JP7546282B2 - Magnetic and non-magnetic substance removal filters - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a filter for removing magnetic and non-magnetic substances, and in particular to a filter device that can effectively separate and remove two types of contaminant substances, such as iron and non-magnetic substances, such as aluminum, from various types of liquid to be treated, in which these two types of contaminant substances are mixed together or separately.

Conventionally, devices and equipment with a structure in which liquids such as lubricating oil and hydraulic oil circulate inside, such as engines, transmissions, and various hydraulic systems, have been used for various purposes. In these devices and equipment, the surfaces of the metal parts gradually wear away during use, and metal powder generated by the wear of the surfaces of such metal parts inevitably mixes with and becomes suspended in the liquid circulating inside. The metal powder in the liquid further accelerates the wear of the metal part surfaces. In machine tools such as honing machines and grinding machines, grinding is performed while supplying coolant such as grinding fluid or cutting fluid stored in a supply tank to the workpiece placed in the processing section. Metal particles such as fine metal powder, metal abrasive grains, and metal chips (swarf) of the ground workpiece are mixed into the coolant collected from the processing section, but it is difficult to reuse the coolant containing such metal particles as it is.

In engines, transmissions, hydraulic systems, etc., the metal parts that wear out are made of ferromagnetic materials such as iron or non-magnetic materials such as aluminum, and in machine tools, grinding and other processes are performed on workpieces made of ferromagnetic materials such as iron or non-magnetic materials such as aluminum. Therefore, powders of such ferromagnetic materials or non-magnetic materials become mixed into the used lubricating oil, hydraulic oil, coolant, etc. For this reason, these liquids are filtered by a filter device placed in the piping route of the liquid, and the fine particles mixed in the liquid are separated, collected, and removed. Various structures of filter devices have been proposed for this purpose.

One such filter device is a magnetic filter device that uses magnetic energy to adsorb and separate (filter) ferromagnetic powder (metal powder) mixed in liquid. Compared to filter devices that use conventional filtration filters, this type of filter device is less prone to clogging, meaning that there is no need to periodically clean or replace the filter, and it has attracted attention as a filter device with features such as reduced running costs.

For example, Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 5-2713 and Japanese Patent Publication No. 2011-11205 propose a magnetic filter, also called a magnetic in-line filter, in which a permanent magnet is placed outside a passage through which the liquid to be treated flows, and the magnetic force of the permanent magnet is used to magnetically separate ferromagnetic powder from the liquid to be treated flowing through the passage. In this case, in order to remove the ferromagnetic powder that has been attracted and removed from the liquid to be treated by the magnet and trapped in the passage from the passage, a structure is adopted in which the magnet is moved along the passage and positioned at a magnetic blocking portion where the magnetic force of the magnet does not act, thereby eliminating the attraction effect of the magnet and discharging the powder together with the liquid to be treated. However, since all of these magnetic filter devices magnetically separate ferromagnetic powder from the liquid to be treated, there is an inherent problem that non-magnetic substances that are difficult to separate magnetically cannot be separated and removed from the liquid to be treated.

In addition, in JP 2015-178058 A, a centrifuge device is proposed in which a fluid containing fine particles is supplied into a main container to generate a vortex, and the fine particles are moved outward by centrifugal force to separate the fine particles, and the separated fine particles are allowed to settle and discharged to the outside from the lower part of the main container, while a fluid outlet is provided at the upper part of the main container, and the fluid in the main container is filtered by a filtering member and then discharged to the outside through the fluid outlet. However, in such a centrifuge device, in addition to the need to place a specific filtering member in the container body, all of the fluid in the container body is forced to pass through the filtering member and discharged to the outside, which makes it easy for problems such as clogging of the filtering member by fine particles, especially smaller fine particles floating in the fluid, to occur, and there is a major problem with its durability.

Furthermore, JP 2005-28244 A proposes a filter device that uses centrifugal force and magnetic force to separate magnetic fine particles in a fluid, in which a fluid containing fine particles is supplied to generate a vortex, which moves the fine particles outward in a centrifugal state to separate them, and a settling section that setstlings the fine particles in the filter section are arranged in vertical communication, and a magnet unit is provided on the outer periphery of the settling section to apply a magnetic force that attracts the fine particles in the direction of the settling section. In addition, JP 2009-297676 A discloses a structure for a foreign particle separation device equipped with a cyclone-type processing vessel that separates foreign particles using centrifugal force, in which an upper inverted cone-shaped portion and a lower inverted cone-shaped portion are connected within the processing vessel, and the foreign particles are separated by centrifugal force by flowing the fluid to be processed containing foreign particles into the upper inverted cone-shaped portion and causing it to swirl, while a magnet member is provided in the lower inverted cone-shaped portion, and magnetic particles in the fluid to be processed are magnetically separated by the magnetic attraction force of the magnet. In this structure, in order to separate floating matter with a low specific gravity that is difficult to be affected by centrifugal force, a floating matter recovery tank is provided above the upper inverted cone-shaped portion via a partition plate with slit-shaped holes, and the floating matter with a low specific gravity can be separated and stored in the recovery tank.

However, the filter devices and foreign particle separation devices proposed in these cases are basically intended to magnetically separate magnetic fine objects and foreign particles, and are not particularly effective at separating and removing non-magnetic fine objects and foreign particles. In addition, because the fluid outlet is opened in the center of the vortex of the fluid formed in the device, magnetic fine objects and foreign particles are further refined and suspended in the fluid, which tends to allow the fine particles to flow out through the outlet without being magnetically separated. This creates the inherent problem of insufficient separation of magnetic fine objects and foreign particles mixed in the fluid.

However, in the foreign particle separator disclosed in JP 2009-297676 A, a floating object recovery tank is provided above the upper inverted cone-shaped portion in order to reliably separate and remove floating objects with low specific gravity on which centrifugal force is difficult to act, such as oil components, floating garbage, floating carbon, and foreign object particles with low specific gravity. However, this is merely intended to remove floating objects that rise to the surface of the treated fluid due to differences in specific gravity, and is not capable of effectively separating and removing fine non-magnetic particles suspended in the treated fluid and having a specific gravity equal to or greater than that of the treated fluid (liquid).

In particular, the liquids to be treated, such as the used lubricating oil, hydraulic oil, and coolant mentioned above, that require purification contain not only magnetic substances consisting of ferromagnetic powder particles such as iron, cobalt, and nickel, but also non-magnetic substances such as aluminum, copper, brass, and even abrasive grains (ceramics) that have fallen off grinding wheels, depending on the material of the workpiece or machine tool. Then, liquids to be treated that contain both magnetic and non-magnetic substances, or various liquids to be treated that contain them separately, are supplied and purified, but in such cases, the various known filter devices mentioned above were not able to effectively separate and remove both the magnetic and non-magnetic substances.

Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 5-2713 JP 2011-11205 A JP 2015-178058 A JP 2005-28244 A JP 2009-297676 A

The present invention was made against the background of the above-mentioned circumstances, and the problem it aims to solve is to provide a filter for removing magnetic and non-magnetic substances that effectively utilizes the centrifugal separation action and the magnetic separation action to effectively separate and remove magnetic substances such as ferromagnetic powder particles such as iron, and non-magnetic substances such as aluminum, brass, abrasive grains, etc. from the liquid being treated.

The present invention can be suitably implemented in various aspects as listed below in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, and each aspect described below can be adopted in any combination. It should be understood that the aspects and technical features of the present invention are not limited to those described below, but can be recognized based on the inventive concept disclosed in the entire specification and drawings.

Therefore, in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a liquid guide member comprising: (a) an inlet for introducing a liquid to be treated containing magnetic and/or non-magnetic substances and an outlet for introducing the purified liquid to be treated from which the magnetic and non-magnetic substances have been separated and removed; (b) a liquid guide member disposed within the inlet/outlet head, the liquid guide member having an introduction passage extending downward in the circumferential direction on the outer circumferential surface and a discharge passage for introducing the purified liquid to be treated to the discharge outlet of the inlet/outlet head; and (c) a cylindrical body having a truncated cone shape tapering downward, the cylindrical body having a large diameter at the upper end opening, the upper end opening being attached to the lower part of the inlet/outlet head, and the liquid guide member disposed within the cylindrical body being connected to the introduction passage. (d) an outer funnel in which the magnetic and non-magnetic substances are separated and removed from the liquid to be treated introduced through an inlet passage, and the liquid to be treated purified by such separation and removal is introduced to the outlet of the inlet/outlet head through the outlet passage of the liquid-guiding member; (e) an inner funnel consisting of a truncated conical cylinder smaller than the cylinder constituting the outer funnel and tapering downward, the inner funnel being housed within the outer funnel and fixed to the inner surface of the middle part of the outer funnel at the upper end opening with a large diameter, while the magnetic and non-magnetic substances separated and removed from the liquid to be treated are allowed to fall downward by gravity from the lower end opening with a small diameter and are accumulated at the lower part of the outer funnel; and (f) an inner funnel having a bottom, a circular groove having a closed lower end, which extends downward within the outer funnel, vertically penetrating the inlet/outlet head and the liquid-guiding member. (f) a cylindrical magnet pipe; (c) a magnet means arranged so as to be movable in the vertical direction within the magnet pipe, which, by moving downward within the magnet pipe, applies a predetermined magnetic field to the liquid to be treated flowing within the outer funnel via the magnet pipe, thereby attracting the magnetic substance in the liquid to be treated to the outer circumferential surface of the magnet pipe and magnetically separating it, while, by moving upward, the action of the magnetic field is selectively cancelled, so that the magnetic substance attracted to the outer circumferential surface of the magnet pipe can be released and dropped, and the magnetic substance can be dropped by gravity into the inner funnel; and (g) a magnet means having a plurality of blades, which is rotatably attached to the outer circumferential surface of the magnet pipe, and which is arranged so as to move the plurality of blades by the circumferentially downward flow of the liquid to be treated that is guided by the introduction passage of the liquid-guiding member arranged in the inlet/outlet head. The gist of the magnetic and non-magnetic substance removal filter is that it has: (a) a cyclone means that, by rotating, induces a downward swirling flow in the liquid to be treated, causing the liquid to swirl and move downward inside the outer funnel, while dropping the magnetic and non-magnetic substances in the liquid to be treated into the inner funnel; (h) a removable collection vessel that is connected to the lower opening of the outer funnel, into which the magnetic and non-magnetic substances that drop from the lower opening of the inner funnel and accumulate flow in from the lower part of the outer funnel by gravity; and (i) a valve means that is disposed on a communication passage that connects the outer funnel and the collection vessel, opens and closes the communication passage, and allows the magnetic and non-magnetic substances to flow into the collection vessel by opening the communication passage.

In one preferred embodiment of the magnetic and non-magnetic material removal filter according to the present invention, the inlet passage of the liquid-guiding member is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the liquid-guiding member so that the cross-sectional area of the passage gradually decreases from the opening on the side of the liquid-guiding member corresponding to the inlet of the inlet/outlet head to the opening on the lower surface of the liquid-guiding member.

In another preferred embodiment of the magnetic and non-magnetic substance removal filter according to the present invention, the outlet path of the liquid-guiding member is formed so as to pass through the inside of the liquid-guiding member from the lower surface of the liquid-guiding member and open to the side surface corresponding to the outlet of the inlet/outlet head.

Furthermore, according to another preferred embodiment of the filter according to the present invention, the liquid-guiding member is made of resin.

In addition, according to another preferred embodiment of the magnetic and non-magnetic material removal filter of the present invention, a wiper member is disposed on the outer periphery of the magnet pipe, protruding outward from the magnet pipe and extending around the entire circumference of the magnet pipe so as to be located below the mounting position of the cyclone means on the magnet pipe. The presence of this wiper member prevents the magnetic material magnetized to the magnet pipe from moving upward when the magnet means rises inside the magnet pipe, and acts to scrape it off, making it easy for the magnetic material to fall downward.

According to another preferred embodiment of the removal filter of the present invention, a moving rod having an operating part located outward from the upper opening of the magnet pipe is attached to the magnet means, and the magnet means can be moved up and down within the magnet pipe by raising and lowering the operating part. By vertically moving the magnet means by the moving rod in this way, the magnet means can be positioned at a position within the outer rotor where the magnetic material is magnetically attached to the outer surface of the magnet pipe, and the magnetic material magnetically attached to the outer surface of the magnet pipe can be easily and simply dropped downward by raising the magnet means.

Furthermore, in the present invention, a holding member made of a predetermined magnetic material is preferably disposed at the penetration portion of the magnet pipe in the inlet/outlet head, and when the magnet means is raised by the operation of the moving rod, the magnet means is magnetically attracted to and held by the holding member, so that the position of the magnet means within the magnet pipe can be fixedly held. This makes it possible to effectively hold magnet means having a strong magnetic force within the magnet pipe, and advantageously avoids the occurrence of unexpected problems caused by removing such magnet means to the outside.

The magnetic and non-magnetic substance removal filter according to the present invention utilizes the centrifugal force produced by the more effective swirling flow, as well as the effective magnetic attraction produced by the magnet means, to effectively separate and remove various magnetic and non-magnetic substances mixed into the fluid being treated, thereby further increasing the degree of purification of the liquid being treated and enabling the liquid to be effectively reused.

In particular, in the magnetic and non-magnetic substance removal filter according to the present invention, a spiral inlet passage is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the liquid-guiding member disposed within the inlet/outlet head, extending circumferentially downward from a portion corresponding to the inlet of the inlet/outlet head, so that the inflowing liquid to be treated is effectively guided as a circumferentially downward flow into the outer funnel, and furthermore, the swirling action of the cyclone means can generate a more effective swirling flow of the liquid to be treated, thereby more effectively achieving the separation and removal of magnetic and non-magnetic substances mixed into the liquid to be treated.

FIG. 1 is an explanatory cross-sectional view of a main portion of a representative embodiment of a magnetic and non-magnetic substance removal filter according to the present invention, in a form in which the filter is separated at the connection portion between an outer funnel and a ball valve (however, the flow path insert is shown in the form of a front view rather than a cross-sectional view). 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing an inlet/outlet head and a magnet pipe in the removal filter shown in FIG. 1 . FIG. 2A, 2B, 2C and 2D are enlarged explanatory views of a flow path insert used in the removal filter shown in FIG. 1, where (a), (b), (c) and (d) are a front explanatory view, a right side explanatory view, a left side explanatory view and a plan explanatory view, respectively. 3A is an enlarged explanatory diagram of the flow path insert shown in FIG. 1, (a) is a bottom view thereof, (b) is a cross-sectional view taken along line B-B in FIG. 3D, (c) is a perspective view of the bottom side, and (d) is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A in FIG. 3A. 2 is an enlarged front view of an outer funnel used in the removal filter shown in FIG. 1 , in a configuration in which an inner funnel is disposed inside the outer funnel; FIG. 6A is a plan view of a funnel body used in the outer funnel shown in FIG. 5; FIG. 6B is a cross-sectional view taken along the line CC in FIG. 5A; 2 is an enlarged explanatory diagram showing an inner funnel used in the removal filter shown in FIG. 1, (a) is a plan view explanatory diagram, and (b) is a cross-sectional view taken along line DD in (a). 2A and 2B are explanatory views of a cyclone blade used in the removal filter shown in FIG. 1 , where FIG. 2A is an enlarged explanatory view of a planar shape thereof, and FIG. 2B is an enlarged explanatory view of a perspective view thereof. 2A and 2B are enlarged explanatory views of a wiper used in the removal filter shown in FIG. 1, in which FIG. 2A is an explanatory plan view of the wiper, and FIG. 2B is an explanatory cross-sectional view taken along line E-E in FIG. 2 is an enlarged front view illustrating an example of a moving rod to which a magnet is attached, which is used in the removal filter shown in FIG. 1 .

In order to clarify the configuration of the present invention more specifically, a representative embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

First, Figure 1 shows a cross-section of the main part of a removal filter for purifying various types of coolants containing magnetic substances such as iron and non-magnetic substances such as aluminum as one embodiment of a magnetic substance/non-magnetic substance removal filter having a structure according to the present invention, in a form in which the filter is separated at the connection portion between the outer funnel and the ball valve. The removal filter 10 according to this embodiment includes an inlet/outlet head 12 having a bottomed cylindrical shape with the top being the bottom, a flow path insert 60 disposed inside the inlet/outlet head 12, an outer funnel 14 attached to the lower opening of the inlet/outlet head 12, an inner funnel 16 disposed at the lower part of the outer funnel 14, a magnet pipe 22 disposed so as to extend through the bottom of the inlet/outlet head 12 and the flow path insert 60 into the outer funnel 14, a magnet 24 disposed inside the magnet pipe 22, a cyclone blade 26 and a wiper 28 attached to the outer periphery of the magnet pipe 22 so as to be freely rotatable, and a collection container 20 to which the lower end of the outer funnel 14 is connected via a ball valve 18 as a valve means.

As shown enlarged in Fig. 2, the inlet/outlet head 12 is a cylindrical shape with a bottom, the top of which is closed to form a thick-walled tubular section, and is made of a non-magnetic material such as SUS304. At opposing positions on the thick-walled tubular wall, an inlet 12a through which the liquid to be treated containing magnetic and non-magnetic substances flows in, and an outlet 12b through which the purified liquid to be treated flows out are provided. An inlet pipe (not shown), which constitutes part of the piping in the coolant purification system, is connected to the inlet 12a by screwing, so that coolant containing magnetic substances made of ferromagnetic powder particles such as iron powder and non-magnetic substances such as aluminum, coolant containing magnetic substances, and coolant containing non-magnetic substances can be arbitrarily introduced as the liquid to be treated. On the other hand, an outflow pipe (not shown), which constitutes part of the piping of the purification system, is connected to the outlet 12b by screwing, so that the coolant (liquid to be purified) from which magnetic and non-magnetic substances have been separated and removed in the removal filter 10 is allowed to flow out from the removal filter 10 to the outside.

The inlet/outlet head 12 has a resin flow path insert 60 fitted and positioned inside the cylinder, and an inlet path 62 formed in a spiral shape extending circumferentially downward on its outer circumferential surface guides the treated liquid flowing in from the inlet 12a of the inlet/outlet head 12 downward, while the purified treated liquid is guided to the outlet 12b of the inlet/outlet head 12 via the outlet path 64.

Specifically, as shown in Figures 3 and 4, the flow path insert 60 has a thick cylindrical shape as a whole, and has an insertion hole 66 through which the magnet pipe 22 is inserted so as to penetrate the center, while the spiral inlet 62 formed on its outer circumferential surface has a groove-shaped flow path connecting an inlet opening 62a formed at a position corresponding to the inlet 12a of the inlet/outlet head 12 with an outlet opening 62b opening on the lower surface of the flow path insert 60, and the cross-sectional area of the passage gradually decreases as it moves from the inlet opening 62a to the outlet opening 62b. On the other hand, the outlet path 64 is integral with the insertion hole 66 and has a structure formed as an internal flow path from the inlet opening 62a opening on the lower surface of the flow path insert 60 through the inside of the flow path insert 60 to the outlet opening 62b formed at a position corresponding to the outlet 12b of the inlet/outlet head 12. The inlet insert 60 of this structure can be fixed to the inlet/outlet head 12 by inserting a screw 70 into the inlet/outlet head 12 as shown in FIG. 1, through the mounting hole 68 shown in FIG. 3(d), and then through the working hole 69 shown in FIG. 4(a) or (c) using a jig.

Therefore, due to the presence of such a flow path insert 60, the treated liquid flowing in through the inlet 12a of the inlet/outlet head 12 is introduced into the outer rotor 14 below as a swirling flow by the inlet passage 62 formed in a spiral shape so as to extend circumferentially downward on the outer peripheral surface of the flow path insert 60. Moreover, the inlet passage 62 is structured so that the passage cross-sectional area gradually decreases from the inlet opening 62a to the outlet opening 62b, and has a passage structure that is narrowed toward the outer rotor 14. This effectively increases the flow rate of the treated liquid being introduced and leads it into the outer rotor 14, thereby effectively forming the treated liquid into an even stronger swirling flow. In addition, the inlet opening 62a of the outlet passage 64 is located near the center of the underside of the flow path insert 60, so that the purified treated liquid that is led upward through the center of the outer funnel 14 can be effectively led to the outlet 12b of the inlet/outlet head 12.

2, a magnet pipe 22 made of a non-magnetic material such as SUS304 is located at the center of the bottom of the inlet/outlet head 12, which penetrates the inlet/outlet head 12 in the vertical direction and penetrates the center (insertion hole 66) of the flow path insert 60 arranged inside the inlet/outlet head 12, and extends downward inside the outer rotor 14. The magnet pipe 22 is made of a non-magnetic material such as SUS304 and has a closed lower end. The magnet pipe 22 is screwed to the inlet/outlet head 12 at its upper end opening and fixed. The magnet pipe 22 is provided at a portion located inside the outer rotor 14 with two circumferentially extending accommodation grooves 22a, 22a spaced apart from each other by fitting snap rings 32, 32 into the accommodation grooves 22a, 22a, respectively, as shown in FIG. 1, so that a cyclone blade 26 and a wiper 28, which will be described later, are freely rotatably attached between them. In addition, as can be seen from FIG. 2, a circular recess 12c is provided on the upper surface of the inlet/outlet head 12 located around the upper end opening of the magnet pipe 22, and a donut-shaped retaining ring 30 made of a magnetic material such as S50C is fitted into the recess 12c with the upper end of the magnet pipe 22 positioned within its central hole, and is fixed by screwing in a bolt 31 as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2.

Furthermore, an outer funnel 14 is attached to the lower opening of the inlet/outlet head 12 as shown in Figure 5. As shown in Figures 6(a) and (b), the outer funnel 14 has a funnel body 14a made of a non-magnetic material such as SUS304, which is a cylindrical truncated cone-shaped cylinder that tapers downward. As shown in Figure 5, a cylindrical funnel upper flange 14b is welded to the upper opening on the large diameter side of the funnel body 14a, while a cylindrical funnel nipple 14c is welded to the lower end opening on the small diameter side. The outer funnel 14 is attached liquid-tight to the lower opening of the inlet/outlet head 12 at the funnel upper flange 14b via an O-ring 36 by tightening with a ring nut 34, as shown in Figure 1, while the funnel nipple 14c is connected to the ball valve 18, which is a valve means, by screwing it.

In addition, an inner funnel 16 made of a non-magnetic material such as SUS304 is disposed within the funnel body 14a of the outer funnel 14, and is a truncated cone-shaped cylinder whose diameter tapers downward so that it opens and is positioned below the axial center. As is clear from Figures 7(a) and (b), this inner funnel 16 is smaller than the funnel body 14a, which is the cylindrical body that constitutes the outer funnel 14; in other words, it has a maximum outer diameter that is somewhat smaller than the inner diameter of the axial center of the funnel body 14a. As a result, when the inner funnel 16 is inserted into the funnel body 14a of the outer funnel 14 from the open end on the small diameter side, the inner funnel 16 penetrates a predetermined distance into the funnel body 14a, and the maximum outer periphery of the inner funnel 16 comes into contact with the inner circumferential surface of the funnel body 14a, preventing further penetration. In this state, these contacting parts are welded and fixed, so that the inner funnel 16 is fixedly positioned coaxially within the funnel body 14a. By arranging the inner funnel 16 in the funnel body 14a in this way, the lower end of the magnet pipe 22 is configured to be located above the inner funnel 16, as shown in Figure 1.

In this way, by placing the inner funnel 16 inside the outer funnel 14, the inside of the outer funnel 14, specifically the inside of the funnel body 14a, is divided into an upper space located above the inner funnel 16, and a lower space located below the inner funnel 16. In this upper space, magnetic and non-magnetic substances descending through the liquid to be treated enter the inner funnel 16, then descend further downward from the small-diameter lower end opening of the inner funnel 16, and are accumulated in the lower space of the funnel body 14a. Moreover, because the lower end opening of the inner funnel 16 is narrowed to form a small-diameter opening, the magnetic and non-magnetic materials that fall downward through this small-diameter opening are hardly affected by the flow of the liquid being treated in the upper space of the outer funnel 14, and therefore do not rise up again and are drawn into the inner funnel 16, but are effectively accumulated in the lower space of the funnel body 14a.

In the present invention, as described above, the cyclone blade 26 and wiper 28 made of an appropriate material such as resin are attached to the outer surface of the magnet pipe 22, which extends downward so as to penetrate into the inner funnel 16 arranged in the outer funnel 14, and are positioned above and below each other, in a form in which movement in the vertical direction is prevented by two upper and lower snap rings 32, 32. As shown in Figures 8(a) and (b), the cyclone blade 26 is integrally provided with an attachment ring 40 that is inserted outside the magnet pipe 22, and six blades 42 that are provided with a predetermined phase difference in the circumferential direction and extend radially sideways (diametrically outward) from the attachment ring 40. Each of the blades 42 has a blade body that is bent obliquely upward as shown in Figure 8(b), while forming a predetermined gap between the attachment ring 40 as is clear from Figure 8(a).

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 1, the swirling flow of the liquid being treated, which is guided downward through the spiral inlet passage 62 of the flow path insert 60, hits the upper surface of the curved blade body of the six blades 42 of such a cyclone blade 26, causing the cyclone blade 26 to rotate, thereby causing the liquid to become a more effective swirling flow and be guided downward along the inner surface of the outer funnel 14. As a result, particles of magnetic and non-magnetic substances with a high specific gravity in the liquid being treated are effectively caused to fall downward by gravity, and further fall within the inner funnel 16, are guided further downward from the small diameter lower end opening, and are accumulated in the lower space of the outer funnel 14. In addition, the swirling flow of the treated liquid flows upward from the inner funnel 16, is guided upward through the central portion of the outer funnel 14, and is discharged to the outside through the outlet 12b from the outlet passage 64 of the flow path insert 60. The mixed particles suspended in the upward flow of the treated liquid are again subjected to the cyclone action as described above by the rotating cyclone blades 40, and are caused to descend downward within the outer funnel 14.

The wiper 28, which is disposed so as to be located below the cyclone blade 26, is integrally formed from a mounting ring portion 28a in the shape of a circular ring of a predetermined thickness that is fitted onto the magnet pipe 22, and a tapered portion 28b formed on the outer periphery of the mounting ring portion 28a, which is inclined downward and extends around the entire circumference, as shown in FIG. 9. This wiper 28 is disposed so as to be located above the magnet 24 housed within the magnet pipe 22, as shown in FIG. 1.

A cylindrical magnet (permanent magnet) 24 made of a powerful magnet such as a neodymium magnet is arranged within the magnet pipe 22 so that it can move up and down the magnet pipe 22. As shown in FIG. 1, it is moved downward and positioned so that it is located above the bottom of the lower part of the magnet pipe 22. A predetermined magnetic field is applied to the treated liquid flowing within the outer funnel 14 via the magnet pipe 22, so that magnetic substances in the treated liquid are attracted to the outer surface of the magnet pipe 22 and magnetically separated. The magnet 24 has a structure in which cylindrical pieces divided by multiple (here, four) dividing surfaces extending in the axial direction are magnetically attached to each other and integrated to form a cylindrical shape. Here, as shown in FIG. 10, the multiple cylindrical pieces of the magnet 44 are arranged in an integrated form around the lower part of a moving rod 44 made of a long screw rod, and the magnet 24 is attached to the moving rod 44 by fixing it with screw nuts 46, 46 located above and below. The magnet 24 is moved upward by a pulling operation using an operating piece 48 attached to the upper end of the moving rod 44, and the effect of the magnetic field on the liquid to be treated through the magnet pipe 22 is selectively eliminated, so that the magnetic material attracted to the outer circumferential surface of the magnet pipe 22 can be released and dropped.

10, a circular plate-shaped cover 49 having an outer diameter larger than that of the magnet pipe 22 is loosely fitted to the moving rod 44 at a portion located between the upper operating piece 48 and the lower magnet 24, and the cover 49 covers the upper opening of the magnet pipe 22 to prevent foreign objects from falling into the magnet pipe 22. As shown in FIG. 1, the moving rod 44 is configured to have a length such that its upper portion can protrude from the upper opening of the magnet pipe 22. By using the operating piece 48, which is the operating part, to pull up the moving rod 44 and position the magnet 24 at the upper opening of the magnet pipe 22, the magnet 24 is magnetically attached to the inner diameter surface of the retaining ring 30 and can be fixed in position in the vertical direction. At that time, the magnet 24 is held in the magnet pipe 22 so that it does not protrude below the bottom surface of the flow path insert 60 and is therefore positioned above the wiper 28.

1, the outer funnel 14 is screwed to the upper opening of the ball valve 18 by the funnel nipple 14c provided at its lower part, while the collection vessel 20 is attached to the lower opening of the ball valve 18 via a nipple 50. The ball valve 18 is an open/close valve having a known structure, and can open or close the communication passage between the outer funnel 14 and the collection vessel 20 by rotating the handle 18a. The collection vessel 20 is constructed in such a way that a lid member 54 is liquid-tightly fastened to the upper opening of the vessel body 52 by a ring nut 58 via an O-ring 56. Furthermore, a thick cylindrical portion 54a is integrally formed on the inner surface of the lid member 54, extending downward, and an inlet pipe 55 is also provided extending downward from this cylindrical portion 54a. Due to the presence of the thick cylindrical portion 54a and the inlet pipe 55, even if the liquid to be treated is present in the communication passage from the ball valve 18 to the collection vessel 20, problems such as the liquid to be treated overflowing from the vessel body 52 when the vessel body 52 is removed from the lid member 54 are prevented.

Therefore, in the removal filter 10 configured as described above, the liquid to be treated, which is introduced from the inlet 12a of the inlet chamber head 12 and contains magnetic and non-magnetic substances either together or separately, is made to flow downward in a swirling manner in the spiral inlet 62 of the flow path insert 60, and this flow rotates the cyclone blade 26, causing the liquid to flow downward as an effective swirling flow, and descends along the inner surface of the outer funnel 16. At this time, particles of magnetic and non-magnetic substances, which have a higher specific gravity than the liquid to be treated, are effectively descended by centrifugal force or the cyclone effect and are led into the inner funnel 16. Furthermore, the magnetic and non-magnetic substances separated from the flow of the liquid to be treated are caused to descend by gravity from the small-diameter lower end opening of the inner funnel 16, and are accumulated in the lower space of the outer funnel 14 below the inner funnel 16.

However, this downward flow of the treated liquid gradually reverses and becomes an upward flow at the center of the outer funnel 14, passing through the outside of the wiper 28 and the gaps in the cyclone blades 26, through the outlet path 64 of the flow path insert 60, to the outlet 12b of the inlet/outlet head 12, from where it is discharged to the outside. A magnet pipe 22 is arranged so as to be located at the center of the outer funnel 14 with respect to this flow of the treated liquid, and a magnet 24 is further arranged inside the magnet pipe 22 so that a predetermined magnetic field is applied to the treated liquid. As a result, any magnetic substances mixed in the treated liquid are attracted to the outer surface of the magnet pipe 22 and are effectively magnetically separated from the treated liquid. Moreover, at that time, particularly fine magnetic substances suspended in the treated liquid that is led to the outlet 12b can be advantageously magnetically attached to the outer circumferential surface of the magnet pipe 22, so that even fine magnetic substances can be effectively separated and removed from the outlet 12b of the inlet/outlet head 12, and the treated liquid with an even higher degree of purification can be advantageously discharged.

The magnetic and non-magnetic substances that fall in the liquid being treated due to the action of gravity and the swirling flow of the liquid being treated that occurs in the outer funnel 14 reach the inner funnel 16, then fall further inside the inner funnel 16 and are introduced into the lower space of the outer funnel 14 through its small-diameter lower end opening, where they are accumulated. Note that the swirling flow of the liquid being treated that occurs in the upper part of the outer funnel 14 has almost no effect on the lower space of the outer funnel 14 where the magnetic and non-magnetic substances are accumulated, due to the presence of the inner funnel 16. Therefore, there is no risk of the magnetic and non-magnetic substances that have been caused to fall flying upward from the small-diameter lower end opening of the inner funnel 16 and being mixed back into the liquid being purified.

On the other hand, the magnetic substances that are magnetically separated from the liquid to be treated by being attracted to the outer circumferential surface of the magnet pipe 22 due to the action of the magnetic field from the magnet 24 disposed inside the magnet pipe 22 are lowered into the lower space of the outer funnel 14 as follows: First, the magnet 24 is moved upward by a pulling operation using the moving rod 44 to which it is attached, and is positioned above the cyclone blades 26, whereby the magnetic substances are released from the outer circumferential surface of the magnet pipe 22, and the magnetic substances that were attracted there are lowered by gravity and are accommodated in the lower space of the outer funnel 14 from the inner funnel 16. As the magnet 24 rises, the magnetic material adsorbed to the outer periphery of the magnet pipe 22 is also pulled upward. However, since a wiper 28 is provided below the cyclone blade 26, the magnetic field of the magnet 24 is interrupted by the wiper 28, which scrapes off the magnetic material. This makes it easy to release the magnetic material adsorbed to the outer periphery of the magnet pipe 22 and allow it to fall. When separating and removing the magnetic material adsorbed to the magnet pipe 22, the flow of the liquid to be treated into the removal filter 10 is preferably interrupted and the removal operation is temporarily stopped.

When the magnetic and non-magnetic substances accumulated in the lower space of the outer funnel 14 are removed from the outer funnel 14, the ball valve 18 connected via the funnel nipple 14c at the bottom of the outer funnel 14 is opened by operating the handle 18a, and the magnetic and non-magnetic substances are allowed to fall by gravity into the collection container 20 attached to the bottom of the ball valve 18 and are stored therein. Of course, during the work of separating and removing magnetic and non-magnetic substances from the liquid to be treated in the outer funnel 14, it is also possible to keep the ball valve 18 in an open state at all times and keep the outer funnel 14 and the collection container 20 in a constant state of communication, so that the magnetic and non-magnetic substances separated and removed by centrifugal separation from the lower space of the outer funnel 14 are allowed to fall successively into the collection container 20.

In addition, when a predetermined amount of magnetic or non-magnetic material is contained in the collection container 20, the handle 18a of the ball valve 18 is operated to close the ball valve 18 and block communication with the outer funnel 14, and then the ring nut 58 is loosened to remove the container body 52 from the lid member 54, making it possible to remove the magnetic or non-magnetic material that has been lowered into the container body 52 and discard it. As described above, instead of removing only the container body 52, it is also possible to remove the entire collection container 20 from the ball valve 18 by unscrewing the lid member 54 from the nipple 50. In addition, in order to easily grasp the amount of magnetic or non-magnetic material contained in the container body 52 during the removal operation of the collection container 20, the container body 52 is preferably made of a transparent resin.

The above describes in detail the configuration and variations of the present invention based on a representative embodiment, but it should be understood that these are merely examples and that the present invention should not be interpreted in any limited manner based on the specific descriptions of such embodiments and variations.

For example, a rare earth magnet with strong magnetic force such as a neodymium magnet is preferably used as the permanent magnet 24, but it is not limited to this and various known permanent magnets can be used.

In addition, in the illustrated embodiment, the six vanes 42 that make up the cyclone blade 26 are arranged radially and protrude independently from the mounting ring 40, but it is also possible to connect the vanes 42 to the outer ring at their protruding ends to form an integral structure.

Furthermore, for the cyclone blade 26, which is the cyclone means, the shape of the multiple vanes 42 that compose it can be any known vane shape, so long as the downward flow of the treated liquid causes the cyclone blade 26 to rotate and induces a downward swirling flow of the treated liquid, and the number of vanes 42 can be appropriately selected so that the object of the present invention can be achieved.

Furthermore, as shown in the example, it is desirable for the wiper 28 to be a plate-like brim or annular plate of a given thickness extending horizontally, but there is no problem if it is simply an umbrella-shaped one that inclines downward. It is also possible to adopt a fixed attachment to the outer circumferential surface of the magnet pipe 22, rather than a freely rotatable attachment.

In addition, the lid 49 that covers the upper opening of the magnet pipe 22 can be made of a magnetic material, and when the moving rod 44 rises, the magnet 24 that is pulled up is magnetically attached to the lid 49, preventing the magnet 24 from descending. This allows the retaining ring 30 to be replaced by the lid 49.

It is also preferable that the entire container body 52 of the collection container 20 is transparent, but there is no problem if it is partially transparent to the extent that the amount of magnetic and non-magnetic materials contained therein can be grasped. For example, a structure can be adopted in which a slit-shaped transparent window portion extending in the depth direction of the container body 52 is provided, and furthermore, the entire container body 52 can be made of an opaque structure or made of metal.

In any case, the present invention can be implemented in various forms with changes, modifications, improvements, etc. based on the knowledge of those skilled in the art, and it should be understood that all such embodiments are within the scope of the present invention as long as they do not deviate from the spirit of the present invention.

10 Removal filter 12 Inlet/outlet head 12a Inlet 12b Outlet 12c Circular recess 14 Outer funnel 14a Funnel body 14b Funnel upper flange 14c Funnel nipple 16 Inner funnel 18 Ball valve 18a Handle 20 Collection container 22 Magnet pipe 22a Storage groove 24 Magnet 26 Cyclone blade 28 Wiper 28a Mounting ring portion 28b Tapered portion 30 Retaining ring 31 Bolt 32 Snap ring 40 Mounting ring 42 Blade 44 Moving rod 44a Upper rod portion 44b Lower rod portion 46 Threaded nut 48 Operation piece 49 Lid 50 Nipple 52 Container body 54 Lid member 54a Cylindrical portion 55 Introduction tube 56 O-ring 58 Ring nut 60 Flow passage insert 62 Introduction passage 62a Inlet opening 62b Outlet opening 64 Outlet passage 66 Insertion hole 68 Mounting hole 69 Working hole 70 Screw

Claims (7)

an inlet/outlet head having an inlet for allowing the inflow of a liquid to be treated containing magnetic and/or non-magnetic substances, and an outlet for allowing the purified liquid to be treated from which the magnetic and non-magnetic substances have been separated and removed to flow out;
a liquid guide member disposed within the inlet/outlet head, the inlet passage for guiding the liquid to be treated flowing in from the inlet of the inlet/outlet head downward is formed in a spiral shape so as to extend downward in the circumferential direction on the outer peripheral surface, and a guide passage for guiding the purified liquid to the outlet of the inlet/outlet head is provided;
an outer funnel consisting of a cylindrical body in a truncated cone shape tapering downward, the larger-diameter upper end opening of the cylindrical body being attached to the lower part of the inlet/outlet head, so that within the cylindrical body, the magnetic substances and non-magnetic substances are separated and removed from the liquid to be treated that is introduced through an inlet passage of the liquid-guiding member disposed in the inlet/outlet head, while the liquid to be treated that has been purified by the separation and removal is introduced to the outlet of the inlet/outlet head through the outlet passage of the liquid-guiding member;
an inner funnel consisting of a truncated cone-shaped cylinder smaller than the cylinder constituting the outer funnel and tapering downward, the inner funnel being housed within the outer funnel and fixed to the inner surface of the middle part of the outer funnel at its large-diameter upper end opening, while the magnetic material and non-magnetic material separated and removed from the liquid to be treated are allowed to fall downward by gravity from its small-diameter lower end opening and are accumulated at the bottom of the outer funnel;
a cylindrical magnet pipe having a bottom, the bottom end of which is closed, penetrating the inlet/outlet head and the liquid guide member in the vertical direction, and extending downward within the outer funnel;
a magnet means arranged within the magnet pipe so as to be movable in the vertical direction, and by moving downward within the magnet pipe, a predetermined magnetic field is applied to the liquid to be treated flowing within the outer funnel via the magnet pipe, so that the magnetic substances in the liquid to be treated are attracted to the outer peripheral surface of the magnet pipe and magnetically separated, while by moving upward, the action of the magnetic field is selectively cancelled, so that the magnetic substances attracted to the outer peripheral surface of the magnet pipe can be released and dropped, causing them to fall by gravity into the inner funnel;
a cyclone means having a plurality of blades and rotatably attached to the outer circumferential surface of the magnet pipe, the plurality of blades being rotated by the downward circumferential flow of the liquid to be treated guided through the introduction passage of the liquid guide member disposed in the inlet/outlet head, thereby inducing a downward swirling flow in the liquid to be treated, causing the liquid to swirl and move downward within the outer funnel, while causing the magnetic and non-magnetic substances in the liquid to fall into the inner funnel;
a removable collection container connected to the lower end opening of the outer funnel, into which the magnetic and non-magnetic materials that descend from the lower end opening of the inner funnel and are accumulated flow in from the lower part of the outer funnel by gravity;
a valve means disposed on a communication passage that communicates between the outer funnel and the collection container, for opening and closing the communication passage and allowing the magnetic material and non-magnetic material to flow into the collection container by opening the communication passage;
A filter for removing magnetic and non-magnetic substances, comprising: The magnetic and non-magnetic material removal filter according to claim 1, wherein the inlet passage of the liquid-guiding member is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the liquid-guiding member so that the cross-sectional area of the passage gradually decreases from the opening on the side of the liquid-guiding member corresponding to the inlet of the inlet/outlet head to the opening on the lower surface of the liquid-guiding member. The magnetic and non-magnetic material removal filter according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the outlet path of the liquid-guiding member is formed so as to pass through the inside of the liquid-guiding member from the lower surface of the liquid-guiding member and open to the side surface corresponding to the outlet of the inlet/outlet head. The magnetic and non-magnetic substance removal filter according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the liquid guide member is made of resin. A filter for removing magnetic and non-magnetic materials according to any one of claims 1 to 4, in which a wiper member is disposed on the outer periphery of the magnet pipe, protruding outward from the magnet pipe and extending around the entire circumference of the magnet pipe so as to be positioned below the attachment position of the cyclone means on the magnet pipe. A filter for removing magnetic and non-magnetic substances according to any one of claims 1 to 5, in which a moving rod having an operating part located outward from the upper opening of the magnet pipe is attached to the magnet means, and the magnet means can be moved up and down within the magnet pipe by raising and lowering the operating part. A magnetic and non-magnetic substance removal filter as described in claim 6, in which a holding member made of a predetermined magnetic material is arranged at the penetration portion of the magnet pipe in the inlet/outlet head, and when the magnet means is raised by the operation of the moving rod, the magnet means is magnetically attracted to and held by the holding member, so that the position of the magnet means within the magnet pipe can be fixedly held.

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