JPH0718180B2 - Foam spout - Google Patents

Description

Description: TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a foam spout that is attached to the tip of a spout of a faucet, a shower head, or the like to foam water supply.

[Conventional technology]

BACKGROUND ART A faucet provided with a foam spouting port has been conventionally used to reduce the noise of water supply and the noise of falling to a sink or the like and to prevent splashing of water. The most commonly used one is, for example, one described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 63-31621.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing the outline of the foam spout according to this publication and other general foam spouts. In the figure, a pressure reducing plate 52 having a large number of small holes 52a is housed in a water discharge cap fixed to the tip of a spout 50 of a water faucet. Then, an air hole 53 for taking in outside air into the water supply is opened in the peripheral wall of the water discharge cap 51 downstream of the pressure reducing plate 52, and a plurality of rectifying nets 54 for rectifying the flow are arranged at the outlet. There is.

In such a foam spout, the flow speed is increased when the water supply from the spout 50 passes through the small hole 52a of the pressure reducing plate 52.
Therefore, the inside of the water discharge cap 51 on the downstream side of the pressure reducing plate 52 is depressurized, and the outside air is sucked in through the air port 53, and the air is mixed into the water supply to foam the flow. Further, since the mesh of the rectifying net 54 is fine, the water supply is vigorously agitated even when the water supply hits against the water flow and flows away, further promoting foam formation.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention]

However, the water supplied from the spout 50 is supplied through the small hole 52a of the pressure reducing plate 52.
Therefore, the pressure loss of the flow is considerably large. For this reason, unless the valve opening of the faucet is set to a certain value or more, an appropriate water discharge pressure cannot be obtained, and when the flow rate is reduced, usability becomes poor and foaming cannot be sufficiently performed.

Further, since the pressure reducing plate 52 and the rectifying network 54 are provided in two stages,
It is easy for foreign matter in the water supply to become clogged and scale to adhere. For this reason, if the flow passage area becomes small and the amount of water discharge becomes insufficient, or if the small holes 52a of the pressure reducing plate 52 are closed, proper foaming cannot be performed.

As described above, the conventional foam spout uses the speedup of the water supply using the pressure reducing plate and the suction of the outside air due to the depressurization of the internal flow path based on this, so that the pressure loss of the water supply and the blockage of the flow path, etc. The problem was unavoidable.

Further, in the foam water discharge from the water discharge cap 51 provided at the tip of the spout 50, the size of the water discharge is determined by the water discharge cap 51. Therefore, if the spout cap 51 has the same diameter as the spout 50, the spout 50 has the same spread as the spouted water before being foamed. On the other hand, since foam water discharge softens the water supply, it can be suitably used for a shower or the like. However, if the water discharge range is small, it is suitable for faucets,
The water discharge range is too small for shower use. For this reason,
Although it is sufficient to increase the size of the water discharge cap 51, the pressure loss also increases accordingly, causing the same problem as described above.

Therefore, the present invention ensures a flow rate without causing pressure loss or clogging of foreign matter, and always makes it possible to obtain appropriate foaming, and also to expand the water discharge range so that it can be appropriately used in a shower or the like. The purpose is to

[Means for Solving the Problems]

In order to achieve the above object, the foam water spouting port of the present invention has an inlet and an outlet for a fluid, a communication passage communicating between the inlet and the outlet, and a swirling flow chamber arranged in the communication passage, A swirl hole for supplying the fluid from the communication passage along the inner wall of the swirl flow chamber as an oblique flow with an inflow axis, and to the outlet side near the center of the swirl flow of the fluid in the swirl flow chamber A foaming chamber facing the communication passage, a foaming chamber communicating with the discharge opening, having a cross-sectional area larger than the opening area of the discharge opening, and having an end communicating with the outlet, and the foaming chamber. The chamber is provided with an air flow path communicating with outside air.

[Action]

The water that has flowed into the swirl flow chamber becomes a spiral swirl flow, and the centrifugal force outward acts on the flow itself. And
Since the flow at the discharge port opened almost in the center of the swirl chamber is also swirl-shaped, the water flowing out from the discharge port is blown outward by the centrifugal force, forming a conical water film like a foam from the discharge port. It is sent to the chemical conversion chamber. As a result, the water flowing into the foaming chamber is already easily scattered, and if the foaming chamber is opened to the atmosphere by air or the like, the air is sucked by the depressurizing effect of the water flowing in at a high speed from the discharge port. Then, the sucked air is promptly mixed into the water film-shaped water supply that is flowing in, and is discharged as foam water discharge.

As described above, without using a pressure reducing plate having a large number of small holes, by supplying air after swirling the water supply to make it easily scattered, foam spouting can be obtained, and foaming with reduced pressure loss can be achieved. It will be possible.

Further, since the water from the swirling flow chamber spreads in a conical shape due to the centrifugal force, if the discharged water is spread as it is, the final water discharge range is also expanded.

〔Example〕

Hereinafter, the features of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of an essential part of a water spout showing an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line I-I of FIG.

In the figure, a water discharge head 1 for foaming is attached to the tip of a spout 50. The water discharge head 1 has a circular cross section as shown in FIG. 2 and has a spout at the upper end.
The connecting cylinder 1a to 50 is projected in the radial direction. And
The streamline extending from the connecting tube 1a in a substantially horizontal direction is the water discharge head 1
An internal flow path is formed which is bent at a right angle downward from the center of and is discharged from the rectification cap 2 provided at the lower end.

The interior of the water discharge head 1 is vertically divided by a partition wall 3,
The swirl chamber 4 is above the partition 3 and the foaming chamber 5 is below. The swirl flow chamber 4 is partitioned into an outer swirl flow chamber 7 and an inner swirl flow chamber 8 by an annular wall 6 that connects the partition wall 3 and the upper inner wall of the water discharge head 1. The outer swirl chamber 7 is in communication with the connecting cylinder 1a, and the inner swirl chamber 8 is in communication with the foaming chamber 5 by means of a discharge port 3a opened in the partition wall 3. The partition wall 3 and the annular wall 6 are integrally molded and fixed in the water discharge head 1 to have an assembled structure.

The annular wall 6 is arranged coaxially with the cross section of the flow path of the water discharge head 1, and has holes 6a at four positions as shown in FIG. These holes 6a are positioned inside the annular wall 6 such that the streamlines are tangential to the cross section of the inner swirling flow chamber 8. On the other hand, the discharge port 3a opened to the bottom of the inner swirl chamber 8 is located at the center of the inner swirl chamber 8,
Its inner diameter is much smaller than the inner diameter of the inner swirl flow chamber 8.

Further, an air hole 5a is opened in the peripheral wall of the foaming chamber 5, from which air is sucked to foam the water supply. The inside of the foaming chamber 5 has such a height and an inner diameter that the water supplied from the discharge port 3a can be sufficiently foamed by the air from the air hole 5a.

The flow regulating cap 2 is attached to the lower end of the water discharge head 1 by joining the screws 2a, and a mesh 9 for promoting foam formation is provided therebetween. The rectifying cap 2 has a rectifying plate 2b for promptly discharging the foamed water.

Here, when water is sent from the spout 50, the inner swirl flow chamber 8 passes from the outer swirl flow chamber 7 through the hole 6a of the annular wall 6.
Water flows into. At this time, since the axis of the hole 6a is oriented in the tangential direction with respect to the inner swirl flow chamber 8 having a circular cross section, the water becomes a swirl flow in the inner swirl flow chamber 8. That is, as shown in FIG. 3, water flows along the inner wall from the outer peripheral portion of the inner swirling flow chamber 8 and the four holes 6a are formed.
The water from the above starts to swirl inside the inner swirling flow chamber 8 while forming a vortex. At this time, if the entire flow passage area of the hole 6a is larger than that of the discharge port 3a, a phenomenon in which water accumulates in the inner swirling flow chamber 8 occurs and the internal pressure rises to some extent. Therefore, the flow energy of the water itself increases inside the inner swirl flow chamber 8, and the centrifugal force by the swirl flow acts. For this reason, the water flowing down from the discharge port 3a has a behavior of spreading outward under the influence of the centrifugal force, and is discharged as a conical water film F as shown by a broken line in the figure. That is,
Instead of flowing down from the discharge port 3a as a cylindrical flow path cross section, it is blown off in the radial direction by the action of the centrifugal force of the water itself, and this becomes a continuous flow to form a conical water film F. Then, the thickness of the water film F becomes thinner as it goes away from the discharge port 3 a, and hits the net 9 at the lower end of the foaming chamber 5.

On the other hand, the discharge port 3a is located almost in the center of the foaming chamber 5, and water accompanied by centrifugal force flows out at a high flow rate, so that the internal pressure of the space outside the conical water film F decreases. For this reason,
Air is sucked through the air holes 5a, hits the net 9, and is mixed with the water that has been crushed, so that the water supply is foamed.

The water foamed as described above is rectified while passing the rectifying plate 2b of the rectifying cap 2 and is discharged from the water discharge head 1.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of a main part showing another example of the structure of the discharge port 3a for forming a conical water film.

In the figure, a cylindrical discharge cylinder 10 is formed downward at the discharge port 3a, and a guide 11 is attached to the inner circumference of the lower end thereof. The inner circumference of the lower end of the discharge cylinder 10 has a sloping portion with a hem-widening cross section
The guide 11 has a tapered surface 11a formed along the inclined portion 10a. The gap between the inclined portion 10a and the tapered surface 11a has a frustoconical cross section with a widened hem, and water is discharged into the foaming chamber 5 as a conical water film due to this cross sectional shape. .

Such a structure of the discharge port 3a can be adopted instead of the structure shown in FIG. In this case, in addition to the centrifugal force applied to the flow in the swirl flow chamber 4, the guide 11 guides the streamline of the water in a divergent manner, so that the water film F is stably formed. Further, even if the swirling flow chamber 4 is not provided and the structure is such that the water is directly sent, the action of expanding the streamline of the water does not change, so that the water film F can be formed.

Further, FIG. 5 shows that instead of forming a water film, the foaming chamber 5
It has a structure that scatters water by violently converging inside.

In the figure, a discharge cylinder 12 is formed below the discharge port 3a as in the case of FIG. 4, and a plurality of holes 12a provided at the lower end portion thereof are all opened so as to face the axis of the discharge port 3a. Water from the discharge port 3a is discharged toward the axial direction of the hole 12a,
It flows so that it may join on the axis line of the discharge port 3. For this reason,
After the merging, as shown by the broken line in the figure, water splashes in the foaming chamber 5 and facilitates foaming when hitting the lower net 9 or the inner wall of the foaming chamber 5.

FIG. 6 is an example showing a structure in which water can be scattered in the foaming chamber 5 in a state where the pressure loss is small. this is,
In comparison with the structure shown in FIG. 1, a hole 6c is formed in a top plate 6b in which an inner swirl flow chamber 8 is formed as a room separated from the outer swirl flow chamber 7 by providing a top plate 6b at the upper end of the annular wall 6. Are different.

Water flows into the inner swirl flow chamber 8 through the holes 6a and 6c, and at this time, a swirl flow is formed by the water from the holes 6a in the tangential direction. Then, since water also flows in from the hole 6c of the top plate 6b, a flow that tends to push out to the discharge port 3a due to centrifugal force also occurs. For this reason, in the structure of FIG. 1, the water from the discharge port 3a was discharged as a water film, but the action force of water pushing out from the hole 6c causes the water flux to be torn off. As shown in the drawing, the water is discharged from the discharge port 3a as splash water. Further, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the water flow path is not greatly restricted, and the pressure loss is reduced as compared with these examples.

As described above, the water film F as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3 or the splashed water as shown in FIGS. 4 to 6 is fed into the foaming chamber 5 from the discharge port 3a. In addition, since the flow velocity is high in any case, the suction of air from the air hole 5a is also performed quickly. Therefore, the air is mixed with the water crushed by hitting the net 9 or the inner wall of the foaming chamber 5, and good foam discharge can be obtained.

Further, since the water discharged from the swirling flow chamber 4 spreads in a conical shape, the discharge range of the water flowing into the foaming chamber 5 also expands. For this reason, if the diameter of the foaming chamber 5 is increased, the range of the finally obtained spouting water is expanded even if the spout 50 is small. Therefore, even if the maximum flow rate from the spout 50 is determined, it is possible to loosely discharge water having a large water discharge range as compared with the conventional example. As a result, in addition to softening the water supply by foaming, it is possible to discharge water with a large diameter, and it can be suitably used for showers and other applications.

In addition to the embodiment, various structures can be considered for the structure for swirling the flow in the swirling flow chamber 4 and foaming in the foaming chamber 5. For example, instead of the annular wall 6 provided in the swirl flow chamber 4, what is equivalent to the annular wall 6 is formed by a large number of blade rows, and the flow passages between the blades are opened.
It is used as 6a, or a slit is provided in the annular wall 6 to use this as a flow path. In any of these, in order to swirl the feed water flowing into the swirl flow chamber 4, it is basically configured to feed water in a swirling direction with the blades and slits as tangential directions. Also,
Instead of the air hole 5a provided in the foaming chamber 5, an air cylinder is raised from the central portion of the flow regulating cap 2 and the upper end thereof is used as an air suction portion, and conversely, a swirl flow chamber is provided from the upper end of the water discharge head 1. An air cylinder may be provided so as to penetrate through the discharge port 3 and the air may be sent from the lower end thereof.

〔The invention's effect〕

As described above, in the present invention, the centrifugal force is generated in the flow by swirling the water supply, and the centrifugal force is utilized to feed the centrifugal force into the foaming chamber as a conical water film flow.
Air is mixed due to the decrease in internal pressure generated at this time. Therefore, as compared with the conventional case where a pressure reducing plate having a large number of small holes is used, the pressure loss is reduced, the flow rate is secured, and defective water discharge due to adhesion of foreign matter or scale is eliminated.

Further, the spouted water can be spread conically by the generation of centrifugal force due to the swirling flow in the swirl flow chamber, and the range of the spouted water spouted in the foaming chamber can be expanded. For this reason, in addition to softening by foaming, loose water can be discharged, and it can be appropriately used for a shower or the like.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of an essential part of a foam spout showing an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line II of FIG. 1, and FIG. Fig. 3 (b) is a cross-sectional view showing the generation of a swirl flow in Fig. 4, Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view of an example in which a water film is formed using a guide, and Fig. 5 is a view showing the confluence of water. FIG. 6 is a sectional view showing an example of producing splashed water, FIG. 6 is a sectional view of an example of forming splashed water by utilizing an annular wall, and FIG. 7 is a sectional view of a conventional foam spout. 1: Water discharge head, 1a: Connection cylinder 2: Flow cap, 2a: Screw 2b: Flow plate 3: Partition wall, 3a: Outlet port 4: Swirling flow chamber 5: Foaming chamber, 5a: Air hole 6: Annular wall, 6a : Hole 6b: Top plate, 6c: Hole 7: Outer swirl flow chamber 8: Inner swirl flow chamber 9: Net 10: Discharge cylinder, 10a: Inclined part 11: Guide, 11a: Tapered surface 12: Discharge cylinder, 12a: Hole

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A fluid inlet and an outlet, a communication passage for communicating between the inlet and the outlet, a swirl flow chamber arranged in the communication passage, and a fluid from the communication passage for the swirl chamber. A swirl hole in which the inflow axis supplies as an oblique flow along the inner wall of the swirl, a discharge port near the center of the swirl flow of the fluid in the swirl flow chamber and facing the communication path to the outlet side, and the discharge port. A foaming chamber communicating with the outlet and having a space with a cross-sectional area larger than the opening area of the outlet and having its end communicating with the outlet, and an air channel for communicating the outside with the foaming chamber. A foam spout that is equipped.