Hand drying apparatus

• US 7,971,368 B2
• Filed: 07/26/2005
• Issued: 07/05/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/26/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
• Original Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
• Inventors: Mori, Syunichi, Itoigawa, Yasuyuki, Fukaya, Yoshihiro
• Primary Examiner(s): GRAVINI, STEPHEN MICHAEL
• Application Number:
  US11/884,122
• Publication Number:
  US 20080263889A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,170 Days
• Field of Search: 34/77, 345/65, 34/57, 34/2, 342/02, 222/52, 222/1, 396/626, 396/571, 462/3, 73/232, 73/53, 436/45, 436/180, 705/1, 705/14
• US Class Current: 34/77
• CPC Class Codes: A47K 10/48 Drying by means of hot air hair-drying devices A45D20/00; curative hot-air baths A61H33/06; electric heating elements H05B
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 436/111666 Utilizing a centrifuge or compartmented rotor
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 436/2575 Volumetric liquid transfer

Abstract

In a hand drying apparatus, an infrared light absorber absorbs infrared light, when a hand is not present, emitted from an infrared light emitter provided on an inner surface of a drying space.

Claims

1. A hand drying apparatus comprising:

a high pressure airflow generator configured to generate high pressure airflow;

a nozzle that discharges the high pressure airflow generated by the high pressure airflow generator;

a drying space that has a hand insertion portion having wall faces that allow insertion and pulling-out of hands and is formed so hands inserted through the hand insertion portion are dried by the high pressure airflow discharged from the nozzle;

at least one hand detector constituted of an infrared light emitter and an infrared light receiver configured to detect hands inserted into the drying space that are arranged on a same wall face of the drying space, wherein driving of the high pressure airflow generator is controlled based on a detection signal from the hand detector; and

an infrared light absorber whose infrared light reflectivity is smaller than that of hands and absorbs infrared light, formed on at least a portion of a wall face of the drying space unit that is opposed to the infrared light emitter of the hand detector.

2. The hand drying apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the hand detector is provided unitarily on a rear face side of the drying space.

3. The hand drying apparatus according to claim 1, wherein color or material whose infrared light reflectivity is smaller than that of hands is used for the infrared light absorber.

4. The hand drying apparatus according to claim 2, wherein color or material whose infrared light reflectivity is smaller than that of hands is used for the infrared light absorber.

5. The hand drying apparatus according to claim 2, wherein a distance between a front face side and a rear face side of the drying space is between 40 millimeters and 100 millimeters.

6. The hand drying apparatus according to claim 2, wherein a distance between a front face side and a rear face side of the drying space is between 40 millimeters and 100 millimeters.

7. The hand drying apparatus according to claim 3, wherein a distance between a front face side and a rear face side of the drying space is between 40 millimeters and 100 millimeters.

8. The hand drying apparatus according to claim 4, wherein a distance between a front face side and a rear face side of the drying space is between 40 millimeters and 100 millimeters.

9. The hand drying apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising any one or both of an infrared light emitter and an infrared light receiver opposed to each other across the drying space, wherein hands inserted into the drying space are detected by cooperation of any one or both of the infrared light emitter and the infrared light receiver opposed to each other and the hand detector with each other.