JP6959129B2 - Valve device and valve seat - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a valve device and a valve seat.

Patent Document 1 discloses a valve device using a ball valve for executing flow rate control or distribution control of a fluid such as an automobile engine coolant (radiator liquid). In this valve device, the valve opening of the ball valve and the valve seat are formed by pressing the concave spherical seat surface of the valve seat against the convex spherical ball surface of the ball valve and rotating the ball valve. Switch between communication and non-communication of the seat opening.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2016-53415

However, the conventional valve device including Patent Document 1 repeatedly slides in a state where the ball surface of the ball valve and the seat surface of the valve seat are in pressure contact with each other when used for a long period of time. The seat surface was worn and there was a risk of fluid leaking even when the valve was closed.

The present invention has been made based on the above awareness of the problem, and an object of the present invention is to obtain a highly durable valve device and valve seat capable of preventing wear of the valve seat and leakage of fluid due to the wear. do.

The valve device of the present embodiment includes a ball valve having a ball surface and a ball opening, and a valve seat having a seat surface and a seat opening, and the ball opening and the ball opening are in a state where the ball surface and the seat surface face each other. A valve device in which the flow of fluid is allowed by communicating the seat openings, and the seat surface is a reference concave seat surface facing the ball surface and the reference concave seat surface toward the ball surface. the fluid between the lip surface adjacent with projecting possess a plurality of lip surface capable of storing, the radius of curvature of the reference concave seat surface is larger than the radius of curvature of the ball surface, that the said There is.

The plurality of lip surfaces have different radii of curvature and / or can project toward the ball surface with different protrusion amounts.

The plurality of lip surfaces can increase the radius of curvature and / or the amount of protrusion as the ball opening and the sheet opening move away from the communication axis.

The plurality of lip surfaces can be composed of three lip surfaces that increase the radius of curvature and the amount of protrusion as the distance from the communication axis increases.

The plurality of lip surfaces can be arranged at substantially equal intervals as they move away from the communication axis of the ball opening and the sheet opening.

The plurality of lip surfaces can be provided continuously or discontinuously in a concentric ring centered on the communication axis when viewed along the communication axis between the ball opening and the sheet opening.

The valve seat of the present embodiment has a seat surface and a seat opening, and in a state where the ball surface of the ball valve and the seat surface face each other, the ball opening of the ball valve and the seat opening communicate with each other to form a fluid. A valve seat that allows flow, the seat surface is between a reference concave seat surface facing the ball surface and a lip surface that projects from the reference concave seat surface toward the ball surface and is adjacent to the ball surface. the fluid possess a plurality of lip surface capable of storing and a radius of curvature of the reference concave seat surface, the greater than the radius of curvature of the ball surface is characterized by.

According to the present invention, a highly durable valve device and valve seat capable of preventing wear of the valve seat and leakage of fluid due to the wear can be obtained.

It is sectional drawing of the main part which shows the valve open state of the valve device by 1st Embodiment. It is sectional drawing of the main part which shows the valve closed state of the valve device by 1st Embodiment. It is sectional drawing of the main part which shows the structure of the seat surface of the valve seat by 1st Embodiment. It is sectional drawing of the main part which shows the structure of the seat surface of the valve seat by 2nd Embodiment.

<< First Embodiment >>
The valve device 1 and the valve seat 20 according to the first embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3. The valve device 1 is mounted on an automobile, for example, to perform flow rate control or distribution control of a long life coolant (LLC). The valve device 1 has a degree of freedom in its application, and can be used for flow rate control or distribution control of any fluid other than LLC.

The valve device 1 has a housing 10 that directly or indirectly supports each component of the valve device 1. The housing 10 has an inlet through which LLC (fluid) is guided and an outlet through which LLC whose flow rate is controlled or distributed by the valve device 1 is discharged.

A valve seat 20 is supported on the housing 10. The valve seat 20 is composed of, for example, a ring body formed by containing rubber such as EPDM or resin such as PTFE, and the material thereof has a degree of freedom. The valve seat 20 has a circular seat opening 21 penetrating the central portion and a concave spherical seat surface 22 located around the seat opening 21. The housing 10 has a small-diameter cylindrical portion 11, a diameter-expanded portion 12 that expands the diameter from the small-diameter tubular portion 11, and a large-diameter tubular portion that is continuous with the enlarged-diameter portion 12 as supporting means for supporting the valve seat 20. It has 13 and. A spring 30 is supported on the outer peripheral surface of the small-diameter cylindrical portion 11. Further, the valve seat 20 is supported on the upper surface of the enlarged diameter portion 12 and the inner peripheral surface of the large diameter tubular portion 13. That is, the upper surface of the enlarged diameter portion 12 supports the surface of the valve seat 20 opposite to the seat surface 22, and the large diameter tubular portion 13 restrains (position restricts) the outer peripheral surface of the valve seat 20.

A ball valve 40 is supported directly above the valve seat 20. Although not shown, the ball valve 40 is linked to a shaft that rotatably supports the ball valve 40 and an electric actuator that rotates the shaft. The ball valve 40 is composed of a cup body formed by containing a resin such as a thermoplastic resin, for example, but the material thereof has a degree of freedom. The ball valve 40 has a cylindrical ball opening 41 penetrating the central portion and a convex spherical ball surface 42 facing the concave spherical seat surface 22 of the valve seat 20.

The ball opening 41 of the ball valve 40 and the valve seat are formed by rotating the ball valve 40 with a shaft and an actuator (not shown) with the ball surface 42 of the ball valve 40 and the seat surface 22 of the valve seat 20 facing each other. It is possible to switch between communication and non-communication of the 20 seat openings 21. In the valve open state where the ball opening 41 of the ball valve 40 and the seat opening 21 of the valve seat 20 communicate with each other, the flow of LLC is permitted (FIG. 1), and the ball opening 41 of the ball valve 40 and the seat opening 21 of the valve seat 20 are not. The LLC flow is cut off when the continuous valve is closed (Fig. 2). Further, by rotating the ball valve 40 in the valve open state in which the ball opening 41 and the seat opening 21 communicate with each other, the degree of communication between the ball opening 41 and the seat opening 21 (LLC flow rate) can be controlled. In FIGS. 1 and 2, the common axis of the ball opening 41 and the seat opening 21 in the state where the degree of communication between the ball opening 41 and the seat opening 21 (LLC flow rate) is maximum is drawn as the communication shaft 50.

The flow direction of the LLC in the valve device 1 is not particularly limited, but as an example of understanding assistance, the LLC supplied from the inlet of the housing 10 is supplied to the inside of the ball opening 41 of the ball valve 40. Then, when the valve device 1 is switched from the valve closed state to the valve open state, LLC is guided to the outlet of the housing 10 via the ball opening 41 and the seat opening 21.

The opening diameter of the ball opening 41 of the ball valve 40 is set to be larger than the opening diameter of the seat opening 21 of the valve seat 20. However, the opening diameter of the ball opening 41 and the opening diameter of the sheet opening 21 may be substantially the same, or the opening diameter of the ball opening 41 may be set to be smaller than the opening diameter of the sheet opening 21.

By the way, the conventional valve device including Patent Document 1 repeatedly slides in a state where the ball surface of the ball valve and the seat surface of the valve seat are in pressure contact with each other when used for a long period of time. The seat surface was worn and there was a risk of fluid leaking even when the valve was closed.

The present inventor has succeeded in solving the technical problem by considering the above problem as an important technical problem and devising the structure of the seat surface 22 of the valve seat 20.

FIG. 3A is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing the structure of the seat surface 22 of the valve seat 20, and FIG. 3B is an enlarged view of the circled portion in FIG. 3A. The seat surface 22 of the valve seat 20 has a reference concave seat surface 22A facing the ball surface 42 of the ball valve 40. The reference concave sheet surface 22A constitutes the reference concave surface of the sheet surface 22. The radius of curvature of the reference concave seat surface 22A is set to be larger than the radius of curvature of the ball surface 42 of the ball valve 40. Therefore, when the communication shaft 50 of the seat opening 21 and the ball opening 41 is used as a reference, the reference concave seat surface 22A and the ball surface 42 are in contact with each other at a position close to the communication shaft 50, but at a position far from the communication shaft 50. The reference concave sheet surface 22A and the ball surface 42 are not in contact with each other, and a clearance is formed between the two, so that LLC (fluid) can be stored in the clearance.

The reference concave sheet surface 22A is formed with a first lip surface 22B1, a second lip surface 22B2, and a third lip surface 22B3 protruding from the reference concave sheet surface 22A toward the ball surface 42. The first lip surface 22B1 to the third lip surface 22B3 are arranged in order from the side closer to the communication shaft 50 of the sheet opening 21 and the ball opening 41 to the side farther from the communication shaft 50.

The first lip surface 22B1 to the third lip surface 22B3 are provided continuously or discontinuously in a concentric ring around the communication shaft 50 when viewed along the communication shaft 50 of the seat opening 21 and the ball opening 41. Has been done.

The first lip surface 22B1 to the third lip surface 22B3 are arranged at substantially equal intervals as they move away from the communication shaft 50 of the seat opening 21 and the ball opening 41. That is, when viewed along the direction orthogonal to the communication axis 50 (left-right direction in the drawing), the distance between the first lip surface 22B1 and the second lip surface 22B2 is substantially the same, and the second lip The distance between the surface 22B2 and the third lip surface 22B3 is substantially the same.

The first lip surface 22B1 to the third lip surface 22B3 increase the radius of curvature and the amount of protrusion to the ball surface 42 as they move away from the communication shaft 50 between the seat opening 21 and the ball opening 41. That is, the radius of curvature of the second lip surface 22B2 and the amount of protrusion to the ball surface 42 are larger than those of the first lip surface 22B1, and the curvature of the third lip surface 22B3 is larger than that of the second lip surface 22B2. The radius and the amount of protrusion to the ball surface 42 are large.

The tips of the first lip surface 22B1 to the third lip surface 22B3 come into contact with (bullet contact) the ball surface 42. FIG. 3B depicts the free state of the first lip surface 22B1 to the third lip surface 22B3, and the portion that comes into contact with (ballistically contacts) the ball surface 42 and is compressed (deformed) is shown by a broken line. The contact amount (contact amount) between the first lip surface 22B1 and the ball surface 42 is the smallest, the contact amount (ball contact amount) between the second lip surface 22B2 and the ball surface 42 is the second smallest, and the third lip The contact amount (ballistic contact amount) between the surface 22B3 and the ball surface 42 is the largest.

When the facing portion between the seat surface 22 of the valve seat 20 and the ball surface 42 of the ball valve 40 is microscopically observed, the reference concave seat surface 22A and the ball surface 42 are hardly in contact with each other (even if there is a contact portion). Good), the first lip surface 22B1 to the third lip surface 22B3 are in contact (bullet contact) with the ball surface 42. By dispersing the contact (bullet contact) portion of the ball valve 40 with the ball surface 42 on the first lip surface 22B1 to the third lip surface 22B3 in this way, the seat surface 22 of the valve seat 20 is worn and the surface 22B3 is dispersed. It is possible to realize a highly durable valve device 1 that can withstand long-term use while preventing leakage of LLC (fluid) due to the cause.

Further, when the communication or non-communication between the ball opening 41 of the ball valve 40 and the seat opening 21 of the valve seat 20 is switched by rotating the ball valve 40, the adjacent first lip surface 22B1 and the second lip are switched. The LLC (fluid) is scraped and stored between the surfaces 22B2 and between the adjacent second lip surface 22B2 and the third lip surface 22B3. Then, due to the floating (surface tension) effect of the LLC, the wear (friction) applied to the first lip surface 22B1 to the third lip surface 22B3 while maintaining the contact (bullet contact) of the ball valve 40 with the ball surface 42. Can be effectively reduced to achieve excellent followability and slidability.

<< Second Embodiment >>
In the first embodiment, the first lip surface 22B1 to the third lip surface 22B3 are provided, but it is sufficient that there are a plurality of lip surfaces, and various design changes can be made. FIG. 4A illustrates a case where two lip surfaces, a first lip surface 22C1 and a second lip surface 22C2, are provided. The first lip surface 22C1 and the second lip surface 22C2 have a radius of curvature and an amount of protrusion (contact amount, impact amount) to the ball surface 42 as they move away from the communication shaft 50 of the seat opening 21 and the ball opening 41. ) Is increased. FIG. 4B illustrates a case where four lip surfaces of a first lip surface 22D1, a second lip surface 22D2, a third lip surface 22D3, and a fourth lip surface 22D4 are provided. The first lip surface 22D1 to the fourth lip surface 22D4 have a radius of curvature and an amount of protrusion (contact amount, impact amount) to the ball surface 42 as they move away from the communication shaft 50 of the seat opening 21 and the ball opening 41. ) Is increased.

<< Third Embodiment >>
In the first and second embodiments, a plurality of lip surfaces (first lip surface 22B1 to third lip surface 22B3, first lip surface 22C1 to second lip surface 22C2, first lip surface 22D1 to 1). The fourth lip surface 22D4) makes both the radius of curvature and the amount of protrusion to the ball surface 42 different. However, the plurality of lip surfaces may differ in only one of the radius of curvature and the amount of protrusion to the ball surface 42. That is, the plurality of lip surfaces may have different radii of curvature and / or project toward the ball surface 42 with different protrusion amounts. Further, a part of the plurality of lip surfaces may have the same radius of curvature and the amount of protrusion to the ball surface 42. Further, on a part of the plurality of lip surfaces, at least one of the radius of curvature and the amount of protrusion to the ball surface 42 becomes smaller (or the same) as the seat opening 21 and the ball opening 41 move away from the communication shaft 50. There may be.

The valve device and valve seat of the present invention are suitable for use, for example, in an automobile to perform flow control or distribution control of a long life coolant (LLC). In this case, in addition to the above-mentioned effects of the present invention, advantages such as early warm-up, combustion improvement, friction reduction, cooling loss reduction, fuel consumption improvement, and emission improvement can be obtained.

1 Valve device 10 Housing 11 Small diameter tubular part 12 Expanded diameter 13 Large diameter tubular part 20 Valve seat 21 Seat opening 22 Seat surface 22A Reference concave seat surface 22B1 First lip surface 22B2 Second lip surface 22B3 Third Lip surface 22C1 First lip surface 22C2 Second lip surface 22D1 First lip surface 22D2 Second lip surface 22D3 Third lip surface 22D4 Fourth lip surface 30 Spring 40 Ball valve 41 Ball opening 42 Ball surface 50 Communication axis

Claims (7)

A ball valve with a ball surface and a ball opening,
A valve seat with a seat surface and a seat opening,
Have,
A valve device in which a fluid flow is allowed by communicating the ball opening and the seat opening with the ball surface and the seat surface facing each other.
The seat surface is
A reference concave sheet surface facing the ball surface and
A plurality of lip surfaces that project from the reference concave sheet surface toward the ball surface and can store the fluid between adjacent lip surfaces.
Have a,
The radius of curvature of the reference concave sheet surface is larger than the radius of curvature of the ball surface.
A valve device characterized by that. The plurality of lip surfaces have different radii of curvature and / or project toward the ball surface with different protrusion amounts.
The valve device according to claim 1. The plurality of lip surfaces increase the radius of curvature and / or the amount of protrusion as they move away from the communication axis between the ball opening and the sheet opening.
The valve device according to claim 2. The plurality of lip surfaces are composed of three lip surfaces that increase the radius of curvature and the amount of protrusion as the distance from the communication axis increases.
The valve device according to claim 3. The plurality of lip surfaces are arranged at substantially equal intervals as they move away from the communication axis of the ball opening and the sheet opening.
The valve device according to any one of claims 1 to 4. The plurality of lip surfaces are provided continuously or discontinuously in a concentric ring centered on the communication axis when viewed along the communication axis between the ball opening and the sheet opening.
The valve device according to any one of claims 1 to 5. A valve seat that has a seat surface and a seat opening, and in a state where the ball surface of the ball valve and the seat surface face each other, the ball opening of the ball valve and the seat opening communicate with each other to allow fluid flow. There,
The seat surface is
A reference concave sheet surface facing the ball surface and
A plurality of lip surfaces that project from the reference concave sheet surface toward the ball surface and can store the fluid between adjacent lip surfaces.
Have a,
The radius of curvature of the reference concave sheet surface is larger than the radius of curvature of the ball surface.
The valve seat is characterized by that.

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