JP3969731B2 - Humidity control gas generator - Google Patents

Description

    The present invention is a humidity control apparatus configured to generate and supply a gas conditioned to a desired humidity by mixing a fixed amount of gas saturated with water vapor and a fixed amount of gas that is completely dry. The present invention relates to a body generating apparatus.

    For example, when calibrating a hygrometer (humidity sensor), there is a method of measuring the humidity of a gas whose humidity is known. In this way, a means for obtaining a gas whose humidity is known, in other words, generating a gas of the desired humidity As a means for supplying, a humidity control gas generator A as shown in FIG. 16 is provided.

  This humidity control gas generator A is a device that employs a diversion method, which is one of the known humidity generation methods. The compressed air from the compressor C is made into a completely dry gas by the dryer D and then divided into two. Then, one flow is made saturated gas through the saturation tank S, and then supplied to the test tank T, and the other dry gas is supplied to the test tank T as it is, and the dry gas and the saturated gas are mixed to be constant. It generates and supplies gas with relative humidity.

  Further, in this humidity control gas generator A, the flow rate of each of the two divided dry airs is measured / set by a flow meter Fw and a flow meter Fd comprising a mass flow meter / controller, etc. By adjusting the mixing ratio of the dry gas and the saturated gas supplied to, a humidity-controlled gas having a relative humidity of 0 to 100% (rh) can be obtained quickly and easily.

  Here, the above-mentioned prior art known to the applicant is a publicly known / public technique and does not relate to a known literature invention, and therefore there is no prior art document information to be described.

    By the way, in the conventional humidity control gas generator using the shunt method as described above, the flowmeter is an indispensable component, for example, a float that measures the flow rate from the movement of the float supported by the gas flowing in the flow path In a flow meter (float mass flow meter) and a thermal gas flow meter (thermal flow meter) that measures the flow rate from the difference in detection temperature between a pair of temperature sensors provided inside the flow path with a heater, During operation, the surface of the float or sensor that is continuously exposed to the gas flowing through the flow path gradually becomes dirty, and there is a possibility that the measurement accuracy may deteriorate with time as the operation time elapses.

  Furthermore, since the flowmeters (float type flowmeters and thermal gas flowmeters) as described above are devices with an extremely fine structure, maintenance work such as disassembly and cleaning is not only complicated, but also accuracy adjustment is extremely difficult. Since delicate work is required, it is difficult to maintain high measurement accuracy. With the conventional humidity control gas generator as described above, the humidity accuracy of the generated and supplied humidity control gas is always maintained at high accuracy. It was difficult to do.

  In addition, since the above-mentioned flowmeter is a precision instrument with a precise structure, the cost per unit is extremely high. For this reason, the conventional diversion method using the flowmeter as an essential component is adopted. In the humidity-controlled gas generator, the inconvenience of incurring a significant increase in costs related to the production per apparatus could not be avoided.

  Further, in the conventional humidity control gas generator employing the diversion method, in order to obtain the relative humidity (%) of the generated and supplied humidity control gas, the ratio of the flow rate measured by the flow meter Fw and the flow meter Fd (diversion flow) Ratio: the ratio of the mass flow rate of the gas before entering the saturation tank S and the total gas), the total pressure of the gas in the test tank T, the total pressure of the gas in the saturation tank S, and further in the saturation tank S Complicated calculations using various parameters such as saturated water vapor pressure at gas temperature are required.

  That is, in a conventional humidity control air generator employing the shunt method, a humidity control gas having a desired relative humidity is secondarily generated and supplied (secondary generation) based on the arithmetic processing for the split ratio as described above. Therefore, not only is there a problem that requires complicated calculation processing, but errors in calculation results using various parameters may lead to a decrease in accuracy of the generated and supplied humidity control gas. was there.

  In view of the actual situation described above, the present invention can always maintain the humidity accuracy of the generated and supplied humidity-controlled gas with high accuracy, and at the same time, can suppress the manufacturing cost per unit at a low cost. An object of the present invention is to provide a humidity control gas generator capable of generating and supplying a highly accurate humidity control gas very easily.

    In order to achieve the above object, a humidity control gas generator according to the invention of claim 1 includes a piston pump for sucking and sending a predetermined volume of dry gas by a reciprocating motion of the piston in the cylinder, and an introduced dry gas. A gas mixing unit that mixes a saturated gas with a dry gas, a dry-side flow channel that directly introduces a dry gas sent from a piston pump into the gas mixing unit, and a dry gas sent from the piston pump through a saturated gas generating means. A wet-side flow channel that introduces the saturated gas generated into the gas mixing unit, and further, a gas having a desired humidity is generated by mixing the dry gas and the saturated gas at a predetermined ratio in the gas mixing unit. Therefore, the operation of the piston pump is controlled to adjust the capacity of the dry gas introduced from the piston pump to the gas mixing section through the dry-side flow path. It is characterized in that from the piston pump through the wet side channel comprising a control means for adjusting the volume of the saturated gas to be introduced into the gas mixing unit.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a humidity control gas generator according to the first aspect of the invention, wherein the piston pump is driven by an electric actuator.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a humidity control gas generator according to the second aspect of the present invention, wherein the control means performs a zero adjustment of the piston in the piston pump at predetermined time intervals. It is characterized by.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a humidity control gas generating apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention, wherein the piston pump is driven by an air cylinder actuator.

  Further, the humidity control gas generation device related to the invention of claim 5 is the humidity control gas generation device related to the invention of claim 1, wherein the saturated gas generation means is a saturation tank incorporated in the humidity control gas generation device. It is a feature.

    According to the humidity control gas generator relating to the invention of claim 1, by controlling the operation of the piston pump, the capacity of the dry gas introduced into the gas mixing section and the capacity of the saturated gas are adjusted, and the dry gas and the saturated gas are saturated. Since the gas with the desired humidity is generated by mixing the gas with a predetermined ratio, the piston pump having the basic structure of the cylinder and the piston performs maintenance work such as disassembly and cleaning very easily. In addition, since the configuration is simple and the adjustment work for obtaining accuracy is also simple, the humidity accuracy of the generated and supplied humidity-controlled gas can always be maintained at high accuracy.

  Moreover, according to the humidity control gas generator concerning the invention of Claim 1, it is mutually mixed by operation | movement of a comparatively cheap piston pump, without using the flow meter whose cost per unit is very expensive. Since the capacity | capacitance of dry gas and saturated gas is set, it becomes possible to reduce the cost concerning manufacture per apparatus.

  Furthermore, according to the humidity control gas generation device relating to the invention of claim 1, since the capacity of the dry gas introduced into the gas mixing unit and the capacity of the saturated gas are adjusted based on the operation of the piston pump, It is possible to generate and supply (primarily generate) a humidity-controlled gas having a desired humidity without requiring complicated calculations using various parameters.

  Thus, according to the humidity control gas generator relating to the first aspect of the invention, the humidity accuracy of the generated and supplied humidity control gas can be maintained at a high level of accuracy, and the manufacturing cost per unit is also achieved. Can be suppressed at a low cost, and a highly accurate humidity control gas can be generated and supplied very easily.

  According to the humidity control gas generating apparatus relating to the invention of claim 2, the electric actuator has a high operation resolution of, for example, 1/1000 (0.1%) or more by driving the piston pump with the electric actuator. Therefore, it is possible to set the volumes of the dry gas and the saturated gas sent from the piston pump with extremely high accuracy, and thus the humidity accuracy of the humidity control gas generated by mixing a predetermined volume of the dry gas and the saturated gas. Can be significantly improved.

  According to the humidity control gas generating device relating to the invention of claim 3, by performing the zero level adjustment of the piston in the piston pump at a predetermined time interval, the zero point movement due to the change over time can be canceled, and the piston pump Therefore, it is possible to always maintain the humidity accuracy of the generated and supplied humidity-controlled gas with high accuracy without frequently performing maintenance work such as disassembly and cleaning.

  According to the humidity control gas generating apparatus relating to the invention of claim 4, the piston pump is driven by the air cylinder actuator, so that the air cylinder actuator can easily set and maintain the stroke by a mechanical limiter. Therefore, for example, when constantly generating / supplying a humidity-controlled gas with a specific humidity, the stroke of the air cylinder actuator is set / maintained by a limiter, so that complicated control related to the driving of the piston pump can be performed. Without being necessary, it becomes possible to constantly generate and supply a humidity-controlled gas having a desired humidity.

  According to the humidity control gas generator relating to the invention of claim 5, the saturated gas generation means is constituted by a saturation tank, and the saturation tank is incorporated into the humidity control gas generator as a constituent element, so that saturation of a complicated configuration is achieved. Without preparing the gas generating means separately from the humidity control gas generator, it is possible to generate and supply the humidity control gas very simply by preparing a simple dry gas supply means such as a gas cylinder. .

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings illustrating embodiments.
1 to 7 show a first embodiment in which a humidity control gas generator according to the present invention is applied to a portable calibrator for generating / supplying a calibration gas for a humidity sensor. The generator 1 includes a piston pump 3, an electric cylinder (electric actuator) 4, a chamber (gas mixing unit) 6 and the like which will be described in detail later.

  The humidity control gas generator 1 is connected to a dryer 2 which is an aspect of the dry gas supply means and a saturation tank 5 which is an aspect of the saturated gas generation means. The dryer 2 and the saturation tank 5 are prepared separately when the humidity control gas generator 1 is in operation, and are not elements constituting the humidity control gas generator 1 itself.

  The dryer 2 has a function of converting the outside air introduced from the intake pipe Pi into a completely dry gas (0% rh) while passing through the inside, and a supply pipe through which the generated dry gas is sent out. It is connected to the piston pump 3 via P1 and a main pipe P2 to which the supply pipe P1 is connected. Incidentally, it is possible to connect a gas cylinder (not shown) filled with a dry gas instead of the dryer 2.

  The piston pump 3 includes a cylinder 3s to which the main pipe P2 is connected and a piston 3p that reciprocates inside the cylinder 3s, and the reciprocating operation of the piston 3p is caused by the dry gas generated in the dryer 2 In this way, a predetermined amount is sucked and a predetermined amount is sent out.

  The piston pump 3 is driven by an electric cylinder 4 which is one mode of an electric actuator. The piston pump 3 is moved back and forth while adjusting the stroke of the piston 3p by the electric cylinder 4, so that the piston pump 3 has a variable capacity. Functions as a piston pump.

  Further, since the piston pump 3 has an extremely high operation resolution of the electric cylinder 4 (electric actuator) that drives the piston pump 3, the capacity of the dry gas sucked / delivered by the piston pump 3 as described later is extremely high. It can be adjusted with accuracy.

  Here, the effective lengths (effective strokes) of the piston pump 3 and the electric cylinder 4 in the embodiment are both 100 mm, and the operation pitch in the electric cylinder 4 is 0.1 mm. The piston pump 3 has an operation resolution of 1/1000 (0.1%).

  Incidentally, when both the effective length (effective stroke) of the piston pump 3 and the electric cylinder 4 are set to 1200 mm and an electric cylinder (electric actuator) having an operation pitch of 0.2 mm is adopted, an even higher 1/6000 ( It goes without saying that an operation resolution of 0.017%) can be obtained.

  On the other hand, the saturation tank 5 connected to the humidity control gas generator 1 has a function of making a dry gas passing through it saturated with water vapor (100% rh) by a well-known bubbling device or the like incorporated therein. The dry gas is introduced through the pipe P3 branched from the main pipe P2 described above, and the saturated gas generated in the saturation tank 5 is introduced into the chamber (gas mixing unit) 6 through the pipe P4.

  That is, on the wet side, the saturated gas generated when the dry gas sent from the piston pump 3 passes through the saturation tank 5 is introduced into the chamber 6 (gas mixing section) by the main pipe P2, the pipe P3, and the pipe P4. A flow path Lw is configured.

  On the other hand, a pipe P5 branched from the main pipe P2 described above is connected to the chamber (gas mixing section) 6, and a dry gas is introduced into the chamber 6 through the pipe P5. That is, the main pipe P2 and the pipe P5 constitute a dry-side flow path Ld that directly introduces the dry gas sent from the piston pump 3 into the chamber (gas mixing unit) 6.

  Here, the saturated gas introduced through the wet-side flow path Lw and the dry gas introduced through the dry-side flow path Ld are mixed in the chamber 6 to obtain a desired humidity. The humidity control gas is introduced into the test tank T installed outside the humidity control gas generator 1 through the supply pipe P7.

  In the humidity control gas generator 1, the operation of the piston pump 3 is controlled by the behavior of the electric cylinder 4, and the volume of the dry gas introduced from the piston pump 3 into the chamber 6 via the dry side flow path Ld is controlled. A sequencer (programmable controller) 7 is provided as a control means for adjusting the volume of saturated gas introduced from the piston pump 3 into the chamber 6 via the wet-side flow path Lw.

  The sequencer 7 controls the operation of the piston pump 3 according to the behavior of the electric cylinder 4 as described above, and is provided in the supply pipe opening / closing valve V1 and the pipe P3 (wet side flow path Lw) interposed in the supply pipe P1. The wet-side opening / closing valve Vw and the dry-side opening / closing valve Vd interposed in the pipe P5 (dry-side flow path Ld) are controlled to open and close at a timing corresponding to the operation of the piston pump 3. The sequencer 7 is connected with a touch panel 8 as data input means.

Below, the operation | movement aspect of the humidity control gas generator 1 as mentioned above is demonstrated in detail later on order of operation | movement.
First, as shown in FIG. 2 (a), when the dry side opening / closing valve Vd and the wet side opening / closing valve Vw are closed and the supply pipe opening / closing valve V1 is open, the piston 3p of the piston pump 3 is moved backward to thereby move the dryer. 2 is sucked into the piston pump 3.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 2B, when the supply pipe opening / closing valve V1 and the wet side opening / closing valve Vw are closed and the dry side opening / closing valve Vd is opened, the piston 3p of the piston pump 3 is moved forward to move the piston The dry gas in the pump 3 is introduced into the chamber 6 through the dry side flow path Ld.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 3 (a), when the dry side on-off valve Vd and the wet side on-off valve Vw are closed and the supply pipe on-off valve V1 is open, the piston 3p of the piston pump 3 is moved backward to relieve the dryer. 2 is sucked into the piston pump 3 again.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 3B, the piston 3p of the piston pump 3 is advanced by moving the piston 3p forward in a state where the supply pipe opening / closing valve V1 and the dry side opening / closing valve Vd are closed and the wet side opening / closing valve Vw is opened. The dry gas in the pump 3 becomes saturated gas via the wet side flow path Lw and is introduced into the chamber 6.

  In this way, a fixed amount of dry gas is fed into the chamber 6 by one stroke of the piston pump 3 shown in FIGS. 2 (a) and 2 (b), and the piston pump 3 shown in FIGS. 3 (a) and 3 (b). A fixed amount of saturated gas is fed into the chamber 6 by one stroke, and the operation shown in FIGS. 2 (a), 2 (b), 3 (a), and 3 (b) is repeated to dry the chamber. A humidity-controlled gas in which a gas and a saturated gas are mixed is continuously generated.

  Here, regarding the operation of the piston 3 p in the piston pump 3, when a gas having a desired humidity (humidified gas) is generated, a stroke when the dry gas is fed into the chamber 6 and a saturated gas is fed into the chamber 6. The position (stroke end) of the piston 3p is set for each stroke.

  That is, in the stroke when the dry gas is fed into the chamber 6, as shown in FIG. 4A, 10 positions of 0 (origin) and D1 to D10 are set, and when the saturated gas is fed into the chamber 6 In this stroke, as shown in FIG. 4B, 0 (origin) and 10 positions W1 to W10 are set.

  Then, based on the set humidity of the humidity control gas to be generated, the position of the piston 3p when the dry gas is fed into the chamber 6 and the position of the piston 3p when the saturated gas is fed into the chamber 6 are shown in FIG. The piston pump 3 is operated in combination as shown in the table.

  For example, in the case of generating a humidity control gas with a set humidity of 20%, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, in the process of sending the dry gas into the chamber 6, the piston 3p is stroked between 0 (origin) and D8. In the process of sending the saturated gas into the chamber 6, the piston 3p is caused to stroke between 0 (origin) and W2.

  Further, when generating a humidity control gas with a set humidity of 70%, as shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 7, in the process of sending the dry gas into the chamber 6, the piston 3p is stroked between 0 (origin) and D3. In the process of sending saturated gas into the chamber 6, the piston 3p is stroked between 0 (origin) and W7.

  Incidentally, the respective positions of D1 to D10 in FIG. 4A and the respective positions of W1 to W10 in FIG. 4B are not set at the same place, but are connected to the dry side flow path Ld. Needless to say, a subtle difference is provided to correct the difference in flow path length from the wet-side flow path Lw and the pressure loss due to the interposition of the saturation tank 5.

  Thus, the humidity control gas generator 1 described above is greatly different from the conventional humidity control gas generator using the diversion method, and the dry gas introduced into the chamber 6 by controlling the operation of the piston pump 3. Realizing a completely new concept of humidity control gas generation by adjusting the volume of gas and the volume of saturated gas and mixing the dry gas and saturated gas at a predetermined ratio to generate the gas of the desired humidity It is.

  For this reason, in the humidity control air generator employing the diversion method, the humidity control gas is secondarily generated and supplied based on the calculation processing with respect to the diversion ratio. However, in the humidity control gas generator 1 described above, the volume of the dry gas introduced into the chamber 6 and the saturated gas are based on the operation of the piston pump 3. Therefore, it is possible to generate and supply (primary generation) the humidity control gas of the desired humidity without requiring complicated calculations using various parameters. . In other words, it is a generation method capable of expressing moisture in a volume by mass, which is expressed by absolute humidity (g / cubic m: mass of water vapor contained in a unit volume of gas at a certain temperature). Can be confirmed.

  Moreover, according to the humidity control gas generator 1 mentioned above, since the gas of desired humidity is generated by controlling the operation | movement of the piston pump 3, the said piston pump 3 has the basic structure of the cylinder 3s and the piston 3p. Therefore, maintenance work such as disassembly and cleaning can be performed very easily, and since the structure is simple, the adjustment work to obtain accuracy is also simple. It becomes possible to maintain the humidity accuracy of the supplied humidity control gas at a high accuracy.

  Moreover, according to the humidity control gas generator 1 mentioned above, the capacity | capacitance of the dry gas and saturated gas which are mutually mixed is set by the combination of the relatively cheap piston pump 3 and the electric cylinder (electric actuator) 4. In other words, since a flow meter with a very high cost per unit is not used, compared with a conventional humidity control gas generator that employs a shunt method, Manufacturing costs can be greatly reduced.

  Moreover, according to the humidity control gas generator 1 mentioned above, since this electric cylinder 4 has high operation | movement resolution by driving the piston pump 3 with the electric cylinder 4 which is one aspect | mode of an electric actuator, The volume of the dry gas and saturated gas delivered from the piston pump 3 can be set with extremely high accuracy, so that the humidity accuracy of the humidity control gas generated by mixing a predetermined volume of dry gas and saturated gas is markedly high. Can be improved.

  Further, in the humidity control gas generator 1 described above, the zero level adjustment of the piston 3p in the piston pump 3 at a predetermined time interval, that is, the operation amount in the state where the piston 3p is positioned at 0 (origin) is zero (zero). ), The zero point movement due to the change with time can be canceled and the piston pump 3 can be operated with high accuracy at all times. The humidity accuracy of the humidity control gas can be further improved.

  Furthermore, in the humidity control gas generator 1 described above, the flow rate of the generated and supplied humidity control gas can be arbitrarily set by adjusting the feed (movement) speed of the piston 3p in the piston pump 3.

  In the above-described embodiment, the position of the piston 3p in the piston pump 3 is set to 10 (0 (origin) + D1 to D10) by the stroke when the dry gas is fed into the chamber 6, and when the saturable gas is fed into the chamber 6. Is set to 10 positions of 0 (origin) + W1 to W10 with the stroke of, for example, 0 (origin) + 100 positions, and the number of positions within the allowable range of the piston pump operating resolution based on the behavior of the electric cylinder Needless to say, the position can be arbitrarily set.

  In the above-described embodiment, the position of the piston 3p when the dry gas is fed into the chamber 6 and the position of the piston 3p when the saturated gas is fed into the chamber 6 in order to generate a gas having a desired humidity. 5, the piston pump 3 is operated in combination as shown in the table of FIG. 5, but the operation mode of the piston pump for generating a gas having a desired humidity is not limited to the above-described embodiment. .

  For example, when the dry gas is fed into the chamber 6, the piston 3 p is made to make a full stroke, and when the saturated gas is fed to the chamber 6, the piston 3 p is made to make a full stroke (after correcting the pressure loss or the like based on the interposition of the saturation tank 5). Thus, it is also possible to produce a humidity-controlled gas of 50% (rh) by mixing almost the same volume of dry gas and saturated gas.

  In the above-described embodiment, the piston pump 3 is driven by the electric cylinder 4, but the piston pump 3 is driven by an air cylinder actuator (not shown) instead of the electric cylinder (electric actuator). It is also possible to configure.

  Here, the air cylinder actuator can easily set and maintain a stroke by a mechanical limiter as is well known. For this reason, for example, a humidity control gas having a specific humidity is constantly generated and supplied. In this case, by setting and maintaining the stroke of the air cylinder actuator with a limiter, the humidity control gas having a desired humidity is constantly set without requiring complicated control related to the driving of the piston pump 3. It can be generated and supplied.

  FIG. 8 shows a second embodiment in which the humidity control gas generator according to the present invention is applied to a portable calibrator for generating / supplying a calibration gas for the humidity sensor. 'Includes a dryer 2', a piston pump 3 ', an electric cylinder (electric actuator) 4', a saturation tank 5 ', a chamber (gas mixing section) 6', and the like.

  In other words, the humidity control gas generator 1 ′ includes a dryer 2 and a saturation tank 5 which are separate components in the humidity control gas generator 1 of the first embodiment as components of the humidity control gas generator 1 ′. Therefore, it is not necessary to separately prepare a dryer or a saturation tank when the humidity control gas generator 1 'is operated, so that the humidity control gas can be generated and supplied easily. Is possible.

  The above-described configuration of the humidity control gas generator 1 ′ is the same as that of the humidity control gas generator 1 ′ shown in FIGS. 1 to 7 except that the dryer 2 ′ and the saturation tank 5 ′ are incorporated in the humidity control gas generator 1 ′. Since there is basically no difference from the apparatus 1 and the operation and effect are basically the same, the constituent elements of the humidity control gas generator 1 ′ have the same functions as the constituent elements of the humidity control gas generator 1. In FIG. 8, the same reference numerals as those in FIGS.

  FIGS. 9 to 13 show a third embodiment in which the humidity adjusting gas generator according to the present invention is applied to a portable calibrator for generating / supplying a calibration gas for a humidity sensor. The generator 100 includes a dry-side piston pump 103D, a wet-side piston pump 103W, a dry-side electric cylinder (electric actuator) 104D, a wet-side electric cylinder (electric actuator) 104W, and the like.

  The humidity control gas generator 100 is connected to a dryer 102 that is one mode of the dry gas supply unit and a saturation tank 105 that is one mode of the saturated gas generation unit. The dryer 102 and the saturation tank 105 are prepared separately when the humidity control gas generator 100 is operated, and are not elements constituting the humidity control gas generator 100 itself.

  The dryer 102 has a function of converting the outside air introduced from the intake pipe Pi into a dry gas that is completely dry while passing through the inside, and the first supply pipe P1 and the second supply to which the generated dry gas is sent out. The pipe P2 is connected, and the first supply pipe P1 is connected to the dry side piston pump 103D via the pipe P3, while the second supply pipe P2 is connected to the wet side piston pump 103W via the pipe P4. Has been. Note that, instead of the dryer 102, a gas cylinder (not shown) filled with a dry gas can be connected.

  The dry-side piston pump 103D includes a cylinder 103Ds connected to the pipe P3 and a piston 103Dp that reciprocates inside the cylinder 103Ds, and the wet-side piston pump 103W includes a cylinder connected to the pipe P4. 103 Ws and a piston 103 Wp that reciprocates inside the cylinder 103 Ws.

  The piston pumps 103D and 103W are driven by electric cylinders 104D and 104W which are one mode of the electric actuator, and the electric cylinders 104D and 104W reciprocate while adjusting the strokes of the pistons 103Dp and 103Wp. The piston pumps 103D and 103W function as variable displacement piston pumps.

  The effective lengths (effective strokes) of the piston pumps 103D and 103W and the electric cylinders 104D and 104W in the embodiment are both 100 mm, and the operation pitch in the electric cylinders 104D and 104W is 0.1 mm. The pumps 103D and 103W have an operation resolution of 1/1000 (0.1%).

  On the other hand, dry gas is introduced into the saturation tank 105 via pipes P4 and P5 extending from the wet-side piston pump 103W, and the saturated gas generated in the saturation tank 105 constitutes a gas mixing unit via the pipe P6. It is introduced into the junction pipe Pc. That is, the saturated gas generated when the dry gas sent from the wet-side piston pump 103W passes through the saturation tank 105 is introduced into the merge pipe (gas mixing unit) Pc by the pipe P4, the pipe P5, and the pipe P6. A wet-side flow path Lw is configured.

  A pipe P3 extending from the dry-side piston pump 103D is connected to the junction pipe (gas mixing section) Pc, and dry gas is introduced into the junction pipe (gas mixing section) Pc through the pipe P3. The That is, the pipe P3 constitutes a dry-side flow path Ld for directly introducing the dry gas sent from the dry-side piston pump 103D into the merge pipe (gas mixing unit) Pc.

  Here, the saturated gas introduced through the wet-side flow path Lw and the dry gas introduced through the dry-side flow path Ld are mixed inside the merging pipe (gas mixing unit) Pc. Thus, a gas having a desired humidity is obtained, and this humidity-controlled gas is introduced into the test tank T installed outside the humidity-controlled gas generator 1 through the collective supply pipe P7.

  On the other hand, while controlling the operation of the dry side piston pump 103D by the behavior of the dry side electric cylinder 104D, adjusting the volume of the dry gas introduced from the piston pump 103D through the dry side flow path Ld into the test tank T, Control for controlling the operation of the wet-side piston pump 103W according to the behavior of the wet-side electric cylinder 104W and adjusting the volume of the saturated gas introduced from the piston pump 103W through the wet-side flow path Lw into the test tank T A sequencer (programmable controller) 107 as means is provided.

  The sequencer 107 controls the operation of the dry-side piston pump 103D according to the behavior of the dry-side electric cylinder 104D and the operation of the wet-side piston pump 103W according to the behavior of the wet-side electric cylinder 104W as described above, and the first supply pipe P1. The first open / close valve V1 interposed in the second supply pipe P2, the second open / close valve V2 interposed in the pipe P3 (dry side flow path Ld), and the pipe P4. The wet side opening / closing valve Vw interposed in the (wet side flow path Lw) is controlled to open and close at a timing corresponding to the operations of the dry side piston pump 103D and the wet side piston pump 103W. The sequencer 107 is connected to a touch panel 108 as data input means.

Below, the operation | movement aspect of the humidity control gas generator 100 as mentioned above is demonstrated in detail later on order of operation | movement.
First, as shown in FIG. 10A, when the first on-off valve V1 and the second on-off valve V2 are open, and the dry-side on-off valve Vd and the wet-side on-off valve Vw are closed, the dry-side piston pump 103D By retracting the piston 103Dp, the dry gas generated by the dryer 102 is sucked into the dry-side piston pump 103D, and the saturated gas generated by the dryer 102 by retracting the piston 103Wp of the wet-side piston pump 103W. Is sucked into the wet-side piston pump 103W.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 10B, when the first on-off valve V1 and the second on-off valve V2 are closed and the dry-side on-off valve Vd and the wet-side on-off valve Vw are open, the dry-side piston pump 103D By advancing the piston 103Dp, the dry gas of the dry side piston pump 103D is introduced into the test tank T from the junction pipe Pc via the dry side flow path Ld, and the piston 103Wp of the wet side piston pump 103W is advanced. Thus, the dry gas of the wet side piston pump 103W becomes saturated gas via the wet side flow path Lw, and is introduced into the test tank T from the junction pipe Pc.

  In this way, a fixed amount of dry gas is sent to the test tank T via the merge pipe Pc by one stroke of the dry piston pump 103D, and a test is performed via the merge pipe Pc by one stroke of the wet piston pump 103W. A fixed amount of saturated gas is fed into the tank T, and thereafter, by repeating the operations shown in FIGS. 10A and 10B, the humidity-controlled gas in which the dry gas and the saturated gas are mixed continuously. Will be generated.

  Here, with respect to the operations of the dry-side piston pump 103D and the wet-side piston pump 103W, the positions (stroke ends) of the piston 103Dp and the piston 103Wp in the case of generating a gas having a desired humidity (humidity adjusting gas) are set. .

  That is, in the stroke of the piston 103Dp in the dry side piston pump 103D, as shown in FIG. 11 (a), 10 positions of 0 (origin) and D1 to D10 are set, and the piston 103Wp in the wet side piston pump 103W is set. In this stroke, as shown in FIG. 10B, 0 (origin) and 10 positions W1 to W10 are set.

  Based on the set humidity of the humidity control gas to be generated, the position of the piston 103Dp in the dry side piston pump 103D and the position of the piston 103Wp in the wet side piston pump 103W are combined as shown in the table of FIG. The piston pumps 103D and 103W are operated.

  For example, when generating a humidity control gas with a set humidity of 50%, as shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, the piston 103Dp of the dry side piston pump 103D is stroked between 0 (origin) and D5, and the wet side The piston 103Wp of the piston pump 103W is caused to stroke between 0 (origin) and W5.

  Incidentally, the positions D1 to D10 in FIG. 11 (a) and the positions W1 to W10 in FIG. 11 (b) are not set in correspondence with each other, but are dry side flow. Needless to say, subtle differences are provided in the piston pumps 103D and 103W in order to correct the difference in flow path length between the path Ld and the wet flow path Lw, the pressure loss due to the interposition of the saturation tank 5, and the like. .

  According to the humidity control gas generating device 100 described above, the humidity accuracy of the generated and supplied humidity control gas can be maintained at a high accuracy at all times in the same manner as the humidity control gas generating device 1 in the first embodiment. In addition, it is possible to greatly reduce the cost for manufacturing per apparatus, and it is possible to generate and supply highly accurate humidity control gas very easily.

  Similarly to the humidity control gas generator 1 in the first embodiment, the dry pump and the saturated gas sent from the piston pumps 103D and 103W are driven by driving the piston pumps 103D and 103W with the electric cylinders 104D and 104W, respectively. Therefore, the humidity accuracy of the humidity control gas generated by mixing a predetermined volume of dry gas and saturated gas can be remarkably improved.

  Similarly to the humidity-controlled gas generator 1 in the first embodiment, the zero-level adjustment of the dry-side piston pump 103D and the wet-side piston pump 103W is performed at a predetermined time interval, so that the generated humidity-controlled gas Humidity accuracy can be further improved.

  Similarly to the humidity-controlled gas generator 1 in the first embodiment, the generation / supply is performed by adjusting the feed (moving) speed of the piston 103Dp in the dry-side piston pump 103D and the piston 103Wp in the wet-side piston pump 103W. The flow rate of the humidity-controlled gas can be set arbitrarily.

  In the above-described embodiment, the position of the piston 103Dp in the dry side piston pump 103D is 10 (0 (origin)) + D1 to D10, and the position of the piston 103Wp in the wet side piston pump 103W is 0 (origin) + W1. Although 10 positions of W10 are set, for example, the number and positions of positions can be arbitrarily set within the allowable range of the operation resolution of the piston pump based on the behavior of the electric cylinder, such as 0 (origin) +100 positions. Needless to say.

  Further, the operation modes of the dry-side piston pump 103D and the wet-side piston pump 103W for generating a gas having a desired humidity are not limited to the above-described embodiments. For example, the dry-side piston pump 103D The piston 103Dp of the wet side piston pump 103W is made to make a full stroke (after correcting the pressure loss or the like based on the intervention of the saturation tank 105), so that substantially the same amount of dry gas and saturated gas can be obtained. It is also possible to produce a 50% (rh) humidity control gas.

  Here, when the humidity control gas generator 100 of the third embodiment described above is used to generate a humidity control gas having a constant (fixed) humidity, as shown in FIG. 14, the dry side piston pump A stopper flange 103Df is installed at a predetermined position of the rod 103Dr in 103D, and a stopper claw 110D is fixed at a predetermined position in the moving range of the stopper flange 103Df. Similarly, the stopper flange 103Wf is fixed at a predetermined position of the rod 103Wr in the wet-side piston pump 103W. In addition, by fixing the stopper claw 110W at a predetermined position in the movement range of the stopper flange 103Wf, the operation of the dry side piston pump 103D and the wet side piston pump 103W can be handled by applying a mechanical limiter. Is possible.

  That is, when the piston 103Dp of the dry-side piston pump 103D moves backward (rightward in the drawing) by the operation of the dry-side electric cylinder 104D, the stopper flange 103Df is brought into contact with the fixed stopper claw 110D, whereby the piston 103Dp The stroke Sd is uniquely set. Incidentally, when the stopper flange 103Df comes into contact with the stopper claw 110D, the operation of the dry-side electric cylinder 104D is temporarily stopped by a signal from the limit switch 111D which is pushed by the stopper flange 103Df and is turned ON. Yes.

  Similarly, when the piston 103Wp of the wet side piston pump 103W is retracted (rightward in the figure) by the operation of the wet side electric cylinder 104W, the stopper flange 103Wf is brought into contact with the fixed stopper claw 110W, whereby the piston 103Wp The stroke Sw is uniquely set. Incidentally, when the stopper flange 103Wf comes into contact with the stopper claw 110W, the operation of the dry-side electric cylinder 104W is temporarily stopped by a signal from the limit switch 111W which is pressed by the stopper flange 103Wf and is turned on. Yes.

  Thus, the mechanical limiter is applied to the operation of the dry-side piston pump 103D (stroke of the piston 103Dp) and the operation of the wet-side piston pump 103W (stroke of the piston 103W), and the dry-side piston pump 103D and the wet-side piston By operating the pump 103W like a constant capacity type piston pump, it is possible to constantly generate humidity control gas having a desired constant (fixed point) humidity.

  In the above-described embodiment, the dry-side piston pump 103D and the wet-side piston pump 103W are driven by the dry-side electric cylinder 104D and the wet-side electric cylinder 104W, respectively, but the electric cylinder (electric actuator) 104D, Instead of 104W, each piston pump 103D, 103W may be driven by an air cylinder actuator (not shown).

  Here, the air cylinder actuator can easily set and maintain a stroke by a mechanical limiter as is well known. For this reason, for example, a humidity control gas having a specific humidity is constantly generated and supplied. In this case, by setting and maintaining the stroke of the air cylinder actuator with a limiter, the humidity control gas at the desired humidity is constantly maintained without requiring complicated control related to the driving of the piston pumps 103D and 103W. Can be generated and supplied automatically.

  FIG. 15 shows a fourth embodiment in which a humidity control gas generator according to the present invention is applied to a portable calibrator for generating / supplying a calibration gas for a humidity sensor. ′ Includes a dryer 102 ′, a dry-side piston pump 103D ′, a wet-side piston pump 103W ′, a dry-side electric cylinder (electric actuator) 104D ′, a wet-side electric cylinder (electric actuator) 104W ′, and a saturation tank 105 ′. It has.

  In other words, the humidity control gas generator 100 ′ includes a dryer 102 and a saturation tank 105, which are separate bodies in the humidity control gas generator 100 of the third embodiment, as components of the humidity control gas generator 100 ′. For this reason, there is no need to separately provide a dryer or a saturation tank when the humidity control gas generator 100 'is operated, and the humidity control gas can be generated and supplied easily. Is possible.

  The above-described configuration of the humidity control gas generator 100 ′ is the same as that of the humidity control gas generator 100 ′ shown in FIGS. 9 to 14 except that the dryer 102 ′ and the saturation tank 105 ′ are incorporated in the humidity control gas generator 100 ′. Since there is basically no difference from the apparatus 100 and the operation and effect are basically the same, the constituent elements of the humidity control gas generator 100 'perform the same functions as the constituent elements of the humidity control gas generator 100'. In FIG. 15, the same reference numerals as in FIGS.

  Here, in each embodiment described above, the piston pump is driven by the electric cylinder, but the electric actuator for driving the piston pump is limited to the electric cylinder (linear actuator) shown in the embodiment. Of course, electric actuators of various configurations can be adopted, for example, a servo motor which is one aspect of the electric actuator is adopted, and a piston (piston rod) is connected via a transmission mechanism such as a rack and pinion. It is also possible to drive the piston pump by directly reciprocating.

  Further, in each of the above-described embodiments, an example of generating / supplying air (atmosphere) conditioned by the humidity control gas generation device has been shown, but in the humidity control gas generation device according to the present invention, various other than air It goes without saying that any humidity setting in the gas atmosphere is possible.

  Further, in each of the above-described embodiments, an example in which the present invention is applied to a portable calibrator for calibrating a hygrometer (humidity sensor) has been shown, but the scope of use of the present invention is not limited to the embodiments. For example, it can be effectively applied as a device for generating and supplying conditioned gas in various industrial fields such as manufacturing precision parts such as semiconductors, biotechnology, pharmaceutical formulations, polymer research, and fuel cell evaluation tests. Of course you get.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The whole block diagram which shows 1st Example of the humidity control gas generator concerning this invention. (a) And (b) is a conceptual diagram which shows the operation | movement aspect in the humidity control gas generator of 1st Example. (a) And (b) is a conceptual diagram which shows the operation | movement aspect in the humidity control gas generator of 1st Example. (a) And (b) is a figure which shows the operation position of the piston pump in the humidity control gas generator of 1st Example. The table | surface which shows the relationship between the setting humidity of the humidity control gas in the humidity control gas generator of 1st Example, and the operation position of a piston pump. The timing chart which shows the operation | movement aspects, such as a piston pump, in the humidity control gas generator of 1st Example. The timing chart which shows the operation | movement aspects, such as a piston pump, in the humidity control gas generator of 1st Example. The whole block diagram which shows 2nd Example of the humidity control gas generator concerning this invention. The whole block diagram which shows the 3rd Example of the humidity control gas generator concerning this invention. (a) And (b) is a conceptual diagram which shows the operation | movement aspect in the humidity control gas generator of 3rd Example. (a) And (b) is a figure which shows the operation position of the piston pump in the humidity control gas generator of 3rd Example. The table | surface which shows the relationship between the setting humidity of humidity control gas in the humidity control gas generator of 3rd Example, and the operation position of a piston pump. The timing chart which shows operation | movement aspects, such as a piston pump, in the humidity control gas generator of 3rd Example. The conceptual diagram which shows another aspect of the operation control of the piston pump in the humidity control gas generator of 3rd Example. The whole block diagram which shows 4th Example of the humidity control gas generator concerning this invention. The conceptual diagram which shows the structure of the conventional humidity control gas generator.

Explanation of symbols

1, 1 '... humidity control gas generator,
2,2 '... Dryer,
3, 3 '... piston pump,
4, 4 '... Electric cylinder (electric actuator),
5,5 '... saturation tank,
6, 6 '... chamber (gas mixing part),
7, 7 '... Sequencer (control means),
8, 8 '... touch panel,
Ld, Ld ′: dry side flow path,
Lw, Lw '... wet side flow path,
100, 100 '... humidity control gas generator,
102, 102 '... dryer,
103D, 103D '... Dry side piston pump,
103W, 103W '... wet side piston pump,
104D, 104D '... Dry side electric cylinder (electric actuator),
104W, 104W '... wet side electric cylinder (electric actuator),
105, 105 '... saturation tank,
107, 107 '... sequencer (control means),
108, 108 '... touch panel,
Pc, Pc '... confluence pipe (gas mixing part),
Ld, Ld ′: dry side flow path,
Lw, Lw ′: Wet side channel.

Claims (5)

A piston pump for sucking and sending dry gas by a predetermined volume by reciprocating movement of the piston in the cylinder;
A gas mixing section for mixing the introduced dry gas and saturated gas;
A dry-side flow path for directly introducing the dry gas sent from the piston pump into the gas mixing section;
A wet-side flow path for introducing a saturated gas generated from the dry gas sent from the piston pump through a saturated gas generating means into the gas mixing section;
In order to generate a gas having a desired humidity by mixing the dry gas and the saturated gas at a predetermined ratio in the gas mixing unit, the operation of the piston pump is controlled, and the dry-side flow path from the piston pump is controlled. A control means for adjusting the capacity of the dry gas introduced into the gas mixing section through the piston pump and adjusting the capacity of the saturated gas introduced into the gas mixing section from the piston pump through the wet-side flow path;
A humidity control gas generator characterized by comprising: The humidity control gas generator according to claim 1, wherein the piston pump is driven by an electric actuator. The humidity control gas generator according to claim 2, wherein the control means performs zero adjustment of the piston in the piston pump at predetermined time intervals. The humidity control gas generator according to claim 1, wherein the piston pump is driven by an air cylinder actuator. 2. The humidity control gas generator according to claim 1, wherein the saturated gas generator is a saturation tank incorporated in the humidity control gas generator.

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