JP5035771B2 - Vacuum valve - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a vacuum valve used in a piping system for exhausting a gas in a vacuum chamber for manufacturing semiconductors with a vacuum pump, and more specifically, a vacuum provided with a housing formed by a press diaphragm or a spatula diaphragm. It relates to a valve for use.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a vacuum valve housing, a cylindrical portion containing a valve body and a flat portion constituting a valve seat with which the valve body abuts have a substantially uniform thickness by drawing a single metal tube. What is formed in this way is known, for example, from US Pat. The vacuum valve includes the valve seat formed in a planar shape by drawing in the cylindrical housing, and the valve member that opens and closes the valve seat. Further, an operation part (cylinder part) for opening and closing the valve member is attached.
In this way, if the valve housing is formed by drawing metal pipe material, it is not necessary to perform expensive and complicated machining, so the housing can be manufactured easily and inexpensively, and the housing is formed thin. This is effective for reducing the weight of the valve.

However, on the other hand, the thinned housing makes it difficult to mount the operation unit. In the conventional vacuum valve, an annular support member is attached to the upper end portion of the housing using the thickness of the housing as it is, and the operation portion is attached to the support member, or the operation portion is attached to the operation portion. The combined adapter is attached directly to the upper end of the cylinder, but this method of attaching the operating part directly to the end of the small-thickness housing is not only difficult to install, but also has low attachment strength. It tends to be. And since the said supporting member protrudes largely on the outer periphery of a housing, it is easy to lead to the enlargement of a valve | bulb. Moreover, when it is necessary to isolate the said supporting member from a corrosive control fluid, the structure for that is also complicated.
Japanese Patent No. 3032708

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a vacuum valve having a housing formed by drawing a metal material so that the operation portion can be easily and compactly attached to the housing without causing a reduction in strength. In addition, the protection of the parts from the corrosive control fluid is easy.

In order to achieve the above object, a vacuum valve of the present invention comprises two ports connected to a vacuum chamber and a vacuum source, a valve seat formed in the middle of a flow path connecting these ports, and the valve seat. The main valve portion includes a poppet-shaped valve member that opens and closes, and an operation portion that opens and closes the valve member.
The housing of the main valve unit includes a cylindrical housing body having a uniform one thickness, consist two ports cylindrical member forming the port, a first end of the axial direction of the housing body is assembled by joining the port member to the opening port formed in a side surface, the second end of the axial direction of the housing body, extending inwardly from an end of the housing body mounting flange-like are formed integrally with the support seat member having than the inner diameter of the mounting portion on the mounting portion of the large-diameter circular bore is mounted, the operating part to the support seat member Further, an annular seal member and an annular support plate are sandwiched between the attachment portion and the operation portion in the inner hole of the support seat body, and the support plate and the valve member are Both ends of bellows are continuous It is.

In the present invention, the support seat is composed of a main body portion that is placed on the upper surface of the attachment portion, and a skirt portion that extends from the outer peripheral end of the main body portion to the housing side and surrounds the outer periphery of the housing. Alternatively, it may be formed to have a groove-shaped cross-sectional shape, and may be attached to the attachment portion in a state where the opening edge of the groove is in contact with the attachment portion.
In the present invention, a heat transfer jacket may be provided on the outer surface of the housing of the main valve portion. In this case, the jacket and the support seat can be integrally formed.

Moreover, according to this invention, the housing for main valve parts in the said vacuum valve is provided. The housing includes a cylindrical housing body having a uniform one thickness, consist two ports cylindrical member forming the port, formed in a first end and sides of the axial direction of the housing body The port member is assembled by joining the port member to the port opening, and the second end in the axial direction of the housing body has a uniform thickness extending inwardly from the end of the housing body. A flange-like mounting portion having the same is formed integrally, and the thickness of the mounting portion is equal to the thickness of the housing body.
It is desirable that a support seat body having a circular inner hole having a diameter larger than the inner diameter of the mounting portion is mounted on the mounting portion.

According to the present invention having the above configuration, in a vacuum valve having a housing formed by drawing a metal material, the operation portion is attached to the housing in an inward flange-like shape formed at the end of the housing. By using the mounting portion and the annular support seat mounted on the mounting portion, the mounting is simple and compact without causing a decrease in strength compared to the conventional product without the mounting portion. It can be carried out.
In addition, the presence of the flange-shaped mounting portion allows the support seat to be configured so as not to come into contact with the corrosive control fluid. Therefore, the support seat is made of a special and expensive material having corrosion resistance. There is no need to form.

  FIG. 1 shows a first structural example of a main valve housing in a vacuum valve. The housing 3 is used for the main valve portion 1 of the vacuum valves VA and VB as shown in FIG. 5 or FIG. These vacuum valves VA and VB are formed in the middle of a flow path connecting the first and second ports P1 and P2 connected to the vacuum chamber and the vacuum source and the ports P1 and P2. The main valve portion 1 having a valve seat 4 and a poppet-type valve member 5 for opening and closing the valve seat 4 is coupled with an operation portion 2 comprising a fluid pressure cylinder for opening and closing the valve member 5. The details of the configuration of these valves VA and VB will be described later.

  As can be seen from FIG. 2, the housing 3 includes a cylindrical housing body 6 having a uniform thickness formed by subjecting a metal plate material such as stainless steel or a metal tube material to press drawing or spatula drawing, and the port P1. , P2 and two cylindrical first and second port members 7 and 8, and these port members 7 and 8 are connected to a port forming port formed in the housing body 6. The first and second openings 11 and 12 are assembled as shown in FIG. 1 by being joined by a method such as welding or brazing.

  The housing body 6 is bent at the first end in the axis L direction of the cylindrical body 9 for movably housing the valve member 5, and the end of the housing body 6 is bent inward by pressing or the like. The valve seat forming surface 4a which is formed in an annular shape and is flat in the direction perpendicular to the axis L is formed, and the first opening 11 which forms the first port P1 is formed inside the valve seat forming surface 4a. In addition, the annular valve seat 4 surrounding the first opening 11 is formed at a position near the inner peripheral end of the valve seat forming surface 4a. At the inner peripheral end of the valve seat forming surface 4a, that is, the mouth edge of the first opening portion 11, a port connecting tube portion 11a having a cylindrical shape is formed by bending the mouth edge outward along the axis L. Is formed.

  Further, a second opening 12 for forming the second port P2 is formed on the side surface of the cylindrical body 9 in the housing body 6, and the rim of the second opening 12 is folded outward. By bending, a cylindrical port connecting tube portion 12a is formed.

  Further, a flange-shaped attachment portion 10 having a uniform thickness is formed at the second end of the housing body 6 in the axis L direction by bending the end of the housing body 6 inward. . The attachment portion 10 is for attaching the operation portion 2. In the illustrated example, the attachment portion 10 is inclined so that the inner peripheral side is obliquely upward, but may be horizontal.

For example, as shown in FIG. 10, the mounting portion 10 is formed by inserting a receiving die 13 having a diameter that can be changed into a large size and having a receiving surface 13 a for bending on the outer periphery of the distal end portion. In this state, the upper end portion of the housing body 6 is bent inward by applying pressure with a holding die 14 having an inclined surface 14a for bending, and then the receiving die is reduced in diameter and taken out. It can be done by the method. Of course, it may be formed by other methods.
The housing 3 as described above can be easily and inexpensively manufactured by press drawing or the like without expensive machining.

  The radius of curvature inside the bent portion 16 where the cylindrical body portion 9 and the valve seat forming surface 4a in the housing body 6 are continuous, and the bent portion 17 where the valve seat forming surface 4a and the connecting cylinder portion 11a are connected. The inner radius of curvature is desirably close to the minimum dimension obtained by pressing. For example, when the housing 3 is formed of a stainless steel plate, assuming that the thickness of the plate is 1.5 mm, the radius of curvature is as follows. Is preferably 3 mm or less, more preferably about 2 mm.

  Thus, when the radius of curvature of the bent portion 17 is reduced, the valve seat 4 can be formed at a position near the inner peripheral end of the valve seat forming surface 4a, that is, at a position close to the first opening portion 11. Therefore, the valve member 5 can be made smaller in diameter, and as a result, the difference between the inner diameter of the housing 3 and the outer diameter of the valve member 5 can be increased, and the flow path area at the time of valve opening increases. Therefore, the conductance can be increased even with the same valve stroke. Alternatively, the outer shape of the housing 3 can be made smaller than the effective sectional area of the housing 3 by reducing the diameter of the body portion 9 of the housing 3 while increasing the diameter of the first opening 11. It becomes possible.

As can be seen from FIGS. 1 and 2, the port members 7 and 8 include a cylindrical portion 18 having a flat joint surface 18 a at the tip, and a flange portion 19 formed at the proximal end portion of the cylindrical portion 18. It has. Then, the joint surface 18a is abutted against the flat joint surfaces 11b and 12b at the tips of the connecting tube portions 11a and 12a formed on the housing main body 6, and the contact portions are welded to the housing main body 6. They are joined together. The port members 7 and 8 are formed by combining press and forging.
Although the two port members 7 and 8 have the same shape and the same size, the shape and size may be different from each other. When the dimensions of the two port members 7 and 8 are different, the dimensions of the connecting cylinder portions 11a and 12a are also different accordingly.

FIG. 3 shows a second configuration example of the housing 3. In the second configuration example, the cylindrical connecting tube portion 11a as in the first configuration example of FIGS. 1 and 2 is not formed around the first opening 11 of the housing body 6, and the first The distal end portion of the cylindrical portion 18 of the port member 7 is brought into direct contact with and welded to the lip of the one opening portion 11. That is, as can be seen from the enlarged view surrounded by a circle, a concave step portion 18b is formed at the tip of the cylindrical portion 18, and the tip of the valve seat forming surface 4a is brought into contact with the concave step portion 18b so as to contact them. The contact part is joined by welding. Therefore, in this case, the angle between the valve seat forming surface 4a and the port member 7 becomes sharper than in the case of the first configuration example of FIG.
Since the other configuration of the housing 3 of the second configuration example is not different from that of the housing 3 of the first configuration example, the same portions are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted.

  Thus, the housing 3 includes the housing main body 6 and the two port members 7 and 8, and these members are joined and integrated at two locations. In this case, if the cylindrical portions 18 of the port members 7 and 8 and the connecting cylinder portions 11a and 12a of the housing body 6 have substantially the same thickness, they can be joined by various joining methods. It is advantageous to perform reverse wave welding in which the surfaces are substantially the same as the surfaces of the plate materials to be joined. In this case, the corrosive substance does not enter the fine gaps in the joint, and the corrosion resistance of the housing 3 can be improved.

The flange portions 19 of the port members 7 and 8 can be configured in various forms as illustrated in (a) to (c) of FIG.
The flange portions 19 of the port members 7 and 8 shown in FIG. 5A are formed by bending a proximal end portion of the cylindrical portion 18 toward the outside, and an inner side of the bent portion 19a. The auxiliary metal fitting 19b is in contact with the clamp.
Further, the flange portions 19 of the port members 7 and 8 shown in FIG. 7B are bent outwardly by pressing or the like at the base end portion of the cylindrical portion 18, and then the tip ends of the cylindrical portion 18. It is formed in a hollow shape by folding back toward the tip side of the tube and bending the tip toward the outer surface of the cylindrical portion.
Further, the flange portion 19 of the port members 7 and 8 shown in FIG. 8C is bent toward the outside by pressing the proximal end portion of the cylindrical portion 18 and then the distal end thereof is the axis of the flange portion. Is formed into a groove shape by bending it into a cylindrical shape along with the tip thereof and bending it toward the center.
The flange portions 19 of the port members 7 and 8 in FIGS. 4B and 4C are lightweight because the inside is hollow.
Note that the port members 7 and 8 can be formed of a shaving material.

Next, the vacuum valve VA using the housing 3 will be described with reference to FIGS.
In this vacuum valve VA, the housing 3 for the main valve portion 1 is obtained by joining the port members 7 and 8 shown in FIG. 4A to the connecting cylinder portions 11a and 12a of the housing body 6 in FIG. It is used. The valve mechanism 20 is incorporated in the housing 3 and the fluid pressure cylinder is formed on the upper portion of the mounting portion 10 formed at the upper end of the body portion 9 of the housing 3 via a support seat 21. An operation unit 2 is attached.

  The valve mechanism 20 includes the disc-shaped valve member 5, and a ring-shaped seal member 5 a that contacts and separates from the valve seat 4 is attached to the lower surface of the valve member 5. Further, a lower end of the valve rod 22 extending along the central axis L of the housing 3 is attached to the central position of the upper surface of the valve member 5, and the upper end of the valve rod 22 is connected to the cylinder housing 31 in the operation unit 2. The bottom wall portion 31 a extends through the cylinder housing 31.

  Further, a spring 23 for biasing the valve member 5 toward the valve seat 4 is interposed between the lower surface of the bottom wall portion 31a and the valve member 5, and the bottom wall portion 31a and the attachment portion are interposed therebetween. 10, both ends of the bellows 24 are connected to an annular support plate 25 sandwiched and fixed together with the seal member 33 and the upper surface of the valve member 5. The bellows 24 encloses the valve rod 22, the spring 23, and the lower surface of the bottom wall portion 31a of the cylinder housing 31, so that these members and portions are placed between the first port P1 and the second port P2. It is isolated from the corrosive control fluid flowing through and prevents their corrosion.

  On the other hand, as can be seen from FIG. 6, the operation unit 2 includes the cylinder housing 31 having a rectangular outer shape, and a piston is disposed in a circular cylinder hole 31 b formed in the cylinder housing 31. 35 is slidably accommodated, and the upper end of the valve rod 22 is attached to the piston 35. A pressure chamber 36 is formed between the lower surface of the piston 35 and the bottom wall portion 31a of the cylinder housing 31, and the pressure chamber 36 communicates with an operation port (not shown). By supplying and discharging a pressurized fluid such as compressed air to 36, the piston 35 is driven so that the valve member 5 opens and closes the valve seat 4.

  The operation portion 2 is attached to the attachment portion 10 of the main valve housing 3 by the support seat 21. As can be seen from FIG. 7, the support seat body 21 has a rectangular planar shape, and has a main body portion 21 a having a rectangular cross section placed on the upper surface of the mounting portion 10, and an outer peripheral end of the main body portion 21 a. The skirt portion 21b extends from the housing 3 side and surrounds the outer periphery of the upper end portion of the housing 3 and has a circular inner hole 21c formed inside the main body portion 21a. The inner hole 21c has a hole diameter that is larger than the inner diameter of the mounting portion 10 but smaller than the outer diameter, and a portion 21d that abuts or is placed on the upper surface of the mounting portion 10 on the lower surface of the main body portion 21a. The width W1 in the inner / outer diameter direction is formed smaller than the width W2 in the inner / outer diameter direction of the mounting portion 10. Therefore, when the support seat 21 is mounted on the mounting portion 10, a portion closer to the inner periphery of the mounting portion 10 extends toward the inner periphery of the inner hole 21 c of the support seat 21.

A plurality of female screws 38 for screwing screw rods 37 for fixing the operation unit 2 are formed at the four corner positions of the support seat 21. The support seat 21 is formed of low corrosion resistant stainless steel, iron-based or non-ferrous metal material, and is joined and fixed to the mounting portion 10 by a method such as welding or brazing as shown by a chain line in FIG. Yes. This joining is usually performed when the housing 3 is formed.
On the other hand, an annular concave step portion 31c into which the support seat 21 is fitted is formed on the outer periphery of the bottom surface of the bottom wall portion 31a of the cylinder housing 31, and the support is provided on the inner peripheral portion of the concave step portion 31c. A pressing portion 31 d that contacts the plate 25 is formed.

  Then, the seal member 33 is disposed on the mounting portion 10 in a position on the inner peripheral side of the support seat body 21, that is, in the inner hole 21 c, and the seal member 33 is sandwiched between the mounting portion 10. The operation plate 2 is disposed on the operation plate 2, and the operation portion 2 is disposed thereon, and the screw rod 37 is screwed onto the female screw 38 of the support seat 21. Is bound to. At this time, the seal plate 33 is sandwiched between the support plate 25 and the mounting portion 10 by the support plate 25 being in contact with the pressing portion 31 d of the cylinder housing 31 and being pressed downward. . The upper end of the bellows 24 is connected to a position near the inner peripheral end of the support plate 25.

  With this configuration, the valve rod 22, the spring 23, and the lower surface of the bottom wall portion 31a of the cylinder housing 31 are contained in the bellows 24, and contact with the corrosive control fluid flowing between the ports P1 and P2. The bellows 24 itself, the housing 3, the sealing member 33, and the support plate 25 located outside the bellows 24. For this reason, the bellows 24 and the support plate 25 are formed of a corrosion-resistant material such as stainless steel like the housing 3. On the other hand, the support seat 21 and the cylinder housing 31 can be formed of an inexpensive material that does not particularly have corrosion resistance.

  Further, the above-described configuration in which the operation unit 2 is attached to the inwardly flanged attachment portion 10 formed at the upper end of the housing 3 via the annular support seat body 21 is a thin housing without the attachment portion. Compared with a conventional product in which a support member is directly attached to the upper end of the actuator and the operating part is placed, the operating part has a much higher mounting strength, and the operating part 2 is provided with a cylinder housing 31 having the same shape or a small diameter as the housing 3. The coupling is possible and is very effective in reducing the size of the vacuum valve.

  The vacuum valve VB of the second embodiment shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 has a heat transfer made of a material (for example, aluminum) having a higher thermal conductivity than the housing 3 on the outer surface of the housing 3 in the main valve portion 1. A jacket 40 is attached in close contact with the housing 3. The jacket 40 is for preventing heat components from the control fluid from depositing and adhering to the housing 3 by transferring heat from a heater (not shown) to the housing 3 and heating the housing 3. .

  As shown in FIG. 9, the jacket 40 is preferably divided into a plurality of (for example, two) jacket members 40 a and 40 a, and these jacket members 40 a are preferably detachably attached to the housing 3. Thus, by making the jacket 40 detachable, the problem that the aluminum jacket 40 is melted by removing the jacket 40 when the housing 3 is washed with hydrogen fluoride water is solved.

The jacket is formed integrally with the support seat 21. However, these jackets and support seats 21 may be formed separately.
The other configurations and operations in the second embodiment are the same as those of the vacuum valve VA of the first embodiment described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6, and the same reference numerals are used for the main corresponding parts. In addition, further explanation is omitted.

11 and 12 show another configuration example of the support seat. The support seat 21 is formed by pressing and drawing a plate material, for example, and has a groove-shaped cross-sectional shape. The inner wall 41a is circular and the outer wall 41b is rectangular. Then, with the opening of the groove facing downward, that is, toward the mounting portion 10 at the upper end of the housing 3, the inner wall 41 a is attached to the mounting portion with the opening edge of the groove (the tip of the inner wall 41 a) in contact with the mounting portion 10. It is fixed to the housing 3 by being joined to 10 by a method such as electron beam welding or laser welding.
A nut member 42 is fixed to the back surface of the support seat body 41 at a portion where the space between the inner wall 41a and the outer wall 41b at the four corners of the support seat body 41 is widened. 38 is formed.

  FIG. 13 shows a third configuration example of the housing. The difference between the housing 3 of the third configuration example and the housing 3 of the second configuration example shown in FIG. 3 is the structure of the second port P2. That is, in the second configuration example, a cylindrical connecting tube portion 12a is formed around the second opening 12, and the tip of the tube portion 18 of the port member 8 is abutted against the tip of the connecting tube portion 12a. In the housing 3 of this third configuration example, the second opening 12 on the side surface of the housing body 6 is formed in a simple hole, and the port member 8 is joined. The joint surface 18a at the tip of the cylindrical portion 18 is formed into a curved curved surface that can be brought into close contact with the lip of the second opening 12 that opens in the cylindrical surface, and the contact portions are welded to each other. (Bitubular joint).

Further, a mounting seat 10 having the same groove shape as that shown in FIGS. 11 and 12 is attached to the mounting portion 10 at the upper end of the housing 3, and this supporting seat 21 is shown in FIG. It may be of any shape.
Since the other configuration of the housing of the third configuration example is the same as that of the second embodiment, the same reference numerals are given to the main same components and the description thereof is omitted.

It is sectional drawing of the assembly state which shows the 1st structural example of the housing of the valve | bulb for vacuum which concerns on this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows the state before the assembly of the housing of FIG. It is sectional drawing which shows the 2nd structural example of a housing. (A)-(c) is sectional drawing which shows the structural example from which a port member differs. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a first embodiment of a vacuum valve according to the present invention. FIG. 6 is a plan view of FIG. 5. It is a top view of a support seat. It is sectional drawing which shows 2nd Embodiment of the valve | bulb for vacuum which concerns on this invention. It is a right view of FIG. It is principal part sectional drawing which shows an example of the method of forming an attaching part. It is principal part sectional drawing which shows another structural example of a support seat. It is a top view of FIG. It is sectional drawing which shows the 3rd structural example of a housing.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Main valve part 2 Operation part 3 Housing 4 Valve seat 5 Valve member 6 Housing main body 7,8 Port member 10 Attachment part 11,12 Opening part 21 Support seat 21c Inner hole 24 Bellows 25 Support plate 33 Seal member 40 Jacket P1, P2 port

Claims (9)

Two ports connected to a vacuum chamber and a vacuum source, a valve seat formed in the middle of a flow path connecting these ports, and a main valve portion having a poppet-shaped valve member for opening and closing the valve seat; In a vacuum valve comprising an operation part for opening and closing the valve member,
The housing of the main valve section, the cylindrical housing body having a uniform one thickness, consist two ports cylindrical member forming the port, a first end of the axial direction of the housing body It is assembled by joining the port member to the port opening formed on the side surface,
The second end of the axial direction of the housing body, a flange-shaped mounting portion having a uniform thickness extending inwardly from an end of the housing body are formed integrally, said on the mounting portion A support seat body having a circular inner hole larger in diameter than the inner diameter of the attachment portion is attached, and the operation portion is attached to the support seat body. A vacuum valve characterized in that an annular seal member and an annular support plate are sandwiched between an operation portion, and both ends of a bellows are connected to the support plate and the valve member.   The support seat includes a main body portion placed on an upper surface of the attachment portion, and a skirt portion that extends from the outer peripheral end of the main body portion toward the housing and surrounds the outer periphery of the housing. Item 2. The vacuum valve according to Item 1.   The said support seat body has a groove-shaped cross-sectional shape, and is attached to this attachment part in the state which contact | abutted the opening edge of the groove | channel on the said attachment part. Valve for vacuum.   The vacuum valve according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a jacket for heat transfer is provided on an outer surface of the housing of the main valve portion.   5. The vacuum valve according to claim 4, wherein the jacket and the support seat are integrally formed. Two ports connected to a vacuum chamber and a vacuum source, a valve seat formed in the middle of a flow path connecting these ports, and a main valve portion having a poppet-shaped valve member for opening and closing the valve seat; A housing for the main valve part in a vacuum valve comprising an operation part for opening and closing the valve member,
Said housing comprises a cylindrical housing body having a uniform one thickness, consist two ports cylindrical member forming the port, formed in a first end and sides of the axial direction of the housing body Assembled by joining the port member to the port opening made,
A flange-shaped attachment portion having a uniform thickness extending inwardly from the end portion of the housing body is integrally formed at the second end in the axial direction of the housing body, and the thickness of the attachment portion is the above-described thickness. A main valve housing for a vacuum valve, characterized by being equal to the thickness of the housing body .   The housing according to claim 6, wherein a support seat body having a circular inner hole whose diameter is larger than an inner diameter of the mounting portion is mounted on the mounting portion. The support seat includes a main body portion placed on an upper surface of the attachment portion, and a skirt portion that extends from the outer peripheral end of the main body portion toward the housing and surrounds the outer periphery of the housing. Item 8. The housing according to Item 7.   8. The support seat according to claim 7, wherein the support seat has a groove-shaped cross-sectional shape and is fixed to the mounting portion in a state in which an opening edge of the groove is in contact with the mounting portion. Housing.

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