Hand-held Dispenser Spool Valve Flow Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing hand-held dispensers lack precise control over water flow rate and chemical injection, making them inefficient for mixing liquids with water, especially in applications like lawn spraying and mop bucket filling.
Innovation Solution
A hand-held dispenser with a T-shaped configuration featuring a horizontally and vertically disposed body portion, a valve system with a spool valve for controlling water flow, and a mechanism to draw liquid chemicals from a container for mixing with water, allowing precise control of water flow and chemical injection through a combination of valve actuation and spool rotation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a simple valve system is used in hand-held dispensers, then the device complexity is reduced and ease of manufacture is improved, but the precision of water flow rate control and chemical injection is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The valve system is segmented into two independent but coordinated components: a valve actuating lever for opening/closing the water flow, and a rotatable spool valve for precise flow rate control. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function optimally while maintaining overall system manageability and manufacturing feasibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The spool valve is designed to be rotatable, providing dynamic adjustment capability for water flow rate. The spool's rotation allows continuous variation of the flow passage cross-section, enabling precise control of water flow rate and corresponding chemical injection rate, transforming a static valve into a dynamically adjustable flow control mechanism.
2Ease of operation
If a rotatable spool valve is added for precise flow control, then the precision of water flow rate control is improved, but the device complexity and difficulty of manufacture increase
Solution Approach 1:
The spool valve combines multiple functions into a single component: it serves as both the flow control element and the chemical injection control element. The spool's rotation simultaneously adjusts the water flow rate through the nozzle and the chemical injection rate through the mixing passage, eliminating the need for separate control mechanisms and simplifying the overall manufacturing process.
Solution Approach 2:
The spool valve is designed as a multi-functional component that controls both water flow and chemical injection. By rotating the spool, the user can simultaneously regulate the mixing ratio of water and chemical, making a single component perform multiple control functions that would otherwise require separate mechanisms.
3Ease of operation
If the valve actuating lever is pivotally movable between upper and lower positions, then the ease of operation for valve actuation is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The valve actuating lever is extracted as a separate, independently movable component from the main valve body. This allows the lever to be pivotally connected to the valve stem, enabling the user to actuate the valve by simple pivoting motion while keeping the lever mechanism simple and easy to manufacture. The separation of the actuating mechanism from the flow control mechanism reduces overall system complexity.
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
Enables precise and convenient control of water flow rate and chemical mixing, ensuring efficient distribution of chemicals with water, enhancing usability and economic manufacturing while maintaining durability and refined design.
Implementation Method 1
The spool valve is selectively rotatable to a different position so that a different cross-section area of the flow passage is effective
Implementation Method 2
The passage of water through the fifth passageway to the discharge end of the first body portion, when the first valve means is in its open position, draws liquid from the liquid container upwardly through the sixth passageway
Data Source
AI summary
A hand-held dispenser for precisely controlling the flow rate of water therethrough and for injecting a liquid chemical into the water passing through the apparatus.