JPS6013724Y2 - oil reservoir - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an oil reservoir used for circulating and supplying hydraulic oil within a hydraulic circuit.

For example, power steering, known as a hydraulic system for automobiles, consists of two elements: a power cylinder that generates steering assist force, and a control valve that controls the direction and output of operation in conjunction with the steering wheel. Connected to the pump via a passage.

After the hydraulic oil stored in the oil reservoir is supplied by the oil pump to the control valve and power steering to operate them, it is returned to the oil reservoir again and is circulated and supplied into the hydraulic circuit by the oil pump.

Therefore, in a hydraulic device such as the power steering system mentioned above, the hydraulic fluid used as its power source is important for its operation, but when this hydraulic fluid flows within the hydraulic circuit, for example, it is absorbed from outside the circuit. Contains impurities and denatured substances caused by foreign matter or the wear and tear of various equipment, resulting in contamination.

If this contaminated hydraulic oil is circulated within the hydraulic circuit, the lifespan and reliability of each device will be reduced, and the fruiting device itself will malfunction, making it impossible to maintain its safety margin.

Therefore, in order to solve this problem, it is common to incorporate a filter into the oil reservoir to remove impurities and altered substances contained in the hydraulic oil.

However, when such a filter is provided, impurities and denatured substances contained in the hydraulic oil gradually adhere to the filter element, causing the filter element to become clogged.

If this happens, not only will the hydraulic fluid not be purified, but its distribution will be blocked.

Therefore, in such oil reservoirs, when the filter element becomes clogged beyond the specified value, it is necessary to replace or clean it, and setting the timing for cleaning or replacement is important. .

However, in conventional oil reservoirs of this type, the filter element is fixed at a predetermined location within the reservoir body either directly or by applying a bias spacing using a spring or the like, making it impossible to check whether the filter element is clogged from the outside. For this reason, for example, in an oil reservoir used in power steering, the filter is periodically taken out from the reservoir body and inspected, and the filter element is cleaned or replaced by setting the mileage or period of time the vehicle travels.

However, with this method, it is difficult to check because the degree of clogging of the filter element varies depending on the mileage, driving conditions, maintenance inspection, management status, etc. of each vehicle. It was difficult to know when to clean or replace.

Furthermore, if there is little clogging at the time of inspection, there is a problem that excessive maintenance and inspection is required to set a new time and re-inspect, so in order to avoid this, filter element It was not very efficient as cleaning or replacing the parts would result in waste.

In addition, in conventional oil reservoirs of this type, a relief valve, etc. is built into the filter, and when the cleaning or replacement period of the filter element is delayed, the relief valve, etc. is activated by the back pressure generated inside the filter, and impurities are removed. The structure is such that contaminated hydraulic oil is sent directly to the oil pump.

However, when such a relief valve is activated, not only is it impossible to clean the hydraulic oil, but impurities adhering to the filter element flow toward the pump, and as a result, these impurities can damage the equipment that makes up the hydraulic circuit. This causes problems such as damaging the filter element, shortening its lifespan, lowering its reliability, and adversely affecting the operation of the device itself.It is necessary to properly understand the clogging status of the filter element mentioned above. It is said that

In view of these points, the present invention was developed when the filter element installed inside the reservoir body becomes clogged to a level exceeding the specified value, the filter element moves in the axial direction due to the back pressure inside the filter, and the hydraulic oil is diverted to the outlet port. With this simple structure, a clogging indicator rod is provided that projects from the top surface of the reservoir body and displays the clogging status of the filter element as it moves, making it possible to reliably confirm the clogging of the filter element from the outside. The present invention provides an inexpensive oil reservoir in which the cleaning or replacement of the filter element can be carried out properly without making a mistake, thereby avoiding the adverse effects on the entire hydraulic circuit as much as possible.

EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings and embodiments.

The figure shows an embodiment of the oil reservoir according to the present invention, and shows only the main parts thereof in an enlarged manner.

In the same figure, the oil reservoir, which is designated as a whole by reference numeral 1, is built into a hydraulic device such as a power steering system and is used to circulate and supply hydraulic oil. have.

An oil supply port 3 is provided at the top of the reservoir body 2, and an inlet port 4 is provided at the bottom through which contaminated return oil from the hydraulic circuit flows, and an oil pump is provided at the bottom to supply purified hydraulic oil to the hydraulic circuit. An output port 5 connected to a terminal (not shown) is provided.

The entry port 4 is arranged coaxially with the fuel filler port 3, and at the bottom of the reservoir body 2 provided with the entry port 4, there is provided a filter receiver member 6 which is arranged concentrically therewith and has a substantially cup shape. ing.

In this filter receiver, a member 6 is used to hold the lower end of the cylindrical filter element 7 inserted from the oil filler port 3 so that it can rise freely in the axial direction, and to restrict its lateral movement. The holding hole 6a is formed to be slightly larger than its outer diameter so that the filter element 7 can be loosely fitted into the holding hole 6a.

The tip of the cylindrical shape 6b forming the holding hole 6a is curved so as to spread outward, and a circulation groove 6c along the axial direction is formed on the opening side of the inner surface which becomes the guide wall of the filter element 7. A plurality of them are formed in the direction.

Therefore, when the filter element 7 moves upward, the inner chamber 8 and the outer chamber 9, which are divided into the filter element 7, are communicated with each other via the circulation groove 6c.

Incidentally, it goes without saying that the bottom of the member 6 of the filter receiver is penetrated by the entry port 4, and this entry port 4 opens into the inner chamber 8.

The filter element 7 is made of a microbon filter or a mesh filter that will not clog even after long-term use, and its axial length is set to be shorter than the height inside the reserve body 2. has been done.

The upper end of the filter element 7 is held by a cup-shaped filter holding member 10 that is paired with the filter holder 6 and is covered with a holding hole 10a of the filter holding member 10. The size is such that the filter element 7 is integrally connected when the filter element 7 is fitted.

Note that the length of the cylindrical portion 10b of the filter holding member 10 is short because the filter receiver is different from the cylindrical portion 6b of the member 6 and is only for holding the upper end of the filter element 7. good.

Further, the filter element 7 is attached to the filter holding member 1.
The filter receiver is pressed into the member 6 by a predetermined pin spacing added to the top of the filter.

That is, the filter receiver includes the member 10 and the reservoir body 2.
A spring member 12 is interposed between the fuel filler port 3 and a cap 11 that is placed over the fuel filler port 3.

This spring member 12 is normally attached to the filter element 7
It has a piascus that holds down against the hydraulic oil pressure from the input port 4.

Therefore, the filter element 7 is held and fixed at a predetermined position by the spring member 12 except when the filter element 7 becomes clogged and the back pressure in the inner chamber 8 increases.

According to the present invention, a clogging indicator rod 13 is vertically provided at the center of the filter holding member 10 and extends from the filter holding member 10 through the cap 11 and protruding to the outside.

This rod 13 also displays a danger of clogging to the outside when the back pressure in the inner chamber 8 increases and the filter element 7 and filter holding member 10 move upward against the bias of the spring member 12. It has a clogging indicator 14 colored red or the like at the tip hidden inside the cap 11.

Therefore, when the rod 13 moves upward due to the movement of the filter element 7, it protrudes from the cap 11;
This allows the protruding state to be clearly confirmed from the outside.

Note that a stopper 15 is provided at the center of the rod 13, and is used to restrict the amount of movement of the lower end of the filter element 7 so that it does not come off the filter holding member 6a.

Further, 16 is a sealing material, and 17 is a sleeve that guides the movement of the rod 13 in the axial direction.

In the oil reservoir 1 configured as described above,
Contaminated hydraulic oil flowing into the inner chamber 8 from the inlet boat 4 has its impurities removed as it flows through the outer chamber 9 through the filter element 7, and this purified hydraulic oil flows into the outlet port 5.
is supplied to the oil pump side.

Then, when the filter element 7 becomes extremely clogged and the back pressure in the inner chamber 8 becomes greater than the pressure of the spring member 12, the filter element 7 moves upward together with the filter holding member 10. The filter receiver allows the hydraulic oil to flow to the outer chamber 9 side through the circulation groove 6c provided on the inner surface of the holding hole 6a in the member 6, maintains the flow of the hydraulic oil, and prevents the flow of hydraulic oil from increasing to various parts due to the increase in hydraulic oil pressure. Designed to prevent negative effects.

At the same time, the clogging indicator 14 of the rod 13 protrudes from the upper part of the reservoir body 2, that is, the cap 11, indicating that the filter element 7 needs to be cleaned or replaced, and the dirty hydraulic fluid is spread throughout the hydraulic circuit. The structure is designed to avoid as much as possible the negative effects of circulating.

After the driver confirms such a clogging indication, the cleaning or replacement work of the filter element is the same as in the conventional case.

In the above-mentioned embodiment, the rod 13 is fixed to the center of the filter holding member 10, and the colored clogging indicator 14 is provided on the tip side of the rod 13, so that the clogging state of the filter element 7 can be detected using only this rod 13. The following modification examples are possible.

For example, a switch mechanism such as a micro switch or a reed switch may be provided opposite the tip of the rod 13, and the switch may be activated when the rod 13 protrudes as the filter element 7 moves.

If this switch mechanism is connected to an alarm device such as an alarm lamp or an alarm buzzer installed in the driver's seat, the clogging state of the filter element 7 can be remotely monitored in addition to the clogging display rod 13 through visual confirmation. Its practical effects are great.

In addition, a spring such as a leaf spring is provided on the side wall of the reservoir body 2, and is opposed to the filter holding member 10 at a fixed distance to act as a stopper for regulating the amount of movement of the filter element 7. It is also conceivable to provide a switch to turn it off.

In addition, although a case has been described in which, for example, a microbon filter or a mesh filter is used as the filter element 7 used in the oil reservoir 1, which is less likely to clog even when used for a long period of time, the invention is not limited to this. .

Furthermore, it goes without saying that the oil reservoir according to the present invention can be applied not only to automobile hydraulic systems such as power steering systems, but also to various hydraulic systems, and each member may be modified as appropriate.

As explained above, according to the present invention, the filter element, which is held in the reservoir body with a constant bias spacing, becomes extremely clogged and moves upward against the bias spacing due to back pressure. We have provided a clog indicator that protrudes from the top surface of the reservoir body when the filter element is moved to the main body, so anyone can immediately check this and clean or replace the filter element. By properly timing the cleaning or replacement of the oil pump, it is possible to prevent any adverse effects on the entire hydraulic circuit, which has a great practical effect.

Further, according to the present invention, the structure is simple in that the clogging indicating rod is provided on the filter holding member, and there is an advantage that the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

Furthermore, according to the present invention, the filter holder that holds the filter element so that it can be raised and lowered skillfully utilizes members to bypass hydraulic oil from the lower end side when the filter element moves upward due to an increase in internal pressure. Compared to conventional relief valves, this has the advantage of being simpler in structure and capable of proper operation.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The figure is an enlarged sectional view of a main part showing an embodiment of an oil reservoir according to the present invention. 1... Oil reservoir, 2... Reservoir body, 3... Oil filler port, 4... Input port, 5... Outlet port, 6...Filter receiver is a member, 6c...Curved flow groove, 7...Filter element, end...Inner chamber, 9...Outer chamber,
10... Filter holding member, 12...
Spring member, 13...Clogged indicator rond.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] A filter element is arranged such that its inside communicates with the inlet port within the reservoir body, and a filter holder is fixed to the bottom of the reservoir body to hold the filter element so that it can be raised and lowered, and to restrict its lateral movement. a filter retaining member which is mounted on the upper end of the filter element and is applied with a biasing force from above; The filter receiver includes a protruding clogging indicator rod, and the filter receiver is configured to release hydraulic oil from its lower end when the filter element rises against the biasing force due to an increase in internal pressure due to clogging. An oil reservoir characterized by: