AUTOMATION FIELD DEVICE

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a field device of automation technology, comprising a housing and a sensor unit sensitive for a process variable of a medium. The housing has a passageway to accommodate the sensor unit and the sensor unit protrudes from the housing through a terminal opening of the passageway. A clamping angle and a screw are introduced into the housing in a region of the housing adjoining the opening of the passageway. By means of the screw the clamping angle is shiftable in the housing a predeterminable distance in the direction of the sensor unit, and the clamping angle shifted in the direction of the sensor unit is embodied to press with a first clamping angle section of the clamping angle radially on a clamping region of the sensor unit arranged in the housing and facing the opening of the passageway.

Claims

1-16. (canceled)

17. A field device of automation technology, comprising: a housing and a sensor unit configured to detect a process variable of a medium, wherein the housing has a passageway to accommodate the sensor unit, wherein the sensor unit protrudes from the housing through a terminal opening of the passageway; and a clamping angle and a screw, wherein the clamping angle and the screw are introduced into the housing in a region of the housing adjoining the opening of the passageway, wherein the screw is configured to shift the clamping angle in the housing a predeterminable distance toward the sensor unit; wherein the clamping angle shifted toward the sensor unit is embodied to press with a first clamping angle section of the clamping angle radially on a clamping region of the sensor unit arranged in the housing and facing the opening of the passageway.

18. The field device of claim 17, wherein the sensor unit is moved toward the housing, and the first clamping angle section pressing on the sensor unit inhibits a twisting of the sensor unit relative to the housing after the sensor unit has been moved toward the housing.

19. The field device of claim of claim 17, wherein the first clamping angle section is arranged parallel to a first housing wall adjoining the opening of the passageway, and wherein the first clamping angle section presses with a contour of the first clamping angle section on the clamping region of the sensor unit.

20. The field device of claim 19, wherein the shape of the contour of the first clamping angle section is matched to the shape of the clamping region of the sensor unit.

21. The field device of claim 17, wherein a sealing element is arranged between sensor unit and housing in a region adjoining the opening of the passageway, and wherein the clamping region is arranged between the sealing element and a region of the sensor unit protruding out from the opening of the passageway.

22. The field device of claim 17, wherein the clamping angle is inserted in a hollowed-out section of the housing, and wherein a first loss preventer inhibiting a removal of the clamping angle from the hollowed-out section is formed by inserting a pin-shaped element into and protruding through a second clamping angle section perpendicular to the first clamping angle section.

23. The field device of claim 22, wherein the pin-shaped element of the first loss preventer is formed by the screw protruding through a bore of the second clamping angle section.

24. The field device of claim 23, wherein a second loss preventer inhibiting a removal of the screw from the clamping angle is formed by the screw having a greater diameter than the bore in an end region of the screw protruding from the bore.

25. The field device of claim 24, wherein a slit is introduced into the second clamping angle section and provides a resilient expansion of the bore during screwing of the screw.

26. The field device of claim 24, wherein the greater diameter of the screw in the end region is facilitated using a slit ring mounted on the screw.

27. The field device of claim 17, wherein the screw is accessible from a second housing wall perpendicular to the first housing wall and the second housing wall is parallel to the second clamping angle section, and wherein: screwing in of the screw causes the shifting of the clamping angle by the predeterminable distance to the sensor unit; and the unscrewing of the screw causes the shifting of the clamping angle by the predeterminable distance away from the sensor unit.

28. The field device of claim 17, wherein a hole in the housing oriented radially to the sensor unit is configured to receive the screw.

29. The field device of claim 22, wherein the hollowed-out section receiving the clamping angle is formed in a manufacturing method of the housing producing a solid body having a geometrically defined form from a formless material.

30. The field device of claim 17, wherein the screw or the clamping angle are stainless steel.

31. The field device of claim 17, wherein the screw has a diameter of 1 mm to 10 mm.

32. The field device of claim 17, wherein the first clamping angle section has a smaller area than the second clamping angle section, and wherein the second clamping angle section has an area 10 mm.sup.2 to 200 mm.sup.2.

Description

[0028] The invention will now be explained in greater detail based on the appended, schematic drawing, wherein equal reference characters refer to equal features. When perspicuity requires or it otherwise appears sensible, already shown reference characters are omitted in subsequent figures. The figures of the drawing show as follows:

[0029] FIG. 1 a sectional view of an embodiment of a field device of the invention;

[0030] FIG. 2a another sectional view of an embodiment of a field device of the invention;

[0031] FIG. 2b a perspective view of a clamping angle and a screw of an embodiment of a field device of the invention;

[0032] FIGS. 3a,b another embodiment of a field device of the invention having a slit ring;

[0033] FIG. 4 another, alternative embodiment of a field device of the invention; and

[0034] FIG. 5 a perspective view of an additional embodiment of a field device of the invention.

[0035] The sectional view in FIG. 1 of an embodiment of a field device of the invention having a housing 1 shows in passageway 2 a sensor unit 3, which protrudes from the housing through a terminal opening 21 of the passageway 2. In this embodiment, the sensor unit 3 is essentially cylindrical. Of course, the sensor unit 3 can have other embodiments than that shown in the schematic view of FIG. 1, in order to comprise corresponding sensitive components for the measurement devices mentioned above. These include, for example, mechanical, oscillatable units such as, for instance, oscillatory forks, membrane oscillators or single rods in the case of vibronic fill level measuring devices.

[0036] Arranged in a region, which borders on the opening 21 of the passageway 2, is, additionally, a sealing ring serving as a sealing element 6 for and extending annularly around the sensor unit 3. The sealing ring liquid tightly seals the interface between the housing 1 and the sensor unit 3. This greatly limits the space available for securing the sensor unit 3 relative to the housing 1. In the solution of the invention, consequently, the clamping angle 4 and the screw 5 are provided for securing the sensor unit 3. By means of the screw 5 in the threaded hole 11, the clamping angle 4 can be pressed against the sensor unit 3, so that especially a twisting of the housing 1 relative to the sensor unit 3 is no longer possible. The clamping angle 4 is, in such case, inserted into a hollowed-out section 12 of the housing 1.

[0037] The detailed sectional view in FIG. 2a shows the embodiment of the field device of the invention of FIG. 1 with the housing 1, wherein FIG. 2a essentially only shows the region marked with II in FIG. 1. The clamping angle 4 presses with a first clamping angle section 41 radially on a clamping region 31 of the sensor unit 3. The clamping region 31 is located between the sealing ring and the terminal opening 21. In such case, the clamping angle is inserted in such a manner into the hollowed-out section 12 that the planar, first clamping angle section 41 is essentially arranged in parallel with a first housing wall 13 and especially mounted flushly with housing wall 13. Clamping angle 4 is, in such case, shiftable by means of the screw 5 a predeterminable distance in the direction of the sensor unit 3, i.e. radially to the sensor unit 3 (see arrow in FIG. 2a). A screwing in of the screw effects that a contour 41a of the first clamping angle section 41 is moved radially to the sensor unit 3 and presses on the clamping region 31 the sensor unit 3.

[0038] A first loss preventer for clamping angle 4 is formed by engaging the screw 5 in a bore 43 (see FIG. 2b) in the second clamping angle section 42, such that it protrudes as a pin-shaped element 9 through the bore 43 of the second clamping angle section 42. This prevents removal of the clamping angle 4 from the hollowed-out section 12.

[0039] At the same time, the screw 5 after a first time screwing into the bore 43 is securely held in the second clamping angle section 42 by a second loss preventer. The second loss preventer is formed by giving the screw 5 in the end region ER protruding through the bore 43, i.e. the sensor unit 3 near region of the screw 5, a greater diameter than the bore 43. The screw 5, in such case, can be screwed into a hole drilled into the housing 1, and is accessible from a second housing wall 14. Advantageously, in this embodiment, by an unscrewing of the screw 5, the securement between sensor unit 3 and housing 1 can be very simply repeatedly released, wherein an, in given cases, unintentional dropping of the screw 5 from the bore 43 is prevented by means of the second loss preventer.

[0040] In order to be able to screw such a screw 5 first into the bore 43, a spring element is advantageously provided, which in the case of the screwing in of the screw 5 into the bore 43 effects a matching of the diameter of the end region ER of the screw and the diameter of the bore relative to one another.

[0041] FIG. 2b represents a first variant of this, in which the bore 43 resiliently expands upon the screwing in of the screw 5. For this, a slit 7 is provided in the second clamping angle section 42. In the perspective view in FIG. 2b, also the contour 41a is matched to the curvature of the sensor unit. This shape matched contour 41a is, of course, also combinable with the subsequently related embodiments. The shape matched contour 41a achieves that the screwed tight clamping angle section 4 presses with multiple regions of the contour 41a on the clamping region 31. In this way, a multipoint-securement between sensor unit 3 and housing 1 is advantageously achieved.

[0042] An alternative to FIGS. 2a,b, or, in given cases, a supplement for the above mentioned spring element for matching of the diameters of screw 5 and bore 43 is shown in FIGS. 3a,b. The slit ring 8 shown in FIG. 3a in a plan view effects, firstly, that the diameter in the end region ER of the screw is greater than that of the bore 43. This is shown in the sectional view of FIG. 3b. Upon first time screwing in of the screw 5 into the hole 11, the slit ring 8 is resiliently collapsed, i.e. squeezed to a smaller diameter, in such a manner that it can pass through the bore 43. In order to ease this, it is, in given cases, possible supplementally to chamfer the bore 43 in a region facing toward hole 11 and the second housing wall 14.

[0043] Alternatively to the first loss preventer for clamping angle 4 illustrated in FIGS. 2a,b and FIGS. 3a,b, in the case of which the pin-shaped element 9 is formed by the screw 5, it is, of course, alternatively also possible to provide a pin-shaped element 9 separate and supplemental to the screw 5. Such is shown in FIG. 4. In such case, the screw 5 does not protrude through the second clamping angle section 42, but, instead, shifts the clamping angle 4 in the direction radial to the sensor unit 3 by pressing on the second clamping angle section 42.

[0044] FIG. 5 shows, finally, a perspective view of an embodiment of a field device of the invention. In such case, significant is that the space provided for securement is very small, especially since a sealing ring (not shown) is arranged in a region between the housing 1 and the sensor unit 3 adjoining the opening 21. The sensor unit 3 is shown in FIG. 5 only partially, since, for example, additional components of the sensor unit 3 can be screwed on the opening 21 far screw thread of the sensor unit 3 protruding out from the housing 1. Housing 1 is bulged in the illustrated region and can have in such region a hollowed-out section 12 in the housing 1 to seat the clamping angle 4. Visible in this perspective view are the first clamping angle section 41 of the clamping angle 4 arranged flushly with the first housing wall 13 and the screw 5 accessible from the second housing wall 14.

Reference Characters and Symbols

[0045] 1 housing

[0046] 2 passageway

[0047] 21 terminal opening of the passageway

[0048] 3 sensor unit

[0049] 31 clamping region of the sensor unit

[0050] 4 clamping angle

[0051] 41 first clamping angle section

[0052] 41a contour of the first clamping angle section

[0053] 42 second clamping angle section

[0054] 43 bore in the second clamping angle section

[0055] 5 screw

[0056] 6 sealing element

[0057] 7 slit

[0058] 8 slit ring

[0059] 9 pin-shaped element

[0060] 11 hole

[0061] 12 hollowed-out section

[0062] 13 first housing wall

[0063] 14 second housing wall

[0064] ER end region