JP2009277494A - Piping connection device in fuel cell for domestic use - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a piping connection device for connecting each units of a fuel cell for a domestic use by piping, which can be assembled easily and can reduce a cost effectively. <P>SOLUTION: A sleeve 12 is composed of a cylindrical portion 12a and a shaft portion 12d of a large diameter and, on its outer circumferential intermediate portion, there is formed a step portion having a perpendicular surface 12e contacting an end surface of an engaging portion 10b of a main body aide. On the shaft portion, there is formed an engaging portion 12b of a large diameter and on its left side, there is formed a step portion Z, and the pair of the engaging portions are arranged to face each other with the perpendicular surface in-between while being pinched by an engaging member body 18. A pipe 14 is press-fixed on a ring-shaped concave portion 14a of an inner circumference of the sleeve. A pipe portion extended in a right direction from the press-fixed portion composes a housing portion of an O-ring. The housing portion is formed between a bent portion 14b contacting with a right side surface of the O-ring and a right end surface of the sleeve. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an apparatus for connecting units of a household fuel cell by a pipe line, and more particularly to a pipe connecting apparatus of a type using an O-ring.

Prospects and challenges for full-fledged commercialization of stationary fuel cell cogeneration systems that have both energy saving and environmental friendliness, and efforts to solve them are being promoted under the initiative of the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy, Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. The details are described in the report on the review of the fuel cell market strategy for automobiles (April 11, 2005). (Non-Patent Document 1)
In this report, the reduction of system cost is a major issue in the spread of the fuel cells. Among them, the cost reduction of peripheral equipment (auxiliary equipment) is important. The specifications required for the auxiliary machinery should be made public and new companies should be encouraged to supply auxiliary machinery, which is an important issue for cost reduction. "

  Based on the recommendations of the report, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry provides system manufacturers with specifications required for peripheral equipment (auxiliary equipment) for household fuel cell systems (output 1 kw to 700 w) such as pumps and sensors. Based on the results of the questionnaire surveys, etc., published on April 21, 2005, and in order to promote further standardization, taking into account the subsequent changes in the situation, the required specifications have been scrutinized once again and almost unified. "Common specifications" have been published. (Non-Patent Document 2)

  FIG. 4 is an outline of the stationary fuel cell cogeneration system described in Non-Patent Document 2. As shown in FIG. 4, this system includes G1 (raw fuel booster pump), B1 (combustion burner air blower), B2 (CO remover air blower pump), B3 (battery reaction air blower), W1. (Reforming water pump), W2 (battery cooling water pump), W3 (hot water storage volume control pump) vaporizer, burner, exhaust heat recovery device, desulfurizer, reformer, CO converter, CO remover, fuel electrode, Many piping parts are required to connect between each unit such as air electrode, cooler, cooling water tank, heat exchanger, water treatment device, hot water tank unit, etc. Therefore, cost reduction including assembling work of these connecting piping parts has become a big issue. Therefore, a de facto standardization is adopted in which each unit side has a structure as shown in FIG. 5 instead of a conventional female taper screw.

As shown in FIG. 5, the use of three types of O-rings P7, P10, and P14 is specified at the opening that is an interface with the piping portion, and the inner diameter (round) of the opening contacting the outer periphery of these O-rings. (Indicated by A in the mark) are 10 mm, 13 mm, and 18 mm.
A sleeve having a cross-sectional shape shown in FIG. 6 is conceivable in order to realize the sealing function of the O-rings arranged in these three types of inner diameter portions and on the premise that commercial pipe materials for piping can be used.
“Fuel Cell Market Strategy Review Meeting Report (April 11, 2005)”: http: // www. meti. go. jp / info / committee / mokuji. html “Specification List of Peripheral Equipment (Auxiliary Equipment) Related to Stationary Fuel Cell System”, Policy Division, New Energy Department, Agency for Natural Resources and Energy, Fuel Cell Promotion Office: http: // www. meti. go. jp / press / 200504421002/200504421002. html

In the example of FIG. 6 described above, the dimension d of the sleeve S in consideration of the fact that no commercially available pipe material such as steel or stainless steel has an outer peripheral dimension that directly matches the inner diameter of the designated O-ring. Is advantageous in that it can be machined in accordance with the outer circumference of a commercially available pipe, but the connecting pipe is welded and fixed at the Z1 portion of the sleeve S, and the machining of the sleeve S is performed by the O-ring groove Z2. In addition, there are many processing parts including the above, and it is relatively complicated.
The condition that the outer circumference dimension of the commercially available piping pipe material does not match the specified O-ring inner diameter was found by the subsequent investigation that there was a suitable piping pipe material. The problem of hiring remains a challenge.

  The inventor of the present application has conducted extensive research, examination, and trial manufacture in order to solve the above problems, and as a result, the pipe outer peripheral surface is press-fitted into an annular recess provided in the sleeve inner peripheral surface, and the pipe is extended from the sleeve. It has been found that the above problem can be basically solved by forming an O-ring housing portion at the end of the pipe by plastic deformation.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a pipe connection device in a domestic fuel cell that does not have a welded structure that becomes an obstacle to popularization, and that can be easily installed on the installation site of a household fuel cell and that can reduce costs as much as possible. Is to provide.

In order to achieve the above object, a pipe connection device in a household fuel cell according to the present invention is provided.
A device for connecting each unit of a household fuel cell by a conduit,
As an opening formed integrally with each unit and connected to the pipeline, the first length L in the pipeline axial direction and the first inner diameter D and the first step portion on the outer peripheral portion And a main body having a cylindrical portion that is inserted into the opening of the main body and shorter than the first length L, and has a vertical surface that is in contact with the end surface of the opening. A sleeve having a second step portion disposed so as to be symmetrical with the first step portion and having an annular recess formed in an inner peripheral portion, and one end side of a pipe line connected to the opening portion A first bent portion formed by being press-fitted and fixed in the annular recess of the sleeve, and a second bent portion formed at an end portion on the one end portion side and having an outer diameter substantially equal to the inner diameter D. A connecting conduit in which an O-ring storage portion is formed by the second bent portion and the main body end surface; An O-ring disposed in the ring storage portion and a member engaged with the first and second step portions to prevent the sleeve abutting on the main body via the vertical surface from being detached from the vertical surface. And a joint member.

  In this case, the engaging members are respectively suspended from the top and are provided with side walls formed so as to face each other, extending from the side walls, and openings for engaging with the first and second stepped portions. An elastic engaging member main body comprising a pair of inclined surfaces and a flare part that follows the mountain part, and a bent part that has an opening in the middle part and wraps the flare part at both ends are formed. The opening of the clasp member is engaged with the first and second step portions located on the opposite side of the top portion, and one side of the bent portion has one of the bent portions. A claw portion with a punched portion is formed, and the tip of the claw portion can be configured to abut against and press against the flare portion in the assembled state.

A pipe connection device in a household fuel cell according to the present invention is:
A device for connecting each unit of a household fuel cell by a conduit,
As an opening formed integrally with each unit and connected to the pipeline, the first length L in the pipeline axial direction and the first inner diameter D and the first step portion on the outer peripheral portion And a main body having a cylindrical portion that is inserted into the opening of the main body and shorter than the first length L, and has a vertical surface that is in contact with the end surface of the opening. A sleeve having a second step portion disposed so as to be symmetrical with the first step portion and having an annular recess formed in an inner peripheral portion, and one end side of a pipe line connected to the opening portion A first bent portion formed by being press-fitted and fixed in the annular recess of the sleeve, and a second bent portion formed at an end portion on the one end portion side and having an outer diameter substantially equal to the inner diameter D. A connecting conduit in which an O-ring storage portion is formed by the second bent portion and the main body end surface; An O-ring disposed in a ring storage portion and a member engaged with the first and second step portions to prevent the sleeve contacting the main body via the vertical surface from being detached from the vertical surface. A joint member;
Since it was configured with
Since there is no welded part and the O-ring housing part is formed by the sleeve end surface and the connecting pipe end, it is not necessary to form an O-ring groove on the sleeve, and the shape can be simplified and the cost can be reduced. There is.
Further, since the connecting conduit is press-fitted into the annular recess of the sleeve and integrated with the sleeve, it does not come out of the sleeve.
Further, since the main body of the engaging member is provided with openings that engage with the first and second step portions, the assembly work at the site is easy.

FIG. 1 is a pipe connection device of an example based on an embodiment of the present invention, in which FIG. 1A is a longitudinal sectional view of an upper half of an axial direction showing a main part of a connection portion, and FIG. The top view of (a) and the figure (c) are the left view seen from the axial direction of (b).
In FIG. 1A, reference numeral 10 denotes a connection main body integrally formed in one unit constituting the fuel cell system, and the left end portion of the main body 10 has an inner diameter D and a length L. An opening SP having a cylindrical portion 10a is formed.
The left end portion of the cylindrical portion 10a is an engaging portion 10b formed with a large diameter, and a stepped portion Y is formed on the right side of the engaging portion 10b. The outer periphery of the cylindrical portion 10a following the stepped portion Y is a mounting space for an engagement member main body 18 to be described later.

Reference numeral 12 denotes a sleeve inserted into the opening SP. The sleeve 12 includes a cylindrical portion 12a having a length shorter than the length L of the cylindrical portion 10a of the main body 10 and a shaft portion 12d having a diameter larger than that of the cylindrical portion 12a. A stepped portion Z having a vertical surface 12e that contacts the end surface of the engaging portion 10b is formed. The shaft portion 12d on the left side of the vertical surface 12e is formed with a thick engagement portion 12b, and as shown in FIG.
As described above, the engaging portions 10b and 12b are arranged to face each other through the vertical surface 12e while being sandwiched between the openings of the engaging member main body 18.

  Reference numeral 14 is a commercially available stainless steel pipe that is press-fitted into an annular recess 14 a formed in the inner periphery of the sleeve 12 and fixed. A bent portion 14b is formed at the end of the pipe 14 extending rightward from the press-fitted portion, and an O-ring is provided between the right end surface of the sleeve 12 and the bent portion 14b at the end of the pipe as shown in the figure. 14c is comprised. Further, the bent portion 14b of the pipe 14 and the press-fitted portion can be formed in advance by compressing the end portion of the pipe from both sides in the axial direction using a mold having a predetermined shape and plastically deforming only in the radial direction. The plastic deformation processing of the press-fitted portion and the bent portion 14b can be performed in advance with a dedicated pipe end processing machine, for example, a processing machine of Osgar Machine Co., Ltd. A chain line X indicates a case where the stepped portion Z of the sleeve 12 is formed as it is, and therefore there is no left side of the chain line X. In this case, the processing of the sleeve 12 becomes simpler and its axial length can be shortened.

  FIG. 1B is a plan view of FIG. 1A viewed from above, in which a part (four locations) of the pair of engaging portions 10b and 12b arranged to face each other is an opening 18a of the engaging member main body 18. It shows that it is engaged with 18b, and it is engaged so that the ridgeline of opening part 18a, 18b may contact a pair of engaging part side surface, and the movement to an axial direction may be controlled.

  FIG.1 (c) is the figure which looked at the state which attached the engaging member main body 18 to the engaging part from the axial direction, and the engaging member main body 18 is a single state from a natural state, as shown by arrow A. Since the elastic force toward the arrow direction is acting, the engaging member main body 18 does not fall down downward. The engaging member main body 18 is commercially available as a stainless steel clip member, and examples thereof include a joint clip (trade name) manufactured by Taiyo Stainless Spring Co., Ltd.

  FIG. 2 shows a longitudinal section through the openings 18 a and 18 b of the engaging member main body 18. In the figure, from the top portion 18c of the engaging member main body 18, side walls 18e and 18e formed so as to face each other, and extending from the side walls 18e and 18e, respectively, are engaged with the step portions 10c and 12c. It consists of a peak made of a pair of inclined surfaces 18f, 18g having openings 18b, 18a for the purpose, and a flare 18d following the peak, and is made of a stainless steel member having elasticity.

FIG. 3 shows an operation procedure for assembling the fastener 20 having an opening to the flare portion 18d in the state shown in FIG. 1C with the engagement member main body 18 attached. FIG. 3A shows a state in which the end of the flare portion 18d is wrapped by the bent portion 20c on the right end side of the fastener 20 that engages with the flare portion 18d of the engaging member main body 18. Reference numeral 20b is a bent portion on the left end side of the fastener 20, and the claw portion 20a is formed by punching a part of the bent portion 20b.
FIG. 3 (b) shows an assembled state in which the left flare portion 18d is further pushed in from the tip of the claw portion 20a by pushing down and plastically deforming the fastener 20 from above as indicated by the arrow in FIG. 3 (a). Further, a state where a stepped portion protrudes from the opening is shown.
FIG. 3 (c) shows that the fastener 20 is engaged with the engaging portion main body 18 by rolling up the bent portion 20b upward as shown by the arrow while pushing the claw portion 20a back to the punched portion 20d using a tool such as radio pliers. Indicates that you can leave.

FIG. 4 corresponds to FIG. 3B, and shows a state where the fastener 20 is assembled to the engaging portion main body 18.
FIG. 5 is a plan view showing an assembled state of the fastener 20 viewed from the Z direction in FIG. 4.

  Next, assembly and removal of the pipe connection device according to the present invention will be described. The assembling work is such that each unit of the household fuel cell is installed at a substantially fixed position, and these units are connected by piping. Prior to the on-site assembling operation, the pipe 14 is press-fitted and fixed in advance to the annular recess 14a of the sleeve 12, and an O-ring storage portion is formed at the end of the pipe by a pipe end processing machine or the like. When assembling at the site, the sleeve 12 is inserted into the opening SP of the main body 10 with a predetermined O-ring 14c mounted on the storage portion, and the vertical surface 12e is in contact with the end surface of the engaging portion 10b. Flares 18d and 18d are formed by aligning the axial positions of the openings 18a and 18b of the joint member main body 18 and the engagement portions 10b and 12b and pushing the top 18c of the engagement member main body 18 toward the center Q of the sleeve 12. Is moved while being spread, and the engagement portions 10b and 12b are fitted into the openings 18a and 18b at four locations, whereby the attachment of the engagement member main body 18 is completed.

  Next, the assembling work of the pipe connecting portion is completed by assembling the fastener 20 according to the operation procedure of FIGS. 3 (a), 3 (b), and 3 (c).

  For the removal work, the fastener 20 fixed by crimping to the flare portion 18d is engaged with the engagement member main body using the tool 22 or the like in the reverse procedure of the operation procedure of FIGS. 3 (a), 3 (b) and 3 (c). After being detached from the joint 18, it is possible to release the fastening by pulling the top 18 c of the engagement member main body 18 away from the center Q of the sleeve 12, thus simplifying the work at the site of assembly and removal. .

  The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, but the present invention is not limited to these exemplified contents, and those skilled in the art can implement various modifications based on them. is there. For example, it is possible to prevent the flare portion from spreading by attaching a plate material or the like between the flare portions 18d, 18d and fixing them with bolts and nuts instead of the fastener 20.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is a figure explaining the pipe connection apparatus of the Example based on embodiment of this invention, Comprising: (a) is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the upper half of the axial direction which shows the principal part of a connection part, (b) is (a). The top view seen from the upper side of the figure, the figure (c) is the left side view seen from the axial direction of (b). It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which passes along the opening part of an engaging member main body. An operation procedure for assembling a fastener having an opening to the flare portion in a state where the engagement member main body is attached is shown. (A) is a diagram of the right end side of the fastener engaging with the flare portion of the engagement member main body. (B) shows the assembled state in which the left flare part is further pushed in from the tip part of the claw part by pushing down the stopper from above and pushing down from above. c) It is a figure which shows that a fastener can be removed from an engaging part main body using tools, such as a radio pliers. It is a block diagram explaining the outline | summary of the stationary fuel cell cogeneration system described in the nonpatent literature 2. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the contents of Reference 3 attached to “Specification List of Peripheral Devices (Auxiliary Equipment) Related to Stationary Fuel Cell System” of Non-Patent Document 2. FIG. FIG. 6 is an axial longitudinal sectional view of a sleeve structure that satisfies the specifications shown in FIG. 5 but assumes the use of welding.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Main body 10a Cylindrical part 10b Engagement part 10c Step part 12 Sleeve 12a Cylindrical part 12b Engagement part 12d Shaft part 12e Vertical surface 14 Pipe 14a Bending part 14b Bending part 14c O-ring 18 Engaging member main body 18a Opening part 18b Opening part 18c Top portion 18d Flare portion 20 Fastener 20a Claw portion 20b Left end side bent portion 20c Right end side bent portion 20d Punched portion SP Opening Y, Z Stepped portion

Claims (2)

A device for connecting each unit of a household fuel cell by a conduit,
As an opening formed integrally with each unit and connected to the pipeline, the first length L in the pipeline axial direction and the first inner diameter D and the first step portion on the outer peripheral portion A body formed with,
The cylindrical portion is inserted into the opening of the main body and has a cylindrical portion shorter than the first length L. The cylindrical portion has a vertical surface that contacts the end surface of the opening, and the outer peripheral portion has the first step. A sleeve having a second step portion arranged so as to be symmetrical with the portion, and having an annular recess formed in the inner peripheral portion;
A first bent portion formed by press-fitting and fixing to an annular concave portion of the sleeve and an end portion on the one end side are formed on one end portion side of the pipe line connected to the opening, and the outer diameter is the inner diameter D. A connecting conduit having a second bent portion substantially equal to the second bent portion, and an O-ring housing portion formed by the second bent portion and the end face of the main body,
An O-ring disposed in the O-ring storage unit;
A household fuel cell comprising: an engaging member that engages with the first and second step portions to prevent the sleeve that contacts the main body from separating from the vertical surface via the vertical surface; Piping connection device. Each of the engaging members hangs down from the top and has a side wall formed so as to be opposed to each other, a pair of openings extending from the side wall and having openings for engaging with the first and second stepped portions. An engaging member main body having elasticity composed of a hill part formed of an inclined surface and a flare part following the hill part;
The clasp member has an opening in the middle portion and a bent portion that wraps the flare portion at both ends, and the clasp member opening is located on the opposite side to the top portion. A claw part that is engaged with the stepped part and is formed by punching a part of the bent part is formed on one side of the bent part, and the tip of the claw part is in contact with and presses the flare part in the assembled state. A piping connection device in a household fuel cell.

Images