Automatic magnetic valve, system, and methods

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2025035232-A1
Application number	US-202418785839-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jul 26, 2024
Priority date	Jul 26, 2023
Publication date	Jan 30, 2025
Grant date	—

Abstract

A method, apparatus, and system of controlling flow of a flowable material including interposing an automatic magnetic valve comprising a magnetic actuator moveable in a valve body relative to a flow path for the flowable material without any on-board magnetic field source for actuating movement of the magnetic actuator in the valve body, or control circuit or electrical power source; selecting operating state of the valve to normally-open or normally-closed by configuration of the restoring force component relative to the magnetic actuator; positioning the valve relative to an off-board magnetic field to effectively take advantage of a direction and magnitude of the off-board magnetic field; and operatively connecting and controlling a flow of the flowable material through the valve with the off-board magnetic field influence on the on-board magnetic actuator.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . An automatic magnetic valve comprising:
a. a housing to direct a flowable material through the housing along a flow path within the housing; b. an on-board actuator of at least in part magnetic material, the actuator having freedom of movement along a range of motion (ROM) in the housing that at least either partially allows or blocks the flow path of flowable material in response to a first direction and magnitude of an off-board magnetic field that is effective to move the actuator along its ROM; and c. a restoring force component in or at the housing that opposes movement of the actuator caused by the first direction and magnitude of the off-board magnetic field; d. so that the magnetic actuator in the housing automatically follows changes in the off-board magnetic field to allow coordinated flow of the flowable material relative the flow path in response to changes in the off-board magnetic field.

2 . The automatic magnetic valve of claim 1 wherein the housing comprises a valve body with a valve seat and the actuator comprises a valve plug that seats in the valve seat.

3 . The automatic magnetic valve of claim 1 wherein the housing comprises substantially magnetically non-responsive material to allow passage of the off-board magnetic field.

4 . The automatic magnetic valve of claim 1 where in the flowable material comprises:
a. a liquid phase material (including fluids);
b. a gaseous phase material;
c. a solid phase material; or
d. a combination of any of the foregoing.

5 . The automatic magnetic valve of claim 1 wherein the actuator comprises:
a. magnetically responsive material;
b. ferromagnetic (soft or hard) material;
c. a permanent magnet or magnets;
d. a combination of any of the foregoing and other material.

6 . The automatic magnetic valve of claim 1 wherein the ROM and direction and magnitude of the off-board magnetic field that at least partially allows or blocks the flowable material comprises one of:
a. full blocking of the flowable material or a full closed valve position;
b. full unblocking of the flowable material or a full open valve position;
c. partial blocking of the flowable material or a partially closed valve position; and
d. partial unblocking of the flowable material or a partially open valve position,

7 . The automatic magnetic valve of claim 1 wherein the restoring force component comprises:
a. a resilient member having a changing force versus displacement curve (linear or non-linear) providing a F RESTORING with the ability to recover shape quickly when a deforming force or pressure is removed (including elastic materials and springs that act in accordance with Hooke's law and materials and springs that act in a nonlinear fashion); and
b. a curve for F RESTORING is predetermined based on consideration of:
i. the first direction and magnitude of magnetic force F magnetic of the stray magnetic field relative the actuator; and
ii. the direction and magnitude of force F FLOW of the flowable material relative the actuator

c. wherein F FLOW and F RESTORING can be one of:
i. aligned (⬆⬆);
ii. anti-aligned (⬆⬇); or
iii. perpendicular (⬆→).

8 . The automatic magnetic valve of claim 1 wherein the restoring force component comprises:
a. orientation of the valve body to have freedom of movement of the actuator along its ROM substantially vertically in operating conditions of the valve;
b. gravity as the restoring force based on mass of the actuator and position along its ROM.

9 . The automatic magnetic valve of claim 1 wherein the off-board magnetic field is:
a. generated off-board the automatic magnetic valve; and/or
b. without a control circuit on-board the automatic magnetic valve; and/or
c. without the need of an on-board electrical power source; and/or
d. one of:
i. dedicated to valve operation, or
ii. dual function of valve operation and another function.

10 . The automatic magnetic valve of claim 1 wherein the off-board magnetic field varies between a low field of lower magnetic force in the first direction and a high field of higher magnetic force in the first direction, wherein the low field can have a magnitude of zero to a first value, and the high field can have a magnitude above the first value.

11 . The automatic magnetic valve of claim 10 wherein the automatic magnetic valve can be configured for one of:
normally open configuration constructed such that when the off-board magnetic field is low, the valve actuator and housing allow flowable material to flow through the housing; and
normally closed configuration constructed such that when the off-board magnetic field is low, the valve actuator and housing fully block the path of flowable material, thereby preventing flowable material flow.

12 . One or more of the automatic magnetic valve of claim 1 in combination with:
a. a source of off-board magnetic field; and
b. a source of flowable material.

13 . The automatic magnetic valve of claim 12 wherein the source of off-board magnetic field comprises a magnetocaloric heat pump system where the off-board magnetic field is primarily used for inducing magnetocaloric effect in a magnetocaloric material.

14 . The automatic magnetic valve of claim 12 wherein a mechanism and source of off-board magnetic field comprises one of:
a. a faucet where the off-board magnetic field is primarily used for inducing docking of a spray nozzle and a hose;
b. a concealed mechanism to control flow of a gas or a liquid (including flammable and corrosive) where the off-board magnetic field is primarily used for inducing rotary motion of a motor or pump;
c. a plastic pipe where the off-board magnetic field is primarily used for inducing rotary motion of a motor or pump;
d. an elastocaloric heat pumping system where the off-board magnetic field is primarily used for inducing rotary or linear motion of a motor;
e. a tamper-proof valve assembly where the off-board magnetic field influences the magnetic actuator inside the valve body;
f. a pressure vessel where the off-board magnetic field influences the magnetic actuator inside the pressure vessel;
g. a valve assembly where the off-board magnetic field is controlled by a signal from a control location remote from the valve assembly.

15 . A method of controlling flow of a flowable material comprising:
a. interposing an automatic magnetic valve comprising a magnetic actuator moveable in a valve body relative to a flow path for the flowable material through the valve body without any on-board magnetic field source for actuating the valve, or control circuit or electrical power source; b. selecting operating state of the valve to normally-open or normally-closed by configuration of the restoring force component relative to the magnetic actuator; c. positioning the valve relative to an off-board magnetic field to effectively take advantage of a direction and magnitude of the off-board magnetic field; and d. operatively connecting and controlling a flow of the flowable material through the valve body with the off-board magnetic field.

16 . The method of claim 15 wherein the automatic magnetic valve comprises of one or more of the automatic valve variations of claims 1-14 .

17 . The method of claim 15 where in the flowable material comprises:
a. a liquid phase material (including fluids);
b. a gaseous phase material;
c. a solid phase material; or
d. a combination of any of the foregoing.

18 . The method of claim 15 wherein the actuator comprises:

Assignees

• Univ Iowa State Res Found Inc

Inventors

• Cho Kyuil
• Pecharsky Vitalij K
• Slaughter-Zrostlik Julie
• Griffith Lucas
• Czernuszewicz Agata

Classifications

• F16K31/086

  the magnet being movable and actuating a second magnet connected to the closing element · CPC title

• F16K31/084

  the magnet being used only as a holding element to maintain the valve in a specific position, e.g. check valves (F16K31/082, F16K31/086 take precedence) · CPC title

• F16K31/082

  using a electromagnet and a permanent magnet · CPC title

• F16K3/0254

  being operated by particular means · CPC title

• F16K31/08 Primary

  using a permanent magnet · CPC title