Feather valve

Claim 2

A valve assembly comprising: valve seat means, said valve seat means including a flat seating surface and having at least one elongated port; guard means, said guard means being provided with a plurality of ports, the ports in said guard means being offset with respect to said port in said valve seat means, the ports in said guard means being separated by rib means, said rib means being generally aligned with the port in said valve seat means and having smoothly curved concave surface means facing said valve seat means; flexible strip means having a first end portion and a second end portion, said flexible strip means being positioned between said valve seat means and said guard means, said strip means being aligned with said port in said valve seat means and said rib means in said guard means, said strip means having a width which exceeds that of the port in said valve seat means, said strip means normally being flat and contacting the seating surface of said valve seat means whereby said strip means covers said port in said valve seat means to prevent flow through the valve when said flexible strip means is in an undeflected condition; a first strip support means and a second strip support means, said first and second strip support means being located on opposite ends of said rib means and receiving said first and second end portions of the flexible strip means, said first and second strip support means comprising a plastic material having a low coefficient of friction, said first and second end portions of said flexible strip means sliding with respect to the first and second support means to allow for flexure of said flexible strip means and to permit flow through the valve when said flexible strip means is in a deflected condition; and shock absorbing strip means extending between the first and second strip support means and positioned between said strip means and said rib means, said shock absorbing strip means comprising a plastic material which absorbs and damps forces resulting from the impact of said strip means on said shock absorbing strip means when the end portions of the strip means slide with respect to the first and second support means and said flexible strip means is deflected to open the valve.

Claim 3

The valve assembly of claim 1 wherein: said shock absorbing means is a layer of material adhered to said concave surface means of said rib means.

Claim 4

The valve assembly of claim 1 wherein said first and second strip support means each include a body having a recess for receiving the end portions of the flexible strip means, said recess defining a shoulder, two edges, and a floor, said shoulder restraining the flexible strips in a direction parallel to the longitudinal axis of the strip, said edges restraining movement of the strips in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the strip, and said floor being shaped to define a curved continuation of said smoothly curved concave surface means of said rib means.

Claim 5

The valve assembly of claim 3 wherein said guard means further comprises: recesses formed in the surface of said guard means which face said seat means, said recesses being located at the opposite ends of each of said rib means, said recesses being shaped to receive said bodies of said first and second flexible strip support means wherein said shock absorbing strip means defines a first end portion and a second end portion and wherein said first and second end portions of the shock absorbing strip means are received by the recesses in the bodies of said first and second flexible strip support means.

Claim 6

The valve assembly of claim 4 wherein the edges of the recess of the bodies of the first and second strip support means prevent the flexible strip means from contacting said guard means.

Claim 7

A valve assembly comprising: valve seat means, said valve seat means including a flat seating surface and having a plurality of elongated ports in a parallel array; guard means, said guard means having a plurality of elongated ports in a parallel array, the ports in said guard means being offset with respect to said ports in said valve seat means, said ports in said guard means being separated by ribs, said ribs being generally aligned with said ports in said valve seat means and having smoothly curved concave surfaces facing said valve seat means; flexible strips having a first end portion and a second end portion and positioned between said valve seat means and said guard means, each of said strips being aligned with an associated one of said ports in said valve seat means and an associated one of said ribs in said guard means, each of said strips having a width which exceeds that of the associated port in said valve seat means, said strips normally being flat and contacting the seating surface of said valve seat means whereby said strips cover said ports in said valve seat means to prevent flow through the valve when the flexible strips are in an undeflected condition; a first strip support means and a second strip support means associated with each rib means, the first and second support means being located on opposite ends of the rib means and receiving the first and second end portions of the flexible strip means, the first and second end portions of the strips sliding with respect to said first and second support means to allow for flexure of said flexible strips to permit flow through the valve when said flexible strips are in a deflected condition; and a plurality of shock absorbing strip means associated with each of the rib means, said shock absorbing strip means extending between the first and second strip support means and positioned between each of said flexible strips and each of said rib means, said shock absorbing strip means comprising a plastic material which absorbs and damps forces resulting from the impact of said flexible strips on said shock absorbing strip means when the end portions of the flexible strips slide with respect to the first and second strip support means and said flexible strips are deflected to open the valve.

Claim 8

A valve assembly comprising: valve seat means, said valve seat means including a flat seating surface and having a plurality of elongated ports in a parallel array; guard means, said guard means having a plurality of elongated ports in a parallel array, the ports in said guard means being offset with respect to said ports in said valve seat means, said ports in said guard means being separated by ribs, said ribs being generally aligned with said ports in said valve seat means and having smoothly curved concave surfaces facing said valve seat means; flexible strips having a first end portion and a second end portion and positioned between said valve seat means and said guard means, each of said strips being aligned with an associated one of said ports in said valve seat means and an associated one of said ribs in said guard means, each of said strips having a width which exceeds that of the associated port in said valve seat means, said strips normally being flat and contacting the seating surface of said valve seat means whereby said strips cover said ports in said valve seat means to prevent flow through the valve when the flexible strips are in an undeflected condition; a first strip support means and a second strip support means associated with each rib means, the first and second support means being located on opposite ends of the rib means and receiving the first and second end portions of the flexible strip means, the first and second end portions of the strips sliding with respect to said first and second support means to allow for flexure of said flexible strips to permit flow through the valve when said flexible strips are in a deflected condition; and a plurality of shock absorbing strip means associated with each of the rib means, said shock absorbing strip means extending between the first and second strip support means and positioned between each of said flexible strips and each of said rib means, said shock absorbing strip means comprising a plastic material which absorbs and damps forces resulting from the impact of said flexible strips on said shock absorbing strip means when the end portions of the flexible strips slide with respect to the first and second strip support means and said flexible strips are deflected to open the valve.

Claim 9

The valve assembly of claim 6 wherein: said shock absorbing means is a layer of material adhered to said concave surface of each rib.

Claim 10

The valve assembly of claim 6 wherein the first and second strip support means each include a body including a recess for receiving the end portions of the flexible strip means, said recess defining a shoulder, a floor and two edges, said shoulder restraining the flexible strips in a direction parallel to the longitudinal axis of the strip, said edges restraining movement of the strips in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the strip, and said floor being shaped to define a curved continuation of said smoothly curved surface means of said rib means.

Claim 11

The valve assembly of claim 8 wherein said guard means further comprises: recesses formed in the surface of said guard means which faces said seat means, said recesses being located at the opposite ends of each of said rib means, said recesses being shaped to receive said bodies of said first and second flexible strip support means, and wherein said shock absorbing strip means defines a first end portion and a second end portion, and wherein said first and second end portions of the shock absorbing strip means are received by the recesses in the bodies of said first and second flexible strip support means.

Claim 12

The valve assembly of claim 9 wherein the edges of the recess of the bodies of the first and second strip support means prevent the flexible strip from contacting said guard means.