FLUID SUPPLY DEVICE

Abstract

[Problem] When configuring a device for storing and supplying fluid, each components such as vessels, valves/pipes and the like, are placed independently outside a vessel that stores the fluid, and even if these components are small, the volume of the area between the components cannot be effectively used because each of them occupies the surrounding area, and when the total size of the device is limited, it is difficult to ensure a sufficient volume of the vessel that stores the fluid. The present invention provides a design for a configuration of a mechanism consisting of components such as valves/pipes and the like, that functions for storing and exhausting the fluid inside the storage vessel to innovatively improve the volume usage efficiency of the device.

Claims

1. A device for supplying fluid, wherein the feature is characterized that there is a vessel to store fluid to be supplied, and all the following mechanisms to exhaust the stored fluid are built inside the vessel, such as, main parts of a hand valve except for openings and an operation part, main parts of a valve operated electrically and remotely except for openings, pipes except for openings, a heat exchanger connected to the valves and pipes, a storage vessel for temporally use, a pressure sensor, a safety valve, and other accessories that function as exhausting the fluid, and the outside of the vessel, components exposed are limited to the opening for filling the fluid, or the opening for exhausting the fluid, or the operation part for the hand valve or a terminal to exchange electrical signals for a valve operated electrically and remotely.

2. The device for supplying fluid according to claim 1, wherein an opening for filling the fluid and an opening for exhausting the fluid are identical.

3. The device for supplying fluid according to claim 1, wherein either or both of an exposed opening for filling the fluid or an exposed opening for exhausting the fluid are sealed.

4. The device for supplying fluid according to claim 1, wherein fluid is gas.

5. The device for supplying the fluid according to claim 1, wherein fluid is high-pressure gas.

6. The device for supplying the fluid according to claim 1, wherein fluid is liquefied gas.

7. The device for supplying the fluid according to claim 1, wherein a mechanism includes a heat exchanger.

8. The device for supplying fluid according to claim 1, wherein the mechanism contains a vessel for temporary storage of the fluid that has passed through the mechanism, or vessels or objects that are not connected to the mechanism but can sacrifice the space utilization of the surrounding area.

9. A method for supplying fluid, wherein the feature is characterized that there is a vessel to store the fluid to be supplied, and all the following mechanisms to exhaust the stored fluid are built inside the vessel, such as, main parts of a hand valve except for openings and an operation part, main parts of a valve operated electrically and remotely except for openings, pipes except for openings, a heat exchanger connected to the valves and pipes, a storage vessel for temporally use, a pressure sensor, a safety valve, and other accessories that function as exhausting the fluid, and the outside of the vessel, components exposed are limited to the opening for filling the fluid, or the opening for exhausting the fluid, or the operation part for the hand valve or the terminal to exchange electrical signals for a valve operated electrically and remotely.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0025] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of a device in which a mechanism consisting of valves, pipes, and other components that function as exhausting fluid is constructed inside a vessel that stores the fluid.

[0026] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example for augmented device by modularized components.

[0027] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a mechanism consisting of valves, pipes, and other components that function as exhausting the fluid into a prismatic vessel.

[0028] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a mechanism consisting of valves, pipes, and other components that function as exhausting the fluid into two consecutive prismatic vessels.

[0029] FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a mechanism consisting of valves, pipes, and other components that function as exhausting the fluid into four adjacent prismatic vessels.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

[0030] The present invention does not designate whichever fluid to be exhausted and supplied is liquid or gas. The present invention accepts whichever the fluid to be exhausted and supplied is liquid or gas.

[0031] The present invention is particularly useful for liquefied gas with low vapor pressure. The low vapor pressure makes it possible to use a prismatic (rectangular or cubic) vessel itself as a storage vessel, leading to a significant improvement of the efficiency of volume utilization.

[0032] FIG. 3 shows an example of the implementation in a cube-type thruster for micro satellites. Herein, “fluid” denotes a propellant. The cube-type thruster is a device, and a cube-shaped box is a vessel. The size of the vessel is 10 cm×10 cm×10 cm. Some components, such as safety valves and terminals, which cannot be shown in the figure, are omitted from the diagram.

[0033] In such micro thrusters, it is not easy to provide a vessel of sufficient volume to store propellant fluid, even if the components are small, because each component occupies the bottom area and height. Even if it is possible, the amount of fluid that can be stored is very much limited because the volume is proportional to the cube of the length scale.

[0034] This difficulty can be overcome with the present invention.

As shown in the figure of example configuration, implementing all the components of the mechanism inside the box makes it possible to store for transport about 600 cc to 700 cc of fluid by filling the entire box with the propellant fluid.

[0035] The components that are exposed to the outside of a vessel are only a rotating knob that operate a hand valve, a terminal for electrical operation, a fill valve, an exhaust valve, and an outlet that directs the propellant to the outlet of the vessel as a final step.

[0036] The propellant fluid can be gas, liquid, or liquefied gas, or the like. As described above, in the cube-type vessel in the example configuration, low-pressure gas or liquefied gas with low vapor pressure are the most preferable propellant.

[0037] Additionally, a prismatic vessel makes it possible to develop an arbitrary augmentation of the system, the device.

[0038] FIG. 4 shows an example in which two cube-type thrusters are connected. FIG. 5 shows an example in which four cube-type thrusters are connected. Augmented vessels can store the fluid nearly 100% in terms of the volume.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

[0039] Especially for micro satellites, the transportation cost depends not only on the mass, but also on the overall density or in other words on the efficiency of volume utilization significantly.

[0040] The present invention will lead to a dramatic improvement in the efficiency of the volume utilization, which will in turn contribute to lowering the transportation cost.

[0041] The present invention will lead to a standardization of the shape of the device and the vessel, which will make it easy to augment the device module by nodule, leading to a variety of applications.