Combined structure of electronic water valve

Abstract

Proposed is a combined structure of an electronic water valve including an electromagnetic unit including a coil body and a magnetic yoke having an upper support plate and a lower support plate, and a valve body including an upper member and a lower member. The combined structure includes a locking long hole formed in each of opposite sides of the lower support plate, a protruding elastic pressing rod, a protruding locking rod formed on each of opposite sides of an upper portion of the upper member, and a burr blocking device formed on an outer circumference of the upper member and preventing a welding burr generated when performing friction welding of the upper member and the lower member constituting the valve body from being exposed to an outer side of the outer circumference of the valve body through a gap of a friction welding portion.

Description

[0001] This application claims priority to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2022-0087283, filed on July 15, 2022, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference for all purposes. Technical Field

[0002] This disclosure relates to an assembly structure for an electronic water valve. More specifically, this disclosure relates to an assembly structure for an electronic water valve in which the valve body and the electromagnetic unit can be easily assembled by simplifying the assembly structure of the electromagnetic unit. Background Technology

[0003] Electromagnetic water valves (hereinafter referred to as "electronic water valves") that perform the desired opening and closing operations by using the magnetic force generated when an electric current is applied are widely used, primarily in electronic products such as washing machines, dishwashers, refrigerators, and coffee vending machines, to control the water supply function of these electronic products.

[0004] Such an electronic water valve generally consists of or includes a valve body and an electromagnetic unit. The valve body of the electronic water valve constructed as described above is divided into an upper part and a lower part. Furthermore, the valve body includes an upper member formed in the shape of a cap, and a lower member. The lower member is provided with an inlet, an outlet, and a valve seat, with the valve seat located in the central portion of the lower member's interior. Additionally, a diaphragm is provided between the upper and lower members, dividing the upper and lower spaces and being flexibly mounted using a restoring element.

[0005] Furthermore, the electromagnetic unit includes a coil body and a magnetic yoke formed in a channel steel beam and positioned on the outer periphery of the coil body. The magnetic yoke is a support structure that includes a bottom surface, a connecting rod, and a support surface, forming a magnetic field loop. Additionally, the electromagnetic unit is mounted on the upper surface of the valve body.

[0006] In the electronic water valve constructed as described above, the diaphragm moves according to the plunger, causing the valve seat to open and close, thereby controlling the predetermined water supply function. The plunger passes through the valve body and the electromagnetic unit and is installed between the valve body and the electromagnetic unit, and moves up and down by the magnetic force generated by the coil body of the electromagnetic unit driven by the electrical signal.

[0007] Furthermore, in traditional electronic water valves, the valve body and the solenoid unit are combined into two parts. In addition, various combined structures have been developed and used as the traditional combination of valve body and solenoid unit.

[0008] Therefore, as an example of the combined structure of the valve body and the electromagnetic unit of a conventional electronic water valve, the rotary combination structure (hereinafter referred to as the "conventional rotary combination structure") is known.

[0009] The conventional rotary assembly structure features a protruding hook and a recessed assembly. The protruding hook protrudes vertically on each of the opposite sides of the upper surface of the valve body, and the recessed assembly is formed on each of the opposite sides of the bottom surface of the magnetic yoke of the electromagnetic unit. The recessed assembly includes a locking part and a passage for the protruding hook to enter and exit. Furthermore, the electromagnetic unit is placed on the upper part of the valve body and rotates in the left-right direction, causing the protruding hook and the recessed assembly to engage with each other, thereby assembling the valve body and the electromagnetic unit.

[0010] Furthermore, after the convex hook and concave assembly that constitute the conventional rotary combination structure are engaged and combined, the fastening pin is fastened such that the fastening pin passes through in a direction perpendicular to the left and right rotation direction when the yoke of the electromagnetic unit and the valve body are combined, thereby preventing the locking part of the convex hook and the concave assembly from separating.

[0011] Therefore, in traditional rotary assembly structures, the fastening pin needs to be tightened after the convex and concave parts mate. Thus, when assembling the valve body and solenoid unit, a dual operation of rotary assembly and tightening of the fastening pin is required. This results in reduced productivity due to the numerous steps involved in the assembly process, and increased valve manufacturing costs due to the increased number of components required for the assembly.

[0012] Furthermore, in traditional rotary assembly structures, due to assembly tolerances during assembly operations, the electromagnetic unit moves slightly vertically above the valve body, resulting in a non-rigid assembly. This leads to reduced product reliability, such as frequent product failures.

[0013] Related technical documents

[0014] Korean Patent Application Publication No. 10-2017-0118352 (Patent Document 0001) Summary of the Invention

[0015] Therefore, this disclosure is made in consideration of the aforementioned problems that have arisen in the prior art.

[0016] One object of this disclosure is to provide a combined structure for an electronic water valve, wherein the combined structure of the valve body and the electromagnetic unit is simplified and the electromagnetic unit is rigidly combined on the upper part of the valve body, thereby preventing the electromagnetic unit from separating when using the electronic water valve.

[0017] Furthermore, another object of this disclosure is to provide an assembly structure for an electronic water valve that prevents welding burrs from being exposed to the outer periphery of the valve body through the gap between the friction welded portions. The welding burrs are generated during the friction welding of the upper and lower components constituting the valve body, and the gap is formed between the upper and lower components.

[0018] To achieve the above objectives, a combined structure for an electronic water valve is provided. The electronic water valve includes an electromagnetic unit and a valve body. The electromagnetic unit includes a coil body and a magnetic yoke. The magnetic yoke has an upper support plate and a lower support plate. The valve body includes an upper component and a lower component. The upper component is cap-shaped, and the lower component is provided with an inlet, an outlet, a valve seat, and a diaphragm. The combined structure includes: a locking elongated hole formed on each of the opposite sides of the lower support plate and elongated in the front-rear direction; the lower support plate constituting the magnetic yoke of the electromagnetic unit; an elastic pressure rod protruding such that the elastic pressure rod tilts upward from the lower part of the internal cross-section of the locking elongated hole toward the outer side of the locking elongated hole; and a protruding locking rod formed on each of the opposite sides of the upper part of the upper component constituting the valve body, such that the protruding locking rod passes through and is inserted into the locking elongated hole. The raised locking rod is constructed such that a locking protrusion is provided on the outer side of the upper part of the raised locking rod. When the raised locking rod is in the state of passing through the locking elongated hole, the locking protrusion is locked on the upper surface near the outer side of the locking elongated hole. The raised locking rod is also constructed such that when the raised locking rod is in the state of passing through the locking elongated hole, the upper part of the elastic pressure rod presses the inner surface of the raised locking rod with elastic restoring force, and the raised locking rod is in close contact with the elastic pressure rod, thereby preventing the raised locking rod from separating. A burr blocking device is formed on the outer periphery of the upper member and prevents welding burrs from being exposed to the outer periphery of the valve body through the gap of the friction welding part. The welding burrs are generated during the friction welding of the upper member and the lower member constituting the valve body, and the gap is formed between the upper member and the lower member.

[0019] In the present disclosure configured as described above, the combined structure of the valve body and the solenoid unit is simplified, allowing for easy and rapid assembly of the valve body and solenoid unit in a single operation, thereby increasing product productivity. Furthermore, it offers the advantage of reducing the manufacturing cost of the combined valve body and solenoid unit structure, thus lowering the manufacturing cost of the electronic water valve.

[0020] Furthermore, in this invention, since the electromagnetic unit is rigidly assembled on the upper part of the valve body, the electromagnetic unit is prevented from separating when using the electronic water valve, thus providing the advantage of providing an electronic water valve that ensures reliability.

[0021] Furthermore, in this disclosure, since welding burrs generated during the friction welding of the upper and lower components constituting the valve body are prevented from being exposed to the outer periphery of the valve body through the gap formed between the upper and lower components, it is advantageous that the operation of removing welding burrs from the outer periphery of the valve body is not required after the welding of the upper and lower components. Attached Figure Description

[0022] The above and other objects, features and advantages of this disclosure will be more clearly understood through the following detailed embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0023] Figure 1 This is a perspective view showing an electronic water valve with the combined structure according to the present disclosure;

[0024] Figure 2 This is a plan view showing an electronic water valve with the combined structure according to this disclosure;

[0025] Figure 3 It is along Figure 2 A cross-sectional view taken from line AA in the diagram;

[0026] Figure 4 It is shown Figure 3 An enlarged view of part B in the image; and

[0027] Figure 5A and Figure 5B This is a schematic diagram illustrating the assembly process of the assembly structure according to the present disclosure, wherein, Figure 5A This is a diagram showing the state where the electromagnetic unit is separated from the valve body. Figure 5B This is a diagram showing the process of assembling the electromagnetic unit on the valve body. Detailed Implementation

[0028] In the following description, exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, it should be understood that the present disclosure may be implemented in various different forms and is not limited to the described embodiments.

[0029] Figure 1 This is a perspective view showing an electronic water valve employing the combined structure according to this disclosure. Figure 2 This is a plan view showing an electronic water valve using the combined structure according to this disclosure. Figure 3 It is along Figure 2 The cross-sectional view taken from line AA in the diagram. Figure 4 It is shown Figure 3 An enlarged view of part B in the image. Figure 5A and Figure 5B This is a schematic diagram illustrating the assembly process of the assembly structure according to the present disclosure.

[0030] First, as shown in the figure, the electronic water valve assembly structure according to this disclosure is installed in the electronic water valve, which includes an electromagnetic unit 2, a valve body 1, and a plunger 3.

[0031] The electromagnetic unit 2 includes a coil body 21 and a magnetic yoke 22 formed of a channel-shaped steel beam. Furthermore, the magnetic yoke 22 includes a connecting rod vertically mounted on the outer periphery of the coil body 21, and includes an upper support plate 221 and a lower support plate 222 formed in a disc shape, and is also a support structure forming a magnetic field loop. This type of electromagnetic unit 2 is known.

[0032] The valve body 1 includes an upper member 11 formed in the shape of a cap, and a lower member 12. The lower member 12 is provided with an inlet 121, an outlet 122, and a valve seat 123, the valve seat 123 being located in the central portion of the interior of the lower member 12. Furthermore, a diaphragm 13 configured to open and close the valve seat 123 is installed in the interior portion of the valve body 1. This type of valve body 1 is known.

[0033] When the valve body 1 and the solenoid unit 2 face each other and are engaged, the plunger 3 is installed vertically through the interior portions of the valve body 1 and the solenoid unit 2, and is configured to move up and down by the magnetic force generated in the coil body 21. Furthermore, the plunger 3 is used to open and close the valve seat 123 by operating the diaphragm 13. Such a plunger 3 is known.

[0034] Specifically, the electronic water valve assembly structure according to this disclosure can be configured such that one of the electromagnetic units 2 is installed in an electronic water valve with one inlet 121 and one outlet 122, or two of the electromagnetic units 2 are installed in an electronic water valve with one inlet 121 and two outlets 122. The accompanying drawings show an electronic water valve with two of the electromagnetic units 2 installed in one valve body 1, according to the electronic water valve assembly structure of this disclosure.

[0035] Therefore, the combined structure of the electronic water valve according to this disclosure is provided in an electronic water valve including the electromagnetic unit 2, valve body 1 and plunger 3 as described above, and includes a locking elongated hole 4, an elastic pressure rod 5 and a raised locking rod 6.

[0036] An elongated locking hole 4, extending in the front-to-back direction, is formed on each side of the lower support plate 222 of the magnetic yoke 22 constituting the electronic water valve. Furthermore, the elongated locking hole 4 can be formed as an arc shape extending in the front-to-back direction, or it can be formed as a straight line shape extending in the front-to-back direction. The accompanying drawings show an elongated locking hole 4 formed as an arc shape.

[0037] The elastic pressure bar 5 is formed such that it protrudes from the lower part of the inner cross-section of the locking elongated hole 4 and tilts upward toward the outside. More specifically, the elastic pressure bar 5 is formed as a rectangular plate integrally connected to the lower part of the inner cross-section of the locking elongated hole 4. Furthermore, since the upper part of the elastic pressure bar 5 can elastically move in the left-right direction around the lower part of the elastic pressure bar 5, the elastic pressure bar 5 can press the inner surface of the protruding locking bar 6, which will be described later, using elastic restoring force, and its specific implementation will be described below.

[0038] The protruding locking rod 6 is formed such that it passes through and inserts into the locking elongated hole 4, which is positioned on each of the opposite sides of the upper member 11 constituting the electronic water valve. Furthermore, a locking protrusion 61 is formed on the upper outer side of each of the protruding locking rods 6. When each of the protruding locking rods 6 is in the state of passing through the locking elongated hole 4, the locking protrusion 61 locks near the outer side of the upper surface of the locking elongated hole 4. Moreover, when each of the protruding locking rods 6 is in the state of passing through and engaging with the locking elongated hole 4, the upper part of the elastic pressure rod 5 presses against the inner surface of the protruding locking rod 6 using an elastic restoring force and makes tight contact with the protruding locking rod 6, thereby preventing the protruding locking rod 6 from separating.

[0039] Depending on the shape of the locking elongated hole 4, when the locking elongated hole 4 is formed into an arc shape, the protruding locking rod 6 can be formed into an arc shape that protrudes long in the front-back direction, and when the locking elongated hole 4 is formed into a straight line shape, the protruding locking rod 6 can be formed into a straight line shape that protrudes long in the front-back direction. In the accompanying drawings, a protruding locking rod 6 in the form of an arc shape that protrudes long in the front-back direction is shown.

[0040] Preferably, a horizontal surface 611 is formed at the lower part of the locking protrusion 61, and when the protruding locking rod 6 is in the state of passing through the locking elongated hole 4, the horizontal surface 611 is rigidly and tightly locked near the outer side of the upper surface of the locking elongated hole 4.

[0041] Preferably, in order to allow the protruding locking rod 6 to be smoothly inserted into the locking elongated hole 4, an inclined surface 62 is formed on the upper part of the protruding locking rod 6, including the locking protrusion 61, and the inclined surface 62 is inclined downward from the inner side of the upper part of the protruding locking rod 6 toward the outer side.

[0042] The process of assembling and combining the electromagnetic unit 2 with the valve body 1 using the combined structure of the electronic water valve according to the present disclosure will be described below.

[0043] like Figures 1 to 5BAs shown, when the electromagnetic unit 2 is assembled onto the upper part of the valve body 1 that constitutes the electronic water valve, the assembler holds the electromagnetic unit 2 in one hand and positions the electromagnetic unit 2 on the upper part of the valve body 1, and then moves the electromagnetic unit 2 downward from the upper part of the valve body 1. This causes the protruding locking rod 6 formed on the opposite side of the valve body 1 to pass through and be inserted into the locking elongated hole 4 formed on the opposite side of the lower support plate 22 of the electromagnetic unit 2, thereby completing the assembly of the electromagnetic unit 2 and the valve body 1.

[0044] More specifically, as described above, during the process where the assembler holds the electromagnetic unit 2 in one hand and moves it downward from the upper part of the valve body 1, during the process where the locking protrusion 61 of the protruding locking rod 6 passes from the lower part of the locking elongated hole 4 to the upper part of the locking elongated hole 4, such as Figure 5B As shown, the upper part of the elastic pressure bar 5 connected to the lower part of the inner section of the locking elongated hole 4 rotates and moves inward from the lower part of the elastic pressure bar 5, so that the locking protrusion 61 of the protruding locking bar 6 can pass through the locking elongated hole 4.

[0045] Furthermore, since the assembler completes the process of holding the electromagnetic unit 2 with one hand and moving it downward from the top of the valve body 1, the horizontal surface 611 of the locking protrusion 61 constituting the protruding locking rod 6 is locked near the outer side of the upper surface of the locking elongated hole 4, so that the horizontal surface 611 is in close contact with the outer side of the upper surface of the locking elongated hole 4. Then, when the upper part of the elastic pressure rod 5 connected to the lower part of the inner section of the locking elongated hole 4 rotates around the lower part of the elastic pressure rod 5 and moves outward under the action of the elastic restoring force, the inner surface of the protruding locking rod 6 is pressed outward by the upper part of the elastic pressure rod 5 under the action of the elastic restoring force.

[0046] Therefore, in this disclosure, the combined structure of the electromagnetic unit 2 and the valve body 1 is simplified to a protruding locking rod 6 and a locking elongated hole 4 with an elastic pressure rod 5. Thus, when the valve body 1 and the electromagnetic unit 2 are combined, they can be easily and quickly assembled in one process, reducing the manufacturing cost of the combined structure and making this disclosure advantageous.

[0047] Furthermore, in this disclosure, when the electromagnetic unit 2 is combined with the valve body 1, the inner surface of each of the protruding locking rods 6 (locked and fitted into the corresponding locking elongated hole 4 by passing through it) is pressed outward by the upper part of the corresponding elastic pressure rod 5 using an elastic restoring force, so that the electromagnetic unit 2 can be rigidly combined with the upper part of the valve body 1. Therefore, even if vibration of the electronic water valve or external impact is applied to the electronic water valve during use, the reliability of preventing the electromagnetic unit 2 from separating is ensured, making the present invention advantageous.

[0048] Furthermore, in this disclosure, since each of the protruding locking rods 6 is locked and fixed to the corresponding locking elongated hole 4, the electromagnetic unit 2 is rigidly assembled to the upper part of the valve body 1 and does not move in the vertical direction.

[0049] In addition, such as Figure 3 and Figure 4 As shown, the combined structure of the electronic water valve according to this disclosure may further include a burr blocking device 8. The burr blocking device 8 is formed on the outer periphery of the upper member 11 and prevents welding burrs from being exposed to the outer side of the outer periphery of the upper member 11 through the gap 73 of the friction welding part 7. The gap 73 is formed between the upper member 11 and the lower member 12. Welding burrs are generated during the friction welding of the upper member 11 and the lower member 12 constituting the valve body 1.

[0050] First, the friction welding part 7 includes a groove 71, a raised connecting part 72, and a gap 73. The groove 71 is recessed on the circumferential surface of the lower member 12 and has an inner surface on which a first inclined welding surface is formed, which is inclined upward from the lower part to the inside. The raised connecting part 72 is formed on the lower circumferential surface of the upper member 11 such that the raised connecting part 72 is inserted into the groove 71. The raised connecting part 72 has an inner surface on which a second inclined welding surface is formed on the first inclined welding surface. The gap 73 is formed between the upper member 11 and the lower member 12.

[0051] The burr blocking device 8 may include a circumferential extension 81 and a raised blocking portion 82. The circumferential extension 81 protrudes outward from the outer periphery of the upper member 11, and the raised blocking portion 82 protrudes downward from the lower part of the circumferential extension 81 and covers the outside of the gap 73 formed between the upper member 11 and the lower member 12, thereby preventing welding burrs from being exposed to the outside.

[0052] Therefore, in this disclosure, welding burrs generated during friction welding of the upper member 11 and the lower member 12 constituting the valve body 1 are prevented from being exposed to the outer periphery of the valve body 1 through the gap 73 formed between the upper member 11 and the lower member 12. Thus, this disclosure has the advantage that it eliminates the need to remove welding burrs from the outer periphery of the valve body 1 after the welding of the upper member 11 and the lower member 12 is completed.

[0053] In addition, the upper member 11 may also include a burr collecting groove 9 formed in the upper inner side of the inner surface of the protruding connecting portion 72, such that the burr collecting groove 9 is recessed upward, the upper inner side is the lower outer peripheral surface of the upper member 11, the burr collecting groove 9 collects the welding burrs generated during friction welding and moving upward, and the burr collecting groove 9 prevents the welding burrs from being discharged to the upper part of the valve body 1 through the gap 73 of the friction welding portion 7.

[0054] Therefore, since welding burrs are prevented from being discharged through the gap 73 of the friction weld 7 and exposed on the upper part of the valve body 1, this disclosure has the following advantages: it is not necessary to perform the operation of removing welding burrs on the upper part of the valve body 1 after the operation of welding the upper component 11 and the lower component 12 is completed.

[0055] Although exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above, various changes, modifications, and equivalents may be used with respect to the present disclosure. It will be readily understood that the present disclosure may be applied equivalently by appropriately modifying the above embodiments. Therefore, the scope of the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims is not limited by the foregoing description.

[0056] Furthermore, specific exemplary embodiments have been described in the detailed embodiments of this disclosure, but it will be readily understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of this disclosure.

Claims

1. A combined structure for an electronic water valve, wherein, The electronic water valve includes: An electromagnetic unit includes a coil body and a magnetic yoke, the magnetic yoke having an upper support plate and a lower support plate; and The valve body includes an upper component and a lower component. The upper component is shaped like a cap, and the lower component is provided with an inlet, an outlet, a valve seat, and a diaphragm. The combined structure includes: A locking elongated hole is formed on each of the opposite sides of the lower support plate and is elongated in the front-rear direction; the lower support plate constitutes the magnetic yoke of the electromagnetic unit. The elastic pressure bar protrudes such that it tilts upward from the lower part of the inner section of the locking elongated hole toward the outer side of the locking elongated hole; A raised locking rod is formed on each of the opposite sides of the upper portion of the upper member constituting the valve body, such that the raised locking rod passes through and is inserted into the locking elongated hole. The raised locking rod is configured such that a locking protrusion is provided on the outer side of its upper portion. When the raised locking rod is in the state of passing through the locking elongated hole, the locking protrusion is locked near the outer side of the upper surface of the locking elongated hole. Furthermore, the raised locking rod is configured such that when the raised locking rod is in the state of passing through the locking elongated hole, the upper portion of the elastic pressure rod presses against the inner surface of the raised locking rod using an elastic restoring force, and the raised locking rod is in close contact with the elastic pressure rod, thereby preventing the raised locking rod from separating. A burr blocking device is formed on the outer periphery of the upper member and prevents welding burrs from being exposed to the outer side of the outer periphery of the valve body through the gap of the friction weld portion, the welding burrs being generated during the friction welding of the upper member and the lower member constituting the valve body, the gap being formed between the upper member and the lower member.

2. The combined structure of the electronic water valve according to claim 1, wherein, The lower part of the locking protrusion has a horizontal surface such that when the protruding locking rod is in the state of passing through the locking elongated hole, the protruding locking rod is locked near the outer side of the upper surface of the locking elongated hole and in close contact with the outer side of the upper surface. The upper part of the protruding locking rod, including the locking protrusion, has an inclined surface that slopes downward from the inner side of the upper part of the protruding locking rod toward the outer side of the upper part of the protruding locking rod.

3. The combined structure of the electronic water valve according to claim 1, wherein, The friction welding part includes: A groove is recessed in the outer periphery of the upper surface of the lower member and has an inner surface provided with a first inclined welding surface, the first inclined welding surface being inclined upward from the lower part of the groove to the inner side of the groove. A protruding connecting portion is formed on the outer periphery of the lower surface of the upper member such that the protruding connecting portion is inserted into the groove, and has an inner surface provided with a second inclined welding surface, the second inclined welding surface being friction-welded to the first inclined welding surface; and A gap is formed between the upper member and the lower member. The burr blocking device includes: A peripheral extension protrudes outward from the outer periphery of the upper member; and A raised blocking portion protrudes downward from the lower part of the outer peripheral extension and covers the outside of the gap formed between the upper member and the lower member, thereby preventing the weld burrs from being exposed on the outside.

4. The combined structure of the electronic water valve according to claim 3, wherein, The upper component also includes a burr collection groove, which is formed in the upper part of the outer periphery of the lower surface of the upper component on the inner side of the inner surface of the protruding connection, such that the burr collection groove is recessed upward. The burr collection groove collects the welding burrs generated during the friction welding and moving upward, thereby preventing the welding burrs from being discharged through the gap of the friction welding part and exposed on the upper part of the valve body.

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