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Whirlpool bath with an inverter-controlled circulating pump

  • US 5,457,826 A
  • Filed: 12/06/1993
  • Issued: 10/17/1995
  • Est. Priority Date: 12/29/1988
  • Status: Expired due to Fees
First Claim
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1. A whirlpool bath with an inverter-controlled circulating pump comprising:

  • a) a bathtub body,b) a circulating pump driven by a power-operated motor having a drive circuit and mounted exteriorly on said bathtub body, said circulating pump comprising a motor portion covered with a motor casing and a pump portion covered with a pump casing, said motor casing and said pump casing being electrically insulated from one another,c) a hot water circulation path disposed between said bathtub body and said circulating pump, said hot water circulation path comprising a hot water suction path and a hot water forced-feed path, said hot water forced-feed path having at least one terminal end opening into said bathtub body,d) nozzle means comprising at least one blow-off nozzle mounted on said terminal end of said hot water forced-feed path,e) an air intake portion connected to said hot water forced-feed path to permit blowing off of bubbling hot water into said bathtub body from said blow-off nozzle,f) an inverter interposed between said drive circuit of said power-operated motor of said circulating pump and a power source, said inverter having a variable output frequency, said drive circuit being responsive to the output frequency of said inverter to control the rate of revolution of said motor and hence operation of said circulating pump to provide a plurality of modes of said blow-off of hot water, each of said modes being different in amount and pressure of said blow-off of hot water, andg) an electrically isolating transformer interposed between said inverter and said power source, said power-operated motor of said circulating pump having said motor casing thereof connected to a center tap of a secondary winding of said electrically isolating transformer, andh) a control unit for controlling said drive circuit of said circulating pump, said inverter and said electrically isolating transformer,said blow-off nozzle being further provided with valve means for gradually regulating the blow-off amount and blow-off pressure of said blow-off nozzle, said control unit comprising means for simultaneously regulating said valve means of said blow-off nozzle, and further comprising an operating panel, and means applying signals from said operating panel to said circulating pump to selectively control the circulating pump to provide the following blow-off modes;

    a) a blow-off mode in which said valve means of said blow-off nozzle is positioned to enable a full opening of said blow-off nozzle and the rate of revolution of said circulating pump is increased from a medium speed level to a high speed level to provide a blow-off in which the amount of said hot water blown off from said blow-off nozzle is large and the blow-off pressure thereof is low;

    b) a blow-off mode in which said rate of revolution of said circulating pump is held at said high speed level and said valve means of said blow-off nozzle is regulated such that the amount of hot water blown off from said blow-off nozzle is small and the blow-off pressure thereof is high;

    c) a blow-off mode in which said rate of revolution of said circulating pump is held at said high speed level and said valve means of said blow-off nozzle moves between a fully nozzle open position and a fully nozzle closed position to alternately blow-off hot water and stop blowing-off hot water; and

    d) a blow-off mode in which said valve means of said blow-off nozzle is positioned to enable a full or half opening of said blow-off nozzle and the rate of revolution of said circulating pump is periodically changed, thus providing a blow-off in which the amount of said hot water to be blown off is changed periodically.

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