Societe Europeenne De Propulsion

Societe Anonyme:societe Europeenne De Propulsion

Patrick Garceau

Paul Dumont

Patrick Lhuillery

The retractable-gasket ball valve includes sealing means fixed on the valve body, and including, in particular, a gasket for providing sealing between the shutter member and the valve body when the shutter member is in a closed position, and further including a slide for causing said sealing means to move between a retracted position which is also a rest position in which the sealing means is spaced spart from the spherical shutter member, and a contact position in which the gasket is pressed against the shutter member. The valve includes a first resilient element of low stiffness which tends to separate the sealing means from the shutter member when the valve is brought to its open position, and a second resilient element of relatively greater stiffness which is put under tension by the slide a few degrees before the mechanical closure position of the valve when the gasket is in contact with the shutter member, and which exerts control pressure on said gasket in contact with the shutter member.

Retractable-gasket valve having two stiffnesses

A rotary actuator device having an annular piston rod, the device comprising at least one piston held provided with sealing means and co-operating with an annular piston rod mounted so as to be capable of moving in an annular chamber, together with means for selectively applying a fluid under pressure in said annular chamber, wherein the piston head co-operates with the piston rod via a hinge having one degree of freedom in rotation and one degree of freedom in translation, said hinge comprising a piece in the form of a knife whose edge co-operates with a V-groove in a female portion of triangular profile, the knife edge and the V-groove being parallel to the axis of rotation of the piston rod. This disposition enables the forces exerted on the sealing means to be brought back into balance, thereby increasing sealing even under high pressures.

Rotary actuator device having an annular piston rod

A ball valve comprising a valve body defining inlet and outlet sections, and a ball with a calibrated through-port. The valve further comprises a stem to rotate the ball between open and closed positions, a seal to insure a fluid tight closure of the valve when the ball is in the closed position, and a mechanism for retracting the seal. This seal retracting mechanism is selectively coupled to the stem, and the mechanism eliminates all contact, when the valve is in the open position, (i) between the ball and the seal, and (ii) between the stem and the seal retracting mechanism.

Growing community of inventors

Saint Marcel, France

Patrick Garceau