Ball valve

Claim 1

A ball valve comprising a valve housing including a valve box having inlet and outlet openings, a spherical valve body rotatably arranged in the valve box, said valve body having a flow passage therethrough that communicates with the inlet and outlet openings so as to permit fluid to flow from said inlet opening to said outlet opening of the valve box and with rotation of the spherical valve body through a 90° rotation, said valve body prevents flow of fluid from said inlet opening to said outlet opening, said spherical valve body including a sub-valve plate disposed respectively on opposite sides thereof on a first axis perpendicular to a second axis through said flow passage in said spherical valve body for seating against said inlet opening and said outlet opening thereby closing the inlet and outlet openings, each of said sub-valve plates including a flat back side perpendicular to said first axis and a front side having a circular shape which seats against said inlet opening and said outlet opening, and pressing means for pressing the backs of the sub-valve plates to close the inlet and outlet openings by the sub-valve plates, a ring-like projecting valve seat disposed respectively on an inside wall of an end portion of each of the inlet and outlet openings, said inside wall being faced toward a front side of the sub-valve plates, a concave cutout is respectively formed within the spherical valve body perpendicular to said first axis for installing the sub-valve plates therein to be movable in a direction toward said valve seat to close the inlet and outlet openings, and the pressing means is positioned in the concave cutouts behind the sub-valve plates, a lid detachably secured to an opening formed with an upper portion of the valve box for inserting and removing the spherical valve body, a rotatable valve stem connected to the spherical valve body, said valve stem penetrates a central hole of the lid and is supported thereby, said inlet opening and said outlet openings are formed by inner tubes (3) each having end surfaces that form said valve seats for each of the peripheries of the sub-valve plates, said inner tubes being detachably secured to the valve box, and outer tubes (4) each forming valve body support surfaces that fit a periphery of the spherical valve body adjacent outer edges of the concave cutouts in which the sub-valve plates are installed, said outer tubes being threaded to the periphery of the inner tubes for movement in a direction of an axis thereof.