Abstract:
A vertical shut-off valve is provided to get instant access of fluid supply delivered from a pressurized inlet source to the outlet of the valve housing body by means of the outer reciprocating motion. A movable stem assembly composed of an upper member, a ring seal, and a base plate is engaged with a valve seat as the body of the stem assembly is being passed through the opening of the valve seat. The stem assembly urged in a closed position by the pressures from the compression spring and the inlet fluid, being moved away from the valve seat by the external pushing force on the pushbutton assembly, allows the flow passed through the valve seat between the body of the stem assembly and the inner recesses of the valve seat opening. The valve housing body containing the stem assembly is secured with a bottom cover with a ring seal and a top cover which is adjustably placed to lock the ring seal to achieve the sealing and the appropriate movement of the stem assembly.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     This application is continuation-in-part (CIP) of prior U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/731,180 applied on Dec. 9, 2003, which is fully incorporated herein. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     1. Field of Invention  
         [0003]     This invention relates to a vertical shut-off valve, engaging in control of the fluid flow from a pressurized inlet source to the outlet.  
         [0004]     2. Description of the Prior Art  
         [0005]     The vertical shut-off valve described in the earlier application is suited to supply fluid manually or automatically for a liquid delivery system in a manner of on-and-off operation. It has been improved by adding new features for better performance, which include an added sealing element in the top cover area, the supplementary grooves for ring seals, a barrier for limiting emplacement of the valve seat in the valve housing body, a valve seat added another stage on the inner wall of the opening for easy tooling and grooves for the ring seal, and novel features on the stem assembly and the pushbutton. In addition, the new features comprise an added key element on the shoulder and the thread of the stem assembly for the grip with a tool for the prevention of spinning.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0006]     The vertical shut-off valve having a valve housing body works solely as an independent component or as a built-in element in the unit. The valve housing comprises an upper chamber and a lower chamber interconnected by a link channel having a valve seat. The lower chamber contains an inlet connected to the pressurized fluid source and the upper chamber encloses an outlet to discharge the fluid released from the lower chamber through the valve seat. The both chambers embrace a stem assembly which moves in linear motion with a reversal of direction as for a valve function.  
         [0007]     The movable stem assembly is engaged with the valve seat at the link channel by the pressures released from the compression spring and the pressurized inlet fluid. The stem assembly composed of an elastic ring seal secured between an upper member and a base plate with a fastener is normally urged to the valve seat to close an opening of the valve seat at the link channel. The ring seal has an exposed area from the surrounding grooves of the upper member and the base plate for engagement with the seat, which should be less than the thickness of the ring seal to be secured in the place. The roundness and the elasticity of the ring seal enhance the effectiveness of the sealing toward the round lip of the valve seat by affording tolerance of the lateral movement.  
         [0008]     The extended upper member of the stem assembly being out of the valve housing body has a shoulder adjoining means to secure including thread at the end. The shoulder and the means to secure contain a key element including but not limiting one or more flat sided facet or other shape for the purpose of preventing the pushbutton or other mounted parts being spun on the shoulder. Besides, the purpose of this key element is to supply means for holding the stem assembly with a tool to facilitate assembly of the components. The upper member can utilize a pushbutton to make the manual operation easier, wherein the pushbutton contains an opening matched to the shoulder with the key element on the upper member.  
         [0009]     The stem assembly has a base plate located in the lower chamber engaged with a compression spring placed on the seat of the bottom cover, wherein the bottom cover secures the lower chamber with a ring seal. The bottom cover secured to the valve housing body with a ring seal has a groove for the proper sealing. The top cover located on the opposite side includes the multiple ring seals to seal the opening and the secured areas. The top cover is rotatably secured to achieve the optimum pressures against the ring seals for the proper sealing and the linear movement of the stem assembly.  
         [0010]     The valve seat located in between the upper chamber and the lower chamber is secured to the valve housing body with an elastic ring seal or a gasket. The valve seat is emplaced until a barrier on the valve housing body prevents the excessive proceeding for the safe installation. It encircles the upper member of the stem assembly being through the opening in the middle, wherein the opening has three stages of the inner recesses to facilitate the valve operation and the valve seat assembly in the valve housing body. The upper member of the stem assembly is further extended to the outside of the valve housing body through an opening of the top cover to receive the external force for allowing the release of the pressurized inlet fluid. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0011]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the vertical shut-off valve built in a controller as for an intrinsic structure.  
         [0012]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the vertical shut-off valve built in a cylinder as for an independent structure.  
         [0013]      FIG. 3  is an exploded view of the vertical shut-off valve in  FIG. 2  made in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0014]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view of the valve seat.  
         [0015]      FIG. 4A  is a plan view of the valve seat taken from  4 A in  FIG. 4 .  
         [0016]      FIG. 4B  is a section view of the valve seat taken from  4 B- 4 B in  FIG. 4 .  
         [0017]      FIG. 4C  is a plan view of the valve seat taken from  4 C in  FIG. 4 .  
         [0018]      FIG. 5  is a perspective view of the stem assembly.  
         [0019]      FIG. 5A  is a plan view of the stem assembly taken from  5 - 5  in  FIG. 5 .  
         [0020]      FIG. 6  is a section view of the stem assembly taken from  6 - 6  in  FIG. 5 .  
         [0021]      FIG. 6A  is a detailed view of fragmentary enlargement of  FIG. 6 .  
         [0022]      FIG. 7  is a section view of the valve housing body taken from  3 - 3  in  FIG. 3 .  
         [0023]      FIG. 8  is a view of  FIG. 7  with internal components assembled except the stem assembly.  
         [0024]      FIG. 9  is a section view of the vertical shut-off valve taken on the line  2 - 2  in  FIG. 2 , wherein the stem assembly is engaged with the valve seat showing the valve in closed motion.  
         [0025]      FIG. 10  is a view of  FIG. 9 , wherein the stem assembly being pressed down by external force P is not engaged with valve seat showing the valve in opened motion. 
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0026]     In the following detailed description of the vertical shut-off valve, identical elements are provided with the same numbers. The numerals having the same first two digits indicate related elements, such as  30  and  302 . The numerals having the same first three digits indicate same components with different elements, such as  302  and  3027 . Referring to  FIG. 1 , a perspective view of the present invention, a vertical shut-off valve, is shown as an illustration of an embodiment built directly into a controller by the number of 10. The vertical shut-off valve system  101  comprises the inlet opening  1015  and the outlet opening  10112  on the controller body  1017 .  
         [0027]     However, the vertical shut-off valve built in a cylinder as shown in the  FIG. 2  takes a clear view as a discrete unit, which will be generally used for the description of the present invention. The isolated shut-off valve unit may be inserted into a controller to use a single entity as well. The structure of this kind is suitable when the vertical shut-off valve housing body is made of different material from the controller body as is in the brass crafted valve housing combined into the plastic molded controller. The vertical shut-off valve  20  comprises a valve housing  45  having an inlet opening  528  and an outlet opening  519 , a top cover  40 , a bottom cover  90 , a stem  70 , and a pushbutton  30 . The valve housing can take any shape of body including cylinder, hexagonal bar, and rectangular bar. The pushbutton  30  here is attached for assisting the manual movement of the stem  70 , which can be replaced with any element having a linear motion with a reversal of direction such as a trigger handle that implements a leverage to gain valve operation force.  
         [0028]     The valve housing body  50  of the valve housing  45  as shown in the exploded view in  FIG. 3  contains an internal structure as shown in  FIG. 7  that the stem assembly moves vertically against the fluid flow direction, nominated a vertical shut-off valve. The valve of this kind is convenient when the fluid flow path runs in a right angle against the direction of the valve operation force. The internal structure of the valve housing body  50  in  FIG. 7  comprises two chambers—an upper chamber  51  and a lower chamber  52 —divided by the link channel  55 . The upper chamber  51  located above the link channel  55  contains an outlet opening  519  for the discharged fluid and a small opening  511  for the upper member  71  in  FIG. 3  of the stem assembly  70  passed through.  
         [0029]     The opening  511  of the upper chamber  51  in  FIG. 7  is further extended to a larger opening  513  having means to secure  515  including thread and a groove  517  for the ring seal  48  in  FIG. 8 . The large opening  513  in  FIG. 7  is secured with a top cover  40  in  FIG. 3  which in turn seals the said opening  511 , wherein the upper member  71  of the stem assembly  70  in  FIG. 3  is passed through to receive the operating pressure from the outside. The large opening  513  in  FIG. 7  is further sealed with a ring seal  49  in  FIG. 8  seated in the groove  505  under the top cover  40 , wherein the top cover  40  in  FIG. 3  has means to secure  405  including thread against the means to secure  515  in  FIG. 7  on the body to enclose the ring seals  48 ,  49  in  FIG. 3  for sealing. The top cover  40  in  FIG. 3  also has an opening  401  for being passed through the upper member  71  of the stem assembly  70  in the central area. It contains a seal groove  405  in  FIG. 8  to secure the ring seal  49  for sealing.  
         [0030]     The lower chamber  52  in  FIG. 7  is located below the link channel  55 , which contains an inlet opening  528  leading to a pressurized fluid source. The lower chamber includes the ring seal and the base plate of the stem assembly  70  and the compression spring  96  in  FIG. 3  seated in the bottom cover  90 . The lower chamber is united to a large opening  523  having means to secure including thread  525  in  FIG. 7  with the means to secure including thread  902  in  FIG. 8  of the bottom cover  90  in  FIG. 8 . The bottom cover  90  sealing the large opening  523  is secured with a ring seal  98  seated in the groove  509  on the valve housing body  50 . The bottom cover  90  can contain the groove  909  for the ring seal  98  to secure. The bottom cover  90  in  FIG. 8  also comprises a base  903  or a support  904  for the spring  96  to be held in the place without displacement.  
         [0031]     The valve seat  60  in  FIG. 4  located in the link channel  55  in  FIG. 7  is secured as shown in  FIG. 8  to the valve housing body  50  with a ring seal  68  or a gasket in the groove  508  in  FIG. 7 . The opening  601  of the valve seat in  FIG. 4 , wherein the upper member  71  of the stem assembly  70  and the released fluid are passed through, has three stages—the one opening  605  In  FIG. 4B  as the first stage near the bottom, the next opening  604  as the second stage in the middle, and the last opening  609  as the third stage at the top. The first opening  605  is normally round for placing the protuberance element  717  in  FIG. 5  of the stem assembly  70 , the second opening  604  is in a none-circular shape including a polygon shape such as a hexagon or an octagon for the purpose of tooling, and the third opening  609  is smaller than the second opening in order to prevent the tool being through the opening thoroughly. The valve seat with the second type opening  604  can be easily secured into the link channel  55  of the valve housing body  50  using a tool without free turning. Moreover, the valve seat with the third type opening  609  in  FIG. 4B  can be more easily secured into the valve housing body, because the inserted tool into the opening  604  stops at the third small opening  609  so that the pushing force obtained from the tool can be utilized to place the valve seat into the valve housing body.  
         [0032]     The valve seat  60  in  FIG. 4  has the mean to secure including thread  607  in  FIG. 4B  to secure to the link channel  55  in  FIG. 7 , wherein the barrier  506  in  FIG. 7  of the valve housing body  50  determines the proceeding of the valve seat  60  into the valve housing body  50 . Consequently, the valve seat  60  will get protected from the excessive tightening and the ring seal or the gasket  68  in  FIG. 3  will not be unnecessarily pressed down by the flange element  6025  in  FIG. 4A ,  FIG. 4B  for sealing. The valve seat  60  has a groove  6027  for the ring seal or gasket on the flange element or a groove  6029  on the body under the flange element. The valve seat  60  contains a lip  602  in  FIG. 4B  which is engaged with the ring seal  78  of the stem assembly  70  in  FIG. 5  for sealing. The round dome of the valve seat  60  affords more rooms for sealing than the flat surface, affording some tolerance for engagement of the stem assembly  70 . The smooth surface of the dome area of the valve seat  60  supplies good sealing with the ring seal  78  of the stem assembly  70 .  
         [0033]     The stem assembly  70  in  FIG. 4  comprises an upper member  71 , a ring seal  78 , a base plate  80 , a lock washer  891 , and a fastener  89 . The upper member  71  extended to the outside of the valve housing is passed through the opening of the valve stem. The base plate  80  under the upper member forming a disk absorbs the pressures from the inlet fluid source and compression spring  96  in  FIG. 8 , releasing them to urge the ring seal  78  against the valve seat  60 . The base plate contains a groove  802  for the ring seal  78  on one side and a protruding element  805  in  FIG. 6  on the other at the central area for securing the compression spring  96 . The base plate is secured to the upper member  71  through an opening  806  in the middle by the fastener  89  and the lock washer  891  with the ring seal  78  placed in between in the grooves  719 ,  802  in  FIG. 6A , creating a stem assembly  70  as one distinctive unit as shown in  FIG. 5 . The groove  719  on the upper member and the groove  802  on the base plate contain break corners  7175 ,  8035  in  FIG. 6A  to avoid damage of the ring seal  78 .  
         [0034]     The upper member  71  of the stem assembly  70  in  FIG. 4  comprises a protuberance element  717  at the lower area, a shaft  715  in the middle, a shoulder  713  at the top, and means to secure including thread  712  for fastening. The protuberance element  717  has a groove  719  in  FIG. 6A  to keep the ring seal  78  in the place with a break corner  7175  to prevent the ring seal being damaged. The stream lined surface of the protuberance element  717  on the upper member  71  restrains and stabilizes movement of the stem assembly  70  at the first stage opening  605  of the valve seat  60  in  FIG. 4B , wherein the coaxially round element of the protuberance element  717  is fitted in any direction. The shaft  715  in  FIG. 5  is extended its length to the outside of the valve hosing  45  as shown in  FIG. 9  for communication. The smooth and round surface of the shaft contributes good sealing with the ring seal  48  in  FIG. 9  and the lead-in chamfer  7155  in  FIG. 5  on the edge is set to avoid seal damage.  
         [0035]     The shoulder  713  in  FIG. 5  of the upper member  71  is set for placing a pushbutton  30  in  FIG. 3  or any attachable parts to control the stem assembly  70  for the valve stroke. The shoulder  713  has its smaller width (B) in  FIG. 5A  lesser than the diameter (A) of the shaft  715 , so that any attachable part on the shoulder  713  including the pushbutton  30  is stayed on the shoulder for the proper operation. The shoulder is further extended to the thread  712  in  FIG. 5 , which holds a locknut  304  with a lock washer  303  in  FIG. 9  to secure the pushbutton  30  or other attachable parts. Besides, the shoulder  713  and the thread  712  contain a key element including one or more flat facets  7135  along the column to prevent the attachable parts rotated by themselves. The key element is also used for holding the upper member  71  with a tool to assemble or secure other related parts.  
         [0036]     The ring seal  78  in  FIG. 5  in the grooves becomes deformed or displaced from the initial place by the pressures urged upon, resulting to failure of the sealing function. The ring seal  78  secured in the round grooves  719 ,  802  in  FIG. 6A  matched to its curvature and thickness distributes the absorbed pressures over the entire grooves, establishing the maximum supportive areas with the minimum deformation. In addition to the above features, the ring seal has the minimum exposed width W in  FIG. 6A  less than the thickness D to avoid its displacement, formulated as the following:
 
W&lt;D
 
 to keep the ring seal  78  in the grooves for the proper function of the stem assembly  70  without displacement. 
 
         [0037]     The difference between the exposed width W and the thickness D of the ring seal is nominated a absolute value of the difference (D−W), which is one of the factors to determine the stability of the ring seal  78  placed in the grooves  719 ,  802  in  FIG. 6A . However, the absolute value of the difference becomes less meaningful when it is applied to the various sizes of ring seal, adopting a value of the relative difference ratio. The relative difference ratio is the ratio that the absolute value of the difference is compared to the thickness of the ring seal, and formulated as the following:
 
Relative Difference Ratio=( D−W )/ D 
 
 which imposes more value regarding the stability of the ring seal in the grooves. The larger number of the relative difference ratio holds the more stability of the ring seals in the grooves. 
 
         [0038]     The other factors that affect the stability of the ring seal include the hardness of the ring seal, the measure of bond strength, the means to secure the ring-seal, and the configurations of the ring seal family. The more stability of the ring seal can be achieved from the higher hardness factor of the ring seal and the stronger bond strength of the adhesive if any used. The means to secure the ring seal include a direct molding onto the base plate or a molding plate, not using the separate ring seal or the base plate. The stability of the ring seal can be attained from the varied configurations of the ring seal family in their compatible grooves, wherein the configurations include O-ring seals, square-ring seals, oval-ring seals, quad-ring seals, H seals, or any types of the ring seals that provide the optimum sealing with the valve seat for a wide range of applications. The configurations of the ring seal family require the compatible grooves or the base plate to be secured, in which the base plate can be attached to the top element or consolidated to become one solid piece.  
         [0039]     The pushbutton assembly  30  in  FIG. 3  comprises a body  302  having an opening in the middle  308  in  FIG. 9  for the stem assembly  70 , a washer including polygon shape  301 , a groove for the washer  3025 , a locknut  304  for the stem assembly, a lock washer  303  for the lock nut, and a finish plug  306 , a groove  3029  for the finish plug leg  3061  to lock the finish plug in, a slot  3027  for a screwdriver to open the finish plug. The opening  308  on the body  302  in  FIG. 9  for the shoulder  713  in  FIG. 5  of the stem assembly  70  takes the same shape as the shoulder having a key element to prevent the pushbutton assembly from the rotation. The body  302  has a large opening  307  in  FIG. 9  for keeping in the locknut  304  and the lock washer  303 , wherein the opening  307  is secured with the finish plug  306  with its legs  3061  snapped in the groove  309 . The body  302  also contains a slot  3027  for assisting the removal of the finish plug  306  using a screwdriver. The polygon washer  301  in  FIG. 3  having an opening  3011  with the key element  7135  in  FIG. 5  of the shoulder  713  can be added in the compatible groove  3025  to reinforce the pushbutton body  302  when the key element  7135  at the small opening  308  is not strong enough to hold the rotation force. The lock nut  304  together with the lock washer  303  is for jointing the body  302  of pushbutton assembly  30  or other control parts to the upper member  71  of the stem assembly  70 .  
         [0040]     The vertical shut-off valve  20  in  FIG. 9  is in closed state, wherein the ring seal  78  of the stem assembly  70  is in engagement with the lip  602  of the valve seat  60  having no communication between the lower chamber  52  containing the inlet  528  and the upper chamber  51  containing the outlet  519 . The stem assembly  70  is being urged against the valve seat  60  by the pressures released from the spring  96  and the pressurized fluid  5282  in  FIG. 9 , preventing the fluid flow from the inlet  5281  to the upper chamber  51 . When the stem assembly  70  is pressed down by the pressure P in  FIG. 10 , the vertical shut-off valve  20  in  FIG. 10  is in open state to allow the fluid flow from the inlet  5281  to the outlet  5191 . The pressure ratio of the outlet  519  to the inlet  528  is adjustable by changing the size of the inlet opening compared to that of the outlet opening. The smaller opening at the inlet compared to the one at the outlet lowers the inlet pressures to the level of various applications.