Multi-way fluid valve

Abstract

The utility model relates to a multi-way fluid valve which comprises a valve shell (1), a valve core (2) and a valve core (3), the valve shell is provided with a first shell end (11), a second shell end (12) opposite to the first shell end and a valve cavity extending between the first shell end and the second shell end, and the second shell end is provided with a plurality of ports; a valve core (2) which is rotatably arranged in the valve chamber; and a flat sealing assembly (3) having a plurality of openings corresponding to the plurality of ports and arranged on a side of the second housing end (12) facing the spool; the sealing assembly (3) comprises a first sealing piece (31) made of flexible materials and a second sealing piece (32) made of rigid materials, and the second sealing piece is located between the first sealing piece and the valve element.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The utility model relates to the field of multi-pass fluid valve especially to a multi-pass fluid valve with improved sealing structure. BACKGROUND

[0002] With the development of new energy automobile technology, the cooling liquid control fluid valve of the thermal management integrated module for new energy automobile, especially the multi-pass cooling liquid flow control water valve, becomes a key component of new energy automobile.

[0003] In the multi-pass fluid valve, the current sealing structure mainly adopts the sealing structure of ethylene propylene diene rubber (EPDM) surface pasting polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) film. This sealing structure has the following disadvantages: high design cost, complex processing technology, large driving torque fluctuation of fluid valve, and easy PTFE film peeling, indentation and wear in working environment and long time work, thereby affecting the sealing effect. SUMMARY

[0004] In order to overcome the above problems, it is necessary to provide a multi-pass fluid valve with improved valve sealing structure. This sealing structure not only has simple processing technology, low cost and high reliability, but also has smooth valve body driving torque.

[0005] Therefore, the utility model provides a multi-pass fluid valve, which comprises: a valve housing having a first housing end and an opposite second housing end, and a valve chamber extending between the first housing end and the second housing end, the second housing end being provided with a plurality of ports; a valve core rotatably arranged in the valve chamber; and a flat sealing assembly arranged on the side of the second housing end facing the valve core; wherein the sealing assembly comprises a first sealing member made of flexible material and a second sealing member made of rigid material, and the second sealing member is located between the first sealing member and the valve core.

[0006] In the above scheme, since the second sealing member is made of rigid material, the second sealing member can provide rigid support, and since the second sealing member is an integral part, the compression of the entire first sealing member made of flexible material is uniform when the valve core rotates, thereby avoiding sudden compression of the first sealing member during rotation of the valve core, resulting in fluctuation of the driving torque of the valve housing.

[0007] According to one scheme of the utility model, a groove is provided in the inner side surface of the second housing end facing the valve core, and the shape and size of the groove are configured to be consistent with the shape and size of the sealing assembly, so as to receive the sealing assembly therein.

[0008] In one preferred embodiment of the present application, the first seal is, for example, a unitary piece made of ethylene propylene diene rubber material, and the second seal is, for example, a unitary piece made of ceramic material. It should be understood that the first seal can also be made of other flexible materials suitable for use as a seal, such as, for example, nitrile rubber. The second seal can be made of, for example, polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) material.

[0009] According to one preferred embodiment of the present application, the first seal and the second seal have the same shape, wherein the first seal is configured to have a concentric first inner circular ring and a first outer circular ring, and a plurality of first radial ribs extending radially and spaced apart between the first inner circular ring and the first outer circular ring, and the first inner circular ring, the first outer circular ring, and the first radial ribs have the same first cross section; and the second seal is configured to have a concentric second inner circular ring and a second outer circular ring, and a plurality of second radial ribs extending radially and spaced apart between the second inner circular ring and the second outer circular ring, and the second inner circular ring, the second outer circular ring, and the second radial ribs have the same second cross section.

[0010] According to one preferred embodiment of the present application, the first cross section of the first seal includes a frustoconical surface section, a bifurcated section, and a waist section between the frustoconical surface section and the bifurcated section. The first seal has such a special cross section, which can reduce the rebound force of the first seal after being compressed, thereby reducing the driving resistance.

[0011] In one preferred embodiment, the second cross section of the second seal is rectangular, so that the upper surface and the lower surface of the second seal are both planar, to provide better contact with the first seal and the valve core.

[0012] According to one preferred embodiment of the present application, the thickness of the first seal is, for example, 4.5 mm to 7 mm, and the thickness of the second seal is, for example, 3 mm to 5 mm. However, it should be understood by those skilled in the art that the above numerical ranges are merely exemplary, and other suitable thickness ranges can be selected depending on the material of the seal, which are also covered within the scope of the present application.

[0013] According to one preferred embodiment of the present application, when the sealing assembly is arranged in the groove of the second housing end of the valve housing, the second seal abuts the frustoconical section of the first cross section of the first seal. In this configuration, the rebound force of the first seal after being compressed can be reduced, thereby reducing the driving resistance.

[0014] At least one of the following beneficial technical effects can be achieved by the present application: reducing the difficulty of design and processing technology of the sealing structure, thereby reducing the cost; canceling the PTFE film bonding process, avoiding the situation that the PTFE film peels off and affects the sealing effect; using the rigidity of the second sealing element, avoiding the sudden compression of the first sealing element made of EPDM during the operation of the valve core, thereby causing the torque fluctuation of the valve body. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0015] Further features and advantages of the present application will become apparent from reading the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0016] Figure 1 A longitudinal sectional view of one embodiment of a multi-port fluid valve according to the present application is shown, showing the arrangement of the sealing assembly within the multi-port fluid valve;

[0017] Figure 2 A first housing end plan view of the valve housing of the multi-port fluid valve shown in Figure 1

[0018] Figure 3 An exploded view of the multi-port fluid valve shown in Figure 1

[0019] Figure 4 A perspective view of the first sealing element of the sealing assembly according to the present application is shown;

[0020] Figure 5 A cross-sectional view of the first sealing element shown in Figure 4

[0021] Figure 6 A perspective view of the second sealing element of the sealing assembly according to the present application is shown; and

[0022] Figure 7 A cross-sectional view of the second sealing element shown in Figure 6 DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0023] ​​​​The multi-way fluid valve with an improved sealing structure according to the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments. In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth to enable those skilled in the art to gain a more complete understanding of the present invention. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that implementations of the present invention may not include some of these specific details. Furthermore, it should be understood that the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiments described. Rather, the present invention can be conceived to be practiced with any combination of the following features and elements, regardless of whether they relate to different embodiments.

[0024] Figure 1 This is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of an embodiment of a multi-way fluid valve 10 with an improved sealing structure according to the present invention. Figure 3 This is an exploded view of the multi-port fluid valve 10 described above. As can be seen from the figure, the multi-port fluid valve 10 includes a valve housing 1, a valve core 2, and a flat sealing assembly 3 disposed between the valve housing and the valve core. The valve housing 1 has a first housing end 11 and an opposing second housing end 12, and a valve chamber extending between the first housing end 11 and the second housing end 12. The valve core 2 is rotatably disposed within the valve chamber. By rotating the valve core, the multi-port fluid valve 10 can be set to different operating modes. In this embodiment, the multi-port fluid valve 10 is, for example, a four-port fluid valve, and the second housing end 12 of the valve housing 1 has four equidistant ports. It should be understood that providing other numbers of ports is also within the scope of this application. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the sealing assembly 3 is disposed on the side of the second housing end 12 facing the valve core 2.

[0025] In the above embodiments, it is advantageous that the sealing assembly 3 includes a first seal 31 made of a flexible material and a second seal 32 made of a rigid material, see [link to previous embodiment]. Figure 1 The second seal 32 is located on top of the first seal, that is, between the first seal 31 and the valve core 2. Since the second seal is made of a rigid material, it can provide rigid support for the valve core and provide uniform compression to the first seal when the valve core rotates, avoiding sudden compression of the first seal made of flexible material during valve core operation, which would cause fluctuations in the drive torque of the multi-way fluid valve.

[0026] In a preferred embodiment, it is advantageous that the first seal 31 is a one-piece material made of, for example, ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) rubber by injection molding, and the second seal 32 is a one-piece material made of, for example, ceramic. The first seal 31 may also be made of other suitable materials, such as nitrile rubber. The second seal 32 may also be made of other suitable materials, such as polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF). These are also covered within the scope of this application.

[0027] In one embodiment according to the present invention, see Figure 2 The inner side of the second housing end 12 facing the valve core is provided with a groove 121, the shape and size of which are configured to match the shape and size of the sealing assembly so as to receive the sealing assembly 3 therein.

[0028] See Figure 4 , Figure 5 , Figure 6 and Figure 7 The first seal 31 and the second seal 32 have substantially the same shape and are configured to fit the shape and depth of the groove 121. Here, both the first and second seals are made into a double-ring configuration. Figure 4 and Figure 5 As can be seen, the first seal 31 is constructed with a concentric first inner annular ring 311 and a first outer annular ring 312, and eight first radial ribs 313 extending radially and spaced apart between the first inner and first outer annular rings. The first inner annular ring 311, the first outer annular ring 312, and the first radial ribs 313 have the same first cross-section 310. The thickness of the first seal 31 can be, for example, from 4.5 mm to 7 mm, preferably 6 mm. Figure 6 and Figure 7 As can be seen, the second seal 32 is constructed having a concentric second inner annular ring 321 and a second outer annular ring 322, and eight second radial ribs 323 extending radially and spaced apart between the second inner and second outer annular rings. The second inner annular ring, the second outer annular ring, and the second radial ribs have the same second cross-section 320. The thickness of the second seal 32 is 3 mm to 5 mm, preferably 4 mm. It should be understood that the thicknesses of the first and second seals described above are also exemplary and can be adjusted according to...

[0029] In the above embodiments, the diameters (including inner and outer diameters) of the first inner annular ring and the second inner annular ring are substantially the same, as are the diameters (including inner and outer diameters) of the first outer annular ring and the second outer annular ring. The arrangement of the eight first radial ribs and the eight second radial ribs is also consistent. It should be understood that the number of first and second radial ribs given above is merely exemplary. Depending on the number and layout of the ports of the multi-channel fluid valve, other suitable numbers of radial ribs can be selected to allow the sealing assembly to be arranged around each port.

[0030] See you again Figure 5For example, the first cross-section 310 of the first seal 31 is an irregular cross-section, which, as seen in the figure, includes a truncated conical section 310a at the top, a bifurcated section 310b with two legs at the bottom, and an oblong section 310c located between the truncated conical section and the bifurcated section. This irregular cross-section of the first seal reduces the rebound force after compression, thereby reducing driving resistance. See again. Figure 7 The second cross-section 320 of the second seal 32 is rectangular, so that both the upper and lower surfaces of the second seal 32 are planar, allowing for better contact and fit with the first seal and the lower surface of the valve core, thus providing better support. See again. Figure 1 When the sealing assembly 3 is arranged in the groove 121, the second seal 32 abuts against the truncated conical section 310a of the first cross section of the first seal 31.

[0031] By providing the sealing component 3 according to this invention, the difficulty of sealing structure design and processing can be reduced, thereby lowering costs. A second seal made of a rigid material, such as ceramic, replaces the PTFE membrane, eliminating the PTFE membrane bonding process, preventing PTFE membrane peeling, and improving the sealing effect. Furthermore, the rigidity of the second seal prevents sudden compression of the first seal, for example, made of EPDM, during valve core operation, thus avoiding fluctuations in the valve body drive torque.

[0032] Although the present invention has been disclosed above with reference to preferred embodiments, it is not limited thereto. Any combinations, changes, and modifications made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention should be included within the protection scope of the present invention. Therefore, the protection scope of the present invention should be determined by the scope defined in the claims.

Claims

1. A multi-way fluid valve, characterized in that, The multi-way fluid valve (10) includes: A valve housing (1) having a first housing end (11) and an opposing second housing end (12) and a valve chamber extending between the first housing end and the second housing end, the second housing end having a plurality of ports; Valve core (2), which is rotatably arranged in the valve chamber; and A flat sealing assembly (3) is arranged on the side of the second housing end (12) facing the valve core; The sealing assembly (3) includes a first seal (31) made of a flexible material and a second seal (32) made of a rigid material, wherein the second seal is located between the first seal and the valve core.

2. The multi-port fluid valve according to claim 1, characterized in that, The inner side of the second housing end (12) facing the valve core is provided with a groove (121), the shape and size of which are configured to match the shape and size of the sealing assembly so as to receive the sealing assembly (3) therein.

3. The multi-port fluid valve according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The first seal (31) is an integral piece made of EPDM rubber material, and the second seal (32) is an integral piece made of ceramic material.

4. The multi-port fluid valve according to claim 2, characterized in that, The shape of the first seal is consistent with the shape of the second seal, wherein the first seal (31) is configured to have a concentric first inner annular ring (311) and a first outer annular ring (312) and a plurality of first radial ribs (313) extending radially and spaced apart between the first inner annular ring and the first outer annular ring, and the first inner annular ring (311), the first outer annular ring (312) and the first radial ribs (313) have the same first cross section (310); the second seal (32) is configured to have a concentric second inner annular ring (321) and a second outer annular ring (322) and a plurality of second radial ribs (323) extending radially and spaced apart between the second inner annular ring and the second outer annular ring, and the second inner annular ring, the second outer annular ring and the second radial ribs have the same second cross section (320).

5. The multi-port fluid valve according to claim 4, characterized in that, The first cross section (310) includes a truncated cone section (310a), a bifurcated section (310b), and a waist-shaped section (310c) located between the truncated cone section and the bifurcated section.

6. The multi-port fluid valve according to claim 5, characterized in that, The second cross section (320) is rectangular.

7. The multi-way fluid valve according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The thickness of the first seal (31) is 4.5 mm to 7 mm; the thickness of the second seal (32) is 3 mm to 5 mm.

8. The multi-way fluid valve according to claim 6, characterized in that, When the sealing assembly is arranged within the groove, the second seal abuts against the truncated conical section of the first cross-section of the first seal.

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