Rotary wash valve

• US 6,453,929 B1
• Filed: 02/16/2001
• Issued: 09/24/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 02/16/2001
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: BioNex Solutions, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Innovadyne Technologies, Inc.
• Inventors: Johnson, James E., Picha, Neil, Nichols, Jon
• Primary Examiner(s): RIVELL, JOHN A
• Application Number:
  US09/785,914
• Publication Number:
  US 20020112767A1
• Time in Patent Office: 585 Days
• Field of Search: 137/240, 137/624.13, 137/624.14, 137/625.11, 137/625.12, 137/625.18, 137/625.46, 137/862, 137/887, 137/15.05, 251/208
• US Class Current: 137/15.05
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 39/223 Multiway valves
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 39/225 Flush valves, i.e. bypass valves for flushing line
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 11/0743 with both the supply and the discharge passages being on one side of the closure plates
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/0424 Liquid cleaning or flushing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/4259 With separate material addition
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/86501 Sequential distributor or collector type
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/86509 Sequentially progressive opening or closing of plural ports

Abstract

A wash system for a fluid handling system that permits simultaneous washing of a plurality of parallel fluid channels is disclosed. In one aspect of the invention, a specialized rotary wash valve is described. In another aspect of the invention a system which incorporates wash and selector valves is described which permits a plurality of separate fluid lines emerging from the selector valve to be washed simultaneously.

Claims

1. A fluid handling system comprising:

a selector valve having a selector input port and a plurality of selector output ports, the selector valve having a plurality of fluid delivery positions wherein in each fluid delivery position the selector valve makes a fluidic connection between the selector input port and a different one of the selector output ports;

a wash valve having a wash fluid input port and a plurality of wash fluid output ports, wherein the wash valve has a first position that makes a fluidic connection between the wash fluid input port and the plurality of wash fluid output ports, and a second position which disconnects the wash fluid input port from the plurality of wash fluid output ports;

a plurality of dispensing lines, each dispensing line being coupled to an associated one of the selector output ports; and

a plurality of wash lines, each wash line coupling a selected one of the wash line output ports to an associated one of the dispensing lines to facilitate washing out the dispensing lines.

2. A system as recited in claim 1 wherein

both the wash valve and the selector valve are rotor based valves that have a rotor face plate that rotates relative to a stator face plate to make and decouple fluidic connections between their respective input and output ports.

3. A system as recited in claim 1 wherein the wash valve further includes:

a rotor including a rotor face having a rotational axis, a central recess and a multiplicity of angularly spaced grooves that extend radially outward from the central recess;

a stator having a stator face that has a central passage that opens opposite the central recess of the rotor face and extends to the wash fluid input port, and a plurality of outer holes that each couple to an associated wash fluid output port, each outer hole being aligned with an associated groove when the rotor face is disposed in a first position, wherein the rotor face and stator are arranged such that when the rotor face is rotated to a second position relative to the stator, the outer holes do not have any fluidic connection with the grooves such that the outer holes are all substantially dead-headed at the rotor face.

4. A system as recited in claim 3 wherein:

the only openings in the rotor face are the central recess and the multiplicity of grooves that extend radially outward from the central recess; and

the valve has just two operational positions.

5. A fluid handling system comprising:

a selector valve having a selector input port and two or more selector output ports, the selector valve having two or more fluid delivery positions wherein in each fluid delivery position the selector valve makes a fluidic connection between the selector input port and a different one of the selector output ports;

a wash valve having a wash fluid input port and a plurality of wash fluid output ports, wherein the wash valve has a first position in fluid flow communication between the wash fluid input port and the plurality of wash fluid output ports, and a second position out of fluid flow communication between the wash fluid input port from the plurality of wash fluid output ports;

two or more dispensing lines, each dispensing line being coupled to an associated one of the selector output ports; and

a plurality of wash lines fluidly coupled to a selected one of the wash line outlet ports, wherein two or more of the plurality of wash lines coupling a selected one of the wash line outlet ports to an associated one of the two or more dispensing lines to facilitate washing out the dispensing lines.

6. A system as recited in claim 5 wherein,

at least one of the wash valve and the selector valve is a rotor based valve.

7. A system as recited in claim 5, wherein

the wash valve further includes:

a rotor including a rotor face having a rotational axis, a central recess and a multiplicity of angularly spaced grooves that extend radially outward from the central recess;

a stator having a stator face that has a central passage that opens opposite the central recess of the rotor face and extends to the wash fluid input port, and a plurality of outer holes that each couple to an associated wash fluid output port, each outer hole being aligned with an associated groove when the rotor face is disposed in the first position, wherein the rotor face and stator are arranged such that when the rotor face is rotated to the second position relative to the stator, the outer holes do not have any fluidic connection with the grooves such that the outer holes are all substantially dead-headed at the rotor face.

8. A system as recited in claim 7, wherein

the only openings in the rotor face are the central recess and the multiplicity of grooves that extend radially outward from the central recess.

9. A system as recited in claim 7, wherein

the valve has just two operational positions.

10. A system as recited in claim 7, wherein

the stator includes an independent stator face plate that includes the stator face.

11. A system as recited in claim further comprising:

a drive shaft coupled to the rotor;

a drive motor for rotating the rotor relative to the stator; and

a rotor housing that encases the drive motor.

12. If A method of flushing two or more dispensing lines coupled to associated selector outlet ports of a selector valve having two or more selector output ports, the selector valve further having two or more fluid delivery positions wherein in each fluid delivery position the selector valve makes a fluidic connection between the selector input port and a different one of the selector output ports, said method comprising;

positioning a wash valve in a first position to fluidly couple a wash fluid input port of the wash valve to a plurality of wash fluid output ports thereof, wherein two or more wash lines, each wash line coupling a selected one of the wash fluid output ports to an associated one of the two or more dispensing lines;

in the first position, flowing a washing fluid from the wash fluid input port to the wash fluid output ports, through the two or more wash lines and through the associated ones of the two or more dispensing lines to facilitate washing out the dispensing lines; and

positioning the wash valve in a second position to fluidly de-couple the wash fluid input port of the wash valve from the plurality of wash fluid output ports thereof to prevent fluid communication between the wash fluid input port and the dispensing lines.

13. The method of claim 12, further including:

when the wash valve is positioned in the second position, flowing a dispensing fluid through the selector input port, the selected selector output port of the selector valve, and through the associated dispensing line thereof.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein

said wash valve is a rotor based valve having a rotor element and a stator element, and said positioning a wash valve in the first position includes rotating a rotor face of the rotor element relative a stator face of a stator element about a rotational axis to fluidly couple said wash fluid input port to the plurality of wash fluid output ports.

15. The method of claims wherein

said positioning the wash valve in a second position includes rotating the rotor face of the rotor element relative a stator face of a stator element about the rotational axis to fluidly decouple said wash fluid input port from the plurality of wash fluid output ports.