Patent ID: 6240944
Filing Date: 2001-06-05
Classification: F15B,F15C,F16K,G05D,Y10T

Abstract:
A device for controlling the proportional pressure or flow of fluids over a range of source pressure, comprising:an addressable array interposed between a source pressure and an exit pressure chamber, said array comprising a plurality of electrostatically actuated valves, the total open area of which define the opening between said source pressure and said exit pressure, said electrostatically actuated valves including upper and lower electrodes addressable by a conductor, wherein one of said upper and lower electrodes being common to all said valves and the other of said upper and lower electrodes are connected in groups whereby actuation of a specific group or groups actuates a number of valves ranging from one valve to all the valves in said array; andan actuator for separately actuating each valve of said array between an open and a closed condition, whereby the total number of open valves determines the flow between said source pressure and said exit pressure.