RU2259311C1 - Portable sealed container - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: packing means, particularly containers, packaging elements or packages for contents presenting particular transport or storage problems.

SUBSTANCE: sealed container for material storage and transportation has upper and lower parts formed of gas-impermeable material and connected in air-tight manner one to another along perimeters thereof as well as main handle for container carrying. Container has additional removable handle installed from opposite container side and in symmetry with the main one, lever-driven hinged lock to connect upper and lower container parts, removable fixer to secure container on space-craft and means to control and maintain gas medium quality inside the container.

EFFECT: increased speed and convenience of material packing, sealing and transportation in vacuum, possibility of limited operator movement.

5 cl, 5 dwg

Description

The invention relates to devices for storing and transporting samples of materials intended for research in a vacuum or other inert environment when working in a spacesuit, in particular for transporting materials to the Earth exposed on the outer surface of a spacecraft.

A device for storing samples and studying properties in a vacuum is known, which is a container made in the form of a quartz ampoule connected to a means for creating a vacuum in which the test samples of materials are placed [1].

The disadvantages of this container are the lack of a handle and the inability to work with the container in conditions when it is necessary to carry the container. Closest to the proposed invention is a portable sealed container selected for the prototype for storing and transporting substances, comprising gas-tight material and interconnected upper and lower parts along the perimeter, a handle for carrying the container [2].

The design drawback is the lack of an element necessary for fixing the portable container on any object, for example, on the handrail of a spacecraft in space, where the operator’s mobility is limited.

The technical task of the present invention is to create a portable airtight container for convenient and quick packaging, sealing and transportation of materials in a vacuum with limited operator mobility (work in a suit).

This object is achieved in that a portable airtight container for storing and transporting substances with limited operator mobility, comprising top and bottom parts made of a gas-tight material and interconnected along the perimeter, a handle for carrying the container, is equipped with an additional removable handle mounted symmetrically to the main one with the opposite sides of the container, with a lever hinged lock for connecting the upper and lower parts of the container and a removable latch for fixing the cont jnera on any subject. A gas monitor is installed inside the portable airtight container. In this case, the gas medium monitor can be made in the form of a vacuum tank equipped with a neck with a membrane, where the tank is filled with activated vacuum adsorbent, and a punch is placed on the container. The monitor can be made in the form of a heteroionic pump with a power supply unit or in the form of a cylinder with compressed inert gas connected by a nozzle to the container cavity through a valve.

Figure 1 shows a General view of the container. Figure 2 shows the latch for fixing the container on any item. Figure 3 shows a monitor in the form of a vacuum tank. Figure 4 shows a monitor in the form of a heteroionic pump. Figure 5 shows a monitor in the form of a cylinder with compressed inert gas.

The portable airtight container contains the upper 1 and lower 2 parts made of a gas-tight material and interconnected around the perimeter, a handle for carrying the container 3 and is equipped with an additional removable handle 4, mounted symmetrically to the handle 3, a lever hinge lock 5 for connecting the upper 1 and lower 2 parts container and a latch 6 for fixing the container on any item.

The weight of the sealed container is 9 kg. Overall dimensions 600 × 400 × 200 mm. It can accommodate two panels with samples measuring 510 × 300 × 50 mm each.

To control and control the quality of the gas environment, a gas environment monitor is installed inside the container. Depending on the required type of gas medium (vacuum or inert gas), the monitor can be made in different ways.

To maintain the vacuum according to claim 3, the monitor is made in the form of a vacuum reservoir equipped with a neck with a membrane, the reservoir being filled with an activated vacuum sorbent. Figure 3 shows a monitor made in the form of a vacuum tank. It consists of a tank 7, equipped with a neck 8 with a membrane 9 and a punch 10. The tank is filled with an activated vacuum sorbent. Activated carbon can be used as a sorbent. Pre-activation is carried out by heating the tank to 600 ° C with continuous pumping through the neck. At the end of the evacuation stage, the neck is isolated by a membrane 9. The tank thus prepared is installed inside the container.

In another embodiment, maintaining the vacuum according to claim 4 of the claims, the monitor is in the form of a heteroionic pump with a power supply. Figure 4 shows a container with a monitor in the form of a heteroionic pump. The pump 11 is connected via a flange 12 to the upper part 1 of the container and a cable 13 to the power supply unit 14. Power can be supplied from the onboard network of the spacecraft.

When an inert gas is chosen as the medium inside the container, the monitor according to claim 5 can be made in the form of a cylinder with compressed inert gas connected by a pipe to the container cavity through a valve. Figure 5 shows a container with a monitor in the form of a cylinder with compressed inert gas. A container 15 with inert gas is mounted on the upper part 1 of the container, attached to it through a valve 16 and a nozzle 17. To monitor the pressure in the container, it is equipped with a pressure sensor, which is made in the form of coaxially arranged electrodes equipped with external terminals.

Work with a portable airtight container is as follows. The astronaut leaves the pressurized compartment of the spacecraft with a closed airtight container, by means of a removable latch 6 fixes the airtight container, for example, on the handrail 18 of the spacecraft, opens the upper part 1 of the airtight container and places an unpressurized container with samples removed from the spacecraft, then transfers the lever hinge lock 5 to the closed position. This ensures the preliminary sealing of the sealed container. Then the astronaut operates a gas monitor in the form of a vacuum tank or a monitor in the form of a cylinder with compressed inert gas. Actuation of the monitor in the form of a vacuum reservoir is carried out by the operator in outer space when laying samples in the container. Before closing the upper part of the container 1, the operator punctures the membrane 9 with a punch 10, which he removes from the socket on the tank 7 (Fig.3). In this case, the cavity of the reservoir communicates with the internal volume of the closed container, and gases penetrating due to leaks in the container are absorbed by the vacuum sorbent.

The actuation of the monitor in the form of a cylinder with compressed inert gas is carried out by the astronaut on the outer surface of the spacecraft after closing the upper part 1 of the container by opening valve 16. Thus, inert gas from the cylinder fills the cavity of the container. Then the astronaut introduces a sealed container into the pressurized compartment of the spacecraft.

If a monitor in the form of a heteroionic pump is installed on an airtight container, the cosmonaut will actuate it after the airtight container is introduced into the pressurized compartment of the spacecraft.

Immediately after transportation of the airtight container to the pressurized compartment of the spacecraft, the astronaut tightens the bolts of the upper part 1 of the airtight container.

It is possible to use a sealed container without a gas monitor.

In the event that there are no structural elements in the working area on which the container lock can be installed, the lower handle is used. The second astronaut holds the container by the lower handle during the work of the first operator.

A sealed container with panels is returned to Earth no later than 3 months after dismantling the panels.

The pressure inside the sealed container at this point is:

for the version without getter not more than 20 mm Hg,

for a variant with a getter not more than 0.2 mm Hg,

including the partial pressure of oxygen of not more than 0.01 mm Hg

Thanks to this embodiment of the airtight container, fast, airtight packaging and its transportation in zero gravity conditions when working in a spacesuit are possible.

Sources of information

1. RF patent No. 2091740, cl. G 01 N 1/02, 1995.

2. RF patent No. 2109668, cl. In 65 D 81/32, 1996.

Claims (5)

1. A portable airtight container for storing and transporting substances with limited operator mobility, comprising upper and lower parts made of gas-tight material and tightly interconnected around the perimeter, a handle for carrying the container, characterized in that it is equipped with an additional removable handle mounted symmetrically to the main on the opposite side of the container, with a lever hinge lock for connecting the upper and lower parts of the container, a removable lock for fixing the container on the spacecraft and a device for maintaining and controlling the quality of the gas medium inside the container. 2. A portable airtight container according to claim 1, characterized in that a gas monitor is installed inside it. 3. The portable airtight container according to claim 2, characterized in that the gas medium monitor is made in the form of a vacuum tank equipped with a neck with a membrane, the tank being filled with activated vacuum adsorbent and a punch is placed on the container. 4. The portable airtight container according to claim 2, characterized in that the monitor is made in the form of a heteroionic vacuum pump with a power supply. 5. The portable airtight container according to claim 2, characterized in that the monitor is made in the form of a cylinder with compressed inert gas connected by a nozzle to the container cavity through a valve.

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