WO1999029618A1

WO1999029618A1 - A valve cap

Info

Publication number: WO1999029618A1
Application number: PCT/DK1998/000509
Authority: WO
Inventors: Bernt Ipsen
Original assignee: Micro Matic A/S
Priority date: 1997-11-25
Filing date: 1998-11-19
Publication date: 1999-06-17
Also published as: CN1279648A; AU1433899A; CN1143813C; EP1040075A1

Abstract

A valve cap (18) serving for securing against unintentional loosening of a double valve (1) mounted on a container (3) serving of storing a liquid. The upper part of the double valve is formed as a basket having a cylinder mantle (9) with a free top edge (10) flushing with the top edge (11) of the connection piece. Along this is formed an outwardly directed bead (14). The valve cap (18) consists of an annular skirt (19) which, at mounting of the valve cap, is pressed in under the bead (14), and an inwardly directed collar (20) which, during this, is made to abut against the top edge (11) of the connection piece (14) and/or the top edge (10) of the cylinder mantle. Thereby, disadvantages are avoided of a coupling (4) belonging to the valve screwing the valve (1) loose of the connection piece (2) so that the pressure gas blows out on the operator or that he is hit by the unscrewed valve (1). The container (3) cannot be used unnoticed for hiding e.g. drugs either.

Description

A valve cap

The invention relates to a valve cap for securing against unintentional loosening or dismounting of a double valve which is tightly mounted in an upper connection piece on a container serving for storing a liquid, such as beer, under pressure of a gas, such as C0₂, whereby the upper part of the double valve is formed as a basket which has a cylinder mantle with a free top edge mainly flushing with the top edge of the connection piece, and that along this an outwardly directed bead is formed.

Containers of the above type are largely used as transportable containers for distributing beverages such as e.g. beer, wine, and soft drinks. When a container is to be used, a coupling with a gas inlet and a liquid outlet is mounted on the valve. The mounting usually takes place by means of a bayonet joint where the coupling is turned in relation to the valve. The double valve is opened by pressing a hand grip on the coupling down whereby the container is connected both with a pressure gas- source via the gas inlet and with a liquid barrel tap via the liquid outlet.

At public houses as restaurants and pubs, there will often be emptied containers without coupling. The empty containers have in some cases been used for hiding drugs, the valve having been dismounted and then mounted again after the drugs in packed condition have been lowered into the container. There are examples of guests being poisoned by drug remains in beer from a container which has been used in this way earlier.

At mounting, valves of the basket type are usually screwed into the connection piece by means of a thread joint. Sealing is obtained by, during this, squeezing an elastomeric sealing ring together between the valve and the connection piece.

The coupling is dismounted with a turning movement in the same direction as the valve turns when it is screwed off of the connection piece. It has turned out that the coupling during this can bring the valve with it due to the friction existing between the coupling and the valve in coupled condition with the result of the valve being loosened and loosing contact with the sealing ring. Thereby, the necessary sealing between the valve and the connection piece stops so that pressure gas and any liquid which might have been carried along undesirably blow out on the operator who is handling the dismounting.

If the valve is of the type which is mounted without securing against dismounting while there still is an overpressure in the container, there is a risk of the operator screwing the valve completely out of the threaded connection piece. At the very moment that the valve is free of the thread of the connection piece, the overpressure in the container shoots valve and coupling out with great force towards the operator who thereby risks being hit with serious personal injuries as a result.

The object of the invention is to provide a valve cap of the kind mentioned in the opening paragraph which is arranged in such a way that the valve cannot be loosened or dismounted during dismounting of the coupling, and that it cannot be dismounted and mounted by authorised persons without visible marks .

The novel and unique features according to the invention, whereby this is achieved, is the fact that the valve cap consists of an annular skirt which, at mounting of the valve cap, is pressed in under the bead, and an inwardly directed collar which, during this, is placed near or to abut against the top edge of the connection piece and/or the cylinder mantle. The valve cap discloses if the valve has been loosened or has been screwed off as it then will be visibly deformed. Furthermore, the valve cap will in itself resist against loosening of the valve so that the valve only can be dismounted when using relatively great strength. A mounted coupling can therefore not bring the valve with it at dismounting. The inwardly directed collar of the valve cap can be extending more or less in over the top edge of the cylinder mantle or over its inner periphery. However, it is important that the opening defined by the collar is large enough for the engagement parts of the coupling to be able to pass the opening and engage with the bayonet joint of the valve.

When the bayonet joint of the valve consists of inwardly directed pins, the valve cap can advantageously be fitted with locking means for rotation-proof fixing of the valve cap in relation to the valve.

In an advantageous embodiment, the valve cap can be made of a relatively thin metal sheet and its locking means can be inwardly directed projections for being bent down on each side of each of the inwardly directed pins of the cylinder mantle so that the valve cap in a simple manner is prevented from rotating in relation to the valve.

In order to avoid impurities collecting under the valve cap, there can, between this and the connection piece and the valve respectively, be placed an elastomeric ring which advantageously can be adhered or vulcanised to the valve cap in advance.

When the valve cap is made of metal, it can be fixed around the bead in a simple manner as, on its skirt, folds are made that at the same time function as reinforcing ribs. The folds can furthermore be suitably open to allow liquid which has got in under the valve cap to run out again.

In a second embodiment, the valve cap can be a plastic valve cap with a skirt which, at mounting, is pressed together around the bead of the connection piece under thermal stress.

The valve cap can be heat-sealed on the connection piece but can alternatively be applied with an adhesive for adhering the valve cap. The invention will be explained in greater detail below, describing only exemplary embodiments with reference to the drawing, in which

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a valve for a pressure container with a fitted valve cap according to the invention,

Fig. 2 is a side, axial sectional view of the valve cap in fig. 1, which is fitted on a valve which is screwed into a threaded connection piece having an outwardly directed bead and placed on a pressure container,

Fig. 3 is the same view but with the valve cap pressed together around the bead of the connection piece and with a mounted coupling,

Fig. 4 is on a larger scale a side view partly in section of a first embodiment of a valve cap according to the invention fitted on the threaded connection piece, and

Fig. 5 is on a larger scale a side view partly in section of a second embodiment of a valve cap according to the invention fitted on the threaded connection piece.

Fig. 1 and 2 show a valve 1 screwed into a threaded connection piece 2 on a transportable pressure container 3 for distributing a beverage, which in the following is assumed to be beer, which is under pressure of C0₂.

In fig. 3, the valve is mounted on a coupling 4 for opening and closing the valve which is shown in its closed position in the figure. The coupling has an inlet 6 which, via a hose or a tube

(not shown) , connects the coupling with a C0₂-source (not shown) .

Via a tubular spindle 7 , the coupling f rthermore has a beer- outlet 8 which, via a hose or a tube (not shown) , connects the coupling with a tap for drawing beer. When the hand grip 5 is pressed down, the valve is opened whereby the chamber above the beer in the container is connected with the C0₂-source while the beer is connected with the barrel tap via a riser pipe 12 which is immersed in the beer. The beer can now be drawn in e.g. beer mugs at the public house.

Coupling and valve are moreover known per se and will therefore not be described in detail here.

The valve 1 is of the type which at the top is formed as a basket with a side wall in the form of a cylinder mantle 9, the top edge 10 of which is mainly flush with the top edge 11 of the connection piece 2 when the valve is screwed home against an elastomeric sealing ring 13 for forming sealing between the valve 1 and the connection piece 2. At the top, the connection piece furthermore has an outwardly directed bead 14.

As shown, there are, on the cylinder mantle 9 of the valve, made two inwardly directed pins 15 and on the coupling 4, two gripping jaws 16 with inclined top sides 17. The coupling is mounted by first leading the part of the coupling which has the gripping jaws down into the basket of the valve and then turning the coupling so that the inclined surfaces 17 of the gripping jaws get in under the pins 15 of the valve, and the coupling is fastened by continued turning until it is securely fitted in the valve .

The inclined surfaces 17 of the gripping jaws 16 have an inclination so small that the engagement between the gripping jaws 16 and the pins 17 becomes self-locking. This means that a torque at least as great must be used for dismounting the valve as for the mounting described above. The dismounting torque can some times be greater than the torque necessary for unscrewing the valve, and in these cases, the coupling will bring the valve with it at dismounting so that the valve is loosened and pressure gas blows out on the operator who is doing the operation. If the operator furthermore gets the valve screwed free of the connection piece, it is together with the coupling shot up towards the operator who thereby risks being hit and injured.

In order to avoid personal injuries due to the incidents which thus might happen at dismounting of the coupling, the mounted position of the valve in the connection piece is secured by means of a valve cap 18 in the way described in the following.

Fig. 1 - 4 show a first embodiment of the valve cap according to the invention. In this embodiment, the valve cap is made of a relatively thin metal sheet preferably of a corrosion-resistant material such as e.g. stainless steel.

The valve cap consists of a hanging skirt 19 which at the top pass into an inwardly directed collar 20 extending across both the top edge 11 of the connection piece and the top edge 10 of the cylinder mantle 9 of the valve. In fig. 2, the valve cap is put down over the connection piece and the valve. In fig. 3, the skirt is furthermore pressed in under the bead 14 of the connection piece.

At dismounting, the coupling can now no longer bring the valve which is stopped by the valve cap which again is locked by the bead of the connection piece.

Nor can an empty container unnoticed be used for hiding e.g. drugs as the deformations of or the absence of a valve cap will immediately disclose if the valve has been dismounted and mounted in an unauthorised manner.

As best shown in fig. 1, the valve cap 18 has two inwardly directed projections 21 for each of the two inwardly directed pins 15 of the valve. At mounting of the valve cap, the tongues are bent down on each side of each of their two pins so that the valve cap expediently is prevented from rotating in relation to the valve . In the example shown in fig. 2 and 3, the valve cap is fixed directly on the connection piece and the valve. In the example shown in fig. 4, an elastomeric sealing ring 22 is furthermore put in under the valve cap for preventing a possible slit under the valve cap being filled with impurities which might form a hotbed of cultures of bacteria. In order to more easily be able to mount the valve cap and the sealing ring, this can furthermore be adhered to the valve cap in advance.

Fig. 4 also shows that the skirt 19 of the valve cap is pressed together around the bead 14 of the connection piece forming a number of folds 23 which function as reinforcing ribs for reinforcing the grip of valve cap under the bead. The folds are formed with openings 24 that allow liquid which might have got in under the valve cap to run out again.

Fig. 5 shows a second embodiment 25 of the valve cap according to the invention. In this case, the valve cap is made of an appropriate plastic which allows the side sheeting of the valve cap to be pressed together around the connection piece and the valve under thermal stress.

The plastic type and the intensity of the thermal stress can advantageously be chosen so that the valve cap is heat-sealed on the connection piece and the valve so that a tight joining is formed between these parts and the valve cap for refusing penetration of impurities.

Alternatively, there can, on the inside of the valve cap, be applied an adhesive (not shown) which, at mounting, sticks the valve cap fast on to the connection piece and the valve.

Claims

1. A valve cap (18) for securing against unintentional loosening or dismounting of a double valve (1) which is tightly mounted in an upper connection piece (2) on a container (3) serving for storing a liquid, such as beer, under pressure of a gas, such as C0₂, whereby the upper part of the double valve is formed as a basket which has a cylinder mantle (9) with a free top edge (10) mainly flushing with the top edge (11) of the connection piece (2), and that along this an outwardly directed bead (14) is formed, characterised in that the valve cap (18) consists of an annular skirt (19) which, at mounting of the valve cap, is pressed in under the bead (14), and an inwardly directed collar (20) which, during this, is placed near or to abut against the top edge (11; 10) of the connection piece (2) and/or the cylinder mantle (9).

2. A valve cap (18) according to claim 1, characterised in that the inwardly directed collar (20) of the valve cap defines an opening which is large enough for engagement parts on the coupling (4) for opening the valve to be able to pass the opening and engage with corresponding engagement parts on the cylinder mantle (9) of the double valve.

3. A valve cap (18) according to claim 2, and where the engagement parts on the cylinder mantle of the double valve are at least one inwardly directed pin (15), characterised in that locking means for rotation-proof fixing of the valve cap in relation to the valve are provided on the valve cap .

4. A valve cap (18) according to claim 1, 2, or 3, characterised in that the valve cap is made on a relatively thin metal sheet .

5. A valve cap (18) according to claim 4, characterised in that the locking means of the valve cap consist of at least two inwardly directed projections for, at mounting of the valve cap, being bent down on each side of the at least one inwardly directed pin of the cylinder mantle.

6. A valve cap (18) according to claim 4 or 5 , characterised in that belonging to the valve cap is an elastomeric sealing ring (22) which, at mounting of the valve cap, is pressed together between this and the connection piece and the valve respectively.

7. A valve cap (18) according to claim 4, 5, or 6, characterised in that the elastomeric ring (22) is joined with the valve cap in advance.

8. A valve cap (18) according to each of the claims 4 - 7, characterised in that a number of more or less open folds

(23) are made at intervals on the skirt (19) of the valve cap in its compressed condition.

9. A valve cap (18) according to claim 1 - 3, characterised in that the valve cap is made of a plastic arranged to allow the skirt being pressed together around the bead of the connection piece under thermal stress.

10. A valve cap (18) according to claim 1 - 9, characterised in that the inside of the valve cap is applied with an adhesive for sticking the valve cap on to the connection piece at mounting.