Cylinder valve assembly with check valve

Details Cylinder valve assembly with check valve Cylinder valve assembly with check valve

2001-11-14

2003-09-30

Chambers, A. Michael (Department: 3753)

Fluid handling

With lock or seal

C137S522000, C137S523000, C137S614190, C137S614200, C251S065000, C251S089000, C251S297000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06626204

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a cylinder valve assembly which is attached to a cylinder storing compressed gas, liquefied gas and the like, and more particularly to a cylinder valve assembly with a check valve, which internally houses the check valve so as to prevent reversely flowing gas, gas of a different kind, gas containing impurities and the like from flowing into a cylinder and besides to inhibit air, rain drops or the like foreign matters from entering the cylinder with the result of decreasing the purity of the stored gas.
2. Explanation of Related Art
The cylinder valve assembly with the check valve of this type comprises a housing within which an inlet bore communicates with an outlet bore through an inlet passage, a stop valve chamber, a check valve seat and a check valve chamber in the mentioned order. A check valve member is inserted into the check valve chamber and is resiliently pushed by a check spring for closing with respect to the check valve seat.
When the cylinder has an inner pressure not less than a set one, a stop valve within the stop valve chamber is opened, thereby enabling gas pressure acting on a valve face of the check valve member to open the check valve member against a valve closing force of the check spring. This results in taking gas out of the cylinder. On the other hand, when the cylinder has a residual pressure lowered to the set one, the valve closing force of the check spring overcomes the gas pressure acting on the valve face to close the check valve member. This maintains a predetermined residual pressure within the cylinder and therefore prevents invasion of foreign matters and the like from an exterior area. In the event that there comes from the outlet bore, reversely flowing gas which contains impurities residual in various instruments, is of a different kind or the like, the reversely flowing gas has a pressure cooperating with the check spring to close the check valve member.
Meanwhile, the cylinder valve assembly internally houses the foregoing check valve. Therefore, when recharging gas from the outlet bore into the cylinder, it is required to forcedly open the check valve member so as not to close the check valve member with a charging pressure. In this case, if the check valve member can be readily opened at a place other than the place where a predetermined charging system is installed, there is a likelihood that the gas which contains impurities or is of a different kind is readily charged to contaminate an interior area of the cylinder. Thus the above-mentioned check valve member is desirably constructed so that it can be opened by using a special system or a jig.
Japanese Patent Public Disclosure No. 3-20199 proposed earlier by the present Assignee recites a conventional example of the cylinder valve assembly with the check valve which can be forcedly opened when charging gas.
The conventional example forms a valve-opening means accommodation portion at a position where a check valve member faces the accommodation portion through an inlet of a check valve chamber. Attached in the valve-opening means accommodation portion is a check valve member opening means. The opening means switches over from a valve opening position where it advances to the check valve chamber and pushes the check valve member for opening it, and a valve-opening cancellation position where it retreats from the check valve chamber and separates from the check valve member. The check valve member has an input portion formed from a piston of fluid-pressure actuation type. A valve-opening actuation chamber is formed between the piston-type input portion and a rear end wall of the valve-opening means accommodation portion. The rear end wall is formed with an input hole which comprises a flow passage of pressurized fluid. The valve-opening actuation chamber communicates with an external portion of the valve-opening means accommodation portion through the input hole. The check valve member opening means is retained at the valve-opening cancellation position by a valve-opening cancellation spring so as not to open the check valve member by mistake at the time other than the time of charging. Further, the input hole composed of the flow passage is inclined with respect to an axis of the input portion of the check valve member opening means in order that such opening means might not be pushed by some other thing.
When charging gas into the cylinder, a charging means is connected to the outlet bore of the cylinder valve assembly and a source of pressurized fluid such as compressed air is connected to the input hole provided in the rear wall of the valve-opening means accommodation portion. Then the pressurized fluid is introduced into the valve-opening actuation chamber to move the check valve member opening means to a valve opening position. After having opened the check valve member, the stop valve is opened to charge gas from the outlet bore into the cylinder.
The conventional cylinder valve assembly with the check valve is excellent in that it can be easily opened by using a special system and a jig and besides the check valve member cannot be opened at a place other than the place where these predetermined charging systems are installed and that it can prevent the interior area of the cylinder from being contaminated by charging the gas which contains impurities, is of a different kind and the like. However, the conventional technique has to be still improved on the following points:
(1) It moves the check valve member opening means with the pressurized fluid and therefore requires to provide in the charging device a source of pressurized fluid such as compressed air. In addition, for example, a flow passage must be formed so as to connect the source of pressurized fluid to the input hole in communication therewith. This increases the number of parts to result in inviting a problem that it cannot be put into practice inexpensively;
(2) Instead of the foregoing construction that the check valve member opening means is moved with the pressurized fluid, it can be considered to mechanically move the check valve member opening means. However, a protecting means must be provided in order that the check valve member opening means might not be pushed by some other thing by mistake at the time other than the time of charging. Besides, the valve-opening actuation means has to adopt such a complicated structure as a cam mechanism in order to be able to move the check valve member opening means while cancelling the protecting means. This increases the number of parts to be needed with the result of entailing the problem that the conventional technique cannot be put into practice inexpensively.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention has an object to provide a cylinder valve assembly with a check valve which can prevent gas from being charged at a place other than the place where a predetermined charging system is installed but can charge gas by using an existing charging device as it is at the place where the predetermined charging system is installed and besides can be put into practice with a simple structure inexpensively.
In order to accomplish the above object, the present invention has constructed a cylinder valve assembly with a check valve in the following manner, for example, as shown in
FIGS. 1
to
5
.
A housing
4
is formed with an inlet bore
7
, a stop valve chamber
9
, a check valve chamber
41
and a valve-opening means accommodation portion
53
. The check valve chamber
41
is provided with a check spring
43
and a chamber inlet
41
a
which communicates with the inlet bore
7
through the stop valve chamber
9
. A check valve seat
44
is formed around the chamber inlet
41
a.
A check valve member
42
is inserted into the check valve chamber
41
and is resiliently pushed by the check spring
43
to the check valve seat
44
. The valve-opening means accommodation portion
53
has a peripheral wall and is formed at a position where it faces the check valve member
42
through the

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