JP2010242851A - Joint - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a joint which keeps a necessary sealing performance between a body and a nose. <P>SOLUTION: A beer joint 10 is equipped with: a nose 14 connected to a flow passage end on one side; and a resin made body 12 connected to a flow passage end on the other side, A body 12 has a nut section 12B connected in screwing to the flow passage end on the other side; a nose connecting section 12A to which the nose 14 is connected so that the flow passage end on the other side communicates with the flow passage end on the one side, and seal section 12C which is arranged between the nut section 12B and the nose connecting section 12A, and sandwiches an O ring 22 between the peripheral surface of the nose 14 and it; and gate mark Gm at the time of injection molding is formed in the nut section 12B. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a joint including a male nose in which a flow path portion is formed and a female body.

  As a joint between hoses for transferring a liquid such as beer, a joint including a male nose in which a flow path portion is formed and a female body is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2). .

JP 2009-14165 A JP 2009-14166 A

  By the way, when the body is formed by resin injection molding, if the gate, which is the resin injection port into the mold, is set as the seal part with the nose, a problem such as a flow mark that causes a seal failure occurs on the seal surface. There is concern about the occurrence of

  An object of the present invention is to obtain a joint that can ensure a required sealing property between a body and a nose.

  The joint according to the first aspect of the present invention includes a nose connected to the flow path end on one side, a nut portion connected to the flow path end on the other side by screwing, the flow path end on the other side, and the A seal member is sandwiched between a nose coupling portion where the nose is coupled so that the end of the flow path on one side is connected, and an outer peripheral surface of the nose provided between the nut portion and the nose coupling portion. A resin body having a seal portion and having a gate mark formed in the nut portion at the time of injection molding.

  The joint according to claim 1 communicates the flow path end on one side and the flow path end on the other side in a state where the nose is coupled to the nose coupling portion of the body. In this state, a seal member is sandwiched between the outer peripheral surface of the nose and the seal portion of the body, so that the space between the nose and the body is sealed.

  Here, in this joint, since the gate mark when the body is injection-molded is formed in the nut portion, it is possible to prevent or effect the flow mark from being generated in the seal portion of the nut due to the resin injection from the gate. Is suppressed. On the other hand, the nut portion connected to the end of the flow path by screwing (tightening) does not affect the sealing performance even if a flow mark is generated.

  Thus, in the joint according to claim 1, a required sealing property between the body and the nose can be ensured.

  A joint according to a second aspect of the present invention is the joint according to the first aspect, wherein the nut portion has a regular polygonal shape as viewed in the axial direction, and the gate mark is viewed in the axial direction of the nut portion. Is formed at the top.

  In the joint according to claim 2, since the gate mark is formed at the top (corner portion) of the nut portion having a regular polygonal shape when viewed in the axial direction, the gate cut after injection molding is easy.

  A joint according to a third aspect of the present invention is the joint according to the first or second aspect, wherein the nut portion is formed thicker than the nose coupling portion and the seal portion.

  In the joint according to claim 3, since the resin is injected from the thick part of the body, bubbles or the like are hardly generated during molding.

  As described above, there is an excellent effect that a required sealing property between the body and the nose can be ensured.

It is a half sectional view showing the separation state of the nose and the body constituting the beer joint according to the embodiment of the present invention. It is a half sectional view showing the combined state of the nose and the body constituting the beer joint according to the embodiment of the present invention. It is a half sectional view showing the fluid circulation state of the beer joint concerning the embodiment of the present invention. It is a front view which expands and shows the nut part of the body which comprises the beer joint which concerns on embodiment of this invention. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 5-5 of FIG. It is sectional drawing which expands and shows the thickness of each part of the body which comprises the beer joint which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a rear view of the beer joint concerning the embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows the moderation mechanism of the beer joint which concerns on embodiment of this invention, Comprising: (A) is an expanded sectional view which shows the vicinity of the moderation protrusion when a cover exists in a lock position, (B) is a lock unlock position. It is an expanded sectional view which shows the moderation protrusion vicinity when it is rotated a little in this direction. In the beer joint concerning the embodiment of the present invention, it is a half sectional view showing the initial stage of the process of inserting a nose into a body. In the beer joint concerning the embodiment of the present invention, it is a half sectional view showing the middle of the process of inserting a nose into a body. In the beer joint concerning the embodiment of the present invention, it is a half sectional view showing the end of the process of inserting a nose into a body. In the beer joint concerning the embodiment of the present invention, it is a half sectional view showing the state where the cover of the joint was rotated to the lock release position. In the beer joint concerning the embodiment of the present invention, it is a half sectional view showing the process of drawing a nose into the body. It is a half sectional view showing a flow mark generated on a sealing surface of a body according to a comparative example with the embodiment of the present invention.

  A beer joint 10 as a joint according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  In FIG. 1, the separated state of the beer joint 10 is shown in a half sectional view. In addition, FIG. 2 shows a combined state of the beer joint 10 in a half sectional view, and FIG. 3 shows a use state (liquid circulation state) of the beer joint 10 in a half sectional view. Yes. As shown in these drawings, the beer joint 10 includes a body 12 that is a female member, a nose 14 that is a male member, and a lock mechanism 16 that maintains a coupled state of the body 12 and the nose 14. Is configured as the main part. The beer joint 10 according to this embodiment is used for a purpose of flowing beer, which is a beverage as a liquid, at a predetermined pressure (for example, about 0.20 to 0.35 MPa).

  The body 12 is made of, for example, a resin material such as polyacetal (POM), and is formed in a cylindrical shape whose axis (flow direction) forms a straight line as a whole. The body 12 is formed on one end side (downstream side in the beer flow direction) and a nose coupling portion 12A into which the nose 14 is inserted, and is formed on the other end side (hereinafter referred to as “arrow A side”) as a flow path end. A nut portion 12B to which the adapter (pipe) is connected, and a seal portion 12C provided between the nose coupling portion 12A and the nut portion 12B.

  In this embodiment, the seal portion 12 </ b> C is a constricted portion whose cylindrical wall is reduced in diameter both inside and outside with respect to other portions. In this embodiment, the nut portion 12B has a regular dodecagon whose outer periphery is a regular polygon as viewed in the axial direction, and a female screw 15 is formed on the inner periphery. Therefore, the nut portion 12B is configured to be connected to the adapter by being screwed onto the male screw of the adapter and tightened. The shape of the outer periphery of the nut portion 12B is a tool receiving shape.

  The nose 14 is made of a resin material such as polyacetal (POM), for example, and is a substantially “L” -shaped tubular (hollow) member in a side view. On the arrow A side of the nose 14, a mounting portion 14 </ b> A that is inserted into the nose coupling portion 12 </ b> A and locked by the lock mechanism 16 is formed. The mounting portion 14 </ b> A is formed with an annular engagement groove 18 that is formed on the outer peripheral surface along a surface perpendicular to the beer flow (axis) direction and is locked by the lock mechanism 16. In other words, it can be considered that the annular engagement groove 18 constitutes a part of the lock mechanism 16.

  The nose 14 has a seal portion 14B that protrudes from the mounting portion 14A to the arrow A side and reaches the seal portion 12C in the coupled state shown in FIGS. An O-ring 22 that is a seal member is attached to a seal groove 20 formed substantially parallel to the engagement groove 18 in the seal portion 14B. The O-ring 22 is pressure-bonded to a seal surface 12D that is an inner peripheral surface of the seal portion 12C to seal between the body 12 and the nose 14. Between the mounting portion 14A (engagement groove 18) and the seal portion 14B, a tapered portion 14C having a diameter reduced toward the seal portion 14B is formed. On the other hand, the other end portion of the nose 14 connected to the mounting portion 14A and the inside (flow channel) of the seal portion 14B is a hose connection portion 14D to which a hose (not shown) as a flow channel end is connected.

  The lock mechanism 16 is supported in the nose coupling portion 12A of the body 12 so as to be prevented from coming off, and is supported so as to be relatively displaceable in the axial direction with respect to the body 12 (holding member 24) inside the holding member 24. The collet 26 as a locking member is a main part. The holding member 24 has a short cylindrical shape, and an engagement protrusion 24A that protrudes continuously or intermittently from the outer peripheral surface in the circumferential direction is formed on the inner peripheral surface of the nose coupling portion 12A. By entering 12E, it is held so as not to be displaced relative to the body 12 in the assumed use state.

  A space between the holding member 24 and the step portion 12F between the nose coupling portion 12A and the seal portion 12C in the body 12 is a collet relief groove 28. Further, an engagement step portion 24B is formed on the holding member 24 on the insertion end side of the nose 14. As will be described later, the collet 26 can be displaced relative to the body 12 in the axial direction between the step portion 12F and the engagement step portion 24B.

  The collet 26 is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape as a whole, and a plurality of slits (not shown) are formed in a part (substantially half) on the arrow A side along the axial direction. Spring-like legs 26A are formed. The leg portion 26A can be elastically deformed in the thickness (diameter) direction, and by the deformation, the engaging protrusion 30 formed at the intermediate portion of the axis can be advanced and retracted with respect to the engaging groove 18 of the nose 14. Has been.

  A tapered surface 26C that is inclined so as to face the free end side and the radially inner side is formed at the free end portion 26B of each leg portion 26A. The collet 26 is moved to the arrow A side while engaging the tapered surface 26C with the cam projection 12G protruding from the step portion 12F, so that each leg portion 26A is elastically deformed outward in the radial direction. It has become. Along with this elastic deformation, the collet 26 is configured such that its free end portion 26B enters the collet relief groove 28. In the lock mechanism 16, the collet relief groove 28 in which the free end portion 26 </ b> B advances and retracts ensures a stroke in which the engagement protrusion 30 positioned in the nose coupling portion 12 </ b> A advances and retracts with respect to the annular engagement groove 18. ing.

  In the beer joint 10, the position where the free end portion 26 </ b> B engages with the stepped portion 12 </ b> F is limited to the movement of the collet 26 toward the arrow A as shown in FIG. 9. On the other hand, a retaining step portion 26D that can be engaged with the engaging step portion 24B is formed on the outer side in the radial direction of each leg portion 26A, and the retaining step portion 26D is engaged with the engaging step portion as shown in FIG. The position where the collet 26 engages with 24B is the limit of movement of the collet 26 to the opposite arrow A side.

  The locking operation by the locking mechanism 16 described above will be described later together with the operation of this embodiment.

  In addition, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the collet 26 has a stroke amount from an arbitrary position within the restricted range of the engagement step portion 24 </ b> B and the step portion 12 </ b> F to a movement limit at least toward the arrow A side. Only the unlocking operation portion 26E is projected from the open end of the nose coupling portion 12A (holding member 24) to the nose 14 side. The beer joint 10 includes a cover 32 as a lock release member for releasing the locked state of the nose 14 with respect to the body 12 by the lock mechanism 16.

  The cover 32 is formed in a cap shape (bottomed cylindrical shape) that covers the body 12 from the handle of the nose coupling portion 12A, and a through hole 32B through which the nose 14 passes is formed in the bottom plate portion 32A. Further, a cutout portion 36 is formed on the opening end side of the cylindrical portion 32C of the cover 32 to allow the release restricting projection 34 protruding from the outer periphery of the nose coupling portion 12A to enter. The notch 36 is elongated in the circumferential direction in the circumferential direction of the cylindrical portion 32C, and within a range where the release restricting projection 34 engages both ends 36A, 36B in the longitudinal direction (in this embodiment, approximately ¼ circumference). The relative displacement of the cover 32 with respect to the body 12 is allowed. In this embodiment, two release restricting protrusions 34 and two notch portions 36 are provided with a separation of 180 °.

  In the beer joint 10, a position where the cover 32 is engaged with one end 36 </ b> A of the notch 36 is a lock position (see FIG. 2), and a position where the cover 32 is engaged with the other end 36 </ b> B of the notch 36. Is the unlocking position (see FIG. 1, see FIG. 7 for the end 36B). Specifically, a protrusion escape portion 36C formed deeper than the other portions is formed on the end portion 36B side of the notch portion 36, and the notch portion 36 is disposed in the protrusion escape portion 36C. Is allowed to move in the direction (axial direction) in which the bottom plate portion 32A is brought close to the opening end of the nose coupling portion 12A.

  By this displacement, the cover 32 pushes the unlocking operation portion 26E toward the stepped portion 12F side at the bottom plate portion 32A. Thereby, it is set as the structure by which the locked state of the nose 14 with respect to the body 12 by the lock mechanism 16 (collet 26) is cancelled | released. It should be noted that the cover 32 is prevented from falling off from the body 12 when the retaining protrusion 32D formed on the inner peripheral side engages with the engaging protrusion 12H formed on the outer periphery of the nose coupling portion 12A (see FIG. 2). It is set as the structure prevented. Further, the unlocking operation by the cover 32 will be described later together with the operation of the present embodiment.

  In this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B, from the vicinity of the release restricting protrusion 34 in the nose coupling portion 12A and the vicinity of the end portion 36A of the notch portion 36 in the cover 32, The moderation protrusions 38 and 40 are projected. The moderation protrusions 38 and 40 are configured to give a sense of moderation accompanying unlocking by overcoming each other when the cover 32 is rotated from the locked position to the unlocked position side. In this embodiment, the moderation protrusions 38 and 40 have a steeper slope than the slope over which the moderation protrusions 38 and 40 get over when unlocking, and a large resistance (moderation feeling) when unlocking. It is configured to make you feel.

  The body 12 constituting the beer joint 10 described above is formed in the above shape by injection molding of the resin such as POM described above. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 1, the body 12 is formed with a gate mark (a trace) which is a resin injection port into the mold during injection molding, that is, a gate mark Gm. In the beer joint 10, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the gate mark Gm is formed at the top (vertical corner) T of the nut portion 12 </ b> B having a regular dodecagonal shape when viewed in the axial direction.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the nut portion 12 </ b> B (the cylindrical wall) where the gate mark Gm is formed in the body 12 is thicker than the nose coupling portion 12 </ b> A and the seal portion 12 </ b> C (each cylindrical wall). Has been. That is, if the thickness of the nut portion 12B is tb, and the thickness of the nose coupling portion 12A and the seal portion 12C is ta and tc, then tb ≧ ta and tc.

  Moreover, in the beer joint 10, the tightening torque when the nut portion 12B of the body 12 is connected to the adapter is set to be relatively low (for example, 9.8 Nm at the maximum). The body 12 can withstand a predetermined pressure (for example, about 0.20 to 0.35 MPa) when the beer flows through the beer joint 10 by manually tightening the nut portion 12B to the adapter. The maximum tightening torque described above corresponds to a value obtained by multiplying the manual tightening torque by a required safety factor.

  Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described.

  In the beer joint 10 having the above configuration, when the nose 14 and the body 12 are coupled, the mounting portion 14A of the nose 14 is inserted (inserted) into the nose coupling portion 12A of the body 12. Then, as shown in FIG. 9, the tapered portion 14 </ b> C of the nose 14 pushes the engagement protrusion 30 protruding from the collet 26, and the collet 26 is moved to the arrow A side. Along with this movement, the free end portions 26B of the leg portions 26A constituting the collet 26 are displaced radially outward while engaging the cam projections 12G.

  As a result, the tapered portion 14C of the nose 14 passes through the engaging projection 30 and is inserted deeply into the nose coupling portion 12A, and the engaging groove 18 formed in the nose 14 as shown in FIG. When the position is reached, each engagement protrusion 30 enters the engagement groove 18 by restoration of each leg portion 26A. At this time, the nose 14 moves slightly to the opposite arrow A side together with the collet 26 engaged with the engagement protrusion 30 in the engagement groove 18, and the unlocking operation portion 26 E of the collet 26 is nose-coupled as shown in FIG. It protrudes from the open end of the part 12A. As a result, even if the nose 14 is pulled in the direction in which the nose 14 is pulled out from the body 12, the pulling out is performed by the engagement between the engagement groove 18 and the engagement protrusion 30 and the engagement step portion 24B and the retaining step portion 26D. Is locked.

  Further, by rotating the cover 32 from the unlock position to the lock position, as shown in FIG. 2, the collet 26 may be pushed into the lock release side by the cover 32 due to interference between the cover 32 and the release restricting protrusion 34. It is held in the prohibited lock release prohibited state. That is, the nose 14 is properly attached to the body 12. In the beer joint 10, the nose 14 can be attached to the body 12 in the same procedure as described above except for the lock operation of the cover 32 from the state where the cover 32 is located at the lock position. When beer flows in the beer joint 10, the force in the pulling direction of the nose 14 due to the internal pressure of the beer is engaged between the engagement step 24 </ b> B of the holding member 24 and the collet 26 retaining step 26 </ b> D as shown in FIG. 3. Supported by.

  On the other hand, when separating the body 12 and the nose 14 for cleaning or the like, as shown in FIG. 12, the cover 32 is rotated to the unlocked position and further pushed in the direction of arrow A. Then, the collet 26 is displaced to the arrow A side, and along with this displacement, the tapered surface 26C of the free end portion 26B is guided by the cam projection 12G, and each leg portion 26A is displaced (deformed) radially outward. As a result, the engagement protrusion 30 provided on the leg portion 26A comes out of the engagement groove 18 of the nose 14 (see FIG. 10), and the nose 14 can be pulled out of the body 12 as shown in FIG.

  Here, in the beer joint 10, since the gate mark Gm of the body 12 is formed in the nut portion 12B, the required sealing performance between the body 12 and the nose 14 is ensured. For example, in the body 100 according to the comparative example shown in FIG. 14, a gate mark (not shown) is formed on the outer surface of the seal portion 12C. For this reason, in the body 100, the flow mark Fm is likely to occur on the seal surface 102 with which the O-ring 22 comes into contact. When the flow mark Fm is generated, the surface roughness of the seal surface 102 may not be suppressed within an allowable range depending on molding conditions, which causes a seal failure between the body 100 and the nose 14. Further, when resin is injected from the thin seal portion 12C relative to the nut portion 12B, bubbles and sink marks are likely to occur in the resin (product) as the resin flows from the thin portion to the thick portion.

  On the other hand, in the beer joint 10, since the gate mark Gm of the body 12 is formed on the nut portion 12B, the flow mark Fm is not formed on the seal surface 12D. On the other hand, even if the flow mark Fm is formed on the inner surface (female screw 15) of the nut portion 12B, the sealing performance between the body 12 and the nose 14 is not affected. For this reason, in the beer joint 10, the surface roughness of the seal surface 12D with which the O-ring 22 comes into contact is ensured, and the required sealing performance between the body 12 and the nose 14 can be ensured.

  Moreover, in the beer joint 10, since the gate trace Gm is formed in the nut part 12B which is a thick part in the body 12, it is suppressed that a bubble and sink mark arise in resin at the time of injection molding. In particular, in the beer joint 10, the outer periphery of the nut portion 12 </ b> B is a regular dodecagon (a polygon close to a circle), so that the thickness of each portion in the circumferential direction of the nut portion 12 </ b> B is substantially equalized. This also suppresses the generation of bubbles.

  Further, in the beer joint 10, the gate trace Gm is formed on the top portion T of the regular dodecagon, so that the gate cut after molding is easier than the configuration in which the gate trace is formed on a flat surface (no need for finishing) Or can be simplified) and contributes to a reduction in manufacturing cost. This also contributes to simplification of the mold structure. In addition, since the yield of the product is improved by combining the effects of preventing the generation of the flow mark Fm on the seal surface 12D and suppressing the generation of bubbles, the manufacturing cost of the body 12 can be reduced also from this viewpoint.

  Furthermore, the nut portion 12B (particularly, a configuration having six or more top portions T such as a regular hexagon, a regular octagon, a regular dodecagon, and a regular hexagon as viewed in the axial direction) on which a tightening torque is applied to the adapter, Forming the gate mark Gm may be disadvantageous in strength, but the beer joint 10 according to the present embodiment is applied to the use of low tightening torque as described above, so the strength of the nut portion 12B is a problem. Never become.

  In the above-described embodiment, an example in which the beer joint 10 is applied to a flow path system for flowing beer has been shown. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, beverages such as carbonated drinks, and other fluids. The joint according to the invention can be applied.

10 Beer fittings (Fittings)
12 Body 12C Seal part 12D Seal surface 12B Nut part 12A Nose joint part 14 Nose 22 O-ring Gm Gate trace T Top part

Claims (3)

A nose connected to one end of the flow path;
A nut portion connected to the other flow path end by screwing; a nose coupling portion to which the nose is coupled so that the other flow path end and the one flow path end communicate with each other; A seal portion provided between the nut portion and the nose coupling portion and sandwiching a seal member between the outer peripheral surface of the nose and a gate mark at the time of injection molding is formed in the nut portion. A resin body;
With fittings. The nut portion has a regular polygonal shape when viewed in the axial direction,
The joint according to claim 1, wherein the gate mark is formed on a top portion of the nut portion as viewed in the axial direction.   The joint according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the nut portion is formed thicker than the nose coupling portion and the seal portion.

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