Aerator

Abstract

To provide an aerator that can send a liquid involving a large number of air bubbles in a desired direction.SOLUTION: An aerator 1 includes a laminar flow pump 12 provided in a liquid. The laminar flow pump 12 is assembled with a casing 15 having a suction inlet 15a for suction of a liquid, a motor 16 provided in an inside of the casing 15, an impeller 17 attached to a rotation axis of the motor 16, and a gas supply means 2 for supplying a gas to an inside of the casing 15 from a suction inlet 15a positioned in the vicinity of the impeller 17. A gas supplied from the suction inlet to the inside of the casing 15 by the gas supply means is agitated by the impeller 17 to become a large number of air bubbles that are then sent to a prescribed direction with a liquid sucked in the casing 15 by the impeller 17.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an aeration device that feeds a gas such as air into a liquid such as water. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, aeration devices include those that use a high-concentration oxygen supply device (very expensive) to supply water with high-concentration oxygen dissolved in it, those that use a rotating object on the water surface such as a water wheel to agitate the water (air is only diffused near the top of the tank), those that supply air using a commercial air pump (however, air is only diffused vertically from bottom to top), and those that supply air by submerging a PVC pipe connected to an air compressor (again, only from bottom to top). For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an aeration device that includes a stirring impeller having multiple rotating blades that are immersed in the water to be treated in a tank and rotate around a vertical axis to stir the water to be treated and form a vertical swirling circulating flow in the tank, and an aeration device that supplies and diffuses oxygen-containing gas into the swirling circulating flow. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2008-12475 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, it has been difficult for conventional aeration devices to send liquid containing a large amount of bubbles in a desired direction.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has as its object to provide an aeration device that can send out a liquid containing a large amount of bubbles in a desired direction. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to achieve the above object, the aeration apparatus of the present invention is an aeration apparatus equipped with a circulatory pump disposed in a liquid, The pump includes a casing having a suction port for sucking liquid; a motor provided inside the casing; an impeller attached to a rotary shaft of the motor; The compressor is characterized by comprising a gas supply means for supplying gas into the casing from the intake port located near the impeller.

[0007] Here, when the liquid is water (breeding water) contained in the culture tank, air is supplied into the casing from the intake port by the gas supply means.

[0008] In this invention, the induced flow pump placed in the liquid has a casing with an inlet for sucking in the liquid, a motor, an impeller, and a gas supply means for supplying gas into the casing from the inlet located near the impeller, so that the gas supplied into the casing from the inlet by the gas supply means is agitated by the impeller and becomes a large amount of bubbles, which are then sent in a predetermined direction together with the liquid sucked into the casing by the impeller. Therefore, liquid containing a large amount of bubbles can be sent in the desired direction.

[0009] In the above-described configuration of the present invention, the gas supply means includes a supply tube capable of supplying gas from the intake port into the casing; The device may include an air pump connected to the supply tube for feeding gas into the supply tube.

[0010] With this configuration, the gas sent into the supply tube by the air pump can be reliably supplied into the casing from the intake port.

[0011] In the above-described configuration of the present invention, the supply tube may include a flexible tube body and a supply portion provided on the tube body for supplying the gas from the intake port into the casing.

[0012] Here, the tube body may have one or more supply parts, and the supply part may be a protrusion provided so as to protrude from the tube body, or a hole formed in the tube body.

[0013] With this configuration, the tube body is flexible, so that it can be easily attached or detached to a desired position on the casing of the pump. Also, since the tube body is provided with a supply part, by providing this supply part at the suction port located near the impeller, gas can be reliably supplied from the suction port into the casing.

[0014] In the above-described configuration of the present invention, the tube body may be wound around and held by the casing of the flow-generating pump.

[0015] According to this configuration, the tube body is wound around and held by the casing, so that the tube body can be easily attached to the casing.

[0016] In the above-described configuration of the present invention, the flow pump may be a laminar flow pump capable of generating a laminar flow in a liquid.

[0017] With this configuration, since the flow pump is a laminar flow pump, the laminar flow generated by the laminar flow pump has a substantially uniform speed and direction, and a large amount of air bubbles can be sent out in the desired direction along with the liquid along with this laminar flow. [Effects of the Invention]

[0018] According to the present invention, a liquid containing a large amount of bubbles can be delivered in a desired direction. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0019] [Figure 1] 1 is a side cross-sectional view showing a general configuration of a land-based aquaculture apparatus provided with an aeration device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the schematic configuration of the land-based aquaculture device of the same embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. [Figure 5] FIG. [Figure 6] 1 is a side view showing a schematic configuration of an aeration device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] FIG. [Figure 8] 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 7. [Figure 9] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a gas supply means according to the first embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0020] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the aeration device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings, but before that, a land-based aquaculture device in which the aeration device is provided will be described. FIG. 1 is a side cross-sectional view showing the schematic configuration of the land-based aquaculture device, and FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the schematic configuration of the same land-based aquaculture device. 1 and 2, the thick arrows indicate the direction of flow of a fluid (liquid) such as water.

[0021] As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the land-based aquaculture device 10 is a closed-circulation land-based aquaculture device, and is equipped with a culture tank 11 that houses the cultured organisms F, and an aeration device 1 of this embodiment that is equipped with a flow pump 12 that can generate laminar flow in the fluid in the culture tank 11. The aquaculture tank 11 is formed in the shape of a rectangular parallelepiped box that is elongated from side to side and is open at the top. Furthermore, a heat insulating material 13 is provided on the outer surface of the aquaculture tank 11 so as to cover the outer surface. The heat insulating material 13 is composed of a plurality of heat insulating material pieces 13a, 13b, and 13c. The heat insulating material piece 13a is formed in the shape of a rectangular plate and is provided on opposing side end surfaces of the aquaculture tank 11 so as to cover the side end surfaces. The heat insulating material piece 13b is formed in the shape of a rectangular plate and is provided on opposing side surfaces of the bathtub 11 so as to cover the side surfaces. The heat insulating material piece 13c is formed in the shape of a rectangular plate and is provided on the bottom surface of the aquaculture tank 11 so as to cover the bottom surface.

[0022] The flow pump 12 is a laminar flow pump 12 that can generate a laminar flow by itself. As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the laminar flow pump 12 comprises a casing 15, a motor 16 housed in the casing 15, an impeller 17 attached to the rotating shaft of the motor 16, and a discharge section 18 provided at the tip opening of the casing 15.

[0023] The casing 15 is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape, and has a plurality of intake ports 15a formed on its outer circumferential surface. The intake ports 15a are rectangular openings for drawing fluid such as water into the casing 15, and a plurality of intake ports 15a are formed at predetermined intervals in the circumferential and axial directions of the casing 15. Motor 16 is a DC brushless motor, and its rotating shaft is arranged coaxially with casing 15, with the tip of the rotating shaft facing discharge section 18. Motor 16 is attached to a mounting base 16a, which is fixed to the base end of casing 15 (the right end in FIGS. 3 and 4). The impeller 17 is attached to the rotary shaft of the motor 16, and is disposed inside the inner circumferential surface 15b of the tip end portion of the casing 15 (the left end portion in FIGS. 3 and 4). 5, a plurality of cylindrical walls 18a are concentrically provided inside the discharge portion 18 at predetermined intervals in the radial direction, and radial walls 18b are provided extending radially from the center toward the outermost cylindrical wall 18a, with the radial walls 18b inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to the axis of the casing 15. The cylindrical walls 18a and the radial walls 18b rectify the fluid (liquid) flowing from the impeller 17, so that the fluid (liquid) discharged from the discharge portion 18 becomes a laminar flow.

[0024] In the laminar flow pump 12 configured as described above, when the impeller 17 is rotated by the motor 16, fluid such as water around the laminar flow pump 12 is drawn into the casing 15 through the suction port 15a, and the fluid flows toward the discharge portion 18 and is discharged to the outside from the discharge portion 18. At this time, the fluid drawn into the casing 15 is discharged from the discharge portion 18 as a laminar flow due to the mutual mixing action between the impeller 17 and the cylindrical wall 18a and radial wall 18b of the discharge portion 18. Laminar flow can be achieved by optimally designing the shapes of the impeller 17, casing 15, and discharge portion 18.

[0025] 1, a separator plate 20 is provided in the aquaculture tank 11. The separator plate 20 separates the inside of the aquaculture tank 11 into upper and lower sections, is formed in a rectangular plate shape, and is disposed parallel to the bottom surface of the aquaculture tank 11. The long sides of the separator plate 20 are in watertight contact with the inner surface of the aquaculture tank 11 along the longitudinal direction, while the short sides are spaced apart from the inner surface of the aquaculture tank 11 along the lateral direction. Fluid can be circulated between an upper tank 21 above the separator 20 and a lower tank 22 below by a laminar flow pump 12. The upper tank 21 contains the culture target organisms F, and the lower tank 22 has the laminar flow pump 12 disposed therein. Furthermore, if the distance between the bottom surface of the lower tank 22 and the separator 20 is H1 and the distance between the separator 20 and the upper surface of the fluid in the upper tank 21 is H2, then H2 ≧ H1. Specifically, in this embodiment, in order to obtain a larger amount of culture target organisms F, H2:H1 = 2:1. In other words, the upper tank 21 is twice as deep as the lower tank 22.

[0026] Furthermore, a pair of openings 25, 26 for circulating a fluid between the upper tank 21 and the lower tank 22 is provided between the separator 20 and the inner wall surface of the aquaculture tank 11 (the inner surface along the lateral direction of the aquaculture tank 11). The pair of openings 25, 26 are provided at positions perpendicular to the fluid flow direction, and are not provided parallel to the fluid flow direction. In other words, the length of the separator 20 (the length in the left-right direction in FIGS. 1 and 2) is shorter than the distance between the two inner surfaces along the lateral direction of the aquaculture tank 11, and the width of the separator 20 is equal to the distance between the two inner surfaces along the longitudinal direction of the aquaculture tank 11. Therefore, the opening 25 is provided at one end of the separator 20 in the longitudinal direction, the opening 26 is provided at the other end, and no openings are provided parallel to the fluid flow direction.

[0027] Of the pair of openings 25, 26, one opening 25 is an upstream opening 25 provided on the upstream side of the fluid flow direction in the upper tank 21, and the other opening 26 is a downstream opening 26 provided on the downstream side of the fluid flow direction. As shown in FIG. 2, the upstream opening 25 and the downstream opening 26 are each formed to have a substantially rectangular shape in plan view. In the lower tank 22, two laminar flow pumps 12, 12 are provided below the downstream opening 26. As shown in Fig. 2, the laminar flow pumps 12, 12 are arranged spaced apart in the width direction of the aquaculture tank 11 below the downstream opening 26 in a plan view. If the width of the aquaculture tank 11 is narrow, one laminar flow pump 12 may be provided, but if the width is wider than that shown in Fig. 2, three or more laminar flow pumps 12 may be provided. 1, the distance H1 between the bottom surface of the lower tank 22 and the separator 20 is greater than the vertical height of the laminar flow pump 12. As a result, the laminar flow pump 12 is disposed in the lower tank 22 without protruding upward from the downstream opening 26.

[0028] In addition, lattice plates 27 are attached to the upstream opening 25 and the downstream opening 26, allowing fluid to flow through but preventing the cultured organisms F from passing through.This allows fluid to circulate between the upper tank 21 and the lower tank 22 as a laminar flow using the laminar flow pumps 12, 12, but prevents the cultured organisms F from flowing from the upper tank 21 into the lower tank 22. Furthermore, if the opening area of ​​the upstream opening 25 is A1 and the opening area of ​​the downstream opening 26 is A2, then A1 ≥ A2 holds. In other words, the opening area of ​​the upstream opening 25 is equal to or larger than that of the downstream opening 26. The laminar flow generated by the multiple (two) laminar flow pumps 12 flows in one direction (rightward in FIG. 1) in the upper tank 21 and in the other direction opposite to the one direction (leftward in FIG. 1) in the lower tank 22.

[0029] In addition, in the land-based aquaculture device of this embodiment, fluid such as water in the aquaculture tank 11 is circulated between the aquaculture tank 11 and the filtration tank 31. That is, as shown in Figure 1, the filtration tank 31 is positioned below the aquaculture tank 11, and as shown in Figure 2, it is positioned offset in the width direction of the aquaculture tank 11 so as not to overlap with the aquaculture tank 11 in a plan view.

[0030] The filter tank 31 is formed in the shape of a rectangular parallelepiped box that is elongated from side to side and has an open top. Furthermore, a heat insulating material 33 is provided on the outer surface of the filter tank 31 so as to cover the outer surface. The heat insulating material 33 is composed of a plurality of heat insulating material pieces 33a, 33b, and 33c. The heat insulating material piece 33a is formed in the shape of a rectangular plate and is provided on opposing side end surfaces of the filter tank 31 so as to cover the side end surfaces. The heat insulating material piece 13b is formed in the shape of a rectangular plate and is provided on opposing side surfaces of the filter tank 31 so as to cover the side surfaces. The heat insulating material piece 13c is formed in the shape of a rectangular plate and is provided on the bottom surface of the filter tank 31 so as to cover the bottom surface.

[0031] Additionally, multiple partition walls 31a are provided inside the filtration tank 31 so as to stand upright from the bottom surface of the filtration tank 31. The multiple partition walls 31a are arranged in parallel, and these partition walls 31a separate, from right to left, a water receiving tank 34, a first filtration tank 35, a second filtration tank 36, a third filtration tank 37, a fourth filtration tank 38, and a drainage tank 39. The first filtration tank 35, the second filtration tank 36, the third filtration tank 37, and the fourth filtration tank 38 contain filter media 35a, 36a, 37a, and 38a, respectively. The drainage tank 39 is provided with a pump 40, and the lower end of a circulation path 41 formed of a pipe or the like is connected to this pump 40. The upper end opening of the circulation path 41 is located above the upstream side of the aquaculture tank 11. In addition, a circulation path 42 formed by a pipe or the like is inserted through the insulation piece 13a on the downstream side wall of the aquaculture tank 11, and the upper end opening of the circulation path 42 is arranged almost flush with the water surface of the upper tank 21 of the aquaculture tank 11. This circulation path 42 extends downward, and its lower end opening is arranged above the water receiving tank 34 of the filtration tank 31.

[0032] In this filtration tank 31, when the pump 40 is operated, fluid flows from the upper tank 21 of the aquaculture tank 11 into the circulation path 42 and is supplied from the lower opening of the circulation path 42 to the water-receiving tank 34. When the water-receiving tank 34 is full, the fluid flows over the partition wall 31a into the adjacent first filtration tank 35, and the fluid then flows over the partition wall 31a sequentially into the second filtration tank 36, the third filtration tank 37, and the fourth filtration tank 38. As the fluid passes through these filtration tanks 35, 36, and 37, impurities are filtered out by filter media 35a, 36a, 37a, and 38a, before flowing into the drainage tank 39, where it is filtered and supplied from the drainage tank 39 through the circulation path 41 to the upper tank 21 from the upper opening of the circulation path 41. As the pump 40 continues to operate, the fluid in the aquaculture tank 11 circulates between the tank and the filtration tank 31, and impurities are filtered out by the filtration tank 31 before being supplied to the aquaculture tank 11.

[0033] The land-based aquaculture apparatus of this embodiment is also provided with a filter device 44 that filters impurities from the fluid flowing out from the lower end opening of the circulation path 42. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the filter device 44 includes a filtration filter 45 and reels 46, 47, and 48. Filtration filter 45 is wound around reel 46 and disposed above water receiving tank 34 of filtration tank 31. Filtration filter 45 is a flexible, planar filter, and filtration filter 45 unwound from reel 46 is wound around reel 47, which is disposed below reel 46 and above water receiving tank 34, to change direction, and is then wound around reel 48, which is disposed diagonally above reel 47 and diagonally below reel 46. The reel 48 is rotated by a motor (not shown) to wind up the filtration filter 45 unwound from the reel 46 .

[0034] The lower end opening of circulation path 42 is disposed above filter 45 located between reels 47 and 48, and fluid flowing down from this lower end opening passes through filter 45, thereby filtering impurities from the fluid. When reel 48 is rotated in the winding direction by the motor, filter 45 located between reels 47 and 48 becomes a new filter, enabling efficient filtering. When all filter filters 45 have been unwound from reel 46, filter 45 is replaced with the entire reel 46, and a new filter 45 is installed.

[0035] The land-based aquaculture device of this embodiment also includes a temperature regulator 50 that adjusts the temperature of the fluid circulating between the aquaculture tank 11 and the filtration tank 31. The temperature regulator 50 includes a heating unit 51 such as an electric heating wire arranged in the third filtration tank 37 of the filtration tank 31, and a control unit 52 that controls the temperature of the heating unit 51. The temperature regulator 50 also includes a sensor (not shown) that detects the temperature of the fluid in the third filtration tank 37, and this sensor is connected to the control unit 52. The temperature regulator 50 uses a sensor to detect the temperature of the fluid in the third filtration tank 37, and if the detected temperature is lower than a predetermined value, the control unit 52 controls the heating unit 51 to increase the temperature, and if the detected temperature is higher than the predetermined value, the control unit 52 controls the heating unit to decrease the temperature. Therefore, the temperature of the fluid circulating between the culture tank 11 and the filtration tank 31 can be adjusted to a predetermined temperature.

[0036] In this embodiment, the heating section 51 of the temperature regulator 50 is disposed in the third filtration tank 37 of the filtration tank 31, but instead of or in addition to this, the heating section 51 may be disposed in the first filtration tank 35, the second filtration tank 36, or the fourth filtration tank 39.

[0037] The land-based aquaculture device of this embodiment is also equipped with a blower 55. This blower 55 is disposed above and downstream of the aquaculture tank 11, and blows laminar airflow obliquely toward the surface of the fluid in the aquaculture tank 11. In this embodiment, the fan 55 blows laminar airflow onto the surface of the fluid in the opposite direction to the flow direction of the fluid that flows in laminar form from upstream to downstream in the upper tank 21 of the aquaculture tank 11, but the laminar airflow may also be blown onto the surface of the fluid in the direction of the fluid flow. In this case, the fan 55 is disposed above and upstream of the aquaculture tank 11. In this way, by blowing laminar airflow from the blower 55 onto the surface of the fluid, the temperature of the fluid can be effectively lowered.

[0038] Next, the aeration device 1 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. The configuration of the laminar flow pump 12 has already been described with reference to Figures 3 and 4, so in Figures 6 and 7, the same components as those shown in Figures 3 and 4 are given the same reference numerals and their description will be omitted. 6 to 9, the aeration device 1 is equipped with the laminar flow pump 12, and further equipped with a gas supply means 2. In this embodiment, the aeration device 1 is equipped with the laminar flow pump 12, but instead of the laminar flow pump 12, it may be equipped with a normal starter pump. As described above, the laminar flow pump 12 has a casing 15 having an intake port 15a for sucking in liquid, a motor 16 provided inside the casing 15, and an impeller 17 attached to the rotating shaft of the motor 16.

[0039] The gas supply means 2 supplies a gas such as air into the casing 15 from an intake port 15a located near the impeller 17, and includes a supply tube 3 capable of supplying the gas from the intake port 15a into the casing 15, and an air pump 5 connected to the supply tube 3 and sending the gas into the supply tube 3. Here, in this embodiment, the intake port 15a located near the impeller 17 is at least one of the plurality of intake ports 15a provided in the casing 15 that are closest to the impeller 17 and are arranged at predetermined intervals in the circumferential direction. 9, the supply tube 3 is made of resin and has a flexible tube body 3a and a supply part 3b that is provided on the tube body 3a and supplies gas from an intake port 15a into the casing 15. The tube body 3a is formed in a substantially ring shape by branching into two at a branch part 3d from the tip of a connection tube 3c that is connected to the air supply pump 5.

[0040] Supply portion 3b protrudes inside ring-shaped tube body 3a, communicates with tube body 3a, and has an open tip. Because supply portion 3b protrudes inside ring-shaped tube body 3a, when tube body 3a is attached to casing 15, supply portion 3b protrudes into casing 15 from suction port 15a near impeller 17, and gas such as air is ejected from its tip. Therefore, the flow direction of the liquid flowing inside casing 15 by impeller 17 and the supply direction of gas from supply portion 3b are perpendicular to or intersect each other.

[0041] Although there are two supply parts 3b, there may be three or more. The gas sent from the air pump 5 to the supply tube 3 passes through the connecting tube 3c, the branch part 3d, and the tube main body 3a, and is ejected from the supply parts 3b, 3b, thereby supplying the gas into the casing 15 from the intake port 15a. Such a supply tube 3 may be formed specifically for the purpose by resin molding, but for example, a commercially available cannula may also be used.

[0042] 8, the tube body 3a is wound around and held by a casing 15 of the laminar flow pump 12. To fix the tube body 3a to the casing 15, for example, the tube body 3a may be fixed to the casing 15 with a fixing member such as a cable tie. The casing 15 has a plurality of suction ports 15a, and a linear frame 15c is formed between adjacent suction ports 15a in the circumferential direction near the impeller 17. The tube body 3a may be fixed to this frame 15c with a fixing member such as a cable tie.

[0043] In a land-based aquaculture apparatus equipped with the aeration device 1 configured as described above, when the laminar flow pump (starting pump) 12 of the aeration device 1 is activated, a fluid (liquid) such as water contained in the aquaculture tank 11 flows as a laminar flow, circulating between the upper tank 21 and the lower tank 22. The flow velocity of the fluid (e.g., water) discharged from the discharge portion 18 of the laminar flow pump 12 is approximately equal in speed and direction from the center of the discharge portion 18 to the end (peripheral end) of the discharge portion, resulting in a laminar flow. As a result, the cultured organisms (e.g., fish) F in the upper tank 21 of the aquaculture tank 11 can swim and spread evenly in the left-right direction (direction perpendicular to the water flow) and the up-down direction (vertical direction of the aquaculture tank), improving the culture density. Furthermore, the laminar flow makes the direction and magnitude of the fluid flow rate uniform, making it possible to equalize the exercise load on the cultured organisms F. This improves the aquaculture environment for the cultivated organisms F, resulting in an increase in aquaculture production.

[0044] Furthermore, laminar flow pump 12 has casing 15 with suction port 15a for sucking in liquid, motor 16, and impeller 17, and is equipped with gas supply means 2 for supplying gas such as air into casing 15 from suction port 15a located near impeller 17, so that the air supplied from suction port 15a into casing 15 by gas supply means 2 is agitated by impeller 17 and becomes a large amount of bubbles, which are then discharged from discharge portion 18 together with the liquid (water) drawn into casing 15 by impeller 17, and sent in the axial direction of casing 15. The laminar flow generated by laminar flow pump 12 has approximately the same speed and direction, so that a large amount of air bubbles can be sent out in the desired direction (axial direction of casing 15) together with the liquid (water) along with this laminar flow. Furthermore, since a large amount of air bubbles can be sent out together with the liquid (water), the amount of dissolved oxygen in the liquid can be increased, which in turn can promote the rapid growth of the cultured organisms (for example, fish) F. Furthermore, since a large amount of bubbles is present in the liquid, it becomes difficult for the cultured organisms (for example, fish) F to recognize each other, and as a result, cannibalism between the cultured organisms (for example, fish) F can be suppressed.

[0045] In addition, since the aeration device 1 is placed in the lower tank 22 below the culture tank 11, water flow and oxygen-containing air bubbles can be supplied to the bottom of the culture tank 11, which is also effective in stimulating the activity of aerobic bacteria to promote the decomposition of ammonia nitrogen in excrement, waste feed, etc. Furthermore, the gas supply means 2 is equipped with a supply tube 3 capable of supplying gas into the casing 15 from the intake port 15a, and an air pump 5 connected to the supply tube 3 and sending gas (air) into the supply tube 3, so that the gas sent into the supply tube 3 by the air pump 5 can be reliably supplied into the casing 15 from the intake port 15a by the supply tube 3. In addition, since the tube body 3a is flexible, the tube body 3a can be easily attached to a desired position on the casing 15 of the laminar flow pump 12. Also, since the tube body 3a is provided with the supply portion 3b, by providing the supply portion 3b at the suction port 15a located near the impeller 17, gas can be reliably supplied into the casing 15 from the suction port 15a. Furthermore, since the tube main body 3a is wound around and held by the casing 15, the tube main body 3a can be easily attached to the casing 15. Furthermore, the tube 3 can be easily removed for maintenance of the pump, etc.

[0046] In addition, since insulation material 13 is provided on the outer surface of the aquaculture tank 11 so as to cover the outer surface, the insulation material 13 suppresses temperature rises and falls of the fluid in the aquaculture tank 11, making it easy to maintain a constant temperature of the fluid. Furthermore, a fluid is circulated between an upper tank 21 above the separator 20 and a lower tank 22 below by a laminar flow pump 12, and since the cultured organisms F spread out evenly in the upper tank 12 and swim in one direction, the culture state of the cultured organisms F can be easily observed. Furthermore, since the laminar flow pump 12 is arranged in the lower tank 22, the cultured organisms F contained in the upper tank 21 will not collide with the laminar flow pump 12, thereby preventing damage to the cultured organisms F and the laminar flow pump 12. In addition, by generating laminar flow in the fluid in the culture tank 11 using the multiple laminar flow pumps 12, the culture target organisms F can be easily cultured even if the culture tank 11 is large.

[0047] Furthermore, laminar flow flows in one direction in the upper tank 21 of the culture tank 11 and in the other direction in the lower tank 22, so that the fluid flows in a circulating laminar flow between the upper and lower tanks, enabling efficient cultivation of the cultured organisms F in the upper tank 21. Furthermore, if the distance between the bottom surface of the lower tank 22 and the separator 20 is H1 and the distance between the separator 20 and the top surface of the fluid in the upper tank 21 is H2, then H2≧H1, and therefore the depth of the fluid in the upper tank 21 is greater than or equal to the depth of the fluid in the lower tank 22. This allows the number of cultured organisms F to be accommodated in the upper tank 21 to be increased, thereby increasing the number of cultured organisms. Furthermore, since H1 is higher than the vertical height of the laminar flow pump 12, the laminar flow pump 12 can be reliably disposed in the lower tank 22 without interfering with the separator plate 20.

[0048] In addition, a pair of openings 25, 26 are provided between the separator 20 and the inner wall surface of the culture tank 11 for circulating the fluid between the upper tank 21 and the lower tank 22, and the openings 25, 26 are provided at a position perpendicular to the flow direction of the fluid, and are not provided at a position parallel to the flow direction of the fluid, so that the fluid can be easily and efficiently circulated between the upper tank 21 and the lower tank 22 through the pair of openings 25, 26. Furthermore, of the pair of openings 25, 26, one opening 25 is an upstream opening 25 provided on the upstream side of the fluid flow direction in the upper tank 21, and the other opening 26 is a downstream opening 26 provided on the downstream side of the fluid flow direction, and since a laminar flow pump 12 is provided below the downstream opening 26, the fluid flowing from upstream to downstream in the upper tank 21 can be easily and reliably made to flow into the lower tank 22.

[0049] Furthermore, if the opening area of ​​the upstream opening 25 is A1 and the opening area of ​​the downstream opening 26 is A2, then A1 ≥ A2. The flow rate of a fluid is flow rate x area, and since the flow rates at the upstream opening 25 and downstream opening 26 are equal, the flow rate of the fluid at the upstream opening 25 is lower than the flow rate of the fluid at the downstream opening 26. For this reason, the flow of the fluid is gentler on the upstream side than on the downstream side. Furthermore, since the upstream opening 25 and the downstream opening 26 are each formed to have an approximately rectangular shape when viewed from above, the planar shapes of the upstream opening 25 and the downstream opening 26 can be made appropriate.

[0050] In addition, a filtration tank 31 is provided below the culture tank 11, and the culture tank 11 and the filtration tank 31 are connected by circulation paths 41, 42. As the pump 40 continues to operate, the fluid in the culture tank 11 circulates between the culture tank 11 and the filtration tank 31, and impurities are filtered out by the filtration tank 31 before being supplied to the culture tank 11, so that the fluid in the culture tank 11 can be subjected to water quality management that is optimal for cultivating the cultured organisms F. Furthermore, a filter device 44 is provided that filters impurities from the fluid flowing out from the opening at the lower end of the circulation path 42, and the fluid flowing down from the opening at the lower end of the circulation path 42 passes through a filtration filter 45, thereby filtering out impurities from the fluid. When the motor rotates the reel 48 in the winding direction, the filtration filter 45 located between the reels 47 and 48 becomes new and can filter efficiently.

[0051] The apparatus is also provided with a temperature regulator 50 that adjusts the temperature of the fluid circulating between the aquaculture tank 11 and the filtration tank 31. The temperature regulator 50 uses a sensor to detect the temperature of the fluid in the third filtration tank 37, and controls the controller 52 to raise the temperature of the heating unit 51 if the detected temperature is lower than a predetermined value, and to lower the temperature of the heating unit if the detected temperature is higher than the predetermined value. This allows the temperature of the fluid circulating between the aquaculture tank 11 and the filtration tank 31 to be adjusted to a predetermined temperature. It is also equipped with a blower 55, which blows laminar air onto the surface of the fluid flowing in laminar flow from upstream to downstream within the upper tank 21 of the aquaculture tank 11, thereby effectively lowering the temperature of the fluid.

[0052] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above with reference to the drawings, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments and can include various modifications. For example, the above-described embodiments have been described in detail to clearly explain the present invention, and the present invention is not necessarily limited to those including all of the described configurations. Furthermore, it is possible to add, delete, or replace part of the configuration of the embodiments with other configurations. [Explanation of symbols]

[0053] 1 Aeration device 2. Gas supply means 3 Supply Tube 3a Tube body 3b Supply section 5. Air pump 12 Laminar flow pump 15 Casing 15a Inlet 16 motors 17 Impeller

Claims

1. An aeration device having a submerged pump, The pump includes a casing having a suction port for sucking liquid; a motor provided inside the casing; an impeller attached to a rotary shaft of the motor; An aeration device comprising: a gas supply means for supplying gas into the casing from the inlet located near the impeller.

2. The gas supply means includes a supply tube capable of supplying gas from the intake port into the casing; 2. The aeration device according to claim 1, further comprising an air pump connected to the supply tube for feeding gas into the supply tube.

3. 3. The aeration device according to claim 2, wherein the supply tube comprises a flexible tube body and one or more supply portions provided on the tube body for supplying the gas from the intake port into the casing.

4. 4. The aeration device according to claim 3, wherein the tube body is wound around and held by the casing of the pump.

5. 5. The aeration device according to claim 1, wherein the flow pump is a laminar flow pump capable of generating a laminar flow in a liquid.

Images