A valve arrangement from microstructured components worked out of a basic body, for the control of fluids, include an actuation element which is movable relative to a flow path distributor and opens or closes fluid paths depending on its position. A transition from one position into the other is effected by adding an actuating drive connected to an electrical power source. The actuation element is held in its switch position. For a high fluid flow, a large force can be applied to the actuation element. The actuating drive works according to an operating principle aimed at covering the longest distance possible. A holding device is provided, which works according to an operating principle working independent of the first operating principle and provides the generation of the greatest cohesion possible.

Valve arrangement of microstructured components

A micro-fluid valve or pump has a piezoelectric control with a flat substrate, one side of which has a detent (10) with a link channel and a twin membrane layer extending from the substrate outer margin over the detent. The two membrane layers are joined together. One membrane is piezo-ceramic membrane which deflects into and out of the detent on electrical command. Preferred Features: The detent is dish-shaped. The second membrane (7) is also formed from a piezo-electric material with a similar thermal coefficient of expansion to that of the first (4).

Piezo-electrically controlled micro actuator for fluids

An active valve is controlled and driven by external electrical actuation of a ferroelectric actuator to provide for improved passage of the fluid during certain time periods and to provide positive closure of the valve during other time periods. The valve provides improved passage in the direction of flow and positive closure in the direction against the flow. The actuator is a dome shaped internally prestressed ferroelectric actuator having a curvature, said dome shaped actuator having a rim and an apex, and a dome height measured from a plane through said rim said apex that varies with an electric voltage applied between an inside and an outside surface of said dome shaped actuator.

/pdf/ferroelectric-fluid-flow-control-valve-d8k79cnbe8.pdf

Ferroelectric fluid flow control valve

PURPOSE:To miniaturize and simplify the constitution of a flow adjusting device and also to improve the performance of machining and control by using a bimorph type piezoelectric element so as to adjust the flow. CONSTITUTION:Since the bimorph type piezoelectric element 11 is formed by overlapping piezoelectric elements expanded and contracted reciprocally in response to a voltage, the element 11 is changed from, e.g., state 11a to 11b in response to a voltage of a power supply 13 controlled by a signal transmitted from a flow control circuit 5. That is, the distance between a gas flowing part of an oriffice 10 and the piezoelectric element 11 is adjusted by a generated voltage of the controlled power supply 13 so as to control the flow of gas. The constitution comprising the oriffice 10 and the bimorph type piezoelectric element 11 is simplified for the flow adjusting part, the performance of machining is improved, the miniaturization is attained, and the displacement is controlled by a voltage applied to the piezoelectric element, then a high flow control performance is attained.

Shimada Tadanori

Papers

Flow adjusting device