JP2020187621A - Relief valve integrated pressure reduction valve and water heater - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a relief valve integrated pressure reduction valve in which breakage or deformation due to change in a fluid state is less likely to occur, and a water heater.SOLUTION: A relief valve integrated pressure reduction valve 10 comprises: a valve box including a passage through which a fluid flows; a pressure reduction valve provided in the passage and reducing the pressure of a fluid on a downstream side by opening and closing a first valve body according to the pressure of the fluid on the downstream side; a relief valve provided downstream of the pressure reduction valve of the passage, and opening a second valve body to discharge the fluid when the pressure of the fluid on the downstream side is high; a temperature sensor 60 arranged in the passage and detecting the fluid state; and a control unit opening and closing the second valve body of the relief valve on the basis of the fluid state detected by the temperature sensor 60.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to a relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve and a water heater.

Some pressure reducing valves are provided with a relief valve that discharges the fluid to the outside in order to reduce the pressure when the fluid becomes abnormally high pressure.

For example, Patent Documents 1 and 2 have a diaphragm that is elastically deformed by the pressure of a fluid on the downstream side, and a pressure reducing valve that opens and closes the first valve body by elastically deforming the diaphragm, and a first valve provided on the diaphragm. A relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve including a two-valve body and a relief valve having a valve seat urged by an auxiliary spring on the diaphragm is disclosed.

In the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve described in Patent Documents 1 and 2, when the diaphragm is pushed by a fluid having an abnormally high pressure and elastically deforms more than the natural length of the auxiliary spring, the second valve body and the valve of the relief valve A gap is opened between the seats and the fluid is discharged from the gap. This prevents the fluid from becoming an abnormal pressure in this relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve.

Jikkenhei 3-17487 Gazette Registered Utility Model No. 3018088

When the fluid is water, it freezes and its volume increases when the temperature drops below 0 ° C. As a result, abnormal pressure may be applied to the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve.

Generally, the pressure reducing valve opens and closes according to the pressure on the downstream side of the first valve body to reduce the pressure. Therefore, when water freezes on the upstream side of the first valve body of the pressure reducing valve, it is difficult to reduce the pressure with the pressure reducing valve. As a result, when water freezes on the upstream side of the first valve body of the pressure reducing valve, the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve may be deformed or damaged.

Therefore, in order to prevent the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve from being deformed or damaged, it is conceivable to open the second valve body of the relief valve to discharge water when the temperature becomes low. Further, when the pressure rises abnormally on the upstream side of the second valve body of the pressure reducing valve, it is conceivable to open the second valve body of the relief valve to discharge water.

However, in the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve described in Patent Documents 1 and 2, the second valve body of the relief valve opens and closes due to the elastic deformation of the diaphragm. Therefore, the second valve body of the relief valve cannot be opened or closed depending on the temperature of the fluid. As a result, it is difficult for this relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve to open the second valve body and discharge water to prevent deformation or breakage when the temperature becomes low.

In addition, the diaphragm is elastically deformed by the pressure of the fluid on the downstream side. Therefore, the second valve body of the relief valve cannot be opened or closed by the pressure of the fluid on the upstream side. As a result, it is difficult to prevent deformation or breakage of the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve when the pressure rises abnormally on the upstream side of the second valve body.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve and a water heater that are less likely to be damaged or deformed due to a change in the state of the fluid.

In order to achieve the above object, the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve according to the present invention is provided in a valve box having a flow path through which a fluid flows and a first valve body provided in the flow path according to the pressure of the fluid on the downstream side. A pressure reducing valve that opens and closes to reduce the pressure of the fluid on the downstream side, and a pressure reducing valve that is provided downstream of the pressure reducing valve in the flow path and opens the second valve body to discharge the fluid when the pressure of the fluid on the downstream side is high. It is equipped with a relief valve. Further, the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve is arranged in the flow path, and has a sensor for detecting the state of the fluid and a control unit for opening and closing the second valve body of the relief valve based on the state of the fluid detected by the sensor. , Equipped with.

According to the configuration of the present invention, the control unit opens and closes the second valve body of the relief valve based on the state of the fluid detected by the sensor. Therefore, it is possible to prevent damage or deformation of the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve due to the state of the fluid.

Schematic diagram of the piping route of the water heater according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Block diagram of the water heater according to the first embodiment of the present invention Perspective view of the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve included in the water heater according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Perspective view of the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve when the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve provided in the water heater according to the first embodiment of the present invention is cut into two. Cross-sectional view of the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve provided in the water heater according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Hardware configuration diagram of the control device provided in the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve provided in the water heater according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a flow chart of a valve opening / closing process of a control device included in the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve of the water heater according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Block diagram of the water heater according to the second embodiment of the present invention Schematic diagram of the piping route of the water heater according to the second embodiment of the present invention. Schematic diagram of the piping route of the water heater according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve and the water heater according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the figure, the same or equivalent parts are designated by the same reference numerals. In the orthogonal coordinate system XYZ shown in the figure, when the flow path of the housing provided with the valve-integrated pressure reducing valve is directed in the vertical direction and the motor provided with the valve-integrated pressure reducing valve is positioned on the left side with respect to the housing. The left-right direction is the X-axis, the up-down direction is the Z-axis, and the direction orthogonal to the X-axis and the Z-axis is the Y-axis. Hereinafter, this coordinate system will be referred to and described as appropriate.

(Embodiment 1)
The water heater according to the first embodiment is provided with a relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve in order to reduce the pressure of water supplied from an external device. Then, in order to prevent the water from freezing inside at low temperature and damaging the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve itself, the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve opens the temperature sensor for measuring the temperature and the relief valve inside. It has a control unit for draining water.

First, the configuration of the water heater will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. Next, the configuration of the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve included in the water heater will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 to 6.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a piping route of the water heater 1A according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the water heater 1A.

As shown in FIG. 1, the water heater 1A includes a relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 for reducing the pressure of water supplied from the outside of the device, and a water storage tank for storing water decompressed by the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10. 2. The heat source device 3 that heats the water in the water storage tank 2 and returns it to the water storage tank 2 to turn the water in the water storage tank 2 into hot water, the hot water stored in the water storage tank 2, and the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10. It is provided with a mixing valve 4 for mixing the water depressurized by the water and draining it to the outside.

The relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 is connected to a water pipe. The relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 reduces the pressure of water supplied from the water pipe to a preset set pressure. In addition, in this specification, a water pipe is also referred to as a water supply pipe.

Further, the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 extends from the water storage tank 2 and is connected to a connecting pipe branching to the mixing valve 4. The relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 supplies decompressed water to the water storage tank 2 and the mixing valve 4. Further, the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 stops the supply of water from the water pipe to reduce the water pressure in the water storage tank 2 when the water pressure in the water storage tank 2 rises. The detailed configuration of the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 will be described later.

The water storage tank 2 receives the supply of decompressed water from the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10, and also sends the water to the heat source device 3 by the pump 9 described later. On the other hand, the heat source device 3 heats the sent water to boil the hot water, and returns the hot water to the water storage tank 2. The water storage tank 2 supplies the stored hot water to the mixing valve 4 by a pump 9.

The mixing valve 4 mixes the hot water supplied from the water storage tank 2 and the water supplied from the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 at a ratio determined by the control unit 7 described later. As a result, the mixing valve 4 produces hot water at a desired temperature. Then, the hot water is supplied to an external device.

The water heater 1A circulates water and hot water to each of the above-mentioned devices to supply hot water at a desired temperature. In order to boil hot water at a desired temperature, the water heater 1A has an operation unit 5 for setting the temperature of the hot water to be supplied and a heat source device based on the temperature set in the operation unit 5, as shown in FIG. A control unit 7 for controlling the calorific value of 3 and the flow rate of the pump 9 is further provided.

Although not shown, the operation unit 5 includes various operation buttons such as a power button and a temperature setting button, and a liquid crystal display that displays various information such as the operating state of the water heater 1A and the set temperature. When the user presses the power button and then inputs the set temperature using the temperature setting button, the operation unit 5 transmits the set temperature data to the control unit 7.

Although not shown, the control unit 7 receives power from an external power source. On the other hand, the water storage tank 2 described above is provided with a temperature sensor 8. The control unit 7 receives the temperature data detected by the temperature sensor 8. The control unit 7 determines the amount of heat generated by the heat source device 3 based on the received temperature data, and supplies the necessary electric power to the heat source device 3. Further, the control unit 7 determines the flow rate of the water supplied to the heat source device 3 and drives the pump 9.

Further, the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 is provided with a temperature sensor 60. The control unit 7 receives the temperature data of the temperature sensor 60 in addition to the temperature sensor 8 described above, and determines the ratio of water to hot water to be mixed by the mixing valve 4. The control unit 7 transmits a determined ratio to the mixing valve 4 to cause the mixing valve 4 to produce hot water at a desired temperature. In this specification, the control unit 7 is also referred to as a control device. Further, the temperature sensor 60 is also referred to as a temperature detection unit.

In the water heater 1A, as described above, the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 is connected to the water pipe. Water pipes generally pass outdoors in many cases. Therefore, the temperature of the water flowing through the water pipe is easily affected by the outdoor air temperature. As a result, water may freeze in the water pipe, mainly in winter. Then, inside the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 to which the water pipe is connected, the volume of water increases due to freezing, and the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 may be deformed or damaged. Therefore, the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 opens the relief valve at low temperature to drain water. Next, the configuration of the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 to 6.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 included in the water heater 1A according to the first embodiment. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 when the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 is cut in two. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10. FIG. 6 is a hardware configuration diagram of the control unit 70 provided in the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10. Note that FIG. 4 shows the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 when the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 shown in FIG. 3 is cut in a plane extending in the horizontal and vertical directions, that is, a plane parallel to the XZ plane. Shown. FIG. 5 shows the cut surface of FIG. Further, in FIGS. 4 and 5, for easy understanding, the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 is shown with the pressure reducing valve 30 and the relief valve 40 closed.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 includes a housing 20, a pressure reducing valve 30 and a relief valve 40 housed in the housing 20, and a motor 50 adjacent to the housing 20. It has. Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 further includes the above-mentioned temperature sensor 60 and a control unit 70 that drives the motor 50 based on the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 60. ..

As shown in FIG. 3, the housing 20 has a main body portion 21 formed in a circular tubular shape with its tube axis oriented in the left-right direction, and a rectangular parallelepiped box portion 22 provided in the center of the main body portion 21 in the left-right direction. Have. In this specification, the housing 20 is also referred to as a valve box.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the main body 21 is hollow, and both ends in the left-right direction are closed. A pressure reducing valve 30 is incorporated inside the main body 21. Then, in order to supply water to the pressure reducing valve 30, a circular tubular shape extending downward on the right side portion of the main body 21 and having an inflow port 230 to which the above-mentioned water pipe is connected is formed at the lower end thereof. An inflow pipe 23 is provided. Further, on the right side portion of the main body 21, a circle extending upward to discharge water from the pressure reducing valve 30 and having an outlet 240 formed at the upper end to which the above-mentioned connection pipe of the water heater 1A is connected. A tubular outflow pipe 24 is provided.

The box portion 22 is also hollow. The internal space of the box portion 22 is connected to the internal space of the main body portion 21 by opening the wall surfaces at both ends in the left-right direction. The internal space is partitioned in the left-right direction by a diaphragm 33 described later. A relief valve 40 is attached to the diaphragm 33. The box portion 22 is provided with a circular tubular drainage pipe 25 extending downward and having a drainage port 250 formed at the lower end thereof in order to drain water from the relief valve 40. As a result, the box portion 22 can drain the water from the relief valve 40.

On the other hand, the internal space of the main body 21 described above is continuous with the inner peripheral wall of the inflow pipe 23 and is partitioned by a partition wall 210 extending toward the outflow pipe 24.

The partition wall 210 is not continuous with the inner peripheral wall of the outflow pipe 24, but extends to the boundary between the main body 21 and the outflow pipe 24. Further, the end portion of the partition wall 210 is located near the pipe axis of the outflow pipe 24. As a result, the partition wall 210 is located on the right side of the flow path 211 that connects the inflow pipe 23 to the outflow pipe 24, and the flow path 212 that is located on the left side of the flow path 211 and connects the outflow pipe 24 to the diaphragm 33 in the box portion 22. And form.

Further, the partition wall 210 is connected to a cylindrical wall 213 extending in the horizontal direction at the center of the main body 21 in the vertical direction. As a result, the above-mentioned flow path 211 branches in the left-right direction. A pressure reducing valve 30 is provided at the branch destination of the flow path 211 in order to reduce the water pressure in the flow path 211. Further, the flow path 212 is provided with a relief valve 40 in order to prevent damage to the pressure reducing valve 30 when the water pressure on the outflow pipe 24 side is too high.

Next, of the pressure reducing valve 30 and the relief valve 40, the pressure reducing valve 30 will be described.

As shown in FIG. 4, the pressure reducing valve 30 includes a first valve seat 31 provided in the flow path 211, a first valve body 32, and a diaphragm 33 for operating the first valve body 32.

The first valve seat 31 is formed by the above-mentioned cylindrical wall 213. Specifically, the cylindrical wall 213 has a notch portion 214 in which a partial lower region is notched in order to connect to the flow path 211. The first valve seat 31 is formed by a portion of an annular cylindrical wall 213 adjacent to the notch 214.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5, the first valve body 32 is formed in the shape of a cylinder having a small outer diameter at the central portion in the cylindrical axial direction. Its maximum outer diameter is smaller than the inner diameter of the cylindrical wall 213 so that it can slide. The first valve body 32 is fitted in the cylindrical wall 213 with the cylindrical axis oriented in the left-right direction. The outer peripheral portion of the right end is located on the right side of the first valve seat 31. Compared to the first valve seat 31 in order to improve watertightness when the first valve body 32 slides on the outer peripheral portion of the right end of the first valve body 32 to close the gap with the first valve seat 31. An annular seal member 34 having a large outer diameter is attached.

The right end of the first valve body 32 is connected to the first spring 35. The first spring 35 is arranged between the first valve body 32 and the right wall of the main body 21 in a compressed state from the free length. As a result, the first valve body 32 is pressed to the left from the first spring 35.

On the other hand, at the left end of the first valve body 32, the second valve seat 41 included in the relief valve 40 is located. The second valve seat 41 is fixed to the diaphragm 33.

The diaphragm 33 is formed of a thin metal plate. A spring pedestal 37 whose bottom is directed toward the diaphragm 33 is in contact with the left surface. A second spring 36 is fitted in the spring pedestal 37.

The second spring 36 has a larger spring constant than the first spring 35. The second spring 36 is sandwiched between the spring pedestal 37 and the adjustment block 38 fitted inside the main body 21.

Here, the adjustment block 38 is formed in the shape of a cylinder having a disk-shaped collar at the center of the cylinder shaft. Although not shown, a male screw is formed on the outer circumference of the collar. This male screw is screwed into a female screw formed on the inner wall of the main body 21. The adjustment block 38 can be moved in the left-right direction and its position can be changed by rotating. The position of the adjustment block 38 is adjusted so that the second spring 36 is compressed to a length smaller than the free length.

The second spring 36 is compressed from the free length by the spring pedestal 37 and the adjusting block 38. Since the second spring 36 has a larger spring constant than the first spring 35, it has a larger elastic force than the first spring 35. As a result, the diaphragm 33 is pressed to the right by the second spring 36.

On the other hand, as described above, the diaphragm 33 is formed of a thin metal plate. Therefore, the diaphragm 33 is elastically deformable. Then, as described above, the diaphragm 33 partitions the internal space of the box portion 22. The right internal space of the box portion 22 partitioned by the diaphragm 33 is connected to the outflow pipe 24 by the above-mentioned flow path 212. As a result, the diaphragm 33 comes into contact with water when the outflow pipe 24 is filled with water. In that case, the water pressure is applied to the diaphragm 33.

Further, since the first valve body 32 pressed to the left by the elastic force of the first spring 35 pushes the second valve seat 41, the pressure of the elastic force of the first spring 35 is applied to the diaphragm 33 in addition to the above water pressure. It takes.

On the other hand, the second spring 36 is located on the left side of the diaphragm 33. As a result, the pressure of the elastic force of the second spring 36 is applied to the diaphragm 33. As a result, the diaphragm 33 is deformed into a convex shape to the right or left by the differential pressure between the total pressure of the water pressure and the pressure of the first spring 35 and the elastic force of the second spring 36, and the position thereof. Fluctuates.

In this way, the position of the diaphragm 33 changes depending on the water pressure on the outflow pipe 24 side. When the total pressure of the water pressure on the outflow pipe 24 side and the pressure of the first spring 35 is smaller than the pressure of the pressure of the second spring 36, the diaphragm 33 is deformed convexly to the right. In this case, the diaphragm 33 pushes the first valve body 32 to the right and moves it in that direction. When the first valve body 32 moves to the right, the seal member 34 of the first valve body 32 is compressed. As a result, a gap between the first valve body 32 and the first valve seat 31 is opened. As a result, the diaphragm 33 opens the pressure reducing valve 30. In this specification, the water pressure on the outflow pipe 24 side where the pressure reducing valve 30 opens is referred to as a first threshold value.

On the other hand, when the total pressure of the water pressure on the outflow pipe 24 side and the pressure of the first spring 35 is larger than the pressure of the pressure of the second spring 36, the diaphragm 33 is deformed convexly to the left. In this case, the diaphragm 33 pushes the first valve body 32 to the left and moves it in that direction. When the first valve body 32 moves to the right side, the compressed seal member 34 is restored. As a result, the seal member 34 comes into close contact with the first valve seat 31, and the gap between the first valve body 32 and the first valve seat 31 is closed. As a result, the diaphragm 33 closes the pressure reducing valve 30.

In the pressure reducing valve 30, the diaphragm 33 is elastically deformed by increasing the water pressure on the outflow pipe 24 side, and the gap between the first valve body 32 and the first valve seat 31 is closed. As a result, the passage of the pressure reducing valve 30 of water is blocked, and the water pressure on the outflow pipe 24 side is lowered. However, even if the pressure reducing valve 30 is closed, if the water pressure at the connection destination of the outflow pipe 24, for example, the water storage tank 2 is high, the water pressure on the outflow pipe 24 side may not decrease. Therefore, in order to prevent the pressure reducing valve 30 from failing due to the water pressure not decreasing, the diaphragm 33 is provided with a relief valve 40 as described above. Next, the relief valve 40 will be described.

The relief valve 40 includes a second valve seat 41 fixed to the diaphragm 33, a second valve body 43 having a valve shaft 42, a small spring 44 for urging the second valve body 43 to the second valve seat 41, and the like. The diaphragm 33 is elastically deformed to move the valve shaft 42, so that the stopper 45 comes into contact with the valve shaft 42.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the second valve seat 41 is formed in a conical shape having an obtuse angle. And it has a through hole in the apex angle portion. Although not shown, the diaphragm 33 is formed in an annular shape. The second valve seat 41 is fitted into the diaphragm 33 from the right side of the diaphragm 33 with the portion where the through hole is formed facing the left side.

On the other hand, a valve shaft 42 is provided at the left end of the second valve body 43. The valve shaft 42 is passed through the through hole of the second valve seat 41. On the other hand, the left end of the small spring 44 is fixed to the right end of the second valve body 43.

The right end of the small spring 44 is fixed to the first valve body 32 of the pressure reducing valve 30. The diaphragm 33 is pressed against the first valve body 32 by elastically deforming the diaphragm 33. Alternatively, the first valve body 32 is urged to the diaphragm 33 by the elastic force of the first spring 35. As a result, the small spring 44 is compressed. As a result, the small spring 44 brings the second valve body 43 into close contact with the second valve seat 41 by its elastic force. The left end of the valve shaft 42 of the second valve body 43 projects to the left side of the second valve seat 41 in that state. A stopper 45 is arranged further to the left of the valve shaft 42, and the left end of the valve shaft 42 faces the stopper 45.

The stopper 45 is attached to an adjustment block 38 fixed to the inner wall of the main body 21. Specifically, the adjusting block 38 is formed with a screw hole 39 penetrating in the left-right direction. The stopper 45 is formed in the shape of a rod, and a male screw (not shown) is formed on the outer periphery thereof. The stopper 45 is fixed to the adjustment block 38 by screwing a male screw into the screw hole 39. In this specification, the male screw is also referred to as a screw portion.

Further, the stopper 45 is adjusted to a desired position with respect to the diaphragm 33 by being rotated around the rod axis. The desired position is a position where the left end of the valve shaft 42 comes into contact with the valve shaft 42 when the water pressure on the outflow pipe 24 side becomes the desired pressure and the diaphragm 33 is elastically deformed. As a result, when the water pressure on the outflow pipe 24 side becomes higher than the desired pressure, the stopper 45 abuts on the left end of the valve shaft 42, and elastically deforms the diaphragm 33 and limits the movement of the valve shaft 42 to the left. .. As a result, the diaphragm 33 is elastically deformed to the left, while the valve shaft 42 stops moving. As a result, the stopper 45 separates the second valve body 43 from the second valve seat 41 of the diaphragm 33. As a result, the stopper 45 creates a gap between the second valve seat 41 and the second valve body 43, and opens the relief valve 40. The stopper 45 is provided with a motor 50 that adjusts the position by rotating the stopper 45 around the rod shaft in order to abut the valve shaft 42 at a desired position to open the relief valve 40. In the present specification, the desired pressure at which the relief valve 40 opens is referred to as a second threshold value.

Although not shown, the motor 50 has an output shaft connected to a stopper 45. The motor 50 is rotated by the output of the control unit 70 shown in FIG. In this specification, the motor 50 is also referred to as a drive unit.

As described above, the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 is provided with the temperature sensor 60 as shown in FIG. Although not shown, the temperature sensor 60 is arranged in the inflow pipe 23 included in the housing 20. As a result, the temperature sensor 60 detects the temperature of the inflowing water. The temperature sensor 60 transmits the measured temperature data to the control unit 70.

The control unit 70 is realized by the CPU (Central Processing Unit) 120 executing a valve opening / closing program stored in the storage unit 110 shown in FIG. 6 included in the water heater 1A. Returning to FIG. 2, the control unit 70 receives the temperature data from the temperature sensor 60. The control unit 70 drives the motor 50 to open and close the relief valve 40 based on the received temperature data.

Specifically, when the received temperature data is lower than the set temperature value, the control unit 70 determines that the inside of the relief valve 40 freezes, and rotates the motor 50 in the forward direction by a constant rotation amount. Here, the forward rotation is a rotation direction in which the stopper 45 is moved to the right in FIGS. 4 and 5, that is, in a direction approaching the diaphragm 33. As a result, the control unit 70 opens the relief valve 40 by moving the stopper 45 toward the diaphragm 33 and bringing the stopper 45 into contact with the valve shaft 42.

When the temperature data becomes equal to or higher than the set temperature value after the forward rotation of the motor 50, the control unit 70 reversely rotates the motor 50 by the same amount as the above-mentioned forward rotation amount. As a result, the control unit 70 separates the stopper 45 from the valve shaft 42 and closes the relief valve 40. Then, the relief valve 40 is returned to the original state.

Next, the operation of the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 in the water heater 1A will be described. In the following description, it is assumed that the position of the stopper 45 is adjusted in advance to a position where the water pressure at which the relief valve 40 opens is higher than the water pressure at which the pressure reducing valve 30 closes. Further, it is assumed that the constant rotation amount of the motor 50 described above is determined in advance by conducting the drainage experiment, and the data of the constant rotation amount is stored in the storage unit 110. Further, it is assumed that the storage unit 110 stores the data of the set temperature value described above. The set temperature value shall be the temperature at which water freezes, that is, zero degree, which is the freezing point.

FIG. 7 is a flow chart of a valve opening / closing process of the control unit 70 included in the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10.

When the user presses the power button included in the operation unit 5 shown in FIG. 2 to activate the water heater 1A, the valve opening / closing program is executed by the CPU 120 included in the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10. As a result, the flow of valve opening / closing processing is started.

When the flow of the valve opening / closing process is started, first, as shown in FIG. 7, the control unit 70 acquires the temperature data from the temperature sensor 60 (step S1).

Subsequently, the control unit 70 reads the data of the set temperature value T0 from the storage unit 110, and determines whether or not the acquired temperature T is smaller than the read set temperature value T0 (step S2). As a result, the control unit 70 determines whether or not the temperature inside the inflow pipe 23 is lower than the set temperature value T0.

When the control unit 70 determines that the temperature T is lower than the set temperature value T0 (Yes in step S2), the water temperature in the inflow pipe 23 is low and the water may freeze, so that the motor 50 is rotated forward. (Step S3). At this time, the control unit 70 reads out the rotation amount data of the motor 50 stored in the storage unit 110, and rotates the motor 50 in the forward direction by the read rotation amount. As a result, the control unit 70 opens the relief valve 40. As a result, the control unit 70 drains the water in the inflow pipe 23 to prevent the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 from being damaged due to the increase in volume due to freezing of the water.

On the other hand, when the control unit 70 determines that the temperature T is equal to or higher than the set temperature value T0 (No in step S2), the control unit 70 returns to step S1 and acquires the temperature data of the temperature sensor 60 again. By repeating steps S1 and S2, the control unit 70 monitors whether the water temperature in the inflow pipe 23 is lower than the set temperature value T0.

After rotating the motor 50 in the forward direction, the control unit 70 acquires temperature data from the temperature sensor 60 again (step S4). Subsequently, in order to determine whether or not the relief valve 40 may be closed, it is determined whether or not the temperature T is equal to or higher than the set temperature value T0 (step S5).

When the control unit 70 determines that the temperature T is equal to or higher than the set temperature value T0 (Yes in step S5), the water temperature in the inflow pipe 23 becomes high, or the water in the inflow pipe 23 escapes and enters the inside. The motor 50 is rotated in the reverse direction (step S6), assuming that the temperature of the air is high and there is no risk of freezing as a result. The amount of rotation at this time is the same as the amount of rotation in step S3. As a result, the relief valve 40 is closed.

On the other hand, when the control unit 70 determines that the temperature T is lower than the set temperature value T0 (No in step S5), the control unit 70 returns to step S4 and continues to acquire the temperature data and determine the temperature T. As a result, the relief valve 40 is opened until the water temperature or the air temperature in the inflow pipe 23 rises and there is no risk of freezing.

The control unit 70 returns to step S1 after the motor 50 is rotated in the reverse direction to close the relief valve 40. As a result, temperature monitoring is continued.

The above flow continues until the user presses the power button on the operation unit 5 again to stop the operation of the water heater 1A. When the power button is pressed again and the operation of the water heater 1A is stopped, the flow of the valve opening / closing process is forcibly terminated.

Although the control unit 70 performs the valve opening / closing process, the control unit 7 included in the water heater 1A may perform the valve opening / closing process.

Further, the operation unit 5 is provided with a forced discharge button, and when the forced discharge button is pressed, the operation unit 5 outputs a forced discharge signal, and the control unit 70 receives the output to cause the motor 50 to operate. The relief valve 40 may be opened by rotating it in the forward direction. In this case, when the forced discharge button is pressed again, the control unit 70 may rotate the motor 50 in the reverse direction to close the relief valve 40.

As described above, in the water heater 1A according to the first embodiment, the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 opens and closes the second valve body 43 of the relief valve 40 based on the temperature of water detected by the temperature sensor 60. The control unit 70 is provided. Therefore, by opening and closing the second valve body 43 at the temperature at which the control unit 70 freezes water, it is possible to prevent the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 from being damaged or deformed due to freezing.

(Embodiment 2)
In the first embodiment, the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 opens and closes the second valve body 43 of the relief valve 40 based on the temperature data detected by the temperature sensor 60. However, the present invention is not limited to this. The water heater 1B according to the second embodiment includes a pressure sensor 61. Then, the control unit 70 opens and closes the second valve body 43 of the relief valve 40 based on the pressure data detected by the pressure sensor 61. Hereinafter, the water heater 1B according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9. In the second embodiment, a configuration different from that of the first embodiment will be described.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram of the water heater 1B according to the second embodiment. FIG. 9 is a schematic view of the piping route of the water heater 1B.

As shown in FIG. 8, the water heater 1B includes a pressure sensor 61 that detects water pressure.

As shown in FIG. 9, the pressure sensor 61 is arranged on the upstream side of the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10, that is, on the water supply side for supplying water. In detail, although not shown, the pressure sensor 61 is arranged in the inflow pipe 23 of the housing 20 included in the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10. As a result, the pressure sensor 61 detects the pressure of the inflowing water and transmits the detected pressure data to the control unit 70. In this specification, the pressure sensor 61 is also referred to as a pressure detection unit.

Returning to FIG. 8, the control unit 70 receives the pressure data from the pressure sensor 61 and drives the motor 50 based on the received pressure data. As a result, the control unit 70 opens and closes the relief valve 40.

More specifically, the storage unit 110 described in the first embodiment stores a set pressure value as a reference for opening and closing the relief valve 40. When the received pressure data is higher than the set pressure value stored in the storage unit 110, the control unit 70 rotates the motor 50 in the forward direction by a constant rotation amount described in the first embodiment. As a result, the control unit 70 moves the stopper 45 toward the diaphragm 33 and opens the relief valve 40. As a result, the control unit 70 prevents the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 from being damaged or deformed due to an increase in water pressure.

After rotating the motor 50 in the forward direction, the control unit 70 rotates the motor 50 in the reverse direction by the same amount as the rotation amount of the forward rotation when the pressure data becomes less than the set pressure value. As a result, the control unit 70 separates the stopper 45 from the valve shaft 42 and closes the relief valve 40.

The operation of the water heater 1B is whether or not the temperature data acquisition in steps S1 and S4 shown in FIG. 7 is the acquisition of pressure data, and the temperature T in step S2 is smaller than the set temperature value T0. The determination is whether the pressure is higher than the set pressure value, and in step S5, the determination of whether the temperature T is equal to or higher than the set temperature value T0 is whether the pressure is equal to or lower than the set pressure value. It is the same except that it is a judgment of whether or not. Therefore, in the second embodiment, the description of the operation of the water heater 1B will be omitted.

As described above, in the water heater 1B according to the second embodiment, the control unit 70 opens and closes the second valve body 43 of the relief valve 40 based on the pressure of water detected by the pressure sensor 61. Therefore, when the pressure of the water in the inflow pipe 23 becomes high, the pressure sensor 61 detects the pressure, and the control unit 70 opens the second valve body 43, so that the water pressure in the inflow pipe 23 becomes high. It is possible to prevent the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 from being damaged or deformed due to an increase in pressure.

(Embodiment 3)
In the second embodiment, the pressure sensor 61 is arranged in the inflow pipe 23 of the housing 20. However, the present invention is not limited to this. In the water heater 1C according to the third embodiment, the pressure sensor 62 is arranged in the outflow pipe 24. Hereinafter, the water heater 1C according to the third embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. In the third embodiment, a configuration different from the first and second embodiments will be described.

FIG. 10 is a schematic view of the piping route of the water heater 1C according to the third embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 10, the water heater 1C includes a pressure sensor 62 that detects water pressure, as in the second embodiment.

The pressure sensor 62 is arranged on the downstream side of the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10, that is, on the mixing valve 4 side and the water storage tank 2 side. Although not shown in detail, the pressure sensor 62 is arranged in the outflow pipe 24 of the housing 20 of the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10. As a result, the pressure sensor 62 detects the pressure of the water in the outflow pipe 24 and transmits the detected pressure data to the control unit 70.

The control unit 70 receives pressure data from the pressure sensor 62 and drives the motor 50 based on the received pressure data. As a result, the control unit 70 opens the relief valve 40 when, for example, an abnormal state occurs in which the water pressure does not decrease even though the pressure reducing valve 30 is closed and the pressure is reduced. To eliminate.

The configuration of the control unit 70 and the operation of the water heater 1C are the same as those in the second embodiment. Therefore, in the third embodiment, those description will be omitted.

As described above, in the water heater 1C according to the third embodiment, the pressure sensor 62 is arranged in the outflow pipe 24. Therefore, the pressure reducing valve 30 can be opened and closed based on the water pressure in the outflow pipe 24.

Further, in the water heater 1C, since the pressure sensor 62 is arranged in the outflow pipe 24, it is possible to check the operation of whether the pressure reducing valve 30 opens and closes at a desired pressure. For example, the assembly work can be facilitated by checking the operation of the pressure reducing valve 30 at the time of assembling the water heater 1C.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, in the first embodiment, the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 includes a temperature sensor 60. In the second and third embodiments, the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 includes pressure sensors 61 and 62. However, the present invention is not limited to this. The relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 may be provided with a sensor for detecting the state of water.

For example, in addition to the temperature sensor 60 and the pressure sensors 61 and 62, a flow velocity sensor may be provided. In this case, if the flow velocity detected by the flow velocity sensor does not change for a certain period of time, in other words, if the fluctuation of the flow velocity is only below the threshold value, the control unit 70 states that the water heater 1A-1C has not been operated for a long period of time. After determining, the relief valve 40 may be opened to drain water from the water heater 1A-1C. With such a form, it is possible to prevent rust due to long-term non-use and failure of the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 due to accumulation of impurities.

In the first to third embodiments, the temperature sensor 60 or the pressure sensors 61 and 62 are arranged inside the inflow pipe 23 or the outflow pipe 24. However, the present invention is not limited to this. As described above, the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 may include a sensor for detecting the state of water. Therefore, the arrangement of the temperature sensor 60 or the pressure sensors 61 and 62 is arbitrary as long as the temperature or pressure of water can be detected.

For example, the temperature sensor 60 or the pressure sensors 61 and 62 may be provided inside the flow paths 211 and 212 formed in the main body 21 included in the housing 20. Further, the temperature sensor 60 may be arranged on the outer peripheral portion of the inflow pipe 23. In this case, the temperature sensor 60 may output the temperature of the outer peripheral portion thereof as the temperature of water. Alternatively, the control unit 70 may estimate the temperature of water from the temperature of the outer peripheral portion detected by the temperature sensor 60. Specifically, the control unit 70 may obtain the relationship between the temperature of the outer peripheral portion and the temperature of water in advance, and obtain the temperature of water based on the data showing the relationship.

In the first to third embodiments, the control unit 70 rotates the motor 50 by a certain amount of rotation to open and close the relief valve 40. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Since the control unit 70 only needs to open and close the relief valve 40, the amount of rotation of the motor 50 rotated by the control unit 70 is arbitrary. For example, the control unit 70 may rotate the motor 50 by the amount of rotation corresponding to the temperature fluctuation detected by the temperature sensor 60. In such a form, the relief valve 40 can be opened at an opening degree corresponding to the fluctuation of the temperature. Similarly, the control unit 70 may rotate the motor 50 by the amount of rotation corresponding to the fluctuation of the pressure detected by the pressure sensors 61 and 62. In such a form, the relief valve 40 can be opened at an opening degree corresponding to the fluctuation of the pressure.

In the first to third embodiments, the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 is used for the water heater 1A-1C, but the present invention is not limited thereto. The relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 may be used for equipment other than the water heater 1A-1C. For example, the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 may be used in a water storage tank of a building. It may also be used to connect to water pipes in buildings.

In the first to third embodiments, water is circulating in the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10, but the present invention is not limited to this. A fluid may circulate in the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10. For example, the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve 10 may be connected to a pipe through which the refrigerant flows, and the refrigerant may flow.

1A-1C water supply, 2 water storage tank, 3 heat source device, 4 mixing valve, 5 operation unit, 7 control unit, 8 temperature sensor, 9 pump, 10 relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve, 20 housing, 21 main body, 22 Box, 23 inflow pipe, 24 outflow pipe, 25 drain pipe, 30 pressure reducing valve, 31 first valve seat, 32 first valve body, 33 diaphragm, 34 seal member, 35 first spring, 36 second spring, 37 spring Pedestal, 38 adjustment block, 39 screw hole, 40 relief valve, 41 second valve seat, 42 valve shaft, 43 second valve body, 44 small spring, 45 stopper, 50 motor, 60 temperature sensor, 61, 62 pressure sensor, 70 Control unit, 110 storage unit, 120 CPU, 210 partition wall, 211,212 flow path, 213 cylindrical wall, 214 notch, 230 inlet, 240 outlet, 250 drain.

Claims (11)

A valve box with a flow path through which fluid flows,
A pressure reducing valve provided in the flow path that opens and closes the first valve body according to the pressure of the fluid on the downstream side to reduce the pressure of the fluid on the downstream side.
A relief valve provided downstream of the pressure reducing valve in the flow path and opening the second valve body to discharge the fluid when the pressure of the fluid on the downstream side is high.
A sensor arranged in the flow path and detecting the state of the fluid,
A control unit that opens and closes the second valve body of the relief valve based on the state of the fluid detected by the sensor.
Relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve equipped with. The sensor has a temperature detection unit that detects the temperature of the fluid.
The control unit opens the second valve body of the relief valve based on the temperature detected by the temperature detection unit.
The relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve according to claim 1. The control unit opens the second valve body of the relief valve when the temperature detected by the temperature detection unit is smaller than the set temperature value set below the freezing point of the fluid.
The relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve according to claim 2. The sensor has a pressure detection unit that detects the pressure of the fluid.
The control unit opens the second valve body of the relief valve based on the pressure detected by the pressure detection unit.
The relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve according to any one of claims 1 to 3. The pressure detection unit is arranged on the upstream side of the pressure reducing valve in the flow path.
The control unit opens the second valve body of the relief valve based on the pressure of the fluid on the upstream side detected by the pressure detection unit.
The relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve according to claim 4. The pressure detection unit is arranged on the downstream side of the pressure reducing valve in the flow path.
The control unit opens the second valve body of the relief valve based on the pressure of the fluid on the downstream side detected by the pressure detection unit.
The relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve according to claim 4. The pressure reducing valve is
The first valve seat provided in the flow path, the diaphragm elastically deformed by the pressure of the fluid on the downstream side of the first valve seat, and the first valve seat due to the elastic deformation of the diaphragm. It has the first valve body that opens and closes the gap,
The gap opens when the pressure of the fluid on the downstream side is equal to or lower than the first threshold value, and closes when the pressure of the fluid on the downstream side is greater than the first threshold value.
The relief valve is
The second valve seat provided on the diaphragm, the valve shaft passed through the through hole penetrating the second valve seat, and the second valve to which the valve shaft is connected and urged to the second valve seat. Have a body
When the pressure of the fluid on the downstream side is larger than the second threshold value, the diaphragm is elastically deformed to move the valve shaft to hit the stopper provided on the valve box, and the second valve seat and the said. Open a gap with the second valve body,
The relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve according to any one of claims 1 to 6. Further provided with a drive unit for moving the stopper to change the position of the stopper with respect to the diaphragm.
The control unit drives the drive unit to change the position of the stopper with respect to the diaphragm based on the state of the fluid detected by the sensor.
The relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve according to claim 7. The stopper has the shape of a rod having a screw portion screwed into a screw hole penetrating the valve box on the outer peripheral portion.
The drive unit has a motor for rotating the stopper.
The control unit controls the amount of rotation of the motor to change the position of the stopper with respect to the diaphragm.
The relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve according to claim 8. The relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve according to any one of claims 1 to 9.
A water supply pipe connected to the relief valve integrated pressure reducing valve and
Water heater equipped with. Water is supplied to the flow path from the water supply pipe.
The sensor is a temperature sensor that measures the temperature of water supplied to the water supply pipe.
A control device for controlling the calorific value of the heat source device for heating the water supplied from the water supply pipe based on the temperature sensor is provided.
The water heater according to claim 10.

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