JP4922284B2 - Tubular leak detection device and tubular leak detection method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a leak detection device that detects a leak generated in a tubular body, and in particular, it is possible to detect a leak even in a detected object such as a corrugated pipe in which a large amount of bubbles adhere to the outer surface. The present invention relates to a leak detection device.

  With respect to the leak detection device, techniques as described in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2 have been conventionally known. The leak detection device according to the techniques described in these documents employs a so-called “water immersion method”, and the “detected object” for detecting the presence or absence of the leak is placed in a liquid such as water. The presence of a leak hole in the detected object is detected by submerging in the liquid and detecting a bubble rising from the inside of the detected object through the leak hole in the liquid.

  However, the leak detection device according to the above prior art includes the following problems. That is, first, if the object to be detected is simply submerged in the liquid, a large number of bubbles are attached to the outer surface of the object to be detected. In this way, when the above-mentioned leak detection is performed under the condition that a large number of bubbles are attached to the outer surface of the object to be detected, are the bubbles rising from the inside of the detected part through the “leak hole”? Alternatively, there is a problem that it is impossible to determine whether the bubble is originally attached to the outer surface of the detected object. In particular, when detecting an object to be detected such as a “corrugated tube” in which many irregularities are formed on the outer surface, a large amount of bubbles will adhere to the outer surface of the object to be detected just by submerging in water. The above problems may be particularly encouraged.

  In such a case, it is possible to set the detection means to operate only when a large amount of bubbles are generated. However, in such a case, bubbles generated from a very small leak cannot be detected. Therefore, it must be said that highly accurate detection is difficult.

On the other hand, there is a method that uses the above-mentioned “water immersion method” and sucks bubbles generated from the leak holes together with the liquid, detects the presence of the bubbles, and determines the presence or absence of the leak holes. When the sample is taken, it is necessary to set a large number of suction ports so as to surround the object to be detected, and to suck liquid from the entire circumference of the object to be detected. If a location where a leak can occur can be predicted with certainty, it is sufficient to suck the liquid only from the location, but if not, it cannot be predicted where the detected object will be generated. Therefore, it is necessary to inhale and detect liquid that may contain bubbles from the entire circumference of the object to be detected.
JP 58-17335 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 3-180734

  The first problem to be solved by the present invention is to increase the leak detection by removing bubbles adhering to the outer surface of the detected object prior to detecting the bubbles generated from the detected object leakage hole. It is an object of the present invention to provide a tubular body leak detection device that can be performed with high accuracy.

  In addition, the second problem is that a liquid flow is generated around the object to be detected in the liquid to be introduced for leak detection, and the area around the object to be detected is set to a negative pressure state so that the entire object to be detected is detected. An object of the present invention is to provide a tubular body leak detection device capable of sucking bubbles from a leak hole that may exist in the periphery.

  In order to solve the above problems, the means adopted by the present invention are as follows.

The invention according to claim 1 is a leak detection device for detecting a leak generated in a tubular body,
A container in which a liquid is contained, and a tubular body passes through the liquid;
An inhaler provided in the container for inhaling air bubbles leaked from the inside of the tube together with liquid around the tube;
A detection unit that detects bubbles in the liquid sucked by the suction unit;
The suction part sucks the liquid so as to generate a liquid flow that circulates around the tube body in one direction .

Invention of Claim 2 is the leak detection apparatus of the tubular body of Claim 1,
The suction portion is characterized in that a liquid flow is generated by providing a suction port for sucking the liquid inclined with respect to an axis of a tube passing through the liquid.

The invention according to claim 3 is the leak detection device according to claim 1 or 2,
The suction portion is installed in the container, is formed of a cylinder through which the tube passes, and an inlet for sucking liquid is provided on the inner surface of the cylinder.

The invention according to claim 4 is the leak detection device according to claim 3,
The cylindrical body is characterized in that both end sides are formed to have a smaller diameter than the inside in order to generate a negative pressure in the cylindrical body.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the leak detection device according to the first to fourth aspects,
The tubular body is a corrugated pipe having an unevenness on the outer surface.

The invention described in claim 6 is the leak detection device according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
The said container is installed so that the tubular body which moves on molding lines, such as extrusion or a corrugate, may pass.

The invention described in claim 7 is the leak detecting device according to claim 6,
The container is characterized in that the tube body is cooled by an internal liquid.

The invention according to claim 8 is the leak detection device according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
The detection unit irradiates light into the liquid sucked from the suction unit, and detects reflection of light from bubbles in the liquid.

The invention according to claim 9 is the leak detection device according to any one of claims 1 to 8,
An air inlet for arbitrarily sucking air bubbles into the suction part is provided in the vicinity of the suction part.

The invention according to claim 10 is a leak detection method for detecting a leak generated in a tubular body,
A passing step of passing the tube through the liquid contained in the container;
In order to remove bubbles attached to the outer surface of the tube passing through the liquid, the outer surface of the tube is sucked in the liquid around the tube so as to generate a liquid flow in one direction around the tube. A first inhalation step of inhaling air bubbles adhering to the liquid together with the liquid around the tube;
Air bubbles leaking from the inside of the tubular body that has passed through the first suction step are sucked in the liquid around the tubular body so as to generate a liquid flow in one direction around the tubular body. A second inhalation step for inhaling with the liquid;
A detection step of detecting bubbles in the liquid sucked in the second suction step;
It is characterized by comprising.

  By adopting the above means, the following effects can be obtained.

According to the leak detecting device for a tubular body according to the present invention, first, air bubbles adhering to the outer surface of the tubular body passing through the liquid in the container are sucked together with the liquid around the tubular body at the first suction portion. The air bubbles leaked from the inside of the tube body are then sucked together with the liquid around the tube body at the second suction portion, and the air bubbles in the liquid are detected at the detection portion. Therefore, it is possible to determine that the leakage has occurred from the inside of the tubular body, and it is possible to detect the presence or absence of a leak with high accuracy. Then, in particular, by generating the liquid flow you move around the tube in one direction in the suction unit, inhalable and made the liquid from around the tube and thus inhales the air bubbles from the periphery of the tube body The effect that it becomes possible will be produced.

  Furthermore, by generating a negative pressure in the suction portion, it becomes possible to suck out bubbles from the inside of the tube body, and there is no need for a process or device for increasing the internal pressure of the tube body when detecting leaks in the tube body. The effect of becoming will be produced.

  On the other hand, according to the leak detection method for a tubular body according to the present invention, first, bubbles adhered to the outer surface of the tubular body in the passing step are caused to flow in one direction around the tubular body in the first suction step. By sucking the liquid around the tube so as to be generated, bubbles adhering to the outer surface of the tube are removed by sucking together with the liquid, and then the bubbles leaked from the inside of the tube are put into the second suction step. In order to detect bubbles in the liquid in the detection step by inhaling bubbles together with the liquid around the tube body by sucking the liquid around the tube body so as to generate a liquid flow in one direction around the tube body, It becomes possible to determine that the detected bubble is leaked from the inside of the tubular body, and there is an effect that it is possible to detect the presence or absence of a leak hole with high accuracy.

The leak detection device according to the present invention includes a container, a suction part, and a detection part, and detects a leak generated in a tubular body that is an object to be detected. One or a plurality of the suction portions may be provided, but in the following description, a case where two suction portions are provided will be described. Hereinafter, each component requirement will be described.
[Reference form]

  First, the “container” contains a liquid inside, and allows the tubular body, which is an object to be detected, to pass through the liquid.

  Next, the “first inhalation part” is provided in the container, and the bubbles are piped in order to remove bubbles attached to the outer surface of the tube passing through the liquid contained in the container. Inhaled with fluid around the body.

  The “second suction part” is provided in the container together with the first suction part, and bubbles leaked from the inside of the detection object that has passed through the first suction part are liquid around the detection object. Inhaled with. The liquid sucked from the first suction part and the second suction part may be introduced into the container and circulated in the apparatus or discharged outside the apparatus.

  The first suction part and / or the second suction part generate a liquid flow in one direction around the detected object by sucking the liquid in the vicinity of the detected object in the container. The liquid is caused to flow around the object to be detected. When the “liquid flow” is generated in the first suction part, it is possible to peel off the bubbles attached to the entire surface of the object to be detected. Specifically, by setting the suction port of the first suction part and / or the second suction part to be inclined (biased) with respect to the axis of the detected object, It is conceivable to generate a liquid flow in one direction. Such a configuration is extremely effective even when a corrugated tube (parallel spiral) having concavities and convexities on the outer surface is an object to be detected.

  Further, the first suction part and / or the second suction part may be configured as an “suction port” set on an inner surface of a cylindrical body installed in the container. In this case, the “cylinder” is required to have a shape that allows the object to be detected to pass therethrough. “Liquid flow” around the object to be detected in the cylinder (preferably over the entire circumference of the object to be detected) by sucking the liquid in the container from the suction port set on the inner surface of the cylinder. Will be generated.

  Furthermore, negative pressure may be generated in the cylindrical body by forming both ends of the cylindrical body to have a smaller diameter than the inner side where the “suction port” is set. In particular, when a negative pressure is generated in the second suction portion, air inside the detected object is sucked out as bubbles through a leak hole generated in the detected object. For this reason, a process or an apparatus for increasing the internal pressure of the detected object is not required when detecting a leak in the detected object.

  The “detecting unit” detects when air bubbles are present in the liquid sucked by the second suction unit. In the present invention, the fact that air bubbles are mixed in the liquid from the second suction part means that a leak has occurred in the object to be detected. As a specific configuration of the detection unit, a “light source” for irradiating light is disposed on one side of the flow path of the liquid sucked from the second suction unit, and on the other side of the flow path. It is conceivable to arrange “elements” capable of transmitting electrical signals by light irradiation. According to such a configuration, the light from the light source is reflected on the bubbles in the liquid and irradiated to the element, the element transmits an electrical signal, and the abnormality warning display provided in the apparatus based on the signal transmitted by the element Is activated, and it becomes possible for the workers in the vicinity of the apparatus to recognize the “existence of a leak”.

  Here, it is considered preferable to employ a light source with high directivity as the light source in the detection unit. That is, it is necessary to have a configuration in which the element is irradiated only when the light from the light source is reflected by the bubbles in the liquid, and the element is not irradiated with light in the normal state. As a light source with high directivity, for example, “high luminance LED” can be considered. Such a light source has not only a characteristic of high directivity, but also a characteristic of low risk of so-called “ball breakage”. In this device, when the light source of the detection unit is “out of sphere”, no light is reflected even if bubbles pass through the detection unit. Even if there is a leak, it cannot be detected. For this reason, it is desirable to use a light source with a small number of broken balls as the light source of the detection unit.

  Even if the first suction unit, the second suction unit, and the like are operating normally, if the detection unit is not operating normally, the “existence of a leak hole” may be missed. Therefore, a configuration that can arbitrarily check whether or not the operation state of the detection unit is normal is desirable. Specifically, it is conceivable that an “air inlet” for arbitrarily sucking bubbles into the second suction part is set in the vicinity of the second suction part. The air inlet may be configured to blow air with a predetermined pressure. However, when the vicinity of the second suction portion where the air inlet is set is in the “negative pressure state”, By providing a valve that can be freely opened and closed, it is possible to cause the second suction part to suck air bubbles by opening the valve.

  In addition, when the container is installed at a position where a moving pipe passes on a molding line such as an “extrusion molding machine” or a “corrugator” or “rotary winding molding machine” for molding a corrugated pipe, The “leakage inspection process” can be performed in series, and the manufacturing efficiency of the tubular body is improved. Furthermore, when the liquid in the container is also used for cooling the tube, the “cooling step” can be performed at the same time. When the leak detection device is additionally installed on an existing molding line, the “cooling water tank” provided in the molding line may be used as the “container” in the present invention. It is done. Specifically, a “jig (tubular body)” having a first suction part, a second suction part, and the like is installed in the cooling water tank, and the pipe body is passed through the jig. .

Next, the invention relating to the “tube leak detection method” will be described. The present invention is a method for detecting a leak generated in a tube, and a leak detection method for detecting a leak generated in a tube,
A passing step of passing the tube through the liquid contained in the container;
In order to remove bubbles attached to the outer surface of the tube passing through the liquid, the outer surface of the tube is sucked in the liquid around the tube so as to generate a liquid flow in one direction around the tube. A first inhalation step of inhaling air bubbles adhering to the liquid together with the liquid around the tube;
Air bubbles leaking from the inside of the tubular body that has passed through the first suction step are sucked in the liquid around the tubular body so as to generate a liquid flow in one direction around the tubular body. A second inhalation step for inhaling with the liquid;
A detection step of detecting bubbles in the liquid sucked in the second suction step;
It consists of

  The above “leakage detection device” uses the “leakage detection method” as a device, and since these “method” and “device” are the same in terms of technical idea, Description of the invention is omitted.

(Reference Example 1)
As described above, the leak detection device according to the present invention includes a container, a suction part, and a detection part, and detects a leak generated in a tubular body that is a detected object. One or a plurality of the suction portions may be provided, but in the following description, a case where two suction portions are provided will be described. Hereinafter, each component requirement will be described.

  1 to 9 show the whole or a part of a tubular body leak detection device 100 according to Reference Example 1 of the present invention.

  First, FIG. 1 shows the side of the tubular body leak detection device 100 according to Reference Example 1, and FIG. 2 shows the front of the device 100. And the leak detection apparatus 100 which concerns on this reference example has the container 40, the jig | tool 30, the pumping pump 60, and the operation panel 80, as shown in FIG. 1 or FIG. Also, a jig 30 is installed in the container 40, and one ends of the first suction pipe 11 and the second suction pipe 21 are connected to the jig 30, and the other ends of the suction pipes 11 and 21 are connected. Is connected to the pump 60. A drain pipe 70 is connected to the drain side of the pump 60, and the liquid sucked by the pump 60 is circulated to the container 40. In addition, the discharge port of the drainage pipe 70 is set at a point on the downstream side of the jig 30 and away from the jig 30, and the liquid circulated in the apparatus 100 is discharged there. This is to prevent bubbles from adhering to the tube before undergoing the leak inspection.

  Next, FIGS. 3 to 6 are views showing an appearance or a cross section of the jig 30 in the apparatus 100. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, the jig 30 is a cylindrical body, and is configured by stacking a total of five ring-shaped members including two outer blocks 31 and three inner blocks 32. The hollow portions formed inside the jig 30 shown in FIG. 5 are the first suction portion 10 and the second suction portion 20. Each of the two outer blocks 31 is formed with an inlet, and the inner and outer sides of the outer block 31 are mutually trained. That is, the first suction pipe 11 is connected to the first suction portion 10 and the second suction pipe 21 is connected to the second suction portion 20 via the suction port.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, the “suction port” formed in the outer block 31 and connected to the first suction unit and the second suction unit is a tube body (cover) that passes through the cylindrical body. It is set in a state of being inclined (biased) with respect to the axis of the detection object), and a liquid flow is generated in one direction extending over the entire circumference of the tube body (detection object).

  Further, as shown in FIG. 6, in the inner block 32 arranged at both ends of the three inner blocks 32 constituting the jig 30, the “suction port” sets the outer diameter corresponding to both ends of the cylindrical body. By forming it to have a smaller diameter than the inner side, a negative pressure is generated in the cylinder (jig 30).

  As shown in FIGS. 3 to 6, the outer block 31 constituting the second suction part 20 is provided with an “air inlet 33” having a valve structure that can be freely opened and closed. It has a structure that can inhale air bubbles arbitrarily.

  FIG. 7 shows the detection unit 50 in the apparatus 100. The first suction pipe 11 and the second suction pipe 21 are connected to the upstream side of the detection unit 50, and are joined at the downstream side (the pumping pump 60 side). Of these pipes 11 and 21, at least the second suction pipe 21 is formed of a transparent pipe such as an acrylic pipe and is provided with a sensor unit 51. As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the sensor unit 51 is formed by arranging a light source 52 and an element 53 with respect to the transparent tube. With this configuration, when a bubble passes through the transparent tube (second suction pipe 21), the bubble 53 is irradiated with light from the light source 52 and reflected, and the element 53 detects the reflected light. It becomes.

  In the reference example 1 described above, an example using two suction parts has been described. However, in the case where one suction part is used, the second suction part 20 is used as the suction part in the reference example 1, and the first suction part is used. This corresponds to the case where the suction part 10 is deleted.

  The `` leakage detection device '' and `` leakage detection method '' according to the present invention are not limited to the leak detection for the tube body, and by diversifying the shape of the `` jig '' through which the object to be detected passes, It can be used to detect leaks in other objects to be detected.

It is a side view of the leak detection apparatus 100 which concerns on the reference example 1. FIG. It is a front view of the leak detection apparatus 100 shown in FIG. It is a side view of the jig | tool 30 in the leak detection apparatus 100 shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a rear view of the jig 30 shown in FIG. 3. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of the jig 30 shown in FIG. 4 and shows a state in which a “wavy tube” as an object to be detected passes. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line B-B of the jig 30 shown in FIG. 3, showing a state in which bubbles are generated from a leak hole generated in an object to be detected and the bubbles are sucked by a second suction unit 20. It is a side view of the detection part 50 in the leak detection apparatus 100 shown in FIG. FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of a sensor unit installed in the detection unit 50 shown in FIG. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a state where the light emitted from the light source 52 is diffusely reflected on the bubbles in the liquid and irradiated onto the element 53 in the sensor unit illustrated in FIG. 8.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 1st suction | inhalation part 11 1st suction | inhalation pipe 20 2nd suction | inhalation part 21 2nd suction | inhalation pipe 30 Jig 31 Outer block 32 Inner block 33 Air inlet 40 Container 50 Detection part 51 Sensor part 52 Light source 53 Element 60 Pumping pump 70 Drainage pipe 80 Operation panel 100 Leakage detection device

Claims (10)

A leak detection device for detecting a leak generated in a tubular body,
A container in which a liquid is contained, and a tubular body passes through the liquid;
An inhaler provided in the container for inhaling air bubbles leaked from the inside of the tube together with liquid around the tube;
A detection unit that detects bubbles in the liquid sucked by the suction unit;
The pipe leakage detection device according to claim 1, wherein the suction part sucks the liquid so as to generate a liquid flow that circulates around the pipe in one direction . In the tubular body leak detection device according to claim 1,
The pipe leakage detector according to claim 1, wherein the suction part is configured to provide a liquid flow when an inlet for sucking the liquid is inclined with respect to an axis of the pipe passing through the liquid. . In the leak detection device according to claim 1 or 2,
The pipe leakage detector according to claim 1, wherein the suction part is formed in a cylinder through which the pipe passes, and a suction port for sucking liquid is provided on an inner surface of the pipe. . In the leak detection device according to claim 3,
The tubular body leak detecting device according to claim 1, wherein both ends of the tubular body are formed with a smaller diameter than the inside so as to generate a negative pressure in the tubular body. In the leak detection device according to claim 1 to claim 4,
The tubular body leak detecting device according to claim 1, wherein the tubular body is a corrugated pipe having an unevenness on an outer surface. In the leak detection device according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
The said container is installed so that the tubular body which moves on molding lines, such as extrusion or a corrugate, may pass, The leak detection apparatus of the tubular body characterized by the above-mentioned. In the leak detection device according to claim 6,
The tubular body leakage detecting device, wherein the container cools the tubular body with an internal liquid. In the leak detection device according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
The tubular body leak detection device, wherein the detection unit irradiates light into the liquid sucked from the suction unit and detects reflection of light from bubbles in the liquid. In the leak detection device according to any one of claims 1 to 8,
An air leak detection device for a tubular body, wherein an air inlet for arbitrarily sucking air bubbles into the suction portion is provided in the vicinity of the suction portion. A leak detection method for detecting a leak generated in a tubular body,
A passing step of passing the tube through the liquid contained in the container;
In order to remove bubbles attached to the outer surface of the tube passing through the liquid, the outer surface of the tube is sucked in the liquid around the tube so as to generate a liquid flow in one direction around the tube. A first inhalation step of inhaling air bubbles adhering to the liquid together with the liquid around the tube;
Air bubbles leaking from the inside of the tubular body that has passed through the first suction step are sucked in the liquid around the tubular body so as to generate a liquid flow in one direction around the tubular body. A second inhalation step for inhaling with the liquid;
A detection step of detecting bubbles in the liquid sucked in the second suction step;
A method for detecting leakage of a tubular body, comprising:

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