Pivoting Flap Valve Assembly for Floor Drain Gas Sealing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Floor drains with an absent or dry 'S' bend create a direct communication between the room and the sewer system, allowing gases and microorganisms to enter the room, compromising indoor air quality and health.
Innovation Solution
A valve assembly with a resiliently mounted movable valve member that engages a seat to seal the drain when no water is present, preventing gas and microbial passage, utilizing springs or counter-weights for operation and being adaptable for retrofitting into existing floor drains.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If an 'S' bend is used to retain water in floor drains, then gases are prevented from passing up through the pipe, but the room is in direct communication with the sewer system when the 'S' bend becomes dry or is absent
Solution Approach 1:
The invention divides the protection function into two independent components: the traditional 'S' bend for liquid retention and a mechanical flap valve for gas sealing. This segmentation ensures that if one component fails (dry 'S' bend), the other continues to provide protection, resolving the reliability issue while maintaining gas prevention capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The flap valve acts as an intermediary mechanical barrier between the sewer system and the room. It provides an active sealing mechanism that operates independently of the water seal, ensuring continuous protection even when the 'S' bend is dry, thus eliminating the direct communication problem.
2Reliability
If a valve assembly is added to prevent gas ingress when the 'S' bend is dry, then continuous protection is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The flap valve is designed as a dynamic, movable component that automatically opens and closes in response to water flow and gas pressure. This dynamic operation eliminates the need for complex control mechanisms, actuators, or multiple moving parts, providing reliable continuous protection with minimal structural complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The valve assembly is self-actuating, using the natural forces of water flow and gas pressure to operate the flap. No external power source, control system, or additional actuation mechanism is required, thereby maintaining simplicity while achieving continuous protection through automatic operation.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If a mechanical valve member is used to seal the drain, then gas and microbial passage is prevented, but the ease of operation and installation is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of requiring active operation or complex installation procedures, the valve is designed to passively respond to natural forces. The flap valve inverts the conventional approach by using gas pressure and water flow to automatically control sealing, eliminating the need for manual operation or complex installation steps.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention replaces complex mechanical control systems with a simple passive mechanical flap that responds to natural forces. This substitution eliminates the need for actuators, sensors, control circuits, or manual operation mechanisms, thereby maintaining ease of installation while achieving effective microbial and gas passage prevention.
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
Effectively prevents the ingress of gases and microorganisms into the room, maintaining indoor health and allowing for easy installation without damaging existing floor drain components.
Implementation Method 1
resilient means for urging the valve member into engagement with the valve seat to seal the passage when no water is present
Implementation Method 2
The seal 21 is formed of resilient material such as plastics and/or rubber and is compressed against the surface 16 so as to sealingly connect the tubular body 25 and the tubular member 14
Data Source
Figure 1
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Figure 3
AI summary
A valve assembly (10) is to be used in conjunction with a tubular member having an internal surface surrounding a passage into which the valve assembly is to be sealingly inserted. The valve assembly includes a tubular body (25) having a longitudinal passage and an outer surface to be located adjacent the internal surface. A seal (29) is mounted on the outer surface to engage the internal surface to sealingly connect the tubular body with the tubular member. A movable valve member (33) is movable between an open position providing for the flow of water from an upstream end to a downstream end of the passage of the tubular body and a closed position closing the passage. Resilient means, such as a spring (34) urges the valve member to the closed position. The resilient means is configured to provide for displacement of the valve member toward the open position when pressure beyond a predetermined pressure is applied upon the movable valve member.