Automatic valve shutoff device and methods
AssigneeUniversity of Washington through its Center for Commercialization
InventorsShwetak N. Patel, Timothy B. Campbell, Eric C. Larson, Gabriel A. Cohn
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Examples of automatic valve shutoff systems are described which may include an actuation device including an actuator and a valve attachment portion. The valve attachment portion may be configured for attachment with an existing valve in a fluid or compressible gas supply line. The system may further include a controller coupled to the actuation device, wherein the controller is configured to initiate a valve shutoff process in response to a wireless signal. Wake-up circuitry may be coupled to the controller and configured to monitor the supply line for vibrations and activate the controller in response to the vibrations.
Claims11
A method of closing or opening a manual valve coupled to a conduit for flowing a fluid therethrough, the method comprising:
- receiving a signal indicative of an instruction to close the manual valve;
- in response to the signal, removing a barrier provided between a pneumatic pressure source and an actuator coupled to the manual valve, wherein the removing comprises puncturing the barrier using a puncture device or melting the barrier using a chemical process;
- and
- rotating the manual valve using the actuator driven by the pneumatic pressure source.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.