JP7714975B2 - drying equipment - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a drying device.

Conventionally, devices for drying nail polish and other substances applied to nails have been known. For example, the device described in Patent Document 1 has a drying chamber with a fan and electric heater at the top, and multiple fingers placed in this drying chamber are dried by the fan and electric heater.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-287744

However, in the configuration described in Patent Document 1, the drying conditions, such as the air volume and air direction, for each of the multiple fingers are not uniform, which results in uneven drying of the fingers.
The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and has an object to suppress variations in the degree of dryness of each finger.

In order to achieve the above object, the drying device of the present invention comprises:
a plurality of finger placement units on which a plurality of fingers can be individually placed;
a finger drying means provided in each of the plurality of finger placement sections;
an intermittent movement mechanism that moves the finger placement section while intermittently engaging the finger placement section with one side in a first direction of the finger placement section;
Equipped with
one side of the finger placement section in the first direction corresponds to a tip side of a finger placed on the finger placement section,
The intermittent movement mechanism includes:
a plurality of teeth provided on the finger placement portion and arranged along the first direction;
a locking claw whose position in the first direction is fixed;
a second biasing means for biasing the locking claw toward the finger placement portion and engaging the locking claw with the plurality of teeth;
a release means for releasing the biasing force of the second biasing means to release the engagement between the locking pawl and the plurality of teeth;
The present invention is characterized by comprising:

This invention makes it possible to reduce variations in the degree of dryness of each finger.

1 is a perspective view showing an external configuration of a drying device according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the drying device according to the embodiment. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 2. FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of part B in FIG. 3 . FIG. 2 is a control block diagram showing a schematic control configuration of the drying device according to the embodiment. 5A and 5B are diagrams for explaining the operation of the drying device according to the embodiment. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a state in which a right hand is inserted into the drying device according to the embodiment. 5A and 5B are diagrams for explaining the operation of the drying device according to the embodiment.

An embodiment of a drying device according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 8. FIG.
It should be noted that the embodiments described below are subject to various limitations that are technically preferable for carrying out the present invention, but the scope of the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments and illustrated examples.
In addition, in the following embodiments, an example will be described in which the drying device dries fingernails, but the object to be dried by the drying device of the present invention is not limited to fingernails, and for example, the object to be dried may also be toenails.

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing the external configuration of a drying device 1 according to this embodiment, and Fig. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the drying device 1. Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A in Fig. 2, and Fig. 4 is an enlarged view of part B in Fig. 3.
An upper cover 3, which will be described later, is not shown in Fig. 2. In the following embodiments, up/down, left/right, and front/rear refer to the directions shown in the drawings.

As shown in FIG. 1, the drying device 1 has a main body case 2 formed in a substantially box shape.
The main body case 2 has an open top surface, and this opening is closed by a generally flat upper cover 3. The upper cover 3 has an air vent 31 formed over most of its surface, and this air vent 31 allows communication between the inside and outside of the main body case 2.
An opening 21 is formed on the front surface of the main body case 2, covering almost the entire surface except for the upper portion thereof. The opening 21 functions as an insertion port or the like for inserting a finger U (see FIG. 3 ) having a nail T to be dried into the main body case 2.

2, a finger position adjustment mechanism 4 is housed inside the main body case 2. The finger position adjustment mechanism 4 is an example of an intermittent movement mechanism according to the present invention, and dries the nails T of each finger U while supporting the multiple fingers U so that the longitudinal positions of the multiple fingers U can be individually adjusted.
Specifically, the finger position adjustment mechanism 4 includes a plurality of finger placement units 40 (six in this embodiment) arranged side by side on the left and right. The plurality of finger placement units 40 correspond to a plurality of fingers U, with the four central ones on the left and right being first finger placement units 40a for placing the four fingers other than the thumb, and the two on the left and right being second finger placement units 40b for placing the thumbs. Of the two second finger placement units 40b, the one on the left is for the thumb of the right hand (see FIG. 7 ), and the one on the right is for the thumb of the left hand, and they are inclined left and right so that their upper surfaces face diagonally upward, outward from the device.
In the following, unless otherwise specified, the first finger placement unit 40a, which accommodates four fingers other than the thumb, will be used as an example. The second finger placement unit 40b is configured in substantially the same manner as the first finger placement unit 40a, except for the left and right inclinations described above.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, each finger placement unit 40 has a finger rest 41, a first biasing spring 42, a locking claw 43, and a second biasing spring 44.
The finger rest 41 is an example of a finger placement section according to the present invention, and is a portion on which a finger U of one hand is placed, and is formed long in the front-to-back direction. The upper surface of the finger rest 41 forms a finger placement surface 41a that supports the finger U, and is formed in a concave shape with a recess in the center of the left and right to correspond to the pad of the finger U. The longitudinal direction D (front-to-back direction, first direction) of the finger rest 41 corresponds to the extension direction of the finger U placed on the finger rest 41, and one side (rear side) of the finger rest 41 corresponds to the tip side of the finger U.

The finger rests 41 are supported by the main case 2 so that they can move back and forth. Specifically, the underside of the main case 2, excluding both the left and right sides, has a raised, isosceles trapezoidal shape in the approximately front half, and a partition plate 24 is erected on the upper surface of this raised portion, dividing the upper surface into multiple lanes 23 corresponding to the multiple finger rests 41. Guide protrusions 24a are erected on the side of the partition plate 24 along the front and rear, and guide grooves 41b corresponding to the guide protrusions 24a are formed on both side surfaces of the finger rest 41. The finger rests 41 are supported so that they can move back and forth by guiding the guide grooves 41b into engagement with the guide protrusions 24a of the main case 2.

A small fan motor 411, which is an example of a finger drying means according to the present invention, is integrally provided at the rear end of the finger rest 41. The fan motor 411 is fixed to a fan support 41c erected at the rear end of the finger rest 41, and is arranged above the rear end of the finger placement surface 41a so as to be able to blow air downward. The fan motor 411 blows air toward the nails T placed at the rear end of the finger placement surface 41a.
The finger drying means according to the present invention is not limited to a fan motor, and may be, for example, a heating element, as long as it is provided on each finger rest 41 and is capable of drying the finger U (nail T).

The first biasing spring 42 is located behind the finger rest 41, between the finger rest 41 and the rear of the main body case 2. This first biasing spring 42 is an example of the first biasing means according to the present invention, and biases the finger rest 41 forward.

The locking claw 43 and the second biasing spring 44 are for intermittently moving the finger rest 41 rearward.
Of these, the locking claw 43 is disposed below the finger rest 41 and configured to be able to mesh with a plurality of teeth 41d formed on the underside of the finger rest 41. The second biasing spring 44 is an example of a second biasing means according to the present invention, and biases the locking claw 43 upward toward the finger rest 41, causing the locking claw 43 to mesh with the plurality of teeth 41d.
Specifically, the locking claw 43 is inserted into a through-hole 23a formed in the lane 23 of the main body case 2, and is supported so as to be movable up and down while its position in the front-to-rear direction is fixed. A plurality of teeth 41d that mesh with the locking claw 43 are arranged along the longitudinal direction D of the finger rest 41, over substantially the entire lower surface of the finger rest 41.

More specifically, as shown in Figure 4, the tip (upper end) of the locking claw 43 is formed in a generally sawtooth shape, with a front surface that curves gradually toward the rear as it approaches the tip, and a flat rear surface that is generally perpendicular to the front-to-rear direction. Meanwhile, the tip (lower end) of each tooth 41d of the finger rest 41 is formed in a generally sawtooth shape, with a flat front surface that is generally perpendicular to the front-to-rear direction, and a rear surface that curves gradually toward the front as it approaches the tip.

With this configuration, when the locking claw 43 is engaged with the plurality of teeth 41d and the finger rest 41 attempts to move forward, the front surfaces of the flat teeth 41d come into contact with the rear surface of the locking claw 43. As a result, the finger rest 41 is locked by the locking claw 43, and its forward movement is restricted.
On the other hand, when the finger rest 41 attempts to move rearward, the rear surfaces of the teeth 41d, which are curved to face each other, come into contact with the front surfaces of the locking pawls 43, and the teeth 41d press the locking pawls 43 downward against the biasing force of the second biasing springs 44. Then, when the tooth 41d that pressed down the locking pawls 43 passes rearward, the locking pawls 43 are biased upward by the second biasing springs 44 and return to a position in front of the tooth 41d, where they are locked by the next tooth 41d adjacent to the tooth 41d in front of it. By repeating this process, the finger rest 41 moves rearward while being intermittently locked at the pitch between adjacent teeth 41d.
Therefore, when the multiple teeth 41d are engaged with the locking claws 43, the finger rest 41 moves intermittently to one side (rearward) in the longitudinal direction D, and its movement to the other side (forward) in the longitudinal direction D is restricted.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the finger position adjustment mechanism 4 also includes a release plate 46 that releases the engagement between the locking claw 43 and the plurality of teeth 41d.
The release plate 46 is formed in a generally flat plate shape that is perpendicular to the top and bottom, and supports the locking claws 43 and the second biasing springs 44 from below. More specifically, the locking claws 43 and the second biasing springs 44 of all of the finger placement units 40 are supported by a support plate 47, and the release plate 46 supports the locking claws 43 and the second biasing springs 44 via the support plate 47. The release plate 46 is housed below the lower surface of the main body case 2, which protrudes in an isosceles trapezoid shape, and is supported by the main body case 2 and the lower cover 5 so as to be movable back and forth with its underside covered by the lower cover 5. In addition, a handle portion 46c is formed in the center of the left and right front end of the release plate 46, allowing the user to operate the release plate 46 back and forth.

The release plate 46 has a stepped portion 46d located slightly rearward of the center in the front-to-rear direction, a higher portion 46a located in front of the stepped portion 46d, and a lower portion 46b located rearward. The higher portion 46a and the lower portion 46b are integrally formed by a plurality of fins standing upright along the front and rear.
The elevated portion 46a is formed at a height that supports the support plate 47 (the locking pawl 43 and the second biasing spring 44) so that the locking pawl 43 can mesh with the plurality of teeth 41d. The elevated portion 46a supports the support plate 47 when the release plate 46 is normally housed in the main body case 2. In addition, the rear end portion of the elevated portion 46a (the portion connecting with the low portion 46b) is formed in a tapered shape that smoothly connects to the low portion 46b so that the support plate 47 can easily return from the low portion 46b (easily climb up the stepped portion 46d).
The low base portion 46b is lower than the high base portion 46a and is formed at a height that supports the support plate 47 (the locking pawl 43 and the second biasing spring 44) so as to release the engagement between the locking pawl 43 and the plurality of teeth 41d (separate the locking pawl 43 from the plurality of teeth 41d). Therefore, when the release plate 46 is moved forward from its normal position, the biasing force of the second biasing spring 44 is released simultaneously in all of the finger positioning units 40, and the engagement between the locking pawl 43 and the plurality of teeth 41d is released (see FIG. 8).
The left and right side portions of the release plate 46 corresponding to the second finger placement unit 40b are formed lower than the portions corresponding to the first finger placement unit 40a by an amount corresponding to the inclination of the second finger placement unit 40b so that the support plate 47 (locking claw 43 and second biasing spring 44) can be supported in the second finger placement unit 40b in the same way as in the first finger placement unit 40a. Also, the release plate 46 may be provided individually in each finger placement unit 40 so as to release the biasing force of the second biasing spring 44 and release the engagement between the locking claw 43 and the multiple teeth 41d.

FIG. 5 is a control block diagram showing a schematic control configuration of the drying device 1.
As shown in this figure, the drying device 1 includes an operation unit 61, a storage unit 64, a control unit 65, and the like in addition to the above-mentioned components.

The operation unit 61 is configured to allow various inputs, settings, etc. to be performed in response to user operations, and an input signal corresponding to the operation received by the operation unit 61 is transmitted to the control unit 65. The operation unit 61 of this embodiment includes, for example, a button for starting/stopping the fan motor 411. However, the specific configuration of the operation unit 61 is not particularly limited, and for example, various operation buttons, a keyboard, a pointing device, a touch panel, etc. may be provided as the operation unit 61.
The storage unit 64 stores various types of information and programs for operating the drying device 1 .
The control unit 65 controls each part of the drying device 1. The control unit 65 loads the program in the storage unit 64 into a work area and executes it, thereby controlling each part of the drying device 1 in an integrated manner.

The drying apparatus 1 may be configured to be capable of communicating with a terminal device (not shown) that functions as a user interface. The terminal device is, for example, a mobile terminal such as a smartphone or a tablet. However, the terminal device is not particularly limited as long as it is capable of communicating with the drying apparatus 1, and may be, for example, a laptop or stationary personal computer, a game terminal device, or the like.
The drying device 1 may also include a display unit that displays various information based on a display command from the control unit 65.

Next, the operation of the drying device 1 will be described.
6 and 8 are diagrams for explaining the operation of the drying device 1, and FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a state when the right hand H is inserted into the drying device 1.

As shown in Figure 6(a), when the drying device 1 is not in use (when fingers are not being dried), the finger rest 41 in each finger placement unit 40 is biased by the first biasing spring 42 and is positioned at the front end of its range of movement. The entire release plate 46 is housed in the main body case 2, and the elevated portion 46a supports the support plate 47. Therefore, the locking claw 43 supported by the support plate 47 engages with multiple teeth 41d on the finger rest 41.

In this state, when the user inserts a finger U into the finger placement surface 41a of the finger placement stand 41 and pushes the finger placement stand 41 toward the back (rear) of the device with the finger U against the biasing force of the first biasing spring 42, the finger placement stand 41 moves rearward while being intermittently locked by the locking claws 43, as shown in Figure 6(b). As a result, the finger placement stand 41 moves to a position in the front-to-rear direction where the finger U is naturally extended without any strain, and is locked there.

In the finger position adjustment mechanism 4, this movement of the finger rest 41 is performed for each finger placement unit 40 (the multiple finger rests 41 move individually). Therefore, for example, as shown in Figure 7, when five fingers U of a right hand H are individually inserted into multiple finger placement units 40, the finger rest 41 of each finger placement unit 40 is positioned corresponding to the length of the inserted finger U. This allows the user to position each of the multiple fingers U of different lengths in a natural state.

The user then operates the operation unit 61 to drive the fan motor 411 provided on each finger rest 41. In response, the fan motor 411 in each finger placement unit 40 begins blowing air toward the nail T of the finger U placed at the rear end of the finger rest 41, drying the nail T. Because the fan motor 411 is provided on each finger rest 41, the drying conditions, such as air volume and direction, can be made uniform for the fingers U on each finger rest 41, allowing the nail T of each finger U to be dried evenly.

8(a), the user stops the fan motor 411, removes the finger U from the finger rest 41, and then grasps the handle 46c and pulls the release plate 46 toward the front of the device. As the release plate 46 moves, the portion supporting the support plate 47 lowers from the high base 46a to the low base 46b. This lowers the positions of all of the locking claws 43 supported by the support plate 47, and the engagement between the locking claws 43 and the teeth 41d in all of the finger placement units 40 is simultaneously released.
8(b), the finger rest 41 is released from the engagement of the engagement claw 43, and the finger rest 41 returns to the front end position of its movement range due to the biasing force of the first biasing spring 42. Then, by pushing the release plate 46 rearward and storing it inside the main body case 2, the finger position adjustment mechanism 4 returns to its original state as shown in FIG.

As described above, according to this embodiment, the fan motor 411 serving as finger drying means is provided on each of the plurality of finger stands 41 on which a plurality of fingers U can be individually placed.
This makes it possible to suppress variations in the degree of dryness of each finger U placed on the multiple finger rests 41, unlike conventional techniques in which the amount and direction of airflow for each finger was uneven.

Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the finger position adjustment mechanism 4 moves the finger rest 41 while intermittently engaging it to one side of its longitudinal direction D (the tip side of the finger U placed on the finger rest 41; the rear side).
Therefore, as the finger U is inserted, the finger rest 41 moves to a position where the finger U is naturally extended and is locked there, allowing the user to place the finger U on the finger rest 41 in a natural state without any strain.

Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the finger position adjustment mechanism 4 moves the multiple finger rests 41 individually.
This allows the user to position each of a plurality of fingers U of different lengths in a natural state.

Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the finger position adjustment mechanism 4 includes a second biasing spring 44 that biases the locking claw 43 toward the finger rest 41 and causes the locking claw 43 to mesh with the multiple teeth 41 d, and a release plate 46 that releases the biasing force of the second biasing spring 44 and causes the locking claw 43 to disengage from the multiple teeth 41 d.
This allows the engagement between the locking pawl 43 and the plurality of teeth 41d to be easily released by operating the release plate 46.

Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the locking claws 43 and the second biasing springs 44 are each provided in multiple numbers corresponding to the multiple finger rests 41, and the release plate 46 simultaneously releases the biasing forces of the multiple second biasing springs 44.
As a result, by operating the release plate 46, the locked state of the plurality of finger stands 41 can be released all at once.

Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the finger position adjustment mechanism 4 includes the first biasing spring 42 that biases the finger rest 41 toward the other side (front side) in the longitudinal direction.
As a result, when the finger rest 41 is released from the lock by the release plate 46, the finger rest 41 can be suitably returned to the forward position by the biasing force of the first biasing spring 42.

Although the above describes an embodiment of the present invention, it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment and various modifications are possible without departing from the spirit of the invention.

For example, in this embodiment, six finger placement units 40 are provided to accommodate both left and right hands, but the number of finger placement units 40 (finger rests 41) is not particularly limited as long as multiple finger placement units 40 (finger rests 41) are provided. For example, the second finger placement unit 40b corresponding to the thumb does not need to be provided.

In the present embodiment, the finger position adjustment mechanism 4 is configured to be able to individually move the multiple finger rests 41. However, the finger position adjustment mechanism 4 may be configured to move the finger rests 41 while intermittently locking them, and the multiple finger rests 41 may be configured to move in the same manner.
Furthermore, the direction in which the finger position adjustment mechanism moves the finger rest (first direction according to the present invention) is not limited to the longitudinal direction of the finger rest, but may be, for example, the width direction of the finger rest.

Furthermore, the forward and backward movement of the finger rest 41 may be detected, and the detection result may be used in the control of the drying device 1 by the control unit 65. For example, when a certain amount of time has passed since the finger rest 41 moved from its normal position (the position in Figure 6(a)), it may be determined that the finger U has been placed in a predetermined position, and drying by the fan motor 411 may be initiated. The movement (forward and backward position) of the finger rest 41 may be detected by various sensors, etc.

Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the scope of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but includes the scope of the invention described in the claims and its equivalents.
The inventions described in the claims originally attached to this application are as follows. The claim numbers described in the appendix are the same as those of the claims originally attached to this application.
[Note]
<Claim 1>
a plurality of finger placement units on which a plurality of fingers can be individually placed;
a finger drying means provided in each of the plurality of finger placement sections;
Equipped with
A drying device characterized by:
<Claim 2>
an intermittent movement mechanism configured to move the finger placement section while intermittently engaging the finger placement section with one side in a first direction of the finger placement section;
One side of the finger placement section in the first direction corresponds to a tip side of a finger placed on the finger placement section.
2. The drying device according to claim 1.
<Claim 3>
the intermittent movement mechanism moves the plurality of finger placement units individually.
3. The drying device according to claim 2.
<Claim 4>
The intermittent movement mechanism includes:
a plurality of teeth provided on the finger placement portion and arranged along the first direction;
a locking claw whose position in the first direction is fixed;
Equipped with
When the finger placement section moves to one side in the first direction, the locking claw engages with the plurality of teeth, thereby intermittently locking and moving the finger placement section.
4. The drying device according to claim 2 or 3.
<Claim 5>
The intermittent movement mechanism includes:
a second biasing means for biasing the locking claw toward the finger placement portion and engaging the locking claw with the plurality of teeth;
a release means for releasing the biasing force of the second biasing means to release the engagement between the locking pawl and the plurality of teeth;
Equipped with
5. The drying device according to claim 4.
<Claim 6>
a plurality of the locking claws and a plurality of the second biasing means are provided corresponding to the plurality of finger placement portions,
the release means simultaneously releases the biasing forces of the plurality of second biasing means.
6. The drying device according to claim 5.
<Claim 7>
the intermittent movement mechanism includes a first biasing means that biases the finger placement portion toward the other side in the first direction.
The drying device according to any one of claims 2 to 6.

1 Drying device 2 Main body case 23a Through hole 4 Finger position adjustment mechanism (intermittent movement mechanism)
40 Finger placement unit 41 Finger rest (finger placement section)
41a: Finger placement surface 41c: Fan support portion 41d: Teeth 411: Fan motor (finger drying means)
42 First biasing spring (first biasing means)
43 Engagement claw 44 Second biasing spring (second biasing means)
46 Release plate (release means)
46a High platform portion 46b Low platform portion 46c Handle portion 47 Support plate D Longitudinal direction (first direction)
T Claw U Finger

Claims (5)

a plurality of finger placement units on which a plurality of fingers can be individually placed;
a finger drying means provided in each of the plurality of finger placement sections;
an intermittent movement mechanism that moves the finger placement section while intermittently engaging the finger placement section with one side in a first direction of the finger placement section;
Equipped with
one side of the finger placement section in the first direction corresponds to a tip side of a finger placed on the finger placement section,
The intermittent movement mechanism includes:
a plurality of teeth provided on the finger placement portion and arranged along the first direction;
a locking claw whose position in the first direction is fixed;
a second biasing means for biasing the locking claw toward the finger placement portion and engaging the locking claw with the plurality of teeth;
a release means for releasing the biasing force of the second biasing means to release the engagement between the locking pawl and the plurality of teeth;
Equipped with
A drying device characterized by: the intermittent movement mechanism moves the plurality of finger placement units individually.
2. The drying device according to claim 1 . The intermittent movement mechanism includes :
When the finger placement section moves to one side in the first direction, the locking claw engages with the plurality of teeth, thereby intermittently locking and moving the finger placement section.
3. The drying device according to claim 1 or 2 . a plurality of the locking claws and a plurality of the second biasing means are provided corresponding to the plurality of finger placement portions,
the release means simultaneously releases the biasing forces of the plurality of second biasing means.
The drying device according to any one of claims 1 to 3 . the intermittent movement mechanism includes a first biasing means that biases the finger placement portion toward the other side in the first direction.
The drying device according to any one of claims 1 to 4 .