WO2018221925A1 - Electric water heater - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an electric water heater comprising: a hot water tank including a cover part which has an open hole and of which the lower end is opened, and a tank body coupled to the lower side of the cover part and of which the upper end is opened; a diaphragm provided between the lower end of the cover part and the upper end of the tank body so as to divide and separate the inside of the hot water tank into an upper air chamber and a lower hot water chamber, and provided to be deformable upwards or downwards by a pressure difference between the air chamber and the hot water chamber; a spring supporting plate provided on the surface of the diaphragm inside the cover part; a spring provided inside the cover part while the lower end thereof is supported by the spring supporting plate, and provided so as to press the diaphragm downwards; a decompression valve provided at a water supply line, through which water is supplied from the outside, so as to reduce pressure of water supplied through the water supply line; a cold water supply pipe connected to the decompression valve so as to supply water into the tank body; a heater provided at the lower part inside the tank body so as to heat the water inside the hot water chamber; and a hot water discharge pipe extending into the tank body so as to be a path for discharging the water inside the hot water chamber to the outside.

Description

Electric water heater

The present invention relates to an electric water heater, and more particularly, to an electric water heater that is stable against the expansion pressure of water generated inside the hot water tank.

In general, to use heating and hot water, a boiler using electricity or gas is installed. However, there is an uneconomical disadvantage when installing a boiler to use only hot water. Therefore, when only hot water is used, a water heater for the purpose of producing hot water is generally installed.

Water heaters generally have electric and gas-fired combustion as heat sources. Electric water heaters do not require the installation of exhaust pipes. Its spread is expanding.

On the other hand, a water heater is divided into an instant type for producing hot water by heating the water instantaneously when using hot water, and a storage type for producing and storing hot water in advance.

Instantaneous water heater is a method of producing hot water by instantaneously heating the flowing cold water by using electric heat, there is an advantage that can be used immediately even if there is no pre-stored stored hot water, but to obtain a high heat consumption in order to obtain a high heat instantaneously There is a high risk of fire due to electrical overload due to the required heater, and there was an inconvenience in using the electrical circuit breaker when the overload was applied to cut off the electricity. In addition, the instantaneous electric water heater has a disadvantage that the hot water temperature according to the state of the water pressure or the flow of cold water is very fluid.

In recent years, the shortcoming of the instantaneous water heaters is being compensated for, and the spread of the storage type electric water heaters, which are relatively inexpensive and consumes less electricity than the instantaneous water heaters, has been expanded. Since the storage electric water heater takes a certain time to heat the cold water to an arbitrary temperature, it is common to heat the storage water through the electric heater so that the storage water stored in the tank is always maintained at an arbitrary set temperature.

In order to use hot water in the storage type electric water heater, a hot water tank for heating and storing hot water at a set temperature is essential. By the way, the expansion pressure is generated in the process of the cold water is heated to become hot water. Therefore, in the storage type electric water heater, it is one of the most important design issues to design the hot water chamber to withstand the overpressure caused by the expansion pressure.

To this end, in the related art, it is common to use a ceramic material coated with an enamel coating on a stainless steel cylinder or a steel cylinder, which has disadvantages of increased cost and weight.

On the other hand, by employing a boiler structure to install a separate expansion tank is used, which has the disadvantage of increasing the size of the electric water heater, there is a problem that the expansion tank part is a weakness of the insulation, the heat insulation performance is reduced. .

An object of the present invention, even if the internal pressure acts by the expansion of water as the cold water is heated in the hot water tank, so that the internal pressure can be absorbed, even if the hot water stored in the hot water tank expands in accordance with the temperature change It is to provide an electric water heater that can maintain the stability of the tank.

In order to achieve the above object, the electric water heater according to the present invention includes a hot water tank having an open hole and a lower end of the cover part, and a tank body coupled to the lower end of the cover part and having an open upper end; By installing between the lower end of the cover portion and the upper end of the tank body divided the inside of the hot water tank into an upper air chamber and a lower hot water chamber to separate into a space separated from each other, by the pressure difference between the air chamber and the hot water chamber A diaphragm installed to be deformable to an upper side or a lower side; A spring support plate provided on a surface of the diaphragm in the cover part; A spring installed at the inner side of the cover part while being supported by the spring support plate and installed to press the diaphragm downward; A pressure reducing valve installed in a water supply line through which water is supplied from the outside to reduce the water supplied through the water supply line; A cold water supply pipe connected to the pressure reducing valve to supply water into the tank body; A heater installed below the tank body to heat water in the hot water chamber; And a hot water discharge pipe extending into the tank body and serving as a path through which water inside the hot water chamber is discharged to the outside.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the diaphragm may be interposed and fixed between the flange formed outside the bottom of the cover portion and the flange formed outside the top of the tank body.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the diaphragm is formed in a disc shape, and has a ring-shaped annular ring portion which protrudes up and down on an edge and has a larger thickness than other adjacent portions, and is formed outside the bottom of the cover portion. An annular groove corresponding to each other is formed in each of the flange and the flange formed outside the upper end of the tank body, and the annular grooves face each other so that an annular insertion groove is formed between the flanges, and the diaphragm includes the annular ring portion. It is disposed in the annular insertion groove formed between the flanges, it is interposed between the flanges and fixed.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the tank body is formed with a smaller diameter than the cover portion, the stepped portion is formed by the upper end of the tank body inside the hot water tank, the spring support plate is larger than the tank body diameter By providing a rim portion of the spring support plate is caught in the step portion is prevented that the spring support plate is lowered into the tank body.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the cold water supply pipe is connected to the lower side of the tank body to supply water so that the cold water fills up from the lower side of the tank body, the hot water discharge pipe is the inside of the tank body of the tank body It is extended to a position adjacent to the top, the hot water discharge pipe may be formed with a side discharge hole in the upper side direction so that hot water discharge is not blocked even if the deflection deformation of the diaphragm.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the side discharge hole may be formed in the form of a slit groove formed in the lateral direction connected to the discharge hole formed to be opened on the top of the hot water discharge pipe.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the cold water supply pipe has a bending portion extending through the tank body and bending at the end to change the flow direction of water and water is directed toward one side of the bending portion along the inner wall of the tank body. A supply end opening to be supplied may be formed.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the diaphragm protrudes in the center, and is fitted into the fitting coupling portion coupled to the center hole of the spring support plate, and is formed in an annular shape surrounding the fitting coupling portion and concave downward in the form of a round groove. And an annular round groove portion formed. In addition, the diaphragm has an inner annular round protrusion formed in the groove shape, which is continuously formed in the annular round groove portion and protrudes upward, and the spring support plate is formed inside the outer portion of the annular round groove portion. It is formed to have a lower height than the outer portion and has a spring seating surface which is supported by the lower end of the spring, the spring seating surface is placed and supported inside the inner annular round protrusion of the diaphragm.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the diaphragm is provided between the cover part and the flange of the tank main body and fixed to the lower side of the diaphragm, and has a smaller elasticity than the diaphragm and has a porous deflection prevention film having through holes formed therein. Can be. This prevents damage to the diaphragm due to excessive deflection of the diaphragm without forming the stepped portion at the top of the tank body.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the opening of the cover part may be provided with a check valve to allow air flow in only one direction toward the inside of the air chamber depending on the pressure difference between the inside of the air chamber and the outside air. have. In this case, the inside of the air chamber may function as an air spring.

According to the electric water heater according to the present invention having the above-described configuration, even if the hot water stored in the hot water chamber expands in volume according to the temperature change, the expansion pressure can be absorbed to prevent excessive internal pressure from being formed inside the hot water tank. Therefore, it is possible to eliminate the risk of damage due to increased internal pressure of the hot water tank.

According to the present invention, the diaphragm can prevent the hot water discharge pipe from being blocked even though a negative pressure is formed inside the hot water chamber due to hot water discharge, while allowing the water of the upper portion having the highest water temperature inside the hot water chamber. It is possible to prevent the diaphragm from being damaged.

For this reason, according to the present invention, it is possible to manufacture a manufacturing method that is impossible in the conventional electric water heater structure, that is, hot water tank by plastic injection. As a result, it is possible to produce a hot water tank at a low cost, it is possible to easily prevent the corrosion of the hot water tank.

1 is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view showing the configuration of an electric water heater according to the present invention.

Figure 2 is a detailed view for explaining the assembly relationship between the spring, the spring support plate, the diaphragm in the electric water heater according to the present invention.

3 is a view showing a spring support plate and a diaphragm in the electric water heater according to the present invention.

Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view showing the installation state of the cold water supply pipe connected to the water supply line of the electric water heater according to the present invention.

5 and 6 are views illustrating the operation when the expansion pressure by hot water heating and the negative pressure by hot water discharge in the electric water heater according to the present invention.

7 is a cross-sectional view for explaining a modified embodiment of the electric water heater according to the present invention.

8 is a cross-sectional view for explaining another modified embodiment of the electric water heater according to the present invention.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the electric water heater according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a schematic cross-sectional view for explaining the configuration of the electric water heater according to the present invention.

As shown in Figure 1, the electric water heater according to the present invention, the hot water tank 100 is installed upright on one side in the case 10, and the operation of the components of the electric water heater on the other side of the case 10 The control unit 106 is installed to control. The installation position of the hot water tank 100 and the control unit 106 in the case 10 may be variously changed.

The hot water tank 100 is formed by coupling the upper cover portion 110 and the lower tank body 120 to each other, the diaphragm 310 is interposed between the cover portion 100 and the tank body 120 tank The inside of the body 120 is hermetically coupled to the outside thereof.

The diaphragm 310 is interposed between the cover part 110 and the tank body 120 to separate and separate the inside of the hot water tank 100 into an upper portion and a lower portion, and the air chamber 111 corresponding to the cover portion 110 and The hot water chamber 121 corresponding to the tank body 120 is formed.

The cover 110 and the tank body 120 is formed in a cylindrical shape. The hot water tank 100 formed by combining the cover unit 110 and the tank body 120 also has a cylindrical shape, as shown in the cover unit 110 of FIG. 2, the cover unit 110 and the tank body 120. ) It has a rounded shape as a whole so that angled edges are not formed, and high resistance to internal pressure is formed.

The cover part 110 and the tank main body 120 have flanges 110a and 120a formed on the outside thereof, and the diaphragms 310 are interposed therebetween while the flanges 110a and 120a face each other. By fixing the flanges 110a and 120a through fastening means such as bolts, the cover 110 and the tank body 120 may be fixed to each other. In this case, the flanges 110a and 120a may be coupled to be watertight, and an O-ring may be additionally provided.

Referring to FIG. 2, an annular groove having a semicircular cross section facing each other is formed at each of the flange 110a of the cover 110 and the flange 120a of the tank body 120 so that the annular grooves of the semicircular cross section correspond to each other. As the flanges 110a and 120a are assembled to each other, an annular insertion groove 100a is formed between the flanges 110a and 120a.

An annular ring portion 311 formed along the edge of the diaphragm 310 is inserted into the annular insertion groove 100a formed between the flanges 110a and 120a and the flanges 110a and 120a are easily fixed to each other. Watertightness can be formed.

The hot water tank 100 is provided with a heat insulating material on the outside so that the heated hot water can be maintained with minimal heat loss until use.

The water supply line 200 is connected to the tank body 120 of the hot water tank 100 so that water is supplied to the hot water chamber 121 formed inside the tank body 120.

The pressure reducing valve 105 is installed in the water supply line 200 to which the non-heated water such as tap water, that is, cold water is supplied from the outside, and the cold water supply pipe 210 is coupled to the pressure reducing valve 105 to thereby the tank main body 120. Water is supplied. Cold water supply pipe 210 is connected to the lower side of the tank body 120, it may be connected adjacent to the bottom surface of the tank body 120.

The pressure reducing valve 105 lowers the water pressure in the overpressure state supplied through the water supply line 200 to a pressure suitable for use of water from the hot water tank 100. The water supply line 200 may generally be a water supply line 200 to which tap water is supplied, and the tap water supplied through the water supply line 200 may be, for example, installed in a building and a high-level house without additional pump facilities. It must be able to be supplied, so it is supplied under pressure rather than at the proper working pressure.

The pressure reducing valve 105 is a pressure that enables the smooth use of the water discharged into the hot water tank without impacting the hot water tank 100 on the basis of cold water, and depressurizes the water supplied through the water supply line 200. . The reduced pressure cold water does not impact the hot water tank 100, but when the water is heated to expand the pressure, the cold water shocks the hot water tank 100. The impact caused by the expansion pressure is absorbed by the expansion pressure absorbing unit 300 described below.

4 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a structure in which a cold water supply pipe is connected to the tank body in the electric water heater according to the present invention.

According to the present invention, the cold water supply pipe 210 is installed to supply water along the inner wall at the lower side of the tank body 120.

Referring to FIG. 4, the cold water supply pipe 210 extends penetrating in a direction orthogonal to the inner wall of the tank body 120 and includes a bending portion 210a bent in a curve at the end of the cold water supply pipe 210. In order to change the flow direction, it is provided with an open supply end 210b for discharging water so that an annular water flow is made along the inner wall of the tank body 120 toward one end of the cold water supply pipe 210.

Water provided from the outside through the water supply line 200 is supplied to the hot water chamber 121 through the cold water supply pipe 210 in a reduced pressure state in the pressure reducing valve 105. Since the water supplied into the water through the cold water supply pipe 210 hits the inside of the bending portion 210a at the end of the cold water supply pipe 210 and is supplied into the hot water chamber in a changed direction, the water pressure is directly applied to the tank body 120. It also prevents the impact and further reduces the possibility of impact.

The supply end 210b of the cold water supply pipe 210 discharges water in a direction close to the tangent or tangent of the inner wall of the tank body 120 so that the flow of water occurs along the inner wall of the tank body 120.

According to the embodiment of the present invention, the cold water tank in a state in which the pressure is reduced by the pressure reducing valve 105, or the pressure reduction of the water by the pressure reducing valve 105 and the water pressure reduction of the water by the bending unit 210a is performed. The water supply mechanism is supplied along the inner wall of the main body 120. The water supply mechanism forms a laminar flow in which the water layer is filled from the bottom to the top of the hot water chamber 121 without being stirred up and down.

According to the present invention, since the cold water is heated and heated at the lower side of the hot water chamber 121, convection caused by the temperature difference of water and the cold water supplied by the cold water supply pipe 210 are pushed up to the upper side. Therefore, in the hot water chamber 121, hot water is stored at the upper side and cold water having a relatively low temperature at the lower side.

According to the present invention, the hot water discharge pipe 107 is installed to supply the water of the upper side of the hot water chamber 121 to the outside.

Therefore, according to the present invention, by the structure and arrangement of the cold water supply pipe 210 and the hot water discharge pipe 107, the phenomenon that the temperature is lowered while the hot water preheated inside the hot water chamber 121 is stirred with cold water, and in advance, The heated hot water can be used as it is without deteriorating the hot water.

Referring back to FIG. 1, the heater 102 for heating the water of the hot water chamber 121 and the temperature sensor 101 for detecting the temperature of the heater 102 are located inside the tank body 120 of the hot water tank 100. ) Is installed. In addition, an overheat prevention sensor (not shown) may be installed to block the operation of the heater 102 in order to prevent overheating when there is no hot water in the tank body 120 or insufficient hot water.

The hot water discharge pipe 107 is installed to discharge to the outside of the water in the hot water chamber 121, penetrates the lower end of the tank body 120, that is, the position of the upper end of the tank body 120, that is, adjacent to the diaphragm 310 Extends.

Since the upper end of the hot water discharge pipe 107 is located above the inside of the tank body 120, it is possible to discharge through the hot water discharge pipe 107 from the hot water of a relatively high temperature of the hot water of the tank body 120.

According to the present invention, the upper end of the hot water discharge pipe 107 is formed with a discharge hole 107a opened toward the upper side, the side surface discharge hole 107b in the form of a slit groove connected to the discharge hole 107a on the upper side Is formed.

The supply of water in the hot water chamber 121 is automatically adjusted by the pressure inside the hot water chamber 121. When water in the hot water chamber 121 is discharged through the hot water discharge pipe 107, the pressure inside the hot water chamber 121 is lowered. When the pressure in the hot water chamber 121 falls, the pressure of the cold water supply pipe 210 is higher than that of the hot water chamber 121 and cold water is supplied. On the other hand, when the pressure in the hot water chamber 121 rises due to the supply of water and rises above the pressure in the cold water supply pipe 210, the supply of water is stopped through the cold water supply pipe 210.

The discharge and supply of this water is made continuously, the hot water between when the water is discharged through the hot water discharge pipe 107 and when the water is supplied through the cold water supply pipe 210 so that the hot water chamber 121 is completely filled with water again. Underpressure is generated in the chamber 121 by the discharge of water.

When negative pressure occurs while discharging hot water from the hot water chamber 121, the diaphragm 310 sags toward the tank body 120, ie, sags downward to block the top of the hot water discharge pipe 107.

However, according to the present invention, since the side discharge hole 107b is formed at the upper end of the hot water discharge pipe 107, even though the water is blocked by the diaphragm 310 of the discharge hole 107a, the water is discharged through the side discharge hole 107b. It is possible to be discharged. That is, according to the present invention, the hot water having the highest temperature at the upper side of the hot water chamber 121 can be discharged and used outside, but the deflection of the diaphragm 310 generated by the negative pressure during hot water discharge can be used. Hot water discharge can be prevented.

In the present invention may be formed in the form of a slit groove cut into the side is connected to the discharge hole (107a) opened to the top of the side discharge hole (107b). That is, it can be formed in a simplified structure.

On the other hand, the water backflow prevention valve 104 is installed in the water supply line 200 directly connected to the tap water. A conventional check valve may be used as the water backflow prevention valve 140, and in the case of a single water or the like, the water stored in the hot water tank 100 is prevented from flowing back.

As described above, the water supply line 200 is provided with a pressure reducing valve 105 to supply the reduced pressure to the cold water supply pipe (210). As described above, the pressure reducing valve 105 lowers the pressure of the water supplied to the hot water tank 100 to the set pressure, thereby preventing excessive water pressure from acting on the hot water tank 100. In addition, it also functions to block the hot water tank 100 is affected by the fluctuations in pressure generated during the hourly season.

The controller 106 controls the operation of the electric water heater, including starting and stopping of the electric water heater.

When the electric water heater is introduced into the hot water chamber 121 through the water supply line 200, and the operation of the heater 102 is started through the control unit 106, the hot water production starts.

The heater 102 is driven in accordance with the setting conditions of the control unit 106. When the temperature of the water in the hot water chamber 121 sensed by the temperature sensor 101 is lower than the set temperature, power is applied to the heater 102 by the controller 106 to heat the water. On the other hand, when the temperature of the water in the hot water chamber 121 sensed by the temperature sensor 101 is higher than the set temperature, the power supply to the heater 102 is cut off by the controller 106 to stop the heating of the water.

The water stored in the hot water chamber 121 is heated and stored at a set temperature by the heater 102, and when the user wants to use hot water, the hot water is discharged to the outside through the hot water discharge pipe 107.

When cold water is heated in the warm water chamber 121, the volume of water expands, so that the expansion pressure according to the volume expansion of the water acts inside the hot water tank 100.

 If the internal pressure acting on the hot water tank 100 is not properly controlled, water leakage of the flanges 110a and 120a may be damaged between the cover 110 and the tank main body 120, resulting in water leakage.

The present invention constitutes an expansion pressure absorbing part 300 toward the cover part 110 of the hot water tank 100 so as to properly control the pressure acting inside the hot water tank 100 by heating the water.

According to the present invention, the opening hole 340 is formed at the upper end of the cover part 110 to form the inside of the cover part 110 at atmospheric pressure, and the expansion pressure absorbing part 300 includes a diaphragm 310 and a spring. 320 and a spring support plate 330.

2 and 3, the coupling of the spring support plate, the diaphragm and the spring will be described.

The diaphragm 310 is formed of a flexible material such as silicon. As described above, the diaphragm 310 is interposed between the flange 110a of the cover 110 and the flange 120a of the tank body 120 and is installed in the hot water tank 100.

The diaphragm 310 serves to relieve overpressure and underpressure, in particular overpressure, in the hot water chamber 121 while moving upward or downward by the pressure and the spring 320 formed in the hot water chamber 121. When the water inside the hot water chamber 121 is expanded while being heated, the diaphragm 310 is deformed upward to increase the volume of the hot water chamber 121, and transmits the expansion pressure to the spring 320 to supply the diaphragm 310. The expansion pressure of the water acting on the spring 320 to be absorbed by the elastic deformation.

The diaphragm 310 is generally formed in a disc shape, and has an annular ring portion 311 having a larger thickness than other adjacent portions so as to protrude upward and downward, and having a ring shape as a whole.

The diaphragm 310 includes an annular round groove portion 312, which is annularly formed around the center and is recessed downward in the form of a semicircular cross section, rounded downward. The annular round groove portion 312 is a diaphragm when the diaphragm 310 overcomes the force of the spring 320 acting from the top downward and deforms upward by the expansion pressure of water acting from the bottom upward. Partial overstrain of 310 is absorbed to induce upward deformation in overall balance.

In addition, as the usage time of the electric water heater increases, the diaphragm 310 may increase due to frequent deformation of the diaphragm 310. At this time, the diaphragm 310 is prevented from being folded at a portion where the diaphragm 310 and the spring support plate 330 abut due to the area where the annular round groove portion 312 is extended. This allows the diaphragm 310 to be used without folding even for prolonged use, thus inducing a balanced deformation. As a result, the spring support plate 330 and the spring 320 placed on the upper portion of the diaphragm 310 may be deformed to be deflected in one direction to prevent a collision with the inner wall of the cover 110.

Inside the annular round groove portion 312 is formed an inner annular round protrusion 314 in the form of a groove which projects upwardly in succession with the annular round groove portion 312. The annular round groove portion 312 and the inner annular round protrusion 314 protruding from each other in the up and down direction are formed adjacent to each other in a continuous shape when viewed in cross section, thereby increasing the diaphragm 310. Folding phenomenon is more effectively prevented from occurring on the surface of the fram 310.

In addition, the inner annular round protrusion 314 allows the spring seating surface 334 of the spring support plate 330 to be placed inward and supported. That is, the inside of the inner annular round protrusion 314 forms a seating groove in which the spring seating surface 334 is placed and supported. The inner annular round protrusion 314 contacts and supports the stepped portion between the outer portion 332 of the spring support plate 330 and the spring seating surface 334 to prevent the spring support plate 330 from flowing.

In the center of the diaphragm 310 is fitted fitting portion 316 is formed. The fitting portion 316 is inserted and fixed to the center hole 336 formed at the center of the spring support plate 330. The fitting coupler 316 allows the spring support plate 330 to be disposed concentrically with respect to the diaphragm 310.

The spring support plate 330 is installed on the upper surface of the diaphragm 310 to support the lower end of the spring 320.

In the center of the spring support plate 330 is formed a center hole 336 into which the fitting coupling portion 316 of the diaphragm 310 is inserted. In addition, the spring support plate 330 is formed with a spring seating surface 334 having a lower height than the outer portion 332 into the upper surface. By placing the lower end of the spring 320 along the rim of the spring seating surface 334, it is possible for the lower end of the spring 320 to be supported without flowing. The spring seating surface 334 is supported by the bottom outer side abutting the inner annular round protrusion 314 of the diaphragm 310.

The spring 320 is installed while the upper end is supported on the annular seating rib 342 formed on the inner upper surface of the cover 110, the lower end is supported by the spring seating surface 334.

The spring support plate 330 supports the lower end of the spring 320 to change the deformation of the diaphragm 310 to the working distance of the spring 320. In addition, the spring support plate 330 uniformly distributes the elastic force of the spring 320 through the spring support plate 330, to prevent the elastic force is concentrated on a predetermined portion of the diaphragm 310, the deformation of the diaphragm 310 It functions to guide the uniformly happening.

According to the present invention, the cover 110 inside which the spring 320 is installed is formed as an open space communicating with the outside air through the exhaust hole 340. Because of this, it is possible to simplify the structure, it is possible to prevent the formation of excessive negative pressure when the negative pressure is formed in the hot water chamber 121.

Referring to Figure 1, the tank body 120 is formed to have a smaller diameter than the cover portion 110. Therefore, the stepped portion 120b is formed in the hot water tank 100 by the upper end of the tank body 120 between the cover 110 and the tank body 120.

In the state where the spring support plate 330 is attached to the surface of the diaphragm 310, the spring support plate 330 is formed to have a larger diameter than the tank body 120.

When the rising pressure inside the hot water chamber 121 is released, the force pushing the diaphragm 310 upward is removed and the diaphragm 310 is forced in the downward direction by the elastic force of the spring 320. The edge portion of the spring support plate 330 located between the spring 320 and the diaphragm 310 is caught by the stepped portion 120b formed by the upper end of the tank body 120, thereby lowering the spring support plate 330. Can be prevented.

That is, the stepped portion (120b) prevents the falling of the spring support plate 330 while the stopper function without a separate member to prevent the falling of the spring support plate 330, the diaphragm by the spring 320 and the spring support plate 330 Pressing of the lower side of the 310 can be prevented, and damage such as tearing of the diaphragm 310 can be prevented.

Meanwhile, as shown in FIG. 8, instead of forming the stepped portion 120b on the upper portion of the tank body 120 to prevent the spring support plate 330 from falling, the deflection prevention net 350 is diaphragm 310. ) Can be installed together.

7 is a variation of the electric water heater according to the present invention, a check valve 108 for controlling the movement of air in one direction is installed in the opening hole 340 formed in the cover 110.

 The check valve 108 allows the outside air to flow into the air chamber 111 through the opening hole 340, while controlling the air inside the air chamber 111 not to be discharged to the outside.

 The air chamber 111 acts as an air spring by the check valve 108. That is, when the expansion pressure of the water in the hot water chamber 121 acts as the diaphragm 310 is deformed upward, the spring 320 absorbs the expansion pressure of the water, wherein the volume of the air chamber 111 is also reduced It can absorb the expansion pressure of water. For this reason, it is possible to design the strength of the spring 320 installed inside the cover part 110 relatively small compared with the embodiment of FIG.

 In theory, when the cover 110 is installed to be sealed to the outside, the inside of the air chamber 111 may function as an air spring. However, in reality, when the air chamber 111 is compressed while the hot water chamber 121 is inflated, air inside the air chamber 111 leaks to the outside through the coupling portion or the like.

When the diaphragm 310 returns while the expansion pressure of the water in the hot water tank 121 is released while the air inside the air chamber 111 is leaked, a negative pressure is formed inside the air chamber 111 to form a diaphragm. Interfere with the return of 310.

Although the inside of the air chamber 111 may be formed in a structure capable of being completely airtight even under high pressure, in this case, excessive costs may occur. However, according to the present invention, when the negative pressure is formed in the air chamber 111, since the outside air is supplied through the check valve 108, it is possible to supplement the leaked air. Therefore, the air chamber 111 can be operated by a spring without forming a very tight hermetic structure.

5 and 6, the operating principle of the expansion pressure absorbing unit 300 of the electric water heater according to the present invention will be described.

Hot water chamber 121 inside the tank body 120 through the cold water supply pipe 210 in a state in which the water pressure is reduced by the pressure reducing valve 105 when water is supplied to the hot water tank 100 through the water supply line 200. Water is supplied.

As shown in FIG. 5, when the water of the hot water chamber 121 is heated by the heater 102, the water expands. As the internal pressure of the hot water chamber 121 rises due to the expansion of water, the diaphragm 310 is pushed toward the air chamber 111 of the cover 110.

When the diaphragm 310 is deformed by the inflation pressure of the water and rises toward the cover part 110, the spring support plate 330 and the spring 320 interposed on the upper surface of the cover part 110 are compressed to expand the inflation pressure. Will be absorbed.

When the elastic force of the spring 320 is in equilibrium with the inflation pressure of the water applied to the diaphragm 310, the diaphragm 310 stops in a state in which the diaphragm 310 is deformed. As the spring 320 absorbs the expansion pressure of the water in the form of elastic deformation, excessive volume deformation of the hot water chamber 121 may be prevented and the hot water tank 100 may be prevented from being damaged by the overpressure.

After the diaphragm 310 stops in a state in which the diaphragm 310 is deformed, when hot water is discharged through the hot water discharge pipe 107 and the rising pressure of the inside of the hot water chamber 121 is released, the diaphragm 310 descends to its original position. Return to.

Since the air chamber 111 is opened to the outside air through the opening hole 340, the air chamber 111 maintains the same atmospheric pressure as the outside air. Therefore, when a pressure higher than atmospheric pressure is formed in the hot water chamber 121, overpressure is induced through elastic deformation of the spring 320.

As shown in FIG. 6, when the hot water is discharged from the hot water chamber 121, when the amount of water supplied through the cold water supply pipe 210 does not follow the amount of hot water discharged, a negative pressure is formed in the hot water chamber 121. The diaphragm 310 is deformed downward.

 When the diaphragm 310 is deformed upward, the elastic force of the spring 320 acts in a direction to prevent the diaphragm 310 from being deformed, thereby preventing the diaphragm 310 from being excessively deformed.

However, when the diaphragm 310 deforms downward, the elastic force of the spring 320 acts in the direction of increasing the deformation of the diaphragm 310. Therefore, when the negative pressure and the elastic force of the spring 320 acts on the diaphragm 310 as it is, the diaphragm 310 may be excessively deformed and damage such as tearing may be prevented.

However, according to the present invention, since the spring support plate 330 is supported by the stepped portion 120b formed by the diameter difference between the tank body 120 and the cover portion 110, the elastic force of the spring 320 is diaphragm Pressing down 310 can be prevented.

That is, since the diaphragm 310 is deformed only by the negative pressure, the diaphragm 310 can be prevented from being damaged by being pressed against the spring support plate 330 while preventing the excessive deformation from occurring.

On the other hand, the phenomenon that the discharge hole 107a of the hot water discharge pipe 107 is blocked due to the deflection of the diaphragm 310, hot water may be discharged to the outside through the side discharge hole (107b).

8 illustrates a modification in which the step portion 120b is not formed according to the diameter difference between the cover 110 and the tank body 120 in the electric water heater according to the present invention. Referring to FIG. 6, the open hole 340 is shown open to the outside air, but as another modification, the check valve 108 may be installed at the open hole 340.

According to the modification illustrated in FIG. 8, a separate deflection prevention net 350 is provided to regulate the deflection of the diaphragm 310 downward.

The deflection prevention net 350 may be installed between the flange 110a of the cover 110 and the flange 120a of the tank body 120 together with the diaphragm 310. The deflection prevention network 350 regulates the deformation amount so that the diaphragm 310 does not deform downward beyond a set limit when hot water is discharged to the outside of the hot water chamber 121 through the hot water discharge pipe 107.

To this end, the deflection prevention network 350 is formed of a material having a small elasticity as compared with the diaphragm 310, it is formed of a porous structure having a plurality of through holes.

Therefore, the deflection prevention network 350 prevents the diaphragm 310 from being deformed downward, while allowing the movement of water through the through hole, so that the diaphragm 310 moves upward while excessive pressure in the hot water chamber 121 is increased. It does not affect the action to be resolved.

The deflection prevention network 350 supports the diaphragm 310 when the diaphragm 310 is subjected to the downward pressure by the spring 320 and the spring support plate 330 supported by the spring 320, thereby providing a diaphragm ( 310 is prevented from being excessively deformed. Therefore, there is an effect of preventing damage to the diaphragm 310.

As described above, according to the present invention, the expansion pressure generated when the water is heated can be absorbed, thereby preventing the expansion pressure of the water from being applied to the hot water tank 100 as it is. That is, the hot water tank 100 may be manufactured to have a structurally low strength as compared with the conventional stainless steel or ceramic material, but the risk of damage to the hot water tank 100 may be eliminated. Therefore, it is possible to manufacture the hot water tank 100 by a relatively easy plastic injection.

As a result, it is possible to secure ease of transportation and installation by reducing the cost of the electric water heater and reducing the weight.

In the above description of the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the present invention is not limited to the description of one embodiment, and those skilled in the art to which the present invention belongs without departing from the description of the claims of the present invention. It should also be construed that various modifications by the present invention are also within the protection scope of the present invention.

[Description of the code]

100: hot water tank 110: cover part

111: air chamber 120: tank portion

121: hot water chamber 200: water supply line

210: cold water supply pipe 310: diaphragm

320: spring 330: spring support plate

340: open hole 350: deflection prevention network

Claims (10)

A hot water tank (100) having an opening (340) and having a bottom open at the bottom, and a tank body (120) coupled to the bottom of the cover (110) and having an open top; Installed between the lower end of the cover unit 110 and the upper end of the tank body 120 to the space separated from each other by the upper air chamber 111 and the lower hot water chamber 121 in the upper portion of the hot water tank 100 A diaphragm 310 that is separated and installed to be deformed upwardly or downwardly by a pressure difference between the air chamber 111 and the hot water chamber 121; A spring support plate 330 provided on a surface of the diaphragm 310 in the cover part 110; A spring 320 installed at the inner side of the cover part 110 while being supported by the spring supporting plate 330 to press the diaphragm 310 downward; A pressure reducing valve 105 installed in the water supply line 200 to which water is supplied from the outside to reduce the water supplied through the water supply line 200; A cold water supply pipe 210 connected to the pressure reducing valve 105 to supply water into the tank body 200; A heater 102 installed at a lower portion of the tank body 120 to heat water in the hot water chamber 121; And An electric water heater comprising: a hot water discharge pipe 107 extending into the tank body 120 and serving as a path through which water inside the hot water chamber 121 is discharged to the outside. The method of claim 1, The diaphragm 310 has a ring-shaped annular ring portion 311 which is formed in a disc shape and protrudes up and down on an edge and has a larger thickness than other adjacent portions. An annular groove corresponding to each other is formed in each of the flange 110a formed outside the bottom of the cover part 110 and the flange 120a formed outside the top of the tank body 120 and the annular grooves face each other to form the flange. Annular insertion groove (100a) is formed between the (110a, 120a), The diaphragm 310 has the annular ring portion 311 is disposed in the annular insertion groove (100a) formed between the flanges (110a, 120a), it is interposed between the flanges (110a, 120a) is fixed Electric water heater, characterized in that. The method of claim 1, The tank body 120 is formed with a smaller diameter than the cover portion 100, the stepped portion (120b) is formed by the upper end of the tank body 120 into the hot water tank 100, The spring support plate 330 has a larger diameter than the tank body 120 so that the edge portion of the spring support plate 330 is caught by the stepped portion 120b so that the spring support plate 330 is the tank body 120. Electric water heater, characterized in that it is prevented to fall into. The method of claim 1, The cold water supply pipe 210 is connected to the lower side of the tank body 120, the water is supplied so that the cold water fills up from the lower side of the tank body 120, The hot water discharge pipe 107 is extended to a position adjacent to the upper end of the tank body 120 in the tank body 120, the hot water discharge pipe 107 in the hot water discharge pipe 107 even in the deflection deformation of the diaphragm 310 Electric water heater, characterized in that the side discharge hole (107b) is formed in the upper side direction so as not to be blocked. The method of claim 4, wherein The side discharge hole (107b), the electric water heater characterized in that the slit groove shape formed in the lateral direction connected to the discharge hole (107a) formed to be opened in the upper end of the hot water discharge pipe (107). The method of claim 4, wherein The cold water supply pipe 210 has a bending portion 210a extending through the tank body 120 and bending at an end thereof to change the flow direction of water, and the tank body 120 toward one side of the bending portion 210a. An electric water heater, characterized in that an open supply end (210b) is formed so that water is supplied in the direction along the inner wall. The method of claim 1, The diaphragm 310 is, Protruding in the center, the fitting coupling portion 316 is coupled to the center hole 336 of the spring support plate 330, And an annular round groove portion (312) surrounding the fitting coupling portion (316) and formed in an annular shape and recessed downward in the form of a rounded groove. The method of claim 7, wherein The diaphragm 310 is, Inwardly of the annular round groove portion 312, it is provided with an inner annular round protrusion 314 in the form of a groove continuously formed in the annular round groove portion 312 and protruded upwards, The spring support plate 330 is formed to have a lower height than the outer portion 332 to the inner side of the outer portion 332 and has a spring seating surface 334, the lower end of the spring 320 is supported, The spring seating surface (334) is placed and supported inside the inner annular round protrusion (314) of the diaphragm (310). The method of claim 2, The porous part formed between the cover part 110 and the flanges 110a and 120a of the tank body 120 to the lower side of the diaphragm 310 and having a smaller elasticity than the diaphragm and having through holes formed therein. Electric water heater, characterized in that the sagging prevention film 350 is provided. The method of claim 1, The opening hole 340 of the cover part 110 is provided with a check valve 108 to allow air flow in only one direction toward the inside of the air chamber depending on the pressure difference between the inside of the air chamber and the outside air. Electric water heater, characterized in that.

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