JPH0788944B2 - Gas safety shut-off device - Google Patents

Description

Description: FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a gas safety shutoff device for preventing a gas accident.

2. Related Art Conventionally, various safety devices have been used in order to prevent a gas accident which, once it occurs, would be a catastrophic risk. In recent years, detecting abnormal use of gas and gas leakage,
A gas safety shutoff device that shuts off gas is drawing attention. In particular, due to advantages such as ease of gas piping and low cost, there is an increasing demand for a gas safety shutoff device having a shutoff valve capable of shutting off a gas flow in an abnormal condition installed in a gas meter.

Conventionally, this type of gas safety shutoff device has been disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No.
As shown in Japanese Patent No. 140981, the structure is as shown in FIG.

That is, the gas meter 1 has the gas flow rate measuring means 2 built-in, and based on the signal from the measuring means 2, the interruption determination section 3 having a microcomputer outputs a interruption signal when the gas flow rate satisfies a predetermined condition. Receiving this cutoff signal, the cutoff valve 5 as a cutoff device provided in the gas flow path 4 operates to close the gas flow path. Furthermore, the signal from the abnormality sensor 6 such as an earthquake detector or a gas leak alarm is cut off by the judgment unit 3
When the predetermined condition is satisfied, a shutoff signal is output to shut off the flow path. Further, since the lithium battery 7 built in the gas meter 1 is used as a power supply for supplying power to the shutoff determination unit 3 and the shutoff valve 5, the shutoff valve 5 is a self-holding solenoid that does not require power to maintain the open state. It is common to use a valve.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION Problems to be Solved by the Invention However, in such a conventional configuration, when it is desired to shut off the shutoff valve 5 of the gas meter 1 indoors urgently due to a fire occurring indoors or for some other reason, or when going out or going to sleep. Shut-off valve 5 from inside for safety
I couldn't respond if I wanted to shut off. Even if the conventional gas safety shut-off device is constructed by adding a switch for manual shut-off to the gas leak alarm corresponding to the abnormality sensor 6 installed indoors, the conventional gas safety shut-off device does not have the abnormality sensor 6 Signal of the cutoff determination unit 3
Is input to the gas meter 1 based on the signal, and the shut-off valve 5 is shut off by the power of the lithium battery 7 built in the gas meter 1. Therefore, for example, the shut-off valve 5 is shut off before going to bed or before going out every day. If the lithium battery 7 of the gas meter 1 is used for shutting down, or if the lithium battery 7 of the gas meter 1 is used to reset the shutoff valve 5 each time, the lithium battery 7 of the gas meter 1 is originally designed not to be replaced for 10 years. Nevertheless, there was a problem that the battery was exhausted and could not function as a gas safety shutoff device in less than 10 years.

Means for Solving the Problems In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a self-holding shutoff valve capable of shutting off a gas flow path, and a signal based on a signal from a measuring unit for measuring the amount of gas flowing through the gas flow path. A shutoff determination unit that determines whether or not to shut off the shutoff valve and generates a shutoff signal to the shutoff valve, a shutoff valve return unit that restores the shutoff valve to the state in which the gas flow path is open, and the shutoff A gas for supplying electric power to the valve, and a remote controller connected to the shutoff valve restoring means and operated by a power source different from the battery, and a gas for activating the shutoff valve restoring means in response to a restoration signal from the remote controller. It is configured as a safety shutoff device.

The gas safety shutoff device of the present invention has the above-described configuration, and first, based on the signal of the measuring means of the amount of gas flowing through the gas flow path, the shutoff determination unit determines whether it is in an unsafe state, and when it determines that the battery is abnormal, The shutoff valve is shut off by the electric power of. Separately from this, a return signal is output from a remote controller that operates on a power source different from the battery to the shutoff valve restoring means, and the shutoff valve restoring means is actuated by the power of the other power source to reset the shutoff valve. Acts like.

Due to the above action, for example, when you want to shut off the gas meter shut-off valve from an indoor emergency due to a fire or for some other reason, or when you want to shut off the shut-off valve indoors for peace of mind before going out or going to bed, etc. The shut-off valve can be operated to shut off the gas, and the shut-off valve restoring means can be actuated at any time to remotely restore the shut-off valve to the state in which the gas flow path is opened from the remote controller. Further, in this case, the shutoff valve restoring means is operated by the power of the power source different from the battery, not the power of the battery supplying the shutoff determination unit. Therefore, even if the shut-off valve is shut off every day before going to bed or before going out and the shut-off valve resetting means is activated after waking up or returning home every day, the battery will be exhausted and the function as a gas safety shut-off device will be achieved within a predetermined number of years. It is possible to solve the problem of being unable to achieve the goal.

Embodiment One embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In FIG. 1, a gas meter 1 is equipped with a metering mechanism 2 for metering the gas flow rate and a metering means 2 including a flow sensor,
Based on the signal from the metering means 2, the interruption determination unit 3 having a microcomputer outputs an interruption signal when the gas flow rate satisfies a predetermined condition. Upon receipt of this shutoff signal, the self-holding shutoff valve 5 provided so that the gas passage 4 can be shut off to close the gas passage 4. In this case, the shut-off electric power for shutting off the shut-off valve 5 is supplied from the lithium battery 7 built in the gas meter 1 together with the shut-off determination unit 3. Further, the lithium battery 7 also supplies electric power for operating the cutoff determination unit 3 having a microcomputer. Further, FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing a part of the gas meter 1 of the embodiment of the present invention in which the shutoff valve 5 and the shutoff valve restoring means 8 are assembled. That is, 9 is a case main body of the gas meter 1, 10 is a gas inlet, and 11 is a flow port communicating with the valve chamber. And the inflow port 10 and the distribution port
A fixed valve seat 13 is provided on a partition wall 12 which divides the partition wall 11 from the partition wall 12. Further, a self-holding shutoff valve 5 is provided facing the fixed valve seat 13. The self-holding shutoff valve 5 is composed of a coil 15 surrounding the plunger 14, a yoke 16 provided on the outer periphery of the coil 14, and a magnet 17 provided on the bottom of the yoke. And the plunger
A valve element 18 facing the fixed valve seat 13 is attached to the tip of the valve element 14, and the valve element 18 is fixed by a spring 19 to the fixed valve seat 13
Is biased in the direction of. When the coil 15 is in the non-energized state, the plunger 14 overcomes the force of the spring 19 and is attracted and held by the magnet 17, and the valve body 18 is apart from the fixed valve seat 13 and is in the valve open state. When a reverse magnetic field is applied to the valve body, the restoring force of the spring 19 causes the valve body to
18 is pressed against the fixed valve seat 13 to maintain the closed state.

On the other hand, at the front of the case body 9 of the gas meter 1 facing the shutoff valve 5, a shutoff valve returning means 8 for returning the valve body 18 of the shutoff valve 5 to the open state is formed. This shut-off valve return means 8 is provided with a movable valve seat 20 inside the fixed valve seat 13.
Is fixedly provided on the push rod 21, and normally the movable valve seat 20 is retracted and stopped by the spring 22 before the fixed valve seat 13. When a return signal is issued from the remote controller 23, the geared motor 25 is driven by the power source 24 other than the battery 7, and the cam 26 is rotated once. When this cam 26 makes one rotation, the push rod
The motion transmitting member 27 that is in contact with 21 is pushed by the cam 26, and the push rod 21 and the movable valve seat 20 are simultaneously pushed inward, so that the movable valve seat 20 pushes the valve body 18 of the shutoff valve 5 to open the shutoff valve 5 The plunger 14 is adsorbed and held by the magnet 17 to be in a valve open holding state. When the cam 26 has completed one rotation,
As shown in FIG. 2, the movable valve seat 20 stops at a position slightly retracted from the fixed valve seat 13 which is the same as before the operation. The shut-off valve return means 8 is not limited to the remote return from the remote controller 23,
The shut-off valve 5 that has been shut off can be manually returned from the front of the gas meter 1. That is, the motion transmitting member 27 of the shutoff valve returning means 8 is configured by projecting the manual return button portion 29 out of the hole of the return mechanism case 29, and by pushing the manual return button portion 28 with a finger, It is possible to manually restore the shut-off valve 5 to the open state from the front surface of 1. Further, a return signal when the shutoff valve 5 is returned is fed back to the microcomputer of the shutoff determination unit 3 so that the return can be recognized. Further, the microcomputer of the interruption determination unit 3 is controlled by
Information of the gas meter 1 is transmitted to 23. For example, the reason for shutoff, the amount of gas used, the open / closed state of the shutoff valve, and the like can be displayed on the LCD display unit 30 of the remote controller 23 as necessary. The remote controller operation unit 31 also includes a display switch 32 for displaying various information of the gas meter 1, a remote shutoff switch 33 for manually shutting off the shutoff valve 5 from the remote controller 23, a remote reset switch 34 for remote restoration, and the like. Furthermore, the remote controller 23 is operated by a power source 24 different from the lithium battery 7 built in the gas meter 1. The other power source 24 supplied to the remote controller 23 is a lithium battery or a commercial power source, or its power source. It is configured so that both can be used. When the shutoff valve 5 is remotely restored by the remote return switch 34 of the remote controller 23, the power of the other power source 24 is applied to the shutoff valve restoring means 8 to restore the shutoff valve 5.

Next, the operation of the configuration of this embodiment will be described. First, in a normal use state, the coil 15 of the self-holding solenoid type cutoff valve 5 of the gas meter 1 is in a non-energized state, and the plunger 14 of the cutoff valve 5 urges the valve body 18 in the closing direction. The magnet 17 is adsorbed and held in the valve open state by overcoming the urging force of the spring 19. Therefore, the gas flows through each part of the gas flow path 4, the shutoff valve 5 and the metering means 2, and the flow rate signal detected by the metering means 2 is input to the shutoff judging section 3. As described above, in the normal use state, a flow rate signal that can be regarded as exceeding the predetermined maximum gas flow rate or exceeding the predetermined continuous use time of the gas appliance used is input from the flow rate sensor of the measuring means 2 to the cutoff determination unit 3. If the shutoff determination unit 3 determines that it is in a dangerous abnormal state, the battery 7 that has the power for shutting off the shutoff valve 5 built in the gas meter 1
It acts to apply from. Then, the solenoid coil 15 of the shutoff valve 5 is instantaneously energized, a magnetic field in the opposite direction to the magnetic field of the self-holding magnet 17 is generated, and the attraction and holding of the plunger 14 by the magnet 17 is released. Therefore, the valve body 18 closes the valve seat 20 by the urging force of the spring 19,
The gas is cut off. This can prevent gas leakage in the event of an abnormality. Further, in the case of such an abnormal shutoff, the reason signal of the shutoff is transmitted from the shutoff determination unit 3 to the remote controller 23, and is displayed on the display unit 30 so that the gas user can take an appropriate countermeasure. In addition to this, by pressing the remote shutoff switch 33 of the remote controller 23, the shutoff valve 5 of the gas meter 1 can be remotely shut off manually. Therefore, by shutting off with the remote control 23 before going to bed or before going out, it is possible to almost completely prevent a gas accident at night or while away. At the same time, you can be relieved from the danger of gas accidents during the night or when you are away, and you can get a lot of peace of mind. In addition, even if you shut down before going out and go home, or shut down the night before and wake up the next morning, you do not have to go to the installation location of the gas meter 1 and manually reset the shutoff valve 5, for example, a remote control installed indoors. Since the remote recovery can be performed by simply pressing the remote recovery switch 34 of 23, it is easy and convenient to shut off and restore each time. Therefore, more safety and security can be obtained. In addition, when the remote control 23 is used for remote recovery, the power is not supplied from the battery 7 that is supplying power to operate the cutoff determination unit 3 of the gas meter 1, but a power source different from the battery 7.
Since the shut-off valve returning means 8 is operated by the electric power of 24, the shut-off valve 5 is shut off every day before going to bed or before going out, and the battery 7 is not burdened even if it is remotely restored each time. Therefore, while monitoring the gas flow rate signal of the gas meter 1, the battery 7 has a function of electrically backing up the function of the shutoff determination unit 3 to shut off the shutoff valve 5 in the event of an abnormality.
It is possible to guarantee the gas safety shutoff function for a predetermined number of years without shortening the life of the. In addition, the weighing means 2 and the interruption determination unit 3
The shutoff valve 5 and the battery 7 are integrally configured in the gas meter 1, the shutoff determination unit 3 is operated by the battery 7, and the power source 24 of the remote controller 23 is different. Even if 24 fails, there is no hindrance to the function of discriminating abnormalities by the gas flow rate signal and performing safety shutoff, and a highly reliable gas safety shutoff device can be provided. Also remote control
By using a lithium battery for the power source 24 of 23, it is possible to backup and store signals from the gas meter 1, for example, information such as the gas usage amount and the reason for abnormal shutoff.

EFFECTS OF THE INVENTION As described above, the present invention determines whether or not to shut off the shutoff valve based on a signal from a self-holding shutoff valve capable of shutting off the gas passage and a measuring means for measuring the amount of gas flowing through the gas passage. And a shutoff determination unit that generates a shutoff signal to the shutoff valve,
A shut-off valve restoring means for restoring the shut-off valve in a state where the gas flow path is opened, a battery for supplying electric power to the shut-off valve, and a power source which is connected to the shut-off valve restoring means and is different from the battery. Since it has a configuration of a gas safety shutoff device that has a remote control and operates the shutoff valve restoration means in response to a restoration signal from the remote control, a function of discriminating an abnormality by a gas flow rate signal and performing safety shutoff. The remote recovery can be performed at a high frequency without any adverse effect on the battery life of. That is, in the gas safety shutoff device of the present invention, the shutoff determination unit determines whether or not it is in an unsafe state based on the signal from the measuring unit for measuring the amount of gas flowing through the gas flow path, and separately from the battery that supplies the shutoff power. , The remote control operated by another power source outputs a return signal to the shut-off valve return means, and the shut-off valve return means is activated by the power of the other power source. The gas cutoff can be restored remotely.

For example, when you want to shut off the shut-off valve from the inside of the house for peace of mind before going out or going to bed, you can activate the shut-off valve from the remote control at any time to shut off the gas, and also activate the shut-off valve resetting means at any time to remote control from the remote control. The shutoff valve can be returned to the state where the gas flow path is opened. Further, in this case, the shutoff valve restoring means is operated by the power of the power source different from the battery, not the power of the battery supplying the shutoff determination unit. Therefore, even if the shut-off valve is shut off every day before going to bed or before going out and the shut-off valve resetting means is activated after waking up or returning home every day, the battery will be exhausted and the function as a gas safety shut-off device will be achieved within a predetermined number of years. It is possible to solve the problem of being unable to achieve the goal.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a gas safety shutoff device showing an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a sectional view of a main part of the gas safety shutoff device, and FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of a conventional gas safety shutoff device. is there. 2 ... weighing means, 3 ... shutdown determination section, 4 ... gas flow path,
5 ... Shut-off valve, 7 ... Battery, 8 ... Shut-off valve resetting means, 23
...... Remote control, 24 …… Another power supply.

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A self-holding shutoff valve capable of shutting off a gas flow path, and whether or not to shut off the shutoff valve based on a signal from a measuring means for measuring the amount of gas flowing through the gas flow path. A shutoff determination unit that generates a shutoff signal to the shutoff valve, a shutoff valve restoring unit that restores the shutoff valve to the state in which the gas flow path is open, a battery that supplies power to the shutoff valve, and the shutoff valve restoration. A gas safety shutoff device having a remote controller connected to the means and operated by a power source different from the battery, and actuating the shutoff valve restoring means by a restoration signal from the remote controller. 2. The gas safety shutoff valve device according to claim 1, wherein the shutoff valve returning means is provided separately from the shutoff valve. 3. The gas safety shutoff valve device according to claim 1, wherein the shutoff valve also serves as shutoff valve returning means. 4. The gas safety shutoff device according to claim 1, wherein the shutoff valve, the shutoff determination unit, and the battery are integrally formed with a gas meter for measuring the amount of gas flowing through the gas passage.