Hot-water device for a sanitary fitting and sanitary fitting having a hot-water device

Abstract

The invention relates to a hot-water device (1) for a sanitary fitting (2), comprising at least: - a housing (3); - a boiler unit (4) for heating a liquid, the boiler unit (4) being located in the housing (3); and - an expansion vessel (5) for the liquid, said expansion vessel being connected to the boiler unit (4) and located in the housing (3). The invention also relates to a sanitary fitting that is connected to a corresponding hot-water device (1) via a connection pipe (12).

Description

[0001] Hot water device for a sanitary fitting and sanitary fitting with a hot water device

[0002] The present invention relates to a hot water device for a sanitary fitting and a sanitary fitting with a hot water device. Sanitary fittings are used in particular for supplying a liquid, especially water, to sinks or washbasins.

[0003] Sanitary fittings can have a mixing valve for mixing cold and hot water to create mixed water at a desired mixed water temperature. Sanitary fittings are also known that can alternatively or cumulatively deliver hot water at a hot water temperature of, for example, up to 100 °C [Celsius]. For this purpose, the sanitary fittings can be connected to a hot water device that heats the liquid to the hot water temperature. Heating the liquid leads to an increase in volume and, in hot water devices that do not have an open hot water outlet for the hot water, to an increase in the pressure of the liquid in the hot water device.

[0004] To prevent damage to the hot water appliance, the hot water appliance or a liquid line through which the liquid is supplied to the hot water appliance must be equipped with a pressure relief valve, through which excess liquid can be discharged into a waste pipe or a siphon in the sink or washbasin. This increases the installation effort of the hot water appliance. Alternatively, the liquid line can be equipped with a pressure expansion tank, in which the liquid can be temporarily stored when the volume of the liquid increases. A disadvantage of pressure expansion tanks, however, is that some of the liquid can stagnate in the pressure expansion tank, which can lead to the formation of pathogens, such as germs and / or bacteria.

[0005] The object of the invention is therefore to at least partially solve the problems described with reference to the prior art and, in particular, to provide a hot water device for a sanitary fitting that is characterized by low installation effort and with which the formation of pathogens can be prevented. Furthermore, a sanitary fitting is also to be provided whose hot water device is characterized by low installation effort and with which the formation of pathogens can be prevented.

[0006] These objects are achieved with a hot water appliance and a sanitary fitting according to the features of the independent patent claims. Further advantageous embodiments of the invention are specified in the dependent patent claims. It should be noted that the features listed individually in the dependent patent claims can be combined with one another in any technologically expedient manner and define further embodiments of the invention. Furthermore, the features listed in the patent claims are further specified and explained in the description, with further preferred embodiments of the invention being presented.

[0007] A hot water device for a sanitary fitting which has at least the following contributes to this:

[0008] - a housing;

[0009] - a hot water heater for heating a liquid, the hot water heater being arranged in the housing; and

[0010] - a pressure expansion vessel for the liquid, which is connected to the hot water heater and arranged in the housing, wherein the pressure expansion vessel has a liquid inlet and a liquid outlet, so that the pressure expansion vessel can be at least partially flowed through by the liquid.

[0011] The hot water device can be connected to a sanitary fitting, in particular via at least one connecting line, for example in the manner of a hose line. Such sanitary fittings are used in particular to provide mixed water at a tap, a sink and / or a washbasin. For this purpose, cold water at a cold water temperature and hot water at a hot water temperature can be supplied to the sanitary fitting, for example. The cold water temperature is in particular a maximum of 25 °C (Celsius), preferably 1 °C to 25 °C, particularly preferably 5 °C to 20 °C and / or the hot water temperature is in particular a maximum of 90 °C, preferably 25 °C to 90 °C, particularly preferably 55 °C to 65 °C. The cold water and the hot water can then be mixed through the sanitary fitting, for example by means of a mixing valve, to form mixed water with a desired mixed water temperature.In addition, the sanitary fitting can be used to dispense a liquid cooled and / or carbonated by the device.

[0012] The sanitary fitting can have a fitting housing, which can in particular be made at least partially of plastic and / or (cast) metal, such as brass. The fitting housing can be fastened to a support, for example a worktop, the sink, or washbasin, and / or has a (protruding or branching) outlet that is rigidly or movably connected to the fitting housing. The outlet can be at least partially tubular and / or has at least one outlet opening. The at least one outlet opening can be designed, for example, in the manner of a jet former or mousseur.

[0013] The hot water device can be arranged in particular below the sanitary fitting and / or the support, for example in a cupboard. In particular, the hot water device can be mobile or portable. For this purpose, the mass of the hot water device can, for example, be a maximum of 50 kg [kilograms]. The hot water device has a housing that can be made at least partially of metal, for example sheet metal, or plastic. The housing can have a housing length of, for example, 100 mm [millimeters] to 500 mm, a housing width of, for example, 100 mm to 500 mm and / or (in a vertical direction) a housing height of 100 mm to 500 mm. In particular, the hot water device is not a building heating system and / or a hot water heater for other facilities in a building. The hot water device has a hot water heater for heating a liquid.The hot water heater can, for example, be designed like a boiler or instantaneous water heater. The heating of the liquid by the hot water heater is achieved, in particular, by electricity. For this purpose, the hot water device can be connected to an electrical network, for example, with a mains voltage of 100 V to 140 V or 200 V to 260 V. The connection can be made, for example, via a power cable.

[0014] The liquid is, in particular, (drinking) water. For this purpose, the hot water device or the housing of the hot water device can be connected to a liquid source, in particular via a liquid line, for example, in the manner of a liquid hose. The liquid source can be, for example, an angle valve and / or a public water supply network.

[0015] The hot water heater allows the liquid to be heated to a hot water temperature of, for example, 80 °C to 100 °C.

[0016] The hot water heater may comprise a hot water tank, which may, for example, have a capacity for heated liquid or hot water of 1 liter to 5 liters. The liquid can be stored in the hot water tank, for example for heating.

[0017] After the liquid has been heated, the liquid can be fed, in particular via a hot water line, to a hot water outlet of the hot water appliance or the housing. The hot water outlet can be connected to the sanitary fitting via the at least one connecting line. For this purpose, the at least one connecting line can, for example, be screwed to the hot water outlet. The hot water appliance is arranged in the housing of the hot water appliance. The hot water appliance has a pressure expansion vessel for the liquid, which is connected to the hot water appliance and / or a liquid supply line of the hot water appliance. This allows liquid to flow from the hot water appliance and / or the liquid supply line into the pressure expansion vessel when the liquid expands as a result of its heating.This prevents the pressure of the liquid in the hot water heater and / or the liquid supply line from rising above a predetermined value and / or a permissible limit. The predetermined value or the limit can, for example, be in the range from 6 bar to 10 bar, preferably 7 bar to 8 bar. The pressure expansion vessel can be designed in the manner of a closed container or in the manner of a pressure vessel. The pressure expansion vessel can be made at least partially of a material suitable for drinking water and / or at least partially coated with the material suitable for drinking water. The pressure expansion vessel can be made at least partially of metal. The pressure expansion vessel is arranged in the housing of the hot water appliance.

[0018] Thanks to the pressure expansion tank, the hot water appliance does not need to be connected to a waste pipe or a siphon at the tap, sink or washbasin, thus reducing installation effort.

[0019] The pressure expansion vessel or a vessel housing of the pressure expansion vessel has a liquid inlet for the liquid and a liquid outlet for the liquid. The liquid can flow into the pressure expansion vessel via the liquid inlet and out of the pressure expansion vessel via the liquid outlet. The liquid inlet and the liquid outlet are formed separately from one another. For example, the liquid inlet and the liquid outlet can be opposite one another. The liquid supply line or a first section of the liquid supply line can connect an inlet for the liquid of the hot water appliance to the liquid inlet of the pressure expansion vessel. The liquid supply line or a second section of the liquid supply line can connect the liquid outlet of the pressure expansion vessel to the hot water heater.The pressure expansion vessel is designed to allow fluid to flow through from the fluid inlet to the fluid outlet. In particular, a fluid channel of the pressure expansion vessel extending from the fluid inlet to the fluid outlet is completely fluid-permeable. This prevents, particularly permanent, stagnation of at least a portion of the fluid in the pressure expansion vessel, thereby preventing the formation of pathogens in the fluid.

[0020] The pressure expansion vessel may comprise a membrane. The membrane is preferably made at least partially of a flexible material and / or is arranged within the pressure expansion vessel. For example, the membrane may be made at least partially of rubber or silicone. In particular, the membrane is made at least partially of a material with a temperature resistance of at least 100°C.

[0021] The membrane can at least partially connect the liquid inlet to the liquid outlet. The membrane can at least partially form the liquid channel of the pressure expansion vessel, which connects the liquid inlet to the liquid outlet.

[0022] The membrane can be at least partially tubular. The membrane can be completely tubular. A flow cross-section of the membrane can have a diameter of, for example, 5 mm to 50 mm (particularly orthogonal to a longitudinal axis of the membrane).

[0023] The membrane can be permeated by the liquid.

[0024] The pressure expansion vessel can have a space filled with gas. The gas can be, for example, air, oxygen or CO2. The gas-filled space can have a volume of, for example, 0.5 l to 2 l. The membrane can extend at least partially through the gas-filled space. The membrane can expand into the gas-filled space, thereby reducing its volume and / or compressing the gas. When the heated liquid is released via the hot water line or the hot water outlet, the pressure of the liquid in the hot water heater and / or the liquid supply line is reduced, so that the liquid is pushed out of the membrane by the compressed gas towards the hot water heater and / or the liquid supply line.

[0025] The hot water heater and / or the liquid supply line are connected to a safety valve through which the liquid can be released in the event of excess pressure. The safety valve can be designed in the manner of a check valve. The safety valve is in particular normally closed and opens when the liquid is at excess pressure. The excess pressure occurs in particular when the pressure of the liquid in the hot water heater and / or the liquid supply line rises above the specified value and / or the permissible limit. The safety valve therefore opens automatically due to the excess pressure. The safety valve can be used to reduce the pressure of the liquid in the hot water heater and / or the liquid supply line, in particular in the event of a defect in the pressure expansion vessel and / or an imminent overload of the pressure expansion vessel.In particular, the safety valve closes automatically when the pressure of the liquid in the hot water heater and / or the liquid supply line falls below the specified value and / or the permissible limit.

[0026] The safety valve can be arranged in the housing.

[0027] The liquid can be released into a container via the safety valve. For this purpose, the safety valve can be connected to the container via an overpressure line. The container can have a liquid holding capacity of, for example, 0.1 l to 2 l. The container can be detachably arranged on and / or in the housing. The container can be designed like a drawer. The container can be emptied by a user of the hot water appliance or the sanitary fitting, for example into the sink or washbasin. The hot water appliance has a device by which further heating of the liquid in the hot water heater can be prevented when a predetermined fill level of the liquid in the container is reached. The device can be designed like a fill level sensor.Using the device, for example, a valve in the liquid supply line can be closed so that no further liquid can be supplied to the hot water heater and / or the hot water heater can be deactivated. The device can be connected (via data transmission) to a control unit of the hot water appliance. The control unit can be designed as a microcontroller.

[0028] The hot water appliance or the housing can (additionally) have a liquid detector and / or leak detector that can detect liquid dispensed into the container and / or liquid leaking into the housing. If the liquid detector and / or leak detector detects liquid, this can be signaled to the user, for example, by a visual and / or acoustic signal.

[0029] The liquid released through the safety valve can be evaporated by an evaporator. The evaporator can have at least one warm or hot surface for evaporating the liquid. The liquid can be evaporated by the evaporator, in particular using electrical energy. The evaporator can be arranged in the hot water device, the housing, and / or the container.

[0030] The hot water appliance can have a carbonator and / or cooler for the liquid. The carbonator allows the liquid to be treated, in particular, with CO2. The cooler allows the liquid to be cooled, for example, to a temperature of 1°C to 10°C. The carbonator and / or cooler can be arranged in the hot water appliance, the housing, and / or the container. According to a further aspect, a sanitary fitting is proposed that has a first connecting line, via which the sanitary fitting is connected to a hot water appliance according to the invention.

[0031] For further details on the sanitary fitting, please refer to the full description of the hot water appliance.

[0032] The invention and the technical environment are explained in more detail below with reference to the figures. It should be noted that the figures show a particularly preferred embodiment of the invention, but are not limited thereto. Identical components in the figures are provided with the same reference numerals. They show, by way of example and schematically:

[0033] Fig. 1: a sanitary fitting with a hot water device; and

[0034] Fig. 2: the hot water device.

[0035] Fig. 1 shows a sanitary fitting 2 with a fitting housing 14 and an outlet 15. The fitting housing 14 of the sanitary fitting 2 is attached to a support 16. A mixing valve 17 is arranged in the fitting housing 14, to which cold water can be supplied via a cold water supply line 18 and hot water can be supplied via a hot water supply line 19. The cold water and hot water can be mixed by the mixing valve 17 to form mixed water with a desired mixed water temperature. The mixed water temperature can be adjusted by a user of the sanitary fitting 2 via an actuating element 20 of the sanitary fitting 2. The actuating element 20 is designed here in the manner of an actuating lever. The mixed water can be discharged via an outlet opening 21 of the outlet 15 into an environment 22 of the sanitary fitting 2. The sanitary fitting 2 is connected to a hot water device 1 via a first connecting line 12 and a second connecting line 13.The hot water device 1 is arranged below the support 16, for example in a cupboard. Fig. 2 shows the hot water device 1 in an enlarged view. The hot water device 1 comprises a housing 3 with an inlet 23 for a liquid, which can in particular be cold water. The liquid can be supplied to the hot water device 1 via the inlet 23. For this purpose, the inlet 23 can be connected to a liquid source not shown here, for example via a liquid line not shown here, for example in the manner of a liquid hose. The liquid source can be, for example, an angle valve and / or a public water supply network. The liquid can be supplied from the inlet 23 via a liquid supply line 8 to a hot water heater 4 arranged in the housing 3 and to a carbonator 24 arranged in the housing 3.

[0036] The liquid can be heated to a hot water temperature by the hot water heater 4 and then fed to a hot water outlet 26 of the hot water device 1 via a hot water line 25. The first connecting line 12 shown in Fig. 1 is connected to the hot water outlet 26 so that the liquid heated by the hot water heater 4 can be fed to the sanitary fitting 2 via the first connecting line 12. The heated liquid can be delivered via the outlet opening 21 of the outlet 15 shown in Fig. 1. The hot water line 25 can be shut off by a hot water valve 27. When the liquid is heated by the hot water heater 4, the liquid expands. In order to prevent the hot water heater 4 from bursting when the hot water valve 27 is closed, the liquid supply line 8 andThe hot water heater 4 is connected to a pressure expansion vessel 5 and a safety valve 9, which here is designed like a check valve. The pressure expansion vessel 5 has a vessel housing 34 with a liquid inlet 28 and a liquid outlet 33. The liquid inlet 28 is connected to the liquid outlet 33 via a tubular membrane 6, so that the liquid can flow from the liquid inlet 28 through the membrane 6 to the liquid outlet 33. The membrane 6 runs through a gas-filled space 7 of the pressure expansion vessel 5 or the vessel housing 34. If the liquid expands as a result of heating in the hot water heater 4, the liquid is pressed into the pressure expansion vessel 5, so that the membrane 6 expands into the space 7, whereby the gas in the space 7 is compressed. This prevents an excessive increase in the pressure of the liquid in the liquid supply line 8 orthe hot water heater 4. A backflow preventer 32 arranged in the liquid supply line 8 prevents the heated liquid from flowing back via the liquid supply line 8 in the direction of the inlet 23 or a processing device for the liquid or the cold water, not shown in Fig. 2.

[0037] The safety valve 9 is normally closed and opens when the pressure of the liquid in the liquid supply line 8 or the hot water heater 4 rises above a permissible or predetermined value (for example, in the event of a defect in the pressure expansion vessel 5). When the safety valve 9 is open, the liquid can be released via an overpressure line 29 to a container 10, in which the liquid can be stored. The container 10 has a device 11 by which the fill level of the liquid in the container 10 can be monitored. The device 11 can therefore be designed in the manner of a fill level sensor. If the fill level of the liquid in the container 10 rises above a limit value or a predetermined fill level, the device 11 prevents further heating of the liquid by the hot water heater. For this purpose, the device 11 can be connected, for example, to a control system of the hot water device 1 (not shown here).

[0038] The liquid can be carbonated and / or cooled by the carbonator 24 and then fed to a liquid outlet 31 of the hot water device 1 via a line 30. The second connecting line 13 shown in Fig. 1 is connected to the liquid outlet 31, so that the carbonated and / or cooled liquid can be fed to the sanitary fitting 2 and discharged via the outlet opening 21 of the outlet 15.

[0039] The hot water device 1 is characterized in particular by its low installation effort. List of reference symbols

[0040] 1 hot water device

[0041] 2 sanitary fittings

[0042] 3 housings

[0043] 4 hot water heaters

[0044] 5 Pressure expansion vessel

[0045] 6 Membran

[0046] 7 Room

[0047] 8 Liquid supply line

[0048] 9 Safety valve

[0049] 10 containers

[0050] 11 Facility

[0051] 12 first connecting line

[0052] 13 second connecting line

[0053] 14 valve bodies

[0054] 15 Outlet

[0055] 16 carriers

[0056] 17 Mixing valve

[0057] 18 Cold water supply line

[0058] 19 Hot water supply line

[0059] 20 Actuating element

[0060] 21 Outlet opening

[0061] 22 Surroundings

[0062] 23 Entrance

[0063] 24 carbonators

[0064] 25 Hot water pipe

[0065] 26 Hot water outlet

[0066] 27 Hot water valve 28 Liquid inlet

[0067] 29 Overpressure line

[0068] 30 Line

[0069] 31 Liquid outlet 32 ​​Backflow preventer

[0070] 33 Liquid outlet

[0071] 34 vessel housings

Claims

Patent claims 1. Hot water device (1) for a sanitary fitting (2), comprising at least: - a housing (3); - a hot water heater (4) for heating a liquid, the hot water heater (4) being arranged in the housing (3); and - a pressure expansion vessel (5) for the liquid, which is connected to the hot water heater (4) and arranged in the housing (3), wherein the pressure expansion vessel (5) has a liquid inlet (28) and a liquid outlet (33) so that the pressure expansion vessel (5) can be at least partially flowed through by the liquid.

2. Hot water device (1) according to claim 1, wherein the pressure expansion vessel (5) has a membrane (6).

3. Hot water device (1) according to claim 2, wherein the membrane (6) at least partially connects the liquid inlet (28) to the liquid outlet (33).

4. Hot water device (1) according to one of claims 2 or 3, wherein the membrane (6) is at least partially tubular.

5. Hot water device (1) according to one of claims 2 to 4, wherein the membrane (6) can be flowed through by the liquid.

6. Hot water device (1) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the pressure expansion vessel (5) has a space (7) filled with gas.

7. A hot water appliance (1) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the hot water heater (4) is connected to a safety valve (9) through which the liquid can be released in the event of excess pressure.

8. A hot water appliance (1) according to claim 7, wherein the liquid can be released to a container (10) via the safety valve (9).

9. Hot water device (1) according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the liquid discharged via the safety valve (9) can be evaporated by an evaporator.

10. Sanitary fitting (2), comprising a first connecting line (12) via which the sanitary fitting (2) is connected to a hot water device (1) according to one of the preceding claims.

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