Selector and Lockout Valve Assembly With Orientation Lockout
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Solution Overview
Problem
In fire suppression systems, selector and lockout valves can be incorrectly installed due to their symmetric design, leading to improper orientation, which may result in insufficient agent coverage or failure to suppress fires, as the visual position indicators can misleadingly show the valve state.
Innovation Solution
A valve assembly featuring a positioning pin and a D-shaped valve shaft that ensures the valve positioner and ball valve assembly can only be installed in one correct orientation, using a positioning pin and D-shaped shaft to prevent incorrect assembly, and a U-shaped mounting bracket to secure the components in the proper alignment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If selector and lockout valves are designed with symmetric assembly features, then ease of assembly is improved, but reliability deteriorates due to inability to prevent incorrect orientation installation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies asymmetry by providing at least one asymmetric feature on either the valve positioner or ball valve assembly (such as a positioning pin, keyway, or shaped mounting interface) that prevents the valve positioner from being installed in incorrect orientations. This asymmetric design ensures that only the correct orientation allows proper assembly, thereby preventing installation errors while maintaining reliable operation.
2Reliability
If positioning features are added to prevent incorrect installation, then reliability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements reliability improvement through minimal asymmetric features such as a positioning pin, keyway, or shaped mounting interface on either the valve positioner or ball valve assembly. These simple asymmetric elements prevent incorrect orientation installation without requiring complex mechanisms, thereby achieving enhanced reliability with minimal increase in device complexity.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2A~2C
Figure 2D
AI summary
Valve assembly (200) comprising a valve positioner (202), a ball valve assembly (204) configured to be actuated by the valve positioner between an open state and a closed state, an indicator (208) configured to provide visual indication of the state of the ball valve assembly and a positioning pin (216) configured between the valve positioner (202) and the ball valve assembly (204), the positioning pin (216) arranged to prevent installation of the valve positioner (202) to the ball valve assembly (204) in all but one orientation and to ensure installation in only one orientation.