Microvalve Soft Floating Gasket Hard-Soft Seal
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Microfluidic devices fabricated from polymers face challenges in achieving a reliable valve seal without using dissimilar materials that are difficult to join, often requiring high forces which compromise the valve's reliability, and existing solutions either introduce additional soft materials or are costly and restrictive in material choice.
Innovation Solution
A microvalve design featuring a soft floating gasket made of materials like Teflon, inserted between a valve body and membrane before bonding, allowing for a hard-soft seal without additional adhesives and maintaining the force-deflection performance, enabling the use of similar materials for the device and simplifying manufacturing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a hard-hard seal is used in microfluidic membrane valves, then manufacturing is simplified with similar materials, but valve sealing performance deteriorates requiring extremely high forces
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by making only the sealing surfaces soft while keeping the rest of the valve structure hard. Specifically, a soft layer is incorporated at the valve seat and membrane contact regions to enable effective sealing, while the bulk valve body and membrane remain hard materials suitable for polymer fabrication processes.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses composite materials by combining hard valve body materials (such as cyclic olefin copolymer) with soft sealing materials (such as ethylene vinyl acetate or thermoplastic elastomers). This composite approach allows the valve to achieve both manufacturability through polymer bonding and reliable sealing through hard-soft material contact.
2Reliability
If a soft material layer is added between hard layers for sealing, then valve sealing performance improves, but device complexity increases and material selection is restricted
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the soft sealing layer with the valve body structure itself rather than treating it as a separate component. The soft layer is integrated into the valve seat region of the valve body, eliminating the need for additional soft material layers between separate hard components and simplifying the overall device architecture.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent makes the valve body multi-functional by incorporating both structural support and sealing functions in a single component. The valve body includes both hard regions for structural integrity and soft regions for sealing, eliminating the need for separate sealing components and reducing device complexity.
3Ease of manufacture
If high forces are applied to achieve hard-hard sealing, then manufacturing is simplified, but valve reliability deteriorates due to compromised structural integrity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by concentrating soft material only at the sealing contact regions where high pressure is needed, while maintaining hard materials in the bulk structure where mechanical strength is required. This localized approach enables effective sealing without compromising overall valve reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses composite materials to combine the advantages of hard materials (structural strength, manufacturability) and soft materials (sealing capability under moderate force). The hard-soft composite structure allows the valve to maintain structural integrity while achieving reliable sealing without extremely high forces.
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 provides a reliable valve seal with reduced manufacturing complexity and cost, allowing for flexible material selection based on thermal and chemical stability, and enables the same design to be produced in different materials for various applications without extensive redesign.
Implementation Method 1
A microvalve design featuring a soft floating gasket made of materials like Teflon, inserted between a valve body and membrane before bonding, allowing for a hard-soft seal
Data Source
AI summary
A microvalve assembly (10) includes an elongate valve body (14) having opposed first and second major surfaces, the first major surface defining a valve recess (34) and the second major surface defining first and second fluid ports (20,22). Both the fluid input port and the fluid output port extend in fluid communication with the valve recess. A gasket (12) is freely positioned within the valve recess so as to extend in overlying registry with either or both of fluid ports. A valve cover (16) is bonded to the valve body and includes a first planar surface positioned in overlying registry with the valve recess so as to enclose the gasket therein. The valve cover is deflectable into the valve recess so as to cause the gasket to seal at least one of the fluid ports.