Rotary Flow Valve Geometry for Precise Low-Flow Adjustment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing flow rate adjusting devices, such as those described in Japanese Patent No. 5144880, face high manufacturing costs due to numerous components like motors and mechanisms, and struggle to accurately adjust fluid flow rates in low flow rate ranges, particularly below 30 mL/min.
Innovation Solution
A flow rate adjusting device with a circularly columnar valve portion and an accommodation hole, featuring inflow and outflow grooves that adjust fluid flow through rotational positioning, eliminating the need for motors and transmission mechanisms, allowing precise control of fluid flow rates without additional components.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a motor and transmission mechanism are used to adjust the needle valve position, then the flow rate can be dynamically controlled, but the manufacturing cost increases due to the large number of components
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes the motor and transmission mechanism from the flow rate adjusting device, retaining only the essential valve structure. This eliminates complex components while preserving the core flow control function through a simplified manual adjustment mechanism, directly resolving the contradiction between operational capability and manufacturing cost.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs a simple, inexpensive valve structure without expensive motors or transmission components. The design accepts a basic manual adjustment mechanism that is cost-effective and sufficient for the application, trading away dynamic automated control for significant cost reduction.
2Productivity
If the needle valve insertion level is changed to adjust flow rate, then the flow rate can be modified, but it becomes difficult to achieve precise low flow rates (30 mL/min or lower) due to large flow rate changes relative to small insertion level changes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by creating a tapered valve hole with varying cross-sectional areas along its length. The upper portion has a smaller cross-sectional area that provides finer flow control for low flow rates, while the lower portion has a larger cross-sectional area for higher flow rates. This localized variation in geometry enables precise control across the entire flow range, particularly improving low flow rate precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the geometric parameter of the valve hole from a uniform cylindrical shape to a tapered shape with varying cross-sectional area. This parameter change creates different flow characteristics at different heights, allowing the valve to achieve both high and low flow rate precision through a single structural modification rather than requiring separate mechanisms.
3Ease of manufacture
If a simple valve structure without motors is used, then manufacturing cost is reduced, but the ability to dynamically adjust flow rate is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces dynamics through a rotatable valve portion that can be manually positioned to different angles. This rotational movement dynamically adjusts the alignment between the valve groove and valve hole, enabling continuous flow rate adjustment from fully closed to fully open positions without requiring motors or complex transmission mechanisms.
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is a flow rate adjusting device includes a first member having a valve portion and a second member having an accommodation hole whose cross section is circular, the first member is accommodated rotatably in the second member, the second member has an outflow channel configured to guide a fluid from an inner circumferential face of the accommodation hole to an outflow pipe connected to the second member, the valve portion has an inflow hole, an outflow hole, and an outflow groove formed in the outer circumferential face circumferentially about a first axis, the outflow groove forms a flow rate adjusting channel extending circumferentially between the accommodation hole and the inner circumferential face and connecting the outflow hole and the outflow channel to each other, and the sectional area of the flow rate adjusting channel gradually decreases in accordance with the distance ranging circumferentially from one end of the outflow groove.