Valve

Abstract

A valve (10) has a valve element (14) and a substantially closed chamber (24) on a side of the valve element opposite an inflow side (18) of the valve element, which inflow side can be subjected to pressure, characterized in that the chamber (24) has at least one outflow throttle (28) leading to a low-pressure side.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a valve. Background Art

[0002] Similar valves, such as those shown, for example, in US 9638340 B2 or US11428338 B2, typically have a rotatable valve element also referred to as a puck, which rotates substantially about the central axis of the valve element in a manner of sliding contact with at least one disk. In order to ensure sealing in the case where the valve should block the fluid flow, the valve element must always be in sealing contact with a mating element, such as the mentioned disk. When the valve element now has to rotate with respect to the mating element and still always in a manner of sliding contact with the mating element in order to set another position, due to the relatively high frictional force caused by the unit area pressure necessary for the sealing contact, a relatively strong actuator is required. In other words, the coefficient of friction needs to be improved, and thus a relatively powerful actuator is currently used in such valves.

[0003] The valve for a household appliance according to EP 3 369 972 A1 has a rotatable valve disk and a slider movable in the flow direction to ensure additional sealing in the case of high differential pressure. However, this requires additional components, such as the mentioned slider.

[0004] Another similar valve according to WO 2022 / 117143 A1 disadvantageously requires a relatively large structural space. Summary of the Invention

[0005] In this context, the object underlying the present invention is to improve such a valve in terms of the required structural space and the number of individual components, and at the same time meet the requirements put forward.

[0006] The solution to the object is achieved by the valve described in claim 1.

[0007] Thus, the valve has a substantially closed chamber on the side of the valve element opposite the pressure-loaded inflow side of the valve element. The chamber is provided with at least one outflow throttle valve leading to the low-pressure side. Since the outflow throttle valve is arranged on the side of the valve element opposite the pressure-loaded inflow side, the chamber essentially acts as an anti-pressure chamber. In other words, the pressure present in the chamber assists in pressing the valve element against the mating element in order to improve the sealing. However, the additional contact pressure is applied only when it is needed in an advantageous manner. This essentially corresponds to the case where the valve element is loaded on the inflow side with a relatively high pressure as described above that must be counteracted. The inevitable leakage between the valve element and the mating element is essentially used to build up pressure in the described chamber. As described, the fluid flows into the chamber through this leakage and presses the valve element against the mating element. Here, the inflow pressure or inlet pressure is greater than the pressure present in the chamber. However, for the described case of a relatively high pressure on the inflow side, the latter reduces to the following pressure: the valve must be pressed onto the valve seat, i.e., the mating element, with this pressure by suitable measures such as a spring, etc.

[0008] The pressure present in the described chamber is greater than the pressure on the low-pressure side of the valve, e.g., at the outlet, and the fluid in the chamber can flow out via the described outflow throttle valve leading to the low-pressure side. Thus, the outflow throttle valve essentially regulates the pressure present in the chamber. This also applies to the pressure in the described chamber especially when there is a relatively small pressure on the inflow side, so that no unnecessary additional contact pressure is applied to the valve element in this case, the friction during the movement of the valve element with respect to the mating element can be kept small, and a relatively small torque must be applied on the actuator side in order to move the valve element.

[0009] In the case of a relatively high pressure on the inflow side, the balance occurs in a substantially regulated manner as follows: the opening that enables leakage between the valve element and the mating element shrinks due to the counter-pressure built up in the chamber, and a substantially stable leakage flow is formed into the chamber and from there through the outflow throttle valve towards the outflow section.

[0010] It should be mentioned that the valve according to the invention can be arranged in a vehicle, especially in the cooling circuit of a vehicle. In particular, the valve according to the invention can also be used in a cooling water circuit as in other coolant circuits. In addition, the described chamber can be implemented with relatively low cost because the chamber essentially only needs to be bounded by the housing, and advantageously no movable or active components need to be provided in the chamber. Furthermore, the chamber does not increase or does not significantly increase the required structural space, and the outflow throttle valve can also be constructed in a simple manner and method and without additional components as described more precisely below.

[0011] Preferred embodiments of the invention are described in the other claims.

[0012] Advantageously, the actuator can be arranged on the side of the chamber, such that, in other words, the outflow side of the valve is likewise preferably on the side of the inflow. Advantageously, in this way, one side of the valve can be optimally designed with respect to the chamber and the connection to the actuator, while the opposite side has the necessary inflow and outflow sections.

[0013] Particularly easy to implement and thus preferred as a structural form is a valve in which the valve element can rotate about an axis extending through the valve element. Such a valve element can be provided in a simple manner and method with the necessary recesses and / or openings, preferably being substantially disc-shaped and can accordingly be referred to as a disc member.

[0014] The described outflow throttle valve can be formed in an effective manner and method in a housing surrounding the chamber and / or a mating element of the valve element, such as a disc, with which the valve element is in sealing contact.

[0015] Alternatively or additionally, it is conceivable that the outflow throttle valve is formed in the valve element itself.

[0016] Furthermore, the outflow throttle valve can be formed as a cut or groove in one or more of the members mentioned above by means of simple means and effectively.

[0017] Advantageously, by means of the measures according to the invention, it can be achieved that the valve element is in sealing contact with the mating element with a pressure per unit area of less than 0.2 N / mm in the initial state, i.e. when the ambient pressure or the system pressure of a closed fluid circuit acts on the valve element only from all sides. 2

[0018] The described structural form can also be advantageously realized such that the distance between the valve element and the actuator is less than 30 mm. The distance is measured here between the section of the valve element closest to the actuator and the section of the actuator closest to the valve element. Especially in the case of a rotationally actuated valve element, this can result in a relatively short actuator shaft, such that the torsion acting on it is reduced and the accuracy of the valve setting is improved.

[0019] It should be additionally mentioned that all features disclosed in the German patent application with application number 102022 214 438 filed by the applicant on December 29, 2022 regarding the mating element can be applied within the scope of the present invention and are hereby regarded as the subject matter of the present application. Description of the Drawings

[0020] The preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The drawings show:

[0021] Figure 1A cross-sectional view showing the main components of the valve according to the present invention;

[0022] Figures 2 to 5 Showing different embodiments of the valve according to the present invention;

[0023] Figure 6 Showing a top view of the valve according to the present invention; and

[0024] Figure 7 Showing a flow chart for showing the mode of action. Detailed Description of the Invention

[0025] As can be seen in Figure 1 the valve 10 according to the present invention basically has a rotary actuator 12 and a rotary valve element 14 in the form of a so-called disk member, which has suitable chambers and flow-through parts. In the case shown, the valve element 14 is in sliding contact with a disk 16, which is shown more precisely in other figures. The valve element 14 has suitable chambers and deflection parts in order to ensure a desired fluid flow depending on the rotational position.

[0026] Here, the valve element acts together with the shown disk 16 in a sliding contact manner and presses against the disk in order to ensure the sealability on the inflow side 18. For this purpose, the disk 16 is sealed relative to the housing 20 by means of a suitable seal 22, for example accommodated in an annular groove, and a chamber 24 is formed between the housing 20 and the valve element 14, the function of which will be described more precisely below. In order to ensure the sealability, in the example shown, the valve element 14 presses against the disk 16. In the shown embodiment, two O-rings 26 are provided for sealing the shaft of the valve element 14 to the outside. As can be seen in the middle region, the O-rings are connected to the outlet in order to avoid pressure build-up here.

[0027] As in Figure 2 is indicated by the arrow A, a relatively high pressure can act on the valve element 14, which causes leakage, as indicated by the arrow B. The leakage flow fills the chamber 24 with fluid and builds up a counter-pressure indicated by the arrow C here, which additionally presses the valve element 14 against the disk 16. Here, the balance occurs especially in such a way that the fluid can flow out of the chamber 24 into the low-pressure region as indicated by the arrow D.

[0028] In Figure 2 the embodiment shown, an outflow throttle valve 28 is formed in the housing 20, while in Figure 3 and Figure 4In the embodiment shown, the outflow throttle valve is configured as a cutout in the disk 16 in the shown case. In cross-section, the cutout can have an angle of approximately 45° and can be a few tenths of a millimeter deep. Furthermore, it should be mentioned at this point that a plurality of outflow throttle valves can also be provided.

[0029] In particular, one or more outflow throttle valves 28 can also be formed at the valve element 14, as shown in Figure 5 . In this case, although the position of the outflow throttle valve 28 changes with the rotation of the valve element 14, there can be application cases where this design is meaningful and can be coordinated with the remaining details of the valve element 14.

[0030] It should be additionally mentioned that in all embodiments, the pressure build-up in the chamber 24 is caused by leakage flow. However, the pressure in the chamber can also be established by other measures, such as its own inlet line.

[0031] Finally, from the Figure 6 top view, the valve 10 and in particular the substantially circular, three-dimensionally substantially cylindrical shape of the housing 12 of the valve are known. Here, an axle hub 30 for connecting an actuator shown in the upper region in Figures 1 to 3 and Figure 5 is shown in the middle.

[0032] From the Figure 7 flow chart, the following mode of operation is additionally known: In the case of a correspondingly high pressure on the inflow side, an internal leakage flow occurs through the gap between the valve element and the mating element, which fills the chamber volume, and the gap between the valve and the mating element is reduced by the counter-pressure established in the chamber. Thus, a substantially steady leakage flow occurs into the chamber and from there through the outflow throttle valve towards the outflow. Other explanations are given by the arrows A to D in Figure 2 above. Thus, a high contact pressure of the valve element on the mating element only results when it is needed to ensure the tightness of the valve. When the pressure difference across the valve decreases, the chamber pressure is again reduced by the throttle valve, so that regulation can be achieved with a relatively small torque.

Claims

1. A valve (10) having a valve element (14) and a substantially enclosed chamber (24) on a side of the valve element opposite to the inflow side (18) of the valve element, the inflow side being capable of being loaded with pressure, characterized in that, The chamber (24) has at least one outflow throttle valve (28) leading to the low-pressure side.

2. The valve (10) according to claim 1, characterized in that, An actuator (12) is provided on the side of the chamber (24).

3. The valve (10) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The outflow side of the valve (10) is on the inflow side (18).

4. The valve (10) according to claim 1, 2 or 3, characterized in that, The valve element (14) can rotate about an axis extending through the valve element (14).

5. The valve (10) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that, The outflow throttle valve (28) is formed in a housing (20) surrounding the chamber (24).

6. The valve (10) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that, The outflow throttle valve (28) is formed in a disk (16) with which the valve element (14) is in sealing contact.

7. The valve (10) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that, The outflow throttle valve (28) is formed in the valve element (14).

8. The valve (10) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that, The outflow throttle valve (28) is configured as a notch or groove.

9. The valve (10) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that, The valve element (14) is substantially disk-shaped with a recess and / or an opening.

10. The valve (10) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that, The valve element (14) is in sealing contact with the mating element (16) in the initial state with a pressure per unit area of less than 0.2 N / mm 2 .

11. The valve (10) according to any one of the above claims, characterized in that, The distance between the valve element (14) and the actuator (12) is less than 30 mm.

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