GB2309063A

GB2309063A - Valve with removable control member

Info

Publication number: GB2309063A
Application number: GB9600411A
Authority: GB
Inventors: I Assoni
Original assignee: GASCON PROD Ltd
Current assignee: GASCON PROD Ltd
Priority date: 1996-01-10
Filing date: 1996-01-10
Publication date: 1997-07-16
Anticipated expiration: 2016-01-10
Also published as: GB9600411D0; GB2309063B

Abstract

A valve includes a fluid passage therethrough in which is mounted a closure member (20) with a passage (22) therethrough in which is mounted a removable fluid control member (48). The closure member is moveable from an open to a closed position by a valve stem (40) the end of which fits into the closure member and carries the control member. When the closure member is moved to the closed position the control member can be removed for maintenance. The fluid control member (48) may be a filter, a strainer, a non-return valve or a regulator.

Description

IMPROVEMENTS IN OR RELATING TO VALVES The present invention concerns improvements in or relating to valves, especially but not exclusively ball valves incorporating a fluid control member.

It is known to incorporate within a valve body a fluid control member, for example, a strainer or a flow regulator, the latter of which is intended to provide a constant flow through the valve irrespective of the supply pressure.

All valves incorporate a dosure member, for example, a ball, gate or butterfly which, on movement from a first to a second position, allows flow of fluid through the valve or prevents flow of fluid through the valve.

Often the fluid control member in a valve, for example, the flow regulator, requires maintenance and replacement and in certain instances in the past this has necessitated cutting off the supply of fluid to the line in which the valve is incorporated, removing the valve from the line, dismantling it to remove the flow regulator and thereafter re-fitting. The disruption, downtime and spillage which this often causes is most disadvantageous.

It is an object of the present invention to obviate or mitigate this and other disadvantages.

According to the present invention there is provided a valve comprising an inlet, an outlet, a passage interconnecting the inlet and outlet, a closure member within said passage moveable from a first position in which the flow of fluid from inlet to outlet is permitted and the second position closing off said passage, a fluid control member mounted within said closure member in the path of fluid when the closure member is in said first position and isolated from the fluid when the closure member is in said second position, a valve stem removably engaging said closure member for moving said closure member and including mounting means for said fluid control member.

Preferably said closure member is a ball having a passage formed therethrough.

Preferably a parallel sided slot is formed in said ball and communicates with said through passage, said slot being adapted to receive the correspondingly shaped end of the valve stem in which the fluid control member is mounted so that the valve stem locates the fluid control member within said passage.

Preferably said end of the valve stem has a circular cross-section aperture therein to receive a disc shaped control member.

Preferably connection means are provided at the inlet and outlet for connecting a valve member into a fluid line. The connection means may be compression fittings.

An embodiment of the present invention will now be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Fig. 1 is a sectional elevation of a ball valve; and Fig. 2 an end elevation thereof.

In the embodiment now to be described a ball valve is intended for incorporation in a water supply line to, for example, a hand basin. The valve is intended to perform two functions, firstly to shut off the supply of water flowing through the valve and secondly to regulate the flow through the open valve by incorporating a flow regulator, the design of which is knos n and 4il not be described here in detail, which assures a constant flow irrespective of the supply pressure within the fluid line.

The valve comprises a cast,.brass body 10 having an inlet 12 and an outlet 14, the inlet and outlet being provided with standard compression fittings 16,18. The control member of the valve is a ball member 20 having a spherical outer surface and a circular cross-section through passage 22 formed therein. Conveniently the ball member is machined from brass.

The ball member is mounted within the valve in a known method by means of 0 rings 24, 26, such that on rotating it through 900 from an open position, in which its though passage 22 is co-axial with a passage 32 through the valve leading from inlet 12 to outlet 14, to a closed position in which the ball valve blocks off the passage 32. In Fig. 1 and Fig. 2 the ball valve is shown in the open position.

A valve stem 40 is provided for rotating the ball 20 from the open to the closed position. It is a circular cross section brass member having a lower extension 42 presenting two parallel faces 44, 46 with a circular crosssection passage 48 extending therebetween. The valve stem 40 has a peripheral groove 50 formed therein in which is accommodated an 0 ring 52. The valve stem is rotatably mounted in the valve body 10 and normally held in position by a threaded collar 54 mounted in a cylindrical extension 56 from the body 10 a compression seal 58 being provided between a flange 60 on the valve stem and the bottom of the threaded column.

A disc-like flow regulator 70 is mounted with an interference fit in the passage 22 through the extension 42 from the valve stem 40.

A parallel slided slot 72 is machined in the ball 20 from its upper end, the dimensions of the slot corresponding to the dimensions of the extension 42 from the lower end of the valve stem 40 so that the valve stem carrying the flow regulator 70 can be fitted into the slot with its through passage arranged concentrically with the through passage 22 of the ball 20.

It will be realised therefore, as shown in Fig. 1 that when the valve is assembled and the ball is in the open position, fluid passes through the valve from the inlet 12 to the outlet 14 by way of the flow regulator. If it is desired to carry out any maintenance on the flow regulator it is necessary only to turn the ball 20 to the closed position thereby preventing the flow of fluid through the passage 22 and the valve stem extension passage, remove the collar 54 holding the valve stem 40 and extract the valve stem carrying the flow regulator 70 from the valve body 10 through the top of the valve.

During this removal, inspection and subsequent refitment can be carried out without disturbing in any way the connection of the valve in the line. Fluid is prevented from flowing through the valve by the ball of the closure member which remains in the closed position during the operation.

To recommission the valve it is necessary only to replace the extension 42 from the base of the valve stem 40 into the correspondingly shaped and dimension slot 72 in the ball, to fit the retaining collar 54, tighten it to an in use condition and thereafter open the valve by means of the valve stem in the normal manner.

Various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention, for example, the closure member could be a gate or butterfly with a flow regulator incorporated therein, mounted in an extension to the valve stem for removal with the valve stem when the closure member closes off the valve. The mounting means for the ball member can vary in any convenient manner and the components of the valve could be made from suitable materials other than brass, for example, plastics. Other flow control members could be mounted in the valve stem extension, for example, strainers, filters or non-return valves. The means for fitting the valve body into the fluid line could be any suitable means other than compression fittings.

Whilst endeavouring in the foregoing specification to draw attention to those features of the invention believed to be of particular importance it should be understood that the Applicant claims protection in respect of any patentable feature or combination of features hereinbefore referred to and/or shown in the drawings whether or not particular emphasis has been placed thereon.

Claims

claims

1. A valve comprising an inlet, an outlet, a passage interconnecting the inlet and outlet, a closure member within said passage moveable from a first position in which the flow of fluid from inlet to outlet is permitted and a second position closing off said passage, a fluid control member mounted within said closure member in the path of fluid when the closure member is in said first position and isolated from the fluid when the closure member is in said second position, a valve stem removably engaging said closure member for moving said closure member and including mounting means for said fluid control member.

2. A value as claimed in claim 1, in which said closure member is a ball having a passage formed therethrough.

3. A valve as claimed in claim 2, in which a parallel sided slot is formed in said ball and communicates with said through passage, said slot being adapted to receive the correspondingly shaped end of the valve stem in which the fluid control member is mounted so that the valve stem locates the fluid control member within said passage.

4. A value as claimed in claim 3, in which said end of the valve stem has a circular cross-section aperture therein to receive a disc shaped control member.

5. A value as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, in which connection means are provided at the inlet and outlet for connecting a valve member into a fluid line.

6. A value substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

7. Any novel subject matter or combination including novel subject matter disclosed, whether or not within the scope of or relating to the same invention as any of the preceding claims.