Abstract:
A water purifier that includes a housing having an inlet and an outlet opposing each other, a filter disposed in the housing and connected to the inlet to reduce the flow rate of water introduced into the filter from the inlet, a separator disposed in the housing to store water discharged from the filter, a supply conduit disposed in the housing and connected to a central portion of the separator to provide a path through which the water in the separator is drained, and an ultraviolet light emitting diode (UV LED) module disposed in the housing to irradiate UV rays toward the water stored in the separator.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    The present application claims priority under 35 U.S.C 119(a) to Korean Application No. 10-2013-0090513, filed on Jul. 30, 2013, in the Korean intellectual property Office, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0002]    1. Technical Field 
         [0003]    Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to water purifiers and, more particularly, to water purifiers that use ultraviolet (UV) light sources. 
         [0004]    2. Related Art 
         [0005]    As it becomes more difficult to use raw water as drinking water because of environmental pollution, the use of water purifiers and mineral water have become widespread. In particular, water purifiers rather than the mineral water may be widely used in houses, restaurants, offices and construction sites because utilizing the water purifiers is more advantageous than purchasing the mineral water in terms of cost. The water purifier may be connected to a water pipe supplying the raw water or a raw water tank temporarily storing the raw water to filter out impurities in the raw water. The water purifier may additionally include a cooler for cooling the water and/or a heater for heating the water. 
         [0006]    Impurities such as heavy metals in the raw water may be chemically and physically filtered by a filter included in the water purifier. For example, the filter of the water purifier may filter the impurities in the raw water by adsorbing and decomposing the impurities in the raw water. Recently, ultraviolet (UV) rays have been used to remove or sterilize bacteria and viruses in the raw water. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0007]    This summary is intended to provide an overview of the subject matter of this patent, and is not intended to identify essential elements or key elements of the subject matter, nor is it intended to be used to determine the scope of the claimed embodiments. The proper scope of this patent may be ascertained from the claims set forth below in view of the detailed description below and the drawings. 
         [0008]    According to some embodiments, a water purifier includes a housing having an inlet and an outlet opposing each other, a filter disposed in the housing and connected to the inlet to reduce the flow rate of water introduced into the filter from the inlet, a separator disposed in the housing to store water discharged from the filter, a supply conduit disposed in the housing and connected to a central portion of the separator to provide a path through which the water in the separator is drained, and an ultraviolet light emitting diode (UV LED) module disposed in the housing to irradiate UV rays toward the water stored in the separator. The UV LED module is disposed to be adjacent to the supply conduit. 
         [0009]    According to further embodiments, a water purifier includes a housing having an inlet and an outlet opposing each other, a filter disposed in the housing and connected to the inlet to reduce the flow rate of water introduced into the filter from the inlet, a first separator disposed in the housing to store water discharged from the filter, a supply conduit disposed in the housing and connected to a central portion of the first separator to provide a path through which the water in the first separator is drained, a first ultraviolet light emitting diode (UV LED) module disposed in the housing to irradiate UV rays toward the water stored in the first separator, a second separator disposed in the housing to store water discharged from the supply conduit, and a second UV LED module disposed in the housing to irradiate UV rays toward the water stored in the second separator. The first UV LED module is disposed adjacent to an upper portion of the supply conduit and the second UV LED module is disposed adjacent to a lower portion of the supply conduit. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0010]    Embodiments of the inventive concept will become more apparent in view of the attached drawings and accompanying detailed description, in which: 
           [0011]      FIG. 1  is a schematic view illustrating an embodiment of a purifying system including a water purifier; 
           [0012]      FIG. 2  is a cross-sectional view illustrating an embodiment of a water purifier; 
           [0013]      FIG. 3  is an exploded perspective view of the water purifier shown in  FIG. 2 ; and 
           [0014]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view illustrating a separator of the water purifier shown in  FIG. 2 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS 
       [0015]    For clarity, the detailed descriptions herein describe certain exemplary embodiments, but the disclosure in this application may be applied to any water purifying system comprising certain of the features described herein and recited in the claims. In particular, although the following detailed description describes certain exemplary embodiments of water purifying systems, it should be understood that other embodiments may have different structures, forms and configurations. In the drawings, the widths, lengths and thicknesses of layers and regions may be exaggerated for clarity. 
         [0016]      FIG. 1  is a schematic view illustrating an embodiment of a purifying system  100  including a water purifier. Referring to  FIG. 1 , the purifying system  100  may include a water purifier  200  having UV LEDs, a first water tank  310  connected to an inlet of the water purifier  200 , and a second water tank  320  connected to an outlet of the water purifier  200 . The first water tank  310  may correspond to a reservoir in which water to be purified is stored. The second water tank  320  may correspond to a reservoir in which water purified by the water purifier  200  is stored. In different embodiments, the shapes of the first and second water tanks  310  and  320  may be different. 
         [0017]      FIG. 2  is a cross-sectional view illustrating the water purifier  200  of  FIG. 1 , and  FIG. 3  is an exploded perspective view of the water purifier  200  shown in  FIG. 2 . In addition,  FIG. 4  is a perspective view illustrating a separator  251  or  252  of the water purifier  200  shown in  FIG. 2 . In  FIG. 2 , the arrows denote the directions that water flows in the water purifier  200 . 
         [0018]    Referring to  FIGS. 2 and 3 , the water purifier  200  may include a housing  210  that protects and supports its internal components. In this embodiment, the housing  210  may include an upper housing  211  and a lower housing  212 . However, in other embodiments, the housing  210  may be a single unified housing. An upper cap  221  may be disposed on the upper housing  211  to close an upper opening of the upper housing  211 . The upper cap  221  may have an inlet  231  penetrating a central portion thereof. As described with reference to  FIG. 1 , the first water tank  310  may be connected to the water purifier  200  through the inlet  231 . A lower cap  222  may be disposed below the lower housing  212  to close a lower opening of the lower housing  212 . The lower cap  222  may have an outlet  232  penetrating a central portion thereof. As described with reference to  FIG. 1 , the second water tank  320  may be connected to the water purifier  200  through the outlet  232 . 
         [0019]    A first filter  241  may be disposed in an upper portion of an inside space of the upper housing  211 . The first filter  241  may primarily purify the raw water which is introduced into the upper housing  211  through the inlet  231 . In some embodiments, the first filter  241  may be, for example, a sediment filter. The sediment filter used as the first filter  241  may mechanically and physically filter impurities in the raw water. For example, the first filter  241  may be formed of a high density polypropylene material containing a plurality of pores with sizes ranging from about  5  micrometers to about  20  micrometers to filter impurities or contaminants which are greater than about  5  micrometers to about  20  micrometers. In some embodiments, the density of the polypropylene material may be increased to reduce the flow rate of the water passing through the first filter  241 . 
         [0020]    A first separator  251  may be disposed below the first filter  241 . As illustrated in  FIG. 4 , the first separator  251  may include a frame  410  having a plurality of openings. In some embodiments, the frame  410  may be formed of a material which is capable of reflecting UV rays. For example, the frame  410  may be formed of an aluminum material such as aluminum or an aluminum-containing alloy. Although  FIG. 4  illustrates an example in which the frame  410  has four openings, in other embodiments, the frame  410  may have one, two, three, five or more openings. The first separator  251  may act as a reservoir that temporarily stores the water passing through the first filter  241 . 
         [0021]    A supply conduit  260  may be disposed below a central portion of the first separator  251 . The supply conduit  260  may be connected to the central portion of the first separator  251 . Thus, the water stored in the first separator  251  may drain into the supply conduit  260  through the central portion of the first separator  251 . Accordingly, the water stored in each opening of the first separator  251  may remain for a sufficient time. 
         [0022]    A first UV LED module  271  may be disposed adjacent to an upper portion of the first separator  251  and may be configured to irradiate UV rays into the water stored in the first separator  251 . 
         [0023]    The first UV LED module  271  may include a plurality of UV LEDs. In such a case, the number of the UV LEDs constituting the first UV LED module  271  may be equal to or greater than the number of the openings of the first separator  251 . In any case, the UV LEDs of the first UV LED module  271  may be uniformly disposed below the openings of the first separator  251 . In some embodiments, the first UV LED module  271  may emit UV rays having a wavelength of about  200  nanometers to about  400  nanometers. A first UV transmission plate  281  may be disposed between the first UV LED module  271  and the first separator  251  to increase transmittance of the UV rays. In some embodiments, the first UV transmission plate  281  may be composed of a quartz material, a tempered glass, or other materials that can transmit UV rays. The UV rays emitted from the first UV LED module  271  may be irradiated to the water in the openings of the first separator  251  through the first UV transmission plate  281  to sterilize the water in the first separator  251 . As described above, since the water stored in the first separator  251  drains into the supply conduit  260  through the central portion of the first separator  251 , the water stored in each opening of the first separator  251  may remain for a sufficient time. Thus, the UV rays emitted from the first UV LED module  271  may be irradiated to the water in the openings of the first separator  251  for a sufficient time. 
         [0024]    A second separator  252  may be disposed below the supply conduit  260 . The second separator  252  may have substantially the same configuration as the first separator  251 . That is, the second separator  252  may include a frame  410  having a plurality of openings, as illustrated in  FIG. 4 . Even in such a case, the frame  410  of the second separator  252  may be formed of a material which is capable of reflecting UV rays. For example, the frame  410  of the second separator  252  may be formed of an aluminum material such as aluminum or an aluminum-containing alloy. Although  FIG. 4  illustrates an example in which the frame  410  of the second separator  252  has four openings, in other embodiments, the frame  410  of the second separator  252  may have one, two, three, five or more openings. The second separator  252  may act as a reservoir that temporarily stores the water passing through the supply conduit  260 . 
         [0025]    A second UV LED module  272  may be disposed to be adjacent to a lower portion of the second separator  252  to irradiate UV rays into the water stored in the second separator  252 . The second UV LED module  272  may include a plurality of UV LEDs. In such an embodiment, the number of the UV LEDs constituting the second UV LED module  272  may be equal to or greater than the number of the openings of the second separator  252 . In any case, the plurality of UV LEDs of the second UV LED module  272  may be uniformly disposed on the openings of the second separator  252 . In some embodiments, the second UV LED module  272  may emit UV rays having a wavelength of about  200  nanometers to about  400  nanometers. A second UV transmission plate  282  may be disposed between the second UV LED module  272  and the second separator  252  to increase a transmittance of the UV rays. In some embodiments, the second UV transmission plate  282  may be composed of a quartz material or a tempered glass or other material that can transmit UV rays. The UV rays emitted from the second UV LED module  272  may be irradiated to the water in the openings of the second separator  252  through the second UV transmission plate  282  to sterilize the water in the second separator  252 . 
         [0026]    A second filter  242  may be disposed below the second separator  252  to further purify the water discharged from the second separator  252 . In some embodiments, the second filter  242  may be, for example, a carbon filter. The carbon filter used as the second filter  242  may adsorb heavy metals and impurities to additionally purify the water discharged from the second separator  252  and may release mineral components to improve the drinkability of the purified water. In some embodiments, the second filter  242  may be a complex filter that includes a carbon filter and an ionic filter that are combined with each other. The second filter  242  may be connected to the outlet  232  of the lower cap  222 , and the water additionally purified by the second filter  242  may be supplied through the outlet  232  of the lower cap  222 . The second UV LED module  272 , the second UV transmission plate  282 , the second separator  252  and the second filter  242  may be disposed in the lower housing  212 . 
         [0027]    The elements constituting the water purifier  200  may be sealed or combined with each other by various packing, connecting and sealing means  501 ,  502 ,  503  and  504 , as illustrated in  FIG. 3 . Although the above embodiment is described in conjunction with an example in which the first separator  251  is disposed on the second separator  252  and the first and second UV LED modules  271  and  272  are disposed between the first and second separators  251  and  252 , the inventive concept is not limited thereto. For example, in some embodiments, the water purifier  200  may not include the second separator  252  and the second UV LED module  272 . In some other embodiments, the first and second UV LED modules  271  and  272  may be connected to a car battery through a connector such as a cigarette jack so that the water purifier  200  may be used in an automobile. Moreover, the water purifier  200  may include a chemical battery or a solar cell so that it may be portable. 
         [0028]    According to the embodiments, UV rays may be irradiated to water for a sufficient time to successfully sterilize the water. 
         [0029]    The embodiments of the inventive concept have been disclosed above for illustrative purposes. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications, additions and substitutions are possible, without departing from the scope and spirit of the inventive concept as disclosed in the accompanying claims.