JP3606864B2 - Ion generator and air conditioner - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an ion generator that generates ions in the air and an air conditioner including the ion generator. Examples of air conditioning devices here include air conditioners, dehumidifiers, humidifiers, air purifiers, fan heaters, etc., mainly in the interior of a house, a room in a building, a hospital room, a car interior, Used on airplanes, ships, etc.

  In general, in a sealed room with little ventilation, such as an office or a conference room, if there are many people in the room, air pollutants exhausted by breathing, cigarette smoke, dust and other air pollutants increase. The negative ions, which have the effect of relaxing, decrease from the air. In particular, a large amount of negative ions may be lost due to cigarette smoke and may be reduced to about 1/2 to 1/5 of the normal amount. In order to replenish negative ions in the air, various ion generators have been proposed and installed in air purifiers and the like. On the other hand, in recent years, the need for sterilization and sterilization has increased, but there has been a problem that airborne bacteria cannot be positively removed by an ion generator that generates only negative ions.

Therefore, as a result of intensive studies on means for removing airborne bacteria in the air, the present inventors have devised that positive ions and negative ions should be generated. An air cleaner equipped with an ion generator that generates Both positive ions and negative ions are generated by generating H ⁺ (H ₂ O) _n (n is a natural number) as positive ions and O ₂ ⁻ (H ₂ O) _m (m is a natural number) as negative ions. Are attached to the surface of floating bacteria, these ions chemically react to generate hydrogen peroxide (H ₂ O ₂ ) and / or hydroxyl radical OH, which are active species, and remove floating bacteria in the air. .

  However, positive ions are said to give stress to humans. For this reason, if positive ions and negative ions are generated, the effect of relaxing negative ions on humans decreases. Therefore, it is necessary to switch the operation mode according to the purpose of use. That is, when the user wants to obtain a relaxation effect, the operation mode generates a large amount of negative ions, and when the user desires a sterilization / sterilization effect, the operation mode generates a substantially equal amount of positive ions and negative ions. There is a demand for an ion generator that can control the type and amount of generated ions by automatically switching the operation mode in accordance with the surrounding environment.

  In order to generate only negative ions, it is necessary to output with a direct current, and in the case of a high-voltage alternating current, it is sufficient to use a half wave on one side. However, this method increases the size of the parts, increases the cost, and makes it difficult to switch modes. There was a problem such as.

  In view of the above problems, the present invention can stably generate negative ions and positive ions by adding a simple circuit configuration, and can control the generation ratio of negative ions and positive ions over a wide range. It is an object of the present invention to provide a generator and an air conditioner including the ion generator.

An ion generation apparatus according to the present invention includes an ion generation element having a pair of electrodes, and a voltage application unit that applies a voltage necessary for generating ions from the ion generation element between the electrodes. Rectification means having an anode and a cathode, opening / closing means connected in series to the rectification means, and a capacitance part connected in parallel to the rectification means, the anode side being capable of discharging among the pair of electrodes It is connected to an electrode , and the cathode side is connected to a ground line provided in the voltage applying means via the opening / closing means .
The ion generator according to the present invention is characterized in that the generation ratio of negative ions and positive ions generated can be controlled by the opening / closing means and the capacitance unit.

  The ion generator according to the present invention is characterized in that the rectifying means is a diode.

The ion generating apparatus according to the present invention, the electrostatic capacitance unit may it have a controllable configuration of the capacitance magnitude.

The ion generating apparatus according to the present invention, the electrostatic capacitance unit may it have a selectable constituting the capacitance elements having different capacitances.

The ion generation device includes an air condition sensor, and is configured to be able to control the capacitance of the capacitance unit according to an air condition detection result.

  An air conditioner according to the present invention is an air conditioner provided with an ion generator, and is characterized by including the ion generator according to the present invention.

  In the present invention, the rectifying means and the electrostatic capacity portion connected in parallel to the rectifying means are provided, and the cathode side of the rectifying means is connected to the ground line provided in the voltage applying means. It is possible to provide an ion generator capable of controlling and controlling the generation ratio of positive ions and negative ions.

  In the present invention, since the rectifying means is constituted by a diode, it is possible to provide an ion generator capable of controlling the type of generated ions and the generation ratio of positive ions and negative ions with a simple circuit configuration and small parts. Become.

In the present invention, since the size of the electrostatic capacity of the electrostatic capacity unit is controllable, it is possible to provide an ion generator that can easily control the generation ratio of positive ions and negative ions. .

  In the present invention, since the electrostatic capacity portion is configured to be able to select electrostatic capacity elements having different electrostatic capacities, the generation ratio of positive ions and negative ions can be easily changed by switching the connection of the electrostatic capacity elements. It is possible to provide an ion generator capable of controlling the above.

In the present invention, since the capacitance of the capacitance unit can be controlled according to the air condition detection result by the air condition sensor, it is necessary according to the air condition (for example, the degree of contamination). It is possible to provide an ion generator capable of generating types of ions and setting the generation ratio of positive ions and negative ions as required.

  In the present invention, since the air conditioner is provided with an ion generator capable of setting the generation ratio of positive ions and negative ions, the air conditioner can simultaneously achieve a disinfection / sterilization effect against airborne bacteria in the air and a relaxation effect. A device can be provided.

  As described above in detail, in the present invention, the configuration of adding a simple circuit in which the rectifying means and the capacitance unit are connected in parallel allows the control of the type of generated ions and the positive ions and negative ions. It is possible to provide an ion generator capable of controlling the generation ratio. At this time, if more negative ions are generated than positive ions, a disinfection / sterilization effect against airborne bacteria in the air and a relaxation effect can be realized simultaneously.

  In the present invention, since the rectifying means is constituted by a diode, an ion generator capable of controlling the kind of generated ions and controlling the generation ratio of positive ions and negative ions with a simple circuit configuration and small parts is provided. Is possible.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an ion generator capable of controlling the generation ratio of negative ions and positive ions by controlling the size of the electrostatic capacity.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an ion generator that can easily control stepwise the generation ratio of positive ions and negative ions by switching the connection of capacitance elements having different capacitances.

In the present invention, since the capacitance of the electrostatic capacitance unit is controlled according to the air condition detection result by the air condition sensor (for example, the pollution degree sensor), the air condition (for example, It is possible to provide an ion generator capable of controlling the generation of necessary types of ions according to the degree of contamination) and the generation ratio of positive ions and negative ions as required.

  In the present invention, since it is an air conditioner equipped with an ion generator that can set and change the generation ratio of positive ions and negative ions, it achieves a disinfection / sterilization effect against airborne bacteria in the air and a relaxing effect It is possible to provide an air conditioner that can be used.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings illustrating embodiments thereof. FIG. 1 is a main circuit diagram of an ion generator according to the present invention. In the figure, reference numeral 30 denotes an AC commercial power supply, which is connected to a point A which is one input end of a high voltage applying means 40 as a voltage applying means via an SSR (solid state relay). The point B, which is the other input terminal of the high voltage applying means 40, is directly connected to the AC commercial power supply 30 with respect to the point A to which the SSR is connected. Here, the point B is a ground point, that is, a ground line. The SSR is controlled to be opened and closed by a control signal SS from the control unit 33C of the microcomputer 33. Note that the control signal SS may be directly input by separately providing direct input means such as an input button regardless of microcomputer control. The SSR is connected to the anode side of the diode D3 via the resistor R1. The cathode side of the diode D3 is connected to the positive side of the capacitor C2. Further, the negative electrode side of the capacitor C2 is connected to the AC commercial power supply 30 via the diode D1. If the SSR is on, power is supplied from the AC commercial power supply 30 to the high voltage applying means 40, and a high voltage (which may be a voltage necessary for ion generation) is applied to the ion generating element 10 to generate ions. . If the SSR is off, no power is supplied from the AC commercial power supply 30 to the high voltage applying means 40 and no high voltage is applied to the ion generating element 10, so that no ions are generated.

  One end of the primary winding 31P of the switching transformer 31 is connected to the positive electrode side of the capacitor C2. The other end of the primary winding 31P of the switching transformer 31 is connected to the SCR. The capacitor C1 and the resistors R3, R4, and R5 constitute an SCR gate control circuit. The resistor R2 divides the AC commercial power supply 30 with the resistor R1, and applies an appropriate voltage to the capacitor C2. The diodes D2 and D4 are for backflow prevention. The switching transformer 31 includes a secondary winding 31S on the secondary side, and the ion generating element 10 is connected to the secondary winding 31S. The ion generating element 10 has a dielectric 11 and a pair of electrodes (an internal electrode 12 and a surface electrode 13) facing each other with the dielectric 11 interposed therebetween.

  A series circuit composed of a rectifying means and an opening / closing means is connected between one of the pair of electrodes of the ion generating element 10 (here, the surface electrode 13) and the ground line (that is, the point B). The rectifying means includes an anode and a cathode, and here is constituted by a diode D5, and the anode is connected to the surface electrode 13 side and the cathode is connected to the ground line side. The opening / closing means is constituted by a relay 32. A capacitance unit is connected in parallel to the rectifying means, that is, the diode D5. The capacitance unit is configured by a capacitor C3. Although the diode (D5) is used as the rectifying means, it goes without saying that other rectifying means may be used.

  The relay 32 is subjected to open / close control (on / off control) by a relay control signal 32S from the control unit 33C of the microcomputer 33. The relay control signal 32S is output after appropriately determining various input information IN to the input unit 34 of the microcomputer 33. The various input information IN to the input unit 34 is, for example, operation mode designation information from an operation unit that allows the user to select an operation mode, such as a measurement result of the pollution level of the surrounding environment by an environmental sensor (for example, a pollution level sensor), etc. It is. The control unit 33C includes a control circuit that outputs a control signal and the like. Note that a calculation unit and the like in the microcomputer 33 are omitted.

  In such a configuration, when the SSR is turned on, an alternating current is applied between the points A and B, but the capacitor C2 is charged in a cycle in which the potential at the point A is higher than the potential at the point B (SCR is turned off). Maintenance). Next, when the alternating current is inverted (period at which the potential at point B is higher than the potential at point A), a voltage higher than the threshold voltage is applied between the gate and cathode of the SCR by the operation of the gate control circuit, and the SCR is turned on. When the SCR is turned on, the capacitor C2 is discharged, and a current flows through the path of the capacitor C2, the switching transformer 31 (primary winding 31P), the SCR, and the diode D1, thereby inducing the secondary winding 31S of the switching transformer 31 as well. Voltage is generated.

  Since the ion generating element 10 is pseudo-capacitance load and resistance load, the secondary side circuit of the switching transformer 31 is equivalently an LCR oscillation circuit and corresponds to the energy charged in the primary side capacitor C2. The vibration stops after the energy is released and consumed on the secondary side.

  FIG. 2 is a potential waveform diagram of the ion generating element used in the present invention. The vertical axis represents voltage V, and the horizontal axis represents time T. The voltage is about 5 to 7 kV from the peak (positive) to the peak (negative), and the vibration period of the vibration waveform is about 0.1 to 0.2 ms. This vibration waveform is generated at a period corresponding to the frequency of the AC commercial power supply 30. 1A shows a potential waveform when the relay 32 in the circuit of FIG. 1 is in an OFF state (that is, a state in which the diode D5 is not connected). FIG. 4B shows a potential waveform when the capacitor C3 is removed and the relay 32 is turned on (that is, the diode D5 is connected) in the circuit of FIG. The diode D5 has a waveform in which the potential of the surface electrode 13 is shifted in the minus direction when viewed from the potential at the point B in order to cut the current in one direction. Accordingly, an ion generation state in which the ratio of positive ions is small and negative ions are large is obtained. FIG. 6 (c) shows that the relay 32 in the circuit of FIG. ) Shows the potential waveform. The potential of the surface electrode 13 is shifted in the positive direction as compared with the case of FIG. 5B, and a small amount of positive ions is generated. By adjusting the capacitance of the capacitor C3, the generation ratio of positive ions and negative ions can be controlled.

  FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of an ion generation state of the ion generator according to the present invention. In FIG. 1, when the relay 32 is in the on state (that is, when the diode D5 is connected and the capacitor C3 is added in parallel to the diode D5), the change in the ion generation state accompanying the change in the capacitance of the capacitor C3. Is shown. It can be seen that the negative ions gradually decrease and the positive ions gradually increase as the capacitance of the capacitor C3 increases. Incidentally, when the capacitance is 100 pF, the positive ions are 70,000 / cc, the negative ions are 580,000 / cc, and when the capacitance is 200 pF, the positive ions are 140,000 / cc, and the negative ions are 380,000 / cc. When cc and the capacitance were 1000 pF, positive ions were measured to be 320,000 / cc and negative ions were measured to be 220,000 / cc. When the capacitance was zero, the positive ions were 0,000 / cc and the negative ions were 1 million / cc.

  In order to make the capacitance of the capacitor C3 variable, for example, it can be realized by using a variable capacitor. In addition, a plurality of capacitors having different capacitances can be connected in parallel to select each capacitor. It can also be realized by selecting a necessary capacitor by a changeover switch. Only one capacitor may be selected, or a plurality of capacitors may be selected. By adopting a selectable configuration, the capacitance can be easily controlled stepwise, and the generated ions can be controlled more easily. As the selection means at this time, a mechanical switch may be used, or an electronic switching means (for example, a solid switch such as a solid state relay) may be used.

  The ion generator may further comprise an air condition sensor. The air condition sensor is, for example, a pollution degree sensor, specifically a dust sensor, an odor sensor, or the like. Based on the detection results of these sensors, a microcomputer or the like automatically generates necessary ion species according to a program that incorporates necessary judgments in advance, and generates positive ions and negative ions. The generation rate can be controlled automatically. Further, the ion generator may be manually controlled so that the output of the sensor can be recognized by a person.

  FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of the ion generating element used in the present invention. FIG. 4A is an external perspective view of the ion generating element, and FIG. 4B is a cross-sectional view of the ion generating element. In the figure, an ion generating element 10 includes a surface electrode 13 provided on the surface of a flat plate-like dielectric 11, a surface electrode contact 15 provided on the surface of the dielectric 11 to supply power to the surface electrode 13, An internal electrode 12 embedded in the dielectric 11 and provided parallel to the surface electrode 13, and an internal electrode contact 14 provided on the surface of the dielectric 11 for supplying power to the internal electrode 12 are provided. Yes. The dielectric 11 includes an upper dielectric 11a, a lower dielectric 11b, and a surface protective dielectric 11c.

  As the material of the dielectric 11, a material excellent in oxidation resistance is suitable as an organic material, and for example, a resin such as polyimide or glass epoxy can be used, and as an inorganic material, high-purity alumina, crystallized glass, Ceramics such as forsterite and steatite can be used, but inorganic materials are preferable from the viewpoint of corrosion resistance, and ceramics are used from the viewpoint of formability and ease of electrode configuration described later. It is preferable to mold them. Further, since it is desirable that the insulation resistance between the surface electrode 13 and the internal electrode 12 is uniform, it is preferable that the density variation in the material is small and the insulation rate of the dielectric 11 is uniform. The shape of the dielectric 11 may be another shape such as a circular plate, an elliptical plate, or a polygonal plate, and may be a columnar shape. However, in view of productivity, a plate shape as shown in the figure. (This plate shape includes both a disk shape and a rectangular parallelepiped shape).

  The surface electrode 13 can be used without particular limitation as long as it has conductivity. However, the condition is that the surface electrode 13 does not cause deformation such as melting by discharge. The surface electrode 13 is formed integrally with the dielectric 11 on the surface of the dielectric 11, and the depth from the surface (when the surface electrode 13 is provided on the internal electrode 12 side from the surface of the dielectric) or thickness (dielectric) It is desirable that the surface electrode 13 is provided so as to protrude from the surface. The shape of the surface electrode 13 may be any shape such as a planar shape, a lattice shape, or a linear shape. However, if the shape is such that electric field concentration is likely to occur, the surface electrode 13 is applied between the surface electrode 13 and the internal electrode 12. Since it can be discharged even when the voltage to be applied is low, it is desirable to have a shape in which electric field concentration is likely to occur, such as a lattice shape or a linear shape.

  As with the surface electrode 13, the internal electrode 12 can be used without particular limitation as long as it has conductivity. Further, since it is desirable that the insulation resistance between the surface electrode 13 and the internal electrode 12 is uniform, the internal electrode 12 is preferably parallel to the surface electrode 13. Therefore, it is preferable to dispose the dielectric 11 in parallel with the surface electrode 13 so that the distance between the surface electrode 13 and the internal electrode 12 is constant. Thereby, the discharge state between the surface electrode 13 and the internal electrode 12 is stabilized, and positive ions and negative ions can be suitably generated.

  Next, the internal electrode contact 14 is a contact that is electrically connected to the internal electrode 12, and the surface electrode contact 15 is electrically connected to the surface electrode 13, and a high voltage is applied to the contact via a lead wire such as a copper wire or an aluminum wire. Connect means (40 in FIG. 1). The surface electrode contact 15 may be provided on any surface as long as it is a surface of the dielectric 11 for ease of connection with the lead wire. However, since the surface electrode contact 15 has the same potential as the surface electrode 13, It is desirable that the distance from the surface electrode contact 15 is farther than the distance between the electrodes. The internal electrode contact 14 may be provided on any surface as long as it is a dielectric surface for ease of connection with the lead wire. However, since the internal electrode contact 14 has the same potential as the internal electrode 12, It is desirable that the distance from the electrode contact 14 is longer than the distance between the electrodes. With this configuration, a stable discharge state can be obtained.

  In addition, the distance between the surface electrode contact 15 and the internal electrode contact 14 is also formed longer than the distance between the electrodes. Further, if both the surface electrode contact 15 and the internal electrode contact 14 are provided on the surface (lower surface) opposite to the surface (upper surface) provided with the surface electrode 13, the surface electrode 13 on which the positive ions and negative ions are generated is provided. Since wiring such as a lead wire is not arranged, it is preferable that the air flow is not disturbed by the lead wire when air is blown to the surface provided with the surface electrode 13. Such an effect can be similarly obtained by providing the surface electrode contact 15 and the internal electrode contact 14 at a position other than the upper surface.

  An air purifier as an example of an air conditioner according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the air cleaner according to the present invention, and FIG. 5 is an exploded view of the air cleaner according to the present invention. The air cleaner 80 has a main body front portion 81 and a main body rear portion 82 as main components. An air outlet 83 is provided at the upper rear of the air cleaner 80 to supply clean air containing ions into the room. A part of the fan storage space 84 forms a convex portion in the main body rear portion 82. An air intake 85 is formed at the center of the air cleaner 80. The air intake port 85 takes in air from the front surface of the air cleaner 80 through a front filter (not shown), passes the fan casing 86, and passes clean air to the outside from the slit hole 87 communicating with the air outlet 83. Supply. Inside the fan casing 86, the ion generator 1 is disposed. As a result, the air purifier 80 can be provided with an ion supply function, and the type of ion supply and the ratio of positive ions to negative ions can be controlled as necessary.

It is a main circuit diagram of the ion generator concerning the present invention. It is an electric potential waveform diagram in the ion generating element used for the present invention. It is explanatory drawing of the ion generating element used for this invention. It is a perspective view of the air cleaner concerning the present invention. It is an exploded view of the air cleaner which concerns on this invention. It is explanatory drawing of the ion generation condition of the ion generator which concerns on this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Ion generator 10 Ion generator 12 Internal electrode 13 Surface electrode 32 Relay 40 High voltage application means 80 Air cleaner C3 Capacitor D5 Diode

Claims (7)

In an ion generating apparatus comprising an ion generating element having a pair of electrodes and a voltage applying means for applying a voltage necessary for generating ions from the ion generating element between the electrodes, a rectifying means having an anode and a cathode; Opening / closing means connected in series to the rectifying means, and a capacitance unit connected in parallel to the rectifying means, the anode side being connected to a dischargeable electrode of the pair of electrodes, and the cathode side being An ion generator, wherein the ion generator is connected to a ground line provided in the voltage applying means via the opening / closing means .   2. The ion generator according to claim 1, wherein the ion generating device is configured to control a generation ratio of negative ions and positive ions generated by the opening / closing means and the electrostatic capacity unit. The rectifying means, the ion generating apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that a diode. The capacitance part, the ion generating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that you have a controllable configuration of the capacitance magnitude. The capacitance part, the ion generating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the capacitive elements are set to a selectable configuration having different capacitances. 6. The ion generator according to claim 1, further comprising an air condition sensor configured to control a capacitance of the capacitance unit according to an air condition detection result . The ion generator as described in any one . An air conditioner provided with an ion generator, comprising the ion generator according to any one of claims 1 to 6 .

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