Rotary slide valve for a motor vehicle

Abstract

The invention relates to a rotary slide valve (100) for a motor vehicle, comprising a circular valve body (30) which can be rotated about an axis of rotation (A) and has a circular lateral surface (38) in which at least two valve body ports (31-33) are provided which are fluidically connected to one another by a connecting line (35) provided in the valve body (30), a valve housing (40) having at least three outer valve connections (41, 42, 43) and a circular inner wall (49) in which at least three valve housing ports (41', 42', 43') corresponding to the outer valve connections (41, 42, 43) are provided, wherein an elastic sealing ring (20) is allocated to each valve housing port (41', 42', 43') in a manner fixed to the housing, said sealing ring being formed from an elastic ring body (21) and sealing the annular radial gap (R) between the valve housing inner wall (49) and the valve body lateral surface (38) in the region of the relevant valve housing port (41', 42', 43'), wherein a separate one-piece frame ring (50) is provided which is arranged in the annular radial gap (R) and which directly holds the sealing rings (20), wherein the frame ring (50) is formed by a frame body (51) which consists of material which differs from that of the ring body (21).

Description

[0001] Automotive rotary valve

[0002] The invention relates to a rotary valve for motor vehicles with a circular valve body rotatable about an axis of rotation.

[0003] Automotive rotary valves are used in motor vehicles for the switchable distribution of a fluid, such as coolant, to connect multiple fluid circuits as needed. An automotive rotary valve typically has a circular valve body rotatable around an axis of rotation, with a circular outer surface, and features multiple valve body ports. It also has a valve body with at least three valve connections that open into a corresponding number of valve body ports located on the inside of the housing.

[0004] Such a rotary valve for motor vehicles is known, for example, from DE 11 2017 002 570 T5. The annular gap between the valve body's outer surface and the inside of the housing body is sealed in the area of ​​the valve housing ports by an annular elastic sealing ring. For permanent and robust fixation, the sealing ring must be fixed to the housing body, for example, by bonding. However, both reliable assembly and ensuring the permanent fixation are demanding and complex.

[0005] In contrast, the object of the invention is to create an inexpensive, highly reliable rotary valve for automotive applications. This object is achieved according to the invention by an automotive rotary valve with the features of claim 1.

[0006] The rotary valve for motor vehicles according to the invention has a circular valve body rotatable about an axis of rotation and a rotationally symmetrical outer surface in which at least two valve body ports are provided. Furthermore, the valve body has at least one connecting line that fluidically connects the at least two valve body ports. The connecting line does not necessarily have to completely penetrate the valve body, but can also be formed in the form of a radially outwardly open recess in the valve body.

[0007] The stationary valve body has at least three external valve connections and a corresponding number of valve body ports on its circular inner wall, which are fluidically connected to the at least three external valve connections.

[0008] Each valve housing port is assigned a housing-fixed elastic sealing ring, which is formed from an elastic ring body and seals the annular radial gap between the valve housing inner wall and the valve body outer surface in the area of ​​the respective valve housing port.

[0009] A single, separate, one-piece frame ring is provided, positioned within the annular radial gap. This frame ring directly holds and structurally connects the sealing rings, with the frame ring being formed by a frame body made of a different material than the ring body. The frame ring holds the sealing rings and thus determines their spatial arrangement relative to one another. Furthermore, this design significantly simplifies the assembly process, particularly during the installation of the rotary valve, as the sealing rings do not need to be individually positioned at the valve housing ports. Additionally, the frame ring provides further stabilization of the sealing rings' mounting position, as they mechanically support and stabilize each other.Since the entire assembly, consisting of the frame ring and the sealing rings, is multi-part, a material optimally suited to the primary function of fluidic sealing can be selected for the sealing rings. Similarly, a material that is as stiff as possible can be chosen for the frame body, as it itself does not perform a sealing function. The frame ring does not completely fill the annular radial gap and therefore does not cause friction when the valve body rotates. The friction between the valve body and the valve housing is primarily caused by the sealing rings, which are under a certain degree of preload and compression in the radial direction.

[0010] This simplifies both the installation of the automotive rotary valve and improves operational reliability in the long term.

[0011] Preferably, the frame ring forms a ring closed in a circular direction, which is arranged in the annular radial gap over the entire circumference of the ring, but does not completely fill it in the radial direction to avoid friction during valve actuation.

[0012] Preferably, the frame ring has annular receiving openings in which the annular sealing rings are each received and fixed. The frame ring thus consists of a band-shaped body with annular receiving openings, so that the ring body of the sealing ring is held against the frame ring over its entire circumference.

[0013] Preferably, the sealing rings are positively fixed to or within the frame ring or in the receiving opening of the frame ring. This simplifies the assembly of the sealing rings onto the frame ring. Furthermore, the structural functionality, due to the positive-locking connection, is not dependent on the durability of another joining technique, such as bonding.

[0014] Preferably, the proximal sealing surfaces of the sealing rings are each coated with a separate sliding film that has lower roughness and adhesion than the uncoated areas of the sealing rings. This makes the sliding of the proximal sealing surfaces of the sealing rings on the circular surface of the valve body particularly low-resistance, so that, firstly, lower forces are sufficient to rotate the valve body and, secondly, deformation of the sealing rings during rotation of the valve body is prevented.

[0015] Preferably, the ring body has a Shore hardness of 50-70. Preferably, the ring body is formed from a fiber-reinforced elastomer.

[0016] Preferably, the frame body consists of a thermoplastic, particularly preferably a fiber-reinforced thermoplastic. An embodiment of the invention is explained in more detail below with reference to the drawings. These show:

[0017] Figure 1 schematically shows a cross-section perpendicular to the valve body axis of rotation of a rotary valve according to the invention, including a frame ring holding the sealing rings.

[0018] Figure 2 shows the frame ring of Figure 1 holding the sealing rings in perspective, and

[0019] Figure 3 shows an enlarged view of detail III of the rotary valve of the vehicle shown in Figure 1.

[0020] Figure 1 schematically shows in a cross-section perpendicular to the valve body rotation axis A a 3 / 3 automotive rotary valve 100 with a circular valve body 30 rotatable about the rotation axis A, a valve housing 40 and a sealing arrangement 10.

[0021] The valve body 30 is rotationally symmetric about its axis of rotation A and has a circular, rotationally symmetric surface 38. In the present embodiment, the valve body 30 is externally cylindrical, but it can also have another rotationally symmetric shape. The valve body 30 is formed by an externally cylindrical plastic body 30', which defines a cylindrical surface 38 and, in the present embodiment, further defines three fluidic valve body ports 31, 32, 33 and a three-armed connecting line 35 that fluidically connects the three valve body ports 31, 32, 33. In the present embodiment, the three valve body ports 31, 32, 33 are each oriented at 90° to one another.

[0022] The rotatable valve body 30 is adjusted by an electric valve actuator 80.

[0023] The rotary valve 100 is used for thermal management in the complex coolant network of a motor vehicle (e.g., vehicle), which may consist of, for example, a cabin heating circuit, a battery cooling circuit, an engine cooling circuit, an electronics cooling circuit, an accessory cooling circuit, and a radiator circuit. The rotary valve 100 connects or isolates the various coolant circuits as needed.

[0024] The rotary valve 100 for automotive applications has a stationary valve housing 40 with three valve ports 41, 42, 43. The valve housing 40 is formed by a plastic body 40' and has a circular inner wall 49 in which three valve housing ports 41', 42', 43' corresponding to the external valve ports 41, 42, 43 and fluidically connected are provided.

[0025] Between the valve body outer surface 38 on the one hand and the substantially cylindrical circular inner wall 49 of the valve housing, a substantially cylindrical radial gap R is formed in which the sealing assembly 10 is arranged. The sealing assembly 10 consists of a separate, one-piece frame ring 50, which is arranged approximately in the radial center of the annular radial gap R, and three sealing rings 20, which are positively fixed in three receiving openings 58 of the frame ring 50. The sealing rings 20 are positively held in the receiving openings 58 by a corresponding annular positive locking structure, which is essentially formed by an annular groove 26 on the ring body and a complementary annular web 26 of the frame ring 50 or the frame body 51. Additionally or alternatively, the sealing ring 20 can also be bonded to the frame ring 50.The frame ring 50 is formed by a frame body 51 made of a suitable thermoplastic, which may be fiber-reinforced. The sealing ring 20 is formed by a ring body 21 made of a fiber-reinforced elastomer. The ring body 21 has a Shore A hardness of 55 to 65. The ring body 21 has a distal annular sealing surface 22 and a proximal annular sealing surface 23, the proximal sealing surfaces 23 each being coated with a separate sliding film 70, which in this case is a vulcanized PTFE film with a thickness of 0.2 mm.

Claims

REQUIREMENTS 1. Automotive rotary valve (100) with a circular valve body (30) rotatable about an axis of rotation (A) and having a circular outer surface (38) in which at least two valve body ports (31-33) are provided, which are fluidically connected to each other by a connecting line (35) provided in the valve body (30), a valve housing (40) with at least three external valve connections (41, 42, 43) and a circular inner wall (49) in which at least three valve housing ports (41', 42', 43') corresponding to the external valve connections (41, 42, 43) are provided, wherein each valve housing port (41', 42', 43') is fixedly associated with an elastic sealing ring (20) formed from an elastic ring body (21) and which seals the annular radial gap (R) between the valve housing inner wall (49) and the valve body outer surface (38) in the area of ​​the relevant valve housing port (41', 42', 43') seals,wherein a separate one-piece frame ring (50) is provided which is arranged in the annular radial gap (R) and which directly holds the sealing rings (20), wherein the frame ring (50) is formed by a frame body (51) which is made of a different material than the ring body (21).

2. Automotive rotary valve (100) according to claim 1, wherein the frame ring (50) forms a ring closed in a circular direction.

3. Automotive rotary valve (100) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the frame ring (50) has receiving openings (58) in which the sealing rings (20) are fixed.

4. Automotive rotary valve (100) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the sealing rings (20) are positively fixed in the frame ring (50).

5. Automotive rotary valve (100) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the proximal sealing surfaces (23) of the sealing rings (20) are each coated with a separate sliding film (70).

6. Automotive rotary valve (100) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the ring body (21) has a Shore hardness of 50 to 70.

7. Automotive rotary valve (100) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the ring body (21) is formed of a fiber-reinforced elastomer.

8. Automotive rotary valve (100) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the frame body (51) is made of a thermoplastic.

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