WO2006046793A1

WO2006046793A1 - Regulator

Info

Publication number: WO2006046793A1
Application number: PCT/KR2005/000081
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jong-Kee Kim
Original assignee: Sancheong Co Ltd
Current assignee: Sancheong Co Ltd
Priority date: 2004-10-29
Filing date: 2005-01-11
Publication date: 2006-05-04
Anticipated expiration: 2007-04-29
Also published as: KR20060038007A; KR100581760B1

Abstract

A regulator to regulate pressure of high-pressure gas discharged from a gas bombe is disclosed. When the spout (la) of a gas bombe (1) fastened to a bombe connection part (52) of a regulator housing (50) is manipulated, gas from the bombe passes through a gas supply valve (60), a pressure regulation valve (70) and a flow control valve (80). The pressure regulation valve (70) opens or closes the gas supply valve (60) according to the pressure of the gas, thus regulating the pressure of the gas in the housing. The regulated gas may be discharged through an upper nozzle (54) or a lower nozzle (56). A retainer ring (90) to support the pressure regulation valve and to prevent contact between the two valves (70, 80) is placed in a step space (80a) of the flow control valve. Thus, the pressure regulation valve does not press the flow control valve.

Description

DESCRIPTION

REGULATOR

Technical Field

The present invention relates, in general, to regulators to regulate the pressure of high-pressure gases discharged from the spouts of gas bombes and, more particularly, to a regulator to regulate the pressure of high-pressure oxygen gas contained in a bombe (oxygen bombe) for resuscitation systems to an appropriate^■pressure when the oxygen gas is discharged from the spout of the bombe.

[Background Art]

Generally, a conventional regulator, which regulates the pressure of high-pressure oxygen gas of an oxygen bombe to a low pressure when the oxygen gas is discharged from the bombe, comprises a housing 10 with a bombe connection part 12 provided at an upper portion of the housing 10 as shown in Fig. 1. The bombe connection part 12 has a gate 12a to receive therein the spout Ia of the oxygen bombe 1. The spout Ia of the bombe 1 is fastened to the gate 12a by the manipulation of a handle 12b of the bombe connection part 12. The spout Ia of the bombe 1 has an outlet through which the oxygen gas is discharged from the bombe 1 according to the manipulation of the spout Ia. When the spout Ia of the bombe 1 is fastened to the boitibe connection part 12 of the housing 10, the outlet of the spout Ia is connected to a gas supply valve 16 of the housing 10, which is best seen in Fig. 2. In the above state, the oxygen gas can be discharged from the bombe 1 through the outlet of the spout Ia according to the manipulation of the spout Ia

(conventionally, the oxygen gas is discharged from the bombe through the outlet of the spout by rotation of the cylindrical spout) .

Thus, the high-pressure oxygen gas is discharged from the bombe 1 into the housing 10 through' the gas supply valve 16. In the housing 10, the oxygen gas flows through an upper gas passage 10a provided in the housing 10 at a position above a pressure regulation valve 18, and reaches an upper nozzle 14 mounted to a sidewall of the housing 10, as shown in Fig. 2. In the above state, the oxygen gas discharged from the bombe 1 also flows to a pressure indicator I through the gas supply valve 16 as shown in the drawing. Therefore, the pressure indicator I shows the inner pressure of the oxygen bombe 1, while the upper nozzle 14^' of the housing 10 supplies the oxygen gas to a forcible respirator (not shown) which is connected to an outlet of the upper nozzle 14 through a hose. While the oxygen gas discharged from the bombe 1 into the housing 10 flows to the upper gas passage 10a as described above, the oxygen gas also flows through the pressure regulation valve 18 and a flow control valve 20 which are sequentially installed in the housing 10. Thus, when the flow control valve 20 is opened, the oxygen gas is discharged from the housing 10 through a lower nozzle 15 mounted to a lower nozzle fitting hole 15a provided at a lower portion of the housing 10. The oxygen gas discharged from the lower nozzle 15 is supplied to a respiration mask

(not shown) which is connected to an outlet of the lower nozzle 15 through a hose.

Each of the pressure regulation valve 18 and the flow^' control valve 20 is closely installed in the housing 10 with a ring gasket g fitted around the outer circumferential surface thereof. Herein below, the pressure regulation valve 18 and the flow control valve 20 will be described in detail.

First, the pressure regulation valve 18 comprises a valve poppet 18a, a guide ring 18b and a spring 18c, and receives the oxygen gas therein through the guide ring 18b which is closely placed below the lower end of the gas supply valve 16. In the pressure regulation valve 18, the oxygen gas passes downwards through a central hole formed through the central axis of the valve poppet 18a, and is discharged from the lower end of the poppet 18a. The central hole formed through the central axis of the valve poppet 18a extends inwards from a sidewall of a vertical stem of the valve poppet 18a in radial directions and extends downwards to the lower end of the poppet 18a as shown in the drawing. Thus, the stem of the valve poppet 18a is closed at an upper end thereof. The valve poppet 18a and the guide ring 18b are assembled together and are elastically biased in opposite directions by the spring 18c as shown in the drawing. The upper part of the vertical stem of the valve poppet 18b is closely inserted into a central hole of the guide ring 18b. As shown in the drawing, the guide ring 18b, the spring 18c and the valve poppet 18a of the pressure regulation valve 18 are sequentially seated in a cylinder 22 which integrally extends upwards from the upper end of the flow control valve 20. The outside edge of a disk of the valve poppet 18a is seated on an annular step 24 formed in the cylinder 22. The annular step 24 is configured such that the step 24 is higher than a pinhole disk 26 of the flow control valve 20, which will be described later herein. Thus, the step 24 forms a chamber C between the valve poppet 18a of the pressure regulation valve 18 and the pinhole disk 26 of the flow control valve 20 as shown in an enlarged view of the drawing. Of course, the chamber C is a gap that is defined between the valve poppet 18a and the pinhole disk 26 by the step 24. The above-mentioned step 24 prevents undesired contact of the valve poppet 18a with the pinhole disk 26 in addition to provision of the chamber C. In the above state, the valve poppet 18a does not compress the pinhole disk 26. Described in detail, the lower surface of the disk of the valve poppet 18a is seated on the step 24, so that the valve poppet 18a cannot compress the pinhole disk 26.

The pressure regulation valve 18 supplies high- pressure oxygen gas from the gas supply valve 16 to the chamber C through the central hole of the valve poppet 18a. In the above state, when the flow control valve 20 is closed and, at the same time, the pressure of the oxygen gas from the gas supply valve 16 exceeds 3.5 kg/cm², the valve poppet 18a rises in the cylinder 22 due to the pressure of the oxygen gas contained in the chamber C. In other words, the oxygen gas contained in the chamber C is compressed in the chamber C and pushes the valve poppet 18a upwards. Thus, the valve poppet 18a rises in the cylinder 22 while overcoming the elasticity of the spring 18c. The upward movement of the valve poppet 18a in the above state is guided by the guide ring 18b. The above-mentioned rising valve poppet 18a closes the outlet of the gas supply valve 16 using the closed upper end of the stem thereof, so that oxygen gas cannot be supplied into the housing 10. The oxygen gas which was contained in the housing 10 is discharged from the housing 10 through the upper gas passage 10a or the flow control valve 20. Because the oxygen gas which was contained in the housing 10 is discharged from the housing 10 as described above, the pressure in the chamber C is regulated to a level lower than about 3.5 kg/cm². Thus, the spring 18c biases the valve poppet 18a which has risen, so that the valve poppet 18a returns to its original position. As the valve poppet 18a returns to its original position, the gas supply valve 16 is opened and supplies oxygen gas into the housing 10 again. Of course, it should be understood that the spring 18c is designed such that the spring 18c is compressed or expanded by pressures of about 3.5 kg/cm².

In the above state, the inner pressure of the housing 10 is maintained at about 3.5 kg/cm² due to the operation of the pressure regulation valve 18. In other words, the pressure of the oxygen gas supplied into the housing 10 through the gas supply valve 16 is always maintained at about 3.5 kg/cm² due to the operation of the pressure regulation valve 18. Of course, the oxygen gas is discharged from the housing 10 at the same pressure as the pressure of the oxygen gas controlled by the pressure regulation valve 18.

The flow control valve 20 has a cylindrical shape as shown in the drawings, and is provided with a lower gas passage 20a to guide oxygen gas from the pressure regulation valve 18 to the lower nozzle 15 of the housing 10. The flow control valve 20 further includes the pinhole disk 26 which controls the flow rate of the oxygen gas flowing from the pressure regulation valve 18 to the lower gas passage 20a. The above-mentioned pinhole disk 26 comprises a plurality of pinholes 26a and a central shaft 26b as shown in another enlarged view of the drawing. The pinholes 26a are formed through the disk 26 and are spaced apart from each other at regular intervals, while the central shaft 26b is coupled to a knob 28 and is rotated by operation of the knob 28.

The pinholes 26a of the pinhole disk 26 have different diameters and are sequentially arranged around the pinhole disk 26 in order from the smallest diameter pinhole to the largest diameter pinhole. In the pinhole disk 26, the gap between the smallest diameter pinhole 26a and the largest diameter pinhole 26a is much larger than the gaps between the other pinholes 26a as shown in the drawing. Thus, the pinhole disk 26 has a non-holed section which is a land with no pinhole 26a.

The pinhole disk 26 of the flow control valve 20 is rotated by operation of the knob 28 so that one of the plurality of pinholes 26a or the non-holed section of the disk 26 is aligned with the inlet of the lower gas passage 20a. Thus, the lower gas passage 20a of the flow control valve 20 is opened or closed by the pinhole disk 26. During the above-mentioned operation, the flow rate of the oxygen gas flowing into the lower gas passage 20a is determined by a pinhole 26a of the pinhole disk 26 which is aligned with the inlet of the lower gas passage 20a. In other words, the flow rate of the oxygen gas flowing into the lower gas passage 20a is determined by the diameter of the aligned pinhole 26a. In conclusion, the flow control valve 20 can control the flow rate of the oxygen gas, which is discharged through the lower nozzle 15 of the housing 10, due to the pinhole disk 26 which is rotated by the operation of the knob 28. The pinhole disk 26 does not interfere with the valve poppet 18a due to the step 24 which is formed in the cylinder 22 of the flow control valve 20. Thus, the pinhole disk 26 is rotated along with the knob 28 during rotation of the knob 28. If the valve poppet 18a compresses the pinhole- disk 26, the pinhole disk 26 cannot be rotated. Thus, to allow rotation of the pinhole disk 26, the above- mentioned step 24 must be formed in the cylinder 22.

The housing 10 may have two upper nozzles 14 as shown in the drawing. When the two upper nozzles 14 are provided on the housing 10, one upper nozzle 14 may be connected to a forcible respirator, while the other upper nozzle 14 may be connected to a suction device (not shown) .

In the above-mentioned conventional regulator, the step 24 formed in the cylinder 22 of the flow control valve 20 prevents undesired contact of the valve poppet 18a with the pinhole disk 26 and, at the same time, defines the chamber C between the valve poppet 18a and the pinhole disk 26. Thus, to allow the pinhole disk 26 to be rotated and the valve poppet 18a to rise and fall, the cylinder 22 having the step 24 must be provided at the upper end of the flow control valve 20.

The above-mentioned cylinder 22 undesirably increases production costs of the regulator and increases the production time of the regulator. Furthermore, a process of installing the elements of the pressure regulation valve 18 in the cylinder 22 must be added to the production process for the regulator.

In addition, when the flow control valve 20 is installed in the housing 10 of the conventional regulator, the ring gaskets g which are fitted around the lower portion of the outer circumferential surface of the flow control valve 20 strike and are damaged by the inside edge of the lower nozzle fitting- hole 15a which is formed in the lower portion of the housing 10.

The above-mentioned strike of the ring gaskets g of the flow control valve 20 against the inside edge of the lower nozzle fitting hole 15a is necessary because the ring gaskets g, which have been placed in a compressed state in the lower portion of the housing 10, instantaneously expand at a position around the lower nozzle fitting hole 15a when the flow control valve 20 is fitted into the housing 10. The expanding ring gaskets g in the above state strike and are cut by the inside edge of the lower nozzle fitting hole 15a.

In the drawings, the reference character P denotes a packing ring which is fitted over the stem of the valve poppet 18a constituting the pressure regulation valve 18, and S denotes a snap ring which locks the flow control valve 20 to the housing 10. The reference numeral 10b denotes an air hole to prevent the formation of a vacuum in the housing 10 at a position with the spring 18c of the pressure regulation valve 18.

[Disclosure] [Technical Problem]

Accordingly, the present invention has been made keeping in mind the above-mentioned problems occurring in the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a regulator in which, although a conventional cylinder having a step is not provided in a flow control valve, a pressure regulation valve can be spaced apart from the flow control valve, so that the pressure regulation valve is prevented from undesired contact with the flow control valve and allows a pinhole disk of the flow control valve to be rotated and a valve poppet of the pressure regulation valve to rise and fall.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a regulator in which, although the valve poppet of the pressure regulation valve and the pinhole disk of the flow control valve are not spaced apart from each other to define a chamber between them, the valve poppet can rise and fall due to gas supplied from a gas supply valve. A further object of the present invention is to provide a regulator in which the coefficient of friction of a ring gasket relative to the inside edge of a lower nozzle fitting hole formed in the lower portion of a housing is reduced, so that the ring gasket is prevented from being damaged due to the lower nozzle fitting hole.

[Technical Solution]

In order to accomplish the above objects, the present invention provides a regulator, comprising: a cap-shaped housing, with a bombe connection part provided at an upper portion of the housing to fasten the spout of a high- pressure gas bombe to the housing, and upper and lower nozzles respectively mounted to upper and lower nozzle fitting holes which are formed at upper and lower positions of the housing, so that the nozzles discharge the gas from an inside to an outside of the housing; a gas supply valve securely set in the housing and supplying the gas from the spout of the bombe into the housing; a pressure regulation valve to guide the gas from the gas supply valve to a lower portion of the inside of the housing and to regulate the pressure of the gas supplied into the housing by opening or closing the gas supply valve according to the pressure of the gas supplied from the gas supply valve; a flow control valve placed in the housing in a sealed state such that the flow control valve is aligned with the pressure regulation valve in a line, the flow control valve defining a step space on the periphery of an upper end thereof, and supplying the gas from the pressure regulation valve to the lower nozzle of the housing while controlling the flow rate of the gas; and a retainer ring placed in the step space of the flow control valve, thus supporting the periphery of a lower surface of the pressure regulation valve and preventing contact between the pressure regulation valve and the flow control valve.

In the regulator, the pressure regulation valve may comprise: a disk-shaped valve poppet, with a ring gasket provided around an outer circumferential surface of the valve poppet to seal the valve poppet and an inner circumferential surface of the housing, and a stem provided on the valve poppet, closed at an upper end thereof, and provided with a central hole therein to supply the gas from the gas supply valve to the lower portion of the housing, so that ' the valve poppet rises or falls according to the pressure of the gas to be supplied to the lower portion of the housing, thus closing or opening the gas supply valve by the upper end of the stem; a guide ring closely connected to a lower end of the gas supply valve, with an upper portion of the stem of the valve poppet closely received in the guide ring, so that the guide ring supplies the gas from the gas supply valve to the central hole of the stem and guides the rising or falling motion of the valve poppet; and an elastic member to elastically support both the valve poppet and the guide ring.

The pressure regulation valve may further comprise: a poppet lifting means for lifting the valve poppet using the high-pressure gas supplied thereto through the stem of the valve poppet. The poppet lifting means may comprise: a poppet chamber formed on a central portion of a lower surface of the valve poppet such that the poppet chamber is opened downwards and communicates with the central hole of the stem of the valve poppet, thus allowing the high- pressure gas supplied from the stem of the valve poppet to be compressed in the poppet chamber and push the valve poppet upwards.

The retainer ring may be configured such that an upper surface of the retainer ring protrudes above the upper end of the flow control valve, thus supporting the periphery of the lower surface of the pressure regulation valve and spacing the pressure regulation valve and the flow control valve apart from each other.

The above-mentioned retainer ring determines the distance between the pressure regulation valve and the flow control valve. In other words, the distance between the pressure regulation valve and the flow control valve is determined by the retainer ring. In the above state, the retainer ring may space the pressure regulation valve apart from the flow control valve such that a chamber is defined between the pressure regulation valve and the flow control valve. Alternatively, the retainer ring may space the pressure regulation valve apart from the flow control valve by a slight gap without defining such a chamber between the two valves. The retainer ring has an annular shape and may be configured as a plurality of parts. Described in detail, the annular retainer ring may be bisected into two parts, or may be quartered into four parts. However, it is preferable to configure the retainer ring as ^• a single integrated body in consideration of convenience during the process of producing and assembling the regulator.

The flow control valve may comprise: a cylindrical valve body, with a ring gasket provided around an outer circumferential surface of the valve body to seal the valve body and an inner circumferential surface of the housing, and a gas passage provided in the valve body to guide the gas from the pressure regulation valve to the lower nozzle of the housing; a pinhole disk rotatably placed on a central portion of an upper surface of the valve body and providing the step space on an upper end of the valve body, with a plurality of pinholes having different diameters and formed through the pinhole disk at positions spaced apart from each other at regular intervals, so that, when the pinhole disk is rotated, the pinhole disk aligns one of the plurality of pinholes or a land between the pinholes with the gas passage of the valve body, thus controlling the flow rate of the gas to be supplied to the lower nozzle of the housing; and a rotating unit coupled to the pinhole disk and rotating the pinhole disk.

The rotating unit may comprise: a rotating shaft extending from the center of the pinhole disk and vertically passing through the valve body; and a knob coupled to the rotating shaft and rotated along with the rotating shaft.

Alternatively, the rotating unit may comprise: a disk cap placed to close an upper surface of the pinhole disk, with a gas supply hole formed on the upper surface of the disk cap and supplying the gas from the pressure regulation valve into the pinhole disk, and a rotating shaft extending from a center of the disk cap and passing through centers of both the valve body and the pinhole disk such that the rotating shaft is integrated with the pinhole disk; and a knob coupled to the rotating shaft of the disk cap and rotated along with the rotating shaft.

The housing may further comprise: a damage prevention means for preventing the ring gasket from being damaged by being compressed against the inner circumferential surface of the lower portion of the housing when both the pressure regulation valve and the flow control valve are installed in the housing. The damage prevention means may comprise: an inner diameter enlargement groove formed on the inner circumferential surface of the lower portion of the housing along a circumferential direction at a position corresponding to the lower nozzle fitting hole of the housing, thus reducing a coefficient of friction of the ring gasket relative to the inner circumferential surface of the lower portion of the housing.

[Advantageous Effects]

In the regulator according to the present invention, the retainer ring spaces the pressure regulation valve apart from the flow control valve and, at the same time, prevents undesired contact between the pressure regulation valve and the flow control valve. Thus, the present invention does not require a conventional cylinder having a step in the flow control valve, simplifies the production process of the regulator, reduces the production costs of the regulator, and produces a compact regulator.

Furthermore, when the poppet chamber is formed in the valve poppet of the pressure regulation valve and the pressure regulation valve is spaced apart from the flow control valve by a gap, the gas compressed in the poppet chamber pushes the valve poppet upwards, thus allowing the valve poppet to rise and fall. Furthermore, in the above state, the gap between the pressure regulation valve and the flow control valve is minimized, so that the length of the regulator can be sufficiently reduced to provide a compact regulator.

In addition, the retainer ring defines the chamber between the pressure regulation valve and the flow control valve and, furthermore, supplies the compressed gas to the periphery of the lower surface of the valve poppet of the pressure regulation valve. Thus, although a conventional cylinder having a step is not provided in the flow control valve of the regulator, the valve poppet can rise and fall due to the gas discharged from the gas bombe in the same manner as that described for the related art. Furthermore, due to the inner diameter enlargement groove formed in the housing, the ring gaskets of both the pressure regulation valve and the flow control valve are free from severe frictional contact with the inside edge of the lower nozzle fitting hole formed in the lower portion of the housing. Thus, it is possible to prevent damage to the ring gaskets.

[Description of Drawings]

Fig. 1 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the construction of a conventional regulator; Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the regulator of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an exploded perspective view illustrating a regulator according to a first embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view of the regulator of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view illustrating the operation of the regulator according to the first embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view illustrating a regulator according to a second embodiment of the present invention; and

Fig. 7 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the construction of a flow control valve shown in Fig. 6.

[Best Mode]

Herein below, a regulator according to the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Fig. 3 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the regulator according to a first embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view ^' of the regulator of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view illustrating the operation of the regulator according to the first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the regulator according to the first embodiment of the present invention comprises a cylindrical cap-shaped housing 50 having a pressure indicator I, with a gas supply valve 60, a pressure regulation valve 70, a retainer ring 90, and a flow control valve 80 which are sequentially installed in the housing 50. The above-mentioned construction of the regulator according to the first embodiment will be described in detail herein below.

The housing 50 is configured as a hollow cylindrical body which is opened at its lower end, with a bombe connection part 52 provided at an upper portion of the housing 50 to fasten the spout Ia of an oxygen bombe 1 to the housing 50 as shown in Fig. 3. The bombe connection part 52 has a gate 52a which receives therein the spout Ia of the oxygen bombe 1, and a chuck 52b which compresses the spout Ia of the bombe 1 received in the gate 52a, thus fastening the spout Ia to the gate 52a. In the present invention, the chuck 52b is preferably configured as a T- shaped handle which is screwed to the upper portion of the gate 52a such that the handle is moved upwards and downwards, as shown in the drawings.

Two nozzle fitting holes 54a and 56a are formed through a sidewall of the housing 50 at upper and lower positions as shown in Fig. 4, so that upper and lower nozzles 54 and 56 are fitted into the nozzle fitting holes 54a and 56a, respectively. In the present invention, it is preferable to provide two upper nozzles 54 on the upper portion of the housing 50 as shown in Fig. 3. One of the two upper nozzles 54 may be connected to a forcible respirator

(not shown) , while the other upper nozzle 54 may be connected to a suction device, (not shown) . Unlike the two upper nozzles, only one lower nozzle 56 is preferably provided on the housing 50 and is connected to a respiration mask (not shown) .

An upper gas passage 50a is provided in the upper portion of the housing 50 such that the passage 50a communicates with the upper nozzle 54. An inner diameter enlargement groove 58 to prevent ring gaskets G of both the pressure regulation valve 70 and the flow control valve 80 from being damaged is formed on the inner circumferential surface of the lower portion of the housing 50. The inner diameter enlargement groove 58 is formed on the inner surface of the housing 50 along a circumferential direction at a position corresponding to the lower nozzle fitting hole 56a. The inner diameter enlargement groove 58 functions as a damage prevention means for preventing damage to the ring gaskets G.

The gas supply valve 60 is vertically and securely set in the housing 50 at a position below the gate 52a of the housing 50 as shown in Fig. 4. The gas supply valve 60 connects the outlet of the spout Ia of the bombe 1, which is fastened to the bombe connection part 52, to the bore of the housing 50. The gas supply valve 60 communicates with the pressure indicator I, as shown in the drawing, so that the pressure indicator I shows the pressure of oxygen gas flowing through the gas supply valve 60, which is equal to the inner pressure of the bombe 1.

The pressure regulation valve 70 comprises a disk- shaped valve poppet 72; a cylindrical guide ring 74 which is closely placed below the lower end of the gas supply valve 60; and an elastic member 76 which elastically biases the valve poppet 72 and the guide ring 74 in opposite directions, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4. The above-mentioned construction of the pressure regulation valve 70 will be described in detail herein below.

The valve poppet 72 has a. vertical stem 72a which extends upwards from the center of the disk of the poppet 72 as shown in Fig. 4. The stem 72a of the valve poppet 72 has a central hole which extends inwards from the sidewall of the stem 72a in radial directions and extends downwards to the lower end of the poppet 72a, with a packing ring PR fitted over the stem 72a and sealing the junction between the stem 72a and the guide ring 74. The stem 72a of the valve poppet 72 is closed at an upper end thereof due to the above-mentioned structure of the central hole of the stem 72a. Furthermore, a ring gasket G is fitted around the disk of the valve poppet 72, thus sealing the junction between the disk of the valve poppet 72 and the inner surface of the housing 50.

The guide ring 74 has an external flange around its upper end as shown in Fig. 4, with a grommet 74a provided along the periphery of the upper surface of the guide ring 74. The above-mentioned guide ring 74 is installed in the housing 50 such that the guide ring 74 directly communicates with the gas supply valve 60. In the above state, the grommet 60 seals the junction between the guide ring 74 and the gas supply valve 60. The elastic member 76 is a coil spring as shown in Fig. 4. In the present invention, the elastic member 76 must be specifically designed such that the elastic member 76 is compressed when the pressure of oxygen gas discharged from the bombe 1 exceeds 3.5 kg/cm². The elastic member 76 has a diameter which allows the elastic member 76 to be placed around both the outer circumferential surface of the guide ring 74 and the vertical stem 72a of the valve poppet 72.

The guide ring 74, the elastic member 76 and the valve poppet 72 of the pressure regulation valve 70 are sequentially placed and assembled together in the housing 50, as shown in Fig. 4, such that the upper portion of the stem 72a of the valve poppet 72 is placed in the guide ring 74. The elastic member 76 is placed around both the outer circumferential surface of the guide ring 74 and the vertical stem 72a of the valve poppet 72, and elastically biases the valve poppet 72 and the guide ring 74 in opposite directions, as shown in the drawing.

The flow control valve 80 is placed immediately below the pressure regulation valve 70, and comprises a cylindrical valve body 82; a pinhole disk 84; and a rotating unit to rotate the pinhole disk 84, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4. The construction of the flow control valve 80 will be described in detail herein below.

The valve body 82 is provided with a lower gas passage 82a to guide oxygen gas from the pressure regulation valve 70 to the lower nozzle 56 of the housing 50, as shown in Fig. 4. Two ring gaskets G are fitted around the outer circumferential surface of the valve body 82, and seal the junction between the outer surface of the valve body 82 and the inner surface of the housing 50.

The pinhole disk 84 comprises a plurality of pinholes 84a which have different diameters, as shown in Fig. 3. The pinholes 84a are formed through the disk 84 at positions spaced apart from each other at regular intervals. The pinholes 84a are sequentially arranged around the pinhole disk 84 in order from the smallest diameter pinhole to the largest diameter pinhole. In the pinhole disk 84, the gap between the smallest diameter pinhole 84a and the largest diameter pinhole 84a is much larger than the gaps between the other pinholes 84a. In other words, no pinhole 84a is formed between the smallest diameter pinhole 84a and the largest diameter pinhole 84a, so that a non-holed section which is a land with no pinhole 84a is provided between the smallest diameter pinhole 84a and the largest diameter pinhole 84a of the pinhole disk 84. The pinhole disk 84 is placed on the center of the upper surface of the valve body 82 such that a step space 80a is defined on the periphery of the upper surface of the valve body 82, as shown in the enlarged view of Fig. 4. The above-mentioned pinhole disk 84 is rotated by the rotating unit, so that one of the plurality of pinholes 84a may be aligned with the inlet of the lower gas passage 82a of the valve body 82 according to the rotational position of the pinhole disk 84. Thus, it is possible to control the flow rate of the oxygen gas flowing through the lower gas passage 82a. Furthermore, the non-holed section of the pinhole disk 84 may be aligned with the inlet of the lower gas passage 82a according to the rotational position of the pinhole disk 84. In the above state, the lower gas passage 82a is closed. Thus, the pinhole disk 84 opens or closes the lower gas passage 82a, and controls the flow rate of gas flowing into the passage 82a. Of course, the flow rate of gas discharged from the lower nozzle 56 of the housing 50 is controlled by opening or closing the passage 82a and by controlling the flow rate of the gas in the passage 82a.

The rotating unit preferably comprises a rotating shaft 86 which extends downwards from the lower surface of the pinhole disk 84 and passes through the center of the valve body 82; and a knob 87 which is coupled to the rotating shaft 86 and is rotated along with the rotating shaft 86, as shown in Fig. 4. Thus, when the knob 87 is rotated, the rotating shaft 86 rotates the pinhole disk 84.

The above-mentioned flow control valve 80 is locked to the housing 50 by a snap ring S which is fitted into the lower end of the housing 50, as shown in Fig. 4. The retainer ring 90 is placed in the step space 80a which is defined on the upper surface of the flow control valve 80, as shown in the enlarged view of Fig. 4, so that the retainer ring 90 supports the periphery of the lower surface of the pressure regulation valve 70. The retainer ring 90 is thicker than the pinhole disk 84 of the flow control valve 80 so that the upper surface of the retainer ring 90 protrudes above the upper end of the flow control valve 80, as shown in Fig. 4. Thus, the retainer ring 90 spaces the pressure regulation valve 70 upward from the flow control valve 80 and forms a chamber 95 between the pressure regulation valve 70 and the flow control valve 80. Therefore, the retainer ring 90 must be configured such that the ring 90 has a thickness capable of providing the above-mentioned chamber 95. In the present invention, it is preferable to configure the retainer ring 90 such that the ring 90 forms a chamber 95 having about lmm - 3mm height between the two valves 70 and 80. In other words, the height of the chamber 95 is set to about lmm - 3mm.

In the present invention, the retainer ring 90 may be configured as a ring having a flat surface. However, the retainer ring 90 is preferably designed such that the ring 90 has a waved surface with radial ridges and valleys 92 as shown in Fig. 3. To form the radial ridges and valleys 92 of the waved surface, the retainer ring 90 may be repeatedly bent upwards and downwards. Alternatively, the radial ridges and valleys 92 of the waved surface of the retainer ring 90 may be formed by intermittently cutting the surface of the ring 90.

Unlike the above-mentioned waved surface of the retainer ring 90, the retainer ring 90 may be provided with a plurality of protrusions 94 formed along the upper surface of the ring 90 as shown in the enlarged view of Fig. 3. The protrusions 94 are preferably formed by embossments as shown in the drawing.

When the retainer ring 90 is provided with the radial ridges and valleys 92 or the protrusions 94 as described above, it is possible to allow the oxygen gas flowing from the gas supply valve 60 to act on the periphery of the lower surface of the disk of the valve poppet 72. In the above state, the oxygen gas from the gas supply valve 60 passes through the valleys of the waved surface comprising the radial ridges and valleys 92, or the gaps between the protrusions 94 of the retainer ring 90, and reaches the periphery of the lower surface of the valve poppet 72. In other words, the radial ridges and valleys 92 or the protrusions 94 provide a passage through which the oxygen gas flows. Furthermore, the radial ridges and valleys 92 or the protrusions 94 evenly support the periphery of the lower surface of the valve poppet 72.

In the drawings, the reference numeral 50b denotes an air hole to prevent the formation of a vacuum in the housing 50 at a position with the elastic member 76 of the pressure regulation valve 70.

The regulator having the above-mentioned construction according to the first embodiment of the present invention is assembled as follows. As shown in Fig. 4, the pressure regulation valve 70 is inserted into the housing 50. Thereafter, the retainer ring 90 is placed in the step space 80a of the flow control valve 80 prior to inserting the flow control valve 80 into the housing 50. To prevent the flow control valve 80 from being removed from the housing 50, the lower end of the flow control valve 80 is locked to the housing 50 using the snap ring S.

When both the valve poppet 72 of the pressure regulation valve 70 and the valve body 82 of the flow control valve 80 are inserted into the housing 50, the ring gaskets G which are fitted around both the valve poppet 72 and the valve body 82 are first compressed against the inner surface of the lower portion of the housing 50, and, thereafter, slightly expand into the inner diameter enlargement groove 58 while they pass over the groove 58, and are compressed again against the inner surface of the housing after they pass over the groove 58. Thus, when both the pressure regulation valve 70 and the flow control valve 80 are completely installed in the housing 50, the ring gaskets G in the compressed state desirably seal the junctions between the inner surface of the housing 50 and the outer surfaces of both the valve poppet 72 and the valve body 82.

Because the ring gaskets G slightly expand into the inner diameter enlargement groove 58 of the housing 50 while they pass over the groove 58as described above, the ring gaskets G do not severely strike or frictionally contact the inside edge of the lower nozzle fitting hole 56a of the housing 50 into which the lower nozzle 56 is fitted. Therefore, the ring gaskets G are not damaged by the inside edge of the lower nozzle fitting hole 56a. After the pressure regulation valve 70, the retainer ring 90 and the flow control valve 80 are completely installed in the housing^' 50 as described above, the spout Ia of the oxygen bombe 1 is locked to the bombe connection part 52 of the housing 50 as shown in Fig. 3, so that oxygen gas can be discharged from the spout Ia of the bombe 1 by operation of the spout Ia. The oxygen gas discharged from the spout Ia of the bombe 1 is introduced to both the pressure indicator I and the pressure regulation valve 70 through the gas supply valve 60 of the housing 50. Thus, the pressure indicator I shows the pressure of the oxygen gas discharged from the bombe 1. The oxygen gas which flows into the pressure regulation valve 70 sequentially passes through the guide ring 74 and the valve poppet 72 and is contained in the chamber 95 defined below the pressure regulation valve 70. In the above state, the oxygen gas passes through the central hole formed along the central axis of the vertical stem 72a of the valve poppet 72, so that the oxygen gas reaches the chamber 95.

When the flow control valve 80 which is placed below the chamber 95 is closed, the oxygen gas flows from the chamber 95 in a reverse direction, thus being introduced into the upper gas passage 50a of the housing 50 and flowing to the upper nozzle 54 of the housing 50 through the upper gas passage 50a. The upper nozzle 54 discharges the oxygen gas to a desired device outside the housing 50. On the contrary, when the flow control valve 80 is opened, the oxygen gas flows from the chamber 95 to the lower nozzle 56 of the housing 50 through the flow control valve 80, so that the oxygen gas is discharged to a desired device from the lower nozzle 56. When the pressure of the oxygen gas from the gas supply valve 60 exceeds 3.5 kg/cm², the oxygen gas contained in the chamber 95 is quickly compressed in the chamber 95 and pushes the lower surface of the valve poppet 72 upwards. In the above state, the oxygen gas compressed in the chamber 95 passes through the valleys of the waved surface comprising the radial ridges and valleys 92, or the gaps between the protrusions 94 of the retainer ring 90, and reaches the periphery of the lower surface of the valve poppet 72. Thus, due to the pressure of the oxygen gas compressed in the chamber 95, the valve poppet 72 rises in the guide ring 74, which surrounds the stem 72a of the valve poppet 72, while compressing the elastic member 76, as shown in Fig. 5. The above-mentioned rising valve poppet 72 closes the outlet of the gas supply valve 60 using the closed upper end of the stem 72a thereof, as shown in Fig. 5, so that the gas supply valve 60 closed by the stem 72a of the valve poppet 72 stops the supply of oxygen gas.

When the supply of oxygen gas is stopped as described above, the oxygen gas remaining in the housing 50 is discharged from the housing 50 through the upper nozzle 54 or the lower nozzle 56 of the housing 50 according to an opened or closed state of the flow control valve 80. Thus, the pressure in the chamber 95 is reduced, so that the elastic member 76 which was₍ compressed by the valve poppet 72 restores its original state while pushing the valve poppet 72 downwards as shown in Fig. 4. In the above state, the falling valve poppet 72 returns to its original position under the guide of the guide ring 74 surrounding the stem 72a of the valve poppet 72, and opens the outlet of the gas supply valve 60 as shown in Fig. 4. Thus, the gas supply valve 60 supplies oxygen gas into the housing 50 again.

Because the valve poppet 72 opens or closes the gas supply valve 60 based on a reference pressure, 3.5 kg/cm², as described above, the pressure of the oxygen gas which exceeds 3.5 kg/cm² when the gas flows into the gas supply valve 60 is regulated to a level lower than 3.5 kg/cm² due to operation of the valve poppet 72. Thus, the pressure of the oxygen gas supplied into the housing 50 through the gas supply valve 60 is always maintained at a level lower than 3.5 kg/cm². In other words, the pressure of the oxygen gas supplied into the housing 50 does not exceed 3.5 kg/cm².

To supply the oxygen gas to the lower nozzle 56 of the housing 50, the knob 87 of the flow control valve 80 is rotated. Thus, the pinhole disk 84 is rotated by the knob 87, so that one of the plurality of pinholes 84a is aligned with the inlet of the lower gas passage 82a of the valve body 82, as shown in Fig. 5. Thus, the oxygen gas discharged from the valve poppet 72 of the pressure regulation valve 70 flows to the lower nozzle 56 through the lower gas passage 82a of the valve body 82, and is discharged from the housing 50 through the lower nozzle 56. To control the flow rate of oxygen gas discharged from the lower nozzle 56, the knob 87 is rotated to a desired angle. Due to the rotation of the knob 87, the pinhole disk 84 aligns another pinhole 84a, which has a diameter different from that of the previously aligned pinhole 84a, with the inlet of the lower gas passage 82a. Thus, the flow rate of oxygen gas to be discharged from the lower nozzle 56 can be freely controlled as desired. In other words, the flow rate of the oxygen gas to be discharged from the lower nozzle 56 is determined by the diameter of the pinhole 84a in the pinhole disk 84 that is aligned with the lower gas passage 82a.

To stop the discharge of the oxygen gas through the lower nozzle 56, the knob 87 is ^' completely rotated to a stop position. In the above state, the non-holed section of the pinhole disk 84, in which no pinhole 84a is provided, is aligned with the inlet of the lower gas passage 82a, thus closing the lower gas passage 82a and stopping the discharge of oxygen gas through the lower nozzle 56.

In conclusion, the flow control valve 80 may stop the discharge of oxygen gas through the lower nozzle 56, or control the flow rate of the oxygen gas to be discharged through the lower nozzle 56, according to a rotational position of the knob 87. That is, the flow control valve 80 can control the flow rate of the oxygen gas to be discharged through the lower nozzle 56, according to the manipulation of the knob 87. The construction of the regulator according to the present invention may be altered as shown in Figs. 6 and 7. Fig. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view illustrating a regulator according to a second embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 7 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the construction of a flow control valve shown in Fig. 6.

In the second embodiment of the present invention, most of the elements of the regulator remain the same as those of the first embodiment, but the valve poppet 72 of the pressure regulation valve 70, the thickness of the retainer ring 90, and the rotating unit of the flow control valve 80 are altered. In the following description for the second embodiment, those elements common to both the first embodiment and the second embodiment will thus carry the same reference numerals. The elements of the second embodiment, which differ from those of the first embodiment, will be described in detail herein below.

The valve poppet 72 of the pressure regulation valve 70 is provided with a poppet chamber 72c on the lower surface thereof as shown in Fig. 6. In the present invention, the depth and diameter of the poppet chamber 72c are preferably set to about 3mm ~ 6mm and about 1.2 cm ~ 1.8 cm, respectively. Most preferably, the depth and diameter of the poppet chamber 72c are set to about 5mm and about 1.5 cm, respectively. The above-mentioned poppet chamber 72c formed on the lower surface of the valve poppet 72 may be provided through a drawing process or a cutting process.

As shown in Fig. 6, the retainer ring 90 according to the second embodiment is thinner than the retainer ring 90 according to the first embodiment. The retainer ring 90 according to the second embodiment is configured such that it is slightly thicker than a disk cap 88 of the flow control valve 80, which will be described in detail later herein, as shown in the drawing. Preferably, the retainer ring 90 is thicker than the disk cap 88 by about 0.1mm ~ 0.3mm. More preferably, the retainer ring 90 is thicker than the disk cap 88 by about 0.3mm. When the retainer ring 90 is configured such that it is thicker than the disk cap 88 by about 0.3mm as described above, the upper surface of the retainer ring 90 protrudes above the upper end of the disk cap 88 by about 0.3mm due to the difference in the thickness between the disk cap 88 and the retainer ring 90, as shown in the enlarged view of the drawing. Thus, the valve poppet 72 of the pressure regulation valve 70 is spaced apart from the upper surface of the flow control valve 80 with a predetermined gap defined between them, due to the retainer ring 90 which protrudes above the upper end of the disk cap 88 by about 0.3mm. Therefore, the pressure regulation valve 70 is prevented from contact with the flow control valve 80, so that the pressure regulation valve 70 cannot press the upper surface of the flow control valve 80. Because the pressure regulation valve 70 cannot press the upper surface of the flow control valve 80 as described above, the disk cap 88 of the flow control valve 80 can be rotated by the rotating unit which will be described later herein.

The retainer ring 90 has radial ridges and valleys 92 or a plurality of protrusions 94 in the same manner as that described for the first embodiment, so that the retainer ring 90 can supply compressed oxygen gas from the poppet chamber 72c of the valve poppet 72 to the periphery of the lower surface of the valve poppet 72. In the above state, the oxygen gas from the poppet chamber 72c passes through the valleys of the waved surface comprising the radial ridges and valleys 92, or the gaps between the protrusions 94 of the retainer ring 90, and reaches the periphery of the lower surface of the valve poppet 72. Because the retainer ring 90 supplies the compressed oxygen gas from the poppet chamber 72c to the periphery of the lower surface of the valve poppet 72 as described above, an upward thrust force acts on the entire area of the lower surface of the valve poppet 72. Thus, the valve poppet 72 smoothly rises.

The rotating unit of the flow control valve 80 according to the second embodiment comprises the disk cap 88 which has a rotating shaft 88a at a center thereof; and a knob 89 which is coupled to the rotating shaft 88a and is rotated along with the rotating shaft 88a, as shown in Fig. 7.

The disk cap 88 has a gas supply hole H on the upper surface thereof as shown in Fig. 7, so that the oxygen gas flows to the pinhole disk 84 through the disk cap 88. As shown in the drawing, the rotating shaft 88a of the disk cap 88 sequentially passes through the pinhole disk 84 and the valve body 82 of the flow control valve 80. The disk cap 88 also closes the upper surface of the pinhole disk 84 as shown in Fig. 6. In the present invention, the pinhole disk 84 is coupled to the rotating shaft 88a of the disk cap 88 through a spline coupling method, so that the pinhole disk 88 is integrated with the rotating shaft 88a. The above-mentioned rotating shaft 88a of the disk cap 88 is locked to the knob 89 as shown in the drawing, thus being rotated during rotation of the knob 89.

The pinhole disk 84 according to the second embodiment is preferably configured as a thin disk as shown in Fig. 7. The above-mentioned thinness of the pinhole disk 84 is necessary because the thin disk 84 can prevent an increase in the height of the flow control valve 80. In other words, when the pinhole disk 84 is configured as such a thin disk, the flow control valve 80 can be configured as a compact valve. Furthermore, if the pinhole disk 84 is configured as such a thin disk, it is possible to easily form the pinholes 84a in the pinhole disk 84. Thus, the flow control valve 80 can be easily produced and have reduced production costs thereof.

In the second embodiment, the formation of the poppet chamber 72c on the lower surface of the valve poppet 72 of the pressure regulation valve 70 is necessary because the retainer ring 90 is configured as a ring thinner than that of the first embodiment and the thin retainer ring 90 cannot define a chamber 95 between the pressure regulation valve 70 and the flow control valve 80, unlike the first embodiment of Fig. 4. The poppet chamber 72c formed on the lower surface of the valve poppet 72 functions as the chamber 95 of Fig. 4. When the valve poppet 72 does not have such a poppet chamber 72c, it is impossible to compress the oxygen gas flowing from the gas supply valve 60, so that the valve poppet 72 cannot rise in the housing 50. In other words, if the oxygen gas flowing from the gas supply valve 60 is not compressed, no thrust force acts on the lower surface of the valve poppet 72. Thus, the valve poppet 72 cannot rise in the housing 50. In the present invention, the volume of the poppet chamber 72c of the valve poppet 72 according to the second embodiment is almost equal to that of the chamber 95 according to the first embodiment of Fig. 4. Described in detail, the chamber 95 shown in Fig. 4 has the same diameter as that of the inner circumferential surface of the housing 50 and a height of lmm - 3mm, while the poppet chamber 72c has a diameter of about 1.2 cm ~ 1.8 cm and a depth of about 3mm ~ 6mm. In other words, the diameter of the poppet chamber 72c is smaller than that of the chamber 95, while the depth of the poppet chamber 72c is larger than the height of the chamber 95, which corresponds to the depth of the poppet chamber 72c. Thus, the volumes of the poppet chamber 72c and the chamber 95 are almost equal to each other. Due to the almost equal volumes, the gas compression operations executed by the poppet chamber 72c and the chamber 95 are almost equal to each other.

Because the gas compression operations executed by the poppet chamber 72c and the chamber 95 are almost equal to each other as described above, the valve poppet 72 of the second embodiment can rise due to the oxygen gas which is compressed in the poppet chamber 72c. Thus, although the regulator of the second embodiment is configured such that the retainer ring 90 spaces the pressure regulation valve 70 apart from the flow control valve 80 with a predetermined gap defined between the two valves 70 and 80, the valve poppet 72 of the pressure regulation valve 72 can rise.

The operation of the above-mentioned regulator according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described herein below. The operation of the regulator will be more easily understood when referred to Fig. 5, so that the operation of the second embodiment will be described herein below in conjunction with Fig. 5. In the regulator according to the second embodiment, oxygen gas flows into the pressure regulation valve 70 through the gas supply valve 60 as shown in Fig. 6. The oxygen gas which flows into the pressure regulation valve 70 sequentially passes through the guide ring 74 and the stem 72a of the valve poppet 72, thus being supplied into both the poppet chamber 72c of the valve poppet 72 and the disk cap 88 of the flow control valve 80. In the above state, the oxygen gas passes through the gas supply hole H of the disk cap 88, so that the gas is supplied into the disk cap 88. When the flow control valve 80 is closed, the oxygen gas flows in a reverse direction, and is- discharged from the housing 50 through the upper gas passage 50a.

When the pressure of the oxygen gas flowing from the gas supply valve 60 into the poppet chamber 72c exceeds 3.5 kg/cm², the oxygen gas contained in the poppet chamber 72c is compressed in the poppet chamber 72c and pushes the lower surface of the valve poppet 72 upwards. In the above state, the oxygen gas compressed in the poppet chamber 72c flows to the periphery of the lower surface of the valve poppet 72 through the retainer ring 90. Thus, the valve poppet 72 smoothly rises under the guide of the guide ring 74, which surrounds the stem 72a of the valve poppet 72. The above-mentioned rising valve poppet 72 closes the outlet of the gas supply valve 60 with the closed upper end of the stem 72a. Of course, during the upward movement of the valve poppet 72, the elastic member 76 is compressed by the valve poppet 72 (see Fig. 5) .

When the outlet of the gas supply valve 60 is closed as described above, the oxygen gas remaining in the housing 50 is discharged from the housing 50 through the upper gas passage 50a. Thus, the pressure in the poppet chamber 72c of the valve poppet 72 is reduced, so that the compressed elastic member 76 restores its original state while pushing the valve poppet 72 downwards to the original position of the poppet 72. As the valve poppet 72 returns to its original position, the gas supply valve 60 supplies oxygen gas into the housing 50 again.

Because the valve poppet 72 opens or closes the gas supply valve 60 according to the pressure of the oxygen gas supplied from the gas supply valve 60 as described above, the pressure of the oxygen gas supplied into the housing 50 is always maintained at about 3.5 kg/cm² (see Fig. 5) .

The oxygen gas supplied into the housing 50 may be discharged from the housing 50 through the lower nozzle 56 after passing through the flow control valve 80. To discharge the oxygen gas from the housing 50 through the lower nozzle 56, the knob 89 is manipulated and rotated. In the above state, the rotational force of the knob 89 is transmitted to the disk cap 88 through the rotating shaft 88a, so that the disk cap 88 is rotated.

During rotation of the disk cap 88, the pinhole disk 84 is rotated along with the disk cap 88. Thus, one of the plurality of pinholes 84a may be aligned with the inlet of the lower gas passage 82a which is formed in the valve body 82 of the flow control valve 80, or the non-holed section of the pinhole disk 84, in which no pinhole 84a is provided, may be aligned with the inlet of the lower gas passage 82a. Therefore, the lower gas passage of the valve body 82, which is connected to the lower nozzle 56, may be closed by the non-holed section or may be opened by a pinhole 84a which is aligned with the lower gas passage 82a. In the above state, the opening ratio of the passage 82a is determined by the diameter of the aligned pinhole 84a. Thus, because the lower gas passage 82a of the valve body 82 may be closed by the pinhole disk 84 or may be opened while the flow rate of the oxygen gas flowing through the passage 82a is controlled, the flow rate of the oxygen gas to be discharged from the lower nozzle 56 can be controlled as desired. Of course, the oxygen gas to be discharged from the lower nozzle 56 after passing through the lower gas passage 82a of the valve body 82 is the oxygen gas that has flowed from the pressure regulation valve 70 into the disk cap 88 through the gas supply hole H of the disk cap 88.

The above-mentioned flow control valve 80 according to the second embodiment may be used in the regulator according to the first embodiment. In the above case, the retainer ring 90 must be configured such that the retainer ring 90 defines the chamber 95 of Fig. 4 or spaces the pressure regulation valve 70 apart from the flow control valve 80 with a gap defined between the two valves 70 and 80.

On the contrary, the flow control valve 80 of the first embodiment may be used in the regulator according to the second embodiment. In the above case, the retainer ring 90 must be configured such that the retainer ring 90 provides the chamber 95 of Fig. 4.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed for illustrative purposes, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications, additions and substitutions are possible, without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as disclosed in the accompanying claims.

[industrial Applicability]

The present invention provides a regulator which is produced through a simple process, has a compact construction, and reduces the production costs thereof.

Claims

[CLAIMS]

[Claim l]

A regulator to regulate pressure of high-pressure gas discharged from a spout (Ia) of a gas bombe (1) , comprising: a cap-shaped housing (50), with a bombe connection part (52) provided at an upper portion of the housing to fasten the spout (Ia) of the bombe (1) to the housing, and upper and lower nozzles (54, 56) respectively mounted to upper and lower nozzle fitting holes (54a, 56a) which are formed at upper and lower positions of the housing, so that the nozzles discharge the gas from an inside to an outside of the housing; a gas supply valve (60) securely set in the housing (50) and supplying the gas from the spout (Ia) of the bombe (1) into the housing (50) ; a pressure regulation valve (70) to guide the gas from the gas supply valve (60) to a lower portion of the inside of the housing (50) and to regulate the pressure of the gas supplied into the housing (50) by opening or closing the gas supply valve (60) according to the pressure of the gas supplied from the gas supply valve (60) ; a flow control valve (80) placed in the housing (50) in a sealed state such that the flow control valve is aligned with the pressure regulation valve (70) in a line, the flow control valve defining a step space (80a) on a periphery of an upper end thereof, and supplying the gas from the pressure regulation valve (70) to the lower nozzle (56) of the housing (50) while controlling a flow rate of the gas; and a retainer ring (90) placed in the step space (80a) of the flow control valve (80), thus supporting a periphery of a lower surface of the pressure regulation valve (70) and preventing contact between the pressure regulation valve (70) and the flow control valve (80) .

[Claim 2]

The regulator according to claim 1, wherein the pressure regulation valve (70) comprises: a disk-shaped valve poppet (72), with a ring gasket

(G) provided around an outer circumferential surface of the valve poppet to seal the valve poppet and an inner circumferential surface of the housing (50) , and a stem

(72a) provided on the valve poppet, closed at an upper end thereof, and provided with a central hole therein to supply the gas from the gas supply valve to the lower portion of the housing, so that the valve poppet rises or falls according to the pressure of the gas to be supplied to the lower portion of the housing, thus closing or opening the gas supply valve (60) with the upper end of the stem (72a); a guide ring (74) closely connected to a lower end of ■ the gas supply valve (60), with an upper portion of the stem (72a) of the valve poppet (72) closely received in the guide ring, so that the guide ring supplies the gas from the gas supply valve (60) to the central hole of the stem

(72a) and guides a rising or falling motion of the valve poppet (72); and an elastic member (76) to elastically support both the valve poppet (72) and the guide ring (74) .

[Claim 3]

The regulator according to claim 1, wherein the pressure regulation valve (70) further comprises: poppet lifting means for lifting the valve poppet (72) using the high-pressure gas supplied thereto through the stem (72a) of the valve poppet (72), the poppet lifting means comprising: a poppet chamber (72c) formed on a central portion of a lower surface of the valve poppet (72a) such that the poppet chamber is opened downwards and communicates with the central hole of the stem (72a) of the valve poppet (72) , thus allowing the high- pressure gas supplied from the stem (72a) of the valve poppet (72) to be compressed in the poppet chamber and push the valve poppet (72) upwards.

[Claim 4]

The regulator according to any one of claims 1 through 3, wherein the retainer ring (90) is configured such that an upper surface of the retainer ring protrudes above the upper end of the flow control valve (80) , thus supporting the periphery of the lower surface of the pressure regulation valve (70) and spacing the pressure regulation valve (70) and the flow control valve (80) apart from each other.

[Claim 5]

The regulator according to claim 4, wherein the retainer ring (90) further comprises: a plurality of radial ridges and valleys (92) continuously formed on a surface of the retainer ring along a circumferential direction, and supplying the gas from the gas supply valve (60) to the periphery of the lower surface of the pressure regulation valve (70) through the valleys.

[Claim 6]

The regulator according to claim 4, wherein the retainer ring (90) further comprises: a plurality of protrusions (94) formed on a surface of the retainer ring along a circumferential direction and spaced apart from each other, and supplying the gas from the gas supply valve (60) to the periphery of the lower surface of the pressure regulation valve (70) through gaps defined between the protrusions.

[Claim 7]

The regulator according to claim 1, wherein the flow control valve (80) comprises: a cylindrical valve body (82), with a ring gasket (G) provided around an outer circumferential surface of the valve body to seal the valve body and an inner circumferential surface of the housing (50) , and a gas passage (82a) provided in the valve body to guide the gas from the pressure regulation valve (70) to the lower nozzle (56) of the housing (50); a pinhole disk (84) rotatably placed on a central portion of an upper surface of the valve body (82) and providing the step space (80a) on an upper end of the valve body (82), with a plurality of pinholes (84a) having different diameters and formed through the pinhole disk at positions spaced apart from each other at regular intervals, so that, when the pinhole disk is rotated, the pinhole disk aligns one of the plurality of pinholes (84a) or a land between the pinholes (84a) with the gas passage (82a) of the valve body (82), thus controlling the flow rate of the gas to be supplied to the lower nozzle (56) of the housing (50); and a rotating unit coupled to the pinhole disk (84) and rotating the pinhole disk (84) .

[Claim 8]

The regulator according to claim 7, wherein the rotating unit comprises: a rotating shaft (86) extending from a center of the pinhole disk (84) and vertically passing through the valve body (82); and a knob (87) coupled to the rotating shaft (86) and rotated along with the rotating shaft.

[Claim 9] The regulator according to claim 7, wherein the rotating unit comprises: a disk cap (88) placed to close an upper surface of the pinhole disk (84), with a gas supply hole (H) formed on the upper surface of the disk cap and supplying the gas from the pressure regulation valve (70) into the pinhole disk (84) , and a rotating shaft (88a) extending from a center of the disk cap and passing through centers of both the valve body (82) and the pinhole disk (84) such that the rotating shaft is integrated with the pinhole disk (84); and a knob (89) coupled to the rotating shaft (88a) of the disk cap (88) and rotated along with the rotating shaft.

[Claim 10l The regulator according to any one of claims 2, 3 and 7, wherein the housing (50) further comprises: damage prevention means for preventing the ring gasket (G) from being damaged by being compressed against the inner circumferential surface of the lower portion of the housing (50) when both the pressure regulation valve (70) and the flow control valve (80) are installed in the housing, the damage prevention means comprising: an inner diameter enlargement groove (58) formed on the inner circumferential surface of the lower portion of the housing (50) along a circumferential direction at a position corresponding to the lower nozzle fitting hole (56a) of the housing (50), thus reducing a coefficient of friction of the ring gasket (G) relative to the inner circumferential surface of the lower portion of the housing (50) .