Faucet device

Abstract

To provide a faucet device capable of suppressing confusion of an operator, adjusting a water temperature or water volume and stopping water discharge through manual operation and stopping water discharge through automatic operation with a simple configuration.SOLUTION: A faucet device 1 comprises: a single-lever faucet 10 that can adjust a mixing ratio of hot water from a hot water supply pipe 13 to water from a water supply pipe 14 to produce temperature-adjusted water and can adjust the amount of the temperature-adjusted water discharged from a temperature-adjusted water discharge pipe 15; a solenoid valve 5 that is disposed on the temperature-adjusted water discharge pipe 15 and a flow rate sensor 6 that detects presence or absence of a flow of the temperature-adjusted water; an optical sensor 12b that detects operation of an operator; a control device 7 that opens and closes the solenoid valve 5 in response to a signal from the optical sensor 12b; and a speaker 8 that informs the operator that the single-lever faucet 10 is in a closed state when the control device 7 receives the signal from the flow rate sensor 6 indicating that the temperature-adjusted water is not flowing to the temperature-adjusted water discharge pipe 15 with the solenoid valve 5 in an open state.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a faucet device. More specifically, the present invention relates to a faucet device capable of manually adjusting the water temperature and water volume and stopping and starting the water flow, and automatically stopping and starting the water flow.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, there has been a faucet device that can adjust the temperature and amount of water discharged from a discharge pipe of a faucet attached to a counter in a kitchen or a washbasin, manually stop and start the water flow, or automatically stop and start the water flow of the water whose temperature and amount have been adjusted. Patent Document 1 discloses such a faucet device. In this faucet device, a valve cartridge is used, which is configured to mix hot water supplied from a hot water supply passage and water supplied from a water supply passage, thermally adjust the mixture to obtain regulated water, and discharge the regulated water to a manual discharge passage and an automatic discharge passage. A flow sensor for detecting the flow of water in the manual discharge passage is disposed, and a solenoid valve is disposed in the automatic discharge passage. When the flow sensor senses that no water is flowing in the manual discharge passage, the solenoid valve can be automatically opened and closed.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In the technology described in the above Patent Document 1, during manual operation, the solenoid valve is in a closed state, and during automatic operation, water is not supplied from the valve cartridge to the manual discharge path. Therefore, there is no situation where water is not discharged during automatic operation due to forgetting to perform manual operation. However, there are problems such as the need to adopt a special valve cartridge that can discharge the regulated water to the manual discharge path and the manual discharge path, or to provide two discharge paths, the manual discharge path and the automatic discharge path, in parallel, which complicates the structure and easily leads to cost increase.

[0005] In view of such problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a faucet device having a simple structure, suppressing the occurrence of confusion among operators, and enabling adjustment of the water temperature and water volume and discharge stop by manual operation, as well as discharge stop by automatic operation.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] A first invention of the present invention is a faucet device, comprising a single lever faucet configured to adjust the mixing ratio of hot water supplied from a hot water supply path and water supplied from a water supply path to produce regulated water and to adjust the amount of the regulated water discharged from a discharge path, a solenoid valve disposed in the discharge path for opening and closing the discharge path, a flow sensor disposed in the discharge path for detecting the presence or absence of the flow of the regulated water, a detection means for detecting the operation or voice of an operator, a control means for opening and closing the solenoid valve according to a signal input from the detection means, and a caution means for notifying the operator that the single lever faucet is in a closed state when the control means sets the solenoid valve in an open state and receives a signal from the flow sensor indicating that no regulated water is flowing through the discharge path.

[0007] According to the first invention, while using a general single lever faucet, with the temperature and water volume of the regulated water determined manually by the single lever faucet, the electromagnetic valve is opened and closed by a signal from the detection means to automatically stop and start the discharge of water from the discharge water passage. And when the regulated water does not come out from the discharge water passage even when the electromagnetic valve is opened in the automatic opening and closing operation of the electromagnetic valve by the signal from the detection means, the attention - calling means can notify the operator that the single lever faucet is in the closed state. Thereby, the simplification of the faucet device is achieved, and when the regulated water is not discharged from the discharge water passage even when the electromagnetic valve is opened by the signal from the detection means during the automatic opening and closing operation of the electromagnetic valve, the operator can recognize that the single lever faucet is in the closed state without confusion.

[0008] According to a second invention of the present invention, in the first invention, the detection means is a motion sensor that detects the movement of the operator's hand or a voice recognition sensor that detects the content of the operator's voice.

[0009] According to the second invention, the operator can open and close the electromagnetic valve in a non - contact manner to stop and start the discharge of water from the discharge water passage, so it is hygienic.

[0010] According to a third invention of the present invention, in the first invention or the second invention, the attention - calling means is a voice - calling means that calls the operator's attention by voice or a visual - calling means that calls the operator's attention by visual information such as light or an image.

[0011] According to the third invention, the operator can be notified in a non - contact manner that the single lever faucet is in the closed state, so it is hygienic.

[0012] According to a fourth invention of the present invention, in any one of the first invention to the third invention, the flow rate sensor can measure the flow rate of the regulated water per unit time, and the control means integrates the flow rate per unit time input from the flow rate sensor within a predetermined time to calculate an integrated flow rate. When the integrated flow rate exceeds a predetermined value, the control means has a function of calling the operator's attention by the attention - calling means.

[0013] According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, waste of water resources can be suppressed. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0014]

Figure 1

Figure 2

[0015] The configuration of a water faucet device 1 according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figures 1 and 2. In Figure 1, arrows indicate the front, back, left, right, up and down directions relative to the user, and the directional explanation will be based on the directions indicated by these arrows.

[0016] As shown in Fig. 1, the faucet device 1 has a single-lever faucet 10 disposed on the top surface of a kitchen counter, a solenoid valve 5, a flow sensor 6, a control device 7, and a speaker 8. The solenoid valve 5, the flow sensor 6, the control device 7, and the speaker 8 are disposed under the counter. Here, the control device 7 and the speaker 8 correspond to the "control means" and the "attention means, audio alert means" in the claims, respectively.

[0017] As shown in FIG. 1, the single lever faucet 10 has a faucet body 11 and a water discharge pipe 12 that extends upward from the faucet body 11 and curves downward and backward midway. The faucet body 11 has a casing 11a, a cartridge 11b disposed inside the casing 11a, an operation handle 11c for operating the cartridge 11b, a hot water supply pipe 13, a water supply pipe 14, and a temperature-controlled water discharge pipe 15 that are connected to the cartridge 11b in a watertight manner. The cartridge 11b mixes the hot water supplied from the hot water supply pipe 13 and the water supplied from the water supply pipe 14, thermally regulates the mixed water, and discharges the temperature-controlled water to the temperature-controlled water discharge pipe 15. The temperature of the temperature-controlled water and the discharged water volume are adjusted by operating the operation handle 11c. Here, the hot water supply pipe 13, the water supply pipe 14, and the temperature-controlled water discharge pipe 15 respectively correspond to the "hot water supply path", "water supply path", and "water discharge path" in the claims.

[0018] The lower end side of the water discharge pipe 12 is attached to the faucet body 11. A detachable water discharge head 12a is attached to the tip of the water discharge pipe 12. The upper end side of the temperature-controlled water discharge pipe 15 is connected to the water discharge head 12a while maintaining a watertight state. Note that at least the portion of the temperature-controlled water discharge pipe 15 that passes through the inside of the water discharge pipe 12 is a flexible pipe. As a result, the water discharge head 12a can be pulled out from the water discharge pipe 12 to discharge the temperature-controlled water. A push-type switching button 12a1 is disposed on the water discharge head 12a, and the mode of water discharge can be selected between a straight shape and a shower shape by switching the switching button 12a1 to a pushed-in state or a protruding state.

[0019] As shown in Fig. 1, a light sensor 12b is disposed on the outer peripheral surface that is substantially C-shaped and curved on the tip side of the water discharge pipe 12. The light sensor 12b functions to switch between continuous water discharge and water stoppage from the water discharge head 12a. When a detected object such as a human hand is detected above the tip side of the water discharge pipe 12, which is the detection area, while the solenoid valve 5 is closed, the light sensor 12b sends the signal to the control device 7, and the control device 7 switches the solenoid valve 5 to the open state. After that, even if the detected object is no longer detected, the solenoid valve 5 remains in the open state. Then, when the detected object is detected again within the detection area, the signal is sent to the control device 7, and the control device 7 switches the solenoid valve 5 to the closed state. Conversely, when the solenoid valve 5 is in the open state, if the light sensor 12b detects a detected object such as a human hand above the tip side of the water discharge pipe 12, which is the detection area, the signal is sent to the control device 7, and the control device 7 switches the solenoid valve 5 to the closed state. After that, even if the detected object is no longer detected, the solenoid valve 5 remains in the closed state. Then, when the detected object is detected again within the detection area, the signal is sent to the control device 7, and the control device 7 switches the solenoid valve 5 to the open state. Here, the light sensor 12b corresponds to the "detection means, motion sensor" in the claims.

[0020] In the water discharge pipe 12, a solenoid valve 5 and a flow sensor 6 are arranged side by side in the upstream to downstream direction in a watertight state at a part thereof. The solenoid valve 5 can be switched between open and closed by an electrical signal from the control device 7, and can switch the water discharge pipe 12 to the open state or the closed state. The solenoid valve 5 can be manually forced to the open state in case of an emergency such as a power failure. The flow sensor 6 outputs an electrical signal corresponding to the flow rate per unit time of the temperature-controlled water discharged from the solenoid valve 5 and flowing through the water discharge pipe 12 to the control device 7. At least the part of the water discharge pipe 12 from the flow sensor 6 to the water discharge head 12a is made of a flexible pipe and can be bent and deformed within the water discharge pipe 12. The control device 7 is connected to a power source (not shown), receives electrical signals from the light sensor 12b and the flow sensor 6, and outputs electrical signals to the solenoid valve 5 and the speaker 8. The speaker 8 emits a predetermined voice guide or buzzer sound toward the operator when receiving an electrical signal from the control device 7.

[0021] Based on FIG. 2, the operation of the faucet device 1 will be described. The initial states are as follows: (1) the single lever faucet 10 is in the closed state and the solenoid valve 5 is in the closed state; (2) the single lever faucet 10 is in the closed state and the solenoid valve 5 is in the open state; (3) the single lever faucet 10 is in the open state and the solenoid valve 5 is in the closed state; (4) the single lever faucet 10 is in the open state and the solenoid valve 5 is in the open state. Here, only in the case of (4) is the regulated water discharged from the water discharge head 12a. In FIG. 2, the thick solid line represents the pipe, and the thin solid line represents the wiring.

[0022] In the case of (1), even if the single lever faucet 10 is operated, the regulated water is not discharged from the water discharge head 12a. To manually operate the single lever faucet 10 to discharge the regulated water, a detected object is detected by the optical sensor 12b and an electrical signal is sent to the control device 7, and the solenoid valve 5 is opened based on the electrical signal from the control device 7. At this time, since the single lever faucet 10 is in the closed state, an audio guide or a buzzer sound notifying the operator that the single lever faucet 10 is in the closed state is emitted from the speaker 8 based on the electrical signal from the control device 7. The temperature and amount of the regulated water are adjusted by operating the single lever faucet 10, and the water discharge is stopped. To automatically stop the water discharge, when the single lever faucet 10 is operated to adjust the temperature and amount of the regulated water and the water is discharged, and a detected object is detected by the optical sensor 12b and an electrical signal is sent to the control device 7, the solenoid valve 5 is closed based on the electrical signal from the control device 7. Thereafter, each time an operation of detecting a detected object by the optical sensor 12b and sending an electrical signal to the control device 7 is performed, the solenoid valve 5 alternately repeats the open state and the closed state, and the water discharge can be automatically stopped and started.

[0023] In the case of (2), to manually operate the single lever faucet 10 to discharge the regulated water, without operating the solenoid valve 5 to the open state, operate the single lever faucet 10 to adjust the temperature and amount of the regulated water and perform water discharge stop. To automatically perform water discharge stop, the same operation as in (1) may be performed. At this time, even if the operation of causing the light sensor 12b to detect a detected object and sending an electrical signal to the control device 7 is repeated, mistakenly thinking that the single lever faucet 10 is in the open state, water discharge will not occur. Similar to (1), when the light sensor 12b detects a detected object and the solenoid valve 5 is opened, since the single lever faucet 10 is in the closed state, an audio guide or buzzer sound notifying the operator that the single lever faucet 10 is in the closed state is emitted from the speaker 8 based on the electrical signal from the control device 7.

[0024] In the case of (3), to manually operate the single lever faucet 10 to discharge the regulated water, similar to (1), cause the light sensor 12b to detect a detected object and send an electrical signal to the control device 7, and based on the electrical signal from the control device 7, open the solenoid valve 5. At this time, since the regulated water is immediately discharged due to the single lever faucet 10 being in the open state, the temperature and amount of the regulated water may be adjusted and water discharge stop may be performed by operating the single lever faucet 10 from that state. To automatically perform water discharge stop, if adjustment of the temperature and amount of the regulated water is not required, the same operation as in (1) may be performed without operating the single lever faucet 10.

[0025] In the case of (4), to manually operate the single lever faucet 10 to discharge the regulated water, since the solenoid valve 5 is in the open state, the temperature and amount of the regulated water may be adjusted and water discharge stop may be performed by operating the single lever faucet 10 from that state. To automatically perform water discharge stop, the same operation as in (1) may be performed.

[0026] That is, in the cases of (1) and (2), even if the operation of causing the light sensor 12b to detect the object to be detected and sending an electrical signal to the control device 7 is repeated under the mistaken assumption that the single lever faucet 10 is in the open state, water will not be discharged. At this time, since an audio guide or a buzzer sound notifying the operator that the single lever faucet 10 is in the closed state is emitted from the speaker 8, it is possible to prevent the operator from being confused.

[0027] Further, based on the electrical signal from the flow rate sensor 6, the control device 7 calculates the integrated flow rate within a predetermined time, and if it exceeds a predetermined value, it has a function of emitting an audio guide or a buzzer sound notifying the operator from the speaker 8 that the integrated flow rate is large. Thereby, waste of water resources can be suppressed.

[0028] The faucet device 1 of the present embodiment configured as described above has the following effects. While using a general single lever faucet 10, in a state where the temperature and amount of the regulated water are determined manually with the single lever faucet 10, the electromagnetic valve 5 can be automatically opened and closed by the light sensor 12b to stop and start the water discharge from the water discharge head 12a. And when the regulated water does not come out from the water discharge head 12a during the opening and closing operation of the electromagnetic valve 5 by the light sensor 12b, an audio guide or a buzzer sound notifying that the single lever faucet 10 is in the closed state can be emitted by the speaker 8. Thereby, the faucet device can be simplified, and when the regulated water is not discharged from the water discharge head 12a even when the electromagnetic valve 5 is opened and closed by the light sensor 12b during automatic operation, the operator can recognize that the single lever faucet 10 is in the closed state and operate without confusion.

[0029] In addition, since the optical sensor 12b is a motion sensor that non - contact detects the movement of a detected object such as the hand of an operator, the operator does not need to touch an object that multiple people come into contact with, which is hygienic. Furthermore, since the speaker 8 can arouse the operator's attention by voice, the operator does not need to touch an object that multiple people come into contact with, which is hygienic. In addition, when the integrated flow rate within a predetermined time measured by the flow rate sensor 6 and the control device 7 exceeds a predetermined value, the speaker 8 can issue a voice guide or a buzzer sound informing that the water usage amount is large. By this, waste of water resources can be suppressed.

[0030] As mentioned above, specific embodiments have been described. However, the present invention is not limited to their appearance and configuration, and various changes, additions, and deletions are possible without changing the gist of the present invention. For example, the following are examples.

[0031] 1. In the above - mentioned embodiment, the solenoid valve 5 and the flow rate sensor 6 are arranged side by side in the direction from upstream to downstream in a part of the water discharge pipe 12. However, it is not limited to this, and the order of arrangement of the solenoid valve 5 and the flow rate sensor 6 may be reversed, or the solenoid valve 5 and the flow rate sensor 6 may be arranged separately. That is, it is only necessary that the solenoid valve 5 and the flow rate sensor 6 are arranged in the water discharge pipe 12.

[0032] 2. In the above - mentioned embodiment, the optical sensor 12b is adopted as the "detection means" in the claims. However, it is not limited to this, and a voice recognition sensor that detects the content of the voice issued by the operator can also be adopted.

[0033] 3. In the above - mentioned embodiment, the speaker 8 that issues a voice guide or a buzzer sound is adopted as the "attention - arousing means" in the claims. However, it is not limited to this, and a visual - arousing means that emits visual information such as an image from a display screen to arouse the operator's attention can also be adopted.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0034] 1 Faucet device 5 Solenoid valve 6 Flow rate sensor 7 Control device (control means) 8 Speaker (attention arousal means, voice arousal means) 10 Single lever faucet 12 Drain pipe 12a Drain head 12b Optical sensor (detection means, motion sensor) 13 Hot water supply pipe (hot water supply path) 14 Water supply pipe (water supply path) 15 Temperature-controlled water discharge pipe (discharge water path)

Claims

1. A faucet device, A single-lever faucet that adjusts the mixing ratio of hot water supplied from a hot water supply path and water supplied from a water supply path to produce regulated water and adjusts the amount of the regulated water discharged from a discharge water path, A solenoid valve that opens and closes the discharge water path disposed in the discharge water path, A flow rate sensor that detects the presence or absence of the flow of the regulated water disposed in the discharge water path, Detection means for detecting the operation or voice of an operator, Control means for opening and closing the solenoid valve by a signal input from the detection means, When the control means sets the solenoid valve to an open state and receives a signal from the flow rate sensor indicating that the regulated water is not flowing through the discharge water path, a caution prompting means for notifying the operator that the single-lever faucet is in a closed state, A faucet device having the above.

2. The faucet device according to claim 1, wherein the detection means is a motion sensor that detects the movement of the operator's hand or a voice recognition sensor that detects the content of the operator's voice.

3. The faucet device according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the caution prompting means is a voice prompting means for prompting the operator by voice or a visual prompting means for prompting the operator by visual information such as light or an image.

4. In any one of claims 1 to 3, the flow rate sensor is capable of measuring the flow rate of the regulated water per unit time, The control means integrates the flow rate per unit time input from the flow rate sensor within a predetermined time to calculate an integrated flow rate, and when the integrated flow rate exceeds a predetermined value, has a function of prompting the operator by the caution prompting means. A faucet device.

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