Surface-Mounted One-Way Valve With Lip-Biasing Contact Structure
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
One-way valves, such as duckbill valves, tend to lose their biasing to a closed position over time due to wear, leading to leakage issues, especially when used in flow paths through surfaces, as the resilient force keeping the lips together becomes weak, and existing solutions requiring additional force perpendicular to the flow path are unsuitable for surfaces like lids or flat structures.
Innovation Solution
A valve design with resiliently deformable lips and contacting structures that mechanically interact with the surface to maintain the lips in a closed position, providing additional force to prevent leakage, even when the restoring force of the lips is reduced, allowing for effective sealing in flow paths through surfaces.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If additional force is applied perpendicular to the flow path to keep lips touching, then leakage prevention is improved, but the valve becomes unsuitable for use in flow paths through surfaces like lids or flat structures
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of applying force perpendicular to the flow path as in conventional valves, this invention applies force parallel to the flow path direction. The contacting structure pushes the lip assembly in the direction of fluid flow, which indirectly keeps the lips touching and prevents leakage while being suitable for surface-mounted applications.
Solution Approach 2:
The contacting structure acts as an intermediary that translates force applied parallel to the flow path into the necessary closing force on the lips. This mediator structure includes a pushing surface that contacts the lip assembly and transfers the force component needed to keep lips sealed while allowing the overall force direction to be parallel to flow.
2Device complexity
If only resilient force from lips is used to maintain closed position, then the valve structure remains simple, but the valve becomes leaky over time due to wear and reduced resiliency
Solution Approach 1:
The contacting structure applies a preliminary closing force to the lip assembly before fluid pressure acts on it. This pre-biasing ensures the lips start in a firmly closed position and maintains contact during operation, compensating for wear and reduced resiliency over time without requiring complex additional mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The contacting structure provides a counteracting force that opposes the opening tendency of the lips caused by wear and reduced resiliency. This force balances the weakening closing force of the lips, maintaining the sealed position throughout the valve's service life.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the valve is designed for flow paths through surfaces, then adaptability to lids and flat structures is improved, but additional force must be applied parallel to the surface which complicates the biasing mechanism
Solution Approach 1:
The contacting structure is designed to be resilient and deformable, allowing it to dynamically adapt to the lip assembly position. This dynamic characteristic enables the contacting structure to automatically adjust the force application point and magnitude, maintaining effective biasing without complex control mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The contacting structure self-adjusts to maintain proper lip contact through its resilient properties. As the lips wear or deform, the contacting structure naturally adjusts its position and force application, eliminating the need for externally controlled complex biasing mechanisms while maintaining sealing effectiveness.
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
The valve effectively prevents fluid leakage by ensuring the lips remain in contact, even with reduced restoring force, due to the additional force from the contacting structures, maintaining the valve's one-way functionality and sealing integrity.
Implementation Method 1
The valve is normally biased towards a closed position, keeping the deformable lips into or in the closed position while the valve is in an idle state. When a pressure is applied to an inlet side of the valve, or when a mechanical mean pushes against the valve's lips from the inlet side, the resilient lips move apart and the port is opened
Implementation Method 2
one or more contacting structures arranged to mechanically contact the surface, when the valve is mounted to the surface, such that the one or more contacting structures bias the lips into the first position
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to a valve (1) for mounting to a surface (2) and for use in a flow path, which flows through said surface (2), for permitting flow in said flow path in a first direction and for preventing flow in said flow path in a second direction being opposite to the first direction. The valve (1) comprises: one or more ports (21) defined by a plurality of lips (22), wherein each lip (22) is resiliently deformable from a first position, in which the lips (22) are in contact with one another in order to close the respective port (21), to a second position, in which the respective port (21) is opened in order to permit flow in the first direction, and one or more contacting structures (30) arranged to mechanically contact the surface (2), when the valve is mounted to the surface (2), such that the one or more contacting structures (30) bias the lips (22) into the first position.