HK1165394B - Water purifier - Google Patents

Description

Water purifier

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a water purifier.

This application claims priority from Japanese application No. 2009-005211, 1-13 of 2009, and the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

Background

Water purifiers that filter water using a filter using a hollow fiber membrane or the like are known. In such a water purifier, since the filter cartridge needs to be replaced after a certain amount of water is filtered, a flow meter for measuring the amount of filtered water is provided, and the measured flow rate is accumulated and stored in a storage unit of the control device.

In addition, in a water purifier having a mechanism for switching between a filtration mode in which raw water flowing into the water purifier is filtered by a filter cartridge and discharged and a raw water mode in which raw water is discharged as it is without passing through the filter cartridge, a user is notified of which mode the water purifier is currently in.

In order to visually notify such a user, a water purifier including a display unit using a liquid crystal display is known (for example, see patent document 1).

The display unit of the water purifier described in patent document 1 includes a circuit board on which a control circuit is mounted, a liquid crystal display fixed to an upper surface of the circuit board, and a case that accommodates the circuit board and the liquid crystal display. The upper surface of the housing is a visual confirmation side, and the lower surface is open. The circuit board is mounted so as to close the opening of the case, and a one-pack curable resin is filled so as to cover the opening end of the case and the lower surface of the circuit board, and the case is sealed with the resin.

Documents of the prior art

Patent document

Patent document 1: japanese laid-open patent publication No. 2007-175616

However, in the structure described in patent document 1, the water-repellency in the case is maintained by the resin covering the open end of the case and the lower surface of the circuit board, but since the outer surface of the display portion, which is likely to be wetted by water scattering or the like, has a joint portion between the case and the resin, the water-repellency in the case may be impaired when the adhesion between the case and the resin is insufficient. When the waterproof property in the case is insufficient, display defects such as shading of the display portion are likely to occur.

Further, the entire lower surface of the circuit board needs to be sealed with resin, but since the sealing area is large, workability in manufacturing the display portion is poor.

Disclosure of Invention

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a water purifier capable of obtaining higher water repellency of a display portion and improving workability in manufacturing the display portion.

(1) A water purifier is provided with a display unit for displaying notification information, the display unit includes a display, a circuit board for controlling the display, and a housing for accommodating the display and the circuit board, one or more electric wires are connected to the circuit board, the housing includes a housing main body having an opening and a through hole, the area of the through hole is smaller than the area of the opening, the opening is sealed, the through hole is sealed with a resin, and the electric wires are led out of the housing through the through hole.

(2) The water purifier according to (1), wherein the housing main body has a cylindrical shape with both ends open, and the through hole is provided inside one open end of the housing main body.

(3) The water purifier according to (1) or (2), wherein the opening is provided at the other end of the housing main body, and the opening is sealed by a lid.

(4) The water purifier according to the item (1), wherein the resin is an ultraviolet curable resin.

(5) The water purifier according to (1) or (2), wherein the display comprises a liquid crystal panel.

(6) The water purifier according to any one of (1) to (3), which comprises a raw water inlet for receiving raw water, a filter cartridge for filtering the raw water, and a discharge port for discharging the filtered purified water.

(7) The water purifier according to item (4) has a structure in which the raw water inlet is detachably connected to a tap water faucet.

(8) A method for manufacturing a display member for a water purifier, which displays notification information, wherein a circuit base to which one or more electric wires are connected is inserted through an opening in a case having the opening and a through hole, the electric wires are led out from the through hole, and the through hole is sealed with a sealant.

(9) The method for manufacturing a display member for a water purifier according to item (8), wherein the sealing agent is an ultraviolet curable resin, and the ultraviolet curable resin is cured by irradiating ultraviolet rays after the ultraviolet curable resin is injected from the outside of the case.

(10) A method for manufacturing a water purifier, wherein the display member for a water purifier obtained by the method (8) or (9) is fitted to a main body casing of a water purifier main body.

Effects of the invention

In the water purifier of the present invention, the housing of the display unit includes a cylindrical housing main body made of a transparent material, and a lid body that liquid-tightly closes one opening of the housing main body, and only the other opening of the housing main body is sealed with resin, so that the housing and the resin are not joined to each other on the outer surface of the display unit that is easily wetted by water scattering or the like. Therefore, even if the adhesion between the case and the resin is insufficient, high water resistance can be ensured. In addition, since the area required to be sealed with resin is small, workability in manufacturing the display portion is improved.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing one embodiment of a water purifier according to the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the display section, taken along line II-II of fig. 3.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line III-III of fig. 2.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, a faucet direct-coupling type water purifier according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described as an example with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The water purifier 1 of the present embodiment is a so-called faucet-directly-coupled water purifier having a structure in which a raw water inlet 6 is detachably connected to a faucet, and includes a main body casing 2 and a filter cartridge 3. A switch lever 8 and a display unit 10 are attached to the main body case 2.

In the figure, reference numeral 6 denotes a raw water inlet of the main body casing 2. The raw water inlet 6 is an opening for receiving tap water (raw water) in the main body case 2, and is detachably connected to a faucet of a tap water pipe by an annular fixture 12.

The filter cartridge 3 is configured to accommodate a filter member such as a hollow fiber membrane filter for filtering tap water (raw water) flowing into the main body casing 2 from the raw water inlet 6, and is detachable from the main body casing 2.

The switching lever 8 is a switching mechanism for switching the discharge mode of the water purifier 1 between a "water purification mode" in which tap water flowing into the raw water inlet 6 is filtered by the filter medium in the filter cartridge 3, a "raw water mode" in which tap water flowing into the raw water inlet 6 is not filtered but is directly discharged, and a "water spray mode" in which the raw water is sprayed and discharged. A purified water discharge port, a raw water discharge port, and a raw water spray-like discharge port are provided on the lower surface 9 of the main body casing 2.

Although not shown, a flowmeter for measuring the amount of water filtered by the filter cartridge 3 is provided in the main body casing 2. The flowmeter is disposed downstream of the filter cartridge 3 and measures the amount of water (filtered water amount) flowing out of the filter cartridge 3, that is, the amount of water (purified water) filtered by the filter cartridge 3.

The flow meter can be suitably configured in a known manner, for example, as described in japanese patent application laid-open No. 2003-200154. Specifically, an impeller that rotates in one direction by water flow is provided in a flow path from a purified water discharge port to discharge of purified water filtered by the filter cartridge 3, a magnet is attached to a shaft of the impeller, and the number of rotations of the magnet can be detected by a magnetic detection means such as a reed switch. Since the number of rotations of the magnet is proportional to the number of rotations of the blade and reflects the increase or decrease of the flow rate, the number of rotations detected by the reed switch is calculated by the control device, and necessary information such as the flow rate and the integrated flow rate is calculated and displayed on the display unit 10.

Next, the structure of the display unit 10 will be described.

As shown in fig. 2 and 3, the display unit 10 includes a circuit board 22 on which a control circuit is mounted, a display 24 controlled by the control circuit of the circuit board 22, and a case 26 accommodating the circuit board 22 and the display 24. In the present embodiment, the display 24 is fixed to one surface of the circuit board 22.

The case 26 includes a cylindrical case main body 27 having openings at both ends in the longitudinal direction, and a lid 28 that liquid-tightly closes the first opening 27a of the case main body 27. The housing main body 27 is made of a transparent material. The second opening 27b of the case main body 27 is sealed with a resin 25 (hereinafter, also referred to as a sealing resin 25).

The housing main body 27 is preferably integrally molded using, for example, ABS resin or acrylic resin from the viewpoint of transparency, processability, and strength.

In this embodiment, a liquid crystal display element having a known structure can be used as the display 24. The display 24 displays notification information such as whether the water purifier is in the filtration mode or the raw water mode, or whether the filter cartridge replacement timing is set.

In the figure, reference numeral 31 denotes a liquid crystal panel, and the display screen is arranged to be visible from the outside of the casing main body 27.

Hereinafter, the longitudinal direction of the housing 26 on the plane parallel to the display screen of the liquid crystal panel 31 is referred to as the X direction, and the direction perpendicular to the X direction is referred to as the Y direction. The direction perpendicular to both the X direction and the Y direction is referred to as the Z direction.

A frame 32 having a window in a region overlapping the display screen is provided between the liquid crystal panel 31 on the display screen side of the liquid crystal panel 31 and the case main body 27. The frame 32 is opaque.

The frame 32 has semicircular plate-shaped rising portions 32a at both ends in the X direction. Further, both ends of the frame 32 in the Y direction hang down on the circuit board 22, and the tip end portion thereof is a projection 32b facing the outside in the Y direction.

Fixing portions 23 for holding the frame 32 and the circuit board 22 are provided at positions facing each other on the inner surface of the case main body 27. Each fixing portion 23 is formed of two parallel convex strips along the X direction, and the protruding portion 32b of the frame 32 and the front end portion of the circuit board 22 in the Y direction are inserted between the two convex strips so as to slide along the X direction.

A partition wall 21 having a through hole 21a is formed integrally with the case main body 27 inside the second opening portion 27b of the case main body 27. A plurality of electric wires (not shown) electrically connected to the circuit board 22 extend to the main body casing 2 through the through-hole 21a and the second opening 27b of the casing main body 27.

The through-hole 21a of the partition wall 21 may be of any size as long as it can lead out the electric wiring to the outside, and may be of any size that the circuit board 22 cannot penetrate.

By providing the partition wall 21 having the through hole 21a inside the second opening 27b of the case main body 27 in this way, the opening area of the path through which the moisture enters the case main body 27 can be reduced.

A step portion 29 is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the second opening portion 27b of the case main body 27 to be detachably fixed to the main body case 2.

A gasket 41 is fitted to the outside of the partition wall 21 in the second opening 27b of the case main body 27. The spacer 41 is made of an elastic material, and has through holes smaller than the diameter of the electric wires as many as the number of the electric wires. Further, the opening 27b is sealed in a liquid-tight manner by filling and curing a sealing resin 25 outside the gasket 41. The electric wiring is led out to the outside of the main body case 27 through the through hole of the spacer 41 and the sealing resin 25.

The lid 28 has an inner lid 28a welded to the first opening 27a of the case body 27 by welding, and an outer lid 28b fitted and fixed to a fitting projection 28c on the outer surface of the inner lid 28 a. The inner cover 28a may be transparent or opaque. The outer cover 28b is preferably opaque.

For example, the material of the inner lid 28a is preferably the same as the material used for the case main body 27 in view of weldability at the time of welding. The material of the outer cover 28b is preferably the same as that of the main body case 2, and for example, ABS resin or acrylic resin is suitably used.

In the present embodiment, the outer decorative body 42 made of an opaque material is provided on the entire periphery of the case main body 27 made of a transparent material on the circuit board 22 side with respect to the fixing portion 23 and on both side portions outside the rising portion 32a of the frame body 32 in the X direction, so that only the upper surface of the frame body 32 in the inside of the case main body 27 and the liquid crystal panel 31 in the window portion thereof can be visually recognized from the outside.

The outer garnish 42 may be formed to cover a desired portion of the main body case 27, and is preferably tightly coupled to the case main body 27. For example, an opaque film material may be adhered to the outer surface of the housing main body 27.

The sealing resin 25 may be a two-liquid curing resin that is cured by mixing two liquids, or may be a one-liquid curing resin that is cured by only one liquid. The resin may be a thermosetting resin that is cured by heating, or an ultraviolet curing resin that is cured by irradiation of ultraviolet light. These can be appropriately selected from commercially available products.

For example, a polyurethane-based curable resin composition such as UF-820A, UF-820BN (all trade names, manufactured by Sanyo Co., Ltd.) can be used as the two-liquid curable and thermosetting resin. Two or more of these may be mixed and used.

For example, as the one-pack curing type and ultraviolet curing type resin, a urethane acrylate curing resin composition such as SUV-387 (trade name, manufactured by sanyo corporation) can be used.

From the viewpoint of short curing time, an ultraviolet curable resin is preferred. In addition, from the viewpoint of usability, a one-pack curable resin is preferable.

To manufacture the display unit 10 of the present embodiment, for example, the circuit board 22 and the frame 32 to which the liquid crystal panel 31 is fixed are first inserted into the fixing portion 23 of the case main body 27 including the exterior garnish 42 from the first opening portion 27a of the case main body 27.

At this time, the electric wiring connected to the circuit board 22 is drawn out of the case main body 27 through the through hole 21a of the partition wall 21 of the case main body 27.

Next, the electric wiring is passed through the spacer 41, the spacer 41 is fitted into the second opening 27b of the case body 27, and the inner lid 28a is welded to the opening 27a of the case body 27. Thereafter, the sealing resin 25 is filled into the second opening 27b and cured. For example, when the sealing resin 25 is an ultraviolet-curable resin, it is cured by irradiation with ultraviolet light. At this time, since the case main body 27 is transparent, the resin can be sufficiently cured even if ultraviolet rays are irradiated from the outside of the second opening 27b of the case main body 27. The electric wiring is led out to the outside through the sealing resin 25.

Finally, the outer lid 28b is fitted to the inner lid 28a and attached.

In the water purifier 1 of the present embodiment, the display unit 10 is easily soaked in water by the outer surface contacting the outside except for the other end portion of the housing main body 27 joined to the main body housing 2, but the inner wall of the housing 26 except for the other end portion of the housing main body 27 is constituted by the transparent cylindrical housing main body 27 and the inner cover 28a welded to the first opening portion 27a of the housing main body 27, and therefore, high water resistance can be obtained.

Further, since the housing main body 27 is transparent, the display can be visually confirmed therein without providing a window portion by using another member. Therefore, by configuring the housing main body 27 with one cylindrical member, high waterproofness can be obtained.

In addition, since the second opening 27b of the case main body 27 is sealed by the gasket 41 and the resin 25, a good waterproof property can be obtained. Further, since the area to be sealed with the resin 25, that is, the area of the through-hole 21a is smaller than the area of the other first opening 27a, the required amount of the sealing resin 25 (sealant) is the minimum amount, and the workability in manufacturing the display portion 10 is good.

In addition, since the case main body 27 is made of a transparent material, an ultraviolet curable resin can be used as a resin for sealing. Since the ultraviolet curable resin is cured in a short time, the efficiency of manufacturing the display portion can be improved. Therefore, the display portion can be manufactured by insert molding.

In particular, in the faucet direct-coupling type water purifier, since the water purifier itself is small, the workability and the manufacturing efficiency are greatly affected.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various changes and modifications can be made within the scope of the technical idea described in the claims.

For example, in the present embodiment, the housing main body 27 is cylindrical, but the sectional shape may be other than cylindrical, and may be appropriately changed.

Industrial applicability

The case of the display unit includes a cylindrical case body made of a transparent material and a lid body that closes one opening of the case body in a liquid-tight manner, and the other opening of the case body is sealed with a resin, so that the case and the resin are not bonded to each other on the outer surface of the display unit that is easily wetted by water scattering or the like. Therefore, a water purifier capable of ensuring high water repellency even if the adhesion between the housing and the resin is insufficient can be provided. Further, since the area required for sealing with resin is small, workability in manufacturing the display portion can be improved.

Description of the symbols

1-water purifier, 2-body case, 3-cartridge, 6-raw water inlet, 8-switch lever, 10-display, 22-circuit board, 24-display, 25-resin (sealing resin), 26-case, 27-case body, 27 a-first opening, 27 b-second opening, 28-cover, 28 a-inner cover, 28 b-outer cover, 31-liquid crystal panel, 32-frame, 41-gasket, 42-exterior decorative body.

Claims (8)

1. A water purifier comprising a raw water inlet for receiving raw water, a filter cartridge for filtering the raw water, a discharge port for discharging the filtered purified water, and a display unit for displaying notification information,

the display part comprises a display, a circuit board for controlling the display, a casing for accommodating the display and the circuit board,

one or more electrical wirings are connected to the circuit board,

the housing includes a housing main body having a first opening, a second opening, and a through hole, the housing main body is made of a transparent material,

the area of the through hole is smaller than the area of the first opening,

the through hole is provided inside the second opening,

the first opening is sealed by a cover body,

the second opening is sealed with a gasket and resin, the through hole is sealed with the resin, and the electric wiring is led out to the outside of the case through the through hole.

2. The water purifier according to claim 1,

the housing body has a cylindrical shape having a first opening at one end and a second opening at the other end.

3. The water purifier according to claim 1,

the resin is an ultraviolet curable resin.

4. The water purifier according to claim 1 or 2,

the display device includes a liquid crystal panel.

5. The water purifier according to claim 1,

the water supply device has a structure that the raw water inlet can be detachably connected with a tap water faucet.

6. A method for manufacturing a display member for a water purifier for displaying a notification message,

in a case made of a transparent material and having a first opening, a second opening, and a through hole provided inside the second opening,

the area of the through hole is smaller than the area of the first opening,

a circuit base connected with one or more electric wires is inserted through the first opening,

the electric wiring is led out from the through hole, the second opening is sealed with a gasket and resin, the through hole is sealed with the resin, and the first opening is sealed with a lid.

7. The method for manufacturing a display unit for a water purifier as defined in claim 6,

the resin is an ultraviolet curable resin, and the ultraviolet curable resin is cured by irradiating ultraviolet rays after the ultraviolet curable resin is injected from the outside of the case.

8. A method for manufacturing a water purifier is characterized in that,

the display member for a water purifier obtained by the method according to claim 6 or 7 is fitted to a main body casing of a water purifier main body.