WO2013098783A2

WO2013098783A2 - Air cleaner

Info

Publication number: WO2013098783A2
Application number: PCT/IB2012/057763
Authority: WO
Inventors: Weiran Wang; Gang Wang; Yaodong HUANG; Ji Wen CHEN
Original assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V.
Priority date: 2011-12-31
Filing date: 2012-12-27
Publication date: 2013-07-04
Also published as: WO2013098783A3; CN202719697U

Abstract

This utility model provides an air cleaner (100, 200, 300), which comprises a housing (101, 201, 301); a first air inlet (102, 202, 302); a first air outlet (103, 203, 303); an air fan (104, 204, 304) configured to be located in an air channel formed between the first air inlet and the first air outlet; a washing chamber (105, 205, 305) configured to be at least partially located in the air channel; a distributing device for distributing liquid into the washing chamber; and a dry chamber (110, 210, 310) configured to be communicated with the first air outlet and at least partially located in the air channel. In such air cleaner, it is not necessary to utilize the filter members since the water is used for air cleaning and humidification simultaneously. Moreover, the purified and humid air can be discharged directly or dried through the dry chamber before being discharged as required, which avoids the overhigh humidity of the air and can dehumidify the indoor air.

Description

AIR CLEANER

FIELD OF THE PRESENT UTILITY MODEL

The present utility model generally relates to an air cleaner, and more particularly, to an air cleaner with the functions of air cleaning and humidity adjusting.

BACKGROUND OF THE PRESENT UTILITY MODEL

With the increased requirement for the quality of life, the issue of air pollution has been concerned more and more. In our daily life, air cleaner is usually used by the consumer for filtering or cleaning the dust and many chemical pollutants from the indoor air, and more particularly, for example, it is used for purifying or filtering the formaldehyde in the newly renovated house. Generally, it is desired to humidify the air to some extent upon purifying the indoor air, and in the dry autumn and winter seasons as well as an air-conditioned environment, such requirement is increased prominently.

However, most of the air cleaners in the current market are not provided with the humidifying function and the humidifiers are also configured without the purifying function, causing an obviously increased living cost of the consumer if two functions are obtained by purchasing two kinds of the products simultaneously. In addition, some products being advertised to possess both two functions of air cleaning and humidifying are actually integrated by the above two devices (i.e. the air cleaner and the humidifier) simply, and the purifying and humidifying functions are still isolated from each other.

SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT UTILITY MODEL

In view of the existing problems in the prior art, according to an embodiment of the present utility model, an air cleaner is proposed to purify the air and adjust the humidity by utilizing the water only, and it can achieve the prominent purifying effect by effectively increasing the contact surface between the water and the air to be purified rather than replacing the filter members. Furthermore, according to an embodiment, this air cleaner can also dehumidify the indoor air. According to an embodiment of the present utility model, an air cleaner is provided, which comprises a housing; a first air inlet and a first air outlet configured to be located on the housing; an air fan configured to be located in an air channel formed between the first air inlet and the first air outlet; a washing chamber configured to be at least partially located in the air channel; a distributing device for distributing liquid into the washing chamber; and a dry chamber configured to be communicated with the first air outlet and at least partially located in the air channel.

Further, a second air outlet is disposed in the air channel and located between the washing chamber and the dry chamber, and the second air outlet is configured to have smaller resistance to air flow than the dry chamber. It can be achieved, for example, by adding a water absorption material in the dry chamber to increase the flowed friction, so that the air flow can be discharged from the air cleaner through the second air outlet rather than the dry chamber as required, for example, for humidifying the indoor air.

According to a preferred embodiment, the second air outlet is located between the air fan and the dry chamber. In this way, when the second air outlet is opened, the air flow can flow towards the second air outlet to discharge from the air cleaner under the action of the air fan.

Further, the air cleaner also comprises a controller for controlling the second air outlet to be opened or closed in some specific conditions. For example, in the case that the indoor air has a higher humidity and there is no need to humidify the air, the second air outlet will be closed, and the humid and purified air came from the washing chamber is forced to be discharged through the dry chamber and the first air outlet. Similarly, if the indoor air has a lower humidity and needs to be humidified, the second air outlet will be opened under the control of the controller, and then the air with higher humidity came from the washing chamber can be directly discharged through the second air outlet to humidify the dry environment.

Further, a second air inlet is disposed in an intake channel of the air fan for bringing into the air flow from the outside of the air cleaner when the dry chamber is needed to be maintained such as refreshed by blowing air through it. The configuration that the second air inlet is disposed in the intake channel of the air fan is propitious for entering of the outside air flow. Under normal conditions, the second air inlet is opened manually by the user as required, however, it should be understood that the above controller can also be used for controlling the second air inlet.

According to an embodiment of the present utility model, the second air outlet is closed as soon as the second air inlet is opened. As such, when the dry chamber is refreshed, the air flow from the outside of the air cleaner is discharged only through the dry chamber and the first air outlet.

Further, the controller is also used for controlling the distributing device.

According to an embodiment of the present utility model, the air cleaner further comprises a showering chamber configured to be located above the washing chamber, and the distributing device comprises: a showering device configured to be located in the showering chamber; a water tank configured to be located below the showering chamber; and a pump configured to be fluidly communicated with the water tank and the showering device.

Further, the air cleaner also comprises a first humidity sensor which is used to transmit the measured humidity data to the controller for monitoring and controlling the indoor humidity. In addition, in order to maintain the performance of the dry chamber, according to a preferred embodiment, a second humidity sensor is disposed at the outlet of the dry chamber and used to transmit the measured humidity data to the controller for comparing with the humidity data measured by the first humidity sensor, it is beneficial for the user to judge the performance of the dry chamber based on the compared data and then determine whether the dry chamber is needed to be maintained or not.

Further, the air cleaner also comprises a pollutant sensor which is used to transmit the measured pollutant data to the controller for monitoring and controlling the degree of purification of the indoor air.

According to the present utility model, the washing chamber of the air cleaner is configured as a packed tower filled with the water adsorption materials therein.

According to an alternative embodiment, the air cleaner further comprises an alarm configured to be coupled with the controller.

It can be learnt from the above description that, according to the specific embodiment of the present utility model, in the air cleaner, it is not necessary to utilize the filter members since the water is used for air cleaning and humidification simultaneously; moreover, the purified and humid air can be discharged directly or dried through the dry chamber before being discharged as required, which avoids the overhigh humidity of the indoor air; the testing and monitoring for the humidity and the pollutant of the indoor air are beneficial to control the air inlet or outlet to be opened or closed, so that the humidity control and the purification can be implemented independently or simultaneously, the user can visually observe the working condition of the air cleaner and can maintain the performance of the dry chamber via the humidity monitoring for the air flow through the dry chamber; the alarm further avoids the overhigh humidity of the air and provides an additional protection for the performance of the dry chamber. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The other features and advantages of the present utility model will be better understood via the preferable embodiments described in detail hereinbelow with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the figures, the same reference number indicates the same or similar member, wherein:

Fig.l schematically illustrates an air cleaner according to a first embodiment of the present utility model;

Fig.2 schematically illustrates the structural layout and implementation process of the air cleaner according to a second embodiment of the present utility model, wherein the indoor air enters into the air cleaner from the lower side thereof;

Fig.3 is similar to Fig.2, and schematically illustrates the structural layout and implementation process of the air cleaner according to a third embodiment of the present utility model, the difference is that in this embodiment the indoor air enters into the air cleaner from the upper side thereof. DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Next, the present utility model will be described in detail with reference to the specific embodiments. However, it should be noted that, the following embodiments are only used to exemplarily explain the specific technical solutions of the present utility model, and cannot be used to restrict the protection scope of the present utility model. First, referring to Fig.l , an air cleaner 100 according to an embodiment of the present utility model comprises a housing 101 , a first air inlet 102 and a first air outlet 103, an air fan 104 is located in an air channel formed between the first air inlet 102 and the first air outlet 103, so that the indoor air 116 can be brought into the air cleaner 100 and flowed through a washing chamber 105 which is at least partially located in the air channel. A distributing device is disposed above the washing chamber 105 to distribute liquid to the washing chamber for filtering the air. A dry chamber 110 is communicated with the first air outlet 103 and at least partially located in the air channel, and then the purified air can flow through the dry chamber 110 to form and discharge a dry and purified air 118. The embodiment shown in Fig. l is a basis of the present utility model, and various embodiments can be obtained based on this basis, such various embodiments include but not limit to the following embodiments described by referring to Figs. 2 and 3.

Fig.2 schematically illustrates the structural layout and implementation process of the air cleaner 200 according to a second embodiment of the present utility model. The air cleaner 200 comprises a housing 201 , a first air inlet 202 and a first air outlet 203 configured to be located on the housing 201 , an air fan 204 is located in an air channel formed between the first air inlet 202 and the first air outlet 203. In the present embodiment, the air fan 202 is operated with the negative pressure, that is to say, during the operation of the air cleaner 200, the air fan 204 is rotated to produce an air flow upwards so as to force the indoor air 216 to be sucked into the air cleaner from the first air inlet 202 and discharged out from the first air outlet 203 through the air channel. The washing chamber 205 which is used for purifying the sucked indoor air 216 is at least partially located in the air channel, and the distributing device is used to distributing liquid to the washing chamber 205. The distributing device comprises: a showering device 207 configured to be located in a showering chamber 206 which is located above the washing chamber 205; a water tank 208 configured to be located below the showering chamber 206; and a pump 209 configured to be fluidly communicated with the water tank 208 and the showering device 207. In some embodiments, the washing chamber 205 is configured as a packed tower filled with the water adsorption materials therein. In this way, when the water is bumped to the showering device 207 via the pump 209 and used to shower liquid to the washing chamber 205, a moisture film can be formed on the surface of the material to increase the contact area between the water and the sucked indoor air 216, so as to effectively filter or clean the dust and chemical pollutants from the indoor air. Since the formaldehyde solubility in water is very high (0.24g/100ml at room temperature), the formaldehyde in the air can be effectively removed by implementing the present embodiment. Moreover, according to the embodiments of the present utility model, other pollutants which can be dissolved in the water or reacted with the water to be captured, decomposed or eliminated by the water can also be removed from the air.

In the air cleaner 200 shown in Fig.2, the dry chamber 210 is communicated with the first air outlet 203 and at least partially located in the air channel. Some water absorption materials such as sponge, zeolite and the like can be filled in the dry chamber 210. In addition, in the air channel, a second air outlet 211 is disposed between the washing chamber 205 and the dry chamber 210, and in the present embodiment, the second air outlet 211 is disposed between the air fan 204 and the dry chamber 210. If the indoor humidity is lower and the humidification is required, the second air outlet 211 will be opened to allow the purified and humid air 217 to be directly discharged; contrarily, if the indoor humidity is comfortable enough and there is no need to humidify the air, the second air outlet 211 will be closed to force the purified and humid air 217 to be dried through the dry chamber 210 and then discharge the dried and purified air 218. It can be clearly understood by reference to the explanation hereinafter.

In the intake channel of the air fan 204, a second air inlet 212 is provided, as shown in Fig.2. Generally, the second air inlet 212 is closed. If the user wants to maintain the dry chamber 210 regularly or the water absorption material in the dry chamber 210 has achieved to a saturation level, the second air inlet 212 can be opened, while the second air outlet 21 1 and the bump 209 for pumping the water will be closed. At this time, the air fan 204 is still operating to suck the air from the first air inlet 202 and the second air inlet 212 simultaneously, wherein the air entered from the first air inlet 202 will air dry the filled material in the washing chamber 205 to a certain degree, and the air entered from the second air inlet 212 will air dry the water absorption material in the dry chamber 210. A controller 213 can be used for controlling the pump 209 and the second air outlet 211, and this controller 213 is also used to monitor the data measured by a first humidity sensor 214 and a pollutant sensor 215 disposed on the air cleaner 200. Additionally, a second humidity sensor 219 disposed at the outlet of the dry chamber 210 can transmit the measured humidity data to the controller 213 so as to compare with the humidity data measured by the first humidity sensor 214, if two values are close to each other, it is indicated that the water absorption material in the dry chamber 210 has been saturated, and then the user may replace the water absorption material or implement the above air-dry operation. An alarm 220 can be provided on the air cleaner 200 and coupled with the controller 213. With this configuration, the alarm 220 will keep warning if the indoor humidity goes beyond a predetermined value.

Fig.3 schematically illustrates the structural layout and implementation process of the air cleaner 300 according to a third embodiment of the present utility model, which is similar to Fig.2 and the difference is that the indoor air 316 enters into the air cleaner 300 from the upper side thereof. It is because that the air fan 304 in this embodiment is operated by positive pressure.

Similar to the embodiment in Fig.2, the air cleaner 300 in Fig. 3 comprises a first air inlet 302 and a first air outlet 303 on the housing 301, and also comprises a washing chamber 305, a showering device 307 located in a showering chamber 306 above the washing chamber 305, a water tank 308 located below the showering chamber 306 and a pump 309 fluidly communicated with the water tank 308 and the showering device 307, as well as a second air inlet 312 disposed in the intake channel of the air fan 304. Since the indoor air 316 enters into the air cleaner 300 from the upper side via the first air inlet 302, the first air outlet 303 and a dry chamber 310 communicated therewith are disposed at the lower side of the air cleaner 300 accordingly. Similarly, the second air outlet 311 is disposed between the washing chamber 305 and the dry chamber 310, and configured to have smaller resistance to air flow than the dry chamber 310, so that the purified and humid air 317 can be discharged directly when the second air outlet 311 is opened, or if the humid air is required to be dried, the dried and purified air 318 can be discharged when the second air outlet 311 is closed. It can be seen that, in the present embodiment, a first humidity sensor 314, a second humidity sensor 319, a pollutant sensor 315, an alarm 320 and a controller 313 for controlling the pump 309 and the second air outlet 311 are also provided, which do not be described in detail. The operation of the air cleaner according to the present utility model will be further explained by referring to the following specific embodiments.

1. If the initial indoor humidity is lower, such as lower than 40%RH, and the air purification is required, such as the formaldehyde concentration is higher than 0.1mg/m³, the controller 213, 313 will control the pump 209, 309 to be turned on, and the second air outlet 211, 311 is opened while the second air inlet 212, 312 is closed, the indoor air 216, 316 will be filtered through the washing chamber 205, 305 and the purified and humid air 217, 317 will be discharged directly from the second air outlet 211 , 31 1 ;

2. If the indoor humidity is up to a comfortable level, such as 50%RH* 60%RH, but the formaldehyde concentration is still higher than 0.1mg/m³, the indoor air is only required to be purified, the controller 213, 313 will control the pump 209, 309 to be turned on, and the second air outlet 211 , 311 is closed while the second air inlet 212, 312 is also closed, the indoor air 216, 316 will be filtered through the washing chamber 205, 305, and the purified and dried air 218, 318 will be discharged from the first air outlet 203, 303 through the dry chamber 210, 310; 3. If the indoor humidity is up to a comfortable level, such as 50%RH* 60 RH, and the formaldehyde concentration is lower than O.lmg/m , the air cleaner can be turned off or be refreshed, that is, the controller 213, 313 will control the pump 209, 309 to be turned off, and the second air outlet 211, 311 is closed while the second air inlet 212, 312 is opened, the indoor air 216, 316 will be discharged from the first air outlet 203, 303 through the washing chamber 205, 305 and the dry chamber 210, 310, so that the washing chamber 205, 305 and the dry chamber 210, 310 can be air dried; 4. When the indoor humidity is up to a comfortable level, such as 50%RH* 60%RH, and the formaldehyde concentration is lower than O. lmg/m , if the dry chamber is required to be air dried, the user may close the first air inlet 202, 302, the controller 213, 313 will control the pump 209, 309 to be turned off, and the second air outlet 211, 311 is closed while the second air inlet 212, 312 is opened, the indoor air 216, 316 will be sucked in only from the second air inlet 212, 312 and discharged from the first air outlet 203, 303 through the dry chamber 210, 310, so that the dry chamber 210, 310 can be air dried independently; in this case, the user may also humidify the indoor air with the air cleaner, which is achieved since the air flow sucked from the second air inlet 212, 312 can not flow through the washing chamber 205, 305 to be further humidified, and some moisture of the air can be absorbed by the water absorption material in the dry chamber 210, 310 upon flowing therethrough;

5. When the indoor humidity goes beyond a predetermined value, such as 75 RH, and the formaldehyde concentration is still higher than O. lmg/m , if the user wants to purify the air, the controller 213, 313 will control the pump 209, 309 to be turned on, and the second air outlet 211 , 311 is closed while the second air inlet 212, 312 is also closed, the indoor air 216,

316 will be filtered through the washing chamber 205, 305, and the purified and dried air 218, 318 will be discharged from the first air outlet 203, 303 through the dry chamber 210, 310; in this case, if the water absorption material in the dry chamber 210, 310 has been saturated, namely, the measured humidity of the discharged purified air is still beyond the comfortable humidity range, the alarm 220, 320 will keep warning;

6. When the indoor humidity goes beyond a predetermined value, such as 75%RH, and the formaldehyde concentration is lower than O. lmg/m , there is no need to purify and humidify the air, since the overhigh humidity will affect the health and the sucked air can not be utilized to air dry the air cleaner, thereby, the air cleaner is turned off. Although taking the formaldehyde as an example of the air pollutant in the above embodiments, it should be understood that the concentration or other values of various pollutant can also be achieved by equipped with the suitable sensors or other detecting devices. Therefore, the range of applying the present utility model is not limited to one or some specific pollutants.

The technical contents and the technical features of the specific embodiments of the present utility model have been disclosed, however, it should be noted that without departing the technical principle of the present utility model, the person skilled in the art may make some modifications and changes to the present utility model, which may be considered as a part of the protection scope of the present utility model. The explanations of the above embodiments are exemplary but not restrictive, and the protection scope of the present utility model is defined by the appended claims.

Claims

What Is Claimed Is:

1. An air cleaner, comprising: a housing; a first air inlet;

a first air outlet; an air fan configured to be located in an air channel formed between the first air inlet and the first air outlet;

a washing chamber configured to be at least partially located in the air channel;

a distributing device for distributing liquid into the washing chamber; and a dry chamber configured to be communicated with the first air outlet and at least partially located in the air channel.

2. The air cleaner of Claim 1 , wherein a second air outlet is disposed in the air channel and located between the washing chamber and the dry chamber, and the second air outlet is configured to have smaller resistance to air flow than the dry chamber.

3. The air cleaner of Claim 2, wherein the second air outlet is located between the air fan and the dry chamber.

4. The air cleaner of Claim 3, wherein the air cleaner further comprises a controller for controlling the second air outlet.

5. The air cleaner of Claim 2, wherein a second air inlet is disposed in an intake channel of the air fan.

6. The air cleaner of Claim 4, wherein the controller is also used for controlling the distributing device.

7. The air cleaner of Claim 4, wherein the air cleaner further comprises a showering chamber configured to be located above the washing chamber, and the distributing device comprises: a showering device configured to be located in the showering chamber;

a water tank configured to be located below the showering chamber; and a pump configured to be fluidly communicated with the water tank and the showering device.

8. The air cleaner of Claim 4, wherein the air cleaner further comprises a first humidity sensor which is used to transmit the measured humidity data to the controller.

9. The air cleaner of Claim 5, wherein a second humidity sensor is disposed at the outlet of the dry chamber and used to transmit the measured humidity data to the controller.

10. The air cleaner of Claim 4, wherein the air cleaner further comprises a pollutant sensor which is used to transmit the measured pollutant data to the controller.

11. The air cleaner of Claim 1, wherein the washing chamber is configured as a packed tower filled with water adsorption materials therein.

12. The air cleaner of Claim 4, wherein the air cleaner further comprises an alarm configured to be coupled with the controller.