Patent Publication Number: US-11655906-B2

Title: Multi-port multi-plane valve

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED PATENT APPLICATION 
     This patent application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/719,629, filed Dec. 18, 2019, which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/782,155, filed Dec. 19, 2018, the entire teachings and disclosure of which are incorporated herein by reference thereto. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention generally relates to multi-port valves, and more particularly to multi-port valves having multiple inlet and outlet ports to control flow in different planes. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Multi-port valves are used in a variety of industries and applications. Such valves include one or more inlet ports and one or more outlet ports. A valve member disposed within a housing of the valve is responsible for governing the flow between the various ports. A portion of the valve member, e.g. a valve stem, protrudes from the housing and is acted upon by an actuator attached to the multi-port valve. As result, the actuator governs the position of the valve member within the housing, which in turn governs the flow between the various ports. 
     Such multi-port valves advantageously provide a single flow device which can effectively replace multiple flow devices which only employ a single inlet and a single outlet. However, such multi-port valves are not without their own drawbacks. For example, the overall complexity of the valve increases as the number of ports increases. This can lead to relatively high part count assemblies. Further, this complexity in construction also results in a more complex manufacturing process for making the valve. Indeed, the multiple ports are associated with multiple inlets and outlets of the valve which must be welded onto a housing. Further the desired fitting for each inlet and outlet must also be welded on to its respective inlet or outlet. 
     Such welded up assemblies increase the number of potential leak paths of the valve. Further, to achieve such welds, special machining steps are often needed at the inlets and outlets as well as the housing to ensure there is a tight fit between these components for subsequent welding. 
     Furthermore, a number of individual seals are required to effectively seal the various ports of the multi-port valve off from one another. These multiple seals also lead to an increase in overall cost and complexity of the multi-port valve. 
     Multi-port valves that overcome these issues are available from the assignee of the instant application, and are described in U.S. Pat. No. 9,212,751 (“Valve system and method” by Allan R. McLane et al.), issued Dec. 15, 2015, and co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/945,173 (Publication No. 2018/0292016, “Multi-port valve” by Joe Ledvora et al.), filed Apr. 4, 2018, and claiming priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/483,167, filed Apr. 7, 2017, the teachings and disclosure of which are hereby incorporated in their entireties by reference thereto. 
     In many applications that utilize such multi-port valves, fluid flow in multiple planes is required and typically provided via the external plumbing in the fluid control system. Unfortunately, the use of such external plumbing greatly increases the required volume or footprint of the overall fluid control system, and can create problems necessitating re-routing and re-locating of other components in its or other systems that need to occupy that volume. 
     Accordingly, there is a need in the art for a multi-port valve that provides multi-planar fluid flow and control within the volume of the valve itself. Embodiments of the present invention provide such a multi-port multi-plane valve. These and other advantages of the invention, as well as additional inventive features, will be apparent from the description of the invention provided herein. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In one aspect, embodiments of the present invention provide a multi-port multi-plane valve having a reduced part count and a reduced cost relative to prior designs, and that provides multi-planar fluid flow and control. An embodiment of such a multi-port multi-plane valve includes a housing. The housing defines an internal cavity. The housing further includes a plurality of ports, at least one of which lies in a different plane from the other(s). Preferably, at least one of the ports lies in a plan normal to the plane of the other ports. Each of the plurality of ports is in communication with the internal cavity. 
     A preferred embodiment also includes a shell body rotatably disposed within the internal cavity. This shell body is configured to provide flow between different ports existing in the same plane and between different ports existing in different planes based on its angular position within the valve housing. 
     A seal member is also provided which has a plurality of openings and surrounds the shell body such that it circumscribes the shell body within the internal cavity. In certain embodiments, each opening of the plurality of openings of the seal member is associated with one of the plurality of ports lying in one plane such that each of the plurality of ports in that plane are sealed from one another along the outer periphery of the seal member. 
     In certain embodiments, the seal member seals outwardly in a radial direction against an interior surface of the housing. In other embodiments, the seal member includes a plurality of seal ribs which seal against the shell body. The seal member may be one of a continuous piece of elastomeric material, or comprises a rigid core with a plurality of elastomeric seals attached thereto. 
     In certain embodiments, the valve also includes a plurality of port bodies, respectively received in the plurality of ports such that one port body of the plurality of port bodies is received in one port of the plurality of ports. In certain embodiments, the seal member comprises a plurality of seal segments. 
     Other aspects, objectives and advantages of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The accompanying drawings incorporated in and forming a part of the specification illustrate several aspects of the present invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention. In the drawings: 
         FIG.  1    is top a cross-sectional illustration of an embodiment of a multi-port multi-axis valve constructed in accordance with the teaching of the present invention having four ports in a first plane of the illustration and a fifth port in a second plane perpendicular to the first plane, with its shell body positioned at a 0° location; 
         FIG.  2    is a cross-sectional illustration of the embodiment of the multi-port multi-axis valve of  FIG.  1    with its shell body positioned at a 24° counter-clockwise location relative to the shell body position shown in  FIG.  1   ; 
         FIG.  3    is a cross-sectional illustration of the embodiment of the multi-port multi-axis valve of  FIG.  1    with its shell body positioned at a 24° clockwise location relative to the shell body position shown in  FIG.  1   ; 
         FIG.  4    is a cross-sectional illustration of the embodiment of the multi-port multi-axis valve of  FIG.  1    with its shell body positioned at a 180° location relative to the shell body position shown in  FIG.  1   ; 
         FIG.  5    is a cross-sectional illustration of the embodiment of the multi-port multi-axis valve of  FIG.  1    with its shell body positioned at a 156° counter-clockwise location relative to the shell body position shown in  FIG.  1   ; 
         FIG.  6    is a cross-sectional illustration of the embodiment of the multi-port multi-axis valve of  FIG.  1    with its shell body positioned at a 156° clockwise location relative to the shell body position shown in  FIG.  1   ; 
         FIG.  7    is a right-side perspective view illustration of the embodiment of the multi-port multi-axis valve of  FIG.  1    positioned to show the fifth port not visible in  FIG.  1   ; 
         FIG.  8    is a bottom-side perspective view illustration of the embodiment of the multi-port multi-axis valve of  FIG.  1   ; 
         FIG.  9    is a bottom-side perspective view illustration of the embodiment of the multi-port multi-axis valve of  FIG.  2   ; 
         FIG.  10    is an isometric perspective view of an embodiment of the multi-port multi-plane valve of the present invention; 
         FIG.  11    is an isometric perspective view of an embodiment of the multi-port multi-plane valve of the present invention shown in  FIG.  10   , rotated to show additional features of this embodiment; 
         FIG.  12    is an isometric perspective cross-sectional illustration of the embodiment of the multi-port multi-axis valve of  FIG.  10    having illustrative flow arrows superimposed thereon; 
         FIG.  13    is top a cross-sectional illustration of the embodiment of the multi-port multi-axis valve of  FIG.  10    having illustrative flow arrows superimposed thereon with its shell body positioned at a 0° location; 
         FIG.  14    is a cross-sectional illustration of the embodiment of the multi-port multi-axis valve of  FIG.  10    having illustrative flow arrows and an indicator of a closed flow passage superimposed thereon with its shell body positioned at a 24° counter-clockwise location relative to the shell body position shown in  FIG.  13   ; 
         FIG.  15    is a cross-sectional illustration of the embodiment of the multi-port multi-axis valve of  FIG.  10    having illustrative flow arrows and an indicator of a closed flow passage superimposed thereon with its shell body positioned at a 24° clockwise location relative to the shell body position shown in  FIG.  13   ; 
         FIG.  16    is a cross-sectional illustration of the embodiment of the multi-port multi-axis valve of  FIG.  10    having illustrative flow arrows superimposed thereon with its shell body positioned at a 180° location relative to the shell body position shown in  FIG.  13   ; 
         FIG.  17    is a cross-sectional illustration of the embodiment of the multi-port multi-axis valve of  FIG.  10    having illustrative flow arrows and an indicator of a closed flow passage superimposed thereon with its shell body positioned at a 156° counter-clockwise location relative to the shell body position shown in  FIG.  13   ; 
         FIG.  18    is a cross-sectional illustration of the embodiment of the multi-port multi-axis valve of  FIG.  10    having illustrative flow arrows and an indicator of a closed flow passage superimposed thereon with its shell body positioned at a 156° clockwise location relative to the shell body position shown in  FIG.  13   ; 
         FIG.  19    is a cross-sectional illustration of an embodiment of a multi-port multi-axis valve having illustrative flow arrows and an indicator of a closed flow passage superimposed thereon with an alternative embodiment of a shell body positioned at a 24° counter-clockwise location relative to the shell body position shown in  FIG.  13   ; and 
         FIG.  20    is a cross-sectional illustration of the embodiment of the multi-port multi-axis valve of  FIG.  19    having illustrative flow arrows and an indicator of a closed flow passage superimposed thereon with its shell body positioned at a 24° clockwise location relative to the shell body position shown in  FIG.  13   . 
     
    
    
     While the invention will be described in connection with certain preferred embodiments, there is no intent to limit it to those embodiments. On the contrary, the intent is to cover all alternatives, modifications and equivalents as included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Turning now to the figures, as will be understood from the following, embodiments of a multi-port multi-plane valve assembly and its associated multi-port multi-plane valve are described herein. The multi-port multi-plane valve advantageously overcomes existing problems in the art by presenting an overall construction with a reduced part count, a reduced number of potential leak paths, a reduction in overall assembly time and cost, and reduced external plumbing to provide fluid flow and control in multiple planes. 
     As discussed in the above identified co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/945,173 (Publication No. 2018/0292016, “Multi-port valve” by Joe Ledvora et al.), filed Apr. 4, 2018, the teachings and disclosure of which is hereby incorporated in its entirety by reference thereto, multi-port valve assemblies typically, as here, include an actuator (not shown herein) mounted to the multi-port valve. The actuator is responsible for actuating a valve member (i.e., a shell body as described below) which in turn governs the flow characteristics through the valve. The actuator may be any style of actuator typically used in valve actuation, e.g., rotary, linear, etc., and may rely on any type of power source typically used in valve actuation, e.g., electric, hydraulic, and pneumatic, etc. Monitoring of the rotational position of the valving member may also utilize any type of position sensing, e.g., via a Hall-effect sensor, potentiometer, stepper motor control, etc. As such, the actuator and position sensing are non-limiting on the invention herein. 
     Turning now to  FIG.  1   , an embodiment of the multi-port multi-plane valve  32 . Valve  32  includes a housing  40 . In one advantageous implementation of the invention, housing  40  is formed as a single piece. By “formed as a single piece” it is meant that the main body of housing  40  and its associated ports are not an assembly of separate components which are subsequently joined together by a joining process, e.g., welding, as is done in conventional valve housings. Rather, housing  40  is formed as a single unitary piece by any process capable of achieving such a configuration, e.g. injection molding, 3D printing, etc. However, it is contemplated by the teachings herein that housing  40  may be embodied as an assembly of separate components which are subsequently joined together by a joining process. 
     As illustrated, housing  40  includes a plurality of ports, in particular, a first port  42 , a second port  44 , a third port  46 , a fourth port  48 , and a fifth port  50  (see  FIG.  7   ) that lies in a plane or along an axis that is normal to the plane of the other four ports  42 ,  44 ,  46 ,  48  in the illustrated embodiment. Of course those skilled in the art will recognize that other angles may be provided. Each of the ports  42 ,  44 ,  46 ,  48 ,  50  are in fluid communication with an internal cavity  56  of housing  40 . Further, each of ports  42 ,  44 ,  46 ,  48 ,  50  may function as an inlet or an outlet, or both, of valve  32 . 
     Still referring to  FIG.  1   , internal cavity  56  receives a generally cylindrical shell body  58  which operates as a valve member for controlling the flows between the plurality of ports  42 ,  44 ,  46 ,  48 ,  50 . A seal member  60  is also received in cavity  56  and surrounds the outer periphery of shell body  58 . This seal member  58  is a continuous cylindrical element, except for the openings formed therein. As will be discussed below, seal member  60  is a single piece seal which advantageously creates a seal for each of the plurality of ports  42 ,  44 ,  46 ,  48  to prevent unintended cross flow or short circuiting. 
     Seal member  60  also advantageously entirely seals internal cavity  56 , such that no additional seals need be associated with port  50  or a cover  62  (see  FIG.  7   ) of valve  32 . It is possible, however, that seal member  60  may also be formed as separate seal segments which immediately next to one another in the circumferential direction, which together define a seal member which surrounds the shell body  58 . The term “seal member” as used herein includes both configurations, i.e. a single unitary seal member, or a seal member formed of a plurality seal segments. 
     Shell body  58  includes a plurality of openings. The openings of seal member  60  remain statically aligned with ports  42 ,  44 ,  46 ,  48 ,  50  so that each opening is associated with one port, and seals against an interior surface of housing  40  that defines cavity  56 , around the opening of the port into cavity  56 . Opening  20  and  22  in shell body  58 , however, are selectively alignable with ports  42 ,  44 ,  46 ,  48 , and opening  24  is aligned with port  50  to govern the flows between the ports. The shell body  58  includes a valve stem  64  (see  FIG.  7   ) which extends through an opening in housing  40 . This valve stem, and in turn the remainder of shell body  58 , is rotatable about axis by an actuator as discussed above. 
     A plurality of port bodies, namely, a first port body  224 , a second port body  226 , a third port body  228 , a fourth port body  230 , and a fifth port body  232  (see  FIG.  7   ) are respectively received in the first through fifth ports  42 ,  44 ,  46 ,  48 ,  50  as illustrated. The port bodies  224 ,  226 ,  228 ,  230  are substantially identical to one another, but port body  232  differs in the illustrated embodiment. Port body  224 ,  226 ,  228 ,  230  includes a through bore  238 ,  240 ,  242 ,  244  which communicates with an internal cavity  56  containing shell body  58  rotatably disposed therein through port  42 ,  44 ,  46 ,  48 , respectively, of housing  40 . Port body  232  provides passage through port  50  of housing  40  as shown in  FIG.  7   . 
     Having now described the structure of an embodiment of the present invention, attention will now be directed to the orientation of the shell body  58  in each of  FIGS.  1 - 6    to discuss the fluid control provided by rotation thereof. 
     As shown in  FIG.  1   , the shell body  58  is located in a first position referred to herein as 0°. In such position the openings  20  and  24  provide fluid communication between ports  48  and  50  (see  FIG.  7   ) and provide a change in the axis of flow between the two different planes in which the ports  48  and  50  lie. In this position the opening  22  provides fluid communication between ports  42 ,  44 , and  46 . This communication is equal between ports  42  and  44 , and may provide a 50%-50% mix of fluid flow from ports  42 ,  44  into port  46 , or vice versa, in certain implementations. Indeed, the percentage mix or flow can be varied between the ports  42 ,  44  by rotating the shell body  58  to provide a greater or lesser communication with opening  22 . 
     Once the shell body  58  has rotated about 24° in the illustrated embodiment as shown in  FIG.  2   , port  44  is isolated such that it has no fluid communication to any of the other ports. However, fluid communication is still provided between ports  42  and  46  (and between  48  and  50 ). A rotation of the shell body  58  about 24° from the orientation of  FIG.  1    in the other direction as shown in  FIG.  3    isolates port  42  such that it has no fluid communication to any of the other ports. However, fluid communication is still provided between ports  44  and  46  (and between  48  and  50 ). As the angle of rotation is varied, the area of the openings  20  and  22  that is exposed to the particular port also varies once an edge of the opening moves past the seal  60  edge. 
       FIGS.  4 - 6    illustrate similar rotational alignments as shown in  FIGS.  1 - 3   , but starting with an orientation of the shell body  58  that is 180° from that shown in  FIG.  1   . Such orientations provide fluid communication between ports  46  and  50 , and variable mixing (or division) of flow between ports  42 ,  44 , and  48 , as well as isolation of ports  42  and  44  as discussed with regard to  FIGS.  2  and  3   . 
     With the symmetrical layout of the four ports  42 ,  44 ,  46 ,  48  and the openings  20 ,  22 , similar operation will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the foregoing when the shell body  58  is initially oriented at 90° and 270° from the orientation shown in  FIG.  1   , and a discussion thereof will be forgone in the interest of brevity. 
       FIGS.  7 ,  8    provide isometric side views of the embodiment of the multi-port multi-plane valve  32  shown with the shell body  58  positioned as shown in  FIG.  1    when viewed into port body  224  and  228 , respectively.  FIG.  9    provides isometric side views of the embodiment of the multi-port multi-plane valve  32  shown with the shell body  58  positioned as shown in  FIG.  2    when viewed into port body  228 . 
     Turning now to  FIGS.  10  and  11   , there are illustrated isometric views of an embodiment of a multi-port multi-plane valve similar to that discussed hereinabove. However, the reference numerals have been removed and replaced with five port designations  1 - 5  to simplify the understanding of the operation thereof for the following description. In order to aid in this description, the isometric cross-sectional view of  FIG.  12    is also instructive as it illustrates the internal passages and the shell body with the same five port designations  1 - 5 . Further,  FIG.  12    and the figures included thereafter introduce flow arrows and blocked flow symbols to aid in the understanding of the operation of the valve. However, it should be noted that the directional heads of the flow arrows shown in  FIGS.  12 - 20    are not limiting on the flow direction through the valve, but instead only illustrate possible flows through the valve based on the communication enabled by the positioning of the shell body. Indeed, flow in other directions is also possible based on the external plumbing and flow system, and flow in both directions at different times through the same ports based on these external factors is also possible. 
     Turning now to  FIG.  13   , the shell body is located in a first position referred to herein as 0°. In such position the shell body provides fluid communication between ports  3  and  5 , and fluid communication between ports  1 ,  2 , and  4 . As the shell body is rotated, the percentage flow can be varied between the ports  2  and  4  to provide a greater or lesser flow from port  1 . 
     Once the shell body has rotated about 24° in the illustrated embodiment as shown in  FIG.  14   , port  4  is isolated as shown by the blocked flow symbol such that it has no fluid communication to any of the other ports. However, fluid communication is still provided between ports  1  and  2  (and between  3  and  5 ). A rotation of the shell body about 24° from the orientation of  FIG.  13    in the other direction as shown in  FIG.  15    isolates port  2  as shown by the blocked flow symbol such that it has no fluid communication to any of the other ports. However, fluid communication is still provided between ports  1  and  4  (and between  3  and  5 ). 
       FIGS.  16 - 18    illustrate similar rotational alignments as shown in  FIGS.  13 - 15   , but starting with an orientation of the shell body that is 180° from that shown in  FIG.  13   . Such orientations provide fluid communication between ports  1  and  5 , and variable flow between ports  3 ,  2 , and  4 , as well as isolation of ports  4  and  2  as discussed with regard to  FIGS.  14  and  15   . 
     With the symmetrical layout of the four ports  1 - 4  and the openings in the shell body, similar operation will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the foregoing when the shell body is initially oriented at 90° and 270° from the orientation shown in  FIG.  13   , and a discussion thereof will be forgone in the interest of brevity. 
     With reference now to  FIGS.  19  and  20   , there is illustrated an embodiment of the multi-port, multi-plane valve that includes a shell body having a first and a second flow enhancer channel  20 A,  20 B provided on either side of the opening  20 . These flow enhancer channels  20 A,  20 B also provide fluid communication to opening  24  leading to port  5 , and operate to increase the flow thru the right angle opening when the shell body has been rotated to a position that is blocking the flow through one of the ports ( 4  in  FIGS.  19  and  2    in  FIG.  20   ) on the other side of the valve. Such enhanced flow reduces the pressure drop occurring on one side of the valve when controlling flow paths on the other side of the valve. In embodiments, opening  20  is wider than the first flow enhancer channel  20 A and wider than the second flow enhancer channel  20 B. Further, in embodiments, the first flow enhancer channel  20 A has the same width as the second flow enhancer channel  20 B. 
     As described herein, embodiments of the present invention The multi-port multi-plane valve advantageously overcomes existing problems in the art by presenting an overall construction with a reduced part count, a reduced number of potential leak paths, and a reduction in overall assembly time and cost. In embodiments, the multi-port multi-plane valve has particular suitability for routing coolant in a thermal system, e.g., an engine or motor of a vehicle. For example, the multi-port multi-plane valve can be used to route coolant in a first thermal loop and at least one other thermal loop. In embodiments, a first thermal loop may be to route the coolant to engine/motor components or a battery in need of cooling or warming, and a second thermal loop may be provided to cool or warm the coolant (e.g., to a radiator, chiller, or heater). Depending on the particular needs of the coolant and the components to which it is being routed, the shell body  58  is able to be rotated to direct the flow of coolant through the desired thermal loops. 
     All references, including publications, patent applications, and patents cited herein are hereby incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each reference were individually and specifically indicated to be incorporated by reference and were set forth in its entirety herein. 
     The use of the terms “a” and “an” and “the” and similar referents in the context of describing the invention (especially in the context of the following claims) is to be construed to cover both the singular and the plural, unless otherwise indicated herein or clearly contradicted by context. The terms “comprising,” “having,” “including,” and “containing” are to be construed as open-ended terms (i.e., meaning “including, but not limited to,”) unless otherwise noted. Recitation of ranges of values herein are merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referring individually to each separate value falling within the range, unless otherwise indicated herein, and each separate value is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g., “such as”) provided herein, is intended merely to better illuminate the invention and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the invention unless otherwise claimed. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimed element as essential to the practice of the invention. 
     Preferred embodiments of this invention are described herein, including the best mode known to the inventors for carrying out the invention. Variations of those preferred embodiments may become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon reading the foregoing description. The inventors expect skilled artisans to employ such variations as appropriate, and the inventors intend for the invention to be practiced otherwise than as specifically described herein. Accordingly, this invention includes all modifications and equivalents of the subject matter recited in the claims appended hereto as permitted by applicable law. Moreover, any combination of the above-described elements in all possible variations thereof is encompassed by the invention unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context.