Patent ID: 6915958

Claim:
A valve for controlling the flow of coolant between an engine and a radiator in an automotive vehicle, the valve comprising: a housing having a chamber formed therein extending between opposing first and second ends; a radiator port extending between the radiator and the first end of the chamber for passing coolant flowing between the radiator and the chamber; a bypass port extending between an outlet from the engine and the chamber for passing coolant flowing between the engine and the chamber; an engine port extending between an inlet from the engine and the chamber for passing coolant flowing from one or both of the radiator and bypass ports between the inlet of the engine and the chamber; a main valve slidably received within the housing for movement in and out of engagement with the first end of the chamber for closing or opening fluid flow between the radiator and the chamber, the main valve comprising a cylindrical body including a first ring radially extending from the cylindrical body for engaging the first end of the chamber and a second guide extending longitudinally from the first ring in a direction of the second end of the chamber for maintaining alignment of the main valve within the chamber; a secondary valve slidably received within the housing for movement with the main valve in and out of engagement with the second end of the chamber for opening or closing fluid flow between the bypass port and the chamber; and a drive assembly operatively coupled between the secondary valve and a central control for automatically and proportionally opening and closing the main and secondary valves in response to changes in the temperature of the coolant within a predetermined temperature range.