Check Valve

A vacuum pump, comprising:

• a pump housing having a suction conduit, a discharge conduit and a chamber between said suction conduit and said discharge conduit;
• a piston reciprocally mounted in said chamber;
• a motor engaging said piston;
• a suction check valve disposed between said suction conduit and said chamber;
• a discharge check valve disposed between said chamber and said discharge conduit;
• and
• wherein each of said suction check valve and said discharge check valve comprises a valve body, a plurality of discharge port openings having at least one of a non-uniform width and a non-uniform position extending through said valve body and a flexible valve disk disposed generally adjacent to said valve body.

A method of reducing noise in a vacuum pump having a suction conduit, a discharge conduit, a chamber between the suction conduit and the discharge conduit and a piston reciprocally mounted in the chamber, comprising:

• providing a suction check valve between the suction conduit and the chamber;
• providing a discharge heck valve between the chamber and the discharge conduit;
• and
• wherein each of said suction check valve and said discharge check valve comprises a valve body, a plurality of discharge port openings having at least one of a non-uniform width and a non-uniform position extending through said valve body and a flexible valve disk disposed generally adjacent to said valve body.