US1455662A - Thermostatic valve mechanism - Google Patents

Description

F. W. ROBERTSHAW ET AL May l5, i923.

THERMOSTATIC VALVE MECHANISM Wiled Jan. 20. 1921 4 Sheets-Sheet l May 15, i923.

F. W. ROBERTSHAW ET AL THERMOSTATIC VALVE MECHANI SM Filed Jan. 20. 1921 4 SheetsjSheet 2 3.9 A 1 mm :5 4@ 47 INVENTORS xmwwu May mm3. M5566@ F. W. ROBERTSHAW ET AL THERMOSTATIC VALVE MECHANISM Filed Jan, 20, 1921 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 4a 19a 15a Vu l M 52a A h 17@ JE 2a f1 l l I lNvEwron Patented May 115, 1923 UNH STATE TET @FMCG FREDERICK W. ROBERTSHAW, OF PITTSBURGH, AND GEORGE A. ROBERTSHAW, OF GREENSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA.

THERMOSTATIC VALVE MECHANISM.

Application led January 20, 1921.

To all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that we, FREDERICK W. RoBnR'rsHAw, a resident of Pittsburgh, in the county of Allegheny and State of ennsylvania, and GEORGE A. RoBnRTsHAw, a resident of Greensburg, in the county of lVest-moreland and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful lmprovement in Thermostatic Valve Mechanism, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l is a vertical section illustrating one form of apparatus embodying our invention.

Figure 2 is a similar view showing another embodiment of the invention.

Figure 3 is a side elevation showing still another embodment of the invention.

Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 2, and showing another modification.

Our invention has relation to thermo- 'static valve mechanism particularly designed for the control of the supply of gas or of air and gas to a gas burner or burners, although it may be utilized for the control of other fluids.

One object of our invention is to provide mechanism of this character which'will insure a quick opening of the main valve which controls the How through the supply line of the system. X

A further object of the invention, as embodied in a preferred form thereof, is to provide a novel arrangement of the pilot light i gas supply whereby a constant blue flame may be provided at the pilot light, receiving its-supply of gas from the relief or bleeding ports of the valve system.

The particular nature of our invention will be best understood by reference to the accompanying drawings, in which we lhave shown several difl'erent embodiments thereof, which will now be described, it being premised, however, that the invention is susceptible of various other embodiments and may be changed in various ways within the spirit and'scope of the appended claims.

Referring iirst to thatform of our invention which is illustrated in Figure 1, the numeral 2 designates a main gas supply pipe, 3 a main diaphragm chamber, 4 an auxiliary diaphragm chamber, and 5 a thermostatic element which is so arranged as to be ar"- ected by changes in temperature in the heat- Serial No. 438,738.

ing system controlled by the mechanism. The supply pipe 2 has a port 6 leading into the lower part of the diaphragm chamber 3, with which it communicates by means of a port 7 having a valve seat 8 at its upper side. This/,port is controlled by a main valve 9 carried by a flexible diaphragm 10 in the chamber 3. 12 is an outlet from the lower portion of the chamber 3 and leading to the burner or burners to be supplied and controlled (not shown).

rllhe pipe 2 is also connected by a port 13 with the lower portion of the diaphragm chamber 4, the opening in the said chamber being controlled by an auxiliary valve 14 carried by a flexible diaphragm 15 in said chamber 4, the valve havingxa seat at 16.

`17 is a port, constituting at times a relief passage, connecting the lower part of the chamber 4 with the upper part of the chamber 3.y 18 is an escape or relief passage leading from the lower portion of the chamber 4 into a pipe 19 which is connected to a gas and air mixer 20 for supplying a pilot light connection 21.

22 designates any suitable valve arranged to be opened by the action of the thermostatic element 5 and to be closed by the spring 23 acting in opposition to said element. rlhe valve 22 is seated in the chamber 24, which is connected above the valve by a connection 25 leading tothe gas supply pipe 2. The lower portion of the chamber 24 is connected bya pipe or passage 26 with the upper portion of the diaphragm chamber 4. A pipe 2T also leads outwardly from the lower portion of the chamber 24 and into the mixer 2O of the pilot light. The gas enters the mixer 2O from the pipes 19 and 27 by means of the respective nozzles 28 and 29, which are directed at an angle'to each other. indicates any suitable regulating device for the port 6.

rlhe operation is as follows: `With the i ting gas into the lower port-ion of thechambei-424 from the pipe 2, this gas; passingv through the connection 26 into the upper portion ot' the diaphragm chamber' -4 (the valve 14 being open), builds up a pressure in said chamber above the diaphragm 15, thereby closing the valve 14 and cutting off vthe supply. of gas through the port 13 into the lower portion of said chamber 4, which gas has, by reason of the port 17, been acting to maintain a closing control at the upper side of the diaphragm 10. As soon as the valve 14 closes, no more gas can enter the lower part of the chamber 4 or the upper part of the chamber 3; and the gas which is contained in these portionsof the two chambers escapes through the port 18 and pipe 19 tol the` pilot li ht. This reduction of pressure above the (Iiaphragm 10 occurs very rapidly, owing to the comparatively small area of the upper portion of this chamber; and the diaphragm 10,- being exposed to the iow pressure of the gas from the supply pipe 2 at its under side, will open quickly, thereby admitting immediately a substantially full supply of gas to the burners. It Will be noted that the valve 9 requires but* a relatively small opening movement to y provide a free passage for the as of an area equal to the area of the port During the time that the valves 9 and 22 have been closed, the pilot light has been receiving its supply of gas from the lower portion of the diaphragm chamber through the relief port 18. When this supply is cut off by the closing of the valve 14 (except for the further leakage which occurs in the diaphragm chambers), the valve 22 has been opened and the ilot light is receiving a supply through t e pipe 27.

After the operations above described have taken place, the valve 9 remains opten so long as thetemperature in the heater does not exceed the predetermined maximum for which the therinostatic element is adjusted. When such maximum is reached, the valve' 22 again closes, thereby shutting off any further entrance of gas through the pipe 26 into the upper portion of the diaphragm chamber 4. The as which is present in the upper portion of tis chamber escapes through the pipes 26 and 27, thereby relieving pressure above the diaphragm 15 and allowing said V diaphragm to open under the action of the gas entering .below the valve through the port 13. The opening of the valve 14 again permits gas to flow through the po-rt 17 into the upper portion of the diaphragm chamber 3, thereby establishing therein a :pressure suficient to again close the valve 9.

In .the modification shown in Figure 2,31 designates the main gasv supply pipe, and 32 is the main valve controlling the fiow to the burner connection 31. 33 is the main diaphragm chamber having there-in a flexible diaphragm 34 to which is connected the stem 35 of the y valve 32. 36 is a spring tending to seat the valve 32 against the action of the diaphragm 34. 37 is the auxiliaryi .diaphragm chamber having therein a @gas supply pipe 31 to the lower side of the diaphragm chamber 37, and corresponding to the connection 13 of Figure 1. 46is a connection between the lower portion of the diaphragm chamber 37 and the upper portion of the diaphragm chamber 33, and corresponding in function to the port 17 of `Figure 1. 47 is a relief pipe leading from the connection 46, and corresponding in function to the port 18 and pipe 19 of Figure 1.

In this form of our invention the upper and lower portions of the diaphragm chainber 38 are in constant communication with each other through a small orifice 48, which is formed through the valve 39.

- In Figure 2 the parts are shown in the position which they occupy when the main valve 32 is closed to cut off the supply 4of gas to the burners. Under these conditions the connection between the pipes 42 and 44 is closedv at the valve 41; and the pressure in the upper part of the diaphragm chamber 37 will vhold the valve 39 closed by reason of the larger effective area of the upper surface of the diaphragm. y The space above the diaphragm 34 has been exhausted through the relief connections 46 and 47, and the spring 36 is therefore holding the valve 32 l closed. When the temperature in the heater falls to the pre-determined limit, the valve 41 will open, thereby relieving the pressure above the diaphragm 38 andf causing the valve 39 to open. This admits pressure through the connections 45 and 46 to the upper side of the diaphragm 34, and builds up a pressure which will open the valve 32. When the temperature again reaches the maximum Ito which the thermostat is set, the

valve 41 will close and pressure will be built up above the diaphragm 38 lthrough the orifice 48 to again close the valve 39 and thereby e'ect the closure of the valve 32.

In thel form of our invention shown in Figure 2, the reliefs are not adapted to form a constant supply for a pilot light, but the gas escaping therethrough may be burned at the pilot light. i

The form of our invention shown in Figure 3 is generally similar to that shown in Figure 1. In this figure, however, we have shown the invention applied to la system of burners 49 for a heater 50 in which the Cil thermostatic element 5a is placed. We have also shown the-valve 22, which corresponds to the valve 22 of Figure l, as being actuated by a multiple lever 51 which is acted upon by the thermostat. ln this figure We have also shown the two diaphragm chambers' as separated instead of being placed close together as in Figure l. We have applied to the parts shown in this gure the same reference characters as are applied to the corresponding parts shown in Figure l, but with the letter a aiixed thereto. |The operation is substantially the same as that of the apparatus shown in Figure l. From a structural standpoint, however, it is less desirable than that shown in Figure l, owing to the greater number of ttings and couplings required to connect up the various parts of the apparatus.

lt will be readily understood that by reversing the valve in the diaphragm chamber 3a with respect to its seat, the system may be made to operate with a reverse action thermostat; that is to say, with a thermostat which will act to open the thermostatically controlled valve on a rise in temperature, instead of closing such valve.

ln Figure 4c we have shown our invention as applied to the control of both air and gas for supplying a blast burner.l The arrangement is the same as in Figure 2, but an air valve 52, arranged to control the flow of air through an air supply pipe 53 leading to a burner-pipe 54, has its stern 55 arranged to be operated by the stem of the gas valve 32a. As will be readily seen, the

ltwo valves 321and 52 will be opened and.

closed in unison. l

lt will be obvious also` that the valve 32a may be the air control valve, and the valve 52 the gas controlvalve. ln that case the diaphragm control is effected by air instead of by gas.

:Parts in Figure 4 corresponding to similar parts in Figure 2 are given the same reference numerals as in .Figure 2, but with the letter a aixed.

The advantages of our invention result from the provision of the auxiliary diaphragm chamber, diaphragm, and auxiliary valve actuated by the auxiliary diaphragm. An objection to thermostatically controlled diaphragm valves such as heretofore used for the control of gas burners consisted in the fact that such valves do not always open with suiicient rapidity. When the valve opens slowly, there is a relatively small iiow of gas to the burners, and this often results in the burners lighting back at the mixers. We have discovered that by providing an auxiliary diaphragm and valve for the purpose of controlling the main diaphragm and valve, this objection can be entirely eliminated.

The form of 'our invention shown in Figures l and 3 is also advantageous in that it enables the pilot light to be operated continuously by the gas which escapes through the relief ports which are necessary tothe operation of the valves.

lWe claim:

l. rl`hermostatic valve mechanism, comprising a Huid pressure supply line having a branch connection, a thermostatically controlled valve in said connection, a main valve in said line, both of said valves when open being adapted to have a pressure flow therethrough, an actuating diaphragm for the main valve, an auxiliary valve, an actuating diaphragm or the auxiliary valve, and connections controlled by the auxiliary valve for controlling the action of the main valve, both of said diaphragme being operated by the pressure in said supply line, substantially as described.

2. Thermostatic valve mechanism, comprising a main supply pipe, a main control valve for said pipe, a diaphragm for actuating said main control valve, an auxiliary valve, an actuating diaphragm for said auxiliary valve, connections controlled by the auxiliary valve for controlling the pressure from said supply pipe to one side of said first mentioned diaphragm, and thermostatically controlled means for directing pressure from said pipe to said second mentioned diaphragm, substantially as described.

3. Thermostatic valve mechanism comprising a main supply pipe, a main control valve in said pipe, a diaphragm for actuating the main control valve, an auxiliary valve, a diaphragm for actuating the saine, connections controlled by the auxiliary valve for controlling the pressure at one side of the first named diaphragm, thermostatic means for controlling the pressure conditions at one side of the auxiliary diaphragm, relief connections for the chambers ofthe two diaphragms, and a pilot burner connected to receive a supplyy from said relief connections substantially as described.

4. rll`hermostatic valve mechanism comprising a .main diaphragm chamber, an auxiliary diaphragm chamber, a main flow passage through the main diaphragm chamber, an auxiliary flow passage through the auxiliary diaphragm chamber and Jr'rom thence into the main diaphragm chamber, a diaphragm actuated valve in each of said chambers for controlling the flow therethrough, and thermostatic means for controlling the pressure conditions in the auxiliary diaphragm chamber, substantially as described.

5. Thermostatic valve mechanism' comprising a main diaphragm chamber, a main flow passage leading through said chamber, a diaphragm in said chamber, a valve*l actuated by said diaphragm and controlling said passage, an auxiliary diaphragm chamber having a flow passage therethrough, a diaphragm in the auxiliary chamber, a Valve actuated by said diaphragm for controlling the How passage through the auxiliary chamber, a passage connecting the tWo chambers at opposite sides of their respective ldi'- aphragms, and thermostatically controlled means for controlling the pressure in the auxiliary chamber at the opposite side of the diaphragm from that at which the last named connection is located, substantially as described.

6. Thermostatic valve mechanism comprising a main valve, a fluid pressure supply line 'controlled thereby, a diaphragm' for actuating the main valve by the pressure in said supply line, an auxiliary valve for controlling the operation of the main valve, and a thermostatically operated valve for controlling the operation of the auxiliary valve by directing pressure thereto from said supply line, substantially as described.

7. Thermostatic valve mechanism comprising a main valve, an auxiliary valve for controlling the action of the main valve, a diaphragm chamber and a diaphragm therein for each of said Valves, said chambers having relief passages, and a pilot burner to Which both of said relief passages are connected, substantially as described.

8. Thermostatic valve mechanism comprising a main valve, an auxiliary Valve for controlling the action of the main valve, a diaphragm chamber and a diaphragm therein for each of said valves, said chambers having relief passages, a gas and air mixer into which the iuid from said relief passages is arranged to How, and a pilot burner Supplied by said mixer, substantially as described.

operation of the main valve, and'thermostatic means for controlling the operation of the auxiliary Valve, together with a second main valve arranged to be controlledv by the first named main valve, substantially as described.

l0. The combination With a main. gas

control valve, and a main air control valve,

said valves being arranged to operate in unison, a diaphragm for actuating one of said main valves, an auxiliary valve for controlling said diaphragm, a diaphragm for controlling the auxiliary valve, and thermostatic means for controlling the second named diaphragm, substantially as described.

ll. In a thenmostatic valve mechanism, a. main valve, an auxiliary Valve controlling the action of the main valve, a diaphragm chamber and a diaphragm therein for each of said valves, said chambers 'having relief passages, a mixing chamber With which said relief passages communicate, and a pilot burner supplied by said mixing chamber, substantially as described.

12. Inv a thermosta-tic valve mechanism, a main supply pipe, a main control valve in said pipe, a diaphragm for actuating the main control valve, an auxiliary valve, a diaphragm for actuating the same, connections controlled by the auxiliary valve` forY controlling the pressure at one side yof the first named diaphragm, thermostatic means for controlling the pressure conditions at one side of the second named diaphragm, relief connections for the chambers of said diaphragms, a mixing chamber' communicating With said connections and a pilot burner receiving' a supply from said mixing chamber, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof We have hereunto set our hands.

FREDERICK lV. ROBERTSHAV. GEORGE A. ROBERTSHAVV.

Images