method therefor, and gas cooktop

The present disclosure relates to a gas flow control apparatus of a gas cooktop, and in particular, to a gas flow control apparatus of a gas cooktop having an electromagnetic valve, a manufacturing method therefor, and a gas cooktop having the gas flow control apparatus. Electromagnetic valves have been widely used in the field of gas cooktops. Because of manufacturing requirements, many valve bodies have a cavity gas inlet or gas outlet formed on a side wall of an electromagnetic valve mounting cavity. It is common in the prior art that the cavity gas inlet or gas outlet is formed by drilling a hole in the valve body from outside to inside, and then, the hole on the valve body is blocked with a sealing element, such as a screw or a piece of rubber. However, a gas leak risk still exists in the blocked hole, and particularly, for a blocking element that becomes aged or rusty after long-term use, existence of the gas leak risk cannot be ignored.

In addition, existing gas valves are generally single-functional and are only used for switching on or off gas and adjusting a flow rate of gas, while a multi-functional gas valve usually has a complex structure and costs too much.

Unless supported by sufficient evidence, the prior art described herein does not mean that it is publicly known to persons of ordinary skill in the art to which the present disclosure relates before the filing date of the present application.

Objectives of the present disclosure are solving at least one of the above-described technical problems, so as to provide an improved gas flow control apparatus of a gas cooktop, a manufacturing method therefor, and a gas cooktop having the gas flow control apparatus.

The present disclosure achieves one of the above-described technical objectives by means of one technical solution as described below: a gas flow control apparatus of a gas cooktop includes a valve body and an electromagnetic valve, the valve body includes a gas inlet, a gas outlet, and a cavity used for mounting the electromagnetic valve, the cavity has a mounting opening, and an inner wall of the cavity is provided with a cavity gas inlet in communication with the gas inlet and cavity gas outlets in communication with the gas outlet, where the inner wall includes a side wall surrounding the mounting opening, one end of the cavity gas inlet and/or cavity gas outlets is located on the side wall and passes through the mounting opening in an extending direction of the end, and the other end is implanted into an interior of the valve body. It should be noted that the word "communication" described herein may be direct or indirect communication, for example, the cavity gas outlet may be directly connected to the gas outlet or may be in communication with the gas outlet through a channel. "The other end is implanted into an interior of the valve body" indicates that the other end does not penetrate through a wall body of the valve body. A structure of the gas flow control apparatus of a gas cooktop disclosed by the present disclosure enables the cavity gas inlet and/or cavity gas outlets to be formed by drilling a hole in the side wall by way of the mounting opening, so as to prevent forming the cavity gas inlet and/or cavity gas outlets by drilling a hole from the outside of the valve body, thereby reducing the number of holes or openings formed on a surface of the valve body, reducing the number of potential gas leak points, and improving security of the gas flow control apparatus.

In a possible embodiment of the present invention, the cavity gas outlets include a first cavity gas outlet and a second cavity gas outlet that are both in communication with the gas outlet respectively, the electromagnetic valve is used for closing and opening the second cavity gas outlet, one end of the first cavity gas outlet is located on the side wall and passes through the mounting opening in an extending direction of the end, and the other end is implanted into the interior of the valve body.

The present disclosure further achieves one of the above-described technical objectives by means of another technical solution as described below: a gas flow control apparatus of a gas cooktop includes a valve body and an electromagnetic valve, the valve body includes a gas inlet, a gas outlet, and a cavity used for mounting the electromagnetic valve, the cavity has a mounting opening, and an inner wall of the cavity is provided with a cavity gas inlet in communication with the gas inlet and cavity gas outlets in

communication with the gas outlet. The inner wall includes a side wall surrounding the mounting opening, and the cavity gas inlet and/or the cavity gas outlets are formed by drilling a hole in the side wall by way of the mounting opening. It should be noted that the word "communication" described herein may be direct or indirect communication, for example, the cavity gas outlet may be directly connected to the gas outlet or may be in communication with the gas outlet through a channel. The technical solution of the present disclosure may prevent forming the cavity gas inlet and/or cavity gas outlets by drilling a hole from the outside of the valve body, thereby reducing the number of holes or openings formed on a surface of the valve body, reducing the number of potential gas leak points, and improving security of the gas flow control apparatus.

In a possible embodiment of the present invention, the cavity gas outlets include a first cavity gas outlet and a second cavity gas outlet that are both in communication with the gas outlet respectively, the electromagnetic valve is used for closing and opening the second cavity gas outlet, and the first cavity gas outlet is formed by drilling a hole in the side wall by way of the mounting opening. The present disclosure provides a gas flow control apparatus applicable to existing gas cooktops, thereby achieving more diverse control on a gas flow rate and satisfying more various cooking manners of users. For example, when a boiler is removed from a gas cooktop, the electromagnetic valve closes the second cavity gas outlet and only preserves a small fire for the gas cooktop, thereby reducing a waste of gas; alternatively, the electromagnetic valve keeps the second cavity gas outlet open in a time period, so as to increase a heating power of the gas cooktop to exceed a rated power thereof, thereby satisfying users' requirements for cooking time reduction and rapid heating. In a possible embodiment of the present invention, the cavity gas inlet and/or the cavity gas outlets formed by drilling a hole in the side wall by way of the mounting opening does or do not penetrate through the valve body. The cavity gas inlet and/or cavity gas outlets that does or do not penetrate through the valve body is or are formed in the interior of the valve body, so a hole or an opening that needs to be blocked would not be formed in an outer wall of the valve body, which, as compared with the prior art, reduces a gas leak risk.

In consideration of manufacturing feasibility, in order to enable a hole-drilling tool to pass through the mounting opening to drill a hole or holes in the side wall to form the cavity gas inlet and/or cavity gas outlets, in a possible embodiment of the present invention, an extending direction or extending directions of the cavity gas inlet and/or the cavity gas outlets formed by drilling a hole in the side wall by way of the mounting opening passes or pass through the mounting opening.

In a possible embodiment of the present invention, the cavity enables an action direction of the electromagnetic valve in a use state to tilt relative to an axis of the gas inlet and/or gas outlet. On the one hand, the present structure may reduce a space occupied by the gas flow control apparatus, so as to keep the gas flow control apparatus away from a burner as far as possible, thereby preventing the gas flow control apparatus from being overheated. On the other hand, the cavity enables the action direction of the

electromagnetic valve in the use state to tilt relative to the axis of the gas inlet and/or gas outlet. In this way, the cavity gas inlet and/or cavity gas outlets formed by drilling a hole by way of the mounting opening would have an opportunity to be arranged in parallel to another opening or hole, for example, the gas inlet and/or gas outlet, that needs to be machined on the valve body, thereby machining the valve body during a manufacturing process more conveniently. After machining the gas inlet and/or the gas outlet is completed, the hole-drilling tool may continue to machine the cavity gas inlet and/or cavity gas outlets without adjusting a holder to locate the valve body. "An action direction of the electromagnetic valve in a use state to tilt relative to an axis of the gas inlet and/or gas outlet" shall be interpreted as that the action direction of the electromagnetic valve in the use state is neither perpendicular to nor in parallel to the axis of the gas inlet and/or gas outlet. In a possible embodiment of the present invention, the cavity is approximately cylindrical. In a possible embodiment of the present invention, the inner wall includes a bottom wall opposite to the mounting opening, and the second cavity gas outlet is arranged on the bottom wall. The space of the cavity is fully used to make the entire valve body structure compact and save materials.

In consideration of manufacturing convenience, in a possible embodiment of the present invention, the cavity gas inlet is at least partially arranged on the bottom wall, so as to be easily formed in a molding process. In a possible embodiment of the present invention, a radial dimension of the first cavity gas outlet is less than a radial dimension of the second cavity gas outlet, so as to satisfy more various adjustment requirements of users, for example, the first cavity gas outlet is used for maintaining a small fire of the gas cooktop.

In a possible embodiment of the present invention, the valve body further includes a channel for communicating the first cavity gas outlet with the gas outlet. In this way, the first cavity gas outlet is not necessarily connected to the gas outlet directly, thereby improving flexibility of a structure of the gas flow control apparatus.

In a possible embodiment of the present invention, the valve body further includes an adjustment hole in communication with the first cavity gas outlet, and an adjustment screw used for adjusting a gas flow rate of the first cavity gas outlet is arranged inside the adjustment hole.

In a possible embodiment of the present invention, the adjustment hole is coaxial to the channel. Such design may simply the manufacturing process, at least may omit a step of locating the valve body by the holder, and may also form the adjustment hole and the channel in a one-time hole-drilling process.

In a possible embodiment of the present invention, the first cavity gas outlet is in parallel to the gas inlet and/or the gas outlet.

In a possible embodiment of the present invention, the gas inlet is coaxial to the gas outlet. Such design makes it more convenient to arrange a pipeline of the gas cooktop. A gas cooktop generally includes a segment of straight pipeline having a certain length, and the gas inlet being coaxial to the gas outlet enables the gas flow control apparatus to be directly connected to the segment of straight pipeline without changing previous pipeline arrangement and without adding an extra adaptation interface.

In a possible embodiment of the present invention, the first cavity gas outlet always keeps in communication with the gas outlet. On the basis of the same inventive concept, the present disclosure further provides a manufacturing method for a gas flow control apparatus of a gas cooktop, including the following steps: a. manufacturing a valve body, the valve body including a gas inlet, a gas outlet, and a cavity used for mounting an electromagnetic valve, and the cavity having a mounting opening; b. drilling a hole in a side wall of an inner wall of the cavity by way of the mounting opening to form a cavity gas inlet in communication with the gas inlet and/or cavity gas outlets in communication with the gas outlet, where the side wall surrounds the mounting opening. Because the side wall surrounds the mounting opening, all of the prior art documents disclose forming the cavity gas inlet and/or cavity gas outlets by drilling a hole from the outside of the valve body, and further blocking a hole or an opening formed on a surface of the valve body by using a sealing element. However, the present manufacturing method reduces the number of holes or openings on the surface of the valve body, reduces gas leak risks, and improves security of the gas flow control apparatus.

In a possible embodiment of the present invention, the cavity enables an action direction of the electromagnetic valve in a use state to tilt relative to an axis of the gas inlet and/or gas outlet. On the basis of the same inventive concept, the present disclosure herein proposes a gas cooktop, including the gas flow control apparatus as described above. The above- described gas flow control apparatus is used, so that the present disclosure can provide a gas cooktop with higher security and capable of achieving more diverse control on a gas flow rate and satisfying more various cooking manners of users.

In a possible embodiment of the present invention, the gas cooktop includes at least one gas valve and at least one burner, and the gas flow control apparatus is arranged between the one gas valve and the one the burner. The gas flow control apparatus of the present disclosure may be directly applied to an existing gas cooktop platform without making other adjustment and may reduce a cost of the gas cooktop of the present invention. In a possible embodiment of the present invention, the gas cooktop includes an outer ring gas nozzle and an inner ring gas nozzle, and the gas flow control apparatus is arranged between the one gas valve and the one outer ring gas nozzle. FIG. 1 is an exploded view of a gas flow control apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a three-dimensional view of a gas flow control apparatus according to an

embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a valve body according to an embodiment of the

present invention;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view along line F-F in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating closing a second cavity gas outlet by an

electromagnetic valve of a gas flow control apparatus according to an

embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating opening a second cavity gas outlet by an

electromagnetic valve of a gas flow control apparatus according to an

embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of a valve body according to another embodiment of the

present invention; and

FIG. 8 is a partial schematic diagram of a gas cooktop according to an embodiment of the present invention.

To further understand the objectives, structures, features, and effects of the present disclosure, detailed description is provided below with reference to the embodiments.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, FIG. 1 is an exploded view of a gas flow control apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a three-dimensional view of a gas flow control apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. A gas flow control apparatus 2 of a gas cooktop includes a valve body 10 and an electromagnetic valve 20. The valve body 10 includes a gas inlet 11 , a gas outlet 12, and a cavity 13 used for mounting the electromagnetic valve 20. In the present embodiment, the gas inlet 1 1 is coaxial to the gas outlet 12, so that the gas inlet 11 and the gas outlet 12 present a straight pipe shape in terms of appearance. The cavity 13 is approximately a cylindrical cavity. Still referring to FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a valve body according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a sectional view along line F-F in FIG. 3. The cavity 13 has a mounting opening 13a, and the electromagnetic valve 20 is partially placed into the cavity 13 through the mounting opening 13a. An inner wall of the cavity 13 is provided with a cavity gas inlet 130 and cavity gas outlets. The cavity gas outlets include a first cavity gas outlet 131 and a second cavity gas outlet 132. The cavity gas inlet 130 is in communication with the gas inlet 1 1 , the second cavity gas outlet 132 is in communication with the gas outlet 12, and the electromagnetic valve 20 may close and open the second cavity gas outlet 132. The valve body 10 further includes a channel 14. An end of the channel 14 is in communication with a first cavity gas outlet 131 and the other end is in communication with the gas outlet 12, so that the first cavity gas outlet 131 is in communication with the gas outlet 12 through the channel 14. In a use state, the first cavity gas outlet 131 always keeps in communication with the gas outlet 12. The valve body 10 further includes an adjustment hole 15 in communication with the first cavity gas outlet 131 , and an adjustment screw 30 used for adjusting a gas flow rate of the first cavity gas outlet 131 is arranged inside the adjustment hole 15. By adjusting a depth by which the adjustment screw 30 is screwed into the adjustment hole 15, a cross- sectional area of the first cavity gas outlet 131 at this position is changed, so as to adjust the gas flow rate of the first cavity gas outlet 131. In the present embodiment, the adjustment hole 15 is coaxial to the channel 14, so that manufacturing is more convenient.

Specifically, the inner wall of the cavity 13 includes a side wall 13b surrounding a mounting opening 13a and a bottom wall 13c opposite to the mounting opening 13a, the cavity gas inlet 130 is at least partially arranged on the bottom wall 13c, the second cavity gas outlet 132 is arranged on the bottom wall 13c, the cavity gas inlet 130 and the second cavity gas outlet 132 are both formed in a process of manufacturing the valve body 10 by using a molding process, and the first cavity gas outlet 131 is formed by drilling a hole in the side wall 13b by way of the mounting opening 13a. One end of the first cavity gas outlet 131 is located on the side wall 13b, and the first cavity gas outlet 131 passes through the mounting opening 13a in an extending direction of the end, and the other end is implanted in an interior of the valve body 10, that is, the other end does not penetrate through a wall body of the valve body 10. The cavity 13 is arranged in such a way that it enables an action direction z of the electromagnetic valve 20 in a use state to tilt relative to an axis of the gas inlet 1 1 and gas outlet 12. As shown in FIG. 4, the cavity 13 per se tilts relative to the axis of the gas inlet 11 and gas outlet 12, and the mounting opening 13a tilts relative to the axis of the gas inlet 11 and gas outlet 12. Hence, a hole-drilling tool may form the first cavity gas outlet 131 in parallel to the gas inlet 11 and gas outlet 12 by drilling a hole in the side wall 13b by way of the opening 13a in a direction parallel to the axis of the gas inlet 11 and gas outlet 12.

As shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating closing a second cavity gas outlet by an electromagnetic valve of a gas flow control apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating opening a second cavity gas outlet by an electromagnetic valve of a gas flow control apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. The electromagnetic valve 20 includes a valve core 22 and a spring 23, and the valve core 22 and the spring 23 are placed inside the cavity 13 through the mounting opening 13a. In order to ensure that the electromagnetic valve 20 can be mounted inside the valve body 10 in a sealing manner, an O-shaped seal ring 21 is arranged between the electromagnetic valve 20 and the valve body 10. Similarly, an O-shaped seal ring 31 is arranged between the adjustment screw 30 and the valve body 10. A radial dimension of the first cavity gas outlet 131 of the present embodiment is less than a radial dimension of the second cavity gas outlet 132. As shown in FIG. 5, when the valve core 22 of the electromagnetic valve 20 closes the second cavity gas outlet 132, gas that enters the cavity 13 can only flow from a first cavity gas outlet 131 to the gas outlet 12 (a dotted line with an arrow in the drawing indicates a flow direction of gas), and a gas flow rate at the gas outlet 12 is A (where A>0). As shown in FIG. 6, when the valve core 22 of the electromagnetic valve 20 opens the second cavity gas outlet 132, gas that enters the cavity 13 flows from the first cavity gas outlet 131 and the second cavity gas outlet 132 to the gas outlet 12 (a dotted line with an arrow in the drawing indicates a flow direction of gas), a gas flow rate at the gas outlet 12 is A+B (where B>0), and it is obvious that A+B>A. In view of the above, the gas flow control apparatus may enrich control on a gas flow rate of an existing gas cooktop.

Referring to FIG. 7, FIG. 7 is a sectional view of a valve body according to another embodiment of the present invention. Structures and functions corresponding to the same reference numerals in the preceding embodiments are the same or similar to those in the present embodiment, and are not repeatedly described herein. Reference may be made to the preceding relevant descriptions. The present embodiment differs from the preceding embodiments in that: a cavity gas inlet 130 is also formed by drilling a hole in a side wall 13b by way of a mounting opening 13a. One end of the cavity gas inlet 130 is also located on the side wall 13b, the cavity gas inlet 130 passes through the mounting opening 13a in an extending direction of the end, and the other end is implanted into an interior of a valve body 10 without penetrating through a wall body of the valve body 10. Extending directions of the cavity gas inlet 130 and a first cavity gas outlet 131 pass through the opening 13a. An axis of the cavity gas inlet 130 is perpendicular to an axis of a gas inlet 11 and a gas outlet 12. An axis of the first cavity gas outlet 131 is in parallel to an axis of the gas inlet 1 1 and gas outlet 12. In this way, it is more convenient to machine and manufacture the valve body. When the valve body 10 is held in place by a holder, after machining an interface 1 10, proximal to an end portion, of the gas inlet 1 1 is completed, a hole-drilling tool may continue to machine the first cavity gas outlet 131 without adjusting a direction in which the holder holds the valve body. Similarly, after the hole-drilling tool completes machining the adjustment hole 15 and channel 14, the hole-drilling tool may further continue to machine the cavity gas inlet 130 without adjusting the direction in which the holder holds the valve body. In another embodiment of the present invention, the cavity gas inlet and cavity gas outlet are both formed by drilling a hole in the side wall 13b by way of the mounting opening 13a. In this case, a valve core 22 of the electromagnetic valve 20 may be enabled to snugly fit the side wall 13b, so as to be formed at the cavity gas inlet and cavity gas outlets on the side wall in a sealing manner, and when acting, electromagnetic valve 20 may open and close the cavity gas inlet and/or cavity gas outlets.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the first cavity gas outlet 131 is in a zigzag shape or a curved shape rather than a straight-channel shape, and it may be machined and manufactured by the hole-drilling tool by way of the mounting opening 13a in a non-straight-line direction. In another embodiment of the present invention, an extending direction of a first cavity gas outlet 131 formed by drilling a hole in a side wall 13b by way of a mounting opening 13a may not pass through the mounting opening 13a, and the first cavity gas outlet 131 may be machined by using, for example, a hole-drilling tool with a bent machining head and machined and formed on the side wall 13b by the machining head that extends into a cavity 13 through the mounting opening 13a.

The present invention further provides a manufacturing method for a gas flow control apparatus 2, including the following steps. a. manufacturing a valve body 10, the valve body 10 including a gas inlet 11 , a gas outlet 12, and a cavity 13 used for mounting an electromagnetic valve 20, and the cavity 13 having a mounting opening 13a; b. drilling a hole in a side wall 13b of an inner wall of the cavity 13 by way of the mounting opening 13a to form a cavity gas inlet 130 in communication with the gas inlet 1 1 and/or cavity gas outlets in communication with the gas outlet 12, where the side wall 13b surrounds the mounting opening 13a.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the cavity gas outlets include a first cavity gas outlet 131 and a second cavity gas outlet 132 that are both in communication with the gas outlet 12 respectively, and the electromagnetic valve 20 is used for closing and opening the second cavity gas outlet 132. In this embodiment, the step b specifically includes: forming a first cavity gas outlet 131 in communication with the gas outlet 12 by drilling a hole in a side wall 13b of an inner wall of the cavity 13 by way of the mounting opening 13a. The first cavity gas outlet 131 does not penetrate through the valve body 10. In an embodiment of the present invention, the cavity 13 is manufactured in such a way that it enables an action direction z of the electromagnetic valve 20 in a use state to tilt relative to an axis of the gas inlet 1 1 and the gas outlet 12.

The present invention further provides a gas cooktop, as shown in FIG. 8, and FIG. 8 is a partial schematic diagram of a gas cooktop according to an embodiment of the present invention. The gas cooktop 1 includes the gas flow control apparatus 2 as described above, at least one gas valve 3, and at least one burner 4. The same as an existing gas valve, the gas valve 3 is used for manually switching on or off the burner 4 and adjusting a firepower of the burner 4 by touching or turning a knob by a user. The gas flow control apparatus 2, gas valve 3, and burner 4 are arranged on a bottom shell 7. The gas flow control apparatus 2 is arranged between one gas valve 3 and one burner 4. More specifically, the gas cooktop 1 includes an outer ring gas nozzle 5 and an inner ring gas nozzle 6, and the outer ring gas nozzle 5 sprays gas to supply the gas to the burner 4 for combustion to form inner ring flame. The gas flow control apparatus 2 is arranged between the gas valve 3 and the out ring gas nozzle 5. The gas flow control apparatus 2 may serve as an independent apparatus and be applied to the gas cooktop 1 to satisfy more diverse control requirements of users. For example, when a boiler is removed from the gas cooktop 1 , the electromagnetic valve 20 closes the second cavity gas outlet 132 and only preserves a small fire for the gas cooktop 1 ; alternatively, the electromagnetic valve 20 keeps the second cavity gas outlet 132 open in a time period, so as to increase a heating power of the gas cooktop 1 to exceed a rated power thereof.

Design of the cavity of the gas flow control apparatus 2 shown in FIG. 8 enables an action direction z of the electromagnetic valve 20 in a use state to tilt relative to an axis of the gas inlet 11 and gas outlet 12. An advantage of such design is that in a case where a space of the bottom shell 7 is limited, the position of the gas flow control apparatus 2 may be kept far away from the burner 4 to prevent it from being overheated. If the action direction z of the electromagnetic valve 20 is perpendicular to an axis of the gas inlet 1 1 and gas outlet 12, because of space limitation of the bottom shell 7, the position gas flow control apparatus 2 is certainly closer to the burner 4 and is easily affected by the burner to be overheated. In addition, the gas inlet 11 is coaxial to the gas outlet 12, and such design makes it more convenient to arrange a pipeline of the gas cooktop. The gas flow control apparatus 2 may be directly connected to the straight pipeline of the gas cooktop 1 without changing previous pipeline arrangement and without adding an extra adaptation interface.

The present disclosure is described by means of the above-described relevant embodiments. However, the above-described embodiments are only examples for implementing the present invention. It should be pointed out that the disclosed

embodiments do not limit the scope of the present disclosure. On the contrary, modifications and alternations made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure all fall within the patent protection scope of the present disclosure. Reference Numerals:

1 gas cooktop;

2 gas flow control apparatus;

3 gas valve;

4 burner;

5 outer ring gas nozzle;

6 inner ring gas nozzle;

7 bottom shell;

10 valve body;

11 gas inlet;

12 gas outlet;

13 cavity;

13a mounting opening;

13b side wall;

13c bottom wall;

14 channel;

15 adjustment hole;

20 electromagnetic valve;

21 seal ring;

22 valve core;

23 spring;

30 adjustment screw;

31 seal ring;

130 cavity gas inlet;

131 first cavity gas outlet;

132 second cavity gas outlet