U.S. patent application number 12/763822 was filed with the patent office on 2011-06-23 for oil supply structure for refrigerant compressor.
This patent application is currently assigned to INDUSTRIAL TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH INSTITUTE. Invention is credited to Yu-Choung Chang, Shu-Er Huang, Yueh-Ju Tang.
Application Number | 20110150690 12/763822 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 44151390 |
Filed Date | 2011-06-23 |
United States Patent
Application |
20110150690 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Tang; Yueh-Ju ; et
al. |
June 23, 2011 |
OIL SUPPLY STRUCTURE FOR REFRIGERANT COMPRESSOR
Abstract
An oil supply structure for a refrigerant compressor is
connected to a main shaft of the refrigerant compressor. The oil
supply structure has a concave recessed from a periphery to a
center, an oil hole penetrating the center of the concave and in
communication with an oil supply passage of the main shaft, and at
least one blade protruding from the concave and extending from the
periphery towards the oil-hole. A rotation direction of the blade
is opposite to a rotation direction of the main shaft. Through a
simple structure in a form of an impeller, the oil supply structure
can generate the function of a centrifugal pump by the concave and
the blade during rotation, so as to change the supply of a
lubricating oil according to changes in the rotation rate.
Inventors: |
Tang; Yueh-Ju; (Hsinchu
City, TW) ; Huang; Shu-Er; (Hsinchu City, TW)
; Chang; Yu-Choung; (Hsinchu County, TW) |
Assignee: |
INDUSTRIAL TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH
INSTITUTE
Hsin-Chu
TW
|
Family ID: |
44151390 |
Appl. No.: |
12/763822 |
Filed: |
April 20, 2010 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
418/55.6 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F04C 2230/21 20130101;
F04C 18/0215 20130101; F04C 29/023 20130101; F04C 23/008 20130101;
F04C 29/025 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
418/55.6 |
International
Class: |
F01C 1/063 20060101
F01C001/063 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Dec 17, 2009 |
TW |
098143294 |
Claims
1. An oil supply structure for a refrigerant compressor, connected
to one end of a main shaft of the refrigerant compressor extending
to an oil tank, comprising: a concave, formed on one end opposite
to the main shaft, and recessed from a periphery to a center; an
oil hole, penetrating the oil supply structure from the center of
the concave, and in communication with an oil supply passage of the
main shaft; and at least one blade, protruding from the concave,
and extending from the periphery towards the oil hole, wherein a
rotation direction of the blade is opposite to a rotation direction
of the main shaft.
2. The oil supply structure for a refrigerant compressor according
to claim 1, wherein the oil supply structure is integrated with the
main shaft to form a unity and is directly molded on one end of the
main shaft.
3. The oil supply structure for a refrigerant compressor according
to claim 2, wherein the oil supply structure is directly molded on
one end of the main shaft.
4. The oil supply structure for a refrigerant compressor according
to claim 1, wherein the oil supply structure is an impeller, the
impeller has a main body, the main body is slightly in a horn shape
and has a columnar end and an expanded end, the columnar end is
used to be combined with the oil supply passage of the main shaft,
the concave is formed on the expanded end, the oil hole penetrates
the main body, and the blade protrudes from the concave.
5. The oil supply structure for a refrigerant compressor according
to claim 4, wherein the columnar end and the oil supply passage of
the main shaft are configured to be assembled together, so as to
enable the impeller to be directly combined with the oil supply
passage of the main shaft.
6. The oil supply structure for a refrigerant compressor according
to claim 1, wherein the refrigerant compressor is transversely
disposed, and an oil collector is sleeved on an outer edge of the
oil supply structure, so as to suck the lubricating oil.
7. The oil supply structure for a refrigerant compressor according
to claim 6, wherein the oil collector has a main body having a
hollow chamber, the main body has an oil suction pipe extending
downwards therefrom, and the oil suction pipe extends into the
lubricating oil of the oil tank of the refrigerant compressor.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED PATENT APPLICATION
[0001] This application claims priority to and the benefit of
Taiwan Patent Application No. 098143294, filed Dec. 17, 2009, the
contents of which are incorporated herein in their entireties by
reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE
[0002] 1. Technical Field
[0003] The present disclosure relates to the field of a refrigerant
compressor, and more particularly to an oil supply structure having
a simple structure and capable of improving the reliability of
lubricating oil supply.
[0004] 2. Related Art
[0005] A revolving-driven refrigerant compressor achieves the
effect of compressing a refrigerant gas by relative rotation of an
orbiting pump element and a fixed pump element. However, when the
orbiting element rotates, significant friction occurs at junctions
between the orbiting element and a base body, a bearing, and a
fixing member. Therefore, an oil supply pump is required to supply
a lubricating oil to portions of the junctions between the moving
elements at which the friction occurs for lubrication.
[0006] In the field of refrigerant compressors, a positive
displacement oil pump such as a gear pump is generally used to
supply a fixed amount of lubricating oil to lubricate the parts
requiring lubrication. In the gear pump, an eccentricity and a
difference in the numbers of inner and outer teeth are used as
changes of the volume of the oil supply mechanism, and the gear
pump has advantages of a positive displacement volume pump of high
head and constant displacement. However, in the refrigerant
compressor, a pressure inside the case is used as a back pressure
of the gear pump, and since the pressure is variable, but the gear
needs to work under a steady back pressure, a spring member is
generally used as a pressure accumulator to dynamically compensate
for the back pressure, in order to prevent the volume efficiency
from decreasing due to leakage; or a friction plate is designed so
as to reduce an axial variable load of the gear pump. In any case,
the structure of the gear pump has disadvantages such as requiring
a large number of elements and having a poor assembly
efficiency.
[0007] The pump with the swing rotors also belongs to positive
displacement volume pumps, and has similar advantages and
disadvantages to the gear pump, except that the stator and the
rotors are circular, which are easily manufactured. However, since
a swing-driven crankshaft requires eccentric driving and friction
loss occurs at the contact point, the type of the pump with the
rocking rotors has disadvantages of noise and power loss.
[0008] Although the positive displacement volume pump can provide
constant displacement, the positive displacement volume pump needs
to be designed to be capable of accurately estimating the demand on
the supply of the lubricating oil. Once the rotation rate or
operation condition is significantly changed, the positive
displacement volume pump cannot provide a response in real time to
the corresponding demand on the supply of the lubricating oil.
[0009] For example, during operation at a high rotation rate, when
the flow of the lubricating oil needs to be increased to lubricate
the bearing and dissipate the heat, the positive displacement
volume pump cannot rapidly increase the flow of the lubricating
oil, which leads to a decrease in the temperature resistance of the
bearing of the compressor, resulting in that the bearing may be
damaged after operation at a high rotation rate for a long time.
The problems are generally overcome by using an excessive oil
supply design, but in this manner, when the large amount of the
lubricating oil is not required during operation at a low rotation
rate, problems such as excessive oil supply and power loss on the
oil transmission of the main shaft will occur.
SUMMARY
[0010] Accordingly, the present disclosure is directed to an oil
supply structure for a refrigerant compressor, which can reduce the
number of components required and is capable of changing the supply
of a lubricating oil according to the rotation rate of a main
shaft.
[0011] In order to achieve the objectives, the oil supply structure
of the present disclosure is connected to one end of a main shaft
of a refrigerant compressor extending to an oil tank. The oil
supply structure has a concave formed on one end opposite to the
main shaft and recessed from a periphery to a center, an oil hole
penetrating the oil supply structure from the center of the concave
and in communication with an oil supply passage of the main shaft,
and at least one blade protruding from the concave and extending
from the periphery towards the oil hole. A rotation direction of
the blade is opposite to a rotation direction of the main
shaft.
[0012] In the oil supply structure of the present disclosure, the
function of a centrifugal pump is generated by the inwardly
recessed concave and the blade during rotation, such that the oil
supply structure of the present disclosure generates different
centrifugal forces according to changes in the rotation rate, so as
to change the amount of the lubricating oil flowing into the oil
hole and pressurize the lubricating oil, thereby improving the oil
feeding efficiency for lubrication.
[0013] The oil supply structure of the present disclosure is only
structure in a form of an impeller, which has a simple structure
and a small number of mechanical elements, and thus can be easily
manufactured and assembled.
[0014] In an embodiment, the oil supply structure is integrated
with the main shaft to form a unity, and is directly molded on one
end of the main shaft by integral molding.
[0015] In an embodiment, the oil supply structure is an impeller,
the impeller has a main body, the main body is slightly in a horn
shape and has a columnar end and an expanded end, the columnar end
is used to be assembled to and combined with the oil supply passage
of the main shaft, the concave is formed on the expanded end, the
oil hole penetrates the main body, and each blade protrudes from
the concave. In an implementation, the columnar end is used to be
combined with the oil supply passage of the main shaft in a
tight-fitting manner.
[0016] In an embodiment, the refrigerant compressor is transversely
disposed, and an oil collector is sleeved on an outer edge of the
oil supply structure. The oil collector has a main body having a
hollow chamber, the main body has an oil suction pipe extending
downwards therefrom, and the oil suction pipe extends into the
lubricating oil of the oil tank, such that the oil supply structure
can stably suck the lubricating oil.
[0017] In order to make the aforementioned features and
characteristics of the present disclosure more comprehensible,
embodiments accompanied with figures are described in detail
below.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0018] FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional structural view of the
present disclosure applied to a revolving-driven compressor;
[0019] FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional structural view of the
present disclosure;
[0020] FIG. 3 is a three-dimensional outside view of the present
disclosure;
[0021] FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional structural view of a
second embodiment of the present disclosure;
[0022] FIG. 5 is a three-dimensional outside view of the second
embodiment of the present disclosure;
[0023] FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional structural view of a
third embodiment of the present disclosure; and
[0024] FIG. 7 is a schematic cross-sectional structural view of a
fourth embodiment of the present disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0025] In the following detailed description, for purpose of
explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to
provide a through understanding of the disclosed embodiments. It
will be apparent, however, that one or more embodiments may be
practiced without these specific details. In other instances,
well-known structures and devices are schematically shown in order
to simplify the drawing.
[0026] Embodiments of the present disclosure are described in
detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0027] FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional structural view of the
present disclosure applied to a revolving-driven compressor, FIG. 2
is a schematic cross-sectional structural view of the present
disclosure, and FIG. 3 is a three-dimensional outside view of the
present disclosure.
[0028] In this embodiment, the revolving-driven refrigerant
compressor is described and shown by taking a scroll compressor as
an example, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. In
the structure of the compressor 1, a motor stator 11 and a motor
rotor 12 are disposed in a housing 10, and the motor rotor 12 is
combined with a main shaft 13.
[0029] One end of the main shaft 13 has an eccentric shaft 14, the
eccentric shaft 14 is connected to an orbiting scroll 15, the
orbiting scroll 15 is rotatably disposed in the housing 10, and a
fixed scroll 16 is disposed corresponding to the orbiting scroll
15. Therefore, when the motor rotor 12 and the main shaft 13
rotate, the eccentric shaft 14 drives the orbiting scroll 15 to
perform an engaging movement of revolving rather than rotating
relative to the fixed scroll 16, and perform compression operations
such as suction, compression, and discharging on a refrigerant in
the above movement manner.
[0030] In order to provide the lubricating oil required during the
rotation of the orbiting scroll 15, an oil tank 17 is disposed on
one side of the housing 10 away from the fixed scroll 16, and one
end of the main shaft 13 opposite to the eccentric shaft 14 extends
to the oil tank 17 and is connected to an oil supply structure
2.
[0031] Referring to FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, the oil supply structure 2
of the present disclosure is an impeller structure in a form of a
centrifugal pump, the oil supply structure 2 has a concave 21
recessed from a periphery to a center on one end opposite to the
main shaft 13, an oil hole 22 on the center of the concave 21, and
at least one blade 23 protruding from a surface of the concave 21
and extending from the periphery of the concave 21 towards the oil
hole 22. A rotation direction of the blade 23 is opposite to a
rotation direction of the main shaft, and a surface of the blade 23
is inclined towards the oil hole 22, such that the inclination of
the surface of the blade 23 has a fluid guiding function.
[0032] In this embodiment, the oil supply structure 2 is directly
fabricated on the end of the main shaft 13 opposite to the
eccentric shaft 14 by electrical discharge machining or other
methods, such that the oil supply structure 2 is integrated with
the main shaft 13 to form a unity. The concave 21 is in a form of a
concave camber. The oil hole 22 extends into the main shaft 13, and
the main shaft 13 has an oil supply passage connected to the oil
hole 22. The oil supply passage is formed by a first passage 131
and a second passage 141 (as shown in FIG. 1). The first passage
131 extends from a center of one end of the main shaft 13 connected
to the oil supply structure 2 towards an other end of the main
shaft 13, the second passage 141 extends from a center of the
eccentric shaft 14 towards the first passage 131, and meets and
communicates with the first passage 131 in the main shaft 13, such
that the lubricating oil can be supplied from the oil hole 22
through the first passage 131 and the second passage 141 to the
orbiting scroll 15 for lubrication. In this embodiment, the oil
supply structure 2 has six blades 23, and the number and inclined
angle of the blades 23 and the recessed depth of the concave 21 may
be adjusted according to the amount of oil to be supplied.
[0033] In the oil supply structure 2 of the present disclosure, the
function of a centrifugal pump is generated by the inwardly
recessed concave and the blades, such that the oil supply structure
2 of the present disclosure generates different centrifugal forces
according to changes in the rotation rate, so as to determine the
amount of the lubricating oil flowing into the oil hole and
pressurize the lubricating oil, and achieve an appropriate
lubrication effect by oil injection under the guide of the first
passage 131 and the second passage 141, thereby improving the oil
feeding efficiency for lubrication. The oil supply structure 2 of
the present disclosure is an impeller structure in a form of a
centrifugal pump, which has a simple structure, can effectively
reduce the number of mechanical elements, and thus can be easily
manufactured and assembled.
[0034] Further, the oil supply structure 2 of the present
disclosure has speed characteristic of the centrifugal pump, and is
capable of adjusting the supply of the lubricating oil according to
the rotation rate of the main shaft 13, so as to achieve the effect
of providing a stable oil supply through flow variation, thereby
avoiding a problem that due to an excessively slow response to the
increase of the amount of the lubricating oil, a bearing of the
orbiting scroll 15 is heated due to friction and the heat cannot be
dissipated in time, resulting in that the bearing of the orbiting
scroll 15 is damaged due to heat accumulation.
[0035] In addition, a thickness of a lubricating oil film is
correlated to the friction loss of the compressor, and both
excessive lubricating oil and insufficient lubricating oil affect
the lifetime of the bearing and power consumption of the
compressor. The present disclosure has the effect of providing a
stable oil supply through flow variation, and is capable of
adjusting the supply of the lubricating oil according to the
rotation rate of the main shaft 13, so as to prevent an excessive
or insufficient supply of the lubricating oil, thereby increasing
the lifetime and reliability of the bearing of the compressor, and
reducing the power loss of the main shaft 13.
[0036] FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional structural view of a
second embodiment of the present disclosure, and FIG. 5 is a
three-dimensional outside view of the second embodiment of the
present disclosure. The oil supply structure is a separate impeller
4. The impeller 4 has a separate main body 40. The main body 40 is
slightly in a horn shape and has a columnar end 401 and an expanded
end 402. The columnar end 401 is used to be combined with the a
first passage 331 of a main shaft 33 in a tight-fitting manner,
such that the main body 40 can rotate along with the main shaft 33.
The concave 41 is formed on the expanded end 402, the oil hole 42
penetrates the main body 40, and a plurality of blades 43 is formed
on the concave 41.
[0037] After the separate impeller 4 is combined with the main
shaft 33, the same effect as the oil supply structure according to
the first embodiment can also be achieved.
[0038] FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional structural view of a
third embodiment of the present disclosure. Referring to FIG. 6,
the revolving-driven compressor 5 is transversely disposed. An oil
supply structure 6 is integrally formed on one end of the main
shaft 53 extending to the oil tank 57. An oil collector 7 is
sleeved on an outer edge of the oil supply structure 6. The oil
collector 7 has a main body 70 having a hollow chamber, the main
body 70 has an oil suction pipe 71 extending downwards therefrom,
and the oil suction pipe 71 extends into the lubricating oil of the
oil tank 57, so as to ensure that the oil supply structure 6 can
obtain the lubricating oil. Thus, this embodiment can also achieve
the same effect as the first embodiment.
[0039] Definitely, in addition to the application to the
revolving-driven compressor as described in the above embodiments,
the oil supply structure for the refrigerant compressor of the
present disclosure may also be applied to other types of
refrigerant compressors. FIG. 7 is a schematic cross-sectional
structural view of a fourth embodiment of the present disclosure.
Referring to FIG. 7, in this embodiment, the oil supply structure
for the refrigerant compressor of the present disclosure is
implemented on a rotary compressor. The rotary compressor 8
includes a motor 81 for driving a main shaft 82. The main shaft 82
penetrates a compression mechanism 83 and includes an eccentric
shaft 821 corresponding to the compression mechanism 83, so as to
drive a rotor 84 to operate in the compression mechanism 83. The
oil supply structure 9 of the present disclosure is disposed on one
end of the main shaft 82 penetrating the compression mechanism 83.
Thus, the same effect of improving the oil supply efficiency as the
first embodiment can also be achieved.
[0040] In addition, the present disclosure may also be applied to a
transversely disposed rotary compressor, and during implementation,
the application can be realized by simply combining the oil
collector in the third embodiment with the fourth embodiment.
[0041] The disclosure being thus described, it will be obvious that
the same may be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to be
regarded as a departure from the spirit and scope of the
disclosure, and all such modifications as would be obvious to one
skilled in the art are intended to be included within the scope of
the following claims.
* * * * *