US 5,398,724 A · High speed electrically actuated gaseous fuel admission valve

Abstract

An electronic fuel admission system for use in an industrial engine or the like, having high speed electrically operated flow control valve assemblies for controlling fuel flow to the engine's cylinders via an air intake system is disclosed. The valve assembly comprises two opposed face-to-face disks; one disk being fixed, the other being translatable with respect to the fixed disk. Both disks include ports distributed around their surfaces such that flow is prevented when the disks abut yet a slight separation results in a relatively high flow rate. The translatable disk is connected to an armature which is associated with a high permeability magnetic core having a coil for generating magnetic flux within the core. The system includes a two phase driver for energizing the coil which first provides a high current of short duration to rapidly generate flux in the core and rapidly attract the armature thereby separating the translatable disk from the fixed disk and opening the valve. The two phase driver then provides the coil with a lower current to lower the flux in the core to a level that will enable rapid closing of the valve, but which remains sufficient to hold the disks apart in the open position. Finally, the disk is rapidly closed by collapsing the flux field in the core such that the translatable disk compresses against the fixed disk.

Claims21

Dependent claims

A high speed electrically energized flow control valve assembly comprising, in combination:

a valve body with an inlet port and an outlet port, the flow control valve assembly being constructed to control flow from a higher pressure region connected to the inlet port to a lower pressure region connected to the outlet port;
a pair of opposed disks mounted in the valve body including a first disk and a second disk, the first disk defining a nested porting arrangement including interconnected lands defining multiple concentric ports with multiple peripheries, the second disk having lands disposed opposite the concentric ports of the first disk, one of the opposed disks being translatable between a closed position in which the lands of the second disk close the concentric ports of the first disk and an open position in which the disks are separated a predetermined distance to open the concentric ports at the peripheries thereof, the concentric ports of the first disk and the lands of the second disk exposing areas to the high and low pressure regions so as to provide a pressure seal;
and,
a low mass armature attached to one of the opposed disks and associated with a core for generating magnetic fields, the armature and the core defining an air gap therebetween sufficiently small to produce a magnetic field adequate to overcome the pressure seal but sufficiently large to allow separation of the opposed disks by the predetermined distance, thereby to open the valve assembly.

1 more element

A high speed electrically actuated flow control valve assembly comprising, in combination:

a face-type valve assembly having two opposed face-to-face disks biased into juxtaposition by a pressure imbalance, at least one of the disks having a nested porting arrangement which prevents flow when the disks are juxtaposed yet permits high flow resulting from the pressure imbalance when the disks are separated a small predetermined distance;
an armature connected to at least one of the disks for separating the disks when subjected to a magnetic field;
a high permeability magnetic core associated with the armature and having a coil for energizing the core for generating the magnetic field which attracts the armature;
the armature and the core defining an air gap therebetween sufficiently small to produce a magnetic field adequate to overcome the pressure imbalance but sufficiently large to allow separation of the disks by the small predetermined distance;
and,
a two phase driver for the coil having a pull-in phase and a hold-in phase, the pull-in phase delivering a high current which is controllably ramped at a predetermined rate to a first given level for controllably powering the coil to rapidly separate the disks consistently from cycle to cycle, and the hold-in phase delivering reduced current to the coil at a second given level adequate to hold the disks apart but to promote rapid release and collapse of energy in the coil when the face type valve assembly is to be closed.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

High speed electrically actuated gaseous fuel admission valve

Life of this patent

High speed electrically actuated gaseous fuel admission valve

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims21