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WO-2026093305-A1 - REFRIGERANT VALVE

WO2026093305A1WO 2026093305 A1WO2026093305 A1WO 2026093305A1WO-2026093305-A1

Abstract

In order to provide a refrigerant valve which can be produced cost-effectively and simply, a refrigerant valve (100) comprising a valve housing (10) and a valve needle (11) is proposed, wherein: the valve housing (10) has a substantially cylindrical channel (12); the channel (12) has at least one inlet opening (13) for a refrigerant and an axial outlet opening (14) for a refrigerant; the valve needle (11) is arranged in the channel (12) such that the valve needle can be axially moved between a closed position and an open position; the valve needle (11) is cylindrical; an outer diameter (15) of the valve needle (11) is smaller than an inner diameter (16) of the channel (12); the valve needle (11) has a collar (18) at an end; the collar (18) forms a valve seat (19); the channel (12) has a stop surface (20) for the collar (18) at the outlet opening (14).

Inventors

  • SCHULTZE, TONIO-ERIK
  • Hörning, Oliver
  • BODEUTSCH, DIRK

Assignees

  • VOLKSWAGEN AG

Dates

Publication Date
20260507
Application Date
20251028
Priority Date
20241030

Claims (10)

  1. 1. Refrigerant valve (100) comprising a valve housing (10) and a valve needle (11), wherein the valve housing (10) has a substantially cylindrical channel (12), wherein the channel (12) has at least one inlet opening (13) for a refrigerant and an axial outlet opening (14) for a refrigerant, wherein the valve needle (11) is arranged to be axially displaceable in the channel (12) between a closed position and an open position, wherein the valve needle (11) is cylindrical, characterized in that an outer diameter (15) of the valve needle (11) is smaller than an inner diameter (16) of the channel (12), that the valve needle (11) has a collar (18) at its end, wherein the collar (18) forms a valve seat (19), and wherein the channel (12) has a stop surface (20) for the collar (18) at the outlet opening (14).
  2. 2. Refrigerant valve (100) according to claim 1, characterized in that the at least one inlet opening (13) is a radial inlet opening (13).
  3. 3. Refrigerant valve (100) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the outlet opening (14) has a profile section (22) wherein the inner diameter (16) of the channel (12) widens in the area of the profile section (22).
  4. 4. Refrigerant valve (100) according to claim 3, characterized in that the profile section (22) realizes a valve characteristic curve.
  5. 5. Refrigerant valve (100) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the channel (12) has no undercut.
  6. 6. Refrigerant valve (100) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the valve needle (11) is secured in the valve housing (10) by means of an anti-rotation device, and/or that the valve needle (11) has a seal (23), in particular an O-ring (24).
  7. 7. Refrigerant valve (100) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that an electric motor (26) is provided which is configured to move the valve needle (11) between the at least one open position and the closed position. K 34226 - 10 -
  8. 8. Refrigerant valve (100) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a valve block (27) is provided, and that the valve housing (10) has a connection section (29) for attachment to the valve block (27), wherein preferably the connection section (29) is a screw thread (30), and/or wherein preferably the connection section (29) comprises a union nut (31).
  9. 9. Refrigeration circuit (300) comprising at least one refrigerant valve (100) according to one of the preceding claims.
  10. 10. Motor vehicle (200) comprising a refrigeration circuit (300) according to claim 9 and/or comprising a refrigerant valve (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 8. Motor vehicle (200) comprising a refrigeration circuit (300) according to claim 9 and/or comprising a refrigerant valve (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

Description

K 34226 Description Refrigerant valve The present invention relates to a refrigerant valve comprising a valve body and a valve needle. Furthermore, the present invention relates to a refrigeration circuit comprising a refrigerant valve and to a motor vehicle comprising a refrigeration circuit with a refrigerant valve. Refrigerant valves are required in large quantities in modern motor vehicles, especially battery-electric and hybrid electric vehicles with complex thermal management systems. Due to the high production volume, one goal is to manufacture the refrigerant valves as cost-effectively as possible. The valve bodies of known refrigerant valves typically have a complex geometry that is expensive to manufacture. For example, these valve bodies often feature undercuts. Therefore, the valve bodies represent a significant portion of the overall cost of the refrigerant valve. DE 10 2006 029 267 A1 discloses a control valve for the refrigerant R744 for controlling a high pressure difference between an inlet and outlet of the refrigerant in the valve with an actuating device which actuates an actuating rod in a guide bore arranged in the valve and extending in the axial direction, the actuating rod having a sealing element at its end facing the inlet and outlet, wherein a stroke movement of the actuating rod opens or closes the sealing element in its sealing seat and thus the inlet or outlet. From EP 2 003 331 A1, a valve arrangement for an injection valve and an injection valve for a combustion chamber of an internal combustion engine are known, comprising a valve body having a central longitudinal axis, wherein the valve body has a cavity forming an inner wall, the cavity having a fluid outlet section with a seat area being part of the inner wall, and a valve needle being axially movable in the cavity, wherein the valve needle, in a closed position, allows a fluid flow through the K 34226 - 2 - The fluid outlet section prevents the fluid flow and, in other positions, releases the fluid flow in one fluid flow direction through the fluid outlet section. The present invention is based on the objective of providing a refrigerant valve that can be manufactured cost-effectively and easily. To solve the problem underlying the invention, a refrigerant valve comprising a valve housing and a valve needle is proposed, wherein the valve housing has a substantially cylindrical channel, the channel having at least one inlet opening for a refrigerant and one axial outlet opening for a refrigerant, the valve needle being axially displaceable in the channel between a closed position and an open position, the valve needle being cylindrical, with an outer diameter of the valve needle being smaller than an inner diameter of the channel, the valve needle having a collar at its end, the collar forming a valve seat, and the channel having a stop surface for the collar at the outlet opening. According to the invention, the valve needle is arranged to be axially displaceable in the channel between a closed position and an open position. In the closed position, the outlet opening is closed by the valve seat of the valve needle, so that no refrigerant can escape from the outlet opening. In the open position, the valve needle releases the outlet opening, allowing a refrigerant to enter the channel through the inlet opening and exit through the axial outlet opening. The valve seat is formed by a collar on the valve needle, which, in the closed position, rests against the stop surface of the channel's outlet opening, thereby closing and sealing the outlet. The valve seat is preferably designed as a line contact, meaning that, in the closed position, the collar rests against the stop surface with a border. A surface seal is also conceivable in principle. The outer diameter of the valve needle is smaller than the inner diameter of the channel. This means that the valve needle, at least in a region of its axial extent, has a section with an outer diameter that is smaller than the inner diameter of the channel surrounding the valve needle. The region in which K 34226 - 3 - the outer diameter of the valve needle is smaller than the inner diameter of the channel, in particular the area in which the at least one inlet opening of the channel is located. This ensures that refrigerant entering the inlet opening can flow between an inner wall of the channel and the outer wall of the valve needle and, when the valve needle is open, can flow out through the outlet opening. The channel and/or the valve needle are essentially cylindrical. In particular, the channel and the valve needle can be cylindrical in sections with varying diameters. Within the scope of the invention, a channel and a valve needle with an elliptical or a hexagonal, octagonal, or polygonal cross-section are also considered to be essentially cylindrical. Preferably, however, the channel and the valve needle have a circular cross-section. The collar preferably extends radially fr