AU2022285368A1

AU2022285368A1 - A tamper evident water valve

Info

Publication number: AU2022285368A1
Application number: AU2022285368A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Ian Lowrey
Original assignee: Refire Group Pty Ltd
Current assignee: Refire Group Pty Ltd
Priority date: 2021-12-21
Filing date: 2022-12-12
Publication date: 2023-07-06

Abstract

A tamper evident valve (1) is disclosed having a valve housing (3), and a spindle (4) for a valve handle (5). The spindle extends from the housing and is 5 mechanically connected with a valve mechanism (9) inside the housing. The valve housing includes at least two parts (24, 25, 26) movable relative to each other to form the housing. A microswitch (15) is located within the housing adjacent a stepped pin retained in a rest position by the housing parts being in a housing closed position. At least one resilient member (21, 22) is associated 10 with the pin (18, 118, 218) and is arranged to urge the pin from its rest position if the housing parts are moved away from each other. Movement of the pin from its rest position activates the microswitch and thereby indicates a tamper attempt. A method is also disclosed. 5362H-AU 4/Ib 26 Fic.7

Description

4/Ib

26 Fic.7

A TAMPER EVIDENT WATER VALVE

Field of the Invention The present invention relates to water valves and, in particular, to water valves used in fire-fighting installations.

Background Art Modem buildings have fire-fighting systems to prevent the building being consumed by fire. The water supplied to such a system passes through a normally open valve which is connected to the mains water supply and ensures that water is available to the sprinkler system and/or to the firemen who come to the building in the event of a fire. Such valves are wired to the Fire Indicator Panel and are provided with electronic indicators such as switches to ensure that the valve cannot be opened, or closed, or even be adjusted, without an alarm being raised on the Fire Indicator Panel.

Because of the importance of such valves, the valves are also provided with a tamper indication arrangement which means in practice that the valve gearbox cannot be opened, or removed from the valve body, without an alarm being raised on the Fire Indicator Panel.

Hitherto, such tamper evident or anti-tamper valves have been provided with an extra or additional housing in addition to the valve housing itself This extra housing contains the switch gear required to provide the alarm facility. As a consequence, such tamper evident or anti-tamper valves are expensive.

Genesis of the Invention The genesis of the present invention is a desire to ameliorate the above-described situation and reduce the cost of such tamper evident valves.

Summary of the Invention

5362H-AU 1

In accordance with a first aspect of the present invention there is disclosed a tamper evident valve comprising a valve housing, a spindle for a valve handle, said spindle protruding from said housing and being mechanically connected with a valve mechanism inside said housing, said valve mechanism having a valve axle extending from said valve housing and being connected to a valve member to drive same between valve open and valve closed positions, wherein said valve housing includes at least two parts movable relative to each other to form said housing, a microswitch located within said housing adjacent a stepped pin retained in a rest position by said housing parts being in a housing closed position, and at least one resilient member associated with said pin and arrange to urge said pin from said rest position on said housing parts being moved away from said housing closed position, whereby moving said housing parts causes said pin to be moved from its rest position to activate said microswitch and thereby indicate a tamper attempt.

In accordance with a second aspect of the present invention there is disclosed a A method of indicating a tamper attempt on a water valve having a housing of at least two parts movable relative to each other to form said housing, said method comprising the steps of locating a microswitch within said housing adjacent a stepped pin, retaining said pin in a rest position by said housing parts being in a housing closed position, locating a resilient member in contact with said pin and arranged to urge said pin from said rest position on said housing parts being moved away from said housing closed position, whereby moving said housing parts causes said pin to be moved from its rest position to activate said microswitch and thereby indicate a tamper attempt.

Preferably, the housing has a body, a lid and a base, said microswitch is located within said body and said pin extends between interior surfaces of said lid and base.

Preferably the valve has two said resilient members, one of which is located adjacent said base and urges said pin away from said base, and the other of which is located

5362H-AU 2 adjacent said lid and urges said pin away from said lid.

Preferably the pin has a substantially centrally located region of reduced transverse thickness which in said pin rest position is adjacent to, but does not abut, said microswitch, and wherein to either side of said centrally located region is a region of greater transverse thickness, one of which abuts said microswitch in the event of said pin moving from its rest position.

Alternatively, the pin has a pair of substantially centrally located regions of reduced transverse thickness located one to either side of a region of greater transverse thickness, said pin in said rest position is adjacent to, and abuts, said region of greater transverse thickness, and in the event of said pin moving from its rest position one of said regions of reduced transverse thickness is located adjacent to saidmicroswitch, whereby said pin does not abut said microswitch.

Preferably, the base is secured to said body by bolts, at least one of said bolts extending through said body and into said base, and the remainder of said bolts extending from said base into said body.

Preferably there is a single resilient member located between said base and said pin and which urges said pin away from said base in the event of relative movement between said lid and said base.

Brief Description of the Drawings Several embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the tamper evident valve of the preferred embodiment in the closed state, Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the tamper evident valve of Fig, 1in the open state, Fig. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the valve of Fig. 1,

5362H-AU 3

Fig. 4 is a cut away perspective view of the valve housing showing a microswitch, Fig. 5 is cutaway view similar to Fig. 4 but showing the lid of the housing being moved, Fig. 6 is a cutaway view similar to Fig. 4 but showing the base of the housing being moved, Fig. 7 is an enlarged perspective view of the interior of the housing showing a normally on switching mechanism, Fig. 8 is an enlarged perspective view similar to Fig. 7 but illustrating a normally off switching mechanism, and Fig. 9 is a partially cutaway perspective view of the housing of a further embodiment.

Detailed Description As seen in Figs, 1- 3, a tamper evident valve 1 has a housing 3 from which a spindle 4 extends. A handle 5 is secured to the spindle 4 in order to enable the valve to be opened and closed. A valve member 7, in this case a butterfly valve member, is located within a cylindrical water conduit 8. In known fashion the spindle 4 is connected to the valve member 7 via a valve mechanism 9 (as seen in Fig. 3) which includes a worm gear 10 which drives a valve axle 11 (Fig. 3).

Rotation of the handle 5 enables the spindle 4, via valve mechanism 9 to rotate the valve member 7 between the open position illustrated in Fig. 2 and the closed position illustrated in Fig. 1, or any position intermediate these positions. An indicator 12 is rotatable with the valve member 7 so as to provide a visual indication as to the position of the valve member 7, and hence the state of the valve 1.

The valve housing 3 includes an electrical grommet 13 to provide an opening for various electric wires, not illustrated. These wires are connected to switches inside the valve housing 3 and are connected to a Fire Indicator Panel, or similar. These switches indicate whether the valve 1 is open or closed, for example. The housing 3 is connected to a base 26 from which the valve axle 11 projects, by means of bolts 20.

5362H-AU 4

Hitherto, in order to provide an alarm function with such a valve, it was necessary to attach an exterior switch, such as AMTRON (Trade Mark) Class A switch, to the exterior of the valve.

However, in accordance with the preferred embodiment, as illustrated in Fig. 4, such an alarm switch can be provided in the form of a microswitch 15 located within the interior of the valve housing 3. The electrical connections in the form of wires terminating at the microswitch 15, and not illustrated in the drawings, can be passed through the electrical grommet 13, thereby avoiding any change to the exterior of the valve housing 3.

As best seen in Fig. 7, the microswitch 15 includes an actuating arm 16 and is positioned alongside a pin 18 mounted between a pair of helical springs 21, 22. The valve housing 3 has a lid 24, a body 25, and a base 26. The length of the pin 18 is selected so that it extends between the lid 24 and a recess 28 in the base 26. In addition, the diameter of the pin 18 is stepped so as to form a thin central region 30, an upper and a lower thick region 31, 32 respectively, and medium end regions 33, 34.

The helical springs 21, 22 are retained on the medium end regions 33, 34. A hollow sleeve 23 holds the pin 18 and springs 21, 22 during assembly of the housing 3. With the lid 24 and body 25 secured to the base 26, the springs 21, 22 are both compressed relative to their uncompressed state. In this condition, the central region 30 is opposite, but not touching, the actuating arm 16 which is in its rest position, thereby placing the microswitch 15 in its unactuated condition.

However, as seen in Fig. 5, if the lid 24 and body 25 are moved apart, for example by moving the lid 24 upwardly relative to the body 25, then the compressive force on the upper spring 21 is removed. This thereby allows the lower spring 22 to urge the pin 18 upwardly. This upward movement of the pin 18 brings the thick region 32 opposite the actuating arm 16 thereby depressing the actuating arm 16 towards the microswitch 15 which is thereby switched into the actuated condition.

5362H-AU 5

Conversely, if it is the body 25 and base 26 of the valve housing 3 which are moved apart, for example by the body 25 being moved upwardly relative to the base 26, then the compressive force on the lower spring 22 is removed, thereby allowing the upper spring 22 to urge the pin 18 downwardly. This downward movement of the pin 18 brings the thick region 31 of the pin 18 opposite the actuating arm 16. Again, the actuating arm 16 is depressed towards the microswitch 15 which is thereby again switched into the actuated condition.

As a consequence of the above-described operation, if any attempt is made to tamper with the valve housing 3, by movement of either the lid 24 relative to the body 25, or movement of the body 25 relative to the base 26, or both of these, then the microswitch 15 is switched from its unactuated condition. As a result, an alarm is activated which is apparent at the Fire Indicator Panel

An alternative embodiment is illustrated in Fig. 8 where the microswitch 15 is in a normally actuated position and a modified pin 118 is provided with a thick central region 300, two thin regions 310 and 320 respectively, and the same medium diameter regions 33, 34 as before. Under these conditions it will be seen that movement of the pin 118 changes the microswitch 15 from being normally actuated into the unactuated condition.

The foregoing describes only two embodiments of the present invention and modifications, obvious to those skilled in the plumbing arts, can be made thereto without departing from the scope of the present invention. For example, if the housing 3 is made with an integrally formed body and base, then only a single spring 22 is required which can urge the pin 18, 118 outwardly in the event that the lid 24 is moved away from the remainder of the housing.

In a further embodiment, illustrated in Fig. 9, at least one bolt 200 of the bolts 20 is inverted so as to pass from the interior of the body 25 into the base 26, rather than pass through the base 26 into the body 25 as best illustrated in Fig. 3. Where this is

5362H-AU 6 achieved by means of a retrofit, it is necessary to thread the hole in the base 26 drilled the thread out of the hole in the housing 25. Alternatively, where the components are freshly made, then the bolt 200 can be of any convenient size. This stratagem has the advantage that, in practice, the lid 24 must be removed from the housing 25 before there is any possibility of moving the housing 25 relative to the base 26.

Where only the lid 24 is movable relative to the housing 25 and base 26, then the pin 218 can be as illustrated in Fig. 9 having only a single thin central region 30. In addition, only a single spring 22 is required to urge the pin 218 upwardly in the event of relative movement between the lid 24 and the housing 25.

The term "comprising" (and its grammatical variations) as used herein is used in the inclusive sense of "including" or "having" and not in the exclusive sense of "consisting only of'.

5362H-AU 7

Claims

CLAIMS 1. A tamper evident valve comprising a valve housing, a spindle for a valve handle, said spindle protruding from said housing and being mechanically connected with a valve mechanism inside said housing, said valve mechanism having a valve axle extending from said valve housing and being connected to a valve member to drive same between valve open and valve closed positions, wherein said valve housing includes at least two parts movable relative to each other to form said housing, amicroswitch located within said housing adjacent a stepped pin retained in a rest position by said housing parts being in a housing closed position, and at least one resilient member associated with said pin and arrange to urge said pin from said rest position on said housing parts being moved away from said housing closed position, whereby moving said housing parts causes said pin to be moved from its rest position to activate said microswitch and thereby indicate a tamper attempt.
2. The valve as claimed in claim 1 wherein said housing has a body, a lid and a base, said microswitch is located within said body and said pin extends between interior surfaces of said lid and base.
3. The valve as claimed in claim 2 and having two said resilient members, one of which is located adjacent said base and urges said pin away from said base, and the other of which is located adjacent said lid and urges said pin away from said lid.
4. The valve as claimed in claim 3 wherein said pin has a substantially centrally located region of reduced transverse thickness which in said pin rest position is adjacent to, but does not abut, said microswitch, and wherein to either side of said centrally located region is a region of greater transverse thickness, one of which abuts said microswitch in the event of said pin moving from its rest position.

5362H-AU 8
5. The valve as claimed in claim 3 wherein said pin has a pair of substantially centrally located regions of reduced transverse thickness located one to either side of a region of greater transverse thickness, said pin in said rest position is adjacent to, and abuts, said region of greater transverse thickness, and in the event of said pin moving from its rest position one of said regions of reduced transverse thickness is located adjacent to said microswitch whereby said pin does not abut said microswitch.
6. The valve as claimed in claim 2 wherein said base is secured to said body by bolts, at least one of said bolts extending through said body and into said base, and the remainder of said bolts extending from said base into said body.
7. The valve as claimed in claim 6 and having a single resilient member located between said base and said pin and which urges said pin away from said base in the event of relative movement between said lid and said base.
8. A method of indicating a tamper attempt on a water valve having a housing of at least two parts movable relative to each other to form said housing, said method comprising the steps of locating a microswitch within said housing adjacent a stepped pin, retaining said pin in a rest position by said housing parts being in a housing closed position, locating a resilient member in contact with said pin and arranged to urge said pin from said rest position on said housing parts being moved away from said housing closed position, whereby moving said housing parts causes said pin to be moved from its rest position to activate said microswitch and thereby indicate a tamper attempt.

5362H-AU 9
9. The method as claimed in claim 8 wherein said housing has a body, a lid and a base, said microswitch is located within said body and said pin extends between interior surfaces of said lid and base.
10. The method as claimed in claim 9 including the step of providing two said resilient members, one of which is located adjacent said base and urges said pin away from said base, and the other of which is located adjacent said lid and urges said pin away from said lid.
11. The method as claimed in claim 10 wherein said pin has a substantially centrally located region of reduced transverse thickness which in said pin rest position is adjacent to, but does not abut, said microswitch, and wherein to either side of said centrally located region is a region of greater transverse thickness, one of which abuts said microswitch in the event of said pin moving from its rest position.
12. The method as claimed in claim 10 wherein said pin has a pair of substantially centrally located regions of reduced transverse thickness located one to either side of a region of greater transverse thickness, said pin in said rest position is adjacent to, and abuts, said region of greater transverse thickness, and in the event of said pin moving from its rest position one of said regions of reduced transverse thickness is located adjacent to said microswitch, whereby said pin does not abut said microswitch.
13. The method as claimed in claim 9 wherein said base is secured to said body by bolts, at least one of said bolts extending through said body and into said base, and the remainder of said bolts extending from said base into said body.
14. The method as claimed in claim 13 and having a single resilient member located between said base and said pin and which urges said pin away

5362H-AU 10 from said base in the event of relative movement between said lid and said base.

Dated this 8th day of December 2022

REFIRE GROUP PTY LTD

FRASER OLD & SOHN Patent Attorneys for the Applicant

5362H-AU 11