Pendulum Vacuum Valve Sealing Part Decoupling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vacuum valves in semiconductor manufacturing, such as pendulum and slide gate valves, face challenges in achieving a simple, compact design that maintains high pressure integrity while minimizing wear and complexity, particularly due to the need for multiple sealing rings and complex control systems.
Innovation Solution
A valve design featuring a valve plate divided into a support part and a sealing part, where the sealing part is decoupled from the support part to distribute pressure evenly and reduce shear forces on the sealing ring, allowing for a single sealing ring to perform dual sealing functions and eliminating the need for multiple large sealing rings, thus simplifying the design and enhancing maintainability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If multiple sealing rings are used to ensure gas tightness under high pressure differences, then sealing reliability is improved, but device complexity and maintenance difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The valve plate is divided into two functionally independent parts: a support part that handles mechanical loading and pressure forces, and a sealing part that carries the sealing ring and performs the actual sealing function. This segmentation allows each part to be optimized for its specific function, enabling reliable sealing with a single sealing ring while reducing overall complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The sealing ring is extracted from the traditional valve seat interface and transferred to the sealing part of the valve plate. This extraction allows the sealing function to be decoupled from the support structure, enabling the use of a single sealing ring that is protected from excessive support forces while maintaining reliable sealing under pressure differences.
2Reliability
If high contact pressure is applied to ensure gas tightness, then sealing reliability is improved, but wear of the sealing ring increases
Solution Approach 1:
By separating the support part from the sealing part, the sealing ring is isolated from the high support forces that would otherwise be transmitted through the valve seat. The sealing ring only experiences the necessary contact pressure for sealing while being protected from excessive loads that cause wear, thereby extending its service life.
Solution Approach 2:
The sealing part acts as an intermediary between the support part and the sealing ring. It transmits only the necessary sealing force to the sealing ring while filtering out excessive support forces, thereby protecting the sealing ring from wear-causing loads and extending its duration of action.
3Ease of manufacture
If a simple valve design with fewer components is used, then ease of manufacture and maintenance are improved, but achieving reliable sealing under high pressure differences becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The valve plate is segmented into support and sealing parts, each with clearly defined functions. This segmentation simplifies manufacturing by allowing each part to be produced and tested independently, while simultaneously improving sealing reliability under pressure by ensuring that each part performs its specific function optimally without interference from the other.
4Reliability
If the valve plate is pressed directly onto the valve seat to ensure sealing, then sealing reliability is improved, but shear forces on the sealing ring increase causing damage
Solution Approach 1:
The valve plate is divided into a support part that absorbs shear forces and a sealing part that maintains the sealing ring in a position where it experiences minimal shear. This segmentation eliminates the harmful shear forces that would otherwise damage the sealing ring while maintaining reliable sealing.
Solution Approach 2:
The sealing ring is extracted from the direct contact interface between valve plate and valve seat. Instead, it is mounted on the sealing part which is positioned to avoid shear forces during the pressing operation, thereby eliminating the harmful shear effect while maintaining sealing reliability.
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 design achieves reliable gastight sealing with reduced wear and increased load capacity, allowing the valve to handle high pressure differences without complex contact pressure regulation, while maintaining a compact and easy-to-maintain structure.
Implementation Method 1
the distance between the valve plate and the valve seat is reduced so that the valve plate and the valve seat are pressed uniformly one onto the other and the opening is closed essentially gastight
Implementation Method 2
The valve plate has resilient means, in particular at least one spring
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to a valve, in particular a pendulum or slide gate valve, for essentially gastight closing of a flow path (F). The valve includes a valve housing (1) having a first wall (2) which has a first opening (3) and a first valve seat (4), a valve plate (5) having a closing side (6) with a first sealing ring (7) and at least one drive (8). By action of the drive (8), the valve plate (5) is pivotable or displaceable from an opened position (A) essentially parallel to the first valve seat (4), and the perpendicular distance between the valve plate (5), and the first valve seat (4) can be reduced so that, in the closed position (C), the flow path (F) is closed essentially gastight by an axially sealing contact between the first sealing ring (7) and the first valve seat (4). The valve plate (5) includes support part (9), which is connected to the drive (8) and fixes the first sealing ring (7) in the perpendicular direction to the first valve seat (4), and a sealing part (10) which has an inner circumferential area (11) and which is mounted so as to be movable relative to the support part (9) in a direction (Z) essentially perpendicular to the first valve seat (4). The inner circumferential area (11) encloses the first sealing ring (7) in an essentially gastight way with an inner seal. Thus, in the closed position (C), a pressure difference at the valve plate (5) acts essentially on the sealing part (10) so that sealing part (10), decoupled from the support part (9), is supported perpendicularly on a section of the valve housing (1), in particular the first valve seat (4) or a lateral groove (27).