JP7051101B2 - Flow switching valve - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a flow path switching valve, and more particularly to a flow path switching valve having a case for accommodating a drive unit for driving a valve body.

An example of a conventional flow path switching valve is disclosed in Patent Document 1. This flow path switching valve is a valve body having a valve chamber, a ball-shaped valve body arranged in the valve chamber, a valve shaft connected to the valve body, and a motor that rotationally drives the valve body via the valve shaft. It has a rotary drive unit including a drive gear and the like.

In order to prevent dew condensation inside the gear case, such a flow path switching valve is provided with a ventilation hole for circulating air inside and outside the gear case and a ventilation pipe connected to the ventilation hole and extending upward. The ventilation pipe is covered with a cap-shaped filter member that allows the flow of air and blocks the flow of liquid.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2018-115690

However, since the ventilation pipe and the filter member provided in the gear case have a predetermined height, the flow path switching valve is enlarged in the height direction. In particular, in a flow path switching valve having a rotation position detecting unit for detecting the rotation position of the valve body, the rotation position detecting unit may be arranged above the rotation driving unit. In such a flow path switching valve, if the ventilation holes are arranged so as to face the rotation position detecting portion, the flow path switching valve is further enlarged in the height direction. Therefore, it has been an obstacle in reducing the size of the flow path switching valve.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a flow path switching valve that can improve the air flowability and effectively reduce the size in the height direction.

In order to achieve the above object, the flow path switching valve according to the present invention includes a valve body, a valve body rotatably housed in the valve body, a valve shaft attached to the valve body, and the valve shaft. A drive unit that rotationally drives the valve body, a rotation position detection unit that detects the rotation position of the valve body, and a case that is attached to the valve body and accommodates the drive unit and the rotation position detection unit. The drive portion includes a motor, a worm gear, an intermediate gear body, and a large-diameter gear, and the case has a motor case portion and a gear case portion. The gear case portion includes a bottom wall portion integrally provided with the motor case portion, an upper wall portion provided with a ventilation portion for circulating air inside and outside the gear case portion, and the bottom wall portion. The motor has a peripheral wall portion connecting the upper wall portion, and the motor is arranged in the motor case portion so that a drive shaft protrudes into the gear case portion from a through hole provided in the bottom wall portion. The worm gear is attached to the drive shaft, the intermediate gear body is arranged in the gear case portion, is provided on the shaft portion, one end portion of the shaft portion, and has a small diameter gear portion that meshes with the worm gear and the shaft portion. It has a second worm gear portion provided at the other end and meshes with the large diameter gear, and the large diameter gear is arranged in the gear case portion and coaxially attached to the valve shaft, and the rotation position detecting portion. Is arranged in the gear case portion, has a rotation angle sensor for detecting the rotation angle of the valve shaft, and a base body for supporting the rotation angle sensor, and the ventilation portion is of the intermediate gear body. It is characterized in that it is arranged so as to face the second worm gear portion.

In the present invention, it is preferable that the ventilation portion has a flat plate portion provided with the ventilation holes, a ventilation pipe that is connected to the ventilation holes and extends upward, and a cap-shaped filter member that covers the ventilation pipes.

In the present invention, the base body has a base main body portion attached to the gear case portion and a sensor support portion on which the rotation angle sensor for detecting the rotation angle of the valve shaft is supported, and the sensor support portion. Is preferably provided with a notch on the edge portion on the side of the second worm gear portion.

According to the present invention, the ventilation portion provided on the upper wall portion of the gear case portion is arranged so as to face the second worm gear portion of the intermediate gear body. Since this is done, it is possible to prevent the worm gear portion of the intermediate gear body that meshes with the large diameter gear from overlapping with the rotation position detecting portion. Therefore, since the ventilation portion can be arranged so as to face the second worm gear portion while avoiding the rotation position detecting portion, the size of the flow path switching valve in the height direction can be effectively reduced. Further, since the air is flowed in the vicinity of the ventilation portion by the rotation of the second worm gear portion, the air flowability inside and outside the gear case portion can be effectively enhanced.

It is a perspective view of the flow path switching valve which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a vertical sectional view of the flow path switching valve of FIG. It is sectional drawing which follows the AA line of FIG. It is a top view which shows the state which the upper wall part of the gear case part was removed in the flow path switching valve of FIG. It is a top view which shows the state which the upper wall part and the rotation position detection part of the gear case part were removed in the flow path switching valve of FIG. It is sectional drawing which follows the line BB of FIG.

Hereinafter, the flow path switching valve according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 6.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a flow path switching valve according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view (vertical cross-sectional view) along the rotation axis of the ball valve body in the flow path switching valve of FIG. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. FIG. 4 is a plan view showing a state in which the upper wall portion of the gear case portion is removed in the flow path switching valve of FIG. 1, and FIG. 5 is a plan view showing a state in which the rotation position detecting portion is further removed. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line BB of FIG. In the following description, "up / down / left / right" is used to indicate the relative positional relationship of each member in each figure, and does not indicate an absolute positional relationship. In each figure, the X-axis direction is the left-right direction, the Y-axis direction is the front-back direction (front-back direction), and the Z-axis direction is the up-down direction. The X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis are orthogonal to each other.

As shown in each figure, the flow path switching valve 1 of the present embodiment includes a valve body 10, a ball valve body 20 as a valve body, seat members 30 and 30, sealing members 31, 31 and a valve shaft. It has 40 and. Further, the flow path switching valve 1 has a case 50, a drive unit 60, a ventilation unit 70, and a rotation position detection unit 80.

The valve body 10 is made of, for example, a synthetic resin such as polyphenylene sulfide (PPS), and is formed in a substantially cubic box shape having an open upper end.

A substantially L-shaped first flow path 11 is provided on the left side wall portion 10a of the valve body 10. A linear second flow path 12 is provided on the front wall portion 10b of the valve body 10. The right side wall portion 10c of the valve body 10 is provided with a substantially L-shaped third flow path 13 that is plane-symmetrical with the first flow path 11. The opening 11a of the first flow path 11, the opening 12a of the second flow path 12, and the opening 13a of the third flow path 13 are directed in the same direction (front direction). The first flow path 11, the second flow path 12, and the third flow path 13 communicate with the valve chamber 14 provided in the valve body 10. Two or four or more flow paths may be provided as the flow paths leading to the valve chamber 14.

The ball valve body 20 is formed in a hollow ball shape (spherical shape) using, for example, a metal or a synthetic resin as a material. The ball valve body 20 is rotatably supported by the seat members 30 and 30 and is housed in the valve chamber 14. In the rotation position shown in FIG. 3, the ball valve body 20 has a first opening 21 opened toward the left side, a second opening 22 opened toward the front, and a third opening opened toward the right side. 23 and are provided. Inside the ball valve body 20, a substantially T-shaped switching flow path 25 is provided in a plan view connecting the first opening 21, the second opening 22, and the third opening 23 to each other. The ball valve body 20 has, for example, only the first opening 21 and the second opening 22, and at the rotation position shown in FIG. 3, the ball valve body 20 has a substantially L-shape in a plan view connecting the first opening 21 and the second opening 22 to each other. The switching flow path 25 may be provided. Further, although the ball valve body 20 is used as the valve body in this embodiment, a columnar valve body may be used.

The switching flow path 25 is configured to switch the connection between the first flow path 11, the second flow path 12, and the third flow path 13 according to the rotation position. Specifically, the switching flow path 25 connects the first flow path 11, the second flow path 12, and the third flow path 13 when the ball valve body 20 is in the rotation position shown in FIG. The switching flow path 25 connects the first flow path 11 and the second flow path 12 when the ball valve body 20 is in a rotation position rotated 90 degrees clockwise in a plan view from the rotation position shown in FIG. .. The switching flow path 25 connects the second flow path 12 and the third flow path 13 when the ball valve body 20 is in a rotation position rotated 90 degrees counterclockwise from the rotation position shown in FIG. do.

A valve shaft insertion hole 24 into which a valve shaft 40, which will be described later, is inserted is provided in the upper portion of the ball valve body 20. The valve shaft insertion hole 24 is formed so that the ball valve body 20 rotates around the axis L, which is the rotation axis, as the valve shaft 40 rotates when the valve shaft 40 is inserted. In the present embodiment, the valve shaft insertion hole 24 is formed in a regular hexagonal shape.

The sheet members 30 and 30 are formed in an annular shape using, for example, a synthetic resin such as polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) as a material. The seat members 30 and 30 are paired and are housed in the valve chamber 14 so as to face each other at a distance from each other in the left-right direction. The seat members 30 and 30 rotatably support the ball valve body 20 in the valve chamber 14 with the ball valve body 20 interposed therebetween.

The sealing members 31 and 31 are O-rings made of an elastic material such as a rubber material, and are between one sheet member 30 and the left side wall portion 10a of the valve body 10, and the other sheet member 30 and the valve. It is sandwiched between the right side wall portion 10c of the main body 10 and the right wall portion 10c so as to be in a compressed state. In the present embodiment, the sealing member 31 is attached to the annular groove 30a provided in the sheet member 30, and a part of the sealing member 31 protrudes from the annular groove 30a. The sealing members 31 and 31 together with the seat members 30 and 30 seal (seal) between the valve body 10 and the ball valve body 20. By providing the annular groove 30a on the seat member 30, molding on the valve body 10 side can be easily performed, and the sealing member 31 can be assembled in the annular groove 30a, so that the assembly man-hours can be reduced. .. It should be noted that the sealing members 31 and 31 may be omitted, and the sheet members 30 and 30 made of an elastic material such as a rubber material and having the function of the sealing member may be adopted.

The valve shaft 40 is made of synthetic resin and is formed in a column shape extending linearly as a whole, and has a columnar portion 41 and a prismatic portion 42 coaxially connected to the lower end of the columnar portion 41. .. The valve shaft 40 is arranged along the axis L.

A groove is provided at the lower end of the columnar portion 41 over the entire circumference, and an O-ring 44 formed in an annular shape using a rubber material or the like as a material is fitted in the groove. A large-diameter gear 67 of the drive portion 60 is coaxially attached to the upper end portion of the cylindrical portion 41. Further, a substantially columnar mounting hole 45 along the axis L is provided in the center of the end surface 41a facing upward in the columnar portion 41. The potentiometer shaft 81 of the rotation position detection unit 80 is press-fitted into the mounting hole 45.

The prism portion 42 is formed in a columnar shape having a cross-sectional shape (cross-sectional shape) orthogonal to the axis L having the same regular hexagonal shape as the valve shaft insertion hole 24. The prism portion 42 is attached to the ball valve body 20 along the axis L by being inserted into the valve shaft insertion hole 24 of the ball valve body 20. Since the cross-sectional shape of the prism portion 42 is formed into the same regular hexagonal shape as the valve shaft insertion hole 24, the valve shaft insertion hole 24 and the prism portion 42 fit into each other, and the ball is rotated as the valve shaft 40 rotates. The valve body 20 is rotated around the axis L. In addition to the regular hexagonal shape, the prismatic portion 42 may be a polygonal columnar shape such as a triangular columnar column or a quadrangular columnar shape, or a columnar column having a D-shaped cross section in which a part of the side surface of the column is flat. In this case, the valve shaft insertion hole 24 is also formed to have the same shape as the cross-sectional shape of the prism portion 42.

The case 50 is made of, for example, a synthetic resin such as polyphenylene sulfide (PPS), and is attached to the valve body 10 to accommodate the drive unit 60. The case 50 has a motor case portion 51 and a gear case portion 52.

The motor case portion 51 is formed in a bottomed cylindrical shape and accommodates the motor 61 of the drive portion 60.

The gear case portion 52 connects the flat plate-shaped bottom wall portion 53 integrally provided with the motor case portion 51, the upper wall portion 54 provided with the ventilation portion 70, and the bottom wall portion 53 and the upper wall portion 54. It has a peripheral wall portion 55 and. In the present embodiment, the bottom wall portion 53 and the peripheral wall portion 55 are integrally provided, and the upper wall portion 54 is attached to the upper end of the peripheral wall portion 55 by a screwing structure or a snap-fit structure (not shown). The gear case portion 52 accommodates the worm gear 62 of the drive portion 60, the intermediate gear body 63, the large-diameter gear 67, and the rotation position detection unit 80.

The gear case portion 52 has a cylindrical bearing portion 56 integrally with the bottom wall portion 53. The cylindrical portion 41 of the valve shaft 40 is inserted into the bearing portion 56 to rotatably support the cylindrical portion 41. Further, the gear case portion 52 has a substantially square cylindrical inner peripheral wall portion 57 provided so as to project downward from the bottom wall portion 53. The inner peripheral wall portion 57 is inserted inside the valve body 10 and is joined to the valve body 10 by ultrasonic welding or the like. The gear case portion 52 may be attached to the valve body 10 by a screwing structure or the like.

The drive unit 60 rotationally drives the ball valve body 20 via the valve shaft 40. The drive unit 60 includes a motor 61, a worm gear 62 (first worm gear) constituting a speed reducer, an intermediate gear body 63, and a large-diameter gear 67.

The motor 61 is arranged in the motor case portion 51 so that the drive shaft 61a protrudes into the gear case portion 52 from the through hole 53a provided in the bottom wall portion 53 of the gear case portion 52. A worm gear 62 is attached to the tip of the drive shaft 61a.

The intermediate gear body 63 is arranged in the gear case portion 52. The intermediate gear body 63 is provided at the shaft portion 64, the small diameter gear portion 65 which is provided at one end portion 64a of the shaft portion 64 and meshes with the worm gear 62, and is provided at the other end portion 64b of the shaft portion 64 and meshes with the large diameter gear 67. It has a worm gear portion 66 (second worm gear portion).

In the present embodiment, the intermediate gear body 63 is a virtual line connecting the rotation shaft (drive shaft 61a) of the worm gear 62 and the rotation shaft (axis line L) of the large diameter gear 67 in a plan view (see FIG. 4). They are arranged so that they do not intersect. That is, the intermediate gear body 63 is not arranged between the worm gear 62 and the large diameter gear 67. This structure facilitates the assembly and removal of the intermediate gear body 63. For example, after assembling the potentiometer base 82, both ends of the intermediate gear body 63 are arranged in the recesses 58 and 58 of the gear case portion 52, and the protrusions formed on the upper wall portion 54 so that both ends do not fall off from the recesses 58 and 58. The portions 59 and 59 can be rotatably supported.

The large diameter gear 67 is arranged in the gear case portion 52. In the large diameter gear 67, a cylindrical portion 41 of the valve shaft 40 is press-fitted into a through hole provided in the center.

The drive unit 60 transmits the rotational force of the drive shaft 61a of the motor 61 to the valve shaft 40 through the worm gear 62, the intermediate gear body 63, and the large diameter gear 67 to rotate the valve shaft 40 around the axis L. As a result, the ball valve body 20 is positioned at a desired rotation position.

The ventilation portion 70 is a mechanism for circulating air inside and outside the gear case portion 52. The ventilation portion 70 has a flat plate portion 71, a ventilation pipe 72, and a filter member 73. The flat plate portion 71 is a part of the upper wall portion 54, and is provided through the ventilation hole 71a. The ventilation pipe 72 is formed in a cylindrical shape and is provided so as to extend upward from the peripheral edge portion of the ventilation hole 71a in the flat plate portion 71. The inner space of the ventilation pipe 72 is connected to the ventilation hole 71a. The filter member 73 is formed in the shape of a cap and has a function of allowing the flow of air and blocking the flow of liquid.

The ventilation hole 71a of the ventilation portion 70 is arranged so as to face the worm gear portion 66 of the intermediate gear body 63. As a result, air can be positively flowed in the vicinity of the ventilation hole 71a by the rotation of the worm gear portion 66.

The rotation position detecting unit 80 includes a potentiometer shaft 81 which is a rotation angle output shaft, a potentiometer base 82 which is a base body, and a potentiometer 85 which is a rotation angle sensor.

The potential shaft 81 is made of, for example, a metal such as stainless steel or brass or a synthetic resin such as polyphenylene sulfide (PPS), and is provided separately from the valve shaft 40. The potentiometer shaft 81 is coaxially fixed and mounted on the valve shaft 40 by being press-fitted into the mounting hole 45 of the valve shaft 40. In the potentiometer shaft 81, a D-cut shaped fitting shaft portion 81a provided at the upper end portion is fitted with the rotor 86 of the potentiometer 85. The fitting shaft portion 81a may be integrally provided on the end surface 41a of the valve shaft 40.

The potentiometer base 82 is made of synthetic resin and has a base main body portion 83 and a sensor support portion 84 integrally. The base main body portion 83 is formed in a substantially flat plate shape, and is fixed to the bosses 53b, 53b protruding upward from the bottom wall portion 53 of the gear case portion 52 by screws 95, 95. The sensor support portion 84 is formed in a substantially disk shape having a diameter smaller than that of the large diameter gear 67, and a potentiometer 85 is attached to the center thereof. The sensor support portion 84 is arranged in the gear case portion 52 so as to overlap the large diameter gear 67. The shape of the sensor support portion 84 may be a shape other than a disk shape, for example, a square shape, but does not overlap with the worm gear portion 66 of the intermediate gear body 63 when arranged so as to overlap the large diameter gear 67. As described above, it is formed smaller than the large diameter gear 67.

Further, the sensor support portion 84 is provided with a notch portion 84a at the edge portion on the worm gear portion 66 side. In the present embodiment, the notch portion 84a has a shape in which the sensor support portion 84 is cut out in an arc shape. By doing so, the sensor support portion 84 can be further separated from the worm gear portion 66, so that the ventilation portion 70 having the ventilation holes 71a can be easily arranged at a position facing the worm gear portion 66.

The potentiometer 85 is a rotation angle sensor for detecting a rotation angle (rotation angle). The potentiometer 85 includes a disk-shaped rotor 86 and a meter body 87 which is a signal output unit that rotatably supports the rotor 86 and outputs a signal (voltage) according to the rotation angle of the rotor 86. are doing. A D-shaped fitting hole in a plan view is provided in the center of the rotor 86, and the fitting shaft portion 81a of the potentiometer shaft 81 penetrates through the fitting hole, and the rotor 86 rotates together with the fitting shaft portion 81a. It is fitted so that it is done. The rotor 86 is rotated with the rotation of the fitting shaft portion 81a. As a result, the potentiometer 85 detects the angle of rotation of the potentiometer shaft 81 (that is, the valve shaft 40 and the ball valve body 20) around the axis L.

In the flow path switching valve 1, the rotational force of the drive shaft 61a of the motor 61 of the drive unit 60 is output to the valve shaft 40 through the large diameter gear 67 or the like, and the valve shaft 40 is rotated around the axis L. Along with the rotation of the valve shaft 40, the ball valve body 20 is rotated around the axis L and is positioned at each rotation position. As a result, the connection of the flow path according to the rotation position is realized. Further, the potentiometer shaft 81 is rotated around the axis L together with the valve shaft 40, and a signal corresponding to the rotation angle of the potentiometer shaft 81 is output from the potentiometer 85. The rotational position of the ball valve body 20 can be monitored based on the signal output from the potentiometer 85.

From the above, according to the flow path switching valve 1 of the present embodiment, the sensor support portion 84 of the potentiometer base 82 is formed in a disk shape having a diameter smaller than that of the large diameter gear 67 attached to the valve shaft 40, and is a potentiometer. The 85 is attached and is arranged so as to overlap with the large diameter gear 67. The ventilation portion 70 provided on the upper wall portion 54 of the gear case portion 52 has a flat plate portion 71 provided with the ventilation hole 71a, a ventilation pipe 72 that is connected to the ventilation hole 71a and extends upward, and a cap shape that covers the ventilation pipe 72. It has a filter member 73. The ventilation hole 71a of the ventilation portion 70 is arranged so as to face the worm gear portion 66 of the intermediate gear body 63. From this, it is possible to prevent the worm gear portion 66 of the intermediate gear body 63 that meshes with the large diameter gear 67 from overlapping with the sensor support portion 84 of the potentiometer base 82. Therefore, since the ventilation portion 70 having the ventilation hole 71a can be arranged so as to face the worm gear portion 66 while avoiding the sensor support portion 84, the size of the flow path switching valve 1 in the height direction can be effectively reduced. can do. Further, since the air flows in the vicinity of the ventilation hole 71a due to the rotation of the worm gear portion 66, the air flowability inside and outside the gear case portion 52 can be effectively improved.

Although embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to these examples. The present invention also includes those having components added, deleted, and design changes as appropriate to the above-described embodiments, and those in which the features of the embodiments are appropriately combined, as long as it does not contradict the gist of the present invention. Is included in the range of.

1 ... Flow path switching valve, 10 ... Valve body, 10a ... Left side wall part, 10b ... Front wall part, 10c ... Right side wall part, 11 ... First flow path, 12 ... Second flow path, 13 ... Third flow path , 11a, 12a, 13a ... opening, 14 ... valve chamber, 20 ... ball valve body, 21 ... first opening, 22 ... second opening, 23 ... third opening, 24 ... valve shaft insertion hole, 25 ... switching flow path , 30 ... Sheet member, 30a ... Circular groove, 31 ... Sealing member, 40 ... Valve shaft, 41 ... Cylindrical part, 41a ... End face, 42 ... Square pillar part, 44 ... O ring, 45 ... Mounting hole, 50 ... Case, 51 ... motor case part, 52 ... gear case part, 53 ... bottom wall part, 54 ... upper wall part, 55 ... peripheral wall part, 56 ... bearing part, 57 ... inner peripheral wall part, 58 ... concave part, 59 ... convex part, 60 ... Drive unit, 61 ... motor, 61a ... drive shaft, 62 ... worm gear, 63 ... intermediate gear body, 64 ... shaft part, 64a ... one end, 64b ... other end, 65 ... small diameter gear part, 66 ... worm gear part, 67 ... Large diameter gear, 70 ... Ventilation part, 71 ... Flat plate part, 71a ... Vent hole, 72 ... Ventilation pipe, 73 ... Filter member, 80 ... Rotation position detection part, 81 ... Potential shaft, 81a ... Fitting shaft part, 82 ... Potential base, 83 ... Base body, 84 ... Sensor support, 85 ... Potential meter, 86 ... Rotor, 87 ... Meter body, 95 ... Screw

Claims (3)

A valve body, a valve body rotatably housed in the valve body, a valve shaft attached to the valve body, a drive unit for rotationally driving the valve body via the valve shaft, and rotation of the valve body. A flow path switching valve having a rotation position detection unit for detecting a position and a case attached to the valve body and accommodating the drive unit and the rotation position detection unit.
The drive unit includes a motor, a worm gear, an intermediate gear body, and a large-diameter gear.
The case has a motor case portion and a gear case portion.
The gear case portion includes a bottom wall portion integrally provided with the motor case portion, an upper wall portion provided with a ventilation portion for circulating air inside and outside the gear case portion, and the bottom wall portion and the upper portion. It has a peripheral wall part that connects to the wall part,
The motor is arranged in the motor case portion so that the drive shaft protrudes into the gear case portion from the through hole provided in the bottom wall portion.
The worm gear is attached to the drive shaft and
The intermediate gear body is arranged in the gear case portion, is provided at the shaft portion, one end portion of the shaft portion, a small diameter gear portion that meshes with the worm gear, and is provided at the other end portion of the shaft portion, and has the large diameter. Has a second worm gear section that meshes with the gear,
The large-diameter gear is arranged in the gear case portion and coaxially attached to the valve shaft.
The rotation position detecting unit is arranged in the gear case unit, and has a rotation angle sensor that detects the rotation angle of the valve shaft and a base body that supports the rotation angle sensor.
The flow path switching valve is characterized in that the ventilation portion is arranged so as to face the second worm gear portion. The flow according to claim 1, wherein the ventilation portion includes a flat plate portion provided with a ventilation hole, a ventilation pipe connected to the ventilation hole and extending upward, and a cap-shaped filter member covered with the ventilation pipe. Road switching valve. The base body has a base main body portion attached to the gear case portion and a sensor support portion on which the rotation angle sensor for detecting the rotation angle of the valve shaft is supported.
The flow path switching valve according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the sensor support portion is provided with a notch at an edge portion on the side of the second worm gear portion.

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