Bucket for swinging rotor of centrifugal separator

Abstract

There can be provided a bucket for a swinging rotor of a centrifugal separator that can be readily carried while ensuring the sealability at the time of a centrifugal treatment or the carriage operation. The bucket includes a bucket body (11) in a bottomed cylindrical shape, a cover main body (21) (cover), a packing (22) (seal member), and a pair of attachment mechanisms (34) configured to detachably attach the cover main body (21) to the bucket body (11). The cover main body (21) includes a lid portion (24) having clip fixing portions (31) (pressed portions) and configured to cover an opening (11a) of the bucket body (11), and a handle portion (25) formed integrally with the lid portion (24). The handle portion (25) is stretched between the pair of clip fixing portions (31). A handle concave portion (36) (hole) that opens toward the outside of the cover main body (21) and separates the lid portion (24) and the handle portion (25) is formed between the lid portion (24) and the handle portion (25).

Claims

1. A bucket for a swinging rotor of a centrifugal separator, comprising: a bucket body in a bottomed cylindrical shape configured to accommodate a tube containing a sample to undergo a centrifugal treatment and pivotably and detachably supported by a rotor yoke of the centrifugal separator; a cover detachably attached to an opening of the bucket body and configured to close the opening; a seal member provided between the bucket body and the cover; and a pair of attachments provided at positions that divide the opening into two parts and configured to detachably attach the cover to the bucket body while the cover is pressed toward the bucket body, the cover including a lid portion including a pair of pressed portions that are pressed by the pair of attachments and configured to cover the opening, and a handle portion formed integrally with the lid portion and projecting from the lid portion toward an opposite side of the bucket body, the handle portion being stretched between the pair of pressed portions, a hole formed between the lid portion and the handle portion, the hole opening toward the outside of the cover and separating the lid portion and the handle portion, and a wall, in the hole, configured to connect the lid portion and the handle portion stretched between the pair of pressed portions.

2. The bucket for the swinging rotor of thecentrifugal separator according to claim 1, wherein the attachments are located in two end portions of the bucket body and two end portions of the cover when viewed from an axial direction of trunnion pins that are configured to pivotably connect the bucket body to the rotor yoke, and the handle portion is formed to have an arc-shaped cross section that is convex toward the opposite side of the bucket body.

3. The bucket for the swinging rotor of the centrifugal separator according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein each of the attachments includes a clip type fixing tool that is pivotably supported by one member among the bucket body and the cover, and an engaging portion that is provided in the other member among the bucket body and the cover and engages with the clip type fixing tool.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

(1) FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a state in which buckets are mounted on a rotor yoke according to the present invention;

(2) FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state in which the buckets are detached from the rotor yoke;

(3) FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing the bucket;

(4) FIG. 4A is a plan view for explaining the arrangement of a bucket body;

(5) FIG. 4B is a front view for explaining the arrangement of the bucket body;

(6) FIG. 4C is a side view for explaining the arrangement of the bucket body;

(7) FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a shield cover when viewed from diagonally below;

(8) FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view showing the shield cover;

(9) FIG. 7A is a plan view for explaining the arrangement of a cover main body;

(10) FIG. 7B is a bottom view for explaining the arrangement of the cover main body;

(11) FIG. 7C is a front view for explaining the arrangement of the cover main body;

(12) FIG. 7D is a side view for explaining the arrangement of the cover main body;

(13) FIG. 7E is a sectional view taken along a line E-E in FIG. 7A;

(14) FIG. 7F is an enlarged sectional view showing a packing holding portion;

(15) FIG. 8A is a plan view for explaining the arrangement of a lever;

(16) FIG. 8B is a front view for explaining the arrangement of the lever;

(17) FIG. 8C is a side view for explaining the arrangement of the lever;

(18) FIG. 8D is a rear view for explaining the arrangement of the lever;

(19) FIG. 8E is a sectional view taken along a line E-E in FIG. 8B;

(20) FIG. 9 is a sectional view showing the bucket;

(21) FIG. 10A is a sectional view showing an attachment structure in a locked state;

(22) FIG. 10B is a sectional view showing the attachment structure in an unlocked state;

(23) FIG. 11 is a side view showing a bucket according to a comparative example in which no handle portion is provided; and

(24) FIG. 12 is a side view showing the bucket according to the present invention for explaining a state at the time of a carriage operation.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

(25) An embodiment of a bucket for the swinging rotor of a centrifugal separator according to the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 12.

(26) Four buckets 1 shown in FIG. 1 are supported by a rotor yoke 2. The four buckets 1 and the rotor yoke 2 form a swinging rotor 3 of a centrifugal separator (not shown). The rotor yoke 2 rotates about a rotation axis indicated by a one-dot dashed line C1 in FIG. 1. The rotation axis C1 extends in the vertical direction.

(27) As shown in FIG. 2, the rotor yoke 2 includes four arms 4 each extending in the horizontal direction. Each of the distal end portions of the arms 4 is provided with trunnion pins 5. The trunnion pins 5 support the buckets 1 rotatably and detachably, and are each formed in a columnar shape. The trunnion pins 5 are rotatably fitted, from below, in trunnion pin grooves 6 (see FIG. 2) provided in two side portions of each bucket 1. If the rotor yoke 2 rotates at high speed while the buckets 1 are mounted on the rotor yoke 2, each bucket 1 rotates about the trunnion pins 5 by the centrifugal force acting on the bucket 1, and the bottom surface of the bucket 1 is swung up outward when viewed from the rotation center.

(28) As shown in FIG. 3, each bucket 1 includes a bucket body 11 formed in a bottomed cylindrical shape, a tube rack 12 accommodated in the bucket body 11, and a shield cover 13 for closing an opening 11a of the bucket body 11. An explanation of each part of the bucket 1 assumes that a direction in which the bucket body 11 opens is set as an upward direction and a direction opposite to the direction is set as a downward direction.

(29) As shown in FIGS. 4A to 4C, the bucket body 11 includes the above-described trunnion pin grooves 6 located on the outer portion and a pair of engaging convex portions 14 located near the opening 11a. The trunnion pin grooves 6 are provided in two facing side walls 11b and 11c of the bucket body 11, respectively. As shown in FIG. 4C, the trunnion pin grooves 6 extend in the vertical direction along the side walls 11b and 11c of the bucket body 11, and open laterally and downward with respect to the bucket body 11. The direction in which the two trunnion pin grooves 6 are formed is the axial direction of the trunnion pins 5. The axial direction of the trunnion pins 5 is indicated by a one-dot dashed line C2 in FIG. 4A.

(30) The engaging convex portions 14 are used to fix the shield cover 13 (to be described later) to the bucket body 11, and are respectively provided at positions at which the bucket body 11 is divided (halved) into two parts in the axial direction of the trunnion pins 5 when viewed from above. In other words, as shown in FIG. 4C, the positions at which the engaging convex portions 14 are provided are the positions of the two end portions of the bucket body 11 when viewed from a direction facing the trunnion pin groove 6 (the axial direction of the trunnion pins 5). The direction in which the pair of engaging convex portions 14 are arranged will be simply referred to as the radial direction of the rotor 3 hereinafter.

(31) Each engaging convex portion 14 projects laterally from the bucket body 11, and is formed in a shape extending in a direction orthogonal to the radial direction of the rotor 3. As shown in FIG. 4C, the lower end of each engaging convex portion 14 is formed by a bucket hook groove 15. The bucket hook groove 15 has an arc-shaped cross section that is convex upward. The bucket hook groove 15 forms an engaging portion of the invention.

(32) A flat mating surface 16 extending in the horizontal direction is formed in the opening 11a of the bucket body 11. This mating surface 16 is formed over the entire region of the opening 11a of the bucket body 11 without any discontinuity.

(33) As shown in FIG. 3, the tube rack 12 is used to hold a plurality of tubes 17. Each tube 17 is formed in a bottomed cylindrical shape, and contains a sample (not shown). The tube rack 12 according to this embodiment is formed in a shape fitted inside the bucket body 11. The tube rack 12 includes six non-through holes 18 for tube insertion to hold the six tubes 17. The tubes 17 are inserted into the non-through holes 18 from above, and held.

(34) As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the shield cover 13 is formed by a cover main body 21, a packing 22 attached to the lower end portion of the cover main body 21, clip type fixing tools 23 (to be simply referred to as clips 23 hereinafter) pivotably attached to the two end portions of the cover main body 21, and the like.

(35) As shown in FIGS. 7A to 7E, the cover main body 21 includes a lid portion 24 for covering the opening 11a of the bucket body 11, and a handle portion 25 projecting upward (to the opposite side of the bucket body 11) from the lid portion 24. In this embodiment, the cover main body 21 forms a cover of the present invention.

(36) The cover main body 21 according to this embodiment is formed in a predetermined shape by a plastic material. Thus, the handle portion 25 is formed integrally with the lid portion 24.

(37) As shown in FIG. 7E, the lid portion 24 is formed in a box shape opening downward. As shown in FIGS. 7B and 7F, a concave groove 26 for holding the packing 22 and a projection 27 extending downward from the concave groove 26 are formed in the opening 24a of the lid portion 24. The concave groove 26 opens downward, and extends over the entire region of the opening 24a of the lid portion 24 without any discontinuity.

(38) The packing 22 inserted into the concave groove 26 is formed by an elastic body such as rubber in an annular shape (see FIG. 6) that can be fitted in the concave groove 26. As shown in FIG. 7F, the packing 22 is formed in a shape in which the lower end portion of the packing 22 protrudes downward from the concave groove 26 while the packing 22 is inserted into the concave groove 26. The packing 22 is in contact with the mating surface 16 of the bucket body 11 while the shield cover 13 is attached to the bucket body 11. In this embodiment, the packing 22 forms a seal member of the present invention.

(39) The projection 27 extends over the entire region of the opening 11a of the lid portion 24 without any discontinuity. As shown in FIG. 9, the projection 27 is fitted in the opening 11a of the bucket body 11 while the shield cover 13 is attached to the bucket body 11.

(40) Clip fixing portions 31 are provided in the two end portions of the lid portion 24 in the radial direction of the rotor 3 (the two end portions in the vertical direction in FIG. 7A). Each clip fixing portion 31 has a function of pivotably holding the clip 23 (to be described later).

(41) The clip fixing portions 31 according to this embodiment are provided near the opening 24a, and project from the two sides of the lid portion 24 in the radial direction of the rotor 3. The upper portion of each clip fixing portion 31 is formed by a concave groove 33 in which a clip shaft portion 32 (see FIG. 8A) of the clip 23 is pivotably fitted. The concave groove 33 is formed to have a C-shaped cross section that opens upward.

(42) Although details will be described later, each clip 23 forms an attachment mechanism 34 (see FIG. 9) together with the corresponding engaging convex portion 14 of the bucket body 11. The attachment mechanism 34 has a function of detachably attaching the cover main body 21 to the bucket body 11 and a function of pressing the cover main body 21 toward the bucket body 11. Consequently, the clip fixing portions 31 of the cover main body 21 are pressed downward by the attachment mechanisms 34. In this embodiment, the clip fixing portions 31 form pressed portions of the present invention.

(43) As shown in FIGS. 7A and 7D, the handle portion 25 is stretched between the pair of clip fixing portions 31. As shown in FIG. 7E, the handle portion 25 according to this embodiment is formed by a plate-like upper plate 25a extending to connect the pair of clip fixing portions 31 and a vertical wall 35 connecting the upper plate 25a to an upper wall 24b of the lid portion 24. As shown in FIG. 7D, the upper plate 25a is formed to have an arc-shaped cross section that is convex upward (toward the opposite side of the bucket body 11) when viewed from the axial direction of the trunnion pins 5.

(44) The vertical wall 35 is located in the central portions of the upper wall 24b and upper plate 25a in the axial direction of the trunnion pins 5 (in the horizontal direction in FIG. 7E), and extends in the vertical direction and the radial direction of the rotor 3. Consequently, a handle concave portion 36 opening toward one side and the other side in the axial direction of the trunnion pins 5 is formed between the upper plate 25a and the upper wall 24b of the lid portion 24. The handle concave portion 36 opens toward the outside of the cover main body 21, and separates the lid portion 24 and the handle portion 25. In this embodiment, the handle concave portion 36 corresponds to a hole of the present invention, and the vertical wall 35 corresponds to a wall connecting a lid portion and a handle portion of the invention.

(45) The center of the arc formed by the upper plate 25a is the axis of the trunnion pins 5 when viewed from the axial direction of the trunnion pins 5.

(46) As shown in FIGS. 6 and 8A to 8E, each clip 23 includes the clip shaft portion 32 formed in a columnar shape, and a pair of side plate portions 41 connected to the two end portions of the clip shaft portion 32, and first and second clip joining portions 42 and 43 provided between the side plate portions 41. The clip 23 according to this embodiment is formed in a predetermined shape by a plastic material.

(47) The clip shaft portion 32 is formed in a shape rotatably fitted in the above-described concave groove 33 of the clip fixing portion 31, and is connected to the one-end portions of the side plate portions 41. The first clip joining portion 42 is connected to the other-end portions of the side plate portions 41. The second clip joining portion 43 is located between the clip shaft portion 32 and the first clip joining portion 42.

(48) Two concave portions 44 are formed in the first clip joining portion 42 so that the operator (not shown) inserts fingers. The concave portions 44 are formed between the pair of side plate portions 41 and a reinforcing rib 45 located at the central portion of the first clip joining portion 42.

(49) A clip hook portion 46 is provided in a portion of the first clip joining portion 42 facing the second clip joining portion 43 to project. As shown in FIG. 8E, the clip hook portion 46 is formed to have a semicircular cross section that is convex toward the clip shaft portion 32. As shown in FIGS. 10A and 10B, the clip hook portions 46 are located at positions where the clip hook portions 46 are engaged in the bucket hook grooves 15 by superimposing the cover main body 21 attached with the clips 23 on the bucket body 11 and swinging the clips 23 toward the bucket body 11. An arrangement in which the engagement displaces the cover main body 21 to the side of the bucket body 11 to compress the packing 22 is adopted. A state in which the clip hook portions 46 are engaged in the bucket hook grooves 15 to compress the packing 22, as shown in FIG. 10A, will be referred to as a locked state hereinafter. Furthermore, a state in which the clip hook portions 46 are not engaged in the bucket hook grooves 15, as shown in FIG. 10B, will be referred to as an unlocked state hereinafter.

(50) To attach the shield cover 13 having the above arrangement to the bucket body 11, the shield cover 13 is superimposed on the opening 11a of the bucket body 11 so that the projection 27 of the cover main body 21 is fitted in the bucket body 11. At this time, the packing 22 is in contact with the mating surface 16 of the bucket body 11. Then, the operator swings the clips 23 to fit and engage the clip hook portions 46 in the bucket hook grooves 15 of the bucket body 11, as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10A.

(51) When the clip hook portions 46 are engaged in the bucket hook grooves 15, the cover main body 21 is fixed to the bucket body 11 and the shield cover 13 is set in the locked state. This engagement causes the cover main body 21 to press the packing 22 toward the bucket body 11, and the packing 22 is compressed and crushed as a whole.

(52) When the opening 11a of the bucket body 11 is covered with the shield cover 13 and the packing 22 is compressed between the bucket body 11 and the shield cover 13, the interior of the bucket 1 is sealed.

(53) To detach the shield cover 13 from the bucket body 11, the operator swings each clip 23 in a direction in which the swing end portion of the clip 23 is separated from the bucket body 11, as shown in FIG. 10B. When the clips 23 were swung, the engagement between the clip hook portions 46 and the bucket hook grooves 15 is canceled, thereby setting the shield cover 13 in the unlocked state. In this state, the shield cover 13 is lifted up from the bucket body 11, thereby detaching the shield cover 13 from the bucket body 11.

(54) The bucket 1 in a state in which the shield cover 13 is fixed to the bucket body 11 and set in the locked state can be readily carried by gripping the handle portion 25 of the shield cover 13. The handle portion 25 is gripped when the operator inserts fingers into the handle concave portion 36 to hook them on the upper plate 25a. At this time, the cover main body 21 is applied with an upward force generated when the handle portion 25 is lifted up and a downward force corresponding to the weight of the bucket 1 and transmitted via the clips 23.

(55) The reason why the sealability deteriorates when a bucket provided with no handle portion is carried will be described again with reference to FIG. 11. In FIG. 11, the same reference numerals as in FIGS. 1 to 10B denote the same or equivalent members. As for a bucket 51 provided with no handle portion, as described in patent literature 1, if a shield cover 52 is lifted up, an upward force almost uniformly acts on the entire region of a cover main body 53, as indicated by arrows in FIG. 11. Since the cover main body 53 is not a complete rigid body, it is deformed when an external force is applied.

(56) The peripheral portions of the clip fixing portions 31 pressed toward the bucket body 11 by the clips 23, that is, portions A indicated by two-dot dashed lines in FIG. 11 have relatively small deformation amounts, a decrease in crushing amount of the packing 22 is small. However, in an unfixed portion that receives no force from each clip 23, that is, a portion B indicated by a two-dot dashed line in FIG. 11, the crushing amount of the packing 22 largely decreases. Thus, the sealability unwantedly deteriorates.

(57) To the contrary, as for the bucket 1 according to this embodiment, if a force F1 that lifts up the handle portion 25 is applied to the handle portion 25, as shown in FIG. 12, the force F1 intensively acts on the peripheral portions (portions A) of the clip fixing portions 31 for the first and second reasons (to be described later). The first reason is that the handle portion 25 is stretched between the pair of clip fixing portions 31 and the upper plate 25a of the handle portion 25 extends to the clip fixing portions 31. The second reason is that the handle concave portion 36 is formed between the handle portion 25 and the lid portion 24, and the force is difficult to be transmitted between the upper plate 25a of the handle portion 25 and the upper wall 24b of the lid portion 24. That is, the transmission direction of the upward force is restricted by the handle concave portion 36.

(58) Consequently, most of the force that lifts up the handle portion 25 acts on the peripheral portions of the clip fixing portions 31, and the upward force transmitted to the unfixed portion (portion B) that is not fixed by the clips 23 is small. Since the upward force applied to the clip fixing portions 31 is canceled by the downward force corresponding to the weight of the bucket body 11, the clip fixing portions 31 are never deformed upward with respect to the bucket body 11.

(59) Therefore, even if the bucket 1 is lifted up by gripping the handle portion 25, it is possible to minimize a decrease in packing crushing amount over the entire region of the cover main body 21, thereby suppressing a deterioration in sealability.

(60) Since the handle portion 25 is formed integrally with the lid portion 24 of the cover main body 21, it never moves with respect to the lid portion 24 at the time of the centrifugal treatment. Therefore, the force of each of the above-described attachment mechanisms 34, that presses the cover main body 21 toward the bucket body 11, remains the same during the centrifugal treatment.

(61) According to this embodiment, it is possible to provide a bucket for the swinging rotor of a centrifugal separator that can be readily carried while ensuring the sealability at the time of a centrifugal treatment or the carriage operation.

(62) In the bucket 1 according to this embodiment, the handle portion 25 is formed integrally with the lid portion 24, and the locked state and the unlocked state of the cover main body 21 can be switched by the dedicated attachment mechanism 34 irrelevant to the handle portion 25. Although not shown, for example, the reliability when ensuring the sealed state is high, as compared with a case in which the locked state and the unlocked state of the cover main body are switched by making the handle portion pivotably provided in the cover main body stand upright or tilting the handle portion. The reason for this is that if a centrifugal treatment is performed in a state in which the handle portion stands upright with respect to the cover main body (in a state at the time of the carriage operation), the handle portion may tilt due to the centrifugal force. To solve this problem, it is only necessary to adopt an arrangement in which the handle portion can be held in the state in which it tilts at the time of the centrifugal treatment while maintaining the locked state by tilting the handle portion to the opposite side of the unlock position at which the handle portion tilts with respect to the cover main body. In this case, however, if the direction in which the handle portion is tilted is wrong at the time of the centrifugal treatment, an unsealed state is set. The bucket according to the present invention has no such problem, and the reliability of the sealed state is improved.

(63) As shown in FIG. 9, the attachment mechanisms 34 according to this embodiment are located in the two end portions of the bucket body 11 and the two end portions of the cover when viewed from the axial direction of the trunnion pins 5. The handle portion 25 is formed to have an arc-shaped cross section that is convex toward the opposite side of the bucket body 11 when viewed from the axial direction. Consequently, the interval between the handle portion 25 and the rotor yoke 2 does not change largely at the time of the centrifugal treatment. Therefore, according to this embodiment, the handle portion 25 can be formed by making full use of the limited space between the opening 11a of the bucket body 11 and the rotor yoke 2. Note that if the internal space of the bucket body 11 or the handle concave portion 36 can be formed to be sufficiently wide, the upper plate 25a of the handle portion 25 need not be formed in an arc shape.

(64) The vertical wall 35 that connects the lid portion 24 and the handle portion 25 is provided inside the handle concave portion 36 (on the bottom of the handle concave portion 36) according to this embodiment. Since, therefore, the vertical wall 35 reinforces the handle portion 25, the handle portion 25 is never deformed even if the centrifugal force is applied to the handle portion 25. Thus, the rigidity of the cover main body 21 is kept high, thereby making it possible to further improve the sealability during the centrifugal treatment. Note that if the strength of the upper plate 25a of the handle portion 25 against the centrifugal force can be sufficiently ensured, the vertical wall 35 can be eliminated. If no vertical wall 35 is provided, there is no upward force transmitted from the handle portion 25 to the upper wall 24b of the lid portion 24, and thus the sealability is readily ensured.

(65) Each attachment mechanism 34 according to this embodiment includes the clip 23 pivotably supported by the cover main body 21, and the engaging convex portion 14 provided in the bucket body 11 and engaged with the clip 23. Therefore, it is possible to readily switch, by the clips 23, between the locked state in which the cover main body 21 is fixed to the bucket body 11 and the unlocked state in which the fixing is canceled. It is thus possible to provide a bucket for the swinging rotor of a centrifugal separator that is easier to handle.

(66) As described in this embodiment, if the clips 23 are used to fix the cover main body 21 to the bucket body 11, the positions of the clips 23 are apparently different between the locked state and the unlocked state, and it is thus possible to prevent an error operation by the operator. Note that the attachment mechanism 34 is not limited to that using the clip 23 described in this embodiment. Any structure that can detachably fix the cover main body 21 to the bucket body 11 is used.

EXPLANATION OF THE REFERENCE NUMERALS AND SIGNS

(67) 1 . . . bucket, 2 . . . rotor yoke, 5 . . . trunnion pin, 11 . . . bucket body, 15 . . . bucket hook groove (engaging portion), 17 . . . tube, 21 . . . cover main body (cover), 22 . . . packing (seal member), 23 . . . clip (clip type fixing tool), 24 . . . lid portion, 25 . . . handle portion, 31 . . . clip fixing portion (pressed portion), 34 . . . attachment mechanism, 35 . . . vertical wall (wall), 36 . . . handle concave portion (hole), 46 . . . clip hook portion