Check Valve Non-Rotating Disc Hinge Assembly
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional check valves with rotating discs are unsuitable for certain industries due to premature wear and misalignment issues, and they often fail to meet corrosion resistance standards, particularly in applications like the petrochemical industry, where API Standard 594 requires non-rotating discs and components with equivalent corrosion resistance.
Innovation Solution
The design incorporates a clevis and hinge assembly with a non-circular cross-sectional shape and interlocking features to prevent disc rotation, using a monolithic disc with integral sealing and retention portions to ensure alignment and corrosion resistance, eliminating the need for additional fasteners like nuts and cotter pins.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If the disc is allowed to rotate 360 degrees about its axis relative to the hinge, then the valve structure is simpler and easier to manufacture, but the disc experiences premature wear and misalignment creating leak paths between the disc and seat
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies asymmetry by providing the hinge with a non-circular cross-sectional shape that corresponds to a non-circular stem portion of the disc. This asymmetric geometry prevents the disc from rotating 360 degrees about its axis relative to the hinge, as the non-circular shapes are incompatible with full rotation. This resolves the technical contradiction by maintaining the simple hinge structure while preventing disc rotation that would cause wear and misalignment.
2Ease of manufacture
If conventional fasteners (nuts, washers, cotter pins) are used to secure the disc to the hinge, then the assembly is easier to manufacture, but the fasteners may not meet corrosion resistance standards required by API Standard 594
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates the need for conventional fasteners (nuts, washers, cotter pins) by providing the disc with a non-circular cross-sectional shape that directly engages with the non-circular hinge. This direct geometric engagement secures the disc to the hinge without requiring additional fastening components, thereby eliminating the corrosion resistance issue associated with conventional fasteners while maintaining ease of manufacture.
Solution Approach 2:
The asymmetric non-circular cross-sectional shapes of the disc and hinge create a secure fit that eliminates the need for fasteners. The non-circular geometry prevents removal of the disc without tools while maintaining ease of assembly, resolving the contradiction between ease of manufacture and corrosion resistance by removing the problematic fastener components entirely.
3Reliability
If the disc is restricted from rotating 360 degrees, then corrosion resistance standards are met, but the valve structure becomes more complex requiring non-circular cross-sections and interlocking features
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses asymmetry with non-circular cross-sectional shapes for both the hinge and disc stem portion. This asymmetric design prevents 360-degree rotation of the disc while maintaining a relatively simple overall structure. The non-circular geometry inherently provides the restriction function without requiring complex interlocking features, mechanisms, or additional components, thus resolving the contradiction between reliability and device complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
A check valve including a clevis, a hinge pin, a hinge configured to be rotatably coupled to the clevis by the hinge pin, and a disc configured to be detachably coupled to the hinge. The hinge includes a first hinge member having a male interlocking feature and a second hinge member defining a female interlocking feature corresponding to the male interlocking feature. The second hinge member is configured to be detachably coupled to the first hinge member. When the first hinge member is coupled to the second hinge member, the male interlocking feature of the first hinge member is received in the female interlocking feature defined in the second hinge member to prevent angular separation of the first and second hinge members about the hinge pin. The first and second hinge members may define a non-circular opening configured to prevent rotation of the disc relative to the hinge.