Hair drier having an air stream generated by an injector fed with compressed air

Abstract

 A nozzle (2) (or eventually a plurality of nozzles) which is fed with compressed air is arranged within an envelope (1), which is substantially equal to that one of an usual hair drier and defines a cavity (11), provided with an opening (12) and from which an open tubular conduit (13) is projecting outwardly, said nozzle (2) being disposed near the inner end portion of the said tubular conduit (13).
The air stream generated by the nozzle (or nozzles) (2) induces into the said tubular conduit (13) additional air, which is sucked through the opening (12), blown into the same tubular conduit (13) and then is coming out from the free end portion thereof.
The operating mode of the present hair drier corresponds to that one of an already known injector.
The nozzle (2) is fed through a convenient flexible small pipe (3), which connects the hair drier to a suitable generator (4) of compressed air.
Within the tubular conduit (13) is arranged an electric heating element (5), which heats on request the air stream. In addition, adequate devices of already known type are provided to control and regulate the feeding of the compressed air to the nozzle (2) as well εs to connect and disconnect the electric heating element (5) with respect to the electric supply line. said devices being able to be housed within the handle (14) of the hair drier.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a hair drier in which the air stream is generated by induction from an injector fed with compressed air, the said hair drier being particularly suitable to be employed for professional uses.

[0002] It is known that for having the hairs dried in a rapid manner devices called hair driers are employed, both for professional and domestic uses, which devices are able to generate an air stream which may also be suitably heated and conveyed for the relevant use.

[0003] The most diffused and known of the said devices is substantially constituted by a small fan which is driven by an electric motor provided with brushes and commutator, which motor is disposed within an adequate envelope provided with a handle.

[0004] The fan sucks the air through a suitable opening of the said envelope and blows it into a tubular conduit projecting from the same envelope, wherein the air coming out from the conduit may be conveyed as expected. Normally, an electric heating element provided for heating the air stream and connectable on request to the supply line is disposed within the tubular conduit In addition, also a change in the air stream rate of flow is often foreseen.

[0005] Recently, also another kind of hair drier has been realized, which essentially consists in a simple tubular sleeve connected by a flexible tube with a considerable diameter to a low. pressure ventilation unit, which is usually constituted by a per se known conventional vacuum cleaner.

[0006] The tubular sleeve may be provided with an adequate handle and obviously it will also be provided with a suitable heating element, which may be turned on on request for heating the air stream, as well as with some devices which are able to change the air stream rate of flow.

[0007] The first and widely diffused kind of hair drier is usually employed both for professional and domestic uses, while the second one is essentially used for professional uses.

[0008] These apparatus, however, present considerable inconveniences.

[0009] The above mentioned first kind of hair drier is considerably noisy, which fact disturbs troublesomely the persons which find themselves in the utilization area of the same, and also is quite heavy, which fact makes the operator considerably weary particularly when this hair drier is utilized for professional uses.

[0010] The second kind of hair drier is considerably noisy too and in addition it presents the inconvenience of being manoeuvrable with difficulty.

[0011] Furthermore, due to the fact that the connection of the same to the air generator is obtained by tubes with considerable diameters, this connection results to be cumbersome.

[0012] Still another inconvenience is that usually the air generator may feed solely an air drier or, utmost, a very limited number of air driers.

[0013] The scope of the present invention is that to overcome the above mentioned inconveniences by means of the present device which is essentially constituted by a tubular conduit, whose one end portion is provided with a nozzle fed with a quite high air pressure (at least 3 + 4 bar), the air stream coming out from the said nozzle producing the entrainment and conveyance of the ambient air into the said tubular conduit, thus producing an air stream which, coming out from the other end portion of the tubular conduit. generates a global air stream for the utilization.

[0014] Obviously, the said tubular conduit results be extended from an adequate envelope which is provided with a suitable handle, in which envelope the said nozzle or eventually a plurality of nozzles result to be fixable on it. In addition, a suitable electric heating element for heating the air stream may be disposed, as usualiy, within the said tubular conduit and control devices of per se known type may also be disposed within the handle. in order to control and/or regulate the feeding of the nozzle or nozzles for inducing air and consequently the generated air stream as well as the electric heating element turning on or off.

[0015] The features of the hair drier according to the invention and the advantages obtainable with the same will be better understood by the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment thereof, by way of a not limiting example only and with reference to the enclosed drawings, in which:

- Fig. 1 shows, in a sectional view, a hair drier of the kind protected by the present invention and

- Fig. 2 shows, in a perspective view, the arrangement of some hair dners of the same kind, which are connected to a sole feeding line.

[0016] Referring to fig. 1, it is to be noted that the present hair drier is basically constituted by an envelope 1 which is substantially completely similar to that one of an already known hair drier provided with electric fan. In fact, the said envelope 1 comprises the cavity 11 which is provided with an opening 12 and communicating with the tubular conduit 13 and the handle 14.

[0017] Within the cavity 11 of the new hair drier according to the present invention, which cavity accomodates the ventilation unit in case of the conventional hair driers, is disposed the nozzle 2, which is suitably arranged near the inner end portion of the said tubular conduit 13.

[0018] The arrangement and removable fixing of the said nozzle 2 are effected by means of the support 21, which is constituted by a first central annular body 22 which is connected by the radial fins 24 to a second outer annular body 23.

[0019] The nozzle 2 is fixed into the hole of the said first central annular body 22. while the second outer annular body 23 engages itself against the inner surface of the cavity 11, bearing against the annular protruding portion 15 thereof which positiones it in a right manner. Then, all these elements will be fixed within the said cavity 11 by means of adequate fixing means or systems, which are not shown in the drawing.

[0020] The nozzle 2 is connected by means of the small pipe 25 to the valve 26a acting as intercepting and flow rate regulating valve, which valve is housed within the handle 14 together with the relevant control push button 26c, which in turn comes out from the handle 14 through the opening 14a provided on the latter and is projecting therefrom so permitting to be operated by the operator. In turn, the valve 26a is connected to the flexible small pipe 3 projecting from the handle, thus resulting to be connected at a suitable free end portion thereof to a compressed air generator or an adequate compressed air feeding system, as illustrated in fig. 2 by way of example.

[0021] Furthermore, in order to heat the air stream a suitable electric heating element 5 will be arranged into the tubular conduit 13 in a per se known manner, the heating element being connected by the wires 52 to the contactor 26b, which forms a sole control device together with the valve 26a.

[0022] The requested electncal supply is obtained by the electric cables 51, which in a first embodiment thereof have been disposed in a sheath which also contains the small pipe3.

[0023] However, in a more rational manner the embodiment thereof foresees a small pipe 3 in which the electric cables 51 are also incorporated.

[0024] The control device formed by both the valve 26a and the contactor 26b then results to be simultaneously controlled by the control push button 26c, which may assume four positions corresponding to the conventional four possible operating conditions, which positions are indicated with the references I-II-III-IV always referring to fig. 1.

[0025] In the position I corresponding to the not-operating condition, the valve 26a completely intercepts the compressed air feeding and the contactor 26b disconnects the heating element 5 from the electric supply line. In the position 11 the valve 26a and the contactor 26b respectively permit to have a limited compressed air feeding to the nozzle 2 and a limited electric supply to the heating element 5. so obtaining a moderate hot air stream.

[0026] On the contrary, in the position III these elements permit to have the greatest feeding intensity of both, so as to obtain a more intensive hot air stream.

[0027] Finally, in the position lV, the contactor 26b disconnects the electric heating element 5 from the supply line, while the valve 26a permits the nozzle 6 to be fed with compressed air, so obtaining a cold air stream.

[0028] The above mentioned hair drier operates in a simple manner, according to the already known injectors operating principle.

[0029] Pratically, when is fed with compressed air, the nozzle 2 generates a primary air stream which is directed toward the inlet side of the tubular conduit 13, producing the suction of the air contained within the cavity 11, which air is then induced to penetrate into the same tubular conduit 13 and blown toward the free end portion thereof. from which it comes out by forming a stream which is equrvalent to that one of a conventional hair drier.

[0030] Clearly, the air will continue to flow into the cavity 11 through the opening 12.

[0031] As already described, the hair drier is operated by acting on the push-button 26c as in a conventional hair dner.

[0032] Fig. 2 shows by way of example the arrangement of some hair driers 1 a of the described kind. which result to be connected by the relevant small pipes 3 to a compressed air feeding line 42, which in turn is fed by a compression unit 4.

[0033] The connection of the small pipes 3 to the said feeding line 42 may be effected by means of convenient rap.d connectors 31, comprising also adequate means performing the connection and the electric supply of the cables 51.

[0034] The principal advantages of the above described hair drier are basically its remarkable lightness. permitting to diminish the fatiguing of the operator. and its silentness permitting the known troublesome inconveniences to be avoided.

[0035] It is to point out that the same operating principle may be advantageously applied also to other kinds of hair drier apparatus. such as the already known dryers. It may be well understooo that the present invention may also be realized in different ways, particularly the injector may be provided with several nozzles (2), however without departing from what has been described and claimed and thus from the protection field of the present industrial invention.

Claims

1) Hair drier having an air stream generated by an injector fed with compressed air, constituted by an envelope which is substantially equal to that one of a conventional hair drier provided with an electric fan, in which a tubular conduit (13) is connected at one end portion thereof to an enlarged part forming a cavity (11), which is able to accomodate the fan, the said enlarged part being provided with an opening (12) for the air intake and a handle (14) projecting therefrom. the said hair dner having an air stream generated by an injector fed with compressed air being characterized in that instead of the fan at least a nozzle (2) fed with compressed air is provided and applied near the inner end portion of the said tubular conduit (13), the said nozzle (2) being arranged with its outlet hole which is directed toward the inner side of the said tubolar conduit (13). wherein the air stream generated by the said nozzle (2) induces within the same tubular conduit (13) another air which is sucked from the said cavity (11) and the outside, through the opening (12), generating a global flow which, by coming out from the 4ree end portion of the tubular conduit (13), produces an air stream which is utilizable in a known manner for the specified scopes, an electric heating element (5) being also provided within the said tubular conduit (13) and being able to heat the air circulating therethrough. and finally the hair drier being connected by means of an outer flexible small pipe (3) to a convenient means for generating the compressed air such as a compressor (4) of per se known kind, control and regulating means being also provided to control and regulate the feeding of the compressed air to the said nozzle (2) and the connection of the said heating element (5) to the electric supply line, said means being constituted by at least a valve (26a) and a contactor (26b) which are preferably accomodated within the said handle (14).

Drawing