KR100844432B1 - Flow control valve using piezoelectric actuator - Google Patents

Abstract

The disclosed fluid control valve has a fluid inlet, a fluid passage communicating with the fluid inlet and having a valve opening / closing cross section, a fluid outlet communicating with the fluid passage, and a valve body divided into upper and lower portions, and one end fixed between the upper body and the lower body. And a piezoelectric actuator that opens the flow path when the shape is deformed by the applied voltage, and closes the flow path when the voltage is released. Here, at least two piezoelectric actuators are provided in parallel, and the other ends thereof are connected to each other by an airtight pad interviewed with the valve opening and closing end face. Such an emulsion control valve opens and closes a nozzle through which a fluid flows using the characteristics of a piezoelectric actuator whose displacement is changed almost linearly in proportion to the amount of applied voltage, thereby controlling the fluid proportionally and driving by voltage. It has the effect of reducing energy consumption. In addition, it is possible to reduce hysteresis through a plurality of piezoelectric actuators connected in parallel even without a special controller, thereby reducing the number of parts forming the valve, and eliminating the constraints of assembling the parts. In addition, there is no ignition possibility in the process using a combustible gas has the effect of not being restricted by the use environment.

Flow rate, valve, piezo actuator, parallel, hysteresis, elastic member, pressure member

Description

FLOW CONTROL VALVE USING PIEZOELECTRIC ACTUATOR}

1 is a cross-sectional view showing a flow control valve using a conventional solenoid actuator.

2 is a cross-sectional view showing a flow control valve using a piezoelectric actuator according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

3 is a partial cross-sectional perspective view of a piezoelectric actuator employed in a flow control valve using a piezoelectric actuator according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 4 is a graph showing the hysteresis of the piezoelectric actuator employed in the flow control valve using a piezoelectric actuator according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

5 is a cross-sectional view showing an operating state of a flow control valve using a piezoelectric actuator according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

<Explanation of symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

100: valve body 110: lower body

111: fluid inlet 112: fluid outlet

112a: nozzle 113: lower flow path

114: seating jaw 115: second coupling groove

116: third coupling groove 120: upper body

121: upper flow path 122: power connection hole

123: first coupling groove 124: uneven protrusions

130: first sealing member 140: second sealing member

150: pressure member 160: elastic member

200: piezoelectric actuator 201: elastic body

202: piezoelectric ceramic 210: airtight pad

S: wire

The present invention relates to a flow control valve, and more particularly, to a flow control valve using a piezoelectric actuator capable of proportionally adjusting the flow rate by using the displacement of the piezoelectric actuator.

1 is a cross-sectional view showing a flow control valve using a conventional solenoid actuator. As shown, the conventional flow control valve 1 is connected to the main body 10 having the fluid inlet 12 and the fluid outlet 14 on one side, the solenoid actuator 20, and the solenoid actuator 20 It consists largely of a spool 18 for interlocking and opening or blocking a flow path 16 which communicates the inlet 12 and the outlet 14.

As is already known, the solenoid actuator 20 includes a coil 22, a stator 24, and a mover 26, and when a current is applied to the coil 22, the stator ( In the magnetized state, the mover 26 moves linearly to operate the spool 18 to open and close the flow path 16.

However, the conventional flow control valve having the above-described configuration has constraints associated with the manufacturing method and coupling structure of the coil 22 and the stator 24 which are the main components constituting the solenoid actuator 20, that is, the coil 22. Manufacturing the flow control valve to the desired size or less while increasing the force and displacement of the mover 26 caused by the number of times of winding, the size according to the number and the magnetization generated between the stator 24 and the coil 22 There is a problem that can be very complex, difficult or even impossible.

In addition, the conventional flow control valve has a structure in which a current is applied to the coil 22 to operate by magnetizing the coil 22 and the stator 24. Therefore, in the process using the combustible gas, It is not easy to use because it may cause fire due to heat or electrical contact generated from each part, and PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) method to adjust the current ratio when applying current to the coil 22 Since the amount of fluid is proportionally controlled by using the power consumption has a lot of problems.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the problems of the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a flow control valve capable of proportionally controlling the flow rate by varying the opening area of the flow path using a piezoelectric actuator.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a flow control valve using a piezoelectric actuator according to a voltage driving method to improve energy saving and response characteristics, and to be easily processed and manufactured, without being restricted by an installation space.

The flow control valve using the piezoelectric actuator according to the present invention for achieving the above object has a fluid inlet, a flow passage communicating with the fluid inlet and having a valve opening and closing cross section, a fluid outlet communicating with the flow passage, divided into upper and lower valves. A main body; One end is fixed between the upper body and the lower body is made of a piezoelectric actuator including a piezoelectric ceramic that opens the flow path when the shape is deformed by the applied voltage, and closes the flow path when the voltage is released.

Preferably, at least two piezoelectric actuators are provided in parallel, and the other ends of the piezoelectric actuators are connected to each other by an airtight pad interviewing the valve open / close end surface.

The piezoelectric actuator further includes an elastic body attached to the bottom of the piezoelectric ceramic.

In addition, the piezoelectric actuator is wrapped with an insulator having electrical insulation and corrosion resistance.

The flow path is formed to surround the valve opening and closing end face to allow deformation of the piezoelectric actuator.

A pressing member is provided between the valve body and the piezoelectric actuator to press one end of the piezoelectric actuator.

It is provided with an elastic member provided in the flow path for pressing the other end of the piezoelectric actuator to the valve opening and closing end surface side.

Preferably, the elastic member is a coil spring, and is inserted into and fixed to the uneven protrusion provided on the surface of the upper body facing the piezoelectric actuator.

A sealing member is provided between the upper body and the lower body to maintain airtightness.

One side of the valve opening and closing end face in contact with the airtight pad is provided with a sealing member for maintaining airtightness. Preferably, the sealing member is an O-ring.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings will be described in detail a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a cross-sectional view showing a flow control valve using a piezoelectric actuator according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

As shown, the flow control valve according to the present invention comprises a valve body 100 forming an appearance, and a piezoelectric actuator 200 is installed to open and close the flow path inside the valve body 100.

The valve body 100 is divided into a lower body 110 and an upper body 120. The lower main body 110 has a fluid inlet 111 through which fluid is introduced from the outside to one side (a side surface in this embodiment), and a fluid outlet 112 through which the fluid introduced into the other side (the lower center of the lower surface of the present embodiment) is discharged. ) Is formed. A nozzle 112a is formed at the upper end of the fluid outlet 112 in communication with the fluid outlet 112. A lower flow passage 113 is provided between the fluid inlet 111 and the nozzle 112 to connect the fluid inlet 111 and the nozzle 112a to communicate with each other. The lower flow passage 113 is formed by digging in an annular annular shape that surrounds the nozzle 112a from the upper surface of the lower body 110. At one end of the lower main body 110 in contact with the upper main body 120, a seating jaw 114 in which one end of the piezoelectric actuator 200 is seated is provided. The mounting jaw 114 has a height similar to the upper surface (valve opening / closing end face) of the nozzle 112a so that the other end of the piezoelectric actuator 200 seated on the mounting jaw 114 covers the nozzle 112a. It is desirable to be able to be located at.

The upper body 120 is coupled to the upper portion of the lower body 110 to fix one end of the piezoelectric actuator 200 seated on the seating jaw 114. An upper passage 121 corresponding to the lower passage 113 is provided on the lower surface of the upper body 120, and a power connection hole 122 is provided on one side of the upper surface. The upper flow passage 121 is formed by digging into a predetermined depth from the lower surface of the upper body 120 and communicates with the lower flow passage 113b. The upper passage 121 is for allowing a smooth flow of the fluid and deformation of the piezoelectric actuator 200. Power connection hole 122 is to be connected to the wire (S) connected to the external power source to one end of the piezoelectric actuator 200 is fixed to the seating jaw (114) to apply a voltage to the upper body It is formed to communicate with the outer end of the seating jaw 114 through one side of the upper surface of the 120. The first sealing member 130, such as an O-ring, is coupled between the lower body 110 and the upper body 120 to increase the sealing effect. The first sealing member 130 is fitted into the first coupling groove 123 formed to surround the upper passage 121 around the lower surface of the upper body 120. The valve body 100 of such a configuration allows the fluid to flow through the fluid inlet 111, the lower flow passage 113, the nozzle 112a, and the fluid outlet 112 sequentially, and cover the nozzle 112a with a piezoelectric actuator. It is provided with a 200 to control the flow rate through the piezoelectric actuator (200).

The piezoelectric actuator 200 is deformed by an applied voltage, and will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

3 is a partial cross-sectional perspective view showing a piezoelectric actuator employed in a flow control valve using a piezoelectric actuator according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in the figure, the piezoelectric actuator 200 is formed in a plate shape extending to a predetermined length, and is composed of an elastic body 201 placed below and a piezoelectric ceramic 202 fixed on the elastic body 201. As already known, the piezoelectric ceramic 202 has a property of causing shape deformation by expanding and contracting according to an applied voltage. The elastic body 201 is to solve the problem that the durability of the valve is lowered due to brittleness of the piezoelectric ceramic 202 itself. The elastic body 201 and the piezoelectric ceramic 202 are wrapped by the insulating material 203 to prevent electrical contact and to prevent corrosion by the fluid. At least two of the piezoelectric actuators 200 are arranged in parallel and connected to each other by an airtight pad 210 coupled to the other end of the piezoelectric actuator 200. That is, the plurality of piezoelectric actuators 200 arranged in parallel are fixed to one end by the valve body 100, the other end is connected by the hermetic pad 210, and the shape is deformed in conjunction with each other by the applied voltage to the nozzle It is to open and close (112a). The airtight pad 210 covers the nozzle 112a by interviewing the upper surface (valve opening / closing end face) of the nozzle 112a, and is formed of an elastic material and coupled to the piezoelectric actuator 200 through a polymer-based adhesive. desirable. The parallel configuration of the piezoelectric actuator 200 is such that the hysteresis of the piezoelectric actuator 200 can be minimized through a plurality of piezoelectric actuators 200 interlocked with each other.

The hysteresis of the piezoelectric actuator 200 will be described with reference to the drawings.

3 is a graph showing the hysteresis of the piezoelectric actuator employed in the flow control valve using the piezoelectric actuator according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

As shown therein, reference numeral 'A' represents hysteresis of one of the piezoelectric actuators 200a (called 'first piezoelectric actuator') of the plurality of piezoelectric actuators 200, and reference numeral 'B' Hysteresis of one piezoelectric actuator 200b (referred to as a second piezoelectric actuator) is shown, and reference numeral C denotes that the hysteresis A and B of the first and second piezoelectric actuators 200a and 200b cancel each other out. Hysteresis occurred. As such, when the plurality of piezoelectric actuators 200a and 200b are connected in parallel to each other, the hysteresis A and B of the respective piezoelectric actuators 200a and 200b cancel each other to improve the new hysteresis C. To be generated. Accordingly, the hysteresis of the piezoelectric actuator 200 can be minimized.

Referring again to FIG. 2, the second sealing member 140, the pressing member 150, and the elastic member 160 are further provided to increase the sealing property of the nozzle 112a by the piezoelectric actuator 200. The second sealing member, such as an O-ring, is fitted into the second coupling groove 115 provided in the circumference (a valve opening / closing one side circumference) between the nozzle 112a of the lower body 110 and the lower flow passage 113 of the lower body 110 and the nozzle. The sealing property between the 112a and the airtight pad 210 is increased. The pressing member 140 is fitted into the third coupling groove 116 provided at one side of the seating jaw 114 to press one end of the piezoelectric actuator 200. The pressure member 150 absorbs the deformation stress of the piezoelectric actuator 200 to prevent damage to the piezoelectric actuator 200, and presses the other end of the piezoelectric actuator 200 in a lever principle to seal the airtight pad 210 and the nozzle. The upper surface (valve opening / closing end face) of 112a is further brought into close contact. The elastic member 160 is provided in the upper flow passage 121 to pressurize the other end of the piezoelectric actuator 200 toward the nozzle 112a to increase the sealing property of the nozzle 112a. In this embodiment, the elastic member 160 As a coil spring was applied, in order to prevent the coil spring from twisting due to the shape deformation of the piezoelectric actuator 200, an uneven protrusion 124 was formed on the surface of the upper flow passage 121 and the coil spring was inserted and fixed.

Hereinafter, with reference to Figure 5 will be described the operation and effect of the flow control valve according to the present invention.

5 is a cross-sectional view showing an operating state of a flow control valve using a piezoelectric actuator according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 5, the piezoelectric actuator 200 remains flat in a non-operating state in which no voltage is applied to the piezoelectric ceramic 202 of the piezoelectric actuator 200. Accordingly, the airtight pad 210 of the piezoelectric actuator 200 is in close contact with the upper surface (valve closing end face) of the nozzle 112a to close the nozzle 112a so that the fluid in the flow path 113 is not distributed to the fluid outlet 112. Don't let that happen. At this time, the second sealing member 140 around the nozzle 112a and the pressing member 150 for pressing one end of the piezoelectric actuator 200, the elastic member 160 for pressing the other end of the piezoelectric actuator 200. The sealing of the nozzle 112a can be secured securely.

When voltage is applied to the piezoelectric ceramic of the piezoelectric actuator 200 in the non-operation state as described above, the piezoelectric ceramic deforms, and the other end of the piezoelectric actuator 200 is connected to the pressing member 150 and the elastic member 160. The elastic member 160 is deformed to be bent upward while pressing against the pressing force. Therefore, the hermetic pad 210 coupled to the other end of the piezoelectric actuator 200 is spaced apart from the nozzle 112a, and the fluid in the flow passage 113 is circulated to the fluid outlet path 112 through the nozzle 112a to the outside. Discharged.

When the voltage is again cut off to the piezoelectric ceramic of the piezoelectric actuator 200 in the above operating state, the piezoelectric actuator 200 is restored to its original form so that the airtight pad 210 is the upper surface of the nozzle 112a (valve opening and closing end face). The nozzle 112a is closed while in contact with the fluid, so that the fluid no longer flows. In this case, the hysteresis generated in the piezoelectric actuator 200 is minimized by offsetting the plurality of actuators 200 connected in parallel as described above.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the gist of the present invention as claimed in the claims.

As described above in detail, the flow control valve according to the present invention opens and closes a fluid flow nozzle by using a characteristic of a piezoelectric actuator whose displacement is changed almost linearly in proportion to the amount of applied voltage. It can be controlled by, and driven by the voltage has the effect of reducing the energy consumption.

In addition, it is possible to reduce hysteresis through a plurality of piezoelectric actuators connected in parallel even without a special controller, so that the number of parts forming a valve is reduced, and there are no constraints from assembling parts, so that valve processing and manufacturing to a desired size are easy. In addition, there is no ignition possibility in the process using a combustible gas, there is an effect that is not restricted by the use environment.

Claims (11)

delete A fluid control valve for regulating the flow rate of a fluid, A valve main body having a fluid inlet port, a flow path communicating with the fluid inlet port and having a valve opening / closing cross section, and a fluid outlet port communicating with the flow path, the valve body being divided into an upper part and a lower part; One end is fixed between the upper body and the lower body is made of a piezoelectric actuator including a piezoelectric ceramic that opens the flow path when the shape is deformed by the applied voltage, and closes the flow path when the voltage is released; At least two piezoelectric actuators are provided in parallel, and the other end of the fluid control valve is connected to each other by an airtight pad interviewing the valve opening / closing end surface. delete delete delete A fluid control valve for regulating the flow rate of a fluid, A valve main body having a fluid inlet port, a flow path communicating with the fluid inlet port and having a valve opening / closing cross section, and a fluid outlet port communicating with the flow path, the valve body being divided into an upper part and a lower part; One end is fixed between the upper body and the lower body is made of a piezoelectric actuator including a piezoelectric ceramic that opens the flow path when the shape is deformed by the applied voltage, and closes the flow path when the voltage is released; And a pressurizing member provided between the valve body and the piezoelectric actuator to press one end of the piezoelectric actuator. A fluid control valve for regulating the flow rate of a fluid, A valve main body having a fluid inlet port, a flow path communicating with the fluid inlet port and having a valve opening / closing cross section, and a fluid outlet port communicating with the flow path, the valve body being divided into upper and lower parts; One end is fixed between the upper body and the lower body is made of a piezoelectric actuator including a piezoelectric ceramic that opens the flow path when the shape is deformed by the applied voltage, and closes the flow path when the voltage is released; And an elastic member provided in the flow passage for urging the other end of the piezoelectric actuator to the valve opening / closing end surface side. The method of claim 7, wherein The elastic member is a coil spring, Fluid control valve, characterized in that inserted into and fixed to the uneven protrusion provided on the surface of the upper body facing the piezoelectric actuator. delete delete delete

Images