US 4,398,562 AGranted

Motorized diverter valve

AssigneeRichdel, Inc.

InventorsMyrl J. Saarem, Donald E. Lovelace

Life of this patent

Estimating the term…

Loading patent…

Abstract

A motor driven diverter valve is provided which diverts fluid flow from a single inlet port to either one of two outlet ports, or vice versa. The valve finds general, although not exclusive, utility in solar heating systems for swimming pools, in which the valve is used selectively to divert water flow from the normal pump-filter loop of the pool installation through the solar collectors. In such an application, the diverter valve of the invention may be operated automatically in response to an electrical switching signal derived, for example, from a temperature controller in the solar heating control system, to direct the water through the solar collectors for one operating position of the valve, and to by-pass the solar collectors for a second operating position. The valve of the invention uses two synchronous permanent magnet drive motors which together consume less power than the conventional single shaded pole motor/gear box arrangement of the prior art.

Claims5

Dependent claims

A diverter valve assembly including a body defining a single inlet port and a pair of outlet ports;

a housing mounted on said body;
a drive shaft mounted on said body and extending into said housing to be rotatable about a particlar axis;
a diverter member mounted in said body on one end of said drive shaft to be turned by said drive shaft selectively to divert fluid from said inlet port to respective ones of said outlet ports as said shaft is rotated about said particular axis;
a pair of drive motors mounted in said housing on opposite sides of said drive shaft;
means including a gear coaxially mounted with respect to said drive shaft for coupling respective ones of said drive motors to said drive shaft;
a cam mounted on said drive shaft within said housing for rotation with said drive shaft;
switching means mounted in said housing in position to be operated by said cam when the drive shaft is turned from a first predetermined angular position to a second predetermined angular position in which said inlet port is coupled to one of said outlet ports by said diverter member, and when said drive shaft is turned from said second pre-determined angular position to said first predetermined angular position in which said inlet port is coupled to the other of said outlet ports by said diverter member;
and means electrically connecting said switching means to said motors to cause said motors to be deenergized each time the switching means is operated by said cam.

5 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.