Very small high pressure regulator
View Patent ↗A Gas regulator capable of reducing the pressure of a gas supply from thousands of psi to as low as 30 psi with an accuracy level of +/−1 psi. The regulator uses at least two oppositely oriented gas stages to reduce the pressure. The first stage performs gross pressure reductions and subsequent stages perform fine pressure reductions. The regulator easily connects to commercially available gas bottles and can easily activate or deactivate gas flow without needing to disconnect the gas bottle. The regulator has a compact design and can provide readings which can be integrated into computer, online, or dynamic systems.
1. A device for regulating the pressure of a gas comprising:
at least two ports, one being a gas input port and one being a gas output port and
a gas flow path between and in fluid communication with the at least two ports, the gas flow path comprising two or more pressure reducing gas stages each stage having two ends, one being a first end and one being a second end; wherein
at least two of the at least two stages are positioned along substantially parallel axis and have their two ends oriented in substantially opposite directions;
in which at least one of the pressure reducing gas stages comprises a piston assembly, the piston assembly comprising:
at least two chambers having walls, one being a wider chamber and one being a narrower chamber,
the wider chamber engaged to the first end and in fluid communication with the narrower chamber,
the narrower chamber engaged to the second end; and
a piston having a shaft narrower than the width of the narrower chamber and a wider end portion comprised of compression rings, the piston capable of being slidably moved between at least two configurations, one being an open configuration and one being a closed configuration, in the closed configuration the piston blocking any possible fluid flow between the wider chamber and the narrow chamber,
when in the closed configuration, fluid in the wider chamber having an exiting pressure, the exiting pressure being lower than the pressure in the narrower chamber;
further comprising a center block, the center block defining at least a portion of the walls of at least one chamber, and
further comprising a transfer plate, the transfer plate defining the walls of at least a portion of at least one of the chambers and at least a portion of the walls of the fluid conduit wherein the second end of a first pressure reducing stage and the first end of another of the two or more pressure regulator stages are interconnected by the transfer plate.
2. The device of claim 1 in which the gas input port is a C-10 adapted port.
3. The device of claim 1 further comprising a second output port.
4. The device of claim 1 having an entering pressure defining the air pressure in the narrow chamber and an activation pressure level, wherein the entering pressure exerts a pushing force against the piston which moves the piston into the closed configuration when the entering pressure exceeds the activation pressure level.
5. The device of claim 4 in which the entering pressure is one value selected from the range consisting of between 3000 psi and 100 psi.
6. The device of claim 4 in which the exiting pressure is one value selected from the range consisting of between 99.9 psi and 30 psi.
7. The device of claim 4 in which the piston assembly further comprises a biasing device, the biasing device applying a countervailing force oppositely vectored relative to the pushing force, the biasing device pushing the piston assembly into the open configuration when the pressure in the wider chamber equals the exiting pressure.
8. The device of claim 4 in which the biasing device is a spring disposed about at least a portion of the shaft.
9. The device of claim 1 in which there are two stages a first stage and a second stage, the wider chamber of the first stage and the narrower chamber of the second stage being interconnected by a fluid conduit having walls, the exiting pressure of the first stage defining the entering pressure of the second stage.
10. The device of claim 1 in which the device has a length of 4.64 inches, a width of 1.25 inches and a height of 2.75.
11. The device of claim 9 further comprising a frit between the fluid conduit and the narrower chamber of the second stage.
12. The device of claim 11 in which the frit blocks the flow of particles further along the gas flow path having a size greater than 10 microns.
13. The device of claim 1 further comprising a shut off assembly engaged to the gas flow path, the shut off assembly having at least two settings, a closed setting and an open setting, the shut off assembly blocking the flow of gas along the gas flow path when in the closed setting and allowing the flow of gas along the gas flow path when in an open setting.
14. The device of claim 13 in which the shut off assembly is positioned along the gas flow path between the second stage and the gas output port.
15. The device of claim 1 comprising at least one diagnostic instrument capable of indicating the pressure within a portion of the gas flow path, the diagnostic instrument being connected to a portion of gas flow path by a diagnostic conduit.
16. The device of claim 15 in which the diagnostic instrument is one instrument selected from the list consisting of: pressure gauge, pressure switch, interactive diagnostic system, computer operating system, and any combination thereof.