The present invention concerns a valve unit for controlling the delivery of a combustible gas, in particular for gas metering apparatuses, having the characteristics mentioned in the preamble of main claim No. 1. The invention also relates to a gas meter including the aforesaid valve unit.
The invention is placed particularly, although not exclusively, in the field of valve devices intended for controlling the delivery of gas in gas metering apparatuses and designed therefore for remote management of the functioning with reduced energy absorption by the actuating means used. In such specific applications it is known to control the opening and closure of the through-flow of gas within the meter, by means of shutters co-operating with respective valve seats which are associated with motorised actuating means with electrical operation. Such a system, which allows the user, by means of a remotely managed enabling signal, to cause the metering apparatus to operate, ensuring the through-flow of gas, should normally be designed to function with an extremely reduced energy absorption in the phases of opening and closure of the gas through-flow, inasmuch as the energy is provided exclusively by storage batteries, in order to ensure independence from external electrical energy sources, and which should prove efficient for a length of time equal to the service life of the meter. In such operational conditions it is therefore preferable for the motorised actuating means acting on the shutter of the gas through-flow, to be supplied with power for an extremely limited time, not absorbing energy if not in a transitory phase of the movement of opening/closing of the valve seat, so as to reduce the energy consumption, while nevertheless ensuring full functioning in the control of the shutter.
In these applications there is in addition the requirement to reduce significantly the loss of head between the sections upstream and downstream of the valve seat, and above all it is desirable for the shutter to remain in the position for opening of the valve seat, even in the absence of pressure or in the case of a drop in pressure.
In order to fulfil all the requirements indicated, a possible solution according to the prior art would provide for the use of a valve of the pneumatic type in which the shutter is actuated via a motor and in which the main through-flow of gas is provided in a servo-assisted valve, in such a manner that the motorised actuating means acts for opening/closure of a reduced gas pathway, such as that provided in the operating circuit for assistance to the servo-valve, with the consequence of having rather modest absorbed power and reduced loss of head.
In applications in gas meters of the aforesaid type, however, it not infrequently happens that the shutter, being able to remain even for a long time in the state of closure of the seat (with meter disabled for use by the user), is subject to a kind of “sticking” on the valve seat, consequently obstructing the opening stroke produced by the motor. Since the latter is supplied with power for a limited time, in order to reduce the energy absorption, it may not be capable of lifting the shutter, owing to the resistance to movement caused by its being stuck on the valve seat, all this compromising the functioning of the valve which could remain closed or only partially open for an indefinite period. Such a limitation is obviously not acceptable in the use of such a valve unit in gas metering apparatuses.
The problem underlying the present invention is that of providing a valve unit for controlling the delivery of a combustible gas, in particular for delivery via a gas metering apparatus, and structurally and functionally designed so as to make it possible to remedy the limitations mentioned with reference to the prior art cited.
This problem is solved by the invention by means of a valve unit produced in accordance with the following claims.
Further features and advantages of the invention will become clearer from the following detailed description of some preferred exemplary embodiments thereof, illustrated by way of non-limiting example with reference to the appended drawings, in which:
With initial reference to
The operating chamber 10 is bounded in part by one side 7a of the diaphragm 7 to which the shutter 6 is firmly secured, and is placed in communication with the outlet section 5 of the pipe 2 via the opening defined by the valve seat 9 associated with the shutter 8. In this way, as will become clear in the continuation of the description, the operation of the main shutter 6 is controlled by the opening/closing of the second servo-assistance shutter 8.
Preferably, the valve seats 3, 9 with the corresponding shutters 6, 8 are mounted coaxially with each other in an axial direction designated by X, along which the actuating strokes of the shutters themselves away from and towards the respective valve seats take place.
For the operation of the shutters, provision is made for the shutters to be secured to an actuating rod, indicated as a whole by 13, which is operatively connected to a motor 14, suitable for driving the rod in the translational movement along the axis X. Provision is conveniently made for the motor 14, which is for example electric, to be selected and arranged for absorbing a reduced power, assuming that it must be supplied with power by a battery mounted in the gas meter, with total independence from the electrical mains system, with the battery having to ensure a long life, relative to the service life of the gas meter. For this purpose, provision is made for the motor to be supplied with power, in the phase of actuation of the actuating rod, for a limited period of time, so as to limit the energy consumption but, in accordance with the invention, nonetheless ensuring the opening and/or closing of the valve seats.
To this end, the actuating rod 13 is secured to the shutters 6 and 8 so as to be able to slide in a limited manner with respect thereto, with a predetermined play in the corresponding coupling, such that the rod is movable by means of the motor 14, without interference with one and/or the other of said shutters, along at least a portion of the lifting stroke thereof and also in opposition to the action of a return spring 15, in order to store resilient energy (by means of compression of the spring) and to transfer said energy to the shutters, so as to urge them away from the valve seats and ensure opening for the through-flow of gas in the main pipe.
In more detail, the actuating rod 13 comprises a first part 13a and a second part 13b, extending in prolongation of each other and also connected so as to be able to slide in a limited manner in the axial direction X. The first part 13a is provided with a bush formation 16 and the second part 13b comprises a rod-shaped portion with an end head 17 which is received and slidably held in the bush 16. Between the head 17 and an end of the bush 16 a spring 15 acts. Preferably, the ends of the spring are abutted by the head 17 and, on the axially opposed side, by a small plate 18 axially guided in the bush, the plate and the spring being slipped coaxially onto the rod-shaped portion of the second rod part.
At the free end of the rod-shaped portion, on the opposite side from the head, an enlargement 13c of the rod is provided, suitable for being held so as to be able to slide in a limited manner inside a second bush 19, with a predetermined axial coupling play. The shutter 8 is connected to the bush 9.
A third rod-shaped part 20 of the actuating rod extends in prolongation of the first and second part, coaxially therewith, the part 20 being firmly secured at one end to the shutter 8 and having at the opposed axial end an enlargement 20a suitable for being held, so as to be slidable in a limited manner, with a predetermined coupling play, inside a third bush 21 to which the shutter 6 is secured and, integral therewith, the diaphragm 7.
The reference 22 indicates a resilient return spring acting on the main shutter 6 and capable of urging same towards the position for closure of the corresponding valve seat 3.
The reference 25 indicates as a whole a position sensor operatively associated with the shutter 8. Said sensor, preferably of the Hall effect type, comprises respective members 25a, 25b, 25c co-operating with one another and with which the position of the shutter 8 is detected, in its movement in the axial direction X, with respective signals indicating the closing and opening positions of the valve seat 9 on which the shutter 8 acts.
In operation, starting from the configuration in
When the motor 14 is actuated, the actuating rod 13 is raised, initially effecting the opening of the valve seat 9 of the servo circuit (
In applications of the valve unit according to the invention in gas meters it happens not infrequently that one or both of the shutters offer a certain resistance to detachment from their valve seat during the lifting stroke of the actuating rod. This event is linked to the fact that, since the shutters can remain for a long time in the closed position, that is, during the periods in which the meter is deactivated or not prepared for use, they are subject to a phenomenon known as “sticking” on the valve seat, with respect to which the motor may not succeed in completing the opening of the valve seat in the (reduced) time during which the motor is supplied with power. When the sticking phenomenon is detected in the main shutter, it may occur that at the end of the stroke which completes the opening of the shutter 8 of the servo circuit, the main shutter 6 is not detached from its seat, and in that case does not ensure the opening of the main valve.
The valve unit according to the invention makes it possible to remedy the above-mentioned limitations, owing to the action of storage and subsequent release of resilient energy which is effected by means of the spring 15.
Owing to the possibility of limited free relative sliding between the parts 13a, 13b of the actuating rod, the motor 14, when supplied with power, is able to raise the part 13a even when one or both of the shutters 6,8 are stuck to their seats, the resistance offered to the force produced by the motor being reduced in this case. During this stroke, energy of a resilient nature is still stored, via the compression of the spring 15, which energy is released and transmitted to the shutter (to one or both), even when the brief time in which the motor is supplied with power has passed, the force remaining applied to the shutter until it is lifted away from its valve seat. The result is that the force with which the shutter is urged is not limited to the time interval in which the motor is actuated, but instead remains applied also for a following period until the resistance offered by any sticking phenomena occurring between the shutters and the valve seats is overcome.
It should also be noted that the spring 15, besides performing the function of accumulating energy and therefore force for the opening of the valve (when compressed during the lifting of the actuating rod), also performs the function of a closure means for the shutter 8 on the corresponding seat 9, when the part 13a is brought into contact with the head 17 of the part 13b. In this movement the thrust is exerted by the plate 18.
With reference to
The provision of the shutter 27 makes it possible, according to this variant, to avoid the arrangement of the constriction 12 or another similar delivery nozzle in the pipe 11. Since the cross-section of the constriction must be extremely reduced in width with respect to the cross-section of the valve seat 9, which relieves the pressure in the operating chamber, there is a risk of obstruction of the operating pipe, owing to the impurities present in the gas delivered, which risk is increased by the fact that a continuous flow of gas is in any case delivered via the constriction.
On the other hand, in the variant of
Downstream of the safety device 32 is mounted the valve unit 1 described in the preceding examples, by means of which the flow of gas is delivered to a measuring device 34 with a respective sensor, with which the volume of gas delivered by the meter is determined.
The invention thus achieves the aims proposed, remedying the limitations mentioned with reference to the prior art and obtaining numerous advantages.
A principal advantage lies in the fact that by means of the valve unit according to the invention, in applications in gas meters, with motorised actuators with a low energy absorption it is possible to ensure the opening of the valve seats even in the event of not infrequent phenomena of “sticking” of the valve seats, rendering the control of the gas delivery via the gas through-flow reliable and efficient. According to the invention, in which there is conveniently provided a servo-assisted valve unit with the main shutter having a diaphragm control subjected to different pressures on the opposed sides thereof, it is possible to ensure low energy absorption of the motor, the latter being supplied with power in a transitory phase of actuation and integrating the energy of the motor with the release of energy stored in the phase of actuation of the motor itself in a resilient member, for example a spring, the resilient action of which is then applied to the shutters, also following the phase during which the motor is supplied with power.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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PD2009A000257 | Sep 2009 | IT | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
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PCT/EP10/58260 | 6/11/2010 | WO | 00 | 3/5/2012 |