KR20160005319A - Water Purifier Capable of Reducing Water Consumption - Google Patents

Abstract

Disclosed is a water purifier capable of recycling water. The water purifier capable of recycling water according to an embodiment of the present invention includes: a water tank for storing water; a filter unit comprising an osmotic membrane filter for filtering the water stored in the water tank; a purification tank for storing the water purified by the filter unit; a collection tube for supplying water, which is not filtered by the osmotic membrane filter, to the water tank; a control unit for shutting the supply of water into the filter unit from the water tank, when the water level is lower than a predetermined level; and a total dissolved solid (TDS) sensor for measuring the TDS of water stored inside the water tank. The control unit blocks the supply of water stored in the water tank to the filter unit, when the water level inside the water tank is lower than a predetermined level, or when the value detected by the TDS sensor is above a predetermined value, in order to prevent the water which is concentrated by multiple times of osmotic membrane filtration.

Description

{Water Purifier Capable of Reducing Water Consumption}

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a water purifier including a reverse osmosis membrane filter, and more particularly, to a water purifier capable of preventing waste of domestic water by reusing unfiltered domestic water in a reverse osmotic membrane filter.

In recent years, environmental pollution, especially water pollution, has become a social problem, and the use of water purifiers to remove impurities by physically or chemically filtering water is increasing.

Among these water purifiers, the water purifier of the reverse osmosis pressure system performs the purifying operation by using an artificial action that an artificial pressure is applied to the higher concentration side so that the water, which is a solvent in the high concentration solution, passes through the osmosis membrane and moves to the low concentration side.

FIG. 1 shows an example of such a reverse osmosis type water purifier.

Referring to FIG. 1, the conventional reverse osmosis water purifier 1 includes a sediment filter 11 for receiving raw water from water or the like and removing dust, debris, and various suspended matters through a fine filter of about 5 microns, (12) which removes chemicals and chlorine components harmful to human bodies such as carcinogens (THM), synthetic detergents and insecticides by using the adsorption method of activated carbon, and a reverse osmosis membrane of 0.0001 micron to remove heavy metals such as lead and arsenic And is connected to the reverse osmosis membrane filter 13 and the connection pipe 13b through a reverse osmosis membrane filter 13 for filtering sodium and various pathogens and discharging concentrated water for life through a drain pipe 13a, And a post-carbon filter (14) for removing unpleasant taste, smell, pigment, and the like contained in the water that has passed through the reverse osmosis membrane filter (13). A pump 15 is mounted at the front end of the reverse osmosis membrane filter 13 to supply pressure to the water flowing into the reverse osmosis membrane filter 13.

In this way, the water filtered in the filter unit 10 is stored in the water tank 20 so that it can be used by the user.

However, the water purifier 1 of the conventional reverse osmosis type has a problem of wasteful water because it has a structure in which the untreated domestic water is directly discarded in the reverse osmosis membrane filter 13.

In addition, since the water purifier 1 of the conventional reverse osmosis system is directly connected to the water purifier, there is a problem that a separate piping work is required to connect the water purifier to an office or factory. In particular, when separate piping can not be installed due to office aesthetics or the like, it is not possible to use a water purifier of the type directly connected to water supply.

Disclosure of Invention Technical Problem [8] Accordingly, the present invention has been made to solve at least some of the above-mentioned problems, and provides a water purifier capable of recycling domestic water with less waste of domestic water by re- .

In addition, the present invention provides, as one aspect, an improved osmosis membrane filter capable of improving the service life of the filter part by preventing the concentrated osmosis water from being supplied to the filter part by filtering the osmosis membrane filter several times, It is an object of the present invention to provide a water purifier which can be recycled.

As one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a water purifier capable of recycling domestic water, which can be used at a place separated from water by separating the water supply tank from the filter unit and receiving raw water from an external water supply installed separately from the water purifier .

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a water supply system comprising: a water supply tank for storing raw water; A filter unit including a reverse osmosis membrane filter for receiving and filtering the water stored in the water supply tank; A purified water tank storing the purified water in the filter unit; A return pipe for supplying unfiltered domestic water from the reverse osmosis membrane filter to the water supply tank; A control unit for blocking supply of water stored in the water supply tank to the filter unit when the water level in the water supply tank becomes lower than a discharge water level set in advance; And a TDS sensor for measuring TDS (Total Dissolved Solid) of water contained in the water supply tank; Wherein the controller is configured to filter the reverse osmosis membrane filter several times so that the concentrated water is no longer supplied to the filter unit, the water level in the water supply tank is lower than a predetermined level, The water stored in the water supply tank may be prevented from being supplied to the filter unit when the value reaches a predetermined value or more.

Preferably, the discharge water level may be set in a range of 20 to 30% of the water tank tank water level.

Further preferably, the water purifier according to one aspect of the present invention may further include a pump for supplying water stored in the water supply tank to the filter unit, wherein the controller stops driving the pump to store water in the water supply tank And to prevent water from being supplied to the filter portion.

Preferably, the control unit may be configured to open a drain valve connected to a drain pipe of the water supply tank to block water stored in the water supply tank from being supplied to the filter unit.

Preferably, the water supply tank may be connected to a pipe and a connection port connected to the filter unit so as to be detachable from the filter unit.

According to the present invention, it is possible to reduce the waste of domestic water by filtering the non-filtered domestic water in the reverse osmotic membrane filter.

According to an aspect of the present invention, when the water level of the water supply tank is equal to the discharge water level, the water supply to the filter unit is cut off so that the living water, which has been filtered through the reverse osmosis membrane filter several times, It is possible to improve the service life of the filter unit and to provide a stable supply of purified water with high quality.

According to an aspect of the present invention, since the TDS sensor for measuring the TDS of the water contained in the water supply tank is provided, if the amount of the dissolved solid matter exceeds a certain level, the life water is not supplied to the filter unit any more, It is possible to obtain an effect that the TDS can be supplied at a low water purification rate.

According to an aspect of the present invention, since the water supply tank is configured to be detachable from the filter unit, raw water can be supplied from an external water supply installed separately from the water purifier, and thus, Is possible.

1 is a schematic view showing a general reverse osmosis type water purifier.
2 is a schematic view of a water purifier capable of recycling domestic water according to an embodiment of the present invention;
3 is a schematic view of a water purifier capable of recycling domestic water according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of a water purifier capable of recycling domestic water according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a water purifier capable of recycling domestic water according to another embodiment of the present invention.

2, a water purifier 100 capable of recycling domestic water according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a filter unit 110, a purified water tank 120, a water supply tank 130, a pump 140, And may include piping for connection.

The filter unit 110 includes a reverse osmosis membrane filter 113 and supplies water received in the water supply tank 130 to generate purified water to supply purified water to the purified water tank 120 .

As shown in FIG. 2, for example, the filter unit 110 may include a sludge filter 130 that receives water from the water supply tank 130 and removes dust, debris, and various suspended substances through a fine filter of about 5 microns. A free carbon filter 111b for removing chemicals and chlorine components harmful to human bodies such as carcinogens (THM), synthetic detergents and insecticides by using the adsorption method of activated carbon and a reverse osmosis membrane of 0.0001 micron, A reverse osmosis membrane filter 113 for filtering heavy metals such as arsenic as well as sodium and various pathogens and discharging concentrated concentrated water through a drain 113a; And a post-carbon filter 114 connected to the reverse osmosis membrane filter 113b to remove unpleasant taste, smell, pigment, etc. contained in the water passed through the reverse osmosis membrane filter 113. However, the types and the number of filters provided before and after the reverse osmosis membrane filter 113 are not limited thereto. For example, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the sediment filter 111a and the free carbon filter 111b may be composed of one composite filter 111, and one or more filters may be removed or added It is also possible.

The purified water tank 120 receives the water filtered by the filter unit 110 through the inlet 115 and stores the water in the filter tank 110. The water level sensor 126 and the low water level sensor 127 are connected to the water level sensor 120, And a water level detecting means. The purified water contained in the purified water tank 120 is supplied to the user through the purified water supply pipe 121. The purified water tank 120 may include a hot water tank and / or a cold water tank according to the specification of the water purifier.

In addition, the water supply tank 130 may include a water supply pipe 131 and a water supply valve 131a provided therein to receive raw water from a water supply or the like. In order to discharge the water stored in the water supply tank 130 to the outside such as the sewage, (132) and a drain valve (132a) provided therein.

One side of the water supply tank 130 is connected to the filter unit 110 through the inlet pipe 142 so as to supply raw water for filtering to the filter unit 110 and the other side is connected to the reverse osmosis membrane filter 113 And is connected to the recovery pipe 150 to receive the domestic water discharged through the drain portion 113a without being filtered. Therefore, when the water level of the purified water tank 120 is lowered and the purified water is required to be replenished, the raw water for filtration stored in the water supply tank 130 is supplied to the front end of the filter unit 110 to perform filtering operation, The filtered water is stored in the purified water tank 120 and the unfiltered domestic water in the reverse osmosis membrane filter 113 is returned to the water supply tank 130 through the recovery pipe 150. Then, when the purified water in the purified water tank 120 needs to be replenished, the water stored in the water supply tank 130 is supplied again to the front end of the filter unit 110, and the process described above is repeated.

When a part of the water supplied to the filter unit 110 from the water supply tank 130 is filtered and stored in the purified water tank 120 and the rest of the water is collected into the water supply tank 130, The water level in the water tank 130 is gradually lowered, and the water contained in the water tank 130 is concentrated to increase the total dissolved solids (TDS).

When the concentrated water is continuously supplied to the filter unit 110, clogging of each filter provided in the filter unit 110, particularly the reverse osmosis membrane filter 113, increases, and the service life of the filter can be shortened In addition, since the filtering performance of the filter unit 110 is limited, the TDS of the filtered water also increases, making it difficult to ensure the desired quality of purified water.

In order to prevent such a problem, the water purifier 100 according to one aspect of the present invention is configured such that water is supplied from the water supply tank 130 to the filter unit 110 when the water level of the water supply tank 130 becomes lower than a preset discharge level (Not shown) for preventing the display device from being displayed.

In this way, when the water level in the water supply tank 130 reaches a certain level, supply of water from the water supply tank 130 to the filter unit 110 is blocked, thereby prolonging the life of the filter provided in the filter unit 110 And the TDS of the water contained in the purified water tank 120 is prevented from being increased, thereby securing the purified water quality.

At this time, it is preferable that the discharge water level is set in a range between 20 and 30% of the full water level. If the discharge water level becomes smaller than 20% of the full water level, if the concentration of the unfiltered domestic water in the reverse osmosis membrane filter 113 increases, that is, the TDS increases and the filtration process through the filter unit 110 continues, The clogging phenomenon may increase and the TDS of the water flowing into the water tank 120 increases to lower the quality of the water. Conversely, if the discharge level is higher than 30% of the full water level, the amount of unnecessarily wasted water is increased.

This discharge water level can be sensed by the discharge water level sensor 137 provided in the water supply tank 130 and the water level of the water supply tank 130 can be sensed by the full water level sensor 136. [

Meanwhile, the water purifier 100 capable of recycling domestic water according to an embodiment of the present invention may further include a TDS sensor 135 for measuring a TDS of water contained in the water supply tank 130. In this case, when the water level detected by the TDS sensor 135 is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, the control unit (not shown) controls the water supply tank 130 130 can be prevented from being supplied to the filter unit 110, thereby reducing the life of the filter due to clogging of the filter and preventing the quality of the water in the water tank 120 from deteriorating.

For example, when the raw water contains a lot of hard materials and the TDS of the raw water is high, the TDS of the water contained in the water supply tank 130 becomes higher than the reference value even before the water level of the water supply tank 130 reaches the discharge water level However, when the TDS sensor 135 is provided as in the embodiment of the present invention, the water stored in the water tank 130 is prevented from being supplied to the filter unit 110, It is possible to prevent the TDS from rising in advance. Particularly, since the TDS sensor 135 is installed in the water supply tank 130, the rise of the TDS of the water contained in the purified water tank 120 can be prevented in advance, So that it can be stably maintained.

The water purifier 100 capable of recycling the domestic water according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a pump installed in the inlet pipe 142 for pressurizing the water stored in the water supply tank 130 and supplying the water to the filter unit 110, (140). ≪ / RTI > At this time, the control unit (not shown) may stop driving the pump 140 to block the water stored in the water supply tank 130 from being supplied to the filter unit 110.

When the water level in the water supply tank 130 becomes lower than a preset water level or the value detected by the TDS sensor 135 becomes a predetermined value or more, The water contained in the water supply tank 130 may be discharged to the outside by opening the drain valve 132a connected to the drain pipe 132 of the water supply tank 130 to block the supply to the filter unit 110. [ At this time, the drain pipe 132 may be connected to a sewage pipe, but it may be connected to a separate drainage tank (not shown) for storing the discharged domestic water, so that the water stored in the drainage tank may be used for cleaning As shown in FIG.

3, the water purifier 100 capable of recycling domestic water according to another embodiment of the present invention may be configured to be capable of separating the water supply tank 130 from the filter unit 110. As shown in FIG.

The water purifier 100 shown in Fig. 3 has the same or similar configuration as that of the water purifier shown in Fig. 2, except that the water supply tank 130 is configured to be detachable. Therefore, in order to avoid unnecessary redundancy, And the same reference numerals are given to the same or similar components, and only differences will be described.

The water purifier 100 shown in FIG. 3 includes a water supply tank 130 connected to the inlet pipe 142 or the return pipe 150 connected to the filter unit 110 so as to separate the water supply tank 130 from the filter unit 110, And the connection ports 138a and 138b. Since these connectors 138a and 138b may have a normal pipe connection structure, detailed description will be omitted.

3, the water purifier 100 separates the water supply tank 130, moves the water supply tank 130 by water or the like, and then connects the water supply pipe 231 and the water supply valve 231a, And may have a connector 138c. At this time, the water supply tank 130 may be provided with a separate water supply port 131b at the upper part to receive raw water.

3, after the water stored in the water supply tank 130 is blocked by the control unit from being supplied to the filter unit 110, A drain connection 138d may be provided so as to be connected to a drain pipe 232 such as a sewage pipe.

By configuring the water supply tank 130 so as to be detachable from the filter unit 110, it is possible to receive the raw water from the external water supply installed separately from the water purifier 100, Can be used.

While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to specific embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the following claims It will be appreciated that those skilled in the art will readily understand the present invention.

100 ... water purifier 110 ... filter portion
113 ... reverse osmosis membrane filter 120 ... water tank
126 ... high water level sensor 127 ... low water level sensor
130 ... Water tank 131 ... Water pipe
131a ... Water supply valve 131b ... Water supply port
132 ... drain pipe 132a ... drain valve
135 ... TDS sensor 136 ... high water level sensor
137 ... discharge water level sensor 138a, 138b, 138c, 138d ... connector
140 ... pump 142 ... inlet pipe
150 ... recovery pipe

Claims (5)

A water supply tank 130 for storing raw water;
A filter unit 110 including a reverse osmosis membrane filter 113 for receiving and filtering the water stored in the water supply tank 130;
A purified water tank 120 for storing the purified water filtered by the filter unit 110;
A recovery pipe (150) for supplying unfiltered domestic water from the reverse osmosis membrane filter (113) to the water supply tank (130);
A controller for blocking water stored in the water supply tank from being supplied to the filter unit when the water level in the water supply tank is lower than a predetermined water level; And
A TDS sensor 135 for measuring TDS (Total Dissolved Solid) of water contained in the water supply tank 130; / RTI >
The controller may control the water level of the water in the water supply tank 130 to be lower than a predetermined level so that the filtered water is not supplied to the filter unit 110, And the water stored in the water supply tank (130) is prevented from being supplied to the filter unit (110) when the value detected by the TDS sensor (135) becomes a predetermined value or more. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the discharge water level is set in a range of 20 to 30% of the water level of the water supply tank (130). 3. The method according to claim 1 or 2,
And a pump 140 for supplying water stored in the water supply tank 130 to the filter unit 110,
Wherein the control unit stops the driving of the pump (140) to block the water stored in the water supply tank (130) from being supplied to the filter unit (110). 3. The method according to claim 1 or 2,
The control unit opens the drain valve 132a connected to the drain pipe 132 of the water supply tank 130 to block the water stored in the water supply tank 130 from being supplied to the filter unit 110 Water purifier that can recycle domestic water. 3. The method according to claim 1 or 2,
Wherein the water supply tank is connected to a pipe connected to the filter unit so as to be detachable from the filter unit by connection pipes 138a and 138b.

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