Fluid flow control regulator
First Claim
1. An improved constant flow control valve comprising:
- a housing including means defining an inlet port and an outlet port;
a piston movably disposed with said housing between said inlet and outlet ports, said piston being operative to vary the effective open area of said outlet port in response to forces acting on opposite sides thereof to thereby define a variable orifice, said variable orifice having a shape such that the open area thereof varies linearly with respect to movement of said piston over the entire range of said variable orifice; and
means defining an adjustable orifice in said piston, said adjustable orifice defining a flowpath for placing said inlet and outlet in fluid communication, said adjustable orifice having a shape such that the open area thereof varies linearly over the entire range of adjustment thereof,said adjustable orifice and said variable orifice cooperating to provide a predetermined substantially constant flow rate over a substantial range of inlet and outlet fluid pressures.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
Improved flow control valves are disclosed which are exceedingly accurate in maintaining a constant predetermined flow rate regardless of inlet and outlet pressures. The valves are preferably designed to enable them to be fabricated almost entirely from suitable polymeric composition materials. One embodiment disclosed is extremely well suited for ultra-pure applications which require extreme care to avoid any possible contamination of the liquid flowing therethrough. Another embodiment is disclosed which is designed to achieve substantially zero leakage flow thereby rendering it particularly well suited for use in applications requiring exceedingly precise flow control and in particular relatively low flow rate applicatins wherein leakage flow is of greater significance.
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Citations
26 Claims
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1. An improved constant flow control valve comprising:
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a housing including means defining an inlet port and an outlet port; a piston movably disposed with said housing between said inlet and outlet ports, said piston being operative to vary the effective open area of said outlet port in response to forces acting on opposite sides thereof to thereby define a variable orifice, said variable orifice having a shape such that the open area thereof varies linearly with respect to movement of said piston over the entire range of said variable orifice; and means defining an adjustable orifice in said piston, said adjustable orifice defining a flowpath for placing said inlet and outlet in fluid communication, said adjustable orifice having a shape such that the open area thereof varies linearly over the entire range of adjustment thereof, said adjustable orifice and said variable orifice cooperating to provide a predetermined substantially constant flow rate over a substantial range of inlet and outlet fluid pressures. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 20, 21)
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16. An improved constant flow control valve comprising:
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a housing including means defining an inlet port and an outlet port; a piston movably disposed with said housing between said inlet and outlet ports, said piston being operative to vary the effective open area of said outlet port in response to forces acting on opposite sides thereof to thereby define a variable orifice; and means defining an adjustable orifice in said piston, said means including an axially facing opening in said piston and movable means associated with said piston, said movable means being movable between a first position wherein said movable means fully overlies and closes off said opening and a second position wherein said movable means allows fluid flow through said opening, said adjustable orifice defining a flowpath for placing said inlet and outlet in fluid communication, drive means for effecting movement of said movable means, said drive means including a shaft extending outwardly of said housing, rotation of said shaft being operative to effect movement of said movable means. said movable means including gear teeth and said shaft having a gear meshingly engaging said gear teeth, said adjustable orifice and said variable orifice cooperating to provide a predetermined substantially constant flow rate over a substantial range of inlet and outlet fluid pressures. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19)
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22. An improved substantially constant flow control valve comprising:
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a housing including a first portion having an inlet opening adjacent one end and being open at the other end, a second portion having means defining an outlet opening adjacent an open end thereof and partition means intermediate the ends thereof, said open end of said first portion being telescopically received within said open end of said second portion, said first portion having a slot adjacent said other end, said slot opening into an outlet chamber defined by said first and second portions whereby fluid entering said inlet may flow through said outlet chamber to said outlet; piston means movably disposed within said first portion and dividing the interior of said first portion into an inlet chamber and an intermediate chamber; shaft means extending from said piston movably through said partition; biasing means disposed within said housing and acting on said shaft to bias said piston toward said inlet opening, said piston means including means defining an adjustable orifice for varying the flow rate of fluid through said piston means from said inlet chamber to said intermediate chamber, said piston means being movable into and out of overlying relationship with said slot in response to a pressure differential between said inlet chamber and said intermediate chamber; and adjustment means disposed outside of said housing and operatively associated with said adjustable orifice to enable adjustment thereof without significantly restricting movement of said piston means whereby said piston means may operate to vary the free area of said slot in response to changes in inlet or outlet fluid pressures so as to thereby maintain a substantially constant fluid flow rate therethrough. - View Dependent Claims (26)
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23. An improved substantially constant flow control valve comprising:
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a housing including a first portion having an inlet opening adjacent one end and being open at the other end, a second portion having means defining an outlet opening adjacent an open end thereof and partition means intermediate the ends thereof, said open end of said first portion being telescopically received within said open end of said second portion, said first portion having a slot adjacent said other end whereby fluid entering said inlet may flow to said outlet; piston means movably disposed within said first portion, said piston means being movable into and out of overlying relationship with said slot; shaft means extending from said piston movably through said partition; biasing means disposed within said housing and acting on said shaft to bias said piston toward said inlet opening, said piston means including a plurality of substantially identical equally spaced openings extending through an axially facing surface of said piston means and movable means sealingly engaging said axially facing surface, said movable means including a plurality of openings therethrough movable into and out of alignment with said openings in said piston whereby fluid flow through said openings may be varied from a maximum when said openings are fully aligned to substantially zero when said openings are not aligned to thereby vary the flow rate of fluid through said piston means; and adjustment means disposed outside of said housing and operatively associated with said adjustable orifice to enable adjustment thereof without significantly restricting movement of said piston means whereby said piston means may operate to vary the free area of said slot in response to changes in inlet or outlet fluid pressures so as to thereby maintain a substantially constant fluid flow rate therethrough. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25)
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Specification