An automatic grease filling ball valve and a grease filling method thereof

Abstract

An automatic grease filling ball valve and a grease filling method thereof, the device comprising a valve body, a valve seat, a valve stem, a ball, a grease filling assembly and a transmission assembly; the grease filling assembly comprising a one-way valve, a push plate and a grease containing cavity, the transmission assembly comprising a one-way connecting piece, a gear set and a lead screw, the valve stem and the ball being fixed, the lower end of the ball being provided with a coaxial valve shaft, four sets of grease filling assemblies and transmission assemblies being provided on the left and right sides of the valve shaft, the threads of the lead screw being opposite to each other to ensure that the push plates move in the same direction, and the valve body being provided with a 90-degree limiting groove. When the valve stem opens the flow channel, the one-way connecting piece drives the gear set to drive the lead screw, and the four sets of push plates synchronously push the sealing grease to the four contact points of the ball-valve seat; when the valve is closed, the one-way connecting piece idles, and the grease filling stops. The method realizes sealing through initial calibration, synchronous grease filling when opening, stopping of grease supply when closing and cyclic grease filling. The present application realizes dynamic and accurate sealing and lubrication and friction reduction, avoids grease waste, improves sealing reliability and component life, and is suitable for ball valves of various specifications.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of ball valve technology, and in particular to an automatic grease-replenishing ball valve and a grease-replenishing method thereof. Background Technology

[0002] Against the backdrop of advancing urbanization and upgrading industrial production demands, ball valves, as core components of fluid control, are widely used in fields such as gas, petroleum, chemical, and domestic fluid transmission. Their sealing performance directly determines the operational safety and efficiency of pipeline systems. However, traditional ball valves face key problems during long-term use, such as sealing grease failure, inconvenient grease replenishment, and insufficient sealing reliability, becoming the core bottleneck restricting their service life and operational stability.

[0003] Traditional ball valves rely on pre-applied sealing grease on the contact surfaces between the valve seat and the ball. While this type of grease possesses a certain degree of chemical stability and weather resistance, it can decompose and evaporate during long-term operation due to media erosion and temperature changes, leading to insufficient lubrication of the sealing surface and causing dry friction between the valve core and seat. Furthermore, if installation is not strictly performed according to specifications, dust, sand, and other impurities can easily adhere to the valve core surface, scratching the sealing surface when forcibly opened or closed, further exacerbating internal leakage and difficulty in opening and closing. More importantly, traditional grease replenishment requires shutdown, interrupting the production process. Manual grease replenishment also suffers from timing delays and inaccurate dosage control. Replenishing too early can lead to grease waste, while replenishing too late increases the risk of seal failure. Especially in scenarios requiring continuous operation, such as gas pipelines, shutdown grease replenishment significantly increases maintenance costs and safety hazards.

[0004] To address the challenge of grease replenishment under pressurized conditions, existing technologies have developed pressurized grease injection devices for PE ball valves. These devices provide stable pressure through a grease filling cylinder and, in conjunction with a check valve and flow guide tube, inject silicone grease onto the valve core surface. This allows for non-stop grease replenishment during gas pipeline operation, mitigating gas leaks and maintenance downtime to some extent. However, these devices still rely on manual operation to control the grease injection process. Pressure monitoring via a pressure gauge and manual judgment of the timing and amount of grease injection are required. They cannot achieve automatic linkage between grease replenishment and the opening and closing of the ball valve, making them unsuitable for the dynamic sealing requirements of high-frequency opening and closing scenarios. Furthermore, the grease injection volume is easily affected by human operation, leading to inaccurate sealing compensation.

[0005] Furthermore, the sealing structure of traditional ball valves lacks effective transmission and limiting design: on the one hand, there is no precise angle control during the opening and closing of the valve stem, which can easily lead to wear of the valve seat and ball due to excessive rotation, or incomplete sealing of the flow channel due to insufficient rotation; on the other hand, the replenishment of sealing grease is completely independent of the valve stem action, and the amount of grease injected cannot be dynamically adjusted according to the wear degree of the sealing surface, resulting in ineffective consumption of sealing grease in some scenarios, and sealing failure due to untimely grease replenishment in other scenarios. These problems together lead to short maintenance cycles and high overall operating costs of traditional ball valves, making it difficult to meet the industrial demand for long equipment life and high reliability. There is an urgent need for a technical solution that can achieve automatic, precise, and dynamic sealing compensation to overcome the pain points of existing sealing and grease replenishment technologies. Summary of the Invention

[0006] This invention addresses the problems of untimely grease replenishment, high ineffective consumption, short maintenance cycle, high cost, and lack of linkage between sealing and opening / closing actions, resulting in insufficient reliability in traditional ball valves. It provides an automatic grease replenishment ball valve and its grease replenishment method that offers precise and efficient sealing, long service life, and low cost.

[0007] This invention provides the following technical solution: an automatic grease-filling ball valve, comprising a valve body, a valve seat, a valve stem, and a ball. The valve stem is fixedly connected to the ball, the ball is embedded inside the valve body, the valve seat is located at the contact point between the valve body and the ball, and a flow channel is provided at the center of the ball. The valve stem drives the ball to rotate to control the flow channel opening and closing. A groove is provided on the valve seat, the opening of which abuts against the outer wall of the ball. A grease-filling assembly is provided inside the groove, the grease-filling assembly including a one-way valve and a push plate. The one-way valve is located at the opening of the groove, and a grease-receiving cavity is formed between the one-way valve and the push plate, the cavity containing sealing grease. The sealing device further includes a transmission assembly, which includes a one-way connector, a driving gear, a driven gear, and a lead screw, and a one-way connector fixing sleeve. The drive gear is fixedly sleeved on the outer circumference of the one-way connector and is attached to the valve stem. The drive gear meshes with the driven gear, and the center hole of the driven gear is fixedly connected to one end of the lead screw. The push plate is provided with a transmission threaded hole that mates with the lead screw. The lead screw is inserted into the transmission threaded hole. When the valve stem drives the ball to open the flow channel, the one-way connector rotates synchronously with the valve stem and drives the drive gear to rotate. The drive gear meshes with the driven gear and drives the lead screw to rotate. The rotation of the lead screw is converted into the linear motion of the push plate through the transmission threaded hole, pushing the sealing grease in the grease chamber through the one-way valve to the contact point between the ball and the valve seat. When the valve stem drives the ball to close the flow channel, the one-way connector rotates relative to the valve stem, and the drive gear, driven gear, lead screw and push plate are all in a stationary state.

[0008] In some embodiments, the one-way connector includes a toothed ring, an outer ring body, and a driven member. The driven member is sleeved on the outer ring body. The toothed ring is disposed in the receiving groove of the outer ring body. A plurality of driven balls are provided between the outer ring body and the toothed ring. The outer ring body includes through holes corresponding to the driven balls. The driven balls are received in the through holes, and a return spring is provided between the driven balls and the outer ring body. The outer ring body and the driven member are fixedly connected. The outer wall surface of the toothed ring is provided with toothed grooves that are evenly spaced along the circumference. The toothed grooves include inclined surfaces and blocking surfaces. The valve stem is inserted into the central hole of the toothed ring and is fixedly connected. When the valve stem rotates counterclockwise, the driven balls are locked in the toothed grooves. The blocking surfaces prevent the driven member from rotating counterclockwise. When the valve stem rotates clockwise, the inclined surfaces of the toothed grooves push the driven balls, causing the toothed ring to rotate freely.

[0009] In some embodiments, the number of teeth of the driving gear is Z1, the number of teeth of the driven gear is Z2, and the ratio of the number of teeth of the driving gear to the number of teeth of the driven gear satisfies i=Z1 / Z2=1 / 5.

[0010] In some embodiments, the number of teeth on the driving gear is Z1, the number of teeth on the driven gear is Z2, the lead of the lead screw is P, and the drive thread hole of the push plate is matched with the thread of the lead screw, that is, the pitch of the drive thread hole is equal to the pitch of the lead screw, and the value is consistent with the lead P; the rotation angle when the valve stem drives the ball to open the flow channel is θ, the moving distance of the push plate when opening the flow channel once is L1, and the cumulative moving distance of the push plate when the valve stem opens the flow channel N times is L. 总 The cross-sectional area of ​​the grease chamber is S; the tooth ratio of the driving gear to the driven gear satisfies: i = Z1 / Z2; when the valve stem opens the flow channel, the rotation angle θ of the driven gear and the lead screw is... 丝 The relationship between θ and the valve stem rotation angle θ is: θ 丝 =θ×i; The single movement distance L1 of the push plate is determined by the rotation angle θ of the lead screw. 丝 And the thread fit determines: The cumulative moving distance L of the push plate 总 The relationship between L1 and the single movement distance and N number of activations is: 总 =N×L1; The ratio constant k of the cross-sectional area S of the grease chamber and the lead of the screw P is in the range of 3500mm-4000mm, that is, S=k×P.

[0011] In some embodiments, a transmission component is provided on both the left and right sides of the valve stem, and the screw threads of the two different transmission components are arranged in opposite directions, so that when the driving gear drives different driven gears, the different push plates move in the same direction.

[0012] In some embodiments, a connecting valve shaft coaxially arranged with the valve stem is fixed at the lower end of the ball, and a transmission component and a grease injection component are simultaneously arranged on the left and right sides of the connecting valve shaft.

[0013] In some embodiments, a limiting groove is provided on the valve body. The limiting groove is opened on the inner wall surface of the valve body near the valve stem. The limiting groove extends circumferentially, and its circumferential length corresponds to a central angle of 90°. A limiting block is provided on the outer wall surface of the valve stem. Through the abutting cooperation between the limiting block and the limiting groove, the rotation angle of the valve stem is limited to 90°.

[0014] A method for replenishing grease using an automatic grease-replenishing ball valve includes the following steps:

[0015] S1: Initial state calibration and preparation. Set the ball flow channel to be 90° perpendicular to the main channel of the valve body, the flow channel is closed, the groove of the valve seat is set to correspond to the four contact points of the ball, and the opening of each groove is in contact with the outer wall of the ball; the grease injection components on the left and right sides of the valve stem and the left and right sides of the valve shaft correspond to the four contact points respectively, and the grease chamber of each grease injection component is filled with sealing grease. The push plate is in the initial position away from the one-way valve and each one-way valve is closed; the toothed ring of the one-way connector is fixed to the valve stem, and the driven ball is inserted into the tooth groove under the action of the return spring; the driving gear is fixed to the driven part of the one-way connector and meshes with the driven gear. The screw is inserted into the transmission thread hole of the push plate. In the transmission components on both sides of the valve stem and the valve shaft, the screw threads are set in opposite directions to ensure that the four sets of push plates move in the same direction, in preparation for the synchronous grease application of the four contact points;

[0016] S2: Synchronous grease sealing when the flow channel is open. Rotating the valve stem in the flow channel opening direction causes the ball to rotate 90° counterclockwise, aligning the ball's flow channel perfectly with the valve body's main channel, fully opening the flow channel. The connecting valve shaft rotates synchronously with the ball. The toothed ring of the one-way connector rotates counterclockwise with the valve stem. The blocking surface of the tooth groove engages the driven ball, causing the outer ring and driven component to rotate, which in turn drives the drive gear. Through meshing with their respective driven gears, it drives four sets of lead screws to rotate synchronously. The rotation of each lead screw is converted into linear motion through the corresponding push plate's transmission thread hole. The four sets of push plates move synchronously towards their respective one-way valves, squeezing the sealing grease in each grease chamber. This allows the sealing grease to be pushed out through the corresponding one-way valves to the four contact points between the ball and the valve seat, evenly filling the tiny gaps that have accumulated due to long-term use, completing the synchronous sealing compensation of the four contact points. At this time, the single movement distance of each set of push plates is... ;

[0017] S3: When the flow channel is closed, the sealing supply is stopped and the state is maintained. Rotate the valve stem in the direction of flow channel closure, causing the ball to rotate 90° clockwise. The ball flow channel returns to the closed state perpendicular to the main channel of the valve body, and the connecting valve shaft rotates synchronously with the ball. The toothed ring of the one-way connector rotates clockwise with the valve stem. The inclined surface of the tooth groove pushes the driven ball to compress the return spring and exit the tooth groove. The toothed ring rotates freely relative to the outer ring body. All four sets of driving gears, driven gears and screws are stationary, and the four sets of push plates maintain their current positions. After each grease chamber stops being pressurized, the corresponding one-way valve closes to prevent the sealing grease from flowing back. The sealing grease at the four contact points remains stable, and the remaining sealing grease is reserved for the next use.

[0018] S4: After multiple openings, the cumulative grease injection cycle repeats operations S2 and S3. Each time the flow channel is opened, all four push plates move towards their respective check valves at L1. When the valve stem has been opened a total of N times, the cumulative movement distance of all four push plates is L. 总 =N×L1; The cross-sectional area of ​​each grease cavity is S=k×P, and the total amount of sealing grease dispensed from the four contact points is S×L. 总 It precisely matches the cumulative wear at each contact point to completely prevent leakage and ensure the long-term sealing performance of the ball and the valve seat;

[0019] S5: Sealant replenishment procedure: Close the upstream and downstream valves of the ball valve to release the pressure in the pipeline, disassemble the ball valve, manually rotate the screw or drive the driven gear with a special tool to disengage the push plate from the groove, inject sealant into the grease chamber, rotate the screw to reset the push plate to the initial position away from the one-way valve, and at the same time recheck the driven ball clamping status and gear meshing accuracy of the one-way connector to ensure that the initial positions of the four sets of push plates are consistent; finally, rotate the valve stem counterclockwise to open the flow channel, observe whether the sealant overflows evenly to the contact point, close the flow channel and restore pipeline operation after confirming that there is no leakage, and reset the cumulative number of openings N to 0, and record the replenishment time and the amount of grease injected.

[0020] Compared with the prior art, the advantages of the present invention are as follows:

[0021] 1. Dynamic sealing is precise and efficient, significantly improving sealing reliability: This invention uses a valve stem opening action to drive a push plate to quantitatively dispense sealing grease through a linkage transmission component. This not only replenishes the sealing grease during the opening process but also continuously forms a stable sealing layer at the contact point between the ball and the valve seat under dynamic operating conditions when the flow channel is open. This precisely fills the gaps generated by the rotation of the ball, solving the problem of sealing failure caused by easy loss of sealing grease and untimely replenishment after the traditional ball valve is opened. It is especially suitable for harsh operating conditions such as high pressure and corrosive media, significantly improving the stability and reliability of ball valve sealing.

[0022] 2. Multi-contact point synchronous grease injection significantly improves the comprehensiveness and uniformity of sealing: This invention uses four sets of grease injection components on the left and right sides of the valve stem and the left and right sides of the connecting valve shaft to simultaneously inject grease at the four key contact points of the ball. Each time the flow channel is opened, the four sets of push plates move synchronously, and the sealing grease evenly covers the entire circumference of the ball's sealing surface, solving the problems of local grease deficiency and sealing failure, and improving the effective coverage of the sealing surface.

[0023] 3. Synergistic effect of lubrication and friction reduction, extending the service life of core components: While achieving the sealing function, the sealing grease can form a uniform lubricating film on the contact surface between the valve seat and the ball, transforming the hard friction between the two into low-resistance lubricating friction. This not only reduces the torque resistance when the valve stem is opened and closed, but also effectively reduces the wear of the sealing surface and the wear of components, significantly extending the service life of core components such as the ball and valve seat, and reducing the frequency of equipment maintenance and overall costs.

[0024] 4. Unidirectional intelligent grease control avoids waste and reduces losses: Utilizing the unidirectional locking characteristic of the unidirectional connector, this invention transmits power to inject grease only when the valve stem opens the flow channel; when the flow channel is closed, the unidirectional connector rotates relative to the valve stem, the transmission component remains stationary, and grease injection stops. This design avoids ineffective consumption of sealing grease, reduces additional wear on transmission components such as push plates and gears, extends the grease replenishment cycle and component lifespan, and improves the economic efficiency of the device operation.

[0025] 5. 90° Precise Limiting Design Enhances Operational Safety and Stability: Through the matching and cooperation of the limiting block and the limiting groove, the valve stem rotation angle is strictly limited to 90°, which can effectively prevent excessive rotation of the valve stem from causing damage to the ball, valve seat or transmission components. At the same time, it ensures that the flow channel is fully opened and closed with precision, reduces the risk of misoperation, and significantly improves the overall stability and operational safety of the device.

[0026] 6. Strong parameter adaptability, balancing versatility and economy: The fixed tooth ratio of the driving gear and driven gear, and the ratio of the grease chamber cross-sectional area to the lead screw are designed to flexibly match parameters according to the ball valve diameter. This ensures precise matching between the single grease injection volume and sealing surface requirements, while the cumulative grease injection design balances sealing effect and operating cost. It can be widely adapted to the application needs of industrial ball valves of different specifications, and has strong versatility.

[0027] 7. High reusability of grease replenishment, reducing overall maintenance costs: The modular grease injection design enables repeated use: When the grease in the grease chamber is depleted, simply follow step S5 to depressurize and disassemble the ball valve, then manually reset the push plate to replenish the grease chamber with new grease. There is no need to replace the one-way valve, push plate, gear set, or other core transmission components. After grease replenishment, by resetting the number of openings N, the device can immediately restore the quantitative grease injection function, realizing the "grease replenishment-use-re-grease replenishment" cycle.

[0028] 8. Integrated Design

[0029] This invention integrates the grease injection component and the transmission component entirely within the ball valve. Compared to an external automatic grease filling machine that requires additional installation, it eliminates the need for complex modifications to the existing piping system to lay connecting pipes and avoids occupying external space. It is suitable for confined installation conditions and can directly match multiple ball valve specifications. Furthermore, it relies on the direct mechanical linkage between the valve stem's opening and closing action and the built-in transmission component, eliminating the need for sensors and electrical control systems dependent on external equipment. This avoids signal delays or linkage failures, achieving precise matching between the grease injection volume and the wear of the sealing surface. The built-in structure shortens the sealing path, and the one-way valve anti-backflow design reduces leakage points, making it more suitable for harsh conditions such as high pressure and corrosive environments. Subsequent grease replenishment only requires resetting the push plate, and the core components can be reused, significantly reducing maintenance difficulty and costs. Attached Figure Description

[0030] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application, the drawings used in the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of this application. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0031] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the present invention;

[0032] Figure 2 This is a cross-sectional structural diagram of the present invention;

[0033] Figure 3 For the present invention Figure 2 A magnified structural diagram at point A;

[0034] Figure 4 For the present invention Figure 2 A magnified structural diagram at point B;

[0035] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the valve stem, driving gear, and driven gear meshing structure of the present invention.

[0036] Figure 6 This is a cross-sectional view of the unidirectional connector of the present invention.

[0037] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the push plate of the present invention.

[0038] In the diagram: 1. Valve body; 2. Valve seat; 21. Groove; 22. Grease chamber; 23. Limiting groove; 3. Ball; 4. Grease injection assembly; 41. Check valve; 42. Push plate; 421. Drive threaded hole; 5. Drive assembly; 51. One-way connector; 511. Gear ring; 512. Outer ring; 5121. Receiving groove; 5122. Perforation; 513. Driven component; 514. Driven ball; 515. Return spring; 516. Gear groove; 5161. Inclined surface; 5162. Blocking surface; 52. Drive gear; 53. Driven gear; 54. Lead screw; 6. Valve stem; 61. Limiting block; 7. Connecting valve shaft. Detailed Implementation

[0039] The present application will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

[0040] The following specific examples illustrate the implementation of this application. Those skilled in the art can easily understand other advantages and effects of this application from the content disclosed in this specification. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of this application, and not all of them. This application can also be implemented or applied through other different specific embodiments, and the details in this specification can also be modified or changed based on different viewpoints and applications without departing from the spirit of this application. It should be noted that, in the absence of conflict, the following embodiments and features in the embodiments can be combined with each other. Based on the embodiments in this application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0041] It should be noted that various aspects of embodiments within the scope of the appended claims are described below. It will be apparent that the aspects described herein can be embodied in a wide variety of forms, and any particular structure and / or function described herein is merely illustrative. Based on this application, those skilled in the art will understand that one aspect described herein can be implemented independently of any other aspect, and two or more of these aspects can be combined in various ways. For example, any number and aspects set forth herein can be used to implement the device and / or practice the method. Additionally, this device and / or method can be implemented using structures and / or functionalities other than one or more of the aspects set forth herein.

[0042] It should also be noted that the illustrations provided in the following embodiments are only schematic representations of the basic concept of this application. The drawings only show the components related to this application and are not drawn according to the actual number, shape and size of the components in the actual implementation. In the actual implementation, the form, quantity and proportion of each component can be arbitrarily changed, and the layout of the components may also be more complex.

[0043] Additionally, specific details are provided in the following description to facilitate a thorough understanding of the examples. However, those skilled in the art will understand that practice can be carried out without these specific details.

[0044] The technical solutions provided by the various embodiments of this application are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0045] Please see Figure 1-7As shown in this embodiment: an automatic grease-filling ball valve includes a valve body 1, a valve seat 2, a valve stem 6, and a ball 3. The valve stem 6 is fixedly connected to the ball 3, and the ball 3 is embedded inside the valve body 1. The valve seat 2 is located at the contact point between the valve body 1 and the ball 3. A flow channel is provided in the center of the ball 3. The valve stem 6 drives the ball 3 to rotate to control the flow channel opening and closing. A groove 21 is provided on the valve seat 2. The opening of the groove 21 abuts against the outer wall of the ball 3. A grease-filling assembly 4 is provided in the groove 21. The grease-filling assembly 4 includes a one-way valve 41 and a push plate 42. The one-way valve 41 is located at the opening of the groove 21. A grease-receiving cavity 22 is formed between the one-way valve 41 and the push plate 42. The grease-receiving cavity 22 contains sealing grease. The sealing device also includes a transmission assembly 5, which includes a one-way connector 51, a driving gear 52, a driven gear 53, and a lead screw 54. The one-way connector 51 is fixedly sleeved on the valve stem 6. The driving gear 52 is fixedly sleeved on the outer periphery of the one-way connector 51. The driving gear 52 meshes with the driven gear 53. The center hole of the driven gear 53 is fixedly connected to one end of the lead screw 54. The push plate 42 is provided with a transmission threaded hole 421 that mates with the lead screw 54. The lead screw 54 is inserted into the transmission threaded hole 421. When the valve stem 6 drives the ball 3 to open the flow channel, the one-way connector 51 rotates synchronously with the valve stem 6 and drives the driving gear 52 to rotate. The driving gear 52 meshes with the driven gear 53 and drives the lead screw 54 to rotate. The rotation of the lead screw 54 is converted into linear motion of the push plate 42 through the transmission threaded hole 421, pushing the sealing grease in the grease chamber 22 through the one-way valve 41 to the contact point between the ball 3 and the valve seat 2. When the valve stem 6 drives the ball 3 to close the flow channel, the one-way connector 51 rotates freely relative to the valve stem 6, and the driving gear 52, driven gear 53, lead screw 54 and push plate 42 are all in a stationary state.

[0046] In some embodiments, such as Figure 6 As shown, the one-way connector 51 includes a toothed ring 511, an outer ring body 512, and a driven member 513. The driven member 513 is sleeved on the outer ring body 512. The toothed ring 511 is disposed in the receiving groove 5121 of the outer ring body 512. A plurality of driven balls 514 are provided between the outer ring body 512 and the toothed ring 511. The outer ring body 512 includes through holes 5122 corresponding to the driven balls 514. The driven balls 514 are received in the through holes 5122, and a return spring 515 is provided between the driven balls 514 and the outer ring body 512. The outer ring body 512 and the driven member... 513 is fixedly connected. The outer wall of the toothed ring 511 is provided with toothed grooves 516 evenly spaced along the circumference. The toothed groove 516 includes an inclined surface 5161 and a blocking surface 5162. The valve stem 6 is inserted into the central hole of the toothed ring 511 and is fixedly connected. When the valve stem 6 rotates counterclockwise, the driven ball 514 is engaged in the toothed groove 516. The blocking surface 5162 blocks the driven member 513 to rotate counterclockwise. When the valve stem 6 rotates clockwise, the inclined surface 5161 of the toothed groove 516 will push the driven ball 514, causing the toothed ring 511 to only rotate freely.

[0047] In some embodiments, such as Figure 5 As shown, the number of teeth of the driving gear 52 is Z1, and the number of teeth of the driven gear 53 is Z2. The ratio of the number of teeth of the driving gear 52 to the number of teeth of the driven gear 53 satisfies i=Z1 / Z2=1 / 5.

[0048] In some embodiments, such as Figure 5 As shown, the number of teeth of the driving gear 52 is Z1, the number of teeth of the driven gear 53 is Z2, the thread lead of the lead screw 54 is P, and the transmission thread hole 421 of the push plate 42 is matched with the thread of the lead screw 54, that is, the pitch of the transmission thread hole 421 is equal to the pitch of the lead screw 54, and the value is consistent with the lead P; the rotation angle of the valve stem 6 when it drives the ball 3 to open the flow channel is θ, the moving distance of the push plate 42 when it opens the flow channel once is L1, and the cumulative moving distance of the push plate 42 when the valve stem 6 opens the flow channel N times is L. 总 The cross-sectional area of ​​the grease-containing cavity 22 is S; the tooth ratio of the driving gear 52 to the driven gear 53 satisfies: i = Z1 / Z2; when the valve stem 6 opens the flow channel, the rotation angle θ of the driven gear 53 and the lead screw 54 is... 丝 The relationship between the valve stem 6 rotation angle θ and the valve stem 6 rotation angle θ is: θ 丝 =θ×i; The single movement distance L1 of the push plate 42 is determined by the rotation angle θ of the lead screw 54. 丝 And the thread fit determines: The cumulative moving distance L of the push plate 42 总 The relationship between L1 and the single movement distance and N number of activations is: 总 =N×L1; The ratio constant k of the cross-sectional area S of the grease cavity 22 and the lead P of the screw 54 is in the range of 3500mm-4000mm, that is, S=k×P.

[0049] In some embodiments, such as Figure 5 As shown, a transmission component 5 is provided on both the left and right sides of the valve stem 6, and the screws 54 of the two different transmission components 5 are arranged in opposite directions, so that when the driving gear 52 drives different driven gears 53, the different push plates 42 move in the same direction.

[0050] In some embodiments, such as Figure 2 As shown, a connecting valve shaft 7, which is coaxially arranged with the valve stem 6, is fixed at the lower end of the ball 3. A transmission assembly 5 and a grease injection assembly 4 are simultaneously arranged on the left and right sides of the connecting valve shaft 7.

[0051] In some embodiments, such as Figures 1-2 As shown, the valve body 1 is provided with a limiting groove 23. The limiting groove 23 is opened on the inner wall surface of the valve body 1 near the valve stem 6. The limiting groove 23 extends circumferentially, and its circumferential length corresponds to a central angle of 90°. The valve stem 6 is provided with a limiting block 61 extending from the outer wall surface. Through the abutting cooperation between the limiting block 61 and the limiting groove 23, the rotation angle of the valve stem 6 is limited to 90°.

[0052] It should be noted that: Z1 has 30 teeth, Z2 has 150 teeth, the groove 21 has a depth of 150mm, a diameter of 120mm, and a clearance fit between the groove 21 and the push plate 42. When the valve stem 6 opens the flow channel, the rotation angle θ = 90°, the number of openings N = 1000, the tooth ratio i = 1 / 5, the lead of the lead screw 54 P = 3mm, and k takes the optimal value of 3770mm, the cross-sectional area of ​​the grease chamber 22 is S = 3770 × 3 = 11310mm², the single movement distance of the push plate 42 is L1 = 0.15mm, and the cumulative movement distance L... 总 =150mm, the total amount of sealing grease ejected from the grease chamber 22 via the one-way valve 41 is S×L. 总 =1696.5cm³, this grease injection amount is suitable for the wear compensation requirements of the sealing surface of large-diameter ball valves (DN300 nominal diameter), and is the optimal grease injection amount. The circumference of the sealing surface of a DN300 ball valve is about 1068mm, and the diameter of the ball is 340mm. 1696.5cm³ of sealing grease can evenly cover the large sealing surface, meet the sealing requirements under high pressure conditions, and the grease filling density is about 0.9g / cm³. The total mass is about 1.5kg, which meets the standard for single grease replenishment of industrial large ball valves.

[0053] Please see Figure 1-7 As shown in this embodiment: a method for replenishing grease in an automatic grease-replenishing ball valve includes the following steps:

[0054] S1: Initial state calibration and pre-preparation. The flow channel of the ball 3 is set to be perpendicular to the main channel of the valve body 1 at 90°, the flow channel is closed, the groove 21 of the valve seat 2 corresponds to the four contact points of the ball 3, and the opening of each groove 21 fits against the outer wall of the ball 3; the grease injection components 4 on the left and right sides of the valve stem 6 and on the left and right sides of the connecting valve shaft 7 correspond to the four contact points respectively, the grease chambers 22 of each grease injection component 4 are filled with sealing grease, the push plate 42 is in the initial position away from the one-way valve 41, and each one-way valve 41 is closed; the one-way valve 41... The toothed ring 511 of the connector 51 is fixed to the valve stem 6, and the driven ball 514 is engaged in the tooth groove 516 under the action of the return spring 515; the driving gear 52 is fixed to the driven member 513 of the one-way connector 51 and meshes with the driven gear 53; the lead screw 54 is inserted into the transmission thread hole 421 of the push plate 42; in the transmission components 5 on both sides of the valve stem 6 and the connecting valve shaft 7, the threads of the lead screw 54 are arranged in opposite directions to ensure that the four sets of push plates 42 move in the same direction, in preparation for synchronous grease application to the four contact points;

[0055] S2: Synchronous grease sealing when the flow channel is open. Rotating the valve stem 6 in the flow channel opening direction causes the ball 3 to rotate 90° counterclockwise. The flow channel of the ball 3 is fully aligned with the main channel of the valve body 1, and the flow channel is fully open. The connecting valve shaft 7 rotates synchronously with the ball 3. The toothed ring 511 of the one-way connector 51 rotates counterclockwise with the valve stem 6. The blocking surface 5162 of the toothed groove 516 engages the driven ball 514, causing the outer ring 512 and the driven member 513 to rotate, thereby driving the driving gear 52, which, through its respective... Driven gear 53 meshes and drives four sets of lead screws 54 to rotate synchronously; the rotation of each lead screw 54 is converted into linear motion through the transmission thread hole 421 of the corresponding push plate 42, and the four sets of push plates 42 move synchronously towards their respective one-way valves 41, squeezing the sealing grease in each grease chamber 22, so that the sealing grease is pushed out through the corresponding one-way valves 41 to the four contact points of the ball 3 with the valve seat 2, evenly filling the small gaps in each contact point caused by long-term use, and completing the synchronous sealing compensation of the four contact points; at this time, the single movement distance of each set of push plates 42 is... ;

[0056] S3: When the flow channel is closed, the sealing supply is stopped and the state is maintained. Rotate the valve stem 6 in the direction of flow channel closure, causing the ball 3 to rotate 90° clockwise. The flow channel of the ball 3 returns to the closed state perpendicular to the main channel of the valve body 1. The connecting valve shaft 7 rotates synchronously with the ball 3. The toothed ring 511 of the one-way connector 51 rotates clockwise with the valve stem 6. The inclined surface 5161 of the tooth groove 516 pushes the driven ball 514 to compress the return spring 515 and exit the tooth groove 516. The toothed ring 511 rotates freely relative to the outer ring body 512. The four sets of driving gears 52, driven gears 53 and lead screws 54 are all stationary. The four sets of push plates 42 maintain their current positions. After each grease chamber 22 stops being pressurized, the corresponding one-way valve 41 closes to prevent the grease from flowing back. The grease at the four contact points remains stable, and the remaining grease is reserved for the next use.

[0057] S4: After multiple openings, the cumulative grease injection cycle repeats operations S2 and S3. Each time the flow channel is opened, all four sets of push plates 42 move closer to their respective one-way valves 41 by L1. When the valve stem 6 has been opened a total of N times, the cumulative movement distance of the four sets of push plates 42 is L. 总 =N×L1; the cross-sectional area of ​​each grease-containing cavity 22 is S=k×P, and the total amount of sealing grease dispensed from the four contact points is S×L. 总 It precisely matches the cumulative wear at each contact point, completely avoiding leakage and ensuring the long-term sealing performance of the ball 3 and the valve seat 2;

[0058] S5: Seal grease replenishment procedure: Close the upstream and downstream valves of the ball valve to release the pressure in the pipeline, disassemble the ball valve, manually rotate the screw 54 or drive the driven gear 53 with a special tool to disengage the push plate 42 from the groove 21, inject seal grease into the grease chamber 22, rotate the screw to reset the push plate 42 to the initial position away from the one-way valve 41, and at the same time recheck the locking state of the driven ball 514 of the one-way connector 51 and the meshing accuracy of the gear to ensure that the initial positions of the four sets of push plates 42 are consistent; finally, rotate the valve stem 6 counterclockwise to open the flow channel, observe whether the seal grease overflows evenly to the contact point, close the flow channel and restore pipeline operation after confirming that there is no leakage, and at the same time reset the cumulative number of openings N to 0, and record the replenishment time and the amount of grease injected.

[0059] This sealing method has the following advantages compared to traditional sealing technologies:

[0060] Simultaneous grease injection at multiple contact points ensures more comprehensive sealing coverage. Traditional methods often involve single-group grease injection, which can easily lead to uneven grease distribution at the contact points between the ball 3 and the valve seat 2, resulting in localized grease deficiency and leakage. This method uses four grease injection components 4, connected to the valve stem 6 and both sides of the valve shaft 7, to simultaneously inject grease at the four contact points of the ball 3. The grease evenly fills the gaps between each contact point, improving the effective coverage of the sealing surface and solving the problem of "localized sealing failure" in traditional methods.

[0061] This method utilizes a linked grease injection mechanism for more precise dynamic sealing, overcoming the timing lag and uncontrolled dosage issues inherent in traditional manual grease application. The valve stem 6's opening action, linked to a one-way connector 51, drives four sets of lead screws 54 to synchronously push grease, with a single injection volume controlled according to... It features quantitative control and continuous grease replenishment when the flow channel is open, which fills the rotation gap of the ball 3 in real time. It is suitable for dynamic and harsh working conditions such as high pressure and corrosive media, and the sealing reliability is improved compared with the traditional method.

[0062] The one-way grease-stopping design avoids ineffective resource consumption. Traditional automatic grease injection often results in erroneous grease injection even when the valve stem 6 is closed due to the lack of one-way control. In this method, during step S3, when the valve stem 6 rotates clockwise, the one-way connector 51 toothed ring 511 idles, and the four sets of transmission components 5 synchronously stop grease injection. At the same time, the one-way valve 41 prevents backflow, resulting in high grease utilization. This reduces grease consumption and lowers operating costs compared to traditional methods.

[0063] This method uses cumulative grease injection to adapt to wear, resulting in longer maintenance cycles. Traditional methods do not correlate the number of openings with wear, leading to inconsistent grease replenishment schedules. In this method, step S4 calculates the cumulative push plate stroke L based on the number of openings (N) and the total push plate stroke (42 L). 总 =N×L1, Total fat injection volume S×L 总 It accurately matches the cumulative wear of each contact point, eliminating the need for frequent shutdowns for lubrication, extending the maintenance cycle compared to traditional methods, and adapting to the needs of continuous industrial operation.

[0064] The initial calibration standard ensures higher operational stability. Traditional methods lack a unified initial benchmark and are prone to grease injection failures due to component misalignment. The S1 step of this method clearly defines the initial state, ensuring the linkage accuracy of the four groups of components, reducing the operational error rate, and improving the operational stability of the device compared to the traditional method.

[0065] Repeated grease replenishment ensures high utilization; by re-greasing the accommodating cavity, the service life of the ball valve can be extended.

[0066] The same or similar parts between the various embodiments in this specification can be referred to mutually. Each embodiment focuses on describing the differences from other embodiments.

[0067] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of this application, but the scope of protection of this application is not limited thereto. Any variations or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in this application should be included within the scope of protection of this application. Therefore, the scope of protection of this application should be determined by the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. An automatic grease-replenishing ball valve, comprising a valve body (1), a valve seat (2), a valve stem (6), and a ball (3), wherein the valve stem (6) is fixedly connected to the ball (3), the ball (3) is embedded inside the valve body (1), the valve seat (2) is located at the contact point between the valve body (1) and the ball (3), the ball (3) has a flow channel at its center, and the valve stem (6) drives the ball (3) to rotate to control the opening and closing of the flow channel, characterized in that, The valve seat (2) has a groove (21) with the opening of the groove (21) abutting against the outer wall of the ball (3). A grease injection assembly (4) is provided in the groove (21). The grease injection assembly (4) includes a one-way valve (41) and a push plate (42). The one-way valve (41) is located at the opening of the groove (21). A grease-containing cavity (22) is formed between the one-way valve (41) and the push plate (42). The grease-containing cavity (22) contains sealing grease. The sealing device also includes a transmission assembly (5). The transmission assembly (5) includes a one-way connector (51). The valve stem (6) is equipped with a drive gear (52), a driven gear (53), and a lead screw (54). The one-way connector (51) is fixedly sleeved on the valve stem (6). The drive gear (52) is fixedly sleeved on the outer periphery of the one-way connector (51). The drive gear (52) meshes with the driven gear (53). The center hole of the driven gear (53) is fixedly connected to one end of the lead screw (54). The push plate (42) is provided with a transmission threaded hole (421) that cooperates with the lead screw (54). The lead screw (54) is inserted into the transmission threaded hole (421). When the valve stem (6) drives the ball (3) to open the flow channel, the one-way connector (51) rotates synchronously with the valve stem (6) and drives the drive gear (52) to rotate. The drive gear (52) meshes with the driven gear (53) to drive the lead screw (54) to rotate. The rotation of the lead screw (54) is converted into the linear motion of the push plate (42) through the transmission thread hole (421), pushing the sealing grease in the grease chamber (22) through the one-way valve (41) to the contact point between the ball (3) and the valve seat (2). When the valve stem (6) drives the ball (3) to close the flow channel, the one-way connector (51) rotates freely relative to the valve stem (6), and the driving gear (52), the driven gear (53), the lead screw (54) and the push plate (42) are all stationary.

2. The automatic grease replenishing ball valve according to claim 1, characterized in that: The one-way connector (51) includes a toothed ring (511), an outer ring body (512), and a driven member (513). The outer ring body (512) is fitted with the driven member (513). The toothed ring (511) is disposed in the receiving groove (5121) of the outer ring body (512). A plurality of driven balls (514) are provided between the outer ring body (512) and the toothed ring (511). The outer ring body (512) includes a through hole (5122) corresponding to the driven ball (514). The driven ball (514) is housed in the through hole (5122), and a return spring (515) is provided between the driven ball (514) and the outer ring body (512). The outer ring body (512) and the driven ball (513) are connected by a toothed ring (511) and a driven member (513). The moving part (513) is fixedly connected. The outer wall of the toothed ring (511) is provided with toothed grooves (516) arranged at equal intervals along the circumference. The toothed groove (516) includes an inclined surface (5161) and a blocking surface (5162). The valve stem (6) is inserted into the central hole of the toothed ring (511) and is fixedly connected. When the valve stem (6) rotates counterclockwise, the driven ball (514) is engaged in the toothed groove (516). The driven part (513) is driven to rotate counterclockwise by the blocking surface (5162). When the valve stem (6) rotates clockwise, the toothed ring (511) will only rotate freely because the inclined surface (5161) of the toothed groove (516) will push the driven ball (514).

3. The automatic grease replenishing ball valve according to claim 2, characterized in that: The number of teeth of the driving gear (52) is Z1, the number of teeth of the driven gear (53) is Z2, and the ratio of the number of teeth of the driving gear (52) to the number of teeth of the driven gear (53) satisfies i=Z1 / Z2=1 / 5.

4. An automatic grease replenishing ball valve according to claim 3, characterized in that: The valve stem (6) is provided with a transmission assembly (5) on both the left and right sides, and the screws (54) of the two different transmission assemblies (5) are arranged in opposite directions, so that when the driving gear (52) drives the different driven gears (53), the different push plates (42) move in the same direction.

5. An automatic grease replenishing ball valve according to claim 4, characterized in that: The lower end of the ball (3) is fixed with a connecting valve shaft (7) that is coaxial with the valve stem (6). The transmission assembly (5) and the grease injection assembly (4) are simultaneously provided on the left and right sides of the connecting valve shaft (7).

6. An automatic grease replenishing ball valve according to claim 5, characterized in that: The number of teeth of the driving gear (52) is Z1, the number of teeth of the driven gear (53) is Z2, the thread lead of the lead screw (54) is P, the transmission thread hole (421) of the push plate (42) is adapted to the thread of the lead screw (54), that is, the pitch of the transmission thread hole (421) is equal to the pitch of the lead screw (54), and the value is consistent with the lead P; the rotation angle of the valve stem (6) when it drives the ball (3) to open the flow channel is θ, the moving distance of the push plate (42) when it opens the flow channel once is L1, and the cumulative moving distance of the push plate (42) when the valve stem (6) opens the flow channel N times is L. 总 The cross-sectional area of ​​the fat-containing cavity (22) is S; The gear ratio of the driving gear (52) to the driven gear (53) satisfies: i = Z1 / Z2; when the valve stem (6) opens the flow channel, the rotation angle θ of the driven gear (53) and the lead screw (54) is... 丝 The relationship between the rotation angle θ of the valve stem (6) and the valve stem (6) is: θ 丝 =θ×i; The single movement distance L1 of the push plate (42) is determined by the rotation angle θ of the lead screw (54). 丝 And the thread fit determines: The cumulative moving distance L of the push plate (42) 总 The relationship between L1 and the single movement distance and N number of activations is: 总 =N×L1; The ratio constant k of the cross-sectional area S of the fat-containing cavity (22) and the lead P of the lead screw (54) is in the range of 3500mm-4000mm, that is, S=k×P.

7. An automatic grease replenishing ball valve according to claim 6, characterized in that: The valve body (1) is provided with a limiting groove (23), which is opened on the inner wall surface of the valve body (1) near the valve stem (6). The limiting groove (23) extends circumferentially, and its circumferential length corresponds to a central angle of 90°. The valve stem (6) is provided with a limiting block (61) extending from the outer wall surface. Through the abutting cooperation between the limiting block (61) and the limiting groove (23), the rotation angle of the valve stem (6) is limited to 90°.

8. A method for replenishing grease based on the automatic grease replenishing ball valve according to any one of claims 6-7, characterized in that, Includes the following steps: S1: Initial state calibration and pre-preparation, setting the flow channel of the ball (3) to be perpendicular to the main channel of the valve body (1) at 90°, the flow channel is closed, the groove (21) of the valve seat (2) is set to correspond to the four contact points of the ball (3), and the opening of each groove (21) is attached to the outer wall of the ball (3); the grease injection components (4) on the left and right sides of the valve stem (6) and the left and right sides of the connecting valve shaft (7) correspond to the four contact points respectively, the grease chamber (22) of each grease injection component (4) is filled with sealing grease, the push plate (42) is in the initial position away from the one-way valve (41) and each one-way valve (41) is closed; the one-way connection The toothed ring (511) of component (51) is fixed to the valve stem (6), and the driven ball (514) is inserted into the tooth groove (516) under the action of the return spring (515); the driving gear (52) is fixed to the driven part (513) of the one-way connector (51) and meshes with the driven gear (53); the lead screw (54) is inserted into the transmission thread hole (421) of the push plate (42), and in the transmission assembly (5) on both sides of the valve stem (6) and the connecting valve shaft (7), the threads of the lead screw (54) are arranged in opposite directions to ensure that the four sets of push plates (42) move in the same direction, in preparation for the synchronous grease application of the four contact points; S2: Synchronous grease sealing when the flow channel is open. Rotate the valve stem (6) in the direction of flow channel opening, causing the ball (3) to rotate 90° counterclockwise. The flow channel of the ball (3) is fully aligned with the main channel of the valve body (1), and the flow channel is fully open. The connecting valve shaft (7) rotates synchronously with the ball (3). The toothed ring (511) of the one-way connector (51) rotates counterclockwise with the valve stem (6). The blocking surface (5162) of the tooth groove (516) engages the driven ball (514), causing the outer ring (512) and the driven member (513) to rotate, thereby driving the driving gear (52) to rotate through each The driven gear (53) meshes with the four sets of lead screws (54) and drives them to rotate synchronously. The rotation of each lead screw (54) is converted into linear motion through the transmission thread hole (421) of the corresponding push plate (42). The four sets of push plates (42) move synchronously towards their respective one-way valves (41), squeezing the sealing grease in each grease chamber (22). The sealing grease is then pushed out through the corresponding one-way valves (41) to the four contact points of the ball (3) with the valve seat (2), uniformly filling the small gaps caused by long-term use at each contact point, and completing the synchronous sealing compensation of the four contact points. At this time, the single movement distance of each set of push plates (42) is... ; S3: When the flow channel is closed, the sealing and supply stop state is maintained. Rotate the valve stem (6) in the direction of flow channel closure, causing the ball (3) to rotate 90° clockwise. The flow channel of the ball (3) returns to the closed state perpendicular to the main channel of the valve body (1). The connecting valve shaft (7) rotates synchronously with the ball (3). The toothed ring (511) of the one-way connector (51) rotates clockwise with the valve stem (6). The inclined surface (5161) of the toothed groove (516) pushes the driven ball ( 514) The return spring (515) is compressed and disengaged from the tooth groove (516). The toothed ring (511) rotates freely relative to the outer ring body (512). The four sets of driving gears (52), driven gears (53) and lead screws (54) are all stationary. The four sets of push plates (42) maintain their current positions. After each grease chamber (22) stops being pressurized, the corresponding one-way valve (41) closes to prevent the grease from flowing back. The grease at the four contact points remains stable, and the remaining grease is reserved for the next use. S4: After multiple openings, the cumulative grease injection cycle repeats S2 and S3. Each time the flow channel is opened, the four sets of push plates (42) move closer to their respective check valves (41) by L1. When the valve stem (6) is opened N times in total, the cumulative moving distance of the four sets of push plates (42) is L. 总 =N×L1; The cross-sectional area of ​​each of the grease-containing cavities (22) is S=k×P, and the total amount of sealing grease dispensed from the four contact points is S×L. 总 The cumulative wear at each contact point is precisely matched to prevent leakage and ensure the long-term sealing performance of the ball (3) and the valve seat (2). S5: Seal grease replenishment step, close the upstream and downstream valves of the ball valve to release the pressure in the pipeline, disassemble the ball valve, manually rotate the screw (54) or drive the driven gear (53) with a special tool, after the push plate (42) is disengaged from the groove (21), seal grease is injected into the grease chamber (22), rotate the screw (54) to reset the push plate (42) to the initial position away from the one-way valve (41), and at the same time recheck the locking state of the driven ball (514) of the one-way connector (51) and the meshing accuracy of the gear to ensure that the initial positions of the four sets of push plates (42) are consistent; finally, rotate the valve stem (6) counterclockwise to open the flow channel, observe whether the seal grease overflows evenly to the contact point, close the flow channel and restore pipeline operation after confirming that there is no leakage, and at the same time reset the cumulative number of openings N to 0, and record the replenishment time and the amount of grease injected.

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