# US 12,001,231 B2 · Flow rate control device

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- Number: US 12,001,231 B2
- Document ID: US12001231B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 18/079,872
- Filed: 2022-12-12
- Published: 2023-11-16
- Granted: 2024-06-04
- Earliest claimed: 2022-05-16
- Assignees: Toflo Corporation
- Applicants: Toflo Corporation
- Inventors: Fumikazu Tamura; Shinji Tobimatsu; Masatoshi Nakamura; Kenji Yamamoto
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12001231B2

## CPC

- G05D 7/0623: {characterised by the set value given to the control element}
- G05D 7/0635: {by action on throttling means (G05D7/0688, G05D7/0694 take precedence)}
- Y02A 20/00: Water conservation; Efficient water supply; Efficient water use
- G05D: SYSTEMS FOR CONTROLLING OR REGULATING NON-ELECTRIC VARIABLES
- Y02A: TECHNOLOGIES FOR ADAPTATION TO CLIMATE CHANGE

## Abstract

A flow rate control device capable of suppressing overshoot while improving responsiveness at the beginning of flow rate control includes: a flow rate meter that measures a flow rate of a fluid flowing through a flow path; a flow rate regulating valve that regulates the flow rate of the fluid flowing through the flow path; and a control part that controls an opening degree of the flow rate regulating valve based on a measurement result of the flow rate meter, the flow rate control device has: a low flow rate rapid valve opening function that accelerates an outflow of the fluid by forcibly opening the opening degree of the flow rate regulating valve from fully closed degree to a designated opening degree when the opening degree of the flow regulating valve is fully closed and a flow rate control is started; and an overshoot suppressing function that is used for suppressing the overshoot by making the flow rate control stand by until a preset standby time or a preset flow rate threshold is reached immediately after the low flow rate rapid valve opening function works.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A flow rate control device comprising:
a flow rate meter that measures a flow rate of a fluid flowing through a flow path;
a flow rate regulating valve that regulates the flow rate of the fluid flowing through the flow path; and
a control part that controls an opening degree of the flow rate regulating valve based on a measurement result of the flow rate meter,
wherein the flow rate control device includes:
a low flow rate rapid valve opening function that accelerates an outflow of the fluid by forcibly opening the opening degree of the flow rate regulating valve from fully closed degree to a designated opening degree when the opening degree of the flow regulating valve is fully closed and a flow rate control is started; and
an overshoot suppressing function that is used for suppressing the overshoot by, immediately after the low flow rate rapid valve opening function starts to work, standing by in a state holding the opening degree of the flow rate regulating valve being forcibly opened to the designated opening degree till whichever comes first between a lapse of a duration of a preset standby time and a preset flow rate threshold being reached,
wherein the preset flow rate threshold is determined to be reached when a specified flow rate variation amount or less and a specified number of sampling times or more are detected, or when a set flow rate value or more is continuously detected for a plurality of times.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The flow rate control device according to claim 1, wherein in the low flow rate rapid valve opening function, the flow rate control device sets that the opening degree of the flow rate regulating valve is forcibly opened from fully closed degree to the designated opening degree in the state that the opening degree of the flow rate regulating valve is fully closed and an instantaneous flow rate value measured by the flow rate meter is OL/min.