The Toro Company

Anthony M Wlodarczyk

James T Wright

John L Baker

A valve for controlling the flow of a liquid includes a valve seat which is engaged by a selectively operable valve member. A pressure chamber above the valve member contains upstream pressurized fluid in the closed position of the valve. The valve is opened by bleeding off pressurized fluid from this pressure chamber. A manual bleed screw assembly is used to manually open the valve when desired by initiating this pressure bleed procedure from the pressure chamber. The bleed screw assembly bleeds the pressurized fluid to a downstream location in the flow path, rather than to atmosphere, without having to completely remove the bleed screw assembly from the port in which it is received.

Valve with downstream manual bleed

A fluid flow control valve has a diaphragm for sealing against a valve seat. The diaphragm has an enlarged resilient annular rim portion which is clamped between mating portions of the valve to seal and support the diaphragm within the valve. The annular rim portion comprises an annular bead that extends substantially completely around a peripheral edge of the diaphragm and is integrally molded with the diaphragm. In addition, a separate flexible ring member having a radially inwardly facing cavity for receiving the bead is separably attached to the bead such that the annular rim portion is formed both by the bead and the ring member.

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Redlands, CA, United States of America

Anthony M Wlodarczyk