A low torque ball valve

Abstract

The utility model provides a low-torque ball valve, which includes a valve body, a valve seat and a sphere, wherein the valve seat is arranged between the valve body and the sphere, and an elastic member is arranged between the valve seat and the valve body; channels are arranged on both sides of the valve body, and a through hole is arranged inside the sphere; support plates are arranged at the axial ends of the sphere, respectively, and the support plate has a main body and a first protrusion and a second protrusion symmetrically arranged on both sides of the main body in the axial direction of the through hole, the outer contour of the main body is circular, and the outer contour radius of the first protrusion and the second protrusion is respectively larger than the outer contour radius of the main body; and an abutting surface is arranged on the valve seat. Support plates with special structures are arranged at the axial ends of the sphere, and during the opening and closing process of the ball valve, the support plate and the abutting surface of the valve seat are abutted, so that the valve seat overcomes the elastic force of the elastic member and moves in a direction away from the sphere to separate from the sphere, thereby reducing the opening and closing torque, reducing the operating cost, and at the same time reducing the wear between the sphere and the valve seat, and extending the service life of the ball valve.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model relates to the technical field of valve manufacturing, in particular to a low-torque ball valve. Background Art

[0002] A ball valve is a valve whose opening and closing part (ball) is driven by the valve stem and rotates around the axis of the ball valve. Ball valves can be used to regulate and control various fluids. They are currently widely used in oil refining, long-distance pipelines, chemicals, papermaking, pharmaceuticals, water conservancy, electricity, municipal administration, steel and other industries, and occupy a pivotal position in the national economy.

[0003] During the opening and closing process of the ball valve, the valve stem drives the ball to rotate. During the rotation, the ball and the valve seat always keep in contact. When the friction force is large, the switching torque will be too large. During automatic control, a larger actuator is required to operate, which increases the operating cost. At the same time, the valve seat and the ball are prone to severe friction, which can easily cause damage and shorten the service life of the ball valve. Summary of the invention

[0004] The utility model aims to solve the shortcomings of the prior art and proposes a low-torque ball valve, which allows the valve seat to separate from the ball during the opening and closing process of the ball valve, thereby reducing the opening and closing torque, reducing the wear between the ball and the valve seat, and extending the service life of the ball valve.

[0005] In order to achieve the above purpose, the utility model adopts the following technical solutions:

[0006] A low-torque ball valve, the ball valve comprises a valve body, a valve seat and a ball, the ball is rotatably arranged in the valve body, the valve seat is arranged between the valve body and the ball, and an elastic member is arranged between the valve seat and the valve body; channels are respectively arranged on both sides of the valve body, and a through hole is arranged inside the ball; support plates are respectively arranged at both axial ends of the ball, and the support plates are perpendicular to the central axis of the ball; the support plate has a main body and a first protrusion and a second protrusion symmetrically arranged on both sides of the main body in the axial direction of the through hole, the outer contour of the main body is circular, and the outer contour radius of the first protrusion and the second protrusion are respectively larger than the outer contour radius of the main body; a supporting surface is provided on the valve seat, and the supporting surface corresponds to the support plate.

[0007] Preferably, when the central axis of the through hole is not perpendicular to the central axis of the channel, the side surfaces of the support plate abut against the abutment surfaces of the valve seats on both sides respectively, so that the valve seats on both sides are separated from the sphere.

[0008] Preferably, a retaining ring and a triangular sealing ring are provided on the valve seat, and the retaining ring is located on the inner side of the triangular sealing ring.

[0009] Preferably, the retaining ring is made of nylon; and / or the triangular sealing ring is made of rubber.

[0010] Preferably, the first protrusion and the second protrusion are respectively crescent-shaped.

[0011] Preferably, the support plate is an integrated structure.

[0012] Preferably, the side surface of the support plate and / or the abutting surface is provided with a friction-reducing coating.

[0013] Preferably, the support plate is fixed to the end of the sphere by screws.

[0014] Preferably, the elastic member is a spring, and a central axis of the elastic member is parallel to a central axis of the channel.

[0015] Preferably, two axial ends of the sphere are respectively provided with a first mounting groove for connecting to the valve stem and a second mounting groove for connecting to the rotating shaft.

[0016] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the utility model are as follows: in the low-torque ball valve of the utility model, support plates with special structures are arranged at both axial ends of the ball. During the opening and closing process of the ball valve, the support plate and the abutment surface of the valve seat abut against each other, so that the valve seat overcomes the elastic force of the elastic part and moves away from the ball to separate from the ball, thereby reducing the opening and closing torque, reducing operating costs, and at the same time reducing the wear between the ball and the valve seat, thereby extending the service life of the ball valve. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] Figure 1 It is a cross-sectional view of the ball valve of some embodiments of the utility model when it is in a closed state;

[0018] Figure 2 for Figure 1 A magnified view of the structure at center A;

[0019] Figure 3 It is a top schematic diagram of a ball and a valve seat when the ball valve of some embodiments of the utility model is in a closed state;

[0020] Figure 4 A half-section schematic diagram of a ball body and a valve seat when the ball valve of some embodiments of the utility model is in a half-open state;

[0021] Figure 5 for Figure 4 Enlarged cross-section at point B.

[0022] In the figure, 10-valve body, 11-channel, 20-valve seat, 21-elastic member, 22-abutment surface, 23-retaining ring, 24-triangular sealing ring, 30-sphere, 31-through hole, 32-support plate, 321-main body, 322-first protrusion, 323-second protrusion, 33-screw, 34-first mounting groove, 35-second mounting groove. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0023] In order to make the purpose, technical scheme and advantages of the present application clearer, the technical scheme of the embodiment of the present application will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the drawings of the embodiment of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiment is a part of the embodiment of the present application, rather than all the embodiments. Based on the described embodiment of the present application, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work belong to the scope of protection of this application. It can be understood that, in the absence of conflict, some technical means of the various embodiments described herein can be replaced or combined with each other.

[0024] In the description of this application, if there are terms such as "first", "second", etc., they are only used to distinguish the objects described and do not have any order or technical meaning. Therefore, an object defined as "first", "second", etc. may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of the objects. In addition, "one" or "a" and similar words do not indicate a quantity limitation, but rather indicate the presence of at least one, and "multiple" means no less than two.

[0025] In the description of the specification of the present application, reference to "one embodiment" or "some embodiments" etc. means that one or more embodiments of the present application include a specific feature, structure or characteristic described in conjunction with the embodiment. Therefore, the phrases "in one embodiment", "in some embodiments", "in some other embodiments", "in some other embodiments", etc. appearing in different places in the specification do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment, but mean "one or more but not all embodiments", unless otherwise specifically emphasized in other ways.

[0026] Please refer to Figures 1 to 3The utility model provides a low-torque ball valve, which includes a valve body 10, a valve seat 20 and a ball 30. The ball 30 is rotatably arranged in the valve body 10, the valve seat 20 is arranged between the valve body 10 and the ball 30, and an elastic member 21 is arranged between the valve seat 20 and the valve body 10. Channels 11 are respectively arranged on both sides of the valve body 10, and a through hole 31 is arranged inside the ball 30. Among them, the ball 30 can be connected to a valve stem (not shown in the figure), and the valve stem is used to drive the ball 30 to rotate. When the central axis of the through hole 31 coincides with the central axis of the channel 11, the ball valve is in a fully open state, and when the central axis of the through hole 31 is perpendicular to the central axis of the channel 11, the ball valve is in a fully closed state. The elastic member 21 is always in a compressed state, so the elastic member 21 exerts an elastic force on the valve seat 20 in the direction of the ball 30 . When the ball valve is in a closed state, the elastic force of the elastic member 21 enables the valve seat 20 to be close to the ball 30 , thereby ensuring sealing.

[0027] Further, the axial direction of the sphere 30 (corresponding to Figure 1 The support plates 32 are respectively provided at both ends of the through hole 31 (in the vertical direction), and the support plates 32 are perpendicular to the central axis of the sphere 30. The support plate 32 has a main body 321 and an axial direction (in the vertical direction) of the through hole 31. Figure 1 In the direction perpendicular to the paper, Figure 3 The first protrusion 322 and the second protrusion 323 are symmetrically arranged on both sides of the main body 321 in the vertical direction (in the vertical direction), and the outer contour of the main body 321 ( Figure 3 The outer contour radius of the first protrusion 322 and the second protrusion 323 is respectively greater than the outer contour radius of the main body 321. The valve seat 20 is provided with a supporting surface 22, and the supporting surface 22 corresponds to the support plate 32. It should be understood that the supporting surface 22 is a side surface of the valve seat 20 facing the support plate 32.

[0028] The support plate 32 is similar to a cam-shaped structure, and the outer contours of the first protrusion 322 and the second protrusion 323 can be arc-shaped, and the outer contours of the first protrusion 322 and the second protrusion 323 are smoothly transitioned with the main body 321. Figure 3 When the ball valve is in a fully closed state, the narrowest part of the support plate 32 is between the abutment surfaces 22 of the valve seats 20 on both sides, and the diameter of the main body 321 is not greater than the distance between the two abutment surfaces 22 at this time. There may be no force between the support plate 32 and the valve seat 20. At this time, under the action of the elastic member 21, the valve seat 20 can be close to the ball 30, thereby ensuring the sealing.

[0029] Reference Figure 1 , Figure 4 and Figure 5During the opening and closing process of the ball valve, the central axis of the through hole 31 is not perpendicular to the central axis of the channel 11, that is, the ball valve is in a non-closed state, and the support plate 32 rotates with the ball 30. During this process, the side surfaces of the support plate 32 (the side surfaces of the first protrusion 322 and the second protrusion 323) are respectively against the abutment surfaces 22 of the valve seats 20 on both sides, so that the valve seats 20 on both sides overcome the elastic force of the elastic member 21 and move in the direction away from the ball 30, so that the valve seats 20 are separated from the ball 30, thereby reducing the opening and closing torque of the ball valve, reducing the operating cost, and at the same time reducing the wear between the ball 30 and the valve seat 20, thereby extending the service life of the ball valve.

[0030] Reference Figure 2 In some embodiments, a retaining ring 23 and a triangular sealing ring 24 are provided on the valve seat 20, and the retaining ring 23 is located inside the triangular sealing ring 24. Here, the retaining ring 23 being located inside the triangular sealing ring 24 means that the distance between the retaining ring 23 and the ball 30 is smaller than the distance between the triangular sealing ring 24 and the ball 30. When the ball valve is in a fully closed state, the elastic force of the elastic member 21 on the valve seat 20 enables the triangular sealing ring 24 to be close to the ball 30, thereby ensuring the sealing performance. Furthermore, the retaining ring 23 can be made of plastic or nylon material to ensure the strength of the sealing structure; the triangular sealing ring 24 can be made of rubber material to achieve soft sealing and ensure the sealing performance.

[0031] In some embodiments, the first protrusion 322 and the second protrusion 323 are respectively crescent-shaped, and the first protrusion 322 and the second protrusion 323 are respectively smoothly transitioned with the main body 321, and the support plate 32 is similar to a cam-shaped structure; in the process of opening and closing the ball valve, the side surfaces of the first protrusion 322 and the second protrusion 323 are respectively against the abutment surfaces 22 of the valve seats 20 on both sides, so that the valve seats 20 on both sides overcome the elastic force of the elastic member 21 and move away from the ball 30, so that the valve seats 20 are separated from the ball 30, thereby reducing the opening and closing torque of the ball valve, reducing the operating cost, and reducing the wear between the ball 30 and the valve seat 20, thereby extending the service life of the ball valve. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and in other embodiments, the support plate 32 can also adopt other suitable structures.

[0032] Furthermore, the support plate 32 may adopt an integrated structure, thereby having a higher structural strength.

[0033] In some embodiments, the support plate 32 may be fixed to the end of the sphere 30 by means of screws 33 or other suitable fixing methods.

[0034] In some other embodiments, the side surface and / or the abutment surface 22 of the support plate 32 are provided with a friction-reducing coating. The friction-reducing coating can be made by coating the existing friction-reducing coating on the side surface or the abutment surface 22 of the support plate 32. The friction-reducing coating can reduce the friction between the support plate 32 and the valve seat 20, thereby reducing torque, reducing wear, and extending the service life of the ball valve.

[0035] Reference Figure 1 and Figure 2 In some embodiments, the elastic member 21 is a spring, and the central axis of the elastic member 21 is parallel to the central axis of the channel 11. The elastic member 21 is installed between the valve seat 20 and the valve body 10, and the elastic member 21 is always in a compressed state, so the elastic member 21 has an elastic force on the valve seat 20 in the direction of the ball 30. When the ball valve is in a closed state, the elastic force of the elastic member 21 enables the triangular sealing ring 24 on the valve seat 20 to be close to the ball 30, thereby ensuring the sealing performance; during the opening and closing process of the ball valve, the support plate 32 rotates with the ball 30. Since the support plate 32 is designed as a cam-shaped structure, the protruding part of the support plate 32 can abut against the abutting surface 22 of the valve seat 20, and the valve seats 20 on both sides overcome the elastic force of the elastic member 21 and move in the direction away from the ball 30, so that the valve seat 20 is separated from the ball 30, thereby reducing the opening and closing torque of the ball valve, reducing the operating cost, and at the same time can reduce the wear between the ball 30 and the valve seat 20, extending the service life of the ball valve.

[0036] Reference Figure 1 In some embodiments, the axial ends of the ball 30 are respectively provided with a first mounting groove 34 for connecting the valve stem and a second mounting groove 35 for connecting the shaft. The connection structure between the ball 30 and the valve stem and the connection structure between the ball 30 and the shaft in the ball valve can adopt the related structures in the prior art, which will not be described in detail here.

[0037] In the low-torque ball valve of the utility model, support plates with special structures are arranged at both axial ends of the ball. During the opening and closing process of the ball valve, the support plates abut against the abutting surfaces of the valve seat, so that the valve seat overcomes the elastic force of the elastic member and moves away from the ball to separate from the ball, thereby reducing the opening and closing torque and the operating cost, while reducing the wear between the ball and the valve seat and extending the service life of the ball valve.

[0038] The present invention has been described by the above-mentioned relevant embodiments, however, the above-mentioned embodiments are only examples for implementing the present invention. It must be pointed out that the disclosed embodiments do not limit the scope of the present invention. On the contrary, any changes and modifications made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention are within the scope of patent protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A low torque ball valve, characterized in that: The ball valve comprises a valve body, a valve seat and a sphere, the sphere being rotatably arranged in the valve body, the valve seat being arranged between the valve body and the sphere, and an elastic member being arranged between the valve seat and the valve body; channels are respectively arranged on both sides of the valve body, and a through hole is arranged inside the sphere; support plates are respectively arranged at both axial ends of the sphere, and the support plates are perpendicular to the central axis of the sphere; the support plate comprises a main body and a first protrusion and a second protrusion symmetrically arranged on both sides of the main body in the axial direction of the through hole, the outer contour of the main body is circular, and the outer contour radii of the first protrusion and the second protrusion are respectively larger than the outer contour radius of the main body; a supporting surface is arranged on the valve seat, and the supporting surface corresponds to the support plate.

2. The low torque ball valve according to claim 1, characterized in that: When the central axis of the through hole is not perpendicular to the central axis of the channel, the side surfaces of the support plate abut against the abutting surfaces of the valve seats on both sides, so that the valve seats on both sides are separated from the sphere.

3. The low torque ball valve according to claim 1, characterized in that: A retaining ring and a triangular sealing ring are arranged on the valve seat, and the retaining ring is located on the inner side of the triangular sealing ring.

4. The low torque ball valve according to claim 3, characterized in that: The retaining ring is made of nylon; and / or the triangular sealing ring is made of rubber.

5. The low torque ball valve according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first protrusion and the second protrusion are respectively in a crescent shape.

6. The low torque ball valve according to claim 1, characterized in that: The support plate is an integrated structure.

7. The low torque ball valve according to claim 1, characterized in that: The side surface of the support plate and / or the abutting surface are provided with a friction-reducing coating.

8. The low torque ball valve according to claim 1, characterized in that: The support plate is fixed to the end of the sphere by screws.

9. The low torque ball valve according to claim 1, characterized in that: The elastic member is a spring, and the central axis of the elastic member is parallel to the central axis of the channel.

10. The low torque ball valve according to claim 1, characterized in that: A first mounting groove for connecting the valve stem and a second mounting groove for connecting the rotating shaft are respectively provided at two axial ends of the spherical body.

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