Patent ID: 9726530
Date: 2017-08-08
CPC Classifications: G01F

Claim:
1. A flowmeter for measuring and outputting total flow rate of a fluid in a pipeline without constricting the flow in the pipeline to permit measuring of flow in the pipeline, comprising: an exterior pipe having a diameter commensurate with the diameter of the pipeline, and having an inlet and an outlet; a plurality of interior measuring tubes placed within said exterior pipe, each of said interior measuring tubes having an outer surface that contacts at least a portion of the outer surface of another interior measuring tube, such that said tubes are at least partially mutually contiguous, said interior measuring tubes having a diameter less than that of said exterior pipe and each of said tubes includes a sensor for measuring the flow of fluid through said interior measuring tubes in terms of velocity of said fluid times the area of said interior measuring tubes, wherein the exterior pipe maintains a consistent interior diameter along the length of the interior measurement tubes and fluid is permitted to contact at least a portion of an inner surface of the exterior pipe along the length of the interior measurement tubes and flow continuously from the inlet to the outlet; and at least one processor, wherein each of said sensors associated with said plurality of said interior measuring tubes is coupled to the at least one processor, for calculating and outputting the flow rate for the combined flow through said interior measuring tubes and said exterior pipe based on sensed flow in said interior measuring tubes and the areas thereof, whereby the total flow in said pipeline is measurable in terms of the areas of the tubes and the velocity of the fluid therethrough without constricting the flow in the pipeline during the measurement process.