The present invention relates to a thermostatic cartridge.
The present invention relates to a thermostatic cartridge for regulating cold and hot fluids to be mixed.
The invention will be better understood upon reading the description which follows, given solely by way of example and with reference to the drawings, wherein:
In the sanitary field, a cartridge is a device for regulating hot and cold fluids to be mixed, in particular hot and cold water.
The cartridge is qualified as thermostatic when it incorporates a thermostatic actuator, in particular a thermostatic element associated with a return spring, which comprises a first part, normally fixed relative to a hollow base of the cartridge, and a second part that is movable with respect to the axis of the base relative to the first part under the effect of heat applied to the actuator, for example under the action of the expansion of a thermally-expandable material contained within the thermostatic element. The second part of the thermostatic actuator is secured to an axially displaceable slide inside the base of the cartridge, in order to inversely vary the sections of the flow passages in the base for the hot and cold fluids in order to mix these two fluids in variable proportions and to obtain, downstream of the slide, a fluid, called the mixture, or mixed fluid or mitigated fluid, flowing along a thermosensitive region of the thermostatic actuator and exiting the base. By modifying the position of the first part of the thermostatic actuator relative to the base by means of an ad hoc setpoint mechanism, the setpoint temperature is varied and around which the temperature of the mixture is thus regulated by the slide.
Furthermore, in order to vary the flow rate of cold fluid and the flow rate of hot fluid sent to the slide via the base, the cartridge incorporates a regulating member, such as a set of ceramic discs which are so mounted as to be at least partially movable in a housing fixed to the base. This regulating member and the above-mentioned setpoint mechanism makes it possible to modify the position of the thermostatic actuator with respect to the base, wherein they together form a regulation and control system which makes it possible to simultaneously vary the flow rates of the respective cold fluid and hot fluid supplying the slide and to regulate the flow and temperature of the mixture exiting the cartridge. As detailed in WO 2017/137368, this regulation and control system may be divided into several types depending on how the flow rate and the temperature of the mixture are regulated: thus, the thermostatic cartridge may be, for example of the single-control type, of the double-control type, or of the sequential type.
In all cases, as explained in WO 2017/005860 and as indicated in WO 2017/137368, it may be advantageous if the base is not in one piece, but is made in two distinct parts, which are assembled by being axially superimposed one against the other, while providing a seal for their junction interface. One possibility for sealing this junction interface is to interpose a seal comprising one or more seals axially between the two parts of the base. In practice, the presence of this seal tends to cause the two parts of the base to move apart axially from one another, with the risk of disassembly of the two parts of the base as long as the cartridge is not mounted and fixed inside a mixing valve. Likewise, as long as the cartridge is not mounted and fixed inside a mixing valve, the thermostatic actuator may exert constraints that tend to separate the two parts of the base axially from one another: thus, when this actuator comprises a thermostatic element associated with a return spring, the latter is interposed between the thermostatic element and one of the two parts of the base, wherein one of the ends of the return spring rests axially against one part of the base, while the other end of the return spring flattens the slide axially against the other part of the base.
To address this problem, the attachment between the two parts of the base may be rigid, for example by using welds or glue between the two parts of the base. These solutions are effective but tend to increase the total assembly time and, by nature, they prohibit any disassembly of the base, thus preventing the recovery, if necessary, of the two parts of base, as well as the slide and the thermostatic actuator retained between the two parts of the base.
The object of the present invention is to provide a thermostatic cartridge whose base, although made in two parts, is fast and convenient to assemble.
For this purpose, the invention relates to a thermostatic cartridge for regulating cold and hot fluids that are to be mixed, wherein the thermostatic cartridge comprises:
A first of the two base parts comprises at least one tab:
One of the ideas underlying the invention is to provide for a first one of the two parts of the base to have one or more tabs that are designed to snap onto the second part of the base. According to the invention, each tab is elongated substantially parallel to the axis of the base and is designed to deflect transversely to the axis during assembly of the two parts of the base by means of the elastic deformation of the axial end of each tab connecting the latter to the rest of the first part of the base. The snap on effect is obtained by one or more retaining surfaces which are provided at the opposite end of each tab: as soon as the two parts of the base are assembled to one another, the retaining surface(s) form(s) axial stops for the second part of the base which can not be released axially from the first part of the base. The use of the tab(s) significantly limits the time required to assemble the two parts of the base, while ensuring reliable retention of the two assembled parts of the base. In addition, the reversibility of the elastic deflection of the tabs may be used to allow the dismountability of the two parts of the base, provided that the appropriate constraints are applied to the tab(s) to release the retaining surfaces from their axial interference with the second part of the base. It is to be understood that the base, the slide and the thermostatic actuator belonging to the cartridge according to the invention may, in the assembled state of the two parts of the base, advantageously form a removable preassembled module, which may be disassembled if necessary, for example in the event of failure of this module and which, otherwise, are ready to be assembled to the cover and the regulation and control system in order to manufacture a functional thermostatic cartridge, which may then be assembled and fixed in a mixing valve. The aforesaid module may thus be manufactured and stored independently of the rest of the thermostatic cartridge, wherein it is integrated later. Moreover, according to the invention, the deflection capacity of the, or each, tab of the cartridge according to the invention is used to facilitate the assembly of this thermostatic cartridge, by involving the tab(s) in the attachment of the cover to the base.
According to additional advantageous features of the cartridge according to the invention:
The assembly 1 is centered on a geometric axis X-X. For convenience, the following description is oriented relative to this axis X-X, wherein it is considered that the terms “upper”, “top” and the like correspond to an axial direction facing the upper part of
As may be clearly seen in
The junction interface between the low 11 and high 12 parts is sealed in the sense that the areas of material contact between these parts 11 and 12 are sealed, thus prohibiting the passage of fluid through these contact areas. To do this, a seal 13 is attached to the junction interface by being interposed axially between the low 11 and high 12 parts. In practice, this seal 13 comprises or consists of one or more seals which, in the assembled state of the base 10, are enclosed axially between the parts 11 and 12. This being the case, the embodiment of the seal 13 is not limiting.
As shown in
As is clearly visible in
Separately from the chamber 10.3, the base 10 is provided with a cold water inlet 10.4 and a hot water inlet 10.5, which, in the embodiment considered in the figures, are located transversely to the axis X-X on either side of the chamber 10.3. The cold water inlet 10.4 and the hot water inlet 10.5 each open at their upper end on the upper face of the base 10, while at their lower end these inlets 10.4 and 10.5 each open into the chamber 10.3, wherein the lower end of the inlet 10.4 is located axially higher than that of the inlet 10.5 as shown in
The base 10 is also provided with a mixing outlet 10.6, which, at its upper end, opens into the chamber 10.3 while at its lower end this outlet 10.6 opens onto the lower face of the base 10. The outlet 10.6 thus connects the chamber 10.3 to the outside of the base 10, more specifically to the underside of the latter. The outlet 10.6 is thus delimited at least partially by the lower part 11 of the base 10: in the embodiment considered in the figures, this outlet 10.6 is delimited exclusively by the lower part 11 by being substantially centered on the X-X axis as is clearly visible in
In use, particularly when the thermostatic cartridge 2 is received and fixed in a mixing valve or the like, the circulation channels 10.1 and 10.2 are designed to be supplied respectively with cold water and hot water from the bottom face of the base 10. After leaving the base 10 by its upper face, this cold water and hot water circulate inside the rest of the thermostatic cartridge 2 where they are returned to the upper face of the base 10 in order to supply the inlets 10.4 and 10.5 respectively. This cold water and this hot water, flowing downwards respectively in the inlets 10.4 and 10.5, then supply the chamber 10.6 in which they mix to form a mixed water, hereinafter referred to as a mixture, which exits the chamber 10.3 by the outlet 10.6 and is evacuated downwards.
The assembly 1 also includes a slide 20 which, as may be clearly seen in
The slide 20 is mounted on the base 10, more specifically inside the chamber 10.3 of this base, and movable parallel to the X-X axis between two extreme positions, i.e.:
The total axial dimension of the slide 20 that respectively separates its upper and lower faces from each other, is smaller than the axial distance separating the lower seat 11A and the upper seat 12A from each other. Also, when the slide 20 is in its extreme high position, as is the case in
In practice and to ensure the guiding of the movable assembly of the slide 20 in the chamber 10.3, the lateral face of this slide is received inside a complementary surface of the chamber 10.3 in a tightly sealed manner through the interposition of a seal to prevent mixing between the cold water and the hot water upstream of the slide. In addition, in order that the cold water admitted into the chamber 10.3 from the inlet 10.4 may join and mix with the hot water admitted inside this chamber from the inlet 10.5 to thus form the aforementioned mixture flowing downstream of the slide to the outlet 10.6, the slide 20 delimits internally one or more flow passages which connect its upper and lower faces to each other, some of which are visible in the
To drive the slide 20 in axial displacement and thus to control its axial position, the assembly 1 also comprises a thermostatic element 30 comprising a body 31 and a piston 32. The body 31 contains a thermally-expandable material 33 which, by expansion, causes displacement relative to the translation of the piston 32. The body 31 and the piston 32 are centered on the corresponding translation axis, wherein this translation axis is parallel to, or even coincident with, the axis X-X in the assembled state of the assembly 1. Likewise in the assembled state of the assembly 1, the body 31 is connected to the slide 20 in order to move the slide between its extreme high and low positions in translation substantially along the axis X-X: in the embodiment shown in the figures, the body 31 is secured to the slide 120 by any suitable means. In any event, at least a portion of the body 31 is arranged in the chamber 10.3 so that the thermally-expandable material 33 may be sensitized by the heat of the mixture flowing downstream of the slide 20 along the body 31.
The thermostatic element 30 is also associated with a return spring 34, typically a compression spring, which acts on the body 31 of the thermostatic element 30, and thus on the slide 20 connected to this body 31 but in an opposite manner to the deployment of the piston 32 out of the body 31 resulting from an expansion of the thermally expandable material 33. The return spring 34 is axially interposed between the base 10 and the slide 20 so that, during the contraction of the thermally expandable material 33, this return spring partially relaxes and allows the piston 32 to return inside the body 31. In the embodiment considered here, the return spring 34 is axially interposed between the lower part 11 of the base 10 and the body 31 of the thermostatic element.
As indicated above, the assembly 1 belongs to the thermostatic cartridge 2 and, as such, is intended to be assembled with the other components of this thermostatic cartridge 2. According to a particularly advantageous embodiment, which is illustrated in the figures, the assembly 1 forms a self-contained module, which is preassembled independently of the other components of the thermostatic cartridge 2. For this purpose, the lower 11 and high 12 parts of the base have fixtures for assembling them to each other in the presence of the seal 13, the slide 20, the thermostatic element 30 and the return spring 34, as shown in
For the purpose of assembling the base parts 11 and 12 with each other, the lower base part 11 comprises two tabs 14 while the upper base part 12 comprises two housings 15 which, in the assembled state of the two parts of the base, respectively receive the tabs 14.
As clearly visible in
Opposite its lower end 14A, each tab 14 has a high end 14B which is shaped to snap onto the base part 12, in particular inside the housings 15 of the latter in the assembled state of the two base parts 11 and 12. For this purpose, the upper end 14B of each tab 14 protrudes on both lateral sides of the tab, conferring on the latter an overall “T” shape as is clearly visible in
As soon as the base parts 11 and 12 are assembled together, as shown in
In the extension of the immediately preceding considerations, a particularly advantageous arrangement is where the tabs 14 each extend from a peripheral portion of the base part 11 and where the housings 15 are each provided in a peripheral portion of the base part 12 as in the embodiment considered in the figures. In addition, upon assembling the base parts 11 and 12, more specifically during the axial approach of the base parts 11 and 12, the tabs 14 deflect outwards, i.e. in the direction opposite to the axis X-X, under the effect of the sliding of these tabs, more specifically their face facing the axis X-X, against the peripheral portions of the base part 12 where the housings 15 are located. In order to facilitate and guide the sliding contact between the tabs 14 and the aforementioned peripheral portions of the base part 12, suitable chamfers may advantageously be provided on the face of the tabs 14 facing the axis X-X, in particular at the upper ends 14B of the tabs, and/or on the outer face of the aforementioned peripheral portions of the base part 12, as are clearly visible in
In practice, it will be noted that the assembly of the base parts 11 and 12 is implemented in the presence of the seal 13, the slide 20, the thermostatic element 30 and the return spring 34: wherein the presence of these elements, in particular of the seal 13 and the return spring 34, induces constraints which tend to axially separate the base parts 11 and 12 from one another. However, thanks to the interference along the axis X-X between the retaining surfaces 16 of the tabs 14 and the bearing surfaces 17 of the base part 12 once the base parts 11 and 12 are assembled, the aforementioned constraints are supported by the base 10 without the risk of disassembly of the latter. These constraints also explain why, in the assembled state of assembly 1, and as long as the thermostatic cartridge 2 with which this assembly 1 is integrated, is not received and fixed inside a mixing valve or the like, the slide 20 occupies its extreme high position described above while the retaining surfaces 16 of the tabs 14 press down the bearing surfaces 17 of the base part 12 axially, as shown in
It is also to be understood that the disassembly of the assembly 1 remains advantageously possible by means of the deflection of the tabs 14 towards the outside, provided that a suitable tool is used: this dismountability of the assembly 1 in the assembled state of the latter allows, for example in case of failure of this assembly, the recovery of all or part of its components.
In the exemplary embodiment considered in the figures, the two tabs 14 are diametrically opposite with respect to the axis X-X, which simultaneously promotes the alignment of the base parts 11 and 12 and the homogeneous distribution of the constraints applied to the tabs 14 in order to deflect them during assembly of the base parts 11 and 12. Advantageously, in order to undo the mounting of the base parts 11 and 12, the width, i.e. the dimension along a direction that is orthoradial to the axis X-X, is different for the two tabs: thus, at least on one axial portion of the tabs 14, in particular at their upper end 14B, the two tabs 14 have respective widths that are different from each other, as is clearly visible in
Moreover, as shown in
Furthermore, whatever the embodiment of the regulation and control system 50, the latter and the cover 40 advantageously form an autonomous module which, likewise as explained in detail in WO 2017/137368, is preassembled independently of the assembly 1 as shown in
In all cases, the tabs 14 participate in the fastening of the cover 40 to the base 10 while the deflection capacity of these tabs 14 is used to facilitate assembly between the cover 40 and the base 10. To this end, as clearly visible in
Thus, the respective reliefs 18 of the tabs 14 allow snapping the cover 10 onto the base part 11, wherein this snapping on is advantageously obtained exclusively by the relative axial approach of the cover 40 and the base 10. To facilitate and guide this snapping on, the relief 18 is advantageously chamfered appropriately.
Once the thermostatic cartridge 2 is assembled, it may be received and fixed inside a mixing valve or the like. In practice, this fixing is intended to induce an axial compression of the thermostatic cartridge so that the components of this thermostatic cartridge are placed under axial load inside the mixing valve to ensure their functional interaction. As soon as the thermostatic cartridge 2 is thus put under load, the retaining surfaces 16 can no longer be in contact with the bearing surfaces 17, just as the reliefs 18 can no longer bear axially downwards against the lower edge of the holes 41. It is thus understood that the tabs 14 do not have to be dimensioned to ensure their structural integrity for the entire lifetime of the thermostatic cartridge 2 since, once the thermostatic cartridge 2 is functional, the axial retention between the base parts 11 and 12 and the axial retention of the cover 40 with respect to the base 10 are provided essentially, or exclusively, by the fastening of the thermostatic cartridge 2 inside the mixing valve or the like.
Various arrangements and variants of the assembly 1 and the thermostatic cartridge 2 described so far are feasible. As examples:
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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1759419 | Oct 2017 | FR | national |
This application is the U.S. National Phase Application under 35 U.S.C. § 371 of International Application No. PCT/EP2018/077345, filed Oct. 8, 2018, designating the U.S. and published in English as WO 2019/072772 A1 on Apr. 18, 2019, which claims the benefit of French Application No. FR 1759419, filed Oct. 9, 2017. Any and all applications for which a foreign or a domestic priority is claimed is/are identified in the Application Data Sheet filed herewith and is/are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties under 37 C.F.R. § 1.57.
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/EP2018/077345 | 10/8/2018 | WO | 00 |