JP2570354Y2 - Automatic gas switching regulator - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automatic gas switching regulator, and more particularly to a high-pressure gas from a gas container which is regulated to a predetermined gas pressure and supplied, and the remaining amount of the gas container being used is small. The present invention relates to an automatic gas switching regulator for switching over to a spare gas container side to supply gas when it becomes.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 3 shows a gas supply system using an automatic gas switching regulator of this type. In the drawing, reference numeral 1 denotes an automatic gas switching regulator. 2 and the gas supply end of the spare gas container 3 are connected to supply a high-pressure gas, and the gas whose gas pressure has been adjusted is supplied to a terminal gas device (not shown) via the gas pipe 4.

[0003] The automatic gas switching regulator 1 is specifically configured as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. In the figure, a peripheral portion of a diaphragm 103 is fixed between a lower case 101 and an upper case 102, and each case 101,
102 is divided into a pressure adjustment chamber 104 and an atmospheric pressure chamber 105, and the balance with the pressure adjustment chamber 104 is maintained by a spring 106 contracted toward the atmospheric pressure chamber 105.
Below the lower case 101 forming the pressure adjustment chamber 104, the high pressure gas inlets 101a,
101b are formed, and a gas container is connected to each of these inflow ports via a high-pressure hose.

At the center of the diaphragm 103, a switching rotary shaft 107 that moves up and down together therewith is provided so as to project therethrough.
The upper end of the switching rotary shaft 107 is
02a, which protrudes out of the upper case 102 through a hollow hole 108a of a hollow rotating body 108 rotatably mounted on the rotating body 02a. The protruding end 107a of the switching rotary shaft 107 is the hollow rotary body 1
08 is linked to the display body 109 swingably supported at 08, and the protruding end 107a acts on the display body 109 to swing by the movement of the switching rotary shaft 107 in the thrust direction.

[0005] The display body 109 is located above the switching rotary shaft 107 at an ascending position, and swings downward due to the lowering of the switching rotating shaft 107 due to a decrease in gas pressure. Display window 110a provided on the side of 110
It is possible to visually confirm the decrease in the gas through the filter.

The switching rotary shaft 107 whose upper end is mounted in the hollow hole 108a is slidable in the thrust direction with respect to the hollow rotary body 108, but is not rotatable in the radial direction. The switching rotary shaft 107 is rotated by the rotation of the hollow rotary body 108. The manual switching knob 110 is engaged with and attached to a flange 108b formed at the upper end of the hollow rotating body 108.

A cam body 111 is integrally formed with the switching rotary shaft 107 protruding into the pressure adjusting chamber 104 so that the switching rotary shaft 107 is rotated by the operation of the manual switching knob 110 so as to rotate together therewith. It is provided in. The cam body 111 has two flat surfaces 11 having different heights at positions separated by 180 degrees.
1a, 111b and tapered surface 1 connecting these two flat surfaces
11c. The two flat surfaces of the cam surface are a pressure adjusting chamber 104 and the high-pressure gas inlet 10.
1a, 101b and valve holes 112a, 11 formed
Actuating rod 114 of valve body 113a, 113b for opening and closing 2b
a, 114b.

The valve bodies 113a and 113b always have a valve hole 112.
a, 112b in the closing direction.
5b, the flat surfaces 111a, 111b
Are actuated by the lowering of the cam body 111.
b, the valve bodies 113a and 113b
15a and 115b are pushed down to
a, 112b are opened.

According to the above-described configuration, by operating the manual switching knob 110 to rotate the switching rotary shaft 107, the cam body 111 integrated therewith is rotated, and one side of the high-pressure gas inlet 101a is rotated by the rotation of the cam body. The other can be set as the main inlet and the other as the auxiliary inlet 101b.

When the gas pressure in the pressure adjusting chamber 104 becomes lower than the gas pressure set by the spring 106 for setting the pressure, the diaphragm 103 moves to the pressure adjusting chamber 1.
04, the cam body 111 is lowered, the cam body 111 is lowered, and the valve body 113a provided in the valve hole 112a of the main flow inlet 101a and the pressure adjusting chamber 104 is operated via the operating rod 114a to form the valve hole 1
12a is opened, and the high-pressure gas in the gas container is supplied under reduced pressure. When the remaining amount of gas in the gas container connected to the main inlet 101a becomes small and the pressure in the pressure adjusting chamber 104 cannot be maintained at the set pressure, the cam body 111 further descends and the valve body on the auxiliary inlet 101b side. 113b operating rod 11
It operates to open via 4b and performs automatic switching of the gas container.

When the cam body 111 descends as described above,
At the same time, the switching rotary shaft 107 is also lowered. By the lowering operation of the switching rotary shaft, the display body 109 indicating that the gas container has been switched is swung by the upper end portion 107a, and the display window of the manual switching knob 110 is rotated. By facing the gas container 110a, the switching of the gas container can be visually recognized through the display window.

When the display confirms that the used gas container has been emptied and the spare gas container has been switched, the delivery person of the gas supplier removes the empty gas container and replaces it with a new gas container. After connection, the manual switching knob 110 is rotated 180 degrees. As a result, the inlet which has been used as the auxiliary inlet 101b and the main inlet 101a becomes the main inlet and the auxiliary inlet, and the existing spare gas container serves as the used gas container and the new gas container serves as the spare gas container. Will do it.

In the automatic switching regulator described above with reference to FIG. 4, the delivery person indicates on the display 10 that the gas container has been switched.
Since it cannot be known unless the confirmation is made by the display of 9, the deliveryman must regularly visit the houses of many customers to perform this confirmation work. Therefore, in order to streamline operations for gas container replacement and delivery, information on switching gas containers is transmitted to a remote distribution center using a transmission line, eliminating the need to go around and check each time. Some are good.

The automatic switching regulator of FIG. 6 is capable of transmitting the switching information of the gas container as described above. The automatic switching regulator has a magnet 120 built in the display 109 and is arranged on the periphery of the shoulder of the upper case 102. A pair of reed switches 122a and 122b which are opened and closed by the contact and separation of the magnet 120 are provided inside the cover 121 thus formed.

With this configuration, the gas container in use is emptied, and the pressure in the pressure adjustment chamber 104 is reduced, so that the display 109
As shown in FIG. 6A, the lead switch 12 moves downward from the state shown in FIG.
2a is opened and the valve body 113b on the side of the preliminary inflow port 101b is lowered by the lowering of the switching rotary shaft 107, and
13b is opened to start gas supply from the spare gas container. By detecting that the reed switch 122a has been opened and transmitting the switching information through the transmission line, it is possible to notify the delivery center that the gas container has been switched, so that it is not necessary to perform a check operation by patrol. ing.

[0016]

By the way, in the above-mentioned conventional automatic switching regulator, the manual switching knob 110
As shown in FIG. 7, a stopper piece 102a is formed on the outer wall of the upper case 102, and two step portions 110b (one (Only shown), and the positioning surface of one step portion 110b abuts against _one surface A1 of the stopper piece 102a by a rotation operation in one direction of the manual switching knob 110 indicated by an arrow, and is adapted to perform manual switching so as to abut against the positioning surface of the stepped portion on the other surface a ₂ of the stopper piece 102a is not the other illustrated by 180 degrees of the rotation operation.

When the switching rotary shaft 107 is rotated, a torsional force acts on the rubber ring mounted around the switching rotary shaft 107 for maintaining airtightness and a spring component for setting pressure. When the rotational force to the switching rotary shaft 107 is released, these repulsive forces act on the switching rotary shaft 107. For this reason, the stopper piece 102a
Manual switching knob 110 so that
By simply rotating the cam, the cam body 111 also slightly reverses together with the switching rotary shaft 107 due to the repulsive force.

Further, on the cam surface of the cam body 111, the two operating rods 114a,
A tapered surface 111c is formed between two flat surfaces 111a and 111b having different heights with which the tip of 114b is in contact. When the inclination of the tapered surface 111c is steep, the rotation of the manual switching knob 110 causes the cam body 11 to rotate.
1 rotates, the frictional resistance between the operating rods 114a and 114b and the tapered surface 111c increases, and the operating rod 11
Wear of the tips of 4a and 114b becomes severe.

During a long period of use, the descending amount of the switching rotary shaft 107 becomes large, and the automatic switching display of the gas container is performed gradually and quickly, and the gas remaining amount is still sufficient. The gas container must be replaced before long, and the delivery frequency of the gas container increases accordingly for the gas supplier, which is not preferable in terms of economic efficiency. Therefore, if the angle of the tapered surface is increased so that the inclination of the tapered surface 111c becomes as gentle as possible, the flat surface 111
The area of a, 111b is reduced.

As described above, the flat surfaces 111a, 111b
In a situation where the area of is small, if the rotation operation of the manual switching knob 110 is released and the cam body 111 is slightly returned,
The tips of the operating rods 114a and 114b are disengaged from the flat surfaces 111a and 111b of the cam body 111 and come into contact with the tapered surface 111c. Is performed promptly, and a display indicating that the gas container needs to be replaced is made while the remaining gas amount is sufficient, thereby causing the same inconvenience.

In particular, in the case where the reed switches 122a and 122b are opened by the approach of the magnet 120 to notify the switching, the manual switching knob 110 is returned to return the magnet 120 and the reed switches 122a and 122a.
There is a possibility that the positional relationship with 22b becomes out of order and the switching notification cannot be performed normally.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, it is a first object of the present invention to provide an automatic switching regulator capable of accurately displaying switching of gas supply in view of the above-mentioned conventional problems.

A second object of the present invention is to provide an automatic switching regulator capable of accurately detecting gas supply switching in view of the above-mentioned conventional problems.

[0024]

In order to achieve the first object, an automatic switching regulator according to the present invention comprises a pair of high-pressure gas inlets, each of which is connected to a gas container, and a pressure regulating chamber. A diaphragm forming a part thereof, a valve element provided in a gas flow path between each of the pair of high-pressure gas inlets and the pressure adjusting chamber, and a rotatably penetratingly provided through the diaphragm. A switching rotary shaft that moves up and down together with the diaphragm according to the pressure in the pressure adjustment chamber, and a height of each of the switching rotary shafts that are integrally provided on the switching rotation shaft that protrudes into the pressure adjustment chamber and correspond to the valve bodies, respectively. 2 different
A cam body having a cam surface composed of two flat surfaces and a tapered surface connecting the two flat surfaces, and an internal hollow manual switch connected to the switching rotary shaft protruding out of the pressure adjustment chamber so as to rotate therewith. A knob, a positioning surface provided on one of the manual switching knob and the fixing portion for regulating the rotation angle of the manual switching knob and the fixing portion, and a positioning surface provided in contact with the stopper member for positioning. A display body that is swingably supported within the knob and swings in accordance with the vertical movement of the switching rotary shaft, wherein the rotation of the manual switching knob rotates the cam body via the switching rotary shaft. One of the gas containers connected to the pair of high-pressure gas inlets is used for use, and the other is set for spare, according to the pressure in the pressure regulation chamber, which drops when the gas container in use becomes substantially empty. Before Activating the valve element provided in the flow path between the high-pressure gas inlet and the pressure adjustment chamber to which a preliminary gas container is connected by the diaphragm and the cam body descending together with the switching rotary shaft, and operating the preliminary gas container In the gas automatic switching regulator, which starts the gas supply from the display and swings the display body by lowering the switching rotation axis to display the gas supply from the spare gas container, The stopper piece is provided so that the stopper piece can move over the stopper piece, and the manual switching knob is held by the protrusion and the positioning surface at a position where the stopper piece and the positioning surface come into contact with each other. Features.

The diaphragm is fixed between the lower case and the upper case forming the pressure adjusting chamber with a peripheral portion interposed therebetween, the stopper piece is formed on the outer wall of the upper case, and the positioning surface is manually switched. It is characterized by being formed inside the knob.

In order to achieve the second object, the automatic switching regulator according to the present invention comprises a spare gas which is opened and closed by a magnet built in the display and the magnet approached by the swing of the display. A pair of reed switches for detecting the start of gas supply from the container.

[0027]

With the above arrangement, the stopper piece provided on one of the manual switching knob and the fixing portion abuts the positioning surface provided on the other, thereby restricting the rotation angle of the manual switching knob.
A protrusion is provided adjacent to the positioning surface, and the stopper piece can ride over this protrusion so that the protrusion and the stopper piece can move mutually, so the manual switching knob makes the stopper piece and the positioning surface abut each other. It is held in the position that was set.

Therefore, the switching rotary shaft and the cam body which rotate together with the manual switching knob are also positioned at predetermined positions, and when the cam body descends together with the diaphragm and the switching rotary shaft in response to a decrease in pressure in the pressure adjustment chamber. The valve body is activated by the flat surface of the cam body, and gas supply from the spare gas container can be started only when the gas container in use is almost empty, and the display on the display is also accurate. Will be performed at an appropriate timing.

Further, the reed switch is reliably opened and closed by the magnet in the display body, and it is possible to detect that the supply gas container has been switched only when the gas container in use is almost empty.

[0030]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows an essential part of an embodiment of an automatic gas switching regulator according to the present invention, and the parts not shown are the same as those described above with reference to FIGS. In FIG. 1, a projection 110c is formed on the inner wall of the manual switching knob 110 adjacent to the positioning surface of the step 110b. This protrusion 110c
Are stopper pieces 102 formed on the outer wall of the upper case 102.
The protrusion 110c is formed at a position where the stopper piece 102a moves over the protrusion 110c when the manual switching knob 110 is rotated.

[0031] Thus, for switching the gas container gas supplied by rotating the manual switch knob 110, rotating the manual switch knob 110 until the positioning surface of one of the stepped portion 110b abuts on one surface A ₁ of the stopper piece 102a Then, the stopper piece 102a has to climb over the protrusion 110c, and the manual switching knob 110 is securely moved to the predetermined position by the click feeling due to the resistance generated at this time and the subsequent collision with the stopper piece 102a on the positioning surface. It can know that it was operated.

When the manual switching knob 110 is rotated to a predetermined position, the stopper piece 102a is positioned between the positioning surface and the projection 110c, and the manual switching knob 110 rotates in the opposite direction. In order for the protrusion 110
c must get over the stopper piece 102a.
Therefore, even if the switching rotation shaft 107 is rotated by the rotation operation of the manual switching knob 110 and the rubber ring or the spring component is twisted to generate a repulsive force in the opposite direction, the resilient force causes the protrusion 110c to move the stopper piece 102a. It cannot be moved over, and the manual switching knob 110,
As a result, the switching rotary shaft and the cam body are held at predetermined positions.

The automatic switching display of the gas container is performed promptly,
The display indicating that the gas container needs to be replaced while the remaining gas amount is sufficient does not occur, and the possibility that the switching notification cannot be normally performed is eliminated.

FIG. 2 is a bottom view showing the inside of the manual switching knob 110. The step 110b with which the stopper piece contacts is 18
Two are formed at a distance of 0 degrees, and the inner wall of the synthetic resin manual switching knob 110 is partially thickened at a portion adjacent to the positioning surface of the step portion 110b to form a projection 110c. . When the manual switching knob 110 is rotated, it can be rotated within a range of X of 180 degrees with respect to a stopper piece 102a indicated by a virtual line integrally formed on the outer wall of the die-cast upper case 102.

In FIG. 2, reference numeral 110d is engaged with a notch (not shown) of a flange 108b (FIG. 4) of the hollow rotary body 108 (FIG. 4) to rotatably connect the manual switching knob 110 to the hollow rotary body 108. Engagement projection 110e is the hollow rotor 10
8 is an engagement piece engaged so as to hold the collar 108b to hold the manual knob switching knob 110 connected to 8 in the mounted state.

In the illustrated embodiment, the stopper piece is provided on the upper case 102 side and the two step portions are provided on the manual switching knob side, respectively. The step may be provided on the upper case side. In this case, the protrusion is formed on the upper case side together with the step.

[0037]

According to the present invention as described above, according to the present invention, when the manual switching knob is rotated, the stopper piece rides over the projection and abuts on the positioning surface, and in the manual switching knob, the stopper piece and the positioning surface abut on each other. The cam body is also positioned at a predetermined position, and when the cam body is lowered, the valve body is reliably actuated by the flat surface of the cam body, and the gas in use is The gas supply from the spare gas container can be started only when the container is almost empty, and the display by the display is performed at an appropriate timing.

Further, the reed switch is opened and closed by the magnet in the display body reliably, and it is possible to accurately detect that the supply gas container has been switched only when the gas container in use is almost empty.

Further, the presence of the projection causes a click feeling when the stopper piece gets over the stopper piece, so that it is possible to know that the manual switching knob has been reliably operated to the predetermined position, so that the operator can do so. You can check the certainty of the rotation operation you have performed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a main part of an embodiment of an automatic gas switching regulator according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a bottom view showing the entire manual switching knob in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a gas supply system to which the automatic gas switching regulator according to the present invention is applied;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a general configuration of an automatic gas switching regulator.

FIG. 5 is a front view of the automatic gas switching regulator of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a partially modified example of the automatic gas switching regulator of FIG. 4;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view showing a main part of a conventional automatic gas switching regulator.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Automatic gas switching regulator 101 Lower case 101a, 101b High-pressure gas inflow port 102 Upper case 102a Stopper piece 103 Diaphragm 104 Pressure adjustment chamber 107 Switching rotation axis 109 Display 110 Manual switching knob 110b Step (positioning surface) 110c Projection 111 Cam body 111a, 111b Flat surface 111c Tapered surface 113a, 103b Valve body 120 Magnet 122a, 122b A pair of reed switches

Claims (3)

(57) [Scope of request for utility model registration] 1. A pair of high-pressure gas inlets each connected to a gas container, a diaphragm forming a part of a pressure adjusting chamber, each of the pair of high-pressure gas inlets, and the pressure adjusting chamber. A switching element that is provided in the gas flow path between the diaphragm and a switching rotary shaft that is rotatably penetrated through the diaphragm and that moves up and down together with the diaphragm according to the pressure in the pressure adjustment chamber; A cam body having a cam surface composed of two flat surfaces which are integrally provided on the switching rotary shaft protruding into the adjustment chamber and have different heights respectively corresponding to the valve bodies, and a tapered surface connecting the two flat surfaces; An internal hollow manual switching knob connected to the switching rotation shaft protruding out of the pressure adjustment chamber so as to rotate therewith, and one of the manual switching knob and a fixing portion for regulating a rotation angle of the manual switching knob. And a positioning surface provided on the other side and abutting on the stopper piece for positioning, and is swingably supported in the manual switching knob and is swung according to the vertical movement of the switching rotary shaft. A display body, and rotating the cam body through the switching rotary shaft by rotating the manual switching knob to use one of the gas containers connected to the pair of high-pressure gas inflow ports, and use the other. The spare gas container is connected to the spare gas container by the cam body which is set for the spare and is lowered together with the diaphragm and the switching rotary shaft in accordance with the pressure in the pressure adjusting chamber, which drops when the gas container in use becomes substantially empty. The valve body provided in the flow path between the high-pressure gas inlet and the pressure regulating chamber is operated to start gas supply from the spare gas container, and the display body is lowered by lowering the switching rotary shaft. An automatic gas switching controller that swings to indicate the gas supply from the spare gas container, further comprising a protrusion provided adjacent to the positioning surface and capable of moving over the stopper piece; And a positioning switch which holds the manual switching knob at a position where the stopper piece and the positioning surface are in contact with each other. 2. The diaphragm is fixed with a peripheral portion interposed between a lower case and an upper case forming the pressure adjusting chamber, the stopper piece is formed on an outer wall of the upper case, and the positioning surface is formed on the outer case. 2. The gas automatic switching regulator according to claim 1, wherein the automatic switching regulator is formed inside a manual switching knob. 3. A magnet built in the display,
The automatic gas switching controller according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a pair of reed switches that are opened and closed by the magnet approached by the swing of the display body and that detect start of gas supply from a spare gas container. .