Electric valve and cleaning machine
By using an integrated electric valve design, a transition chamber is constructed using a rotating pressure plate and an independent arc-shaped hole, enabling precise switching between multiple working modes. This solves the complexity and energy consumption problems caused by adding multiple electric valves, and is suitable for the compact structure and cost control of cleaning machines.
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Applications(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2026-01-26
- Publication Date
- 2026-04-03
AI Technical Summary
In existing technologies, the addition of multiple electric valves complicates the flow path structure of the base station, increases manufacturing costs and energy consumption, and occupies space, limiting the compact design of the sweeping robot.
The electric valve features an integrated design. It has a pressure plate that rotates around the center of the liquid inlet inside the upper cover. The pressure plate has independent arc-shaped holes and through holes, which work together with the bottom cover to form a transition chamber, enabling precise switching between multiple working modes, reducing the number of moving parts and simplifying the layout.
It reduces assembly complexity and operating energy consumption, improves the accuracy of flow path switching and control flexibility, and is suitable for cleaning machines with high requirements for structural compactness, energy efficiency and cost control.
Smart Images

Figure CN121782393A_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] This application relates to the technical field of electric valves, and in particular to an electric valve and a cleaning machine. Background Technology
[0002] In an intelligent robotic vacuum cleaner system, there are typically two main functional units: the robot body and the base station. Among them, the electric valve, as the core control component that realizes the opening and closing of the flow path and the switching of modes in the base station, is generally integrated and installed inside the base station. Through the precise control of the electric valve, the base station flow path system can switch between multiple functional modes, thereby meeting the various needs of the robot body in the entire cleaning operation and ensuring that the cleaning process is efficient and orderly.
[0003] To achieve the on / off switching and mode switching of base station flow paths, the industry currently widely adopts a multi-electric valve combination control scheme. This involves installing electric valves in each independent branch flow path of the base station, and controlling the individual opening and closing or coordinated action of each electric valve to achieve the on / off switching and function switching of different flow paths. However, this scheme has the following drawbacks: the addition of multiple electric valves directly increases the number of moving parts, leading to a more complex base station flow path structure. This not only increases the difficulty of assembly processes but also increases product manufacturing and subsequent maintenance costs. Furthermore, the coordinated operation of multiple electric valves significantly increases overall energy consumption, and the dispersed electric valves occupy a considerable amount of internal space in the base station, restricting the overall compactness and miniaturization design of the robotic vacuum cleaner. Summary of the Invention
[0004] In view of this, it is necessary to provide an electric valve and a cleaning machine that can solve the above-mentioned technical problems.
[0005] To solve the above-mentioned technical problems, this application provides the following technical solution:
[0006] An electric valve, the electric valve comprising:
[0007] The top cover is provided with a liquid inlet and at least three liquid outlets, and the at least three liquid outlets are distributed at intervals along the circumference of a predetermined circle with the center of the liquid inlet as the center.
[0008] A pressure plate is rotatably installed inside the upper cover with the center of the liquid inlet as the center. The pressure plate is provided with an arc-shaped hole and a through hole. The arc-shaped hole is located on the circumference of the preset circle and is independently set relative to the through hole. The through hole is connected to the liquid inlet.
[0009] The bottom cover is connected to the top cover and forms a transition chamber with the pressure plate. The transition chamber is simultaneously connected to the through hole and the arc-shaped hole.
[0010] The electric valve has a first working mode, a second working mode, and a third working mode. In the first working mode, the arc-shaped hole is connected to any one of the liquid outlets. In the second working mode, the arc-shaped hole is simultaneously connected to any two adjacent liquid outlets in the circumferential direction of the preset circle. In the third working mode, the arc-shaped hole is not connected to any of the liquid outlets.
[0011] It is understood that this application constructs an integrated flow path switching structure by setting a pressure plate rotating around the center of the liquid inlet inside the upper cover, and setting independent arc-shaped holes and through holes on the pressure plate, which, together with the bottom cover and the pressure plate, form a transition chamber. This integrated design drives the pressure plate to rotate through a single electric valve, and the precise switching of multiple working modes of the electric valve is achieved based on the control of the pressure plate rotation angle. This structure significantly reduces the number of moving parts, simplifies the overall layout, reduces assembly complexity, and effectively controls manufacturing costs and operating energy consumption. While ensuring the accuracy of flow path switching and the flexibility of control, it reliably realizes the on-demand switching of multiple cleaning functions, and is especially suitable for cleaning machines with high requirements for structural compactness, energy efficiency, and cost control.
[0012] In one embodiment, the top cover is fitted with a sealing ring at the periphery of each of the liquid outlets;
[0013] Among them, at least three of the sealing rings are independently arranged and respectively abut against the pressure plate for sealing.
[0014] Understandably, by independently embedding sealing rings around each outlet and forming a seal with the pressure plate, a reliable soft-hard combination seal can be achieved through the contact and cooperation between the pressure plate and the sealing rings, effectively improving the sealing performance of the electric valve and preventing fluid leakage. On the other hand, based on the independent arrangement of each sealing ring, when the sealing ring corresponding to a single outlet is damaged, the sealing ring can be replaced individually without disassembling the entire sealing structure, thus significantly simplifying the maintenance process and reducing subsequent maintenance costs.
[0015] In one embodiment, at least three of the sealing rings are of the same size, and the outer diameter of each sealing ring is set to D; the number of liquid outlets is set to A, where A≥3; the arc angle between two adjacent liquid outlets on the preset circle is set to α; and the maximum arc angle of the arc-shaped hole on the preset circle is set to β.
[0016] Wherein, (360° / (A+1))-C°≤α≤(360° / (A+1))+C°; and, α≤β≤α+C°, where C is set as a constant.
[0017] Understandably, by standardizing the outer diameter of the sealing ring and defining the parameter correspondence between the arc angle of adjacent outlets and the maximum arc angle of the arc-shaped hole, a clear technical basis is provided for the manufacturing of electric valves. Production based on this parameterized scheme can not only ensure that the electric valve can stably achieve three working modes, but also easily adapt to the development needs of electric valve products with different numbers of outlets by using this parameter design logic, reducing the design and processing difficulties caused by specification adjustments, and providing a reliable guarantee for the mass production of electric valves.
[0018] In one embodiment, the distance between the center of the inlet and the center of any one of the outlets is set to D1, where 1.25D≤D1≤2D.
[0019] Understandably, by limiting the center distance between the inlet and outlet by the outer diameter of the sealing ring, the circumferential dimensions of the outlet can be accurately determined, thus providing clear parameter basis for the structural dimensions design of the top cover and the circumferential distribution position of the outlet.
[0020] In one embodiment, the number of liquid outlets is configured to be four.
[0021] In one embodiment, the electric valve further includes a drive motor and a transmission rod, the transmission rod being rotatably mounted on the bottom cover and drivingly connected to the drive motor;
[0022] The pressure plate is further provided with a connecting cylinder, which is fitted onto the transmission rod and abuts against and limits the transmission rod in its circumferential direction; and the through hole communicates with the transition chamber after passing through the connecting cylinder and the transmission rod.
[0023] In one embodiment, the electric valve further includes an elastic element disposed between the pressure plate and the transmission rod in a pre-compressed manner.
[0024] In one embodiment, the drive motor is configured as a stepper motor.
[0025] In one embodiment, one of the transmission rod and the bottom cover is provided with a limiting protrusion, and the other is provided with a mating protrusion. The limiting protrusion can abut against the mating protrusion to limit the rotation angle of the transmission rod relative to the bottom cover.
[0026] This application also claims protection for a cleaning machine that includes the electric valve described above.
[0027] Due to the application of the above solution, this application has the following advantages compared with the prior art:
[0028] The electric valve and cleaning machine claimed in this application feature an integrated flow path switching structure. This structure incorporates a pressure plate rotating around the center of the inlet within the upper cover, with independent arc-shaped holes and through holes on the pressure plate. These, along with the bottom cover, enclose a transition chamber, creating an integrated flow path switching structure. This integrated design uses a single electric valve 100 to drive the pressure plate rotation. Controlling the pressure plate's rotation angle enables precise switching between multiple operating modes of the electric valve. This structure significantly reduces the number of moving parts, simplifies the overall layout, lowers assembly complexity, and effectively controls manufacturing costs and operating energy consumption. While ensuring accurate flow path switching and flexible control, it reliably achieves on-demand switching of multiple cleaning functions, making it particularly suitable for cleaning machines with high requirements for compact structure, energy efficiency, and cost control. Attached Figure Description
[0029] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application or the conventional technology, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the conventional technology 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.
[0030] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the electric valve provided in this application.
[0031] Figure 2 An exploded view of the electric valve provided in this application.
[0032] Figure 3 This is a cross-sectional view of the electric valve provided in this application.
[0033] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the cover provided in this application.
[0034] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the pressure plate provided in this application.
[0035] Figure 6 Top view of the cover provided for this application.
[0036] Figure 7 A top view of the pressure plate provided in this application.
[0037] Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram showing the case where the arc-shaped hole provided in this application is not connected to any of the liquid outlets.
[0038] Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram showing the arc-shaped hole provided in this application connected to one of the liquid outlets.
[0039] Figure 10This is a schematic diagram showing the arc-shaped hole provided in this application connected to two adjacent liquid outlets simultaneously.
[0040] Figure 11 This is a connection diagram of the transmission rod and pressure plate provided in this application.
[0041] Figure 12 This is a connection diagram of the bottom cover and the transmission rod provided in this application.
[0042] Reference numerals: 100, electric valve; 10, top cover; 101, transition chamber; 102, flow channel; 11, inlet; 12, outlet; 121, first outlet; 122, second outlet; 123, third outlet; 124, fourth outlet; 13, annular groove; 14, groove; 20, pressure plate; 21, arc-shaped hole; 211, guide part; 22, through hole; 23, connecting cylinder; 30, bottom cover; 31, mating protrusion; 40, sealing ring; 50, drive motor; 51, output end; 60, transmission rod; 61, positioning protrusion; 62, limiting protrusion; 63, extension cylinder; 70, elastic element; 80, first sealing ring. Detailed Implementation
[0043] To make the above-mentioned objectives, features, and advantages of this application more apparent and understandable, the specific embodiments of this application are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Many specific details are set forth in the following description to provide a thorough understanding of this application. However, this application can be implemented in many other ways different from those described herein, and those skilled in the art can make similar modifications without departing from the spirit of this application. Therefore, this application is not limited to the specific embodiments disclosed below.
[0044] It should be noted that when a component is referred to as being "fixed to" or "set on" another component, it can be directly on the other component or there may be an intermediate component. When a component is considered to be "connected to" another component, it can be directly connected to the other component or there may be an intermediate component present. The terms "vertical," "horizontal," "upper," "lower," "left," "right," and similar expressions used in this application's specification are for illustrative purposes only and do not represent the only possible implementation.
[0045] Furthermore, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of technical features indicated. Thus, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include at least one of that feature. In the description of this application, "multiple" means at least two, such as two, three, etc., unless otherwise explicitly specified.
[0046] In this application, unless otherwise expressly specified and limited, "above" or "below" the second feature can mean that the first feature is in direct contact with the second feature, or that the first feature and the second feature are in indirect contact through an intermediate medium. Furthermore, "above," "over," and "on top" the second feature can mean that the first feature is directly above or diagonally above the second feature, or simply indicates that the first feature is at a higher horizontal level than the second feature. "Below," "below," and "under" the second feature can mean that the first feature is directly below or diagonally below the second feature, or simply indicates that the first feature is at a lower horizontal level than the second feature.
[0047] Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used in this application have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this application belongs. The terminology used in this application is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the application. The term "and / or" as used in this application includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.
[0048] The electric valve 100 claimed in this application is used in a cleaning machine (not shown) to achieve precise switching and flow control of multiple flow paths. Specifically, the electric valve 100 can be applied to intelligent sweeping robots with base stations. By precisely switching fluid paths and flexibly adjusting the water flow rate, it adapts to various working modes, including water filling the robot's clean water tank, mop cleaning, wastewater tank cleaning, pipe self-cleaning, and dual-path water output with simultaneous water filling and mop cleaning, meeting the needs of the robot's entire cleaning operation. It is understood that the electric valve 100 is also suitable for other fields requiring multi-path fluid control, including industrial fluid control and HVAC systems.
[0049] like Figures 1 to 12As shown, the electric valve 100 provided in this application includes an upper cover 10, a pressure plate 20, and a bottom cover 30. The upper cover 10 is provided with one liquid inlet 11 and at least three liquid outlets 12. The at least three liquid outlets 12 are spaced apart along the circumference of a predetermined circle with the center of the liquid inlet 11 as the center. The pressure plate 20 is rotatably mounted inside the upper cover 10 with the center of the liquid inlet 11 as the center. The pressure plate 20 is provided with an arc-shaped hole 21 and a through hole 22. The arc-shaped hole 21 is located on the circumference of the predetermined circle and is independently arranged relative to the through hole 22. The through hole 22 is connected to the liquid inlet 11. The bottom cover 30 is connected to the top cover 10 and forms a transition chamber 101 with the pressure plate 20. The transition chamber 101 is connected to both the through hole 22 and the arc-shaped hole 21. The electric valve 100 has a first working mode, a second working mode and a third working mode. In the first working mode, the arc-shaped hole 21 is connected to any one of the liquid outlets 12. In the second working mode, the arc-shaped hole 21 is connected to any two adjacent liquid outlets 12 in the circumferential direction of the preset circle. In the third working mode, the arc-shaped hole 21 is not connected to any one of the liquid outlets 12.
[0050] As can be seen from the above, the electric valve 100 of this application constructs an integrated flow path switching structure by setting a pressure plate 20 rotating around the center of the liquid inlet 11 inside the upper cover 10, and setting independent arc-shaped holes 21 and through holes 22 on the pressure plate 20, which, together with the bottom cover 30 and the pressure plate 20, form a transition chamber 101, thereby constructing an integrated flow path switching structure. This integrated design drives the pressure plate 20 to rotate through a single electric valve 100, and achieves precise switching of multiple working modes of the electric valve 100 based on the control of the rotation angle of the pressure plate 20. This structure significantly reduces the number of moving parts, simplifies the overall layout, reduces assembly complexity, and effectively controls manufacturing costs and operating energy consumption. While ensuring the accuracy of flow path switching and control flexibility, it reliably realizes the on-demand switching of multiple cleaning functions. This electric valve 100 is particularly suitable for cleaning machines with high requirements for structural compactness, energy efficiency, and cost control.
[0051] like Figure 2 , Figure 4As shown, in one embodiment, the upper cover 10 is fitted with a sealing ring 40 at the periphery of each liquid outlet 12; wherein, at least three sealing rings 40 are independently arranged and respectively abut against the pressure plate 20 for sealing. That is to say, in this embodiment, the upper cover 10 is independently fitted with a sealing ring 40 at the periphery of each liquid outlet 12 and forms a sealing structure with the pressure plate 20. In this way, on the one hand, a reliable soft and hard combination seal can be achieved through the contact and cooperation between the pressure plate 20 and the sealing ring 40, which effectively improves the sealing performance of the electric valve 100 and avoids fluid leakage problems; on the other hand, based on the independent arrangement of each sealing ring 40, when the sealing ring 40 corresponding to a single liquid outlet 12 is damaged, the sealing ring 40 can be replaced individually without disassembling the entire sealing structure, thereby significantly simplifying the maintenance operation process and reducing the later maintenance cost.
[0052] Here, the top cover 10 is provided with an annular groove 13 at the inlet of each liquid outlet 12, and the sealing ring 40 is correspondingly embedded in the annular groove 13. The annular groove 13 can provide precise installation positioning for the sealing ring 40, and can also effectively prevent the sealing ring 40 from shifting or moving due to the rotational friction of the pressure plate 20, thereby improving the assembly stability and working reliability of the sealing ring 40.
[0053] Furthermore, the arc-shaped hole 21 of the pressure plate 20 is machined with a guide portion 211 on the edge of the opening of the upper cover 10. This guide portion 211 has a chamfered structure. This allows the guide portion 211 to form a smooth contact transition with the sealing ring 40 when the pressure plate 20 rotates during the switching of the electric valve 100's working mode. This effectively reduces the contact friction between the pressure plate 20 and the sealing ring 40, preventing wear, displacement, or damage to the sealing ring 40, ensuring the structural integrity of the sealing ring 40, and thus fundamentally solving the safety hazards caused by leakage.
[0054] like Figure 1 , Figure 6 , Figure 7As shown, in one embodiment, at least three sealing rings 40 are of the same size, and the outer diameter of each sealing ring 40 is set to D; the number of liquid outlets 12 is set to A, where A≥3; the arc angle between two adjacent liquid outlets 12 on a preset circle is set to α; the maximum arc angle of the arc-shaped hole on the preset circle is set to β; where (360° / (A+1))-C°≤α≤(360° / (A+1))+C°; and α≤β≤α+C°, where C is set to a constant. In other words, this embodiment provides a clear technical basis for the manufacturing of the electric valve 100 by standardizing the outer diameter of the sealing ring 40 and defining the parameter correspondence between the arc angle of adjacent outlets 12 and the maximum arc angle of the arc-shaped hole 21. Production based on this parameterized scheme ensures that the electric valve 100 can stably achieve three working modes. Furthermore, by using this parameterized design logic, it is easy to adapt to the development needs of electric valves 100 with different numbers of outlets 12, reducing the design and processing difficulties caused by specification adjustments, thereby providing a reliable guarantee for the large-scale production of the electric valve 100. Here, the number of outlets 12 can be set to three, four, or five to adapt to the fluid output requirements in different scenarios.
[0055] The following example illustrates the situation with four liquid outlets 12 (i.e., A=4). With parameter C=10, the angle parameter range is 62°≤α≤82°, 62°≤β≤92°. α can be 62°, 75°, or 82°; β can be 62°, 70°, 80°, or 92°. In this embodiment, α=75° and β=80° are preferred. This parameter combination optimizes the arc spacing between adjacent liquid outlets 12 and adapts to the coverage of the arc-shaped hole 21. This shortens the rotational stroke angle required for the pressure plate 20 to switch between different working modes, effectively reducing the time required for the electric valve 100 to complete a single working cycle. This better meets the high-frequency, rapid-response start-stop application requirements of the sweeping robot base station.
[0056] like Figure 6 As shown, in one embodiment, the distance between the center of the inlet 11 and the center of any one of the outlets 12 is set to D1, where 1.25D ≤ D1 ≤ 2D. That is, this embodiment limits the center-to-center distance between the inlet 11 and the outlet 12 by the outer diameter of the sealing ring 40, thus accurately determining the circumferential dimensions of the outlets 12. This provides clear parameter basis for the structural dimension design of the upper cover 10 and the circumferential distribution position of the outlets 12. Specifically, the outer diameter D of the sealing ring 40 can be selected from specifications such as 10mm, 12mm, and 15mm; correspondingly, the center-to-center distance D1 between the inlet 11 and the outlet 12 can be selected from values such as 12.5mm, 18mm, and 30mm, adapting to the structural design requirements of different specifications of electric valves 100.
[0057] In this application, the four liquid outlets 12 are the first liquid outlet 121, the second liquid outlet 122, the third liquid outlet 123 and the fourth liquid outlet 124, and the first liquid outlet 121, the second liquid outlet 122, the third liquid outlet 123 and the fourth liquid outlet 124 are arranged at equal intervals along the circumferential direction of the liquid inlet 11.
[0058] like Figures 8 to 10 As shown, when the arc-shaped hole 21 of the pressure plate 20 is aligned with any one of the four outlets 12, the electric valve 100 enables independent water discharge from a single outlet 12; when the arc-shaped hole 21 of the pressure plate 20 is simultaneously aligned with the first outlet 121 and the second outlet 122, the second outlet 122 and the third outlet 123, or the third outlet 123 and the fourth outlet 124, the electric valve 100 enables synchronous water discharge from any two adjacent outlets 12, and this can be achieved by adjusting the pressure plate. The rotation angle of plate 20 controls the matching area between the arc-shaped hole 21 and the two adjacent liquid outlets 12, thereby adjusting the water flow rate of the two adjacent liquid outlets 12 accordingly. When plate 20 rotates to the position between the first liquid outlet 121 and the fourth liquid outlet 124, the arc angle between the first liquid outlet 121 and the fourth liquid outlet 124 is greater than the arc angle between the other two adjacent liquid outlets 12. The arc-shaped hole 21 and all liquid outlets 12 are misaligned, thereby achieving reliable closure of all liquid outlets 12.
[0059] like Figure 4 As shown, in one embodiment, a groove 14 is provided on the side surface of the upper cover 10 facing the pressure plate 20. The groove 14 can reduce the manufacturing precision requirements of the upper cover 10 on the one hand, and on the other hand, it can provide a space to accommodate possible deformation of the upper cover 10, prevent the upper cover 10 from interfering with the pressure plate 20 in position, thereby ensuring the smooth rotation of the pressure plate 20.
[0060] In one embodiment, a first sealing ring 80 is provided at the assembly connection between the upper cover 10 and the bottom cover 30. The first sealing ring 80 is pressed between the upper cover 10 and the bottom cover 30 to seal the assembly gap between the two, thereby preventing fluid inside the electric valve 100 from leaking from the assembly gap and ensuring the overall sealing performance of the electric valve 100.
[0061] like Figure 2 , Figure 3 As shown, in one embodiment, the electric valve 100 further includes a drive motor 50 and a transmission rod 60. The transmission rod 60 is rotatably mounted on the bottom cover 30 and is connected to the drive motor 50 for transmission. The pressure plate 20 is also provided with a connecting cylinder 23, which is fitted onto the transmission rod 60 and abuts against and limits the transmission rod 60 in its circumferential direction. Furthermore, the through hole 22 communicates with the transition chamber 101 after passing through the connecting cylinder 23 and the transmission rod 60.
[0062] like Figure 11 As shown, the transmission rod 60 has two positioning protrusions 61 at intervals on one end facing the connecting cylinder 23. The two positioning protrusions 61 are symmetrically arranged on both sides of the through hole 22 and are inserted into the connecting cylinder 23 and abut against the inner wall of the connecting cylinder 23 for limiting. Along the axial direction of the through hole 22, the height of the two positioning protrusions 61 is greater than the height of the connecting cylinder 23, so that after the positioning protrusions 61 are inserted into the connecting cylinder 23, a flow channel 102 is formed between the two positioning protrusions 61 and the connecting cylinder 23 for the fluid to flow to the transition chamber 101. The fluid flowing in from the inlet 11 can pass through the through hole 22 and the flow channel 102 in sequence, and finally enter the transition chamber 101, forming a complete fluid flow path.
[0063] like Figure 12 As shown, in one embodiment, one of the transmission rod 60 and the bottom cover 30 is provided with a limiting protrusion 62, and the other is provided with a mating protrusion 31. The limiting protrusion 62 can abut against the mating protrusion 31 to limit the rotation angle of the transmission rod 60 relative to the bottom cover 30, thereby preventing the pressure plate 20 from exceeding the preset stroke range due to excessive rotation and ensuring the accuracy of switching between different working modes of the electric valve 100. In this embodiment, it is preferable to provide the limiting protrusion 62 on the transmission rod 60 and the mating protrusion 31 on the bottom cover 30. It can be understood that in other embodiments, the limiting protrusion can also be provided on the bottom cover 30 and the mating protrusion on the transmission rod 60. The limiting principle of the two methods is the same, and both can effectively limit the rotation angle of the transmission rod 60.
[0064] like Figure 2 , Figure 3 As shown, in one embodiment, the electric valve 100 further includes an elastic element 70, which is pre-compressed between the pressure plate 20 and the transmission rod 60. That is, in this embodiment, both ends of the elastic element 70 abut against the pressure plate 20 and the transmission rod 60 respectively, and generate a continuous elastic force through pre-compression deformation. This structural design allows the elastic element 70 to continuously drive the pressure plate 20 towards the direction of contact with the upper cover 10, ensuring that the pressure plate 20 and the sealing ring 40 on the upper cover 10 always maintain a reliable abutment seal, further improving the sealing performance of the electric valve 100 to prevent fluid leakage. On the other hand, it can simultaneously drive the transmission rod 60 to maintain a stable abutment with the output end 51 of the drive motor 50, ensuring the reliability of power transmission. By achieving dual protection functions of sealing and transmission through a single elastic element 70, the overall structural design of the electric valve 100 is effectively simplified. Here, the elastic element 70 can be configured as a compression spring or an elastic rubber sleeve.
[0065] Here, an extension cylinder 63 is integrally formed at one end of the transmission rod 60 facing the pressure plate 20. One end of the elastic element 70 is fitted onto the outside of the connecting cylinder 23 of the pressure plate 20, and the other end extends into the extension cylinder 63 of the transmission rod 60. Through the radial limiting effect of the connecting cylinder 23 and the extension cylinder 63, the radial displacement of the elastic element 70 during pre-compression and operation can be effectively limited, ensuring that the elastic element 70 maintains a stable axial expansion and contraction state, and further guaranteeing its dual function of sealing and transmission.
[0066] like Figure 2 As shown, in one embodiment, the drive motor 50 is configured as a stepper motor. This embodiment utilizes the pulse drive characteristics of the stepper motor to precisely control the rotation angle of the pressure plate 20, thereby improving the control accuracy of the flow path switching of the electric valve 100 and ensuring the accuracy and stability of the water outlet mode switching of each outlet 12. It is understood that in other embodiments, the drive motor 50 can also be configured as other drive mechanisms with precise angle control functions, such as a servo motor.
[0067] The working principle of the electric valve 100 of this application is as follows: the output end 51 of the drive motor 50 rotates, driving the transmission rod 60 to rotate, which in turn drives the pressure plate 20 to rotate synchronously; as the pressure plate 20 rotates, the arc-shaped hole 21 of the pressure plate 20 and the four liquid outlets 12 on the upper cover 10 form different alignment states; at the same time, the fluid flowing in from the inlet 11 enters the transition chamber 101 through the through hole 22 on the pressure plate 20, and the fluid in the transition chamber 101 flows out from the corresponding liquid outlet 12 according to the specific alignment state of the arc-shaped hole 21 and the liquid outlet 12, thereby realizing the precise switching of three working modes of the electric valve 100: independent water discharge from any one liquid outlet 12, synchronous water discharge from two adjacent liquid outlets 12, or all liquid outlets 12 closed.
[0068] This application also claims protection for a cleaning machine, including the electric valve 100 described above.
[0069] The technical features of the above embodiments can be combined in any way. For the sake of brevity, not all possible combinations of the technical features in the above embodiments are described. However, as long as there is no contradiction in the combination of these technical features, they should be considered to be within the scope of this specification.
[0070] The embodiments described above are merely illustrative of several implementation methods of this application, and while the descriptions are relatively specific and detailed, they should not be construed as limiting the scope of the patent application. It should be noted that those skilled in the art can make various modifications and improvements without departing from the concept of this application, and these all fall within the scope of protection of this application. Therefore, the patent protection scope of this application should be determined by the appended claims.
Claims
1. An electric valve, characterized in that, The electric valve (100) includes: The top cover (10) is provided with a liquid inlet (11) and at least three liquid outlets (12), wherein the at least three liquid outlets (12) are distributed at intervals along the circumference of a predetermined circle with the center of the liquid inlet (11) as the center; The pressure plate (20) is rotatably installed inside the upper cover (10) with the center of the liquid inlet (11) as the center. The pressure plate (20) is provided with an arc-shaped hole (21) and a through hole (22). The arc-shaped hole (21) is located on the circumference of the preset circle and is independently set relative to the through hole (22). The through hole (22) is connected to the liquid inlet (11). The bottom cover (30) is connected to the top cover (10) and surrounds the pressure plate (20) to form a transition chamber (101). The transition chamber (101) is simultaneously connected to the through hole (22) and the arc-shaped hole (21). The electric valve (100) has a first working mode, a second working mode and a third working mode. In the first working mode, the arc-shaped hole (21) is connected to any one of the liquid outlets (12). In the second working mode, the arc-shaped hole (21) is simultaneously connected to any two liquid outlets (12) adjacent to each other in the circumferential direction of the preset circle. In the third working mode, the arc-shaped hole (21) is not connected to any one of the liquid outlets (12).
2. The electric valve according to claim 1, characterized in that, The top cover (10) is fitted with a sealing ring (40) at the outer periphery of each of the liquid outlets (12). Among them, at least three of the sealing rings (40) are independently arranged and respectively abut against the pressure plate (20) for sealing.
3. The electric valve according to claim 2, characterized in that, At least three of the sealing rings (40) are the same size, and the outer diameter of each sealing ring (40) is set to D; the number of the liquid outlets (12) is set to A, where A≥3; the arc angle between two adjacent liquid outlets (12) on the preset circle is set to α; the maximum arc angle of the arc hole (21) on the preset circle is set to β. Wherein, (360° / (A+1))-C°≤α≤(360° / (A+1))+C°; and, α≤β≤α+C°, where C is set as a constant.
4. The electric valve according to claim 3, characterized in that, The distance between the center of the liquid inlet (11) and the center of any one of the liquid outlets (12) is set to D1, where 1.25D≤D1≤2D.
5. The electric valve according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that, The number of liquid outlets (12) is configured to be four.
6. The electric valve according to claim 1, characterized in that, The electric valve (100) also includes a drive motor (50) and a transmission rod (60), the transmission rod (60) being rotatably mounted on the bottom cover (30) and connected to the drive motor (50) in a transmission connection. The pressure plate (20) is also provided with a connecting cylinder (23), which is fitted onto the transmission rod (60) and abuts against the transmission rod (60) in its circumferential direction; and the through hole (22) communicates with the transition chamber (101) after passing through the connecting cylinder (23) and the transmission rod (60).
7. The electric valve according to claim 6, characterized in that, The electric valve (100) also includes an elastic element (70), which is pre-compressed between the pressure plate (20) and the transmission rod (60).
8. The electric valve according to claim 6, characterized in that, The drive motor (50) is configured as a stepper motor.
9. The electric valve according to claim 6, characterized in that, One of the transmission rod (60) and the bottom cover (30) is provided with a limiting protrusion (62), and the other is provided with a mating protrusion (31). The limiting protrusion (62) can abut against the mating protrusion (31) to limit the rotation angle of the transmission rod (60) relative to the bottom cover (30).
10. A cleaning machine, characterized in that, The electric valve (100) includes any one of claims 1 to 9.