Flood Stop Valve Relief Aperture for Easy Resetting
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current flood stop devices are difficult to reset after activating, often requiring disconnection from the water supply and pressure reduction, which complicates the process of addressing burst or leaking hoses and subsequent flooding.
Innovation Solution
A valve with a flood prevention device that includes a regulating portion with a relief aperture, allowing pressure reduction on the piston to facilitate its return to the open position, enabling easy resetting without disassembly, using an actuating portion to adjust the regulating portion and reduce pressure through a relief aperture.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a flood stop device is used to stop fluid flow when a hose bursts, then flooding risk is reduced, but the device becomes difficult to reset and requires disconnection from water supply
Solution Approach 1:
The flood prevention device is segmented into distinct functional components: a piston for flow control, a spring for biasing, and a relief aperture for pressure management. This segmentation allows the piston to be independently manipulated to reset the device without disconnecting the entire assembly from the water supply.
Solution Approach 2:
A relief aperture is introduced as an intermediary element that provides a controlled path for fluid to escape. This aperture acts as a mediator between the high-pressure closed state and the low-pressure open state, enabling smooth transition and resetting of the piston without requiring complete system disconnection.
2Ease of operation
If the regulating portion is biased towards the open position, then easy resetting is enabled, but the flood stop capability may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The spring biasing force is carefully calibrated to create a parameter balance: strong enough to reliably push the piston to the open position for easy resetting, yet allowing the piston to be overridden by high fluid pressure when flooding occurs. This parameter optimization ensures both ease of operation and reliable flood stop capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The system is designed to be dynamically responsive: the spring provides a default bias towards the open position for normal operation and easy resetting, but the piston can dynamically shift to the closed position when fluid pressure exceeds the spring force during flooding events. This dynamic balance resolves the contradiction between ease of resetting and flood stop reliability.
3Ease of operation
If the relief aperture is positioned to face the flow direction, then pressure relief is maximized, but the device structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The relief aperture is integrated into the existing piston structure, serving multiple functions: it provides pressure relief pathways, maintains structural integrity of the piston, and works in conjunction with the spring biasing mechanism. This multi-functionality approach maximizes pressure relief efficiency without significantly increasing device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The relief aperture is strategically positioned and oriented on the piston surface to face the flow direction, creating a localized high-efficiency pressure relief zone. This local optimization of aperture placement and orientation maximizes the pressure relief function without requiring complex overall structural changes to the device.
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
The valve provides a convenient and reliable mechanism for resetting the flood prevention device, reducing water damage from burst hoses by allowing pressure relief and easy reactivation of fluid flow without disassembly, effectively managing flooding risks.
Implementation Method 1
a relief aperture defined through a wall of the regulating part to assist in reducing pressure on the regulating portion when it has moved to a closed position
Implementation Method 2
the regulating portion is: biased towards the open position with a biasing member
Data Source
AI summary
A valve including a valve body; an adjusting assembly having an actuating portion and a regulating part; a flood prevention device at least partly located in the valve body, with the flood prevention device having a regulating portion; and a relief aperture defined through a wall of the regulating part to assist in reducing pressure on the regulating portion when the regulating portion moves to a closed position.