One-way vent plug for a piston cylinder and piston cylinder

Abstract

The disclosure discloses a one-way vent plug for a piston cylinder and a piston cylinder, the one-way vent plug has a gas hole in communication with a piston cavity, comprising: a valve body fixed at a gas hole position of the piston cylinder, the valve body has an inner cavity in communication with the gas hole; a resilient valve plug assembly movably arranged in the inner cavity and configured to be able to seal the gas hole and to be able to elastically retract relative to the gas hole; wherein when the gas pressure in the piston cavity of the piston cylinder is higher than the external gas pressure, the gas pressure in the piston cavity is able to overcome the elastic force of the resilient valve plug assembly to push the resilient valve plug assembly away from the gas hole, so that a through channel is formed between the inner cavity and the gas hole, thereby balancing the gas pressure inside and outside the piston cylinder. The resilient valve plug assembly is arranged to seal the gas hole, instead of a labyrinth passage type sealing plug, so that the overall sealing reliability is stronger.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This disclosure generally relates to the field of breather plug technology. More specifically, this disclosure relates to a one-way breather plug for a piston cylinder and a piston cylinder. Background Technology

[0002] In existing piston cylinder structures, labyrinth-type sealing plugs are typically used to seal the piston cylinder's vent holes. However, due to their labyrinthine bidirectional passage design, these sealing plugs are prone to drawing in snow and other impurities during intake when the piston cylinder is covered by ice or snow under harsh working conditions such as extreme weather. Furthermore, this snow and water cannot be drained in time and will freeze and adhere to the inner wall of the cylinder. This makes it difficult for the rubber seal to properly adhere and seal with the inner wall of the cylinder during operation, leading to air leakage and severely affecting the piston cylinder's performance.

[0003] In view of this, there is an urgent need to provide a one-way vent plug and piston cylinder for piston cylinders in order to enhance the overall sealing reliability. Utility Model Content

[0004] In order to at least solve one or more of the technical problems mentioned above, this disclosure provides a one-way vent plug for a piston cylinder and a piston cylinder in several aspects.

[0005] In a first aspect, this disclosure provides a one-way vent plug for a piston cylinder, having a vent hole communicating with a piston cavity, comprising: a valve body fixed to the vent hole position of the piston cylinder, the valve body having an inner cavity communicating with the vent hole; and an elastic valve plug assembly movably disposed in the inner cavity and configured to close the vent hole and elastically retract relative to the vent hole; wherein, when the air pressure inside the piston cavity of the piston cylinder is higher than the external air pressure, the air pressure inside the piston cavity can overcome the elastic force of the elastic valve plug assembly to push the elastic valve plug assembly away from the vent hole, thereby forming a through channel between the inner cavity and the vent hole, and thus balancing the air pressure inside and outside the piston cylinder.

[0006] In some embodiments, the resilient valve plug assembly includes a valve plug and a spring, with one side of the spring abutting against the valve plug and the other side abutting against the bottom side of the valve body in the inner cavity.

[0007] In some embodiments, the valve body further includes an exhaust port that communicates with the internal cavity and the external environment.

[0008] In some embodiments, the valve plug includes a plug body and a sealing ring disposed on the circumferential outer side of the plug body, the sealing ring protruding toward the vent side along the moving direction of the valve plug.

[0009] In some embodiments, the valve body includes an upper valve body and a lower spring seat, the lower spring seat being disposed on the side of the upper valve body opposite to the air hole, and the lower spring seat being used to support the spring.

[0010] In some embodiments, the vent is disposed on the lower spring seat and extends through the lower spring seat toward the vent.

[0011] In some embodiments, the valve body further includes an elastic retaining ring, and a retaining ring groove is provided on the inner wall of the inner cavity. The elastic retaining ring is engaged in the retaining ring groove, and the lower spring seat is pushed against the elastic retaining ring by the spring.

[0012] In some embodiments, a flexible protective sleeve is also provided on the valve body, the flexible protective sleeve extending axially along the exhaust port and covering the exhaust port radially.

[0013] In some embodiments, the resilient valve plug assembly has a venting notch on the radially outer side of the end facing the vent to assist in pressure balance.

[0014] In a second aspect, this disclosure provides a piston cylinder, which includes a cylinder body and a one-way vent plug for the piston cylinder according to the first aspect and several embodiments, wherein the cylinder body is provided with a vent hole and the one-way vent plug for the piston cylinder is fixedly connected to the vent hole.

[0015] By using the one-way vent plug and piston cylinder provided above, the embodiments disclosed herein achieve stronger overall sealing reliability by sealing the vent holes with an elastic valve plug assembly instead of a labyrinth-type sealing plug. Attached Figure Description

[0016] The above and other objects, features, and advantages of exemplary embodiments of this disclosure will become readily apparent upon reading the following detailed description with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, several embodiments of this disclosure are illustrated by way of example and not limitation, and like or corresponding reference numerals denote like or corresponding parts, wherein: Figure 1 Exemplary cross-sectional views of some existing piston cylinders are shown; Figure 2 Exemplary cross-sectional views of some existing one-way breather plugs for piston cylinders are shown; Figure 3 An exemplary perspective view of a piston cylinder according to some embodiments of this disclosure is shown; Figure 4 An exemplary cross-sectional view of a one-way vent plug for a piston cylinder according to some embodiments of this disclosure is shown; Figure 5 An exemplary cross-sectional view of a one-way vent plug for a piston cylinder according to some embodiments of this disclosure is shown; Figure 6 An exemplary perspective view of the plug body of a one-way vent plug for a piston cylinder according to some embodiments of this disclosure is shown. Detailed Implementation

[0017] The technical solutions in the embodiments of this disclosure will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of this disclosure, not all of them. Based on the embodiments in this disclosure, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this disclosure.

[0018] It should be understood that the terms “comprising” and “including” used in this disclosure and claims indicate the presence of the described features, integrals, steps, operations, elements and / or components, but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integrals, steps, operations, elements, components and / or collections thereof.

[0019] It should also be understood that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to limit the scope of this disclosure. As used in this disclosure and claims, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It should also be understood that the term “and / or” as used in this disclosure and claims refers to any combination and all possible combinations of one or more of the associated listed items, and includes such combinations.

[0020] As used in this specification and claims, the term "if" may be interpreted, depending on the context, as "when," "once," "in response to determination," or "in response to detection." Similarly, the phrase "if determined" or "if [described condition or event] is detected" may be interpreted, depending on the context, as "once determined," "in response to determination," "once [described condition or event] is detected," or "in response to detection of [described condition or event]."

[0021] See Figure 1 and Figure 2 , Figure 1 Exemplary cross-sectional views of some existing piston cylinders are shown. Figure 2 Exemplary cross-sectional views of some existing one-way vent plugs for piston cylinders are shown. In existing piston cylinder structures, a common approach is to use labyrinth-type sealing plugs to seal the piston cylinder orifices. Under harsh working conditions such as extreme weather, the piston cylinder may be covered by ice and snow. Because the existing sealing plug structure uses a labyrinth two-way passage, snow water and other impurities are drawn in while the piston cylinder is drawing in air. The snow water cannot be drained immediately and freezes, adhering to the inner wall of the cylinder. This causes the rubber cup to fail to properly seal against the inner wall of the piston cylinder during operation, resulting in air leakage and affecting performance.

[0022] This disclosure provides a one-way vent plug for a piston cylinder, which seals the vent by setting an elastic valve plug assembly, replacing the labyrinth-type sealing plug, thereby making the overall sealing reliability stronger.

[0023] The specific embodiments disclosed herein will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0024] See Figures 3 to 5 , Figure 3 An exemplary perspective view of a piston cylinder according to some embodiments of this disclosure is shown. Figure 4 An exemplary cross-sectional view of a one-way vent plug for a piston cylinder, according to some embodiments of this disclosure, is shown, wherein the resilient valve plug assembly is in the closed state. Figure 5 An exemplary cross-sectional view of a one-way vent plug for a piston cylinder according to some embodiments of this disclosure is shown, wherein the resilient valve plug assembly is in the open state.

[0025] Some embodiments of the present disclosure include a one-way vent plug 100 for a piston cylinder with a vent hole communicating with the piston cavity, and the one-way vent plug 100 includes a valve body 10 and a resilient valve plug assembly 20. The valve body 10 is fixed to the vent hole position of the piston cylinder, and the valve body 10 has an inner cavity 15 communicating with the vent hole. The resilient valve plug assembly 20 is movably disposed in the inner cavity 15 and configured to close the vent hole and elastically retract relative to the vent hole. When the air pressure inside the piston cavity of the piston cylinder is higher than the external air pressure, the air pressure inside the piston cavity can overcome the elastic force of the resilient valve plug assembly 20, pushing the resilient valve plug assembly 20 away from the vent hole, thus forming a through channel between the inner cavity 15 and the vent hole, thereby balancing the air pressure inside and outside the piston cylinder.

[0026] Specifically, the aforementioned piston cylinder includes piston cylinders of various forms or applications, such as piston-type brake cylinders. Taking a piston-type brake cylinder as an example, its unsealed cavity exchanges gas with the external atmosphere during brake release, and this gas exchange is accomplished through a vent located on the outer wall of the cylinder body and communicating with the unsealed cavity. The valve body 10 is formed to have an inner cavity 15, and a vent 17 communicating with the inner cavity 15 is provided on one side. This vent 17 can be connected to the vent of the piston cylinder by means of a threaded connection or the like, so that the vent communicates with the inner cavity 15 of the valve body 10 to achieve pressure relief. The inner cavity 15 of the valve body 10 can, for example, be set to be cylindrical, with its axial direction aligned with the axial direction of the vent of the piston cylinder. The resilient valve plug assembly 20 can be generally formed to be cylindrical, or configured to have a cylindrical front end. The front end of the elastic valve plug assembly 20 can move elastically within the inner cavity 15 along its axial direction. When the air pressure in the piston cylinder cavity communicating with the air hole is lower than that in the inner cavity 15 of the valve body 10, it is elastically pushed against the air hole to seal it. When the air pressure in the piston cylinder cavity is higher than that in the inner cavity 15 of the valve body 10, the air pressure in the cavity can overcome the spring force and push open the front end of the elastic valve plug assembly 20, thereby balancing the air pressure in the piston cylinder cavity and the air pressure in the inner cavity 15.

[0027] By using a resilient valve plug assembly 20 to seal the vent, instead of a traditional labyrinth-type sealing plug, the overall sealing reliability is significantly improved. Labyrinth-type sealing plugs rely on multiple narrow gaps to create fluid resistance, making their sealing performance highly susceptible to variations in machining precision and the working environment. In contrast, the resilient valve plug assembly 20 uses elastic preload to continuously press the valve plug against the vent. Even with slight vibrations in the piston cylinder or misalignments in the valve body 10 installation, the elastic compensation of the elastic element ensures a tight seal between the valve plug and the vent. Furthermore, the multiple passages of a labyrinth-type sealing plug create significant airflow resistance. When the gas pressure inside the piston chamber changes suddenly, the gas exits slowly through the labyrinth, resulting in poor response time. The resilient valve plug assembly 20, however, only requires the gas pressure inside the piston chamber to overcome the spring's elastic force to quickly move the valve plug and open the exhaust channel. Airflow exchange is unimpeded, significantly reducing response time. Moreover, the resiliently openable and closable valve plug prevents impurities from accumulating and blocking the airflow channel. Its structure is also easier to manufacture, more durable, reduces overall maintenance costs, and increases service life.

[0028] In this embodiment, the resilient valve plug assembly 20 includes a valve plug 21 and a spring 22. One side of the spring 22 abuts against the valve plug 21, and the other side abuts against the bottom side of the valve body 10 within the inner cavity 15. The spring 22 can be a steel spring, and its material type, wire diameter, diameter, and length can be flexibly selected according to the expected working conditions. The valve plug 21 can be made of a hard material such as metal, and the cross-section of the valve plug 21 and the inner cavity 15 can be configured to have similar shapes so that the valve plug 21 is guided by the inner wall of the inner cavity 15 when it moves within the inner cavity 15. An upper positioning groove can be provided on the bottom side of the valve plug 21 to accommodate the front end of the spring 22, thereby reducing the probability of the spring 22 deflecting.

[0029] Those skilled in the art will understand that although an elastic valve plug assembly 20 including a valve plug 21 and a spring 22 has been shown above, this disclosure does not limit the specific structure of the elastic valve plug assembly 20. For example, in some embodiments not shown, the spring 22 may be replaced by other elastic elements, or the elastic valve plug assembly 20 may be integrally formed of an elastic material such as rubber, as long as the front end of the elastic valve plug assembly 20 can stably seal the air hole and can move elastically in the inner cavity 15.

[0030] In this embodiment, the valve body 10 also includes an exhaust port 18, which connects the inner cavity 15 and the external environment. Thus, after the gas pressure in the piston cylinder drives the valve plug 21 to open, the high gas pressure in the piston cavity is released to the external environment in sequence through the piston cavity, the inner cavity 15 of the valve body 10, and the exhaust port 18. The high pressure in the piston cavity is quickly discharged without accumulating in the inner cavity 15 of the valve body 10.

[0031] Further or optionally, the valve plug 21 includes a plug body 211 and a sealing ring 212 disposed circumferentially outward of the plug body 211, the sealing ring 212 protruding towards the vent along the moving direction of the valve plug 21. When the valve plug 21 blocks the vent, the sealing ring 212 can first contact the area around the vent to seal the vent. By making the sealing ring 212 form a partial contact around the vent, the clamping force generated by the valve plug 21 towards the edge of the vent is more concentrated, and it can effectively compensate for minor machining errors around the vent. Compared with the scheme where the top surface of the valve plug 21 directly contacts the vent, the sealing ring 212 can reduce gap leakage that may occur during sealing. In addition, by providing the sealing ring 212 between the plug body 211 and the vent, during the reciprocating movement of the valve plug 21 relative to the vent, the plug body 211 can obtain the buffer provided by the sealing ring 212 when it abuts against the outer side of the vent, thereby reducing wear caused by frequent contact and enhancing the resistance to external contaminants during sealing.

[0032] Furthermore, the valve body 10 includes an upper valve body 11 and a lower spring seat 13. The lower spring seat 13 is located on the side of the upper valve body 11 opposite to the air hole and supports the spring 22. The upper valve body 11 and the lower spring seat 13 together enclose the inner cavity 15. A lower spring groove for accommodating and positioning the bottom end of the spring 22 can be provided on the lower spring seat 13. By making the lower spring seat 13 and the upper valve body 11 two independent components, the assembly and processing difficulty is reduced, and the disassembly and assembly operations are simpler when maintaining and replacing the internal parts of the inner cavity 15. Further or optionally, an exhaust port 18 is provided on the lower spring seat 13, and the exhaust port 18 penetrates the lower spring seat 13 towards the air hole. Thus, when the valve plug 21 is opened by the internal air pressure of the piston cylinder, since the inner cavity 15 of the valve body 10 is connected to the external environment through the exhaust port 18 penetrating towards the air hole, no internal pressure is generated in the inner cavity 15 due to the movement of the valve plug 21, allowing the valve plug 21 to move more flexibly.

[0033] In addition, the valve body 10 also includes an elastic retaining ring 14, and a retaining ring groove 151 is provided on the inner wall of the inner cavity 15. The elastic retaining ring 14 is engaged in the retaining ring groove 151, and the lower spring seat 13 is pushed against the elastic retaining ring 14 by the spring 22. Thus, when assembling the one-way vent plug 100 for the piston cylinder, the elastic valve plug assembly 20 can be first installed into the inner side of the upper valve body 11 along the extension direction of the air hole, and then the lower spring seat 13 can be installed in the same direction until it abuts against the bottom end of the elastic valve plug assembly 20. After that, the spring 22 retaining ring is engaged in the retaining ring groove 151 from the same direction, thus completing the assembly and forming a stable preload on the elastic valve plug assembly 20. This structure is simple to assemble and easy to maintain. When it is necessary to replace vulnerable parts such as the sealing ring 212 inside the one-way vent plug, it is only necessary to remove the spring 22 retaining ring and the lower spring seat 13 in sequence along the extension direction of the air hole.

[0034] Further, or optionally, a flexible protective sleeve 30 is also provided around the valve body 10. The flexible protective sleeve 30 extends axially along the exhaust port 18 and radially covers the exhaust port 18. This flexible protective sleeve 30 can be made of materials such as rubber to enhance the sealing and protection effect on the exterior of the valve body 10 through its elasticity. By extending the flexible protective sleeve 30 axially along the exhaust port 18 and covering it, the probability of external impurities entering the one-way vent plug through the exhaust port 18 can be further reduced. Thus, the environmental protection performance of the one-way vent plug is further improved, making it particularly suitable for reducing the impact of ice, snow, oil, or other similar impurities on the piston cylinder in harsh operating environments.

[0035] In addition, see Figure 6 , Figure 6 An exemplary perspective view of the plug body of a one-way vent plug for a piston cylinder according to some embodiments of this disclosure is shown. In this embodiment, a venting notch 24 is provided radially outward at the end of the resilient valve plug assembly 20 facing the vent to assist in pressure balancing. The venting notch 24 may be configured as a plurality of radially spaced recesses around the outer periphery of the circular plug body 211, which assist airflow when the resilient valve plug assembly 20 is opened by the internal pressure of the piston cylinder. By providing the plurality of venting notches 24, the resilient valve plug assembly 20 can quickly balance the internal and external pressures while still maintaining a guiding structure between the outer edge of the plug body 211 and the inner wall of the inner cavity 15, thereby reducing the probability of misalignment or even jamming during the extension and retraction of the resilient valve plug assembly 20.

[0036] The one-way vent plugs for piston cylinders in various embodiments disclosed herein use a resilient valve plug assembly 20 to seal the vent holes, replacing the labyrinth-type sealing plug. This results in stronger overall sealing reliability and a shorter response time. Furthermore, by using a resiliently openable and closable valve plug 21, the accumulation of impurities can be prevented from blocking the airflow passage. This design also simplifies manufacturing, improves durability, reduces overall maintenance costs, and increases service life.

[0037] See you again Figure 3 Some embodiments disclosed herein also provide a piston cylinder 200, which includes a one-way vent plug 100 for the piston cylinder according to several embodiments, and a vent hole is provided on the cylinder body, wherein the one-way vent plug for the piston cylinder is fixedly connected to the vent hole.

[0038] While numerous embodiments of this disclosure have been shown and described herein, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that such embodiments are provided by way of example only. Many modifications, alterations, and alternatives will occur to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and intent of this disclosure. It should be understood that various alternatives to the embodiments of this disclosure described herein may be employed in the practice of this disclosure. The appended claims are intended to define the scope of this disclosure and therefore cover equivalents or alternatives within the scope of these claims.

Claims

1. A one-way vent plug for a piston cylinder, having a vent hole communicating with the piston chamber, characterized in that, include: A valve body (10) is fixed at the air hole position of the piston cylinder, and the valve body (10) has an inner cavity (15) communicating with the air hole. An elastic valve plug assembly (20) is movably disposed in the inner cavity (15) and configured to close the vent and elastically retract relative to the vent. When the air pressure inside the piston chamber of the piston cylinder is higher than the external air pressure, the air pressure inside the piston chamber can overcome the elastic force of the elastic valve plug assembly (20) and push the elastic valve plug assembly (20) away from the air hole, so that a through channel is formed between the inner cavity (15) and the air hole, thereby balancing the air pressure inside and outside the piston cylinder.

2. The one-way vent plug according to claim 1, characterized in that, The resilient valve plug assembly (20) includes a valve plug (21) and a spring (22), with one side of the spring (22) abutting against the valve plug (21) and the other side abutting against the bottom side of the valve body (10) in the inner cavity (15).

3. The one-way vent plug according to claim 2, characterized in that, The valve body (10) also includes an exhaust port (18), which connects the inner cavity (15) and the external environment.

4. The one-way vent plug according to claim 3, characterized in that, The valve plug (21) includes a plug body (211) and a sealing ring (212) disposed on the outer side of the plug body (211). The sealing ring (212) protrudes toward the air hole side along the moving direction of the valve plug (21).

5. The one-way vent plug according to claim 3, characterized in that, The valve body (10) includes an upper valve body (11) and a lower spring seat (13). The lower spring seat (13) is located on the side of the upper valve body (11) away from the air hole, and the lower spring seat (13) is used to support the spring (22).

6. The one-way vent plug according to claim 5, characterized in that, The vent (18) is disposed on the lower spring seat (13), and the vent (18) passes through the lower spring seat (13) towards the vent.

7. The one-way vent plug according to claim 5, characterized in that, The valve body (10) also includes an elastic retaining ring (14), and a retaining ring groove (151) is provided on the inner wall of the inner cavity (15). The elastic retaining ring (14) is engaged in the retaining ring groove (151), and the lower spring seat (13) is pushed against the elastic retaining ring (14) by the spring (22).

8. The one-way vent plug according to any one of claims 3 to 7, characterized in that, The valve body (10) is also covered with a flexible protective sleeve (30), which extends along the axial direction of the exhaust hole (18) and covers the exhaust hole (18) radially.

9. The one-way vent plug according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that, The elastic valve plug assembly (20) has a venting notch (24) on the radially outer side of one end facing the vent to assist in pressure balance.

10. A piston cylinder, characterized in that, It includes a cylinder body and a one-way vent plug for a piston cylinder according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the cylinder body is provided with a vent hole and the one-way vent plug for the piston cylinder is fixedly connected to the vent hole.

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