Manufacturing method for mounting brackets and water heaters
A versatile mounting bracket for water heaters with dual mounting sections and design features enhances installation accuracy and reduces costs by allowing shared use across different devices.
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- JP · JP
- Patent Type
- Patents
- Current Assignee / Owner
- PALOMA CO LTD
- Filing Date
- 2022-12-14
- Publication Date
- 2026-06-29
AI Technical Summary
Conventional water heaters require dedicated mounting brackets for each device, leading to increased part types and costs.
A single mounting bracket with a plate-shaped equipment mounting section and a fixing section, featuring a first and second mounting section for different casings, allowing shared use for multiple devices, and incorporating recesses and bulges to ensure correct installation.
Reduces part types and costs by allowing a single bracket to be used for multiple devices, improves installation accuracy, and simplifies manufacturing by ensuring correct placement.
Smart Images
Figure 0007881460000001 
Figure 0007881460000002 
Figure 0007881460000003
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] The present invention relates to a mounting bracket used for a water heater and a manufacturing method of a water heater using the mounting bracket.
Background Art
[0002] Conventional water heaters are equipped with various devices such as a leakage circuit breaker, a display device, an igniter, etc. When installing such devices, dedicated mounting brackets were used for each type of device (for example, Patent Document 1).
Prior Art Documents
Patent Documents
[0003]
Patent Document 1
Summary of the Invention
Problems to be Solved by the Invention
[0004] However, if dedicated mounting brackets are required for each device to be installed, there is a problem that the cost increases due to an increase in the types of parts.
[0005] Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and aims to provide a mounting bracket and a manufacturing method of a water heater that can reduce the types of parts and achieve cost reduction.
Means for Solving the Problems
[0006] To achieve the above objective, the invention described in claim 1 of the present invention is an installation bracket for installing a casing to which predetermined parts are attached to a water heater, comprising a plate-shaped equipment installation portion on which the casing is installed and a fixing portion that is fixed to the water heater side, wherein a first installation portion for installing a first casing is provided on the surface of the equipment installation portion, and a second installation portion for installing a second casing different from the first casing is provided on the back surface of the equipment installation portion. The invention described in claim 2 is characterized in that, in the invention described in claim 1, the equipment mounting portion is provided with a recess that is recessed toward the rear side on the front side and bulges out on the rear side, a first mounting portion is provided so as to sandwich the recess on the front surface of the equipment mounting portion, and a second mounting portion is provided on the bulging portion on the rear side of the equipment mounting portion.
[0007] Furthermore, in order to achieve the above objective, the invention described in claim 3 of the present invention is a method for manufacturing a water heater in which a predetermined casing is installed via an installation fitting described in claim 1 or 2, characterized in that a first step is performed to select whether to install a first casing or a second casing, and a second step is performed to fix the installation fitting to the water heater side and install the selected casing to the corresponding installation part of the first installation part and the second installation part of the installation fitting. [Effects of the Invention]
[0008] According to the present invention, the device has a plate-shaped equipment mounting section on which the casing is installed, and a fixing section that is fixed to the water heater side. A first mounting section for installing the first casing is provided on the surface of the equipment mounting section, while a second mounting section for installing a second casing different from the first casing is provided on the back surface of the equipment mounting section. Therefore, the same mounting bracket can be used whether the first casing or the second casing is installed on the water heater, thus reducing the number of parts and lowering costs. Furthermore, according to the invention described in claim 2, the equipment installation portion is provided with a recess that is recessed on the front side toward the back side and bulges out on the back side, and the first installation portion is provided so as to sandwich the recess on the front surface of the equipment installation portion, while the second installation portion is provided on the bulging portion on the back surface of the equipment installation portion. Therefore, when attempting to install the first casing on the back surface of the equipment installation portion or the second casing on the front surface of the equipment installation portion, the recess and bulge portions get in the way. Consequently, the casing can be installed in the correct installation portion, and the workability related to the manufacture of the water heater can be improved. Furthermore, according to the invention described in claim 3, a water heater with a first casing installed and a water heater with a second casing installed can be manufactured using the same mounting bracket, and the manufacturing method can be simplified by sharing the mounting bracket. [Brief explanation of the drawing]
[0009] [Figure 1] This is an explanatory diagram showing a water heater with a ground fault circuit breaker installed, with the front cover removed, from the front. [Figure 2] This is a perspective view diagram showing the mounting bracket on which the earth leakage circuit breaker is installed, as seen from the front side of the equipment installation area. [Figure 3] Figure 2 is a perspective view illustrating the disassembled state of the equipment installation area, viewed from the front side. [Figure 4] Figure 2 is a perspective view illustrating the disassembled state of the equipment installation area, as seen from the back side. [Figure 5] This is an explanatory diagram showing a water heater with a display device installed, with the front cover removed, viewed from the front. [Figure 6] This is a perspective view diagram showing the mounting bracket on which the display device is installed, as seen from the back side of the equipment mounting section. [Figure 7] Figure 6 is a perspective view illustrating the disassembled state of the equipment installation area, viewed from the front side. [Figure 8] Figure 6 is a perspective view illustrating the disassembled state of the equipment installation area, as seen from the back side. [Modes for carrying out the invention]
[0010] The following describes in detail, based on the drawings, a water heater using an installation bracket which is one embodiment of the present invention. Figure 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a water heater 1 with a ground fault circuit breaker 31 installed, with the front cover removed, from the front. Figure 2 is a perspective explanatory diagram showing the mounting bracket 21 on which the ground fault circuit breaker 31 is installed, from the front side of the equipment installation section 22. Figure 3 is a perspective explanatory diagram showing the disassembled state of Figure 2, from the front side of the equipment installation section 22. Figure 4 is a perspective explanatory diagram showing the disassembled state of Figure 2, from the back side of the equipment installation section 22. Figure 5 is an explanatory diagram showing a water heater 41 with a display device 32 installed, with the front cover removed, from the front. Figure 6 is a perspective explanatory diagram showing the mounting bracket 21 on which the display device 32 is installed, from the back side of the equipment installation section 22. Figure 7 is a perspective explanatory diagram showing the disassembled state of Figure 6, from the front side of the equipment installation section 22. Figure 8 is a perspective explanatory diagram showing the disassembled state of Figure 6, from the back side of the equipment installation section 22.
[0011] First, we will describe a water heater 1 equipped with a leakage circuit breaker 31 having a first casing (casing 31A) to which predetermined components are attached. The water heater 1 consists of a combustion device 3, a heat exchanger 4, and an exhaust unit 5, all housed in a rectangular box-shaped enclosure 2. The combustion device 3 includes an inner case 6 that houses a burner unit (not shown). The burner unit consists of multiple dilution burners, which are flattened in the left-right direction, arranged in a left-right direction. A gas distribution unit 7 is assembled on the front of the inner case 6 for distributing and supplying fuel gas to each group of burners with different numbers of dilution burners.
[0012] An air intake fan 8, which supplies combustion air to the combustion device 3, is mounted on the lower left side of the combustion device 3. Below the combustion device 3, on the right side inside the housing 2, is a controller 9 equipped with a control circuit board. Meanwhile, the exhaust section 5 has horizontally elongated exhaust pipes 10 that protrude forward through the front cover.
[0013] The heat exchanger 4 is a fin-tube type with heat transfer tubes that meander through multiple fins arranged in parallel in the thickness direction. A water supply pipe 11 is connected to the inlet end of the heat transfer tube, and a hot water outlet pipe 12 is connected to the outlet end of the heat transfer tube. The bottom surface of the housing 2 is provided with a water inlet 13 to which an external water pipe is connected, and a hot water outlet 14 to which external piping to a hot water tap is connected. The upstream end of the water supply pipe 11 is connected to the water inlet 13, and the downstream end of the hot water outlet pipe 12 is connected to the hot water outlet 14. In addition, the bottom surface of the housing 2 is provided with a gas inlet 15 to which an external gas pipe is connected. The gas inlet 15 is connected to the gas distribution unit 7 within the housing 2 via a gas proportional valve unit 16 equipped with a proportional valve 17 and an upstream main solenoid valve 18. Furthermore, a ground fault circuit breaker 31, which cuts off the power supply to the controller 9 in the event of a ground fault in the controller 9, is installed on the bottom plate of the housing 2 via an installation bracket 21 in a first position as described later.
[0014] Next, we will describe a water heater 41 in which a display device 32 is installed, which has a second casing (casing 32A) to which a predetermined component different from that of the earth leakage circuit breaker 31 is attached, instead of the earth leakage circuit breaker 31. The water heater 41 has substantially the same configuration as the water heater 1, and consists of a combustion device 3, a heat exchanger 4, and an exhaust unit 5 installed inside a rectangular box-shaped housing 2. The bottom surface of the housing 2 is provided with a water inlet 13, a hot water outlet 14, a gas inlet 15, etc. A display device 32 that shows the set temperature and any errors that have occurred in the water heater 41 is installed on the bottom plate of the water heater 41 via a mounting bracket 21 in a second position as described later.
[0015] Now, let's describe the mounting bracket 21, which is the main component of the present invention. The mounting fitting 21 is formed by bending a metal plate into an L shape, and has a plate-like equipment mounting portion 22 extending in the vertical direction and a fixing portion 23 extending forward from the lower end of the equipment mounting portion 22. A concave portion 24 recessed backward is provided at the center of the front surface of the equipment mounting portion 22. And, on both left and right sides of the concave portion 24 (positions sandwiching the concave portion 24 left and right) on the front surface of the equipment mounting portion 22, first mounting holes 25, 25 for screwing the screw fixing pieces of the casing 31A of the leakage circuit breaker 31 are formed. That is, a first mounting portion is provided on the surface of the equipment mounting portion 22.
[0016] On the other hand, the portion corresponding to the concave portion 24 (the back surface of the concave portion 24) on the rear surface of the equipment mounting portion 22 bulges backward more than the surroundings. And, a second mounting hole 26 for screwing the screw fixing pieces of the casing 32A of the display device 32 is formed in the bulging portion 24A. That is, a second mounting portion is provided on the back surface of the equipment mounting portion 22. Also, below the second mounting hole 26 in the bulging portion 24A (inside the concave portion 24), a locking hole 27 to which the locking piece 33 of the casing 32A can be locked is formed. Note that the left and right width of the bulging portion 24A is formed to be narrower than the left and right width of the casing 32A.
[0017] In addition, a fixing hole 28 for screwing the mounting fitting 21 to the housing 2 is formed at a position on the fixing portion 23 that is closer to the left than the center in the left-right direction. Also, at the left end of the fixing portion 23, a positioning piece 29 for positioning the mounting fitting 21 on the bottom plate of the housing 2 is bent downward.
[0018] Then, if you want to install the earth leakage circuit breaker 31 to configure the water heater 1 (i.e., you have chosen to install the first casing), you fix the mounting bracket 21 to the bottom plate of the housing 2 in a first position with the front of the equipment mounting section 22 facing forward, that is, in a first position with the fixing section 23 extending forward. At this time, the positioning piece 29 of the fixing section 23 is inserted through a positioning hole (not shown) provided in the bottom plate of the housing 2. Then, you screw the screws 51, 51 into the first mounting holes 25, 25 to screw the casing 31A of the earth leakage circuit breaker 31 to the first mounting section of the mounting bracket 21. As a result, the earth leakage circuit breaker 31 will be installed towards the rear of the housing 2 by the front-to-back width of the fixing section 23. Note that if you try to screw the earth leakage circuit breaker 31 to the rear surface of the equipment mounting section 22, the screw fixing piece of the casing 31A will be lifted up from the rear surface of the equipment mounting section 22. Therefore, workers can easily notice if the leakage circuit breaker 31 is installed incorrectly, that is, if the mounting bracket 21 fixed to the base plate is in the wrong position.
[0019] On the other hand, if you want to install the display device 32 to configure the water heater 41 (i.e., you have chosen to install the second casing), you reverse the mounting bracket 21 and fix the mounting bracket 21 to the bottom plate of the housing 2 in a second position where the rear surface of the equipment mounting section 22 faces forward, i.e., the second position where the fixing section 23 extends backward. In this case as well, the positioning piece 29 of the fixing section 23 is inserted through the positioning hole provided in the bottom plate of the housing 2. Then, after locking the locking piece 33 into the locking hole 27, you screw the screw 52 into the second mounting hole 26 to screw the casing 32A of the display device 32 to the second mounting section of the mounting bracket 21. As a result, the display device 32 will be installed towards the front of the housing 2 by the front-to-back width of the fixing section 23. Note that if you try to screw the display device 32 to the front of the equipment mounting section 22, the screw fixing piece of the casing 32A will be lifted up from the front of the equipment mounting section 22 (the back of the recess 24). Therefore, workers can easily notice errors in the installation position of the display device 32, that is, errors in the orientation of the mounting bracket 21 fixed to the base plate.
[0020] The mounting bracket 21, having the above configuration, has a plate-shaped equipment mounting section 22 on which the casing 31A of the earth leakage circuit breaker 31 and the casing 32A of the display device 32 are installed, and a fixing section 23 that is fixed to the water heater 1, 41. A first mounting section for installing the casing 31A of the earth leakage circuit breaker 31 is provided on the surface of the equipment mounting section 22, while a second mounting section for installing the casing 32A of the display device 32, which is different from the earth leakage circuit breaker 31, is provided on the back surface of the equipment mounting section 22. Therefore, whether the water heater 1 is equipped with an earth leakage circuit breaker 31 or the water heater 41 is equipped with a display device 32, the same mounting bracket 21 can be used, thus reducing the number of parts and lowering costs. Furthermore, by sharing the mounting bracket 21 in this way, the manufacturing method of the water heater 1, 41 can be simplified.
[0021] Furthermore, the surface of the equipment mounting section 22 is provided with a recess 24 that is recessed toward the rear side and bulges out on the rear side. First mounting holes 25, 25 are drilled on both the left and right sides of the recess 24 on the surface of the equipment mounting section 22, while a second mounting hole 26 is drilled in the bulging portion 24A on the rear side of the equipment mounting section 22. Therefore, if one attempts to install the earth leakage circuit breaker 31, which should be installed on the surface of the equipment mounting section 22, on the rear side of the equipment mounting section 22, or if one attempts to install the display device 32, which should be installed on the rear side of the equipment mounting section 22, on the surface of the equipment mounting section 22, the recess 24 and bulging portion 24A will get in the way as described above. Consequently, the earth leakage circuit breaker 31 and the display device 32 can be installed in the correct mounting locations, improving the workability related to the manufacturing of the water heaters 1 and 41.
[0022] Furthermore, the fixing portion 23 protrudes from the lower end of the equipment mounting portion 22 toward the surface side of the equipment mounting portion 22, that is, toward the side where the earth leakage circuit breaker 31 is installed. Therefore, if the mounting bracket 21 is fixed to the bottom plate of the housing 2 in the first orientation with the surface of the equipment mounting portion 22 facing forward, and the earth leakage circuit breaker 31 is installed on the surface of the equipment mounting portion 22, the earth leakage circuit breaker 31 will be installed towards the rear of the housing 2 by the front-to-back width of the fixing portion 23. Thus, it is possible to prevent the earth leakage circuit breaker 31 from interfering with the front cover of the housing 2. On the other hand, if the mounting bracket 21 is fixed to the bottom plate of the housing 2 in the second orientation with the back surface of the equipment mounting portion 22 facing forward, and the display device 32 is installed on the back surface of the equipment mounting portion 22, the display device 32 will be installed towards the front of the housing 2 by the front-to-back width of the fixing portion 23. Thus, it is easier to install the display device 32 near the front cover, for example, to position the monitor of the display device 32 within a display window opened in the front cover.
[0023] Furthermore, the mounting bracket and water heater manufacturing method according to the present invention are not limited in any way to the embodiments described above, and the overall configuration of the water heater, as well as the specific configuration of the mounting bracket and the configuration related to fixing the mounting bracket to the housing, can be modified as needed.
[0024] For example, in the above embodiment, the mounting bracket is configured to allow installation of both the casing of the earth leakage circuit breaker and the casing of the display device. However, there is no problem in configuring it to allow installation of a casing to which another component, such as an igniter, is attached. In that case, if the screw fastening positions on the earth leakage circuit breaker casing and the screw fastening positions on the igniter casing are the same, the equipment mounting section can be configured to allow installation of not only the earth leakage circuit breaker but also the igniter on its surface. In other words, the design can be modified as appropriate to determine what types of casings can be installed on the front and back surfaces of the equipment mounting section.
[0025] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, a recess is provided in the equipment mounting section, and first mounting holes are provided on both the left and right sides of the recess on the surface of the equipment mounting section. However, first mounting holes may also be provided on both the top and bottom sides, or on the top and left sides. By providing the first mounting section so as to sandwich the recess, it is possible to achieve the effect of installing the casing in the correct mounting section. Moreover, it is possible to construct the mounting bracket without providing a recess in the equipment mounting section, and each mounting section may have holes other than those for screw fastening. The specific structures of the equipment mounting section, the first mounting section, and the second mounting section can be modified as appropriate.
[0026] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, when installing a ground fault circuit breaker, the mounting bracket is fixed to the bottom plate of the housing in the first position, while when installing a display device, the mounting bracket is fixed to the bottom plate of the housing in the second position. However, it is also possible to configure the mounting bracket to be fixed to the housing in the same position regardless of whether a ground fault circuit breaker or a display device is installed. Furthermore, there is no problem in fixing the mounting bracket in a position other than those described in the embodiment, such as the third position where the surface of the equipment mounting section faces left, and the mounting bracket may be configured to be fixed to a location other than the bottom plate of the housing, and the fixing position and fixing position of the mounting bracket can be changed as appropriate.
[0027] In addition, in the above embodiment, the mounting bracket is fixed to the housing before the casing is installed in the equipment installation area. However, it is also possible to fix the mounting bracket to the housing after the casing has been installed in the equipment installation area. The order in which the mounting bracket is fixed to the water heater side and the casing is installed in the equipment installation area can also be changed in the design. [Explanation of symbols]
[0028] 1, 41...Water heater, 2...Housing, 21...Mounting bracket, 22...Equipment mounting section, 23...Fixing section, 24...Recess, 24A...Bulging section, 25...First mounting hole (first mounting section), 26...Second mounting hole (second mounting section), 31...Earth leakage circuit breaker, 31A...Casing (first casing), 32...Display device, 32A...Casing (second casing).
Claims
1. An installation bracket for installing a casing with specified parts attached to a water heater, The casing has a plate-shaped equipment installation section on which it is installed, and a fixing section that is fixed to the water heater side, An installation fitting characterized in that a first installation portion for installing a first casing is provided on the surface of the equipment installation portion, and a second installation portion for installing a second casing different from the first casing is provided on the back surface of the equipment installation portion.
2. The equipment mounting section is provided with a recess that is recessed on the front side toward the back side and bulges out on the back side. The first installation portion is provided so as to sandwich the recess on the surface of the equipment installation portion, The mounting bracket according to claim 1, characterized in that the second mounting portion is provided on the bulging portion on the back surface of the equipment mounting portion.
3. A method for manufacturing a water heater, wherein a predetermined casing is installed via an installation fitting described in claim 1 or 2, A first step of selecting which of the first casing and the second casing to install, A method for manufacturing a water heater, characterized in that a second step is performed in which the mounting bracket is fixed to the water heater side and the selected casing is installed in the corresponding mounting portion of the first mounting portion and the second mounting portion of the mounting bracket.