Feeding device

Abstract

This feeding device includes: a suction part capable of sucking a fluid from the outside; a flow passage that allows the sucked fluid to pass; and a discharge part for discharging the fluid which passed through the flow passage. The suction part has an air introduction passage that allows the sucked fluid to pass. The air introduction passage has a substantially annular transverse cross-section, and at least a section of the air introduction passage along the passing direction of the fluid is curved.

Description

Flow device

[0001] The present invention relates to a flow sending device that causes a fluid taken in from the outside to flow inside the device.

[0002] Conventionally, an antiviral air conditioner has been proposed that includes an ultraviolet light source disposed within a housing having an air intake port (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In such an antiviral air conditioner, a filter is provided near the air intake port, and the ultraviolet light source is provided in a chamber disposed behind the filter. Therefore, ultraviolet light is emitted within the chamber disposed within the housing, preventing light containing ultraviolet light from leaking outside the housing.

[0003] JP 2023-35282 A

[0004] The antiviral air conditioner described in Patent Document 1 has a chamber and a filter inside the housing to prevent ultraviolet rays from leaking out, which causes a problem of poor air flow in the air flow path.

[0005] The present invention was made through intensive research by the inventor in consideration of the above problems, and aims to provide a means for suppressing leakage of light to the outside and a decrease in the flow rate of a fluid using a simple structure.

[0006] The flow-directing device of the present invention is a flow-directing device comprising an intake section capable of sucking in fluid from the outside, a flow path through which the sucked-in fluid passes, and an exhaust section that discharges the fluid that has passed through the flow path, wherein the intake section has an air introduction path through which the sucked-in fluid passes, and the air introduction path has a cross section that is approximately annular and at least a portion of which is curved along the direction in which the fluid passes.

[0007] The flow control device of the present invention is characterized in that it has a pressure loss reduction section in which the suction section is arranged in the center, and a surrounding section that surrounds the periphery of the pressure loss reduction section, the pressure loss reduction section has an expanded section that has an expanded diameter at a midpoint along the direction in which the fluid is sucked in, and the surrounding section has an expanded section that has an expanded diameter on the inner circumferential surface at a point facing the expanded section, and the air introduction path is formed by a gap between the pressure loss reduction section and the surrounding section.

[0008] The flow sending device of the present invention is characterized in that it comprises a pressure loss reduction section in which the suction section is arranged in the center, and an enclosing section that surrounds the periphery of the pressure loss reduction section, the pressure loss reduction section having a constricted section that narrows the diameter of a midpoint along the direction in which the fluid is sucked in, the enclosing section having a narrowed diameter section that narrows the diameter of an inner circumferential surface at a location facing the constricted section, and the air introduction passage is formed by a gap between the pressure loss reduction section and the enclosing section.

[0009] The flow sending device of the present invention is characterized in that the pressure loss reducing portion has an end portion having a generally pointed shape.

[0010] In the flow sending device of the present invention, the discharge portion has a plurality of discharge paths extending radially, and the discharge paths are formed in a spiral shape.

[0011] The flow sending device of the present invention is characterized in that the discharge portion discharges the fluid in a radial direction.

[0012] The flow sending device of the present invention is characterized in that fluid can flow down the discharge portion from a plurality of directions within a range from the upstream side to the downstream side of the discharge channel.

[0013] 1 is a perspective view showing a flow sending device of the present embodiment; 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a flow sending device of the present embodiment; 3 is a schematic plan view showing a discharge section; 4 is a schematic view showing air flow; 5 is a view showing the flow direction in the discharge section; 6 is a view showing another example of a suction section; 7 is a view showing the direction of each air flow in the discharge section; 8 shows the influence of a discharged fluid, where (A) is a conceptual diagram of a conventional flow sending device and (B) is a conceptual diagram of the flow sending device of the present invention.

[0014] An embodiment of the flow sending device of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a flow sending device 1 of this embodiment, and Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the flow sending device 1 of this embodiment. The flow sending device 1 comprises a substantially cylindrical housing 4, and a fluid is drawn in via an inlet 2 at the upper end of the housing 4, passes through the internal space of a substantially cylindrical reflector 20 disposed within the housing 4, and is discharged via an outlet 6 at the lower end of the housing 4. The flow sending device 1 also has the function of reducing toxic substances in the fluid within the reflector 20, i.e., toxic substances drawn in along with the fluid.

[0015] Here, the term "fluid" refers to a concept that includes gases, liquids, gels, slurries, powders, etc. Toxic targets include pathogenic microorganisms such as bacteria and viruses, as well as harmful molecules such as formaldehyde, sulfur dioxide gas, nitrous acid gas, odor components, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and total organic carbon (TOC), and are objects that are toxic or harmful to at least the human body or the environment and that move with the fluid. Furthermore, "elimination of a toxic target" refers to the elimination or near-elimination of toxicity from the toxic target through decomposition, inactivation, sterilization, etc.

[0016] The suction section 2 has a pressure loss reduction section 10 arranged in the center in a plan view, an enclosing section 12 surrounding the pressure loss reduction section 10, and the like, and provides a space around the pressure loss reduction section 10 as an introduction path for introducing fluid from the outside. The pressure loss reduction section 10 has a swollen section 14 formed by expanding a portion along the axial direction of the housing 4, and the outer diameter gradually increases from one end (the end on the ultraviolet reflection path 8 side) to the swollen section 14, and gradually decreases in diameter from the swollen section 14 to a tip section 10a (the other end). The tip section 10a has a generally pointed shape forming an obtuse or acute angle.

[0017] That is, the pressure-loss reduction section 10 has a generally conical shape from the bulging section 14 to the tip section 10a, and a generally inverted truncated cone shape from the base end section. The shape of the pressure-loss reduction section 10 from the bulging section 14 to the tip section 10a may be a generally pyramidal shape, a generally truncated pyramidal shape, or a generally truncated conical shape, or the pressure-loss reduction section 10 may have a spiral flow path on its outer surface. The shape from the bulging section 14 to one end section may also be a generally inverted truncated pyramidal shape. Of course, the pressure-loss reduction section 10 may have an overall generally pyramidal shape such as a cone shape.

[0018] The surrounding portion 12 has an annular shape with an inner diameter that varies along the axial direction. The surrounding portion 12 has a narrowed portion 16 at one end on the opening side and an expanded diameter portion 18 at a location radially opposite the expanded portion 14.

[0019] The narrowed portion 16 has an inner diameter that is smaller than the outer diameter of the expanded portion 14 and larger than the outer diameter near the tip portion 10a. The expanded diameter portion 18 has an inner diameter set so as to have a predetermined gap from the expanded portion 14 that faces it in the radial direction. Therefore, the inner diameter of the surrounding portion 12 is set so as to have a predetermined gap or more from the pressure loss reduction portion 10 so as not to interfere with the flow of fluid flowing into the suction portion 2. The position of the narrowed portion 16 is not limited to one end, and can be set appropriately as long as it does not interfere with the flow of fluid. For example, it can be located downstream of the expanded portion 14 in the direction of fluid flow.

[0020] Because the pressure-loss reduction section 10 and the surrounding section 12 are formed as described above, the introduction passage has a substantially annular cross section. Furthermore, the introduction passage has at least a portion whose shape along the downstream flow direction of the fluid is curved. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2 , a portion of the introduction passage defined between the expanded section 14 and the expanded diameter section 18 is curved in a substantially C-shape.

[0021] The reflector 20 has a hollow, generally cylindrical shape with both ends open, and the internal space functions as the ultraviolet ray reflection path 8. An ultraviolet ray light source 22 is disposed in the internal space of the reflector 20, and the ultraviolet ray light source 22 creates an ultraviolet ray region in the ultraviolet ray reflection path 8.

[0022] The reflector 20 has an inner peripheral surface that is UV-reflective over substantially the entire inner peripheral surface. Therefore, inside the reflector 20 and in the UV reflection path 8, the UV light emitted from the UV light source 22 is reflected by the inner peripheral surface in a high order (multiple times in succession). As a result, an UV region with a high density and high dose of UV light is formed. In this UV region, the dose of UV light can be amplified several tens of times or more compared to the UV light emitted from the UV light source 22.

[0023] Such an inner peripheral surface may be made of, for example, a material having ultraviolet reflectivity (e.g., aluminum, etc.), or may be made by providing an ultraviolet reflecting reflective layer on the inside of the reflector 20. The reflective layer may be made of, for example, one or a combination of materials selected from high refractive index materials such as zirconium oxide (zirconia), tantalum pentoxide, titanium oxide, hafnium oxide (hafnia), yttrium oxide, zinc oxide, niobium pentoxide, chromium oxide, and aluminum oxide.

[0024] The method for forming the reflective layer is not particularly limited, and may be any suitable method, such as physical vapor deposition (PVD) methods such as vacuum deposition, ion plating, and sputtering, chemical vapor deposition (CVD) methods such as thermal CVD and plasma CVD, powder coating, solvent coating, printing, electroplating, electroless plating, electrodeposition coating, and water-based coating. For coating, an ultraviolet-reflective paint (e.g., a paint containing particulate silica (SiO), alumina (AlO), etc.) may be used.

[0025] The reflective layer can also be constructed by stacking high refractive index materials in layers, where each layer may be made of the same material, different materials, or different materials may be alternately stacked.

[0026] The ultraviolet light source 22 is, for example, a germicidal lamp, an ultraviolet lamp, an ultraviolet LED, or the like, and is arranged so as to be able to irradiate ultraviolet light onto substantially the entire ultraviolet reflection path 8. The shape of the ultraviolet light source 22 may be set as appropriate, for example, a straight tube shape, a U-shaped tube shape, a spiral shape, a spherical shape, a balloon shape, or the like. A plurality of ultraviolet light sources 22 may be arranged, and the arrangement locations and number of the ultraviolet light sources 22 may be set as appropriate as long as they are able to irradiate ultraviolet light onto at least the fluid that has flowed into the ultraviolet reflection path 8.

[0027] 3 is a schematic plan view showing the discharge unit 6. The discharge unit 6 has a plurality of discharge paths connected to discharge ports arranged on the outer circumferential surface of the flow sending device 1. That is, the discharge unit 6 is arranged below the ultraviolet light reflecting path 8 and has a plurality of discharge ports 6a and discharge paths 6b for discharging the fluid to the outside. The discharge ports 6a are located at the bottom of the outer circumferential surface of the housing 4 and are arranged at approximately equal intervals along the circumferential direction. Each discharge port 6a is connected to a discharge path 6b, and air that has passed through the ultraviolet light reflecting path 8 is guided to the discharge ports 6a by the discharge paths 6b.

[0028] The discharge path 6b is defined by a plurality of walls erected within the discharge portion 6. The walls are provided so as to curve radially outward from approximately the center of the discharge portion 6 in a plan view, and are inclined or curved relative to the vertical direction so that their lower ends connect to the discharge outlet 6a. Therefore, the discharge path 6b curves spirally radially outward from the center of the cross section of the discharge portion 6. Furthermore, the discharge path 6b guides the flow of the fluid that has passed through the ultraviolet reflection path 8 gradually from the vertical direction toward the radial direction toward the discharge outlet 6a.

[0029] The radially outward spiral of the discharge passage 6b is set to follow the rotation direction of the fan 34, which will be described later. For example, if the fan 34 rotates clockwise, the spiral direction of the discharge passage 6a is set to a shape curved to the right. The total opening area, which is the sum of the opening areas of the discharge ports 6a, is set to be at least larger than the opening area of ​​the suction section 2. It goes without saying that the opening area of ​​each discharge port 6a may be set to be larger than the opening area of ​​the suction section 2. The total opening area of ​​the discharge ports 6a may also be set to be larger than the cross-sectional area of ​​the introduction passage of the suction section 2. By setting this total opening area and the shape of the discharge section 6, the discharge speed of the fluid at the discharge ports 6a is set to be slower than the suction speed of the fluid at the suction section 2.

[0030] A light-shielding filter 30a is disposed between the suction portion 2 and the ultraviolet reflection path 8, and a light-shielding filter 30b is disposed between the exhaust port 6 and the ultraviolet reflection path 8. The light-shielding filters 30a and 30b have a structure that prevents ultraviolet light emitted from the ultraviolet light source 22 from leaking out of the reflector 20 and allows fluid to pass through. For example, the light-shielding filters 30a and 30b may be a structure (honeycomb core) formed by arranging polygonal three-dimensional figures such as squares and hexagons without any gaps.

[0031] The light-shielding filters 30a, 30b made of honeycomb cores are desirably arranged so that the hollow holes of each three-dimensional figure are inclined with respect to the axial direction of the housing 4 so as to block ultraviolet rays irradiated from the ultraviolet light source 22. For example, by arranging the light-shielding filters 30a, 30b so that the hollow holes extend at an inclination radially inward from the ultraviolet reflection path 8 side toward the suction section 2 (or discharge section 6) side, it is possible to block ultraviolet rays and the like irradiated from the ultraviolet light source 22 directly toward the suction section 2 or discharge section 6.

[0032] A fan 34 is disposed downstream of the light-shielding filter 30b and upstream of the discharge section 6. The fan 34 includes a hub connected to the rotor and a plurality of blades disposed on the outer peripheral surface of the hub and protruding radially outward in the radial direction of the hub. The blades of the fan 34 may have one or more dimples on their surfaces. The fan 34 rotates when rotational drive is transmitted from the rotor, creating a flow within the flow sending device 1. That is, the fan 34 creates a flow such that the fluid flows into the device 1 through the suction section 2 and is discharged from the discharge section 6 via the ultraviolet reflection path 8.

[0033] The flow sending device 1 of this embodiment can generate a fluid flow, suck in air as a fluid, reduce and eliminate toxic substances, and then discharge the air by rotating the fan 34. That is, when the flow sending device 1 is installed in a predetermined space such as a room and the fan 34 is rotated, the flow sending device 1 draws in the air in the predetermined space via the suction portion 2, reduces and eliminates toxic substances, and discharges the air from the discharge portion 6.

[0034] 4 is a schematic diagram showing the flow of air, in which, as shown by the arrows, air enters the flow sending device 1 from the top of the device. The air descends inside the device and is discharged from the bottom of the device. Specifically, the air flows downward along the outer peripheral surface of the pressure-loss reducing portion 10 in the suction portion 2. That is, the air enters the gap between the pressure-loss reducing portion 10 and the surrounding portion 12, passes through the gap between the bulging portion 14 and the expanded diameter portion 18, the light-shielding filter 30a, etc., and enters the ultraviolet light reflection path 8.

[0035] The air that has entered the ultraviolet reflection path 8 flows downward through the ultraviolet region toward the discharge section 6. At this time, toxic substances in the air are reduced and eliminated within the ultraviolet region. That is, within the ultraviolet region created by the ultraviolet reflection path 8, toxic substances are exposed to high-density and high-dose ultraviolet light, and are therefore instantly decomposed and / or inactivated and / or sterilized, and reduced and eliminated.

[0036] The air that flows down the ultraviolet reflection path 8 passes through the light-shielding filter 30b and enters the discharge section 6. In the discharge section 6, the air moves along the discharge path 6b and is discharged through the discharge port 6a. At this time, the air passes through the fan 34, forming a swirling flow and proceeding to the discharge path 6b. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the flow direction in the discharge path 6b. Within the discharge path 6b, as shown by the arrows in FIG. 5, the air flows in a swirling manner from the axial center side to the outside along the shape of the discharge path 6b. That is, the discharge path 6b curves so as to follow the rotation direction of the fan 34 when viewed in the axial direction (plan view), and guides the swirling air that passes through the fan 34 to the discharge port 6b along the swirling direction.

[0037] The light-shielding filter 30b is provided over substantially the entire area above the discharge portion 6. Therefore, air passing through the light-shielding filter 30b can enter the discharge path 6b from any position within a wide range from the upstream side to the downstream side in the swirling direction. That is, the airflow that can pass through the discharge path 6b may be an airflow entering from the upstream side in the swirling direction as indicated by arrow A in FIG. 7, an airflow entering an intermediate region between the upstream and downstream sides as indicated by arrow B, or an airflow entering from the downstream side toward the upstream side as indicated by arrow C.

[0038] As described above, air that has passed through the light-shielding filter 30b flows downward from various directions into the exhaust section 6. Therefore, airflows can flow downward from the exhaust path 6b to the exhaust port 6a from multiple directions. These airflows interfere with each other in the exhaust path 6b, causing the flow velocity of the air discharged from the exhaust port 6a to decrease without reducing the flow rate. Specifically, the airflow that enters the exhaust path 6b from the most upstream side, as indicated by arrow A, is guided by the exhaust path 6b to form a swirling flow. In contrast, the airflow that enters the exhaust path 6b at the most downstream side, as indicated by arrow C, hits the wall of the exhaust section 6 located downstream of the swirling direction, bounces back, and flows toward the exhaust port 6a. The airflow that enters in the intermediate region, as indicated by arrow B, flows in a direction substantially parallel to the radial direction of the ultraviolet light reflection path 8. As described above, the air currents indicated by arrows A to C flow in different directions, and the air currents collide with each other, weakening their momentum, resulting in the air being discharged from the outlet 6a with a reduced flow rate. In other words, the air that has flowed downward collides with each other near the outlet 6a, weakening its momentum before being discharged.

[0039] As described above, the suction section can block ultraviolet light from the ultraviolet light source 22 and prevent it from leaking to the outside while maintaining the flow of air (fluid). That is, even if ultraviolet light emitted by the ultraviolet light source 22 and reflected in the ultraviolet reflection path 8 passes through the holes in the light-shielding filter 30, it can be blocked by the expansion section 14 and / or the narrowed section 16, reliably preventing it from leaking to the outside. As a result, it is possible to prevent accidental direct viewing of the ultraviolet light source, etc.

[0040] Furthermore, the tip 10a of the pressure loss reduction section 10 is provided at a position radially opposite the narrowed section 16, and the enlarged diameter section 18 of the surrounding section 12 is provided at a position radially opposite the expanded section 14, thereby ensuring space for the fluid to pass through. This reduces the effect of pressure loss that may occur in the suction section 2, and makes it possible to suppress a decrease in the flow rate and flow velocity of the fluid.

[0041] Furthermore, since the discharge passage 6a is curved in accordance with the direction in which the air is swirling, it is possible to reduce the pressure loss of the air and to prevent a decrease in the flow rate and flow velocity of the discharged air.

[0042] As long as the suction section 2 has a shape that blocks at least ultraviolet light, the pressure-loss reduction section 10 may have a constricted section 40 that is narrowed partway along the direction in which the fluid is suctioned, and the surrounding section 12 may have a narrowed-diameter section 42 that is narrowed on the inner circumferential surface at a location facing the constricted section 40 (see, for example, FIG. 6( a)). The pressure-loss reduction section 10 may also have a shape that does not have a pointed end (see, for example, FIG. 6( b)). In these shapes, the narrowed section 42, which has a narrowed inner diameter, protrudes inward, and therefore functions as the narrowed section described above.

[0043] Furthermore, the flow sending device 1 of the present invention is configured so that the velocity of the fluid discharged from the discharge portion 6 is sufficiently slower than the velocity of the fluid sucked in from the suction portion 2, so there is almost no decompression caused by the discharged fluid. That is, as shown by Bernoulli's law discovered by Daniel Bernoulli in 1738, the phenomenon of pressure reduction due to an increase in fluid velocity does not occur. Therefore, there is no flow caused by this phenomenon in which the discharged fluid draws in the fluid around the flow sending device 1, i.e., there is no flow of fluid with a downward vector outside the flow sending device 1 from a height position on the suction portion 2 side to a height position on the discharge portion 6 side.

[0044] FIG. 8 illustrates the effects of the discharged fluid. (A) is a conceptual diagram illustrating a conventional flow-directing device in which the discharged fluid velocity is equal to or greater than the suction velocity, and (B) is a conceptual diagram illustrating the flow-directing device 1 of the present invention. When the velocity of the fluid discharged from the outlet of a conventional flow-directing device (simply referred to as the conventional device) is equal to or greater than the suction velocity of the fluid passing through the suction port (e.g., sufficiently fast), a pressure drop occurs in a predetermined area below the conventional device, including the vicinity of the outlet (e.g., the area surrounded by the dotted line in FIG. 8A). That is, a pressure difference occurs between the predetermined area and an area outside of the predetermined area (e.g., an area above the conventional device), causing a downward flow outside the conventional device. Therefore, a portion of the fluid flowing toward the suction port does not reach the device due to the downward flow caused by the pressure difference, as shown in FIG. 8A, and is instead pulled toward the discharged fluid and flows away from the device. In contrast, when the flow sending device 1 of the present invention is applied, the fluid is discharged from the discharge section 6 at a flow rate that is sufficiently slower than the suction rate of the suction section 2, so there is almost no pressure difference between the upper and lower sides of the flow sending device 1, and almost all of the fluid heading toward the suction section 2 can be sucked in without generating a downward flow outside the flow sending device 1, as shown in Figure 8 (B).

[0045] 1...flow sending device, 2...suction section, 4...casing, 6...exhaust section, 8...ultraviolet reflection path, 10...pressure loss reduction section, 12...enclosing section, 14...expanded section, 16...narrowed section, 18...expanded diameter section, 20...reflector, 22...ultraviolet light source

Claims

1. A flow-sending device comprising an intake section capable of sucking in fluid from the outside, a flow path through which the sucked fluid passes, and a discharge section for discharging the fluid that has passed through the flow path, wherein the intake section has an air introduction path through which the sucked fluid passes, and the air introduction path has a substantially annular cross section and is curved at least partially along the direction in which the fluid passes.

2. The flow control device according to claim 1, characterized in that the suction section has a pressure loss reduction section disposed in the center and a surrounding section surrounding the pressure loss reduction section, the pressure loss reduction section has an expanded section with an expanded diameter at the middle section along the direction of suction of the fluid, the surrounding section has an expanded section with an expanded diameter at the inner circumferential surface facing the expanded section, and the air introduction path is formed by the gap between the pressure loss reduction section and the surrounding section.

3. The flow sending device according to claim 1, characterized in that the suction section has a pressure loss reduction section arranged in the center and a surrounding section surrounding the pressure loss reduction section, the pressure loss reduction section has a constricted section with a reduced diameter at a midpoint along the direction in which the fluid is sucked in, the surrounding section has a reduced diameter section with a reduced diameter on the inner circumferential surface at a location opposite the constricted section, and the air introduction path is formed by a gap between the pressure loss reduction section and the surrounding section.

4. A flow sending device according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that the pressure loss reducing portion has an end portion having a generally pointed shape.

5. The flow sending device according to claim 1, wherein the discharge section has a plurality of discharge paths extending radially, and the discharge paths are formed in a spiral shape.

6. The flow sending device according to claim 1, wherein said discharge portion discharges fluid in a radial direction.

7. A flow sending device according to claim 1, wherein the fluid can flow down the discharge section from a plurality of directions within the range from the upstream side to the downstream side of the discharge path.

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