Shrouded valve assembly

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10844971-B2
Application number	US-201715581690-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 28, 2017
Priority date	Apr 29, 2016
Publication date	Nov 24, 2020
Grant date	Nov 24, 2020

Abstract

A shrouded valve assembly including a valve, valve pipe and valve channel. A valve member can regulate flow of fluid through the valve channel. A valve shroud provides a valve shroud chamber and includes first and second valve shroud members fixed via valve shroud member flanges. An actuator shaft passes through the valve shroud and the valve pipe to the valve member and can move to operate the valve member to regulate flow of fluid through the valve channel. The actuator shaft extends in an actuator shaft direction passing through the valve shroud and the valve pipe. The valve shroud flanges meet at a valve shroud interface inclined at an acute angle to the actuator shaft direction. The actuator shaft passes through the first valve shroud member and not the second valve shroud member, enabling the valve to be inspected by disassembling this interface without disassembling the valve shroud members.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A shrouded valve assembly comprising:
a valve comprising a valve pipe with a valve channel, and a valve member in the valve channel which is operable to regulate a flow of fluid through the valve channel;
a valve shroud which shrouds the valve pipe and provides a valve shroud chamber between the valve pipe and the valve shroud, the valve shroud comprising first and second valve shroud members which are fixed to each other via respective valve shroud member flanges; and
an actuator shaft which passes through the valve shroud and the valve pipe to the valve member and can move to operate the valve member to regulate the flow of fluid through the valve channel, the actuator shaft extending in an actuator shaft direction as it passes through the valve shroud and the valve pipe;
wherein the valve shroud flanges meet at a valve shroud interface which is inclined at an acute angle to the actuator shaft direction, and wherein the actuator shaft passes through the first valve shroud member but not through the second valve shroud member.

2. The shrouded valve assembly of claim 1 , wherein each valve shroud member has a substantially spherical inner surface which defines an outer boundary of the valve shroud chamber.

3. The shrouded valve assembly of claim 2 , wherein each valve shroud member has a substantially spherical outer surface.

4. The shrouded valve assembly of claim 1 , further comprising a drain port which passes through the second valve shroud member but not through the first valve shroud member, wherein the drain port is configured to enable fluid to be drained out of the valve shroud chamber through the drain port.

5. The shrouded valve assembly of claim 1 , further comprising a drain port fitting which is fitted to the second valve shroud member, wherein the drain port is configured to enable fluid to be drained out of the valve shroud chamber through the drain port fitting.

6. The shrouded valve assembly of claim 1 , wherein the acute angle is greater than 40 degrees and less than 50 degrees.

7. The shrouded valve assembly of claim 1 , wherein the valve channel extends in a valve channel direction, and the valve shroud interface is inclined at an acute angle to the valve channel direction.

8. The shrouded valve assembly of claim 1 , wherein the valve shroud interface lies in a single plane, and the single plane is inclined at the acute angle to the actuator direction.

9. The shrouded valve assembly of claim 1 , wherein the first and second valve shroud members are fixed to each other by fasteners passing through the valve shroud member flanges.

10. The shrouded valve assembly of claim 1 , further comprising: first and second shrouded pipe assemblies attached to the valve shroud, each shrouded pipe assembly comprising a pipe in fluid communication with a respective end of the valve channel, and a pipe shroud which shrouds the pipe and provides a pipe shroud chamber between the pipe and the pipe shroud.

11. The shrouded valve assembly of claim 10 , wherein the pipe of each shrouded pipe assembly is in fluid communication with a respective end of the valve channel through one of the valve shroud members but not the other.

12. The shrouded valve assembly of claim 10 , wherein the first and second shrouded pipe assemblies are connected to the valve shroud by respective first and second connections and to the valve by respective third and fourth connections, and wherein the third or fourth connection is more flexible than both the first connection and the second connection.

13. The shrouded valve assembly of claim 1 , wherein the assembly is connected to an aircraft structure.

14. The shrouded valve assembly of claim 1 , wherein the first and second valve shroud members have a substantially identical construction.

Assignees

• Airbus Operations Gmbh

Inventors

• Haug Manfred
• Rappitsch Michael
• Rauch Konrad

Classifications

• F16K27/0218 Primary

  Butterfly valves · CPC title

• B64D37/005

  Accessories not provided for in the groups B64D37/02 - B64D37/28 · CPC title

• F16K1/22

  with axis of rotation crossing the valve member, e.g. butterfly valves · CPC title