System and method for controlling a valve

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10379548-B2
Application number	US-201414520877-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 22, 2014
Priority date	Oct 22, 2013
Publication date	Aug 13, 2019
Grant date	Aug 13, 2019

Abstract

A system and method for controlling a remote valve includes temporarily driving or activating a battery-powered pilot valve assembly to place an operatively coupled output valve in a switch position. One or more processors receives a temperature measurement associated with an operating environment of the battery-powered pilot valve assembly, compares the received temperature measurement to a temperature threshold level, and continuously drives the battery-powered pilot valve assembly to maintain the output valve in the switch position if the temperature measurement is below the temperature threshold level.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for controlling a remote pneumatically operated valve implemented within a process control system, the method comprising:
receiving, by one or more processors, a temperature measurement of an operating environment proximate a battery-powered pilot valve assembly;
determining, by the one or more processors, if the temperature measurement is above or below a temperature threshold level, wherein when the temperature measurement is above the temperature threshold,
temporarily driving, by the one or more processors, the battery-powered pilot valve assembly to place an operatively coupled output valve in a switch position;
ceasing temporarily driving, by the one or more processors, the battery powered pilot valve assembly;
and wherein when the temperature measurement is below the temperature threshold,
continuously driving, by the one or more processors, the battery-powered pilot valve assembly to thereby maintain the output valve in the switch position.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
detecting the temperature of the operating environment proximate the pilot valve assembly with a temperature sensor.

3. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
ceasing continuously driving, by the one or more processors, the pilot valve assembly if the temperature measurement is above the temperature threshold level.

4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
determining, by the one or more processors, if the output valve is being positioned; and
ceasing continuously driving, by the one or more processors, the pilot valve assembly if the temperature measurement is above the temperature threshold level and the output valve is not currently being positioned.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein determining if the output valve is being positioned includes detecting movement of the output valve via a motion sensor.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein temporarily driving a battery-powered pilot valve assembly includes:
driving a first battery-powered pilot valve for a period of time to place the output valve in a first position; or
driving a second battery-powered pilot valve for a period of time to place the output valve in a second position.

7. A method for controlling a remote pneumatically operated valve implemented within a process control system, the method comprising:
monitoring, by one or more processors via an operably coupled temperature sensor, a temperature of an operating environment proximate a battery-powered pilot valve assembly;
determining, by the one or more processors, if the monitored temperature is above or below a temperature threshold level, wherein when the monitored temperature is above the temperature threshold,
temporarily driving, by the one or more processors, the battery-powered pilot valve assembly to place an operatively coupled output valve in a switch position;
ceasing temporarily driving, by the one or more processors, the battery-powered pilot valve assembly; and
wherein when the monitored temperature is below the temperature threshold,
continuously driving, by the one or more processors, the battery-powered pilot valve assembly to thereby maintain the output valve in the switch position.

8. The method of claim 7 , further comprising:
detecting the temperature of the operating environment proximate the pilot valve assembly with the temperature sensor.

9. The method of claim 7 , further comprising:
ceasing continuously driving, by the one or more processors, the pilot valve assembly if the temperature is above the temperature threshold level.

10. The method of claim 7 , further comprising:
determining, by the one or more processors, if the output valve is being positioned; and
ceasing continuously driving, by the one or more processors, the pilot valve assembly if the temperature measurement is above the temperature threshold level and the output valve is not currently being positioned.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein determining if the output valve is being positioned includes detecting movement of the output valve via a motion sensor.

12. The method of claim 7 , wherein temporarily driving a battery-powered pilot valve assembly includes:
driving a first battery-powered pilot valve for a period of time to place the output valve in a first position; or
driving a second battery-powered pilot valve for a period of time to place the output valve in a second position.

13. A system for controlling a remote pneumatically operated valve, the system comprising:
a battery-powered pilot valve assembly operatively coupled to an output valve;
one or more processors operatively coupled to the battery-powered pilot valve assembly;
a memory operatively coupled to the one or more processors;
a temperature sensor operatively coupled to the one or more processors, the temperature sensor facilitates monitoring of a temperature of an operating environment proximate the battery-powered pilot valve assembly; and
a control module stored in the memory, which when executed on the one or more processors,
determines if the monitored temperature is above or below a temperature threshold level, wherein when the monitored temperature is above the temperature threshold level,
temporarily drives the battery-powered pilot valve assembly to place the output valve in a switch position, and cease temporarily driving the battery-powered valve assembly, and
wherein when the temperature is below the temperature threshold level, continuously drives the battery-powered pilot valve assembly to thereby maintain the output valve in the switch position.

14. The system of claim 13 , wherein the control module, when executed on the one or more processors, determines if the output valve is being positioned, and ceases continuously driving the pilot valve assembly if the temperature measurement is above the temperature threshold level and the output valve is not currently being positioned.

15. The system of claim 14 , further comprising a motion sensor operatively coupled to the one or more processors and positioned proximate to the output valve to determine if the output valve is being positioned.

16. The system of claim 13 , wherein the battery-powered pilot valve assembly includes:
a first battery-powered pilot valve for receiving a signal from the one or more processors to place the output valve in a first position; and
a second battery-operated pilot valve for receiving a signal from the one or more processors to place the output valve in a second position.

17. The system of claim 16 , wherein the first and second pilot valves are piezoelectric valves.

18. The system of claim 13 , wherein the output valve includes one of the following: a rotary spool valve, a sliding spool valve.

19. The system of claim 13 , wherein the temperature threshold level is approximately −10° C.

20. The system of claim 13 , wherein the time period to temporarily drive the battery-powered pilot valve assembly is approximately three seconds.

21. The system of claim 13 , wherein the time period to temporarily drive the battery-powered pilot valve assembly is within a range of approximately two to approximately five seconds.

22. A tangible non-transitory computer-readable medium having instructions stored there on that, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to:
receive a temperature measurement of an operating environment proximate a battery-powered pilot valve assembly;
compare the received te

Assignees

• Fisher Controls Int Llc

Inventors

• Panther Mitchell Stephen
• Conger Michael Anthony

Classifications

• F15B13/0431 Primary

  the electrical control resulting in an on-off function · CPC title

• H04L67/10

  in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network (software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46) · CPC title

• G05D7/0635 Primary

  by action on throttling means (G05D7/0688, G05D7/0694 take precedence) · CPC title

• G05B15/02

  electric · CPC title

• F15B13/043 Primary

  with electrically-controlled pilot valves · CPC title