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- February 2012
- Recall (free repair) of air purifier (air cleaner) imported by Ohm Electric Inc.
(Joint release with the Consumer Affairs Agency)Recall (free repair) of air purifier (air cleaner) imported by Ohm Electric Inc.
A serious product accident occurred involving a fire that ignited in an air purifier (air cleaner) imported by Ohm Electric Inc.
Suspected cause of the accident: When an internal short circuit occurred in a diode in the power circuit of the product, the current fuse did not blow because its design rated capacity was inappropriate, allowing overcurrent to continue to flow. This led to overheating and consequently, a fire to ignite within the product.
The same phenomenon can be caused by any failure in the power circuit that leads to overcurrent instead of an internal short circuit in a diode.
To prevent further accidents, the importer today posted a message on its website to ask users to stop using the products and started to offer free repair of those products.
The accident was reported as a serious product accident under the provision of Article 35, Paragraph 1 of the Consumer Product Safety Law, and announced on September 17, 2010 as an accident related to a product other than gas or oil equipment and suspected to have arisen from a product (Control No. A201000517).
The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) would like to ask consumers possessing the products to have them repaired free of charge by the importer in order to prevent any further accidents from occurring.
1. Accident phenomenon and recurrence prevention measures
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Accident phenomenon
A serious product accident occurred involving a fire that ignited in an air purifier (air cleaner) imported by Ohm Electric Inc. One serious product accident has been reported in accordance with the provision of Article 35, Paragraph 1 of the Consumer Product Safety Law (Control No. A201000517). Further, one similar accident (non-fire accident) has been reported to the National Institute of Technology and Evaluation (NITE). No deaths or injuries have resulted from these two accidents.Suspected cause of the accident: When an internal short circuit occurred in a diode in the power circuit of the product, the current fuse did not blow because its design rated capacity was inappropriate, allowing overcurrent to continue to flow. This led to overheating and consequently, a fire to ignite within the product.
The same phenomenon can be caused by any failure in the power circuit that leads to overcurrent instead of an internal short circuit in a diode.
- To prevent further accidents, Ohm Electric today started to (1) ask users to stop using the products by posting a message on its website, sending notifications to users, and posting announcements at retail stores, and (2) offer free repair of the recalled products.
2. Recalled products: product name, model, quantity, sales period, appearance and identification
| Product name | Model (product number) | Quantity | Lot number | Sales period |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air purifier | AP-510H (black) (00-6622) | 25,800 units | D71012, D71211, D80116, D80215, D80227, D80401, D80507 |
From November 2007 to July 2008 |
| AP-510A (blue) (00-6623) | 3,749 units | D71012 | From November 2007 to July 2009 |
(2) Appearance and identification of the recalled products
3. Actions by the Company
Ohm Electric will repair (replace the current fuse) the products free of charge.
4. Notice by the company
- Posting a message on the website: February 1 (Wed.), 2012
- Posting announcements at retail stores: February 1 (Wed.), 2012
- Sending notifications to users whose addresses are known: February 1 (Wed.), 2012
5. Alert to Consumers
Anyone who possesses the above product should immediately cease using it and immediately contact the company below.
6. Contact
Air Purifier Recall Team, Ohm Electric Inc.
- Tel:
-
0120-963-006
048-992-2735 (from mobile phones, PHS phones and some types of IP phones) - Business hours:
- 9:00-17:30 (closes at 17:00 on Saturdays; closed on Sundays and holidays)
- Website:
-
http://www.ohm-electric.co.jp
(in Japanese)
Release Date
February 1, 2012
Division in Charge
Product Accident Information and Analysis Office, Product Safety Division, Commerce and Distribution Policy Group
Related Information
| Product Safety |