TEMPERATURE LIMITING DEVICE APPLICABLE TO SINGLE LEVER VALVES FOR MIXING HOT AND COLD LIQUIDS WITH AN IMPROVED INLET PORT

• US 20090314845A1
• Filed: 01/05/2007
• Published: 12/24/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 01/11/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Greens Industries Limited
• Original Assignee: Greens Industries Limited
• Inventors: Morgan, Ian, Green, John William
• Application Number:
  US12/160,750
• Publication Number:
  US 20090314845A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 236/12.150
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 23/1353 combined with flow controlling means

Abstract

A single lever valve for mixing hot and cold liquids has a mixer which can internally impose an upper limit on the temperature of any liquid emerging from it. The means used may enable the upper limit to be changed by exchange of a component so that the mixer can be used in any location in an installation even though different locations might have different upper limit requirements. The mixer may take the form of a cartridge able to be exchanged with an existing cartridge to convert an “unsafe” mixer to a “safe” one. There is a cylindrical mixing chamber with hot and cold liquid entry through ports through the side walls at opposite ends. A piston sealingly slidable within the chamber effects opening and closing of the ports.

Claims

1-14. -14. (canceled)

15. A device for mixing and regulating the output temperature of a hot liquid and a cold liquid, including:

a mixing chamber;

a hot liquid entry port into said chamber,

a first cold liquid entry port into said chamber,

an outlet from said chamber;

an outlet passage from the device which communicates with said chamber outlet;

mix proportioning means within said chamber able to alter the proportions of hot and cold liquids admitted through said entry ports into said chamber at any rate of combined output flow;

a temperature sensing device adapted to sense the temperature of the output of the mixed liquids from the chamber and to control the mix proportioning means so that the output temperature at all output flow rates from the chamber can never exceed, except for a small tolerance for a small time, a selected maximum; and

a second cold liquid entry port into the output passage of the device downstream from where the temperature of the output flow from the chamber is sensed,

characterized in that the mixing chamber has a cylindrical wall, the hot liquid entry port and the first cold liquid entry port into said chamber being at the side at or adjacent opposite ends of said cylindrical wall, said hot liquid entry port being part of a radially extending hot liquid inlet passage, and the mix proportioning means including joined sealing means slidable within the chamber under the control of the temperature sensing device so that as the cold liquid entry port into the chamber is progressively opened the hot liquid entry port is progressively closed and vice versa, the mix proportioning means enabling the following states of the device to be achieved;

the hot liquid entry port being completely closed while the first cold liquid entry port is completely open, and

the first cold liquid entry port being completely closed while the hot liquid entry port is completely open.

16. A device as claimed in claim 15, which includes a stationary distributing member and a movable distributing member, the stationary distributing member having ports to the movable distributing member for the supply of hot liquid and cold liquid to the movable distributing member, the movable distributing member regulating the proportions of hot and cold liquid supplied to the hot liquid entry port and to the cold liquid entry ports and the flow rates thereof, and enabling complete shut-off of all flows to said ports.

17. A device according to claim 16, further comprising a body supporting the distributing members, and sealing means to seal between parts of the movable and stationary distributing members, a hot liquid inlet port and said cold liquid inlet port being provided in the stationary distributing member, and a hot liquid transfer path and a cold liquid transfer path being provided in the movable distributing member;

and further where all wholly or partly contained in the body, or all wholly or partly contained in the movable distributing member, or all wholly or partly contained in the stationary distributing member there is provided a convergence space, said hot liquid inlet passage communicating with said hot liquid transfer path and with said convergence space, a first cold liquid inlet passage communicating with said cold liquid transfer path and with said convergence space, an outlet from said convergence space, flow regulating means within the convergence space capable of regulating the flow of hot and cold liquids entering said convergence space by progressively opening the hot liquid inlet passage while progressively closing the first cold liquid inlet passage and vice versa and capable of effecting complete closure of said hot liquid inlet passage, said temperature sensing device which controls the operation of the flow regulating means in said outlet, a temperature sensing portion of said temperature sensing device, said second cold liquid inlet passage communicating with said cold liquid transfer path and with said outlet substantially downstream of said temperature sensing portion

and the movable distributing member being movable to each of the following positions;

where the hot liquid inlet port communicates with the hot liquid transfer path which communicates with the hot liquid inlet passage and at the same time the cold liquid inlet port communicates with the cold liquid transfer path which communicates with the first cold liquid inlet passage;

or where the hot liquid inlet port communicates with the hot liquid transfer path which communicates with the hot liquid inlet passage and at the same time the cold liquid inlet port communicates with the cold liquid transfer path which communicates with the first cold liquid inlet passage and the cold liquid transfer path also communicates with the second cold liquid inlet passage;

or where the hot liquid inlet port and the cold liquid inlet port do not communicate with each other and block communication from both said hot liquid inlet port and said cold liquid inlet port with any said passage;

characterized in that the flow regulating means includes a piston in sealing but slidable contact with said cylindrical wall and the peripheral ends of the piston effect closure or opening of the hot liquid and first cold liquid inlet ports.

18. A device according to claim 17, wherein the convergence space has an axis, and a cylindrical wall coaxial with said axis and said flow regulating means includes a movable piston sealingly slidable to and fro in axial directions within said cylindrical wall, and there is an orifice through said piston which may offer communication between said hot and cold liquid inlet passages and wherein said first cold liquid inlet passage communicates with said convergence space at or adjacent one end of said cylindrical wall while said hot liquid inlet passage communicates with said convergence space at or adjacent the other end of said cylindrical wall and said piston may be positioned over said first cold liquid inlet passage to a position where said passage is completely closed so that, in use, no cold liquid can then enter said convergence space, while the hot liquid inlet passage is fully open and vice versa, and positions inbetween where both passages are partially open.

19. A device according to claim 15, wherein there are a plurality of hot liquid entry ports.

20. A device according to claim 16, wherein said cylindrical wall axis is parallel to an axis about which said mix proportioning means may be rotated.

21. A device according to claim 15, wherein said temperature sensing device expands on sensed liquid temperature increase and contracts on sensed liquid temperature decrease, in axial directions.

22. A control device according to claim 16, wherein said temperature sensing device includes a housing and a piston capable of being moved axially to and fro with respect to said housing, coaxially with said cylindrical wall axis.

23. A control device according to claim 22, wherein said temperature sensing device piston can directly contact said mix proportioning means piston.

24. A control device according to claim 23, wherein there is a resilient bias which biases said temperature sensing device piston to the most contracted position of the temperature sensing device.

25. A control device according to claim 24, wherein said resilient bias is a compression spring located between the upper end of said chamber and said flow regulating means piston.

26. A control device according to claim 17, wherein there is protection means for said temperature sensing device which prevents pressure above a pre-determined maximum pressure, being developed within said housing.

27. A control device according to claim 15, wherein the device is in the form a cartridge for a valve.

28. A control device according to claim 15, wherein the device is a valve and includes a single operating lever.