U.S. patent application number 11/395051 was filed with the patent office on 2007-10-18 for multi-pivot tower fan.
This patent application is currently assigned to Kaz, Incorporated. Invention is credited to David Bossa, Anthony DeMore, Anthony Lai, Shu Li, Stephen Russak, Steven Vordenberg.
Application Number | 20070243816 11/395051 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 38605397 |
Filed Date | 2007-10-18 |
United States Patent
Application |
20070243816 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Russak; Stephen ; et
al. |
October 18, 2007 |
Multi-pivot tower fan
Abstract
An appliance assembly that can provide multiple independently
positionable appliances, such as fans. The appliance assembly
includes a base support, a frame coupled to the base support, and a
number of appliances each contained within an appliance housing.
Each appliance housing is rotatably mounted to an outer gimbal such
that it is rotatable about a first axis, and each outer gimbal is
mounted to the frame such that it is rotatable about a second axis.
The appliance assembly can provide two degrees of freedom for
positioning each of the number of appliances. The frame, outer
gimbals, and appliance housing can be formed in a variety of
shapes. The appliance assembly can be used, for example, with any
product where it is desirable to have multiple independently
positionable assemblies, such as fans, speakers, microphones,
lights, and heaters.
Inventors: |
Russak; Stephen; (Demarest,
NJ) ; DeMore; Anthony; (Chardon, OH) ;
Vordenberg; Steven; (New York, NY) ; Lai;
Anthony; (Burlington, MA) ; Bossa; David; (New
York, NY) ; Li; Shu; (New York, NY) |
Correspondence
Address: |
DARBY & DARBY P.C.
P.O. BOX 770, Church Street Station
New York
NY
10008-0770
US
|
Assignee: |
Kaz, Incorporated
New York
NY
|
Family ID: |
38605397 |
Appl. No.: |
11/395051 |
Filed: |
March 31, 2006 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
454/208 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F04D 25/166
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
454/208 |
International
Class: |
F24F 7/013 20060101
F24F007/013 |
Claims
1. An appliance assembly comprising: a base support; a frame
coupled to the base support; a plurality of appliances, each
appliance contained within a respective appliance housing; an outer
gimbal frame for each of the plurality of appliance housings,
wherein each appliance housing is rotatably mounted to the
respective outer gimbal so that the appliance housing is rotatable
about a first axis, and each respective outer gimbal is rotatably
mounted to the frame so that the outer gimbal is rotatable about a
second axis, the second axis being non-parallel to the first
axis.
2. The appliance assembly of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality
of appliances includes a blower fan.
3. The appliance assembly of claim 1, wherein the first and second
axis are perpendicular.
4. The appliance assembly of claim 1, further comprising: a power
control unit configured to control the power of each appliance
independently of the other appliances.
5. The appliance assembly of claim 4, wherein the power control
unit is further configured to independently power each of the
appliances at a desired power level.
6. The appliance assembly of claim 2, further comprising: a power
control unit configured to control the speed of each of the blower
fans independently of the other blower fans.
7. The appliance assembly of claim 6, wherein the power control
unit is further configured to independently operate each of the
blower fans at a desired speed.
8. The appliance assembly of claim 4, wherein the power control
unit is embedded in the frame.
9. The appliance assembly of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality
of appliances is provided electrical power by a set of wires, the
wires being contained within at least one of the base, the frame,
outer gimbal, and the appliance housing.
10. The appliance assembly of claim 1, further comprising a handle
coupled to the frame.
11. The appliance assembly of claim 1, wherein the frame is
detachably coupled to the base support.
12. The appliance assembly of claim 1, wherein the rotatable outer
gimbal mounting to the frame establishes a predetermined degree of
rotation of the outer gimbal.
13. The appliance assembly of claim 1, wherein the rotatable
appliance housing mounting to the outer gimbal establishes a
predetermined degree of rotation of the appliance housing.
14. The appliance assembly of claim 1, wherein each of the
plurality of outer gimbals includes a circular ring, and each of
the plurality of appliance housings includes a circular body
received within a respective ring.
15. The appliance assembly of claim 2, wherein each of the
plurality of appliance housings includes a detachable grill.
16. The appliance assembly of claim 1, wherein the plurality of
appliances are mounted such that the plurality of appliances are
substantially vertically aligned.
17. The appliance assembly of claim 1, wherein the plurality of
appliances are mounted such that the plurality of appliances are
substantially horizontally aligned.
18. A fan assembly comprising: a base support; a frame coupled to
the base support; a plurality of blower fans, each blower fan
contained within a respective fan housing; an outer gimbal frame
for each of the plurality of fan housings, wherein each fan housing
is rotatably mounted to the respective outer gimbal so that the fan
housing is rotatable about a first axis, and each respective outer
gimbal is rotatably mounted to the frame so that the outer gimbal
is rotatable about a second axis, the second axis being
substantially perpendicular to the first axis.
19. The fan assembly of claim 18, wherein each of the plurality of
outer gimbals includes a circular ring, and each of the plurality
of blower housings includes a circular body received within a
respective ring.
20. The fan assembly of claim 18, further comprising: a power
control unit configured to control the speed of each blower fan
independently of the other blower fans.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates to portable appliances, such
as fans, and, more particularly, to a portable fan capable of
generating multiple independently positionable airflows.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Portable fans are employed for a variety of purposes
including air circulation and convective cooling. Such fans are
relatively small and light, and are intended to be placed on the
floor or countertop. The most frequently used forms of portable
fans are the box fan and the pedestal fan which have an axial flow
fan contained within an enclosure which is placed on the floor or
mounted atop a pedestal.
[0003] Many improvements have been included in the design of
portable fans to optimize or enhance their performance as coolers
and air circulators. Specifically, many improvements have been made
in controlling the volume and direction of airflow to suit the
purpose for which the fan is employed.
[0004] To enhance the convective cooling ability of fans, different
mechanisms have been developed for directing the air-stream
generated by a fan towards a particular target. Fan enclosures have
been pivotally mounted atop a pedestal so that the fan can be
rotated about the vertical axis to adjust the direction of the
airflow in the horizontal plane. Because many fans are placed on
low surfaces, such as the floor, fans have been mounted about the
midsection of the fan enclosure to a U-shaped base to form a
yoke-like structure, thereby allowing the vertical direction of the
airflow to be adjusted. This configuration allows the fan to be
adjusted so that the airflow is directed at a specific target in
the vertical plane.
[0005] Frequently, it is desirable to cool or direct airflow at
more than one target in a room. To accomplish this, fans have been
modified with a variety of air deflection devices. One solution is
a motorized pivot which oscillates the fan to cyclically direct the
airflow over a pre-defined range. This results in the airflow being
directed at different targets in the same horizontal plane along
the oscillating range. However, this may create undesirable air
flow as the fan oscillates back and forth. If airflow is desired in
only two locations, an oscillating fan may be used to create the
breeze in those two locations, but will invariably also create an
airflow at all points in between those two locations. Additionally,
this oscillating configuration is limited to providing airflow
generally at only two locations.
[0006] Another solution is to use a fan grill with angled veins to
deflect the airflow. The grill veins can oscillate to change their
deflection pattern, thus providing a similar result to oscillating
the entire fan. Alternatively, a grill employing angled veins can
be rotatably mounted to the fan enclosure, and the entire grill
rotated to adjust the direction of the airflow. Such a rotatable
grill is capable of directing the airflow to multiple points
defined by the angle of the veins as the grill rotates, but it will
also direct airflow at all point in between.
[0007] Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a fan capable
of directing airflow at multiple targets without inadvertently
directing the airflow at all points between the targets.
Additionally, it would be desirable to provide a fan capable of
directing airflow at multiple targets that are not in the same
horizontal and vertical plane.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0008] The present invention relates to portable appliances, such
as fans, and, more particularly, to a portable fan capable of
generating multiple independently positionable airflows.
[0009] One aspect of this invention provides an appliance assembly
having a base support, a number of appliances, each contained
within an appliance housing, and a frame coupled to the base
support. Each appliance housing is rotatably mounted to an outer
gimbal such that it is rotatable about a first axis, and each outer
gimbal is mounted to the frame such that it is rotatable about a
second axis. Thus, each appliance housing can be positioned
independently with two degrees of freedom, and can be individually
directed.
[0010] In a further aspect of this invention, the appliance
contained within the appliance housing can include a blower
fan.
[0011] In a further aspect, the first and second axes are
preferably perpendicular to each other. The first axis may be a
vertical axis and the second axis may be a horizontal axis.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0012] The foregoing and other features of the present invention
will be more readily apparent from the following detailed
description and drawings of illustrative embodiments of the
invention in which:
[0013] FIG. 1 is a front elevation view of a first embodiment of
the invention;
[0014] FIG. 2 is a right side elevation view of the first
embodiment of the invention;
[0015] FIG. 3 is a rear side elevation view of the first embodiment
of the invention;
[0016] FIG. 4 is a top plan view of the first embodiment of the
invention;
[0017] FIG. 5 is a bottom plan view of the first embodiment of the
invention;
[0018] FIG. 6 is a partial right side elevation view of the first
embodiment of the invention; and
[0019] FIG. 7 is a partial front elevation view of the first
embodiment of the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0020] Referring now to the drawings, in one embodiment the present
invention is directed to a portable fan 10 having a base 60, a
frame 20, a number of blower fans 50, each enclosed by a blower
housing 40. Each blower housing 40 is rotatably mounted to an outer
gimbal 30 at mount points 80 such that it is rotatable about a
first axis. Each outer gimbal 30 is rotatably mounted to the frame
20 at mount points 70 such that it is rotatable about a second axis
that is non-parallel to the first axis. The frame 20 is coupled to
the base 60 which provides support and keeps the fan 10
upright.
[0021] The rotational configuration of each blower fan 50 is
similar to a gimbal, in which the blower housing 40 is the inner
gimbal. While a gimbal is most frequently associated with a set of
gimbal rings, it is understood that a circular structure is not
required and each structure defining a plane of rotation about an
axis can take any shape. While the function of the outer gimbal 30
is not identical to that of an aeronautical or gyroscopic gimbal,
because the structure provides a similar function, it is refereed
to herein as the outer gimbal 30.
[0022] Each blower fan 50 is independently positionable about the
first and second axis defined by mount points 80 and 70. Because
each fan 50 is rotatable about two non-parallel axes, the direction
of the air flow can be positioned with two degrees of freedom. In a
preferred embodiment, the first axis defined by mount points 80 is
perpendicular to the second axis defined by mount points 70. This
configuration provides easy control of the direction of the air
flow from each blower fan 50.
[0023] While the invention as shown in FIG. 1 illustrates an
embodiment of this invention having three blower fans 50
substantially vertically aligned in frame 20, it should be
understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that two or more
blower fans 50 can be used to achieve the desired objectives of
this invention. Furthermore, the frame 20, the outer gimbals 30,
and blower housings 40 can have a wide variety of configurations.
FIGS. 2 and 4 illustrate that the frame 20 can arc or slant such
that blower fans 50 are staggered and are not required to be
vertically aligned. The frame 20 may extend horizontally, rather
than vertically as illustrated in the figures, or it may be a
square, rectangle, or other shape enclosing a array of blower fans
(e.g., a three-by-three or two-by-four array). The frame 20 can
also have irregular or decorative shapes that provide mount points
70 to which the outer gimbals 30 can be rotatably mounted.
[0024] The frame 20 can also twist, such that, in the case of the
embodiment illustrated in the figures, the frame 20 would look
similar to a double-helix. Additionally, Frame 20 does not have to
be an enclosed shape, but rather can be an open, for example a "U"
structure or two vertical beams.
[0025] Similarly, the outer gimbal 30 and blower housing 40,
although illustrated in the figures as circular, do not have to be
circular. Outer gimbal 30 and blower housing 40 can be any shape
that allows them to be rotatably connected at mount points 70.
Neither are outer gimbal 30 and blower housing 40 required to be
the same, or even similar, shapes.
[0026] It should be noted that the shape of the frame 20, outer
gimbal 30 and blower housing 40 can be designed to limit the degree
and direction of rotation about the first and second axis, and thus
affect the directional range of the air flow generated by each
blower fan 50. The shape of each part can be designed such that it
will be prevented from rotating in one direction about its axis, or
the shapes can be designed to only allow a predetermined degree of
rotation. Alternatively, the rotating mechanism of mount points 70
and 80 can be designed to limit the degree or direction of
rotation.
[0027] In another aspect of the invention, if the shapes of the
blower housing 40, outer gimbal 30, or frame 20 are such that
rotation about either the first or second axis causes interference
between either the blower housing 40 and the outer gimbal 30 or the
outer gimbal 30 and the frame 20, mount points 70 and 80 can be
positioned away from the inner surface of the frame 20 or outer
gimbal 30. Positioning the mount points 70 and 80 away from their
respective inner surfaces provides a larger clearance distance
between the rotating components, and thus prevents interference
between the components and allows for a greater degree of rotation.
According to this aspect, alternative shapes can be used while not
limiting the direction or degree of rotation about the first or
second axis.
[0028] The embodiment in the figures illustrates a parallel first
axis and a parallel second axis for each blower housing 40 and
outer gimbal 30. It should be understood that the first and second
axis of each blower housing 40 and outer gimbal 30 do not need to
be parallel to the first and second axis of each other blower
housing 40 and outer gimbal 30. Rather, each blower housing can
have its own first and second axes.
[0029] In yet another aspect of this invention, each blower fan 50
provides independent control of the blower speed. This may be
useful for many situations. If there are two targets which are not
equidistant from the fan 10, the closer target may not require the
same velocity magnitude of air current, i.e., a person closer to
the fan may be cold if the fan were run at the speed necessary to
provide a comfortable level of air flow to someone further away.
Similarly, the temperature or breeze which people find comfortable
can differ greatly from one person to another. Thus, the speed
control of each blower fan 50 can be controlled from a control
panel 90. Controls 110, 120, and 130 can be individually associated
with one of the blower fans 50. Additionally, each control can
provide multiple independent speeds. Alternatively, a single
control (not shown) could be provided, thus providing control of
all the blower fans 50 from a single device.
[0030] In another aspect of this invention each blower housing 40
can include a detachable grill 140. Detachable grills 140 allow for
ease of cleaning and can prevent dust buildup on the fan.
[0031] In a further aspect of the invention, electrical wires 125
that supply power to each fan blower can be guided through the
internal cavities of any of the frame 20, the outer gimbals 30, the
base 60, and the blower housings 40. Between components, the
electrical wires 125 can be guided through the mount points 70 and
80. FIGS. 6 and 7 illustrate the electrical wires 125 entering the
frame 20 and passing through mount point 70, outer gimbal 30, mount
point 80, and into blower housing 40. Thus, the exposed electrical
wiring is significantly limited, thereby increasing electrical
safety, without decreasing the aesthetic appeal of the overall
assembly.
[0032] To increase the portability of the fan 10, the fan 10 can
include a handle 100. The handle 100 can be coupled to any part of
the fan 10. Preferably, the handle 100 is coupled to the fan so as
to be positioned over the center of gravity of the fan 10. In the
embodiment illustrated in the figures, the handle 100 is positioned
at the top and center of the fan. Similarly, another aspect of the
present invention provides that the frame 20 can be detached from
the base 60, thereby enhancing the portability of the fan 10.
[0033] The embodiment of the present invention described herein is
directed to a fan. However, it should be understood that the
present invention may also be applicable to other appliances or
products. For example, such products where it is desired to have
multiple independently positional assemblies. Examples of such
appliance assemblies include audio speakers, microphone arrays,
lights, and heaters.
[0034] While the invention has been shown by way of reference to a
portable fan having a base, frame, a plurality of outer gimbals,
and a plurality of blower housings, it will be understood by those
skilled in the art that the present invention may be utilized in
any portable device, such as a fan, and that various changes in
form and details may be made therein without departing from the
spirit and scope of the invention.
* * * * *