Multi-Valve Adjustable Valve for Vehicle Thermal Flow Routing
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Solution Overview
Problem
As the number of components requiring thermal control within a vehicle increases, existing adjustable valves struggle to provide sufficient fluid passages to form diverse thermal control pathways efficiently, leading to limitations in temperature adjustment and system integration.
Innovation Solution
The adjustable valve design incorporates multiple valve bodies and an actuating shaft with engageable and disengageable structures, allowing for selective rotation of valve bodies to connect or disconnect various fluid passages, thereby enabling the formation of multiple fluid paths within a single valve housing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If multiple valve bodies are added to provide more fluid passages, then the number of thermal control pathways increases, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The valve is divided into multiple independent valve bodies (first valve body, second valve body, third valve body, fourth valve body) disposed in different cavities within the housing. Each valve body can be independently actuated to control specific fluid passages, allowing the system to provide multiple thermal control pathways while maintaining manageable complexity through modular segmentation.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple valve bodies are added to provide more fluid passages, then the number of thermal control pathways increases, but the manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple valve bodies are integrated into a single housing structure with a unified actuating mechanism. The first, second, third, and fourth valve bodies are disposed within first and second cavities of the housing, sharing common sealing structures and actuation systems. This merging approach allows the manufacture of multiple thermal control pathways while reducing overall manufacturing complexity compared to separate valve assemblies.
3Measurement precision
If selective actuation of valve bodies is implemented, then the precision of temperature control improves, but the control system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The valve system employs dynamic selective actuation where the actuator can independently rotate different valve bodies to different angular positions. Each valve body's opening can be selectively adjusted to align with specific housing flow ports, enabling precise control of fluid flow distribution to different thermal zones. This dynamic control allows precise temperature regulation without requiring complex multi-layer control systems.
Data Source
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AI summary
The present disclosure provides an adjustable valve, comprising a housing, a first valve body, a second valve body, a third valve body, a fourth valve body, and an actuating shaft. The housing has a first cavity and a second cavity. The first valve body is disposed in the first cavity. The second valve body is disposed in the first cavity, and the first valve body and the second valve body can rotate about a first axis X. The third valve body is disposed in the second cavity. The fourth valve body is disposed in the first cavity, and the third valve body and the fourth valve body can rotate about a second axis Y. The actuating shaft is rotatably disposed in the first cavity, and the actuating shaft can selectively drive one or more of the first valve body, the second valve body, the third valve body, and the fourth valve body to rotate. The adjustable valve of the present disclosure can achieve the connection and disconnection of different fluid passages, and can control the flow of each passage, which facilitates the integration of the adjustable valve and reduces the requirement of a system for actuating energy.