JP6900076B2 - Flow path switching valve - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a flow path switching valve such as a three-way valve or a four-way valve having at least one inflow port and two outflow ports, and is particularly suitable for use in switching the flow path in a hot water supply facility. Regarding the switching valve.

FIG. 10 shows a main part of an example of a conventional hot water supply facility in which a three-way valve, which is one of a flow path switching valve having one inflow port and two outflow ports, is used (see also Patent Document 1). The hot water supply facility 100 of the illustrated example basically has a hot water storage tank 110 in which water is supplied to the lower portion and hot water is supplied from the upper portion thereof, a compressor 131, a hot water heat exchanger (hot water heater) 132, an expansion valve 133, and an expansion valve 133. A heat pump type hot water heating source 130 having an air heat exchanger 134 and the like, a boiling pump 120 for circulating hot water between the hot water storage tank 110 and the heating source 130, one inlet 160 and two outlets 161. , 162, and a three-way valve 150 as a flow path switching valve.

The three-way valve 150 is composed of, for example, an electronically controlled electric valve whose flow path switching operation or the like is controlled based on the temperature or the like of hot water detected by a temperature sensor provided at a required location. Can selectively take a first distribution state in which hot water flows from the inlet 160 to the first outlet 161 and a second distribution state in which hot water flows from the inflow port 160 to the second outlet 162. Normally, when the hot water from the heating source 130 is hot, the first distribution state is taken, the hot water is returned to the upper part of the storage tank 110, and the hot water from the heating source 130 is cold. In, the second distribution state is taken, the low temperature hot water is returned to the lower part of the storage tank 110, and is sent to the heating source 130 again by the boiling pump 120.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2004-257583

In the flow path switching valve such as the three-way valve used in the conventional hot water supply equipment as described above, the fluid leaks to the second outlet side in the first flow state (inflow port → first outlet). At least the first outlet and the second outlet to prevent the fluid from leaking to the first outlet side in the second flow state (inlet → second outlet). A sealing material such as an O-ring is provided between the two, but in order to provide a sealing material such as an O-ring, it is necessary to provide an annular mounting groove or the like in the valve body or the like, resulting in component cost, processing and assembly cost, and eventually. I hated the high product cost.

Further, in the flow path switching valve used for hot water supply equipment, the fluid pressure in the pipe connected to the outlet suddenly increases due to freezing, etc., and the flow direction of the flow path switching valve is different from the normal flow direction. High pressure in the opposite direction (reverse pressure) may be applied, and such reverse pressure may cause the flow path switching valve, piping, or the like to fail.

In order to avoid this, for example, a method of providing a flow path that bypasses the flow path switching valve and interposing a relief valve that opens at a predetermined pressure or higher is conceivable in the flow path. In addition to increasing the number of parts, it takes a lot of time and effort to connect the pipes, which causes an increase in equipment cost.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to eliminate the need for a sealing material such as an O-ring for preventing leakage between a plurality of outlets, and to strictly control the dimensions. It is possible to reliably prevent leakage between outlets without the need for high-precision processing and molding technology, and it is also possible to have a relief function that effectively releases back pressure, processing and assembly costs, and products. An object of the present invention is to provide a flow path switching valve capable of keeping the cost low.

In order to achieve the above object, the flow path switching valve according to the present invention basically includes a valve shaft, a drive source for rotationally driving the valve shaft, an inflow port, a plurality of outflow ports, and the valve. It is provided with a valve shaft fitting insertion portion into which the shaft is rotatably fitted and a valve body having a valve seat provided on the lower outer periphery of the valve shaft fitting insertion portion, and is below the valve seat in the valve shaft. A disk-shaped valve body is integrally provided at the lower end portion protruding from the valve body, and the valve shaft with the valve body is made slidable within a predetermined range in the axial direction of the valve shaft fitting insertion portion. A valve body accommodating portion for accommodating the valve body is provided on the lower side, and the inflow port is provided on the lower side of the valve body accommodating portion. The valve body is composed of a main body member having a cylindrical portion provided on the outer peripheral portion and an inflow port member having the inflow port and having an upper portion fixed to a lower portion of the cylindrical portion of the main body member. It has at least one open passage that selectively opens the inflow port and each of the outflow ports, and by rotating the valve shaft with a valve body, at least the fluid flows from the inflow port to the open path. A first flow state in which the fluid flows from the inflow port to one of the outlets and a second flow state in which the fluid flows from the inflow port to the other one of the outlets through the open passage. The drive source is provided with a fitting hole in which the upper end portion of the valve shaft is slidably fitted in the axial direction and the upper surface is closed, so that the valve body can be selectively taken. The distance between the upper end of the valve shaft and the upper surface of the fitting hole in the state where the valve body is in contact with the upper end of the inflow port member is the maximum at which the valve body is pressed against the valve seat. It is longer than the distance from the ascending position to the most descending position in contact with the upper end of the inflow port member.

In the flow path switching valve according to the present invention, the upper surface of the valve body is pressed against the valve seat by utilizing the fluid pressure in the valve body to seal between the outlets. It is possible to eliminate the need for a sealing material such as an O-ring for sealing, and it is possible to keep processing and assembly costs and product costs low.

In addition, the valve shaft with a valve body can have a relatively simple structure, and is pushed up by the fluid pressure in the valve body so that the upper surface of the valve body is in close contact with the valve seat, so that strict dimensional control is performed. It is possible to easily secure the required sealing property between each outlet without requiring a high-precision processing and molding technique, and thereby, the processing and assembling cost and the product cost can be kept low.

Further, when the pressure on either the outlet side increases by a predetermined pressure or more, a reverse pressure is applied to the valve body, the valve body is pushed down, and a gap is formed between the valve body and the valve seat, whereby the flow occurs. The back pressure on the outlet side is released to the inflow port side through the gap. As described above, since the flow path switching valve of the present invention can have a relief function for effectively releasing the back pressure, it is possible to effectively avoid the failure of the flow path switching valve and the piping system due to the back pressure. In addition, since it is not necessary to separately provide a relief valve in the flow path, it is possible to suppress an increase in equipment cost.

The perspective view which shows the appearance of one Example of the flow path switching valve which concerns on this invention. A partial cut-out cross-sectional view showing a first distribution state of the above embodiment. A half-cross-sectional perspective view showing a first distribution state of the above embodiment. A partial cut-out cross-sectional view showing a second distribution state of the above one embodiment. A half-cross-sectional perspective view showing a second distribution state of the above embodiment. (A) UU cross-sectional view of FIG. 2 and (B) VV cross-sectional view of FIG. A partial cut-out cross-sectional view provided for explanation when a reverse pressure is generated in the above embodiment. The perspective view which shows the valve shaft with a valve body of the said one Example. The perspective view which shows the main body member of the said one Example. The schematic block diagram which shows the main part of an example of the conventional hot water supply equipment which used the flow path switching valve which has one inlet and two outlets.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view showing an embodiment of a flow path switching valve according to the present invention, and FIGS. 2 and 3 are a partial cutaway sectional view and a semi-cross-sectional perspective view showing a first flow state of the above embodiment. 4 and 5 are a partial cut-out cross-sectional view and a semi-cross-sectional perspective view showing a second distribution state of the above embodiment. In addition, in FIGS. 1 to 5, parts (inside of the motor 5, etc.) that are not so necessary for understanding the present invention are not shown or hatched. Further, in each drawing, the gap formed between the members, the separation distance between the members, etc. may be exaggerated in order to facilitate the understanding of the invention and for the convenience of drawing. is there.

Further, in the present specification, the description indicating the position and direction such as up / down, left / right, front / back, etc. is added for convenience according to the drawings in order to avoid complicated explanation, and the position and direction in the actual use state. Does not mean.

The flow path switching valve 1 of the illustrated embodiment is used in a hot water supply facility as shown in FIG. 10 described above (corresponding to reference numeral 150 in FIG. 10), and is basically a valve shaft 30 and the valve. A motor 5 as a drive source for rotationally driving the shaft 30 and a valve body 6 to which the motor 5 is mounted and fixed on the upper side thereof are provided.

The valve main body 6 is made of a synthetic resin, and is divided into a main body member 7 and an inflow port member 9 for convenience of molding and the like.

As can be clearly seen by referring to FIG. 9 in addition to FIGS. 1 to 5, the main body member 7 has a base portion 8 having an upper short cylindrical portion 8A and a lower cylindrical portion 8B, and the base portion 8 is provided. The stepped cylindrical first outlet (joint) 21 and the second outlet (joint) 22 are provided on the outer peripheral portion (left and right side portions) of the above so as to face each other.

Further, mounting pedestals 7f and 7f are provided in front of and behind the upper portion of the upper short columnar portion 8A, and when mounting and fixing the motor 5 to the main body member 7, the motors 5 are mounted on the mounting pedestals 7f and 7f. The motor 5 and the main body member 7 are fastened and fixed with two front and rear screws 15 by mounting screw fastening portions 5f and 5f provided on the front and rear of the lower portion of the motor 5.

The upper short columnar portion 8A of the base portion 8 is provided with a valve shaft fitting insertion portion 12 so as to vertically penetrate the center of the upper short columnar portion 8A, and a peripheral surface opening that opens to the first outlet 21 side. The inverted L-shaped first outflow opening 23 having the lower surface opening and the inverted L-shaped second outflow opening 24 having the peripheral surface opening and the lower surface opening opening on the second outflow port 22 side are 180 °. It is formed symmetrically with an angular interval of.

More specifically, the lower surface openings of the first outflow opening 23 and the second outflow opening 24 have a semicircular curved long groove shape at both ends or a fan shape with a central angle of 100 ° or more, and the lower end portion thereof is an upper portion. The short columnar portion 8A projects downward from the lower end surface 8a (see FIG. 9), and the lower ends of the first outflow opening 23 and the second outflow opening 24 are pressed against the upper surface of the valve body 40, which will be described later, to bring them into close contact with each other. The valve seats are 15A and 15B. In other words, the valve seats 15A and 15B are formed of a frame-shaped convex portion having a predetermined width and having the same outer shape as the edge portion defining the first outflow opening 23 and the second outflow opening 24, and the lower surface thereof ( The valve seat surface) is a flat smooth surface orthogonal to the center line (rotation axis of the valve shaft 30) O of the valve shaft fitting portion 12. The width of the lower surface opening portion of the first outflow opening 23 and the second outflow opening 24 is slightly larger than the width of the opening-shaped passages 41 and 42 formed in the valve body 40 described later, and the length (central angle) thereof is the same. The lengths (central angles) of the opening passages 41 and 42 are longer than the lengths (central angles) of the opening passages 41 and 42 by about semicircular portions at both ends (see also FIG. 6).

On the other hand, the inlet member 9 has a funnel-shaped insertion hole serving as an inlet 20 on the inner peripheral side, and a collar-shaped portion 9a on which the lower cylindrical portion 8B of the base portion 8 of the main body member 7 is placed on the outer peripheral side. In addition, it has a protruding insertion portion 9b that protrudes upward from the flange-shaped portion 9a and is inserted into the lower part of the lower cylindrical portion 8B, and the collar-shaped portion 9a and the lower cylindrical portion 8B are fixed by ultrasonic welding or the like. Has been done.

A valve that swingably accommodates the valve body 40 described later in the lower portion of the lower cylindrical portion 8B, the lower surface 8a of the base portion 8, and the protruding insertion portion 9b (upper end surface) of the inflow port member 9. The body accommodating portion 14 is defined. Further, the protruding insertion portion 9b of the inflow port member 9 functions as a stopper for preventing the valve body 40 from descending from the lower surfaces (valve seat surface) of the valve seats 15A and 15B by a certain distance or more ( (See FIG. 7).

In the valve body 6, the valve body accommodating portion 14 and the inflow port 20 are arranged on the center line O of the valve shaft fitting portion 12, and the first flow is on the common center line C orthogonal to the center line O. An outlet 21 and a second outlet 22 are arranged.

As can be clearly seen from FIG. 8 in addition to FIGS. 1 to 5, the valve shaft 30 has a D-cut convex portion 31 for circumferential positioning and a rotational driving force of the rotor of the motor 5 decelerating at the uppermost portion thereof. An involuted serration shaft portion 32 transmitted via a gear mechanism is provided, and a mounting groove composed of a three-stage flange-shaped portion 34 on which O-rings 35 and 35 are mounted is provided below the serration shaft portion 32. (The portion of the valve shaft 30 on which the O-rings 35 and 35 are mounted is referred to as an O-ring mounting portion 33), and a thick disk-shaped valve body 40 is integrally provided at the lowermost portion. (The valve shaft 30 and the valve body 40 are integrated). The valve shaft 30 with the valve body 40 is capable of sliding the valve shaft fitting / inserting portion 12 in the axial direction (vertical direction) within a predetermined range.

Specifically, the motor 5 is provided with a support portion 57 that rotatably supports the output gear 51 of the reduction gear mechanism, and the serration shaft portion 32 is axially provided on the boss portion 52 of the output gear 51. A serration fitting hole 53 that is slidably fitted and inserted is provided, and a D-shaped fitting hole 54 into which the D-cut convex portion 31 is fitted is continuously provided above the serration fitting hole 53. In this case, the valve shaft 30 with the valve body 40 has the highest position where the valve body 40 is pressed against the valve seats 15A and 15B as shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, and the valve as shown in FIG. The valve shaft 30 with the valve body 40 sets the minimum descending position so that the body 40 can take the minimum descending position (descending by a distance K from the maximum ascending position) in contact with the upper surface of the protruding insertion portion 9b of the inflow port member 9. In the state (FIG. 7), between the upper end of the serration shaft portion 32 and the upper terrace surface 53a of the serration fitting hole 53, and between the upper end of the D-cut convex portion 31 and the upper surface 54a of the D-shaped fitting hole 54. A space for a distance L longer than the K is provided between the two.

The valve body 40 has two opening passages 41 and 42 (first opening passage 41) for selectively opening the inflow port 20 and the first outlet 21 or the inflow port 20 and the second outlet 22. , The second opening passage 42) is provided at an angular interval of 90 °. Each of the open passages 41 and 42 has a fan shape with a central angle of 70 ° to 80 °, and as described above, the width and length (central angle) thereof are the first outflow opening 23 and the second outflow opening 24. It is made smaller than that of the lower surface opening part of.

Further, the upper surface of the valve body 40 other than the open passages 41 and 42 may be in close contact with the lower surfaces (valve seat surfaces) of the valve seats 15A and 15B so as to watertightly seal between the outlets 21 and 22. As shown above, it has a flat and smooth surface.

The position of the valve body 40 in the rotation direction with respect to the valve seats 15A and 15B is the position of the valve seat 15A (first outflow opening 23) as shown in FIGS. 2, 3 and 6 (A). The state in which the opening passage 41 is located directly below is used as a reference (first distribution state), and the state in which the opening passage 41 is rotated 90 ° counterclockwise from this first distribution state, that is, FIGS. 4, 5, and 6. The state in which the opening passage 42 is located directly below the valve seat 15B (second outflow opening 24) as shown in (B) is defined as the second distribution state.

When the flow path switching valve 1 of the present embodiment having the above-described configuration is incorporated into the hot water supply facility as shown in FIG. 10 as a three-way valve indicated by reference numeral 150, a valve with a valve body 40 is attached. The shaft 30 acts on the fluid (hot water) pressure in the valve body 6 (the pressure acting on the lower side of the O-ring mounting portion 33 of the valve shaft 30) and the atmospheric pressure (the pressure acting on the upper side of the O-ring mounting portion 33 of the valve shaft 30). Pressure) and the pressure of the fluid (hot water) that flows into the inflow port 20 and flows to the first outlet 21 or the second outlet 22 pushes it upward, and the upper surface of the valve body 40 becomes a valve. It is pressed against the seats 15A and 15B, and its upper surface can be rotated while being pressed against the valve seats 15A and 15B.

In this case, the valve shaft 30 with the valve body 40 is pushed up and the upper surface of the valve body 40 is pressed against the valve seats 15A and 15B, so that the outlets 21 and 22 are watertightly sealed and the valve is sealed. By rotating the valve shaft 30 while the body 40 is pressed, the fluid flows from the inflow port 20 to the first outflow port 21 through the first open passage 41, and the fluid is released. A second flow state flowing from the inflow port 20 to the second outflow port 22 via the second open passage 42 can be selectively taken.

That is, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, when the first open passage 41 comes directly under the valve seat 15A which is the lower end of the first outflow opening 23, the fluid flows from the outflow port 20 to the first. The first flow state is taken, which flows from the opening passage 41 → the first outflow opening 23 → the first outflow port 21.

On the other hand, when the valve body 40 is rotated counterclockwise by about 90 ° from the first distribution state, the second opening-shaped passage 42 becomes the lower end portion of the second outflow opening 24, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. Since it comes directly under the valve seat 15B, which is said to be, at this time, a second flow state is taken in which the fluid flows from the outflow port 20 → the second open passage 42 → the second outflow opening 24 → the second outflow port 22. ..

As described above, in the flow path switching valve 1 of the present embodiment, the valve shaft 30 with the valve body 40 is pushed up by utilizing the fluid pressure in the valve body 6, and the upper surface of the valve body 40 is pressed against the valve seats 15A and 15B. Since it is designed to seal between the first outlet 21 and the second outlet 22, a sealing material such as an O-ring for sealing between the first outlet and the second outlet is unnecessary. The processing and assembly costs and product costs can be kept low.

Further, the valve shaft 30 with the valve body 40 has a relatively simple structure, and is pushed up by the fluid pressure in the valve body 6 so that the upper surface of the valve body 40 is brought into close contact with the valve seats 15A and 15B. It is possible to easily secure the required sealing property between the first outlet 21 and the second outlet 22 without requiring strict dimensional control or high-precision processing and molding technology.

Further, as shown in FIG. 7, for example, when the first flow state (inflow port 20 → first outlet 21) is taken, when the pressure on the second outlet 22 side increases by a predetermined pressure or more. , A reverse pressure is applied to the valve body 40 (upper surface), the valve shaft 30 with the valve body 40 is slightly tilted or pushed down, and between the lower surfaces (valve seat surface) of the valve seats 15A and 15B and the upper surface of the valve body 40. A minute gap is formed in the air, and the pressure on the second outlet 22 side is released to the inflow port 20 side accordingly. At this time, the valve body 40 is lowered at the maximum until it comes into contact with the upper end of the protruding insertion portion 9b of the inflow port member 9, and further lowering is prevented (the protruding insertion portion 9b is the valve body 40). Acts as a stopper to prevent the body from descending more than a certain distance).

As described above, the flow path switching valve 1 of the present embodiment can be provided with a relief function for effectively releasing the back pressure, so that the flow path switching valve 1 due to the back pressure generated due to freezing or the like can be used. Failure of the piping system can be effectively avoided, and since it is not necessary to separately provide a relief valve in the flow path, it is possible to suppress an increase in equipment cost.

In the above embodiment, a three-way valve having two outlets is illustrated as a flow path switching valve, but the present invention is not limited to this, and three or four outlets are provided to form a four-way valve or a five-way valve. You can also do it. Further, the structure of the valve body is not limited to that of the above embodiment, and various modes can be adopted. Specifically, for example, the first to fourth outlets are provided at 90 ° intervals on the same plane, one opening passage is provided in the valve body, and the valve body is rotated by 90 °, 180 °, and 270 °. The inflow port and each outflow port may be selectively opened each time.

Further, in the above embodiment, the valve shaft 30 and the valve body 40 are manufactured as an integral body, but it is needless to say that the valve shaft 30 and the valve body 40 may be integrally manufactured and then integrally assembled.

1 Flow path switching valve 5 Motor 6 Valve body 7 Main body member 8 Base part 9 Inflow port member 12 Valve shaft fitting part 14 Valve body accommodating part 15A, 15B Valve seat 20 Inflow port 21 First outflow port 22 Second outflow port 23 1st outflow opening 24 2nd outflow opening 30 Valve shaft 40 Valve body 41, 42 Open passage

Claims (1)

A valve shaft, a drive source for rotationally driving the valve shaft, an inflow port, a plurality of outlets, a valve shaft fitting portion into which the valve shaft is rotatably fitted, and the valve shaft fitting. A valve body having a valve seat provided on the outer periphery of the lower portion of the portion is provided.
A disk-shaped valve body is integrally provided at the lower end portion of the valve shaft protruding downward from the valve seat, and the valve shaft with the valve body fits the valve shaft fitting portion within a predetermined range in the axial direction. Slidable,
A valve body accommodating portion for accommodating the valve body is provided on the lower side of the valve seat, and the inflow port is provided on the lower side of the valve body accommodating portion.
The valve main body has a main body member having a cylindrical portion having a plurality of outlets provided on the outer peripheral portion thereof, and the inlet thereof, and an upper portion thereof is fixed to a lower portion of the cylindrical portion of the main body member. It is composed of an inflow port member and
The valve body has at least one open passage that selectively opens the inlet and each outlet.
By rotating the valve shaft with a valve body, at least the first flow state in which the fluid flows from the inflow port to one of the outflow ports through the open passage, and the fluid flows from the inflow port. A second flow state flowing through the open passage to the other one of the outlets can be selectively taken.
The drive source is provided with a fitting hole in which the upper end portion of the valve shaft is slidably fitted in the axial direction and the upper surface is closed.
The distance between the upper end of the valve shaft and the upper surface of the fitting hole in a state where the valve body is in the lowest position in contact with the upper end of the inflow port member is such that the valve body is the valve. A flow path switching valve characterized in that it is longer than the distance from the highest position pressed against the seat to the lowest position in contact with the upper end of the inflow port member.

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