Water treatment cartridge and shower head

Abstract

To provide a water treatment cartridge and a shower head with excellent purification performance by securing a water flow rate and reducing a pressure loss even when the filling volume of purification material is increased.SOLUTION: A tubular spacer member 104 is contained in a cartridge body 102, which is contained in a shower head, the inside of the spacer member in the cartridge body 102 is a first flow channel 160 and the outside is a second flow channel 162, and a purifier 106 is filled into the first flow channel 160 while being contained in a bag body 108. In a water treatment cartridge 100 having such a structure, the spacer member 104 has an opening 156 in a peripheral wall 150, a plurality of flow channel holding parts 152 protruding from an outer surface 150b of the peripheral wall 150, and a purifying material suppressing part 154 at the end located downstream.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a water treatment cartridge and a showerhead. [Background technology]

[0002] The tap water supplied to the shower contains a lot of residual chlorine, which can cause discoloration and rough skin when frequently washing the hair and body. As a solution, showerheads equipped with water treatment cartridges filled with purifying materials such as calcium sulfite, which have a dechlorinating function, are known.

[0003] If all tap water flows into the water treatment cartridge housed in the showerhead, the purification material tends to be compacted, making it difficult for water to pass through. To address this issue, showerheads are known that have a bypass flow path provided outside the water treatment cartridge inside the showerhead. However, forming a bypass flow path outside the cartridge limits the external shape of the water treatment cartridge, reducing design, and also reduces versatility because a dedicated showerhead is required. As a solution to this problem, it has been proposed to house a spacer member inside the cartridge body, form a flow path filled with purification material inside the spacer member, and form a bypass flow path outside the spacer member (Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2018-130686 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, in a water treatment cartridge such as that in Patent Document 1, if the amount of purification material filled is increased to improve purification performance or extend the lifespan, the pressure loss increases, making it difficult for water to flow through the flow path filled with the purification material, and the amount of water flowing through the bypass flow path increases, which may actually decrease purification performance. Furthermore, an increase in the amount of purification material filled can cause the spacer member to expand or the purification material to protrude, blocking the bypass flow path, reducing the amount of water passing through and causing damage.

[0006] An object of the present invention is to provide a water treatment cartridge and showerhead that have excellent purification performance, capable of ensuring a sufficient amount of water flow and reducing pressure loss even when the amount of purification material packed in the cartridge is increased. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The present invention has the following aspects. [1] A water treatment cartridge comprising: a cartridge body to be stored within a shower head; a cylindrical spacer member stored within the cartridge body; and a purification material, wherein the inside of the spacer member within the cartridge body is a first flow path and the outside is a second flow path, the purification material is filled into the first flow path inside the spacer member while being stored in a bag, a peripheral wall portion of the spacer member has openings, and the spacer member comprises a plurality of flow path retaining portions protruding from an outer surface of a part of the peripheral wall portion other than the openings, and a purification material suppressing portion provided at an end portion located downstream of the peripheral wall portion and suppressing movement of the purification material. [2] The water treatment cartridge according to [1], wherein each of the plurality of flow path holding portions is a columnar protrusion or a protruding strip. [3] The water treatment cartridge according to [1] or [2], wherein the plurality of flow path holding portions are arranged at equal intervals in the circumferential direction of the peripheral wall portion. [4] A water treatment cartridge described in any one of [1] to [3], wherein the purification material suppressing portions protruding from the end portion located on the downstream side of the peripheral wall portion are spaced apart from each other in the circumferential direction of the peripheral wall portion. [5] The water treatment cartridge according to any one of [1] to [4], wherein a plurality of the openings are formed in the peripheral wall portion evenly in the circumferential direction and the central axis direction of the peripheral wall portion. [6] The water treatment cartridge according to any one of [1] to [5], wherein the openings account for 40 to 70% of the outer surface of the peripheral wall portion. [7] A water treatment cartridge described in any of [1] to [6], wherein when the peripheral wall portion is viewed from the second flow path side, the bag body covers at least the openings located on the downstream side, and the ratio of the total area of ​​the openings covered by the bag body to the total opening area of ​​the openings is 80% or more. [8] The water treatment cartridge according to any one of [1] to [7], wherein the peripheral wall portion is cylindrical or octagonal tubular. [9] A water treatment cartridge described in any of [1] to [8], wherein a plurality of water passage holes are formed in a portion facing the downstream side of the cartridge body, and when the inner surface of the portion facing the downstream side of the cartridge body is viewed from the central axial direction of the spacer member, the ratio of the total opening area of ​​the water passage holes located inside the peripheral wall portion to the total opening area of ​​all the water passage holes is 4 to 25%.

[10] A water treatment cartridge described in any one of [1] to [9], wherein the ratio of the outer periphery of the inner surface of the peripheral wall portion of the bag body in a direction along the circumferential direction to the inner periphery of the peripheral wall portion is 1.0 to 1.1 times.

[11] The water treatment cartridge according to any one of [1] to

[10] , wherein the purification material contains calcium sulfite.

[12] The water treatment cartridge according to

[11] , wherein the calcium sulfite has a peak top diameter in a particle size distribution of 100 to 500 μm, a ratio of particles having a diameter of 1 to 1000 μm is 90 mass% or more of the total particles, the frequency of the peak tops in the particle size distribution when irradiated with 40 W ultrasonic waves for 5 minutes is 70% or less of the frequency before ultrasonic irradiation, and a specific gravity is 0.80 to 1.20 g / mL.

[13] The water treatment cartridge according to any one of [1] to

[12] , wherein the bag is made of nonwoven fabric.

[14] A showerhead housing the water treatment cartridge according to any one of [1] to

[13] . Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to the present invention, even if the amount of purification material packed in the water treatment cartridge is increased, the amount of water passing through the water treatment cartridge can be ensured and pressure loss can be reduced, thereby providing a water treatment cartridge and showerhead with excellent purification performance. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a side view showing an example of a water treatment cartridge according to an embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a plan view of the water treatment cartridge of FIG. 1. [Diagram 3] 3 is a cross-sectional view of the water treatment cartridge shown in FIG. 2 along the line AA. [Figure 4] 4 is a perspective view of a spacer member in the water treatment cartridge of FIG. 3. [Diagram 5] 5 is a bottom view of the spacer member of FIG. 4 as viewed from the downstream side. [Figure 6] FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a spacer member according to another embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a spacer member according to another embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a shower head according to an embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a spacer member used in Comparative Example 1. [Figure 10] FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a spacer member used in Comparative Example 2. [Figure 11] 1 shows particle size distributions of calcium sulfite used in Examples and Comparative Examples before and after ultrasonic irradiation. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] The following describes an example of the water treatment cartridge and showerhead of the present invention. Note that the dimensions of the drawings shown in the following description are merely examples, and the present invention is not necessarily limited to these, and can be modified as appropriate without departing from the gist of the present invention.

[0011] [Water treatment cartridge] 1 to 3, the water treatment cartridge 100 of this embodiment includes a cartridge body 102, a spacer member 104 housed in the cartridge body 102, and a purification material 106. The water treatment cartridge 100 is housed in a head portion of a shower head.

[0012] 1 and 2, the cartridge body 102 includes a cylindrical body 110, a first plate 112 having a disk-like shape in a plan view provided to close one open end of the body 110, and a second plate 114 having a disk-like shape in a bottom view provided to close the other open end of the body 110. When the water treatment cartridge 100 is stored in the head of the shower head, the first plate 112 may face the upstream side (primary side) and the second plate 114 may face the downstream side (secondary side), or the first plate 112 may face the downstream side (secondary side) and the second plate 114 may face the upstream side (primary side).

[0013] The first plate portion 112 and the second plate portion 114 are curved so that their central portions protrude outward. By curving the first plate portion 112 and the second plate portion 114 in this manner, it becomes easy to fill the water treatment cartridge with a sufficient amount of purification material while making the water treatment cartridge compact.

[0014] The first plate portion 112 has a circular recess 115 formed in the center when the first plate portion 112 is viewed from the front from the outside, and a plurality of water passage holes 116 are formed around the recess. The second plate portion 114 has a circular recess 117 formed in the center when the second plate portion 114 is viewed from the front from the outside, and a plurality of water passage holes 118 are formed around the recess. When the first plate portion 112 faces the primary side and the second plate portion 114 faces the secondary side in the head portion of the shower head, the water passage hole 116 formed in the first plate portion 112 becomes a water inlet hole, and the water passage hole 118 formed in the second plate portion 114 becomes a water outlet hole. On the other hand, when the second plate portion 114 faces the primary side and the first plate portion 112 faces the secondary side, the water passage hole 118 formed in the second plate portion 114 becomes a water inlet hole, and the water passage hole 116 formed in the first plate portion 112 becomes a water outlet hole.

[0015] In this example, the shape of the water passage hole 116 and the water passage hole 118 in a front view is circular. The shape of the water passage hole formed in the first plate portion and the second plate portion in a front view is not limited to a circular shape, and may be, for example, an elliptical shape, a rectangular shape, or the like. The number and arrangement of the water passage holes 116 and the water passage holes 118 are not particularly limited, and may be appropriately set so that water can smoothly flow in and out. The shape, number, and arrangement of the water passage holes 116 and the water passage holes 118 in a front view may be the same or different.

[0016] A filter may be attached to the inner surface 112a of the first plate portion 112 so as to cover all of the water passage holes 116. Similarly, a filter may be attached to the inner surface 114a of the second plate portion 114 so as to cover all of the water passage holes 118. This makes it possible to suppress leakage of fine powder of the purification material, and also makes it possible to fill the water treatment cartridge with raw water even when the flow rate is low, thereby making it possible to more stabilize the water purification effect.

[0017] A step 127 consisting of an annular recess is formed around the entire circumference on the outer peripheral edge of the outer surface 112b of the first plate portion 112. Similarly, a step 128 consisting of an annular recess is formed around the entire circumference on the outer peripheral edge of the outer surface 114b of the second plate portion 114. These steps 127, 128 are used to stabilize the water treatment cartridge 100 when it is stored in the showerhead.

[0018] The cartridge body 102 of this example can be divided into a first member 130 and a second member 132. The first member 130 is a member formed of a first plate portion 112 and a peripheral wall portion 134 forming a portion of the barrel portion 110 on the first plate portion 112 side. The second member 132 is a member formed of a second plate portion 114 and a peripheral wall portion 136 forming a portion of the barrel portion 110 on the second plate portion 114 side. The cartridge body 102 is formed by attaching the first member 130 to the second member 132 by fitting a convex rib 138 provided at the tip portion of the peripheral wall portion 136 of the second member 132 and a concave rib 140 provided inside the tip portion of the peripheral wall portion 134 of the first member 130 to each other.

[0019] The material of the cartridge body 102 is not particularly limited, and may be any known material used for water treatment cartridges housed in showerheads. Specific examples include heat-resistant resins such as polypropylene, polyphenylene ether, polyoxymethylene, polycarbonate, ABS, ASA, and PMP. The manufacturing method of the cartridge body 102 is not particularly limited, and may be any known molding method such as injection molding.

[0020] A cylindrical spacer member 104 is provided in the cartridge body 102. As shown in Figs. 3 to 5, the spacer member 104 includes a cylindrical peripheral wall portion 150, a plurality of flow path holding portions 152, and a plurality of cleaning material holding portions 154. The spacer member 104 is provided in the cartridge body 102 such that the direction of the central axis O1 of the peripheral wall portion 150 is along the direction from the first plate portion 112 to the second plate portion 114. In this example, the central axis O1 of the peripheral wall portion 150 of the spacer member 104 passes through the recessed portion 115 in the center of the first plate portion 112 and the recessed portion 117 in the center of the second plate portion 114. By storing the spacer member 104 in the cartridge body 102, a first flow path 160 on the inside of the spacer member 104 and a second flow path 162 on the outside of the spacer member 104 are formed in the cartridge body 102.

[0021] The inside of the peripheral wall portion 150 of the spacer member 104 is filled with the purification material 106 stored in the bag 108. That is, the first flow path 160 inside the spacer member 104 is filled with the purification material 106 stored in the bag 108. The second flow path 162 outside the spacer member 104 in the cartridge body 102 is not filled with the purification material 106 and serves as a bypass flow path. For example, water flowing into the cartridge body 102 from each water passage hole 116 is divided into the first flow path 160 and the second flow path 162. The water flowing through the first flow path 160 comes into contact with the purification material 106 and is purified, and merges with the water flowing through the second flow path 162 on the downstream side of the spacer member 104 and is discharged from each water passage hole 118.

[0022] The ratio of the cross-sectional area of ​​the first flow passage 160 to the total cross-sectional area of ​​the first flow passage 160 and the cross-sectional area of ​​the second flow passage 162 is preferably 60 to 95%. If the cross-sectional area ratio of the first flow passage 160 is within the above range, it is easy to obtain excellent purification performance while reducing pressure loss. The lower limit of the cross-sectional area ratio of the first flow passage 160 is more preferably 65% ​​or more, and more preferably 70% or more. The upper limit of the cross-sectional area ratio of the first flow passage 160 is more preferably 90% or less, and more preferably 85% or less. The cross-sectional area of ​​the first flow passage 160 means the area of ​​a cross section perpendicular to the central axis O1 of the inner side of the peripheral wall portion 150. The cross-sectional area of ​​the second flow passage 162 means the area of ​​a cross section perpendicular to the central axis O1 of the outer side of the peripheral wall portion 150 in the cartridge body 102.

[0023] The shape of the peripheral wall portion 150 is not limited to a cylindrical shape as long as the first flow path 160 and the second flow path 162 can be formed in the cartridge body 102 and the purification material 106 can be filled inside the peripheral wall portion 150. The shape of the peripheral wall portion 150 may be, for example, a polygonal cylinder such as a square cylinder, a hexagonal cylinder, or an octagonal cylinder, or an elliptical cylinder, and may be a shape in which one side of the polygonal cylinder is curved so as to bulge outward. Among these, the shape of the peripheral wall portion 150 is preferably a cylindrical shape or an octagonal cylinder, since it is easy to form the second flow path 162 having a uniform flow path cross-sectional area all around the outside of the peripheral wall portion 150 in the cartridge body 102. The dimensions of the peripheral wall portion 150 of the spacer member 104 may be appropriately set depending on the size of the cartridge body 102, the amount of the cleaning material 106 filled, and the like.

[0024] An opening 156 is formed in the peripheral wall 150 of the spacer member 104, and a first flow path 160 on the inside of the spacer member 104 and a second flow path 162 on the outside of the spacer member 104 are connected by the opening 156. This allows the water flowing through the first flow path 160 and the second flow path 162 to move in the radial direction of the spacer member 104 through the opening 156. This makes the water flow around the purification material 106 more complex, increasing the contact efficiency between the purification material 106 and the water, and improving purification performance. In addition, the flow paths in the cartridge body 102 are dispersed, reducing pressure loss.

[0025] In the spacer member 104 of this example, a plurality of substantially rectangular openings 156 are evenly arranged in the peripheral wall portion 150 in the circumferential direction and the central axis O1 direction, and the peripheral wall portion 150 is in a lattice shape. The shape of the openings 156 in a front view is not particularly limited, and in this example, it is substantially rectangular, but it may be circular or the like. The number of openings 156 formed in the peripheral wall portion 150 can be appropriately set according to the dimensions of the peripheral wall portion 150, etc. In the spacer member 104, it is preferable that the plurality of openings 156 are evenly formed in the circumferential direction and the central axis O1 direction of the peripheral wall portion 150 in this way. As a result, there is no bias in the flow direction of water around the spacer member 104, and the purification material 106 is suppressed from being pushed in a specific direction by the flow of water and being unevenly distributed. Therefore, the contact efficiency between the purification material 106 and water is further increased, and the purification performance is further improved.

[0026] The aperture ratio of the openings 156 in the outer surface 150b of the peripheral wall portion 150 of the spacer member 104 is preferably 40 to 70%. If the aperture ratio is 40% or more, it is easy to obtain the effect of improving the contact efficiency between the purification material 106 and water and the effect of reducing pressure loss. If the aperture ratio is 70% or less, the amount of water that is discharged outside the cartridge body 102 without coming into contact with the purification material 106 is reduced, making it easy to ensure purification performance and strength of the spacer member 104. It is more preferable that the lower limit of the aperture ratio is 51% or more, and more preferably the upper limit is 63% or less. The opening ratio means the ratio of the total opening area of ​​the openings 156 to the total area of ​​the outer surface 150b of the peripheral wall portion 150 when it is assumed that the openings 156 are not formed in the peripheral wall portion 150.

[0027] When the peripheral wall portion 150 of the spacer member 104 is viewed from the second flow path 162 side, the bag 108 containing the purification material 106 is filled inside the peripheral wall portion 150 so that at least the downstream opening 156 is covered by the bag 108. This makes it possible to reduce the amount of water passing through the cartridge body 102 without coming into contact with the purification material 106, improving purification performance. The ratio of the total area of ​​openings 156 covered by bag body 108 as viewed from second flow path 162 to the total opening area of ​​openings 156 (hereinafter also referred to as "ratio A") is 80% or more. If ratio A is 80% or more, the amount of water passing through cartridge body 102 without coming into contact with purification material 106 can be reduced, improving purification performance. Ratio A is more preferably 90% or more, even more preferably 95% or more, and the closer to 100%, the better.

[0028] The spacer member 104 is provided with a plurality of flow path holding parts 152 that protrude from the outer surface 150b of the peripheral wall part 150 other than the opening 156. In this example, four columnar flow path holding parts 152 are provided so as to protrude radially outward from the outer surface 150b of the peripheral wall part 150. As a result, even if the peripheral wall part 150 tries to expand radially outward when the filling amount of the purification material 106 is increased, the tip of the flow path holding part 152 abuts against the inner surface of the cartridge body 102, so that the peripheral wall part 150 can be supported. In this way, the flow path holding part 152 prevents the peripheral wall part 150 from expanding until it reaches the inner surface of the cartridge body 102, so that even if the filling amount of the purification material 106 is increased, the second flow path 162 is not blocked and a sufficient amount of water can be maintained.

[0029] The four flow path holding portions 152 of the spacer member 104 are disposed at equal intervals in the circumferential direction of the peripheral wall portion 150, i.e., at 90° intervals around the central axis O1. As in this example, it is preferable that the multiple flow path holding portions 152 are disposed at equal intervals in the circumferential direction of the peripheral wall portion 150, i.e., at equal angular intervals around the central axis O1. This makes it possible to support the peripheral wall portion 150 in all directions around the central axis O1 and suppress radial expansion, making it easier to hold the second flow path 162 and more likely to obtain the effect of ensuring the amount of water passing through.

[0030] The number of flow path holding portions 152 provided in the circumferential direction of the peripheral wall portion 150 may be set to a value sufficient to sufficiently support the peripheral wall portion 150 without excessively impeding the flow of water in the second flow path 162, and may be, for example, 2 to 12.

[0031] The number of flow path holders 152 in the direction of the central axis O1 of the peripheral wall 150 of the spacer member 104 may be one or may be two or more. When the number of flow path holders 152 in the direction of the central axis O1 is one, it is preferable to arrange the flow path holder 152 at the center of the peripheral wall 150 in the direction of the central axis O1. When the number of flow path holders 152 in the direction of the central axis O1 is an even number, it is preferable to arrange them at positions symmetrical with respect to the center of the peripheral wall 150 in the direction of the central axis O1. When the number of flow path holders 152 in the direction of the central axis O1 is an odd number of three or more, it is preferable to arrange one flow path holder 152 in the center of the peripheral wall 150 in the direction of the central axis O1, and arrange the remaining flow path holders 152 at positions symmetrical with respect to the center.

[0032] The shape of the flow path holding portion 152 is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include a columnar convex portion and a convex ridge. It is preferable that the tip shape of the flow path holding portion 152 is flat so that the peripheral wall portion 150 can be easily supported when the flow path holding portion 152 abuts against the inner surface 102a of the cartridge body 102. When the flow path holding portion 152 is a columnar convex portion, examples of the shape include a cylindrical shape, a polygonal prism shape such as a square prism shape or a hexagonal prism shape, a truncated pyramid shape, and a truncated cone shape. The flow path holding portion 152 in this example is a truncated pyramid shape.

[0033] When the flow path holding portion 152 is a convex rib, the cross-sectional shape perpendicular to the length direction of the convex rib can be, for example, a rectangular shape, a trapezoidal shape, or a semicircular shape. When the flow path holding portion 152 is a convex rib, the convex rib may extend in the circumferential direction of the outer surface 150b of the peripheral wall portion 150, or may extend in the direction of the central axis O1. The multiple flow path holding portions 152 may be a mixture of columnar convex portions and convex ribs.

[0034] The height of the flow path holding portion 152 from the outer surface 150b of the peripheral wall portion 150 may be set appropriately within a range capable of holding the flow path cross section of the second flow path 162. The tip of each flow path holding portion 152 may be in contact with the inner surface 102a of the cartridge body 102 from the beginning, or the tip may be made to abut against the inner surface 102a of the cartridge body 102 when the peripheral wall portion 150 of the spacer member 104 expands in the radial direction.

[0035] When the water treatment cartridge 100 is stored in the shower head, a purification material suppressing portion 154 that suppresses movement of the purification material 106 is provided at an end portion of the peripheral wall portion 150 of the spacer member 104 that is disposed on the downstream side in the direction of the central axis O1. This prevents the bag body 108 in which the purification material 106 is stored from being pushed out toward the second flow path 162 by the water flowing through the first flow path 160. Therefore, the flow of water in the second flow path 162 is less likely to be impeded, and the amount of water passing through is ensured.

[0036] For example, a case will be described in which the first plate portion 112 of the cartridge body 102 faces the upstream side and the second plate portion 114 faces the downstream side in the head portion of the shower head. In this case, in the spacer member 104, a plurality of purification material suppressing portions 154 are provided at the second end portion 150d arranged on the downstream side of the central axis O1 direction of the peripheral wall portion 150 so as to protrude in the direction of the central axis O1 and to be spaced apart from each other in the circumferential direction of the peripheral wall portion 150. This makes it easier for water flowing through the second flow path 162 to flow from between the adjacent purification material suppressing portions 154 to the water passage hole 118 which becomes the water discharge hole. Therefore, while suppressing the purification material 106 from protruding to the second flow path 162 side, the flow from the second flow path 162 to the water discharge hole can be made smooth, and the amount of water passing can be secured. It is preferable that the purification material suppressing portions 154 provided at the second end portion 150d arranged on the downstream side of the peripheral wall portion 150 are arranged at equal intervals in the circumferential direction of the peripheral wall portion 150. This makes it easier to prevent the purification material 106 from protruding onto the second flow path 162 side in all directions around the central axis O1.

[0037] The shape of the purification material suppressing portion 154 is not particularly limited as long as it can regulate the movement of the purification material 106 toward the second flow path 162 without impeding the flow of water from the second flow path 162 to the water discharge hole. In this example, it is a semicircular plate shape, but it may be a rectangular, trapezoidal, or other plate shape. The size of the purification material suppressing portion 154 may be appropriately set within a range in which the spacer member 104 can be stored in the cartridge body 102 and the protrusion of the purification material 106 can be suppressed without excessively impeding the flow from the second flow path 162 to the water passage hole 118 that serves as the water discharge hole. For example, the circumferential length of the base end of the purification material suppressing portion 154 on the second end 150d side as viewed from the second flow path 162 side can be 5 to 15 mm, and the height from the second end 150d of the purification material suppressing portion 154 to the tip in the direction of the central axis O1 can be 1 to 5 mm.

[0038] The number of purification material suppressing portions 154 provided at second end portion 150d arranged on the downstream side of peripheral wall portion 150 is six in this example, but is not limited to six and can be, for example, 2 to 12.

[0039] In this example, the purification material suppressing portion 154 is provided in the same manner on both the first end 150c and the second end 150d in the direction of the central axis O1 of the peripheral wall portion 150 of the spacer member 104. In this manner, regardless of whether the first plate portion 112 or the second plate portion 114 faces the upstream side (primary side) when the water treatment cartridge 100 is stored in the shower head, the purification material suppressing portion 154 is provided on the end portion arranged on the downstream side of the peripheral wall portion 150. This makes it possible to ensure the amount of water passing through regardless of the orientation of the water treatment cartridge 100 when it is installed in the shower head. Therefore, there is no need to check the orientation of the water treatment cartridge 100 when attaching it to the shower head, making it easy to handle, and reducing restrictions on the design of the cartridge's exterior.

[0040] When the inner surface of the portion of the cartridge body 102 facing the downstream side, for example, the inner surface 114a of the second plate portion 114 facing the downstream side, is viewed from the direction of the central axis O1 of the spacer member 104, the ratio of the total opening area of ​​the water passage holes 118 located inside the peripheral wall portion 150 of the spacer member 104 to the total opening area of ​​all the water passage holes 118 (hereinafter also referred to as "ratio B") is 4 to 25%. If ratio B is 4% or more, the flow rate of water flowing through the second flow path 162 and discharged from the water discharge hole (water passage hole 118) becomes sufficiently large, making it easy to reduce pressure loss. If ratio B is 25% or less, the contact efficiency between the water and the purification material 106 tends to be sufficiently high, making it easy to obtain excellent purification performance.

[0041] When the inner surface 112a of the first plate portion 112 is viewed from the direction of the central axis O1 of the spacer member 104, it is preferable that the ratio of the total opening area of ​​the water passage holes 116 located inside the peripheral wall portion 150 of the spacer member 104 to the total opening area of ​​all the water passage holes 116 is also in the same range as ratio B. This makes it possible to obtain the same effect regardless of whether the first plate portion 112 or the second plate portion 114 of the cartridge body 102 is facing downstream.

[0042] The spacer member 104 may be provided with a plurality of inner protrusions 158 protruding radially inward from the inner surface 150a of the peripheral wall portion 150. In this example, six inner protrusions 158 are provided at equal intervals in the circumferential direction of the inner surface 150a of the peripheral wall portion 150. Also, three inner protrusions 158 are provided at equal intervals in the central axis O1 direction of the inner surface 150a of the peripheral wall portion 150. In this way, the spacer member 104 of this example is provided with 18 inner protrusions 158 protruding from the inner surface 150a of the peripheral wall portion 150. This prevents the bag body 108 containing the purification material 106 from moving downstream due to the flow of water, so that each water passage hole is less likely to be blocked and water is more likely to be discharged. The arrangement of the inner protrusions 158 in the circumferential direction and the central axis O1 direction does not have to be at equal intervals.

[0043] The shape of the inner protrusion 158 is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include a columnar protrusion and a convex streak. When the inner protrusion 158 is a columnar protrusion, examples thereof include a cylindrical shape, a polygonal prism shape such as a square prism or a hexagonal prism, a truncated pyramid shape, and a truncated cone shape. When the inner protrusion 158 is a convex streak, examples of the cross-sectional shape perpendicular to the length direction of the convex streak include a rectangular shape, a trapezoidal shape, and a semicircular shape. When the inner protrusion 158 is a convex streak, the convex streak is preferably provided so as to extend in the circumferential direction of the inner surface 150a of the peripheral wall portion 150.

[0044] The height of the inner protrusion 158 from the inner surface 150a of the peripheral wall 150 can be set appropriately and can be, for example, 1 to 2 mm. The number of inner protrusions 158 may be set within a range that suppresses the movement of bag body 108 containing purification material 106 without excessively interfering with the flow of water in first flow path 160, and may be, for example, 2 to 32.

[0045] The material of the spacer member 104 is not particularly limited, and may be the same as that exemplified for the cartridge body 102. The method of manufacturing the spacer member 104 is not particularly limited, and may be a known molding method such as injection molding.

[0046] The purification material 106 is filled inside the spacer member 104 in a state of being housed in the bag 108. This makes it easy to prevent the purification material 106 from flowing out excessively from the first flow path 160 or being unevenly distributed in the first flow path 160. The bag 108 is not particularly limited as long as it can house the purification material 106, and examples of the bag 108 include bags made of nonwoven fabric, mesh, and the like. Among them, a bag made of nonwoven fabric is preferable from the viewpoint of the retention of the purification material, water permeability, and flexibility. The material for forming the bag 108 is not particularly limited, and a material normally used for water treatment cartridges can be used, and examples of the material for the bag 108 include nylon, polyester, polyethylene, polypropylene, polyolefin, and the like. The material for the bag 108 may be one type, or two or more types.

[0047] The ratio of the outer periphery in the direction along the circumferential direction of the inner surface 150a of the peripheral wall portion 150 of the bag 108 to the inner periphery of the peripheral wall portion 150 of the spacer member 104 is preferably 1.0 to 1.1 times. This makes it easy to fill a sufficient amount of the purification material 106 inside the spacer member 104. When the direction along the central axis O1 of the spacer member 104 in the bag 108 is the length direction and the direction along the circumferential direction is the width direction, the value obtained by multiplying the outer width of the bag 108 in the flattened state is regarded as the outer periphery in the direction along the circumferential direction of the inner surface 150a of the peripheral wall portion 150 of the bag 108.

[0048] The purifying material 106 is preferably a dechlorinating agent. The dechlorinating agent is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include calcium sulfite, ascorbic acid, and activated carbon. The purifying material 106 is not limited to a dechlorinating agent, and may be, for example, a water softening treatment agent. Examples of the water softening treatment agent include ion exchange resins, ion exchange fibers, and chelating fibers. Examples of the cation exchange resin include strong acid cation exchange resins having strong acid groups such as sulfonic acid groups, and weak acid cation exchange resins having weak acid groups such as carboxy groups. As the purifying material 106, one type may be used alone, or two or more types may be used in combination.

[0049] From the standpoint of chlorine removal performance and ease of handling, it is more preferable that the purification material 106 contains calcium sulfite, and it is particularly preferable that the purification material 106 contains calcium sulfite that satisfies the following conditions (1) to (4). (1) The peak top diameter in the particle size distribution is 100 to 500 μm. (2) The ratio of particles having a particle size of 1 to 1000 μm to the total particles is 90 mass % or more. (3) The frequency of the peak top of the particle size distribution when exposed to 40 W ultrasound for 5 minutes is 70% or less of the frequency before ultrasound exposure. (4) Specific gravity is 0.80 to 1.20 g / mL.

[0050] When calcium sulfite satisfies condition (3), it is likely to gradually generate fine particles due to breakdown when water is passed through it, reducing pressure loss and making it easier to maintain high contact efficiency between the purification material 106 and water. If the specific gravity of calcium sulfite is 0.80 or more, the packable weight is large and the specific surface area is large, improving contact efficiency. If the specific gravity of calcium sulfite is 1.20 or less, it is easy to suppress an increase in pressure loss.

[0051] The purification material may contain a known functional additive. Examples of the functional additive include odor removers (divinylbenzene polymers, etc.), moisturizers (plant extracts, hyaluronic acid, collagen, etc.), fresheners (menthol, alum, etc.), and fragrances (rosewood, jasmine, lavender, etc.). The functional additives may be used alone or in combination of two or more.

[0052] The amount of purification material 106 packed in water treatment cartridge 100 may be appropriately set in consideration of purification performance, compactness of water treatment cartridge 100, and the like, and may be, for example, 10 to 20 g.

[0053] As described above, in the water treatment cartridge 100, the inside of the spacer member 104 in the cartridge body 102 is the first flow path 160, and the outside is the second flow path 162, and the purification material 106 is filled in the first flow path 160 inside the spacer member 104 in a state of being stored in the bag body 108. Since the opening 156 is formed in the peripheral wall portion 150 of the spacer member 104, water around the spacer member 104 can also flow in the radial direction, so that the contact efficiency between the water and the purification material 106 is increased and the purification performance is improved. Furthermore, since a plurality of flow path holding portions 152 are provided on the outer surface 150b of the peripheral wall portion 150 of the spacer member 104, the spacer member 104 is prevented from expanding in the radial direction and blocking the second flow path 162. Furthermore, since the purification material suppressing portion 154 is provided at the end portion arranged on the downstream side of the peripheral wall portion 150, the bag body 108 storing the purification material 106 is prevented from protruding into the second flow path 162. For these reasons, even if the amount of purification material 106 packed is increased, a sufficient amount of water can be passed through and pressure loss can be reduced.

[0054] The water treatment cartridge of the present invention is not limited to the water treatment cartridge 100 described above. For example, the trunk of the cartridge body is not limited to a cylindrical shape, and may be appropriately set according to the shape of the storage section of the water treatment cartridge in the shower head, and may be a square tube shape, etc. The shape of the spacer member may be designed to match the shape of the cartridge body.

[0055] The spacer member provided in the water treatment cartridge of the present invention may be an octagonal cylindrical spacer member 104A as illustrated in FIG. 6, or may be an approximately elliptical cylindrical spacer member 104B as illustrated in FIG. 7. The same parts in FIG. 6 and FIG. 7 as those in FIG. 4 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted. The spacer member 104A is similar to the spacer member 104 except that the peripheral wall portion 150 is an octagonal cylindrical shape. The spacer member 104B has a peripheral wall portion 150 in an approximately elliptical cylindrical shape, a flow path holding portion 152 is provided in the center of the portion of the peripheral wall portion 150 extending in the long side direction of the ellipse, openings 156 are formed on both sides of the long side direction of the flow path holding portion 152, and purification material holding portions 154 are provided at both ends in the central axis direction of the portion of the peripheral wall portion 150 extending in the long side direction of the ellipse.

[0056] [Shower head] The showerhead of the present invention is a showerhead in which the water treatment cartridge of the present invention is housed. The showerhead of the present invention can adopt any known embodiment except that the water treatment cartridge of the present invention is housed. Hereinafter, as an example of the showerhead of the present invention, a showerhead in which the water treatment cartridge 100 described above is housed will be shown and described.

[0057] As shown in Figure 8, the showerhead 1 of this embodiment comprises a showerhead body 10, a shower cap 12, and a water treatment cartridge 100. The showerhead body 10 comprises a grip 18 and a head portion 20 provided at the tip of the grip 18. A storage portion 22 for storing the water treatment cartridge 100 is formed inside the head portion 20, and is made of a hollow portion that communicates with the flow path 18a inside the grip 18.

[0058] Shower cap 12 includes a cylindrical peripheral wall portion 40 and a circular spray plate 42 provided to close the tip opening of peripheral wall portion 40. Spray plate 42 has a plurality of spray holes 42a formed therein.

[0059] The materials for the shower head body 10 and the shower cap 12 are not particularly limited, and any known material used for shower heads can be used. Specific examples include heat-resistant resins with a softening point of 80° C. or higher, such as polypropylene, polyphenylene ether, polyoxymethylene, polycarbonate, ABS, ASA, and PMP, and metals such as stainless steel. The manufacturing method for the shower head body 10 and the shower cap 12 is not particularly limited, and any known molding method can be used.

[0060] In this example, the water treatment cartridge 100 is stored in the storage section 22 in the head section 20 so that the first plate section 112 faces the upstream side (primary side). The packing 16 is annular, and is provided so as to watertightly separate the primary side and secondary side of the water treatment cartridge 100 in the head section 20.

[0061] In the showerhead 1, the entire amount of raw water that has flowed into the head portion 20 through the flow path 18a of the grip 18 flows into the water treatment cartridge 100. The raw water that has flowed into the cartridge body 102 from the water passage hole (water inlet hole) 116 formed in the first plate portion 112 is divided into a first flow path 160 and a second flow path 162 in the cartridge body 102. In the first flow path 160, the raw water is purified by the purification material 106. In addition, around the spacer member 104, the water flowing through the first flow path 160 and the second flow path 162 also flows in the radial direction through the opening 156. The water that has flowed through the first flow path 160 and the second flow path 162 flows out to the outside of the water treatment cartridge 100 from the water passage hole (water discharge hole) 118 formed in the second plate portion 114, and is sprayed in a shower from the spray holes 42a of the spray plate 42.

[0062] In the showerhead 1, the water treatment cartridge 100 is housed within the head portion 20 of the showerhead body 10, so that cartridge replacement and maintenance can be easily performed by removing the shower cap 12. EXAMPLES

[0063] The present invention will be specifically described below with reference to examples, but the present invention is not limited to the following description.

[0064] [Water flow test] The water treatment cartridge of each example was placed in a shower head, and water was passed through it at a constant flow rate of 7.5 L / min, and the free residual chlorine removal rate was measured. The free residual chlorine removal rate was calculated by measuring the free residual chlorine concentration in the water after passing through it using a HACH DR300 pocket residual chlorine meter by DPD absorptiometry. The integrated flow rate until the free residual chlorine in the passing water exceeded 0.5 mg / L was then calculated. In addition, the maximum pressure during the passing water was measured using a small pressure sensor (manufactured by Yokogawa Electric Corporation, FP series). Water adjusted to a free residual chlorine concentration of 1 ± 0.1 mg / L and a water temperature of 40 ± 3°C was used as the raw water. The cumulative flow rate and maximum pressure were calculated by carrying out the same test three times for each example and calculating the average value.

[0065] [Example 1] A water flow test was carried out using a water treatment cartridge 100 equipped with a cylindrical spacer member 104 (inner circumference: 98.1 mm) as exemplified in Figures 1 to 5. The outer width of a flattened bag 108 made of nonwoven fabric was 50 mm, and 19 g of calcium sulfite (manufactured by Tateho Chemical Industries, specific gravity: 0.96 g / mL) was filled in the bag 108 as the purification material 106. The particle size distribution of the calcium sulfite used was measured using a particle size distribution analyzer (MT3300EXII, manufactured by Nikkiso Co., Ltd.) before and after 5 minutes of irradiation with 40 W of ultrasound. The measured particle size distribution is shown in Figure 11. The peak top diameter before ultrasound irradiation was 323 μm, with a frequency of 10.0%, and the peak top diameter after ultrasound irradiation was 249 μm, with a frequency of 5.5%. The ratio of the frequency of the peak top after ultrasound irradiation to the frequency of the peak top before ultrasound irradiation was 36.9%.

[0066] [Example 2] A water flow test was conducted in the same manner as in Example 1 using a water treatment cartridge having the same configuration as the water treatment cartridge 100, except that the spacer member 104 was changed to an octagonal cylindrical spacer member 104A (inner circumference: 98.0 mm) as illustrated in Figure 6.

[0067] [Example 3] A water flow test was conducted in the same manner as in Example 1 using a water treatment cartridge having the same configuration as the water treatment cartridge 100, except that the spacer member 104 was changed to the approximately elliptical cylindrical spacer member 104B (inner circumference: 107.6 mm) illustrated in Figure 7.

[0068] [Comparative Example 1] A water treatment cartridge having the same configuration as the water treatment cartridge 100 was used, except that the spacer member 104 was changed to the spacer member 200 (inner circumference: 104.6 mm) illustrated in Figure 9, and the amount of calcium sulfite filled was changed to 12 g. A water flow test was performed in the same manner as in Example 1. The spacer member 200 is a cylindrical member having a pair of flat portions 202 and a pair of curved portions 204, and when viewed from the central axis direction, it has a rectangular shape with a pair of short sides that bulge outward in an arc shape.

[0069] [Comparative Example 2] A water treatment cartridge having the same configuration as the water treatment cartridge 100 was used, except that the spacer member 104 was changed to the spacer member 200A (inner circumference: 108.1 mm) illustrated in FIG. Spacer member 200A has the same configuration as spacer member 200, except that it is provided with a flow path retaining portion 206 protruding from the center of the outer surface of a pair of flat portions 202, and a semicircular plate-shaped purification material restraining portion 208 protruding in the central axis direction from both ends of the pair of flat portions 202 in the central axis direction.

[0070] Table 1 shows the shape of the spacer member for each example and the results of the water flow test.

[0071] [Table 1]

[0072] In Examples 1 to 3, which used a water treatment cartridge having a spacer member with an opening formed in the peripheral wall and provided with a flow path holder and a purification material suppressing portion, the maximum pressure was suppressed to about the same level as in Comparative Example 1, in which the purification material was packed in an amount of 12 g, despite the fact that the purification material was packed in an amount of 19 g. Furthermore, in Examples 1 to 3, the integrated flow rate was larger than that of Comparative Example 1, and the purification performance was superior. In Comparative Example 2, which used a spacer member having a flow path retaining portion and a purification material suppressing portion but no opening formed in the peripheral wall portion, the integrated flow rate was small and the purification performance was poor. [Explanation of symbols]

[0073] 1...shower head, 100...water treatment cartridge, 102...cartridge body, 104, 104A, 104B...spacer members, 106...purification material, 108...bag body, 112...first plate portion, 114...second plate portion, 116, 118...water passage holes, 150...circumferential wall portion, 152...flow path holding portion, 154...purification material holding portion, O1...central axis, 160...first flow path, 162...second flow path.

Claims

1. The present invention includes a cartridge body that is accommodated in a shower head, a cylindrical spacer member that is accommodated in the cartridge body, and a purification material, The inside of the spacer member in the cartridge body is a first flow path, and the outside of the spacer member is a second flow path, The purification material is filled in the first flow path inside the spacer member in a state where the purification material is contained in a bag body, An opening is formed in a peripheral wall of the spacer member, the spacer member includes a plurality of flow path holding portions protruding from an outer surface of the peripheral wall portion other than the opening, and a plurality of purification material suppressing portions suppressing movement of the purification material, the plurality of purification material suppressing portions are provided at an end portion arranged on the downstream side of the peripheral wall portion so as to protrude in a central axis direction and to be spaced apart from one another in a circumferential direction of the peripheral wall portion, A water treatment cartridge, wherein the openings account for 40 to 70% of the outer surface of the peripheral wall portion.

2. The water treatment cartridge according to claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of flow path holding portions is a columnar protrusion or a ridge.

3. The water treatment cartridge according to claim 1 , wherein the plurality of flow path holding portions are disposed at equal intervals in a circumferential direction of the peripheral wall portion.

4. The water treatment cartridge according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a plurality of the openings are formed in the peripheral wall portion, evenly spaced apart in a circumferential direction and a central axis direction of the peripheral wall portion.

5. A water treatment cartridge as described in any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein when the peripheral wall portion is viewed from the second flow path side, the bag body covers at least the opening located on the downstream side, and the ratio of the total area of ​​the openings covered by the bag body to the total opening area of ​​the openings is 80% or more.

6. The water treatment cartridge according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the spacer member is cylindrical or octagonal tubular.

7. The water treatment cartridge according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the ratio of the outer periphery of the inner surface of the peripheral wall portion of the bag body in a direction along the circumferential direction to the inner periphery of the peripheral wall portion is 1.0 to 1.1 times.

8. The water treatment cartridge of any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the purification material comprises calcium sulfite.

9. The water treatment cartridge according to claim 8, wherein the calcium sulfite has a peak top diameter in a particle size distribution of 100 to 500 μm, a ratio of particles having a particle diameter of 1 to 1000 μm is 90 mass% or more of the total particles, a frequency of the peak top of the particle size distribution when irradiated with 40 W ultrasonic waves for 5 minutes is 70% or less of the frequency before ultrasonic irradiation, and a specific gravity of 0.80 to 1.20 g / mL.

10. The water treatment cartridge according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the bag body is made of nonwoven fabric.

11. A showerhead housing the water treatment cartridge according to any one of claims 1 to 10.

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