Patent Publication Number: US-2009223838-A1

Title: High pressure gas cylinder

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     This invention relates to high pressure gas containers. More particularly, this invention relates to one that has longitudinally shaped join troughs distributed evenly on the inner surface of its storage tube, where the storage tube is equipped first with anti-pressure plates which strive against the pressure of high pressure gas, followed by fastening inlet and outlet covers to the join troughs with screw bolts, and the outlet cover is provided with an inner and an outer check valves at its interior and exterior respectively. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     Heretofore, conventional storage or production of high pressure gas makes use of high pressure gas containers for the hold of the gas. Generally, bigger high pressure containers are mostly installed at the medical, construction or factory sites, whereas the small and medium high pressure containers employ a housing with both ends open as their storage tube, followed by positioning two end covers at the two openings of the storage tube with a closure each, where the end covers are provided with connecting joints or piping for the entrance and the exit of gas. The storage tube can be used either for simply storing high pressure gas or for storing certain specific chemical substance (for instance: molecular sieve), where an expected gas (for instance: pure oxygen) can be obtained by boosting the air through the tube. Prior art high pressure gas containers are formed by fastening at the exterior (outside of the storage tube) of the storage tube, which easily result in the leaks of gas as time goes by that makes the use of it inconvenient. Moreover, the prior art high pressure gas containers have only single outlet capacity at its exit end. Suppose any demand for small amount of gas or extra outlet of gas, the requirements for the amount of the gas and the direction of the gas flowing for the conventional settings probably won&#39;t be available, which deteriorates the usage. Recognized the aforesaid drawbacks of the prior art and the inconveniences in use, the inventor proceeded to conceive ideas to improve those inconveniences and drawbacks, through considerable endeavor on research and testing over a long period of time, and the present invention is eventually available. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is the main object of the present invention to provide a high pressure gas cylinder that features extra solid structure targeted for improving the easily happened leaks at the joints between the storage tube and the inlet and outlet covers, which will further boost the duration of the use. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide a high pressure gas cylinder that features dual gas outlet selection for the operation. 
     To cope with the aforesaid objects, the present invention belongs to a high pressure gas cylinder, comprising at least a storage tube, an inlet cover, an inlet junction, an outlet cover, an outlet junction, an anti-pressure plate and an inner check valve, where the storage tube shapes a cylinder with a desired inside diameter, possesses an opening at each of its both ends, and is provided with four longitudinally shaped join troughs distributed equally on its inner surface. The inlet cover is provided with four through holes distributed equally on its exterior surface, has a screw hole formed at its center, and possesses inwardly protruded arced walls on the interior surface near its rim, where the arced walls and the through holes are located in an alternate way, and a gap are formed between the arced walls and the enclosure on the rim of the inlet cover, to accommodate a sealing ring. The inlet junction, opposite to the screw hole of the inlet cover, is provided with a threaded tube, a handle portion and a plug joint. The outlet cover is provided with four through holes distributed equally on its exterior surface, has a screw hole formed at its center, and possesses inwardly protruded arced walls on the interior surface near its rim, where the arced walls and the through holes are located in an alternate way, and a gap are formed between the arced walls and the enclosure on the rim of the outlet cover, to accommodate a sealing ring. The screw hole of the outlet cover forms a backward withstanding set on the other side, where the center of the withstanding set shields the screw hole. The rim of the withstanding set forms a relatively low gap, and a ring body is formed at the raised place next to the gap, where the ring body is provided with a ring gap on it. The inner check valve comprises a dented membrane, a cover, a sealing ring and a plurality of screw bolts, where the cover has a through hole at its center, and the membrane can shield the area of the withstanding set. The sealing ring is lodged in the gap of the ring body, followed by placing the exterior side of the cover on the ring body and the sealing ring and by fastening them with the screw bolts. A tiny distance between the inner side of the cover and the withstanding set is reserved for the movement of the membrane by gas impelling, which produces one-way ventilation effect. The outlet junction, opposite to the screw hole of the outlet cover, is provided with a threaded tube, a handle portion and a plug joint. The anti-pressure plates shape a circular disc with a diameter same as the inner diameter of the storage tube, and four arced indents, corresponding to the four join troughs, are distributed equally along its rim. The anti-pressure plate has a plurality of holes on it for the ventilation of gas, where its one side appears slightly indented around its center and is provided with an arced and cross-shaped reinforced rib, whereas the other side is set into a slight protruded surface. During assembling, an anti-pressure plate is first inserted in each of the two openings of the storage tube, with the indented side facing inside, and followed by clasping each of the arced indents of the plate on the corresponding join trough. The sealing rings are put into the corresponding gaps respectively, and proceed to place the inlet cover and the outlet cover in the openings of the storage tube respectively. The through holes on the inlet cover and outlet cover are aimed at the join troughs one by one, where the plurality of the screw bolts are pierced through the through holes and joined helically the join troughs. The inlet junction has its threaded tube joined helically the screw hole of the inlet cover tightly while the outlet junction has its threaded tube joined helically the screw hole of the outlet cover tightly. 
     In this invention, there is an outer check valve installed in between the plug joint and the handle portion of the outlet junction, and a repelling set is set up in the plug joint facing the handle portion, where a notch is furnished around the repelling set. A cavity is set up by the handle portion facing the plug joint, where a through hole is devised in the center which connects to the screw tube. A membrane is lodged in the cavity, and an elastic element has its one end placed against the membrane while the other end is to place against the notch. The repelling set by the plug joint is then inserted into the cavity and followed by a fixed joining. The elastic element is then compressed to press the membrane to shield the through hole of the cavity, where a minute gap existed between the membrane and the repelling set, which is for the movement of the elastic element during its compression by the membrane due to the gas impelling, and a one-way ventilation effect is brought about. 
     In this invention, there is a tiny through hole on the outlet cover which extends outward and is bent to form a joint, where the connection between the tiny through hole and the joint is controlled by a solenoid valve. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a three-dimensional assembled view depicting the outward appearance of the embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a three-dimensional exploded view depicting the embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 3  is a three-dimensional view depicting the outward appearance for the interior of the inlet cover of the embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 4  is a three-dimensional exploded view depicting the outlet cover and the inner check valve of the embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 5  is a three-dimensional exploded view depicting the outlet junction and the outer check valve of the embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 6  is a three-dimensional view depicting the outward appearance for the anti-pressure plate of the embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 7  is a front elevation depicting the anti-pressure plate of the embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 8  is a sectional view for the part viewing from A-A of  FIG. 7 ; and 
         FIG. 9  is a sectional view for the part viewing from B-B of  FIG. 7 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     To achieve the foresaid objective of this invention, the techniques adopted are detailed described with reference to the following preferred embodiment and the accompanying drawings, which is expected to help the honorable Examiner in comprehending and recognizing the present invention. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 1-2 , the embodiment of the present invention as a whole is a high pressure gas cylinder  1 , comprising a storage tube  10 , an inlet cover  20 , an inlet junction  30 , an outlet cover  40 , an outlet junction  50 , an anti-pressure plate  60 , a solenoid valve  70 , an inner check valve  80  and an outer check valve  90 ; where the storage tube  10  shapes a cylinder with a desired inside diameter, and possesses an opening  11  at each of its both ends, where four longitudinally shaped join troughs  12  are distributed evenly on its inner surface; the inlet cover  20  is provided with four through holes  21  distributed evenly on its exterior surface, has a screw hole  22  formed at its center, and has a plurality of reinforced ribs  23  which are formed outwardly from the screw hole  22 ; referring to  FIG. 3 , the inlet cover  20  possesses inwardly protruded arced walls  24  on the interior surface near its rim, where the arced walls  24  and the through holes  21  are located in an alternate way, and a gap  26  is formed between the arced walls  24  and the enclosure  25  on the rim of the inlet cover  20 , to accommodate a sealing ring  27 ; the inlet junction  30 , opposite to the screw hole  22 , is provided with a threaded tube  31 , a handle portion  32  (for instance; a hexagon) and a plug joint  33 ; 
     The outlet cover  40  has an appearance same as that of the inlet cover  20 , also comprising four through holes  41 , a screw hole  42 , a plurality of reinforced ribs  43 , an arced wall  44 , an enclosure  45 , a gap  46 , and a sealing ring  47 , where the structural combination and the usage of these parts are exactly the same with those of the inlet cover  20 ; whereas some parts of structure on the outlet cover  40  are different from the inlet cover  20 , referring to  FIG. 4 , a tiny through hole  481  is set up on the outlet cover  40 , which extends outward and is bent to form a joint  48 , where the connection or disconnection between the tiny through hole  481  and the joint  48  is controlled by a solenoid valve  70  (shown in  FIGS. 1 &amp; 2 ); the screw hole  42  extends backward to form a radial arrangement of a withstanding set  49  on the other side, where the center of the withstanding set  49  shields the screw hole  42 , the rim of the withstanding set  49  forms a relatively lower gap  491 , and next to it a raised portion forms a ring body  492  which is further provided on it with a ring gap  4921 ; the inner check valve  80  is set up corresponding to the withstanding set  49  and the gap  491 , the ring body  492  and the ring gap  4921 , referring to  FIGS. 2 &amp; 4 , the inner check valve  80  comprises a dented membrane  81 , a cover  82 , a sealing ring  83  and a plurality of screw bolts  84 , where the cover  82  has a through hole  821  at its center; when assembling, the membrane  81  can shield the area of the withstanding set  49 , and the sealing ring  83  is lodged in the gap  4921  of the ring body  492 , followed by placing the exterior side of the cover  82  on the ring body  492  and the sealing ring  83  and by fastening them with the plurality of bolts  84 , thus, a minute distance between the inner side of the cover  82  and the withstanding set  49  is reserved for the movement of the membrane  81  during the impelling by the gas, which produces a one-way ventilation effect (detailed description will be given later on); 
     Referring to  FIGS. 2 &amp; 5 , the outlet junction  50 , same as the inlet junction  30 , is provided with a threaded tube  51 , a handle portion  52  (for instance: a hexagon) and a plug joint  53 , moreover, an outer check valve  90  is installed in between the plug joint  53  and the handle portion  52 , and a repelling set  54  is set up around the plug joint  53  facing the handle portion  52 , where a notch  541  is furnished around the repelling set  54 , and a cavity  55  is set up by the handle portion  52  facing the plug joint  53 , where a through hole  551  is devised in the center which connects to the screw tube  51 ; a membrane  91  is lodged in the cavity  55 , and an elastic element  92  has its one end placed against the membrane  91  while the other end is to place against the notch  541 ; the repelling set  54  by the plug joint  53  is then placed in the rim of the cavity  55  and followed by a fixed joining, and the elastic element  92  is then pressed to push the membrane  91  to shield the through hole  551  of the cavity  55 , where a minute gap existed between the membrane  91  and the repelling set  54 , which is for the movement of the elastic element  92  during its compression by the membrane  91  due to the gas impelling, and a one-way ventilation is brought about (detailed description will be given later on); 
     The anti-pressure plates  60  has an outlook and structure shown in  FIGS. 6-9 , roughly shaping a circular disc with a diameter same as the inner diameter of the storage tube  10 , and four arced indents  61 , corresponding to the four join troughs  12  of the storage tube  10 , are distributed equally along its rim, where a plurality of holes  62  are devised on it for the ventilation of gas, the anti-pressure plate  60  at one side (interior side) has a slightly indented surface  63  around its center and is provided with an arced and cross-shaped reinforced rib  64  while the other side (exterior side) is set into a slightly protruded surface  65 . 
     During the assembly of the embodiment of the present invention, high pressure gas cylinder  1 , the internal space of the storage tube  10  can be selected to exclude other substances and only used for storing high pressure gas, or selected to store certain specific chemical substance (for instance: molecular sieve), where an expected gas (for instance: pure oxygen) can be obtained by boosting the compressed air through the tube; during assembling, an anti-pressure plate  60  is first inserted in each of the two openings of the storage tube  10  with the slightly indented surface  63  facing inside (which is able to reach the substance inside the storage tube  10 ), and followed by clasping each of the arced indents  61  of it on the corresponding join trough  12  one by one; the sealing rings  27 ,  47  are put into the corresponding gaps  26 ,  46  respectively, followed by taking the inlet cover  20  and the outlet cover  40  to cover the two openings  11  of the storage tube  10 , and proceed to aim the through holes  21 ,  41  on the inlet cover  20  and the outlet cover  40  at the join troughs  12  one by one, where the plurality of the bolts  211 ,  411  are piercing through the through holes  21 ,  41  and joined helically the join troughs  12 ; the inlet junction  30  has its threaded tube  31  joined helically the screw hole  22  of the inlet cover  20  tightly (the joining can be rotated even more tight by using a tool through the handle portion  32 ), whereas the outlet junction  50  has its threaded tube  51  joined helically the screw hole  42  of the outlet cover  40  tightly (the joining can be rotated even more tight by using a tool through the handle portion  52 ), and the solenoid valve  70  is installed in the connected piping between the joint  48  and the tiny through hole  481 ; the inner check valve  80  is originally installed in the interior of the outlet cover  40 , and the outer check valve  90  is originally installed in the internal of the outlet junction  50 , hence, the assembly of the embodiment of the present invention, the high pressure gas cylinder  1 , is accomplished. 
     When in use, the plug joint  33  of the inlet junction  30  offers the inlet-plug interface to the piping of the entrance that guides the gas into the storage tube  10 , while the plug joint  53  of the outlet junction  50  offers the outlet-plug interface to the piping of the exit that guides the gas out of the storage tube  10 ; as the gas enters the storage tube  10  through the inlet junction  30 , the gas stays in the storage tube  10  if the exit is not open, on the other hand, if the exit is open, the gas enters the through hole  821  and presses the membrane  81  to move and escape from shielding the through hole  821 , enabling the gas flows through the edge of the membrane  81  to enter the space encompassed by the withstanding set  49  and immediately flows through the screw hole  42  to the screw tube  51  of the outlet junction  50 , where the pressure of the gas will press the membrane  91  again to compress the elastic element  92  to move backward which disables its shielding to the through hole  551  in the cavity  55 , and enables the gas flows through the edge of the membrane  81  to enter the space encompassed by the withstanding set  49  and flows through the plug joint  53  to outside by the guide of the piping of the exit, where the gas is then ready in use. The moment that the outlet junction  50  is used for guiding the high pressure gas out for use, the inner check valve  80  and the outer check valve  90  are both left open, which facilitates the ease of being flown out for the high pressure gas. 
     Some occasions of erroneous operations will result in the reverse flow of the high pressure gas, which is being guided through the plug joint  53  of the outlet junction  50  to the space encompassed by the repelling set  54 , where the high pressure gas will press the membrane  91  to shield the through hole  551  of the cavity  55 , and the bigger the pressure, the more solid of the shielding, which disables the gas to enter the through hole  551 , and that is the one-way hinder brought about by the outer check valve  90 . Suppose for another occasions of erroneous operations that guide the high pressure gas into the screw tube  51  through the through hole  551  and to the space encompassed by the withstanding set  49 , the high pressure gas will press the membrane  81  to shield the through hole  821  of the cover  82 , and the bigger the pressure, the more solid of the shielding, which disables the gas to enter the through hole  821 , and that is the one-way hinder brought about by the inner check valve  80 . With the inner and outer check valves  80 ,  90  taking the role of dual one-way hindering, the possibility of erroneous guiding of the high pressure gas can be considerably minimized. 
     Aside from the normal usage of the high pressure gas in the storage tube  10 , some demands for small amount may not use the massive flowing-out function that is related to the operation of the outlet junction  50  on the outlet cover  40 , it can be done instead by an operation that activates the solenoid valve  70  to guide the high pressure gas in the storage tube  10  to flow from the tiny through hole  481  and through the joint head  48  to outside, which eases the use of small amount of gas. In the assembly and operations of the aforesaid embodiment of the present invention, the function of the anti-pressure plate  60  is to resist the pressure exerted by the high pressure gas in the storage tube  10  or by the specific chemical substances (for instance: molecular sieve) stored therein, which slows down the pressing to the inlet cover  20  and outlet cover  40 , where the closure between the inlet, outlet covers  20 ,  40  and the storage tube  10  can be refrained from being spoiled; therefore, the anti-pressure plate  60  at one side (interior side) has a slightly indented surface  63  around its center and is provided with an arced and cross-shaped reinforced rib  64  while the other side (exterior side) is set into a slightly protruded surface  65 . 
     The present invention has the following advantages when in use which have been illustrated in the aforesaid description:
         (I.) The structural of the present invention features four longitudinally shaped join troughs built on the inner surface of the storage tube and distributed evenly, followed by aiming the through holes on the inlet and outlet covers at the corresponding join troughs and by fastening them with screw bolts; therefore, all the joints are inside the storage tube, which are more solid and safe than the prior art that surely boosts the duration of the use.   (II.) The structure of the present invention features anti-pressure plates to resist the pressure exerted by the high pressure gas in the storage tube or by the specific chemical substances (for instance: molecular sieve) stored therein, which slows down the pressing to the inlet cover and outlet cover, where the closure between the inlet, outlet covers, and the storage tube can be refrained from being spoiled which substantially boosts the duration of the use.   (III.) The structure of the present invention features an inner check valve and an outer check valve, which is able to considerably avoid the happenings of guiding the high pressure gas into abnormal direction due to erroneous operations.   (IV.) The structure of the present invention features a solenoid valve, which eases the use of small amount of gas, making the usage more popular.       

     Accordingly, the disclosed structural combination and technical means of the embodiment of the present invention “high pressure gas cylinder” is not seen in the prior art and not opened to the public; moreover, the expected inventive objective and function of usage are achievable, and the invention is considered to be new, useful and non-obvious, which is fully construed as being compliant to the requirements of the patent; therefore, an application for the utility patent is then filed according to the U.S. Patent Statue, which deserves your favorable examination and approval.