Frictionless position indication transfer mechanism for quarter-turn actuator

A system comprising:

• a valve installed along a pipeline and configured to move from a closed position to an open position;
• an actuator operatively coupled to the valve via a grooved scotch yoke, wherein the grooved scotch yoke comprises four mount slots machined into a top surface of the grooved scotch yoke;
• and
• a position indicator system operatively coupled to the actuator via the grooved scotch yoke, the position indicator system comprising:
• a cross drive bar comprising four cross arms, wherein each cross arm is installed within a corresponding mount slot in the grooved scotch yoke,
• a hole formed through each pair of cross arms and mount slots, wherein each hole extends from a corresponding cross arm into a corresponding mount slot in the grooved scotch yoke,
• a roll pin installed into each hole and fixedly connecting the cross drive bar to the grooved scotch yoke, and
• a position indicator comprising:
• a position indicator flange having four vertical slots, wherein each vertical slot is inserted over a corresponding cross arm on the cross drive bar, and
• an indicator arm jutting out from the position indicator, wherein the indicator arm is configured to indicate if the valve is in the open position or the closed position based on a rotation of the grooved scotch yoke.

A method comprising:

• installing a valve along a pipeline;
• controlling a flow of fluid through the pipeline by placing the valve in an open position or a closed position;
• operatively coupling an actuator to the valve using a grooved scotch yoke, wherein the grooved scotch yoke comprises four mount slots machined into a top surface of the grooved scotch yoke;
• operatively coupling a position indicator system to the actuator via the grooved scotch yoke, wherein the position indicator system comprises:
• a cross drive bar comprising four cross arms, wherein each cross arm is installed within a corresponding mount slot in the grooved scotch yoke,
• a hole formed through each pair of cross arms and mount slots, wherein each hole extends from a corresponding cross arm into a corresponding mount slot in the grooved scotch yoke,
• a roll pin installed into each hole and fixedly connecting the cross drive bar to the grooved scotch yoke, and
• a position indicator comprising:
• a position indicator flange having four vertical slots, wherein each vertical slot is inserted over a corresponding cross arm on the cross drive bar, and
• an indicator arm jutting out from the position indicator;
• and
• indicating whether the valve is in the open position or the closed position using the indicator arm, wherein the indicator arm indicates if the valve is in the open position or the closed position based on a rotation of the grooved scotch yoke.