Flow International Corporation

Shape Technologies Group, Inc.

Jordan J Hopkins

Mohamed Ahmed Hashish

Olivier L Tremoulet, Jr

Ethan E Romanoff

Glenn A Erichsen

Adrian Hawes

Mark F Huntley

Thomas W Sizemore

Jonathan M Stewart

Felice M Sciulli

Charles D Burnham

Paul H Tacheron

Alex M Chillman

Jiannan Zhou

John C Massenburg

Katherine J Zaring

Daniel Chin

Daniel Devine

Adam G Law

Brian Kent

Amanda C Kotchon

Craig D Sunada

Larry G Pearson

Greg Mital

William L Old

Blake G Bozlee

Adrian T Kirn

Olivier L Tremoulet

Disclosed herein are components, systems, and methods of operating an abrasive fluid jet system that recycles and reuses abrasive particles. The systems and methods described enable accurate metering and consistent feeding of wet abrasive particles thereby reducing the time and cost of operations associated with drying the recycled abrasive particles prior to reuse. The system may adjust a ratio of wet abrasive to dry abrasive being provided to a cutting head to form an abrasive fluid jet. Components of the system may overcome challenges associated with clumping and other issues that result in difficulty metering wet abrasive.

Systems and apparatus for use of wet recycled abrasive and methods of operation of said systems and apparatus

Systems and methods for providing real-time modification of cutting process programs using feedback from one or more sensors which measure one or more operational parameters of a cutting process and/or cutting apparatus. The sensor readings may be used to provide real-time modification of a motion program after such motion program has been provided to a motion controller. Examples of such operational parameters may include waterjet pump supply pressure, the abrasive mass flow rate, the force of the waterjet on the target piece, etc. The systems and methods discussed herein also utilize a cutting algorithm or program to calculate actual cut quality based on one or more sensor inputs, and to generate warnings or system shut-downs accordingly. The systems and methods discussed herein also utilize inspection devices to inspect coupons or first articles, and use the inspection data to autonomously modify motion programs and/or cutting process models without user intervention.

Autonomous modification of waterjet cutting systems

Reinforced diamond nozzles and methods of making the same for fluid jet cutting applications are provided. An example method includes forming or providing a tubular diamond body having a jet passage extending therethrough and establishing a protective casing around the tubular diamond body so that an entirety or substantially an entirety of an outer circumferential surface area of the tubular diamond body is directly contacted and reinforced by the protective casing. Establishing the protective casing around the tubular diamond body may include thermal spraying, casting, direct metal laser sintering, or other fabrication techniques.

Fluid jet nozzles and methods of making same

A seal assembly includes a seal body and an energizer. The seal assembly is dimensioned to lessen the chance of certain failure modes, such as back jetting of pressurized fluid that gets behind the energizer during a pressurization operation. A ratio of a lateral distance of the seal body to an axial length of the energizer is between 0.400 and 1.7087. A ratio of the lateral distance to an inner radius of the seal body is between 0.10 and 0.401. A ratio of a web thickness of the seal body to the inner radius is between 0.068 and 0.0881. A ratio of the difference between a radial height of the energizer and a groove height of the seal body to the radial height is between 0.050 and 0.155. A ratio of the difference between the radial height and the groove height to the inner radius is between 0.015 and 0.3486.

High pressure seal assembly

Disclosed herein are components, systems, and methods to improve characteristics of a manufactured article. Specifically, embodiments of a high pressure system includes an apparatus that subjects the article to specific pressures and temperatures for an amount of time to improve characteristics of the article. Methods of manufacturing include use of the high pressure system to subject the article to specific pressures and temperatures for an amount of time to improve characteristics of the article.

Systems and methods of interim and end of process treatment of manufactured articles using high pressure and waterjets

High pressure seal body

A relief valve assembly is provided for use in connection with high pressure and ultrahigh pressure pumps. The relief valve assembly includes a valve pin having an engagement portion with a tapered surface and a valve seat having a valve pin receiving aperture defining a tapered surface on the valve seat to sealingly mate with the engagement portion of the valve pin when the valve pin is seated against the valve seat in a seated configuration. The valve seat further includes at least one bypass passage that extends from the valve pin receiving aperture to an exterior surface of the valve seat such that when the valve pin is displaced away from the seated configuration fluid can pass through the bypass passage and an annular space created between the engagement portion of the valve pin and the valve seat. Systems incorporating the relief valve assembly are also provided.

Relief valve assembly and components thereof

A seal carrier is provided for an ultrahigh-pressure fluid system having a plunger configured to reciprocate therein along a longitudinal axis when the ultra-high pressure fluid system is in operation, the seal carrier having an inner surface provided with a first portion configured to captively receive a seal, substantially preventing displacement of the seal in a direction substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis, and a second portion configured to circumferentially surround a bearing. The seal carrier is further provided with an outer surface having a recess formed along at least a portion of a circumference thereof, the recess at least partially positioned opposite the first portion of the inner surface along a lateral axis substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis.

Method and apparatus for sealing an ultrahigh-pressure fluid system

Seal carrier for ultrahigh-pressure fluid systems

An ultrahigh-pressure fluid system, such as an ultrahigh-pressure fluid pump, includes an improved dynamic seal assembly that can withstand pressures above 40,000 psi, and more preferably, pressures up to and beyond 87,000 psi. The dynamic sealing assembly includes a plastic seal having a bore through which the plunger reciprocates, and a bearing positioned adjacent the seal, also having a bore through which the plunger reciprocates. A seal carrier surrounds the circumference of the bearing and is subjected to a compressive force that is sufficiently high to circumferentially collapse the seal carrier in a radial direction against the bearing. This collapse of the seal carrier against the bearing causes an inner surface of the bore through the bearing to achieve substantially uniform contact with an outer surface of the plunger when the assembly is subjected to ultrahigh-pressure, thereby eliminating gaps that occur in prior art systems. By eliminating any gap between the seal carrier and the bearing, and between the bearing and the plunger, the present invention eliminates any pathway through which the seal might otherwise extrude, particularly when subjected to high pressures up to and beyond 40,000 psi, and more particularly, up to and beyond 87,000 psi.

This invention relates to methods and apparatus for recovering abrasive for use with abrasive jet cutting systems. In one embodiment, an apparatus in accordance with the invention includes an abrasive-laden fluid handling device coupled to a catcher tank of an abrasive jet cutting system, a pre-classifier fluidly coupled to the abrasive-laden fluid handling device, a hydro-classifier fluidly coupled to the pre-classifier, a fine-particle separation tank fluidly coupled to a clarified-fluid flow outlet of the hydro-classifier, a wet abrasive receptacle positioned to receive a wet recovered abrasive discharged from the hydro-classifier, a de-watering device engageable with the wet recovered abrasive in wet abrasive receptacle, and a dryer unit. The abrasive-laden fluid handling device may include an abrasive-laden fluid conduit having a first end in fluid communication with the catcher tank and an abrasive-laden fluid outlet. Alternately, the abrasive-laden fluid handling device may include a fluid drive system. In another embodiment, a de-watering device includes a housing having a wet abrasive intake and a de-watered abrasive, and an eductor port situated along an abrasive travel path extending between the wet abrasive intake and the de-watered abrasive outlet, an eductor inlet coupled to the eductor port and coupleable to a source of eduction air, and a transport device. In a further embodiment, an apparatus includes an airflow control valve fluidly coupled to the eductor port and positionable in a first position to draw an entrained airflow from within the housing through the eductor port, and a second position to backflow the eduction air through the eductor port into the housing.

Apparatus and methods for recovering abrasive from an abrasive-laden fluid for use with abrasive jet cutting systems

An improved apparatus and methods for recovering abrasive from an abrasive-laden fluid are shown and described. An abrasive-laden fluid handling device is coupled to a catcher tank to collect abrasive-laden fluid and transport it to a hydro-classifier. Wet recovered abrasive is discharged from the hydro-classifier and transferred to a de-watering device. The de-watering device removes water from the abrasive by decanting fluid and via use of an air eduction system. De-watered abrasive is then ejected from the de-watering device to a dryer unit, to be further dried and processed for reuse.

Apparatus and methods for recovering abrasive from an abrasive-laden fluid

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Seattle, WA, United States of America

Jordan J Hopkins