Ultrasonic flow measuring device with a rectangular cross-section passage having recesses in two sidewalls other than the sidewalls in which the transducers are located

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10746578-B2
Application number	US-201816148309-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 1, 2018
Priority date	Oct 12, 2017
Publication date	Aug 18, 2020
Grant date	Aug 18, 2020

Abstract

A measuring device for determining a fluid variable relating to a fluid or fluid flow includes a control device, a measuring tube receiving the fluid or fluid flow, and oscillation transducers spaced apart on the measuring tube. At least one oscillation transducer is drivable by the control device to excite a wave conducted through at least one side wall of the measuring tube, the conducted wave exciting compression oscillations of the fluid conducted through the fluid to the other oscillation transducer and recorded there by the control device to determine measurement data. The fluid variable can be determined by the control device as a function of the measurement data. At least one further side wall of the measuring tube has at least one recess extending in a flow direction and increasing a flow cross section of the measuring tube. A method for determining a fluid variable is also provided.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A measuring device for determining a fluid variable relating to at least one of a fluid or a flow of the fluid, the measuring device comprising:
a measuring tube for at least one receiving the fluid or conducting the flow of the fluid through said measuring tube in a flow direction, said measuring tube having a flow cross section, side walls including one side wall, an opposite side wall located opposite said one side wall, a further side wall, and a further opposite side wall located opposite said further side wall;
first and second oscillation transducers disposed at a distance from one another on said measuring tube;
at least one wall selected from the group consisting of said further side wall and said further opposite side wall having at least one recess extending in said flow direction, said at least one recess increasing said flow cross section of said measuring tube, wherein said measuring tube has a rectangular flow cross section apart from said at least one recess at least in at least one measurement section located between said first and second oscillation transducers;
a control device for driving at least one of said oscillation transducers to excite a wave being conducted through at least one of said side walls of said measuring tube, said conducted wave exciting compression oscillations of the fluid to be conducted through the fluid to a further of said oscillation transducers;
said control device being configured to record said compression oscillations at an oscillation transducer selected from the group consisting of said first oscillation transducer and said second oscillation transducer to determine measurement data;
said control device being configured to determine the fluid variable as a function of said measurement data;
said one side wall and said opposite side wall having inner faces spanning a main flow volume; and
said first and second oscillation transducers both being disposed on said one side wall or one of said first and second oscillation transducers being disposed on said one side wall and another one of said first and second oscillation transducers being disposed on said opposite side wall;
said at least one recess being located outside said main flow volume and forming a respective secondary flow volume,
wherein said at least one recess is provided only in at least one wall selected from the group consisting of said further side wall on which none of said oscillation transducers is disposed and said further opposite side wall on which none of said oscillation transducers is disposed.

2. The measuring device according to claim 1 , wherein:
said first and second oscillation transducers are disposed on a wall selected from the group consisting of said one side wall and said opposite side wall, and a different wall selected from the group consisting of said one side wall and said opposite side wall has at least one of planar or mutually parallel inner faces or constant wall thicknesses at least in a measurement section located between said first and second oscillation transducers, or
a transducer selected from the group consisting of said first oscillation transducer and said second oscillation transducer is disposed on said one side wall, another transducer selected from the group consisting of said first oscillation transducer and said second oscillation transducer is disposed on said opposite side wall, said one side wall and said opposite side wall have at least one of planar or mutually parallel inner faces or constant wall thicknesses at least in said measurement section.

3. The measuring device according to claim 1 , wherein at least one wall selected from the group consisting of said further side wall and said further opposite side wall has at least one of:
a constant wall thickness outside said at least one recess at least in at least one measurement section located between said first and second oscillation transducers, or
an inner face being planar in said at least one measurement section or having a constant curvature without a change of sign.

4. The measuring device according to claim 1 , wherein at least one wall selected from the group consisting of said one side wall and said opposite side wall, on which at least one of said first and second oscillation transducers is disposed, is oriented at an angle relative to said further side wall.

5. The measuring device according to claim 1 , wherein said measuring tube has a rectangular outer cross section, at least in at least one measurement section located between said first and second oscillation transducers.

6. The measuring device according to claim 1 , wherein said at least one recess has a planar or curved or circle segment-shaped recess bottom and recess walls extending at an angle relative to said recess bottom.

7. The measuring device according to claim 1 , wherein said at least one recess includes at least two separate recesses in said further side wall.

8. The measuring device according to claim 1 , wherein said further side wall and said further opposite side wall each have at least one respective recess.

9. A method for determining a fluid variable relating to at least one of a fluid or a flow of the fluid with a measuring device, the method comprising the following steps:
providing a measuring tube for at least one of receiving the fluid or conducting the flow of the fluid through the measuring tube in a flow direction, the measuring tube having a flow cross section, side walls including one side wall, an opposite side wall located opposite said one side wall, a further side wall, and a further opposite side wall located opposite said further side wall;
providing first and second oscillation transducers disposed at a distance from one another on the measuring tube;
at least one wall selected from the group consisting of the further side wall and the further opposite side wall having at least one recess extending in the flow direction and increasing the flow cross section of the measuring tube, wherein the measuring tube has a rectangular flow cross section apart from the at least one recess at least in at least one measurement section located between the first and second oscillation transducers;
the one side wall and the opposite side wall having inner faces spanning a main flow volume;
the first and second oscillation transducers both being disposed on the one side wall or one of the first and second oscillation transducers being disposed on the one side wall and another one of the first and second oscillation transducers being disposed on the opposite side wall;
the at least one recess being located outside the main flow volume and forming a respective secondary flow volume; and
the at least one recess being provided only in at least one wall selected from the group consisting of the further side wall on which none of the oscillation transducers is disposed and the further opposite side wall on which none of the oscillation transducers is disposed;
using a control device to drive at least one of the oscillation transducers to excite a wave being conducted through at least one of the side walls of the measuring tube and using the conducted wave to excite compression oscillations of the fluid to be conducted through the fluid to a further of the oscillation transducers;
using the control device to record the compression oscillations at the further oscillation transducer to determine measurement data; and
using the control device to determine the fluid variable as a function of the measurement data.

Assignees

• Diehl Metering Gmbh
• Deihl Metering GmbH

Inventors

• Ploss Peter
• Mayle Michael
• Benkert Andreas

Classifications

• G01F1/667 Primary

  Arrangements of transducers for ultrasonic flowmeters; Circuits for operating ultrasonic flowmeters · CPC title

• G01F1/662 Primary

  Constructional details · CPC title

• G01P5/241

  by using reflection of acoustical waves, i.e. Doppler-effect · CPC title

• G01P5/245

  by measuring transit time of acoustical waves (measuring propagation velocity of acoustical waves per se G01H5/00) · CPC title