JP2003042600A - Flow control valve - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce a cost and stabilize a quality by improving the flow controlling function of a refrigerant whose flow direction upon cooling and heating is different, and by decreasing the number of part items while eliminating a complicated structure, further, and also to eliminate the risk such as the blocking of a passage by restraining the use of a capillary tube. SOLUTION: A tubular valve body 16 is provided at the inner diameter side of the same with a projected stopper 13 and a valve seat 14 while provided at both ends of the same with valve units 15, 15', and is inserted into one side of the opening of a tubular flow passage 12 provided in a main body so that the valve unit 15 is opposed to the valve seat 14. Thereafter, a collar 17 provided with a stopper 13' for regulating the moving range of the valve body 16 and a valve seat 14' opposed to the valve unit 15' is inserted into the other opening of the flow passage 12, then, the collar is fixed by a stop ring 18. In this case, the valve body 16 is provided with a vane 19. The vane 19 secures a flow passage 20 between the inner diameter of the flow passage 12 and the valve body 16, and regulates the moving range of the valve body by abutting against the stopper 13 or a stopper 13' at the downstream side of the valve body 16, when the valve body 16 is moved by the change of flow direction of the refrigerant whereby a distance between the valve unit and the valve seat is kept constant.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a flow rate control valve used in an air-conditioning refrigeration cycle or the like to control the flow of a refrigerant.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, a heat pump type air conditioner has mainly been provided with cooling and heating. This type of air conditioner has a flow rate control device that has a function of controlling the flow rate of each flow because the flow directions of the refrigerant during cooling and heating are opposite, but the structure is complicated and Since many parts are used and many parts are joined to each other, workability during assembly is poor, and it is difficult to stabilize quality and reduce cost. An example thereof will be described with reference to the conventional refrigeration cycle diagram shown in FIG.

In FIG. 7, 1 is a compressor, 2 is a cooling / heating switching valve, 3 is an outdoor heat exchanger, 4'is a conventional flow rate adjusting device for adjusting the flow rate of refrigerant, 5 is an indoor heat exchanger, and 6 Is an accumulator, which forms a basic refrigeration cycle by connecting these in an annular shape.
During cooling, the refrigerant is caused to flow in the above-described order, and the outdoor heat exchangers 7 and 8 and indoor heat exchanger fans are operated to operate.

On the other hand, in the heating operation, the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 1 is made to flow into the indoor heat exchanger 5 by the cooling / heating switching valve 2, and the outdoor heat exchanger 3 and the accumulator are passed through the flow rate control device 4 '. The cycle is from the lator 6 to the compressor 1. In addition, since this refrigeration cycle is a heat pump type for both cooling and heating as described above,
As described above, the flow rate adjusting device 4'has a component structure capable of adjusting the flow rate according to the flow direction of the refrigerant. Where 2
7, 28 and 29 are first, second and third capillary tubes, 3
Reference numeral 0 denotes a check valve having a structure for preventing the backflow of the refrigerant, and both terminals of the third capillary tube 29 are connected before and after the check valve 30 to form a bypass flow passage.

The cooling operation and the heating operation are basically performed by switching the flow direction of the refrigerant in the cycle. However, since the indoor temperature and ambient temperature conditions required for each operation are different, as described above. The flow rate adjusting device 4'adjusts the refrigerant flow rate during cooling and heating. That is, the refrigerant during cooling passes through the first capillary tube 27, and the check valve 3
It flows without resistance along the flow direction of 0, and the flow rate is adjusted through the second capillary tube 28. On the other hand, during heating, the flow reaches the check valve 30 after passing through the second capillary tube 28, which is the reverse of the flow during cooling, but the check valve 30 cannot pass through the check valve 30 due to the backflow prevention structure. 3 After passing through the capillary tube 29, the first capillary tube 2
The flow rate is adjusted through 7.

As described above, in order to obtain the refrigerant flow rate required for each of the cooling operation and the heating operation, the conventional flow rate adjusting device 4'determines the flow rate resistance when the refrigerant passes by the inner diameter and the length of the capillary tube. I adjusted it by changing the type. As described above, in the conventional flow rate control device, the flow rate of the refrigerant is adjusted by combining a plurality of capillary tubes and a check valve.

[0007]

In such a refrigerating cycle, as shown in FIG. 8, the flow rate control device 4'includes the first, second and third capillary tubes 27, 28 around the check valve 30. 29 is provided, in which the main refrigerant circuits 9, 1
It was a structure for connecting 0s. Therefore, the structure is complicated and the number of components is large, and each of the connecting portions a1, a2, a
No. 3, a4, b1 and b2 must be brazed together, and the capillary tube used has a small passage inner diameter, so when brazing, the passage of brazing material into the capillary tube easily causes passage clogging,
Brazing work required careful attention. For this reason, the workability is extremely poor, and there are many problems due to airtight leakage in addition to the passage blockage, making it difficult to stabilize the quality and reduce the cost.
In addition, since many capillary tubes are used, there is a risk that contaminants in the cycle and contaminants generated during long-term operation will accumulate on the inner wall of the capillary tube, increasing flow resistance, or blocking the passageway, resulting in inoperability. Was there.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and reduces costs and stabilizes quality by reducing the number of parts and eliminating a complicated structure, and blockages of passages by suppressing the use of capillary tubes. The purpose is to provide a flow control valve that eliminates the danger of.

[0009]

The flow control valve of the present invention comprises:
A shaft-shaped valve body provided with valve portions at both ends is inserted into a tubular flow path of the main body, and a stopper for restricting a movement range of the valve body is provided in the main body, and the valve is arranged in a movement axis direction of the valve body. It is characterized in that it is provided with a valve seat facing the section facing each other. According to the above configuration, since a plurality of capillary tubes and check valves that have been conventionally used are not used for the flow rate adjusting function during cooling and heating, it is possible to provide an inexpensive and highly reliable flow rate adjusting function. is there.

According to the means of the present invention, when the refrigerant flows into the main body, the valve element receives the resistance of the refrigerant and moves in the downstream direction, but the movement range is restricted by the stopper, so that it stops at a fixed position. Here, the refrigerant flow rate is determined by the resistance when flowing through the gap between the valve portion of the valve body and the valve seat facing it, that is, the distance between the valve body and the valve seat on the downstream side of the valve body,
The valve seat is set in advance at a position where the required flow rate is obtained. Also, when the refrigerant flows in the opposite direction to the above flow due to switching between cooling and heating, the valve element moves and stops at the stoppers on the opposite side to the above, but valve parts are provided at both ends of the valve element. Since the valve seats facing each other are provided, the refrigerant flow rate in this case is adjusted by setting the position of the other valve seat. As described above, according to the flow rate control valve of the present invention, the flow rate of the refrigerant can be individually adjusted by a simple method according to the change in the flow direction.

Further, since the flow rate of the refrigerant is determined by the relative distance between the valve portion of the valve body and the valve seat facing it as described above, when the valve seat is screwed so as to be able to move forward and backward, the valve seat position can be changed. Refrigerant flow rate can be adjusted as desired, increasing versatility and standardizing.

[0012]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will now be described based on examples with reference to the drawings. In FIG. 2A, a shaft-shaped stopper 13 and a valve seat 14 are provided on the inner diameter side at one opening side of the flow path 12 provided in the main body 11, and valve portions 15, 15 ′ are provided at both ends. After inserting the valve body 16 into the flow passage 12 along the axial direction so that the valve portion 15 faces the valve seat 14, a stopper 13 ′ for restricting the movement range of the valve body 16 is provided on the other opening side. A collar 17 provided with a valve seat 14 'facing the seat portion 15' is inserted, and the collar 17 is fixed by a stop ring 18. Further, the valve body 16 is provided with blades 19 as shown in FIG. 3 showing the XX cross section of FIG. 2A, and the inner diameter of the flow passage 12 and the valve body 16 are provided.
The flow passage 20 is secured between the blades 19 and, and when the valve body 16 moves due to the change in the flow direction of the refrigerant, the blade 19 comes into contact with the stopper 13 or 13 'on the downstream side to regulate the moving range of the valve body. , Acts to keep the distance between the valve portion and the valve seat and to flow a certain amount of refrigerant.

In this state, as shown in FIG. 2 (a), for example, when the cooling medium flows from A to B, the valve element 16 receives the resistance of the cooling medium and moves to the B side to move the blades. 1
9 contacts the stopper 13 to set the position of the valve portion 15. The refrigerant passes through the flow passage 20 and passes through the gap between the valve seat 14 and the valve portion 15. Since this gap is determined by the axial dimension L1 between the valve seat 14 and the stopper 13, the required flow rate for cooling can be secured in advance. If the dimension L1 is adjusted to, the flow rate of the refrigerant can be adjusted.

On the other hand, during heating, as shown in FIG.
Since the refrigerant flows from B to A, which is the opposite of that during cooling, the valve element 16 moves to the A side. At this time, the refrigerant flow rate is 1
The distance between 4'and the valve portion 15 ', that is, the axial dimension L2 of the stopper 13' of the collar 17 and the valve seat 14 'is determined. Therefore, by adjusting the refrigerant flow rate during heating by the dimension L2 as described above, the cooling time is reduced. Can be adjusted separately.

The distance between the valve seat on the upstream side of the valve body and the valve body is set to a large value so as not to directly affect the flow rate. At least the position of the valve seat is determined so that the cross-sectional area of passage of the refrigerant between the valve seat on the upstream side and the valve portion facing it is larger than the cross-sectional area of the flow passage 20 in the axial direction.

The feature of the flow rate control valve of the present invention having the above structure is that it has a flow rate control function required for a heat pump type air conditioner equipped with cooling and heating, that is, the refrigerant flow rate during cooling and heating in the flow direction. The point is that the function of individually adjusting to changes is integrated as a single component. Therefore, it does not complicate the structure of the refrigeration cycle as in the past, and because it uses few parts and requires few joining points, it has good workability, such as flow path blockage and airtight leakage due to brazing joining. Quality problems can be resolved, quality can be stabilized, and costs can be reduced.

Further, since the valve element moves and the distance between the valve element and the valve seat increases when switching between the cooling operation and the heating operation, there is a problem in the cycle when a capillary tube having a small inner diameter is used as in the conventional case. The risk of blockage of the passage due to foreign matters and contaminants can be avoided.

[0018]

[Embodiment 1] An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 1
Is a compressor, 2 is a heating / cooling switching valve, 3 is an outdoor heat exchanger, 4 is a flow rate control valve of the present invention, 5 is an indoor heat exchanger, and 6 is an accumulator, which are connected in an annular shape,
A heat pump type refrigeration cycle for both air conditioning and heating was constructed.

In the cooling operation, the high-temperature high-pressure gaseous refrigerant discharged from the compressor 1 is made to flow to the outdoor heat exchanger 3 by the cooling / heating switching valve 2 on the cooling side, and cooled by the fan 7 to be liquefied and flow rate of the present invention. It is introduced into the control valve 4. Flow control valve 4
In the structure shown in FIG. 2A, as described above, the necessary flow rate of the refrigerant is adjusted by adjusting the gap between the valve portion 15 of the valve element 16 and the valve seat 14 by the dimension L1 between the stopper 13 and the valve seat 14. Therefore, it is introduced into the indoor heat exchanger 5 after passing through the gap between the valve portion 15 and the valve seat 14 and adjusted to an appropriate flow rate. Here, the refrigerant absorbs the heat of the indoor air sent by the fan 8 to be gasified and at the same time cools the indoor air. The gasified refrigerant returns to the compressor 1 via the accumulator 6.

Next, in the heating operation, the high-temperature and high-pressure gaseous refrigerant discharged from the compressor 1 is made to flow to the indoor heat exchanger 5 by the cooling / heating switching valve 2 on the heating side to warm the indoor air sent by the fan 8. The refrigerant itself is cooled and liquefied and introduced into the flow rate control valve 4. As shown in FIG. 2B, the flow control valve 4 in the heating operation has the valve element 16 in the opposite direction to that in the cooling operation, and the refrigerant has the valve portion 15 ′ and the valve seat 1 adjusted by the dimension L2.
It is introduced into the outdoor heat exchanger 3 after being adjusted to an appropriate flow rate through the gap 4 '. Here, the refrigerant absorbs the heat of the outdoor air sent by the fan 8 to be gasified, and returns to the compressor 1 via the accumulator 6.

The air conditioner for both air conditioning and heating constructed in this way has a simplified overall structure, the space for incorporating the flow rate adjusting function is reduced to one fifth or less of the conventional space, and the number of parts to be joined is reduced. As a result, workability during assembly was greatly improved.

[0022]

[Embodiment 2] FIG. 4 shows an embodiment in which a valve seat is screwed so as to be able to advance and retreat. A stopper 13 is provided on one side of an opening of a flow passage 12 in a main body 21, and valve portions 15, 15 are provided in front and rear. After inserting the shaft-shaped valve body 16 provided with the'into the flow path 12 along the axial direction, a stop ring 18 for restricting the movement range of the valve body 16 is attached from the other opening side, and the valve seat is further installed. 14,
14 'is screwed so as to face each of the valve portions 15 and 15', and the valve seats 14 and 14 'have hexagonal holes 22 and
22 'is formed, and by inserting a hexagonal wrench into the hexagonal holes 22, 22', the valve seats 14 and 14 'can be operated to adjust the dimensions L3 and L4 to set the refrigerant flow rate. ing.

[0023]

[Third Embodiment] FIG. 5 shows an embodiment in which a flow control valve similar to that shown in FIG. 2 is used after being inserted into the refrigerant pipe 23 and fixed by a rolling 24.

[Embodiment 4] In FIG. 6, an O-ring 25 is attached to the valve seat 14 to provide airtightness between the flow path 12 and the outside, and the valve seat 1 is provided from the outside.
4 has a structure in which the hexagonal hole 22 can be operated, which allows the flow rate of the refrigerant to be adjusted even during operation. After adjusting the flow rate, the seal cap 26 is tightened to the main body 11 to maintain airtightness with the outside.

[0024]

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY According to the present invention, the flow rate adjusting function required for a heat pump type air conditioner having cooling and heating, that is, the refrigerant flow rate during cooling and heating is individually adjusted according to the change of the flow direction. This is a flow rate control valve that integrates the functions as a single component, which simplifies the structure of the refrigeration cycle and reduces the number of joints. Therefore, the workability of assembling the air conditioner is good, and problems such as airtight leak and blockage of the flow path due to brazing and joining can be solved, quality can be stabilized, and cost can be reduced. Furthermore, since the valve element moves when switching between cooling operation and heating operation, it is possible to avoid the risk of passage blockage due to contaminants and contaminants in the cycle, which is a problem when using a conventional capillary tube with a small inner diameter. It has various effects.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a refrigeration cycle diagram of an air conditioner including a flow rate control valve according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2A is a vertical cross-sectional view of a flow rate control valve according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2B is a vertical cross-sectional view of the flow rate control valve showing a state in which the flow direction of the refrigerant is opposite to that in the case of FIG. It is a figure.

FIG. 3 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the flow rate control valve showing an XX cross section in the embodiment of FIG. 2 (a).

FIG. 4 is a vertical sectional view of a flow rate control valve according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a state in which the flow rate control valve according to the present invention is assembled in the refrigerant pipe.

FIG. 6 is a vertical cross-sectional view of a state in which the flow rate control valve according to the present invention has a structure capable of adjusting the flow rate of the refrigerant from the outside.

FIG. 7 is a refrigeration cycle diagram of a conventional air conditioner, which shows a conventional example and is equipped with a flow rate control device using a check valve and a capillary tube.

8 is a perspective view of the flow rate adjusting device shown in FIG. 7. FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Compressor 2 ... Air-conditioning switching valve 3 ... Outdoor heat exchanger 4 ... Flow control valve 4 '... Conventional flow rate adjusting device 5 ... Indoor heat exchanger 6 ... Accumulator 7: Fan for outdoor heat exchanger 8: Fan for indoor heat exchanger 9 ... Main refrigerant circuit 10 ... Main refrigerant circuit 11 ... Main body 12 ... Flow path 13, 13 '... stopper 14, 14 '... valve seat 15, 15 '... valve 16 ... Valve 17 ... Color 18 ... Stop ring 19 ... feather 20 ... Flow passage 21 ... Main body 22, 22 '... Hexagon socket 23 ... Refrigerant piping 24 ... rolling 25 ... O-ring 26 ... Seal cap 27 ... First capillary tube 28 ... Second capillary tube 29 ... Third capillary tube 30 ... Check valve a1, a2, a3, a4 ... Connection part b1, b2 ... Connection part

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A shaft-shaped valve body having valve portions at both ends is inserted into a tubular flow passage of a main body, and a stopper for restricting a movement range of the valve body is provided facing the main body. A flow control valve used in a refrigerating cycle, comprising a valve seat facing the valve portion in the direction of the moving axis of the valve body. 2. The flow rate control valve used in the refrigeration cycle according to claim 1, wherein the valve seat of claim 1 is screwed so as to be movable so as to be movable back and forth.