JP7653586B2 - Wind direction change device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a wind direction changing device for use in a dehumidifier used, for example, for drying clothes.

Conventionally, this type of dehumidifier has been equipped with a main body case with an air outlet at the top, a dehumidifying section and an air blowing section provided within the main body case, and an air direction changing device provided at the air outlet. Dehumidifiers with a dehumidifying section provided within the main body case have a high dehumidifying capacity and are therefore actively used for drying clothes.

In other words, the indoor air is dried in the dehumidifier, and this dry air is then blown towards the washed clothes through an automatically moving air direction changer, aiming to improve the efficiency of drying. This is extremely useful, especially when it is raining or when laundry is difficult to dry during the low temperatures of winter (note that a related prior document is Patent Document 1 below).

JP 2006-102578 A

The problem with the above conventional example is that when the airflow direction changing device is in a horizontal position and a force is applied from above, the force is transmitted to the pivot shaft of the airflow direction changing section, which can cause the pivot shaft to break. Therefore, the present invention aims to prevent the pivot shaft from breaking when a force is applied from above to the airflow direction changing device, thereby improving safety.

In order to achieve this object, the present invention comprises a main body case having an intake port and an air outlet opening upward, a blower section provided within the main body case for blowing air drawn in from the intake port to the air outlet, and a wind direction plate provided to cover the upper part of the air outlet at a predetermined interval and to be rotatable in the vertical direction, the wind direction plate having a surface perpendicular to the rotation axis of the wind direction plate, a plate-shaped support plate extending downward from both ends in the direction of the rotation axis of the wind direction plate, and a wind direction plate extending outward from the outer surface of the support plate. and a support shaft extending from the airflow direction vane, the air outlet has a bearing portion that supports the support shaft of the airflow direction vane, and at least one of the support plate and the bearing portion of the airflow direction vane is provided with a damage prevention mechanism that disengages the support shaft from the bearing portion when the airflow direction vane is pushed from above, the damage prevention mechanism having a bending portion that bends in the support plate in the direction of the rotation axis of the airflow direction vane, and a contact portion that is provided in the bearing portion and bends the bending portion inward in the airflow direction vane when the airflow direction vane is pushed from above. When the flexible portion is bent inwardly of the wind direction vane, the support shaft moves inwardly of the wind direction vane and comes off the bearing portion , and the flexible portion is a narrow plate-shaped portion extending laterally when the wind direction vane is in a horizontal state, and the abutment portion is a flat plate-shaped portion extending in the vertical direction and parallel to the rotation axis direction of the wind direction vane, and has a horizontal end portion at the top, and a lower end portion at the horizontal end portion that is a horizontal end portion and a lower end portion at the horizontal end portion that is a and an inclined end portion which is an end portion inclined toward the horizontal end of the support portion, and the support shaft is provided at the tip of the flexible portion, and when the air deflector is pushed from above, the lower end of the flexible portion comes into contact with the horizontal end of the contact portion and the flexible portion bends toward the inward side of the air deflector, and further, while coming into contact with the inclined end of the contact portion, the flexible portion bends further toward the inward side of the air deflector, and the support shaft comes off the bearing portion , thereby achieving the initial objective.

According to the present invention, the present invention comprises a main body case having an intake port and an air outlet opening upward, a blower section provided within the main body case for blowing air drawn in from the intake port to the air outlet, and a wind direction plate provided to cover the upper part of the air outlet at a predetermined interval and to be freely rotatable in the vertical direction, the wind direction plate having a surface perpendicular to the rotation axis of the wind direction plate, a plate-shaped support plate extending downward from both ends in the direction of the rotation axis of the wind direction plate, and a support plate extending outward from the outer surface of the support plate. The air outlet has a bearing portion that supports the support shaft of the air deflector, and at least one of the support plates and bearing portion of the air deflector is provided with a damage prevention mechanism that disengages the support shaft from the bearing portion when the air deflector is pushed from above. When the air deflector is in a horizontal position and an external force is applied from above the air deflector, the damage prevention mechanism is activated, causing the support shaft to disengage from the bearing portion, preventing damage and improving safety.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a dehumidifier equipped with an airflow direction changing device according to a first embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a dehumidifier equipped with the airflow direction changing device. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an airflow direction changing section of the dehumidifier equipped with the airflow direction changing device, with a first side case removed; FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional perspective view of a damage prevention mechanism for the airflow direction changing device; FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a wind direction plate of the wind direction changing device; FIG. FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a wind direction plate of a wind direction changing device according to a second embodiment of the present invention;

The following describes an embodiment of the present invention with reference to the drawings.

(Embodiment 1)
1, 2 and 3, a box-shaped main body case 1 has an air outlet 3 disposed at the top of the main body case 1 and an air inlet 2 disposed on the side. The air outlet 3 has a number of bars 3a arranged in a lattice pattern. The bars 3a protect laundry hung above the air outlet 3 from entering through the air outlet 3.

Inside the main body case 1, a refrigeration cycle is installed in which a compressor 4, a radiator 5, an expander 6, and a heat absorber 7 are connected in a ring shape to circulate the refrigerant, and an air blower 8 is installed to blow indoor air from the intake port 2 to the exhaust port 3. In addition, a dehumidifying rotor 11 is provided with a moisture absorption section 9 that absorbs moisture from the air and a moisture release section 10 that releases moisture into the air, and a heating means 12 is provided to heat the air supplied to the moisture release section 10 and the moisture release section 10.

The dehumidifying rotor 11, heat absorber 7, radiator 5, and blower 8 are arranged in this order within the main body case 1. The upper ends of the heat absorber 7 and radiator 5 are arranged to be at the same height. The dehumidifying rotor 11 is formed in a disk shape and is rotatably erected with its central axis in the horizontal direction, and is rotated by a driving means 13. Furthermore, a heating means 12 is installed on the windward side of the moisture discharging section 10 of the dehumidifying rotor 11. The moisture discharging section 10 and the heat absorber 7 are arranged to face each other.

In addition, within the main body case 1, a funnel-shaped water collection means 14 is provided below the heat absorber 7, and a water collection tank 15 is further disposed below the water collection means 14 so as to be detachable from the main body case 1. In other words, condensation occurs in the heat absorber 7, and the condensed water is collected by the funnel-shaped water collection means 14 and flows into the water collection tank 15.

The main body case 1 includes a first air passage 1A, a second air passage 1B, and a third air passage 1C.

The first air passage 1A is an air passage through which the air blower 8 draws in air from the intake port 2, supplies it to the moisture absorber 9, and exhausts it to the outlet 3 via the air blower 8. In the first air passage 1A, the indoor air drawn in from the intake port 2 is supplied to the moisture absorber 9 of the dehumidifier rotor 11. At this time, moisture in the air is adsorbed by the moisture absorber 9, and the air becomes dry. Furthermore, since heat of adsorption is generated when the moisture is adsorbed, the indoor air is drawn into the air blower 8 mainly through the upper part of the radiator 5 and the heat absorber 7 in a state where the humidity is reduced and the temperature is increased, and the air is then blown into the room from the outlet 3.

The second air passage 1B is an air passage in which air is sucked in from the intake port 2 by the air blowing section 8, supplied to the heating means 12, the moisture releasing section 10, the heat absorber 7, and the radiator 5 in that order, and discharged from the outlet via the air blowing section 8. In the second air passage 1B, the indoor air warmed by the heating means 12 is supplied to the moisture releasing section 10 of the dehumidifying rotor 11. In the moisture releasing section 10, the moisture adsorbed by the moisture absorbing section 9 moves to the moisture releasing section 10 by the rotational drive of the dehumidifying rotor 11, and is released into the air supplied by the heating of the heating means 12. This highly humid air is supplied to the heat absorber 7, where it is cooled to condense, and the moisture is removed as water droplets. The cooled air is then supplied to the radiator 5, which cools it. Then, the air that has absorbed heat from the radiator 5 and has increased in temperature is sucked into the air blowing section 8. In terms of the refrigeration cycle, effectively cooling the radiator 5 increases the cooling efficiency when cooling the heat absorber 7.

The third air passage 1C is an air passage in which air is sucked in from the intake port 2 by the blower 8, supplied to the radiator 5, and discharged from the outlet 3 via the blower 8. In the third air passage 1C, the indoor air sucked in from the intake port 2 is supplied to the radiator 5 mainly via the heating means 12, the dehumidifier rotor 11, and below the heat absorber 7, and after cooling the radiator 5, is sucked into the blower 8.

There is an optimal air volume for cooling condensation in the heat absorber 7, depending on its surface area and the amount of heat generated by the refrigeration cycle. On the other hand, in terms of the refrigeration cycle, effectively cooling the radiator 5 increases the cooling efficiency when cooling the heat absorber 7. By arranging the third air passage 1C as described above, a larger amount of air can be supplied to the radiator 5, improving the cooling efficiency of the refrigeration cycle and the dehumidification efficiency of the dehumidifier. The refrigeration cycle, the dehumidification rotor 11, the heating means 12, and the driving means 13 constitute the dehumidification section.

As shown in FIG. 3, the airflow direction changing device is a mechanism that changes the airflow direction of the air outlet 3. Two airflow direction vanes 16 are provided above the air outlet 3, which opens upward, so that they can rotate freely. The two airflow direction vanes 16 are arranged perpendicular to the direction of rotation. Specifically, they are lined up in the long side direction of the air outlet 3, and the rotation shaft 17 of the airflow direction vanes 16 extends in the long side direction of the air outlet 3. A gear 18 is fixed to one side of the support shaft 23. The airflow vanes 16 move so as to rotate in the vertical direction by the rotation part 19.

The feature of this embodiment is a damage prevention mechanism 22 provided on one of the support plates 20 and the bearing portion 21 of the vane 16 shown in Figures 3 and 4. At least one of the support plates 20 and the bearing portion 21 of the vane 16 is provided with a damage prevention mechanism 22 that disengages the support shaft 23 from the bearing portion 21 when the vane 16 is pressed from above. With this configuration, when the vane 16 is pressed from above, the damage prevention mechanism 22 works to disengage the support shaft 23 of the vane 16 from the bearing portion 21, and the vane 16 disengages from the bearing portion 21, suppressing damage to the support shaft 23 and improving safety.

The damage prevention mechanism 22 also has a flexible portion 24 that bends in the direction of the rotation axis of the vane 16 on the support plate 20, and a contact portion 25 that is provided on the bearing portion 21 and bends the flexible portion 24 inwardly of the vane 16 when the vane 16 is pressed from above. With this configuration, when the flexible portion 24 bends inwardly of the vane 16, the support shaft 23 moves inwardly of the vane 16 and comes off the bearing portion 21, preventing damage to the support shaft 23 and improving safety.

Specifically, the flexure 24 is a long, narrow plate extending laterally when the vane 16 is horizontal. The flexure 24 is part of the support plate 20, and the flexure 24 and the support plate 20 are arranged on the same plane. The abutment portion 25 is a flat plate extending vertically and parallel to the rotation axis of the vane 16, and has a horizontal end 26 at the top, which is a horizontal end, and an inclined end 27 at the horizontal end 26, which is an end that is inclined downward from the end of the horizontal end 26 on the inner side of the support plate 20 toward the center of the vane 16. The support shaft 23 is provided at the tip of the flexure 24.

With this configuration, when the vane 16 is pushed from above, the lower end of the bending portion 24 comes into contact with the horizontal end 26 of the contact portion 25, causing the bending portion 24 to bend inwardly in the vane 16, and then comes into contact with the inclined end 27 of the contact portion 25, causing the support shaft 23 to come off from the bearing portion 21, making it easier for the support shaft 23 to come off.

Here, the damage prevention mechanism 22 will be described in detail. As shown in Figures 3 and 5, the wind direction plate 16 is in the shape of a substantially flat plate, and includes two support plates 20 extending horizontally from the left and right ends of the wind direction plate 16, and a support shaft 23 extending outward from the outer surface of a bending portion 24 that is a part of the support plate 20. The support plate 20 has a bending portion 24 that bends in the direction of the rotation axis of the wind direction plate 16. When the wind direction plate 16 is in a horizontal state, the bending portion 24 has a narrow plate shape that extends laterally, and the support shaft 23 is provided at the tip. The support shaft 23 extends outward from the outer surface of the support plate 20, and as shown in Figures 4 and 6, it fits into a bearing portion 21 provided at the air outlet. The bearing portion 21 has a bearing hole 28 that supports the support shaft 23, and a contact portion 25 that bends the bending portion 24 inward when the wind direction plate 16 is pressed from above. The bearing hole 28 is provided in the bearing portion 21 on a surface perpendicular to the direction of rotation of the air deflector 16. It fits onto the support shaft 23 and supports the rotation of the air deflector 16.

The contact portion 25 is parallel to the rotation axis of the wind direction vane 16 and has a flat plate shape extending in the vertical direction. The contact portion 25 has a horizontal end 26 at the top. The contact portion 25 has an inclined end 27 at the horizontal end 26 that is inclined downward from the end on the inner side of the support plate 20 toward the center of the wind direction vane 16.

The wind direction vane 16 is supported by a support shaft 23 and rotates up and down by a rotating part 19 fixed to the other side. When the bending part 24 hits the contact part 25, a force is applied to the bending part 24, causing it to bend inwardly in the wind direction vane 16. In response to this bending, the support shaft 23 also moves inwardly in the wind direction vane 16. Furthermore, the bending part 24 bends as it moves from above the horizontal end 26 of the horizontal surface of the contact part 25 to above the inclined end 27. As a result, the support shaft 23 separates from the bearing part 21 and can eventually be removed.

As shown in Figures 4 and 6, the upper end 29 of the bearing part provided above the bearing part 21 may be structured to come into contact with the underside of the wind direction vane 16 when the wind direction vane 16 is pushed from above and the damage prevention mechanism 22 is activated. This allows the bearing part 21 to receive the force from above after the support shaft 23 comes off the bearing part 21, increasing its strength.

The upper end 29 of the bearing portion may also be structured to include a flat portion 30. With this, when the wind deflector 16 is pressed from above and the support shaft 23 comes off the bearing portion 21, the flat portion 30 comes into contact with the underside of the wind deflector 16, so that the load can be received by the surface, thereby increasing the strength.

(Embodiment 2)
7 is a perspective view of a wind direction plate 16 according to a second embodiment of the present invention. The same components as those in the first embodiment are given the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted. The difference from the first embodiment is the arrangement of the support shaft 23.

As shown in FIG. 7, the flexible portion 31 is the lower portion of the support plate 20 of the air deflector 16 when the air deflector 16 is in a horizontal position, and is a portion that protrudes downward, and the support shaft 23 may be provided at the tip of the horizontally elongated plate portion 32 that extends laterally from the flexible portion 31. The flexible portion 31 and the horizontally elongated plate portion 32 are part of the support plate 20.

As a result, when the bending portion 31 hits the contact portion 25, a force is applied to the bending portion 24, which bends inwardly in the wind direction vane 16. In response to this bending, the horizontally elongated plate portion 32 also bends inwardly in the wind direction vane 16, and the support shaft 23 also moves inwardly in the wind direction vane 16. Furthermore, the bending portion 31 bends while moving on the horizontal end portion 26 of the horizontal surface of the contact portion 25. As a result, the support shaft 23 separates from the bearing portion 21 and can eventually be removed. As a result, the contact portion 25 does not hit the horizontally elongated plate portion 32 having the support shaft 23 at its tip, and the support shaft 23 moves inwardly in the wind direction vane 16, thereby increasing the durability of the horizontally elongated plate portion 32 having the support shaft 23.

The airflow direction changing device of the present invention improves the safety and durability of dehumidifiers equipped with an automatically moving airflow direction changing unit, and is therefore useful as a dehumidifier for drying clothes.

LIST OF SYMBOLS 1 Main body case 1A First air passage 1B Second air passage 1C Third air passage 2 Intake port 3 Air outlet 3a Crosspiece 4 Compressor 5 Heat radiator 6 Expansion device 7 Heat absorber 8 Air blowing section 9 Moisture absorption section 10 Moisture discharging section 11 Dehumidification rotor 12 Heating means 13 Driving means 14 Water collection means 15 Water collection tank 16 Air deflector 17 Rotating shaft 18 Gear 19 Rotating section 20 Support plate 21 Bearing section 22 Breakage prevention mechanism 23 Support shaft 24 Flexure section 25 Abutment section 26 Horizontal end section 27 Inclined end section 28 Bearing hole 29 Upper end of bearing section 30 Flat section 31 Flexure section 32 Horizontal elongated plate section

Claims (4)

a main body case having an intake port and an outlet port opening upward;
a blower section provided in the main body case and configured to blow air drawn in through the suction port to the air outlet;
A wind direction plate is provided to cover the upper part of the air outlet at a predetermined interval and to be rotatable in the vertical direction.
The wind direction plate is
A plate-shaped support plate having a surface perpendicular to the rotation axis of the wind direction plate and extending downward from both ends in the rotation axis direction of the wind direction plate;
a support shaft extending outward from an outer surface of the support plate;
The air outlet has a bearing portion that supports the support shaft of the air direction plate,
At least one of the support plate and the bearing portion of the wind direction plate is provided with a damage prevention mechanism that disengages the support shaft from the bearing portion when the wind direction plate is pushed from above;
The damage prevention mechanism includes:
A bending portion that bends in the direction of the rotation axis of the wind direction plate in the support plate;
A contact portion is provided in the bearing portion and causes the bending portion to bend inwardly in the wind direction plate when the wind direction plate is pressed from above.
When the bending portion bends inwardly of the airflow direction plate, the support shaft moves inwardly of the airflow direction plate and comes off the bearing portion,
The bending portion is a portion having a narrow plate shape extending laterally when the wind direction plate is in a horizontal state,
The contact portion has a flat plate shape extending in the vertical direction and parallel to the rotation axis direction of the wind direction plate,
The upper portion has a horizontal end portion which is a horizontal end portion, and an inclined end portion which is an end portion inclined downward from the end portion on the inner surface side of the support plate of the horizontal end portion to the center side of the wind direction plate,
The support shaft is provided at a tip end of the flexible portion,
This wind direction changing device is characterized in that when the wind direction vane is pushed from above, the lower end of the bending portion bends inwardly of the wind direction vane while coming into contact with the horizontal end of the contact portion, and then the bending portion bends further inwardly of the wind direction vane while coming into contact with the inclined end of the contact portion, causing the support shaft to come off the bearing portion. a main body case having an intake port and an outlet port opening upward;
a blower section provided in the main body case and configured to blow air drawn in through the suction port to the air outlet;
A wind direction plate is provided to cover the upper part of the air outlet at a predetermined interval and to be rotatable in the vertical direction.
The wind direction plate is
A plate-shaped support plate having a surface perpendicular to the rotation axis of the wind direction plate and extending downward from both ends in the rotation axis direction of the wind direction plate;
a support shaft extending outward from an outer surface of the support plate;
The air outlet has a bearing portion that supports the support shaft of the air direction plate,
At least one of the support plate and the bearing portion of the wind direction plate is provided with a damage prevention mechanism that disengages the support shaft from the bearing portion when the wind direction plate is pushed from above;
The damage prevention mechanism includes:
A bending portion that bends in the direction of the rotation axis of the wind direction plate in the support plate;
A contact portion is provided in the bearing portion and causes the bending portion to bend inwardly in the wind direction plate when the wind direction plate is pressed from above.
When the bending portion bends inwardly of the airflow direction plate, the support shaft moves inwardly of the airflow direction plate and comes off the bearing portion,
The bending portion is a lower portion of the support plate of the wind direction plate when the wind direction plate is in a horizontal state, and is a portion that protrudes downward,
The contact portion has a flat plate shape extending in the vertical direction and parallel to the rotation axis direction of the wind direction plate,
The upper portion has a horizontal end portion which is a horizontal end portion, and an inclined end portion which is an end portion inclined downward from the end portion on the inner surface side of the support plate of the horizontal end portion to the center side of the wind direction plate,
The support shaft is provided at a tip end of a horizontally elongated plate portion extending laterally from the flexible portion,
This wind direction changing device is characterized in that when the wind direction vane is pushed from above, the lower end of the bending portion bends inwardly of the wind direction vane while coming into contact with the horizontal end of the contact portion, and further, the bending portion bends inwardly of the wind direction vane while coming into contact with the inclined end of the contact portion, causing the support shaft to come off the bearing portion. When the airflow direction plate is pushed from above and the support shaft comes off the bearing portion,
3. The airflow direction changing device according to claim 1 , wherein an upper end of the bearing portion is in contact with a lower surface of the airflow direction plate. The bearing portion has a flat portion at an upper end thereof,
When the airflow direction plate is pushed from above and the support shaft comes off the bearing portion,
The airflow direction changing device according to claim 3 , wherein the flat portion is in contact with a lower surface of the airflow direction plate.

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