Constant-temperature assembly, in particular constant-temperature valve cartridge

Abstract

The invention relates to a thermostatic assembly (1) comprising a housing (10) in which a mixing chamber (11), a hot fluid inlet (14), a cold fluid inlet (15) and a mixed fluid outlet (16) are defined. In the chamber, a spool valve (20) for regulating the temperature of the mixed fluid is movable along an axis (X-X) of the chamber to close the hot and cold fluid passages in respective inverse ratios. A thermostatic element (30) comprises a body (31) arranged in the chamber so as to be in contact with the mixed fluid and movably connected to the spool valve, and a piston (32) connected to the housing about an axis. The piston is housed in the body so as to be movable by the action of a thermally expandable material (33) of the body, the piston being axially mounted so as to slide in a guide (34) of the body, the piston projecting out of the body from the guide. A sealing sleeve (37) is coaxially mounted around the guide and the piston to seal a sliding mount thereof, comprising a first portion fixedly connected to the guide along the axis and a second portion abutting the piston in sliding contact along the axis about the axis.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a thermostatic assembly, specifically a thermostatic valve element.

[0002] In order to regulate the temperature of a mixture of a hot fluid and a cold fluid, in particular a mixture of hot water and cold water in sanitary installations, it is known to use a thermostatic element and a valve arranged in a hollow housing, which housing is usually a valve element body installed in a faucet body. The thermostatic element comprises a piston and a body, the piston being generally fixed relative to the housing, and the body containing a thermally expandable material, during the expansion of which the piston can translate along an axis relative to the body under the action of the thermally expandable material. The body comprises a guide, from which the piston projects outside the body, and in which the piston is slidably mounted along the axis. The valve is connected to the body so as to be driven to move along the axis in the chamber of the housing, so as to be able to close a first passage and a second passage in a corresponding inverse ratio; the first passage is axially defined between the valve and the housing and supplies it with hot fluid from a hot fluid inlet defined by the housing; the second passage is axially defined between the valve and the housing and supplies it with hot fluid from a cold fluid inlet defined by the housing. The valve allows the hot fluid and the cold fluid to reach the chamber through these two passages and mix therein, and a mixed fluid is formed downstream of the valve, which mixed fluid leaves the housing by flowing along the body of the thermostatic element, thereby exerting a thermal action on the thermally expandable material. By modifying the position of the piston relative to the housing, usually by means of a special control mechanism, the thermostatic regulating temperature, i.e. the equilibrium temperature of the mixed fluid, can be set. FR2921709 provides an example of this type of valve element.

[0003] The sliding mounting of the piston in the guide of the thermostatic element body needs to be sealed to prevent the hot, cold and / or mixed fluid from entering the body, and / or to prevent the lubricant provided in the sliding mounting from escaping outside the thermostatic element. To this end, the thermostatic element generally comprises a sealing bellows, which surrounds the sliding mounting, the opposite ends of which along the axis are respectively firmly fixed to the body and the piston. Document FR3109828 discloses such a sealing bellows. In practice, such a sealing bellows is satisfactory, but it occupies a rather large space in the above-mentioned housing, partly occupying the chamber, which can hinder the fluid flow in the chamber and limit the maximum flow rate, and may also require strengthening the fixing of the bellows to the piston to withstand the liquid flow in the chamber. The assembly between the body of the thermostatic element and the valve is also complex, because once the valve is connected to the body, it is usually necessary to temporarily remove the bellows for assembly before repositioning the bellows.

[0004] The object of the present invention is to propose a new thermostatic assembly in which the sliding mounting of the piston in the guide of the thermostatic element body is sealed in an improved manner, in particular in a manner with less limitation.

[0005] To this end, the present invention relates to a thermostatic assembly, such as the thermostatic assembly defined in claim 1.

[0006] A basic idea of the present invention is to replace the above-mentioned sealed bellows with a sealed sleeve, which is coaxially mounted around the guide in a fixed manner along the axis, and is not coaxially mounted around the piston in a fixed manner, but is in sliding contact with the piston along the axis. Therefore, the sealed sleeve abuts against the piston around the axis in a scraping manner, which ensures the contact seal between the sleeve and the piston, including during the axial movement of the piston relative to the main body. Advantageously, the sealed sleeve is flexible, specifically having elastic resilience, which is used to ensure that the sealed sleeve abuts against the piston substantially radially. In all cases, the sealed sleeve has the advantage of being able to be dimensioned along the axis in a particularly reduced manner, specifically compared with the above-mentioned sealed bellows: due to this axial compactness of the sealed sleeve, the fluid flow in the chamber is less disturbed or not disturbed at all around the piston, which does not change the performance of the thermostatic assembly according to the present invention in terms of the maximum allowable flow rate. The sealed sleeve advantageously facilitates the assembly between the main body of the thermostatic element and the slide valve, because the size of the sealed sleeve can be sufficiently compact so as not to interfere with the slide valve during the assembly process while being held on the main body and relative to the position of the movable piston, as will be explained in more detail below. More generally, the sealed sleeve of the thermostatic assembly according to the present invention allows the performance of the thermostatic assembly to be improved, especially in terms of its assembly, thermostatic regulation ability, cost, etc., as described below.

[0007] Other advantageous features of the thermostatic assembly of the present invention are described in other claims.

[0008] The present invention will be better understood by reading the following description given only by way of example and referring to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0009] - Figure 1 is a longitudinal section of the thermostatic assembly of the present invention, which is made in the form of a thermostatic valve core;

[0010] - Figure 2 is Figure 1 an enlarged view of the detail frame II in

[0011] - Figure 3 is Figure 1 and Figure 2 a front view of the thermostatic element of the thermostatic assembly belonging to

[0012] - Figure 4 is Figure 3 a longitudinal section of the detail IV circled in

[0013] Figure 1 and Figure 2Shows a thermostatic valve element 1 arranged around and along the axis X-X. The thermostatic valve element 1 is adapted to supply hot water and cold water to a mixing faucet, not shown in the figure, or more generally, to supply a hot fluid and a cold fluid to be mixed to a device.

[0014] The thermostatic valve element 1 includes a hollow housing 10 as the main external component. The housing 10 is intended to be sealingly installed in the body of the above-mentioned mixing faucet.

[0015] The housing 10 internally defines a cylindrical chamber 11 centered on the axis X-X. The hot water and cold water regulated by the thermostatic valve element 1 are intended to be mixed within the chamber 11 to form mixed water.

[0016] For convenience, the rest of this specification is oriented relative to the axis X-X, that is, the terms "upper part" and "top" correspond to the axial direction towards the Figures 1-4 upper part, while the terms "lower part" and "bottom" correspond to the axial direction in the opposite direction.

[0017] In the embodiment considered in the figure, as Figures 1-2 clearly visible, the housing 10 includes two different outer shells, namely a lower outer shell 12 and an upper outer shell 13, which are firmly fixed to each other. The chamber 11 is jointly defined by the lower outer shell 12 and the upper outer shell 13, formed by the internal volume of the upper outer shell 13, and the lower outer shell 12 is arranged in this internal volume in a sealed manner, and the lower outer shell 12 does not completely occupy the above-mentioned internal volume. The embodiment of the housing 10 to which the lower outer shell 12 and the upper outer shell 13 are associated here is not restrictive.

[0018] Regardless of its embodiment, the housing 10 has a hot water inlet 14, a cold water inlet 15, and a mixed water outlet 16, which each clearly connect the outside of the housing 10 to the chamber 11 to each other. The outlet of the hot water inlet 14 into the chamber 11 and the outlet of the cold water inlet 15 into the chamber 11 are axially offset from each other and are separated from each other by the side wall 17 of the chamber 11 centered on the axis X-X. The embodiments of the hot water inlet 14, the cold water inlet 15, and the mixed water outlet 16 are not limited as long as the hot water inlet 14 constitutes an inlet for hot water to enter the chamber 11 from the outside of the housing 10, the cold water inlet 15 constitutes an inlet for cold water to enter the chamber 11 from the outside of the housing 10, and the mixed water outlet 16 constitutes an outlet for the mixed water contained in the chamber 11 to be discharged from the housing 10.

[0019] In the embodiment considered in the figure, the hot water inlet 14 and the cold water inlet 15 extend radially from the chamber 11 to the axis X-X. As for the mixed water outlet 16, it extends from the chamber 11 parallel to the axis X-X and is substantially centered on this axis even here. In addition, the upper housing 13 includes the side wall 17 of the chamber 11 and defines the hot water inlet 14 and the cold water inlet 15, while the lower housing 12 defines the mixed water outlet 16.

[0020] The thermostatic valve element 1 further includes a spool valve 20, as Figures 1-2 shown. The spool valve 20 is mounted in the chamber 11 in a manner movable along the axis X-X between two extreme positions, namely:

[0021] - The lower extreme position, where the valve seat 20A of the spool valve 20 is located at the lower axial end of the spool valve and is axially supported on the valve seat 10A of the housing 10, which is substantially at the outlet level of the hot water inlet 14 in the chamber 11 along the axis X-X, and

[0022] - The upper extreme position, where the valve seat 20B of the spool valve 20 is located at the upper axial end of the spool valve 20 and is supported on the valve seat 10B of the housing 10, and the housing 10 is substantially at the cold water inlet 15 in the chamber 11 along the axis X-X.

[0023] In the embodiment considered in the figure, the valve seat 10A of the housing 10 is formed by the lower housing 12, more precisely, by the upper end edge of the lower housing, while the valve seat 10B of the housing is formed by the upper housing 13, more precisely, by the inner shoulder of the upper housing. As for the valve seats 20A and 20B of the spool valve 20, they are formed by the lower end edge and the upper end edge of the spool valve 20 respectively.

[0024] In all cases, the axial dimension of the spool valve 20 separating the opposite valve seats 20A and 20B from each other is smaller than the axial distance separating the valve seats 10A and 10B of the housing 10 from each other. Therefore, the valve seat 20A of the spool valve 20 and the valve seat 10A of the housing 10 define a hot water passage P1 between them along the axis X-X, and the hot water inlet 14 leads to the chamber 11 on the hot water passage P1. Similarly, the valve seat 20B of the spool valve 20 and the valve seat 10B of the housing 10 define a cold water passage P2 between them along the axis X-X, and the cold water inlet 15 leads to the chamber 11 on the cold water passage P2.

[0025] It should be understood that when the spool valve 20 is in its lower limit position, the spool valve closes the hot water passage P1, thus completely closing the inlet of hot water into the chamber 11 except for leakage, and at the same time maximally opening the inlet of cold water into the chamber through the open cold water passage P2. Conversely, when the spool valve 20 is in its upper limit position, the spool valve closes the cold water passage P2, thus completely closing the inlet of cold water into the chamber 11 except for leakage, and at the same time maximally opening the inlet of hot water into the chamber through the hot water passage P1. Of course, according to the position of the spool valve 20 along the axis X-X between these upper and lower limit positions, the corresponding blockages of the hot water passage P1 and the cold water passage P2 change conversely, which means that the amounts of hot water and cold water entering the chamber 11 are regulated in a corresponding inverse ratio by the spool valve 20 according to its axial position. In Figures 1-2 the spool valve 20 is located at the upper limit position.

[0026] According to the advantageous arrangement implemented in the embodiment considered here, both the hot water passage P1 and the cold water passage P2 extend around the axis X-X, possibly more than 360°. For this purpose, the valve seats 10A, 10B, 20A and 20B all extend around the axis X-X. In this way, the distribution of hot water and cold water in the hot water passage P1 and the cold water passage P2 around the axis X-X is improved.

[0027] The spool valve 20 is installed in the chamber 11 and seals the hot water inlet 14 and the cold water inlet 15 from each other outside the spool valve. For this purpose, in the embodiment considered here, the spool valve 20 is provided with a peripheral seal 21 that extends around the outer side surface of the spool valve and presses radially against the side wall 17 of the chamber 11 along the axis X-X to form a seal against hot water and cold water between the hot water inlet 14 and the cold water inlet 15. In addition, in order to enable the cold water entering the chamber 11 through the cold water inlet 15 to merge and mix with the hot water entering the chamber through the hot water inlet 14 to form mixed water flowing towards the mixed water outlet 16 downstream of the spool valve 20, the spool valve 20 has flow holes 22, which are Figure 2 only shown in dotted lines in and connect the opposite axial faces of the spool valve. It should be noted that the arrangement of the spool valve 20, such as the seal 21, allowing the hot water inlet 14 and the cold water inlet 15 to be sealed from each other outside the spool valve, and the arrangement of the spool valve 20, such as the flow holes 22, allowing the cold water to merge with the hot water through the spool valve, are not restrictive.

[0028] To drive the spool valve 20 to translate along the axis X-X, the valve core 1 includes a thermostatic element 30, which is visible in all the figures, in Figures 3-4Shown separately. The thermostatic element 30 includes a body 31 and a piston 32 which, in the assembled state of the valve element 1, are substantially centered on the axis X-X, with the piston 32 being partially received in the body 31. The thermostatic element 30 is designed such that its body 31 and piston 32 move relative to each other along the axis X-X, this relative movement being controlled by the temperature change applied to the body 31. Thus, the body 31 can be described as a thermosensitive body. For this purpose, the body 31 contains a thermally expandable material 33, only in Figure 1 is schematically shown: during expansion, the thermally expandable material 33 causes the piston 32 to move relative to the body 31, while during contraction, the thermally expandable material 33 allows the piston to retract relative to the body.

[0029] To guide the relative movement along the axis X-X between the body 31 and the piston 32, the body 31 includes a guide 34 in which the piston 32 is slidably mounted along the axis X-X while axially protruding from this guide 34. Thus, the guide 34 forms the upper end portion of the body 31. Additionally, here, the guide 34 has a tubular shape with its center on the axis X-X and its inner bore receiving the piston 32 in a complementary manner, except for the sliding clearance. In practice, the sliding mounting of the piston 32 in the guide 34 advantageously slides through a lubricant (the lubricant is not visible in the figure) placed at the interface between the piston 32 and the guide 34.

[0030] In the embodiment shown in the figures, the body 31 also includes a cup 35 extending downward from the guide 34, thereby forming the lower end portion of the body 31 here. In practice, the guide 34 and the cup 35 are firmly fixed to each other by any suitable means. The cup 35 advantageously contains the thermally expandable material 33 made of a heat-conductive material (usually metal). In the assembled state of the valve element 1, the cup 35 is arranged to be in contact with the mixed water received in the chamber 11. More generally, regardless of the embodiment of the body 31, the body 31 is arranged to be in contact with the mixed water within the valve element 1, being at least partially disposed in the chamber 11 and, if applicable, in the mixed water outlet 16: in this way, the thermally expandable material 33 is thermally sensitized by the mixed water from the chamber 11, so that the relative axial movement between the body 11 and the piston 32 is controlled by the temperature of this mixed water.

[0031] In all cases, in the assembled state of the valve element 1, the body 31 is connected to the spool valve 20 to drive the spool valve 20 to move along the axis X-X within the chamber 11, such that the spool valve 20 closes the hot water passage P1 and the cold water passage P2 in a corresponding inverse ratio as described above. In the embodiment shown in the drawings, the body 31 and the spool valve 20 are firmly fixed to each other by screws, centered on the axis X-X here: for this purpose, the guide 34 of the body 31 is externally provided with threads 36, centered on the axis X-X here, while the spool valve 20 is internally provided with a tapping 23 complementary to the threads 36, which is coaxially arranged in the passage 24 of the spool valve 20. The passage 24 axially passes through the spool valve 20 from one end to the other, centered on the axis X-X, and in the assembled state of the valve element 1, internally accommodates the guide 34 in a complementary manner. In practice, in addition to screwing the threads 36 into the tapping 23, other embodiments can be envisaged to connect the body 31 and the spool valve 20 that move along the axis X-X, especially through a complementary fit in shape between the guide 34 and the passage 24: for example, the outside of the guide 34 is smooth and is accommodated in a complementary manner in the internally smooth passage 24, and is axially fixed in place relative to the body 31 by additional components such as nuts and circlips.

[0032] As for the piston 32, in the assembled state of the valve element 1, the latter is connected to the housing 10 by a mechanism 40 that acts on the axial position of the piston 32 relative to the housing 10, and the mechanism 40 will be described in further detail.

[0033] On the assumption that the mechanism 40 holds the position of the piston 32 relative to the housing 10 fixed along the axis X-X, the temperature of the mixed water at the outlet of the valve element 1 is thermostatically regulated by the spool valve 20 and the thermostat element 30. In fact, in this assumption, the temperature of the mixed water is directly generated by the corresponding amounts of hot water and cold water that enter the chamber 11 more or less blocked by the spool valve 20 via the hot water passage P1 and the cold water passage P2 respectively, as described above. If the supply of hot water and / or cold water to the valve element is disturbed, for example, the temperature of the mixed water increases, the piston 32 will axially expand relative to the body 31, which will cause the body 31 to translate downward, and in turn cause the spool valve 20 to translate downward: the proportion of hot water circulating in the hot water passage P1 decreases, while conversely, the proportion of cold water circulating in the cold water passage P2 increases, resulting in a decrease in the temperature of the mixed water. When the temperature of the mixed water decreases, an inverse reaction occurs, and it should be noted that during the shrinkage of the thermally expandable material 33, a return spring 50 is provided to cause the body 31 and the piston 32 to retract towards each other, which is equivalent to the piston 32 retracting into the body 31. In the embodiment shown in the drawings, the return spring 50 is axially interposed between the housing 10 (here the lower housing 12) and the body 31 (here the insertion plate). The correction of the temperature of the mixed water results in an adjustment balance of this temperature of the mixed water, and this thermostatically regulated temperature depends on the position of the piston 32 along the axis X-X applied by the mechanism 40.

[0034] The mechanism 40 allows the thermostatic regulation temperature value to be adjusted by acting on the axial position of the piston 32, thereby controlling the temperature of the mixed water. In the embodiment considered here, the mechanism 40 is carried by the housing 10, here by the upper housing 13, and includes a stopper 41 on which the upper end of the piston 32 is axially supported, and the stopper is slidably mounted along the axis X-X within a nut 42, axially inserted between the stopper and the nut 42 of the overtravel spring 43. The axial position of the nut 42 within the housing 10 and the height of the stopper 41 can be adjusted by an adjusting screw 44 which is centered on the axis X-X, the upper end of which projects from the upper housing 13 and is rotatably connected to a control handle (not shown in the figure). At its lower end, the adjusting screw 44 is screwed into the nut 42 which is generally rotatably connected to the upper housing 13 about the axis X-X by splines. Thus, when the screw 44 rotates about its own axis X-X, the nut 42 translates along this axis, which causes the stopper 41 to be correspondingly driven by the overtravel spring 43, it being emphasized that this overtravel spring 43 is much stiffer than the return spring 50.

[0035] The structure and operation of the regulating mechanism 40 will not be described further here, it being understood that for this the reader can refer to FR2869087. It should be noted that the embodiment of this mechanism 40 does not limit the present invention: other embodiments are known in the art, for example in FR2921709, FR2774740 and FR2870611. Furthermore, as a variant not shown, if the regulating ability of the slide valve 20 to regulate the temperature value of the hot and cold water mixture is abandoned, the mechanism 40 can be removed from the thermostatic valve element 1 and the piston 32 is then fixedly connected to the housing 10.

[0036] Returning now to the description of the thermostatic element 30, it should be noted that the thermostatic element 30 includes a sealing sleeve 37, as Figures 1-4 shown, the sealing sleeve 37 is coaxially mounted around the guide 34 of the body 31 and the piston 32 of the thermostatic element 30 to provide a sliding mounting for the sealing piston 32 within the guide 34. Thus, the sealing sleeve 37 prevents the mixed water contained in the chamber 11 and the particles (such as lime particles) that may be present in this mixed water from entering the thermostatic element 30 and reaching the sliding mounting of the piston 32 within the guide 34, thereby risking damage to this sliding mounting. The sealing sleeve 37 also prevents the above-mentioned lubricant from escaping from the sliding mounting of the piston 32 within the guide 34 and from escaping from the thermostatic element 30.

[0037] The sealing sleeve 37 has a generally tubular shape, which is substantially centered on the axis X-X and extends continuously around the axis X-X. As Figure 4As shown, the sealing sleeve 37 thus includes three different tubular portions along the axis X-X, namely a lower portion 37.1 and an upper portion 37.2 which are opposite to each other along the axis X-X, and an intermediate portion 37.3 which connects the lower portion 37.1 and the upper portion 37.2 to each other.

[0038] The lower portion 37.1 is fixedly connected to the guide 34 along the axis X-X by any suitable means. In the embodiment considered in the figure, the guide 34 is provided with a circumferential groove 38 on the outside, in which the lower portion 37.1 of the sealing sleeve 37 is embedded to fixedly connect the lower portion 37.1 to the guide 34 along the axis X-X. Of course, other embodiments can also be considered, as long as the sealing sleeve 37 is fixedly connected to the guide 34 along the axis X-X through its lower portion 37.1.

[0039] The upper portion 37.2 of the sealing sleeve 37 abuts against the piston 32 in a sliding contact manner along the axis X-X around the axis. In the embodiment considered in the figure, the upper portion 37.2 of the sealing sleeve 37 forms a ring that is tightly adjusted around the piston 32, especially tightly adjusted around the piston 32 while allowing relative axial sliding between the ring and the piston 32. Of course, other embodiments can also be envisioned, as long as the sealing sleeve 37 contacts, seals and slides along the axis X-X with the piston 32 through its upper portion 37.2 around the axis X-X. During the movement of the piston 32 relative to the body 31, the piston 32 slides against the upper portion 37.2 in two possible opposite directions without changing the axial position of the upper portion 37.2 relative to the housing 10, nor changing the total axial dimension of the sealing sleeve 37.

[0040] According to a particularly advantageous arrangement, which improves the sealing performance of the upper portion 37.2 of the sealing sleeve 37, the upper portion 37.2 abuts against the piston 32 in a substantially radial manner relative to the axis X-X through the elastic resilience effect of the sealing sleeve 37, especially its intermediate portion 37.3. For this purpose, the sealing sleeve 37 has an elasticity that tends to restore the sealing sleeve to its rest shape, so that the upper portion 37.2 is subjected to a radial stress opposite to the axis X-X due to the presence of the piston 32 coaxially passing through the upper portion 37.2, and the sealing sleeve 37, especially its intermediate portion 37.3, elastically generates an opposite radial stress that presses the upper portion 37.2 against the piston 32. For this purpose, the sealing sleeve 37 is made of an elastomeric material such as rubber or EPDM, for example.

[0041] According to another particularly advantageous arrangement, which can be combined with the above arrangement, when the piston 32 is fully deployed relative to the body 31, the piston 32 is externally smooth on at least the entire upper portion protruding from the guide 34. In practice, it can be provided that the piston is externally smooth over its entire axial dimension. The advantages of the piston 32 are low cost and easy assembly with the rest of the thermostatic element 30.

[0042] Advantageously, the size of the sealing sleeve 37 is compact both transversely to the axis X-X and along this axis X-X, without prejudice to its sealing performance with respect to its sliding mounting in the guide 34 relative to the piston 32.

[0043] Thus, with regard to the transverse dimension of the sealing sleeve 37 relative to the axis X-X, advantageously, the maximum outer diameter of the sealing sleeve 37 ( Figure 2 marked as D37 in ) is less than the minimum inner diameter of the channel 24 (marked as D24). In the embodiment shown in the figures, this means that the maximum outer diameter D37 of the sealing sleeve 37 is less than the diameter at the top of the thread 23 of the channel 24. Thus, it is possible to introduce the guide 34 into the channel 24 during the assembly of the spool 1, while leaving the sealing sleeve 37 in place on the guide 34 and the piston 32. Specifically, in order to assemble the slide valve 20 and the thermostatic element 30 together, it is not necessary to partially or completely remove the sealing sleeve 37, and it may not even be necessary to remove the piston 32.

[0044] With regard to the axial dimension of the sealing sleeve 37, advantageously, the total axial dimension of the sealing sleeve 37 is limited as much as possible, in particular in order to prevent the sealing sleeve 37 from occupying a large amount of space in the chamber 11, which would impede the flow of water and limit the maximum allowable flow rate of the spool 1. To this end, according to a first advantageous dimensional aspect, the upper part 37.2 of the sealing sleeve 37 is axially juxtaposed with the guide 34, as Figure 4 shown: in other words, the upper part 37.2 of the sealing sleeve covers the upper end of the guide 34, directly covering the upper end edge of the guide, except for the axial clearance. According to a second advantageous dimensional aspect, the maximum axial dimension of the sealing sleeve 37 ( Figure 4 marked as L37 in ) is less than the maximum outer diameter of the region of the guide 34 (marked as D34) through which the lower part 37.1 of the sealing sleeve is axially fastened to the guide 34.

[0045] Continuing with the above considerations regarding the axial compactness of the sealing sleeve 37, another advantageous aspect relates to the piston 32, since, somewhat similarly to the sealing sleeve 37, the upper end part of the piston 32 can be dimensioned axially in a reduced manner. Then, considering the whole, the thermostatic element 30 proves to be particularly compact along the axis X-X. To this end, it is advantageously provided that when the piston 32 is retracted to the maximum extent in the body 31, the piston 32 axially projects from the sealing sleeve 37 within a non-zero axial range, as Figure 3 shown as e32 in, and this range is less than or equal to one millimeter. In this way, the risk of the piston 32 getting stuck in the guide 34 is significantly reduced.

[0046] Finally, various arrangements and variants of the thermostatic spool 1 described so far are also conceivable. For example:

[0047] - The sealing sleeve 37 can use other materials in addition to the above materials, such as siloxane; and / or

[0048] - Instead of the housing 10, the spool valve 20, the thermostatic element 30 and the return spring 50, and, where applicable, the mechanism 40 can be assembled with each other in the form of a thermostatic valve core that can be integrally installed in the faucet body, such as the thermostatic valve core 1, the spool valve 20 and the thermostatic element 30 considered so far, and, where appropriate, the mechanism 40 and the return spring 50 are directly installed in the faucet body, and then the latter forms a housing that is functionally similar to the housing 10.

Claims

1. A constant temperature component (1), comprising: A housing (10), in which there is defined: - A chamber (11) which defines an axis (X-X), and in which a hot fluid and a cold fluid are mixed to form a mixed fluid, - A hot fluid inlet (14) through which the hot fluid enters the chamber (11) from outside the housing (10), - A cold fluid inlet (15) through which the cold fluid enters the chamber (11) from outside the housing (10), and - A mixed fluid outlet (16) through which the mixed fluid contained in the chamber (11) leaves the housing (10), A slide valve (20) for regulating the temperature of the mixed fluid, the slide valve being movable along the axis (X-X) within the chamber (11) to correspondingly and inversely close a hot fluid passage (P1) and a cold fluid passage (P2), each passage being axially defined between the slide valve (20) and the housing (10), the hot fluid passage (P1) being supplied with hot fluid from the hot fluid inlet (14), and the cold fluid passage (P2) being supplied with cold fluid from the cold fluid inlet (15), and A constant temperature element (30), which comprises: - A body (31) which contains a thermally expandable material (33), and is at least partially arranged in the chamber (11) to contact the mixed fluid, and is connected to the slide valve (20) to drive the slide valve to move along the axis (X-X) within the chamber, - A piston (32) which is connected to the housing (10) with the axis (X-X) as the center, and during the expansion of the thermally expandable material, is partially received in the body (31) in a manner movable along the axis (X-X line) under the action of the thermally expandable material (33), the piston being slidably mounted along the axis in a guide (34) of the body (31), and the piston protruding from the guide outside the body, and - A sealing sleeve (37) which is coaxially mounted around the guide (34) and the piston (32) to seal the sliding mounting of the piston in the guide, the sealing sleeve (37) comprising a first part (37.1) and a second part (37.2), the first part being fixedly connected to the guide (34) along the axis (X-X), and the second part being in sliding contact around the axis against the piston along the axis.

2. The constant temperature component according to claim 1, wherein the slide valve (20) is provided with a passage (24) which axially passes through the slide valve from one end to the other with the axis (X-X) as the center, and which accommodates the guide (34) in a complementary manner, and wherein the maximum outer diameter (D37) of the sealing sleeve (37) is smaller than the minimum inner diameter (D24) of the passage (24).

3. The constant temperature component according to claim 2, wherein the guide (34) and the passage (24) cooperate by complementary shapes to connect the body (31) and the slide valve (20) when moving along the axis (X-X).

4. The constant temperature component according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the body (31) and the slide valve (20) are fixedly fastened to each other by screwing a thread (36) of the guide (34) into a tapping (23) of the passage (24).

5. The thermostatic assembly according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the second part (37.2) of the sealing sleeve (37) is axially juxtaposed with the guide (34).

6. The thermostatic assembly according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the maximum axial dimension (L37) of the sealing sleeve (37) is less than the maximum outer diameter (D34) of the region of the guide (34), and the first part (37.1) of the sealing sleeve is fixed to the guide (34) along the axis (X-X) by means of the maximum outer diameter.

7. The thermostatic assembly according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein when the piston (32) is retracted to the maximum in the body (31), the piston projects axially from the sealing sleeve (37) within an axial range (e32) of less than or equal to one millimeter.

8. The thermostatic assembly according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the second part (37.2) of the sealing sleeve (37) abuts against the piston (32) in a substantially radial manner with respect to the axis (X-X) by means of the elastic resilience effect of the sealing film.

9. The thermostatic assembly according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein when the piston is deployed to the maximum with respect to the body (31), the piston (32) is externally smooth over at least the entire part that projects from the guide (34).

10. The thermostatic assembly according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the thermostatic assembly (1) further comprises a mechanism (40) for controlling the temperature of the mixed fluid, the mechanism (40) being carried by the housing (10) and connecting the piston (32) to the housing to adjust the position of the piston along the axis (X-X).

11. The thermostatic assembly according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the thermostatic assembly forms a thermostatic valve element (1) adapted for integral installation into a faucet body.

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