JP7617593B2 - Gas valve fixing structure - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a gas valve fixing structure that fixes a gas valve and a flange member attached to the gas valve.

In order to make gas valves used with iron pipe piping applicable to flexible piping as well, a flange member is connected to the inlet connection part of the gas valve (specifically, the connecting tube part at the tip side of the gas valve) and this flange member is fixed to a fixed wall such as a kitchen wall. By attaching the flange member in this manner, the gas valve connected to the flexible piping is fixed to the fixed wall (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

The fixing structure between the gas plug and the flange member is, for example, configured as follows: The outer peripheral surface of the inflow connection part of the gas plug is formed in a hexagonal shape, the insertion connection part of the flange member is provided with a hexagonal insertion opening corresponding to the hexagonal shape of the inflow connection part of the gas plug, and an insertion hole part is provided in the insertion connection part (specifically, inside the insertion opening part) corresponding to the connection tube part on the tip side of the inflow connection part. In this gas plug, the connection tube part of the gas plug is inserted into the insertion hole part through the insertion opening part of the flange member, and while inserted into this insertion hole part, fixing screws are screwed through the insertion connection part of the flange member in the radial direction (for example, screwed into three places spaced apart in the circumferential direction), and in this way the connection tube part of the gas plug is attached to the insertion connection part of the flange member.

When attaching this gas valve to a fixed wall or the like, a mounting bracket is used to fix the gas valve in combination with the flange member, and this mounting bracket is configured to be able to change its shape between a basic shape that is larger than the drawer opening formed in the fixed wall or the like, and a modified shape that is smaller than the drawer opening. This mounting bracket is attached to the flange member with a pair of mounting screws, and while in this attached state, it is changed into a modified shape and inserted, for example, through the drawer opening of the fixed wall into the inside of it. This mounting bracket is configured to return to its basic shape by releasing the modified shape after insertion, and by tightening the pair of mounting screws in this basic shape, the mounting bracket moves in a direction approaching the flange member and cooperates with the flange member to clamp the fixed wall to which it is to be attached, and in this way the gas valve is attached and fixed to the fixed wall.

JP 2006-266366 A

However, this type of fixing structure between the gas valve and the flange member has the following problems. That is, because the gas valve and the flange member are fixed using fixing screws, for example, the fixing screws must be tightened in three places, which requires a process for this tightening and fixing, making the fixing work complicated. Also, in order to tighten and fix multiple points with fixing screws, all screwed points must be tightened with an appropriate strength, which makes it difficult to install and tighten them as required.

The object of the present invention is to provide a connection structure that can firmly fix a gas valve and a flange member, while simplifying the fixing and improving workability.

The fixing structure of a gas plug according to a first aspect of the present invention is a fixing structure of a gas plug comprising a gas plug having a connecting tubular portion and a flange member having an insertion connecting portion, the connecting tubular portion of the gas plug being inserted and connected to an insertion hole portion of the insertion connecting portion of the flange member,
The gas valve is fitted with a gas supply pipe having a gas outlet port and a gas outlet hole provided on the inner circumferential surface of the gas supply pipe. The gas supply pipe is fitted with a gas outlet port and a gas outlet hole provided on the inner circumferential surface of the gas supply pipe. The gas supply pipe is fitted with a gas outlet port and a gas outlet hole provided on the inner circumferential surface of the gas supply pipe.

In addition, in the fixing structure of a gas plug described in claim 2 of the present invention, the connecting tubular portion of the gas plug has a circumferential surface that serves as a pressed portion, and the pressing and retaining member is composed of a ring-shaped member that is accommodated in the accommodating groove of the insertion connection portion of the flange member and biases the same toward the radially inner side, and the ring-shaped member acts on the circumferential surface of the connecting tubular portion to retain the connection when the connecting tubular portion of the gas plug is inserted into the insertion hole portion of the insertion connection portion.

In addition, in the fixing structure for a gas plug according to a third aspect of the present invention, the connecting tube portion of the gas plug is provided with a groove portion or a step portion that constitutes the pressed portion.

According to the gas plug fixing structure of the present invention, a pressure retaining member is provided in the insertion connection portion of the flange member, so that when the connecting tubular part of the gas plug is inserted into the insertion connection portion of the flange member, the pressure retaining member presses the connecting tubular part of the gas plug radially inward and acts on at least most of the connecting tubular part in the circumferential direction to maintain the connection, and thus the gas plug and the flange member can be firmly connected by the pressure retaining member. Also, since the connecting tubular part of the gas plug can be connected by inserting it into the insertion connection portion of the flange member, the conventional tightening operation is unnecessary, and the workability of the installation operation of attaching the flange member to the gas plug is improved.
Furthermore, since this pressure retaining member is accommodated in an accommodating groove provided on the inner surface of the insertion hole portion of the insertion connection portion on the flange member side, when the connecting tube portion of the gas valve is inserted into the insertion hole portion of this insertion connection portion, this ring-shaped member does not move in the insertion direction and is retained in a predetermined position within the insertion hole portion.
Furthermore, since an annular spacer is accommodated in the accommodation groove of the insertion connection part of the flange member and a ring-shaped member is disposed on the inner periphery of this annular spacer, this annular spacer holds the ring-shaped member concentrically within the accommodation groove and acts to expand and contract while maintaining its deformation concentrically. Therefore, when the connection tube part of the gas valve is inserted, it expands in diameter while being maintained concentrically within the accommodation groove of the flange member, so that the position of the ring-shaped member does not become misaligned during insertion and poor connection due to misalignment can be eliminated. Also, when this connection tube part is inserted into the insertion connection part of the flange member, it contracts in diameter while being maintained concentrically within the accommodation groove of the flange member, so that the ring-shaped member can stably act on the connection tube part of the gas valve.
Incidentally, the "at least the majority of the portion over which the pressing and holding member acts on the connecting tubular portion of the gas cock" means 60% or more, preferably 80% or more, and more preferably 90% or more of the entire circumference of the connecting tubular portion.

According to the fixing structure of the gas cock described in claim 2 of the present invention, the connecting tube of the gas cock has a circumferential surface that is the pressed part, and the pressing and holding member is composed of a ring-shaped member accommodated in the accommodation groove of the insertion and connecting part of the flange member, so that when the connecting tube of the gas cock is inserted into the insertion hole of the flange member, the circumferential surface of the connecting tube of the gas cock is located on the radially inner side of the ring-shaped member, and in this inserted state, the ring-shaped member urges the circumferential surface of the connecting tube to the radially inner side. Therefore, the urging action of the ring-shaped member as the pressing and holding member can firmly fix the connecting tube of the gas cock to the insertion and connecting part of the flange member. In this specification, the ring-shaped member is a concept that includes not only a completely circular one, but also an approximately C-shaped one with a part of the circular shape missing. Incidentally, as the ring-shaped member, a stop ring, a snap ring, a C-ring, etc. can be used, but it is preferable to use a stop ring.

Furthermore, according to the fixing structure for a gas plug as set forth in claim 3 of the present invention, a groove or step is provided on the connecting tubular portion of the gas plug . Therefore, when the connecting tubular portion of the gas plug is inserted into the insertion hole of the flange member , the pressing retaining member fits into the groove (or step) on the gas plug side. Thus, the pressing retaining member is forced toward the inner circumference, thereby firmly connecting and fixing the connecting tubular portion of the gas plug and the insertion connection portion of the flange member.

1 is an exploded perspective view showing an embodiment of a gas cock fixing structure according to the present invention; FIG. 2 is a front view showing a flange member in the gas cock fixing structure of FIG. 1 . FIG. 3 is a side view showing the flange member of FIG. 2 . 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line IV-IV in FIG. 2. 2 is a side view showing a state before the connecting tube portion of the gas cock is inserted into the insertion connecting portion of the flange member in the gas cock fixing structure of FIG. 1 . FIG. 2 is a side view showing the state after the connecting tube portion of the gas cock has been inserted into the insertion connecting portion of the flange member in the gas cock fixing structure of FIG. 1 . FIG. 2 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view showing a part of a connecting tube portion of the gas cock and an insertion connecting portion of a flange member in the fixing structure of the gas cock of FIG. 1 ; 2 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view showing a state in which a connecting tube portion of the gas cock is connected to an insertion connecting portion of a flange member in the gas cock fixing structure of FIG. 1 ; 11 is a perspective view showing a state in which the gas supply pipe is connected to the joint member and before the mounting bracket is attached to the flange member. FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing the state in which the mounting bracket is attached to the flange member connected to the gas cock. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the gas valve attached and fixed to the fixed wall, as viewed from the front side of the fixed wall. FIG. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing the gas valve attached to the fixed wall.

An embodiment of the fixing structure of a gas valve according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the attached drawings. First, a gas valve 2 and a flange member 4 will be described with reference to FIG. 1. The illustrated gas valve 2 has a gas valve body 6, and an opening/closing valve (not shown) is attached to a gas flow path (not shown) provided in this gas valve body 6 so that it can be opened and closed. By rotating the operating part 8 in the opening direction, the opening/closing valve is opened and the gas flow path is opened, and by rotating the operating part 8 in the closing direction, the opening/closing valve is closed and the gas flow path is blocked. An inflow connection part 10 is provided on the inflow side of this gas valve body 6, and a supply connection part 12 is provided on the outflow side thereof, and a supply hose (not shown) for supplying fuel gas to a gas appliance, for example, is connected to this supply connection part 12.

In this embodiment, the outer peripheral surface of the inflow connection portion 10 of the gas plug body 6 is formed in a hexagonal shape, and a connection tube portion 14 is provided at its tip. Referring also to FIG. 7, the connection tube portion 14 is a short cylindrical shape that protrudes toward the tip side, and has a tapered portion 16 at its tip, the outer diameter of which gradually decreases toward the tip side. In addition, an annular groove portion 18 is provided in the connection tube portion 14, and this groove portion 18 is provided over the entire circumference of the connection tube portion 14. The bottom surface of this groove portion 18 defines a circumferential surface with a circular cross section, and this circumferential surface functions as a pressed portion against which a pressing and holding member 36 described later acts. In addition, a female thread portion (not shown) to which a coupling member 20 described later is connected is provided on the inner peripheral surface of the connection tube portion 14 of the gas plug body 6.

Next, referring to Figures 2 to 4 as well as Figure 1, the flange member 4 connected to the connection tube portion 14 of the gas plug body 6 will be described. The illustrated flange member 4 has a disk-shaped flange body 22, and an insertion connection portion 24 is provided at one end side of the flange body 22 (the side facing the gas plug 2). A through opening 26 is provided in the center of the flange member 22, and this through opening 26 penetrates the insertion connection portion 24 and the flange body 22 in the axial direction (the direction perpendicular to the paper surface in Figure 2, and the left-right direction in Figures 3 and 4). An insertion hole portion 28 into which the connection tube portion 14 of the gas plug body 6 is inserted is defined in the axial middle portion of this through opening 26, and an insertion opening portion 30 is defined on the insertion side of this insertion hole portion 28. The insertion hole portion 28 of this insertion connection portion 24 has a shape corresponding to the outer shape of the connection tube portion 14 of the gas plug body 6, and this connection tube portion 14 is inserted into the insertion hole portion 28 through the insertion opening portion 30 on the flange member 4 side. In addition, the insertion opening 30 of the insertion connection part 24 has a shape that corresponds to the external shape of the inflow connection part 10 of the gas plug main body 6, and this inflow connection part 10 is inserted into the insertion opening 30 on the flange member 4 side.

A storage groove 32 is provided on the inner peripheral surface of the insertion hole 28 of the flange member 4 in correspondence with the groove 18 of the connection tube 14 of the gas plug body 6 (see Figures 4, 7 and 8). When the connection tube 14 of the gas plug body 6 is inserted into the insertion hole 28 of the flange member 4, as shown in Figure 8, the groove 18 on the gas plug body 6 side is positioned radially inner of the storage groove 32 on the flange member 4 side.

In this embodiment, an annular spacer 34 is accommodated in the accommodation groove 32 of the insertion hole 28 of the flange member 4, and a pressure retaining member 36 is disposed on the radially inner side of the annular spacer 34 (i.e., on the surface side of the annular spacer 34). The annular spacer 34 is made of an elastic member formed from synthetic rubber, synthetic resin, or the like, and acts to hold the pressure retaining member 36 concentrically relative to the accommodation groove 32.

The pressing and retaining member 36 is made of a metal ring-shaped member, preferably a stop ring, but may also be a snap ring, C-ring, etc. The pressing and retaining member 36 (e.g., a stop ring) is configured to act on at least most of the connection tube 14 of the gas valve body 6, for example, on 60% or more of the entire circumference of the connection tube 14, preferably on 80% or more of the entire circumference, and more preferably on 90% or more of the entire circumference.

This ring-shaped member is preferably configured as follows. That is, the inner diameter of the ring-shaped member (pressing and retaining member 36) in its natural state (not expanded or contracted) is set to be smaller than the outer diameter of the bottom surface of the groove 18 of this connecting tube 14. By setting it in this way, when the connecting tube 14 of the gas plug main body 6 is inserted into the insertion hole 28 on the flange member 4 side, this ring-shaped member acts on the bottom surface of the groove 18 of this connecting tube 14 in a state of being somewhat expanded in diameter (in other words, in a state where it is pressed by a contracting action toward the radially inward side).

The outer diameter of the ring-shaped member (pressure retaining member 36) in its natural state is set to be larger than the inner diameter of the insertion hole 28 of the insertion connection portion 24 on the flange member 4 side. By setting it in this way, the ring-shaped member is held in a state accommodated within the accommodation groove 32 on the flange member 4 side before the connection tube portion 14 of the gas plug main body 6 is inserted into the insertion hole portion 28 on the flange member 4 side.

The annular spacer 34 is accommodated in the accommodation groove 32 on the flange member 4 side, and is formed to a size such that its surface side (the side that comes into contact with the ring-shaped member) comes into contact with or is close to the outer circumferential surface of the ring-shaped member in its natural state. By making it this size, the ring-shaped member (pressure retaining member 36) accommodated in the accommodation groove 32 is held concentrically, and the ring-shaped member can be expanded or contracted in the radial direction while being maintained in a concentric state.

The flange member 4 is further provided with an annular protrusion 38 on the other end side that protrudes into the through opening 26, and a gasket 40 is disposed inside the annular protrusion 38. When the connecting tube portion 14 of the gas plug body 6 is inserted into the insertion hole portion 28 on the flange member 4 side as described below, the tip surface of the connecting tube portion 14 abuts against the gasket 40, and the gasket 40 ensures a tight seal between the connecting tube portion 14 of the gas plug body 6 and the annular protrusion 38 of the flange member 4.

The flange member 4 further has a pair of screw through holes 42 that extend axially through the flange body 22 (perpendicular to the paper in FIG. 2, left-right in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4). A recess 46 is provided in a portion of the outer periphery of the insertion connection portion 24 so that the mounting screw 44 (see FIG. 1, FIG. 10 and FIG. 11) that is installed through the screw through hole 42 does not come into contact with the insertion connection portion 24 of the flange member 4. An annular recess 48 is provided on the other end surface of the flange body 22, and an O-ring 50 is disposed in the annular recess 48. As will be understood from the description below, the O-ring 50 is interposed between the fixed wall 52 to which the gas valve 2 is attached.

This gas valve 2 is attached to a fixed wall 52 of a kitchen or the like, for example, in the following manner. When attaching to the fixed wall 52, first connect and fix the flange member 4 to the gas valve 2. This connection and fixation can be achieved by inserting the connection tube portion 14 of the inflow connection portion 10 on the gas valve body 6 side into the insertion hole portion 28 of the insertion connection portion 24 on the flange member 4 side from the state shown in FIG. 5. When inserted in this manner, the tip surface (end surface of the tapered portion 16) of the connection tube portion 14 on the gas valve body 6 side abuts against the annular protrusion 38 of the flange body 22 via the packing 40 (see FIG. 8). In this way, the inflow connection portion 10 of the gas valve 6 is attached to the insertion connection portion 24 of the flange member 4 as shown in FIGS. 6 and 8.

When the connecting tube 14 on the gas valve body 6 side is inserted into the insertion hole 28 through the insertion opening 30 on the flange body 22 side, the ring-shaped member (pressing and holding member 36) is concentrically housed and held in the accommodation groove 32 of the insertion hole 28 by the annular spacer 34, so that the tapered portion 16 of the connecting tube 14 is smoothly inserted into the central space of the ring-shaped member, and the diameter of the connecting tube 14 is expanded concentrically toward the outer periphery in the radial direction by the insertion movement. Then, when it is inserted to a predetermined position, as shown in FIG. 8, the expanded ring-shaped member (pressing and holding member 36) contracts concentrically toward the inner periphery in the radial direction and fits into the groove 18 of the connecting tube 14, and thus the connecting tube 14 of the inflow connection part 10 on the gas valve body 6 side is fixed to the insertion hole 28 of the insertion connection part 24 on the flange body 22 side.

In this connected and fixed state, as can be understood from the above description, the ring-shaped member (pressure retaining member 36) is accommodated in the groove 18 of the connection tube 14 on the gas plug body 6 side in a somewhat expanded state, so that this ring-shaped member acts to bite into the bottom surface of this groove 18, and this biting acts on at least most of the circumferential direction of the connection tube 14 (specifically, the bottom surface of the groove 18), thus firmly connecting and fixing the gas plug body 6 and the flange body 22. In this fixed state, the tip of the inflow connection portion 10 on the gas plug 2 side is inserted into the insertion opening 30 of the insertion connection portion 24 on the flange member 4 side.

Next, a fixing metal fitting 64 having elasticity in the axial direction is inserted into the male threaded portion 62 of the coupling member 20, and in this inserted state, the male threaded portion 62 of the coupling member 20 is screwed into the female threaded portion (not shown) of the connecting tube portion 14 of the gas valve body 6 through the through opening 26 of the flange member 4. When screwed into place in this manner, the fixing metal fitting 64 is compressed between the other surface (back surface) of the flange member 4 and the tool hook hexagonal portion 66 of the coupling member 20. With this configuration, the flange member 4 is biased toward the gas valve 2 by the elasticity of the fixing metal fitting 64, and is held in a state where it is firmly pressed against the connecting tube portion 14.

Next, as shown in FIG. 9, the gas supply pipe 68 is pulled out to the indoor side through the pull-out opening 70 provided in the fixed wall 52, and the tip of the pulled-out gas supply pipe 68 is inserted into the insertion opening 73 of the mounting bracket 72. Note that this pull-out opening 70 is formed in advance at a predetermined location (i.e., the mounting location) on the side of the fixed wall 52 where the gas valve 2 is attached.

Mounting fixture 72 may be a known one disclosed in, for example, JP 2006-266366 A. Mounting fixture 72 includes a support body 74 and a pair of abutment plates 76 attached to support body 74 by, for example, leaf springs in a shape-changeable manner, and the pair of abutment plates 76 are configured to be shape-changeable between a basic shape (shape shown in Figs. 1, 9, 10, and 12) in which they are parallel to support body 74, and a deformed shape in which they are deformed obliquely into a V-shape with respect to support body 74. In the basic shape, the pair of abutment plates 76 are in an expanded state and are larger than the drawer opening 70 on the fixed wall 52 side, and cannot be inserted or removed through this drawer opening 70, but in the deformed shape, the pair of abutment plates 76 are in a state of inward inclination in a direction approaching each other, are smaller than this drawer opening 70, and can be inserted or removed through this drawer opening 52.

Then, as shown in FIG. 10, the tip pipe portion 78 (e.g., a flexible pipe portion) of the gas supply pipe 68 is connected to the joint member 20, and the mounting screw 44 is passed through the screw through hole 42 of the flange member 4 and screwed into the screw hole 80 provided in the support body 74 of the mounting bracket 72. In this way, the gas valve 2 is connected to the tip portion of the gas supply pipe 68 via the joint member 20, and the mounting bracket 72 is fitted onto the gas supply pipe 68.

Then, the mounting bracket 72 is deformed and inserted into the inside of the fixed wall 52 through the pull-out opening 70 of the fixed wall 52, and with the mounting bracket 72 positioned inside the fixed wall 52, the pair of mounting screws 44 are tightened from the surface side (i.e., the room side) of the fixed wall 52. When tightened in this manner, the mounting bracket 72 is pulled toward the fixed wall 52, and thus, as shown in Figures 11 and 12, the flange member 4 and mounting bracket 72 attached to the gas valve 2 clamp the fixed wall 52 from both sides, and thus the gas valve 2 is attached to the fixed wall 52 as required. In this mounting state, the mounting bracket 72 has the coupling member 20 inserted therein, as shown in Figure 12.

The above describes one embodiment of the gas valve fixing structure according to the present invention, but the present invention is not limited to this embodiment, and various modifications and changes are possible without departing from the scope of the present invention.

In the above embodiment, a groove 18 is provided in the connecting tube 14 on the gas valve 2 side, but a step may be provided instead of the groove 18. In this case, the pressing and retaining member 36 (ring-shaped member) fits into the step and bites into the bottom surface of the step. However, it is not necessary to provide such a groove or step, and it may be made to bite into the outer peripheral surface (circular surface) of the connecting tube 14.

In addition, for example, in the above-described embodiment, both the annular spacer 34 and the pressing retaining member 36 (ring-shaped member) are accommodated in the accommodation groove 32 of the insertion hole portion 28 on the flange member 4 side, but when the pressing retaining member 36 can be expanded or contracted as required while accommodated in the accommodation groove 32, the annular spacer 34 can be omitted.

2 Gas valve 4 Flange member 6 Gas valve body 10 Inflow connection portion 14 Connection tube portion 18 Groove portion 22 Flange body 24 Insertion connection portion 28 Insertion hole portion 32 Housing groove 34 Annular spacer 36 Pressing and holding member (ring-shaped member)
52 Fixed wall 68 Gas supply pipe 72 Mounting bracket

Claims (3)

A fixing structure for a gas plug, comprising: a gas plug having a connecting tubular portion; and a flange member having an insertion connection portion, the connecting tubular portion of the gas plug being inserted and connected to an insertion hole of the insertion connection portion of the flange member,
A fixing structure for a gas plug, characterized in that an inner surface of the insertion hole portion of the flange member is provided with an accommodating groove, an annular spacer is accommodated in the accommodating groove, and a pressing and retaining member is accommodated on the inner side of the annular spacer, the annular spacer acts on the pressing and retaining member to hold it concentrically, and the pressing and retaining member presses the connecting tube portion of the gas plug radially inward when the connecting tube portion is inserted into the insertion hole portion of the flange member and acts on at least most of the connecting tube portion in the circumferential direction to maintain the connection. 2. The fixing structure of a gas plug as described in claim 1, characterized in that the connecting tubular portion of the gas plug has a circumferential surface that serves as a pressed portion, the pressing and retaining member is composed of a ring-shaped member that is accommodated in the accommodating groove of the flange member and biases it toward the radially inner side, and the ring-shaped member acts on the circumferential surface of the connecting tubular portion to maintain the connection when the connecting tubular portion of the gas plug is inserted into the insertion hole of the insertion connection portion. 3. The fixing structure of a gas plug according to claim 2, wherein the connecting tube portion of the gas plug is provided with a groove or a step portion that constitutes the pressed portion.

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