Patent Application
20140262995
This application claims the benefit of prior filed German patent application No. 10 2013 004 285.2 filed Mar. 13, 2013, the entire contents of the aforesaid German patent application being incorporated herein by reference.
The present invention concerns a valve assembly, for example, for use as a pressure relief valve, which is arranged in or on a filter. In particular liquid filters, for example, for oil, fuel, or urea solutions in the automotive sector, can be provided with the valve assembly.
In order to dissipate pressure fluctuations in filter systems, check valves or pressure relief valves are provided in filter housings or filter elements themselves. In case of clogging or excessive loading of filter elements, pressure relief valves are provided, for example, that are designed to reliably open so that the filter system will not be damaged. Particularly when valves are integrated in disposable filters, a simple configuration and an inexpensive manufacture are desirable.
Check valves for a fuel supply are, for example, disclosed in DE 10 2004 004 103 A1 in which an elastic valve body comprised of a hollow ball is forced by means of a spring against a valve opening. In an open position of this valve assembly, a minimal flow resistance due to the deformation of the valve body results. In addition to good flow-through properties, a simple manufacture and simple handling of the valve should however be provided also.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide alternative or improved valve devices.
Accordingly, a valve assembly with a valve plunger, which comprises a valve stem with a coupling section and a valve plate for closing a valve opening, and with a spring element, which comprises a spring section for generating a restoring force and a holding section for mechanically coupling to a coupling section, is provided. In this context, the valve stem is at least partially surrounded by a spring section, and the holding section and the coupling section engage each other such that the spring section generates a restoring force along a center axis of the valve assembly for forcing the valve plate against the valve opening.
The valve assembly can be provided and/or integrated in particular as a check valve or pressure relief valve in a filter system, on a filter element or a filter housing.
The valve assembly is used, for example, in operating medium filters for motor vehicles, for example, oil filters or fuel filters, as a bypass valve and non-return valve.
Since the holding section and the coupling section engage each other, a low-expense manufacture or a beneficial assembly of the two elements valve plunger and spring element can be realized, on the one hand. On the other hand, a reliable sealing seat between valve plate and a sealing surface on the valve opening is achieved. For example, a rim of the valve plate as a first sealing surface is forced by means of the spring force of the spring element against a valve opening rim as a second sealing surface. In embodiments, the spring is tensioned in this context between a valve opening rim and the coupling section. In embodiments, a sealing seat between valve opening and valve plate is ensured wherein the restoring force of the spring pulls the valve plate in the direction toward a housing interior against the flow direction.
The coupling section of the valve stem is provided, for example, with an undercut that surrounds partially with positive fit the holding section that is, for example, straight. In the valve assembly, a coupling point between the holding section and the coupling section results preferably on the center axis of the valve assembly. In this way, a particularly good and reliable force transmission between spring element and valve plunger is provided.
In embodiments of the valve assembly, the coupling section is embodied as a hook that at least partially encloses the holding section. Furthermore, a barb can be provided so that the coupling section, as soon as it engages the holding section, is secured by a barb. This can also be referred to as a snap-on action or clip-on action of the holding section, for example, a straight piece of wire, with a valve plunger that is made of plastic material. A snap-on action is realized preferably perpendicular to the spring axis or center axis of the valve assembly. By means of a snap-on action or engagement of the elements with each other, an easy assembly of the valve plunger and of the spring element can be achieved wherein the rim of a valve opening extends between the valve plate and a support section of the spring element.
Preferably, the coupling section is shaped such that, upon joining of the valve plunger and the holding section within the spring section along the center axis, the spring element and the valve plunger are rotated relative to each other and the holding section glides into an engagement area of the coupling section.
Preferably, upon assembly or coupling of the valve plunger with the holding section an automatic positioning of the holding section and of the coupling section relative to each other results so that the holding section glides into the engagement area that is, for example, hook-shaped or formed with an undercut or like a carabiner. The coupling section can moreover be shaped geometrically such that the holding section, which is designed as a wire extending perpendicularly to the center axis or spring axis, automatically glides onto a guide path and reaches the engagement area of the coupling section. Accordingly, upon assembly, without having to determine the orientation of spring element and valve stem relative to each other beforehand, a simple coupling action and engagement can be realized.
In the valve assembly, the holding section preferably exerts a spring force against the coupling section in the direction away from the valve plate. This means that in embodiments the spring is compressed and pulls the valve plate against the rim of the valve opening in the direction toward the coupling section of the valve plunger.
In embodiments, the valve stem comprises moreover projecting guide ribs for securing the spring section. The valve stem ensures thus centering of the spring axis and of the axis of the valve plunger on the center axis of the entire valve assembly. Canting of the valve plunger upon opening and closing of the valve is thus prevented.
Embodiments of the employed spring element comprise spiral springs, in particular spiral pressure springs, coil springs, evolute springs, plate springs, membrane springs, air springs or annular springs.
In the valve assembly, the holding section can comprise a straight spring piece which is projecting from the spring section embodied as a spiral spring in the direction toward the center axis. For example, the spring element is substantially a spiral spring wherein at one end a holding section is provided that is formed as a straight piece extending diametrically. The holding section is preferably positioned perpendicular to the center axis or symmetry axis of the spiral spring. Thereby, together with the coupling section, a centering action of the force transmission between spring and valve plunger is reliably achieved.
The valve assembly comprises in embodiments moreover a valve housing comprising the valve opening. The valve housing has a sleeve-shaped or tubular section which surrounds the spring element. For example, the sleeve-shaped section can be a cylinder which is projecting from a filter end disk wherein the valve opening is provided in the base surface of the cylinder.
The sleeve-shaped section comprises in embodiments guide ribs oriented in the direction toward the spring element for holding the spring element. Accordingly, a reliable guiding action and centering action of the spring element is enabled so that a tilted position or canting is practically reliably prevented. For example, preferably three guide ribs are provided on the sleeve-shaped section of the valve housing and/or three guide ribs are provided which project from the valve plunger. The cylinder axis of a helix or a spiral line is provided as a center axis of the valve assembly, for example. Preferably, the center axis extends through the center of gravity of the spring element, valve plunger, and sleeve section.
The valve plunger and/or the valve housing in embodiments are at least partially manufactured of an injection-moldable material. For example, polypropylene, polyethylene, polyimide, polyamide or PET is suitable.
Furthermore, a filter element is proposed which comprises at least one end disk into which a valve assembly as described above is integrated. Moreover, the valve assembly in embodiments is part of a filter element or a filter device, in particular, for filtering operating media of motor vehicles.
Further possible implementations of the invention comprise also combinations not explicitly mentioned of features or embodiment variants described above or in the following. In this context, a person of skill in the art will also add individual aspects as improvements or supplements to the respective basic embodiment of the invention.
Further embodiments of the invention are subject matter of the dependent claims as well as of the embodiments of the invention described in the following. In the following, the invention will be explained in more detail with the aid of embodiments with reference to the attached Figures.
In the Figures, same reference characters refer to same or functionally the same elements, inasmuch as nothing to the contrary is indicated.
In the following, one embodiment of the valve assembly will be explained in more detail with the aid of the Figures.
The valve assembly 1 serves to close off a valve opening 6 by means of a valve plate 5 arranged on the valve plunger 2 and connected to the valve stem 3. The valve opening 6 is part of a valve housing 10 that is illustrated in
In the closed state of the valve assembly 1, the valve plunger 2 with the valve plate 5 is forced against the valve opening 6 and ensures a sealing seat. The sleeve-shaped section 11 surrounds in this context valve plunger 2 and spring element 7.
The spring element 7 is embodied as a coil pressure spring and comprises a spring section 8, which generates upon tensioning a restoring force F along the center axis 19, and a straight holding section 9, which extends from the spiral line of the spring section 8 radially inwardly toward the center axis 19 that is also the spring axis. The holding section 9 intersects in this context the center axis 19.
In
The valve plunger 2 or the coupling section 4 has moreover a guide wall 18 which delimits a guide path 21 along which the straight holding section 9 upon assembly of the valve plunger 2 within the spring element 7 slides or glides in the direction toward the center axis 19 and then is snapped on or locked in the engagement area 16. In this context, the head or topside 17 of the coupling section 4 is shaped such that the holding section 9 slides in the direction toward the guide wall 18 and is thereby oriented such or valve plunger 2 and spring element 7 rotate relative to each other such that the holding section 9 slides into the undercut or engagement area or hook 16. Accordingly, upon mutual approach along the center axis 19 a mutual deflection movement occurs which leads to the correct seat of the holding section 9 relative to the guide path 21.
When assembling the valve assembly 1, the spring element 7, in the orientation of
In the assembled state, as illustrated in
With the aid of the section views in
With regard to the configuration of the coupling section 4, in the section views of
The guide surface 20 which is present in
Even though the present invention has been explained with the aid of various embodiments, it is not limited thereto but can be modified in many ways. For example, spring types other than the aforementioned ones can be employed.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 2013 004 285.2 | Mar 2013 | DE | national |
