Pressure-reducing valve assembly for gas bottle and gas bottle equipped therewith

The present invention relates to a faucet set / regulator for pressurized gas cylinder.

Conventionally, pressurized gas cylinders were equipped with a valve that should be connected to a valve located on the property, with the disadvantages associated with assembly / disassembly operations. Also, did we recently proposed, particularly in the medical field, combined sets tap / valve connectable directly to at least one low-voltage use circuit. Such assemblies are disclosed in<patcit id="pcit0001" dnum="EP308875A"><text>EP-A-308 875</text></patcit> and <patcit id="pcit0002" dnum="EP629937A"><text>EP-A-629 937</text></patcit>, Where the insulation between fractions of high and low pressure circuits can be ensured by displacement of a preset valve, and in document <patcit id="pcit0003" dnum="EP275242A"><text>EP-A-275 242</text></patcit>Wherein insulation is provided at the output of low-pressure circuit.

The present invention is to propose a set of tap / advanced regulator, particularly robust and picked up design allowing its integration into a suitable cowl, offering ergonomics and increased safety and suitable for many applications, especially in the field of welding .

To do this, the invention provides a faucet set / regulator of claim 1.

According to other more particular features of the invention:<ul><li>the assembly includes a second gas path formed in the body and separate from the first circuit, for filling the bottle when the assembly is mounted on the bottle;</li><li>the assembly includes means for manually adjusting the pressure regulator which advantageously extends along an axis substantially orthogonal to the axis of the body of the mounting plate.</li></ul>

The present invention also relates to an assembly of the type defined above disposed in a protective cover also mounted on the bottle forming and handling cap thereof. The present invention finally relates to a gas cylinder fitted under pressure to an assembly as defined above.

Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of embodiments given for illustration but not limitation, in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:<ul><li>Figure 1 is a perspective view of an assembly according to the invention in place in a rollover figured in phantom lines;</li><li>Figure 2 is a schematic top view of the assembly flipped of Figure 1;</li><li>Figure 3 is a partially sectional view along section line III-III of the assembly of Figure 2 mounted in position on a gas cylinder;</li><li>Figure 4 is a top view, partially in longitudinal section, of the assembly of Figure 2;</li><li>Figure 5 is a detail view, partially in section along the section VV line of Figure 2;</li><li>Figure 6 is a side view, partly in section along line VI-VI section line of Figure 2; and</li><li>Figure 7 is a longitudinal half-section of an alternative embodiment of a cover for an assembly according to the invention.</li></ul>

In the drawings, it is recognized a compact tap / pressure regulator consisting essentially of a metal body 1 having a bottom profiled end forming a mounting base 2 and on which are reported, as discussed in detail below, an outlet connection 3 , a strain relief housing 4, a control lever 5, a filling connection 6, a high pressure gauge 7 and a low pressure gauge 8.

As best seen in Figures 3 to 6, the body 1, made for example of brass, internally defines a utilization circuit of a high-pressure circuit portion comprising: an upstream portion 9 extending in the base 2, substantially parallel to the axis thereof, and opening into a transverse passage 10 for mounting the manometer HP 7 and communicates itself with a transverse passage 11 opening itself in a stepped bore 12 receiving the valve of insulation 13 and 14 forming a seat for the latter; the circuit portion downstream of the seat 14 of the stepped bore 12 communicates through a transverse passageway 15 with a stepped cylindrical chamber 16 opening outwardly of the body 1 through an opening of enlarged diameter in which is mounted the end the annular strain relief housing 4. it will be noted that, being in permanent communication with the storage volume in the bottle B, the HP gauge 7 also ensures the bottle filling gauge function. In the reduced diameter portion of the chamber 16 is mounted a unitary subassembly comprising a tubular cage 17 housing a control valve 18 and forming a seat 19 for the latter. The valve 18 has a rod portion 20 extending forward beyond the seat 19 and engageable with the front face of a piston 21 sliding in the expander body 1 and the housing 4 being urged in the direction the cage 17 by a spring 22 bearing on a rear cup 23 and whose force is adjustable by displacement of the cup 23 by means of a threaded rod 24 mounted in the housing 4 and operable manually by a knob or handwheel 25. the axis of the valve 18 and the expander piston 21 is substantially orthogonal to the axis of the mounting base 2. the low pressure chamber 26 ahead of the piston 21 opens outwardly of the body 1, to opposite the button 25 of the regulator, by an outlet passage 27 which extends into the body 1 parallel to the axis of the valve 18 and the piston 21 adjacent the upper end thereof, and in which is mounted the outlet connector 3, and by a transverse passage 80, orthogonal to the outlet passage 27, substantially vertically aligned with the passage 11, and wherein is mounted the low pressure gauge 8 and disposed in vertical alignment HP 7 gauge.

As seen in Figure 3, the body 1 also defines a bottle filling circuit, completely independent of the distribution circuit described above and having a downstream portion 28 extending in the base 2, parallel to the axis thereof and communicating with a transverse passage upstream 29 in which is mounted the filling adapter 6, opposite to the pressure gauges 7 and 8 and substantially in alignment with the HP pressure gauge 8. the fitting 6 forms an inner passage profiled to accommodate, downstream, a filter 30, in the intermediate zone, a check valve 31 urged by a spring and terminating in an inlet opening 32 arranged to receive the end, for example male, line filling, this male end urging the valve 31 to provide free access to the high filling pressure fluid into the cylinder through the passage 28.

As seen in Figure 5, the isolation valve 13, biased to its seat 14 by a spring bearing against a plug 33 closing the bore 12, has at its front end a finger projecting beyond the seat 14 and cooperating in abutment with a rod 34 passing through a seal having an outer end and emerging from the block 1 to engage a cam surface 35 of the joint head of the lever 5 being journalled about a transverse axis 36 in a protrusion 37 at the upper end of the body 1 substantially between the pressure gauges 7, 8 and the outlet connection 3. the head of the lever 5 comprises at least two notches 38A, 38B which cooperates with a blade spring 39 mounted on the body 1 to maintain the lever 5 in either of its extreme positions of opening or closing, thereby making it virtually insensitive to vibration. Advantageously, a layer of low friction material or self-lubricated, is disposed at the interface between the cam surface 35 and the cap of the rod 34, for example by interposing between them an integral polyimide blade, at least during assembly, the blade 39.

As shown in the drawings, the assembly according to the invention advantageously further comprises a pressure retaining valve 40 in the upstream end of the passage 9 in the base 2, a relief valve 41 in the expander piston 21 and a check valve 42 in the outlet passage 27, and a filter upstream of the passage 11 and the end of the cage 17 respectively.

As is seen in the drawings, configuration picked the tap / pressure regulator, with active members spread over all the faces of the block 1, allows fully integrate all in a rollover valve cap forming C , the contours of a particular embodiment are shown in figures 1 and 2. in this embodiment, the hood / bonnet C consists essentially of a base C₁ mounted on the cylinder B collar around the base 2 and on which is fixed, typically by vertical tie rods, an upper portion C₂ shell-shaped housing most of the tap / pressure and comprising a side handle portion P and an upper head T-shaped head allows the handling of the bottle, in particular by rolling on the ground. The side walls of the upper part C₂ include a number of cutouts or recesses D₁-D₄As shown schematically in Figure 2, to allow access to connectors 3 and 6, the button 25 and pressure gauges 7 and 8. Parts C₂ and C₁ further comprises a longitudinal slot F allowing free movement between its open and closed positions of the lever 5 which is normally housed in the closed position, into the hood C as shown in Figure 1. It may advantageously also provide, down to the F slot mounting a tamper-resistant security device, eg to pull kind, ensuring that the lever 5 has not been pressed before the first use of a bottle equipped with the full set tap / pressure regulator according to the invention. At least the upper part C₂ the cowling C may be made of a technical plastic material. At least the lower portion C₁ can be made of a light metal alloy or of malleable cast iron. Alternatively, as shown schematically in Figure 7, the hood / cap consists of a cage or perforated inner tulip C '₁, Typically of malleable cast iron, fixed on the collar of the bottle, around the base of the tap, and extending upwardly so as to enclose the whole valve / regulator with pressure gauges, and external cowling elements devices and higher C '₂, C '₂ in plastic material, fixed on the cage C '₁.

Although the present invention has been described in relation to particular embodiments, it is thereby not limited but is on the contrary capable of modifications and variations which occur to those skilled in the art.