CONDITION RESPONSIVE VALVE

• US 3,690,336 A
• Filed: 09/08/1970
• Issued: 09/12/1972
• Est. Priority Date: 09/08/1970
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Edward W. Drum
• Original Assignee: Edward W. Drum
• Inventors: Drum, Edward W.
• Primary Examiner(s): Nelson, M. Cary
• Assistant Examiner(s): Gerard, Richard
• Application Number:
  US05/070,238
• Time in Patent Office: 735 Days
• Field of Search: 137/72,73,75,76,77 251/149.6
• US Class Current: 137/75
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 17/383 the valve comprising fusible, softening or meltable elements, e.g. used as link, blocking element, seal, closure plug F16K17/386 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/1819 Safety cut-off

Abstract

A condition responsive material flow control valve that reacts to the occurrence of the condition to terminate material flow through the valve. The valve is designed to activate only when the condition exists. The valve may be responsive to a condition such as exceeding a predetermined elevated temperature; the presence of such an elevated temperature causes adjacent body members to separate and a ball valve to engage with a valve seat so as to terminate the material flow through the valve. The valve has very few moving parts and is dependable.

Claims

1. A valve comprising a pair of adjacent relatively displaceable body members, each of the body members having a bore, the bores of the body members cooperating to provide a passageway for material flow, a valve seat formed in the passageway, a movable valve member in the passageway and adjacent the valve seat, bias means in the passageway including means cooperating with the movable valve member to bias the movable valve member away from the valve seat, and a temperature responsive sleeve means supporting the body members in adjacent relationship, the sleeve means responsive to a change in the temperature to release the adjacent body members, and means causing the movable valve member to engage with the valve seat means upon release of the adjacent body members by the sleeve means.

2. The valve of claim 1, including a thermal barrier between the sleeve means and the body members.

3. The valve of claim 1, wherein the bias means is a spring bias means.

4. A valve comprising adjacent relatively displaceable body members, each of the body members having a bore, the bores of the body members cooperating to provide a passageway, a valve seat formed in the passageway, a movable valve member in the passageway, means cooperating with the movable valve member to bias the movable valve member away from engagement with the valve seat, thermal responsive sleeve means for retaining the body members in adjacent relationship, the sleeve means responsive to a thermal change to release the adjacEnt body members, and means for displacing the movable valve member into engagement with the valve seat upon release of the body members by the sleeve means.

5. The valve of claim 4, wherein the sleeve means substantially circumscribes the joint between the adjacent body members.

6. A valve including relatively displaceable adjacent body members, a passageway in the body members, a valve seat in the passageway, a movable valve member cooperatively associated with the passageway, the movable valve member normally disengaged with the valve seat, thermal responsive sleeve means contiguous the adjacent portions of the body members for supporting the body members in adjacent relationship, the sleeve means responsive to a thermal change to release the adjacent body members, and means for displacing the movable valve member into engagement with the valve seat upon release of the body members by the sleeve means.

7. The valve of claim 6, wherein the sleeve means circumscribes the adjacent portions of the body members.

8. The valve of claim 7, wherein each body member includes a groove and the sleeve includes a lug in the groove of each of the body members.

9. A valve including relatively displaceable adjacent body members, a passageway provided by the adjacent body members, a valve seat in the passageway, a movable valve member in the passageway, the movable valve member normally disengaged from the valve seat, a sleeve substantially circumscribing the adjacent portions of the body members and retaining the body members in adjacent relationship, the sleeve responsive to an elevated temperature to release the adjacent body members, and means for displacing the movable valve member into engagement with the valve seat upon release of the adjacent body members by the sleeve.

10. The valve of claim 9, including thermal barrier means between the sleeve and the body members.

11. A valve including relatively displaceable adjacent body members, a passageway provided by the adjacent body members, valve seat means in the passageway, valve member means in the passageway and normally disengaged from the valve seat means, a sleeve supporting the body members in adjacent relationship, the sleeve being responsive to an occurrence of a predetermined condition to release the adjacent body members, and means for causing the valve member means to engage with the valve seat means upon release of the adjacent body members by the sleeve.

12. The valve of claim 11, wherein the sleeve is responsive to an elevated temperature to release the adjacent body members.

13. The valve of claim 12, wherein the sleeve circumscribes the adjacent portion of the body members and the means for causing the valve member means to engage with the valve seat is a bias means.

14. The valve of claim 13, including thermal barrier means between the sleeve and the body members.

15. The valve of claim 14, wherein the means for causing the valve member means to engage with the valve seat means includes spring means.