Simple filtration device

Abstract

To provide a simple filtration device capable of preventing scattering of water to the surrounding of a water tank due to explosion of air bubbles, also facilitating maintenance such as decomposition and cleaning because of a simplified structure, and also being excellent in quietness in use.SOLUTION: A simple filtration device comprises: a filtration container 1 composed of a vertically long and bottomed cylindrical container body 11 having an opening on a top part, and a lid body 12 capable of airtightly closing the opening; and an air bubble generation part 2 and a filtration part 3 provided in the filtration container 1. A water suction hole 13 is formed on a lower part of the filtration container 1, and an ejection hole 14 composed of a vertically long slit 11a is formed on the top part of the filtration container 1. In the device, while actuating the air bubble generation part 2 for sucking water tank water through the water suction hole 13 by a raised water flow, the filtration water passed through the filtration part 3 is ejected from the lower part of the ejection hole 14 and simultaneously, gas in the filtration container 1 is ejected from the top part of the ejection hole 14.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a simplified filtration device that circulates and filters aquarium water stored in an aquarium. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, in an aquarium tank for breeding ornamental fish, etc., a filtration device has been known in which a vertical pipe is installed in the tank and an air stone installed in this vertical pipe is used to aerate the aquarium water to supply oxygen, etc. to the aquarium water, while at the same time generating an upward water current in the vertical pipe to pump the aquarium water and filter it with a filter, etc. (for example, Patent Document 1 listed below).

[0003] However, the filtration device described in Patent Document 1 discharges aeration bubbles directly from the discharge pipe installed at the upper end of the vertical pipe along with the filtered water, which causes the problem that when the bubbles that have spread on the water surface in the aquarium burst, water splashes all around, soiling the area around the aquarium and the glass surface of the aquarium.

[0004] Therefore, it has been proposed to prevent water from splashing inside and outside the tank by installing a water-air separator at the tip of the discharge pipe and bursting air bubbles inside the water-air separator's casing (Patent Document 2 below).

[0005] However, the steam-water separator described in Patent Document 2 has a complex structure and shape, since it has a separate drain hole for discharging filtered water from inside the housing to the outside of the housing, and a separate exhaust hole for discharging gas from inside the housing to the outside of the housing. This creates the drawback that maintenance work such as disassembly and cleaning of this steam-water separator is not easy.

[0006] In addition, in the past, many users sought quieter aquariums and the like, but for these users, not only the operating sound of the air pump connected to the air stone, but also the popping sound of air bubbles bursting on the water surface was unpleasant to the ears. The air-water separators described in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2 did not take any measures against the popping sound of air bubbles, and there was a drawback in that they could not meet the need for quieter operation. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0007] [Patent Document 1] JP 2016-146773 A [Patent Document 2] Patent Publication No. 2022-80247 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0008] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned drawbacks of conventional filtration devices, and has as its object to provide a simple filtration device that not only prevents water from splashing around the aquarium due to bubble bursting, but also has a simple structure that makes maintenance work such as disassembly and cleaning easy to perform, and is also quiet when in use. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The present invention provides a filtration device that is partially immersed in aquarium water stored in an aquarium and circulates and filters the aquarium water, a filtering vessel comprising a vertically long, bottomed, cylindrical vessel body having an opening at the top and a lid capable of airtightly closing the opening; an air bubble generating section provided within the filtering vessel for generating a large number of air bubbles in water to cause an upward water current within the filtering vessel; and a filtering section housed within the filtering vessel for filtering the aquarium water. a water intake opening is provided at the bottom of the filtration container, and a jet opening consisting of a vertically long slit is provided in the cylindrical wall portion at the top of the filtration container, the filtration container is disposed in the aquarium so that, in use, the top of the jet opening is located above the water level of the aquarium water and the bottom of the jet opening is located below the water level of the aquarium water, and the width of the jet opening at the water level inside the filtration container is smaller than the minimum internal dimension of the filtration container, By operating the bubble generating section, the aquarium water is sucked into the filtration container through the water intake by utilizing the rising water current, while the filtered water that has passed through the filtration section is ejected from the lower part of the nozzle, and at the same time, the gas above the water surface in the filtration container is guided toward the nozzle and ejected from the upper part of the nozzle.

[0010] In addition, the present invention is characterized in that the filtration section includes a large number of granular filtration materials accumulated in the filtration vessel, and the bubble generating section is embedded in the filtration section. Effect of the Invention

[0011] According to the simple filtration device of the present invention, not only the filtered water in the filtration container but also gas can be simultaneously ejected from the nozzle of the filtration container, so that the structure and shape of the device can be significantly simplified and maintenance work such as disassembly and cleaning can be performed very easily.

[0012] In addition, the opening of the filtration container is closed by a lid, and most of the numerous air bubbles floating on the water surface inside the filtration container burst inside the filtration container, and some of the air bubbles that travel to the nozzle adhere to the opening edge of the nozzle, which consists of a narrow slit, and burst there. This ensures that numerous air bubbles are not released directly into the tank, and that water is prevented from being splashed around the tank due to bubble bursting.

[0013] Furthermore, the opening of the filtration container is closed airtightly by the lid, and the internal space of the filtration container is connected to the outside only at the top of the nozzle consisting of a narrow slit, so that the external diffusion of bubble bursting sounds generated inside the filtration container can be significantly suppressed, resulting in excellent noise reduction during use. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0014] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a side view of a simple filtration device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a partially omitted side view showing the simple filtration device in an exploded state. [Diagram 3] 4 is a cross-sectional view of the position of the nozzle of the filtration container of the simple filtration device. FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a side view showing the simple filtration device in use. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a partially enlarged vertical cross-sectional view showing the simple filtration device in use. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view showing the simple filtration device in use. [Figure 7] FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of the nozzle position of a simple filtration device according to another embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0015] As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the simple filtration device 10 of this embodiment is composed of a filtration container 1, a bubble generating section 2 provided in the filtration container 1, and a filtration section 3 housed in the filtration container 1, and is partially immersed in aquarium water stored in an aquarium to circulate and filter the aquarium water.

[0016] 2, the filtration vessel 1 is composed of a vertically elongated, bottomed, cylindrical vessel body 11 having an opening 11a at the top, and a lid 12 capable of airtightly closing this opening 11a. The vessel body 11 of this embodiment is composed of a bottomed cylindrical body made of transparent synthetic resin, and the opening 11a of the vessel body 11 can be detachably and airtightly closed by the lid 12 by screwing a female threaded portion formed on the lid 12 made of opaque synthetic resin into a male threaded portion formed on the opening edge of the circular opening 11a.

[0017] An ejection port 14 consisting of a vertically long slit 14a is provided in the upper cylindrical wall of the vessel body 11 of the filtration vessel 1. As shown in Fig. 3, the width W1 of the ejection port 14 is smaller than the inner diameter (minimum internal dimension) W2 of the vessel body 11 of the filtration vessel 1. The ejection port 14 in this embodiment is composed of a single vertically long slit 14a having a width of about 1 mm and a length of about 30 mm, and is provided parallel to the axis of the cylindrical vessel body 11.

[0018] 2, a plurality of water inlets 13 are formed in the lower cylindrical wall of the container body 11 of the filtration container 1. The water inlets 13 in this embodiment consist of circular holes with a diameter of about 3 mm, and a total of 12 water inlets 13 are provided at equal intervals on the cylindrical circumferential wall of the container body 11.

[0019] 2, the bubble generating unit 2 is composed of a bubble generating unit main body 21 that generates a large number of bubbles in the water, and a flexible air tube 22 having one end connected to the bubble generating unit main body 21. The bubble generating unit main body 21 in this embodiment is composed of a well-known air stone, and by operating a well-known air pump P connected to the other end of the air tube 22, gas can be supplied to the air stone through the air tube 22, generating a large number of bubbles in the water.

[0020] In this embodiment, the air tube 22 connecting the bubble generating unit main body 21 (air stone) provided in the filtration vessel 1 to the external air pump P passes through the lid 12 of the filtration vessel 1, but instead, the air tube 22 may pass through the cylindrical wall of the vessel main body 11 of the filtration vessel 1. In the drawing, reference numeral 23 denotes a bush that fills the gap between the outer circumferential surface of the air tube 22 and the lid 12 in an airtight state.

[0021] The filtration section 3 is configured to include a large number of granular filtering materials (31, 32) accumulated in the filtering container 1, and as shown in Fig. 2, the bubble-generating section main body 21 of the bubble-generating section 2 is buried in these granular filtering materials (31, 32). In this embodiment, a mixture of a first filtering material 31 made of porous ceramics and having a short cylindrical shape and a second filtering material 32 also made of porous ceramics and having a spherical shape is used as the granular filtering material, and the aquarium water is filtered by physical filtration through adsorption by the large number of fine pores that these granular filtering materials (31, 32) have, and biological filtration by bacteria living in the fine pores.

[0022] When using the simple filtration device 10 of this embodiment, first, as shown in Fig. 4, the filtration vessel 1 is disposed in the aquarium so that the upper part of the spout 14 is located above the water surface WS1 of the aquarium water and the lower part of the spout 14 is located below the water surface WS1 of the aquarium water. At this time, as shown in Fig. 4, the filtration vessel 1 may be placed directly on the bottom sand BS in the aquarium, or the filtration vessel 1 may be placed on another base placed on the bottom sand BS. Also, the filtration vessel 1 may not be placed on the bottom sand BS, but may be fixed to the inner wall surface of the aquarium by a fixing means such as a suction cup provided on the filtration vessel 1.

[0023] Next, with the filtration vessel 1 partially immersed in the aquarium water stored in the aquarium, the air pump P is operated. This generates a large number of air bubbles (41, 41...) in the filtration vessel 1 by the air bubble generating unit 2, and as these air bubbles 41 rise, an ascending water current is generated in the filtration vessel 1. By utilizing this ascending water current, aquarium water is sucked into the filtration vessel 1 through the water intake 13 at the bottom of the filtration vessel 1, and the ascending water current of the sucked aquarium water is filtered by the filtration unit 3.

[0024] 5, the filtered water that has passed through the filtration section 3 is ejected from the lower part of the ejection port 14 to the outside of the filtration vessel 1 (black arrow WF), and at the same time, the gas above the water surface WS2 in the filtration vessel 1 is ejected from the upper part of the ejection port 14 to the outside of the filtration vessel 1 (white arrow AF). In this way, the aquarium water stored in the aquarium is circulated and filtered by the simple filtration device 10 of this embodiment.

[0025] As described above, according to the simple filtration device 10 of this embodiment, not only the filtered water in the filter container 1 but also the gas can be ejected from the ejection port 14 of the filter container 1 at the same time, so that the structure and shape of the device can be significantly simplified, and maintenance work such as disassembly and cleaning can be performed very easily. There is also no problem with the conventional product having a drain hole and an exhaust hole separately, which makes the structure and shape complicated.

[0026] In addition, in the simple filtration device 10 of this embodiment, the opening 11a of the filtration container 1 is closed by the lid 12, and most of the numerous air bubbles (42, 42...) floating on the water surface WS2 in the filtration container 1 burst within the filtration container 1, and some of the air bubbles 42 that have traveled to the nozzle 14 also adhere to the opening edge of the nozzle 14, which is made of narrow slits 14a, and burst there. Therefore, unlike conventional products, numerous air bubbles are not released directly into the water tank, and it is possible to reliably prevent water from splashing around the water tank due to bubble bursting.

[0027] Furthermore, in the simple filtration device 10 of this embodiment, the width of the outlet 14 at the position of the water surface WS2 in the filtration vessel 1 is made smaller than the inner diameter of the filtration vessel 1, so that the gas above the water surface WS2 in the filtration vessel 1 can be guided so as to concentrate toward the outlet 14 and be ejected from the outlet 14, as shown by the outlined arrow AF in Fig. 6. This causes the air bubbles 42 floating on the water surface WS2 to gather and combine with each other, facilitating their bursting, and also makes it possible to increase the diameter of the air bubbles 42 and ensure that the bubbles are broken by the slits 14a.

[0028] Moreover, in the simple filtration device 10 of this embodiment, the opening 11a of the filtration container 1 is closed in an airtight state by the lid 12, and the outlet 14 is composed of a narrow slit 14a, so that, as shown in Fig. 5, the air pressure in the internal space S above the water surface WS2 in the filtration container 1 can be increased during use to improve the ejection force of the gas from the upper part of the outlet 14, and further, the ejection force of the filtered water ejected from the lower part of the outlet 14 can be improved by contact with the ejected gas. Therefore, according to the simple filtration device 10 of this embodiment, the gas and filtered water ejected vigorously from the outlet 14 can promote the circulation of the aquarium water stored in the aquarium, which can also contribute to improving the environment in the aquarium.

[0029] Furthermore, in the simple filtration device 10 of this embodiment, the opening 11a of the filtration container 1 is closed in an airtight manner by the lid 12, and the internal space S of the filtration container 1 communicates with the outside only at the upper part of the nozzle 14 consisting of the narrow slit 14a, so that the external diffusion of bubble bursting sounds generated within the filtration container 1 can be significantly suppressed, resulting in excellent quietness during use.

[0030] Moreover, in the simple filtration device 10 of this embodiment, the filtration section 3 is configured to include a large number of granular filtration materials (31, 32), and the bubble-generating section main body 21 of the bubble-generating section 2 is buried in these granular filtration materials (31, 32), so that oxygen can be efficiently supplied to the bacteria etc. responsible for biological filtration, improving the filtration efficiency of the filtration section 3. Furthermore, the entire filtration vessel 1 can be made compact, and the ease of maintenance work such as disassembly and cleaning of the simple filtration device 10 and the ease of handling can be improved.

[0031] When the bubble-generating section 2 is thus embedded in the filtration section 3, the granular filtering material (31, 32) of the filtration section 3 acts as a resistance to the upward movement of the bubbles generated by the bubble-generating section 2, and therefore the force of the rising water current generated in the filtration vessel 1 will be weaker than when the bubble-generating section 2 is not embedded in the filtration section 3. However, as described above, the ejection force of the gas and filtered water can be improved by the ejection port 14 consisting of the slit 14a of the filtration vessel 1, so there is no risk of the circulating filtration of the aquarium water being stagnated.

[0032] In addition, since the ejection force of the gas and filtered water can be improved by the ejection port 14 consisting of the slits 14a, it is not necessary to increase the amount of gas supplied by the air pump P in order to compensate for the force of the rising water current in the filtration vessel 1. Therefore, according to the simple filtration device 10 of this embodiment, there is no increase in the operating noise caused by the increase in the output of the air pump P, and in this respect, it is also excellent in quietness during use.

[0033] Although the simple filtration device 10 of this embodiment has been described above, the present invention can be implemented in other embodiments.

[0034] For example, in the above embodiment, a bottomed cylinder having a circular cross section is used as the container body 11 of the filtration vessel 1, but the present invention is by no means limited to this, and a bottomed cylinder having another cross section, such as a bottomed square cylinder having a rectangular cross section, may be used as the container body 41 of the filtration vessel 4, as shown in Fig. 7. Also, in the above embodiment, the opening 11a of the container body 11 is airtightly closed by the screw-on lid 12, but instead, the opening of the container body may be airtightly closed by a hinged lid.

[0035] In the above embodiment, the outlet 14 opened in the container body 11 is composed of one vertically long slit 14a, but as shown in Fig. 7, the outlet 15 opened in the container body 41 may be composed of a plurality of vertically long slits 15a arranged in parallel to one another. As in this modification, the width W3 of the outlet 15 consisting of a plurality of slits 15a may be smaller than the minimum internal dimension W4 of the container body 41 of the filtration container 4, and various design changes are possible for the width of the outlet 15, the number of slits 15a, the slit width of each slit 15a, etc., taking into consideration the ejection force of the gas and filtered water ejected from the outlet 15, etc.

[0036] In order to more stably dispose the simple filtration device according to the present invention in the water tank, a weight having a large specific gravity may be provided at the bottom of the filtration vessel 1.

[0037] The present invention may be embodied in various other forms that include improvements, modifications, and variations based on the knowledge of a person skilled in the art, without departing from the spirit of the present invention. In addition, the present invention may be embodied in a form in which any of the invention-specifying matters is replaced with other techniques within the scope of the same action or effect, and an invention-specifying matter that is integrally configured may be composed of multiple members, or an invention-specifying matter that is composed of multiple members may be embodied in a form in which it is integrally configured. [Explanation of symbols]

[0038] 10 Simple Filtration Device 1, 4 Filtration container 11, 41 Container body 11a opening 12 Lid 13 Water intake 14, 15 spout 14a, 15a slit 2. Bubble generating section 21 Bubble generating unit body 22 Air tube 3 Filtration section 31, 32 Granular filter media 41, 42 Bubbles WS1 (aquarium water) water surface WS2 (Water surface in the filter vessel) W1, W3 (nozzle width) W2, W4 (minimum inner dimensions of filtration vessel)

Claims

1. A filtration device that is partially immersed in aquarium water stored in a water tank and circulates and filters the aquarium water, A filtration vessel including a vertically elongated cylindrical vessel body having an opening at the top and a lid capable of airtightly closing the opening; a bubble generating unit provided in the filtration vessel for generating a large number of bubbles in water to cause an upward water current in the filtration vessel; A filtration unit that is housed in the filtration container and filters the aquarium water; Equipped with A water inlet is provided at the bottom of the filtration vessel, A nozzle formed of a vertically long slit is opened in the cylindrical wall of the upper part of the filtration vessel, The filtration container is disposed in the aquarium so that, during use, an upper portion of the spout is located above the water level of the aquarium water and a lower portion of the spout is located below the water level of the aquarium water; The width of the jet outlet at the water surface level in the filtration vessel is smaller than the minimum internal dimension of the filtration vessel, This simple filtration device is characterized in that by operating the bubble generating unit, the aquarium water is sucked into the filtration container through the water intake by utilizing the rising water current, while the filtered water that has passed through the filtration unit is ejected from the bottom of the outlet, and at the same time, the gas above the water surface in the filtration container is guided toward the outlet to be concentrated and ejected from the top of the outlet.

2. The filtration section includes a number of granular filtration materials accumulated in the filtration vessel, 2. The simple filtration device according to claim 1, wherein the bubble generating section is embedded in the filtration section.

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