Snap acting flow control valve with venturi formed between the orifice and conical valve plug

Claim 1

AN ON-OFF VALVE FOR CONTROLLING THE FLOW OF FLUID THERETHROUGH COMPRISING (A) A T-SHAPED VALVE BODY INCLUDING A STEM PORTION AND A CROSS-HEAD PORTION, (B) SAID CROSS-HEAD PORTION DEFINING A FLUID INLET CHAMBER AT ONE END AND A FLUID OUTLET CHAMBER AT THE OTHER END THEREOF, (C) A PARTITION SEPARATING SAID FLUID INLET CHAMBER FROM SAID OUTLET CHAMBER, (D) SAID PARTITION HAVING A TAPERING WALL PORTION FORMING A CONICALLY SHAPED PASAGEWAY CONVERGING TOWARD SAID FLUID OUTLET CHAMBER DEFINING AN ORIFICE FOR CONNECTING SAID INLET CHAMBER IN COMMUNICATION WITH SAID OUTLET CHAMBER, SAID WALL PORTION HAVING A SUBSTANTIALLY CONVEXLY CURVED SHAPE FROM THE INLET TO THE OUTLET SIDES THEREOF, (E) SAID PASSAGEWAY HAVING AN INLET AND OUTLET, SAID INLET BEING GREATER IN CROSS-SECTIONAL AREA THAN SAID OUTLET, AND SAID OPENING TO SAID FLUID OUTLET CHAMBER, (F) SAID STEM DEFINING A VALVING CHAMBER OPEN TO SAID INLET FLUID CHAMBER, (G) A VALVING MEMBER RECIPROCALLY MOUNTED IN SAID STEM FOR VALVING THE INLET SAID ORIFICE, (H) SAID VALVING MEMBER INCLUDING A PLUG END ADAPTED TO SEAT ON SAID INLET TO SAID ORIFICE IN THE CLOSED POSITION OF SAID VALVE TO DEFINE A LINE SEAL THEREAT, SAID PLUG END BEING CONICAL IN SHAPE AND HAVING ITS APEX CONVERGING IN THE SAME DIRECTION AS THE WALL OF SAID PASSAGEWAY AND SAID PLUG END AND ORIFICE BEING SO CONSTRUCTED AND ARRANGED THAT IN THE OPEN POSITION OF SAID ORIFICE THE SURFACES OF SAID PLUG END AND THE WALLS OF SAID PASSAGEWAY DEFINE A VENTURI, (I) A VALVE STEM CONNECTED TO SAID PLUG AND (J) RESILIENT DIAPHRAGM MEANS CONNECTED TO THE UPPER END OF SAID VALVE STEM, (K) SAID DIAPHRAGM MEANS BEING PROVIDED WITH A REDUCED CROSS SECTIONAL AREA ABOUT WHICH SAID DIAPHRAGM MEANS IS FREE TO FLEX WITH A NON-LINEAR BACK HAND FORCE VERSUS DISPLACEMENT CHARACTERISTIC TO PROVIDE A QUICK SNAPPING ACTION AND SAID DIAPHRAGM MEANS BEING ADAPTED TO SEAT ON THE PERIPHERAL EDGE OF SAID STEM TO FORM A SEAL FOR SAID VALVING CHAMBER, AND THE AREA OF THE DIAPHRAGM MEANS EXPOSED TO THE PRESSURE OF THE FLUID BEING GREATER THAN THAT OF THE PLUG, (L) A CLOSURE CAP CLAMPING SAID DIAPHRAGM MEANS IN A PLACE TO EFFECT A FLUID-TIGHT SEAL FOR SAID VALVE BODY, SAID CLOSURE CAP HAVING AN OPENING THEREIN, (M) AND A VALVE ACTUATOR CONNECTED TO SAID VALVING MEMBER FOR ACTUATING THE SAME BETWEEN OPEN AND CLOSED POSITION, (N) SAID ACTUATOR PROJECTING OUTWARDLY THROUGH SAID OPENING IN SAID CAP.