Abstract: A bi-stable popper valve and a device for detecting blockage in a flow of a fluid are provided. The valve includes a membrane supporting two conformations: in a first conformation the membrane is convex in relation the upstream fluid, and in a second conformation the membrane can be concave in relation to the upstream fluid, such that in the first conformation the flow of the fluid through the membrane is prevented and in the second conformation the flow of the fluid through the membrane is permitted through a pore defined by the membrane in only the second conformation. The membrane changes from the first conformation to the second responsive to a pressure of the fluid meeting or exceeding an opening pressure value of the membrane. A sensor can detect a shift from the first conformation to the second conformation, indicating a flow, or absence of flow, of the fluid.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
August 8, 2017
Date of Patent:
April 19, 2022
Assignee:
PopFlow, LLC
Inventors:
Scott C. Mitchell, David Frederick Bauer, Alexander Joel Crain, Alexandra Payne Hamlin, Eldred Lee, Hunter Johnstone, Liam Sean Feeney
Abstract: A bi-stable popper valve and a device for detecting blockage in a flow of a fluid are provided. The valve includes a membrane supporting two conformations: in a first conformation the membrane is convex in relation the upstream fluid, and in a second conformation the membrane can be concave in relation to the upstream fluid, such that in the first conformation the flow of the fluid through the membrane is prevented and in the second conformation the flow of the fluid through the membrane is permitted through an pore defined by the membrane in only the second conformation. The membrane changes from the first conformation to the second responsive to a pressure of the fluid meeting or exceeding an opening pressure value of the membrane. A sensor can detect a shift from the first conformation to the second conformation, indicating a flow, or absence of flow, of the fluid.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
June 21, 2016
Date of Patent:
April 6, 2021
Assignee:
PopFlow, LLC
Inventors:
Scott C. Mitchell, David Frederick Bauer, Gabriella L. Grangard, Waad Kahouli, Christopher C. Dalldorf