Relative pressure control system and relative flow control system

• US 7,353,841 B2
• Filed: 12/07/2005
• Issued: 04/08/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 06/09/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CKD Corporation, Tokyo Electron Limited
• Original Assignee: CKD Corporation, Tokyo Electron Limited
• Inventors: Miura, Kazuyuki, Endo, Hiroki, Ito, Keiki, Shimazu, Tsuyoshi, Kono, Tetsujiro, Katsumata, Osamu, Ito, Minoru, Hirose, Jun, Kitazawa, Takashi, Nagaoka, Hideki, Doi, Hiroki
• Primary Examiner(s): Krishnamurthy; Ramesh
• Application Number:
  US11/295,649
• Publication Number:
  US 20060097644A1
• Time in Patent Office: 853 Days
• Field of Search: 137/14, 137/486, 137/487.5, 137/883, 137/12, 137/599.01, 137/599.06, 118/715, 438/935, 700/282
• US Class Current: 137/487.5
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 16/206 the plurality of throttling means being arranged for the control of a plurality of diverging pressures from a single pressure G05D16/204 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/0396 Involving pressure control
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/7761 Electrically actuated valve
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/87877 Single inlet with multiple distinctly valved outlets

Abstract

Provided is a relative pressure control system has a simple configuration, but enables accurate regulation of a division ratio of an operation gas, and concurrently makes it possible to securely drain the operation gas from an operation gas pipeline in case of emergency. The system includes a plurality of air operated valves of a normally open type that are connected to an operation gas pipeline supplied with an operation gas; pressure sensors that are series connected to the respective air operated valves and that detect output pressures of the respective air operated valves; a controller that controls operation pressures of the respective air operated valves in accordance with the pressures detected by the pressure sensors; and a hard interlock solenoid valve that correlates the plurality of air operated valves to one another so that at least one of the plurality of air operated valves is normally opened. In the configuration, an opening of a specified one of the plurality of air operated valves is regulated, the operation gas is output at a predetermined division ratio.

Claims

1. A relative pressure control system comprising:

a plurality of air operated valves of a normally open type that are connected to an operation gas pipeline supplied with an operation gas;

pressure sensors that are series connected to the respective air operated valves and that detect output pressures of the respective air operated valves;

a control device that controls operation pressures of the respective air operated valves in accordance with the pressures detected by the pressure sensors; and

an interlock mechanism that connects to the control device and that correlates the plurality of air operated valves to one another so that at least one of the plurality of air operated valves is normally opened,

wherein an opening of a specified one of the plurality of air operated valves is regulated, and the operation gas is output at a predetermined division ratio.

2. A relative pressure control system according to claim 1, wherein the control device performs a comparison between output pressures and specifies one of the plurality of air operated valves as a control objective.

3. A relative pressure control system according to claim 1, further comprising abnormality detecting means, wherein when the operation gas is supplied by fully opening all the air operated valves, output pressures of the respective air operated valves are detected by the pressure sensors at a fixed interval, and the abnormality detecting means determines whether a pressure ratio of the output pressures exceeds a specified value and detects an abnormality when the pressure ratio exceeds the specified value.

4. A relative pressure control system according to claim 1, wherein the control device stores valve models that each determine an operation pressure of a specified one of the air operated valves for the pressure detected by the pressure sensor, and performs feed forward control of the specified one of the air operated valves by using the valve model.

5. A relative pressure control system according to claim 4, wherein the control device corrects the operation pressure of the specified air operated valve that underwent the feed forward control, by using the pressure detected by the pressure sensor connecting to the air operated valve undergoing the feed forward control.

6. A relative flow control system, comprising:

a flow control device including a flow control valve connecting to a gas supply source, and flowrate sensing means for detecting a flowrate being output by the flow control valve, thereby to control the flow control valve in accordance with the results of detection by the flowrate sensing means;

the operation gas pipeline connecting to the flow control device;

a relative pressure control system including a plurality of air operated valves of a normally open type that are parallel connected to the operation gas pipeline, pressure sensors that are series connected to the respective air operated valves and that detect output pressures of the respective air operated valves, a control device that controls operation pressures of the respective air operated valves in accordance with the pressures detected by the pressure sensors, and an interlock mechanism that connects to the control device and that correlates the plurality of air operated valves to one another so that at least one of the plurality of air operated valves is normally opened, wherein an opening of a specified one of the plurality of air operated valves is regulated, the operation gas is output at a predetermined division ratio; and

abnormality detecting means wherein when the operation gas is supplied by fully opening all the air operated valves, output pressures of the respective air operated valves are detected by the pressure sensors at a fixed interval, and the abnormality detecting means determines whether a pressure ratio of the output pressures exceeds a specified value and detects an abnormality when the pressure ratio exceeds the specified value.

7. A relative flow control system according to claim 6, wherein the control device stores valve models that each determine an operation pressure of a specified one of the air operated valves for the pressure detected by the pressure sensor, and performs feed forward control of the specified one of the air operated valves by using the valve model.

8. A relative flow control system according to claim 7, wherein the control device corrects the operation pressure of the specified air operated valve that underwent the feed forward control, by using the pressure detected by the pressure sensor connecting to the air operated valve undergoing the feed forward control.

9. A relative pressure control system comprising variable orifice means capable of performing variable control of a plurality of flow path areas in parallel to a single controlled-fluid supply pipeline, pressure sensors respectively series connected to the variable orifice means, and control means that controls open and close operations of the variable orifice means, wherein the controlled fluid is output at a predetermined division ratio from the plurality of variable orifice means, wherein:

the control means includes

arithmetic sections that calculate respective objective pressures of the plurality of variable orifice means in accordance with the predetermined division ratio and the results of detection of the pressure sensors, and

a signal processor section that creates control signals to be supplied to the plurality of variable orifice means in accordance with the objective pressures and that outputs the control signals to all the variable orifice means; and

before outputting the signals, the signal processor section outputs fixed-opening signals that each maintain conductance of the plurality of the variable orifice means at a fixed amount.

10. A relative pressure control system according to claim 9, wherein the fixed amount is in a range of from 65% or more to 95% or less of the conductance in a fully opened state.

11. A relative pressure control system comprising variable orifice means capable of performing variable control of a plurality of flow path areas in parallel to a single controlled-fluid supply pipeline, pressure sensors respectively series connected to the variable orifice means, and control means that controls open and close operations of the variable orifice means, wherein the controlled fluid is output at a predetermined division ratio from the plurality of variable orifice means.

wherein:

the control means includes arithmetic sections that normally calculate respective objective pressures of the plurality of variable orifice means in accordance with the predetermined division ratio and the results of detection of the pressure sensors, and a signal processor section that creates control signals to be supplied to the plurality of variable orifice means in accordance with the objective pressures and that normally outputs the control signals to all the variable orifice means,

when the variable orifice means are of a normally open type, the signal processor section performs a comparison of an amount of operation in accordance with a difference between the objective pressure calculated by the arithmetic section in units of the variable orifice means and an output pressure detected by the pressure sensor; and

the signal processor section creates a fixed-opening signal for one of the variable orifice means wherein the amount of operation is a minimum, and creates a control signal necessary for the output pressure to reach the objective pressure for the other variable orifice means.

12. A relative pressure control system according to claim 11, wherein the fixed amount is in a range of from 65% or more to 95% or less of the conductance in a fully opened state.

13. A relative pressure control system comprising variable orifice means capable of performing variable control of a plurality of flow path areas in parallel to a single controlled-fluid supply pipeline, pressure sensors respectively series connected to the variable orifice means, and control means that controls open and close operations of the variable orifice means, wherein the controlled fluid is output at a predetermined division ratio from the plurality of variable orifice means.

wherein:

the control means includes arithmetic sections that normally calculate respective objective pressures of the plurality of variable orifice means in accordance with the predetermined division ratio and the results of detection of the pressure sensors, and a signal processor section that creates control signals to be supplied to the plurality of variable orifice means in accordance with the objective pressures and that normally outputs the control signals to all the variable orifice means

when the variable orifice means are of a normally closed type, the signal processor section performs a comparison of an amount of operation in accordance with a difference between the objective pressure calculated by the arithmetic section in units of the variable orifice means and an output pressure detected by the pressure sensor; and

the signal processor section creates a fixed-opening signal for one of the variable orifice means wherein the amount of operation is a maximum, and creates, for the other variable orifice means, a control signal necessary for the output pressure to reach the objective pressure.

14. A relative pressure control system according to claim 13, wherein the fixed amount is in a range of from 65% or more to 95% or less of the conductance in a fully opened state.