Compressor Poppet Valve Eccentric Passage Self-Cleaning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing poppet valves for compressors face issues with impaired functionality due to contamination, leading to blocked or incomplete closure of closing elements, and increased wear, especially when operated with fluids containing particles or droplets.
Innovation Solution
The poppet valve design incorporates eccentrically arranged passages in the support and base elements, allowing for automatic discharge of dirt and contaminants, reducing accumulation and wear, with a spring-guided support element and movable support elements for continuous cleaning.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the poppet valve is operated with contaminated fluid containing droplets or particles, then the valve can process the fluid, but the closing elements become blocked or inhibited in their movement
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the harmful contaminants (droplets or particles) from the system by providing dedicated discharge paths (passages) that lead from the bore to the exterior. The support element with its passage and the base element with its opening create an escape route for contaminants, allowing them to be removed from the critical closing element area, thus maintaining reliable movement while still processing contaminated fluid.
Solution Approach 2:
The support element acts as an intermediary component between the bore and the exterior. It provides a passage that mediates the removal of contaminants from the bore, preventing direct blockage of the closing element while enabling continuous operation with contaminated fluid. The support element with passage and base element with opening work together as an intermediary contamination removal system.
2Adaptability or versatility
If base elements of different thicknesses are used to vary spring preload and regulate fluid flow, then the valve can control flow pressure, but the structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by providing different configurations of passages and openings in the support and base elements. Instead of changing the overall thickness of base elements, the design varies the local structure by adding or removing passages/openings in specific locations. This allows flow regulation while maintaining a consistent base element structure, reducing complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes parameters by varying the number, size, and configuration of passages in the support element and openings in the base element. Rather than changing base element thickness, the flow regulation is achieved by modifying the passage parameters (cross-sectional area, length, position), which provides the same functionality with a more uniform and less complex structure.
3Force
If the closing element impacts the support element during operation, then the spring force is maintained, but the contamination accumulates on the support element
Solution Approach 1:
The patent converts the harmful effect of closing element impact into a beneficial cleaning action. The passage in the support element and opening in the base element are positioned and sized to receive and discharge contaminants that are kicked up during impact. The impact force that would normally cause contamination accumulation is instead used to drive contaminants into the passage where they can be removed, transforming a harmful effect into a self-cleaning mechanism.
4Extent of automation
If the passage is arranged eccentrically with respect to the bore, then automatic cleaning and discharge of contaminants is enabled, but the manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent deliberately introduces asymmetry by providing an eccentric passage in the support element and an eccentric opening in the base element. This asymmetric arrangement creates a one-way flow path for contaminants that is driven by the closing element's movement. The asymmetric geometry naturally guides contaminants from the bore through the passage to the exterior, enabling automatic cleaning without requiring high-precision alignment, as the asymmetry itself provides the cleaning mechanism.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This design ensures the poppet valve operates maintenance-free for extended periods, preventing clogging and premature wear, enabling reliable operation for several thousand hours.
Implementation Method 1
a spring being arranged between the support element and the closing element in order to bring about a prestressing force on the closing element which is directed towards the valve seat
Implementation Method 2
The closing element opens when the pressure of the fluid, in particular the gas, which flows into the bores of the valve seat plate in the poppet valve, exerts a force on the head of the closing element which exceeds the spring force of the spring
Implementation Method 3
the base element has at least one base element passage arranged eccentrically with respect to the bore, in order to form a passage through the support element and the base element arranged eccentrically with respect to the bore in axial direction A
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3~4
Figure 5~6
AI summary
Poppet valve (1) for a compressor, comprising a catch (3), a valve seat (2) and a plurality of closing elements (4), wherein the catch (3) has a plurality of bores (13) extending in an axial direction (A), wherein the bores (13) are open towards the valve seat (2) and have a bottom element (7) at an end opposite the valve seat (2), wherein a closing element (4) displaceable in the axial direction (A) is arranged in each of the bores (13), wherein the valve seat (2) has a plurality of through-openings (12) arranged opposite the bores (13) in the axial direction (A), such that each of the through-openings (12) can be closed by one of the closing elements (4), wherein a support element (8) is arranged in each of the bores (13) and wherein a spring (5) is arranged between the support element (8) and the The closing element (4) is arrangedto effect a preload force directed towards the valve seat (2) on the closing element (4), wherein the support element (8) has at least one support element passage (8a) arranged eccentrically with respect to the bore (13) and wherein the bottom element (7) has at least one bottom element passage (7a) arranged eccentrically with respect to the bore (13) in order to form an axially eccentric passage (16) through the support element (8) and the bottom element (7) with respect to the bore (13).