Peristaltic pump systems and methods

• US 9,541,081 B2
• Filed: 10/14/2013
• Issued: 01/10/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 10/14/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Elwha LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Original Assignee: Elwha LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Chin, Hon Wah, Hyde, Roderick A., Kare, Jordin T., Wood, Lowell L. Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Kramer, Devon
• Assistant Examiner(s): HERRMANN, JOSEPH S
• Application Number:
  US14/053,430
• Publication Number:
  US 20150104330A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,184 Days
• Field of Search: 417/244, 417/247, 417/266, 417/475
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: F01C 5/08 of tubular form, e.g. hose
• CPC Class Codes: F04B 43/10 Pumps having fluid drive
• CPC Class Codes: F04B 43/1238 using only one roller as the squeezing element, the roller moving on an arc of a circle during squeezing
• CPC Class Codes: F04B 43/1261 the rollers being placed at the outside of the tubular flexible member
• CPC Class Codes: F04B 43/1292 Pumps specially adapted for several tubular flexible members

Abstract

A staged peristaltic pump system and related methods are disclosed. The system may be configured such that the working fluid pressure differential across any individual stage of the system is smaller than the pressure across the entire system. In some embodiments certain components of each stage may be sealed from fluid communication with an external environment, though working fluid may be configured to cross the boundary of the seal. In some embodiments, stages may be pressurized with respect to an external environment.

Claims

1. A staged peristaltic pump system including a driving fluid and a pumped fluid, the system comprising:

a driving fluid system inlet;

a pumped fluid system inlet;

a driving fluid system outlet;

a pumped fluid system outlet; and

a plurality of peristaltic pumps, each peristaltic pump including a fluid motor,

wherein the plurality of peristaltic pumps are disposed in series between the pumped fluid system inlet and the pumped fluid system outlet, and the fluid motors are disposed in series between the driving fluid system inlet and the driving fluid system outlet;

the plurality of peristaltic pumps comprising a driving fluid flow path between the driving fluid system inlet and the driving fluid system outlet, and a pumped fluid flow path between the pumped fluid system inlet and the pumped fluid system outlet, wherein both the driving fluid flow path and the pumped fluid flow path are defined by flexible tubing,

wherein the fluid motor of each peristaltic pump includes the driving fluid passing through the flexible tubing that defines the driving fluid flow path of that respective peristaltic pump; and

the plurality of peristaltic pumps are configured such that a driving fluid pressure change or a pumped fluid pressure change across a single pump, is less than the driving fluid pressure difference between the driving fluid system inlet and the driving fluid system outlet, or the pumped fluid pressure difference between the pumped fluid system inlet and the pumped fluid system outlet.

2. The staged peristaltic pump system of claim 1, wherein, when the staged peristaltic pump system is in operation, the work done over a time interval by any single pump is substantially equal to the work done by any other pump of the plurality of peristaltic pumps over the same time interval.

3. The staged peristaltic pump system of claim 1, wherein, when the staged peristaltic pump system is in operation, the power consumption by any single pump over a time interval is substantially equal to the power consumption by any other pump of the plurality of peristaltic pumps over the same time interval.

4. The staged peristaltic pump system of claim 1, wherein, when the staged peristaltic pump system is in operation, the work done by the driving fluid across any single pump is substantially the same as the work done on the pumped fluid across the same pump.

5. The staged peristaltic pump system of claim 1, wherein each pump of the plurality of peristaltic pumps is configured to interact with both the driving and pumped fluids.

6. The staged peristaltic pump system of claim 5, wherein each pump comprises a first side configured to interact with the driving fluid, and a second side configured to interact with the pumped fluid.

7. The staged peristaltic pump system of claim 1, wherein pressure input at the driving fluid system inlet results in pressure output at the pumped fluid system outlet.

8. The staged peristaltic pump system of claim 7, wherein the pressure input at the driving fluid system inlet drives at least one peristaltic pump such that the at least one driven peristaltic pump generates pressure at the pumped fluid system outlet.

9. The staged peristaltic pump system of claim 8, wherein the pressure input at the driving fluid system inlet drives the plurality of peristaltic pumps such that the plurality of peristaltic pumps generates the pressure at the pumped fluid system outlet.

10. The staged peristaltic pump system of claim 7, wherein pressure input at the driving fluid system inlet causes a plurality of rotors to rotate and the rotors cause the pressure output at the pumped fluid system outlet.

11. The staged peristaltic pump system of claim 7, wherein a pressure drop across the system for the driving fluid powers a pressure increase across the system in the pumped fluid.

12. The staged peristaltic pump system of claim 1, wherein the flexible tubing that defines the driving fluid flow path and the flexible tubing that defines the pumped fluid flow path are different pieces of tubing.

13. The staged peristaltic pump system of claim 1, wherein, a peristaltic pump of the plurality of peristaltic pumps interacts with both the driving fluid flow path and the pumped fluid flow path to simultaneously allow the driving fluid to flow in a first direction and displace the pumped fluid in a second direction that is opposite to the first direction.

14. The staged peristaltic pump system of claim 1, wherein the system is configured to recover pressure generated as an output of a secondary process.

15. The staged peristaltic pump system of claim 1, further comprising a plurality of pressure chambers, wherein each pressure chamber of the plurality of pressure chambers is configured to enclose at least one pump of the plurality of peristaltic pumps and maintain a pressure different from an external environment and from the other pressure chambers.

16. The staged peristaltic pump system of claim 15, wherein each pump of the plurality of peristaltic pumps is enclosed by a pressure chamber of the plurality of pressure chambers.

17. The staged peristaltic pump system of claim 16, wherein each pressure chamber of the plurality of pressure chambers encloses a single pump of the plurality of peristaltic pumps.

18. A method of displacing a pumped fluid in a staged peristaltic pump system, the method comprising:

inputting a driving fluid in stages along a driving fluid flow path that is defined by flexible tubing from a driving fluid system inlet to a driving fluid system outlet; and

displacing the pumped fluid in stages along a pumped fluid flow path that is defined by flexible tubing from a pumped fluid system inlet to a pumped fluid system outlet;

wherein the driving and pumped fluids both flow through a plurality of peristaltic pumps, each peristaltic pump being driven by a fluid motor, wherein the peristaltic pumps and fluid motors are disposed in series between the system inlets and the system outlets,

wherein the plurality of peristaltic pumps are configured such that a driving fluid pressure differential or a pumped fluid pressure differential across a single pump, is less than a pressure change from the driving fluid system inlet to the driving fluid system outlet or from the pumped fluid system inlet to the pumped fluid system outlet.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the system further comprises at least one pressure chamber configured to enclose at least one pump of the plurality of peristaltic pumps and maintain a pressure different from an external environment, the pressure chamber configured such that at least one fluid pump inlet and at least one fluid pump outlet are configured to cross a wall of the pressure chamber.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising pressurizing the at least one pressure chamber such that pressure within the at least one pressure chamber differs from an external environmental pressure.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein the system is configured such that the at least one pressure chamber is a plurality of pressure chambers, wherein each pump of the plurality of peristaltic pumps is disposed in a pressure chamber and each pressure chamber contains a single pump.

22. The method of claim 18, wherein the driving fluid flows through the driving fluid flow path in a first direction while the pumped fluid flows through the pumped fluid flow path in a substantially opposite direction.

23. The method of claim 18, further comprising inputting pressure into the plurality of peristaltic pumps at the driving fluid system inlet, such that rotational displacement is output from the system.

24. The method of claim 23, further comprising priming the system.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein priming the system comprises inputting pressure into the system.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein priming the system further comprises inputting rotational displacement into the system.