US3797961A - Centrifugal fan - Google Patents

Abstract

A centrifugal fan, the rotor of which is driven through the agency of a support plate from the drive shaft of a motor or from the shaft of a V-belt drive, and incorporating a housing having a drive opening, a suction connection and a pressure connection, and wherein the housing is formed of at least three components. The one housing component having the pressure connection can be shifted or displaced relative to the other two side components having the drive opening and the suction connection, and can be fixed by means of a holding mechanism in desired position. According to the invention, the rotor is detachably connected with the support plate, and the ring-shaped disks of the rotor having the buckets or blades each possess at least two holes arranged symmetrically with respect to one another and extending coaxially with respect to the axis of the rotor.

Description

[ Mar. 19, 1974 ABSTRACT the rotor of which is driven through rom the drive shaft of a belt drive, and incorpoa housing having a drive opening. a suction conand wherein the anism in desired position. According to the rotor is detachably connected with 3 Claims, 2 Drawing Figures the support plate, and the ring-shaped disks of the rotor having the buckets or blades each possess at least two holes arranged symmetrically with respect to one another and extending coaxially with respect to United States Patent Brechbuhl CENTRIFUGAL FAN Inventor: Heinrich Brechbuhl,

l-lombergstrasse 56, 3612 Steffisburg. Switzerland June 19, 1972 Appl. No.: 264,243

[22] Filed:

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data 1 O H m mm w 2 2 4 4 4 9 2 l 7 07 N l m m M n 2 m M 3 m 4 00 a 6 m m 2 5 I. l 9 a y 04 .m l 4/m w 4 m S u m Mm 1 m of W m Fm L u C mm m QM M U [F N N U 55 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Pmmiuummm 3791.961

SHEEI 2 (IF 2 FIG. 2

CENTRIFUGAL FAN BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a new and improved centrifugal fan or ventilator, the rotor of which is driven through the agency of a support plate from the drive shaft of a motor or from the shaft of a V-belt drive, said centrifugal fan comprising a housing having a drive opening, a suction connection and a pressure connection, the housing being formed of at least three components, wherein the one component with the pressure connection can be displaced relative to the other side components with the drive opening and the suction connection and can be fixedly clamped in desired position by means of a holding or retaining mechanism.

The heretofore known centrifugal fans possess a unilateral or one-side construction, that is, the erection of the rotor remains unchanged with a construction of the fan mounted at a drive shaft.

This is a considerable drawback, expecially for such installations where oftentimes there is required a change in the direction of the air flow. In order to meet this requirement, the conventional fans must be rebuilt or a new type must be acquired suitable for fulfilling the encountered needs.

However, there are also known to the art fan or ventilator constructions, the housing of which has two oppositely situated openings, which, on the one hand, are closed by a motor housing, and on the other hand, by a suction connection or stud. wherein both such components are detachably secured to flanges of the fan housing. In this case, the motor housing with the rotor and the suction connection can be mutually shifted or displaced, whereby also the pressure connection is also displaced through 180.

The drawback of this proposed solution resides in the fact that at least three components of the fan must be shifted or displaced in order to realize the desired effect. Furthermore, the drive shaft extends to the region of the rotor, so that the rotor together with the motor housing must be exchanged.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Hence, it will be noted that the art is still in need of a centrifugal fan which is not associated with the aforementioned drawbacks and limitations of the prior art proposals discussed above. Therefore, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide a new and improved construction of centrifugal fan or ventilator which effectively and reliably fulfills the existing need in the art and is not associated with the aforementioned drawbacks and limitations of the heretofore considered state-of-the-art proposals.

Another and more specific object of the present invention relates to a centrifugal fan construction which overcomes the previously discussed drawbacks and the rotor of which as well as also pressure connection of which can be shifted in a most simple manner through 180 to the opposite side.

Now, in order to implement these and still further objects of the invention, which will become more readily apparent as the description proceeds, the invention contemplates that the rotor is detachably connected with the support plate and that the ring-shaped disks of the rotor having the blades each possesses at least two mutually symmetrically arranged holes which extend coaxially with regard to the axis of the rotor.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above, will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a side view of a preferred embodiment of centrifugal fan of ventilator according th this invention as veiwed from the suction side; and

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the centrifugal fan depicted in FIG. I together with a drive motor, and viewed substantially along the lines II-II thereof.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Describing now the drawings, the centrifugal fan or ventilator l depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2, as contemplated by this development, can be mounted at the drive side directly at the drive shaft 2 of a suitable drive mechanism, here in the form of a drive motor 3. This drive motor 3 embodies a hub disk 5 keyed to drive shaft 2. A support plate 12 is threadably connected with the hub disk 5, and at the support plate there is attached by means of screws 7 the ring-shaped disk 60 of a rotor 6. Rotor 6 of fan 1 is provided with inclined extending blades or buckets 60 which extend between the two ring- shaped disks 6a and 6b of the rotor 6. The entire rotor 6 is formed of a suitable plastic material and therefore easily can be turned through 180", following loosening of the screws 7 at the disk 6a, and by means of the disk 6b can be again mounted at the support plate 12 and again threadably attached. For this purpose there are provided eleven holes or apertures 8 formed at both disks 6a and 6b, these holes 8 being mutually symmetrically arranged with regard to one another and coaxially with respect to the rotor axis. Hence, the drive of the rotor 6 occurs through the agency of the drive shaft 2, the keyed-on hub disk 5 and the support plate 12 threadably connected to such hub disk 5, wherein the rotor 6 is also supported by such drive unit.

The rotor 6 is surrounded by a housing 1 l which consists of three detachable portions or components. The side portion 11b of the housing 11 which is located perpendicular to the rotor axis at the drive side of the fan 1 will be seen to possess a drive opening 9 through which is inserted the hub disk 5. The other side portion 11c located perpendicular to the rotor axis and at the suction side of the fan 1 possesses a suction connection or stud l0 and the peripheral housing portion 11a a pressure connection or stud 13. Each of the side housing components 11b and possess a projection or flange 11b and 11c respectively which extends over the entire periphery of the associated side portions or components 11b and 11c respectively. The projections 11b and 11c respectively bear against an associated projection or flange 11a of the peripheral housing portion or component 11a, and wherein each such projection 11a is respectively formed at one side of the peripheral housing component 11a. These projections 11a extend about the entire periphery of the projections 11b and 110'. The projections 11 a, 11b, and lie, and therefore the individual components of the housing 1 1, are detachably connected with one another by two clamping rings 14a and 14b which surround these projections.

Because the individual components or portions 11a, 11b and 11c of the housing 11 are formed of a suitable plastic material, just as was the case for the rotor 6, it is possible after releasing the clamping screw a which adjustably connects both free ends of the ring 14a constructed as a collar, to remove the peripheral housing component 11a together with the side housing component 110 from the projection 11b of the side housing component 1 lb and after the subsequent release of the clamping screw 15b and the relevant ring 14b. it is possible to again mount in a position shifted through l80 the projections 11a of the peripheral housing component 11a at the projections 11b and 110'. Additionally. after loosening of the clamping screws 15a and 15b and the corresponding rings 14a and 14b it it possible to displace the peripheral component 11a with the pressure connection or stud 13 along the periphery of the housing 11 through 360, so that the pressure connection 13 can assume different positions.

It is conceivable that the above-described fan also can be employed with a different type of drive mechanism, for instance also with a motor having a V-belt drive. The rotor is then mounted on the shaft of the V- belt drive. The above-described fan is of light construction, its housing components as well as the rotor can be shifted in the most simple manner in order to obtain in a most effortless way the desired direction of air flow without having to undertake changes in construction of the fan or ventilator.

While there is shown and described present preferred embodiments of the invention, it is to be distinctly understood that the invention is not limited thereto but may be otherwise variously embodied and practiced within the scope of the following claims. ACCORD- INGLY.

What is claimed is:

1. A centrifugal fan comprising a rotor having a support plate, drive means for said rotor, said rotor being driven through the agency of said support plate by said drive menas, a housing for said rotor having a drive opening, a suction connection and a pressure connection, said rotor housing being formed of at least three components, one of said housing components having the pressure connection, the other of said housing components defining two side housing components, one of said side housing components having the drive opening and the other said suction connection, said one housing component having said pressure connection having means engaging the two side components whereby the said one component having the discharge connection is turnable through 360 and shiftable by l relative to the other two side housing components, means for retaining the turned respectively shifted housing component in desired fixed position, means for detachably connecting the rotor with the support plate, said rotor having at least two ring-shaped disks equipped with rotor blade means, said ring shaped discs each possessing at least two mutually symmetrically arranged holes which extend coaxially and in parallel with regard to the rotor axis whereby the rotor maybe shifted 180.

2. The centrifugal fan as defined in claim 1, wherein said one housing component having said pressure connection contains projection means, said retaining means comprising two flat clamping rings located at said projection means of said one housing component having said pressure connection, each of said clamping rings having two respective free ends forming a collar. and a respective clamping screw for adjustably connectingwith one another said respective free ends.

3. The centrifugal fan as defined in claim 2, wherein one of said flat clamping rings is positioned on one side of said housing and the other flat clamping ring is positioned on the opposite side of said housing.

* i it

Claims (3)

1. A centrifugal fan comprising a rotor having a support plate, drive means for said rotor, said rotor being driven through the agency of said support plate by said drive menas, a housing for said rotor having a drive opening, a suction connection and a pressure connection, said rotor housing being formed of at least three components, one of said housing components having the pressure connection, the other of said housing components defining two side housing components, one of said side housing components having the drive opening and the other said suction connection, said one housing component having said pressure connection having means engaging the two side components whereby the said one component having the discharge connection is turnable through 360* and shiftable by 180* relative to the other two side housing components, means for retaining the turned respectively shifted housing component in desired fixed position, means for detachably connecting the rotor with the support plate, said rotor having at least two ring-shaped disks equipped with rotor blade means, said ring shaped discs each possessing at least two mutually symmetrically arranged holes which extend coaxially and in parallel with regard to the rotor axis whereby the rotor maybe shifted 180*.

2. The centrifugal fan as defined in claim 1, wherein said one housing component having said pressure connection contains projection means, said retaining means comprising two flat clamping rings located at said projection means of said one housing component having said pressure connection, each of said clamping rings having two respectiVe free ends forming a collar, and a respective clamping screw for adjustably connecting with one another said respective free ends.

3. The centrifugal fan as defined in claim 2, wherein one of said flat clamping rings is positioned on one side of said housing and the other flat clamping ring is positioned on the opposite side of said housing.

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