JP7651176B2 - Gland packing replacement device and replacement method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a gland packing replacement device and a method for replacing gland packing using said replacement device.

In fluid machinery such as valves and pumps, gland packing is used to seal between the shaft and the bearing tube through which the shaft passes in order to seal the sliding parts. However, gland packing can become deformed or damaged over long periods of use, causing a decrease in sealing performance, so it must be periodically replaced with a new one.

When replacing gland packing, special tools are used, such as a prong-type tool with a sharp, curved cutting edge at the tip, or a screw-type tool with a sharp male thread at the tip. The gland packing is then pulled out by piercing the prongs into the gland packing to hook it, or piercing the male thread and screwing it in, and then pulling up the special tool. If the old gland packing to be replaced remains in the installation location, the new gland packing will not install properly and its sealing performance will decrease, so it is necessary to completely remove the old gland packing, which requires effort, time, and a certain level of skill.

In addition, gland packings generally have a multi-layer structure in which multiple gland packings are stacked in the axial direction of the shaft. When replacing a gland packing with this multi-layer structure, the old gland packing must be removed layer by layer using the special tool described above, which is time-consuming. Furthermore, if the tip of the special tool is not properly inserted between adjacent gland packings and pulled up, the gland packing may be damaged or cut off in the middle.

For example, Patent Document 1 proposes a removal device for a multi-stage gland packing that supplies fluid pressure between adjacent gland packings, moves at least one layer of gland packing in the axial direction of the mounting part, and removes the gland packing that has moved axially.

In addition, in order to detect the piled-up state of the iron ore, coke, and other charges supplied to the blast furnace and control the next supply amount to maintain stable operation, the surface profile of the charges that are supplied to the furnace and piled up inside the blast furnace is detected. The present applicant has also previously proposed a detection device as described in Patent Document 2.

Figure 5 shows the detection device 100 shown in Figure 2 of Patent Document 2. The main parts include an angle-variable reflector 140 in which the inclination angle (X direction) of the reflecting surface 140a toward the blast furnace side is variable, and angle-fixed reflectors 138A to 138C (138). A gear 112 on the outer circumferential surface of the rotating shaft 110 meshes with a gear 155 of the motor 113. By driving the motor 113, the rotating shaft 110 rotates in the Y direction, and the rotating plate 120 rotates horizontally relative to the opening 2 of the blast furnace 1. The angle-variable reflector 140 has a first link 117a of a link mechanism 117 fixed thereto, and a second link 117b is connected to the first link 117a. In addition, a connecting rod 114 that penetrates the inside of the rotating shaft 110 is connected to the second link 117b, and as the connecting rod 114 moves up and down in the H direction, the reflecting surface 140a of the angle-variable reflecting plate 140 tilts in the X direction. Then, by tilting the reflecting surface 140a of the angle-variable reflecting plate 140 while rotating the rotating plate 120 together with the rotating shaft 110, the detection wave M transmitted from the transmitting/receiving means 130 via the antenna 135 scans the surface profile of the charge in the blast furnace in a linear or planar manner.

In this detection device 100, dangerous gases inside the blast furnace 1 enter the rotating shaft 110 through the opening 2, and the inside of the rotating shaft 110 is at high pressure, while the area above the rotating shaft 110 in the figure is at low pressure (atmospheric pressure). Therefore, parts A and B enclosed by circles in the figure, i.e., the area between the top surface of the rotating shaft 110 and the connecting rod 114 and the waveguide 133 of the antenna 135, are sealed with gland packing (not shown, see Figure 1).

JP 2019-218983 A Patent No. 6857933

However, as mentioned above, using dedicated tools requires time, effort, and a certain level of skill, and the removal device of Patent Document 1 requires a supply pipe for supplying the fluid, a fluid supply source, a fluid adjustment valve, etc., making the device structure complicated.

In addition, as devices become smaller, the space around where the gland packing is attached becomes smaller, making replacement work in a small space more difficult. In particular, in detection devices such as those in Patent Document 2, the space above the rotating shaft 110 has been narrowed to make them smaller, making replacement work more difficult.

The present invention was made in consideration of these circumstances, and aims to provide a gland packing replacement device and method that can be performed reliably and easily without leaving any old gland packing behind, and does not require any complicated equipment.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides the following gland packing replacement device and replacement method.
(1) A device for replacing a gland packing that seals between an outer peripheral surface of a shaft or a pipe and an inner peripheral surface of a cylindrical support part through which the shaft or the pipe is inserted, comprising:
a detachment arm having a main portion and a pair of arm portions bifurcated from the main portion;
an engagement portion located outside the support portion and adapted to engage with a tip of the arm portion of the removal arm;
A circular ring member fixed above the support portion so as to face the gland packing;
In addition to providing
With the tip of the arm portion of the removal arm engaged with the engagement portion and the arm portion connected to both radial end portions of the outer circumferential surface of the support portion,
A gland packing replacement device characterized in that the main part of the removal arm is rotated toward the circular member, and the gland packing is pushed up together with the support part using the engagement part as a fulcrum, and the gland packing is pressed against the circular member.
(2) A method for replacing a gland packing that seals between an outer peripheral surface of a shaft or a pipe and an inner peripheral surface of a cylindrical support part through which the shaft or the pipe is inserted, comprising the steps of:
The exchange device described in (1) above is used,
The main part of the removal arm is rotated toward the annular member, and the gland packing is pushed up together with the support part with the engagement part as a fulcrum, and the gland packing is pressed against the annular member, thereby pushing the gland packing downward from the support part, and then
A method for replacing a gland packing, comprising inserting a new gland packing into the support portion from the side of the annular member to replace the gland packing.
(3) The gland packing has a multi-stage structure in which a plurality of gland packings are stacked in multiple stages,
The method for replacing a gland packing described in (2) above, characterized in that the series of operations is repeated: rotating the main part of the removal arm toward the circular member, pushing up the gland packing together with the support part using the engagement part as a fulcrum, pressing the gland packing against the circular member to push the gland packing downward from the support part, and then inserting a new gland packing into the support part from the side of the circular member to replace it.

In the present invention, the old gland packing can be removed by pushing up the removal arm, and then replaced with a new gland packing, all with a simple operation, so that the old gland packing can be replaced with a new one without leaving any residue.

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing an embodiment of an exchange device of the present invention, showing a state before exchange. FIG. 2 is a top view of the support and removal arm of the exchange device shown in FIG. FIG. 3 shows a state in which the main portion of the removal arm is pushed up. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a state in which a new gland packing is being added. FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining the main part of the detection device shown in FIG. 2 of Patent Document 2.

The present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view showing an embodiment of the replacement device of the present invention, showing the state before replacement. A gland packing 30 is installed between the shaft or tube (tube 10 in the example shown) and the support part 20 through which the tube 10 is inserted.

The support section 20 is attached to the support frame 25 by bolts 26. In addition, a ring-shaped enclosure 60 is attached to the outside of the support section 20 by bolts 66 to the support frame 25.

The gland packing 30 has a multi-layer structure with three layers stacked above and below the lantern ring 40, totaling six layers in the illustrated example, and is pressed from above by the gland packing retainer 35 and fixed to the support part 20. The gland packing retainer 35 presses its claw-shaped projections 36 against the top layer of gland packing 30 (symbol "30A"), and is attached to the support part 20 by bolts 37 in a pressed state.

A circular member 50 is installed above the gland packing retainer 35 in a position opposite the gland packing 30. The circular member 50 is attached and fixed to the support frame 55.

The lantern ring 40 is provided to supply grease or oil from the outside to the installation location of the gland packing 30 through an injection hole 45 provided in the support part 20, and to seal the gap between the pipe 10 and the support part 20 and the gap between the gland packings, thereby improving the sealing performance. The lantern ring 40 is also divided into two pieces.

A removal arm 70 is connected to the outer periphery of the support part 20. As shown in FIG. 2, the removal arm 70 is a roughly Y-shaped member having a pair of arms 76 that are bifurcated from a main part 75. Each arm 76 has a long hole 77 whose major axis is the longitudinal direction of the arm 76. A fixing pin 80 is inserted through the long hole and fixed to the outer periphery of the support part 20, thereby connecting the removal arm 70 to the support part 20. For simplicity, FIG. 2 only shows the support part 20, the enclosure 60, and the removal arm 70.

The inner circumferential surface of the enclosure 60 has a pair of protrusions 68 that engage with the tips of the arms 76 of the removal arm 70. The enclosure 60 also has an opening 69 on the side opposite the protrusions 68, allowing the main part 75 of the removal arm 70 to protrude through. Although not shown in the figure, in addition to the protrusions 68, there may also be a hole through which the tip of the arm 76 of the removal arm 70 is inserted. This hole and the protrusions 68 are the "engagement part."

To replace the gland packing 30 using the replacement device 5 configured in this manner, the following series of operations are performed.

First, remove the bolts 37 and detach the gland packing retainer 35 from the support part 20. Also, remove the bolts 26 that attach the support part 20 to the support frame 25.

Next, the removal arm 70 is inserted through the opening 69 of the enclosure 60, and the tip of the arm 76 is engaged with the protrusion 68 of the enclosure 60. At the same time, the fixing pin 80 is inserted into the long hole 77 and fixed to the outer circumferential surface of the support part 20.

3, the main part 75 of the removal arm 70 is rotated toward the annular member 50 as shown by the arrow a in FIG. 1. This causes the gland packing 30 to be pushed up together with the support part 20 toward the annular member 50 by the "leverage principle" with the engagement point between the tip of the arm part 76 of the removal arm 70 and the protrusion part 68 of the enclosure 60 as the fulcrum. In the example shown in the figure, the main part 75 of the removal arm 70 protrudes from the opening 69 of the enclosure 60, but the main part 75 does not have to protrude from the opening 69 of the enclosure 60. This pushing up causes the topmost gland packing 30A to be pressed by the annular member 50, and at the same time, the bottommost gland packing 30 (referenced "30B") is pushed downward from the support part 20.

Next, as shown in FIG. 4, the main part 75 of the removal arm 70 is returned to its original position. In this state, as shown in FIG. 4, five layers of gland packing 30 remain in the support part 20, with the bottom layer of gland packing 30B being pushed out. Therefore, a new gland packing 30 (reference symbol "30C") is inserted into the support part 20 from the side of the annular member 50 to replenish it.

This process of raising and lowering the removal arm 70 and replenishing new gland packing 30C is repeated three times each, and then the lantern ring 40 is pushed out from the support part 20, after which the pushed-out lantern ring 40 is repositioned on the support part 20 from the side of the annular member 50. Three layers of gland packing 30 are then refilled on top of the lantern ring 40.

Then, the support part 20 is attached to the support frame 25 with the bolts 26, and then the gland packing 30 is attached to the support part 20 with the bolts 37 while being pressed by the gland packing retainer 35, completing the replacement work.

Note that in Figures 1 to 4, the removal arm 70 is located on the right side of the figure, but this is not limited and it can be performed in any direction relative to the support part 20.

The above-mentioned exchange device 5 can be widely applied to sealing parts of fluid machines such as valves and pumps, and the detection device of Patent Document 2.

5 Exchange device 10 Tube 20 Support portion 30 Gland packing 35 Gland packing retainer 40 Lantern ring 50 Circular ring member 60 Enclosure 68 Protrusion (engagement portion)
70 Detachable arm 75 Main part 76 Arm part 80 Fixing pin

Claims (3)

A gland packing replacement device that seals between an outer peripheral surface of a shaft or a pipe and an inner peripheral surface of a cylindrical support part through which the shaft or the pipe is inserted,
a detachment arm having a main portion and a pair of arm portions bifurcated from the main portion;
an engagement portion located outside the support portion and adapted to engage with a tip of the arm portion of the removal arm;
A circular ring member fixed above the support portion so as to face the gland packing;
In addition to providing
With the tip of the arm portion of the removal arm engaged with the engagement portion and the arm portion connected to both radial end portions of the outer circumferential surface of the support portion,
A gland packing replacement device characterized in that the main part of the removal arm is rotated toward the circular member, and the gland packing is pushed up together with the support part using the engagement part as a fulcrum, and the gland packing is pressed against the circular member. A method for replacing a gland packing that seals between an outer peripheral surface of a shaft or a pipe and an inner peripheral surface of a cylindrical support part through which the shaft or the pipe is inserted, comprising the steps of:
Using the exchange device according to claim 1,
The main part of the removal arm is rotated toward the annular member, and the gland packing is pushed up together with the support part with the engagement part as a fulcrum, and the gland packing is pressed against the annular member, thereby pushing the gland packing downward from the support part, and then
A method for replacing a gland packing, comprising inserting a new gland packing into the support portion from the side of the annular member to replace the gland packing. The gland packing has a multi-stage structure in which a plurality of gland packings are stacked in multiple stages,
The method for replacing a gland packing as described in claim 2, characterized in that a series of operations is repeated: rotating the main part of the removal arm toward the circular member, pushing up the gland packing together with the support part using the engagement part as a fulcrum, pressing the gland packing against the circular member to push the gland packing downward from the support part, and then inserting a new gland packing into the support part from the side of the circular member to replace it.

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