Vacuum valve and closure plate for a vacuum valve

• US 7,959,130 B2
• Filed: 07/16/2009
• Issued: 06/14/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/18/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: VAT Holding AG (VAT Group AG)
• Original Assignee: VAT Holding AG (VAT Group AG)
• Inventors: Duelli, Bernhard
• Primary Examiner(s): Bastianelli; John
• Application Number:
  US12/504,358
• Publication Number:
  US 20100012878A1
• Time in Patent Office: 698 Days
• Field of Search: 251/326, 251/327, 251/328, 251/329, 251/193, 251/366
• US Class Current: 251/326
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 3/314 Forms or constructions of slides; Attachment of the slide to the spindle
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 51/02 specially adapted for high-vacuum installations

Abstract

The invention relates to a vacuum valve for gas-tight sealing of a flow path, comprising at least one thrust rod, which has a cylindrical connecting section, and a closure plate which is removably mounted on the thrust rod and has at least one concave, semicircular first rod recess corresponding to the connecting section. A clamping piece, which has a concave, semicircular second rod recess corresponding to the connecting section, is adjustably mounted by means of a mechanical fixing element on the closure plate in such a way that the semicircular first rod recess and the opposite semicircular second rod recess define a cylindrical holding region which is adjustable in width and in which the cylindrical connecting section is detachably held.

Claims

1. A vacuum valve for gas-tight sealing of a flow path, comprising

a valve housing having an opening for the flow path and a valve seat surface surrounding the opening, the opening having an opening axis along the flow path,

a valve drive,

at least one thrust rod,

which is linearly displaceable by means of the valve drive along its thrust rod axis, which is substantially transverse to the opening axis, and

which has a cylindrical connecting section on the thrust rod end,

a closure plate which is removably mounted on the at least one thrust rod and which defines a plane of the closure plate, comprising

a closure side and a back substantially parallel and opposite thereto,

a closure surface corresponding to the valve seat surface and intended for gas-tight sealing of the flow path by production of a sealing contact of the closure surface with the valve seat surface by means of the valve drive, the closure side of the closure plate pointing toward the opening and the back facing away from the opening,

at least one concave, semicircular first rod recess which corresponds to the connecting section and is formed on a fastening side, which is formed by the closure side or the back, on the closure plate,

and

fastening means by which the connecting section of the thrust rod is detachably fixed in the first rod recess,

wherein

the fastening means are in the form of

a clamping piece which has a concave, semicircular second rod recess corresponding to the connecting section, and

a mechanical fixing element, by means of which the clamping piece is mounted on the fastening side of the closure plate adjustably in a manner such that the semicircular first rod recess and the opposite semicircular second rod recess define a cylindrical holding region which is adjustable in width and in which the cylindrical connecting section is detachably held,

a cavity which extends transversely to the thrust rod axis and in which a resilient pin extends transversely to the thrust rod axis and tangentially to the cylindrical holding region being formed in the first rod recess or the second rod recess, the resilient pin projecting with its lateral surface into the cylindrical holding region, and

the connecting section of the thrust rod has a joint which is transverse to the thrust rod axis, corresponds to the pin and extends in such a way that the pin is clamped with its lateral surface by means of the clamping piece in the joint, and the thrust rod is fixed along the thrust rod axis.

2. The vacuum valve as claimed in claim 1, the pin being fixed with its two ends in the cavity and the middle region of the pin, which is not fixed, projecting between the two ends into the cylindrical holding region.

3. The vacuum valve as claimed in claim 1, the join extending around the connecting section of the thrust rod on a plane to which the thrust rod axis is a normal.

4. The vacuum valve as claimed in claim 1, the joint being formed on a side of the connecting section of the thrust rod, which side points toward the pin, and extending on a plane to which the thrust rod axis is a normal.

5. The vacuum valve as claimed in claim 1, the joint having a cross-section tapering substantially in a V-shaped manner inward into the joint or a semicircular cross-section.

6. The vacuum valve as claimed in claim 1, the cavity being formed in the second rod recess and the pin being arranged in the clamping piece.

7. The vacuum valve as claimed in claim 1,

the mechanical fixing element being in the form of at least one screw extending substantially perpendicularly to the plane of the closure plate,

the clamping piece being inserted to the side of the first rod recess with a section into an undercut which is formed on the fastening side of the closure plate and is formed in such a way that the clamping piece is fixed in the direction pointing away from the closure plate and perpendicular to the plane of the closure plate,

the screw being arranged in

a first hole which is formed to the side of the first rod recess on the fastening side of the closure plate and extends substantially perpendicularly to the plane of the closure plate and

a corresponding second hole in the clamping piece, which extends substantially perpendicularly to the plane of the closure plate,

and

the undercut, the first hole, the second hole and the section of the clamping piece being arranged and formed in such a way that the screw presses the clamping piece in a lever-like manner with the second rod recess onto the connecting section of the thrust rod.

8. The vacuum valve as claimed in claim 7, the first hole being a threaded hole which the screw engages, and the screw being passed through the second hole.

9. The vacuum valve as claimed in claim 7, the second hole being a threaded hole which the screw engages, and the screw being passed through the first hole.

10. The vacuum valve as claimed in claim 1,

the valve drive being formed in such a way that the thrust rod is linearly adjustable by means of the valve drive along the thrust rod axis,

the valve seat surface curving in a closed manner around the opening,

the normals to the at least partly curved valve seat surface and to the closure surface being substantially parallel to the plane of the closure plate and

the closure plate being linearly displaceable by means of the valve drive along the linear adjustment path of the thrust rod, which adjustment path is parallel to the thrust rod axis, between

an opened position freeing the opening and

a position in which said opening is sealed gas-tight and said closure plate is linearly displaced over the opening and hence pressed with the closure surface substantially in the closing direction of the linear adjustment path onto the valve seat surface.

11. The vacuum valve as claimed in claim 1, the valve drive, the valve seat surface and the closure surface being formed in such a way that the opening can be closed by

moving the closure plate substantially along the thrust rod axis over the opening and

pressing the closure plate with the closure surface onto the valve seat surface in the perpendicular direction to the plane of the closure plate.

12. A closure plate for a vacuum valve as claimed in claim 1,

the vacuum valve having, for gas-tight closing of a flow path, a valve housing with an opening for the flow path and a valve seat surface curving around the opening in a closed manner, comprising

a closure side and a back parallel and opposite thereto,

a closure surface which corresponds to the valve seat surface of the vacuum valve, the normals to the at least partly curved closure surface and to the valve seat surface being substantially parallel to a plane of the closure plate, which plane is defined by the closure plate, and the closure surface being formed in such a way that the closure surface can be pressed in the closing direction of the adjustment path parallel to the thrust rod axis onto the valve seat surface into a position in which said opening is sealed gas-tight and said closure plate has been moved linearly over the opening,

at least one concave, semicircular first rod recess,

which is formed on a fastening side, which is formed by the closure side or the back, on the closure plate, and

which corresponds to a cylindrical connecting section of a thrust rod end of at least one thrust rod, which is linearly displaceable by means of a valve drive along its thrust rod axis which is substantially transverse to the opening axis, the thrust rod axis being substantially parallel to the plane of the closure plate,

and

fastening means by which the connecting section of the thrust rod can be detachably fixed in the first rod recess,

wherein

the fastening means are in the form of

a clamping piece which has a concave, semicircular second rod recess corresponding to the connecting section, and

a mechanical fixing element, by means of which the clamping piece is adjustably mounted on the fastening side of the closure plate in such a way that the semicircular first rod recess and the opposite semicircular rod recess define a cylindrical holding region which is adjustable in width and in which the cylindrical connecting section can be detachably held,

a cavity which extends transversely to the thrust rod axis and in which a resilient pin extends transversely to the thrust rod axis and tangentially to the cylindrical holding region being formed in the first rod recess or the second rod recess, the resilient pin projecting with its lateral surface into the cylindrical holding region in such a way that the pin can be clamped with its lateral surface by means of the clamping piece in a joint, which runs transversely to the thrust rod axis in the connecting section of the thrust rod and corresponds to the pin, and the thrust rod being capable of being fixed along the thrust rod axis.

13. The closure plate as claimed in claim 12, the pin being fixed with its two ends in the cavity, and the middle region of the pin, which is not fixed, projecting between the two ends into the cylindrical holding region.

14. The closure plate as claimed in claim 12, the cavity being formed in the second rod recess and the pin being arranged in the clamping piece.

15. The closure plate as claimed in claim 12,

the mechanical fixing element being in the form of at least one screw extending substantially perpendicularly to the plane of the closure plate,

the clamping piece being inserted into an undercut to the side of the first rod recess, which undercut is formed on the fastening side of the closure plate and is formed in such a way that the clamping piece is fixed in the direction pointing away from the closure plate and perpendicular to the plane of the closure plate,

the screw being arranged in

a first bore, which is formed to the side of the first rod recess on the fastening side of the closure plate and extends substantially perpendicularly to the plane of the closure plate, and

a corresponding second bore in the clamping piece, which extends substantially perpendicularly to the plane of the closure plate,

and

the undercut, the first bore, the second bore and the clamping piece being arranged and formed in such a way that the clamping piece can be pressed by means of the screw in a lever-like manner with the second rod recess onto the connecting section of the thrust rod.