Low-temperature environment liquid metal filling system

Abstract

The invention discloses a low-temperature environment liquid metal filling system, and belongs to the technical field of liquid metal processing. The system comprises a low-temperature solidification device, a liquid metal forming device, a liquid metal bearing and sealing structure and a heating and melting device, so that the purposes of accurately controlling the shape and the use amount, realizing more uniform distribution, realizing simple and easy operation of a workbench and an experimental device, isolating an oxygen environment, realizing controllable operation and reducing bubbles are achieved; the liquid metal bearing filling problem can be effectively solved, the bearing stability is improved, the service life is prolonged, and the cost is reduced. Liquid filling of liquid metal is changed into solid filling, and the problems of difficult filling and difficult sealing caused by large surface tension of the liquid metal are thoroughly avoided.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention belongs to the technical field of liquid metal processing, and particularly relates to a liquid metal filling system for low-temperature environments. Background Art

[0002] When a traditional ball bearing is used as the anode assembly of a CT tube, due to its poor heat dissipation performance, it will deform when heated; at the same time, its wear problem is serious, and the friction during operation is likely to cause wear or even jamming failure; in a high-temperature environment, the ball bearing will also generate relatively large noise and vibration. These limitations will lead to low efficiency of the CT tube during operation, affect the scanning accuracy, reduce the service life, and consume a large amount of time and capital costs.

[0003] In 1989, the Philips team launched the MRC200 tube, which was the first to use a liquid metal bearing to replace the ball bearing. Liquid metal has good fluidity and has both electrical conductivity and thermal conductivity. This liquid metal is usually composed of metals such as gallium, indium, and tin, and exists in a liquid state at room temperature. Relying on the excellent properties of liquid metal, the liquid metal bearing CT tube exhibits advantages such as high heat dissipation rate, low wear, low vibration, high reliability, and long service life.

[0004] In terms of practical applications, compared with the traditional ball bearing CT tube, the liquid metal bearing CT tube can provide higher heat capacity and stability, as well as stable photon output at higher rotation speeds, thereby improving the stability and accuracy of CT imaging, and improving the working efficiency and service life. Therefore, when a CT tube uses a liquid metal bearing, it can well solve the deficiencies shown by the ball bearing in terms of performance.

[0005] However, there are various problems when filling a liquid metal bearing. Due to the strong fluidity of liquid metal, it is very difficult to accurately control the injected volume during the filling process, which easily leads to deviation in the filling amount, thereby affecting the performance stability of the bearing; the surface tension of liquid metal is large, and it is difficult to enter the lubrication gap of the bearing; during the filling process, if air bubbles are mixed into the liquid metal, it will affect the performance and stability of the bearing; the air bubbles may cause pressure fluctuations during the operation of the bearing, reduce the load-bearing capacity of the liquid metal film, and may even cause vibration and noise of the bearing; and when filling in the atmospheric environment, once the liquid metal contacts air, it will rapidly oxidize, thereby affecting its performance and service life. Summary of the Invention

[0006] The objective of the embodiments of the present invention is to provide a liquid metal filling system for low-temperature environments, which can solve various problems that occur during the filling process of liquid metal bearings, realize non-oxidative, bubble-free, and easy-to-operate filling of liquid metal bearings, thereby solving at least one technical problem involved in the background art.

[0007] To solve the above technical problems, the present invention is implemented as follows:

[0008] An embodiment of the present invention provides a low-temperature environment liquid metal filling system, including:

[0009] A low-temperature solidification device, which includes a low-temperature refrigeration platform, a support platform provided on the low-temperature refrigeration platform and having a container groove, a container provided in the container groove for containing liquid metal, and a vibrator provided on the support platform for providing vibration to the liquid metal in the container;

[0010] A liquid metal forming device, which includes a support base for installing a mold, a lifting support platform located above the support base and capable of lifting up and down, a driving cylinder provided on the lifting support platform, and a stamping plate provided below the lifting support platform and driven by the driving cylinder to cooperate with the mold;

[0011] A liquid metal bearing and sealing structure, which includes a mandrel having a thrust disc, a bearing sleeve having an open end and sleeved on the mandrel through the open end, and a sealing structure for sealing the open end to prevent liquid metal leakage. The liquid metal is filled in the gap between the mandrel and the bearing sleeve;

[0012] A heating and melting device, which includes a melting support platform, a sealing cover provided on the melting support platform, and a heater provided in the sealing cover for heating the liquid metal bearing and sealing structure.

[0013] Optionally, the temperature of the low-temperature refrigeration platform is adjustable, the vibrator is an air vibrator, and the container groove is made of a material with good thermal conductivity and corrosion resistance.

[0014] Optionally, the liquid metal forming device further includes support columns for assembling the lifting support platform.

[0015] Optionally, the support base is provided with a T-shaped chute for configuring the mold, and the T-shaped chute penetrates the support base along the horizontal direction of the support base.

[0016] Optionally, the liquid metal forming device further includes a pneumatic solenoid valve and an air source processor that move synchronously with the lifting support platform. The pneumatic solenoid valve includes a first air outlet and a first air inlet; the air source processor includes a second air outlet; the driving cylinder includes a second air inlet; the first air outlet of the pneumatic solenoid valve is communicated with the second air inlet of the driving cylinder, and the first air inlet of the pneumatic solenoid valve is communicated with the second air outlet of the air source processor.

[0017] Optionally, an adjusting nut and a throttle valve are further provided on the driving cylinder. The adjusting nut is used to adjust the stroke of the cylinder, and the throttle valve is used to control the pressing-down speed of the air hole.

[0018] Optionally, the liquid metal forming device further includes two control buttons that need to be pressed simultaneously to control the pressing-down of the pressing plate.

[0019] Optionally, the sealing structure includes a stationary ring that abuts against the thrust disk and is sleeved on the mandrel, and a moving ring that abuts against the stationary ring and is sleeved on the mandrel. An inner side of the stationary ring is recessed to form a stationary ring groove that surrounds the mandrel for at least one circle and functions to return the liquid metal. A stationary ring gasket located between the stationary ring and the bearing sleeve is provided on an outer peripheral side of the stationary ring; an inner side of the moving ring is provided with a moving ring driving ring for transmitting torque to drive the moving ring to rotate synchronously with the mandrel.

[0020] Optionally, the stationary ring gasket is made of Ni42CrTi or 3J21 elastic alloy.

[0021] Optionally, the sealing cover is made of an acrylic board; the heater is a spiral heating coil, and the liquid metal bearing and the sealing structure are placed inside the heating coil.

[0022] The beneficial effects of the embodiments of the present invention are as follows:

[0023] 1. The present invention adopts the solid-state filling method and uses a low-temperature solidification device, and can successfully prepare liquid metal films / particles, and can accurately control the dosage and distribution of the liquid metal, thereby completely solving the problems of difficult filling and sealing of the liquid metal bearing due to the large surface tension of the liquid metal.

[0024] 2. The liquid metal film prepared by the present invention under low-temperature conditions can more accurately control its thickness and shape, thereby accurately controlling the amount of liquid metal filled into the bearing, which helps to ensure the consistency and stability of the bearing performance and avoid problems such as increased friction or insufficient lubrication caused by improper filling amount; at the same time, the liquid metal in the form of film / particles can be more evenly distributed inside the bearing and is easier to achieve precise coverage of key parts. This makes the performance of each area of the bearing more balanced during operation, improving the overall working efficiency and service life.

[0025] 3. The present invention adopts a low-temperature solidification device. In a low-temperature environment, the reaction rate of the liquid metal with oxygen will be greatly reduced, thereby reducing the oxidation of the liquid metal, which helps to maintain the purity and performance stability of the liquid metal and avoid wear and corrosion of the bearing caused by impurities and oxides generated by oxidation. Low temperature can inhibit the chemical reaction between the liquid metal and the bearing material, reduce the corrosion effect of the liquid metal on the metal components of the bearing, and extend the service life of the bearing.

[0026] 4. The low-temperature solidification device provided by the present invention can precisely control the solidification rate of liquid metal by adjusting the temperature and duration of low temperature, which is very important for ensuring the solidification state and distribution of liquid metal in the bearing. It can make the liquid metal rapidly solidify at specific parts of the bearing as needed to form a stable structure, or maintain a certain fluidity when necessary to adapt to the dynamic working conditions of the bearing. Moreover, low-temperature filling can reduce the generation of bubbles in the liquid metal. At low temperatures, the gas solubility in the liquid metal decreases, and the gas is more likely to escape from the liquid metal, thereby reducing the possibility of bubbles existing in the bearing after filling and reducing problems such as the decline in bearing performance and the shortening of service life caused by bubbles. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0027] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention, the following will briefly introduce the drawings required for the description of the embodiments. Obviously, the following drawings are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those of ordinary skill in the art, without creative efforts, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings, where:

[0028] Figure 1 is a schematic structural diagram of the low-temperature solidification device provided by the embodiment of the present invention;

[0029] Figure 2 is a schematic structural diagram of the liquid metal forming device provided by the embodiment of the present invention;

[0030] Figure 3 is one of the schematic structural diagrams of the mold provided by the embodiment of the present invention;

[0031] Figure 4 is another schematic structural diagram of the mold provided by the embodiment of the present invention;

[0032] Figure 5 is a schematic structural diagram of the stamping plate provided by the embodiment of the present invention;

[0033] Figure 6 is a schematic structural diagram of the liquid metal bearing and sealing structure provided by the embodiment of the present invention;

[0034] Figure 7 is a schematic structural diagram of the heating and melting device provided by the embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

[0035] Next, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present invention, rather than all of the embodiments. All other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art based on the embodiments of the present invention without making creative efforts fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0036] The terms "first", "second", etc. in the specification and claims of the present invention are used to distinguish similar objects, rather than to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that such data can be interchanged under appropriate circumstances so that the embodiments of the present invention can be implemented in an order other than those illustrated or described herein, and the objects distinguished by "first", "second", etc. are generally of the same category, and the number of objects is not limited. For example, the first object can be one or multiple. In addition, "and / or" in the specification and claims means at least one of the connected objects, and the character " / " generally indicates an "or" relationship between the associated objects before and after.

[0037] Please refer to Figures 1 to 5 As shown, the embodiment of the present invention provides a low-temperature environment liquid metal filling system, including a low-temperature solidification device 2, a liquid metal forming device 3, a liquid metal bearing and sealing structure 4, and a heating and melting device 6.

[0038] Specifically referring to Figure 1 As shown, the low-temperature solidification device 2 includes a low-temperature refrigeration platform 21, a support platform 22 disposed on the low-temperature refrigeration platform 21 and having a container groove 23, a container 26 disposed in the container groove 23 for containing liquid metal, and a vibrator 24 disposed on the support platform 22 for providing vibration to the liquid metal in the container 26. The vibrator 24 is fixed to the support platform 22 by bolts 25.

[0039] The temperature of the low-temperature refrigeration platform 21 is adjustable, providing a low-temperature environment and enabling accurate temperature adjustment. During the actual condensation process, the ambient temperature is controlled at 3°C - 5°C. At this temperature, the solidification of liquid metal can be achieved without causing the freezing of the NaOH solution.

[0040] The support platform 22 is preferably a metal support platform to provide efficient heat conduction.

[0041] The container 26 is fixed in the container groove 23, which can avoid large-scale displacement during the condensation process. Further, the container 26 is made of a material with good thermal conductivity and corrosion resistance.

[0042] The vibrator 24 is an air vibrator, which can provide a certain vibration frequency during the condensation process, so that the liquid metal can expel the gas dissolved in it during the low-temperature solidification process, reducing the impact on the stability of the bearing after filling.

[0043] The vibrator 24 is provided with a vibration air inlet 27 and a vibration air outlet 28 for controlling the inlet and outlet of gas.

[0044] In summary, the low-temperature solidification device 2 provided by the present invention can provide an environment for solidifying liquid metal, and effectively reduce the bubbles in the liquid metal through high-frequency and low-amplitude vibration, avoiding the adverse effects caused by the bubbles existing in the liquid metal.

[0045] For more details, refer to Figure 2 As shown, the liquid metal forming device 3 includes a support base 31 for installing a mold 32, a lifting support platform 33 located above the support base 31 and capable of lifting up and down, a driving cylinder 34 arranged on the lifting support platform 33, a pneumatic solenoid valve 35 and a gas source processor 36 that move synchronously with the lifting support platform 33, a pressing plate 37 arranged below the lifting support platform 33 and driven by the driving cylinder 34 to cooperate with the mold 32, and support columns 38 for assembling the lifting support platform 33.

[0046] The support base 31 is provided with a T-shaped chute 311 for configuring the mold 32. The T-shaped chute 311 penetrates the support base 31 along the horizontal direction of the support base 31. Designing the T-shaped chute 311 as a through type facilitates the rapid replacement of different molds 32 and efficiently realizes the preparation of films / particles.

[0047] The liquid metal forming device 3 further includes two control buttons 311 that need to be pressed simultaneously to control the downward pressure of the pressing plate 37. The two control buttons 311 are respectively arranged on the left and right sides of the support base 31.

[0048] The driving cylinder 34 is further provided with an adjusting nut 331 and a throttle valve 332. The adjusting nut 331 is used to adjust the cylinder stroke, and the throttle valve 332 is used to control the downward pressure speed of the air hole.

[0049] The pneumatic solenoid valve 35 includes a first air outlet 351, a third air outlet 352 and a first air inlet 353; the gas source processor 36 includes a second air outlet 361; the driving cylinder 34 includes a second air inlet 333; the first air outlet 351 of the pneumatic solenoid valve 35 is communicated with the second air inlet 333 of the driving cylinder 34, the second air outlet 352 of the pneumatic solenoid valve 35 is communicated with the throttle valve 332, and the first air inlet 353 of the pneumatic solenoid valve 25 is communicated with the second air outlet 361 of the gas source processor 36.

[0050] The surface structure of the mold 32 is as Figure 3 and Figure 4 shown for preparing a liquid metal film or particles. The structure of the stamping plate 37 is as Figure 5 shown so as to cooperate with the mold 32, so that a shearing force can be generated to realize the cutting and forming of the film or particles during the pressing process.

[0051] For more details, refer to Figure 6 shown. The liquid metal bearing and sealing structure 5 includes a mandrel 51 having a thrust disk 511, a bearing sleeve 52 having an open end and sleeved on the mandrel 51 through the open end, and a sealing structure 54 for sealing the open end to prevent leakage of liquid metal. The liquid metal is filled in the gap 53 between the mandrel 51 and the bearing sleeve 52. Of course, liquid metal films or particles of different sizes can be selected for filling according to the gap size between the mandrel 51 and the bearing sleeve 52 to achieve uniform filling. The specific filling method is as follows: First, assemble the mandrel 51 and the bearing sleeve 52. At this time, there is a space between the end face of the thrust disk 511 and the end face of the bearing sleeve 52 to ensure that filling can be carried out. Use tweezers to put the liquid metal film / particles into the gap between the mandrel 51 and the bearing sleeve 52. After filling, fully fit the mandrel 51 and the bearing sleeve 52, and the thrust disk 511 is close to the end face of the bearing sleeve 52. Finally, use the sealing structure 54 to complete the sealing.

[0052] The thrust disk 511 is annular and extends in the radial direction of the mandrel 51.

[0053] The sealing structure 54 includes a stationary ring 541 that abuts against the thrust disk 511 and is sleeved on the mandrel 51, and a moving ring 542 that abuts against the stationary ring 541 and is sleeved on the mandrel 51.

[0054] An inner side of the stationary ring 541 is recessed to form a stationary ring groove 543 that surrounds the mandrel 51 for at least one turn and serves to return the liquid metal. An outer peripheral side of the stationary ring 541 is provided with a stationary ring gasket 544 located between the stationary ring 541 and the bearing sleeve 52.

[0055] An inner side of the moving ring 542 is provided with a moving ring driving ring 545 for transmitting torque to drive the moving ring 542 to rotate synchronously with the mandrel 51, so as to reduce friction and vibration.

[0056] Furthermore, the stationary ring gasket 544 is made of Ni42CrTi or 3J21 elastic alloy.

[0057] Generally speaking, through the sealing structure 54, the present invention can effectively achieve the sealing of the liquid metal bearing and prevent the leakage of liquid metal, and can effectively extend the service life and reduce the maintenance cost.

[0058] Combined with Figure 7 As shown, the heating and melting device 6 includes a melting support platform 61, a sealing cover 62 arranged on the melting support platform 61, and a heater 64 arranged in the sealing cover 62 and used to heat the liquid metal bearing and the sealing structure 5.

[0059] The sealing cover 62 is made of acrylic plate, and is provided with an air inlet hole 621 and an air outlet hole 622 on it. During the actual heating process, argon is introduced into the internal environment to achieve an oxygen-free environment, so as to avoid the oxidation of liquid metal during the heating process.

[0060] The heater 64 is a spiral heating coil, and the liquid metal bearing and the sealing structure 5 are placed inside the heating coil. The heater 64 is distributed around the liquid metal bearing in the form of a spiral coil, which can provide uniform heat and avoid uneven heating. Taking the eutectic gallium-indium alloy as an example, during the actual heating process, when the temperature of the heating coil 64 is set at 30°C, the heating can be completed.

[0061] In order to facilitate the placement of the bearing, the heating and melting device 6 further includes a rotatable bearing carrier platform 63 arranged inside the heater 64 and used to place the bearing. During the heating process, the bearing is placed in the center of the rotatable bearing carrier platform 63 for heating. By rapidly rotating to provide centrifugal force, the liquid metal can be evenly distributed in the liquid metal bearing. It should be noted that the rotation mode of the rotatable bearing carrier platform 63 can be set to rotate a certain angle every certain period of time.

[0062] It should be noted that in this article, the term "comprising", "including" or any other variant thereof is intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that a process, method, article or device including a series of elements not only includes those elements, but also includes other elements not expressly listed, or also includes elements inherent to such process, method, article or device. Without further limitation, an element defined by the statement "including a..." does not exclude the existence of another identical element in the process, method, article or device including the element.

[0063] In addition, it should be noted that the scope of the methods and systems in the embodiments of the present invention is not limited to performing functions in the order shown or discussed. It may also include performing functions in a substantially simultaneous manner or in the reverse order according to the functions involved. For example, the described methods may be performed in an order different from that described, and various steps may be added, omitted, or combined. Additionally, the features described with reference to certain examples may be combined in other examples.

[0064] The embodiments of the present invention have been described above in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the above specific embodiments. The above specific embodiments are merely illustrative and not restrictive. Under the inspiration of the present invention, those of ordinary skill in the art can also make many forms without departing from the spirit and scope protected by the claims of the present invention, and all of them fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A low-temperature environment liquid metal filling system, characterized in that, Comprising: A low-temperature solidification device, which includes a low-temperature refrigeration platform, a support platform provided on the low-temperature refrigeration platform and having a container groove, a container provided in the container groove for containing liquid metal, and a vibrator provided on the support platform for providing vibration to the liquid metal in the container; A liquid metal forming device, which includes a support base for installing a mold, a lifting support platform located above the support base and capable of lifting up and down, a driving cylinder provided on the lifting support platform, and a stamping plate provided below the lifting support platform and driven by the driving cylinder to cooperate with the mold; A liquid metal bearing and sealing structure, which includes a mandrel having a thrust disk, a bearing sleeve having an open end and sleeved on the mandrel through the open end, and a sealing structure for sealing the open end to prevent leakage of liquid metal. The liquid metal is filled in the gap between the mandrel and the bearing sleeve; A heating and melting device, which includes a melting support table, a sealing cover provided on the melting support table, and a heater provided in the sealing cover for heating the liquid metal bearing and sealing structure.

2. The low-temperature environment liquid metal filling system according to claim 1, wherein The temperature of the low-temperature refrigeration platform is adjustable. The vibrator is an air vibrator, and the container groove is made of a material with good thermal conductivity and corrosion resistance.

3. The low-temperature environment liquid metal filling system according to claim 1, characterized in that The liquid metal forming device further includes support columns for assembling the lifting support platform.

4. The low-temperature environment liquid metal filling system according to claim 3, wherein The support base is provided with a T-shaped sliding groove for configuring the mold, and the T-shaped sliding groove penetrates the support base along the horizontal direction of the support base.

5. The low-temperature environment liquid metal filling system according to claim 4, wherein The liquid metal forming device further includes a pneumatic solenoid valve and a gas source processor that move synchronously with the lifting support platform. The pneumatic solenoid valve includes a first air outlet and a first air inlet; the gas source processor includes a second air outlet; the driving cylinder includes a second air inlet; the first air outlet of the pneumatic solenoid valve is communicated with the second air inlet of the driving cylinder, and the first air inlet of the pneumatic solenoid valve is communicated with the second air outlet of the gas source processor.

6. The low-temperature environment liquid metal filling system according to claim 5, wherein The driving cylinder is further provided with an adjusting nut and a throttle valve. The adjusting nut is used to adjust the cylinder stroke, and the throttle valve is used to control the downward pressing speed of the air hole.

7. The low-temperature environment liquid metal filling system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The liquid metal forming device further includes two control buttons that need to be pressed simultaneously to control the downward pressing of the stamping plate.

8. The low-temperature environment liquid metal filling system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The sealing structure includes a stationary ring provided against the thrust disk and sleeved on the mandrel, and a moving ring provided against the stationary ring and sleeved on the mandrel. An inner side of the stationary ring is recessed to form a stationary ring groove that surrounds the mandrel at least one circle and serves as a liquid metal return channel. A stationary ring gasket is provided on an outer peripheral side of the stationary ring between the stationary ring and the bearing sleeve; an inner side of the moving ring is provided with a moving ring driving ring for transmitting torque to drive the moving ring to rotate synchronously with the mandrel.

9. The low-temperature environment liquid metal filling system according to claim 8, wherein The stationary ring gasket is made of Ni42CrTi or 3J21 elastic alloy.

10. The low-temperature environment liquid metal filling system according to claim 1, characterized in that The sealing cover is made of an acrylic plate; the heater is a spiral heating coil, and the liquid metal bearing and sealing structure is placed inside the heating coil.

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