JP2003120857A - Vacuum gate valve - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To surely cool a sealing member 35 for sealing between valve elements 15, 34 and a valve casing 6 by properly changing the flow rate and pressure of the cooling fluid circulated in cooling passages 15a, 34a formed by the valve elements 15, 34 in the valve casing 6, and to miniaturize the device. SOLUTION: This vacuum gate valve comprises a cooling fluid supplying part 49 expandable in the moving direction of the valve elements 15, 34, and capable of supplying the cooling fluid to the cooling passages 15a, 34a regardless of positions of the valve elements 15, 34, and the cooling fluid supply part 49 is composed of a spiral tube 50 in which the cooling fluid is circulated, bellows 58 mounted around the spiral tube 50 for air-tightly defining the inside of the valve casing 6, and a reinforcement member 48 composed of a telescopically expandable cylindrical member preventing the buckling of the bellows 58.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vacuum gate valve, and more particularly to a vacuum gate valve for cooling a seal portion provided on a valve body with a cooling fluid.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In general, a valve body composed of a valve plate support and a valve plate supported by the valve plate support via a bellows is provided in a housing communicating with a pair of adjacent vacuum vessels. On the other hand, on the outer wall surface of the housing, a cylinder having a piston rod penetrating the wall surface in an airtight manner is attached, and the tip end of the piston rod is connected to the valve plate support in the housing. Is moved between the valve opening position and the valve closing position in the housing, and when the valve body is in the valve closing position, the working fluid in the cylinder is supplied into the bellows through the passage provided in the piston rod. A well-known vacuum gate valve is configured so that the valve plate is pressed against the inner wall surface of the housing to be closed by inflating the bellows.

By the way, in order to prevent the generation of gas from the vacuum container or the vacuum gate valve itself in a vacuum environment, the inside of the vacuum container and the gate valve is preheated (baked). Further, for example, when a work is formed into a film inside a vacuum container, the work, the vapor deposition material, and the like are heated. In these cases, since the valve body and housing of the vacuum gate valve become hot, the sealing member such as rubber that seals between the pressing surface of the valve body and the inner wall surface of the housing deteriorates due to heat and the vacuum inside the vacuum container is reduced. It may not be possible to maintain high degree.

Therefore, for the purpose of cooling the seal member to prevent deterioration due to heat, it has been conventionally used, for example, in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 57-7.
As shown in Japanese Patent Publication No. 7779, a cooling passage communicating with the inside of the bellows is formed in the vicinity of the seal member of the valve plate,
It has been proposed to cool the seal member by causing the working fluid of the cylinder, which is supplied into the bellows, to flow into the cooling passage when the valve body is in the valve closing position.

[0005]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional apparatus, for example, while the vacuum gate valve is closed and the workpiece is being heated in the vacuum container, the sealing member is extremely hot. Even if it becomes, it is difficult to reliably cool the seal member because the flow rate and pressure of the cooling fluid cannot be greatly changed until the work in the vacuum container is completed and the cylinder is activated. . That is, since the flow rate change and the pressure change of the cooling fluid in the cooling passage of the valve body depend on the operation of the cylinder, the flow rate and the pressure of the cooling fluid change depending on the amount to be heated regardless of the operating state of the cylinder. There is a problem that it cannot be done.

Therefore, one end is fixed to the valve body and communicates with the cooling passage, while the other end extends in the moving direction of the valve body and projects to the outside of the housing, and a housing provided around the supply pipe. It is conceivable that a bellows that divides the interior in an airtight manner constitutes a supply section for supplying a cooling fluid to the cooling passage, and the supply section is provided separately from the cylinder. However, this configuration has a problem that a large space is required to install the gate valve because the supply pipe largely protrudes from the housing when the valve body moves and is in the valve open state.

The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and an object thereof is to improve a structure for supplying a cooling fluid to a cooling passage formed in a valve body to improve the valve. It is possible to appropriately change the flow rate and pressure of the cooling fluid flowing through the cooling passage regardless of the body position, and to downsize the device.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, according to the present invention, a cooling fluid is configured to extend and contract in a moving direction of a valve body and a cooling fluid is provided to a valve body position in a cooling passage formed in the valve body. A supply means that can supply regardless of the above is provided.

Specifically, the first aspect of the present invention is a vacuum gate valve, which has a housing having an opening, and a valve opening position and a valve closing position which are provided inside the housing and which extend in a direction substantially parallel to the opening of the housing. A valve body that opens and closes the opening of the housing by moving between the valve body and the valve body. When the valve body closes the opening of the housing, pressure contact is made between the valve body and the housing around the opening. A ring-shaped seal member for sealing between the valve body and the housing,
A cooling passage formed in the valve body for circulating a cooling fluid for cooling the seal member, and a cooling fluid for expanding and contracting in the moving direction of the valve body to the cooling passage regardless of the valve body position. And a supply means capable of supplying.

According to the above invention, even if the position of the valve element changes due to the opening / closing operation, the cooling fluid is supplied to the cooling passage of the valve element by the supply means regardless of the position of the valve element. The seal member can be reliably cooled by appropriately changing the flow rate and pressure of the cooling fluid flowing through the cooling passage independently of the operation of the cylinder or the like that drives the valve element.

In addition to this, since the supply means can be expanded and contracted in the moving direction of the valve body, it does not greatly extend outside the housing as the valve body moves. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the gate valve itself from increasing in size due to the opening / closing operation.

A second invention is the same as the first invention,
The supply means includes a spiral tube through which the cooling fluid flows, partition means provided around the spiral tube to partition the inside of the housing in an airtight manner, and a reinforcing member for preventing buckling of the partition means. I have it.

According to the above invention, the spiral tube, the partitioning means and the reinforcing member respectively expand and contract as the valve body moves. Then, by keeping the inside of the housing vacuum by the partitioning means and circulating the cooling fluid inside the spiral tube in a state where the buckling of the partitioning means is prevented, the cooling fluid outside the housing can be properly supplied to the cooling passage inside the housing. Can be supplied.

Even if the spiral tube is made of a material that emits gas in a vacuum environment, since the housing is airtightly partitioned by the partitioning means, the inside of the housing can be prevented from being contaminated. .
Further, even if the strength of the spiral tube is relatively small, it can be protected by the partitioning means.

A third invention is the same as the second invention,
The partition means is a bellows. As a result, the bellows allows the cooling fluid to be effectively supplied to the cooling passage while maintaining the vacuum state in the housing regardless of the movement of the valve body.

According to a fourth aspect of the invention, in the second or third aspect of the invention, the reinforcing member is a telescopic tubular member.

By the way, in order to prevent buckling of the bellows, a through hole for supporting the long tubular reinforcing member so that it can be inserted thereinto is formed in the housing, and a contact portion with the inner peripheral surface of the through hole is formed. It is also conceivable to support the reinforcing member by both the fixing portion to the valve body. However, when the length direction of the supported supply pipe does not coincide with the moving direction of the valve body, an unreasonable force is applied to the through hole portion and the fixed portion along with the movement of the valve body. There is a risk that the adhered portion will be damaged or the movement of the valve body will be hindered. Therefore, although it is necessary to attach the supply pipe to the valve body and the through hole with high accuracy so as to extend in the same direction as the moving direction of the valve body, such processing is difficult.

On the other hand, according to the present invention, by providing a predetermined gap between the outer peripheral surface of the inner cylindrical member and the inner peripheral surface of the other outer cylindrical member, Even if the shaft center of the tubular member attached to the valve body and the shaft center of the tubular member attached to the housing do not match in the moving direction of the valve body as a result of the mounting process of the reinforcing member, It is possible to absorb the deviation of the axial center by the above-mentioned predetermined interval so as not to apply an unreasonable force to each supporting portion of the reinforcing member in both the housing and the valve body. Therefore, the reinforcing member can be easily attached to the valve body and the housing.

In a fifth aspect based on the first aspect, the supply means is a spiral tube having one end connected to the cooling passage and the other end protruding outside the housing. According to the present invention, it is possible to supply the cooling fluid to the cooling passage regardless of the valve body position with a simple configuration.

[0020]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 4,
1 is a first vacuum container located on the front side, 2 is a first vacuum container 1
A second vacuum vessel adjacent to the rear side of the vacuum vessel, each of the vacuum vessels 1 and 2 has substantially rectangular openings 3 and 4 arranged to face each other. A vacuum gate valve 5 for connecting or disconnecting the internal spaces (vacuum spaces) of the vacuum containers 1 and 2 is provided between the vacuum containers 1 and 2. The vacuum gate valve 5 includes a valve box 6 which is a thin rectangular housing sandwiched between the vacuum containers 1 and 2 in an airtight manner, and has a front wall (a left side wall in FIGS. 1 and 4) of the valve box 6. Above the bottom of the first
The front communication port 7 corresponding to the opening 3 of the vacuum container 1 is provided, and the second vacuum container 2 is provided at the lower part of the rear wall (right side wall in FIGS. 1 and 4).
The rear side communication ports 8 corresponding to the openings 4 are opened respectively, and the vacuum space in the valve box 6 communicates with the respective vacuum containers 1 and 2 through the communication ports 7 and 8. At this time, the peripheral portions of the communication ports 7 and 8 on the outer wall surface of the valve box 6 are pressed into contact with the flange portions of the vacuum containers 1 and 2 which are attached in contact with the peripheral portions, and the valve box 6 Sealing members 9a and 9b for sealing between the peripheral portions of the communication ports 7 and 8 and the flange portions of the vacuum containers 1 and 2 are attached and fixed, respectively. The seal members 9a and 9b are made of, for example, Viton.

In the upper part of the valve box 6, the left and right sides 1 extending parallel to each other in the front-rear direction at positions separated by a predetermined distance in the left-right direction.
A pair of support shafts 11, 11 are rotatably supported by passing through shaft holes 6a, 6a formed in the front and rear walls of the valve box 6, respectively. That is, the bearings 10, 10 are hermetically sealed and fitted and fixed in the shaft holes 6a, 6a of the front and rear walls of the valve box 6, respectively.
It is rotatably and airtightly sealed and inserted through a seal member (not shown) inserted in each of 0 and 10.

At the intermediate portions of the left and right support shafts 11 and 11 located inside the valve box 6, the base end portions of the left and right arms 12 and 12, which are bifurcated in the front-rear direction, are attached and fixed so as to rotate together. One end portion (upper end portion) of the plate-shaped left and right inner links 13 and 13 is swingably supported by link shafts 14 and 14 extending in the front-rear direction at the respective tip portions of the arms 12 and 12. The other ends (lower ends) of the inner links 13, 13 are connected to the communication ports 7, 8 below the valve box 6.
Slightly larger than the rear side of the valve box 6 (second vacuum container 2
Side), with respect to the upper end of the valve plate support 15 arranged offset,
The front and rear bifurcated mounting portions 17 and 17 which are separated from each other in the left and right direction are swingably connected by front and rear link shafts 19 and 19, respectively.

As a result, the valve plate support member 15 has the inner link 1 attached to the distal ends of the left and right arms 12 and 12, respectively.
3, the left and right support shafts 11 and 11 rotate in synchronism with each other in opposite directions to move up and down in the valve box 6 and to the left (left side in FIG. 3) support shaft. 3 is rotated counterclockwise in FIG. 3, and the right support shaft 11 is rotated clockwise in FIG.

The rear end of each of the support shafts 11 extends rearward (outside the valve box 6) with respect to the outer surface of the rear wall of the valve box 6, and at the rear end thereof,
An outer link 28 composed of a pair of parallel plate members extending at right angles to the arm 12 is integrally rotated at the base end portion on the left and right center sides of the valve box 6 when viewed from the rear side (the axial direction of the support shaft 11). It is attached and fixed to. At the tip of the outer link 28, one end of a plate-shaped lever 29 is provided with a link shaft 30 in the front-rear direction.
It is swingably supported by. Further, a cylinder 31 which has a vertical axis and which is a linear actuator as a driving means for driving a valve body, which will be described later, is arranged and fixed in the left-right central portion on the rear side of the valve box 6. This cylinder 3
1 has a piston rod 31a that projects downward from the cylinder body and makes a linear motion.
A plate-like connecting portion 32 extending in the left-right direction is integrally attached and fixed to the lower end of the la at the center, and the other ends of the levers 29, 29 are linked to the front-rear direction at both ends of the connecting portion 32, respectively. The shaft 30 is swingably connected. That is, the piston rod 31a of the cylinder 31 is connected to the tip of each outer link 28 via the lever 29, and the piston rod 31a is extended and contracted by the cylinder 31.
By moving up and down a and rotating both support shafts 11 and 11 in the opposite direction synchronously, the valve bodies 15 and 34 composed of the valve plate support 15 and a valve plate 34 described later are moved up and down, and the cylinder 31
When contracted, the left support shaft 11 is rotated counterclockwise in FIG. 3 and the right support shaft 11 is rotated clockwise in FIG. 3 to raise the valve elements 15 and 34.
When the gate valve 5 is opened and the cylinder 31 is extended, the left support shaft 11 is rotated clockwise in the figure and the right support shaft 11 is rotated counterclockwise in the figure. Then, the valve bodies 15 and 34 are lowered, and the gate valve 5 is closed. The arm 12 and the outer link 28 extend in the orthogonal direction when viewed from the axial direction of each support shaft 11, and when the valve plate support 15 is in the vicinity of the rising end position, the arm 12 is in a substantially horizontal state. On the other hand, the outer link 28 is arranged so as to be substantially horizontal when the valve plate support 15 is in the vicinity of the lower end position.

A plurality of types of guide rollers 22, 24, 26 for guiding the valve plate support 15 up and down in the valve box 6 are provided.
Is provided. That is, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 9, roller shafts 21, 21, ... Having respective horizontal and horizontal axis centers are projected and attached to the upper and lower ends of the left and right side portions of the valve plate support 15. The roller shafts 21 have an outer diameter slightly smaller than the distance between the inner surfaces of the front and rear walls of the valve box 6 and roll on the inner surfaces of the front and rear walls of the communication openings 7 and 8 of the valve box 6. The front and rear guide rollers 22 are rotatably supported. A cylindrical bush 60 formed by molding a solid lubricating material such as MoS ₂ is interposed between the front and rear guide rollers 22 and the roller shaft 21 that is the rotation shaft thereof.

Further, as shown in FIG. 5 in which the lower end portions of the valve bodies 15 and 34 are enlarged when the valve bodies 15 and 34 are in the valve opening position, the second vacuum container 2 of the valve plate support body 15 is described. Side (Fig. 5
On the right and left), the notch 8
0, 80 are provided. This notch 8 at the upper end
Nos. 0 and 80 open upward and rearward, while cutouts 80 and 80 at the lower end open downward and rearward.
The roller shafts 23, 23 extending in the horizontal left-right direction are attached and fixed to the notch portions 80, 80, ... A rear guide roller 24, which is rollable on the inner surface of the rear wall of the valve box 6, is supported by. A bush 61 similar to the above is also interposed between the rear guide roller 24 and the roller shaft 23 thereof.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 7, 8 and 9,
Roller shafts 25, 25, ... (only one of which is shown) having a horizontal longitudinal axis are attached and fixed to the upper and lower ends of the left and right side portions of the valve plate support 15, and the valve box is attached to each roller shaft 25. A side roller 26 rolling on the inner surfaces of the left and right side walls 6 is rotatably supported. And each of these side rollers 2
A bush 59 similar to the above is also interposed between 6 and the roller shaft 25 thereof. And these guide rollers 2
2, 24 and the side rollers 26 allow the valve plate support 15 to move up and down in the valve box 6 in the front-rear direction and in the left-right direction with almost no displacement.

In this way, the valve plate support member 15 is guided by the front and rear guide rollers 22, the rear side guide roller 24, and the side rollers 26, which serve as guide mechanisms, and the first plate
Also, it is movable between the valve opening position and the valve closing position along a direction substantially parallel to the openings of the second vacuum containers 1 and 2.

On the front side surface (left side surface in FIG. 4) of the valve plate support member 15, a valve plate 34 having substantially the same size as the valve plate support member 15 (slightly larger than the front side communication port 7 at the lower portion of the valve box 6). Are supported by a parallel link mechanism 44, 44, ... This valve plate 34 is a valve plate support member 15.
The opening 3 of the first vacuum container 1, that is, the valve box 6
To open and close the front communication port 7 of the first and second vacuum containers 1, 2.
It connects or cuts off communication between them.

When the valve body closes the opening of the valve box 6, the valve body is pressed against the valve box and the valve box 6 around the opening so that the valve body and the valve box 6 are connected to each other. A sealing member 35 for sealing is provided. Specifically, a ring-shaped sealing member 35 made of, for example, Viton or the like is attached and fixed to the outer peripheral portion of the front side surface of the valve plate 34 so as to abut and seal around the communication port 7 on the inner surface of the front wall of the valve box 6. .

The parallel link mechanisms 44, 44, ... Are provided between the valve plate 34 and the valve plate support member 15 so that the valve plate 34 and the valve plate support member 15 are disposed at the valve closing position of the valve plate support member 15. The vacuum gate valve 5 is opened when the valve plate 34 and the valve plate support 15 are in contact with each other so that the vacuum gate valve 5 is opened. Then, the parallel link mechanisms 44, 4
The link mounting structure of each of 4, ... Is as follows.

That is, as shown in FIGS. 3, 5 and 6, the valve plate support 15 is provided at the upper and lower intermediate portions of the valve plate support 15.
4 in the front-back direction and one pair of upper and lower sides as one set
Are formed in a state where they are aligned in the left-right direction, and the rear end portion (the end portion on the side of the valve plate support 15) of the link 45 in each of the openings 16 is the valve plate support. The shaft 15 is swingably supported around a horizontal left-right axial center orthogonal to the moving direction of 15. That is, the link shaft 4 is inserted into the opening 16.
7 is attached and fixed, and the link shaft 47 is inserted into a shaft hole 45b formed at the rear end of the link 45.

On the other hand, a recess 36a is formed on the rear surface of the valve plate 34 so as to substantially correspond to each opening 16 of the valve plate support 15, and a recess 36 is formed at the bottom of the recess 36a. . Then, in each recess 36, each link 4
A front end portion (an end portion on the valve plate 34 side) of 5 is pivotally supported so as to be swingable around a horizontal horizontal axis. That is, the recess 36
The link shaft 46 is attached and fixed inside the link shaft 46.
Is inserted into a shaft hole 45a formed at the front end of the link 45.

A pair of links 45, 45 corresponding to the upper and lower sides constitute a parallel link mechanism 44, 44, ..., Through which the parallel link mechanism 44, 44 ,. The support 15 is supported by a front side surface (a side surface on the side of the first vacuum container 1) so as to be able to come into contact with and separate from the front side surface.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the inner peripheral surfaces of the shaft holes 45a and 45b before and after each link 45, which is a sliding portion of each parallel link mechanism 44, and the shaft holes 45a and 45b.
Between the outer peripheral surfaces of the link shafts 46 and 47 inserted through
A cylindrical bush 57 formed by molding a solid lubricating material such as MoS ₂ similar to that provided on each roller is interposed. In addition, as shown in FIG.
A similar bush may be interposed between a and the shaft hole 17a of the mounting portion 17 and the link shafts 14 and 19. A bush may be provided only on one end of the inner link 13.

By the way, as shown in FIGS. 3, 7 and 8, roller shafts 38, 38 extending horizontally in the horizontal direction are attached and fixed to the lower ends of the left and right side portions of the front side surface of the valve plate 34, respectively. A valve plate front roller 39 as a stopper roller is rotatably supported on the roller shaft 38. Bushings 62 similar to the other rollers are interposed between the valve plate front roller 39 and the roller shaft 38. Further, at the lower ends of the left and right side portions on the inner surface of the front wall of the valve box 6, corresponding to the respective valve plate front rollers 39 when the valve plate 34 is in the valve closed state in which the front communication port 7 of the valve box 6 is closed. In the state where the bottomed concave portion 6b is formed and the valve plate 34 opens the front communication port 7, the valve plate front roller 39 moves the front communication port 7
Normally, they move on the inner surfaces of the left and right sides of the front wall in a non-contact manner, and in the closed state, the valve plate front roller 39 falls into the recess 6b of the valve box 6 while floating from the bottom surface thereof.

At the lower part of the valve box 6, stoppers 40 and 4 are provided directly below the valve plate front rollers 39, respectively.
0s are attached in a line in the left-right direction. Each of the stoppers 40 has a block shape, and the stopper 40
When the valve plate 34 is lowered to the vicinity of the lower end position, the valve plate 34, more specifically, the valve plate front roller 39 is abutted to stop the downward movement of the valve plate 34, and the valve plate 34 is moved along with the subsequent downward movement of the valve plate support 15. The parallel link mechanisms 44, 44, ... Guide the relative movement in the front direction, that is, the closing direction, which is separated from the valve plate support 15. Instead of the valve plate front roller 39, a stopper roller that abuts on the valve plate 34 and rolls may be pivotally supported by each stopper 40.

As shown in FIG. 2, the valve plate 34 is provided with a cooling passage 34a for circulating a cooling fluid for cooling the seal member 35 provided on the valve plate 34.
Further, the cooling passage 34a is provided so as to meander in the left-right direction so as to pass near the sliding portion of the parallel link mechanisms 44, 44, ..., And the bushes 57, 57. Is configured to cool.
The cooling passage 34a is defined by an inner wall surface of a meandering groove formed on the surface of the valve plate 34 and a closing member that closes the opening of the groove. Then, the cooling passage 34
The reference character a connects the first port 71 and the second port 72 formed at the left and right ends of the valve plate.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3, the valve plate support 15
Also, the cooling passage 15a similar to the above is provided in the parallel link mechanism 4
It is provided in a meandering manner so as to pass near the sliding portions of 4, 44, .... The cooling passage 15a is closed at the central upper part in the left-right direction of the valve plate support 15 in the figure. That is, in the central portion of the closed cooling passage 15a, an inlet port 51 that extends upward and is supplied with a cooling fluid from a supply pipe 50, which will be described later, and an inlet port 51 that is provided adjacent to the inlet port 51 and upwards are provided. An outlet port 52 is formed to extend to discharge the cooling fluid in the cooling passage 15a. The cooling passage 15a communicates the inlet port 51 and the fourth port 74 at the left side portion in the figure, while the outlet port 52 and the third port 73 at the right side portion in the figure.
And communicate with. In this way, the cooling passages 34a and 15a are formed in the valve plate 34 and the valve plate support 15, respectively.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, connecting portions 65 and 65 are provided for connecting the cooling passages 15a and 34a in a state where the cooling passages 15a and 34a are in communication with each other. The connecting portions 65, 65 are arranged on the left and right side surfaces of the valve bodies 15a, 34a, respectively. Connection parts 65 and 6
5 is a lower side support portion 69 that is attached and fixed to the side surface of the valve plate 34.
And an upper support portion 68 that is fixedly attached to the side surface of the valve plate support body 15 with a predetermined distance from the lower support portion 69.
And have. A communication passage 69a is formed in the lower support portion 69 and is connected to the first port 71 or the second port 72 formed in the valve plate 34. On the other hand, the upper support portion 68 has a communication passage 68a connected to the third port 73 or the fourth port 74 formed in the valve plate support 15.
Is perforated.

The connecting portion 65 is provided with an expandable and contractible spiral tube 66 for connecting the two communication passages 68a and 69a in a communicating state. Furthermore, the connecting portion 65
Includes a bellows 67 for airtightly covering the spiral tube 66. That is, the bellows 67 connects the upper support portion 68 and the lower support portion 69 with the spiral tube 66 accommodated therein. In this way, the connecting portion 65 connects the cooling passage 34a of the valve plate 34 and the cooling passage 15a of the valve plate support 15 regardless of the opening / closing operation of the valve bodies 15 and 34.

As a feature of the present invention, the valve body 15,
A cooling fluid supply unit 49 is provided which is configured to be expandable / contractible in the moving direction of 34 and is capable of supplying the cooling fluid to the cooling passages 15a and 34a regardless of the valve body position.
That is, the cooling fluid supply unit 49 is provided separately from the cylinder 31, and the cooling fluid sent from the pump (not shown) passes through the cooling fluid supply unit 49 and the cooling passages 15 a, 34.
It is supplied to a.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 10, the cooling fluid supply unit 49 has a spiral tube 50 through which the cooling fluid flows. The spiral tube 50 is integrally provided with a first pipe 50a for circulating the cooling fluid from the outside of the valve box 6 toward the cooling passages 15a and 34a, and along the first pipe 50a. , A second pipe 50b for circulating a cooling fluid from the cooling passages 15a and 34a to the outside of the valve box 6. When the spiral tube 50 is in a contracted state, its central portion is spirally gathered by its elasticity, while it is unwound from both ends of the spiral portion as it extends.

By the way, a block-shaped pedestal portion 53 is formed in the central upper portion of the valve plate support body 15, and the pedestal portion 53 has the inlet port 51 of the valve plate support body 15 and the first pipe 50a. A communication passage 53a for communicating with each other is formed. Similarly, the pedestal portion 53 is formed with a communication passage 53b for communicating the outlet port 52 of the valve plate support 15 and the second pipe 50b. That is, the first pipe 50
a and the lower ends of the second pipes 50b have cooling passages 15a, 15
They are attached and fixed to the valve plate support 15 in a state of communicating with a.

Further, as shown in FIG. 1, a cylindrical guide portion 54 is fixedly provided on the central upper portion of the valve box 6. A flange portion 54a is attached to the upper end of the guide portion 54, and a central portion thereof is opened so that the supply pipe 50 can be inserted therethrough. On the other hand, the lower end of the guide portion 54 is opened so as to communicate with the inside of the valve box 6.

The cooling fluid supply part 49 is provided around the spiral tube 50 and serves as a bellows 58 as a partitioning means for partitioning the inside of the valve box 6 in an airtight manner, and a reinforcing member for preventing the bellows 58 from buckling. And 48.

The bellows 58 is configured to be extendable and contractible in the vertical direction, which is the moving direction of the valve bodies 15 and 34, and the upper end is fixedly provided to the flange portion 54a of the guide portion 54 while the lower end portion is the pedestal portion. It is fixedly attached to 53. As a result, the inside of the valve box 6, which is the outer side of the pellows 58, is maintained in a vacuum state.

The reinforcing member 48 is formed of a telescopic tubular member, and is arranged inside the bellows 58 so as to cover the spiral tube 50. The reinforcing member 48 includes, for example, three tubular members, an upper portion thereof is fixedly provided to the flange portion 54a, and extends toward the lower side (the valve bodies 15 and 34 side), and the first tubular member 48a. A second tubular member 48b having a cross section smaller than that of the first tubular member 48a so that it can be expanded and contracted in the lengthwise direction of the first tubular member 48a at the lower end of the first tubular member 48a. Similarly, a cross section smaller than the second tubular member 48b is provided at the lower end of the second tubular member 48b so as to be capable of expanding and contracting in the lengthwise direction of the second tubular member 48b, so that the second tubular member 48b can project and retract. It has the 3rd cylindrical member 48c which has. The lower end portion of the third tubular member 48c is fixedly provided to the pedestal portion 53.

The reinforcing member 48 projects upward through the valve box 6 and the guide portion 54, and the upper end portion of the first tubular member 48a has a port communicating with the first pipe 50a of the spiral tube 50. 56 and a port 55 communicating with the second pipe 50b are provided respectively. That is,
The upper ends of the first pipe 50a and the second pipe 50b are connected to the port 5
In the state of being connected to 5, 56, they are fixed to the valve box 6 via the reinforcing member 48 and the guide portion 54, respectively.

In this way, the reinforcing member 48 is inserted into the bellows 58, and the spiral tube 50 is further inserted into the reinforcing member 48. And
The bellows 58, the reinforcing member 48, and the spiral tube 50 are configured to be expandable and contractable in the moving directions of the valve bodies 15 and 34, respectively.

By the way, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, inside the front and rear wall surfaces around the communication ports 7 and 8 of the valve box 6, an annular cooling passage 82 extending along the circumferential direction of the communication ports 7 and 8. ，
83 are formed respectively. Cooling passages 82, 83
Is provided so as to pass in the vicinity of the seal members 9a and 9b which are attached and fixed to the front and rear outer wall surfaces of the valve box 6, respectively. In this way, the cooling passages 82 and 83 are configured to cool the seal members 9a and 9b, respectively, by circulating the cooling fluid. Further, the cooling passage 82 on the front side of the valve box 6 has a valve plate 34 when the valve bodies 15 and 34 are closed.
It is also arranged so as to be close to the seal member 35 provided in, and is configured to cool the seal member 35 as well as the seal member 9a.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 11, a fifth port 85 for supplying a cooling fluid to the cooling passage 82 is provided on the side surface of the valve box 6 and a cooling port 82 is provided below the fifth port 85. And a sixth port 86 for exhausting the cooling fluid from each. On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 11, the fifth port 85 and the sixth port 85 on the side surface of the valve box 6
A seventh port 87 for supplying a cooling fluid to the cooling passage 83 is provided in the vicinity of the port 86, and an eighth port 8 provided on the upper side of the port 87 for discharging the cooling fluid from the cooling passage 83.
8 and 8 are provided respectively. 6th port 86 and 7th
The port 87 is connected by a resin tube 93. Thus, after the cooling fluid supplied from the fifth port 85 flows through the cooling passage 82 around the communication port 7, it is discharged from the sixth port 86 and supplied to the seventh port 87, and further the cooling passage around the communication port 8 is discharged. After circulating 83,
It is configured to be discharged from the eighth port 88.

By the way, as shown in FIG. 2 and FIG.
A block-shaped protruding portion 75 protruding laterally is fixedly provided on the side surface of the valve box 6 on the side where the fifth to eighth ports 85, 86, ... Are disposed. 7
5, a pipe (not shown) is connected to supply a cooling fluid to the gate valve 5, and a discharge port 77 is connected to a pipe (not shown) to discharge the cooling fluid from the gate valve 5. And are provided respectively.

Then, the supply port 76 and the first pipe 50a
The upper port 56 is connected by a resin tube 91. In addition, the port 55 at the upper end of the second pipe 50b
And the fifth port 85 are connected by a similar tube 92. Further, the eighth port 88 and the discharge port 77 are connected by the similar tube 94.

Next, the operation of the above embodiment will be described. When the vacuum gate valve 5 in the closed state shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 is opened, the contraction operation of the cylinder 31 causes the piston rod 31a to move upward. As a result, both support shafts 11, 11 connected to the connecting portion 32 at the lower end of the piston rod 31a via the levers 29, 29 and the outer links 28, 28 synchronously rotate in opposite directions, and the left support shaft 11 is a counterclockwise direction in FIG.
Rotate in the same clockwise direction. This support shaft 1
The arms 12 and 12 integrated with the support shafts 11 and 11 are also rotated by the rotational driving of the shafts 1 and 11, and the inner link 1 is attached to the tips thereof.
The valve plate support 15, which is connected via the rollers 3 and 13, is moved up and down in the valve box 6 while being guided by the guide rollers 22 and 24 in the front-back direction and the side rollers 26 in the left-right direction. Due to the rise of the valve plate support 15, the valve plate 34, which closed the communication part between the valve box 6 and the first vacuum container 1, that is, the front communication port 7 in an airtight manner, by the parallel link mechanisms 44, 44 ,. It is pulled up and the front side communication port 7 is opened.

Then, in the vicinity of the contraction stroke end of the cylinder 31, as shown by the phantom line in FIG.
The vacuum chambers 1 and 2 move so as to substantially coincide with the upper end position of the vacuum chambers 8 so that the internal spaces of the vacuum vessels 1 and 2 are in communication with each other via the inside of the valve box 6.

On the other hand, when the gate valve 5 is closed from the valve open state, the piston rod 31a is lowered by the extension operation of the cylinder 31. As a result, both support shafts 11 and 11 rotate synchronously in opposite directions, and the left support shaft 11 rotates clockwise in FIG.
1 rotates counterclockwise, respectively. This support shaft 1
The arms 12 and 12 integrated with the support shafts 11 and 11 are also rotated by the rotational driving of the shafts 1 and 11, and the inner link 1 is attached to the tips thereof.
The valve plate support 15, which is connected via the rollers 3 and 13, is lowered in the valve box 6 together with the valve plate 34 while being guided by being restricted in movement by the guide rollers 22 and 24 and the side rollers 26. When each of the valve plate front rollers 39 at the lower end of the valve plate 34 comes into contact with the stopper 40 near the lower end position of the valve plate support 15, further downward movement of the valve plate 34 is stopped, and the valve plate support 15 is stopped. Further downward movement of the valve plate 34
Is moved and guided to the front side so as to be separated from the valve plate support 15 by the rising motion of each link 45 in the parallel link mechanisms 44, 44 ,. As shown by the solid line in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, when the valve plate support 15 reaches the lower end position near the extension stroke end of the cylinder 31, the valve plate 3
4 is pushed to the front side via links 45, 45, ... By the valve plate support 15 whose movement is regulated on the rear side by the guide rollers 22 and 24. Then, the seal member 35 arranged on the valve plate 34 is pressed around the communication part between the valve box 6 and the first vacuum container 1, that is, around the front side communication port 7 of the valve box 6, and the both vacuum containers 1 , 2 is the communication between the internal spaces of the valve plate 3
It is shut off in a hermetically sealed state by 4. In this state, the front valve plate rollers 39 fall into the recesses 6b on the inner surface of the front wall of the valve box 6.

By the way, as the valve plate support 15 moves up and down, the cooling fluid supply section 49 expands and contracts. That is, as shown in FIG. 1, when the gate valve 5 is in the closed state, the bellows 58, the reinforcing member 48, and the spiral tube 50 are in the expanded state. Then, when the valve plate support body 15 moves up due to the contraction operation of the cylinder 31, the bellows 58, the reinforcing member 48, and the spiral tube 50 respectively contract with the rise. At this time, the third tubular member 48c of the reinforcing member 48 is retracted into the second tubular member 48b, while the second tubular member 48b is moved into the third tubular member 48.
It goes into the first tubular member 48a together with c.

On the other hand, when the gate valve 5 is changed from the open state to the closed state by the extension operation of the cylinder 31, the bellows 58 and the reinforcing member 48 are moved along with the lowering of the valve plate support 15.
The spiral tube 50 and the spiral tube 50 respectively expand. At this time, the third tubular member 48c of the reinforcing member 48 projects downward from the inside of the second tubular member 48b, while the second tubular member 48b.
Protrudes downward from inside the first tubular member 48a together with the third tubular member 48c.

Next, the flow of the cooling fluid in the vacuum gate valve 5 will be described. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 11, first, the cooling fluid sent from the pump (not shown) is
It is supplied through the supply port 76. Thereafter, the cooling fluid moves up the tube 91 and flows downward in the first tube 50a of the spiral tube 50 via the port 56 at the upper end of the first tube 50a. Then, as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 10, the cooling fluid that has passed through the first pipe 50a passes through the lower communication passage 53a and the inlet port 51, and the valve plate support 15
Is supplied to the cooling passage 15a on the left side in FIG. The cooling fluid that has meandered through the cooling passage 15a flows into the spiral tube 66 of the connecting portion 65 via the fourth port 74 and the communication passage 68a. Thereafter, as also shown in FIG. 2, the cooling fluid is supplied to the cooling passage 34a of the valve plate 34 via the communication passage 69a and the first port 71, and flows in the cooling passage 34a from the right side to the left side in the figure. To do. The cooling fluid that has flowed through the spiral tube 66 of the connecting portion 65 via the second port 72 and the communication passage 69a passes through the communication passage 68a and the third port 73 and is located on the right side in FIG. It is supplied to the cooling passage 15a. Then, the cooling fluid that has passed through this cooling passage 15a passes through the outlet port 52 and the communication passage 53b, as shown in FIG.
It circulates inside 0b. The cooling fluid that has risen inside the second tube 50b passes through the port 55 at the upper end of the second tube 50b and the tube 9
Circulates 2 and is sent downward.

The cooling fluid passing through the tube 92 is supplied to the cooling passage 82 on the front side wall of the valve box 6 through the fifth port 85 at the lower end thereof. Thereafter, the cooling fluid is supplied to the cooling passage 8
After circulating around the communication port 7 along 2, the 6th port 8
It is supplied to the cooling passage 83 on the rear side wall of the valve box 6 through 6, the tube 93 and the seventh port 87. Then, the cooling fluid similarly flows around the communication port 8 along the cooling passage 83 and then flows through the tube 94 via the eighth port 88,
It is sent to the upper discharge port 77. Then, it is discharged from the discharge port 77 to the outside.

Further, in this embodiment, even if the positions of the valve bodies 15 and 34 are changed in accordance with the opening / closing operation of the gate valve 5, the cooling fluid supply section 49 irrespective of the positions of the valve bodies 15 and 34. , Cooling passages 15a, 3 of the valve bodies 15, 34
Since the cooling fluid is supplied to the cooling passage 4a, the cooling passage 1 is independent of the operation of the cylinder 31 that drives the valve bodies 15 and 34.
By appropriately changing the flow rate and pressure of the cooling fluid flowing through 5a and 34a, the seal member 35 can be reliably cooled.

In addition to this, since the cooling fluid supply part 49 is expandable / contractible in the moving direction of the valve bodies 15 and 34, it can be greatly extended to the outside of the valve box 6 with the movement of the valve bodies 15 and 34. There is no. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the gate valve 5 itself from becoming large due to the opening / closing operation.

The spiral tube 50, the bellows 58 as a partitioning means, and the reinforcing member 48 expand and contract as the valve bodies 15 and 34 move. And bellows 58
The inside of the valve box 6 is kept vacuum and the bellows 58 is prevented from buckling, and the cooling fluid is circulated inside the spiral tube 50 to cool the cooling fluid outside the valve box 6 inside the valve box 6. It can be appropriately supplied to the passages 15a and 34a.

Even if the spiral tube 50 is made of a material that releases gas in a vacuum environment, the valve box 6 is airtightly divided by the bellows 58, so that the inside of the valve box 6 is prevented from being contaminated. Can be prevented. Further, even if the spiral tube 50 has a relatively small strength, it can be protected by the bellows 58. At this time, since the partitioning means is constituted by the bellows 58, the cooling fluid is supplied to the cooling passage 15 while maintaining the vacuum state in the valve box 6 regardless of the movement of the valve bodies 15 and 34.
a, 34a.

Further, by constructing the reinforcing member 48 by telescopic cylindrical members 48a, 48b, ..., For expanding and contracting in the moving direction of the valve elements 15, 34 and increasing bending strength. A specific structure can be obtained.

Further, the cylindrical members 48a, 48 located inside
b and the other cylindrical member 48b located outside the outer peripheral surface of b.
By providing a predetermined space between the inner peripheral surface of the valve 48c and the inner peripheral surface of the valve 48c, the valve member 15,
The axial center of the tubular member 48c attached to the valve 34 and the axial center of the tubular member 48a attached to the valve box 6 are respectively the valve body 1
Even if they do not coincide with the moving directions of 5, 5 and 34, the deviation of the axial center is absorbed by the above-mentioned predetermined interval, and the respective supporting portions of the reinforcing member 48 in both the valve box 6 and the valve bodies 15 and 34. The pedestal portion 53 of the valve plate support 15 and the guide portion 54
It is possible to prevent an unreasonable force from being applied to both the flange portion 54a and the flange portion 54a. Therefore, the reinforcing member 48 is attached to the valve body 1
5 and 34 and the valve box 6 can be easily attached, and the life of the gate valve 5 can be extended.

In the above embodiment, the cooling fluid supply section 49 for supplying the cooling fluid to the cooling passage is constituted by the bellows 58, the reinforcing member 48 and the spiral tube 50. However, the spiral tube 50 is under vacuum environment. When it is made of a material such as Teflon (R) that does not generate gas in the above, the bellows 58 and the reinforcing member 4
8 may be omitted. That is, the cooling fluid supply unit 49 is
One end may be connected to the cooling passages 15a and 34a, while the other end may be configured by the spiral tube 50 provided so as to project to the outside of the valve box 6. By doing so, it is possible to supply the cooling fluid to the cooling passages 15a and 34a with a simple configuration regardless of the positions of the valve bodies 15 and 34.

Further, although the reinforcing member 48 is arranged so as to cover the spiral tube 50, the present invention is not limited to this, and may be arranged along the spiral tube 50 and the bellows 58. However, from the viewpoint of space efficiency, it is desirable to provide the spiral tube 50 inside the reinforcing member 48 as described above.

In the above embodiment, the valve plate support 1
The so-called link type vacuum gate valve that opens and closes 5 by a link mechanism driven around the support shaft 11 has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the piston rod of the cylinder is directly connected to the valve plate support 15. The present invention can also be applied to a so-called direct-acting type vacuum gate valve. That is, also in this case, both the piston rod and the supply means may be inserted into the valve box.

Further, although the valve plate 34 and the valve plate support member 15 are connected by the parallel link mechanism 44 so as to be freely brought into contact with and separated from each other, the present invention can be applied to those which do not have the parallel link mechanism 44.

In the above embodiment, the cylinder 31 is used as the driving means, but any other means having an output part for linear movement may be used, and the support shaft 11 is directly driven to rotate by a rotary actuator. You may do it.

Further, in each of the above-mentioned embodiments, the valve plate support 15 and the valve plate 34 are moved upward to open the valve, and moved downward to close the valve. The valve plate 34 may be opened by the downward movement and closed by the upward movement. Further, the directions of opening / closing operations of the valve plate support 15 and the valve plate 34 need not necessarily be limited to the vertical direction.

[0074]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the vacuum gate valve is configured to be expandable / contractible in the moving direction of the valve body, and the cooling formed on the valve body regardless of the position of the valve body. By providing the supply means capable of supplying the cooling fluid to the passage, the flow rate and the pressure of the cooling fluid flowing through the cooling passage are appropriately changed independently of the operation of the cylinder and the like,
The seal member can be reliably cooled. In addition to that, since the supply means can be expanded and contracted in the moving direction of the valve body, it is possible to prevent the gate valve itself from becoming large due to the opening / closing operation.

According to the second invention, the supply means includes a spiral tube through which the cooling fluid flows, partition means provided around the spiral tube to partition the inside of the housing in an airtight manner, and buckling of the partition means. By providing the reinforcing member for preventing the above, the cooling fluid outside the housing can be appropriately supplied to the cooling passage inside the housing while the inside of the housing is maintained in vacuum by the partitioning means. Furthermore, since the inside of the housing is covered in an airtight manner by the partitioning means, it is possible to prevent contamination inside the housing.

According to the fourth aspect of the invention, since the reinforcing member is composed of a telescoping tube member, the axial deviation of each tube member is absorbed by the distance between the wall surfaces of each tube member. It is possible to prevent an excessive force from being applied to the supporting portion of the reinforcing member.

According to the fifth aspect of the invention, the supply means is a spiral tube having one end connected to the cooling passage and the other end protruding to the outside of the housing. It is possible to supply the cooling fluid to the cooling passage regardless of the body position.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side sectional view showing a partially broken vacuum gate valve according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view showing a closed state of a vacuum gate valve.

FIG. 3 is a rear view showing a closed state of the vacuum gate valve.

FIG. 4 is a side sectional view showing a partially broken vacuum gate valve in a closed state.

FIG. 5 is a side sectional view showing an enlarged parallel link mechanism between the valve plate support and the valve plate when the valve is opened.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the parallel link mechanism seen from above.

FIG. 7 is a partially cutaway side view showing an enlarged support structure of side rollers on the left and right sides of the valve plate support and a valve plate front roller on the lower end of the valve plate.

FIG. 8 is an enlarged plan sectional view showing a supporting structure of side rollers on the left and right sides of the valve plate support and a valve plate front roller on the lower end of the valve plate.

FIG. 9 is an enlarged plan sectional view showing a support structure of front and rear guide rollers on the left and right side portions of the valve plate support.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory view showing an enlarged connection state between the valve plate support and the cooling fluid supply unit.

FIG. 11 is a side view showing the appearance of a vacuum gate valve.

[Explanation of symbols]

3,4 opening 5 Vacuum gate valve 6 valve box (housing) 7 front communication port 8 Rear communication port 15 Valve plate support 15a cooling passage 34 valve plate 34a cooling passage 35 Seal member 48 Reinforcement member 48a First tubular member (reinforcing member) 48b Second tubular member (reinforcing member) 48c Third cylinder member (reinforcing member) 49 Cooling fluid supply means (supply means) 50 spiral tube (supply means) 58 Bellows (compartment means, supply means)

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A housing having an opening, the opening of the housing being opened and closed by being provided inside the housing and moving between a valve opening position and a valve closing position along a direction substantially parallel to the opening of the housing. And a ring shape provided on the valve body, and when the valve body closes the opening of the housing, the valve body is pressed against the housing around the opening to seal between the valve body and the housing. Sealing member, a cooling passage formed in the valve body for allowing a cooling fluid for cooling the sealing member to flow, and an expandable and contractable member in the moving direction of the valve body, regardless of the valve body position. A vacuum gate valve, comprising: a supply unit capable of supplying a cooling fluid to the cooling passage. 2. A spiral tube through which a cooling fluid flows, partition means provided around the spiral tube for partitioning the inside of the housing in an airtight manner, and said partition means according to claim 1. And a reinforcing member for preventing buckling of the vacuum gate valve. 3. The vacuum gate valve according to claim 2, wherein the partition means is a bellows. 4. The vacuum gate valve according to claim 2, wherein the reinforcing member is formed of a telescopic tubular member. 5. The vacuum gate valve according to claim 1, wherein the supply means is a spiral tube having one end connected to the cooling passage and the other end protruding to the outside of the housing. .