Flow control valve with a v-shaped opening

Claim 1

A FLOW CONTROL VALVE FOR USE WITH FLUIDS CONTAINING SOLIDS COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, A CASING HAVING A INLET, AN OUTLET, AND A FLOW PASSAGE THERETHROUGH, A VALVE PLUG FOR SELECTIVELY CLOSING SAID FLOW PASSAGE, MEANS MOUNTING SAID VALVE PLUG IN SAID CASING FOR MOVEMENT ABOUT A GENERALLY HORIZONTALLY DISPOSED AXIS, MEANS FOR ACTUATING SAID VALVE PLUG, AND ANNULAR SEAL MEANS ENGAGING SAID VALVE PLUS TO SUBSTANTIALLY PREVENT LEAKAGE BETWEEN THE INTERIOR OF THE CASING AND THE SURFACE OF THE VALVE PLUG, SAID VALVE PLUG HAVING A GENERALLY SPHERICAL OUTER SURFACE AND HAVING AN INVERTED V-SHAPED OPENING THERETHROUGH EXTENDING TOWARD THE CENTER OF THE VALVE PLUG FROM THE SURFACE THEREOF, THEREBY PROVIDING A FLOW PATH THROUGH THE VALVE PLUG, SUCH FLOW PATH BEING DEFINED BETWEEN THE V-SHAPED OPENING IN SAID V-SHAPED OPENING DISSEAL MEANS, WITH THE APEX OF SAID V-SHAPED OPENING DISPOSED AT THE TOP OF SAID FLOW PATH, THE SIDES OF SAID VSHAPED OPENING DIVERGING DOWNWARDLY SO THAT THE SHAPE OF THE FLOW PATH DEFINED BETWEEN THE V-SHAPED OPENING IN THE VALVE PLUG AND THE SEAL MEANS WILL BE GENERALLY TRAINGULAR OVER A WIDE OPERATING RANGE, WHEREBY SAID VALVE PLUG CAN BE MOVED BY SAID ACTUATING MEANS FROM A POSITION CLOSING SAID FLOW PASSAGE THROUGH SAID CASING TO A POSITION WHEREIN SAID V-SHAPED OPENING IN AT LEAST PARTIALLY ALINED WITH SAID FLOW PASSAGE THROUGH SAID CASING, THUS PERMITTING FLOW THROUGH SAID VALVE PLUG.