VACUUM VALVE WITH ACOUSTIC SENSOR

• US 20200132222A1
• Filed: 06/28/2018
• Published: 04/30/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: VAT Holding AG (VAT Group AG)
• Original Assignee: VAT Holding AG (VAT Group AG)
• Inventors: ESCHENMOSER, Adrian, GAHLER, Andre, ZICKAR, Michael
• Granted Patent: US 11,460,125 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 3/0218 with only one sealing face
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 3/04 with pivoted closure members
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 3/06 in the form of closure plates arranged between supply and discharge passages F16K3/10 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 3/10 with special arrangements for separating the sealing faces or for pressing them together
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 3/18 by movement of the closure members
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 37/0041 for measuring valve parameters F16K37/0033 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 37/0083 by measuring valve parameters
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 51/02 specially adapted for high-vacuum installations

Abstract

Disclosed is a vacuum valve having at least one acoustic sensor, the acoustic sensor being designed such that information can be generated by the acoustic sensor via a structure-borne sound wave, as a measuring signal, impacting on at least one component of the vacuum valve.

Claims

1. A vacuum valve comprising:

a vacuum slide valve, pendulum valve or monovalve, for regulating a volume or mass flow and/or for gas-tight interruption of a flow path, having

a valve seat which has a valve opening defining an opening axis and a first sealing surface surrounding the valve opening,

a valve closure, in particular a valve disk, for regulating the volume or mass flow and/or for interrupting the flow path, having a second sealing surface corresponding to the first sealing surface, and

a drive unit which is coupled to the valve closure and is designed in such a way that the valve closure

for providing respective valve opening states can be varied and adjusted in a defined manner, and

can be adjusted from an open position (O), in which the valve closure at least partially opens the valve opening, to a closed position (G), in which the second sealing surface is pressed in the direction of the first sealing surface and the valve opening, in particular by means of an interposed seal, is closed in a substantially gas-tight manner, and can be adjusted back again,

wherein

the vacuum valve has at least one acoustic sensor wherein the acoustic sensor is designed and arranged in such a way that, by means of the acoustic sensor, information about a structure-borne sound wave occurring in at least one component of the vacuum valve can be generated as a measurement signal.

2. The vacuum valve according to claim 1,

wherein

the acoustic sensor is arranged on the drive unit.

3. The vacuum valve according to claim 1,

wherein

the acoustic sensor is arranged on the valve closure or the valve seat (3).

4. The vacuum valve according to claim 1,

wherein

the vacuum valve has a valve housing and the acoustic sensor is arranged on the valve housing.

5. The vacuum valve according to claim 1,

wherein

the vacuum valve has a processing and control unit which is designed at least for processing the measurement signal.

6. The vacuum valve according to claim 5,

wherein

the processing and control unit is adapted

to actuate the drive unit with control values for adjusting the valve closure between the open position (O) and the closed position (G), and

to automatically set the control values depending on the currently acquired measurement signal.

7. The vacuum valve according to claim 5,

wherein

the processing and control unit is designed such that the detected measurement signal can be processed by means of the processing and control unit and, on the basis of the detected measurement signal, a status information for the at least one component of the vacuum valve can be generated, wherein in particular an output signal is provided based on an alignment of the status information with a predefined target feature.

8. The vacuum valve according to claim 7,

wherein

the status information relating to a mechanical and/or structural integrity of the drive unit, the first or second sealing surface, the seal and/or the valve housing is provided, in particular wherein the status information is generated by means of an actual-target comparison for the detected measurement signal.

9. The vacuum valve according to claim 5,

wherein

the processing and control unit is adapted to provide a frequency spectrum based on a detection of the measurement signal during a predetermined period of time.

10. The vacuum valve according to claim 5,

wherein

the processing and control unit is adapted to provide, based on an analysis of the measurement signal with respect to one or more measurement frequencies, an output signal with respect to a localization of a structure-borne sound wave causing the respective measurement frequency.

11. The vacuum valve according to claim 5,

wherein

the processing and control unit has a monitoring functionality which is adapted in such a way that, when it is carried out,

the measurement signal is detected during variation of the valve opening state, and

a current functional state is derived for at least one component of the vacuum valve, in particular for the drive unit or the first or the second sealing surface, based on a comparison of the detected measurement signal and a corresponding target measurement signal.

12. The vacuum valve according to claim 5,

wherein

the processing and control unit is adapted in such a way that a sound propagation behavior can be determined on the basis of the measurement signal and can in particular be compared with a previously known target sound propagation behavior.

13. The vacuum valve according to claim 5,

wherein

the processing and control unit is adapted to provide, on the basis of trend monitoring of the measurement signal of a plurality of processes controlled by the vacuum valve, an output signal which includes one or both of:

a warning about increased wear of a component of the vacuum valve, and

a prediction of the durability of a component of the vacuum valve.

14. The vacuum valve according to claim 1,

wherein

the acoustic sensor is arranged and designed in such a way that a structure-borne sound wave is detected by the measurement signal, which sound wave is produced by friction at at least one of the following locations:

between at least a part of the seal and at least a part of the first sealing surface, and

between at least a part of the seal and at least a part of the second sealing surface.

15. The vacuum valve according to claim 1,

wherein

the acoustic sensor is arranged and designed in such a way that a structure-borne sound wave which is produced in the drive unit is detected by the measurement signal.