JPH05132099A - Liquid tank - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To discharge liquid in a tank irrespective of a gravity direction. CONSTITUTION:An air bag 2 which can be swelled and expanded is housed in a tank body 1. The tank 1 is filled with liquid through an liquid inlet port 3, wherein sealing fluid in the air bag 2 causes the bag to be swelled and expanded to press-feed the liquid inside the tank 1 from an exhaust port 4. A direction of exhausted liquid from the exhaust port 4 is free and a placement posture of the tank 1 is free from limitation by a gravity direction. It can be used under no gravity or under very small gravity.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a liquid tank capable of sending liquid in any direction without being affected by gravity.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Normally, in a liquid tank, a drain pipe 13 is connected to a drain port 12 of a tank body 11 as shown in FIG. 4, and a pump 14 is driven to suck the liquid filled in the tank body 11. Then it is pumped to the destination. Therefore, the tank body 11 is installed in a vertical posture, and the drainage pipe is connected to the bottom of the tank body.

However, in a microgravity environment such as a space station, or in a zero gravity environment, the liquid in the tank becomes spherical due to its surface tension, and when a space is formed on the liquid surface in the tank, the filling liquid. Is separated from the drainage port 12 of the tank and cannot be fed.

This is not limited to a special environment such as a space station, but natural drainage utilizing gravity cannot be performed in a tank arrangement in which the drainage port 12 is not located below the gravity direction. ..

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a cylindrical tank is used, and the liquid in the tank is pressurized by a piston according to the same principle as a syringe, and is forced out in an arbitrary direction regardless of the direction of gravity. It is possible.

[0006]

However, when using a tank with a built-in piston, it is necessary to secure a margin for the piston stroke outside the tank. This basically means securing a space with the same capacity as the tank outside the tank, and when installing in a limited space such as a space station or even on the ground, there is a restriction on the space for installation. Cannot be used when receiving.

Further, a driving mechanism and a sealing mechanism are required to drive the piston, which makes the structure complicated and increases the weight, which causes many structural problems.

An object of the present invention is to provide a liquid pump capable of sending a filling liquid in a tank in a free direction regardless of a gravity direction without being restricted by space.

[0009]

In order to achieve the above object, a liquid tank according to the present invention is a liquid tank having a tank body and a bladder, the tank body being a liquid filling container, sucking, It has a drainage port and the air sacs
An inflatable and expandable bag that is housed in the tank body and has a fluid inlet, which is opened to the outside through the tank body and is connected to a fluid pressure source installed outside the tank. Is.

Further, the tank body has a bypass pipe,
The bypass pipe is a pipe that connects the inside of the tank near the drainage port to the portion that becomes the bottom of the tank at the time of installation, and conducts the liquid trapped in the tank main body to the drainage port by expanding and expanding the air bag. It is a thing.

[0011]

When the air sac is expanded and expanded in the tank body filled with the liquid, the liquid is removed by the amount of the volume increase and is forced out of the drain port of the tank body to the outside.

Depending on the shape, direction and arrangement of the air sacs when they are expanded and expanded, the liquid in the tank may be separated from the drainage port by a part of the air sacs. In this case, the liquid is passed through the bypass pipe. Guide the liquid to the exhaust port and send it.

[0013]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

In FIG. 1, the liquid tank of the present invention comprises a combination of a tank body 1 and an air bag 2.
The tank body 1 is a cylindrical closed container, and the upper lid 1a and the lower lid 1b are hemispherical, and the raw water feed port 3 is on the upper lid 1a, and the raw water drain port is on the center bottom of the lower lid 1b. 4 are formed respectively, and a perforated plate 5 is attached to the front surface of the drainage port 4.

An air bag attachment hole 6 is opened in the center of the upper lid 1a facing the drainage port 4. Reference numeral 7 denotes an installation flange of the tank body 1.

The air bag 2 is an inflatable and expandable bag made of rubber or other elastic or flexible material, has a fluid inlet 8, is accommodated in the tank body 1, and has a fluid inlet. 8 is exposed to the outside of the tank body 1 through the air bag attachment hole 6 of the tank body 1, and is fixed to the attachment hole 6 by a cap 9.

The tank main body 1 shown in FIG. 1 is in a normal installation posture, and in a normal use state, the liquid injected and filled into the tank main body 1 through the liquid supply port 3 of the upper lid 1a is lowered by gravity. Drained from the drainage port 4 of the lid 1b, and dare to remove the air sac 2
Need not work.

However, in a zero-gravity or microgravity environment, there is no guarantee that the liquid in the tank can be sent from the drain port 4 in the normal installation posture of the tank main body 1 as shown in FIG. When the posture is reversed and the drainage port 4 is arranged upward, the liquid cannot be sent as it is.

FIG. 2 shows an example in which the tank body 1 is installed in an inverted posture with the drainage port 4 facing upward and used.

In FIG. 1A, the tank body 1 is filled with a liquid and the liquid supply port 3 is covered. An air layer is formed between the liquid surface in the tank body 1 and the drainage port 4 due to the filling amount of the liquid, and as it is, liquid cannot be delivered even if the tank body 1 is forcibly sucked from the drainage port 4. ..

In FIG. 2B, a pump or a fluid pressure source (both not shown) is connected to the fluid inlet 8 of the air bag 2 to inject gas (or liquid) into the air bag 2 at high pressure. The air bladder 2 expands and expands while receiving the fluid pressure to remove the fluid in the tank body 1, and the liquid in the tank body 1 is pushed up and forcedly pumped from the drainage port 4.

In a microgravity or weightless environment, the air bag 2
Is considered to be capable of delivering the entire amount of the liquid in the tank body 1 while expanding and expanding along the shape of the tank body 1, but under the gravity environment, air is used for expanding and expanding the air sacs. When used, due to the difference in specific gravity between the injected air and the liquid in the tank body, the air bag 2 that has expanded and expanded as shown in FIG. 2C floats and the liquid is trapped under the air bag 2.

In preparation for such a situation, as shown in FIG. 3, a bypass pipe 10 is provided to connect the vicinity of the air bag attachment hole 6 of the tank body 1 with the vicinity of the drainage port 4.

The bypass pipe 10 may be provided outside the tank body 1 or may be provided along the inner wall of the tank body 1. When the air bladder 2 is further expanded and expanded from the state of FIG. 2C, the liquid trapped in the lower portion of the tank body 1 is pumped to the drainage port 4 through the bypass pipe 10.

The perforated plate 5 shown in FIG. 1 is for preventing a part of the air bag 2 from invading the drainage port 4 and bursting when the air bag 2 is inflated and expanded to the maximum extent.

In the above embodiment, an example in which the tank body 1 is used in a vertically long inverted posture has been shown, but the installation posture of the tank body 1 is not restricted by horizontal or diagonal placement. When used in a gravitational environment, it is necessary to open one end of the bypass pipe 10 in the portion that will be the bottom of the tank so that it is communicated with the drainage port 4. However,
It is also possible to eliminate the bypass pipe by using a liquid having a larger specific gravity than the filling liquid in the tank for expanding and expanding the air bag.

[0027]

As described above, according to the present invention, the installation posture of the tank main body can be arbitrarily selected and used in a microgravity or weightless environment, or in a gravity environment without being restricted by the liquid feeding direction. ..

Further, according to the present invention, since the structure is for expanding and expanding the air sac in the tank body to send the liquid, it is not necessary to provide a mechanism for sending the liquid outside the tank, and the size and weight can be reduced. It is particularly suitable as a liquid tank used in a microgravity environment such as a space station.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a liquid tank showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 (a) to (c) are diagrams showing a liquid sending capacity.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of a liquid tank showing another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an installation example of a commonly used liquid tank.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Tank main body 2 Air sacs 4 Drainage port 8 Liquid injection port 10 Bypass pipe

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A liquid tank having a tank body and an air bag, wherein the tank body is a liquid-filled container and has suction and drain ports, and the air bag is a bag having expansion and expansion properties. , A liquid tank which is housed in the tank body and has a fluid inlet, which is opened to the outside through the tank body and is connected to a fluid pressure source installed outside the tank .. 2. The tank main body has a bypass pipe, and the bypass pipe is a pipe that connects the inside of the tank near the drainage port to the portion that becomes the bottom of the tank at the time of installation, and expands and expands the air sac. The liquid tank according to claim 1, wherein the liquid confined in the tank main body is conducted to the drainage port.