SPECIFICATION
TITLE OF THE INVENTION
GAS FUEL REGULATOR
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a gas fuel
regulator for regulating gas fuel to be predetermined
pressure and sending out the gas fuel.
Description of the Conventional Art
As a body structure of a gas fuel regulator, for
example, a structure of a gas fuel regulator 1B discussed
in Japanese Patent No. 3594507 and illustrated in a
longitudinal sectional view in Fig. 2 is publicly known.
The gas fuel regulator 1B includes a pressure regulating
mechanism having a one-step pressure reduction system.
The gas fuel regulator 1B has a constitution including a
high pressure part and a low pressure part which are
housed together in one body 5. In the high pressure part,
a valve body 31 attached to a valve shaft 30, a seat
member 32, and the like are provided to constitute a
passage for high pressure gas fuel before pressure
reduction. In the low pressure part, a diaphragm 34, a
fuel outlet 7, and the like are provided to constitute a
passage for low pressure fuel gas after pressure
reduction.

The body structure of the conventional gas fuel
regulator 1B is constituted to have a body structure C in
which the high pressure part and the low pressure part are
integrated. Thus, an entire body 5 is made to have high
strength for realizing a pressure resistant performance of
the high pressure part in which high pressure gas
introduced from a fuel tank acts. Therefore, even in the
low pressure part which does not need high strength since
only low pressure gas after pressure reduction acts
therein, the gas fuel regulator 1B consequentially has
body strength of the same level as that of the high
pressure part.
However, when comparatively expensive members (e.g.,
stainless steel, forging materials, and the like), which
exercise a high pressure resistant performance are used to
the entire body including the low pressure part, an
increase of entire weight of a product is caused. In
addition to this, there is a problem that increases of the
number of processes and a processing costs are caused,
because a material cost increases and the processing is
difficult at a time of assembling the high pressure part
and the low pressure part into one body.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Problem to be Solved by the Invention

The present invention is to solve the aforementioned
problems, and an objective of the present invention is to
provide a gas fuel regulator which does not cause an
excessive increase of weight and an increase of production
cost, while a sufficient pressure resistant performance of
a high pressure part is secured.
Means for Solving the Problem
According to an aspect of the present invention, a
gas fuel regulator for reducing and regulating pressure of
introduced gas fuel to be predetermined pressure and
sending out the gas fuel to the down stream side includes
a high pressure part having a pressure regulating valve
including a seat member and a valve body and forming a
passage for gas fuel before pressure reduction, and a low
pressure part having a pressure regulating chamber and
forming a passage for gas fuel after pressure reduction,
which has passed the pressure regulating valve. In the
gas fuel regulator, the high pressure part is detachably
attached on the main body side in a state of being air-
tightly inserted into a cartridge container having a
pressure resistant performance of a predetermined level or
more, together with a high pressure part body which
constitutes the high pressure part. The low pressure part
provided on the main body side is set to have a lower
pressure resistant performance than the high pressure part

by a predetermined level or more.
Accordingly, the passage for gas fuel before
pressure reduction is formed, so that the high pressure
part required to have a higher pressure resistant
performance than the low pressure part can be detachably
attached on the main body side in a state of being
inserted into the cartridge container. By taking such a
constitution, the pressure resistant performance of the
low pressure part on the main body side does not need to
increase up to an adaptable level to the high pressure
gas, and the pressure resistant performance of an entire
portion other than the high pressure part can be set low.
Therefore, the entire weight can be light, and the cost
can be low.
According to another aspect of the gas fuel
regulator, the high pressure part body is formed to be
adaptable to the pressure of gas fuel before pressure
reduction and to exercise the sufficient pressure
resistant performance with respect to pressure to be
applied to the high pressure part together with the
cartridge container. Therefore, a forging portion
involving a high cost can be minimized to thereby easily
avoid an increase of an entire cost, while the high
pressure part is assembled compact and the sufficient
pressure resistant performance is easily exercised.

Further, according to yet another aspect of the
above-described gas fuel regulator, the cartridge
container is produced by press-drawing of a stainless
plate material into a cylindrical shape. Therefore, since
the cartridge container can exercise the high pressure
resistant performance even though it is thin, a detachably
attached portion can be easily made compact and
lightweight.
Further, according to yet another aspect of the
above-described gas fuel regulator, the high pressure part
body is produced by forging, and the low pressure part
body is produced by casting. Therefore, the body at the
main body side, which is not required to have the high
pressure resistant performance, can be produced to be
lightweight with a low cost.
Furthermore, according to yet another aspect of the
above-described gas fuel regulator, the cartridge
container, in which the high pressure part is inserted, is
inserted into an equipping hole formed in the main body
side, and is fastened and fixed by a predetermined
fastening means, whereby the high pressure part is
connected to the low pressure part. Therefore, a process
for equipping the high pressure part can be easy, so that
the number of production processes can be reduced, and a
production cost can be further reduced.

In addition, according to yet another aspect of the
above-described gas fuel regulator, a method for fastening
of the cartridge container and the high pressure part body
inserted into the cartridge container is a screw type, and
the cartridge container and the high pressure part body
are fastened at a portion where the pressure of gas fuel
before pressure reduction does not act. Therefore, there
is no problem that the fastening portion is loosened due
to the high pressure of gas fuel.
In addition, according to yet another aspect of the
aforementioned gas fuel regulator, a flange extending in a
centrifugal direction is formed on the base end side of
the cartridge container. When the cartridge container is
equipped on the main body side, the flange is clamped
between an outer surface of the main body and a portion at
the base end side of the high pressure part body which is
exposed from the cartridge container and projects in the
centrifugal direction. Therefore, air-tightness of the
inside and outside can be secured more easily.
Effect of the Invention
According to the present invention in which the high
pressure part is detachably provided on the main body side
in a state of being inserted into the cartridge container,
an excessive increase of weight and an increase of
production cost can be entirely prevented, while the

sufficient pressure resistant performance of the high
pressure part is secured.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Fig. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a gas
fuel regulator according to the present exemplary
embodiment.
Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view illustrating
a conventional example.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
An exemplary embodiment of the present invention
will be described below with reference to the drawings.
Fig. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a gas
fuel regulator 1A of the present exemplary embodiment.
The gas fuel regulator 1A includes a pressure regulating
valve having a doughnut-shaped seat member 12, a valve
body 11 having a tapered surface formed on the top end
side, and a valve shaft 10 coaxially having the valve body
11 and performing an opening and closing operation of the
pressure regulating valve. The gas fuel regulator 1A
reduces and regulates pressure of high pressure gas fuel
introduced from a fuel tank, which is not illustrated, and
sends out the gas fuel to the down stream side.
Further, the gas fuel regulator 1A includes a high
pressure part A, which has the aforementioned pressure
regulating valve and forms a passage for high pressure gas

fuel before pressure reduction. The high pressure part A
is surrounded with a dashed line. The gas fuel regulator
1A further includes a low pressure part B, which has a
pressure regulating chamber 14 and forms a passage for gas
fuel after pressure reduction, which has passed the
pressure regulating valve. The low pressure part B is
surrounded with a dashed line. In the present invention,
a high pressure part body 3 constituting the high pressure
part A and a low pressure part body (on the upper side of
a main body) constituting the low pressure part B are
formed as separated bodies. The high pressure part A
including the high pressure part body 3 is detachably
attached to a main body 2 in a state of being air-tightly
inserted into a cartridge container 4 formed in a
cylindrical shape.
That is, while the base end side of the valve shaft
10 is inserted into the high pressure part body 3
constituting the high pressure part A, the high pressure
part A is inserted into the bottomed cylindrical cartridge
container 4, together with other parts such as the valve
body 11, the seat member 12, and the like, which
constitute the high pressure part A. Then, the high
pressure part A is screwed and fastened by a screw
fastening part 32, whereby these parts are integrally
connected. Accordingly, even though the high pressure

part A is a separated body from the low pressure part B,
the high pressure part A can be equipped and fixed by
being inserted into a equipping hole 20 provided at the
main body 2 and being fastened with a bolt 60.
The cartridge container 4, in which the high
pressure part A is inserted, is produced by deep press-
drawing of a stainless plate material to be formed into a
cylindrical shape. Thus the cartridge container 4 can be
processed easily, and can exercise the high pressure
resistant performance even through its thickness is thin,
and a detachably attached portion can be easily made to be
compact and lightweight, so that it is preferable. If the
high pressure part body 3 is produced by, for example,
forging and is adaptive to the pressure of gas fuel before
pressure reduction, it can easily exercise the sufficient
pressure resistant performance with respect to the
pressure to be applied to the high pressure part A,
together with the cartridge container 4, so that it is
preferable.
Further, in the present exemplary embodiment, the
low pressure part body as a portion constituting the low
pressure part B in the main body 2 is set to have a lower
pressure resistant performance than the high pressure part
body 3 by a predetermined level or more. That is, the low
pressure part body can be set to have a level, which is

not adaptive to the pressure of high pressure gas fuel
before pressure reduction but can sufficiently resist the
pressure of gas fuel after pressure reduction. Therefore,
casting which is easier and cheaper than forging can be
used, so that a production cost reduction can be realized.
Furthermore, when a light metal such as aluminum or the
like is used for casting, an entire product can be
lightweight.
In the present exemplary embodiment, the cartridge
container 4, in which the entire high pressure part A
including the high pressure part body 3 is inserted, is
inserted into the equipping hole 20 formed at the main
body 2, and is fastened and fixed to the main body 2 by
the bolt 60 through a bolt hole provided in a flange 33 at
the base end side of the high pressure part body 3, which
is exposed to the external of the cartridge container 4.
In such a way, the high pressure part A is directly
connected to the low pressure part B at the side of the
main body 2. Thus, an operation for equipping of the high
pressure part A to the main body side can be easy.
Further, the screw fastening part 32, which fastens
the cartridge container 4 and the high pressure part body
3 inserted in the cartridge container 4, is placed at the
outer side of an 0-ring 19 as a sealing means provided for
securing air-tightness of the inside and outside between

both the members, and the pressure of gas before pressure
reduction does not act on the screw fastening part 32.
Thus, there is no problem that the fastening portion is
loosened by high pressure being applied.
Furthermore, a flange 41 is provided extending in a
centrifugal direction along an entire periphery on the
base end side of the cartridge container 4 formed in a
cylindrical shape. At a time of equipping of the
cartridge container 4, the flange 41 is clamped between an
opening part outer surface of the equipping hole 20 of the
main body 2 and a top end side surface of a portion of the
flange 33 or the like which is an exposed part of the high
pressure part body 3 and projects in a centrifugal
direction.
Therefore, even when the screw fastening part 32
fastening the cartridge container 4 and the high pressure
part body 3 is loosened, the high pressure part body 3 is
not separated from the cartridge container 4. In
addition, a sealing state between the main body 2 and the
cartridge container 4 is secured by an O-ring 16, and a
sealing state between the high pressure part A and the low
pressure part B is secured by an O-ring 18.
As for the conventional example illustrated in Fig.
2, the entire body including the low pressure part has
high strength in order to secure strength of the high

pressure part to which high pressure is applied, so that
the weight of a product increases and the production cost
increases. By contrast, as for the gas fuel regulator 1A
of the present exemplary embodiment having the
aforementioned constitution, the high pressure part A is
assembled compactly together with the high pressure part
body 3 and is detachably provided on the main body side
while it is inserted into the cartridge container 4.
Therefore, the cost of materials, the number of processing
steps, and the number of assembling steps are reduced, so
that a production cost can be reduced greatly. Further,
the lightweight of the entire product can be easily
realized by the high pressure part A being made compact,
and by a low level pressure resistant structure and a
light weight material being used in the low pressure part
B.
In addition, in the aforementioned exemplary
embodiment, since the low pressure part body constituting
the low pressure part B is produced by aluminum casting,
it is supposed that the entire main body 2 is produced
also by aluminum casting. However, the present invention
is not limited in this embodiment. Of course, the
pressure resistant performance can be properly increased
by use of gravity casting, forging casting, or the like
for a body producing method.

Accordingly, as mentioned above, the present
invention can provide a gas fuel regulator which does not
bring an excessive increase of a weight and an increase of
a production cost while a sufficient pressure resistant
performance of a high pressure part is secured.

What is claimed is,
1. A gas fuel regulator for reducing and regulating
pressure of introduced gas fuel to be a predetermined
pressure and sending out the gas fuel to the down stream
side, the gas fuel regulator comprising:
a high pressure part having a pressure regulating valve
including a seat member and a valve body, and forming a
passage for gas fuel before pressure reduction; and
a low pressure part having a pressure regulating chamber,
and forming a passage for gas fuel after pressure
reduction, which has passed the pressure regulating valve,
wherein the high pressure part is detachably attached on
the main body side in a state of being air-tightly
inserted into a cartridge container having a pressure
resistant performance of a predetermined level or more,
together with a high pressure part body constituting the
high pressure part, and
wherein the low pressure part provided on the main body
side is set to have a lower pressure resistant performance
than the high pressure part by a predetermined level or
more.
2. The gas fuel regulator as claimed in claim 1,
wherein the high pressure part body is adaptable to
pressure of the gas fuel before pressure reduction, and

exercises a sufficient pressure resistant performance with
respect to pressure applied to the high pressure part,
together with the cartridge container.
3. The gas fuel regulator as claimed in claim 1 or 2,
wherein the cartridge container is produced in a
cylindrical shape by press-drawing of a stainless plate
material.
4. The gas fuel regulator as claimed in claim 1, 2 or
3,
wherein the high pressure part body is produced by
forging, and
wherein the low pressure part body is produced by casting.
5. The gas fuel regulator as claimed in claim 1, 2, 3
or 4,
wherein the cartridge container, in which the high
pressure part is inserted, is inserted into an equipping
hole formed in the main body side and is fastened and
fixed by a predetermined fastening means, whereby the high
pressure part is connected to the low pressure part.
6. The gas fuel regulator as claimed in claim 1, 2, 3,
4 or 5,

wherein a method for fastening of the cartridge container
and the high pressure part body inserted in the cartridge
container is a screw type, and
wherein the cartridge container and the high pressure part
body are fastened at a portion where pressure of gas fuel
before pressure reduction does not act.
7. The gas fuel regulator as claimed in claim 1, 2, 3,
4, 5 or 6,
wherein a flange extending in a centrifugal direction is
formed on the base end side of the cartridge container,
and
wherein the flange is clamped between an outer surface of
the main body and a portion at the base end side of the
high pressure part body which is exposed from the
cartridge container and projects in a centrifugal
direction.

To provide a gas fuel regulator which can prevent an
excessive increase of a weight and an increase of a
production cost, while a sufficient pressure resistant
performance of a high pressure part is secured, a gas fuel
regulator 1A for reducing and regulating pressure of
introduced gas fuel to be a predetermined pressure and
sending out the gas fuel to the down stream side includes
a high pressure part A having a pressure regulating valve
including a seat member 12 and a valve body 11 and forming
a passage for gas fuel before pressure reduction and a low
pressure part B having a pressure regulating chamber 14
and forming a passage for gas fuel after pressure
reduction which has passed the pressure regulating valve,
the high pressure part A is detachably attached on the
side of a main body 2 in a state of being air-tightly
inserted into a cartridge container 4 having a pressure
resistant performance of a predetermined level or more
together with a high pressure part body 3 constituting the
high pressure part A, and the low pressure part B provided
on the side of the main body 2 is set to have a lower
pressure resistant performance than the high pressure part
by a predetermined level or more.