JPH0377555A - Bathtub water circulation device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of Industrial Application The present invention circulates household bath water and makes it collide with a bathing human body as a jet stream containing air bubbles from a jet nozzle to obtain a pine surge effect, etc. The present invention relates to a bathtub water circulation device.

BACKGROUND ART A conventional bathtub water circulation device is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 57-17.
The configurations described in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 3060, Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 60-7057, and Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 58-103456 were adopted. That is, FIGS. 4 and 5 (a
) and (b), and FIGS. 6(a) and (b).

In FIG. 4, 21 is a bathtub, 22 is a jet nozzle,
23 and 24 are water circuits for circulating water, 25 is a circulation pump,
Reference numeral 26 indicates an on-off valve for flow rate adjustment provided in the middle of the bypass path 27 of the circulation pump 25. The water in the bathtub 21 is operated by the circulation pump 25, and when the on-off valve 26 is fully closed, the circulating water is circulated at the maximum flow rate, and when the on-off valve 26 is fully opened, the circulating water at the minimum flow rate is circulated, and the ejector As a result of this effect, the suctioned air is mixed in, and the impact strength of the jet stream accompanied by air bubbles from the jet nozzle 22 on the human body can be varied in intensity. This level of strength is explained as follows with reference to FIG. In other words, since the setting of the air intake amount is constant, if we assume that the air intake amount is set to the maximum so that the jet strength is the maximum at the maximum flow rate, in this device, if the circulation flow rate is controlled, the figure The jet intensity on the curve indicated by k in the figure is obtained by changing the circulating flow rate. In the figure, the horizontal axis represents the circulation flow rate, and the vertical axis represents the jet strength, which represents the strength of the jet jet flow with bubbles colliding with the human body during bathing.The jet strength is the flow rate from the jet nozzle 22. The higher the flow rate of the circulating water that is injected, and the higher the flow rate, the faster the flow passes through the nozzle, the greater the negative pressure generated within the nozzle, and the greater the ejector effect, resulting in a larger amount of air. is mixed into the water stream and becomes larger. Conversely, when the flow rate decreases, the ejector effect also decreases, and the amount of air bubbles mixed in decreases, which is combined with the decrease in water flow to considerably reduce the jet flow intensity.

In the case of this conventional device, the on-off valve 26 is fully opened, and in order to bypass a large amount of the discharge flow rate of the circulation pump 25 to the bypass waterway 27, the water circuit 3 is connected to the jet nozzle 22.
The amount of water circulating to the flow rate becomes the minimum and decreases to the flow rate shown by Qmin in Figure 3. If the jet strength at the maximum flow rate is "10", the jet strength at Qsin decreases to about "4". The difference between these two flow rates is approximately "6", and when these two flow rates are changed in a short period of time and this change is repeated, the human body receives a pine surge effect due to the jet intensity difference of "6". Next, to explain the conventional example shown in FIG. 5, in FIGS. 5(a) and 5(b), 31 is a bathtub, 32 and 33 are jet nozzles, 34 is a circulation pump, 35 is a switching device, and 36 and 37 are air Suction pipes 38 to 40 are water circuits, 41 and 42 are electromagnetic valves, the opening and closing of which are controlled by a switch 43. In this device, the 1ftM! By controlling valves 41 and 42 in a timely manner, jet nozzle 32
, or 33 jet flows.

Also, in the conventional example shown in FIG. 6, according to FIGS. 6(a) and (b), 5I is a bathtub, 52 to 55 are jet nozzles, 56, 57, 58a to 58c are water circuits, and 59 is a bypass. , V, ~v4 indicates a solenoid valve, V- indicates a manual valve,
The amount of circulating water is adjusted by manually adjusting the manual valve V-, and
Solenoid valve v1 corresponding to each jet nozzle 52 to 55
~v4 is separately controlled by a timer, and the injection of each jet nozzle is switched after the set time of the timer has elapsed.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention However, in the conventional example shown in FIG. By simply lowering the jet strength of the injection to about 40%, the difference from the maximum strength is only "6" jet strength.

In order to obtain the pine surge effect, the larger the difference, the greater the effect, and the current situation is unsatisfactory.

In addition, in Figures 5 and 6, water flow is controlled by a magnetic valve at 1, which seems better than the previous example in Figure 4 as it is possible to set the minimum flow rate to "0". In these examples, unlike the previous example, the device does not perform WIN of the jet flow in a short cycle, so the above-mentioned pine surge effect cannot be obtained.In this way, in the conventional example, the difference in the strength of the jet is not sufficient, and However, the investment cost for this becomes large due to the adoption of electric valves, etc., which poses a problem that could become an impediment to its widespread use for household use.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned conventional problems, and instead of restricting the circulation flow rate or stopping the circulation flow as in the conventional example, the circulation flow rate is kept constant and the air intake of the jet nozzle is controlled without any particular control. By controlling the amount, the jet intensity is significantly reduced, the difference in jet intensity from the maximum jet intensity is large, and this change in intensity is repeated in a short period of time. air supply pipes are provided individually, and the air supply to the two jet nozzles is controlled separately, so that the magnitude of the jet flow intensity appears temporally shifted between the two jet nozzles. , aiming to improve the pine surge effect.

Means for Solving IJH In order to achieve the above object, the present invention includes a bathtub, a plurality of jet nozzles provided close to each other on the side wall of the bathtub, and for spouting bath water; Connecting a circulation port for sucking water and the jet nozzle to the circulation port,
A water circuit that guides the circulation of bath water; a circulation pump installed in the water circuit that circulates the bath water; and a circulation pump that is connected to each of the jet nozzles so that the water is sucked by the ejector effect and mixed into the bath water that passes through the jet nozzles. An air intake pipe that guides air, an air volume control valve provided on each air intake pipe to adjust the amount of incoming air, and the amount of air when circulating bath water! Equipped with a controller that controls the L1 section valve so that the jet flow from the jet nozzle repeatedly changes in strength as the air intake amount changes, and so that the changes in each of the air amount adjustment valves are staggered in time. It is.

Effect: With the above-mentioned means, the amount of air! ill! For example, if the fl valve is repeatedly fully closed and fully opened, even if negative pressure is generated in the jet nozzle for air suction due to the water flow, when it is fully closed, air cannot be taken in, and only a simple water jet is ejected. At this time, the strength of the impact of the jet felt on the human body is significantly different from when breathing air, and a wide range of stimulation can be applied to the skin. In addition, jet streams with different jet intensities between a plurality of adjacent jet nozzles can be obtained by controlling the opening and closing of each air volume me valve in a temporally staggered manner. The effect is to apply a collision stimulus that constantly changes in strength alternately to the left and right or up and down.

Example Examples thereof will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIGS. 1 and 2 show the embodiment, l is a bathtub, 2
are fixed to the upper portions of the left and right side walls 1a of the bathtub 1 with jet nozzles that eject bathwater and bathwater containing bubbles.

3 is a circulation port provided at the lower part of the side wall 1a of the bathtub 1, 4 is a circulation pump, 5, 6 and 6a to 6d are connected between the jet nozzle 2 and the circulation port 3, and the circulation pump 4 is provided in the middle of the water supply. Circuits 78 to 7d are air suction pipes 8a and 8 that guide the air sucked in by the ejector effect of the jet nozzle.
b is a solenoid valve as an air amount adjustment valve, and air suction pipes 7a and 7
c, and between the air suction pipes 7b and 7d.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 2, the jet nozzle 2 has connection ports 2C and 2d with the water circuit, a stopper 2f of the jet nozzle 2 at the end of the water circuit, a connection port 2e with the air suction pipes 7a and 7b, and a connection port 2e with the bathtub 1. A flanch 2 for attaching to the side wall 1a perforation 1b includes a water jet outlet 2g, a gasket 2, a fixing flange 2b, a screw fitting part 2n for fixing, and a negative pressure chamber 2 for sucking air bubbles.
h, $lB from the connection ports 2C and 2d with the water circuit, the stopcock 2f of the connection port 2d, the connection port 20 with the air intake pipe, etc. has been done. The jet nozzle 2 is connected to the side wall 1a of the bathtub 1.
The jet nozzle 2 is fitted with a flange 21 to the perforation 1b provided in the hole 1b, and the fixed flange 2b is fixed by screw fitting with a screw fitting part 2n via a packing 2-. Furthermore, the jet nozzle 2 is connected to its connection port 2c and water circuits 6c and 6d. Further, the circulation port 3 is fixed to the side wall 1a of the bathtub 1, and after connecting to the circulation pump 4 through the water circuit 5, the circulation port 3 is connected to the circulation pump 4 through the water circuit 5.
Connect to 6a and 6b. On the other hand, the connection ports 2e of the left and right jet nozzles 2 are connected to air suction pipes 7a and 7b, and further connected to air suction pipes 7C and 7d via solenoid valves 8a and 8b, and one is connected to the bathtub 1. It is open to the atmosphere above the upper end 1b. Solenoid valve 8a
and 8b and the circulation pump 4 are electrically connected to the controller 9.

With the above configuration, when the circulation pump 4 is driven after filling the bathtub l with water, the bathtub water enters the water circuit from the circulation port 3, is pressurized by the circulation pump 4, and after being divided into the water circuits 6a and 6b, Further, the water passes through the water circuits 6C and 6d and is ejected from the left and right jet nozzles 2.

That is, the bathtub water that has entered the jet nozzle 2 is ejected from the water jet outlet 2g into the negative pressure chamber 2h, generating a negative pressure area around the outer circumference of the jet water, and when the solenoid valves 8a and 8b are opened, the air suction pipe 7c, 7a and air suction pipes 7d and 7b, each of the left and right jet nozzles 2 sucks air, which is mixed into the jet water as air bubbles as shown in FIG. 2, resulting in a bubble jet flow shown at A in FIG. As a result, a jet bubble flow is generated in the bathtub l. When the electromagnetic valves 8a and 8b are closed, the air intake path into the jet nozzle 2 is closed, so that each jet nozzle 2 injects a jet stream of only water. When the solenoid valves 8a and 8b are opened and closed by the controller 9 in a short period of time (1 cycle is about 15 seconds) in this way, the amount of jet bubbles ejected is as if it were an intermittent injection, as shown in FIG. This causes the human body to be in a state of jet flow as shown by the arrows ^ and A in Figure 1A. The period between ^1 and ^8 in Fig. 1a shows a situation in which air intake is stopped and only a weak injection of water is performed.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating the strength of these jet flows,
As already mentioned in the description of the conventional example, the horizontal axis indicates the circulating flow rate flowing to each jet nozzle 2,
The vertical axis indicates the strength of the jet bubble flow, which is the maximum circulation flow rate Qmax, which is determined by the water flow resistance of the jet nozzle 2, water circuits 5.6 and 68-6d, etc., and the capacity of the circulation pump 4.
On the other hand, by adjusting the opening degree of the t-magnetic valve 8a or 8b for air intake, when it is fully open, it shows point 2, and when it is fully closed, it shows point D. As mentioned above, point D is determined by the injection strength of only water flow. The jet strength decreases significantly and becomes about 1/10th of that at full opening. The difference in jet strength of 9 due to the opening and closing of the solenoid valve 8a or 8b gives the human body a clear sense of the strength of the collision, gives the sensation of performing pine surgery, and also makes it clear that it does not touch the skin surface. It has a pine surge effect that provides strong and weak stimulation to the skin, expands capillaries that are causing problems with blood flow such as hyperemia, improves blood circulation, and restores congestion.

Note that by replacing the electromagnetic valve 8a or 8b with an electric valve and providing an intermediate opening degree, it is also possible to set a medium jet flow intensity such as at point M. In this way, by simply closing the solenoid valve 8a or 8b, the jet bubble jet can be adjusted to the jet strength that stopped the water flow.
0'', the operation is such that approximate performance can be obtained.

In addition, the strength of the jet bubble jet depends on the amount of air intake! 11M and adjusting the ejection time of each jet stream by the controller 9, the arrow ^1
The jet flow shown by and ^8 etc. can appear in various patterns 6 For example, 1! The opening degree of the magnetic valve 8 is changed from fully open to intermediate and fully open, and the time to maintain each opening is jl.
s t, and 11 hours, the jet is 1. The ejection pattern is t8 hours at point M and t8 hours at point D, and the opening degree tJ4 of these solenoid valves 8 and the maintenance time are input to the controller 9 for device control, and this cycle is If repeat control is introduced, these jetting patterns can be operated repeatedly. At this time, the human body is initially strong,
Next, a moderately weak stimulus from the bubble jet is felt on the skin surface, then a break in the bubbles is felt for a while (11 hours), and then a strong stimulus (jet intensity at point K) is felt. By repeating this process, a pine surge effect will be obtained.

Furthermore, the two left and right jet nozzles 2 are each equipped with independent air suction pipes 7a and 7b and a solenoid valve 8, and the current from the controller 9 is alternately applied to these two solenoid valves 8 for a short period of time (
(approximately 3 to 5 seconds). At this time, the jet stream injected from the jet nozzle 2 is as shown in the right part of FIG. Intermittent jet flow appears as if there is a break in the middle, with the left and right sides (top and bottom of the diagram) shifting in time. In addition, the injection time of the jet flow indicated by the arrow in the figure, which is felt as a human body jet jet flow, has a strong jet intensity, and is
If you set the time between the arrows in the figure to 3 to 5 seconds, the injection intensity is weak and does not feel like a clear jet to the human body, and the strength of the left and right injections is clearly differentiated as shown in the figure. Rather than physical objects, the human body can also experience the sensation of random stimulation being applied to the left and right sides.

Effects of the Invention As is clear from the above explanation, the present invention can provide stimulation with a large difference in intensity to the skin surface, and can be expected to have a more effective pine surge effect. In addition, since the jet streams of multiple jet nozzles are varied in intensity and time lag, stimulation is alternately applied to the left and right areas of the lower back, etc., with different intensities, which significantly improves the promotion of blood circulation in the human body. This enhances the pine surge effect and provides an excellent psychological sense of comfort. moreover,
If a low-pressure air m1tt valve is used to control the amount of air intake, the investment cost will be low and cost performance will be excellent. Furthermore, jets with different jet patterns can be freely applied to each of a plurality of adjacent jet nozzles.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Figures 1 (a) and (b) are a plan view and a side view showing an embodiment of the bathtub water circulation device of the present invention, Figure 2 is a sectional view of the same jet nozzle, and Figure 3 is a diagram showing air volume and circulation flow rate. Graph of jet flow intensity, Fig. 4 is a configuration diagram showing a conventional example Fig. 5a
Figure 5 shows the same piping circuit diagram, and Figure 6 shows the constituent countries of other conventional examples.
Figure a is a perspective view of another conventional example, and Figure 6 is a piping circuit diagram of the same. l...Bathtub, 2...Jet nozzle,
3... Circulation port, 4... Circulation pump, 5
．． 6 and 68 to 6d are water circuits, 8...1 is a magnetic valve, and 9... is a controller.

Claims (1)

[Claims] a bathtub; a plurality of jet nozzles provided close to each other on a side wall of the bathtub to eject bathtub water; a circulation port provided in the sidewall of the bathtub to suck bathwater; and a connection between the jet nozzles and the circulation port. , a water circuit that guides the circulation of bathtub water;
a circulation pump provided in the water circuit to circulate bath water; an air suction pipe connected to each jet nozzle to guide air sucked by an ejector effect and mixed into the bath water passing through the jet nozzles; Installed in the air intake pipe,
an air volume control valve that adjusts the amount of incoming air; and an air volume control valve that controls the air volume control valves during bathtub water circulation so that the air intake volume changes and the jet particles from the jet nozzle repeatedly change in strength. A bathtub water circulation device equipped with a controller that controls changes in valves to be staggered in time.