Patent Application
20230027808
The present invention relates to a safe sterilization unit and a double-surface sterilization device including the same, in particular to a safe sterilization unit disposed to regulate power supply of a light source portion by a safety switch, and a double-surface sterilization device including the safe sterilization unit.
Ultraviolet rays, belonging to a type of invisible light, cannot be detected by human eyes due to shorter wavelength than blue rays and purple rays. Based on basic physical properties of light, the shorter the wavelength of the light is, the higher the relative frequency of the light is, which also means higher energy. For an example of blue rays belonging to light with higher energy in visible light, the public generally worry about damage to eyes due to energy in the blue rays. While ultraviolet rays have much shorter wavelength and much higher energy than blue rays. Deoxyribonucleic acids (DNAs) of microorganisms can be destroyed with sufficient high energy in ultraviolet rays, causing that the DNAs are broken and cannot be replicated and the microorganisms lose physiological functions and die. As a result, the ultraviolet rays are often used for disinfection and sterilization.
In view of the function of ultraviolet rays in disinfection and sterilization, in recent years, ultraviolet-C light-emitting diode (UVC LED) lamps featuring small size, quick start, and moderate power are developed to replace traditional mercury lamps.
In accordance with the content in the prior art, the inventor further finds that the chance of contacting ultraviolet rays during use is increased due to the improvement in convenience of an ultraviolet lamp in irradiation; and if the lamp is accidentally turned on to emit ultraviolet rays when disinfection is not needed, high energy of the ultraviolet rays will also cause harm to a human body. Therefore, how to prevent a user from being irradiated by ultraviolet rays while disinfecting and sterilizing objects with the ultraviolet rays has become an urgent issue to be solved in the technical field.
In view of this, one aspect of the present invention provides a safe sterilization unit, including: a bearing portion comprising two surfaces corresponding to each other; a light source portion configured to generate sterilization light, and disposed on one surface of the bearing portion; and at least one safety switch disposed on one side surface, provided with the light source portion, of the bearing portion, and connected with the light source portion, where the safety switch is disposed to sense light to generate a sensing message, and to regulate power supply of the light source portion according to the sensing message.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the safe sterilization unit further includes a lens portion disposed to contact the bearing portion and cover the light source portion, and made from a vinyl aromatic and conjugated diene cyclic block copolymer.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the safe sterilization unit further includes a shell formed with an opening communicating with the outside, where the bearing portion is disposed in the shell, and the light source portion is disposed on one surface, facing the opening, of the bearing portion.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the safety switch includes an infrared emitting diode and an infrared receiving diode, where the sterilization light and infrared rays emitted by the infrared emitting diode both pass through the opening, and the safety switch generates the sensing message according to an infrared ray receiving condition of the infrared receiving diode.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the safe sterilization unit further includes a light-transmitting portion disposed at the opening.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the shell includes a lens portion disposed on the opening, and covering the light source portion and the safety switch; and a lens is a Fresnel lens.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the lens portion is disposed on a lamp bead of the light source portion.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the safe sterilization unit further includes a moving unit connected with the light source portion to move an irradiation block of the light source portion.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the light source portion includes a light-emitting lamp body for emitting ultraviolet rays.
Another aspect of the present invention provides a double-surface sterilization device, including a sterilization device body, and two safe sterilization units as described above. The sterilization device body includes an outer shell, and a power supply portion disposed inside the outer shell to regulate input power supply. The safe sterilization units are electrically connected to the power supply portion to obtain a driving power supply, and are respectively disposed on two opposite sides of the outer shell to form a first sterilization zone on a first side of the outer shell and a second sterilization zone on a second side of the outer shell.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, a position, corresponding to the second disinfection zone, of the first side of the sterilization device body is provided with a first support frame; and
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the first support frame is pivoted on the first side to adjust an opening and closing angle of the first support frame relative to a surface of the first side, and the second support frame is pivoted on the second side to adjust an opening and closing angle of the second support frame relative to a surface of the second side.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the outer shell has the first side formed with a first accommodating groove for accommodating the first support frame, and the second side formed with a second accommodating groove for accommodating the second support frame.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the sterilization device body includes two sliding mechanisms respectively disposed on the first side and the second side; and each of the two sliding mechanisms includes sliding rails disposed on the sterilization device body, and a sliding block disposed on the sliding rails for bearing the corresponding safe sterilization unit.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the sterilization device body includes two guide grooves respectively formed in the first side and the second side, respectively allowing shells of the safe sterilization units on two sides to pass through, and limiting the movement stroke of the safe sterilization units.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the sliding rails are formed on two sides of each of the guide grooves such that the outer shell protrudes toward an inner space, two sides of each of the sliding blocks are formed with grooves for the sliding rails to be clamped, and the sliding block is limited to move linearly by the sliding rails.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the sterilization device body includes two positioning mechanisms respectively disposed on the first side and the second side for fixing an object to be sterilized.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, each of the positioning mechanisms includes a positioning column inserted into the outer shell, and a positioning elastic piece with one end fixed to the positioning column; and the positioning elastic piece is opened relative to the other end of the positioning column and elastically returns against a surface of the outer shell to provide clamping.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the power supply portion is connected to an external power supply via an electrical connector disposed on the outer shell.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, an inner side of the outer shell is provided with an accommodating mechanism, the accommodating mechanism is open toward a bottom side of the outer shell, and a draw-out hook is disposed in the accommodating mechanism.
The safe sterilization unit in the present invention enables the light source portion for emitting the ultraviolet rays to fully exert its sterilization function without causing accidental damage to a human body through a mechanism that the infrared emitting diode and the infrared receiving diode act as the safety switch.
Various features and components in the drawings are not drawn to scale, and are only drawn to best present specific features and components related to the present invention. In addition, the same or similar components and parts are referred to by reference numbers of the same or similar components in different drawings.
In order to make the technical connotation of the present invention more detailed and complete, the following describes the implementation patterns and specific embodiments of the present invention, but the description below is not the only form of implementing or using the specific embodiments of the present invention. Those of ordinary skill in the art can easily understand the necessary technical content of the present invention through the description below, and can change and modify the present invention in various ways to adapt to different uses and conditions without violating the spirit and scope of the present invention. Thus, the implementation patterns also belong to the claims of the present invention.
In the description of the present invention, unless the context dictates otherwise, “1” and “the” can also be construed as plural. In addition, within the scope of this description and the appended claims, unless otherwise stated, “disposed on an object” may be regarded as directly or indirectly contacting the surface of an object by attachment or in other forms, and the definition of the surface should be judged according to the context/paragraph semantics of the description and common knowledge in the field to which this description belongs.
In the description of the present invention, unless the context dictates otherwise, “contain”, “include/comprise”, “has/have” or “involve” is inclusive or open, and do not exclude other undescribed elements or method steps.
In the description of the present invention, the terms “middle”, “upper”, “lower”, “front”, “back”, “left”, “right”, “vertical”, “horizontal”, “top”, “bottom” , “inside”, “outside”, etc. for indicating orientations or positional relationships are based on orientations or positional relationships shown in the drawings, which are only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, rather than indicating or implying that the referred device or component must have a specific orientation and be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and thus should not be construed as limiting the present invention.
In the description of the present invention, “disposed”, “installed”, “connected”, “connection”, “fixed”, etc. should be understood in a broad sense, which may be, for example, fixed connection, detachable connection, mechanical connection, directly connected, indirectly connected via a middle medium, etc. Those of ordinary skill in the art can understand the specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention according to specific circumstances.
The programs mentioned in the present invention can all be executed by corresponding controllers (such as but not limited to charge and discharge control, logic control, or power control (such as pulse width modulation (PWM)), analog-to-digital and digital-to-analog conversion, etc.). The “controllers” may be processors or processors connected to storage units and executing corresponding programs, and control the operation of all components or devices according to software, firmware, or hardware configuration. Such controllers can be understood to be included in corresponding devices (such as a light source portion, a safety switch, a power supply portion, etc.) even if they are not mentioned in the description. Such controllers may be, for example, central processing units (CPUs), other programmable general-purpose or special-purpose microprocessors, digital signal processors (DSPs), programmable controllers, application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), other similar devices or combinations of these devices, which are not limited in the present invention.
The shell 500 is formed with an opening OP communicating with the outside, and has an accommodating space PL therein for accommodating the bearing portion 110, the safety switch 130, the light source portion 140, and the moving unit 150. In an embodiment, the shell 500 includes a bottom plate 170 disposed in the accommodating space, such that the bearing portion 110 is disposed on the bottom plate 170. Lead wires and related components including but not limited to driving chips or signal processing components can be disposed on or inside the bottom plate 170 according to requirements, and are electrically connected with the safety switch 130 and the light source portion 140; and specific use patterns of the components are not limited by the present invention. In an embodiment, the opening OP in the shell 500 is further provided with a light-transmitting portion 161 for light to pass through. The light-transmitting portion 161 is located on a light output path of the light source portion 140, and light emitted by an infrared emitting diode 131 of the safety switch 130, light received by an infrared receiving diode 132 of the safety switch, and light emitted by the light source portion 140 can all enter and exit from the shell 500 via a window portion, such that irradiation ranges of the safety switch 130 and the light source portion 140 are overlapped. In an embodiment, a material of the light-transmitting portion 161 may be quartz, a cyclic block copolymer (CBC), or other materials with equivalent application. In an embodiment, the safe sterilization unit 100 may or may not be provided with a lens portion 162 corresponding to the light source portion 140, which is not limited in the present invention.
In an embodiment, the shell 500 includes a base 510, and an extension portion 520 disposed on the base 510; and the extension portion 520 is reserved with the above-mentioned opening OP communicating with the outside.
The bearing portion 110 is disposed in the shell 500. The bearing portion 110 has upper and lower surfaces corresponding to each other, preferably parallel to each other; and the bearing portion 110 is of a plate structure, which is not limited herein. The light source portion 140 is disposed above a surface of the bearing portion 110, and is preferably a light-emitting lamp body. In this embodiment, the light source portion is the light-emitting lamp body for emitting ultraviolet rays. In detail, the bearing portion 110 is preferably a plate body with a heat dissipation function; a material of the bearing portion may be a heat-dissipating material well known in the art, such as a metal or alloy containing copper and/or aluminum, or a ceramic; and more preferably, the bearing portion is a heat-dissipating aluminum plate.
In an embodiment, a base plate 120 is further disposed between the bearing portion 110 and the light source portion 140; the base plate 120 may be made of the same or different material as or from the bearing portion 110, such as a metal or alloy containing copper and/or aluminum, or a ceramic; and in this embodiment, the base plate is made of the aluminum.
The safety switch 130 is disposed on one side surface, provided with the light source portion, of the bearing portion 110, and includes the infrared emitting diode 131, the infrared receiving diode 132 and a control integrated circuit (IC), where the infrared emitting diode 131 and the infrared receiving diode 132 are connected with the light source portion 140 via the control IC. The infrared emitting diode 131 and the infrared receiving diode 132 are disposed on an upper surface of the bearing portion 110.
Due to emission wavelengths which are far apart, the ultraviolet rays and infrared rays will not interfere with each other in function. For a situation of use in conjunction with the safety switch 130, as shown in
In an embodiment, the infrared emitting diode 131 and the infrared receiving diode 132 are respectively located on two sides of the light source portion 140. As shown in
In a case where a plurality of safety switches 130 are used, the conditions for turning on the light source portion 140 can be improved. When infrared emitting diodes 131 on two sides of the light source portion 140 are shielded at the same time, the light source portion 140 will be turned on and emits the ultraviolet rays for sterilization, otherwise, the light source portion 140 will not be turned on, so as to prevent children from accidentally touching the safety switches 130.
Furthermore, since light paths of the ultraviolet rays and the infrared rays are almost overlapped, as long as an area detected by the infrared emitting diode 131 of the safety switch 130 is almost the same as an ultraviolet irradiation range of the light source portion 140, a dead angle of detection can be avoided, and a situation that the object is irradiated in front of the light source portion 140, but is not detected by the safety switch 130 is prevented.
Then, the moving unit 150 in the safe sterilization unit 100 is connected with the light source portion 140, and preferably can be hidden in the base plate 120. The moving unit 150 can move or vibrate with the light source portion 140 in a small range, so as to move an irradiation block of the light source portion 140. Besides, a power source of the moving unit 150 can be provided by a motor, which is not limited in the present invention.
In another aspect, the lens portion 162, 162a or 162b is preferably a Fresnel lens; and as used herein, the “Fresnel lens” is a variant lens formed by dividing numerous concentric circle lines (Fresnel zones) on a lens, can be divided into types of point focusing and line focusing, and can be divided into curved and plano Fresnel lenses according to geometric patterns of lenses. The Fresnel lens can achieve short-length focusing or collimation under the condition of reducing its material.
A material of the lens portion 162, 162a, 162b or 162c is a polymer, preferably a copolymer, and more preferably a vinyl aromatic (such as styrene)-conjugated diene (such as butadiene) cyclic block copolymer. The “block copolymer” belongs to a sub-category of copolymers, and includes two or more chain segments formed by single structural units. Besides, the vinyl aromatic-conjugated diene cyclic block copolymer may be prepared by an anionic polymerization technology or a catalytic hydrogenation technology, which is not limited in the present invention.
In another aspect, the lens portion 162d is a Fresnel lens; and as used herein, the “Fresnel lens” is a variant lens formed by dividing numerous concentric circle lines (Fresnel zones) on a lens, can be divided into types of point focusing and line focusing, and can be divided into curved and plano Fresnel lenses according to geometric patterns of lenses. The Fresnel lens can achieve short-length focusing or collimation under the condition of reducing its material.
A material of the lens portion 162d is a polymer, preferably a copolymer, and more preferably a vinyl aromatic (such as styrene)-conjugated diene (such as butadiene) cyclic block copolymer. As used herein, the “block copolymer” belongs to a sub-category of copolymers, and includes two or more chain segments formed by single structural units. Besides, the vinyl aromatic-conjugated diene cyclic block copolymer may be prepared by an anionic polymerization technology or a catalytic hydrogenation technology, which is not limited in the present invention.
The safe sterilization unit in the present invention has been described in detail above, and the following will describe a double-surface sterilization device corresponding to the present invention in detail with specific embodiments.
The sterilization device body 610 mainly includes an outer shell 611, a power supply portion 612 disposed inside the outer shell 611 for regulating input power supply, and an operation unit 613 connected to the power supply portion 612. The power supply portion 612 is used to provide a power supply required by each apparatus in the double-surface sterilization device 600 according to the embodiment. In an embodiment, the power supply portion 612 can be implemented in the form of a main control circuit board, and is configured to be connected with each apparatus of the double-surface sterilization device 600; a controller of each apparatus can be optionally configured on the main control circuit board (such as a processor, a logic controller, an analog-to-digital converter, a digital-to-analog converter, a switch controller, etc.); of course, such controllers can also be optionally configured on respective independent circuit boards; and such changes are all within the scope of protection of the present invention. In an embodiment, the power supply portion 612 is connected to an external power supply via an electrical connector CT disposed on the outer shell 611, where the external power supply may be, for example, a relay, any connecting wire, or a plug apparatus, which is not limited in the present invention. In yet another embodiment, as shown in
The safe sterilization unit 100 is as described in the previous embodiment, and the same parts will not be repeated. The safe sterilization unit 100 is electrically connected to the power supply portion 612 to obtain a driving power supply. In an embodiment, the safe sterilization unit 100 can be directly electrically connected to the power supply portion 612 by hidden wire arrangement. In another embodiment, the safe sterilization unit 100 can obtain a driving power supply from the power supply portion 612 by wireless power supply (such as a coupling coil), which is not limited in the present invention. In order to achieve the function of double-surface sterilization, two safe sterilization units 100 are respectively disposed on two opposite sides of the outer shell 611 to form a first sterilization zone PA1 on a first side S1 of the outer shell 611 and a second sterilization zone PA2 on a second side S2 of the outer shell 611. The first side S1 and the second side S2 (including types, quantities, shapes, and configuration positions of apparatuses and mechanisms) of the safe sterilization unit 100 in this embodiment may be symmetrical or asymmetrical in design, which is not limited in the present invention. For the convenience of description, and to avoid excessive repetition of substantially same content, most of technical features in the following are described with one side or only one side is marked in the figure, but such configuration is not limited to bilateral symmetry, which is clearly indicated in advance here.
In an embodiment, in order to move the safe sterilization unit 100 to a preferred position in cooperation with corresponding materials or clothing materials to be sterilized, the sterilization device body 610 includes two sliding mechanisms SL respectively disposed on the first side S1 and the second side S2; and each of the sliding mechanisms SL includes sliding rails SL1 disposed on the sterilization device body 610, and a sliding block SL2 disposed on the sliding rails SL1 for bearing the corresponding safe sterilization unit 100. Specifically, the sterilization device body 610 includes two guide grooves 614 respectively formed in the first side S1 and the second side S2, and the two guide grooves 614 respectively allow openings of the safe sterilization units 100 on two sides to pass through and limit the movement stroke of the safe sterilization units 100; and the sliding rails SL1 are formed on two sides of each of the guide grooves 614 such that the outer shell 611 protrudes toward an inner space, two sides of the sliding block SL2 are provided with grooves SL21 for the sliding rails SL1 to be clamped, and the sliding block SL2 is limited to move linearly by the sliding rails SL1. Each of the grooves SL21 has two closed ends and a limited length, thereby limiting the relative movement stroke between the sliding rails SL1 and the sliding block SL2.
In an embodiment, in order to increase the sterilization range of the safe sterilization unit 100 on the first disinfection zone PA1 and the second disinfection zone PA2, a position, corresponding to the first disinfection zone PA1, of the first side S1 of the sterilization device body 610 is provided with a first support frame SP1, and/or a position, corresponding to the second disinfection zone PA2, of the second side S2 of the sterilization device body 610 is provided with a second support frame SP2, so as to increase a distance between the materials or clothing materials to be sterilized and the safe sterilization unit 100; and based on a characteristic that a beam angle of sterilization light is increased with the distance when exceeding 0°, the sterilization range is increased.
Further, in an embodiment, the first support frame SP1 is pivoted on the first side S1 to adjust an opening and closing angle of the first support frame SP1 relative to a surface of the first side S1, and the second support frame SP2 is pivoted on the second side S2 to adjust an opening and closing angle of the second support frame SP2 relative to a surface of the second side S2. In order to improve the appearance of a product, the outer shell 611 has the first side S1 formed with a first accommodating groove CA1 for accommodating the first support frame SP1, and the second side S2 formed with a second accommodating groove CA2 for accommodating the second support frame SP2.
In an embodiment, in order to fix the positions of the materials or clothing materials to be sterilized, the sterilization device body 610 includes two positioning mechanisms 615 respectively disposed on the first side S1 and the second side S2 for fixing the materials or clothing materials to be sterilized. In an embodiment, each of the positioning mechanisms 615 includes a positioning column PT inserted into the outer shell 611, and a positioning elastic piece SF with one end fixed to the positioning column PT; and the positioning elastic piece SF is opened relative to the other end of the positioning column PT and elastically returns against a surface of the outer shell 611 to provide clamping.
In an embodiment, in order to facilitate the double-surface sterilization device 600 in the present invention to achieve a hanging function, an inner side of the outer shell 611 is provided with an accommodating mechanism ST, the accommodating mechanism ST is open toward a bottom side of the outer shell 611, and a draw-out hook 616 is disposed in the accommodating mechanism ST, such that the hanging function is achieved by the draw-out hook 616.
With respect to a usage mode of the double-surface sterilization device in the present invention,
In addition to the above usage mode, the double-surface sterilization device 600 in the present invention can also be hung for use.
In another aspect,
Further, the double-surface sterilization device 700 further includes a fixing component 740, an indicator lamp 720 and a circuit board 730. The fixing component 740 is disposed on the bottom plate 710 and configured to fix the clothing C. The fixing component 740 may be a conventional component such as a fastener or an adhesive component, which is not limited herein. The indicator lamp 720 is configured to remind a user of a usage status of the double-surface sterilization device 700; and specifically, the indicator lamp 720 can be in signal connection with the safety switch 130 to show the situation that the safety switch 130 regulates power supply of the light source portion 140, thereby reducing the probability of affecting the user by escaped light. The circuit board 730 is a carrier for laying electronic components required by the double-surface sterilization device 700, preferably a printed circuit board (PCB), can also serve as the power supply portion 612 as described in the above embodiment, and is configured to be connected with various apparatuses of the double-surface sterilization device 700 and to regulate power input to the double-surface sterilization device 700.
As shown in
In conclusion, compared with the prior art, the safe sterilization unit and the double-surface sterilization device including the same in the present invention enable the light source portion for emitting the ultraviolet rays to fully exert its sterilization function without causing accidental damage to a human body through a mechanism that the infrared emitting diode and the infrared receiving diode act as the safety switch.
The present invention has been described in detail above, but the above is only a preferred implementation pattern and embodiment of the present invention, and is not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. In other words, those of ordinary skill in the art change and modify the present invention in various ways to adapt to different uses and conditions without violating the spirit and scope of the present invention. Thus, the implementation pattern also belongs to the claims of the present invention.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 110127128 | Jul 2021 | TW | national |
| 111207087 | Jul 2022 | TW | national |
