Rotary Fluid Control Valve Seal Layout for Leakage-Free Switching
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional fluid control valves experience unexpected fluid flow and leakage due to the rotational position of the valve straddling the outer peripheral portion of the seal member, limiting the switching pattern and rotational freedom.
Innovation Solution
The fluid control valve design includes a seal member with through-holes arranged in a grid pattern, allowing for a larger number of through-hole columns than opening columns, ensuring the flow path portions do not straddle the outer peripheral portion, thereby reducing fluid flow to the back side of the valve without limiting the switching pattern.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the valve is allowed to rotate freely to any position, then the switching pattern flexibility is improved, but fluid leakage occurs when the valve straddles the outer peripheral portion of the seal member
Solution Approach 1:
The seal member is divided into multiple through-holes arranged in a grid pattern with more columns than the number of opening portions. This segmentation allows the seal member to maintain effective sealing at multiple discrete positions rather than requiring continuous sealing along the entire outer peripheral portion, thereby preventing fluid leakage while allowing rotational freedom.
Solution Approach 2:
The seal member provides sealing functionality only at specific locations where through-holes are positioned, rather than requiring continuous sealing along the entire outer periphery. This local quality approach allows the valve to rotate freely while maintaining fluid tightness at the critical through-hole positions, resolving the contradiction between rotational flexibility and leakage prevention.
2Reliability
If the number of through-hole columns is increased beyond the number of opening columns, then fluid leakage is prevented, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The grid-patterned through-holes in the seal member serve multiple functions: they provide sealing at discrete positions, allow fluid passage when aligned with opening portions, and enable rotational positioning. By making the through-holes multi-functional, the design prevents fluid leakage without requiring additional separate components, thereby limiting the increase in device complexity.
3Reliability
If the seal member covers the outer peripheral portion completely, then fluid leakage is prevented, but the rotational freedom of the valve is limited
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of providing continuous sealing along the outer peripheral portion, the seal member uses segmented through-holes distributed in a grid pattern. This segmentation allows the valve to rotate freely between positions while maintaining fluid tightness when the through-holes align with the opening portions, thus preserving both leakage prevention and rotational freedom.
Data Source
AI summary
A valve rotatatable about an axial center includes a valve outer wall portion defining flow path portions. A housing includes a housing outer wall portion accommodating the valve and defining opening portions. A seal member is disposed between the valve outer wall portion and the housing outer wall portion. The opening portions are formed in a grid pattern in which two or more opening portions are arranged in the axial-center direction and arranged in two or more columns in the circumferential direction. The number of columns of the opening portions arranged in the circumferential direction is a number of opening columns. The number of columns of the through-holes arranged in the circumferential direction is a number of through-hole columns. The number of through-hole columns is set to be larger than the number of opening columns.