Modular Valve Body and Joint Socket for Flexible Piping Layouts
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Solution Overview
Problem
The variability in positions of inlet and outlet flow passages on valve bodies requires new valve devices to be designed for each piping specification, leading to increased costs.
Innovation Solution
A valve device with a male socket and valve element that rotates within it, coupled to a joint body portion via a coupling mechanism, allowing at least two piping portions to communicate through the valve element's passage and holes, enabling flexible adaptation to different piping specifications without the need for new valve designs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the positions of inlet and outlet flow passages are varied according to piping specifications, then the valve device can adapt to different piping configurations, but new valve devices must be designed for each specification, increasing costs
Solution Approach 1:
The valve device is divided into two independent parts: a standardized valve body portion and a configurable joint body portion. The joint body portion includes multiple piping portions that can be selectively engaged with the valve body portion through a coupling mechanism, allowing different piping configurations without redesigning the entire valve device.
Solution Approach 2:
The valve body portion is designed as a universal component that can work with multiple types of joint body portions. The standardized male socket and female socket interface allows a single valve body portion to be paired with different joint body portions to satisfy various piping specifications, eliminating the need for multiple specialized valve designs.
2Adaptability or versatility
If a new valve device is designed for each piping specification, then the valve can precisely match the required configuration, but the costs of the valve devices increase
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the valve device into standardized and configurable parts, the manufacturing process is simplified. The valve body portion can be mass-produced as a standardized component, while only the joint body portion needs to be varied for different specifications, significantly reducing overall manufacturing costs compared to producing entirely custom valves for each application.
Solution Approach 2:
The universal valve body portion design allows a single standardized component to serve multiple piping configurations when paired with different joint body portions. This universality enables economies of scale in manufacturing the common valve body portion, reducing per-unit costs while maintaining precise matching capability for various piping specifications through the interchangeable joint body portions.
Data Source
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AI summary
Provided is a valve device capable of coping with changes in piping specifications easily while suppressing costs. A valve device includes a valve body portion having a male socket including a plurality of holes, and a valve element including a communication passage, the valve element being configured to rotate within the male socket, a joint body portion including a plurality of piping portions, the joint body portion including a female socket configured to engage with or disengage from the male socket, and a coupling mechanism configured to couple the valve body portion and the joint body portion in a state where the male socket and the female socket are engaged, wherein, according to a rotational position of the valve element, at least two of the plurality of piping portions of the joint body portion are configured to communicate through the communication passage of the valve element and the holes of the male socket.