Patent Publication Number: US-2016236846-A1

Title: Fluid Safety Device

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     This present application claims priority from U.S. provisional application No. 62/117,847 having the same title as the present invention and filed on Feb. 18, 2015. 
     This invention relates to an apparatus and method for preventing a contaminated or deteriorated fluid from being used, more specifically, to an apparatus and method for labeling and discharging a contaminated or deteriorated fluid or discharging a contaminant to prevent a contaminated fluid from being used. 
    
    
     BACKGROUD OF THE INVENTION 
     Materials may be contaminated or deteriorates when used in certain conditions, resulting in health issues or damages to a system. For example, as FDA has stated, exposing plastic beverage bottles in high temperature may cause the beverage in the bottles contaminated. According to a study, at 158 ° F. (hot-car condition), antimony concentration could increase up to a 319-fold boost in levels of the metal, compared with levels in refrigerator condition. Antimony is necessary for the manufacture of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and has been found to play a role in lung, heart, and gastrointestinal diseases. Another compound, bisphenol A (BPA), which has estrogenic effects and may increase cancer risk, is also used in plastic bottles, and even found in BPA free bottles. Under high temperature, BPA may be released from the bottles. In addition to antimony and BPA, phthalates, which are found in plastic bottles including BPA free PET bottles, can also be released at high temperature. Phthalates are an endocrine disrupter, like BPA, they can mimic estrogen. 
     In another example, DEF (Diesel Exhaust Fluid), which is used in a SCR (Selective Catalytic Reduction) device for removing NOx in a diesel engine, could be contaminated with diesel fuel or gasoline, when refilled mistakenly. If diesel fuel or gasoline enters the SCR device, it could be oxidized in the catalyst, especially in an ASC (Ammonia Slip Catalyst), releasing heat, causing fire hazards, and damaging the catalyst. 
     To keep a contaminated or deteriorated fluid from causing health issues or damaging a system in which the fluid is used, it is then a primary object of the present invention to provide a device to label or release a fluid when exposed into harmful conditions in which the fluid could be contaminated or deteriorate, so that only fluid in good conditions is used. 
     Another object of the present invention is to provide a device to release a contaminant when it is mistakenly refilled to protect a fluid from being further contaminated. 
     The method for labeling harmful conditions can also to be used for sensing the harmful conditions. Therefore, a further object of the present invention is to provide a sensing device that is able to detect, record, and report harmful conditions in which a material is exposed. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention provides devices for labeling and discharging a fluid when exposed to an environment in which the fluid could be contaminated or deteriorates, and discharging a contaminant to prevent it from causing damages in using the fluid. In an embodiment, a discharging device is disclosed including a wax sealing an aperture at the bottom of a water bottle. At high temperature, which may cause deterioration of the water contained in the water bottle, the wax melts, releasing the water from the water bottle. In another embodiment, a discharging device including an aperture in a DEF tank and a seal material sealing the aperture is used to discharge mistakenly filled gasoline. When gasoline is filled in the DEF tank, it dissolves the seal material, releasing itself out from the DEF tank through the aperture. The discharging device can further include a float positioned in a bore, which has apertures sealed with the seal material and fluidly connected to the DEF tank, a refill passage, and ambient. The float has an upper part with a density lower than a contaminant, such as diesel fuel, a lower part with a density in between the contaminant and DEF, and a dissolvent hold in between the upper part and the lower part. When a contaminant is mistakenly refilled, the upper part moves upwards from the lower part, releasing the dissolvent, which dissolves the seal material, releasing the contaminant from the DEF tank. 
     In another embodiment, a labeling device including an ink sealed in a wax wrapper is disclosed. The labeling device can be positioned inside a cap or at the bottom of a water bottle. When the water bottle is exposed into high temperature, the wax wrapper melts, releasing the ink inside and labeling the water in the bottle as problematic. The labeling device can also be used for detecting and recording high temperature events. In another embodiment, an electrically conductive ink is sealed in a wax wrapper, which is positioned in a non-conductive fluid. A conductivity meter is used for measuring changes in the conductivity of the fluid. At high temperature, the wax wrapper melts, releasing the conductive ink inside, which increases the fluid conductivity. As a result, a high temperature event can be detected and recorded by measuring the fluid conductivity. Using multiple wax wrappers with different melting temperatures, multiple high temperature events can be detected and recorded. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1 a    is a longitudinal sectional view of a water bottle with a safety means at its bottom; 
         FIG. 1 b    is a longitudinal sectional view of a water bottle showing it leaks at high temperature when its safety means melts; 
         FIG. 2 a    is a schematic representation of a DEF tank with a safety means including a seal material and an aperture; 
         FIG. 2 b    is a longitudinal sectional view of a DEF tank with a safety means including a seal material and an aperture; 
         FIG. 2 c    is a longitudinal sectional view of a DEF tank showing the tank leaks when gasoline is refilled dissolving its safety means; 
         FIG. 2 d    is a longitudinal sectional view of a DEF tank with a safety means including a seal material, a refill passage, a bore in which a float is positioned, and apertures; 
         FIG. 2 e    is a cutaway cross-sectional view of the DEF tank of  FIG. 2   d;    
         FIG. 2 f    is a longitudinal sectional view of a float in a bore of a safety means; 
         FIG. 2 g    is a longitudinal sectional view of a float in a bore of a safety means showing a dissolvent in the float leaks when a contaminant is refilled; 
         FIG. 3 a    is a longitudinal sectional view of a bottle cap with a high temperature labeling device; 
         FIG. 3 b    is a longitudinal sectional view of a bottle with a high temperature labeling device positioned at its bottom; 
         FIG. 4 a    is a diagrammatic and longitudinal section view of a device for detecting and recording a high temperature event; 
         FIG. 4 b    is a diagrammatic and longitudinal section view of a device for detecting and recording multiple high temperature events. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Referring to  FIG. 1   a,  a water bottle includes a cap  101 , a bottle body  102  in which a water  105  is contained. On the bottom of the bottle body  102 , a wax  103  is used to seal an aperture  104 . The melting point of the wax  103  can be adjusted according to the materials of the bottle body  102 , so that it is lower than a releasing temperature above which contaminant releasing rate from the bottle body significantly increases. For example, the melting temperature of paraffin wax can be adjusted to 60° C., above which releasing rates of a few contaminants, such as BPA and phthalates, increase significantly. When the water temperature in the bottle body  102  is above the melting point of the wax seal  103 , the wax seal  103  starts to melt, resulting in a leak from the bottle body  102 , as shown in  FIG. 1   b.  In this way, water can only be hold in the bottle body  102  at a temperature lower than the melting temperature of the wax seal  103 , and thereby water in the bottle body  102  can be avoided from being contaminated. 
     A similar method can be used to prevent mistakenly filled gasoline from contaminating DEF in a diesel engine exhaust gas processing system. Referring to  FIG. 2   a,  a DEF tank includes a cap  201 , a fluid level/temperature sensor and coolant heater unit  202 , a tank body  203 , and a seal  205  for sealing an aperture  206  on the tank body  203 . Referring to  FIG. 2 b   , the seal  205  keeps a DEF  211  in the tank body  203  from leaking out. It includes a material, e.g. polystyrene, which can be dissolved in gasoline. When a gasoline  210  is mistakenly filled in the tank body  203 , as shown in  FIG. 2 c   , the gasoline  210 , which is floating above the DEF  211  due to its lower density, dissolves the seal  205 , and leaks through the aperture  206 . Draining of the gasoline  210  from the tank body  203  prevents it from entering a SCR system, and thereby, damages to the SCR system and related safety issues can be avoided. 
     When a fluid other than gasoline is filled and polystyrenes are used in the seal  205 , the fluid may not be able to break the seal  205  in short time. For example, when diesel is filled, especially when it is filled at low temperature, it may take a long time to break the seal  205 . To quickly dissolve the seal  205  at this situation, a structure depicted in  FIG. 2 d    can be used. This structure includes a refill passage  242 , and a bore  241  in which a float  230  is positioned. The DEF tank is refilled through a port  223  on the top of the tank body  203 , and a cap  222  is screwed on the port  223 . Referring to  FIG. 2 e   , the refill passage  242  has an aperture  207 , and a seal  221  separates the aperture  207  from the bore  241 . Similarly, two seals  225  and  227  are used to separates apertures  226  and  227  from the bore  241 . The seals  221 ,  225 ,  227  may have the same material as the seal  205 . Referring back to  FIG. 2 d   , the bottom of the refill passage  242  is fluidly connected to the DEF tank and the bore  241 , while the seal  221  is shorter than the aperture  207 , so that fluid flows into the bore  241  before it enters the DEF tank in refilling. 
     Referring to  FIG. 2 f   , the float  230  includes an upper part  232  with a density lower than diesel, and a lower part  234 , the density of which is higher than diesel and lower than DEF. In between the upper part  232  and the lower part  234 , a dissolvent  231 , such as gasoline, is contained in the lower part  234 . When only DEF is filled, the lower part  234  is floating on the DEF surface, and the dissolvent  231  is hold inside the float  230 . After diesel is added, referring to  FIG. 2 g   , the upper part  232  is floating on the surface of the diesel, while the lower part  234  cannot. The difference in floating force moves the upper part  232  from the lower part  234 , releasing the dissolvent  231  through an aperture  233  when it is exposed. The released dissolvent then dissolves the seals  205 ,  221 ,  226 , and  227 , releasing diesel fuel from the DEF tank. 
     In addition to draining a contaminated liquid or a contaminant, labeling the contaminated liquid is another way to keep it from being mistakenly used. For example, in a bottle of  FIG. 1   a,  an edible color enclosed in a wax wrapper can be used for labeling the water in the bottle body  102  when it is exposed to high temperature. Referring to  FIG. 3   a,  an edible ink  302  sealed by a wax wrapper  301  is attached to the bottom of the cap  101 . When a bottle with the cap  101  is exposed to a high temperature, the wax wrapper  301  melts, releasing the edible ink  302  into the water in the water bottle, labeling it as problematic. In this application, a variety of edible pigments, such as beta-carotene and xanthophyll can be used in the edible ink  302 , and the melting temperature of the wax wrapper  301  can be adjusted according to the bottle materials. 
     The wax wrapper  301  with the edible ink  302  sealed therein can also be positioned on the bottom of a bottle. Referring to  FIG. 3 b   , in such a bottle, the wax wrapper  301  is attached to the bottom of the bottle body  102 . If the temperature of the water  105  is higher than its melting point, then the edible  302  is released from the wax wrapper  301 , labeling the water  105  as problematic. Compared to positioning the was wrapper  301  under the cap  101 , attaching it to the bottom of the bottle body  102  is able to elongate the time the bottle exposes to high temperature, since it needs longer time for the water  105  to reach the melting point of the wax wrapper  301 . 
     A similar method as that used for labeling deteriorated fluid can also be used for detecting and recording temperature anomalies. Referring to  FIG. 4 a   , in such a device, a conductive fluid  403  is sealed in a wax wrapper  402 , which is positioned on the bottom of a fluid container  401  filled with a non-conductive fluid  404 . Two electrodes  406  and  405  extruded into the non-conductive fluid  404  are electrically connected to a conductivity measurement unit  410  located in a device container  409 . A seal  408  and a seal  407  are placed around the electrodes  406  and  407  to keep the fluid container  401  from leaking. An adhesive layer  411  on the top of the device container  409  is used to stick the device on a surface. In an application, whenever a temperature of the non-conductive fluid is higher than the melting temperature of the wax wrapper  402 , the conductive fluid  403  is then released into the non-conductive fluid  404 , and thereby a high conductivity measured by the conductivity measurement device  410  is indicative of a high temperature event. 
     Multiple high temperature events can also be detected and recorded. Referring to  FIG. 4 b   , in an exemplary device, a conductive fluid  415  sealed in a wax  416  and a conductive fluid  417  sealed in a wax  418  are positioned on the bottom of the fluid container  401 . The wax  416  has a lower melting temperature than the wax  418 . When the temperature of the non-conductive fluid  404  increases higher than the melting temperature of the wax  416  and lower than that of the wax  418 , the wax  416  melts, releasing the conductive fluid  415  into the non-conductive fluid  404 . As a result, when a high conductivity is measured by the unit  410 , a high temperature event is detected. If the temperature of the non-conductive fluid  404  further increases higher than the melting temperature of the wax  418 , the conductive fluid  417  is released, resulting in a higher conductivity of the fluid  404 . In this way, a different high temperature event is detected when a higher conductivity value is obtained by the unit  410 . 
     In the temperature event detection devices of  FIG. 4 a    and  FIG. 4 b   , an alarm signal can be generated when a high temperature event is detected. Also, a wireless communication circuit can be included in the conductivity measurement unit  410  for sending sensing results to a reader, and an RFID sensing circuit can be used in the wireless communication circuit for passively detecting the conductivity of the fluid  404  without enclosing a battery in the devices. 
     While the present invention has been depicted and described with reference to only a limited number of particular preferred embodiments, as will be understood by those of skill in the art, changes, modifications, and equivalents in form and function may be made to the invention without departing from the essential characteristics thereof. Accordingly, the invention is intended to be only limited by the spirit and scope as defined in the appended claims, giving full cognizance to equivalents in all respects.