PORTABLE BLOWER
A portable blower capable of improving safety is provided. The blower is placed on a setting surface by support of the leg and is capable of holding an inclined position at a plurality of inclined angles to the setting surface. In addition, the blower includes a housing having an intake port and a discharge port opened on a lower surface and an upper surface thereof, respectively, an air passage connecting the intake port and the discharge port which are provided in the housing, and a blowing fan, and the outdoor air flows into the air passage from the intake port by driving of the blowing fan and is sent forth from the discharge port passing through the blowing fan.
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This application is the national phase under 35 U.S.C. §371 of PCT International Application No. PCT/JP2012/060404 which has an International filing date of Apr. 18, 2012 and designated the United States of America.
BACKGROUND1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a portable blower including a blowing fan provided in a portable housing.
2. Description of Related Art
A conventional portable blower is disclosed in a Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 2008-57519. The portable blower includes an intake port opened on a rear surface of a portable thin box-like housing and a discharge port opened on a front surface thereof. The housing includes an air passage formed therein to connect the intake port and the discharge port and a blowing fan which consists of an axial fan and is arranged in the air passage. Further, the housing is provided with a stand pivotably attached to a side surface thereof. When an end of the pivotable stand abuts a setting surface of a desk, the housing can be supported by the stand to be erected on the desk.
When the blowing fan is driven with the housing erected on the setting surface of the desk by the stand, outdoor air flows into the air passage from the intake port. At this time, as the rear surface of the housing is arranged to incline toward the setting surface, an airflow outflowing from the discharge port of the front surface is sent forth upward to a head region etc. of a user. Therefore, it is possible to obtain coolness easily both outdoors and indoors.
SUMMARYHowever, according to the conventional portable blower, there is a problem in which the appearance of the blower is not good due to the stand being exposed to be directly seen from outside when the stand is not used.
In order to achieve the object, a portable blower of the present invention includes: a blowing fan; a housing which houses the blowing fan; an intake port which is formed in the housing to suck air by the blowing fan; and a discharge port configured to emit the sucked air; wherein the portable blower comprises: a leg which is pivotably supported on the housing so as to support the housing on a setting surface; and a retracting section which is formed as a concave portion on the housing to retract the leg.
The portable blower of the present invention characterized in that the leg is configured to be pivoted at an angle of less than 180 degrees from a state retracted in the retracting section.
The portable blower of the present invention characterized in that the leg is configured to be pivoted at an angle of 90 degrees or more to less than 180 degrees from the state retracted in the retracting section.
The portable blower of the present invention characterized in that, the leg is arranged so as not to block the intake port regardless of whether the leg is in the state retracted in the retracting section or not.
The portable blower of the present invention characterized in that the leg is arranged so as not to change an opening area of the intake port regardless of whether the leg is in the state retracted in the retracting section or not.
The portable blower of the present invention characterized in that an upper end portion of the leg is pivotably supported, and the portable blower includes: a gear provided in the upper end portion concentrically with the leg, a shaft arranged between adjacent teeth of the gear, and a spring configured to bias the shaft in a direction where the shaft is pressed against the gear.
The portable blower of the present invention characterized in that, the retracting section is formed on a portion other than the intake port and the discharge port.
The portable blower of the present invention characterized in that, the leg is formed in a U shape and each of open ends thereof is pivotably supported, and when the leg is retracted in the retracting section, the intake port is positioned at the opening end side with respect to the base portion of the leg.
The portable blower of the present invention characterized in that the upper end portion of the leg is pivotably supported, and the intake port is formed on an opposite side of the upper end portion with respect to the retracting section.
The portable blower of the present invention characterized in that the upper end portion of the leg is pivotably supported, and the upper end portion is positioned between the intake port and the discharge port in a blowing direction of the blowing fan.
In the portable blower of the present invention, the portable blower is provided with a standing leg which can have the portable blower installed on the desk and the leg is pivotably supported at a substantially center in a longer direction of a body, so that the opening/closing angles of the leg can increase.
In addition, since the leg is configured to be retracted in the retracting section of the body so as to be appeared integrally with the body in appearance when the leg is not used, the aesthetic appearance thereof may be maintained.
Further, since the leg is configured so as to make consideration for not blocking the intake port either when the leg is used or retracted, the blowing performance may be not largely influenced by the posture of the portable blower.
According to the present invention, since the housing has the retracting section formed thereon as a concave portion for retracting the leg, the aesthetic appearance of the blower can be achieved.
In addition, since the blower is provided with the leg for installing on the desk, it is possible to carry the blower, as well as use it, such that it is placed on the desk.
Further, since the leg is configured to be retracted in the body while the intake port is not blocked by the leg even when the leg is retracted, it is possible to sufficiently provide the blowing performance when using the blower placed on the desk and when using the blower hung from a neck.
The above and further objects and features will more fully be apparent from the following detailed description with accompanying drawings.
Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to
In addition, the housing 2 includes a front (a face side) case 2a with a display unit 4 mounted thereon. The display unit 4 displays operation information of the portable blower 1 using a display means such as an LED or the like. Further, it is preferable that an operation condition, an operation time, an accumulated operation time, and a residual amount of a battery are displayed using a display means such as an LED, a liquid crystal or the like.
Rotation axes of the leg 3 are provided in substantially the center left and right in the vertical direction of the rear case 2b, so that the leg 3 can be pivoted at an angle of less than 180° as seen from a retracted state. The leg 3 can be held at a plurality of open angles, so that the housing 2 can be supported at various angles by the leg 3 in the open state. Therefore, the portable blower 1 may be placed on the setting surface of the desk in any erected-shape to be described below. As a result, the leg 3 forms a support unit for supporting the housing 2 during when the portable blower 1 is placed on the setting surface of the desk.
The intake port 6 for sucking outer air is formed on the lower end portion of the rear case 2b in the lower portion of the housing 2. A net is attached to the intake port 6 to prevent suction of dust. The intake port 6 is designed to be seen from outside of the rear case 2b side at all times, so as to suck air without being affected by the opening and closing of the leg 3.
The front case 2a and the rear case 2b consisting the housing 2 are formed in a curved surface over the vertical and horizontal directions, and a curved surface having a large radius is provided on a portion which corresponds to the ridge line of a conventional housing (see
In addition, the blowing fan 17 is provided between the control board 15 and the front case 2a. The blowing fan 17 is received onto a boss erected from the rear case 2b through a vibration absorbing rubber. The blowing fan 17 may be a double face suction-type turbofan, and two air intake ports (not shown) of the blowing fan 17 opened in an axial direction of a fan housing are arranged in the thickness direction of the housing 2, respectively. In this configuration, the sucked air can be flowed and supplied through two passage including a passage in which the air sucked from the intake port 6 passes through a gap between the control board 15 and the blowing fan 17, and a passage in which the air passes through a gap 25 between the front case 2a and the blowing fan 17.
Since one sucking passage passes through a gap between the control board 15 and the isolated cavity 22c, the air flowing therein cools each of the bottom walls of the control board 15 and the isolated cavity 22c and indirectly cools the battery 19. In addition, since the other sucking passage bypasses a side of the control board 15 and leads to the gap 25 with the front case 2a, the air flowing therein cools the control board 15.
Further, an air passage 8 is formed inside the front case 2a and covered with a partition panel 22 connecting the blowing fan 17 and the discharge port 7. The partition panel 22, which is a wall body having a substantially U-shaped cross-section, forms the air passage 8 in combination with the bottom wall of the isolated cavity 22b. Therefore, the air flowing in the air passage 8 cools the bottom wall of the isolated cavity 22b and indirectly cools the ion generator 18.
In addition, a straightening guide (not shown) for straightening the blowing airflow is provided on the bottom wall of the isolated cavity 22b toward the air passage 8. The straightening guide is a plurality of plates erected on the bottom wall of the isolated cavity 22b and serves to increase the surface area of the isolated cavity 22b to efficiently cool the isolated cavity 22b.
Further, an attaching portion 2h having an attaching hole for attaching a neck strap is provided on the upper end portion of the rear case 2b outside of the housing 2. Therefore, it is possible to carry the portable blower 1 by connecting the neck strap to the attaching portion 2h and hanging it from the neck of a user.
Next, a configuration of the leg 3 will be described.
When the gears 3a and 3b integrally rotate by the rotation of the leg 3, the shaft moves in a direction of the tooth end of the gears 3a and 3b against the pressing force of the tension spring. Then, the shaft is relatively moved in a circumferential direction between the teeth, and thereby the opening/closing angles of the leg 3 can be limited. By this, it is possible to hold (limit) the leg 3 at any appropriate angle less than 180° in combination with the shape of the retracting section 2f of the housing 2. Therefore, the leg 3 can be held at any angle state, and when the blower is placed on the setting surface of the desk, the rear case 2b of the housing 2 can hold the position at any angle facing the setting surface.
In addition, as shown in
Next, the intake port 6 will be described. As shown in
In addition, the rear case 2b is provided with a lid 2g in a portion facing the above-mentioned isolated cavities 22b and 22c detachably so as to open (expose) the isolated cavities 22b and 22c and exchange the battery 19 and the ion generator 18. A gap is formed between an interior face of the leg 3 while it is retracted in the retracting section 2f and a lower end face of the lid 2g so as to ensure the airflow sucking through the intake port 6 as shown by an arrow A1.
The intake port 6 is formed on the lower end portion of the rear case 2b corresponding to the gap. That is, when the leg 3 is retracted in the retracting section 2f, the position of the intake port 6 is defined on the opening end side with respect to a base portion (a closed end of the U shape) of the leg 3. Therefore, even if the leg 3 is retracted in the retracting section 2f (see
The leg 3 maintains a prescribed distance from both the rear case 2b and the lower end of the lid 2g to provide the gap between both parts and the leg 3 in the closed state (the retracted state). Since the gap is provided over the full width of the leg 3, the opening area of the intake port 6 remains the same either when the leg 3 is closed or opened.
As mentioned above, it is possible to acquire blowing performance of the blowing fan 17 either when the leg 3 is used or not used.
Herein, the intake port 6 is formed on the lower end portion of the rear case 2b corresponding to the retracting section 2f. Therefore, as shown in
Next, the ion generator 18 mounted on the portable blower 1 will be described. The ion generator 18 arranged in the isolated cavity 22b has a plurality of electrodes (not shown) facing toward the air passage 8. The ion generator 18 includes a high voltage electricity generating circuit embedded therein to be operated by the power received from the battery 19. The high voltage electricity generating circuit applies a high voltage including an AC waveform or impulse waveform to the electrodes. The ion generator 18 has a plurality of discharge electrodes. When a positive voltage is applied to one discharge electrode and an ion generated by ionization is coupled with moisture in the air, a positive cluster of ions is formed mainly including H+(H2O)m. Meanwhile, when a negative voltage is applied to another discharge electrode and an ion generated by ionization is coupled with the moisture in the air, a negative cluster of ions is formed mainly including O2−(H2O)n. Herein, m and n are any natural number.
When the positive ion H+(H2O)m and the negative ion O2−(H2O)n are simultaneously emitted into the air, these ions aggregate on surfaces of floating fungus and odorous substances in the air to surround them. In addition, as shown in formula (1) to (3), “.OH” of an active species (hydroxyl radical) and H2O2 (hydrogen peroxide) are generated on the surfaces of the floating fungus and odorous substances to destroy them. Herein, m′ and n′ are any natural number.
H+(H2O)m+O2−(H2O)n→.OH+1/2O2+(m+n)H2O (1)
H+(H2O)m+H+(H2O)m′+O2−(H2O)n+O2−(H2O)n′→2.OH+O2+(m+m′+n+n′)H2O (2)
H+(H2O)m+H+(H2O)m′+O2−(H2O)n+O2−(H2O)n′→H2O2+O2+(m+m′+n+n′)H2O (3)
The air flown into the air passage 8 via the blowing fan 17 flows inside the air passage 8 as shown by an arrow A2 (see
Further, it is naturally possible to put the blower on the desk in such a way that the rear face of the housing 2 directly contacts thereon with the leg 3 retracted. In this case, the blowing airflow is emitted in a substantially horizontal direction.
Further, in this embodiment, the leg 3 is formed in the U shape and pivotably supported on both sides of the housing 2, so that the blower has a structure in which the ion generator 18 and the battery 19 are contained in the housing 2 of inside the leg 3. It is possible to change the shape of the leg 3 by changing the shape of the battery 19.
Further, the leg 30 may be configured to be an L-shaped leg by providing a mounting portion protruding in one direction on one end of the leg body portion 30c without having the T shape.
It is possible to carry the portable blower 1 by using the neck strap for hanging it from the neck of the user. The neck strap is used by fastening it to the attaching portion 2h provided on the rear case 2b to be a rear surface of the housing 2. In the state of using the neck strap, the length of the neck strap may be set so as to position the portable blower 1 adjacent to an upper abdomen from a chest of the user. While it is self-evident, the portable blower 1 has a position in which the discharge port 7 faces substantially directly above in this state. When the power switch 5 is turned on in a state that the user carries the portable blower 1 hung from the neck thereof or grasps it by a hand, the outer air is guided to the intake port 6 through a gap between the user and the housing 2. And, the airflow containing ions is sent forth upward from the discharge port 7. Because a position of a human face is slightly forward compared to the position of the human chest during walking or sitting, it works dominantly to arrange the discharge port 7 biased to the front of the housing 2. Therefore, it is possible to easily obtain coolness at the time of carrying the portable blower 1, and perform sterilization and odor removal around the user due to the action of the positive and negative ions.
In addition, the discharge port 7 is provided with a shutter 7a (see
The shutter 7a will be further described with reference to FIG. 5. The power switch 5 is provided with a protrusion penetrating the rear case 2b on the rear surface. When an arm (not shown) of the shutter 7a is operated by the protrusion, the position of the shutter 7a moves to the rear case 2b side. During blowing, the shutter 7a moves upward of the isolated cavity 22b formed in the rear case 2b so as not to obstruct the blowing.
In the above embodiments, only the negative ions may be released by the ion generator 18. Thereby, the user may obtain relaxation effects.
According to the present invention, it is possible to be applied in the portable blower, a portable air refresher, or the like including a blowing fan provided in the portable housing.
As this description may be embodied in several forms without departing from the spirit of essential characteristics thereof, the present embodiment is therefore illustrative and not restrictive, since the scope is defined by the appended claims rather than by the description preceding them, and all changes that fall within metes and bounds of the claims, or equivalence of such metes and bounds thereof are therefore intended to be embraced by the claims.
Claims
1-10. (canceled)
11. A portable blower comprising:
- a blowing fan;
- a housing which houses the blowing fan;
- an intake port which is formed in the housing to suck air by the blowing fan; and
- a discharge port configured to emit the sucked air;
- wherein the portable blower comprises:
- a leg which is pivotably supported on the housing so as to support the housing on a setting surface; and
- a retracting section which is formed as a concave portion on the housing to retract the leg.
12. The portable blower according to claim 11, wherein the leg is configured to be pivoted at an angle of less than 180 degrees from a state retracted in the retracting section.
13. The portable blower according to claim 11, wherein the leg is configured to be pivoted at an angle of 90 degrees or more to less than 180 degrees from the state retracted in the retracting section.
14. The portable blower according to claim 11, wherein the leg is arranged so as not to block the intake port regardless of whether the leg is in the state retracted in the retracting section or not.
15. The portable blower according to claim 11, wherein the leg is arranged so as not to change an opening area of the intake port regardless of whether the leg is in the state retracted in the retracting section or not.
16. The portable blower according to claim 11, wherein an upper end portion of the leg is pivotably supported, and the portable blower includes:
- a gear provided in the upper end portion concentrically with the leg,
- a shaft arranged between adjacent teeth of the gear, and
- a spring configured to bias the shaft in a direction where the shaft is pressed against the gear.
17. The portable blower according to claim 12, wherein an upper end portion of the leg is pivotably supported, and the portable blower includes:
- a gear provided in the upper end portion concentrically with the leg,
- a shaft arranged between adjacent teeth of the gear, and
- a spring configured to bias the shaft in a direction where the shaft is pressed against the gear.
18. The portable blower according to claim 13, wherein an upper end portion of the leg is pivotably supported, and the portable blower includes:
- a gear provided in the upper end portion concentrically with the leg,
- a shaft arranged between adjacent teeth of the gear, and
- a spring configured to bias the shaft in a direction where the shaft is pressed against the gear.
19. The portable blower according to claim 11, wherein the retracting section is formed on a portion other than the intake port and the discharge port.
20. The portable blower according to claim 19, wherein the leg is formed in a U shape and each of opening ends thereof is pivotably supported, and
- when the leg is retracted in the retracting section, the intake port is positioned at the opening end side with respect to the base portion of the leg.
21. The portable blower according to claim 19, wherein an upper end portion of the leg is pivotably supported, and
- the intake port is formed on an opposite side of the upper end portion with respect to the retracting section.
22. The portable blower according to claim 12, wherein the retracting section is formed on a portion other than the intake port and the discharge port,wherein
- the leg is formed in a U shape and each of opening ends thereof is pivotably supported, and
- when the leg is retracted in the retracting section, the intake port is positioned at the opening end side with respect to the base portion of the leg.
23. The portable blower according to claim 12, wherein the retracting section is formed on a portion other than the intake port and the discharge port,wherein
- an upper end portion of the leg is pivotably supported, and
- the intake port is formed on an opposite side of the upper end portion with respect to the retracting section.
24. The portable blower according to claim 13, wherein the retracting section is formed on a portion other than the intake port and the discharge port,wherein
- the leg is formed in a U shape and each of opening ends thereof is pivotably supported, and
- when the leg is retracted in the retracting section, the intake port is positioned at the opening end side with respect to the base portion of the leg.
25. The portable blower according to claim 13, wherein the retracting section is formed on a portion other than the intake port and the discharge port,wherein
- an upper end portion of the leg is pivotably supported, and
- the intake port is formed on an opposite side of the upper end portion with respect to the retracting section.
26. The portable blower according to claim 11, wherein an upper end portion of the leg is pivotably supported, and
- the upper end portion is positioned between the intake port and the discharge port in a blowing direction of the blowing fan.
Type: Application
Filed: Apr 18, 2012
Publication Date: Jun 12, 2014
Applicant: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA (Osaka-shi, Osaka)
Inventors: Kota Kurihara (Osaka-shi), Yoshifumi Yamamoto (Osaka-shi)
Application Number: 14/237,608
International Classification: F04D 29/00 (20060101);