Expansion Valve Coil Spring Layout for Refrigerant Noise Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
The reduction in size of air conditioning devices has made it challenging to install expansion valves efficiently, and the use of expensive materials, along with refrigerant passing noise due to bubble entrainment, necessitates a solution to minimize metal usage and reduce noise.
Innovation Solution
The expansion valve incorporates a coil spring with a reduced space between its wires to minimize bubble size and noise, eliminating the need for additional components and allowing for a smaller valve body design, with an O ring to prevent leakage and a plug configuration that reduces vertical size.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If the expansion valve uses a conventional structure with separate noise reduction components, then noise reduction function is provided, but device complexity and component count increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the noise reduction function with the coil spring by reducing the space between coil wires. The coil spring serves dual purposes: providing biasing force to the valve member and reducing bubble size to minimize noise. This integration eliminates the need for separate noise reduction components while achieving the desired noise reduction effect.
Solution Approach 2:
The coil spring is designed to perform multiple functions simultaneously: it provides the necessary biasing force to keep the valve member closed, and its reduced wire spacing acts as a bubble reduction mechanism to minimize refrigerant passing noise. This multi-functionality reduces overall device complexity while addressing both valve operation and noise reduction requirements.
2Ease of manufacture
If the expansion valve uses a larger valve body to accommodate all components, then component installation is easier, but device size and metal usage increase
Solution Approach 1:
By integrating the noise reduction function into the coil spring structure, the patent eliminates the need for additional separate components that would require extra installation space. The combined design allows for a more compact valve body while maintaining ease of manufacture through reduced assembly complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent optimizes the coil spring geometry by reducing the radial space between wires rather than increasing axial length or overall component size. This dimensional optimization allows the noise reduction function to be achieved within the existing valve body footprint, preventing volume increase.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If the expansion valve uses expensive materials to reduce noise, then noise reduction effectiveness is improved, but manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent achieves noise reduction by changing the geometric parameters of the coil spring, specifically reducing the space between adjacent coil wires. This parameter modification allows the use of conventional, cost-effective materials while still achieving the desired noise reduction effect through optimized spring geometry rather than expensive material selection.
4Object-affected harmful factors
If the expansion valve reduces bubble size to minimize noise, then refrigerant passing noise is reduced, but additional components are required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the bubble reduction function with the coil spring's biasing function. The reduced space between coil wires creates a mechanism that breaks up bubbles in the refrigerant, and this same structural modification is what provides the noise reduction effect. No separate bubble reduction component is needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The coil spring structure serves itself by using its own geometric configuration (reduced wire spacing) to perform the bubble reduction function. The spring's physical structure inherently creates the necessary conditions for bubble breakup and noise reduction without requiring additional dedicated components or mechanisms.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This configuration effectively reduces refrigerant passing noise and minimizes metal usage, resulting in a lighter, cheaper, and more compact expansion valve with reduced bubble size, enhancing noise reduction without increasing component count.
Implementation Method 1
a size of a space between adjacent coil wires of the coil spring is set so as to reduce bubbles entrained in the liquid refrigerant to a finer size
Implementation Method 2
an O ring which is provided between an outer peripheral portion of the plug and an inner peripheral portion of the valve chamber and prevents leakage of the refrigerant in the valve chamber through the opening to the outside
Data Source
AI summary
In an expansion valve, in a first passage through which a high pressure liquid refrigerant flows, an inlet port includes a large diameter passage portion formed from one side surface to the other side surface of a valve body, and a small diameter passage portion that provides communication between the large diameter passage portion on the bottom end thereof and a valve chamber. A coil spring provided in the valve chamber biases a valve member toward a valve hole. An O ring that seals between a plug that supports a lower end of the coil spring and the valve body is located below the small diameter passage portion and placed on the opposite side of the bottom end of the large diameter passage. Thus, the plug that closes an opening of the valve chamber can be mounted to an upper position, thereby reducing a vertical size of the valve body to further reduce a size of the valve body, and reducing an amount of use of metal materials for the valve body to reduce weight and cost.