JP3636377B2 - Freezing prevention device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
[Industrial application fields]
The present invention relates to a freeze prevention device for preventing freezing of water in a water supply pipe such as a water supply.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, anti-freezing devices have been proposed that can reliably prevent freezing of water pipes using the physical properties of water without using a temperature sensor or the like (JP-A-1-287320, JP-A-1-304230). Publication). This anti-freezing device includes a cylinder that is fixed to an opening of a water supply pipe, a valve body that is slidably inserted into the cylinder, and that opens and closes a valve port, and between a valve body outer peripheral surface and a cylinder inner peripheral surface. Formed in the annular space, and is formed inside the valve body to open the valve body by the volume expansion action at the time of water coagulation, and the water inside the water supply pipe is made outside by the valve body opening operation. A drainage passage for discharging and a water supply passage connecting the inside of the water supply pipe and the working chamber are provided.
In this case, since the water in the water supply pipe flows out of the drainage passage inside the valve body due to the valve opening operation of the valve body, the heat held by the water in the water supply pipe is transmitted to the valve body to melt the ice in the working chamber, The valve body can be closed. That is, since the ice in the working chamber is melted by the retained heat of the water flowing through the drainage passage, the valve body can be closed in a short time even in the cold season, and drainage can be saved.
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In the case of the anti-freezing device described above, the working chamber is formed in an annular space between the inner surface of the cylinder and the outer surface of the valve body. Therefore, when the water in the working chamber is solidified and undergoes volume expansion, the valve body needs to move in the axial direction under the expansion pressure. However, the ice solidified in the working chamber is in close contact with the outer surface of the valve body constituting the inner wall of the working chamber, and this ice may hinder the axial movement of the valve body. As a result, the water in the working chamber solidifies to a considerable extent, and the valve cannot be opened until the expansion pressure overcomes the adhesion force of ice to the valve body and moves the valve body in the axial direction, and is sensitive to a decrease in the outside air temperature. There was a case that could not work.
[0004]
An object of the present invention is to provide an anti-freezing device that can smoothly move the valve body in the axial direction during water coagulation of the working chamber and operates extremely sensitively to a decrease in the outside air temperature.
[0005]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
To achieve the above object, the freeze prevention device of the present invention has one end connected to the opening of the water feed pipe, a cylindrical shaped body which valve port is formed on the one end side, concentric with the interior of the body a sleeve which is fixed in, is formed between the inner and outer surfaces of the sleeve of the body, a cylindrical working chamber for storing water therein, a seal for sealing the one end of the working chamber and having, axially slidable relative to the body and sleeve by volume expansion action during water coagulation of the working chamber, and the valve open mouth valve, the valve opening operation of the valve body, the interior the water pipe A drainage passage for discharging water from the valve port to the outside through the inside of the sleeve and the side wall portion of the body, the inside of the water supply pipe and the other end portion of the working chamber communicate with each other, from the working chamber a water supply passage which is sealed by freezing above, also equipped with a It is.
Moreover , it is desirable to connect a joint that relays between the water supply pipe to one end of the body, and to interpose a spring that biases the valve body in the valve closing direction between the joint and the valve body.
[0006]
[Action]
Since the working chamber is formed between the cylinder and the sleeve, when volume expansion occurs due to water coagulation of the working chamber, the valve body sealing one end side of the working chamber is pushed in the axial direction. By the axial movement of the valve body, the valve port is opened, and water inside the water supply pipe is discharged from the valve port to the outside through the inside of the sleeve.
Since the volume expansion pressure during water coagulation acts only on the valve body in the axial direction, the valve body can move very smoothly in the axial direction, and the valve opens sharply even if the water in the working chamber is slightly solidified. The action can be performed.
When the water inside the water supply pipe is discharged to the outside through the drainage passage, the retained heat of the water is transferred to the working chamber through the valve body, body or sleeve, and the internal ice is melted. Therefore, the volume of the working chamber is reduced, and the valve body is automatically closed by the water pressure of the water supply pipe or the spring force.
[0007]
【Example】
1 to 3 show an example of an antifreezing device A according to the present invention.
A T-shaped joint 2 is connected in the middle of a water supply pipe 1 such as a water supply pipe, and a cylindrical body 3 of the antifreezing device A is connected to a lower connection port 2a of the joint 2 via a joint 4. Yes. Since the pipe 1, the joint 2 and the joint 4 are screwed by the taper screws 1a, 2b and 4a, they are sealed with each other. The joint 4 and the body 3 are screwed with ordinary screws 4b and 3a, and water leakage is prevented by interposing a sealing material 5 such as an O-ring between them.
A valve port 6 that protrudes slightly inward is formed at the upper end opening of the body 3, that is, the opening on the joint 4 side.
[0008]
A substantially cylindrical sleeve 10 is inserted inside the lower portion of the body 3, and the lower end flange 10 a of the sleeve 10 is pressed against the lower surface of the body 3 with a nipple 15 screwed to the lower end portion of the body 3. It is fixed concentrically inside. Therefore, a cylindrical working chamber 7 that stores water therein is formed between the inner surface of the body 3 and the outer surface of the sleeve 10. The lower end side of the working chamber 7 is closed by a sealing material 11 such as an O-ring disposed between the body 3 and the sleeve 10. The lower end of the working chamber 7 communicates with an annular space 13 formed by an annular groove on the outer peripheral surface of the sleeve 10 via a narrow gap 12 between the body 3 and the sleeve 10. It communicates with the inside of the joint 4 through a water supply passage 8 formed in the axial direction on the side wall portion of the joint 4. The water supply passage 8 is formed inside a bulging portion 9 (see FIG. 2) integrally formed on the side wall portion of the body 3 so as to extend to the vicinity of the lower end portion.
[0009]
The nipple 15 functions not only as a fixing tool for fixing the sleeve 10 to the body 3, but also as a connection tool for connecting a hose and the like, and water droplets collected at the lower end of a drain pipe 29 to be described later are solidified. It has a function as a windbreak and a protective cylinder for preventing the above.
The reason why the narrow gap 12 as described above is provided is to allow the space between the working chamber 7 and the water supply passage 8 to be closed if the lower portion of the water supply passage 8 or the lower portion of the working chamber 7 freezes even a little. . In addition, the annular space 13 is provided when the air in the working chamber 7 is degassed by a blow valve 32 described later, and water is introduced from the entire circumference of the sleeve 10 from the water supply passage 8 to the working chamber 7. It is for performing smoothly.
Although the lower end portion of the water supply passage 8 can be connected to the upper portion of the working chamber 7, in this case, it is difficult to freeze it earlier than the working chamber 7 due to the retained heat of the water in the joint 4. On the other hand, if the water supply passage 8 is connected to the lower end side of the working chamber 7 and the water supply passage 8 is formed outside the working chamber 7 as in the embodiment, the influence of the retained heat of the water in the joint 4 can be reduced. In addition, the heat radiation area of the water supply passage 8 can be increased. Therefore, when the outside air temperature decreases, the water supply passage 8 is frozen earlier than the working chamber 7, and the space between the working chamber 7 and the water supply pipe 1 can be closed. Further, melting by water flowing through a drainage passage described later is slower than that of the working chamber 7.
[0010]
A valve body 20 shown in FIG. 3 is inserted inside the upper portion of the body 3 so as to be movable in the axial direction. A cylindrical sealing portion 21 inserted between the body 3 and the sleeve 10 is integrally formed at the lower end portion of the valve body 20, and the working chamber 7 is formed on the inner and outer periphery of the sealing portion 21. Sealing materials 22 and 23 such as O-rings are attached to seal the upper end side. A spring receiver 24 having a seal packing 25 for opening and closing the valve port 6 is screwed and integrated with an upper end portion of the valve body 20.
A valve closing spring 26 for pressing the packing 25 against the valve port 6 is disposed between the upper surface of the spring support 24 and the inner stepped portion 4 c at the upper end of the joint 4. The screen 27 is simultaneously held on the inner step portion 4 c of the joint 4 by the pressure contact force of the spring 26. The screen 27 prevents the scale and the like inside the water supply pipe 1 from entering the body 3.
In the gap between the lower side of the valve port 6 and the upper surface of the valve body 20, a cleaning ring 28 is disposed so as to be movable up and down. The ring 28 swings up and down by the flow of water flowing through the valve port 6 when the valve port 6 is opened, and automatically cleans the inner wall surface of the body 3 with which the valve body 20 is in sliding contact.
[0011]
A drain hole 20 a penetrating to the side is formed in the central portion of the valve body 20, and an upper end portion of a drain pipe 29 is inserted into the axial center portion of the valve body 20. The drain pipe 29 is formed of a pipe having a smooth inner surface such as a tetrafluoroethylene resin, and the upper end of the pipe 29 communicates with the drain hole 20a. The drain pipe 29 penetrates through the center hole 10b of the sleeve 10 downward.
When the valve body 20 opens the valve port 6, the water in the water supply pipe 1 is drained from the valve port 6 through the drain hole 20 a and the drain pipe 29 to the outside. Accordingly, a drainage passage is formed by the drainage hole 20 a and the drainage pipe 29.
The drainage pipe 29 prevents water droplets from adhering between the valve body 20 and the sleeve 10 or the inner surface of the sleeve 10 when the water in the water supply pipe 1 is drained. However, since the drain pipe 29 is formed of a material having low thermal conductivity, the retained heat of the water at the time of draining is not easily transmitted to the sleeve 10, but the water in the working chamber 7 is only slightly melted as described later. Therefore, the drainage pipe 29 has almost no influence. If necessary, the drain pipe 29 may be omitted or shorter than that shown in the drawing so that the drainage flows along the inner surface of the sleeve 10.
A gap 30 having a predetermined width is provided between the drain pipe 29 and the lower end portion of the sleeve 10. The gap 30 reduces the thermal conductivity from the drain pipe 29 to the sleeve 10, and prevents the solidified ice in the gap 12 and the annular space 13 from melting due to the retained heat of the water passing through the drain pipe 29.
[0012]
The body 3 is made of a material having high thermal conductivity such as brass. Therefore, when the outside air temperature decreases, the retained heat of the water in the water supply passage 8 and the working chamber 7 is dissipated from the outer surface of the body 3 constituting the outer wall, and the water in the water supply passage 8 and the working chamber 7 is quickly solidified. . In addition, since the working chamber 7 is constituted by a thin cylindrical space, the contact area with the body 3 with respect to the volume is large, and the working chamber 7 can react quickly to the outside air temperature.
On the other hand, the valve body 20 is formed of a material (for example, stainless steel) having a lower thermal conductivity than the body 3. Therefore, a sensitive valve opening operation can be performed. That is, when the valve body 20 is also formed of a material having high thermal conductivity like the body 3, the heat retained in the water in the joint 4 is transmitted to the working chamber 7 through the valve body 20, and the water in the working chamber 7 is solidified. There is a possibility of delaying. On the other hand, if the valve body 20 is formed of a material having a lower thermal conductivity than that of the body 3, the amount of heat transferred from the joint 4 to the working chamber 7 via the valve body 20 is reduced, and the water in the working chamber 7 is quickly discharged. This is because it can be solidified.
The sleeve 10 is also formed of a material (for example, stainless steel) having a lower thermal conductivity than the body 3. The reason is that since the inside of the sleeve 10 constituting the inner wall of the working chamber 7 is a warm air layer compared to the outside air, the heat of the air layer is prevented from being transmitted to the working chamber 7, and the water in the working chamber 7 is This is to prevent the solidification from being delayed.
[0013]
A blow hole 30 is formed in the side wall of the body 3 located at the upper portion of the working chamber 7 so that the inner end portion communicates with the outer peripheral surface of the sealing portion 21 of the valve body 20 and the outer end portion communicates with the outside. A female screw 31 is formed at the outer end of the blow hole 30, and a blow valve 32 that can freely open and close the blow hole 30 is screwed into the female screw 31.
When the blow valve 32 is opened, the internal pressure of the working chamber 7 decreases, so that the water in the water supply pipe 1 is introduced into the working chamber 7 from below through the water supply passage 8. Along with this, water in the working chamber 7 is discharged from the gap between the outer peripheral surface of the valve body 20 and the body 3 through the blow hole 30 and the discharge hole 33 of the blow valve 32. The accumulated air is also discharged with water. In particular, since air is a compressive fluid, if any air remains in the working chamber 7, the valve opening operation of the valve body 20 is significantly delayed. However, as described above, the water supply passage 8 is provided in the working chamber. Since the blow hole 30 communicates with the uppermost part of the working chamber 7, the residual air in the working chamber 7 can be discharged efficiently.
[0014]
Next, the operation of the antifreezing device having the above configuration will be described.
When the outside air temperature drops below zero degrees, the heat retained in the water supply passage 8 and the working chamber 7 is released through the body 3, the water in the water supply passage 8 is frozen first, and then the water in the working chamber 7 is discharged. Begins to solidify. In particular, due to the heat retained by water inside the joint 4, the lower part of the working chamber 7 solidifies faster than the upper part near the joint 4. When the water in the working chamber 7 starts to solidify, the water supply passage 8 has already been frozen and closed, so that the valve body 20 is pushed up by the volume expansion of the working chamber 7 during water coagulation, and the valve port 6 is opened. Therefore, the water in the water supply pipe 1 is discharged outside through the joint 4, the valve port 6, the drain hole 20 a and the drain pipe 29. As a result, the circulation of water in the water supply pipe 1 can be promoted to prevent the water supply pipe 1 from freezing, and the retained heat of the discharged water is conducted to the working chamber 7 via the body 3, the valve body 20 or the sleeve 10. The ice in the working chamber 7 is melted. As a result, the volume of the working chamber 7 is reduced, and the valve body 20 is pushed down by the water pressure of the water supply pipe 1 and the spring force of the spring 26 to close the valve. Thereafter, the above operation is repeated.
[0015]
In the valve opening operation, the valve body 20 is disposed on the upper end side of the working chamber 10 and receives only an axial force due to the volume expansion of the working chamber 10. Therefore, the axial movement of the valve body 20 becomes very smooth, and the valve body 20 can open the valve port 6 even with a slight volume expansion of the working chamber 10. That is, the water in the working chamber 7 can be opened simply by starting to solidify in a sherbet shape, and can react very sensitively to a decrease in the outside air temperature. Therefore, freezing of other pipes such as the water supply pipe 1 can be reliably prevented. Moreover, when the valve port 6 is opened and drained, the sherbet-like ice in the working chamber 7 is quickly melted by the retained heat of the drainage, so that a large amount of water can be closed without being wasted.
[0016]
The anti-freezing device of the present invention is not limited to being attached in the middle of the water supply pipe 1 as shown in FIG.
FIG. 4 shows an example in which the antifreezing device A of the present invention is attached in the vicinity of the water tap at the end of the pipe.
An end portion of the water supply pipe 1 is opened in a side wall 40 such as a concrete pillar, and a water tap 42 is connected to the open end portion via a joint 41. The antifreezing device A is connected to the lower connection port 41 a of the joint 41 through the joint 4. A resin-made circulation pipe 43 is inserted into the joint 41, and is prevented from coming off by locking a flange 43 a at one end to the introduction port of the joint 41. The other end of the circulation pipe 43 is inserted into the water tap 42.
Therefore, when the valve body 20 of the freeze prevention device A is opened, the water in the water supply pipe 1 enters the water faucet 42 as shown by the arrow, and then passes through the outside of the circulation pipe 43 to the freeze prevention device A. Flowing. Therefore, it is possible to reliably prevent the water faucet 42 from freezing.
In order to prevent the space outside the pipe 43 from becoming negative pressure when the water tap 42 is opened, a negative pressure prevention hole 43b that connects the inside and outside of the pipe 43 is formed.
[0017]
In the said Example, although the body 3 of the freeze prevention apparatus A was connected to the water supply pipe 1 via the joint 4, the body 3 may be directly connected to the water supply pipe 1. However, if the joint 4 is used, even if the diameter of the connection port on the side of the water supply pipe 1 is different, it is possible to simply cope with the replacement of the joint 4, and it is possible to easily form a taper screw generally used in water pipes. is there. Further, the arrangement of the spring 26 and the screen 27 for urging the valve body 20 in the valve closing direction is also simplified.
[0018]
【The invention's effect】
As apparent from the above description, according to the present invention, the working chamber is formed between the cylinder and the sleeve, and a part of the valve body seals one end side of the working chamber. The volume expansion pressure during water coagulation can be applied only to the valve body in the axial direction, and the valve body can smoothly move in the axial direction. Therefore, it is possible to obtain an antifreezing device that can be opened just by slightly solidifying water in the working chamber and that operates extremely sensitively to a decrease in the outside air temperature.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is an overall cross-sectional view of an example of an anti-freezing device according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in FIG.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a valve body.
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of an example in which the freeze prevention device of the present invention is attached in the vicinity of a water tap.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Water supply piping 3 Body 4 Joint 6 Valve opening 7 Actuation chamber 8 Water supply passage 10 Sleeve 20 Valve body 26 Valve closing spring 29 Drain pipe 30 Blow hole 32 Blow valve

Claims (2)

A cylindrical body having one end connected to the opening of the water supply pipe and a valve port formed on the one end;
A sleeve fixed coaxially inside said body,
Is formed between the outer surface of the inner surface and the sleeve of the body, a cylindrical working chamber for storing water therein,
A valve body that seals one end side of the working chamber, and that slides in an axial direction with respect to the body and the sleeve by a volume expansion action during water coagulation in the working chamber and opens the valve port; ,
The valve opening operation of the valve body, a drain passage for discharging to the outside through the inside of the sleeve the water inside the water supply pipe from the valve port,
A water supply passage formed on the side wall of the body, communicating the interior of the water supply pipe with the other end of the working chamber, and being frozen and sealed before the working chamber , Anti-freezing device. The freeze prevention device according to claim 1,
A joint that relays between the body and the water supply pipe is connected to one end of the body, and a spring that biases the valve body in the valve closing direction is interposed between the joint and the valve body. An anti-freezing device characterized by that.

Images