JPH1137340A - Thermally-actuated valve - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a thermally-actuated valve which keeps the cooling effect of a thermally-actuating element, and completely keeps a heating element from the humidity. SOLUTION: This thermally-actuated valve comprises a fluid passage 31, a body 21 having a valve seat 32 mounted on the way of the fluid passage 31, a valve element 24 mounted in opposition to the valve seat 32 for opening and closing the fluid passage, a thermally-actuating element 27 having an operating shaft 26 kept into contact with the other edge of the valve shaft of the valve element 24, a heating element 28 for operating the thermally-actuating element 27, and a case 22 for storing the thermally-actuating element 27 and the heating element 28, which is connected to the body 21, and comprises a vent 33 for cooling the thermally-actuating element. On this occasion, a seal film for sealing the heating element 28, is mounted between the thermally- actuating element 27 and the heating element 28 inside the case 22, and a lead wire outlet 39 for drawing the terminals 38, 38' of the heating element 28, is sealed by a rubber bush or an adhesive 42, so that only a part storing the heating element 28 is provided with an airtight structure.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to a thermal valve. In detail, in order to control the flow of heat medium such as hot water and cold water in the heating and hot water supply system, the operating part of the heat responsive element is slowly expanded and contracted by the temperature change of the heating element, and the gentle opening and closing operation of the valve is performed. The present invention relates to the improvement of a thermal valve.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional thermal valve generally comprises a fluid passage 3 having a fluid inlet 1 and a fluid outlet 2, and a valve seat 4 provided in the middle of the fluid passage 3, as shown in FIG. Body 5, a valve body 6 for opening and closing the fluid passage 3, and a valve shaft 7 having one end connected to the valve body 6 and supporting the valve body in a reciprocating manner.
And a thermally responsive element 9 such as a wax thermoelement in which an operating shaft 8 in contact with the other end of the valve shaft 7 moves up and down due to a temperature change. A heating element 10 such as a positive temperature coefficient thermistor that generates heat, a case 11 and a cap 12 which are coupled to the body 5 while holding the heat responsive element 9 and the heating element 10, and a valve spring 13 for returning the valve element 6. The case 11 was provided with a ventilation hole 11 a for allowing the heat-responsive element 9 to cool down.

When the valve is to be opened, the heating element 1
0, the heating element 10 generates heat, the temperature of the thermoresponsive element 9 is raised by the amount of heat, and the working medium in the thermoresponsive element 9 is expanded, so that the operating shaft 8 protrudes and the valve element 6 Is kept open. When the power supply is stopped, the working medium contracts due to the cooling of the thermally responsive element 9, whereby the operating shaft 8 is pushed back by the spring load of the valve spring 12 abutting on the valve body 6, and is retracted and closed. It is structured to keep the valve state.

[0004] Such a thermal valve can prevent the generation of operating noise when the valve body 6 is opened and closed by the slow operation of the thermal responsive element 9 and also when used for controlling the on / off of the flow of fluid. Since the occurrence of the water hammer phenomenon can be prevented, it is widely used as a control valve for controlling the flow of a heat medium such as hot and cold water in hot air heating, floor heating, and a water heater. Recently, the use in places where the humidity is relatively high, such as installation of bathroom dryers and outdoor equipment, is increasing.

[0005]

However, in the above-described conventional thermal valve, a vent hole 11a is provided on the side surface of the case 11 in order to enhance the cooling effect of the thermal responsive element 9.
Moisture and moisture easily enter the heating element, so that it could not be installed in places where water would splash directly or in places with high humidity such as bathrooms.

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 4, a ventilation hole 11a provided on the side surface of the case 11 is eliminated, and a lead wire outlet for leading a lead wire 16 between the case 11 and the body 5 by an O-ring 15 is provided. 17 is sealed with a rubber bush 18 or the like, and the entire interior of the case 11 is completely airtightly sealed to provide a moisture-resistant structure. However, in such a heat valve having a moisture-resistant structure, heat generated from the heating element 10 is trapped inside the case, and the cooling of the thermally responsive element 9 is deteriorated. For this reason, there is a problem that the valve closing time becomes long. Further, in the event that water leaks due to scratches or wear on the valve shaft 7 or the O-ring 19, there is a danger that the inside of the case will be filled with water and the terminals 14, 14 'of the heating element 10 will be short-circuited. There is a problem.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, it is an object of the present invention to realize a heat valve in which the cooling effect of the heat responsive element is maintained and the heat generating element is completely waterproof and damp proof.

[0008]

According to the thermal valve of the present invention, a body 21 having a fluid passage 31 and a valve seat 32 provided in the middle of the fluid passage 31 is provided. A valve element 24 for opening and closing a fluid passage, a thermoresponsive element 27 having an operating shaft 26 in contact with the other end of the valve shaft 23 of the valve element 24, and a heating element for operating the thermoresponsive element 27 28
And a case 22 accommodating the thermally responsive element 27 and the heating element 28 and being coupled to the body 21 and having a vent 33 for cooling the thermally responsive element, A sealing film 36 for sealing the heating element 28 is provided between the heat responsive element 27 and the heating element 28 inside the case 22, and a lead wire outlet 39 for leading the terminals 38, 38 ′ of the heating element 28 is provided with a rubber bush. Or adhesive 42
, And only the portion accommodating the heating element 28 has an airtight structure.

In addition to this, a ring 37 is provided for pressing the seal film 36 to hermetically press the seal film 36 against the case 22, and the inner diameter of the ring 37 is used as a guide for the thermally responsive element 27. The heat sensitive element 27 is characterized in that the temperature sensitive surface is positioned so as to abut in parallel with the heat generating surface of the heat generating element 28.

[0010] By adopting this configuration, it is possible to obtain a thermal valve in which the cooling effect of the thermally responsive element is maintained by the vent hole and the waterproofing and moistureproofing of the heating element is completely achieved by the sealing film.

[0011]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing an embodiment of the present invention. In the present embodiment, a main body 20 including a body 21 and a case 22 as shown in FIG.
, A valve spring 25 for urging the valve body in the closing direction, and a thermally responsive element 27 such as a wax thermoelement or the like in which an operating shaft 26 is vertically displaced by a temperature change.
And a heating element 28, such as a positive temperature coefficient thermistor, which comes into heat contact with the thermally responsive element 27 and generates heat when energized.

The body 21 is provided with a fluid passage 31 having a fluid inlet 29 and a fluid outlet 30 at both ends, and a valve seat 32 formed in the middle of the fluid passage 31.
The valve body 24 is pressed against the valve seat 32 by the valve spring 25 and is seated thereon. In the case 22, a space for accommodating the thermoresponsive element 27 and a ventilation hole 33 for cooling the thermoresponsive element are formed, and a holder 34 for supporting the thermoresponsive element 27 is provided below the case 22. Is provided.

The thermo-responsive element 27 is housed in the case 22,
The operating shaft 26 is in contact with the upper end of the valve shaft 23 via the spacer 35. In addition, a heating element 2
The sealing film 36 is inserted between the heating element 28 and the thermoresponsive element 27, and the sealing film 36 is pressed against the case 22 by the ring 37 and is in close contact with the case 22. Since the seal film 36 requires heat resistance, a rubber film such as a silicone-based rubber film is used.

The inner diameter of the ring 37 is
Of the heat-sensitive element 2
7 is held so as not to be tilted or displaced, so that the heat-sensitive surface of the heat-responsive element 27 and the heat-generating surface of the heat-generating body 28 come into uniform contact. Thereby, the heating element 28 and the thermally responsive element 2
It is possible to prevent a decrease in responsiveness at the time of valve opening due to poor contact with the valve 7.

The terminals 38, 38 'of the heating element 28 are pressed into contact with a terminal guide 41 made of an insulating material, and are further connected to lead wires 40, 4 through a lead wire outlet 39 provided in the case 22.
0 ', the lead wires 40, 40'
Is sealed to the lead wire outlet 39 by a rubber bush or an adhesive 42. Therefore, the heating element 28 is a seal film 3
6 and the rubber bush or the resin adhesive 42 sealed to the lead wire outlet 39 seal the case 22. Reference numeral 43 denotes a lid for closing an opening formed in the lower part of the body 21, and 44 denotes an O which seals a sliding portion of the valve shaft.
A ring 45 is an O-ring for sealing the lid 43.

A wax thermoelement or the like is used for the thermoresponsive element 27. The wax thermoelement contains wax therein, and the volume expansion and shrinkage of the wax due to a temperature change are controlled by an operating shaft via a diaphragm. 26 is converted into a protrusion and immersion change. The positive temperature coefficient thermistor used for the heating element 28 is generally PT
It is called a C heater, and has a characteristic that its electrical resistance rapidly increases when the temperature of the oxide semiconductor is higher than the Curie point. Therefore, it has a self-temperature control function and is widely used as a constant-temperature heating element.

The present embodiment configured as described above has
When the heating element 28 is not energized, as shown in FIG. 1, the valve body 24 is pushed upward by the spring pressure of the valve spring 25 and is in airtight contact with the valve seat 32, and the fluid passage 31 is in the closed state. It has become. At the same time, the operating shaft 26 of the thermoresponsive element 27 is also pushed upward through the valve shaft 23 and is immersed.

FIG. 2 shows the case where the heating element 28 is energized.
The heating element 28 generates heat as shown in FIG.
Then, the heat-sensitive part on the upper part of the heat-sensitive element 27 that is in close contact with the heat-sensitive element 27 via the seal film 36 is heated to expand the volume of the wax inside, so that the operating shaft 26 gradually projects. The protruding operating shaft 26 pushes down the valve shaft 23 against the urging force of the valve spring 25 via the spacer 35 to open the valve element 24. In addition, the positive temperature coefficient thermistor used for the heating element 28 keeps the heating temperature constant by its self-temperature control function, so that the wax thermoelement of the heat responsive element 27 always maintains a constant displacement amount during energization to increase the valve opening degree. Keep at a certain amount.

When the energization of the heating element 28 is stopped, the wax thermoelement of the thermoresponsive element 27 reduces the amount of heat to the ventilation hole 3.
Allow to cool through 3. This causes the volume of the wax to shrink. Therefore, the operating shaft 26 is pressed by the valve spring 25 via the valve shaft 23 and the spacer 35 and is gently immersed, and at the same time, the valve body 24 also performs the valve closing operation.

[0020]

According to the present invention, a ventilation hole is provided in a case accommodating a heat responsive element for driving a valve element and a heating element to maintain the cooling effect of the heat responsive element 27 while maintaining a conventional heat responsive element. The valve can be opened and closed in the same manner as the valve, and the heating element is sealed in a case by a rubber bush or a resin adhesive sealed to the sealing film and the lead wire outlet,
Water resistance and moisture resistance can be imparted, and a heat valve having a cooling effect of the heat responsive element and complete waterproofing and moisture proofing of the heating element can be obtained.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a state in which a heating element according to an embodiment of the present invention is energized to open a valve.

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view showing an example of a conventional thermal valve.

FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view showing another example of the conventional thermal valve.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 20 ... Body 21 ... Body 22 ... Case 23 ... Valve shaft 24 ... Valve body 25 ... Valve spring 26 ... Operating shaft 27 ... Thermal response element 28 ... Heating element 29 ... Fluid inlet 30 ... Fluid outlet 31 ... Fluid passage 32 ... Valve seat 33 ... Vent hole 34 ... Holder 35 ... Spacer 36 ... Seal film 37 ... Ring 38, 38 '... Terminal 39 ... Lead wire outlet 40, 40' ... Lead wire 41 ... Terminal guide 42 ... Rubber bush or adhesive 43 ... Lid 44, 45 ... O-ring

Claims (2)

[Claims] A fluid passage (31) and said fluid passage (3).
A body (21) having a valve seat (32) provided in the middle of 1), a valve body (24) opposed to the valve seat (32) for opening and closing a fluid passage, and the valve body (24). ) Of the valve shaft (2
3) A thermoresponsive element (27) having an operating shaft (26) in contact with the other end, a heating element (28) for operating the thermoresponsive element (27), the thermoresponsive element (27) and heat generation Body (2
And a case (22) which accommodates the body (8) and is connected to the body (21) and has a vent hole (33) for cooling the heat-responsive element. 22) A seal film (36) for sealing the heating element (28) is provided between the internal thermal response element (27) and the heating element (28), and the terminal (3) of the heating element (28) is provided.
8, 38 ') is drawn out with a rubber bush or an adhesive (42), and only the portion containing the heating element (28) is airtight. valve. 2. The case (22) wherein the sealing film (36) is provided.
A ring (37) for pressing the sealing film (36) in order to hermetically press the sealing member (36), and an inner diameter part of the ring (37) is used as a guide part of the heat responsive element (27); 2. A heating device according to claim 1, wherein the temperature sensing surface is positioned in parallel with the heating surface of the heating element.
The described thermal valve.