JPH04359727A - humidifier - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent any vacant boiling of a humidifying heater by a method wherein a lack-of-water of humidifying water is judged to caused an electrical energization of a humidifying heater to be terminated, the lack-of-water state is displayed and at the same time before elapsing of a specified period of time in a timer, a display of the lack-of-water is not carried out and the lack-of-water is judged after elapsing of a specified period of time. CONSTITUTION:When a signal of an operation switch 4 is inputted to an operation control part 12, a lack-of-water judgment means 8 judges that a supplying of humidifying water is in its normal state if a detected temperature of a temperature sensor 7 is more than a predetermined temperature. Then, the operation control part 12 controls an electrical energization of the humidifying heater 6 through a driving circuit 13. A heating control part 10 controls a room heater 15 and an air blowing motor 16 in response to an operation of a hot air switch 5. In turn, as heating water is in a lack-of-water state, the operation control part 12 stops the electrical energization control in response to a signal from a lack-of-state holding part 11. Then, a timer part 9 for counting the specified period of time after starting a humidification continues to terminate the electrical energization irrespective of a result of judgment of the lack-of-water judgment means 8.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a humidifying device such as a hot air blower, an electric stove, or a humidifier that uses a humidifying heater.

0002

[Prior Art] Conventional humidifying devices generally include an ultrasonic type using an ultrasonic vibrator, a heating type (hot humidification) in which water is evaporated and humidified using a heating device, and a heating device that heats a room. Many are equipped with.

[0003] Generally, these humidifiers use a float switch or a thermostat as a water drain detection method.

0004

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, in the configuration of the conventional humidifying device described above, the water shortage detection method using a float switch requires that the float switch be submerged in the humidifying water tank in order to detect the water level in the humidifying water tank. Therefore, it is necessary to drill a hole in the humidifying water tank for the lead wire to take out the output signal of the float switch. Furthermore, consideration has to be given to preventing water leakage, such as the need for packing to prevent water leakage, which has the disadvantage of complicating the installation structure and increasing costs. In addition, the water shortage detection method using a thermostat is generally of the type that stops the supply of electricity to the humidifying heater when the water runs out when the detected temperature of the thermostat is higher than a predetermined temperature. If you forget to replenish water, even if you stop energizing the humidifying heater when the temperature detected by the thermostat is higher than the specified temperature, the temperature detected by the thermostat will return to normal after some time has passed.
There was a problem in terms of reliability, such as restarting the power supply to the humidifying heater even though water had not been replenished, and this was repeated, resulting in an empty state many times.

The present invention is intended to solve the above-mentioned problem, and aims to avoid a situation where the humidifying heater is left empty when an abnormality in water running out during humidification occurs.

[0006]

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a humidifying heater that heats and evaporates water inside a pipe to humidify it, a humidifying heater drive circuit that drives this humidifying heater, and a humidifying heater drive circuit that drives the humidifying heater. a temperature sensor that detects the temperature of the humidifier, a water-out determination means that determines that the humidifying water is out of water when the detected temperature of the temperature sensor is equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature, a water-out display section that displays this when the water is out of water is detected, and energization of the humidifying heater. and a timer that counts a certain period of time from the start of humidification.When the humidifying heater is detected to be out of water, the humidifying heater is de-energized and a water out indicator is displayed. This state is maintained, and regardless of the temperature detected by the temperature sensor, the water-out indication is not performed until the timer elapses for a certain period of time (hereinafter referred to as time-up), and the water-out determination is started after the timer times out. This is what I did.

[0007]

[Operation] With the above-described configuration, the present invention detects the temperature near the humidifying heater with a temperature sensor, and once it is determined that the humidifying water has run out, the power supply to the humidifying heater is stopped, and this state is maintained while the operation switch is on. By holding the water, even if the detected temperature of the temperature sensor returns to a water-out state without water supply after a period of time, the humidifying heater will be energized again unless the operation switch is operated to release the water-out state. This prevents dry cooking. Furthermore, even if the humidifying water is already out of water when the humidifying operation starts and you operate the operation switch to restart the humidifying operation immediately after supplying the humidifying water, it will be determined that the water has been supplied based on the determination that the water has run out after the timer times out. Therefore, electricity to the humidifying heater can be restarted without operating the operation switch.

[0008]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 2 is an external view of a hot air heater having a humidifying device according to the present invention. As shown in the figure, the hot air heater has a humidifying outlet 1, a cartridge tank 2 for supplying humidifying water, a heating hot air outlet 3, an operation switch 4, and a hot air switch 5. In this embodiment, heating is switched in three stages: strong, weak, and off, depending on the number of energized heaters (not shown). In addition, the humidifying unit installed in the humidifying device uses a heating method, and the water supplied from the cartridge tank 2 is
A mica sheet 6b is placed around the metal tube 6a as shown in FIG.
A humidifying heater 6 formed into a bobbin heater by wrapping a heater wire 6c over the humidifying heater 6 heats and evaporates the humidifier.

FIG. 1 is a control block diagram of a hot air heater equipped with this humidifying device. In the figure, reference numeral 7 denotes a temperature sensor made of a thermistor or the like, which is installed inside the main body of the hot air heater and detects the temperature near the humidifying heater 6. Then, the operation switch 4 instructs the humidifying heater 6 to start and stop energizing, and the hot air switch 5 switches between strong, weak, and off, and the heating capacity of the hot air heater is controlled via the heating control unit 10. Control switching. That is, the output of the heating control section 10 controls the energization of the air blower motor 16 as well as the heating heater 15 . Reference numeral 8 denotes a water-out determination means that determines whether or not humidifying water is being supplied based on the temperature near the humidifying heater 6 detected by the temperature sensor 7, and when it is determined that the water has run out, the water-out state holding unit 11 indicates that the water has run out. remember and retain. The timer unit 9 is a timer that counts a certain period of time from the time when the operation switch 4 starts energizing the humidifying heater 6 . And 12 is a temperature sensor 7 and an operation switch 4,
It is an operation control unit that receives the output signal of the water shortage determination means 8 as input, and the humidification heater drive circuit 13 receives the output of the operation control unit 12.
The humidifying heater 6 is energized through the water depletion determining means 8.
The water out display section 14, which determines that the water is out, notifies the user that the water is out.

Next, the operation of the above configuration will be explained. When the signal from the operation switch 4 is input to the operation control unit 12, the water shortage determination means 8 determines that the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 7 is higher than a predetermined temperature, indicating that humidifying water is being supplied (hereinafter referred to as a normal state). ). The operation control unit 12 controls the humidification heater drive circuit 13 to energize the humidification heater 6 if the water shortage determination means 8 determines that the humidification heater 6 is in a normal state. On the other hand, in the heating control unit 10, the heating heater 15 and the blower motor 16 are controlled according to the heating capacity (strong/weak/off) selected by the user using the hot air switch 5.

[0012] When the humidifying water runs out during humidification, that is, when the water runs out, the temperature near the humidifying heater 6 detected by the temperature sensor 7 exceeds a predetermined temperature as shown in FIG. Then, the water shortage determining means 8 determines that the water is running out, and the water drain state holding unit 11 determines that the water drain state is running out.
is maintained. In the operation control unit 12, since the drain state is held in the drain state holding unit 11, the humidifying heater drive circuit 13 is activated to immediately stop the power supply to the humidifying heater 6.
energization control is stopped. Since the supply of electricity to the humidifying heater 6 is stopped, the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 7 gradually decreases. Even if the detected temperature returns to the normal state, the drain state is held in the drain state holding section 11, so the power supply to the humidifying heater 6 is not restarted, and dry cooking does not occur. In addition, to cancel the water shortage state, please press the operation switch 4 to encourage the user to wake up.
This shall be due to the operation of

Further, assuming the following state change, the operation at that time will be described. (1) If the water is already out of water before the start of humidification and the operation switch 4 is operated immediately after the humidification water is supplied, the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 7 will not drop suddenly, so as shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 2, the humidifier is in a water-drained state at the start of humidification, and then returns to the normal state when the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 7 decreases to a predetermined temperature or lower. At this time, the timer unit 9 that counts a certain period of time from the start of humidification keeps the water out state holding unit 11 until the timer unit 9 times up, regardless of whether the state determined by the water out judgment means 8 is a water out state/normal state. Since the maintained water-draining state is not released, the power supply to the humidifying heater 6 continues to be stopped. When the time is up, the dehydration determination is made again to determine that the humidifier is in a normal state, and the dehydration state held in the dehydration state holding unit 11 is released, so that energization of the humidifying heater 6 is started. In addition, the water out display will not be displayed until the time is up, regardless of whether the water is out of water or in a normal state. Since the water level is determined to be normal when the time is up, the water level is not displayed even after the time is up. That is, the water shortage display is not performed when the state changes as described above. Therefore, the user can start energizing the humidifying heater 6 without operating the operation switch 4, and since no water is displayed, the humidifying heater 6 can be energized without causing discomfort to the user. Can be restarted. (2) In the case where the water is already out of water when humidification starts and the water out state does not change even when the time is up, as shown in FIG.
Since the water-drained state is maintained, the humidifying heater 6 is not energized. Furthermore, since it is determined that the water is out of water when the time is up, it is determined that the water is out of water.
The drained state maintained at 1 is not released. Therefore, even after the time has elapsed, the de-energization of the humidifying heater 6 continues. Regarding the water drain display, as mentioned earlier, the water drain display will not be displayed until the time is up, but the water drain determination at the time is up will determine that the water is running out, so the water drain display will be performed to notify the user that the water is running out. Notice. (3) If it is in a normal state when humidification starts and it is also in a normal state when the time is up, it is a normal state and the humidifying heater 6 is energized. 6 continues to be energized. As for the water drain display, the water drain display is not performed because the condition is normal both before and after the time is up.

[0014]

[Effects of the Invention] According to the present invention, the following effects can be expected. (1) When it is detected that the humidifying water is running out, the humidifying heater is de-energized and a water-out indication is displayed.This state is maintained while the operation switch is on, so the humidifying heater's energization is started/stopped many times. It is possible to reliably avoid dry firing. (2) The structure is simpler than that of a float switch because it is sufficient to simply attach the temperature sensor near the humidifying heater, and there is no need for a structure to prevent leakage of the cartridge tank for supplying humidifying water. (3) A water leakage prevention structure is not required, and the element itself is cheaper than a float switch by using a thermistor or the like as a temperature sensor. (4) Set up a timer that counts a certain amount of time from the start of humidification, and regardless of the temperature detected by the temperature sensor, do not display the water drain indication until the timer elapses for a certain period of time (times up), and start determining the water drain after the time is up. This makes it easy to restart power supply to the humidifying heater.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a control block diagram of a hot air heater having a humidifying device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[Fig. 2] A perspective view of a warm air heater having the same humidifying device.

[Figure 3
】Perspective view of the humidifying heater in the humidifying device

[Figure 4] Diagram showing the relationship between the humidifier's water drain indicator and the humidifier heater's energization state.

[Fig. 5] A diagram showing the relationship between the water-out display and the energization state of the humidifying heater when the humidifier is already out of water when humidification starts and the operation switch is operated immediately after supplying humidifying water.

[
Figure 6 is a diagram showing the relationship between the water drain display and the humidifier heater energization state when the humidifier continues to run out of water from the start of humidification.

[Explanation of symbols]

4 Operation switch 6 Humidification heater 7 Temperature sensor 8 Water shortage determination means 9 Timer section (timer) 13 Humidification heater drive circuit

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A humidifying heater that heats and evaporates water inside a tube to humidify the water, a humidifying heater drive circuit that drives the humidifying heater, a temperature sensor that detects the temperature near the humidifying heater, and a temperature detected by the temperature sensor. a water-out determination means that determines that the humidifying water is out of water when the temperature is higher than a predetermined temperature; a water-out display section that displays this when the water is out of water is detected; an operation switch that instructs to start and stop energization of the humidifying heater; and a timer that counts time, and when the water shortage is detected, the humidifying heater is de-energized and a water shortage display is displayed, and this state is maintained while the operation switch is on, regardless of the temperature detected by the temperature sensor. A humidifying device configured to not display a water shortage display until a timer has elapsed for a predetermined period of time, and to start determining water depletion after the timer has elapsed for a predetermined period of time.