Gas flow valve and methods of operating thereof
AssigneeApplied Materials, Inc.
InventorChang Ke
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Certain embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a gas flow valve. The gas flow valve includes a housing configured to receive a flow of gas. The gas flow valve further includes a plunger configured to move between a closed position and one or more open positions within the housing. The gas flow valve further includes a position sensor configured to measure a distance associated with a difference in position of the plunger between the closed position and the one or more open position. The gas flow valve further includes a force sensor coupled to the plunger and configured to measure a force exerted by the plunger in the closed position on a sealing surface.
Claims20
A gas flow valve, comprising:
- a housing configured to receive a flow of gas;
- a plunger configured to move between a closed position and one or more open positions within the housing;
- a position sensor configured to measure a distance associated with a difference in position of the plunger between the closed position and the one or more open positions;
- and
- a force sensor coupled to the plunger, wherein the force sensor is configured to measure a force exerted by the plunger in the closed position on a sealing surface and further configured to induce vibration on the sealing surface responsive to being energized to dislodge particles from the sealing surface.
A gas flow assembly, comprising:
- a valve comprising:
- a housing configured to receive a flow of gas;
- a plunger configured to move between a closed position and one or more open positions within the housing;
- a position sensor configured to measure a distance associated with a difference in position of the plunger between the closed position and the one or more open positions;
- and
- a force sensor coupled to the plunger, wherein the force sensor is configured to measure a force exerted by the plunger in the closed position on a sealing surface and further configured to induce vibration on the sealing surface responsive to being energized to dislodge particles from the sealing surface;
- a particle trap forming a chamber configured to separate particles from the flow of gas;
- and
- a processing device configured to cause the valve to actuate to control the flow of gas based on sensor data from one or more of the position sensor or the force sensor.
A method, comprising:
- receiving position data from a position sensor configured to measure a distance associated with a difference in position of a gas valve plunger configured to move between a closed position and one or more open positions;
- receiving force data from a force sensor coupled to the plunger and configured to measure a force exerted by the plunger in the closed position on a sealing surface;
- causing the plunger to actuate between the closed position and the one or more open positions based on one or more of the position data or the force data;
- and
- causing the force sensor to vibrate to dislodge particles from the sealing surface.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.