U.S. patent application number 11/088560 was filed with the patent office on 2005-10-06 for fan shroud for pump.
This patent application is currently assigned to Hydro-Gear Limited Partnership. Invention is credited to Gavin, Thomas P., Harshman, Keith, Hauser, Raymond, Holder, Lonnie E., Kopel, Thomas, Roth, Thomas, Steenburg, Bryce.
Application Number | 20050220637 11/088560 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 35054480 |
Filed Date | 2005-10-06 |
United States Patent
Application |
20050220637 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Kopel, Thomas ; et
al. |
October 6, 2005 |
Fan shroud for pump
Abstract
A hydrostatic apparatus is disclosed. The hydrostatic apparatus
comprises a pump, an input shaft, a fan and a fan shroud. The pump
comprises a housing, an end cap, a first end and a second end. The
input shaft extending from the first end and the second end of the
pump. The fan is attached to one end of the input shaft. The fan
shroud is also attached to the pump.
Inventors: |
Kopel, Thomas; (Sullivan,
IL) ; Roth, Thomas; (Lerna, IL) ; Gavin,
Thomas P.; (Sullivan, IL) ; Harshman, Keith;
(Sullivan, IL) ; Steenburg, Bryce; (Mattoon,
IL) ; Hauser, Raymond; (Sullivan, IL) ;
Holder, Lonnie E.; (Sullivan, IL) |
Correspondence
Address: |
NEAL, GERBER, & EISENBERG
SUITE 2200
2 NORTH LASALLE STREET
CHICAGO
IL
60602
US
|
Assignee: |
Hydro-Gear Limited
Partnership
Sullivan
IL
|
Family ID: |
35054480 |
Appl. No.: |
11/088560 |
Filed: |
March 24, 2005 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
60558538 |
Apr 1, 2004 |
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
417/372 ;
417/415; 92/12.2 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F04B 39/066 20130101;
H02K 9/14 20130101; F04D 19/002 20130101; F04D 29/403 20130101;
F04D 29/703 20130101; H02K 9/06 20130101; F04D 25/082 20130101;
B60K 11/06 20130101; H02K 9/04 20130101; F04B 53/08 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
417/372 ;
417/415; 092/012.2 |
International
Class: |
F01B 003/00; F04B
035/00; F04B 017/00; F25B 029/00; F01B 013/04; F04B 039/02; F04B
039/06; F04B 035/04 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A hydrostatic apparatus comprising: a pump having a housing, an
end cap, a first end and a second end; an,input shaft extending
from the first end and the second end of the pump; a fan attached
to one end of the input shaft; and a fan shroud attached to the
pump.
2. The hydrostatic apparatus of claim 1, further comprising: a
bracket attached to the pump; wherein the fan shroud is attached to
the bracket.
3. The hydrostatic apparatus of claim 2, wherein the bracket is
attached to the end cap.
4. The hydrostatic apparatus of claim 2, further comprising: a
charge pump having a housing attached to the end cap; wherein the
bracket is attached to the charge pump housing.
5. The hydrostatic apparatus of claim 2, wherein the fan shroud
further comprises a plurality of snaps that engage the bracket.
6. The hydrostatic apparatus of claim 1, wherein the fan shroud
engages the end cap.
7. The hydrostatic apparatus of claim 1, wherein an input from a
prime mover is attached to an end of the input shaft opposite the
one end to which the fan is attached.
8. A pump comprising: a housing; an end cap; a charge pump mounted
on the end cap; a first end; a second end; an input shaft extending
from the first end and the second end of the pump; a fan attached
to one end of the input shaft; and a fan shroud attached to the
pump, the fan shroud being positioned to generally enclose the
fan.
9. The pump of claim 8, further comprising a bracket to which the
fan shroud is attached.
10. The pump of claim 8, further comprising: a plurality of first
fasteners attaching the end cap to the housing; a plurality of
second fasteners attaching the charge pump to the end cap; and a
bracket attached to the pump by at least one of the first fasteners
and the second fasteners; wherein the fan shroud is mounted on the
bracket.
11. The pump of claim 10, wherein the fan shroud comprises a
plurality of snaps, and the snaps interface with a feature on the
bracket to secure the fan shroud.
12. The pump of claim 11, wherein the fan shroud comprises a stop
to position the fan shroud relative to the bracket.
13. The pump of claim 8, further comprising: a plurality of
fasteners attaching the end cap to the housing; wherein at least
one of the fasteners attaches the fan shroud to the end cap.
14. The pump of claim 8, wherein the fan shroud is attached to the
end cap by a plurality of snaps.
15. The pump of claim 14, further comprising: a plurality of
fasteners attaching the end cap to the housing; wherein the fan
shroud comprises a plurality of locating features that work with
the plurality of fasteners to aid in maintaining the position of
the fan shroud.
16. A fan shroud apparatus for use in a hydrostatic apparatus
comprising: a bracket; and a fan shroud comprising at least one
fastener, the fan shroud being attached to the bracket; wherein the
bracket engages an end of a hydrostatic pump to allow the fan
shroud to generally enclose a fan attached to the end of the
hydrostatic pump.
17. The fan shroud apparatus of claim 16, further comprising means
for establishing the position of the fan shroud relative to the
bracket.
18. The fan shroud apparatus of claim 17, further comprising plugs
on the fan shroud.
19. The fan shroud apparatus of claim 17, wherein the fan shroud
includes a skirt portion.
20. The fan shroud apparatus of claim 19, further comprising plugs
on the fan shroud.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates generally to hydraulic pumps,
and more specifically, to hydraulic pumps incorporating a fan or
other similar cooling device.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Fans mounted on hydraulic pumps are increasingly seen as a
relatively low-cost way of providing cooling for such pumps. While
these pumps are typically located in a protected location that
would minimize contact between the fan blades and an object,
providing such protection or the lack of such protection on a
vehicle may limit the ability to use a fan mounted to a pump in
some applications. Thus, there is a need for a fan shroud that can
readily and inexpensively be attached to a stand alone hydraulic
pump.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0003] A fan shroud capable of being mounted to a stand alone
hydraulic pump is disclosed herein. Embodiments are described
wherein the shroud may be mounted to a bracket that is attached to
the pump, or the shroud may be directly attached to a pump element
such as an end cap or housing. The details of this invention are
set forth below in connection with the detailed description of the
embodiments.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0004] FIG. 1 illustrates a side elevational view of a simplified
zero turn mower on which is mounted a hydraulic pump incorporating
one embodiment of this invention, where one wheel of the mower has
been removed for clarity;
[0005] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the pump shown in FIG.
1;
[0006] FIG. 3 is a partially-sectioned internal view of the pump
shown in FIG. 2, with the fan shroud removed for clarity;
[0007] FIG. 4 is an exploded view of the pump shown in FIG. 2;
[0008] FIG. 5 illustrates a top view of the fan shroud, charge pump
housing and end cap of the pump shown in FIG. 2;
[0009] FIG. 6 is a side view of the fan shroud, charge pump housing
and end cap shown in FIG. 5, with the fan shroud sectioned along
Lines 6-6 in FIG. 5;
[0010] FIG. 7 illustrates a top view of a second embodiment of the
fan shroud and end cap;
[0011] FIG. 8 is a side view of the fan shroud and end cap shown in
FIG. 7, with the shroud sectioned along Lines 8-8;
[0012] FIG. 9 illustrates a perspective view of a pump similar to
that of the pump in FIG. 2, incorporating a bracket compatible with
the second embodiment fan shroud with the shroud and fan removed
for clarity;
[0013] FIG. 10 illustrates a top view of a third embodiment of the
fan shroud; and
[0014] FIG. 11 is a view of the fan shroud depicted in FIG. 10
along Lines 11-11.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PRESENTLY-PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0015] The present invention is discussed herein in relation to a
hydraulic pump and, in particular, a bantam duty variable
displacement pump. Nevertheless, other uses of the present
invention will be apparent from the teachings disclosed herein.
Further, the present invention will be best understood from the
following detailed description of exemplary embodiments with
reference to the attached drawings, wherein like reference numerals
and characters refer to like parts, and by reference to the
following claims.
[0016] FIG. 1 depicts a zero-turn mowing vehicle 10 on which would
usually be mounted a pair of pumps 30, though only one is visible
in FIG. 1. As illustrated, pump 30 is mounted to frame 12 of
zero-turn mowing vehicle 10. Also mounted on frame 12 of zero-turn
mowing vehicle 10 is mowing deck 14, prime mover 16, and wheel
motor 18, which drives axle shaft 26 and thus wheel 27. In
operation, prime mover 16 drives belt 20, which rotatingly drives
pump pulley 22. Pump pulley 22 is mounted on a pump input shaft,
which will be described in more detail herein. Also shown in FIG.
1, without mounting brackets, are filter 28 and reservoir 29.
Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, it is illustrated that pump input shaft
32 drives cylinder block 34. Pistons 36 are further illustrated as
being mounted within cylinder block 34. Pistons 36 contact thrust
bearing 38, which is shown as mounted within swash plate 40. When
swash plate 40 is in the position illustrated in FIG. 3, pump 30 is
in a neutral position and any fluid flow through hydraulic lines 24
(as illustrated in FIG. 1) is minimal and insufficient to cause
wheel motor 18 to drive axle shaft 26. However, when swash plate 40
is moved from the neutral position by the action of control arm 42,
pressurized fluid will flow in one of the two hydraulic lines 24,
causing wheel motor 18 to drive axle shaft 26 in a direction
corresponding to the direction of movement of swash plate 40.
[0017] Additionally, cylinder block 34 runs against end cap 44,
which is preferably attached to housing 48 by a plurality of
fasteners 46. Some pumps may also incorporate a valve plate 50 as a
running surface for cylinder block 34.
[0018] As illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4, a charge pump 52 may be
externally mounted to end cap 44. Further, charge pump 52 may be
disposed within charge pump housing 54, which is attached to end
cap 44 by means of charge pump housing fasteners 56. Pump input
shaft 32 may extend through end cap 44, and also charge pump 52 and
charge pump housing 54, to allow the mounting of fan 58.
[0019] Additional elements and details of the operation of
hydraulic pumps may be found in U.S. Pat. No. 6,332,393, to
Trimble, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference
herein in its entirety.
[0020] To aid in guarding fan 58 from debris, as well as
unintentional contact, fan shroud 60 is provided, as shown in FIGS.
1-2 and 4-6. Referring to these Figures, it is illustrated that
shroud bracket 62 is affixed to charge pump housing 54 with the
same charge pump housing fasteners 56 that also attach charge pump
housing 54 to end cap 44. After shroud bracket 62 is attached to
charge pump housing 54, fan 58 is mounted; on the end of pump input
shaft 32 and retained by fastener 64.
[0021] Fan shroud 60 is then mounted onto shroud bracket 62. The
mounting may preferably be done by means of snaps 66 formed near
the base of fan shroud 60. Snaps 66 are inserted into openings 68
formed in shroud bracket 62, where the configuration of snaps 66
then retains fan shroud 60 on shroud bracket 62. Snap stops 70
formed adjacent to snaps 66 on fan shroud 60 will come into contact
with opening stops 72 formed adjacent to openings 68 on shroud
bracket 62, thus establishing the position of fan shroud 60 during
installation. Louvers 74 on the top of fan shroud 60 will limit the
entry of debris and other objects while allowing air to flow
through openings 76 between louvers 74 of fan shroud 60 and into
fan 58.
[0022] FIGS. 5 and 6 show additional details of fan shroud 60 and
the way fan shroud 60 may be mounted to pump 30. Shroud bracket 62
preferably comprises a material that has dimensional stability to
maintain the sealing characteristic of charge pump housing 54
against end cap 44, such as, for example, steel, though other
materials may be used, depending on the required clamping force of
charge pump housing fasteners 56, the head configuration of charge
pump housing fasteners 56 and whether load dispersion is available,
such as through a washer under the head of charge pump housing
fastener 56.
[0023] Air enters fan shroud 60 through openings 76 between louvers
74 by the action of fan 58, which has been removed from FIGS. 5 and
6 for clarity. Air is then forced downward by the action of fan 58
through the open end 78 of fan shroud 60 and then around shroud
bracket 62 and then along end cap 44 and housing 48. Shroud bracket
62, as illustrated in the embodiments shown in FIGS. 4, 5 and 6, is
formed in an "X" shape to allow air to flow in the open areas
between the legs of the "X." Other shapes are anticipated, such as
a design that uses three leg extensions, and two leg extensions
with a wider area to support a larger snap stop 70 for stability of
fan shroud 60.
[0024] Fan shroud 60 also includes angled skirt 80 that serves
several functions. First, angled skirt 80 moves the lower edge of
fan shroud 60 away from fan 58, further minimizing the ability of
objects to inadvertently reach fan 58 from the bottom of fan shroud
60. Second, angled skirt 80 also opens the bottom of fan shroud 60
outward, providing additional cross-section and air guidance as air
exits fan shroud 60.
[0025] FIGS. 7 and 8 depict a second embodiment of fan shroud 160.
Fan shroud 160 eliminates the need for separate shroud bracket 62,
as used in the first embodiment described above. In this embodiment
fan shroud 160 snaps directly to end cap 144. Snaps 166 are
disposed near the end of flexible legs 82. As fan shroud 160 is
pushed onto end cap 144, flexible legs 82 bend outward until snaps
166 pass below stops 84, allowing snaps 166 to move inward toward
end cap 144 so that snaps 166 interface with stops 84, retaining
fan shroud 160 on end cap 144.
[0026] This embodiment also includes a feature to prevent fan
shroud 160 from being pushed onto end cap 144 to the point where
fan shroud 160 might contact fan 58 (fan 58 is not shown in FIGS. 7
and 8). To prevent this situation, ring 86 is formed a distance
from snap 166 to provide a limit to how far fan shroud 160 can be
pushed onto end cap 144. Ring 86 is formed so that it becomes
arranged about fastener 46. This arrangement aids in preventing fan
shroud 160 from being rotated, which might disengage snaps 166 from
stops 84, which would then allow fan shroud 160 to become
disengaged from end cap 144, a situation that is seen as
operationally undesirable as it would allow shroud 160 to contact
fan 58 (not shown in FIGS. 7 and 8).
[0027] Openings 88 are available to allow a die to be positioned to
form ring 86 from the top side. There are other die configurations
such as side pulls that could also be used to form ring 86. The
size of die access openings such as openings 88 should be minimized
to the extent possible to reduce the ability for objects to enter
shroud 160. As will be shown in a subsequent embodiment, openings
88 may be blocked by a plug to further limit access to the interior
of shroud 160. Another consideration for this embodiment is the
ability to maneuver rings 86 between fan blades 59, shown in FIG.
4. There are several designs that may be used separately or
together. Gap 61 between blades 59, also shown in FIG. 4, may be
wide enough to permit rings 86 to pass between blades 59. Fan 58
may be of a flexible material that allows blades 59 to bend away
from rings 86 as shroud 160 is pushed onto pump 30. Similarly,
shroud 160 may be of a material that provides some flexibility to
rings 86, allowing them to bend to pass blades 59. Some fans 58 may
be sized so that there is little or no interference between rings
86 and blades 59 during the installation of shroud 160. Yet another
option is to form louver portion 75 of shroud 160 as a separate
piece so that the fan may be installed and louver portion 75 then
attached to the main body of shroud 160.
[0028] FIG. 9 depicts a second embodiment of shroud bracket 162
that is mounted to end cap 44 using fasteners 46. Bracket 162 is
compatible with the snap 166 configuration of FIG. 8. Bracket 162
is supported in more locations than bracket 62, and will thus be
more stable for larger shrouds. Thus, bracket 162 allows retention
of the benefits of shroud 160 but eliminates the need to form stops
84 into end cap 144. Tabs 90 formed adjacent to stops 92 aid in
preventing rotation of an attached shroud, similar to the function
of ring 86 in the previously discussed embodiment.
[0029] FIGS. 10 and 11 depict a third embodiment of fan shroud 260.
In this embodiment, fan shroud 260 is attached to end cap 44 (not
shown in FIGS. 10 and 11) by fasteners 46. In order to prevent the
yielding of fan shroud 260 that might occur if fan shroud 260 was
made of a polymer material, inserts 94 are molded into tabs 96.
Inserts 94 would likely comprise metal, or other high strength
material to maintain the clamping force of fasteners 46. Openings
288 are formed in fan shroud 260 to allow a die to reach into
shroud 260 to form tabs 96. As with fan shroud 160, openings 288
should be made as small as possible. Further, each of the openings
288 should be sufficiently large enough to allow for the insertion
of a securing device, such as, for example, a screwdriver, ratchet,
etc., to affix fasteners 46 to pump 30. As was described in the
previous embodiment, there are a variety of techniques to permit
installation of tabs 96 past fan blades 59.
[0030] As illustrated in FIGS. 10 and 11, fan shroud 260 preferably
includes a plurality of plugs 290. Each plug 290 is used to cover
one of the plurality of openings 288, thereby limiting the entry of
foreign objects into fan shroud 260. Preferably, plugs 290 are
fastened into place on fan shroud 260 which the assistance of snaps
292. The operation of snaps 292 is similar to the discussion of the
operation of the other snaps disclosed herein.
[0031] The various embodiments described herein describe fan shroud
60 as having snaps 66 or the equivalent. This configuration is
advantageous because of the ease of forming snap features into an
injection molded part versus the components to which shroud 60 is
attached. However, it is also anticipated that shroud 60 could be
formed with openings while mating components such as bracket 62
could be formed with mating snaps.
[0032] While specific embodiments of the invention have been
described in detail, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the
art that various modifications and alternatives to those details
could be developed in light of the overall teachings of the
disclosure. Accordingly, the particular arrangements of the shroud,
bracket, end cap, pump, etc. disclosed are meant to be illustrative
only and not limiting as to the scope of the invention which is to
be given the full breadth of the appended claims and any
equivalents thereof.
* * * * *