Intelligent ic flow control valve

Abstract

The application relates to an intelligent IC flow control valve, which comprises a valve shell, a control box fixed on the valve shell, a valve ball, a valve core, a valve motor and a controller in the valve shell, and is characterized in that the valve shell is additionally provided with a cloud platform and a gas pressure sensor; the cloud platform comprises a data storage unit, a verification unit, a calculation unit and an instruction sending unit, the data storage unit is used for storing account data of each user; the verification unit is used for verifying account information; the calculation unit is used for deriving a recommended opening degree of a target flow control valve core according to a gas pressure value in the target flow control valve and an average gas pressure value of a branch pipeline where the target flow control valve is located; and the instruction sending unit is used for sending a control instruction containing the recommended opening degree to the controller of the target flow control valve. The flow control valve can assist in balancing the gas pressure in a gas supply pipeline, effectively reducing the situation that the gas pressure is insufficient when the branch pipeline is too long and a plurality of users are connected to the branch pipeline.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of flow valve technology, and more specifically to an intelligent IC flow control valve. Background Technology

[0002] With the maturity and popularization of IC identification and control technology, IC card control valves have been widely used in large-scale centralized gas supply systems.

[0003] The IC control valve operates on a prepaid model. It uses a card slot installed on the valve housing for inserting IC cards. The card slot contains a card reader module for identifying and reading IC information. Users need to insert an IC card with sufficient balance into the card slot, and gas can only be used after successful identification.

[0004] The adoption of IC smart control valves facilitates gas supply companies' management of a large number of users. When a user's account balance is sufficient, the gas supply company can remotely control the opening of the IC smart control valve after successful user information identification. When the user's balance is insufficient or the user removes their IC card, the management system automatically sends a closing command to the IC smart control valve, which will then automatically close, disconnecting the user from the gas supply line. This improves the gas supply company's gas management capabilities and efficiency, increases user satisfaction, reduces complaints, and effectively prevents gas theft.

[0005] Despite the many advantages mentioned above, existing IC smart control valves have one significant drawback: they only have two operating modes, fully on and fully off, meaning they do not have the ability to regulate the gas supply flow rate.

[0006] In reality, a gas supply pipeline can sometimes connect to a large number of users, and these users are located at different locations and distances. When the transmission distance of the gas supply pipeline is long, the pressure loss during transmission and the gas usage of users can cause the gas pressure at different access points in the gas supply pipeline to be different or even significantly different. This may result in some users encountering insufficient gas pressure when using the gas supply pipeline, affecting their gas usage experience.

[0007] To avoid the above situation, improve the user's gas usage experience, and without installing additional equipment on the gas supply line, it is necessary to design an IC smart control valve that can help balance the gas pressure in the gas supply line. Summary of the Invention

[0008] Based on the above description, the present invention provides an intelligent IC flow control valve that can help balance the air pressure in the air supply pipeline.

[0009] The technical solution of the present invention to solve the above-mentioned technical problems is as follows:

[0010] A smart IC flow control valve includes a valve housing and a control box fixed to the valve housing. The control box has a card slot for inserting an IC card. A valve ball is installed inside the valve housing, with a channel for gas flow. A valve core is installed inside the valve ball, with a through hole in its center for gas flow. The valve core can rotate within the valve ball. The control box contains a drive mechanism for rotating the valve core, a valve motor for powering the drive mechanism, and a controller for controlling the valve motor. It also includes a cloud platform, with the controller communicatively connected to the cloud platform. A pressure sensor is installed inside the valve housing and connected to the controller, which is used to read the IC card. The system collects account data and valve body pressure data, and uploads the data to a cloud platform. The cloud platform includes a data storage unit, a verification unit, a calculation unit, and an instruction sending unit. The data storage unit stores account data for each user. The verification unit verifies account information. The calculation unit calculates the recommended opening of the target flow control valve core based on the pressure value inside the target flow control valve and the average pressure value of the branch pipeline where the target flow control valve is located. The instruction sending unit sends a control instruction containing the recommended opening to the controller of the target flow control valve. After receiving the control instruction, the controller controls the valve motor to drive the valve core to rotate by the required angle.

[0011] As a preferred embodiment: the calculation unit retrieves the air pressure values ​​uploaded by all flow control valves in the branch pipeline where the target flow control valve is located from the data storage unit, calculates the average air pressure value of the branch pipeline, and then calculates the difference between the air pressure value of the target flow control valve and the average air pressure value; if the difference is greater than a preset value, the calculation unit finds the flow control valve whose air pressure value is closest to the average air pressure value, i.e., the reference flow control valve, by comparing them one by one. The calculation comparison unit calculates the recommended opening value of the valve core of the target flow control valve based on the valve core opening of the reference flow control valve and the distance between the reference flow control valve and the target flow control valve.

[0012] As a preferred solution: when calculating the recommended opening value, obtain the valve core opening value A0 of the reference flow control valve and its connection point number on the branch pipeline, and obtain the connection point number of the target flow control valve on the branch pipeline; determine its section on the branch pipeline based on the connection point number of the reference flow control valve, and determine its section on the branch pipeline based on the connection point number of the target flow control valve; obtain a compensation factor m based on the conveying distance value L between the two sections, and the recommended opening value K = m × A0.

[0013] As a preferred embodiment, the cloud platform further includes a correction unit, which is used to correct the compensation factor based on the number of users accessing the platform within the transmission distance.

[0014] As a preferred embodiment: the correction unit obtains the number of currently connected users M and the transmission distance L between the two segments, defines the user density S=M / L, compares the calculated user density S with several preset density interval values, each set of density interval values ​​corresponds to a set of correction parameters α, after determining the interval where the user density S is located, retrieves the corresponding correction parameter α, corrects the compensation factor m, and then calculates the corrected recommended opening degree K'=α×m×A0.

[0015] As a preferred embodiment: the drive mechanism includes a rotating shaft, which is rotatably connected to the valve housing. The lower end of the rotating shaft is coaxially connected to the valve core, and the upper end of the rotating shaft passes through the valve housing and extends into the control box. The output shaft of the valve motor is coaxially connected to a worm gear. A worm wheel is coaxially fixed on the upper part of the rotating shaft, and the worm gear meshes with the worm wheel. An angle encoder is installed above the rotating shaft. The housing of the angle encoder is fixed to the box, and the upper end of the rotating shaft is coaxially connected to the shaft of the angle encoder. The angle encoder is connected to the controller.

[0016] As a preferred embodiment, the controller includes a main control module, a data acquisition module, a motor drive module, a communication module, a card reader module, a memory module, and a power supply module.

[0017] As a preferred embodiment, the communication module is a WIFI module or an IoT card communication module.

[0018] Compared with the prior art, the technical solution of this application has the following beneficial technical effects: The above solution can realize the dynamic adjustment of the opening of the flow control valve of each user in the gas supply pipeline, ensuring that the inlet gas pressure of each user in the same branch pipeline is close to the average gas pressure in the branch pipeline, helping to balance the gas pressure in the gas supply pipeline, effectively reducing the occurrence of insufficient inlet gas pressure of some users in the branch pipeline when the branch pipeline is too long and there are many users connected, and improving the gas user experience. Attached Figure Description

[0019] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the external structure of the flow control valve in this embodiment;

[0020] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the internal structure of the flow control valve in this embodiment;

[0021] Figure 3 This is a block diagram illustrating the control principle in this embodiment;

[0022] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the pipeline section in this embodiment.

[0023] The attached diagram lists the components represented by each number as follows:

[0024] 1. Valve housing; 2. Control box; 3. Card slot; 4. IC card; 5. Valve ball; 6. Valve core; 7. Rotary shaft; 8. Worm gear; 9. Valve motor; 10. Worm; 11. Controller; 12. Air pressure sensor; 13. Interface module; 14. Channel; 15. Through hole; 16. Angle encoder. Detailed Implementation

[0025] Reference Figure 1 and Figure 2 A smart IC flow control valve includes a valve housing 1 and a control box 2 fixed on the valve housing 1. The control box 2 is provided with a card slot 3 for inserting an IC card 4.

[0026] A valve ball 5 is installed inside the valve body 1. The valve ball 5 has a channel 14 for gas to flow through. A valve core 6 is installed inside the valve ball 5. A through hole 15 for gas to flow through is provided in the middle of the valve core 6. The valve core 6 can rotate inside the valve ball 5. When the valve core 6 rotates, it can control the connection and disconnection between the through hole 15 and the channel 14, as well as control the conduction area between the through hole 15 and the channel 14, thereby realizing the control of the gas flow and the amount of gas in the valve body.

[0027] A rotating shaft 7 is provided inside the valve housing 1. The rotating shaft 7 is rotatably connected to the valve housing 1. The lower end of the rotating shaft 7 is coaxially connected to the valve core 6. The upper end of the rotating shaft 7 passes through the valve housing 1 and extends into the control box 2. A valve motor 9 is installed inside the control box 2. A worm gear 10 is coaxially connected to the output shaft of the valve motor 9. A worm wheel 8 is coaxially fixed on the upper part of the rotating shaft 7. The worm gear 10 meshes with the worm wheel 8. An angle encoder 16 is installed above the rotating shaft 7. The housing of the angle encoder 16 is fixed to the box. The upper end of the rotating shaft 7 is coaxially connected to the shaft of the angle encoder 16. A controller 11 for controlling the valve motor 9 is also installed inside the control box 2.

[0028] When the rotating shaft 7 drives the valve core 6 to rotate, the angle encoder 16 can detect the current angle rotated by the valve core 6 in real time, thus determining the current opening degree of the valve core 6. The larger the opening degree of the valve core 6, the greater the air flow allowed by the flow control valve.

[0029] When the valve motor 9 rotates, it drives the worm gear 10 to rotate synchronously, and the worm gear 10 drives the worm wheel 8, thereby enabling the rotating shaft 7 to rotate. A pressure sensor 12 for detecting the air pressure inside the valve is also installed inside the valve housing 1.

[0030] Reference Figure 3 The controller 11 includes a main control module, a data acquisition module, a motor drive module, a communication module, a card reader module, a memory module, and a power supply module.

[0031] The communication module is connected to the transceiver port of the main control module and is used for communication between the controller 11 and the cloud platform. The output of the data acquisition module is connected to the data sampling end of the main control module, and the outputs of the air pressure sensor 12 and the angle encoder 16 are connected to the input of the data acquisition module. The input of the motor drive module is connected to the control signal output of the main control module, and the output of the motor drive module is connected to the valve motor 9. The card reader module is installed in the card slot 3 to read the information of the IC card 4, and the output of the card reader module is connected to the input of the main control module. The memory module is connected to the main control module and is used to store user data. The power supply module is used to supply power to each module.

[0032] The cloud platform includes a data storage unit, a verification unit, a calculation unit, and a command sending unit. The data storage unit stores user account data; the verification unit verifies account information; the calculation unit calculates the recommended opening degree of the target flow control valve core 6 based on the air pressure value inside the target flow control valve and the average air pressure value of the branch pipeline where the target flow control valve is located; and the command sending unit sends a control command containing the recommended opening degree to the controller 11 of the target flow control valve.

[0033] In the initial state, i.e. when IC card 4 is not inserted, valve core 6 is in the closed state, and the target flow control valve is completely closed.

[0034] The working principle of this flow control valve is as follows: When the user inserts IC card 4 into card slot 3, the card reader module reads the information in IC card 4. After successful reading, the main control module collects the air pressure detection signal output by air pressure sensor 12, thereby obtaining the air pressure data in the flow control valve. The main control module packages the IC card 4 data and air pressure data and uploads the data to the cloud platform through the communication module. The data is stored in the data storage unit. The cloud platform parses the data to obtain the account information and air pressure data of the target flow control valve. The verification unit verifies the account information, including account number, balance, branch pipeline, and access point. After successful verification, the calculation unit retrieves the data from the storage unit. The storage unit retrieves the air pressure values ​​uploaded by all flow control valves in the branch pipeline where the target flow control valve is located, calculates the average air pressure value of the branch pipeline, and calculates the difference between the air pressure value of the target flow control valve and the average air pressure value. If the difference is greater than a preset value, the calculation unit finds the flow control valve whose air pressure value is closest to the average air pressure value, i.e., the reference flow control valve, by comparing them one by one. The calculation comparison unit calculates the recommended opening value of the valve core 6 of the target flow control valve based on the opening degree of the valve core 6 of the reference flow control valve and the distance between the reference flow control valve and the target flow control valve. After obtaining the recommended opening degree, the controller 11 of the one-way target flow control valve sends a control command containing the recommended opening degree value.

[0035] If the difference between the air pressure value of the target flow control valve and the average air pressure value of its branch pipeline is less than the preset value, the command sending unit will not send a control command to the controller 11 of the target flow control valve.

[0036] After receiving the control command, the controller 11 of the target flow control valve parses the control command to obtain the recommended opening value. The controller 11 then calculates the required opening adjustment amount based on the current valve core 6 opening value and the recommended opening value, and converts the opening adjustment amount into the rotation angle of the valve motor 9. The controller 11 then controls the valve motor 9 to rotate by this angle, thereby rotating the valve core 6 of the target flow control valve to the recommended opening.

[0037] The above solution enables dynamic adjustment of the flow control valve opening for each user within the gas supply pipeline, ensuring that the inlet gas pressure for each user within the same branch pipeline is close to the average gas pressure within that branch pipeline. This helps balance the gas pressure within the gas supply pipeline, effectively reducing the occurrence of insufficient inlet gas pressure for some users on the branch pipeline when there are many users connected to the branch pipeline due to its excessive length, thus improving the gas user experience.

[0038] Reference Figure 4 In this embodiment, the calculation of the recommended opening value is specifically as follows: obtain the valve core 6 opening value A0 of the reference flow control valve and its access point number on the branch pipeline, and obtain the access point number of the target flow control valve on the branch pipeline; determine its section on the branch pipeline according to the access point number of the reference flow control valve, and determine its section on the branch pipeline according to the access point number of the target flow control valve; obtain a compensation factor m according to the conveying distance value L between the two sections, and the recommended opening value K = m × A0.

[0039] The data storage unit pre-stores the actual length of each section of each branch pipeline, which can be directly retrieved when calculating the transmission distance.

[0040] It should be noted that multiple sets of experiments are needed beforehand to test the air pressure values ​​at the beginning and end of the transmission line at different distances. This yields the air pressure loss rate at different transmission distances, and based on this, the required air pressure compensation at the end of the line for different transmission distances is determined, i.e., the compensation rate, which is the compensation factor value. After extensive testing, a correspondence table between transmission distance and compensation factor can be obtained. This table is stored in a data storage unit. When calculating the recommended opening value, the corresponding compensation factor is directly retrieved based on the transmission distance between the two sections to complete the calculation.

[0041] As can be seen from the recommended opening calculation formula K=m×A0, this embodiment directly converts air pressure compensation into valve core 6 opening compensation. That is, by adjusting the valve core 6 opening, the purpose of controlling, regulating and compensating air pressure is indirectly achieved. This eliminates the need for a large amount of data calculation and analysis, improves the response and execution speed, and can better balance the air pressure of each flow control valve.

[0042] Considering that the number of users accessing the transmission distance between the two sections will affect the air pressure loss value, the cloud platform in this embodiment also includes a correction unit. The correction unit is used to correct the compensation factor based on the number of users accessing the transmission distance. Specifically: the correction unit obtains the number of users M currently accessing the two sections and the transmission distance L, defines the user density S = M / L, compares the calculated user density S with several preset density interval values, and each density interval value corresponds to a set of correction parameters α (the larger the interval value, the larger the correction parameter). After determining the interval where the user density S is located, the corresponding correction parameter α is retrieved, and the compensation factor m is corrected. Then, the corrected recommended opening degree K' = α × m × A0 can be calculated.

[0043] In this embodiment, the communication module is a WIFI module or an IoT card communication module.

[0044] In this embodiment, the power module is a UPS power supply.

[0045] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to constitute the present invention. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. An intelligent IC flow control valve, comprising a valve housing and a control box fixed on the valve housing, wherein the control box is provided with a card slot for inserting an IC card, a valve ball is installed inside the valve housing, the valve ball has a channel for gas flow, a valve core is installed inside the valve ball, the valve core has a through hole in the middle for gas flow, the valve core can rotate inside the valve ball, and the control box is provided with a drive mechanism for driving the valve core to rotate, a valve motor for providing power to the drive mechanism, and a controller for controlling the valve motor, characterized in that: It also includes a cloud platform, with the controller communicating with the cloud platform. A pressure sensor is installed inside the valve housing and connected to the controller. The controller reads IC card account data, collects pressure data within the valve housing, and uploads the data to the cloud platform. The cloud platform includes a data storage unit, a verification unit, a calculation unit, and an instruction sending unit. The data storage unit stores account data for each user. The verification unit verifies account information. The calculation unit calculates the recommended opening degree of the target flow control valve core based on the pressure value inside the target flow control valve and the average pressure value of the branch pipeline where the target flow control valve is located. The instruction sending unit sends a control instruction containing the recommended opening degree to the controller of the target flow control valve. Upon receiving the control instruction, the controller controls the valve motor to drive the valve core to rotate by the required angle. The calculation unit retrieves the branch pipeline information of the target flow control valve from the data storage unit. The system collects the air pressure values ​​uploaded by all flow control valves and calculates the average air pressure value of the branch pipeline. Then, it calculates the difference between the air pressure value of the target flow control valve and the average air pressure value. If the difference is greater than a preset value, the calculation unit compares the air pressure values ​​one by one to find the flow control valve whose air pressure value is closest to the average air pressure value, i.e., the reference flow control valve. The calculation comparison unit calculates the recommended valve opening value of the target flow control valve based on the valve core opening of the reference flow control valve and the distance between the reference flow control valve and the target flow control valve. When calculating the recommended opening value, the unit obtains the valve core opening value A0 of the reference flow control valve and its connection point number on the branch pipeline, as well as the connection point number of the target flow control valve on the branch pipeline. Based on the connection point number of the reference flow control valve, its section on the branch pipeline is determined, and based on the connection point number of the target flow control valve, its section on the branch pipeline is determined. A compensation factor m is obtained based on the transmission distance L between the two sections, and the recommended opening value K = m × A0.

2. The intelligent IC flow control valve according to claim 1, characterized in that: The cloud platform also includes a correction unit, which is used to correct the compensation factor based on the number of users accessing the platform within the transmission distance.

3. The intelligent IC flow control valve according to claim 2, characterized in that: The correction unit obtains the number of currently connected users M and the transmission distance L between the two segments, defines the user density S=M / L, compares the calculated user density S with several preset density interval values, each set of density interval values ​​corresponds to a set of correction parameters α, after determining the interval where the user density S is located, retrieves the corresponding correction parameter α, corrects the compensation factor m, and then calculates the corrected recommended opening degree K'=α×m×A0.

4. The intelligent IC flow control valve according to claim 1, characterized in that: The drive mechanism includes a rotating shaft rotatably connected to the valve housing. The lower end of the rotating shaft is coaxially connected to the valve core, and the upper end of the rotating shaft passes through the valve housing and extends into the control box. A worm gear is coaxially connected to the output shaft of the valve motor. A worm wheel is coaxially fixed to the upper part of the rotating shaft, and the worm gear meshes with the worm wheel. An angle encoder is installed above the rotating shaft. The housing of the angle encoder is fixed to the box, and the upper end of the rotating shaft is coaxially connected to the shaft of the angle encoder. The angle encoder is connected to the controller.

5. The intelligent IC flow control valve according to claim 1, characterized in that: The controller includes a main control module, a data acquisition module, a motor drive module, a communication module, a card reader module, a memory module, and a power supply module.

6. The intelligent IC flow control valve according to claim 5, characterized in that: The communication module is a WIFI module or an IoT card communication module.

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