Gas appliance valve and adaptor

There is disclosed a valve for controlling flow of gas and for use with portable gas appliances such as picnic stoves, heaters or lamps. The valve is associated with an adaptor having a projection arranged for operating an outlet valve in a refillable gas container when the adaptor is threaded on to the container. The valve body has an inlet including a pin for operating the valve of a self-sealing gas cartridge.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
This invention relates to gas control valves for use with portable gas 
appliances, for example stoves of the kind used in camping or on picnics, 
or heaters or lamps or lanterns. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
According to the invention there is provided a valve for gas comprising a 
valve body having an inlet and an outlet for gas flow, the inlet having 
internal threads and external threads, and an adaptor having threads 
engageable with the internal threads of the inlet and a projection 
extending away from the portion carrying the adaptor threads for operating 
an outlet valve of a refillable gas container when the external inlet 
threads are engaged with internal threads of an outlet of the container.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
The burner unit indicated generally at 10 is for use as a portable stove 
and is fuelled by gas from a puncturable gas cartridge or a gas cartridge 
provided with a self-sealing valve for its outlet or a refillable gas 
container. The refillable container has an outlet provided with a valve 
biassed to the closed position. Such cartridges and containers are well 
known in the art and need not be described further. Both the container and 
the self-sealing cartridge can be refilled but it is usual to dispose of 
the cartridges when empty. 
The burner includes a windshield 11 provided with angularly spaced 
apertures 12 in a conical portion 11a for ingress of air. The windshield 
has an upper outwardly flanged portion 13 having a lip 14. At its lower 
end the windshield 11 is provided with an aperture 15 defined by an 
annular downward projection 16 which is embraced by a flat annular 
neoprene washer 17 which is held in place by a shoulder 18 on the body 19 
of a gas flow control valve 20. The outlet from the valve 20 is in the 
form of an externally threaded projection 21 which extends through the 
aperture 15 and is in threaded engagement with the lower end of a stem 22 
of a burner device 23. Two diametrically opposed apertures 24 are provided 
in the stem 22 for ingress of primary air into the gas stream through the 
stem 22 to the burner 23. Secondary air is supplied through apertures 12. 
A support 25 for pans or the like has four equiangularly spaced 
horizontally extending lower arms 26 leading to outwardly and upwardly 
inclined portions 27. The portions 27 in regions at 28 adjacent the outer 
ends of the portions 26, in the assembled condition of the unit, engage 
portions 29 at the inner end of the flange 13. The outer ends of the 
portions 27 are connected by cross portions 30 themselves welded together 
at a central location 31. A circular-section ring 32 is seated in 
spherical recesses 33 in the outer ends of the portions 30. It will be 
observed that the pan support 30 is suitable for both larger diameter and 
smaller diameter pans and provides adequate support immediately above the 
head 23 of the burner. This can be particularly seen in FIG. 2. 
The burner 23 is biassed away from the control valve 20 by a coil spring 34 
extending between the under surface of the burner head 23 and the upper 
edge of the portions 26 which are recessed at 35 at the upper side of 
their inner ends to help to locate the spring 34. When the valve 20 is 
disassembled from the stem 22, the spring 34 holds the burner head firmly 
against the cross portions 30. 
The gas control valve 20 is operated by a knurled knob 36 and includes an 
externally threaded inlet boss 37 which is internally threaded at 38. The 
control valve 20 includes a downwardly extending pin 39. In the 
arrangement shown in FIG. 1 the stove unit is to be used with a cartridge 
40 for gas under pressure which is of the kind having a built-in 
self-closing outlet valve. The cartridge 40 includes an outlet boss 41 
which is externally threaded and which can be engaged with the threads 38. 
When this is done, the pin 39 operates the valve in the cartridge 40 to 
allow gas to flow to the burner 23 under the control of the valve 20. An 
externally knurled locking ring 42 is provided and is internally threaded 
at 43 to be engaged on the external threads 37a on the inlet boss 37. The 
ring 42 has an annular recess 44 at its upper face to receive a flat 
annular washer 45. After the boss 41 has been fully engaged with the 
threads 37a and been brought into sealing engagement with an `O` ring 46, 
the locking ring 42 is rotated on the threads 37a until its end face 47 
engages the outer face 48 of a skirt surrounding the boss 41. By these 
means the weight of the cartridge is to some degree removed from the 
threads 41 and transferred to the body of the cartridge acting through the 
ring 42 and the strong threads 43 and 37a. 
When the valve outlet 21 is threaded into the stem 22, the head 23 is moved 
away from cross portions 30 against spring 34. 
The burner unit may be used with a gas container which cannot be refilled 
after it has been initially punctured. Such an arrangement is shown in 
FIGS. 3 and 4 in which the container 50 has an internally threaded outlet 
boss 51 which can be associated with an adaptor as described in my pending 
U.S. Pat. Application No. 641,380. The gas control valve 20 is associated 
with the gas consuming appliance as described in that application. The 
adaptor extends through the boss 51 which is held in a housing 52 to which 
are pivoted two U-section members 53 which can engage beneath the base of 
the container 50. 
A base support shown in FIG. 5 is supplied for use with either the 
cartridge 40 or the container 50. The support 60 is of moulded plastics 
and in its upper surface includes a recess 61 for receiving the base of 
the cartridge 40. A number of small inward projections 62 enable the 
cartridge 40 to be received in the recess with a snap action. Also 
extending from the recess are four elongated recesses 63 generally forming 
two elongated recesses which can receive the portions 65 of the U-shaped 
members 53 which lie beneath the container 50. Again small projections 66 
are provided so that the U-shaped members can be located in the elongated 
recesses with a snap action due to the inherent resilience of the 
projections 62 and 66. 
The underface of the support may be shaped to accommodate a pricker and a 
spanner, the pricker for use in cleaning any obstacle in the gas flow bore 
in outlet 21 and the spanner for use as described later. 
It will be appreciated that the ring 32 assists in preventing a pan or the 
like, or a can, from undesirably toppling off the pan support for example 
whilst being placed on to the stove. This is particularly important in the 
case of pans with heavy handles which tend to overbalance the pan. It will 
also be appreciated that the effect of the spring 34 is to hold the pan 
support 30 firmly against movement relative to the burner and the 
windshield. The windshield acts as a spacer. 
A central aperture 90 in the base support 60 threadedly detachably houses a 
small brass adaptor 91 FIG. 6, having a through bore 91a. This enables the 
gas control valve and burner to be used with refillable gas containers of 
the kind which have a valve-controlled outlet. In this case the ring 42 is 
removed and an externally threaded portion 92 of the adaptor is engaged 
with the internal thread 38 until end 93 of the threaded portion seals 
against the `O` ring 46. A projection 94 having a diametral screw slot 94a 
extends into the outlet of the gas container to open the valve and the 
sealing washer 45 seals against the container and against valve body 19. 
The flange 95 of the adaptor seals against a rubber ring in the outlet of 
the container. 
If the locking ring is removed, it may be releasably stored in the base 
support by a snap-in flat spanner.