Spacer to keep a distance between a bar-shaped inner conductor and an outer conductor of a filling level measuring probe

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10408657-B2
Application number	US-201715620973-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 13, 2017
Priority date	Jun 13, 2016
Publication date	Sep 10, 2019
Grant date	Sep 10, 2019

Abstract

A spacer for keeping a distance between a bar-shaped inner conductor and an outer conductor of a filling level measuring probe. The spacer includes a ring and at least three supports, which respectively extend out of an inner surface of the ring in a radial direction. Each of the three supports has a curved front surface on an end, which is located away from the inner surface. The end, which is located away from the inner surface is engageable with an opening of the bar-shaped inner conductor.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A spacer for keeping a distance between a bar-shaped inner conductor and an outer conductor of a filling level measuring probe, comprising:
a ring; and
at least three supports, each of which extends out of an inner surface of the ring in a corresponding radial direction,
wherein each of the three supports has a distal end which has a curved front surface facing away from the inner surface,
wherein the end facing away from the inner surface is engageable with an opening of the bar-shaped inner conductor, and
wherein each of the at least three support elements has a drilling hole.

2. The spacer according to claim 1 ,
wherein the at least three supports are reduced in a radial direction.

3. The spacer according to claim 1 ,
wherein the at least three supports are arranged at regular intervals along a peripheral direction of the ring.

4. The spacer according to claim 1 ,
wherein the curved front surface of at least one of the at least three supports has a radius with a centre point that is not located on a rotational symmetry axis of the ring.

5. The spacer according to claim 1 ,
wherein drilling axes of the drilling holes extending through the supports are arranged to be inclined to a rotation axis of the ring.

6. The spacer according to claim 1 ,
wherein the respective drilling axes of the drilling holes extending through the supports meet at a common point, which is located on the rotation axis of the ring.

7. The spacer according to claim 1 ,
wherein the spacer is made of a synthetic material.

8. A measuring probe configured to determine a filling level of a medium in a container, the measuring probe comprising:
at least one spacer according to claim 1 , and
a bar-shaped inner conductor, including:
a first row with at least three openings along a peripheral direction of the bar-shaped inner conductor, the first row retaining a respective support of a spacer,

wherein the at least three openings each has a curved base area with a radius, each curved base area having a centre point that is not located on a rotation axis of the bar-shaped inner conductor.

9. The measuring probe according to claim 8 ,
wherein each curved base area of the at least three openings is singly curved, and
wherein for each singly curved base area a respective rotation axis and the rotation axis of the bar-shaped inner conductor are arranged at a distance from one another.

10. The measuring probe according to claim 8 , further comprising:
a second row with at least three openings along the peripheral direction of the bar-shaped inner conductor, the second row retaining a respective support of a spacer;
wherein the second row with the at least three openings and the first row with the at least three openings are arranged at a distance from one another along a rotation axis of the bar-shaped inner conductor.

11. A measuring probe for determining a filling level of a medium in a container, comprising:
at least one spacer according to claim 1 ;
the bar-shaped inner conductor with at least three openings along a peripheral direction of the bar-shaped inner conductor; and
the outer conductor,
wherein the spacer holds together the bar-shaped inner conductor and the outer conductor in a substantially coaxial way by engaging the supports with the at three openings of the bar-shaped inner conductor.

12. The measuring probe according to claim 11 ,
wherein the bar-shaped inner conductor and the outer conductor are aligned in a substantially coaxial way by two spacers arranged at a distance from one another along a rotation axis of the bar-shaped inner conductor.

13. The measuring probe according to claim 11 ,
wherein the ring of the at least one spacer having a cylindrical outer surface, and
wherein a gap is provided between the cylindrical outer surface of the ring and an inner surface of the outer conductor.

14. A tool configured to assemble the at least one spacer on the bar-shaped inner conductor of the measuring probe according to claim 11 ,
wherein the tool includes a plurality of pin-shaped elements configured to engage with the drilling holes of the at least three support elements for mounting the spacer on the bar-shaped inner conductor.

15. An assembly method for assembling a spacer for keeping a distance between a bar-shaped inner conductor and an outer conductor of a filling level measuring probe having a ring and at least three supports, each of which extends out of an inner surface of the ring in a corresponding radial direction, wherein each of the three supports has a distal end which has a curved front surface facing away from the inner surface, and wherein the end facing away from the inner surface is engageable with an opening of the bar-shaped inner conductor on the bar-shaped inner conductor, comprising:
pre-tensioning the spacer to guide the supports of the ring over a surface of the bar-shaped inner conductor along a rotation axis of the bar-shaped inner conductor;
positioning the spacer with respect to the bar-shaped inner conductor;
relaxing the spacer to permit insertion of the supports of the ring into corresponding openings of the bar-shaped inner conductor.

Assignees

• Grieshaber Vega Kg

Inventors

• Dietmeier Juergen

Classifications

• B25B27/06

  inserting or withdrawing sleeves or bearing races · CPC title

• H01P3/06

  Coaxial lines · CPC title

• G01F23/284 Primary

  Electromagnetic waves · CPC title

• G01B5/061 Primary

  height gauges · CPC title

• G01F23/0046 Primary

  with a stationary probe, where a liquid specimen is separated from the mean mass and measured (by gauge glasses G01F23/02) · CPC title