KR101658127B1 - Valve Module for Changing Flow Paths and Position Sensing Method about Valve Driving Gear - Google Patents

Abstract

A flow path switching valve module and a method of determining the position of the valve driving gear using the same are provided. The disclosed flow path switching valve module includes a valve driving gear having a cylindrical blocking wall in which a plurality of through holes are formed, and a valve driving gear disposed on one side of the valve driving gear, Wherein the through hole has a plurality of positioning holes arranged at regular intervals, and each of the positioning holes is formed of a different number of detection holes, so that the valve driving gear rotates The position sensing holes can be recognized separately and the position sensing sensor can determine the position where the valve driving gear is positioned through the transmission of the light components through the through holes.

The present invention enables precise switching to each driving mode of the water softener system or sensing and warning of a malfunction through a process of sensing a through hole formed in a valve driving gear using a position sensing sensor.

Flow switching valve, gear, blocking wall, positioning hole, through hole, detection hole, light emission, receiving

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention [0001] The present invention relates to a flow path switching valve,

The present invention relates to a flow path switching valve module and a method of determining the position of a valve driving gear using the same. More particularly, the present invention relates to a valve driving gear using a valve driving gear having a positioning hole and a position sensing sensor for sensing the positioning hole, The present invention relates to a flow path switching valve module for detecting a position of a gear and rotationally moving the valve, thereby enabling a stable flow path change.

The water softener has the principle of softening calcium ions and magnesium ions contained in hard water by replacing them with sodium ions (Na +). To this end, a water tub containing ion exchange resin of a special polymer compound containing sodium ions is an essential component And a regeneration vessel containing an ion exchange resin regeneration substance such as salt that produces sodium ions when dissolved in water.

That is, in the water softener, the water is continuously passed through the softener tube in contact with the ion exchange resin in a state where a large amount of fine ion exchange resin in the shape of ball is stored in the softener, The Na + component is reduced by the continuous contact with the tap water. Therefore, in order to conserve the Na + component, the salt water made of the NaCl component is injected into the water tank.

Conventional water softener generally has a regeneration passage filled with salt for supplying regenerated water to regenerate the ion resin when the performance of the ion resin deteriorates when the performance of the ion resin is lowered, generally including ion water which converts the raw water supplied from the outside into soft water . The training tub and the regeneration tub are connected to the water supply port, the shower unit, the water tank outlet, and the like through a connection pipe such as a pipe and a channel switching valve module.

The flow path switching valve module is formed with a flow path, a flow path, and a flow path groove therein so that raw water, soft water, and regenerated water can be sent to each part of the water softener system. That is, a raw water supplied from the outside is supplied to the water softening and regenerating tank, and a flow path is formed so that the softened water can be taken out to the outside by way of the ion water of the water softener.

In the operation of the water softener, the function of changing to the operating stage such as soft water, regeneration, rinsing, and the like is performed by the flow path switching valve module. The valve structure to which the valve driving gear constituting the flow path switching valve module is connected is rotated It is the basis for smoothly moving the raw water, the soft water and the regenerated water supplied through the process. On the other hand, in the conventional method, even if the user manually performs the conversion or automatically performs the conversion operation in the process of converting to the respective operation steps of the water softener, there is a problem that the accurate movement to each operation step such as the training, I have been.

In order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention provides a position detecting sensor for detecting the position determining hole by variously arranging the detection holes constituting the position confirmation hole formed in the valve driving gear, And a method for determining the position of the valve driving gear using the same.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a flow path switching valve module including: a valve driving gear having a cylindrical blocking wall in which a plurality of through holes are formed; And a position sensing sensor for measuring the position of the valve driving gear using the through hole, wherein the through hole has a plurality of positioning holes arranged at regular intervals, and each of the positioning holes The position sensing holes can be recognized separately as the valve driving gear rotates, and the position sensing sensor can sense the position of the valve through the penetration of the light component through the through hole, It is possible to determine the position where the drive gear is located.

Wherein each of the positioning holes has a first sensing hole having a first hole width and a second sensing hole having a second hole width which is adjacent to the first sensing hole and is larger or smaller than the first hole width, The holes and the second sensing holes may be disposed at the edges in the respective positioning holes.

The widths of the positioning holes may be equal to each other.

The position detecting sensor includes a body, a light emitting unit disposed on the body to transmit a light component, and a light receiving unit disposed on the body at a predetermined distance from the light emitting unit and receiving light components from the light emitting unit And the blocking wall may be configured to rotate in a space between the light emitting unit and the light receiving unit.

Wherein the through hole is further provided with a reference hole disposed adjacent to a position determining hole disposed at an outermost position among the plurality of position checking holes, and in a state in which the valve driving gear rotates in the forward direction, The normal operation of the valve driving gear can be determined according to whether the reference hole is sensed during the hole checking period after sensing the confirmation hole.

The position sensing sensor may stop at the designated position determining hole by calculating the time that the valve driving gear passes the first hole width and the second hole width while rotating the valve driving gear at a constant speed.

The hole checking period means a moving time between adjacent through holes in the process of rotating the valve driving gear.

The flow path switching valve module may be applied to a water softener system.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for determining a position of a valve drive gear, the method comprising: (a) initiating rotational drive of the valve drive gear in a forward direction; (b) (B) sensing a plurality of positioning holes formed in a cylindrical blocking wall extending to the lower end of the positioning hole, and (c) detecting the number of sensing holes constituting the positioning hole in the step (b) Wherein the position detecting sensor determines whether the valve driving gear is normally operated by determining a position where the valve driving gear is positioned through the transmission of the light component through the position determining hole .

In the step (b), if the position detection sensor can not detect an arbitrary position check hole during the position checking time, a warning may be generated.

In the step (c), the position sensing sensor can confirm the stop point of the valve driving gear by the first sensing hole and the second sensing hole which are disposed at the edges in the respective positioning holes.

The second hole width of the second sensing hole is formed to be larger or smaller than the first hole width of the first sensing hole, thereby improving the sensitivity of the position sensing sensor.

The above-described flow path switching valve module of the present invention may be configured such that a position sensing sensor for sensing the positioning hole may be formed by variously arranging the sensing holes constituting the positioning hole formed in the valve driving gear, So that a stable flow path can be changed. That is, in the course of the rotational movement of the blocking wall formed with the through hole into the space between the light emitting portion and the light receiving portion constituting the position detecting sensor, the position detecting sensor accurately detects the point where the through hole is formed, .

In addition, if there is no conversion of the on / off signal for a considerable time in the position sensor, the valve driving gear may not rotate or the signal transmission of the position sensor may be abnormal. Accordingly, the softener system is stably .

These and other objects, features and other advantages of the present invention will become more apparent by describing in detail preferred embodiments of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings. Hereinafter, a flow path switching valve module according to an embodiment of the present invention and a method of determining a position of a valve driving gear using the same will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Fig. 1 is a perspective view seen from one direction of the channel switching valve module according to the present invention, Fig. 2 is a partially exploded perspective view in a downward direction of the channel switching valve module of Fig. 1, FIG. 4 is a schematic view showing a structure of a valve driving gear, which is a component of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a conceptual view showing an embodiment of a positioning hole formed in a valve driving gear, And FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a time-series characteristic of the method for determining the position of the valve driving gear according to the present invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

Referring to Figs. 1 to 3, the overall structure of the flow path switching valve module 100 of the present invention will be described.

The flow path switching valve module 100 includes a valve driving gear 110, a position sensing sensor 120 disposed at one side of the valve driving gear 110, a housing (not shown) having a valve structure And a drive motor 150 connected to one end of the housing 130 for providing flow of raw water, soft water, regenerated water and the like, and a drive motor 150 for providing driving force to the valve drive gear 110 do. The driving motor 150 is directly connected to the pinion 152 and the pinion 152 is engaged with the outer peripheral surface of the tooth 111 formed on the outer periphery of the valve driving gear 110, Lt; / RTI > The flow path switching valve module 100 is responsible for relocating the connection of pipelines so that the fluid can flow smoothly through the flow paths in the operation water such as raw water, soft water, regeneration and rinsing mode on the water softener system. . It is therefore desirable to have the valve drive gear 110, which actuates the valve structure in the housing 130, correctly positioned in order to increase the reliability of the water softener system.

The housing 130 is composed of an upper housing 132 and a lower housing 134 and the valve driving gear 110 and the position sensing sensor 120 are located on the upper side of the upper housing 132. The valve driving gear 110 is fixed on the upper surface of the upper housing 132 to be rotatable and spaced apart from the upper surface of the upper housing 132. The position detecting sensor 120 is fixed to the upper surface of the upper housing 132, It detects the position.

The valve driving gear 110 includes a blocking wall 114 extending in a cylindrical ring shape of a predetermined thickness from a lower end of a disc-shaped body formed with teeth 111, And a fastener 112 connected to the structure. A plurality of through holes 113 are formed in the blocking wall 114. The through hole 113 includes a plurality of positioning holes 116 and a reverse rotation sensing hole 117 disposed at the edge of the positioning hole 116. The through holes 113 may be arranged at irregular intervals, but it may be preferable to arrange the through holes 113 at regular intervals for accurate positioning.

The position confirmation hole 116 induces an accurate position change of the flow path switching valve module 100 to correspond to the water softener, the regeneration, the rinse mode, etc. on the water softener system, and the position sensing sensor 120 can stop the corresponding mode . The position confirmation hole 116 is constituted by the first to fifth position confirmation holes 116a to 116e and can be viewed as indicating a stop, hot water rinse, hot water regeneration, cold water regeneration and cold water rinse operation state, respectively, But the present invention is not limited thereto and can be configured in various forms.

The hole width of each of the positioning holes 116a to 116e in the horizontal direction is kept constant so that the position sensing sensor 120 can be rotated by the same hole sensing time when the valve driving gear 110 rotates at a constant speed Detection may be possible. Here, the hole sensing time means a time taken to travel the distance corresponding to the hole width. In the present invention, the hole sensing time may be defined to have a positioning hole 116 of a certain size.

The position detecting sensor 120 includes a body 121, a light emitting unit 122 disposed on the body 121 and transmitting a light component, and a light emitting unit 122 disposed on the body 121, And a light receiving unit 124 disposed to receive the light component from the light emitting unit 122. That is, when the light component emitted from the light emitting portion 122 is confirmed to be received by the light receiver 124, it is recognized as an ON state and a High signal is output. The sensing is performed in such a manner that

The thickness of the blocking wall 114 is shorter than the distance between the light emitting portion 122 and the light receiving portion 124, so that the blocking wall 114 is free from rotation. When the valve driving gear 110 is powered by the driving motor 150 and rotated, the position detecting sensor 120 alternately rotates the closed region of the blocking wall 114 and the open region (the region where the through hole is formed) . That is, the on / off process is repeatedly performed, and the through hole 113 is automatically detected.

Referring to FIGS. 4 and 5, an embodiment of the arrangement of the through holes 113 formed on the valve driving gear 110 will be described. The through holes 113 are formed in the outer periphery of the first positioning hole 116a so that the first to fifth positioning holes 116a, 116b, 116c, 116d, and 116e are formed continuously along the blocking wall 114, The reference hole 117 can be disposed at a predetermined distance. A predetermined distance d may be maintained between the adjacent through holes 113 along the blocking wall 114. Here, the time during which the distance d moves in the process of rotating the valve driving gear 110 may be defined as a hole checking period. In other words, the hole checking period may mean the time for sensing the adjacent positional hole 116 or the reference hole 117 after the positional hole 116 is confirmed. The number of the positioning holes 116 may not be limited to the number of the embodiments of the present invention which may be variously changed.

Each of the positioning holes 116 is formed of a different number of sensing holes 118 so that the positioning holes 116 can be recognized separately as the valve driving gear 110 rotates . The first positioning hole 116a is formed of one sensing hole 118a and the second positioning hole 116b is formed of two sensing holes 118b. In this manner, the third through fifth positioning holes 116c, 116d, and 116e include three to five sensing holes 118c, 118d, and 118e, respectively.

FIG. 5 is a view showing, in a straight line, the arrangement relative to the positioning hole 116 and the reference hole 117 formed in the valve driving gear 110 of FIG. 4, And shows a series of arrangement of the holes 118. The number of the detection holes 118 is different for each of the positioning holes 116. When the position detection sensor 120 detects the number of the different detection holes 118 at the time of the rotation of the valve driving gear 110 It is possible to accurately stop at the desired positioning hole 116 in the course of calculation. For example, in order to accurately stop the third position determining hole 116c corresponding to the hot water regeneration mode, the position sensing sensor 120 (see FIG. ) Can be used. That is, when the valve driving gear 110 passes through the third position determining hole 116c in the process of rotating the valve driving gear 110, the receiving end of the position sensing sensor 120 is recognized three times by the light receiving body 124, So that the present position of the valve driving gear 110 can be accurately grasped by outputting three consecutive High signals.

Advantages of the arrangement of the detection holes 118 in each of the positioning holes 116 include a variation in the rotational speed of the driving gear when using a conventional single hole positioning hole, It is possible to prevent an error occurring in the process of performing the operation. That is, when the position control according to the conventional method is used, there is a possibility that the position of the reference hole for determining the origin is wrong or there is a possibility of malfunction in the position movement due to the abnormal operation of the position detection sensor. The position identification holes 116 are given IDs through the process of checking the number of the detection holes 118 provided in the holes 116. [

In the present invention, the first position determining hole 116a is set to the initial stop mode and the other second position confirming hole 116b to the fifth position confirming hole 116e are set in the raw water, soft water, regeneration, Rinsing, hot water regeneration, cold water regeneration, cold water rinsing, and the like. Of course, the mode setting can be variously configured according to the use state of the water softener, the design direction, and the like.

When the valve driving gear 110 is to be placed in the initial stop mode in a state where the valve driving gear 110 is at an arbitrary position, the valve driving gear 110 is first rotated in a reverse direction (in the present invention, And the reference hole 117 adjacent to the 1 positioning hole 116a is sensed. The width of the reference hole 117 is formed to be larger than the width of the first position determining hole 116a so as to be distinguishable from the position detecting sensor. That is, since the valve driving gear 110 rotates at a constant speed, it takes a longer time to sense the reference hole 117 than the first position determining hole 116a, Can be detected. Thereafter, the valve driving gear 110 rotates in a forward direction (in the present invention, it can be defined as a clockwise direction) to stop in the first positioning hole 116a, which is the position sensing hole 116 that is first sensed. On the other hand, the forward direction or the reverse direction may be different according to the arrangement of the through holes 113 formed in the valve driving gear 110.

Referring now to FIG. 6, a further embodiment 113 'of the through hole arrangement formed on the valve drive gear 110 is discussed. The through hole 113 'is formed in the first through fifth positioning holes 116a', 116b ', 116c', 116d ', and 116e' along the blocking wall 114 similarly to the first embodiment 113 of the through hole. And the reference hole 117 may be disposed at a predetermined distance from the outer periphery of the first positioning hole 116a '. Hereinafter, the same parts as those in the first embodiment 113 are not described, and only the other characteristic parts are described.

Each of the positioning holes 116 has a first sensing hole 119a having a first hole width and a second sensing hole 119b having a second hole width that is smaller than or smaller than the first hole width, The first sensing hole 119a and the second sensing hole 119b are disposed at the edges in the positioning holes 116a ', 116b', 116c ', 116d', and 116e '. The first to fifth position determining holes 116a ', 116b', 116c ', 116d', and 116e 'may include a third sensing hole 119c, a first sensing hole 119a, and a second sensing hole 119b. It is possible to maintain a structure that is arranged in order. More specifically, only the first sensing hole 119a and the second sensing hole 119b are disposed in the first positioning hole 116a ', and the third positioning hole 116b' ), A first sensing hole 119a and a second sensing hole 119b are arranged in this order. Since the number of the third sensing holes 119c increases from 2 to 4 as compared with the second positioning holes 116b ', the third to fifth positioning holes 116c', 116d ', and 116e' .

If the position sensing sensor 120 rotates in the clockwise direction with the reference hole 117 as the apex on the valve driving gear 110, the position sensing sensor 120 can detect the third sensing hole 119c, The hole 119a and the second sensing hole 119b. Here, it is preferable that the first sensing hole 119a has a larger hole width than the third sensing hole 119c and the second sensing hole 119b. That is, the first width of the first sensing hole 119a is larger than the second width of the second sensing hole 119b. After the number of the third detection holes 119c is checked in the process of entering the desired drive mode from the reference hole 117, the process of detecting the first wide width and then detecting the second wide width, So that it can be stopped accurately.

Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 7, a method of determining the position of the valve driving gear 110 constituting the flow path switching valve module 100 of the present invention will be described in a time-series manner. And instructs the valve drive gear 110 at any drive mode position to rotate in the reverse direction. The position sensing sensor 120 transmits and receives a sensing signal to the blocking wall 114 rotating at the same speed as the valve driving gear 110 rotates (S10). After the reference hole 117 is sensed in the backward rotation process, if there is no detection during the hole check period, the control unit determines the position of the reference hole 117 (S11). Thereafter, the controller instructs the valve driving gear 110 to rotate in the forward direction (S12).

Next, whether the through hole 113 is recognized or not is read according to whether or not the light component between the light emitting portion 122 and the light receiving portion 124 constituting the position sensing sensor 120 is received (S13). If the position sensing sensor 120 recognizes at least one through hole 113 in step S13, the valve driving gear 110 rotates. Therefore, the number of the sensing holes 118 formed in each positioning hole 116 is controlled by the controller It is determined whether or not it corresponds to a preset value (S14).

On the other hand, if the through hole 113 is not recognized in step S13, the valve driving gear 110 does not rotate or the position sensing sensor 120 can not recognize the through hole 113 by the blocking wall 114 It is determined whether or not a predetermined position check time has elapsed (S15). The position confirmation time can be defined as a reference time at which the through hole 113 should be sensed after a drive command is given to the valve driving gear 110. For example, the time can be set to 9 seconds and managed. If it is determined in step S15 that the position confirmation time has elapsed, it is determined that an abnormality has occurred in the valve drive gear 110 and an alarm is generated (S16). If it is determined in step S15 that the position confirmation time has not elapsed, the flow returns to step S12 and the valve driving gear 110 is maintained in the forward rotation command.

If it is determined in step S14 that the number of the detection holes 118 formed in each of the positioning holes 116 is equal to a predetermined value, the valve driving gear 110 stops rotating without stopping the rotation. Here, each drive mode can be distinguished by using the number of high signals measured through the light receiving portion of the position detection sensor 120 due to the difference in the number of the detection holes 118.

As described above, the flow path switching valve module according to the present invention and the method for determining the position of the valve driving gear using the same are provided with a position sensing hole formed in the valve driving gear, Mode so that stable change of the flow path can be achieved. In addition, by differentiating the number of the detection holes constituting the position confirmation holes, it is possible to increase the discrimination force in the position detection sensors, and by arranging the detection holes distinguished from the other detection holes at the edge in each position confirmation hole, It is possible to accurately stop the operation of the apparatus.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described, the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiments described above. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that numerous modifications and variations can be made in the present invention without departing from the spirit or scope of the appended claims. And equivalents should also be considered to be within the scope of the present invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a flow path switching valve module according to an embodiment of the present invention,

FIG. 2 is a partially exploded perspective view of the channel switching valve module of FIG. 1 in a downward direction,

Fig. 3 is a front view in the direction A in Fig. 1,

4 is a schematic view showing the structure of a valve driving gear which is a component of the present invention,

5 is a conceptual view showing an embodiment of the arrangement of positioning holes formed in the valve driving gear,

6 is a conceptual view showing another embodiment of the arrangement of positioning holes, and Fig.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a time-series characteristic of the method for determining the position of the valve driving gear according to the present invention.

Description of the Related Art

100: flow path switching valve module 110: valve driving gear

111: tooth profile 112: fastener

113: through hole 114: blocking wall

116: Positioning hole 117: Reference hole

118: detection hole 120: position detection sensor

121: body 122:

124: light receiving section 130: housing

132: upper housing 134: lower housing

140: flow tube part 150: drive motor

152: Pinion d: Distance between through holes

Claims (12)

A valve driving gear having a cylindrical blocking wall in which a plurality of through holes are formed; A position sensing sensor disposed at one side of the valve driving gear and measuring a position of the valve driving gear using the through hole; Lt; / RTI > The through hole has a plurality of positioning holes arranged at regular intervals, and each of the positioning holes is formed of a different number of sensing holes, so that the respective positioning holes can be separated from each other as the valve driving gear rotates And the position sensing sensor can determine the position of the valve driving gear through the transmission of the light component through the through hole, Wherein each of the positioning holes has a first sensing hole having a first hole width and a second sensing hole having a second hole width which is adjacent to the first sensing hole and is larger or smaller than the first hole width, And the holes and the second sensing holes are disposed at the edges in the respective positioning holes. delete The method according to claim 1, Wherein the through hole further comprises a reference hole disposed adjacent to the position determining hole disposed at the outermost one of the plurality of position determining holes, Is equal to the distance between the first and second flow paths. The method according to claim 1 or 3, The position detecting sensor includes a body, a light emitting unit disposed on the body to transmit a light component, and a light receiving unit disposed on the body at a predetermined distance from the light emitting unit and receiving light components from the light emitting unit And the blocking wall rotates in a space between the light emitting unit and the light receiving unit. 5. The method of claim 4, Wherein the through hole is further provided with a reference hole disposed adjacent to a position determining hole disposed at an outermost position among the plurality of position checking holes, and in a state in which the valve driving gear rotates in the forward direction, Wherein the normal operation of the valve driving gear can be determined according to whether or not the reference hole is sensed during the hole checking period after sensing the confirmation hole. 6. The method of claim 5, Wherein the position sensing sensor is capable of stopping at a designated position determining hole by calculating a time during which the valve driving gear is rotated at a constant speed while passing the first and second hole widths. Switching valve module. The method according to claim 6, Wherein the hole checking period means a moving time between adjacent through holes in the course of rotation of the valve driving gear. The method according to claim 1, Wherein the flow path switching valve module is applied to a water softener system. In the method of determining the position of the valve drive gear constituting the flow path switching valve module according to the first aspect, (a) initiating rotational drive of the valve driving gear in a forward direction; (b) sensing a plurality of positioning holes formed in a cylindrical blocking wall extending to a lower end of the valve driving gear; And (c) determining whether the number of the sensing holes constituting the positioning hole corresponds to a preset value in the step (b); / RTI > Wherein the position detecting sensor is capable of determining whether the valve driving gear is normally operated by determining a position where the valve driving gear is positioned through the transmission of the light component through the position determining hole. checking way. 10. The method of claim 9, In the step (b) Wherein the position detecting sensor generates a warning if it is impossible to detect an arbitrary position check hole during the position checking time. 11. The method of claim 10, In the step (c), the position sensing sensor can identify the stop point of the valve driving gear by the first sensing hole and the second sensing hole, which are disposed at the edges in the respective positioning holes, Wherein the valve driving gear is positioned at a predetermined position. 12. The method of claim 11, And the second hole width of the second sensing hole is formed to be larger or smaller than the first hole width of the first sensing hole, thereby improving the sensitivity of the position sensing sensor.

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