Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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DEVICE FOR CONTROLLING MEANS FOR DISCHARGING A FLUID
UNDER PRESSURE CONTAINED IN A CONTAINER
The ~resent invention relates to a device for
controlliny means for dischar~iny a fluid under pressure
contained ill d eOlltainer.
Devices of this type are known in the art which comprise
a body ~rovided with at least one cavity in which is mounted
to be movable, under the action of initiating means, a head
actuating the discharging means. Different embodiments have
been proposed. Thus, for example, the initiating means may
comprise screw-and-nut systems, prestressed springs, or -
pyrotechnic systems. The initiating means may consist of a
percussion head perforatiny a membrane closing the container
or a push-member actuating a valve for discharging the fluid
under ~ressure in this container.
In devices for openin~ containers containing fluid under
pressure operating with a percussion member or a push-
member, for example actuated by a manually-controlled screw-
and-nut system, the travel of the percussion member or the
push-member is related to the extent of the ~ull exerted on
this sytem by the user.
It will therefore be understood that it is necessary to
dimension these initiating means in such manner that the
travel of the percussion member or push-member be sufficient
to achieve a yood discharye of the fluid under pressure.
These requirements involve a number of problems related
in particular to the overall size of these devices, their
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facility of initiation and their reliability over a period .
of time. Now, in such ap~lications, as fox exam~le the
inflation of survival rafts at sea, these features are of
capital importance.
An object of the invention is therefore to solve these
problems by proposing a control device which is simple,
reliable, of small overall size, of low cost and ~ermits
achieviny the dischar~e of the fluid under ~ressure in a -~
rapid and effective manner.
The invention therefore provides a device for
controllin~ means for discharyiny a fluid under pressure
contained in a container, of the type comyrising a body
provided with at least one cavity in which is mounted to be
movable under the action of initiatiny means a head for
actuating the discharging means, said device comyrisin~
means for assistiny the actuation of the dischar~ing means,
whose source of energy is the fluid under ~ressure contained
in the container fed, after a beginning of the actuation of
the discharging means by the actuating head, said
discharging means for the fluid under pressure and/or the
actuating head being mounted to be movable between a
retracted position and a~ active position in the body, said
body including an outlet duct for the fluid under pressure,
wherein the outlet duct for the fluid under pressure is
provided in a portion of the body for communicatin~ with the
assisting means when the rneans for discharginy the fluid
under pressure and/or the actuatiny head are in the active
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~osition.
A better understandiny of the invention will be had from
the followiny descri~tion which is yiven solely by way of
exam~le with reference to the accom~anying drawinys, in
which:
Fiys. 1 to 3 are sectional views of a first embodiment
of a device according to the invention, illustrating the
operation of the device, and
Fig. 4 is a sectional view of a second embodiment of a
device accordin~ to the invention.
As can be seen in Fiy. 1, a control device according to
the invention com~rises a body 1 of a housing provided with
at least one axial cavity 2 in which are mounted to be
movable under the action of initiatiny means 3, actuating
means 4 for actuating the discharginy means 5 of a fluid
under pressure contained in a container 6. This container
comprises for example a ~rojectiny s~igot 6a screwed in a
discharge chamber 1a of the body 1. The discharge chamber
1a and the axial cavity 2 of the body 1 are se~arated by a
partition wall 1b ~rovided with an a~erture 1c for the
passage of a ~art of the means for discharging the fluid
contained in the container, for example constituted by means
for perforatin~ the container which will be described in
more detail hereinafter. A sealing element 1d is provided
between the ~artition wall and the ~erforatiny means for
providing a seal~d separation between the discharge chamber
1a and the axial cavity 2 of the body. The initiating means
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com~rise, in this embodilnent, a control cable 7 which
drives, throu~h a driving element 8, a head 9 of a screw 10
cooyeratirly with a tau~ed portion 11 of the body so that the - -
screw is shifted in the cavity of the latter and therefore
relative to the driviny element.
The device according to the invention com~rises an
actuatin~ head 12 constituted by the previously-described ;
actuating means 4 mounted to be movable in the cavity 2
under the action of the ~reviously-described initiating
means 3, this actuating head driving, when it is shifted,
the discharyiny means 5 of the fluid under pressure
contained in the container. These discharginy means
coMprise~ in this embodiment, a piston 13 having one side
adapted to cooperate with the actuating head 12 and another
side including means 1~ adapted to perforate the container
and thereby permit the discharye of the fluid under pressure
from the container into the discharge chamber 1a of the
body~ These perforating sneans are for example formed by a
tube having a chamfered end. Indeed, the afore~entioned
piston 13 and this tube include an axial duct 16
constitutin~ means for connecting the assisting means for
the actuation of the discharying means to the outlet ~ath of
the fluid under pressure, so that these assisting means are
fed with the fluid, after the beginning of the actuation of
the discharging means by the control head, as will be
ex~lained in more detail hereinafter.
The body 1 also includes an air vent 17 of the portion
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of the cavity located between the dischargin~ means, and
more uarticularly the ~iston of the latter, and the rest of
the bod~, and a duct 18 for the outlet of the fluid under
~ressure, this duct beiny ~rovided in such part of the bod~
1 as to be closed by the ~lston 13 of the dischar~ing means
when the latter are in the retracted position in the caYity
2 of the body.
In the embodiment shown in Fig. 1, the assisting means
comprise an assistin~ chamber ~rovided in the cavity of the
body. This assistiny chamber is for example formed by a
chamber 19 provided between the actuatiny head 12 and the
discharyiny means 5, and more s~ecifically the ~iston 13 of
the latter. This chamber is connected to the discharye
chamber 1a of the body throuyh the duct 16 in the
discharyiny means so as to cause a displacement of the
discharging means, as will be described in more detail
hereinafter.
Fig. 1 shows a device in the non-initiated ~osition.
Indeed, the screw 10, the actuatiny head 12 and the
discharging means are in the up~er position, so that the
perforating end of the latter is a retracted position in the
discharge chamber 1a.
When the user desires to cause a discharge of fluid, he
shifts the control cable 7 in the direction of the arrow in
Fig. 2 so as to rotate the screw 10 throuyh the driviny
member 8 and the head 9 of this screw. As the latter
cooperates with the internal ta~ped ~ortion 11 of the body,
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it descends in th~ cavity 2 of the latter and the actuatin~
i`: .
head 12 connected to the screw uryes the fluid dischar~in~
m~a~Is~ constituted in the ~resently-descrlbed embodiment by
means for perforatiny the container, in a direction toward
an active uosition. As soon as the end of the ~rforatin~
means has ~erforated the container, fluid under pressure
enters the axial duct 16 of the discharging means in the
direction from the container 6 to the assisting chamber 19.
The increase in the pressure in the latter results in a
10 continuation of the displacement of the piston 13 of the ~`
discharging means S to a position in which the dischar~iny -`
means, and more specifically the piston 13 of the latter,
clear the outlet duct 18 for the fluid under pressure and
completely ~erforate the container. This duct is then in
communication with the assisting chamber 19, as can be seen
in ~articular in Fig. 3, and the assisting chamber 19 which
is itself in coMmunication with the interior of the
container 6 of fluid under ~ressure through the duct 16
provided in the discharging means. Note that, in this
embodiment, the system comprisin~ the screw and the tapped
portion is non-reversible.
Consequently it will be understood that the chamber 19
constitutes means for assisting the displacement of the
means for dischar~iny the fluid under pressure, this chamber
bein~ connected to the outlet path of the fluid under
pressure after a beyinning of the actuation of the
discharying means by the actuating head.
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Note that, in the case where the device accordin~ to the
in,vention is em~loyed for achievin~ the inflatiorl of some
structure, such as an inflatable survival raft, the latter
is connected to the outlet duct 18.
It will b~ understood that other embodiments are
~ossible. Thus, for exam~le, there is shown in Fig. 4 a
second embodiment of a device accordin~ to the invention
which also com~rises a body 101 urovided with a step~ed
cavity 102 having a first part 102a in which is disposed a
ta~ped and screw-threaded sleeve 103 adapted to cooperate
with a screw 104 of initiatiny means 105 of the device.
This screw 104 is connected to an actuatiny head 106 which
is movably mounted in a cavity 103a of the sleeve and whose
end is ada~ted to coo~erate with a ~iston 107 of means 108
for discharyiny fluid under ~ressure contained in a
container 109 fixed to the body 101. The piston is mounted
in a second part 102b of the cavity in the body to be
m~vable between a retracted ~osition and an active ~osition
in which a percussion head 110 connected to the ~iston 107
20 perforates the container 109. The body 101 further
comprises a dischar~e chamber 101a which is put in
communication with the interior of the container 109 when
the percussion head has started to ~erforate the latter.
The fluid under pressure therefore enters the discharye
25 chamber 101a, separated from the cavity 102 in a sealed
manner by a partition wall 101b similar tc- the ~artition
wall lb described with reference to Fi~. 1, then enters,
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1363
through a duct 111 ~rovided in the body of the housing, an
assisting chalober 112 ~rovided between the dischar~ing rneans
and the actuatiny head. Under the effect of this ~ressure,
the piston 107 continues its downward travel to a ~osition
in which the assisring chamber 112 is in communication with
a fluid outlet du~t 113.
In this embodiment, the means for connectin~ the
assisting chaMber 112 to the fluid outlet ~ath com~rise a
duct ~rovided in the body of the housing between the
dischar~e chamber and the assistiny chamber.
Other embodiments of the invention are also possible.
Thus, the assisting means may comprise an assistiny chamber
~rovided between one end of the actuatiny head, for example
at the level o~ the screw head 9, and the confrontin~
surface of the body 1. In this case, the screw-and-nut
initiating system is reversible so as to ~ermit the
dis~lacement of the assembl~ mounted in the cavity of the
body.
Furthermore~ the assistin~ means may also com~rise an
assisting chamber provided in an intermediate uart of the
actuating head between two confronting surfaces of the
latter haviny different effective sections.
The actuating head may also be constituted by two parts,
one of which is for example connected to the screw of the
initiating means, these parts being movable relative to each
other, and the assisting means may comprise an assisting
chamber then provided between the initiating means and the
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actuatin~ head.
The connectiny means in the various ~reviously-described
embodiments may be formed by a duct provided ln the body of
the housiny or in all of the components disposed in the
cavity of the body between the dischar~in~ chamber and the
assistin~ chamber, in the case where the a~sistiny chamber
is provided between the head of the screw and the
confrontin~ surface of the body, or by a duct provided in
the means for perforatiny the container and in the actuating
head, in the case where the chamber is provided between the
actuatin~ head and the irlitiatin~ means.
In other embodiments, the means for discharging fluid
under pressure may also include a fluid discharye valve.
In this case, the assisting means are connected to the
outlet of this valve throuyh connectiny means. The latter
may be for example formed by a duct which is branch
connected to the outlet orifice of the valve. The actuatiny
head of the dischar~ing means then acts on a control rod of
the valve, the rod beiny displaced by the actuatin~ head in
response to the action of the initiatin~ means, this
displacement ayain bein~ assisted in a manner similar to
that described hereinbefore.
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