Tranquillizer Device for Requlating the Flow Profile of Fluid

The present invention relates to devices kown as tranquillizers for use ina conduit to obtain a fluid flow having a regular speed profile.

Tranquillizers are generally mounted in conduits to regulate the flow profile of fluids upstream from a flow meter. Two types of turbulence interfere with flow meter measurements. First, flow speeds may be asymetrically distributed across a planar section perpendicular to the flow. Such asymmetry may be caused, for example, by an elbow in the conduit or by the shutter of a half-closed valve, for example a wedge gate valve. For a flow measuring device such as a Woltmann meter, this type of asymmetrical flow causes a lateral reaction onthe rotor pivot, prematurely wearing the meter as well as causing measurement errors. Another type of turbulence is vortices coaxial to the conduit. These can arise spontaneously or after the fluid has passed an obstacle. This substantially affects the meter rotor speed and hence the accuracy of flow measurements. Either type of turbulence will cause the other, so the two are typically found together. One way of dealing with such turbulences is by using, upstream of the meter, a tranquillizer having a section which flares out to a cylindrical chamber of a diameter greater than that of the conduit. This type of tranquillizer is effective against asymetrical flow distributions, but vortexes are barely attenuated.

Another solution, so-called honeycomb tranquillizers, are excellent for eliminating vortices, but have little effect on asymetrical flow distributions. The axial speed of the portion of fluid flowing through a honeycomb passage is affected relatively little. In addition, it is costly to fabricate and mount honeycomb tranquillizers in conduits.

The present invention has for an object therefore, an improved tranquillizer for regulating a fluid flow profile.

According to a first mode of the invention, the tranquillizer comprises a cylindrical chamber of a radius greater than, and mounted coaxial to, the conduit. Inside the chamber there is a set of longitudinal ribs evenly spaced around the periphery of the chamber wall and extending radially inward an appropriate distance to leave a cylindrical passage open along the axis and having a radius less than that of the conduit. Thus, the enlarged chamber corrects the flow symmetry and the fins substantially diminish vortices.

According to an other embodiment, the tranquillizer comprises a cylindrical chamber having several sets of ribs, each set extending over a fraction of the length of the chamber. The ribs of each set are offset angularly with respect to the other sets. This eliminates vortices even in the worst conditions. If, in addition, the chamber has a diameter greater than that of the conduit, assymmetrical flow profiles can be corrected.

The tranquillizers of the present invention have the advantages of being economically manufacturable and convenient to use, either separate from the meter or as part of the meter casing. They can be manufactured without special tooling and may be assembled with or without machining.

Such tranquillizers are suitable for water conduits with medium sized meters.

The invention will be better understood with reference to the following description and the accompanying drawings which represent examples, rather than limitations, of various embodiments of the invention.

FIGS. 1 and 2 are longitudinal and axial cross sections, repectively, of a first embodiment;

FIGS. 3 and 4 are longitudinal and axial cross sections, respectively, of a second embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a longitudinal cross section of a third embodiment which is integrated with the casing of a water meter; and

FIGS. 6 and 7 are longitudinal and axial cross sections of a fourth embodiment which is similar to the second embodiment.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a preferred embodiment of the tranquillizer 10 comprises a cylindrical chamber 11 connected by conical sections 12 to cylindrical sections 13 and ending in flanges 14. The tranquillizer is installed in a cylindrical conduit (shown in dashed lines) having the same diameter D as sections 13.

Chamber 11, of a diameter greater than D, has an evenly spaced set of longitudinal ribs 15, extending radially inward, for example four ribs spaced 90.degree. apart. Ribs 15 leave a cylindrical passage of a diameter less than D, for example D/2, open along the axis of the conduit.

When turbulent fluid enters the tranqullizer, the larger diameter of chamber 11 increases the pressure and decreases the speed of the fluid, which equalizes the cross-sectional distribution of its flow.

Ribs 15 inhibit vortices. Thus, the flow at the tranquillizer outlet is laminar and does not impair the operation of a downstream flow meter.

The two ends of each rib are preferably inclined with respect to the axis of the chamber.

According to a second embodiment, FIGS. 3 and 4, chamber 21 has two sets of ribs 25A and 25B, each of which extends over about half the length of the chamber. The sets are angularly offset from each other so that the ribs of one set bisect the arcs between the ribs of the other set. If, for example, each set has four ribs, the sets are offset by 45.degree.. This embodiment eliminates vortices even in the worst cases.

If there is strong vortex phenomenon at the tranquillizer entrance, partial vortexes can arise between the ribs in the first set. The second, angularly offset, set of ribs annuls these partial vortexes.

In a particular example of this embodiment, the tranqillizer has an axial length of 3 D, and the cylindrical chamber has a length of D and a diameter of 2 D. The radial dimension of the ribs is 3/4 D, which leaves a central passage of diameter D/2 open.

These dimensions are only for the sake of illustration, and other proportions could be used within the bounds of the invention.

As shown in FIG. 3, the external ends of the ribs are inclined with respect to the axis of the chamber, and the internal ends of the ribs are perpendicular to said axis.

Such a tranquillizer could be mounted as a separate device upstream from a water meter or other fluid flow measuring apparatus, or it could be an integral part of the meter casing.

A third embodiment is represented in FIG. 5. Member 30 comprises two interdependent parts 30A and 30B. Part 30A is the meter casing and part 30b is the tranquillizer, which has two sets of ribs 31 and 32 partially overlapping in the axial direction of the chamber.

Thus the chamber includes a central zone 33 where the two sets of ribs are overlapping, and two end zones where there is just one set of ribs 31 or 32.

According to a fourth embodiment of the invention shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the cylindrical chamber 40 has substantially the same diameter as the conduit. The chamber 40 is internaly provided with two sets of ribs 42 and 44. The ribs of a set are angularly spaced 90.degree. apart. Moreover, as in the embodiments of FIGS. 3 to 5, the ribs of set 42 and the ribs of set 44 are mutually offset by 45.degree..

As shown in FIG. 6, the ribs of set 42 partially overlap the ribs of set 44 in the axial direction of the chamber. The overlapping parts of the ribs are preferably inclined with respect to the axis of the chamber, as are the external ends of the ribs.

This fourth embodiment of the invention is especially suitable for a the fluid flow having strong vortices, but not having significant asymmetry in the flow profile perpendicular to the flow axis.

For the tranquillizer to function effectively, it is of course necessary to mount the tranquillizer upstream of the meter.