EP-4741774-A1 - ULTRASONIC MEASURING TUBE AND ULTRASONIC FLOWMETER

EP4741774A1EP 4741774 A1EP4741774 A1EP 4741774A1EP-4741774-A1

Abstract

The present invention discloses an ultrasonic measuring tube which comprises tube bodies and a measuring assembly, the tube bodies includes a first tube body and a second tube body, the first tube body and the second tube body are connected in a sealed manner, the first tube body has a first connection groove, and the second tube body has a second connection groove, and the second connection groove and the first connection groove enclose a measuring channel; the measuring assembly is provided within the tube bodies, and the measuring assembly comprises a first ultrasonic transducer, a second ultrasonic transducer and reflective elements. When in use, the fluid to be measured enters the measuring channel from the measuring inlet, and flows out from the measuring outlets, the first ultrasonic transducer and the second ultrasonic transducer are matched to emit and receive ultrasonic waves, and the reflective elements are used to reflect the ultrasonic waves, so that the ultrasonic waves propagate along a direction of the measuring channel, and thus the flow of the fluid is measured. The ultrasonic measuring tube provided by the present invention has a simple and compact structure as well as a small size. The present invention further provides an ultrasonic flowmeter, which includes the above ultrasonic measuring tube and can be used in places with limited installation space.

Inventors

JIANG, XIAOFENG
CHEN, HAO
SUN, Fengwu
YU, HAILONG
ZHAO, Zihui

Assignees

Weihai Ploumeter Co., Ltd.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260513
Application Date: 20250626

Claims (10)

An ultrasonic measuring tube, characterized in that , it comprises: tube bodies, comprising a first tube body and a second tube body, wherein the first tube body and the second tube body are connected in a sealed manner, the first tube body has a measuring inlet, measuring outlets and a first connection groove, and the second tube body has a second connection groove, the second connection groove and the first connection groove enclose a measuring channel, and the measuring inlet and the measuring outlets are in communication with two ends of the measuring channel, respectively; a measuring assembly, provided within the tube bodies, wherein the measuring assembly comprises a first ultrasonic transducer, a second ultrasonic transducer and reflective elements, the first ultrasonic transducer and the second ultrasonic transducer are arranged along a length direction of the measuring channel, and are used to emit and receive ultrasonic waves, and the reflective elements are provided inside the measuring channel, and are configured so that the ultrasonic waves can propagate among the first ultrasonic transducer, the reflective elements and the second ultrasonic transducer.
The ultrasonic measuring tube according to claim 1, characterized in that , the first tube body comprises a first cylinder and a first circular ring coaxially provided within the first cylinder, wherein the first cylinder is connected to the first circular ring by a first connection portion, which is provided along a radial direction of the first circular ring, and the first connection portion extends from an inner wall of the first cylinder through an axis of the first circular ring to an inner wall of the first circular ring; a gap between the first cylinder and the first circular ring forms the measuring inlet, and a gap between the first circular ring and the first connection portion forms the measuring outlets, and a side of the first connection portion facing the second tube body is provided with the first connection groove.
The ultrasonic measuring tube according to claim 2, characterized in that , the first connection portion further has guiding surfaces, which are connected between the first connection groove and the measuring outlets, and the guiding surfaces are inclined from the first connection groove toward the measuring outlets, for guiding a fluid in the measuring channel to flow towards the measuring outlets.
The ultrasonic measuring tube according to claim 2, characterized in that , the second tube body has a flow-adjusting channel and two branching channels, wherein the flow-adjusting channel is in communication with the measuring inlet, and the two branching channels are both in communication with the measuring outlets, a first end of the measuring channel is in communication with a middle section of the flow-adjusting channel, and a second end of the measuring channel is in communication with the two branching channels, and wherein after a fluid enters the flow-adjusting channel from the measuring inlet, the fluid converges to the measuring channel, and the fluid flowing out of the measuring channel diverges to the two branching channels and then flows out from the measuring outlets.
The ultrasonic measuring tube according to claim 4, characterized in that , the second tube body comprises a second cylinder and a second circular ring coaxially provided within the second cylinder, wherein the second cylinder is docked and coaxially provided with the first cylinder, and the second circular ring is docked with the first circular ring, the second cylinder has an open structure with a bottom wall, and the bottom wall of the second cylinder is located on a side of the second cylinder away from the first tube body, the second cylinder is connected to the second circular ring by a second connection portion, which is provided along a radial direction of the second circular ring, and the second connection portion extends from an inner wall of the second cylinder through an axis of the second circular ring to an inner wall of the second circular ring; a gap between the second cylinder and the second circular ring forms the flow-adjusting channel, which is provided opposite to the measuring inlet, a gap between the second circular ring and the second connection portion forms the two branching channels, which are provided opposite to the measuring outlets, a side of the second connection portion facing the first tube body is provided with the second connection groove.
The ultrasonic measuring tube according to claim 5, characterized in that , positioning holes and positioning pins adapted to the positioning holes are provided between the first cylinder and the second cylinder, and the first tube body and the second tube body are connected to each other by inserting the positioning pins into the positioning holes.
The ultrasonic measuring tube according to claim 5, characterized in that , a sealing groove is provided on a side of the first circular ring facing away from the second circular ring, and the sealing groove is used to install a sealing ring.
The ultrasonic measuring tube according to any one of claims 1-7, characterized in that , the reflective elements include N+1 first reflective members and N second reflective member(s), the N+1 first reflective members are provided within the first tube body, the N second reflective member(s) is/are provided within the second tube body and located between the first ultrasonic transducer and the second ultrasonic transducer, the N+1 first reflective members and the N second reflective member(s) are spaced apart and alternately arranged along the length direction of the measuring channel, wherein N is a natural number greater than 0.
An ultrasonic flowmeter, characterized in that , the ultrasonic flowmeter is used to be installed on a meter body, and the meter body comprises an input tube, an output tube and a base, wherein the ultrasonic flowmeter comprises an adapter assembly and an instrument box, and further comprises the ultrasonic measuring tube according to any one of claims 1-8, the adapter assembly is connected to both the meter body and the ultrasonic measuring tube, and the instrument box is connected to the adapter assembly and is located on a side of the ultrasonic measuring tube away from the base.
The ultrasonic flowmeter according to claim 9, characterized in that , the adapter assembly comprises a sleeve, an adapter tube and a positioning nut, wherein the adapter tube is threaded to the base, the sleeve is rotatably sleeved to an exterior of the ultrasonic measuring tube and is rotatably inserted into the adapter tube; the positioning nut is threaded to the adapter tube and allows the adapter tube to tightly clamp the sleeve; the instrument box is used to control a measurement of the ultrasonic measuring tube, and the instrument box comprises a box body and a control board; the box body is used to house the control board and to be connected with the adapter assembly.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to the technical field of flow measuring devices and surrounding supporting facilities thereof, in particular to an ultrasonic measuring tube and an ultrasonic flowmeter. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION It is well known that mechanical flowmeters are generally equipped with impellers, through whose rotation the flow is calculated. Mechanical flowmeters are prone to wear, resulting in inaccurate measurement. Ultrasonic flowmeters, on one hand, have no moving parts and thus do not suffer from inaccurate measurement caused by wear during use; on the other hand, have a larger flow area compared to mechanical flowmeters, reducing the possibility of clogging and offering better reliability. Nowadays, with the increasing requirements for higher accuracy in flow measurement, conventional mechanical flowmeters need to be gradually replaced by ultrasonic flowmeters. However, during such replacement, due to space constraints in certain applications, existing ultrasonic flowmeters cannot replace mechanical flowmeters because of the larger size of the existing ultrasonic flowmeters. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The objective of the present invention is to provide an ultrasonic measuring tube and an ultrasonic flowmeter, to solve the above problems in the related technologies, improving the accuracy of flow measurement, wherein the structure of the ultrasonic measuring tube is simple and compact, which is beneficial for reducing the space occupied by the ultrasonic flowmeter and improving the adaptability of the ultrasonic flowmeter. In order to achieve the above objective, the present invention provides the following solutions: The present invention provides an ultrasonic measuring tube, comprising: tube bodies, comprising a first tube body and a second tube body, wherein the first tube body and the second tube body are connected in a sealed manner, the first tube body has a measuring inlet, measuring outlets and a first connection groove, and the second tube body has a second connection groove, the second connection groove and the first connection groove enclose a measuring channel, and the measuring inlet and the measuring outlets are in communication with two ends of the measuring channel, respectively;a measuring assembly, provided within the tube bodies, wherein the measuring assembly comprises a first ultrasonic transducer, a second ultrasonic transducer and reflective elements, the first ultrasonic transducer and the second ultrasonic transducer are arranged along a length direction of the measuring channel, and are used to emit and receive ultrasonic waves, and the reflective elements are provided inside the measuring channel, and are configured so that the ultrasonic waves can propagate among the first ultrasonic transducer, the reflective elements and the second ultrasonic transducer. Preferably, the first tube body comprises a first cylinder and a first circular ring coaxially provided within the first cylinder, wherein the first cylinder is connected to the first circular ring by a first connection portion, which is provided along a radial direction of the first circular ring, and the first connection portion extends from an inner wall of the first cylinder through an axis of the first circular ring to an inner wall of the first circular ring; a gap between the first cylinder and the first circular ring forms the measuring inlet, and a gap between the first circular ring and the first connection portion forms the measuring outlets, and a side of the first connection portion facing the second tube body is provided with the first connection groove. Preferably, reinforcing ribs are also provided between the first cylinder and the first circular ring; arc transition surfaces are provided between the reinforcing ribs and the first cylinder, as well as between the reinforcing ribs and the first circular ring; arc transition surfaces are also provided between the first connection portion and the first cylinder. The first connection portion has guiding surfaces, which are located between the first connection groove and the measuring outlets, and the guiding surfaces are inclined from the first connection groove toward the measuring outlets; the guiding surfaces are arc-shaped surfaces. Preferably, the first connection portion further has guiding surfaces, which are connected between the first connection groove and the measuring outlets, and the guiding surfaces are inclined from the first connection groove toward the measuring outlets, for guiding a fluid in the measuring channel to flow towards the measuring outlets. Preferably, the second tube body has a flow-adjusting channel and two branching channels, wherein the flow-adjusting channel is in communication with the measuring inlet, and the two branching channels are both in communication with the measuring outlets, a first end of the measuring channel is in communication with a middle section of the flow-adjusting cha