CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application claims the benefit pursuant to 35 U.S.C. 1 19(e) of

U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/351 , 188, filed 06/1 6/201 6, and U.S.

Provisional Application No. 62/351 ,494, filed 06/17/2016, each of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

Field

[0002] The present invention relates to the field of reverse osmosis water filters; and more specifically, to control valves for reverse osmosis water filters.

Background

[0003] The present invention represents improvements in the reverse

osmosis control valve disclosed in U. S. Patent No. 6, 1 10,360. That valve was a considerable advance in the art at the time of its development.

However it still had some problems, which problems have been accentuated as reverse osmosis filter system performance in terms of rate of production of product water has greatly increased over the years, as more fully described below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0004] The invention may best be understood by referring to the following description and accompanying drawings that are used to illustrate embodiments of the invention by way of example and not limitation. In the drawings, in which like reference numerals indicate similar elements:

[0005] FIG. 1 illustrates a control valve in accordance with the present

invention in a system shutoff position.

[0006] FIG. 2 illustrates the control valve of Figure 1 in a product water dispensing position.

[0007] FIG. 3 illustrates the control valve of Figure 1 in a product water production position. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0008] In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth.

However, it is understood that embodiments of the invention may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known circuits, structures and techniques have not been shown in detail in order not to obscure the understanding of this description.

[0009] In the following description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate several embodiments of the present invention. It is understood that other embodiments may be utilized, and mechanical compositional, structural, electrical, and operational changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. The following detailed description is not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of the embodiments of the present invention is defined only by the claims of the issued patent.

[0010] The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing

particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. Spatially relative terms, such as "beneath", "below", "lower", "above", "upper", and the like may be used herein for ease of description to describe one element's or feature's relationship to another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. It will be understood that the spatially relative terms are intended to encompass different orientations of the device in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if the device in the figures is turned over, elements described as "below" or "beneath" other elements or features would then be oriented "above" the other elements or features. Thus, the exemplary term "below" can encompass both an orientation of above and below. The device may be otherwise oriented (e.g., rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations) and the spatially relative descriptors used herein interpreted accordingly.

[0011] As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an", and "the" are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms "comprises" and/or "comprising" specify the presence of stated features, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.

[0012] The terms "or" and "and/or" as used herein are to be interpreted as inclusive or meaning any one or any combination. Therefore, "A, B or C" or "A, B and/or C" mean "any of the following: A; B; C; A and B; A and C; B and C; A, B and C." An exception to this definition will occur only when a combination of elements, functions, steps or acts are in some way inherently mutually exclusive.

[0013] Control valves in accordance with U.S. Patent No. 6,1 10,360 were first introduced in Florida, typically a warm water market. The valve used a Teflon piston as stated in the patent, selected to avoid wear on the O-rings from piston motion, and proved to be a success as long as there was never a severe shift in water temperatures. However, when cutting the Teflon material at one temperature to fabricate the piston, then operating the control valve at a lower temperature, the piston will shrink beyond operational dimensions, with the result that the water system will drain on its own. While Teflon has the desired lubricity, it is too unstable a material to properly function over a substantial temperature range, as can be expected in probably most regions of the U.S. and many other countries. To overcome this problem, the present invention utilizes a much more stable family of plastics for the material of the control valve piston, namely, acetal types of plastic, such as by way of example, Delrin as manufactured by DuPont and Celcon as manufactured by Celanese. The acetal plastics are much more stable than Teflon and maintain the required dimensional tolerances over the required temperature range to provide highly

satisfactory operation over any reasonable temperature range.

[0014] Also, the control valve of U.S. Patent No. 6, 1 10,360 was developed at a time when the daily output of a typical reverse osmosis membrane was on the order of 15 gallons per day. In that regard, it is important to note that in the design of the control valve of U.S. Patent No. 6,1 1 0,360, all of the functional operations are related to timing - when to vent, when to turn off, when to turn on, etc. In that regard, the control valve is intended to operate in conjunction with reverse osmosis filter systems having a bladder in the product water storage tank, whereby product water may be added to the internal volume of the bladder while the outer surface of the bladder is vented to atmospheric pressure during product water generation, and to provide squeeze water, that is reverse osmosis filter membrane waste water at tap water pressure, to the outer surface of the bladder to pressurize the product water during product water dispensing.

[0015] Figs. 1 , 2 and 3 illustrate a control valve in accordance with the

present invention wherein the major components of the control valve may be seen. The control valve includes a housing 20 with a control piston 22 therein, sealed at the left end by cap 24 and O-ring 26. The housing 20 includes four ports, namely a feed water port 28 (reverse osmosis filter membrane waste water at tap water pressure), a squeeze water port 30 and a drain port 32, together with product water connection 34. In these Figures, the cross section shown is a form of composite cross sections to place the ports 28, 30, and 32 and product water connection 34 in the same plane, which has distorted the control piston 22, though except for the flow path 40, the control piston 22 has a surface of revolution.

[0016] At the right end of housing 20 is a feed water metering screw 36

which has an extension 38 extending into an axial opening in the control piston 22, which together with flow path 40, allows a slow but positive rate of feed water through feed water port 28 when not blocked by O-rings between the housing 20 and the control piston 22, namely, O-ring 42.

[0017] In this embodiment, the reverse osmosis filter membrane is always exposed to the full feed water pressure in feed water port 28 and the left end, the larger end of control piston 22, is always exposed to a product water pressure through product water connection 34, which as shall be subsequently described, is isolated from reverse flow back to the product water storage tank by a check valve there between. Accordingly, as may be seen in Fig. 1 , when the product water storage tank is full of product water, the product water pressure in the storage tank will increase by continued, though slower, production of product water to increase the pressure in the product water connection 34, ultimately forcing the control piston 22 to the far right position, as shown in Fig. 1 , because of the difference in the areas of the two ends of the control piston 22. In this far right position, O-ring 42 blocks any feed water flow past the O-ring, stopping all water flow in the system. In that regard, as mentioned before, the reverse osmosis membrane in this embodiment is coupled to the raw water source (tap water) at all times, with feed water port 28 being coupled to the waste water outlet of the reverse osmosis filter unit. Accordingly, shutting off the flow through feed water port 28 shuts off all water flow through the system.

[0018] When a product water dispensing valve is opened to dispense the reverse osmosis filtered water, the product water pressure in product water connection 34 will immediately drop, allowing the feed water pressure in feed water port 28 to force the control piston 22 to the far left position, as shown in Fig. 2, moving the control piston past O-ring 42, but not past O- ring 44, so that now the feed water port 28 is coupled to the squeeze water port 30 to pressurize the outer surface of the bladder in the product water storage tank, which in turn forces product water within the bladder through the dispenser.

[0019] When the dispensing stops, the squeeze water port 30 is still coupled to the feed water port 28 so that the product water coupled to product water connection 34 is still at the squeeze water pressure, which is equal to the feed water pressure. Accordingly, control piston 22 will start to move to the right until the squeeze water port 30 is coupled to the drain port 32, as may be seen in Fig. 3. In this position, O-ring 42 blocks flow from feed water port 28 around the right end of control piston 22. Also, with the control piston 22 in the position shown in Fig. 3, the restricted feed water flow in flow path 40 is also coupled to the drain port 32 through vent/drain well 48 in the control piston 22. This causes the squeeze water pressure on squeeze water port 30 and on the outside of the product water storage tank to fall to

atmospheric pressure. However, the check valve previously mentioned prevents product water from flowing back out of product water connection 34, and of course because the dispensing valve is now closed, product water cannot flow out of the product water connection 34 through the dispensing valve, so the control piston 22 will stop at the position shown in Fig. 3. Under this condition, the pressure on the outside of the bladder in the product water storage tank is essentially atmospheric, and the feed water flow past the reverse osmosis membrane and through feed water port 28 is restricted. During this time, product water is being produced, thereby filling the storage tank with product water, after which product water pressure will increase as previously described, moving the control piston 22 to the far right position shown in Fig. 1 , shutting the system off.

[0020] However in the prior art systems, the low speed of movement of the control piston proved to be of vital importance for proper operation of the control valve. The vent/drain well of the piston in the prior art systems was cut at 90 degree angles. This has been found to cause at least two problems in the best present-day systems.

[0021] The first problem is that the width of the channel of the vent/drain well 48 from one wall to the other wall represents the time between squeeze venting and system shut down. Using the latest reverse osmosis membrane technology for current high product water production rates of 60 to 1 00 gallons per day achievable in the newest reverse osmosis filtering systems, such as those of U.S. Patent No. 7,601 ,256, the faster water causes the control piston 22 to move from the full squeeze position (dispensing) (Fig. 2) through squeeze water exhaust position (Fig. 3) to shutdown (Fig. 1 ) and never make water. This would only occur during the initial startup phase of the reverse osmosis filter system. Still, the system would not work right out of the box.

[0022] This problem is solved in the present invention by chamfering at least one side of the vent/drain well 48 in the control piston 22 as shown in the Figs. For the purposes of this specification, "chamfering" the side of the vent/drain well 48 means providing an angled wall on the vent/drain well as shown in the Figs. The "chamfering" extends into the vent/drain well 48 sufficiently further than the O-ring 44 such that the "chamfering" provides a path past the O-ring 44 that opens slowly as the control piston 22 moves to the right. The "chamfering" may extend to the full depth of the vent/drain well 48 as shown in the Figs, so that the "chamfering" connects the outer cylindrical surface of the control piston 22 to the parallel cylindrical surface at the bottom of the vent/drain well.

[0023] The chamfering of the side of the vent/drain well 48 achieves two things. First it starts venting the squeeze water past O-ring 44 early and slowly. This allows the system to stabilize and avoids or minimizes any momentary maintenance of product water pressure after venting of squeeze water occurs, slowing the movement of control piston 22 to the right and allowing it to stop when the squeeze water is vented past O-ring 44, stopping the flow of product water to the left side of the control piston 22, but holding its volume of water by the check valve previously described. Then when the system fills to product water storage tank bladder capacity, the product water pressure increases to supply more product water through product water connection 34, whereby the control piston 22 now continues the movement toward the right to finish the cycle to the full shut down as shown in Fig. 1 .

[0024] Finally, the chamfering of the vent/drain well 48 also prevents the otherwise square corner of the vent/drain well 48 from catching the O-ring 44, and provides a self-centering action to avoid that problem.

[0025] While certain exemplary embodiments have been described and shown in the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that such embodiments are merely illustrative of and not restrictive on the broad invention, and that this invention is not limited to the specific constructions and arrangements shown and described, since various other modifications may occur to those of ordinary skill in the art. The description is thus to be regarded as illustrative instead of limiting.