Mist cooler

Abstract

We provide a mist cooler that can operate using batteries with individual specifications in a compatible manner. [Solution] A mist cooler that operates on 12V power, comprising a fan unit 50 having a two-fluid nozzle and a fan for spraying fine mist, a control unit 20 having an air pump that generates pressurized air to supply it to the fan unit and a controller that controls the operation of the air pump within a casing 22, a reference battery adapter provided at the bottom of the casing and capable of mounting multiple types of batteries with different output voltages from a reference battery manufacturer, and a DC-DC converter that converts the output voltage of the multiple types of batteries mounted on the reference battery adapter into 12V drive power, and a compatible battery adapter that can mount compatible batteries from other battery manufacturers other than the reference battery manufacturer.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a mist cooler, and more particularly to a mist cooler that can use batteries of multiple battery manufacturers with simple modifications.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, such a mist cooler has a structure as described in, for example, Utility Model Registration No. 3202161, and usually uses the power from a lithium-ion battery with or without voltage regulation as driving power.

[0003] Compared with other batteries, the above-mentioned lithium-ion battery has advantages such as high energy density, long life, and strong resistance to supplementary charging, and thus is used as an energy source (power source) for electric devices in various fields. A typical example is the field of power tools, which is widely popular in the market. And each power tool manufacturer develops lithium-ion batteries used in its own power tools with different specifications independently.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] By the way, if lithium-ion batteries, which are batteries for power tools popular in these markets, can also be used in the mist cooler targeted by the present invention, the batteries can be easily obtained, and the battery and its surrounding costs can be reduced, which is a great advantage. Therefore, the present invention aims to provide a mist cooler that can operate by using batteries with individual specifications in an easily compatible manner. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The aforementioned problem is solved by the mist cooler of the present invention having the configurations (1) to (5) below. (1) A mist cooler operating on 12V power comprises a fan unit having a two-fluid nozzle and fan for spraying fine mist, a control unit having an air pump that generates pressurized air and a controller that controls the operation of the air pump within the casing for supplying pressurized air to the fan unit, a reference battery adapter provided at the bottom of the casing and capable of accommodating multiple types of batteries with different output voltages from a reference battery manufacturer, and a DC-DC converter that converts the output voltages of the multiple types of batteries attached to the reference battery adapter into 12V drive power, A mist cooler characterized by having a compatible battery adapter that can accommodate a compatible battery from a different battery manufacturer than the aforementioned standard battery manufacturer, the compatible battery adapter having a connecting member that can be attached to the standard battery adapter, and the compatible battery attached to the compatible battery adapter supplying 12V drive power to the fan unit and air pump via the compatible battery adapter, the standard battery adapter and DC-DC converter. (2) The mist cooler according to (1), wherein the standard battery and compatible battery are lithium-ion batteries. (3) The mist cooler (2) wherein the lithium-ion battery is of the slide-mount type. (4) The mist cooler described in (1) above, which is mounted on the vehicle. (5) The mist cooler described in (1) above, which is used in the passenger seat of a golf cart or in the driver's seat of heavy machinery such as a forklift, hydraulic excavator, and tractor. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] In the mist cooler according to this invention, a battery from a specific battery manufacturer having predetermined external specifications is used as the standard battery, an adapter for this standard battery is provided as standard equipment, and a compatible battery adapter is provided that allows a compatible battery from a different battery manufacturer to be attached, and the compatible battery adapter is equipped with a connecting member that can be attached to the adapter for the standard battery, so that the fan unit and air pump can be driven by the battery attached to the compatible battery adapter. Therefore, if the standard battery runs out of charge or reaches the end of its lifespan, this mist cooler can be operated using a compatible battery, making it extremely convenient. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] This is an overall perspective view of a mist cooler according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] This diagram shows the internal structure of the control unit shown in Figure 1 when used in the standard battery mounting configuration. [Figure 3] Figure 1 is a perspective view showing the external configuration of the control unit when used with a compatible battery connection. [Figure 4] This figure shows the internal structure of the control unit shown in Figure 3. [Figure 5] This diagram illustrates the state when two types of compatible batteries are installed. [Figure 6] This is a wiring diagram illustrating the electrical connection state between the reference battery and the compatible battery in a mist cooler according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] The mist cooler according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Figure 1 is an overall perspective view of a mist cooler 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The mist cooler 10 of the present invention can be powered not only by a standard battery B1 attached to a battery adapter pre-installed in the mist cooler, but also by compatible batteries B2 and B3 (see Figure 5; only two types are shown in this embodiment). As shown in Figure 1, the mist cooler 10 includes a control unit 20 and a fan unit 50 connected to the control unit 20. A fan power connector 24 for supplying power to the fan unit 50 is provided, protruding from the top surface of the control unit 20.

[0010] As clearly shown in Figure 2, the control unit 20 includes a casing 22, and an adapter mounting space 25 is provided at the lower part of the casing 22. Furthermore, a control board 26 with a drive power input / output connector, which will be described later, is located in the upper part of the casing 22, and an electric air pump 27 for generating pressurized air to be supplied to the fan unit 50 is located in the central part. From the control board 26 with the drive power input / output connector, a fan power supply wiring L1 (see Figure 6) that connects to the fan power connector 24 and an air pump power supply wiring L2 (see Figure 6) that connects to the air pump 27 extend.

[0011] In the adapter mounting space 25, a reference battery adapter with terminals for the reference battery B1 (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as "battery adapter") 28 is equipped. From this reference battery adapter 28, a power supply wiring L0 for supplying driving power from the battery mounted thereon to the control board 26 is connected. A DC-DC converter 64 for converting from another voltage to 12V driving power is provided in this power supply wiring L0. In the present embodiment, a battery of the slide type connection is used, and a pair of parallel guide rails 29 as connection members protrude downward at the lower part of the battery adapter 28. On the other hand, a pair of parallel guide grooves that are inserted into the parallel guide rails 29 in a slide type are provided on the upper part of the battery including the reference battery B1 (the compatible batteries B2, B3). When these guide rails are completely mounted in the guide grooves, the electrical connection parts of both contact and are energized.

[0012] In the present invention, in order to enable the use of the compatible batteries B2, B3, a first compatible adapter 60 for the compatible battery B2 and a second compatible adapter 70 for the compatible battery B3 as shown in FIG. 5 are provided.

[0013] Here, the compatible batteries B2, B3 and the reference battery B1 have different structural specifications of their connection members (for example, the distance between a pair of power supply electrodes 29 that also act as the above-described guide rails and a pair of power supply electrodes in a pair of guide grooves into which they are inserted, etc.) due to requirements such as safety. (The pair of guide grooves of the compatible battery B2 are indicated by the symbol Ba, and the pair of guide grooves of the compatible battery B3 are indicated by the symbol Bb). Therefore, in the embodiment of the present invention, a first compatible battery adapter 60 for the compatible battery B2 and a second compatible battery adapter 70 for the compatible battery B3 are proposed.

[0014] In other words, the intervals D1 and D2 between the power supply electrodes (not shown) in the guide grooves Ba of the compatible batteries B2 and B3 are different from the interval between a pair of power supply electrodes 29 that also act as guide rails of the reference battery adapter 28. Therefore, as it is, the compatible batteries B2 and B3 cannot be attached to the mist cooler. This is solved by the first compatible battery adapter 60 and the second compatible battery adapter 70.

[0015] For the above purpose, in the first compatible battery adapter 60, power supply electrodes (not shown) in guide grooves 62, 62 having an interval equal to the interval between the pair of power supply electrodes 29 are provided on the insertion side of the adapter on the upper surface thereof so that the pair of power supply electrodes 29 of the reference battery adapter 28 can be inserted. Similarly, in the second compatible battery adapter 70, power supply electrodes (not shown) in guide grooves 72, 72 having an interval equal to the interval between the pair of power supply electrodes 29 are provided on the insertion side of the adapter on the upper surface thereof so that the pair of power supply electrodes 29 of the reference battery adapter 28 can be inserted. As described above, FIGS. 3 and 4 show the state in which the compatible battery B2 is attached to the control unit 20 of the mist cooler 10.

[0016] FIG. 6 shows the connection state of the electrical system in the control unit 20 described above. In this figure, the first and second compatible battery adapters 60 and 70 are shown in a state of being connected in parallel to the basic battery adapter 28, but the compatible battery adapters are replaceable and only one of them is attached.

[0017] The mist cooler according to the present invention is preferably arranged and used in the passenger seat of a golf cart or the driver's seat of heavy machinery such as a forklift, a hydraulic shovel, and a tractor.

Explanation of Signs

[0018] 10 Mist cooler 20 Control unit 22 Casing 24 Fan power connector 25 Space for adapter installation 26 Control board with drive power input / output connector 27 Air pump 28 Standard Battery Adapter 60 Compatible Battery Adapter 64 DC-DC Converters 70 Second-Party Compatible Battery Adapter B1 Standard Battery B2 Compatible Battery B3 Compatible Battery

Claims

1. A mist cooler operating on 12V power comprises a fan unit having a two-fluid nozzle and fan for spraying fine mist, a control unit having an air pump that generates pressurized air and a controller that controls the operation of the air pump within the casing for supplying pressurized air to the fan unit, a reference battery adapter provided at the bottom of the casing and capable of accommodating multiple types of batteries with different output voltages from a reference battery manufacturer, and a DC-DC converter that converts the output voltages of the multiple types of batteries attached to the reference battery adapter into 12V drive power, A mist cooler characterized by having a compatible battery adapter that can accommodate a compatible battery from a different battery manufacturer than the aforementioned standard battery manufacturer, the compatible battery adapter having a connecting member that can be attached to the standard battery adapter, and the compatible battery attached to the compatible battery adapter supplying 12V drive power to the fan unit and air pump via the compatible battery adapter, the standard battery adapter and DC-DC converter.

2. The mist cooler according to claim 1, wherein the standard battery and compatible battery are lithium-ion batteries.

3. The mist cooler according to claim 2, wherein the lithium-ion battery is of the slide-mount type.

4. A mist cooler according to claim 1, which is mounted on a vehicle.

5. The mist cooler according to claim 1, which is used in the passenger seat of a golf cart or in the driver's seat of heavy machinery such as a forklift, hydraulic excavator, and tractor.

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