Abstract: The disclosure provides a remote monitoring system for remotely acquiring various information related to a hot water utilizing facility in an appropriate period, and a relay device used therefor. The remote monitoring system includes: a hot water utilizing facility; a relay device communicating with the hot water utilizing facility; and a management device communicating with the relay device via a communication network. The management device is configured to transmit to the relay device a command for acquiring information related to the hot water utilizing facility at a set transmission interval over a set transmission period. The relay device includes an information acquisition part acquiring at least one piece of information from a plurality of types of information related to the hot water utilizing facility according to the command transmitted from the management device and transmitting it to the management device. The transmission period is configured so that setting is changeable.

Abstract: A solenoid valve driving apparatus includes switching means for ON/OFF-controlling application of a direct current voltage to a solenoid of a solenoid valve, and signal outputting means. A first period and a consecutive second period are set as a valve opening operation period of the solenoid valve. When the signal outputting means outputs the PWM signal to the switching means, a duty ratio of the output signal is set to be higher in the second period than in the first period so that a power supplied to the solenoid is larger in the second period than in the first period. As a result, a valve opening operation is performed in the solenoid valve reliably, and loud noise generation during the valve opening operation is suppressed.

Abstract: An exhaust adapter secures an exhaust tube relative to an exhaust pipe. The exhaust adapter is formed to have an annular shape enclosing a through hole, and is mounted on the outer peripheral surface of the exhaust tube and on the inner peripheral surface of the exhaust pipe by inserting the exhaust tube into the through hole. When the exhaust adapter is being fitted on the outer peripheral surface of the exhaust tube, the inner peripheral surface of the exhaust adapter presses the outer peripheral surface of the exhaust tube, and when the exhaust adapter is being fitted on the inner peripheral surface of the exhaust pipe, the outer peripheral surface of the exhaust adapter presses the inner peripheral surface of the exhaust pipe.

Abstract: The present invention becomes possible to employ a main microprocessor with a relatively lower number of input ports, whereby while maintaining the performance and function of a water heater, the cost of a control apparatus is cut down. Some of sensors, adapted for measurement of various parameters which are for use in operational control of the water heater and in need of immediate response, are connected to a main microprocessor 31. The other sensors that are not in need of an immediate response, such as an ambient temperature sensor 36, are connected only to a sub microprocessor 32 if the main microprocessor 31 does not have any extra analog signal input port. The sub microprocessor converts an analog signal from the sensor 36 which is connected only to the sub microprocessor into digital data. And the sub microprocessor transmits the digital data to the main microprocessor through communication therewith.

Abstract: A combustion apparatus includes a burner and a heat shield plate. The heat shield plate includes a main plate portion located on a lateral side of a flame formation region above the burner to erect, a stepped portion protruding from a lower end of the main plate portion toward the burner and set at approximately the same height as that of a flame hole surface of the burner, and air passage holes provided in the stepped portion. The main plate portion is provided with a facing wall portion which protrudes from a middle part of the main plate portion in a vertical height direction thereof toward the flame formation region and faces the air passage holes so as to be subjected to a collision with air travelling upward from the air passage holes. This configuration allows the heat shield plate to be properly cooled/protected, while reducing consumed air.

Abstract: There is provided a flame hole formation member 7 which is inserted and mounted from above in a third plate member 6 used to form a central rich-side flame hole row 33. As the flame hole formation member 7, a pair of flame hole formation parts 71, 71 each used to form a respective lean-side flame hole row 34 are connected by bridge formation parts 72, 72 at their upper end positions, with a predetermined distance held between the flame hole formation parts 71, 71. The bridge formation part 72, 72 is fitted from above into an engagement groove 332 formed in the upper end edge of the third plate member 6, whereby the pair of the flame hole formation parts 71, 71 are assembled so as to sit astride the upper end edge of the third plate member 6.

Abstract: An exhaust adapter A having an inner tubular wall 41 forming a through hole 40 communicating with an exhaust port 14, an outer tubular wall 42 surrounding the inner tubular wall 41, and an annular concave part 43 formed between the inner tubular wall 41 and the outer tubular wall 42. One of at least two types of exhaust pipes having different pipe diameters can be selectively connected as an exhaust pipe 2 by utilizing either the through hole 40 or the annular concavity 43. Height H1 of the inner tubular wall 41 is designed to be lower than height H2 of the outer tubular wall 42. Drain flowing in the annular concave part 43 is prevented from flowing out around the outer tubular wall 42 and furthermore the exhaust adapter A can be accurately used for various types of exhaust pipes with different pipe diameters.

Abstract: A heat exchanger A1 includes: a case 2 surrounding a heat transfer tube 4; and a guide member 5 for guiding heating gas entering the case 2 through an intake vent 21 to a first space region 24A and then to a second space region 24B, the guide member 5, together with a wall portion 20b, defining therebetween a gap 25b in communication with a gap 25a between the wall portion 20b and the heat transfer tube 4 for allowing part of the heating gas having been guided to the first space region 24A to proceed into the second space region 24B through the gaps 25a and 25b. This arrangement performs efficient heat recovery from the heating gas by effectively utilizing the entire heat transfer tube 4 while alleviating a problem that the case 2 is partially heated to elevated temperatures.

Abstract: A shaft body (12) is rotatable around an axial line (C-C). A first valve element (13a) is located between a first opening (11a) and a second opening (11b) and it has a first notch (13a1). A second valve element (13b) is located between first opening (11a) and a third opening (11c) and it has a second notch (13b1). By rotating first and second valve elements (13a, 13b) around the axial line (C-C) as a center (O), an operation for opening and closing first and second notches (13a1, 13b1) can be performed.

Abstract: A fin includes a cut and raised slit and a cut and raised wall portion. The cut and raised slit is formed in a region adjacent to at least one through hole of a plurality of through holes in a first direction and has a tunnel-shaped hole extending in a second direction intersecting the first direction. The cut and raised wall portion is located in the second direction of the cut and raised slit, protrudes toward a main surface of the fin, and extends along the first direction. Thus, a heat exchanger and a water heater capable of sufficiently conducting an amount of heat of a combustion gas to a heat conduction pipe even in a blind spot of a flow of the combustion gas of the heat conduction pipe and suppressing noise can be realized.

Abstract: A first period during which drain is not substantially generated on a surface of a water tube (4) of a heat exchanger (B1), and a second period as a transition during which an amount of drain on the surface of the water tube (4) is increased are provided. There are a plurality of kinds of fan-controlling data in which operation control contents of the fan (13) in the first and second periods in correspondence with change of conditions of entering water temperature or combustion level of the burner (1). The fan-controlling data are stored in a data table (90) of a controller (9). The controller (9) controls the fan (13) in accordance with the data, and an initial air-fuel ratio of combustion driving of the burner (1) is stabilized.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a combustion control device incorporated in an apparatus such as water heater and provides the combustion control device having an improved configuration with a main controller and a sub controller, capable of employing a microcomputer with lower capability as the sub controller, and ensuring higher safety than ever before. Signals indicating a combustion state of a combustion apparatus are inputted into the main controller 35 and the sub controller 36 in parallel. Upon fulfillment of a predetermined condition of stopping, the main and sub controllers 35 and 36 each output a stop signal to cut off a current to be supplied to a device driving circuit 42. The conditions of stopping in outputting of the stop signal by the main and sub controllers are such that the sub controller 36 is less apt to execute the cutoff than the main controller 35.

Abstract: A combustion apparatus 51 includes a plurality of burners 58, a plurality of fuel supply channels 89, a blower 53, an air supply passage 37, and a pressure regulator 56. The burners 58 are divided into a plurality of burner groups 71. The pressure regulator 56 is branched at a portion located immediately after a gas outlet 31 at downstream of the regulator 56 and connected to the respective fuel supply channels 89, so as to regulate gas supplied at a primary pressure to gas at a secondary pressure in response to a predetermined signal pressure sensed from one selected from a part of the air supply passage 37 and the blower 53 and to discharge the regulated gas through the pressure regulator 56. The fuel supply channels 89 each are configured to perform fuel supply to the respective burner groups 71 and are provided with a switching valve 75 for either shutting off or reducing the fuel supply to at least a part of the burner groups 71.

Abstract: A water tube WT of a heat exchanger B includes a helical tube body 5 which includes a plurality of loops 50 arranged in the axial direction. At least one of the loops 50 includes an inclined tube portion which is inclined with respect to the axial direction and a non-inclined tube portion extending perpendicularly to the axial direction. The inclined tube portion is provided at each of opposite end regions s2a and s2b in a width direction crossing the axial direction, whereas the non-inclined tube portion is provided at an intermediate region S1 in the width direction. With this structure, the pitch p2 of the loops 50 is reduced. Therefore, by increasing the number of loops 50, high heat exchange efficiency is achieved without considerably increasing the size of the helical tube body 5.

Abstract: The invention presents a drinking water server having a configuration capable of suppressing generation of bacteria in a cold water tank, in a cold water pour tube, and in a pour valve. An opening part (2c) is formed in bottom side of a cold water tank (2), and a straight cold water pour tube (6) disposed horizontally in this opening part (2c) by way of a bent part (6b). An ultraviolet lamp (8) is disposed so as to reach up to a bottom part of the bent part (6b) by way of the opening part (2c) from inside of the cold water tank (2), so that ultraviolet rays emitted from the ultraviolet lamp (8) may be emitted uniformly both in the cold water tank (2) and in the duct of the cold water pour tube (6). As a valve body of a cold water pour valve (7), a diaphragm (71) for clogging the leading end of the cold water pour tube (6) is used, and dead angle of ultraviolet rays is eliminated.

Abstract: So as to provide a latent heat recovery-type water heater capable of certainly preventing drain generated by heat exchange from being discharged out of an exhaust portion through an outlet with entrained by a flow of combustion gas, an exhaust portion 9 is formed by an exhaust portion constituting-body 25 attached above a secondary heat exchanger 7. The exhaust portion 9 includes therewithin a deflector 26 and a distribution board 27 opposed to the deflector 26. The deflector 26 has a deflection board 30 extending substantially vertically downward from a top face 9a of the exhaust portion 9, so as to form a gap 35 between a lower end of the board 30 and a bottom face 9b of the exhaust portion 9. A flowing direction of combustion gas introduced into the exhaust portion 9 through an opening 21 of the bottom face 9b is deflected by passing through the gap 35, and the combustion gas flows toward the distribution board 27.

Abstract: A tube spacer S formed by bending a wire, includes a plurality of projections 20 and a base-bending portion 21. Each of the projections 20 is inserted between tubes, and has a pair of extending portions 201 extend in X direction and a front-bending portion 202 for connecting both front ends of the pair of extending portions 201. The base-bending portion 21 connects both rear ends of the projections 20 so that the projections 20 are arranged at interval in Z direction. With this structure, manufacturing cost for the tube spacer S can be low, and the tubes can be stably supported.