Head hair dryer

Abstract

To miniaturize a head hair dryer.SOLUTION: A head hair dryer comprises: a first body (10) in which a wind passage (12) extending in a first direction (15) is formed; a second body (20) comprising an internal space (22) connected to the downstream side of the wind passage; a heater (41) located over the wind passage and the internal space; and a partition wall (28) provided around the heater so as to extend the wind passage in the second body. Discharge ports (21a and b) connected to the internal space are provided in a first region (28a) sandwiching the partition wall in the internal space.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a hair dryer. [Background technology]

[0002] Hair dryers that include a fan and a heater and blow hot air onto hair to dry it are widely used. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a hair dryer in which a fan and a heater are disposed on a handle that is held by a user. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Special Publication No. 2022-515494 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, in the above-mentioned conventional technology, the fan and heater are arranged in series inside the handle, which makes the handle long, and the head that guides the air in the direction to dry the hair is arranged at the end of the handle, which makes the hair dryer large in size.

[0005] An object of one aspect of the present invention is to realize a miniaturized hair dryer. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problems, the hair dryer of the present invention comprises a first housing in which an air passage extending in a first direction is formed, a second housing having an internal space connected to the downstream side of the air passage, a heater positioned across the air passage and the internal space, and a partition portion provided around the heater in the second housing so as to extend the air passage, and a plurality of first air outlets connected to the internal space are provided in a plurality of first regions in the internal space sandwiched between the partition portion. Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to one aspect of the present invention, a hair dryer can be made smaller. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a front view showing the appearance of a hair dryer according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] 2 is a cross-sectional view of the hair dryer shown in FIG. 1 along the line AA. [Diagram 3] 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the main parts of the hair dryer; FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a front view showing details of the blowing portion. [Diagram 5] 3 is a cross-sectional view of the second main body taken along line BB in FIG. 2. [Figure 6] 3 is a cross-sectional view of the second main body taken along line CC in FIG. 2. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] [Embodiment] (hair dryer) In this disclosure, a hair dryer that makes it easy to dry hair is realized, but first, the hair dryer in this disclosure will be described. In this disclosure, the term "hair dryer" refers to any device that can dry hair using gas. Therefore, the hair dryer also includes a device that can dry other objects (e.g., pet hair) in addition to hair, and a blow dryer or handheld dryer that can be used for purposes other than drying hair.

[0010] The hair dryer includes, for example, a device capable of drying hair and blowing gas onto the skin to care for the skin. The temperature of the gas supplied by the hair dryer is not particularly limited. For example, the hair dryer may be capable of supplying at least one of hot air and cold air.

[0011] Here, "cold air" is not defined by an absolute temperature, but refers to air supplied without substantially heating the gas supplied by a heating means such as a heater. In contrast, "hot air" refers to air supplied by heating the gas supplied by a heating means such as a heater.

[0012] The type of gas is not particularly limited. Examples of preferred gases include air, nitrogen, oxygen, argon, and carbon dioxide. These gases are preferably gases in the temperature range in which the hair dryer is used.

[0013] (Overview of Hair Dryer 1) An embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below. Fig. 1 is a front view showing the appearance of a hair dryer 1 according to this embodiment. Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the hair dryer 1 taken along line AA in Fig. 1.

[0014] As shown in Fig. 1, the hair dryer 1 includes a first body (first housing) 10 having a substantially cylindrical shape that is held by a user, and a second body (second housing) 20 having a substantially cylindrical shape connected to one end of the first body 10. The shape of the first body 10 is not limited to a substantially cylindrical shape, and may be a polygonal columnar shape as long as it is columnar, and the corners of the polygonal columnar shape may be rounded. Similarly, the shape of the second body 20 is not limited to a substantially cylindrical shape, and may be a polygonal columnar shape as long as it is columnar, and the corners of the polygonal columnar shape may be rounded.

[0015] In the drawings, the direction in which the first main body 10 extends is indicated as the Z direction, the direction perpendicular to the Z direction is indicated as the X direction, and the direction perpendicular to the X and Z directions is indicated as the Y direction.

[0016] The first main body 10 has a shape extending in one direction (Z direction in the figure) and has a gripping part 14 that is gripped by a user. The first main body 10 is provided with an operation part 60 composed of a plurality of switches. In addition, the second main body is connected to one end of the first main body 10, and a power cable 80 is connected to the other end.

[0017] An air intake 13 is disposed between the power cable 80 and the grip portion 14 in the first main body 10. The cross-sectional shape of the air intake 13 may be, for example, elongated or dot-shaped.

[0018] The second body 20 has a shape extending in a direction (Y direction in the figure) substantially perpendicular to the direction in which the first body 10 extends, and one end of the second body 20 is closed. On the other hand, a blowing section 25 is disposed at the other end of the second body 20. The blowing section 25 is provided with a plurality of blowing ports 21. Gas passes from the intake port 13 through the first body 10 and the second body 20 to the blowing section 25. The blowing section 25 is also provided with a distance sensor 23 that measures the distance to the object to be dried.

[0019] The distance sensor 23 may be, for example, of a TOF (Time Of Flight) type, and may have a light emitting section and a light receiving section made of semiconductor lasers. However, the distance sensor 23 is not limited to a TOF type, and may be of another type. The distance sensor 23 measures the distance from the position where the distance sensor 23 is provided to an object (at least a part of the human body (e.g., the scalp, hair, etc.) or a member) that exists in front of the distance sensor 23. When the hair is dried by the hair dryer 1, the distance sensor 23 measures the distance to the hair. Note that the distance sensor 23 does not necessarily have to be provided.

[0020] As shown in Fig. 2, the hair dryer 1 is provided therein with at least one ion generating unit 24 for supplying ions to the gas to be blown, and a cylindrical member 40. The ion generating unit 24 is provided on the rear side of the blowing section 25, and has an electrode 24A protruding toward a hollow portion (internal space 22 described below) inside the second main body 20. The second main body 20 has a hole 27 used for cleaning the electrode 24A of the ion generating unit 24 in a region facing the electrode 24A of the ion generating unit 24 (see Fig. 5).

[0021] In addition, reference numeral 22 in FIG. 2 indicates the schematic shape of the internal space by a dashed line, and the cross-sectional view of FIG. 2 shows the schematic overall shape of the internal space including a space portion that is not actually shown.

[0022] The ion generating unit 24 is a unit that generates ions. The ion generating unit 24 may generate at least one of negative ions and positive ions, or may generate both. For example, the ion generating unit 24 may include, as the electrode 24A, a needle-shaped discharge electrode and a ring-shaped induction electrode that surrounds the periphery of the discharge electrode. In this case, a voltage is applied between the discharge electrode and the induction electrode to generate a corona discharge, and H + Positive ions such as (HO)m and O 2- It is also possible to generate both positive and negative ions such as (H2O)n. The generated positive ions and negative ions are released together with the air blown out from the air outlet 21. Note that the ion generating unit 24 is not essential and may not be provided.

[0023] The ion generating unit 24 according to one embodiment of the present invention is an example of a charged particle supply (generation) mechanism. The charged particle supply (generation) mechanism is a mechanism that supplies (generates) charged particles.

[0024] The term "charged particles" refers to particles that are not electrically neutral, or active species that have been activated to a non-electrically neutral state. Charged particles are not limited to particles that have an electric charge, and include, for example, particles such as atoms and molecules that have no electric charge but have unpaired electrons. Specifically, charged particles include, for example, ions with positive or negative charges, complexes of ions with positive or negative charges, radicals, electrons, protons, and the like.

[0025] The charged particle supply (generation) mechanism may be, for example, a mechanism that supplies (generates) only one type of charged particle, or may be a mechanism that supplies (generates) multiple types of charged particles. The charged particle supply (generation) mechanism may be, for example, a mechanism that supplies (generates) both positive ions or complexes of positive ions (for example, complexes in which positive ions are coordinated with polar molecules such as water molecules) and negative ions or complexes of negative ions (for example, complexes in which negative ions are coordinated with polar molecules such as water molecules). The charged particle supply (generation) mechanism may be, for example, a mechanism that supplies (generates) only one of the complexes of positive ions and negative ions.

[0026] The cylindrical member 40 is a cylindrical member that communicates from the air passage 12 of the first body 10 to the internal space 22 of the second body 20. The cylindrical member 40 is formed of a flame-retardant material. The heater 41 is inserted into the cylindrical member 40. A cylindrical sheet (not shown) is provided between the cylindrical member 40 and the heater 41, and the cylindrical sheet is formed using flame-retardant mica as a main material. In this embodiment, the cylindrical member 40, the heater 41, and the cylindrical sheet have approximately the same length in the longitudinal direction (Z direction). It is preferable that the cylindrical member 40 and the cylindrical sheet are longer than the heater 41. In addition, more than half of the total length (total length) of the cylindrical member 40 and the heater 41 in the longitudinal direction is located in the internal space 22. The tip of the cylindrical member 40 and the heater 41 on the internal space 22 side is located above the midpoint of the internal space 22 in the Z direction.

[0027] An area inside first main body 10 is referred to as air passage 12. Air passage 12 may be formed from the position of fan 11 (electric blower) housed in first main body 10, or may be formed from air intake port 13. Air passage 12 is formed by extending in first direction (Z direction) 15. In addition, a space formed inside second main body 20 is referred to as internal space 22. Internal space 22 is connected to the downstream side of air passage 12.

[0028] The cylindrical member 40 is housed in the partition wall portion 28 (see Figs. 5 and 6) formed in the second body 20 and the first body 10. The partition wall portion 28 is formed in the second body 20 to match the outer shape of the cylindrical member 40. That is, the partition wall portion 28 has a substantially cylindrical shape with openings at both ends, and air passes through the openings. That is, the heater 41 is located in the air passage 12 and the internal space 22 via the cylindrical member 40. As a result, the partition wall portion 28 is provided around the heater 41 in the second body 20 so as to extend the air passage 12. Due to the presence of the cylindrical member 40, the air entering from the opening passes through the inside of the cylindrical member 40, and therefore the air can be sent without leaking out from the joint between the first body 10 and the second body 20.

[0029] In the hair dryer 1, air is sucked in through the air intake 13, blown out by the fan 11, passes through the air passage 12, and is heated as it passes through the heater 41, and then the hot or cold air is blown out from the air outlet 21 to the items to be dried. A substrate is disposed inside the first body 10 between the fan 11 and the air intake 13, and the substrate is cooled by the air flow generated by the rotation of the fan 11.

[0030] FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the main parts of the hair dryer 1. The operation unit 60 includes an ON / OFF switch 61, a one-shot cold air switch 62, a mode change switch 63, and an air volume change switch 64. When the ON / OFF switch 61 is turned on, power from the power cable 80 is supplied to each part of the hair dryer 1. When the ON / OFF switch 61 is turned off, power supply to each part of the hair dryer 1 is stopped. In addition, the one-shot cold air switch 62 transmits a signal notifying the control unit 50 that the switch has been operated every time the switch is operated. The control unit 50 alternately controls the heater 41 to be on / off every time the control unit 50 receives a signal from the one-shot cold air switch 62. Note that the control unit 50 may alternately connect and cut off the power from the power cable 80 to the heater 41 every time the one-shot cold air switch 62 is pressed, without going through the control unit 50. The mode change switch 63 and the air volume change switch 64 transmit a signal notifying the control unit 50 that the switch has been operated every time the switch is operated. The control unit 50 controls the rotation speed of the fan 11, the heat output of the heater 41, and the on / off of the ion generating unit 24 in response to signals from the mode change switch 63 and the air volume change switch 64. Each switch may be, for example, a button. That is, the control unit 50 controls each part of the hair dryer 1 in an integrated manner.

[0031] (Blowout section 25) FIG. 4 is a front view showing the details of the blowing section 25. The blowing section 25 is provided at a downstream end facing the internal space 22, where the wind flowing through the air passage 12 blows out. The blowing section 25 is provided with three or more blowing outlets 21, which communicate with the internal space 22. Specifically, in this embodiment, four blowing outlets 21 are provided. The centroids of each blowing outlet 21 on the plane on which the blowing section 25 is arranged are represented by centroids P1 to P4. A quadrangle formed by connecting the centroids P1 to P4 with straight lines is a square, and the centroid of the square is represented by centroid C. The plane on which the blowing section 25 is arranged (XY plane in the figure) is perpendicular to the flow direction of the gas in the blowing section 25. Moreover, a region in the blowing section 25 where no blowing outlet 21 exists is a closed region from which gas is not blown out.

[0032] Moreover, the air outlet 21 opens toward a second direction 21e (Y direction) different from the first direction 15 (Z direction). The angle between the first direction 15 and the second direction 21e may be, but is not limited to, 90°.

[0033] In order to distinguish between the four air outlets 21, the air outlets 21 corresponding to the centroids P1 to P4 are referred to as air outlets 21a to 21d, respectively. That is, the centroid P1 is located at the air outlet 21a, the centroid P2 is located at the air outlet 21b, the centroid P3 is located at the air outlet 21c, and the centroid P4 is located at the air outlet 21d.

[0034] (Structure of internal space 22) Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB of the second body 20 in Fig. 2. Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along line CC of the second body 20 in Fig. 2. The second body 20 has an internal space 22, which is a hollow portion. The internal space 22 includes a curved surface with a gentle curvature change. This is to allow the flow of air to change smoothly. As a result, air can be blown with little pressure loss.

[0035] Second main body 20 has wall portion 26 on an extension of air passage 12. Wind that has flowed from air passage 12 into internal space 22 hits wall portion 26, and guides the wind in a direction along wall portion 26. Wall portion 26 is formed with ridge portion 26a toward the upstream side of air passage 12, and ridge portion 26a causes the wind that hits wall portion 26 to be divided into two directions in internal space 22 and guided therein.

[0036] Furthermore, the wind guided by the wall portion 26 passes through the internal space 22 and is blown out from the air outlet 21. The internal space 22 is formed into a curved surface that is curved in a convex shape facing outward.

[0037] (Relationship between partition wall portion 28 and air outlet 21) As described above, the cylindrical member 40 is disposed in the partition wall portion 28 in the second main body 20. Moreover, the heater 41 is provided inside the cylindrical member 40. As a result, in the second main body 20, the partition wall portion 28 is provided around the heater 41. Moreover, the partition wall portion 28 may surround the heater 41 in the XY plane in the internal space 22. Here, the XY plane is a plane perpendicular to the first direction 15.

[0038] In a plurality of first regions 28a sandwiching the partition wall portion 28 in the internal space 22, an air outlet 21a (first air outlet) and an air outlet 21b (first air outlet) connected to the internal space 22 are provided. In a second region 28b excluding the first regions 28a in the internal space 22, an air outlet 21c (second air outlet) and an air outlet 21d (second air outlet) connected to the internal space 22 are provided.

[0039] The wind from air passage 12 is split into two winds by wall portion 26, one of which reaches outlet 21b via outlet 21c, and the other reaches outlet 21a via outlet 21d. After that, the wind that has passed through internal space 22 is blown out from outlets 21a-d. Note that the wind passing through outlets 21a-d only needs to pass through the areas in which each of outlets 21a-d is located. Note that since there are four outlets 21, a sufficient amount of air can be obtained to dry hair.

[0040] Due to the positional relationship between the partition 28 and the air outlet 21, the overall length (total length) of the hair dryer 1 in the longitudinal direction, that is, the Z direction, can be shortened. In other words, the distance between the end of the heater 41 on the longitudinal side of the internal space 22 and the ridge 26a is shorter than the distance between the end of the heater 41 on the longitudinal side of the internal space 22 and the joint between the first body 10 and the second body 20. By inserting the heater 41 deep into the internal space 22 in this manner, the overall length (total length) of the hair dryer 1 in the longitudinal direction, that is, the Z direction, can be shortened. In other words, the hair dryer 1 can be made more compact.

[0041] Therefore, the position and posture of the second main body 20 can be easily adjusted to the user's desired state, and hair can be dried efficiently. Also, since space-consuming and heavy items such as the fan 11 and the heater 41 can be stored inside the first main body 10 held by the user, the second main body 20 can be easily handled. Therefore, hair can be dried easily.

[0042] Here, if a hair dryer in which the fan and the heater are arranged in series in the handle as in the conventional technology, the hair dryer would be large in size. Therefore, the head would be located away from the handle that the user holds, making it difficult to move the head around the hair. Therefore, the hair dryer 1 according to this embodiment makes it easier to dry hair than the conventional technology.

[0043] 〔summary〕 The hair dryer according to aspect 1 of the present invention comprises a first housing having an air passage extending in a first direction, a second housing having an internal space connected to the downstream side of the air passage, a heater positioned across the air passage and the internal space, and a partition section provided around the heater in the second housing so as to extend the air passage, and a plurality of first air outlets connected to the internal space are provided in a plurality of first regions in the internal space sandwiched between the partition section.

[0044] According to the above configuration, a low-profile hair dryer can be realized, the second housing can be easily moved, and a hair dryer that makes it easy to dry hair can be realized.

[0045] The hair dryer according to aspect 2 of the present invention may be configured as in aspect 1 above, wherein a second air outlet connected to the internal space is provided in a second region of the internal space excluding the first region.

[0046] According to the above configuration, even if the hair dryer is short, a sufficient amount of air can be obtained from the first air outlet and the second air outlet.

[0047] The hair dryer according to a third aspect of the present invention is the hair dryer according to the first or second aspect, wherein the partition portion surrounds the heater in the internal space.

[0048] The hair dryer according to aspect 4 of the present invention may be configured in any one of aspects 1 to 3 above, further comprising a tubular member extending from the air passage to the internal space, the heater being inserted into the tubular member and a portion of the tubular member being disposed in the partition portion.

[0049] According to the above configuration, air is blown through the cylindrical member, so that air can be blown without leaking from the joint between the first housing and the second housing.

[0050] A hair dryer according to a fifth aspect of the present invention is the hair dryer of any one of the first to fourth aspects, wherein the first air outlet is open in a second direction different from the first direction.

[0051] According to the above configuration, the fan, heater, and air outlet are not arranged in a straight line, but are bent along the way, resulting in a compact hair dryer that is easy to handle and allows for easy drying of hair.

[0052] [Additional Notes] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the claims. The technical scope of the present invention also includes embodiments obtained by appropriately combining the technical means disclosed in the embodiment. Furthermore, new technical features can be formed by combining the technical means disclosed in the embodiment. [Explanation of symbols]

[0053] 1 Hair dryer (hot air blower) 10 First main body (first housing) 11 Fan 12 Wind path 15 1st direction 20 Second main body (second housing) 21 Air outlet 21e 2nd direction 22 Interior Space 26 Wall 26a Minebe 28 Bulkhead 28a 1st area 28b 2nd area 40 Cylindrical member 41 Heater

Claims

1. A first housing having an air passage extending in a first direction; a second housing having an internal space connected to a downstream side of the air passage; A heater located across the air passage and the internal space; a partition wall portion provided around the heater in the second housing so as to extend the air passage; A hair dryer, wherein a plurality of first air outlets connected to the internal space are provided in a plurality of first regions in the internal space that are disposed on either side of the partition wall.

2. The hair dryer according to claim 1 , wherein a second air outlet connected to the internal space is provided in a second region excluding the first region in the internal space.

3. The hair dryer according to claim 1 , wherein the partition portion surrounds the heater in the internal space.

4. Further comprising a cylindrical member extending from the air passage to the internal space, The cylindrical member is The heater is inserted, The hair dryer according to claim 3 , wherein a part of the hair dryer is disposed in the partition portion.

5. The hair dryer according to claim 4 , wherein the first air outlet is open in a second direction different from the first direction.

6. Further comprising a cylindrical member extending from the air passage to the internal space, The cylindrical member is The heater is inserted, The hair dryer according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a part of the hair dryer is disposed in the partition portion.

7. The hair dryer according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the first air outlet is open in a second direction different from the first direction.

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