Patent ID: 12234920

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

The features and exemplary embodiments of various aspects of the present application are described in detail below. To make the objects, solutions and advantages of the present application clear and apparent, the present application is described in detail in conjunction with the drawings and the specific embodiments.

In the field of control valves for fluid control, a control valve includes a valve body, a valve core assembly and a sealing member located between the valve body and the valve core assembly, the valve body has a mounting cavity, at least part of the valve core assembly is located in the mounting cavity, the valve core assembly is driven to rotate by a driving device, and the sealing member is configured to seal a gap between the valve core assembly and the valve body, so as to prevent the valve core assembly from leaking during operation.

Generally, the valve body and the sealing member are arranged separately, that is, the sealing member and the valve body are two separate members, then the separate sealing member and the separate valve body are manually assembled together, and then the sealing member is extruded after the valve core assembly300is assembled into a mounting space formed by the sealing member, so that a sealing condition among the valve body, the sealing member and the valve core assembly is formed. In order to facilitate the assembly of the sealing member into the mounting cavity of the valve body, a position-limiting member may be provided in the valve body, so as to mount the sealing member between the position-limiting member and the side wall of the valve body. A structure of the position-limiting member is an important factor, which may cause a part of the sealing member not to be limited by the position-limiting member, and may easily cause the deformation of the sealing member, such as the curling of the sealing member, during the assembly of the sealing member and the valve body or during the assembly of the valve core assembly and the sealing member, thereby effecting the sealing performance of the control valve.

A control valve1000is provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The control valve1000according to the embodiment of the present disclosure is described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Referring toFIGS.1to4, the control valve1000according to the embodiment of the present disclosure includes a valve body100, a valve core assembly300and a sealing member200. The valve body100has a mounting cavity101, at least part of the valve core assembly300is located in the mounting cavity101, the valve core assembly300is rotatable, for example, the valve core assembly is driven to be rotatable by an external driving member, so as to control the fluid. The valve body100includes a side wall20, the sealing member200is located in the mounting cavity101and is arranged between the side wall20of the valve body100and the valve core assembly300, so as to seal a gap between the side wall20of the valve body100and the valve core assembly300, thereby improving the quality and stability of the control valve1000. It can be understood that the side wall20is a side wall which defines the mounting cavity101, and the side wall20includes an inner contour and an outer contour, and shapes of the inner contour and the outer contour may be the same or different. For example, inFIG.1, the inner contour of the side wall20is in a cylindrical surface, and the outer contour of the side wall includes a mounting flat surface, so as to facilitate of fitting the control valve1000.

In order to facilitate the assembly of the sealing member and to better limit a position of the sealing member200, in some embodiments, the valve body100includes a bottom wall10, a side wall20and a position-limiting rib30, and the side wall20protrudes from the bottom wall10. In this embodiment, the position-limiting rib30includes an arc section, the position-limiting rib30is located in a space defined by the bottom wall10and the side wall20and protrudes from the bottom wall10, a gap is formed between the side wall20and the position-limiting rib30. The sealing member200after being assembled has an arc structure and the sealing member200is located in the gap. The assembled sealing member200has the arc structure, which refers to that an orthographic projection of the assembled sealing member200on the bottom wall10has an unclosed arc structure, that is, the assembled sealing member200has an inner surface and an outer surface, which are arc surfaces respectively. The sealing member200includes a first portion and a second portion. It defines that the first portion is close to an axial end of the sealing member200and the second portion is located between the valve core assembly300and the side wall20. The first portion is fixedly connected to the second portion, and the first portion is located in the gap between the side wall20and the position-limiting rib30.

In the valve body100according to the embodiment of the present disclosure, the position-limiting rib30is provided in the valve body100, the gap is provided between the side wall20and the position-limiting rib30, and the first portion of the sealing member200can be arranged in the gap between the side wall20and the position-limiting rib30during the assembly of the sealing member200and the valve body100, so that the position-limiting rib30can limit a position of the sealing member200located in the gap. By providing the position-limiting rib30with the arc section in the embodiment of the present disclosure, an arc length of the sealing member200can be set by the position-limiting rib300, which can reduce the local deformation of the sealing member300during assembly, thereby improving the sealing performance of the control valve and improving the stability and quality of the control valve. The valve body100according to the embodiment of the present disclosure can be manufactured or sold separately, and the sealing performance of the control valve1000can be improved by providing the valve body100, which benefits the popularization and utilization.

In some embodiments, an arc length of the position-limiting rib30is greater than or equal to 0.9 times of an arc length of the first portion of the sealing member200. It can be understood that, as shown inFIG.4, the arc length m1 of the position-limiting rib30refers to an arc length, facing an arc surface of the sealing member200, of the position-limiting rib30, that is, an arc length of an outer surface of the position-limiting rib30. The arc length m2 of the sealing member200refers to an arc length, facing an arc surface of the position-limiting rib30, of the sealing member200, that is, an arc length of an inner surface of the assembled sealing member200. According to the embodiment of the present disclosure, by setting the arc length of the position-limiting rib30greater than or equal to 0.9 times of the arc length of the sealing member200, most of the arc length of the sealing member200can be limited by the position-limiting rib30when the valve body100is applied to the control valve1000, which is beneficial to reducing the deformation of the portion, not limited by the position-limiting rib30, of the sealing member if the arc length of the position-limiting rib30is relative small during the assembly of the sealing member200or during the assembly of the sealing member200and the valve core assembly300, thereby improving the sealing performance of the control valve1000, and improving the stability and quality of the control valve1000.

Referring toFIG.2andFIG.3, since the sealing member200needs to ensure the static sealing between the sealing member200and the side wall20of the valve body100and the sealing member200further needs to ensure the dynamic sealing between the valve core assembly300and the sealing member200during the rotation of the valve core assembly300, in some embodiments, the assembled sealing member200has an unclosed arc structure, and the unclosed arc structure can expand after it is subjected to a radial external force, so that the valve core assembly300and the sealing member200have a relatively large expansion space during the extrusion. Compared with the closed annular sealing member200, the sealing member200according to the embodiment of the present disclosure can reduce the design difficulty and the processing difficulty. In case that the sealing member200has the unclosed arc structure, two circumferential sides of the sealing member200are easily deformed during the assembly, so that edges of the two circumferential sides of the sealing member200can be prevented from deforming by setting the arc length of the position-limiting rib30.

In order to better limit the position of the sealing member200and avoid the deformation of the sealing member200during the assembly of the control valve1000, in some embodiments, a center angle corresponding to an arc length of the position-limiting rib30is equal to 0.7-1 time of a center angle corresponding to an arc length of the inner surface of the side wall20. Since the inner surface of the side wall20is a closed cylindrical curved surface, the center angle corresponding to the arc length of the arc side wall20is 360 degrees. By arranging the center angle corresponding to the arc length of the position-limiting rib30equal to 0.7-1 time of the center angle corresponding to the arc length of the inner surface of the side wall20, it is calculated that the center angle corresponding to the arc length of the position-limiting rib30ranges from 252 degrees to 360 degrees, and the arc length of the position-limiting rib30can be calculated by the formula m=n×π×r/180. In the formula, m represents the arc length of the position-limiting rib30, n represents the degrees of the center angle corresponding to the arc length of the position-limiting rib30, r represents the radius corresponding to the arc length of the position-limiting rib30, and in that case, more larger portion of the sealing member200can be limited by the position-limiting rib30.

Referring toFIG.4, in some embodiment, a center angle α2 corresponding to an arc length of the first portion of the sealing member200is greater than or equal to 270 degrees and is less than or equal to 280 degrees. Optionally, the center angle corresponding to the arc length of the first portion of the sealing member200may be 276 degrees. A center angle α1 corresponding to the arc length of the position-limiting rib30is greater than or equal to 260 degrees and is less than or equal to 360 degrees. In practice, in case that the center angle corresponding to the arc length of the position-limiting rib30is 260 degrees, and the center angle corresponding to the arc length of the sealing member200is 276 degrees, the arc length of the position-limiting rib30is equal to 0.9 times of the arc length of the sealing member200; in case that the center angle corresponding to the arc length of the position-limiting rib30is 360 degrees and the center angle corresponding to the arc length of the sealing member200is 276 degrees, the arc length of the position-limiting rib30is equal to 4.2 times of the arc length of the sealing member200. With the above arrangement, the sealing member200can have a relatively large expansion space, the position-limiting rib30can limit most portion of the sealing member200, and the deformation of the sealing member200during assembly can be effectively reduced by setting the arc length of the position-limiting rib30. It can be understood that the center angle corresponding to the arc length of the sealing member200can be set according to the needs of the user. For example, the center angle corresponding to the arc length of the sealing member200may be 260 degrees or in other degrees, and the center angle corresponding to the arc length of the position-limiting rib30is accordingly adjusted according to the arc length of the sealing member200.

In order to facilitate the arrangement and manufacturing of the sealing member200, in some embodiments, the center angle corresponding to the arc length of the position-limiting rib30is equal to the center angle corresponding to the arc length of the first portion of the sealing member200. With the above arrangement, the position-limiting rib30can completely limit the sealing member200and prevent the deformation thereof. It can be understood that the position-limiting rib30and the sealing member200are sleeved with each other and the position-limiting rib30is arranged corresponding to the sealing member200, so that the position-limiting rib30can achieve a better position-limiting effect.

Referring toFIGS.5to7, in order to improve the position-limiting performance of the position-limiting rib30to the sealing member200and effectively avoid the deformation of the sealing member200, in some embodiments, the position-limiting rib30includes at least two position-limiting blocks31, each of which has an arc structure, and the at least two position-limiting blocks31are spaced apart along a circumferential direction of the mounting cavity101. The arc length of the position-limiting rib30is greater than a sum of arc lengths of the at least two position-limiting blocks31. Since the at least two position-limiting blocks31are spaced apart, a spaced passage is formed between two adjacent position-limiting blocks31, and the arc length of the position-limiting rib30is equal to the sum of the arc lengths of the at least two position-limiting blocks31and an arc length corresponding to the spaced passage between the two position-limiting blocks31, that is, the arc length of the position-limiting rib30is a maximum arc length passing through a center of the position-limiting rib30and end points of the two position-limiting blocks31arranged at the edge in the circumferential direction. The sealing member200can be limited at each circumferential position of the sealing member200by providing at least two position-limiting blocks31that are spaced apart. For example, three position-limiting blocks31are provided, two of the position-limiting blocks31are respectively arranged at edges on two sides of the sealing member200, and the other one of the position-limiting blocks31is located in the middle of the sealing member200in the circumferential direction, so as to prevent the sealing member200from deforming, thereby improving the sealing performance of the control valve1000. It can be understood that the number of the at least two position-limiting blocks31are set according to the needs of the user. For example, the number of the position-limiting blocks31may be two, four or five, etc.

When the position-limiting rib30includes at least two position-limiting blocks31, in some embodiments, the center angle corresponding to the arc length of each position-limiting block31is greater than or equal to 76 degrees, and a projection of each position-limiting block31at least partially overlaps with a projection of the first portion of the sealing member200in a radial direction of the side wall20, so that each position-limiting block31can limit the position of the sealing member200. Since the valve body100is a plastic member, which is formed generally by injection molding, the difficulty of the manufacturing can be simplified by arranging the center angle corresponding to the arc length of each position-limiting block31, so as to facilitate the manufacture and molding of the arc position-limiting blocks31. In practice, the interval between the position-limiting blocks31can be set according to the needs of the user, as long as each position-limiting block31can limit the first portion of the sealing member200.

In some embodiments, a width of the gap between the position-limiting rib30and the side wall20is greater than or equal to a thickness of the first portion of the sealing member200, and the sealing member200is clamped between the valve core assembly300and the side wall20. The above arrangement can facilitate the assembly of the sealing member200and the valve body100.

Since the valve core assembly300needs to be sleeved on a side of the inner surface of the side wall20, in order to enable the valve core assembly300to be coaxial with the side wall20and thus enable the valve core assembly300rotate stably, in some embodiments, the position-limiting rib30is coaxial with the side wall20, the position-limiting rib30has a position-limiting surface which faces the side wall20, and a shape of the position-limiting surface is matched with a shape of the sealing member200, so that the sealing member200is coaxial with the side wall20. In case that the position-limiting rib30includes at least two position-limiting blocks31, arc surfaces, away from the surface of the side wall20, of the at least two position-limiting blocks41are coplanar with each other, so as to better limit the position of the sealing member200.

In order to facilitate the assembly of the valve core assembly300and the valve body100, in some embodiments, the valve body100includes a mounting portion102, which is located in the mounting cavity101and protrudes from the bottom wall10, part of the valve core assembly300is inserted into the mounting portion102, and a height of the position-limiting rib30protruding from the bottom wall10is less than or equal to a height of the mounting portion102protruding from the bottom wall10. The above arrangement enables the position-limiting rib30to limit the position of the sealing member30and prevent the excessive height of the position-limiting rib30from affecting the assembly of the valve core assembly300. In practice, the height of the position-limiting rib30can be set according to the needs of the user. In order to avoid affecting the position-limiting performance if the height of the position-limiting rib30is small, optionally, the height of the position-limiting rib30may be configured to be slightly less than the height of the mounting portion102, as long as the assembly and rotation of the valve core assembly300are not affected.

The control valve1000according to the embodiments of the present disclosure is configured to control the fluid. The control valve1000is used in a heat exchange system, such as a vehicle air conditioning system or a household air conditioning system. Specifically, a working medium flowing through the control valve1000may be water, a mixture of water and other liquids, or other coolants with thermal conductivity. The control valve1000controls the distribution of the working medium and adjusts the outlet flow rate flowing through the control valve1000so as to control the working medium of the flow path of the heat exchange system, which can improve the control performance of the flow path of the heat exchange system.

In order to realize the control performance of the control valve1000on the fluid, in some embodiments, the side wall20includes a first sub-portion21which extends along a circumferential direction of the side wall20. The first sub-portion21includes a first communication port211, which extends through the first sub-portion21. The sealing member200includes a second communication port201, which extends through the sealing member200. The second communication port201corresponds to and is in communication with the first communication port211, and the position-limiting rib30is arranged close to the first sub-portion21along the circumferential direction of the side wall20. With the above arrangement, the position-limiting rib30can better limit the sealing member200sleeved on the side of the inner surface of the first sub-portion21so as to prevent the sealing member200from deforming.

To sum up, in the control valve1000according to the embodiments of the present disclosure, the control valve1000includes the valve body100, the valve core assembly300and the sealing member200, and the sealing member200is sleeved between the valve core assembly300and the side wall20of the valve body100, so that the sealing member200can realize the sealing between the valve core assembly300and the valve body100and prevent the control valve1000from causing fluid leakage during operation. Since the sealing member200and the valve body100are two separate members, the position-limiting rib30is provided in the valve body100to limit the assembly position of the sealing member200, so as to facilitate the assembly of the sealing member200and the valve body100. The position-limiting rib30can limit more arc length of the sealing member200by setting the arc length of the position-limiting rib30greater than or equal to 0.9 times of the arc length of the sealing member200in the embodiment of the present disclosure, and thus, in case that the arc length of the position-limiting rib30is same, it is beneficial to reducing the deformation of the portion, which not limited by the position-limiting rib30, of the sealing member200during the assembly of the sealing member200or during the assembly of the sealing member200and the valve core assembly300, thereby improving the sealing performance of the control valve1000, and improving the stability and quality of the control valve1000, which is convenient for popularization and disclosure.

It should be understood that, relational terms such as “first” and “second” are merely used to distinguish one entity or operation from another entity or operation, but do not indicate or imply an actual relation or order of these entities or operations. It can be understood that the terms so used are interchangeable under appropriate circumstances such that the embodiments of the application described herein, for example, can function or be arranged in sequences other than those described herein or otherwise.

It should be noted that, the above embodiments are only intended to illustrate the present application and not to limit the technical solutions described in the present application. Although the present specification has been described in detail with reference to the embodiments described above, it should be understood by those skilled in the art that, various modifications and equivalents can be made to the technical solutions of the present application without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application, all of which should be contained within the scope of the claims of the present application.