Expansion valve

Details Expansion valve Expansion valve

2001-02-27

2002-08-20

Tapolcai, William E. (Department: 3744)

Refrigeration

Refrigeration producer

Compressor-condenser-evaporator circuit

C062S225000, C236S09200D

Reexamination Certificate

active

06434971

ABSTRACT:

FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an expansion valve for controlling the flow rate of the refrigerant equipped to the refrigeration cycle of an air conditioning device for a vehicle and the like.
DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART
A known expansion valve comprises a prism-shaped valve body, the body being equipped with a valve chamber and a power element for operating a valve means formed within the valve chamber.
This kind of expansion valve comprises two passages communicated to the valve chamber, and a passage through which the refrigerant returning from the evaporator to the compressor travels. An operating shaft capable of communicating the movement of the power element to the valve means penetrates the passage through which the refrigerant returning from the evaporator to the compressor travels, and transmits the temperature information of the refrigerant to the power element.
The structure of such conventional expansion valve is shown in FIG.
9
and FIG.
10
.
FIG. 9
is a schematic view showing the external structure of the expansion valve, and
FIG. 10
is a cross-sectional view showing the cross-section A-A′ of
FIG. 9
observed from the direction of the arrow. In
FIGS. 9 and 10
, the valve body
30
is equipped with a first passage
32
formed from the refrigerant exit of a condenser
5
via a receiver
6
to the refrigerant entrance of an evaporator
8
, and a second passage
34
formed between the refrigerant exit of the evaporator
8
and the refrigerant entrance of a compressor
4
, the two passages separately positioned one above the other. The passages constitute a refrigerant piping
11
of the refrigeration cycle. The first passage
32
is equipped with a valve hole
23
for performing adiabatic expansion of the liquid-phase refrigerant supplied from the refrigerant exit of the receiver
6
through the opening
321
. The center line of the valve hole
23
is positioned along the longitudinal direction of the valve body
30
. A valve seat is formed to the entrance of the valve hole
23
, toward which a ball-shaped valve means
42
is biased by a spring
32
such as a compression coil spring via a valve support member
31
.
The first passage
32
to which the liquid-phase refrigerant from receiver
6
enters functions as a liquid-phase refrigerant passage, equipped with an exit port
322
, an entrance port
321
, and a valve chamber
20
communicated to the entrance port
321
. After expansion, the refrigerant flows out through the exit port
322
to the evaporator
8
. The valve chamber
20
is a chamber with a bottom formed coaxial to the center line of the valve hole
23
, which is sealed by a plug
34
. A sealing member
36
is equipped to the plug
34
.
A power element
50
for driving the valve member
42
is equipped to the upper end of the valve body
30
. The power element
50
comprises a case
56
, the interior space of which is divided by a diaphragm
54
into upper and lower pressure chambers. The lower pressure chamber
55
is communicated to the second passage
34
through a pressure equalizing hole
36
e
formed coaxial to the center line of the valve hole
32
a.
The second passage
34
comprises an entrance port
342
and an exit port
341
, where refrigerant vapor exiting the refrigerant exit of the evaporator
8
flows in through the entrance port
342
and exits through the exit port
341
toward the compressor
4
. Passage
34
functions as a passage for the gas-phase refrigerant, and the pressure of the refrigerant vapor is loaded to the lower pressure chamber
55
, via the pressure equalizing hole
36
e
. An operating shaft
40
extending from the lower surface of the diaphragm
54
to the valve hole
23
of the first passage
32
is coaxially positioned within the pressure equalizing hole
36
e
. A stopper
52
is equipped to the operating shaft
40
, which is placed within the lower pressure chamber
55
, and contacted to the lower surface of the diaphragm
54
. The operating shaft
40
is supported by the inner surface of the lower pressure chamber
55
constituting the power element
50
and the separation wall between the first passage
32
and the second passage
34
of the valve body
30
so as to slide freely in the vertical direction. The lower end of the operating shaft
40
is contacted to the valve means
42
. A sealing member
44
that prevents refrigerant from leaking between the first passage
32
and the second passage
34
is equipped to the peripheral surface of the operating shaft
40
corresponding to the operating shaft slide-guide hole in the separation wall.
A known heat sensing gas for driving the diaphragm is filled in the upper pressure chamber
55
. The heat of the refrigerant vapor exiting through the refrigerant exit of the evaporator
8
and traveling in the second passage
34
is transmitted to the diaphragm drive fluid through the diaphragm
54
and the valve means drive shaft
36
f
exposed to the second passage
34
and the pressure equalizing hole
36
e
communicated to the second passage
34
. Further, reference number
58
shows a plug body for sealing the heat sensing gas.
The heat sensing gas inside the upper pressure chamber
55
loads the pressure corresponding to the heat transmitted thereto to the upper surface of the diaphragm
54
. The diaphragm
54
is vertically displaced corresponding to the difference in the pressure between the diaphragm drive gas loaded to the upper surface thereof and the pressure loaded to the lower surface of the diaphragm
54
. The vertical displacement of the diaphragm
54
drives the valve means
42
via the operation shaft
40
closer to or away from the valve seat of the valve hole
23
. As a result, the flow rate of the refrigerant is controlled.
According to the above-mentioned conventional expansion valve, the valve means drive shaft
36
f
is positioned at the center of the valve body
30
, so the power element
36
must also be positioned at the center area of the valve body
30
.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Since according to the prior-art expansion valve, the pipes to which the evaporator and the compressor are connected are arranged in opposing directions, which restrict the degree of freedom when determining the mounting position of the expansion valve, the evaporator, and the compressor. Especially, when the expansion valve must be mounted in the engine room of a vehicle and the like where mounting space is limited, the mounting structure of the expansion valve becomes a problem.
The object of the present invention is to solve such problem by providing an expansion valve having an improved degree of freedom of the mounting structure.
In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides an expansion valve for controlling the flow rate of a refrigerant provided from a compressor to an evaporator, the valve comprising a prism-shaped valve body, a passage through which the refrigerant exiting from the compressor travels, a passage through which the refrigerant returning to the compressor travels, the passages opening to a first side surface of the valve body, and a passage through which the refrigerant flowing toward the evaporator travels, a passage through which the refrigerant returning from the evaporator travels, the passages opening to a second side surface of the valve body adjacent to the first side surface equipped with the openings for the two former-mentioned passages.
A preferable example of the expansion valve according to the present invention characterizes in that a power element is mounted at a biased position against the valve body.
Moreover, the expansion valve according to the present invention is equipped with a stud bolt equipped to the first side surface of the valve body utilized for fixing the expansion valve, and two penetrating holes penetrating through the second side surface and the side surface opposite to the second side surface utilized also for fixing.
The expansion valve according to the present invention having the above-explained structure includes refrigerant passages opening to t

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