WO2002075190A1

WO2002075190A1 - Safty-valve having multi-function

Info

Publication number: WO2002075190A1
Application number: PCT/KR2000/001513
Authority: WO
Inventors: Yong Jae Im
Original assignee: Chung Jung Engineering Co., Ltd
Priority date: 2000-12-22
Filing date: 2000-12-22
Publication date: 2002-09-26

Abstract

This invention is a multi-functional safety valve comprised of the main body, which consists of an inlet, outlet and valve seat (to activate the valve disc in shutting off a conduit), the lever set (to activate the valve disc when the conditions for shutting off a conduit are met), a wobble plate and rotating link. The invention prevents accidents from happening by automatically shutting off any pipeline in case of an abrupt pressure change in the flow of liquid or gas, due to a rupture of the conduit or following an earthquake or unusual vibration.

Description

SAFETY-VALVE HAVING MULTI-FUNCTION

General

This invention, a multi-functional safety valve, is designed to automatically shut off any pipeline in response to a change in pressure or an earthquake.

Background Explanation

Earthquake valves are normally installed in liquid or gas pipelines for activation in case they sense an unusually sharp vibration or an earthquake. Safety valves are also installed to maintain a certain level of pressure inside a pipeline. However, these devices do not respond to a sharp drop in pressure inside a pipeline, such as that caused by a rupture or other breach of integrity. Due to this flaw, there always exists the possibility of a large-scale accident. Also, conventional safety valves entail a problem of high production cost due to their complicated structures.

On the Invention

This invention is designed to solve the various technical problems of conventional safety valves. It automatically and comprehensively responds to sharp changes in pressure inside a pipeline as resulting from a rupture, a strong vibration or an earthquake, and thus prevents accidents from happening.

A Brief Explanation of the Drawings

Drawing- 1 is an object-angle drawing showing the Invention. Drawing-2 is a section drawing showing the entire Invention. Drawing-3 is a section drawing showing how the Invention is activated.

Drawing-4 is a partial cross-section drawing showing the Invention. Drawing-5 is a partial longitudinal section drawing showing the Invention. Drawing-6 is a section drawing enlarging Part C of the Invention. Drawing-7 is a drawing showing how the valve disc of the Invention works. Drawing-8 is a block diagram of the lever device of the Invention.

Description of Major Parts in the Drawings

10: Main Body/11: Liquid or Gas Inlet/12: Liquid or Gas Outlet/13: Valve Seat/20: Valve Cover/21: Flush/22: Base Plate/ 30: Valve Disc/31: Packing/32: Rotating Arm/33: Catch Groove/34: Reset Shaft Optimal Conditions for Use of the Invention

The following sketches are concerned with how the Invention can be optimally used:

Drawing- 1 is an object-angle drawing showing the Invention.

Drawing-2 is a section drawing showing the entire Invention.

Drawing-3 is a section drawing showing how the Invention is activated.

Drawing-4 is a partial cross-section drawing showing the Invention.

Drawing-5 is a partial longitudinal section drawing showing the Invention.

Drawing-6 is a section drawing enlarging Part C of the Invention.

Drawing-7 is a drawing showing how the valve disc of the Invention works.

Drawing-8 is a block diagram of the lever device of the Invention.

The drawings show how the Invention works upon detecting an earthquake or a change in pressure within a pipeline. The main body consists of a liquid or gas inlet (11), outlet (12) (the inlet and outlet have different cross sections and are designed to indicate different pressures in case of a sharp change in the pipelines pressure), valve disc (30) and a valve seat (13) (the valve disc and valve seat maintain close adhesion to each other to shut off the flow of liquid or gas). A rotating arm (32) is combined with the upper part of the valve seat (13) by means of a hinge, while the valve disc (30) is attached to the rotating arm (32). Any occurrence of earthquakes is sensed by an earthquake sensor (40), while another sensor (50) is set to detect changes in pressure at both the inlet (11) and the outlet (12). This is done by linking the inlet (11) with the forward section and linking the outlet (12) with the rear section. A rotating link (80) works to shut off the pipeline by selectively activating the valve disc (30) in response to an activation of the earthquake sensor (40) and the pressure change sensor (50), as executed through a lever set (60) and wobble plate (70). This process will be set into motion whenever the conditions for shutting off the pipeline are met (i.e. earthquake intensity and/or a change in pressure exceeding beyond certain levels).

The Invention is ^"designed to work in case of a sharp change in pipeline pressure due to damage in the pipeline, or from gas equipment in the secondary pipeline, even as it prevents the reverse flow of liquid or gas as explained in the foregoing section.

Important advantages of the Invention include its non-reliance upon a separate power source to function, and an easy reset mechanism that returns an activated valve disc (30) to the original position by simply moving the reset shaft (34).

To explain it in more detail: Drawing- 1 is an entire object-angle drawing of the Invention, showing the earthquake sensor (40) and the pressure change sensor (50) installed within the valve cover in the upper section, as well as the valve main body (10) in the lower part. The lower part of the valve main body (10) has the liquid or gas inlet (11) on one side and the outlet (12) on the other. Between the inlet (11) and the outlet (12), lies the valve seat (13). Combined with the upper part of the valve seat (13) is the rotating valve disc (30) to shut off the pipeline flow in case of a sharp change in pressure at the inlet (11) and outlet (12), or following an earthquake or unusual vibration.

The valve disc (30) is combined with the rotating arm (32), which is in turn combined with the upper section of the valve seat (13) by means of a coil spring (35) for proper elasticity. The tensile coil spring (35) helps the valve disc (30) adhere to the valve seat.

The valve disc (30) is equipped with packing (31) to enable a tight shut off for the valve seat. A catch groove (33) is scored into the front end of the rotating arm (32), while the earthquake sensor (40) is located in the valve cover (20) of the upper section of the valve disc (30), i.e. the upper part of the main body (10). The earthquake sensor (40) is located on the horizontally fixed base plate (22), which supports the lever set (60) in such a way as enables its center to rotate. A part of the lever set (60) is connected with a sensor member (42) by means of a hinge. Located within the hub cup (41) with a side open, the sensor member (42) has a plate spring (43) installed in its lower part.

Located on the upper side of the sensor member (42) is a spill ball (44), which helps maintain a stable position by distributing weight to the sensor member and pressurizing the plate spring (43) in the lower part.

A part of the lever set (60) is combined with the links (62) (83) as well as with the rotating link (80) (whose center is fixed) by means of a hinge, even as the rotating link is combined with a fixture (82) of the base plate (22) also by means of a hinge. Combined with the rotating link (80) of the lever (60) is the front end of another lever (83), which in turn is combined with the fixture by means of a hinge in such a way as enables the center of the lever to rotate. Protruding on another side of the rotating link (80) is a pin (80a) that may be selectively locked with the catch groove (33) of the rotating arm (32) to make the valve disc (30) adhere to the rotating valve seat (13) in shutting off the pipeline.

Combined with the rotating arm (32) of the valve disc (30) are a reset disc (36) and compressed coil spring (37) assembled with flat washers and- bolts. The rotating arm (32) is combined with a reset shaft assembled with the coil spring (35).

In the middle block formed in the valve cover (20) of the main body (10), a bump (21) lies protruded downward so that the steel ball of the earthquake sensor (40) may return to the original position without being displaced.

Located on another side within the valve cover is the pressure change sensor (50), which is formed by a combination ' of the outlet pressure chamber (52) and inlet pressure chamber (51). Located inside the pressure change sensor is a cylinder rod (54) which is in turn combined with a diaphragm (53), while the front end of the cylinder rod is combined with the wobble plate (70) by means of a hinge. The cylinder rod (54) is equipped with an O-ring to prevent the leakage of liquid or gas.

The inlet (11) and the inlet pressure chamber (51) are connected to each other with a conduit (90) through which pressure is conveyed. A pressure adjusting valve and pressure gauge (94) are also installed at this juncture, and are connected to the outlet pressure chamber (52) with a pipe (91) through which pressure is distributed. A pressure gauge (93) is installed to measure pressure at the outlet (12).

The Invention, a multi-functional safety valve, has both an inlet (11) and outlet (12) connected with the pipeline to allow the flow of liquid or gas.

In case of the occurrence of an earthquake or unusual vibration, the steel ball (44) will float. The steel balls displacement from the sensor member (42) leads to a rise of the sensor member (42) by the elasticity of the spring (43) and then to a turn of the lever (61). A rise of the left-hand side of the lever (61) causes the opposite side to fall. The rotating power conveyed to the lever connector (62) with an activation of the lever is then conveyed to the rotating link (80), which in turn causes the rotating link to turn to a certain degree. This movement serves to displace the catch groove which was locked with the pin (80a), thus setting the rotating arm (32) free. In this way, the valve disc (30) comes to turn towards and adhere to the valve seat (13) by means of the elasticity of the coil spring (35) installed in the rotating arm (32).

The valve disc (30) which has adhered to the valve seat (13) shuts off the flow of liquid or gas, thus preventing accidents from happening in case of an earthquake or unusual vibration.

Now, lets look at how the safety valve is activated in case pressure in the primary side drops or there is an excessive flow of liquid or gas.

If pressure at the outlet (12) falls below a certain level (due to an excessive flow of liquid or gas), this information is immediately conveyed to the outlet pressure chamber (52). In such a case, since pressure within the inlet pressure chamber (51) is higher than that in the outlet pressure chamber (52), and pressure at the diaphragm (53) and cylinder rod (54) is higher than at the outlet pressure chamber (52), the diaphragm (53) and the cylinder rod (54) move toward the outlet chamber. This causes the wobble plate (70) combined with the front head of the cylinder rod (54) to turn counter-clockwise. If the angle made by the wobble plate (70) exceeds the set angle, it will swivel to push the lever connector (62). The activated lever connector then causes the rotating link (80) to turn to a certain degree, displacing the catch groove (33) and setting the rotating arm (32) free. This makes the valve disc (30) turn toward the valve seat (13) by means of the elasticity of the coil spring (35) in the rotating arm (32), forcing it to adhere to the valve seat (13).

Conversely, if pressure at the inlet (12) (i.e. the primary side) falls below a set pressure, this information is immediately conveyed to the inlet pressure chamber (51) through the inlet conduit (90). In this case, as pressure within the outlet pressure chamber (52) is higher than that in the inlet pressure chamber (51), the diaphragm (53) and the cylinder rod will turn toward the inlet chamber. This causes the wobble plate (70) combined with the front end of the cylinder rod to rotate clockwise. In such a case, if the angle made by the wobble plate exceeds a set angle it will push the lever connector (62), thus swiveling the rotating link (80) to a certain degree. The catch groove (33) is then displaced from the pin (80a), setting the rotating arm (32) free. This makes the valve disc (30) turn toward the valve seat (13) by means of the elasticity of the coil spring (35) in the rotating arm (32), forcing it to adhere to the valve seat (13).

In case the valve disc should be returned to the original position after the pipeline is shut off following an earthquake or unusual change in pressure, the reset shaft (34) needs to be turned counter-clockwise. Then, the rotating arm (32) moves the reset disc (36) toward the inlet (11), causing the pipeline to open and liquid or gas to move toward the outlet (12) making pressure at the inlet and outlet equal. Thus, pressure applied to the valve disc (30) is reduced. With everything returned to its original position, the compressed coil spring (37) adheres the reset disc (36) and the valve disc (30) to each other, thus allowing no leakage to happen while in operation.

Industrial Applicability

As explained in the foregoing paragraphs, the Invention shuts off any pipeline in case of an earthquake or unusual vibration, following damage to the secondary part or gas equipment, or after a rupture or leakage in the primary part. Thus the device prevents accidents from happening. It does not require a separate power source for operation, and allows the valve device to return to the original position with no difficulty after a contingency.

Claims

1. The valve main body (10) including the valve seat, the inlet (11) and the outlet (12);

The rotating arm (32) and the valve disc (30) combined with the upper part of the valve seat (13) by means of a hinge;

The pressure change sensor (50) activated by a detection of difference in pressure at the inlet (11) and the outlet (12);

The multi-functional safety valve including the lever (60) and the rotating link (80), which work to shut off any pipeline by selective activation of the valve disc (30) in response to warnings from the earthquake sensor (40) and the pressure change sensor (50).

2. The earthquake sensor (40) mentioned in foregoing section 1 includes the sensor member (42) supported by the spring (43), the hub cup (41) installed in the lower part of the sensor member (42) and the steel ball (44) inlaid in the upper part of the sensor member (42). The sensor member is combined with the lever set (60) to convey power to the lever (61), the lever connector (62) and the rotating link (80).

3. The connecting conduit (90/91) at the inlet (11) and the outlet (12) of the valve main body (10) as mentioned in foregoing section 1 has a pressure gauge, and the connecting conduit (90/91) is equipped with the pressure control valve (92).

4. The valve disc (30) mentioned in foregoing section 1 is combined with the rotating arm (32) under elasticity from the coil spring (34). The rotating arm (32) has a catch groove locked with the pin (80a) of the rotating ring (80).

5. The pressure change sensor (50) mentioned in foregoing section 1 activates the wobble plate (70) by movement of the cylinder rod (54), following activation of the diaphragm (53) due to a difference in pressure at the inlet (11) and the outlet (12). The wobble plate (70) is combined with the lever set (60).

6. The valve main body (10), the inlet (11) and the outlet (12) mentioned in foregoing section 1 maintain different liquid or gas pressure levels from each other due to different cross sections.

7. The reset disc (36) and the compressed coil spring (37) mentioned in foregoing section 1 are designed to smoothly return the valve disc (30) to its original position.