Fluid flow valve

Claim 1

In a butterfly valve device in which the butterfly valve disk is movable transversely of an axis of rotation of the valve disk prior to rotation of the valve disk when opening the valve device by the turning of a handle-shaft means comprising a valve-shaft to which the valve disk is operatively rotatably attached for rotation therewith, including a flow conduit housing for the valve disk with the flow conduit housing providing a valve seat for the valve disk and providing a stem port with the valve shaft extending axially therethrough and rotatable therein and sealed therein against leakage, and including the valve shaft being movable initially axially and then rotatably during the turning of a handle to open the valve disk to a valve -open position, and with the valve-shaft being operatively connected at one end thereof to the valve disk such that initial axial movement of the valve-shaft causes the valve disk to move laterally away from its valve seat of the flow conduit housing and causes the valve disk after the lateral movement to move with the valve-shaft rotatably in valve disk opening action; the improvement in combination with the valve disk, the handle-shaft means and valve-shaft thereof, and the flow conduit housing with its valve seat and with its stem port, comprising: the valve disk having opposite substantially flat faces extending in substantially parallel planes, the shaft extending in a direction substantially parallel to the planes of said valve disk''s opposite flat faces, there being a cylindrically shaped sleeve structure having the valveshaft fixedly secured thereto and extending axially from a lower end of the sleeve structure and having an axially extending bore within an upper end of the sleeve structure with the bore being threaded with female threads; a collar housing structure defining a handle-shaft port at an upper end thereof, a base-valve port through which the valve-shaft is extendable upwardly before its connection with a lower end of the sleeve structure, the handleshaft port and the base-valve port being axially aligned with the stem port, and a side port aligned radially to a cylindrical side of the cylindrically shaped sleeve structure, the collar housing structure being fixedly mounted to said flow conduit housing in surrounding relation to said cylindrical sleeve structure; bearing means mounted within said side port having a ball-bearing structure extending radially inwardly within the collar housing structure, said bearing means being removably mounted in said side port; said cylindrically shaped sleeve structure defining in its cylindrically shaped outer wall two serially consecutive first and second grooves, a first groove being an upper groove extending axially downwardly a first predetermined distance, and cOntinuous with the lower end of the first groove the second groove extending helically downwardly, the width and size of the respective first and second grooves being of predetermined dimensions for accommodatingly receiving slidably along the grooves the ball-bearing structure such that upon the sleeve structure being moved axially upwardly, the sleeve structure moves non-rotatably upwardly as the ball-bearing structure slidably rides along the first groove from an upper to a lower end thereof, and such that upon the structure being moved further upwardly, the ball-bearing structure rides in the helical second groove, whereby during the initial upward movement of the sleeve structure the valve-shaft moves axially upwardly, to withdraw the valve disk from the valve seat and whereby during subsequent helical upward movement of the sleeve structure, the valve-shaft rotates the valve disk to a valve-open position; and the handleshaft means further including a helically threaded male handleshaft mounted within said handle-shaft port for rotation therein and mounted against axial movement within said handle-shaft port, a lower end of the helically-threaded male handle shaft being meshably engaged within the female-threaded axial bore of the sleeve structure; and including handle-structure fixedly mounted on the upper end of said male handle shaft; and including parallel flanges extending parallel to each other and spaced from one another a predetermined spacing-distance, formed on and extending perpendicularly outwardly from one of said parallel faces of the valve disk, said flanges each defining therein bearing means directed toward and spaced from the bearing means of the opposite parallel flange, with the bearing means of the respective parallel flanges being substantially axially aligned with one another; and the valve-shaft having the end having the valve disk attached thereto on each of opposite sides of a rectangular formed section thereof third and fourth grooves serially continuous, the third grooves being upwardly located and inclined downwardly, the third and fourth grooves of each of the opposite rectangular surfaces respectively being of predetermined guide dimensions receivable and slidable therein of the respective opposite flange bearing means, such that during initial axial upward movement of the shaft, and valve disk is moved away from the valve seat, and the fourth grooves being continuous with a lower end of the third grooves, the fourth grooves extending axially downwardly such that rotary movement of the valve-shaft rotates therewith the valve disk, the parallel flanges and the valve-shaft oppositely located sides of the rectangular section defining the third and fourth grooves being tightly fitted with one another such that the bearing means of the respective parallel flanges are closed from environmental fluid flowing through the conduit housing, and additionally enclosing connecting structure extending between the opposing parallel flanges on said valve disk such that the valve-shaft is substantially circumscribed in juxtaposition to the third and fourth grooves.