Top-Entry Valve Lug Coupling for Fast Bonnet Maintenance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional ball valves require time-consuming and costly maintenance due to bolted connections, which are prone to corrosion and machining defects, necessitating a more efficient and cost-effective solution for repair and installation.
Innovation Solution
A top entry valve system utilizing a quick connection mechanism with radially extending lugs and spaces for coupling the bonnet to the valve body, allowing for rapid assembly and disassembly without external fasteners, and enabling internal component access without disassembling the valve body.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional bolted connections are used to join valve body to bonnet, then structural strength and reliability are improved, but maintenance time and cost increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The coupling mechanism is segmented into discrete body lugs and bonnet lugs that can be independently positioned and engaged. This segmentation allows for rapid assembly by simply aligning and inserting the lugs into corresponding openings, eliminating the time-consuming process of bolt installation and tightening while maintaining connection integrity through the interlocking lug structure
Solution Approach 2:
The traditional fasteners (bolts, nuts, and fastening hardware) are completely extracted from the coupling mechanism. Instead of using external fastening elements, the invention uses integrated lugs formed directly on the body and bonnet that engage through openings, eliminating the need for separate fastening components and significantly reducing maintenance time
2Strength
If traditional bolted connections are used to join valve body to bonnet, then structural strength is improved, but manufacturing cost and complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The coupling lugs are merged directly into the body and bonnet structures as integral features rather than separate components. The body lugs are formed on the valve body and the bonnet lugs are formed on the bonnet, creating a unified coupling system that reduces part count and simplifies manufacturing while maintaining connection strength through the interlocking geometry
Solution Approach 2:
Complex fastening systems with multiple bolts, nuts, washers, and torque specifications are extracted and replaced with a simple lug-and-opening engagement system. This extraction of unnecessary complexity maintains connection strength through the direct lug-to-lug interface while dramatically reducing the number of components and assembly steps
3Ease of operation
If traditional fasteners are used for coupling, then ease of assembly is maintained, but leak points and corrosion risks increase
Solution Approach 1:
External fasteners that create leak paths and corrosion sites are completely extracted from the coupling mechanism. The lug-based system engages through openings without requiring threaded holes or gasket interfaces at the coupling points, eliminating the primary sources of leaks and corrosion while maintaining ease of assembly through the simple insert-and-lock geometry
Solution Approach 2:
The lug engagement system acts as an intermediary mechanism that provides a leak-free connection without requiring traditional gasket interfaces. The interlocking lugs create a direct mechanical bond that prevents fluid leakage while the simplified structure eliminates corrosion-prone threaded interfaces and fastener contacts
Data Source
AI summary
A valve for regulating a fluid flow includes a body with an opening at a top. The valve also includes a bonnet arranged within the opening, The valve further includes a coupling mechanism joining the body to the bonnet. The coupling mechanism includes a plurality of body lugs extending radially inward toward a stem axis, each body lug of the plurality of body lugs being separated from an adjacent body lug by a body opening. The coupling mechanism also includes a plurality of bonnet lugs extending radially outward from the stem axis, each bonnet lug of the plurality of bonnet lugs being separated from an adjacent bonnet lug by a bonnet opening. Each bonnet lug is adapted to axially move through a corresponding body opening to transition an axial position of the bonnet relative to the body.