Valve with air-gap provision to prevent backflow

摘要

A valve is provided having an air gap to protect against backflow in a fluid system. The valve can also be used to control fluid flow while providing such backflow protection. The valve can be used with e.g., a reverse osmosis water filtration system and/or other systems. By incorporating both backflow protection and flow control into the same device, efficiencies in space, complexity, and/or installation time are provided.

主权项

1. A valve for preventing backflow, comprising:
a main body comprising
a first primary inlet,a primary outlet,a secondary inlet,a secondary outlet, anda secondary fluid channel connecting the secondary inlet with the secondary outlet, the secondary fluid channel defining a gap connected with an ambient that is exterior to the valve; and a rotatable valve element positioned within the main body, the valve element at least partially positioned in the secondary fluid channel and selectively rotatable between a position placing the first primary inlet in fluid communication with the primary outlet and a position disconnecting the first primary inlet from fluid communication with the primary outlet; wherein the main body extends longitudinally along a vertical axis between an upper end and a lower end, and wherein the gap is located at a position that is higher along the vertical axis than the secondary inlet and the secondary outlet.