Cartridge and cartridge driving method

Abstract

To provide a cartridge capable of suppressing necessary power to control the ejection of a fluid such as gas, liquid, and powder, and its driving method.SOLUTION: A cartridge includes a housing having a cavity therein leading to the outside in a first opening and a second opening to store a fragrance source, a movable member arranged in a movable manner between a first position for closing the first opening and the second opening and a second position for opening the first opening and the second opening, and a drive part for driving the movable member so as to move the movable member between the first position and the second position. The drive part takes either of a first state for holding the movable member at the first position and a second state for holding the movable member at the second position according to the direction of magnetic force from the outside, and maintains a state when the magnetic force disappears even if the magnetic force from the outside disappears.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to a technique for controlling the movement of fluids, and particularly to a cartridge for containing fluids such as gases, liquids, powders, etc. and a driving method thereof.

Background Art

[0002] As an aroma generator, there is, for example, one installed in a vehicle or the like. As an aroma generator used in a vehicle, it is often the case that a cartridge is used. However, when using a cartridge, the following problems may be considered.

[0003] For example, a vehicle may be left parked in a parking lot for a long time. In the hot summer sun, the temperature inside the vehicle becomes very high. If the cartridge or the aroma generator is left in such a state for a long time, the temperature of the fragrance source inside the cartridge may rise and melt, and there is a possibility of flowing out to the outside through the opening of the cartridge. In such a case, not only may the aroma generator and the interior of the vehicle be soiled, but there is also a possibility of irreversibly affecting the aroma generator and the vehicle interior.

[0004] Also, under high-temperature conditions, since the fragrance components from the fragrance source are likely to volatilize, not only does the life of the cartridge become shorter, but depending on the situation, an unintended strong aroma may be emitted, which may cause discomfort to the passengers.

[0005] To solve such problems, it is conceivable to provide a shutter at the opening of the cartridge. However, when a shutter is provided, the problem becomes how to open and close the shutter. As a normal idea, it is reasonable for the shutter to be in a closed state at all times and to open only when generating an aroma. In such a case, it is important what mechanism is adopted to drive the shutter.

[0006] As such a mechanism, Patent Document 1 discloses an electromagnetic valve for a brake that combines a spring and a solenoid. It is conceivable to drive a shutter provided in a cartridge using such an electromagnetic valve.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0007]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0008] When using a solenoid as shown in Patent Document 1 to drive the shutter of a cartridge, it is necessary to supply power to the solenoid to drive the solenoid while the fragrance is being generated. However, if the valve is open for a long time, the time to drive the solenoid becomes long, and there is a problem that the power consumption increases. In particular, when controlling the ejection of gas from a cartridge in a portable device driven by a battery or the like, the available power is limited. When the time to drive the solenoid becomes long, the battery is consumed quickly and the time the device can be used is limited.

[0009] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a cartridge and a driving method thereof that can suppress the power required to control the ejection of fluids such as gas, liquid, and powder.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0010] The cartridge according to the first aspect of the present invention includes a housing having a cavity communicating to the outside at a first opening and a second opening for containing a fluid, a movable member movably disposed between a first position for opening the first opening and the second opening and a second position for closing the first opening and the second opening, and a driving unit for driving the movable member so that the movable member moves between the first position and the second position. The driving unit takes either a first state of holding the movable member at the first position or a second state of holding the movable member at the second position according to the direction of an external magnetic force, and maintains the state when the external magnetic force disappears even after the external magnetic force disappears.

[0011] Preferably, the driving unit includes a permanent magnet fixed to the movable member and an elastic member for biasing the magnet in the direction of the movable member.

[0012] More preferably, the elastic member includes a leaf spring disposed so as to bias the permanent magnet toward the inside of the housing such that the permanent magnet is fixed at the center and both ends are in contact with the inner wall inside the housing.

[0013] Preferably, the housing has a cylindrical shape having a first end face and a second end face, the first opening and the second opening are provided in the first end face and the second end face respectively, the movable member has a first closing member for closing the first opening, a second closing member for closing the second opening, a first end portion disposed closer to the first end face than the second end face, and a second end portion disposed closer to the second end face than the first end face, and a support member for supporting the first closing member at the first end portion and the second closing member at the second end portion. The permanent magnet is provided on the support member on the side opposite to the first closing member and the second closing member at an intermediate position between the first end portion and the second end portion of the support member.

[0014] More preferably, the driving unit is disposed inside the housing.

[0015] Even more preferably, the housing has a cylindrical shape with a side surface that is partially flat, and the driving unit is disposed inside the housing such that the magnet faces the flat part of the side surface.

[0016] The cartridge driving method according to the second aspect of the present invention is a cartridge driving method for driving any of the above-described cartridges, including the steps of: arranging an electromagnet having a core made of a magnetic material at a portion of a side surface of the housing facing the driving unit; changing the state of the driving unit to a first state by passing a current in a first direction through the electromagnet in response to a first driving signal from a computer; a first cutting step in which the computer cuts off the current to the electromagnet following the first state change step; a second state change step in which, in response to a second driving signal emitted from the computer following the first cutting step, the state of the driving unit is changed to a second state by passing a current in a second direction opposite to the first direction through the electromagnet; and a second cutting step in which the computer cuts off the current to the electromagnet following the second state change step.

[0017] The above and other objects, features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the present invention understood in connection with the accompanying drawings.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0018]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

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Figure 8

Figure 9

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0019] In the following description and drawings, the same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals. Therefore, detailed descriptions thereof will not be repeated. The embodiments disclosed below relate to a cartridge for holding a solid fragrance source. However, the cartridge referred to in the present invention is not limited to such a thing, and generally refers to a container for containing fluids such as gases such as carbon dioxide gas, liquids such as perfumes and inks, and powders such as toners and food materials.

[0020] 1 First Embodiment 1A Configuration Referring to FIG. 1, the cartridge 100 according to the first embodiment is used in an apparatus that holds a fragrance source and ejects air containing fragrance. The cartridge 100 includes a rectangular parallelepiped cylindrical housing 110 having a cavity inside, and a cap 114 attached to one end face of the housing 110. An opening 200 (see FIGS. 3 and 4) through which air containing fragrance from the internal fragrance source is ejected is formed at the center of the end face (referred to as the first end face) of the housing 110 to which the cap 114 is attached. An opening 118 is formed at the center of the cap 114 so as to coincide with the opening 200 of the housing 110. An opening 202 (see FIGS. 2, 3, and 4) similar to the first end face is formed at the end face (not shown) of the housing 110 opposite to the first end face.

[0021] On the side surface of the housing 110, an electromagnet 112 having an iron core inside is disposed. In this embodiment, the electromagnet 112 is not part of the cartridge 100. The electromagnet 112 is provided in an aroma generating device (not shown) to which the cartridge 100 is attached. The electromagnet 112 is provided at a position where it contacts the side surface of the housing 110 when the cartridge 100 is attached to the aroma generating device. Note that the core of the electromagnet is not limited to an iron core, and any ferromagnetic metal for magnets may be used. For example, in addition to iron, nickel, cobalt, and alloys thereof can be used.

[0022] On the second end face of the cartridge 100, a micro blower 116 for sending air into the opening 202 provided on the second end face of the housing 110 in response to a drive instruction signal for instructing external aroma generation is attached. In this embodiment, the micro blower 116 is also not part of the cartridge 100 and is provided in the aroma generating device. The micro blower 116 is provided at a position where the air outlet 164 (see FIG. 2) of the micro blower 116 contacts the opening 202 on the second end face of the housing 110 when the cartridge 100 is attached to the aroma generating device. Note that the micro blower 116 uses a piezoelectric element, and when an alternating voltage is applied, the piezoelectric element vibrates to create an air flow by the vibration of the piezoelectric element. When the micro blower 116 sends air from the air outlet 164 into the opening 202 on the second end face of the housing 110, the air containing the aroma from the fragrance source housed inside the housing 110 is blown out from the opening 200 on the first end face side and further blown out to the outside through the opening 118.

[0023] FIG. 2 shows an exploded perspective view of the cartridge 100, FIG. 3 shows the internal state of the cartridge 100 when no aroma is generated, and FIG. 4 shows the internal state of the cartridge 100 when aroma is generated, each as a cross-sectional view taken along the arrow in the 3-3 direction of FIG. 1.

[0024] Referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, the electromagnet 112 includes an iron core 160 disposed at the center and a coil 162 wound around the periphery thereof.

[0025] Referring to FIGS. 2 to 4, the housing 110 includes a first housing 140 and a second housing 142 assembled to the first housing 140. A cavity 144 is formed inside the second housing 142. The cavity 144 houses a fragrance tablet 146 and a fragrance tablet 148 serving as fragrance sources. Fragrance is emitted in a gaseous state from the fragrance tablet 146 and the fragrance tablet 148. A partition plate 152 for separating the cavity 144 from the cavity inside the second housing 142 is fixed to the first housing 140 by screws. The cavity 144 is defined by the second housing 142 and the partition plate 152. The cavity 144 is combined so as to be in a sealed state so as not to leak the fragrance of the fragrance tablet 146 and the fragrance tablet 148 to the outside. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, an opening 200 is formed at the center of the first end face of the housing 110 formed by combining the first housing 140 and the second housing 142. Also, an opening 202 is formed at the center of the second end face of the cartridge 100. The position of the opening 200 and the position of the opening 118 of the cap 114 coincide in an opposed state, and the air containing the fragrance blown out from the housing 110 through the opening 200 is further ejected to the outside through the opening 118. On the other hand, the position of the opening 202 and the position of the air outlet 164 of the micro blower 116 also coincide in an opposed state.

[0026] The cartridge 100 further includes a movable member 174 disposed in a cavity formed between the partition plate 152 and the first housing 140 and movable between a first position where the opening 200 and the opening 202 are opened and a second position where the opening 200 and the opening 202 are closed, and a driving unit 150 for driving the movable member 174 to move between the first position and the second position by a magnetic force generated by the electromagnet 112.

[0027] The drive unit 150 includes, at the central portion of the movable member 174, a flat cylindrical permanent magnet 170 fixed to the lower surface of the movable member 174 (the surface opposite to the second housing 142) at the centers of both ends of the movable member 174, and a leaf spring 172 having a central portion sandwiched between the permanent magnet 170 and the movable member 174 and disposed inside the first housing 140 such that both ends thereof contact the inner surface of the first housing 140. The leaf spring 172 is disposed so as to bias the permanent magnet 170 and the movable member 174 toward the partition plate 152. The leaf spring 172 and the movable member 174 constituting the drive unit 150 are fixed at their respective central portions, and the movable member 174 also moves in the vertical direction according to the movement of the drive unit 150.

[0028] The drive unit 150 takes two states: a first state in which the permanent magnet 170 is magnetically coupled to the iron core 160 of the electromagnet 112 via the side wall of the first housing 140 and contacts the inner wall of the first housing 140, and a second state in which there is no magnetic force by the electromagnet 112, the permanent magnet 170 is separated from the electromagnet 112, and the permanent magnet 170 pushes up the movable member 174 by the biasing force. In the first state, the movable member 174 is pulled back downward by the permanent magnet 170. As a result, in the first state, the openings 200 and 202 are opened. In the second state, the movable member 174 is pushed up, and both the opening 200 and the opening 202 are closed by the movable member 174.

[0029] To obtain such an effect, the permanent magnet 170 is disposed at a position facing the iron core 160 of the electromagnet 112. In this embodiment, the permanent magnet 170 facing the iron core 160 means a state in which one of the flat surfaces of the cylindrical permanent magnet 170 faces the iron core 160 and the permanent magnet 170 is disposed such that the distance between the iron core 160 and the permanent magnet 170 is minimized. By disposing the electromagnet 112 and the permanent magnet 170 in this way, the drive unit 150 can be operated most efficiently.

[0030] For example, in the state shown in FIG. 3, a current is passed through the coil 162 so that the magnetic poles of the magnetic force generated in the electromagnet 112 are different magnetic poles (N for S, S for N) from the magnetic poles on the electromagnet 112 side of the permanent magnet 170. (This direction is defined as the first direction.) Then, the permanent magnet 170 is attracted to the electromagnet 112 and moves to a position where it contacts the inner wall of the first housing 140. That state is the state shown in FIG. 4 (the first state). When the first state shown in FIG. 4 is reached, even if the current flowing through the coil 162 is cut off, the position of the permanent magnet 170 is maintained by the magnetic force coupling between the permanent magnet 170 and the iron core 160. That is, even if no current is flowing through the coil 162, the permanent magnet 170 is maintained in the state shown in FIG. 4.

[0031] On the other hand, when a current in the direction opposite to the first direction (defined as the second direction) is passed through the coil 162, the magnetic poles of the magnetic force generated in the iron core 160 and the magnetic poles on the iron core 160 side of the permanent magnet 170 become the same, so a repulsive force is generated between the two. Therefore, the permanent magnet 170 moves in a direction away from the iron core 160. As a result, the permanent magnet 170 pushes up the movable member 174, and the cartridge 100 returns to the state shown in FIG. 3 (the second state). Even if the current flowing through the coil 162 is cut off in this state, the state of the permanent magnet 170 and the movable member 174 is maintained in the state shown in FIG. 3 by the biasing force of the leaf spring 172.

[0032] That is, in this embodiment, when switching the state of the drive unit 150 between the first state and the second state, it is only necessary to pass currents in opposite directions through the coil 162 of the electromagnet 112. After the drive unit 150 reaches the first state or the second state, even if the current to the coil 162 is cut off, the state of the drive unit 150 is maintained. As a result, the electric power required to maintain the open / closed states of the openings 200 and 202 becomes unnecessary.

[0033] 1B Operation The operation of the cartridge 100 according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 to 8. FIGS. 5 and 6 show a state in which the opening 200 is closed by the movable member 174, and FIGS. 7 and 8 show a state in which the opening 200 is open. That is, the movable member 174 includes a first closing member 210 for closing the opening 200 on the first end face of the housing 110, a second closing member 212 for closing the opening 202 on the second end face of the housing 110, a first end portion disposed closer to the first end face than the second end face, and a second end portion disposed closer to the second end face than the first end face, and a support member 214 that supports the first closing member 210 at the first end portion and the second closing member 212 at the second end portion. In addition, in FIGS. 5 to 8, for the purpose of making the explanation easier to understand, the details of the upper half of the cartridge 100 (inside the second housing 142 in FIG. 2) are not shown.

[0034] Referring to FIGS. 5 and 6, an aroma generating device using the cartridge 100 includes a control circuit 254 for outputting a drive instruction signal for generating an aroma from the cartridge 100 and a stop instruction signal for stopping the generation of the aroma according to a predetermined program, and a current inversion circuit 252 for flowing currents in directions opposite to each other through the coil 162 of the electromagnet 112 according to the drive instruction signal and the stop instruction signal from the control circuit 254, and a battery 250 serving as a DC power source for the current inversion circuit 252 and the like.

[0035] In the states shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the opening 200 is closed and the cartridge 100 is not generating fragrance. When it is time to generate fragrance from the cartridge 100 according to the program, the control circuit 254 gives a drive instruction signal to the current inversion circuit 252, instructing it to pass a current in the first direction through the coil 162 of the electromagnet 112. In response to this drive instruction signal, the current inversion circuit 252 uses the battery 250 as a DC power source to pass a current in the first direction through the coil 162 and stops the supply of current after a predetermined time has elapsed. This predetermined time will be described later. As a result, a magnetic force that attracts the permanent magnet 170 is generated in the electromagnet 112. When this force overcomes the biasing force of the leaf spring 172, the permanent magnet 170 is attracted toward the electromagnet 112 and moves to a position in contact with the wall surface of the first housing 140. As a result, the opening 202 of the cavity 144 and the air outlet 164 of the micro blower 116 are in communication, and at the same time, the opening 200 of the cavity 144 and the opening 118 of the cap 114 are also in communication. Even if the current inversion circuit 252 cuts off the current to the coil 162 after a predetermined time has elapsed, this state is maintained by the magnetic force between the permanent magnet 170 and the electromagnet 112. This state is shown in FIGS. 7 and 8. By applying an alternating voltage to the micro blower 116 in the state shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the piezoelectric element vibrates to create an air flow, and the air is sent into the cavity 144 via the air outlet 164 and the opening 202 that are in communication, and then the air containing the fragrance components sealed in the fragrance source tablets 146 and 148 in the cavity 144 is ejected outside the cartridge 100 via the opening 200 and the opening 118 that are in communication in a gaseous state. In this embodiment, since the housing 110 is a rectangular parallelepiped, the drive unit 150 and the like can be arranged so that the portions where the permanent magnet 170 and the electromagnet 112 face each other are flat surfaces. As a result, since the permanent magnet 170 and the electromagnet 112 face each other with only the side surface of the housing 110 in between, the magnetic force can be effectively utilized. However, in the case where the housing is cylindrical, the permanent magnet 170 and the electromagnet 112 cannot be arranged as shown in this figure. Therefore, even when the housing is cylindrical or the like, it is desirable that the position where the permanent magnet 170 and the electromagnet 112 (especially the portion of the iron core 160) face each other has a flat shape.Also, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8, in the side surface of the first housing 140, a flat region 256 having a different thickness from other portions is formed in a portion sandwiched between the permanent magnet 170 and the electromagnet 112. It is desirable to make the flat region 256 thinner from the viewpoint of power saving. However, the thickness of the flat region 256 can also be adjusted so that the magnitude of the magnetic force acting between the permanent magnet 170 and the electromagnet 112 falls within a desired range.

[0036] After that, when it is time to stop the generation of the fragrance from the cartridge 100 according to the program, the control circuit 254 gives a stop instruction signal to the current inversion circuit 252, instructing it to flow a current in the second direction through the coil 162. In response to this stop instruction signal, the current inversion circuit 252 flows a current in the second direction through the coil 162 and stops the supply of the current after a predetermined time. As a result, the electromagnet 112 generates a magnetic force that produces a repulsive force between it and the permanent magnet 170. The permanent magnet 170 moves upward due to this repulsive force. The permanent magnet 170 moves together with the central portion of the leaf spring 172 and pushes up the movable member 174. As a result, the movable member 174 and the drive unit 150 are in a state where the first closing member 210 of the movable member 174 closes the opening 200 and at the same time the second closing member 212 of the movable member 174 closes the opening 202. As a result, the ejection of the fragrance from the cartridge 100 is stopped. This state is maintained by the biasing force of the leaf spring 172 even after the current flowing through the coil 162 is cut off.

[0037] FIG. 9 shows a flowchart of a program for realizing the functions of the control circuit 254 of the cartridge 100 described above by a computer. Although not shown in the figure, the aroma generator can be equipped with a plurality of the cartridges 100 shown in FIG. 1. The aroma varies depending on the cartridge. Therefore, as instructions for the aroma generator, there are at least an instruction on which cartridge to start generating the aroma and an instruction on which cartridge to stop generating the aroma. Note that the control circuit 254 also has a function of controlling the micro blower 116 of the cartridge 100. However, for the sake of clarity in the following description, the control of the micro blower 116 will not be described. The control of the micro blower 116 is performed by simply applying an alternating voltage only while generating the fragrance.

[0038] Referring to FIG. 9, this program includes, after the start of the program, a step 300 of performing initial settings such as clearing the memory and connecting to various ports, a step 302 of waiting to receive an instruction regarding the aroma generator from the computer during the execution of the program using the aroma generator, and a step 304 of branching the control flow according to whether the instruction received in step 302 is an instruction to generate the aroma or not in response to receiving any instruction in step 302.

[0039] This program further includes, in response to the determination in step 304 being affirmative, step 306 of selecting the cartridge specified by the instruction, step 308 of supplying a current in the first direction (the direction of attracting the permanent magnet 170) to the electromagnet that drives the cartridge selected in step 306, and step 310 of stopping the supply of the current after the execution of step 308 and returning the control to step 302 after a predetermined time has elapsed. The predetermined time mentioned here refers to the length of time for which the current is supplied in step 308, which varies depending on factors such as the magnitude of the current flowing through the coil 162, the weights of the movable member 174 and the permanent magnet 170, the elastic force of the leaf spring 172, and the thickness of the first housing 140 between the permanent magnet 170 and the electromagnet 112, but is determined by defining these combinations. Note that an opening may be provided in the wall surface of the first housing 140 at the position where the permanent magnet 170 and the electromagnet 112 are in contact.

[0040] This program further includes, in response to the determination in step 304 being negative, step 312 of branching the control flow according to whether the instruction received in step 302 is an instruction to stop the generation of fragrance, step 314 of selecting the cartridge specified by the instruction in response to the determination in step 312 being affirmative, step 316 of supplying a current in the second direction (the direction of moving the permanent magnet 170 away) to the electromagnet that drives the cartridge selected in step 314, and step 318 of stopping the supply of the current after the execution of step 316 and returning the control to step 302.

[0041] This program further includes, in response to the determination in step 312 being negative, step 320 of executing the process according to the instruction received in step 302 and returning the control to step 302.

[0042] By the computer executing this program until the power is turned off, the cartridge 100 can be controlled to realize the above-described movement.

[0043] 2 Variation In the above first embodiment, when the permanent magnet 170 moves away from the electromagnet 112 and the first closing member 210 and the second closing member 212 are pushed up, the openings 200 and 202 are closed. On the other hand, when the permanent magnet 170 is attracted to the electromagnet 112 and the first closing member 210 and the second closing member 212 are pulled down, the openings 200 and 202 are opened. However, the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment. Openings may be provided in portions of the first closing member 210 and the second closing member 212 corresponding to the openings 200 and 202, and when the permanent magnet 170 moves away from the electromagnet 112, these openings may be positioned corresponding to the openings 200 and 202 so that the openings 200 and 202 are opened. In this case, when the permanent magnet 170 is attracted to the electromagnet 112, the openings 200 and 202 are closed by the portions above the openings of the first closing member 210 and the second closing member 212.

[0044] In the above first embodiment, two openings are provided in the cartridge 100, and two closing members, i.e., the first closing member 210 and the second closing member 212, are provided on the movable member 174. However, the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment. More than two openings may be provided in the cartridge 100, and the same number of closing members as the corresponding number may be provided on the movable member 174 so that air containing fragrance blows out from two or more openings. Conversely, the same driving unit 150 as in the above embodiment can also be used to open and close only one opening.

[0045] In the above-described first embodiment, the leaf spring 172 is used as the elastic member that biases the movable member 174 upward. However, the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment. Instead of the leaf spring 172, an elastic body such as a so-called spring may be used. A plurality of springs may be used. When using springs, each spring may be fixed to the movable member 174 at a position different from the position of the permanent magnet 170. Also, instead of fixing the leaf spring 172 to the movable member 174 together with the permanent magnet 170, it may be fixed to the movable member 174 separately from the permanent magnet 170. Further, the top and bottom of the leaf spring 172 may be reversed compared to the example shown in FIG. 5 or the like. In this case, the leaf spring 172 may be attached to the movable member 174 while allowing the end of the leaf spring 172 to move freely in the longitudinal direction of the leaf spring 172 on the lower surface of the movable member 174. In addition to these, as the elastic body, for example, a coil spring, an elastomer, a rubber sheet, a sponge, etc. can also be used. Also, in the present embodiment, a micro blower is used as the wind power source, but a propeller fan, a centrifugal blower, an air pump, an air compressor, etc. can also be used.

[0046] In the above embodiment, the magnetic force between the permanent magnet 170 and the electromagnet 112 is used for the vertical movement of the movable member 174. However, the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment. The vertical movement of the permanent magnet 170 in the above embodiment can also be used, for example, by using the principle of a lever or a cam mechanism, etc., to change it into a rotational movement within a certain angular range. Further, by fixing the permanent magnet 170 so as to project from a rotating shaft biased to rotate in a certain direction, the movement of the permanent magnet 170 can be taken out as the rotational movement of the shaft, and the closing member may be moved.

[0047] According to the above embodiment, a member for closing the opening of the cartridge is provided. Therefore, even when the device equipped with this cartridge is left unattended in a space where the temperature may be high, such as inside a vehicle, for a long period of time, the possibility that the fragrance inside the cartridge melts and flows out to the outside can be reduced. As a result, a user-friendly cartridge and a fragrance generating device can be realized. Also, no power is required to keep the opening closed or to keep the opening open to generate fragrance. Therefore, extremely little power is required to drive the cartridge. As a result, when a fragrance generating device is incorporated into a portable device powered by a battery, there is an effect that power consumption can be suppressed and it can be used for a long time. Also, the risk that the inside of a parked vehicle will be filled with a strong fragrance during hot seasons can be suppressed.

[0048] The above embodiment relates to a cartridge for generating air containing fragrance. However, the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. For example, it can also be applied to a technique for imparting some attribute (for example, a specific component that generates a pigment, a fragrance, etc.) to a liquid such as water instead of air.

[0049] The embodiments disclosed this time are merely illustrative, and the present invention is not limited to only the above-described embodiments. The scope of the present invention is shown by each claim in the claims, after considering the description in the detailed description of the invention, and includes all modifications within the meaning and scope equivalent to the language described therein.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0050] 100 Cartridge 110 Housing 112 Electromagnet 114 Cap 116 Micro Blower 118, 200, 202 Openings 140 First Housing 142 Second Housing 144 Cavity 146, 148 Fragrance Source Tablets 150 Driving Unit 152 Partition board 160 Iron core 162 Coil 170 Permanent magnet 172 Leaf spring 174 Movable member 210 First closing member 212 Second closing member 250 Battery 252 Current reversal circuit 254 Control circuit 256 Flat region

Claims

1. A housing having a cavity inside that communicates to the outside at a first opening and a second opening for containing a fluid, A movable member movably disposed between a first position for opening the first opening and the second opening and a second position for closing the first opening and the second opening, A drive unit for driving the movable member so that the movable member moves between the first position and the second position, The drive unit takes either a first state of holding the movable member in the first position or a second state of holding the movable member in the second position according to the direction of an external magnetic force, and maintains the state when the external magnetic force disappears even after the external magnetic force disappears. A cartridge.

2. The drive unit, A permanent magnet fixed to the movable member, The cartridge according to claim 1, further comprising an elastic member that biases the magnet in the direction of the movable member.

3. The elastic member includes a leaf spring arranged to bias the permanent magnet toward the inside of the housing such that the permanent magnet is fixed at the center and both ends are in contact with the inner wall inside the housing. The cartridge according to claim 2.

4. The housing has a cylindrical shape with a first end face and a second end face, The first opening and the second opening are respectively provided in the first end face and the second end face, The movable member, A first closing member for closing the first opening, A second closing member for closing the second opening, A first end portion disposed closer to the first end face than the second end face and a second end portion disposed closer to the second end face than the first end face, and the first closing member at the first end portion and the second closing member at the second end portion. And a support member for supporting, The permanent magnet is provided on the support member on the side opposite to the first closing member and the second closing member with respect to the support member at an intermediate position between the first end portion and the second end portion of the support member. The cartridge according to claim 2.

5. A cartridge driving method for driving the cartridge according to any one of claims 1 to 4, Placing an electromagnet having a core made of a magnetic material at a portion of the side surface of the housing that faces the drive unit; A first state change step of passing a current in a first direction through the electromagnet in response to a first drive signal from a computer and changing the state of the drive unit to the first state; After the computer performs the first state change step, a first cutting step of cutting off the current to the electromagnet; A second state change step of changing the state of the drive unit to the second state by passing a current in a second direction opposite to the first direction through the electromagnet in response to a second drive signal issued from the computer after the first cutting step; A cartridge driving method, comprising: after the computer performs the second state change step, a second cutting step of cutting off the current to the electromagnet.

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