Cleanroom Wall Passthrough With Switchable Sealed Fluid Ports
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing passthroughs for cleanrooms are cumbersome and difficult to switch between sealed and fluid passageway states, making them inefficient for transferring materials while maintaining a pollutant-free environment.
Innovation Solution
A passthrough design featuring a barrier with a housing and sealing blocks that allow for selective isolation of spaces, using doors and sealing blocks to control fluid transfer through apertures, ensuring the cleanroom remains isolated from external areas when not in use.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conduits are sealed against the wall to prevent contaminates from entering the cleanroom, then the cleanroom integrity is maintained, but the passthrough becomes cumbersome and difficult to switch between sealed and fluid passageway states
Solution Approach 1:
The passthrough device is segmented into multiple functional components: a barrier with opening, a housing with passageway, first and second doors for selective sealing, and upper and lower sealing blocks. This segmentation allows independent control of sealing and fluid transfer functions, enabling easy switching between sealed and fluid passageway states while maintaining cleanroom integrity when sealed.
Solution Approach 2:
The passthrough incorporates dynamic elements including movable doors (first door and second door) that can selectively close off the opening, and slidable sealing blocks that can move between positioned to seal or allow fluid passage. This dynamic design enables rapid transition between sealed and fluid transfer states without compromising the reliability of the seal when closed.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If the entire opening is sealed to prevent contamination, then the cleanroom remains isolated from external areas, but fluid transfer capability is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The sealing system is designed to be dynamic rather than static. The first door can close off the first space from the opening, the second door can close off the second space from the opening, and the upper and lower sealing blocks can slide into sealing positions. When all sealing elements are in their sealed positions, the cleanroom is fully isolated. When doors are opened and sealing blocks repositioned, fluid transfer capability is restored, providing adaptability between contamination prevention and fluid transfer modes.
Solution Approach 2:
The housing with its internal passageway acts as an intermediary chamber between the first and second spaces. This intermediary structure allows fluid to be transferred through a controlled path that can be sealed off from both sides when needed, enabling the system to provide either full isolation or controlled fluid transfer depending on the position of the doors and sealing blocks.
3Ease of operation
If a simple conduit opening is used for fluid transfer, then ease of operation is improved, but the ability to maintain cleanroom integrity and prevent hazardous materials from exiting is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The passthrough divides the fluid transfer path into segmented sections: the first space, the housing with passageway, and the second space, separated by sealable interfaces. The upper and lower sealing blocks create additional segmentation within the housing. This segmentation allows the system to maintain simple operation for fluid transfer when open, while providing multiple sealing points to ensure hazardous material containment when closed, resolving the contradiction between operational simplicity and containment reliability.
Data Source
AI summary
A passthrough for a barrier separating a first space from a second space includes a housing mounted to an opening that extends through the barrier. First and second doors selectively block the first and second spaces, respectively, from the opening. First and second upper sealing blocks cooperate with first and second lower sealing blocks, respectively, to define a number of apertures. Each apertures is sized and configured to selectively receive 1) a conduit extending through the corresponding upper and lower sealing blocks and having an exterior surface that sealingly engages aperture, and 2) a plug sized and configured to occlude the aperture.