WO1992001980A1

WO1992001980A1 - Compact filling device for adjustable quantities of water for domestic use

Info

Publication number: WO1992001980A1
Application number: PCT/EP1991/000198
Authority: WO
Inventors: Franz Kornfeind
Original assignee: Franz Kornfeind
Priority date: 1990-07-18
Filing date: 1991-02-02
Publication date: 1992-02-06
Also published as: JPH05500412A; EP0493537A1

Abstract

A filling device (1) allows adjustable quantities of water for domestic use to be tapped from water pipes. The device has a pipe space (2) with an outlet port (8) and a stop valve (3), as well as a liquid quantity counter (4) and a control part (5). The liquid quantity counter (4) can transmit a signal to the control part (5) for each partial quantity of water already filled from the quantity to be filled. The filling device (1) may be providedwith a temperature setting means, in case it is connected to hot and cold water pipes, thus allowing the temperature of the water to be tapped to be set and the tapped water to keep said temperature. The filling device can be automatically or purely mechanically assembled. This disclosed device has a filling error that is tolerable for domestic use, is compact and cheap to produce.

Description

COMPACT FILLING UNIT FOR ADJUSTABLE QUANTITIES OF HOT WATER

The invention relates to a filling device for taking adjustable amounts of process water according to the preamble of claim 1 and a method for its operation according to the preamble of claim 10.

Devices for removing adjustable amounts of liquid, also called metering devices, are known. They are currently mainly used for commercial purposes. Since in most cases they have to meet the requirements of the calibration capability, they consist of a relatively complicated and expensive liquid flow meter, an equally complex shut-off device, but mostly with a relatively simple control.

In such known devices, additional measuring devices are also used, for example to measure the temperature of the material to be measured, in order to compensate for interference which could distort the measured amount of liquid. With such complicated metering devices, filling errors of less than 0.5% are easily attainable. However, they are too expensive to carry out simple filling tasks such as occur in households, for example measuring certain amounts of water for cooking or filling bath water.

REPLACEMENT LEAF Such tasks are currently solved by placing the vessel to be filled with the specified amount of liquid under a tap, opening the tap, observing the approach of the liquid to the desired level and closing the tap when the desired level has been reached. This requires at least the presence of a surveillance person. If this person is insufficiently attentive, it can easily happen that the vessel overflows. Filling errors of the order of 5% of the quantity to be filled can still be tolerated in such filling processes on industrial water, thus cheaper means can be used than with commercial dosing systems.

In addition, in households it is often necessary to fill a quantity of liquid which can be set to a predetermined temperature from cold and hot water. Mixer taps are generally used for this purpose, but they can only be used to adjust the water temperature in advance by feeling and may need to be constantly corrected. Mixer taps with a rotating setting of the temperature, which have a satisfactory setting of the rotating angle, are particularly popular. However, this does not yet mean an exact setting of the desired temperature, since pressure differences in the hot and / or cold water line or changes in temperature in these (for example if several consumers are at the same time Hot water boiler remove larger quantities of water) can cause considerable differences in the temperature of the water removed.

The invention seeks to remedy this. The invention has for its object to provide a compact, inexpensive filling device for adjustable amounts of domestic water for household use, which has a tolerable filling error.

The invention achieves the stated object with a filling device which has the features of claim 1, and with a method for operating this filling device which has the features of claim 10. Further claims relate to advantageous embodiments.

The invention is explained by way of example with reference to the drawing. Show it

1 shows a filling device with a solenoid valve and impeller;

2 shows a part of a purely mechanical filling device;

3 shows a filling device with a temperature control device; and

Fig. 4 is a block diagram of a temperature control device.

E ^RS ATZBLATT 1 shows a filling device 1 according to the invention, which is manufactured in a simple manner, for example with extensive use of plastic parts which are machined only in a few places. It consists of an enclosed line space 2, a shut-off valve 3, a liquid quantity counter 4 and a control part 5.

The housing of the line space 2 is connected by means of a flange 6 to a service water line, not shown. However, other types of connection are also possible. The line space 2 leads via a valve seat 7 and a part into which the liquid counter 4 is introduced to an outlet opening 8. The line space 2 is filled with the used water to be filled, which flows to it from the used water line. At the outlet opening 8, it contains, for example, an outlet body 9 with a lower sieve 10 and an upper sieve 10 * '. These ensure a splash-free outlet.

In FIG. 1, a Einfüllgerät is shown, for example l, a solenoid valve is used in _a as the valve 3. Pneumatic valves can also be used, however, or any other valve that can be quickly set from a "closed" state to an "open" state and vice versa. In Fig. 1 the closed ^* state is drawn with solid lines, the open state with dashed lines. Is the open state, there is a shut-off element 11 of the shut-off valve 3 in the dashed position 11 'outside the valve seat 7, the

REPLACEMENT LEAF Process water flows under pressure from the process water line via the line space 2 to the outlet opening 8. If the closed state is present, there is process water in the line space 2, but it does not flow therein because the shut-off device 11 is located in the valve seat 7 and blocks the liquid flow. The screens 10, 10 ^/ in the outlet body 9 prevent the line space 2 from being emptied through the outlet opening 8.

The drawn solenoid valve 3 has a shut-off cone as a shut-off element 11. This is connected via a shaft 12 to a body 12 made of soft magnetic material. A spring 14 presses the body 13 downward, so that the shut-off cone 11 is pressed onto the valve seat 7 when the solenoid valve 3 is closed. As already noted, in this state no process water can flow through the line space 2.

Above the body 13 there is a coil 15 which is able to receive the body 13 as a coil body. In order to keep the filling device 1 in the open state, a current is sent through the coil 15. The body 13 is pulled against the force of the spring 14 into the coil 15, the shut-off cone 11 strikes against a stop on the upper wall of the line space 2 and the process water can flow out of the process water line through the outlet opening 8. If the current is turned off, the coil 15 can no longer hold the body 13 against the spring 14, the shut-off cone 11 is pressed into the valve seat 7, and the process water no longer runs on.

REPLACEMENT LEAF If the filling device 1 is in the “open” state, the process water stream under pressure from the process water line drives the liquid quantity counter 4. A four-bladed impeller counter 4 is drawn as such in FIG. 1. However, other liquid quantity meters, which take advantage of mechanical, electrical, magnetic or thermal effects, such as, for example, impeller meters, Woltmann meters, oval wheel meters, turbine meters or carmine vortex flow meters or the like can be used. The essential thing is that only those liquid quantity counters are used that output a signal for each same, aliquot that is let through, which can be electrical or mechanical. In FIG. 1, a proximity switch 16 is used to count the always the same subset of the process water, which can be excited by small magnets attached to the vanes of the impeller counter 4 through the plastic wall of the conduit space 2, which can be made thin at this point because of the dome shape. The counted portion of the process water corresponds to the volume between two successive blades of the impeller meter 4. It is expedient to select this volume so that the portions correspond to displayable volume units (for example 1/50 liters). This can also be done with other liquid flow meters 4. The errors in a liquid quantity counter 4, such as the hatching volume, measurement uncertainties at the start and at the stop, the temperature dependence of the viscosity of the material to be measured, play only one in the large permissible error of the filling device

REPLACEMENT LEAF subordinate role and do not need to be compensated if the permitted filling quantity is limited to 50 to 100 partial quantities.

In the control part 5 in FIG. 1, for example, the count signals are given to a roller counter 18. Such counters are known and widely used. Furthermore, the control part 5 contains a power supply, not shown here, which of course does not apply if the filling device 1 is constructed purely mechanically, as will be described below. There are also some control buttons on it, which are also not shown. The control part 5 can also comprise a microprocessor, not shown, with which all functions of the filling device are controlled and monitored. In a further embodiment of the invention, the filling device is controlled via a manually operable remote control, which increases the ease of use in the household considerably. The remote control preferably has an optical display with which the course of the filling process can be visually detected, i.e. the partial quantities that have already been filled in or those that are still to be filled are displayed optically.

In order to fill a predetermined amount of liquid, the value of this amount (for example 15/50 liters) is set on the roller counter 18 (alternatively, this amount can be typed in on the remote control), the coil 15 is energized, the shut-off device 11 is released from the valve seat 7 and the liquid

REPLACEMENT LEAF begins to flow from the service water line through line space 2 to outflow opening 8. In this case, the liquid quantity counter 4 is activated and, for each partial quantity that is passed, outputs a signal via the proximity switch 16 to the roller counter 18. The roller counter 18 runs backwards, ie it shows the partial quantities still to be filled. When the value of zero is reached on all the rollers of the roller counter 18, the current is removed from the coil 15, the shut-off device 11 is pressed against the valve seat 7 by the spring 14, and the process water stops flowing into the outlet opening 8. In order to keep the run-out error small, the filling device 1 can also already be switched to the "closed" state when the roller counter 18 is still a few subsets before the "all rollers at zero"position; for example, the position of the role displaying the smallest decimal place need not be taken into account.

The transmission of the number of counted from the liquid meter 4 subsets on the Roll ^'enzählwerk 18 can also be done with other non-contact or non-contact means, for example, the drive shaft can be of the roller type counter 18 directly with the axis of Flüssigkeits¬ totalizer 4 be connected. With this type of coupling, however, a larger slip volume is generated than with the contactless coupling.

REPLACEMENT LEAF Fig. 2 shows schematically the parts of a shut-off valve 3 of a purely mechanical filling device 1. Here, too, the closed state is drawn with continuous, the open state with dashed lines. The shut-off valve 3 has a shut-off cone 11 on a shaft 12, which in the “closed” state is held in the valve seat 7 of the line space 2 by a spring 14 that can be subjected to tension. If the shut-off valve 3 is to be opened, the shaft 12 is raised with the aid of a start lever 19, which is mounted on the one hand in a first axis 20 and on the other hand in a second axis 21, in such a way that the body 13 has a first bevel 22 on it a transmission lever 23 located second slope 24 passes and is now carried by the transmission lever 23 so that it comes out of the valve seat 7 and rests against the stop against the ^' upper wall of the line space 2. The transmission lever 23 is mounted on a third axis 25 and, with its end facing away from the shaft 12, strikes the circumference of the roller for the smallest decimal unit of the roller counter 18, which, as described above, causes the filling device 1 to be switched off. In this case, the roller counter 18 must be rigidly, that is to say touching, coupled to the liquid quantity counter 4. The shut-off roller has a milled groove 26 on its circumference. As soon as this milled groove 26 settles in front of the transmission lever 23, it falls off on the side of the shaft 12, the body 13 can pass the second incline of the transmission lever 23 and the shut-off cone 11 is pushed through the spring 14 is pressed against the valve seat 7, which means the closing of the filling device 1.

REPLACEMENT LEAF In Fig. 3, a further embodiment of the filling device according to the invention is shown schematically, which can be connected to a hot water pipe (for example left) and to a cold water pipe (for example right) which. are not shown, and in which the domestic water to be filled is adjustable to an adjustable temperature (between the temperature of the hot water and that of the cold water). 3A shows a section BB (FIG. 3B) in the view drawn in a state in which the process water to be filled reaches the maximum temperature. In Fig. 3B, the process water reaches an adjustable intermediate temperature and in Fig. 3C a minimum temperature is reached. 3B and 3C are sections in the plane A - A (Fig. 3A) in plan view.

Both tubular extensions 27, 27 'in the line space 2, which begin at the flanges 6, 6', merge into a cylindrical line part 28, the axis of which is perpendicular to the extensions 27, _Λ 27 '. On the wall of the cylindrical line part 28 there is, also movably supported, a likewise cylindrical feed body 29, which in the vicinity of its intersection with the tubular extensions 27 has a slot-shaped opening 30, the slot direction of which is perpendicular to the axis of the feed body 29, and which in Slit direction is a little smaller than the distance measured on the circumference of the feed body 29 between the left edge of the continuation of the hot water 27 and the right edge of the

REPLACEMENT LEAF Continuation of the cold water 27 '. The feed body can be rotated by an attached servomotor 31. In Fig. 3A, the opening 30 is such that only the continuation for the hot water 27 is open, the temperature control device thus only supplies service water of the maximum temperature. In Fig. 3B both extensions 27, 27- "are open, the temperature of the service water is thus at an intermediate temperature. In Fig. 3C only the extension for the cold water 27 'is open, the temperature control device thus supplies service water from the minimum temperature .

3A, the shut-off valve 3 is also drawn in a state in which the shut-off element 11 is lifted off the valve seat 7, so that the process water can flow out through the outflow opening 8 after passing through the liquid quantity counter 4. A temperature sensor 32 is advantageously mounted after the liquid quantity counter 4, which causes the hot water to mix well with the cold water. This measures the temperature of the process water to be filled.

4, a block diagram of the temperature control is shown. A resistance thermometer is assumed to be the temperature sensor 32, since such a component is inexpensive, can be manufactured small enough, and its resistance changes proportionally to the temperature in the temperature range of interest between 0 ° and 100 ° C. In principle, other temperature sensors can also be used, but this requires (known) different circuit diagrams.

REPLACEMENT LEAF The temperature control is operated with the aid of a direct current source 37. On the one hand there is a voltage divider chain with a first series resistor 34 and the resistance thermometer 32, on the other hand another voltage divider chain with a second series resistor 35, which has the same resistance value as the first series resistor 34, and a preferably digitally adjustable potentiometer 33. This potentiometer is set to that value set, the resistance thermometer 32 shows at the water temperature to be set. The temperature control also contains an amplification arrangement 36, consisting at least of a differential amplifier and a bipolar power amplifier, which are shown here as a block component. A point between the first series resistor 34 and the resistance thermometer 32 is placed at one input of the differential amplifier, another point between the second series resistor 35 and the digitally adjustable potentiometer at the other input of the differential amplifier. The difference is amplified with the power amplifier. At the output there is a negative or positive value depending on the sign of the difference, which can be constant or proportional to the deviation. In the vicinity of the difference zero there is a hysteresis range in which the power amplifier outputs the value zero. The servomotor 31 now adjusts the feed body 29 until the temperature set with the potentiometer 33 is reached. Compared to hand-set mixer taps

REPLACEMENT LEAF Greater temperature accuracy is achieved and temperature or pressure changes in hot or cold water that occur during running-in are largely compensated for.

Of course, temperature control devices can also be used, in which control valves are installed in the hot and / or cold water line. With expansion temperature sensors, such temperature regulators can be purged mechanically.

The temperature control device thus has at least one temperature sensor 32, a setting device 33 for the desired temperature of the process water and at least one supply body 29, with which the hot water and / or the cold water supply can be continuously adjusted, so that process water is always as close as possible to the temperature set temperature is removable.

With the inlet device according to the invention, adjustable amounts of process water can be poured in, it has a filling error which is tolerable in the household area, is compact and inexpensive and can be expanded in a simple manner so that the process water to be filled in has a predetermined temperature.

REPLACEMENT LEAF

Claims

PATENT CLAIMS

1. Compact filling device (1) for adjustable quantities of process water with a line space (2) with an outlet opening (8) and a shut-off valve (3), characterized in that it contains a liquid quantity counter (4) and a control part (5), and that a signal can be emitted from the liquid quantity counter (4) to the control part (5) for each filled partial quantity of the quantity to be filled.

2. Filling device according to claim 1, characterized in that the shut-off valve (3) is an automatically operated valve, in particular a solenoid valve.

3. Filling device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the liquid quantity meter (4) is a mechanical volume flow meter, in particular an impeller meter, Woltmann meter, oval wheel meter, tur meter or Karman vortex flow meter.

4. Filling device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the liquid flow meter (4) is an electrical, thermal or magnetic volumetric flow meter.

REPLACEMENT LEAF

5. Filling device according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the control part (5) consists essentially of a start button, a proximity switch (16) and a roller counter (18).

6. Filling device according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that it contains only purely mechanical components.

7. Filling device according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that it is connected to a hot water pipe and a cold water pipe and has a temperature control device for the domestic water to be filled, which consists of a temperature sensor (32), a setting device for the desired temperature (33) of the process water and at least one supply body (29) with which the hot and / or cold water supply can be continuously adjusted so that process water can always be drawn at a temperature as close as possible to the set temperature.

8. Filling device according to one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the control part (5) comprises a microprocessor with which all functions are controlled and monitored.

REPLACEMENT LEAF

9. Filling device according to one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that it has a manually operable remote control, preferably with an optical display of the filling process.

10. The method for operating a filling device according to one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that in the control part (5) a value for a quantity to be filled is set, with the control part (5) the shut-off valve (3) opened, with the aid of the liquid quantity counter ( 4) a signal is output for each same subset of the quantity to be filled, which are counted in the control part (5) and the control part (5) closes the shut-off valve (3) when as many signals are listed as they correspond to the quantity to be filled.

11. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that the roller counter (18) is set to the value of the amount to be filled, the start button opens the solenoid valve (3), whereby the process water flow begins to flow, the proximity switch (16) _Λ the revolutions of the Vane counter (4) counts down via the roller counter (18) and this closes the solenoid valve (3) again when the quantity to be filled has expired.

REPLACEMENT LEAF