Thermally responsive valve assembly

US5934552A · kind A · utility

Assignees

• Modine Manufacturing Company · US
• Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft · DE

Inventors

• Klaus Kalbacher · Rangendingen, DE
• Karl Schutterle · Neckartenzlingen, DE
• Axel Temmesfeld · Raubling, DE
• Winfrid Eckerskorn · Ottobrunn, DE

Key dates

• Filing date: Sep 12, 1997
• Grant date: Aug 10, 1999
• Expiry date: Sep 12, 2017

Classification

• Technology area (CPC Y): Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
• CPC primary: Y10S236/02
• WIPO field: Control
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

A thermostatic valve assembly includes three housing components (16, 18, 20) containing two interconnected chambers (64, 78). A first thermally responsive valve unit (68) is disposed in the chamber (64) while a second thermally responsive valve element (98) is disposed in the chamber (78). Both the chambers (64) and (78) have inlets (60, 110) and the chamber (64) has an outlet (66). The valve may assume configurations allowing a minimal flow (FIG. 2), a large volume warm up flow (FIG. 3), a mixed flow regimen (FIG. 4) and a pure cooling flow regimen (FIG. 5).