Water Flow Valve Backpressure for Accurate Meter Readings
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current water meters inaccurately measure water flow due to gas/air bubbles, leading to higher water bills as they read increased volume, and this inaccuracy also causes wear and tear, reducing the meter's lifespan.
Innovation Solution
A water flow valve is installed between the water meter and the building, compressing air bubbles through back pressure before they reach the meter, ensuring only water volume is measured, thus providing accurate readings and reducing wear on the meter.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If water flow is measured directly by the water meter, then the measurement process is simple, but air bubbles cause inaccurate readings and higher water bills
Solution Approach 1:
The valve creates back pressure before the water reaches the meter, collapsing air bubbles in advance. This preliminary action removes the harmful air bubbles from the water flow before measurement, ensuring accurate readings without requiring complex bubble detection or filtration systems during the measurement process itself.
Solution Approach 2:
The valve acts as an intermediary device between the water source and the meter. It introduces back pressure as a mediating mechanism to collapse air bubbles, thereby protecting the meter from inaccurate measurements caused by air without requiring the meter itself to be more complex.
2Productivity
If air bubbles are present in the water line, then the water flow moves freely, but the water meter reads higher volume than actual water received
Solution Approach 1:
The valve converts the harmful effect of air bubbles (causing over-reading) into a beneficial outcome by using the back pressure they create to collapse them. The air bubbles themselves become the mechanism for creating the pressure needed to eliminate them, turning the problem into its own solution while maintaining water flow productivity.
3Extent of automation
If the water meter continuously reads water volume including air bubbles, then billing is automated, but customers pay for water they did not receive and the meter wears out faster
Solution Approach 1:
The valve provides beforehand cushioning by creating back pressure that prevents air bubbles from reaching the meter in the first place. This protective action occurs continuously before the water reaches the meter, cushioning it against the harmful effects of air bubble ingestion and extending the meter's reliable operational life.
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 ensures more accurate water meter readings, reducing water bills and extending the meter's lifespan by eliminating the impact of air bubbles, resulting in a more precise measurement of actual water usage.
Implementation Method 1
the air is compressed through the creation by the valve of back pressure in the water line. With this increase pressure, the air bubbles in the water begin to collapse and occupy less space
Implementation Method 2
the novel valve compresses the air/air bubbles into the water preferably at the point where the water enters the meter causing the bubbles to collapse
Data Source
AI summary
A water flow valve positioned within a waterline preferably just past a building's water meter. The valve compresses air bubbles into the water at the point where the water enters the meter, thus improving the accuracy of the meter reading. The internal passageway of the valve is non-linear and causing the water traveling therethrough to go through a plurality of turns. A blocking disk and spring are used to close off communication between a first portion of the internal passageway and a second portion of the passageway in a valve closed position. With enough water flow pressure the spring is compressed which causes the blocking disk to retract and allow water to travel through the passageway, while creating the backpressure in the waterline to collapse the air bubbles prior to the bubbles being read by the water meter. A laminar flow for the water can also be created which can reduce the wear and tear on the water meter possibly extending the useful life for the water meter.