Patent Publication Number: US-2021180711-A1

Title: Light weight, multifunctional valve assembly

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/947,146 filed 12 Dec. 2019, which application is herein expressly incorporated by reference. 
    
    
     FIELD 
     The present disclosure relates to a lightweight, multifunctional valve assembly. 
     BACKGROUND 
     The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art. 
     Various types of valves are known for controlling the flow of fluid (including gases, liquids fluidized solids and slurries) by selectively opening and closing passageways. Within system having multiple fluid flows that need to be opened and closed, each fluid flow may be associated with an individually controlled valve. Alternatively, it is generally known to provide a common valve assembly for controlling multiple fluid flows. Such valve assemblies may be generally referred to as multifunctional valve assemblies. 
     While known valve assemblies, including common valve assemblies for controlling multiple fluid flows, may have proven to be successful for their intended purposes, known assemblies are associated with disadvantages and limitations. For example, material used in known valve assemblies, including but not limited to electric ball valves, increase the weight of the valve assembly. Additionally, each valve or each multi-functional valve is associated with a motor, again increasing the weight and complexity of systems including multiple valves. Accordingly, a continuous need for improvement remains in the pertinent art to address the noted and additional disadvantages and limitations associated with known valve assemblies. 
     SUMMARY 
     It is an object of the present teachings to provide a multifunctional valve assembly with reduced weight. 
     It is another object of the present teachings to provide a multifunctional valve assembly including a first portion for controlling at least two fluid flows and a second portion for controlling at least two fluid flows, the first and second portions operated by a single motor. 
     It is another object of the present teachings to provide a multifunctional valve assembly associated with reduced operation times for the switching of valve positions. 
     It is also an object of the present teachings to provide a multifunctional valve assembly incorporating and integrated and replaceable filter. 
     Still further objects of the present teachings will become apparent below. 
     In accordance with one particular aspect, the present teachings provide a multifunctional valve assembly includes a first portion with a first 3-way valve functionality for selectively controlling flow of a first fluid and a second portion with a second, 3-way functionality valve functionality for selectively controlling flow a second fluid. The multifunctional valve assembly further includes a common motor associated with the first and second portions and operative to drive both of the first and second portions to operate in first, second and third operational modes. 
     In accordance with another particular aspect, the present teachings provide a method of operating a multifunctional valve assembly including rotating a first sleeve about an axis of the first sleeve with a common motor to concurrently drive first and second portions of the valve assembly to each operate in first, second and third operational modes. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The drawings described herein are for illustration purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure in any way. 
         FIG. 1  is a front view of a lightweight, multifunctional valve assembly constructed in accordance with the present teachings. 
         FIG. 1A  is a front view similar to  FIG. 1  illustrating an alternative embodiment in which valve assembly is shown incorporated into a larger assembly including a filter assembly. 
         FIG. 2  is a side view of a portion of the lightweight, multifunctional valve assembly of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is an exploded view of the lightweight, multifunctional valve assembly and filter assembly of  FIG. 1A . 
         FIG. 4  is cross-sectional view taken along the line  4 - 4  of  FIG. 1A . 
         FIG. 5  is a partially cut away view of the lightweight, multifunctional valve assembly of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 6  is a side view of a subassembly of the perspective view of the lightweight, multifunctional valve assembly of  FIG. 1 , the subassembly including an inner sleeve, an outer sleeve and a tubular gasket. 
         FIG. 7  is another side view of the subassembly of  FIG. 6 , the subassembly shown rotated 90 degrees about an axially extending centerline. 
         FIG. 8  is a cross-sectional view taken along the line  8 - 8  of  FIG. 7 . 
         FIG. 9  is a side view of the outer sleeve of the subassembly of  FIG. 6 . 
         FIG. 10  is another side view of the outer sleeve  FIG. 9 , the outer sleeve shown rotated 90 degrees about an axially extending centerline. 
         FIG. 11  is a side view of the inner sleeve of the subassembly of  FIG. 6 . 
         FIG. 12  is another side view of the inner sleeve  FIG. 11 , the inner shown rotated 90 degrees about an axially extending centerline. 
         FIG. 13  is a high-level block diagram of an exemplary system incorporating the lightweight, multifunctional valve assembly of the present teachings. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The following description is merely exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the present disclosure, application, or uses. It should be understood that throughout the drawings, corresponding reference numerals indicate like or corresponding parts and features. 
     Referring generally to the drawings, a lightweight, multifunctional valve assembly in accordance with the present teachings is illustrated and generally identified at reference character  100 . As will be further understood below, the valve assembly  100  may include a first portion  100 A with a first 3-way valve functionality for selectively controlling flow of a first fluid and a second portion  100 B with a second, 3-way valve functionality for selectively controlling flow of a second fluid. The present teachings may be readily adapted for various uses where it is desired to selectively control the flow of a first fluid and second fluid. The first and second fluids may be the same type of fluid or distinct types of fluids. 
     In one particular application, the valve assembly  100  may be incorporated into a wastewater management system  10  for a recreational vehicle (“RV”). It will be understood that this particular application shown in the drawings and described herein is merely an exemplary application of the present teachings. Before addressing the valve assembly  100  of the present teachings in greater detail, an understanding of such an exemplary use and the general functioning of the valve assembly  100  is warranted. Reference in this regard will be made particularly to the high-level block diagram of  FIG. 13 . 
     The wastewater management system  10  includes a first holding structure defined by a black water holding tank  12 , a second holding structure defined by a grey water holding tank  14 , and a third holding structure defined by a fresh water holding tank  16 . In general, the grey water tank  14  may hold grey water in the form of kitchen wastewater  18  from a kitchen sink, for example, and bathroom wastewater  20  from a bathroom sink and/or shower, for example. The grey water in the grey water holding tank  14  may be used for flushing of a toilet  22  for purposes of conserving water in the fresh water tank  16 , and reduction of grey water in the grey water tank. The black water tank  12 , in general, receives black water from a positive pressure or macerator pump  34 . The macerator pump  34  is located in a macerator housing  24  associated with the toilet  22 . 
     In addition to the lightweight, multifunctional valve assembly  100 , the system  10  is illustrated to include various other valves for controlling flow between the various components. These other valves may be electronically controlled valves  26  or manually controlled valves  28 . The valves  26  and  28  may be gate valves or ball valves, for example. 
     The system  10  includes level sensors  30 A,  30 B and  30 C for sensing the level within the black water tank  12 , the grey water tank  14  and the fresh water tank  16 , respectively. The level sensors  30 A,  30 B and  30 C may be float assemblies, for example, configured to transmit electronic signals that indicate a fluid level within the corresponding tank  12 ,  14 , and  16 . 
     The system  10  is shown to further include various pumps  32  for pumping fluid (e.g., fresh water, grey water, and black water and additives) through the system  10 . The pumps  32  may be automatically controlled by electronic signals from the controller  38 . Alternatively, the pumps  32  may be controlled by user input. The pumps  32  for the grey and black water tanks  14  and  12  may be centrifugal pumps and the pumps  32  for the additives may be piston pumps. 
     A control sub-system in the form of a control unit  38  and a display unit may be incorporated for controlling the management of wastewater within the system  10  and for emptying of the wastewater tanks  12 , among other functions. The control unit  36  may be located anywhere in the vehicle. The control unit  38  may include a controller  38  in communication with the various pumps  32 , the macerator pump  34 , each of the valves, and each of the level sensors  30 A,  30 B and  30 C. 
     A display unit  50  may incorporate a user operated keypad  40  or other buttons in communication with the controller  38  for initiating programmed routines of the system  10  and/or for opening/closing selected ones of the valves or pumps. The macerator pump  34  may be controlled at the toilet  22 , for example. The grey water pump  32  may be controlled at both the toilet  22  (for flushing) and at a display  50  of the display unit  36  (for instance, for pumping grey water to the black water tank  12 , for mixing grey water or as part of an automated cleaning cycle). The controller  38  may be in communication with a display  42 . The display may be an LCD touchscreen display  42 , for example. The display  42  may have soft touch keys or controls to enable user selection various functions. Such soft touch keys or controls may be in addition to or in lieu of the keypad  40 . 
     As shown in dashed lines in  FIG. 13 , the fresh water tank  16  may optionally be in fluid communication with the grey water tank  14 . This fluid communication may be through a valve  26 . With such an optional communication between the fresh water tank  16  and the grey water tank  14 , fluid communication between the fresh water tank  16  and the toilet  22  would not be required. Explaining further, such optional fluid communication may deliver fresh water to the grey water tank  14  for toilet flushing in the event the grey water tank  14  is empty or below a predetermined level and the system  10  does not provide for direct communication between the fresh water tank  14  and the toilet  22 . Additionally, this communication between the fresh water tank  16  and the grey water tank  14  may be used for complete flushing/rinsing of the system  10 . 
     The system  10  may additionally include an additive sub-system  54 . The additive sub-system  54  may include additive dispensers  54 A,  54 B, and  54 C. Each of the additive dispensers  54 A,  54 B, and  54 C may be refillable with specific additives. In one embodiment, the additive dispensers  54 A,  54 B, and  54 C may receive replaceable cartridges containing the specific additives. Each additive cartridge  54 A,  54 B, and  54 C may be associated with an RFID label  56  that communicates with the controller to keep track of the pumped volume of additives from the dispenser. In this manner, the controller  38  can communicate the remaining level of additives to the user on the display. The RFID label  56  may also include, store and communicate other information such as, but not limited to, cartridge lifetime, cartridge type for keying in the wrong receptacle, cartridge producer, relevant usage data, etc. 
     The additive dispenser  54 A may be in fluid communication with the grey water tank  14  through a pump  32  for delivering a grey water additive to the grey water tank  14 . Dosing of the grey water additive to the grey water tank  14  may be controlled automatically by the controller  38 . For example, the controller  38  may control dosing of the grey water additive to the grey water tank  14  in response to detection of a predetermined volume level of grey water in the grey water tank  14  by the level sensor  30 B. 
     The additive dispenser  54 B may be in fluid communication with the housing  24  associated with the toilet  22  through a pump  32  for delivering a black water additive. In this manner, black water additive may be delivered to the macerator housing  34 A in response to a flush of the toilet  22 . Alternatively, the black water additive may be delivered directly to the black water tank  12  (as shown in  FIG. 1  in dashed lines). The amount of additive per flush may be fixed and be sufficient to control the generation of malodor by the contents of the black water tank  12 . Alternatively, the amount of black water additive per flush may be adjusted by the control  38  based on various factors, including but not limited to a time that waste is held in the black water tank  12 , a temperature of the black water tank  12 , a volume of black water in the black water tank. 
     The additive dispenser  54 C may be in fluid communication with the flush conduit  65  through a pump  32  for delivering a flush water additive to the toilet bowl which is activated by a flush signal. In certain applications, each of the additive dispensers  54 A,  54 B, and  54 C may also be associated with a sensor to sense the age of the corresponding additive and communicate a corresponding signal to the controller  38  when replacement is needed due to additive expiration. 
     When an RV equipped with the system  10  begins a trip, the fresh water tank  16  may be substantially or completely full. The black water tank  12  and the grey water tank  14  may be substantially or completely empty. The system  10  may monitor the levels within the tanks  12 ,  14  and  16  with the sensors  30 A,  30 B and  30 C, respectively. At least the level of the black water tank  12  may be additionally monitored with an acceleration sensor  31  to more accurately assess tank capacity. The sensed levels of the tanks  12 ,  14 , and  16  may be communicated to the controller  38  and in turn displayed for the user on the display  42 , or the remote display. 
     Kitchen wastewater  18  from a kitchen sink, for example, and bathroom wastewater  20  from a bathroom sink and/or shower, for example, may drain to the grey water tank  14  under the force of gravity through a conduit  60 . The kitchen wastewater  18  and bathroom wastewater  20  may be collected and stored in the grey water tank  14 . The grey water in the grey water tank  14  may be used for flushing of the toilet  22  in response to a user request for flushing. This grey flush water is delivered to a filter  62  through a conduit  64 . The filter  62  filters solids from the grey water to create a visually acceptable toilet flush water for the user. Filtered grey flush water is delivered to the toilet  22  for flushing through a conduit  65 . The flush water additive discussed below may be introduced at this location. The conduit  65  is associated with a valve  26 . Explaining further, the controller  38  may operate to open the electronically actuated valve  26  associated with the conduit  65  and pump grey water to the toilet  22 . 
     The solids collected by the filter  62  may be periodically transported to the black water tank  12  through a conduit  66 . In this regard, the controller  38  periodically functions to close the valve  26  associated with the conduit  65 , open the portion of the valve assembly  100  associated with the conduit  66  to communicate the filter  62  with the black water tank  12 , and pump grey water from the grey water tank  14  through conduit  64  and into the filter  62 . These actions clean the inside of the filter  62  and transport the filtered solids through conduit  66  from the filter  62  to the black water tank  12 . 
     The grey water in the grey water tank  14  is treated with automatically dosed additives. The filter  62  also enables a grey water mixing cycle that more evenly distributes grey water additives to treat the grey water and at the same time flushes the filter medium of the filter  62  clean. In this regard, a further conduit  69  extends from the filter  62  to the grey water tank  14 . As shown in the embodiment illustrated, the further conduit  69  may be associated with the first portion  100 A of the valve assembly  100 . Explaining further, the first portion  100 A of the valve assembly  100  may be controlled to completely close flow to both conduit  66  and conduit  69 , may be opened to flow only to conduit  66  or may be open to flow only to conduit  69 . 
     A hose or conduit  72  may extend between the black water tank  12  and the discharge adapter  74 . The conduit  72  may be associated with the second portion  100 B of the valve assembly  100  and a pump  32 . The second portion  100 B of the valve assembly  100  may be connected back to the black water tank  12  through black water mix conduit  71 . When the valve assembly  100  is positioned in a mixing mode to allow flow back to the black water tank, the black water gets mixed when the black water pump  32  runs. Mixing of the black water is preferred to avoid sediments of black water in the tank and also to distribute incoming additives from the toilet macerator chamber with the total black water volume in the tank. The second portion  100 B of the valve assembly  100  can also be operate to allow flow of black water to the discharge adapter  74 . 
     In the event that the grey water tank  14  does not have sufficient grey water to complete a requested flush cycle of the toilet, the toilet  22  may be flushed with fresh water. Flushing of the toilet  22  with fresh water may be accomplished in two different manners depending on the particular configuration of the system  10 . In a first manner, upon sensing of a low level of grey water within the grey water tank  14 , the controller  38  opens an electronically actuated valve  26  associated with a conduit  68  between the fresh water tank  16  and the toilet  22 . Fresh water is pumped from the fresh water tank  16  to the toilet  22 . In a second manner, the controller  38  may open an electronically actuated valve  26  associated with an option conduit  70  between the fresh water tank  16  and the grey water tank  14 . Fresh water is pumped from the fresh water tank  16  to the grey water tank  14 . The controller then delivers the fresh water residing in the grey water tank  14  to the toilet  22  in the manner discussed above. 
     The black water tank  12  and the grey water tank  14  may be periodically emptied in response to a user command entered through a control on the discharge adapter  74  or by a remote device. Such emptying of the black water tank  12  may be desired when the black water tank  12  has reached capacity or when an RV trip has been completed, for example. In response to user input, the controller  38  may operate to open the valve  26  associated with the conduit  72  providing fluid communication between the black water tank  12  and a drain  96  or discharge adapter  74 . The conduit  72  may also be associated with a first manually actuated valve  28  proximate the discharge adapter  74 . Upon opening the valve  28 , the controller  38  may pump black water from the black water tank  12  to the discharge adapter  74 . After the black water tank  12  is emptied, the grey water pump will pump the grey water into the black water tank  12  to rinse the walls of the black water tank  12  and empty the grey water tank  14 . The grey water will then travel from the black water tank  12  to the discharge adapter  74  to clean out the discharge adapter  74  and associated hoses. 
     Optionally, the discharge adapter  74  may be connected to a further waste holding tank  76 . The further waste holding tank  76  may be permanently or removably carried by the RV, may provide further capacity for black water storage, and may to be able to dump waste in a traditional way (i.e., transport of the waste holding tank  76  without moving the vehicle). One suitable type of portable waste holding tank  76  is sold by the assignee of this application under the trademark Cassette®. 
     The lightweight, multifunctional valve assembly  100  of the present teachings will now be further described. The valve assembly  100  includes a valve housing  101 . The valve housing  101  may be unitarily constructed of plastic to thereby reduce the weight of the valve assembly  100 . In one application, the valve housing  101  may be injection molded of plastic. 
     As generally shown in the figures, the valve assembly  100  is constructed to be located at a distance from the filter  62  and connected by a hose or conduit  104  (see  FIG. 13 ). In some applications, however, it may be desired to incorporate the valve assembly  100  into a larger assembly including the filter  62 . In this regard,  FIGS. 1A, 3 and 4  illustrated an alternative embodiment in which the valve assembly  100  is shown as part of a larger assembly including a filter housing  102  for the filter  62 . 
     Insofar as the present teachings are concerned, the filter housing  102  will be understood to be similar in construction and operation where the filter housing  102  is located remote from the valve assembly  100  and where the filter valve assembly  100  and filter assembly  102  are part of a common, larger assembly. As shown in the alternative embodiment of  FIGS. 1A, 3 and 4 , the valve assembly  100  and filter housing  102  may be elongated along a common central axis  106 . 
     The filter assembly  102  may define a cavity  108  open at an upper end of the housing  102 . The cavity  108  may receive a filter insert  110 . The filter insert  110  is generally cylindrical in shape, including a closed end  112  and an open end  114 . A central portion of the filter insert  110  between the closed end  112  and the open end  114  includes a plurality of windows. The windows are covered by the media of the filter  62 . The interior of the filter insert  110  is in fluid communication with the conduit  64  though a filter housing input port  116 . In this manner, the conduit  64  is in fluid communication with a dirty side of the filter  62 . The filter housing  102  further includes a filter housing output port  118 . The output port  118  provides fluid communication between the conduit  65  leading to the toilet  22  and the clean side of the filter  62 . The filter insert  110  carries one or more sealing members or O-rings  120  that define fluid tight interfaces between the filter insert  110  and the housing  102  to prevent dirt from flowing from the “dirty” side of the filter to the “clean water” side of the filter. 
     The valve assembly  100  is illustrated to generally include a valve housing  122 , a valve subassembly  124 , and a drive arrangement  126 . The valve housing  122  defines a cylindrical chamber  128 . At one end  130 , the chamber  128  is in fluid communication with the filter  62 . At a second end  132 , the chamber  128  is in fluid communication with the black water tank  12  through the conduit  71 . The housing  122  includes a first output port  134  for connecting to the conduit  66  leading to the black water tank  12 , a second output port  136  for connecting to the conduit  69  leading to the grey water tank  14 , a third output port  138  for connecting to the conduit  71  leading to the black water tank  12 , and a fourth output port  140  for connecting to the conduit  72  leading to the discharge adapter  74 . 
     The valve subassembly  124  is received within the chamber  128  and rotatable about the axis  106  to control various modes of operation of the valve assembly  100 . The valve subassembly  124  generally includes a first sleeve or inner sleeve  142 , a second sleeve or outer sleeve  144  and a tubular gasket  146 . The outer sleeve  144  is rotationally fixed relative to the housing  122 . The tubular gasket  146  is carried on the outside of the outer sleeve  144  and similarly is rotationally fixed relative to the housing  122 . The inner sleeve  142  rotates within the outer sleeve  144 . The tubular gasket  146  provides a seal between the housing  122  and the outer sleeve  144  and also seals with the inner sleeve  142 . 
     The inner sleeve  142  includes a cylindrical sidewall  147  open at axial opposite ends with a first or upper sleeve portion  148  with a first sidewall opening  150  and a second or lower sleeve portion  152  with a second sidewall opening  154 . The first portion  148  is open to receive the first fluid or grey water into a first inner portion of the first sleeve  142 . The second portion is open to receive the second fluid or black water into a second inner portion of the first sleeve  142 . The first and second inner portions of the first sleeve  142  are separated by a radially extending wall  143 . The first and second sidewall openings  150  and  154  are radially offset 180 degrees from each other and correspond with valve open positions. The inner sleeve  142  may be injection molded or otherwise suitably formed of plastic. 
     The outer sleeve  144  includes a cylindrical sidewall  156  open at axial opposite ends with a first or upper portion  158  and a second or lower portion  160 . The first and second portions  158  and  160  both include four openings  162  equally spaced about the circumference of the cylindrical sidewall  156 . 
     The tubular gasket  146  includes a cylindrical sidewall  163  with a first or upper portion  164  and a second or lower portion  166 . The first and second portions  164  and  166  are both integrally formed to include four O-rings  168  in a convex portion of the sidewall  163 . Two of the O-rings  168  on both the first and second portions  164  and  166  that are radially opposite one another surround open holes  170  in the sidewall  163 . The remaining O-rings  168  surround solid portions  172  of the gasket  146 . The tubular gasket  146  also integrally defines circumferentially extending O-rings  174  at the first end, second end and an axial center of the gasket  146 . The O-rings  174  cooperate to seal against the housing  122 . 
     The inner sleeve  142  is driven for rotation within the housing  122  and about the axis  106  by the drive arrangement  126 . The drive arrangement  126  generally includes a housing  176 , a drive motor  178 , a drive gear  180  and a driven gear  182 . The drive motor  178  is a common motor associated with the first and second portions  100 A and  100 B of the valve assembly  124  and operative to drive both of the first and second portions to operate in first, second and third operational modes. 
     The housing  176  includes a first housing portion  184  captured between the filter housing  102  and the valve housing  122 . The first housing portion  184  defines a tray that rotatably receives the driven gear  180 . The driven gear  180  includes a first keyed portion that extends into a central opening of the tray of the first housing portion  184  and engages a second, cooperating keyed portion  186  of the inner sleeve  142 . In this manner, the inner sleeve  142  is coupled to the driven gear  182  for rotation about the axis  106 . 
     A second housing portion  184  of the housing  176  carries the drive motor  126 . A shaft  186  driven by the drive motor  126  carries the drive gear  180 . Teeth of the drive gear  180  meshingly engage teeth of the driven gear  182 . When the controller  38  operates the drive motor  126 , the inner sleeve  142  is rotated about the axis  116  between various operational modes. The amount of rotation the driven gear  182  and resultantly the inner sleeve  142  may be controlled by a limit switch  188 . 
     The first portion  100 A of the valve assembly  100  will now be understood to control the flow a first fluid within the system  10 , namely grey water from the filter  62 . The first portion  100 A has three operating conditions. In a first operation condition of the first portion  100 A, the inner sleeve  142  is rotated about the axis  106  such that the outlet port  134  leading to the conduit  66  and the outlet port  136  leading to the conduit  69  are both closed to the flow of grey water from the filter  62 . Under this first operating condition, grey water from the filter  62  is available for flushing of the toilet  22 . In a second operation condition of the first portion  100 A, the inner sleeve  142  is rotated about the axis  106  such that the outlet port  134  leading to the conduit  66  is closed to the flow of grey water from the filter  62  and the outlet port  136  leading to the conduit  69  is open to the flow of grey water from the filter  62 . Under this second operating condition, grey water from the filter  62  is directed back to the grey water tank  14  for mixing within the grey water tank. In a third operation condition of the first portion  100 A, the inner sleeve  142  is rotated about the axis  106  such that the outlet port  134  leading to the conduit  66  is open to the flow of grey water from the filter  62  and the outlet port  136  leading to the conduit  69  is closed to the flow of grey water from the filter  62 . Under this third operating condition, grey water from the filter  62  is discharged to the black water tank  12 . 
     The second portion of the valve assembly  100 B controls the flow of a second fluid within the system  10 , namely black water from the black water tank  12 . The second portion  100 B similarly has three operating conditions. In a first operation condition of the first portion  1006 , the inner sleeve  142  is rotated about the axis  106  such that the outlet port  138  leading to the conduit  71  and the outlet port  140  leading to the conduit  72  are both closed to the flow of black water from the black water tank  12 . Under this first operating condition, there is no flow of black water within the system  10 . In a second operation condition of the first portion  1006 , the inner sleeve  142  is rotated about the axis  106  such that the outlet port  138  leading to the conduit  71  is open to the flow of black water and the outlet port  140  leading to the conduit  72  is closed to the flow of black water. Under this second operating condition, black water from the black water tank  12  is returned to the black water tank  12  for mixing within the black water tank  12 . In a third operation condition of the first portion  1006 , the inner sleeve  142  is rotated about the axis  106  such that the outlet port  138  leading to the conduit  71  is closed to the flow of black water and the outlet port  140  leading to the conduit  72  is open to the flow of black water. Under this third operating condition, black water from the black water tank  12  is discharged to the discharge adapter  74 . 
     Insofar as rotation of the inner sleeve  142  controls the operating conditions of both the first portion  100 A and second portion  1006  of the valve assembly  100 , it will be understood that the valve assembly  100  can be controlled to operate in three distinct operating modes. In a first operating mode of the valve assembly  100 , the first and second portions  100 A and  100 B are both in their first operating condition. In this first mode, or static mode, there is no flow of grey water from the filter  62  through the valve assembly  100 . In a second operating mode of the valve assembly  100 , the first and second portions  100 A and  100 B are both in their second operating conditions. In this second operating mode, or mix mode, grey water from the filter  62  flows back to the grey water tank  14  to mix grey water within the grey water tank  14  and black water from the black water tank  12  flows back to the black water tank  12  for mixing. In a third operating mode of the valve assembly  100 , the first and second portions  100 A and  1006  are both in their third operating conditions. In this third operating mode, or discharge mode, grey water from the filter  62  flows to the black water tank  12  to flush the filter of captured solids and black water from the black water tank  12  is discharged to the discharge adapter  74 . 
     Accordingly, it will now be appreciated that the present teachings to provide a multifunctional valve assembly with reduced weight. The present teachings additionally provide a multifunctional valve assembly including a first portion for controlling at least two fluid flows and a second portion for controlling at least two fluid flows, the first and second portions operated by a single motor. Further, the present teachings provide a multifunctional valve assembly associated with reduced operation times for the switching of valve positions. 
     While specific details have been described, those skilled in the art will recognize that various modifications or variations may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The one or more examples provided herein simply illustrate the various embodiments and are not intended to limit the present disclosure. While the valve assembly  100  has been described particularly for a wastewater management system, it will be appreciated that the present teachings may be readily adapted for other applications. The description and any claims should be interpreted liberally with only such limitation as is necessary in view of the pertinent prior art.