Blower Housing

Abstract

Improved means is provided for housing a blower, fan, or the like. Basically, the improved housing means comprises end wall means, scroll means having a first dimension extensible along a first line transverse to the end wall means and a second dimension extensible along a second line generally parallel to the end wall means, and readily removable fastener means for quickly connecting and disconnecting the end wall and scroll means to and from one another. With this arrangement, a fluid inlet opening for the blower can be provided in the end wall means which is smaller than the portion of the blower contained within the housing means, but the blower portion can be easily extracted from within the housing means by removing the fastener means.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to the improvements in means for housing a blower, fan, or the like. More particularly, this invention is directed to the type of housings wherein air or some other fluid is drawn inwardly through a fluid opening provided in the housing end wall means and blown outwardly by the blower impeller through a fluid outlet opening from the housing.

Heretofore, housings of the aforedescribed type have often comprised a pair of spaced end wall members forming the housing end wall means and a scroll or wrapper sheet extending between and over the end wall members and forming the housing walls intermediate of the end wall members. Usually, these pats have been made from a flat, flexible material, such as sheet metal. Frequently, the end wall members have been shaped to conform to the desired end cross section of the housing and their outer peripheral edges have been bent laterally to provide a securing flange for the scroll or wrapper sheet which has been fitted thereover and permanently secured thereto by spot-welding. In order to permit insertion or removal of the blower impeller to and from within these permanently secured prior art housings, it has been necessary to provide the end wall means with an opening large enough to permit a passage of the blower impeller. Since, however, such an opening is too large to function properly as the required blower fluid inlet opening, it has been customary with these prior art devices to place over it a reducing member that is provided with a fluid inlet opening of the proper size, with this reducing member being secured to the end wall means by bolts or other similar fastener devices. A typical form of such prior art housing means is described in U.S. Pat. No. 1,978,459.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides improved means for housing a blower, fan, and the like, which are greatly simplified in construction, assembly and maintenance when compared with the aforedescribed prior art housing means. Basically, the improved housing means provided by the present invention comprises end wall means, scroll means having a first dimension extensible along a first line transverse to the end wall means and a second dimension extensible along a second line generally parallel to the end wall means, and readily removable fastener means for quickly connecting and disconnecting the end wall and scroll means to and from one another. With this improved arrangement, a fluid inlet opening for the blower can be provided in the end wall means which is smaller than the portion of the blower (such as the blower impeller) that is container within the housing means, but this blower portion can be easily extracted from within the housing means by removing the fastener means. Hence, the previous need for spot-welding is eliminated along with the previously required reducing member, and the costs of construction, assembly and maintenance are greatly reduced.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

The present invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a somewhat schematic, partly broken, front elevational view of an electrically powered blower employing a presently preferred form of the improved housing means provided in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a left end view of the apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged, exploded, right end perspective view showing the basic parts which comprise the housing means illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2; and

FIG. 4 is a greatly enlarged fragmentary view showing certain details of construction and assembly of the readily removable fastener means that are employed to quickly connect and disconnect the parts of the housing means illustrated in FIGS. 1-3 and the means in which the fastener means are engaged.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring now to the drawing and, more particularly, to FIGS. 1-3 thereof, there is illustrated, somewhat schematically, a blower unit 10 employing a presently preferred form of improved housing means 11 that is provided in accordance with the present invention.

As best shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the housing means 11 comprises a pair of spaced apart left and right end wall members 12 and 13 that form the end wall means of the housing 11 and a scroll or wrapper sheet 14 which extends between the end wall members 12 and 13 to form the walls of the housing 11 intermediate the end wall members 12 and 13. The scroll or wrapper sheet means 14 has a first dimension, its width as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, which is extensible along a first line transverse to the end wall means 12 and 13 and a second dimension, its thickness as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, which is extensible along a second line that is generally parallel to the end wall means 12 and 13.

Typically, the two end wall members 12 and 13 and the single scroll or wrapper sheet 14 are made from a flat flexible material, such as sheet metal. As illustrated in FIGS. 1-3, each of the end wall members 12 and 13 is shaped about its outer periphery to conform to the desired cross section of the housing means 11, with such shape, in the particular construction shown, including a generally circular portion 15, corresponding to the cross section of the housing portion within which the blower impeller 16 is to be contained, and a handlelike portion 17 extending away from the generally circular portion 15 and forming one edge of the blower housing fluid outlet opening 18.

Either or both (FIG. 3) of the end wall members 12 and 13 is provided with a circular opening 19 at or near to the center of its generally circular portion 15 which forms the blower housing fluid inlet opening. Each of these fluid inlet openings 19 is surrounded by flange means 20 formed of material bent laterally from the major plane of the end wall member 12 or 13 and has a diameter which is smaller than the diameter of the blower impeller 16, which, in turn, is supported within the housing 11 on the output rotor 21 of the blower electric drive motor 22 that is contained in frame means 23 which is small enough to pass through either of the fluid inlet openings 19 and is detachably mounted to either of the end wall members 12 or 13 (the left one 12 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2) by three motor frame-engaging bracket members 24a, 24b, and 24c and three self-tapping sheetmetal screws 25a, 25b and 25c that are threaded into three apertures 26a, 26b, and 26c provided in the end wall members 12 and 13 around the fluid inlet opening 19.

As specifically shown in FIG. 3, each of the end wall members 12 and 13 is provided adjacent its outer periphery, save the portion thereof which forms an edge of the blower fluid outlet 18, with flange means 27 integrally formed therewith by bending most of its outer margin into a generally L-shaped cross section. With this arrangement, the foot portion 27f of the L-shaped flange means 27 provides a seat for the left and right edges of the aforenoted first dimension of the scroll or wrapper sheet 14, while the upright portion 27u of the L-shaped flange means 27 is provided with a plurality of fastener means openings 28, which are spaced around the outer periphery of each of the two end wall members 12 and 13 and through each of which openings 28 is passed the threaded section 29t of a self-tapping sheetmetal screw 29 that is extensible along the aforenoted first line and which, in turn, is tightly threadably engaged with complementary thread-engaging means 30 that are formed by material that is displaced from the scroll or wrapper means 14 along the aforenoted second line.

As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 3 and as shown in detail in FIG. 4, the complementary fastener-engaging means 30, with which the threaded section 29t of each of the readily removable fastener means or self-tapping sheetmetal screws 29 is engaged, are equal in number to the plurality of these screws 29 and the fastener means openings 28 provided, and are intended to be aligned therewith along the aforenoted first line. More specifically, the fastener-engaging means 30 are spaced lengthwise along the opposite long edges of the scroll or wrapper sheet 14 and each is formed by lancing the scroll or wrapper sheet 14 along the aforenoted first line to displace a series of loops 30u and 30d of material from the scroll or wrapper sheet 14 that are axially spaced along the aforenoted first line and alternatingly displaced along the aforenoted second line in a first direction and in a second direction generally opposite from the first direction. Preferably, as best shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, each thread-receiving opening 31 that is formed by the aforedescribed series of axially spaced and alternatingly displaced loops 30u and 30d has an oblate cross section and is tapered along its long axis to match the pitch of the threaded section 29t of each of the self-tapping sheetmetal screws 29, while the cross section of the screw 29 is generally circular. Still further, it is desirable that the foot portion 27f of the L-shaped flange means 27 at the outer periphery of each of the end wall members 12 and 13 be formed with a cup section 32 adjacent each of the fastener means openings 28 that is complementary with and capable of receiving the axially outermost one of the aforedescribed loops 30d.

The blower unit 10 can be assembled by first connecting the blower impeller 16 to the output rotor 21 of the electric drive motor 22. Next, this impeller-motor assembly can be connected to the motor frame means 23 by inserting the end of the motor 22 opposite its output rotor 21 into the frame means 23, the interior of which is preferably designed to tightly grip the exterior of the body of the motor 22. Then, this impeller-motor and frame means assembly can be connected to one of the end wall members 12 or 13 (the left one 12 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2) by passing the frame means 23 outwardly through the fluid inlet opening 19 and detachably connecting the frame means 23 to that one end wall member 12 by fastening it to the outer wall thereof with the three brackets 24a, 24b, and 24c and the three self-tapping sheetmetal screws 25a, 25b, and 25c which are respectively threaded through the three brackets 24a, 24b and 24c and into engagement with the three apertures 26a, 26b, and 26c spaced around the fluid inlet opening 19. Desirably, the motor-engaging frame means 23 is sized such that its outer periphery will rest upon the flange means 20 that surrounds the blower inlet opening 19. Finally, this impeller-motor-frame and single end wall member assembly can be aligned and connected with the other end wall member (the right one 13 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2) and the scroll or wrapper sheet 14 to complete the assembly of the housing means 11 and the blower unit 10. This final step can be easily accomplished by aligning the other end wall member 13 on the opposite end of the blower impeller 16 from that which faces the end wall member 12 which forms a part of the impeller-motor-frame and single end wall member assembly, with the handlelike portions 17 of the two end wall members 12 and 13 arranged parallel to one another; then, wrapping the preformed scroll or wrapper sheet 14 around the blower impeller 16 with the edges at the opposite ends of its first dimension (its width as shown in FIGS. 1, 3 and 4) arranged to respectively rest atop the foot portions 27f of the flange means 27 provided on the outer peripheries of the two spaced apart end wall members 12 and 13; and, finally, connecting together the thus aligned end wall members 12 and 13 and scroll or wrapper means 14 with the readily removable fastener means comprising the plurality of self-tapping sheetmetal screws 29 by passing the threaded section 29t of each of these screws 29 through the fastener means opening 28 provided for it in the upright portion 27u of the flange means 27 and tightly engaging the threaded section 29t of each of the screws 29 with the aforedescribed fastener engaging means 30 that are provided for that purpose by displacement of material from the scroll or wrapper sheet means 14.

And, of special significance, the impeller 16 or any portion of the blower unit 10 that is contained within the assembled novel housing means 11 that is provided in accordance with the present invention can be quickly and easily extracted from within the housing 11 for maintenance or other reasons by removing the readily removable fastener means or sheetmetal screws 29 which connect the impeller-supporting end wall member 12 to the scroll or wrapper means 14, whereupon this impeller-supporting end wall member 12 can be quickly disconnected from the scroll or wrapper means 14 and the impeller 16 or similar blower portions removed from within the housing means 11.

It should be apparent to those skilled in the art that while there has been described what, at present, is considered to be a presently preferred embodiment of this invention in accordance with the patent statutes, changes may be made in the disclosed apparatus without actually departing from the true spirit and scope of this invention. It is, therefore, intended that the appended claims shall cover such modifications and applications as do not depart from the true spirit and scope of the present invention.

Claims

What I claim is:

1. Improved means for housing a blower and the like, comprising:

a. end wall means;

b. scroll means having a first dimension extensible along a first line transverse to said end wall means and a second dimension extensible along a second line generally parallel to said end wall means; and

c. readily removable fastener means comprising a self-tapping sheet metal screw for quickly connecting said end wall and scroll means to and from one another,

d. said screw having a threaded section extensible along said first line for engagement with complementary means formed by material that is displaced from said scroll means along said second line.

2. The invention of claim 1, wherein a first portion of said material is displaced along said second line in a first direction and a second portion of said material is displaced along said second line in a second direction generally opposite from said first direction.

3. The invention of claim 1, wherein said screw is also extensible along said first line through a fastener means opening provided adjacent the outer periphery of said end wall means.

4. The invention of claim 3, further comprising flange means provided adjacent said end wall means outer periphery and including said fastener means opening.

5. The invention of claim 4, wherein said flange means and said end wall means are formed integrally.

6. Improved means for housing a blower and the like, comprising:

a. end wall means;

b. scroll means having a first dimension extensible along a first line transverse to said end wall means and a second dimension extensible along a second line generally parallel to said end wall means;

c. readily removable fastener means comprising a self-tapping sheet metal screw for quickly connecting said end wall and scroll means to and from one another,

d. said screw having a threaded section extensible along said first line for engagement with complementary means formed by material that is displaced from said scroll along said second line; and

e. a fluid inlet opening for the blower being provided in said end wall means which is smaller than the blower portion contained within the housing means, but the blower portion being easily extractable from within the housing means by removing said fastener means.

7. The invention of claim 6, wherein a first portion of said material is displaced along said second line in a first direction and a second portion of said material is displaced along said second line in a second direction generally opposite from said first direction.

8. The invention of claim 6, wherein said screw is also extensible along said first line through a fastener means opening provided adjacent the outer periphery of said end wall means.

9. The invention of claim 8, further comprising flange means provided adjacent said outer periphery of said end wall means and including said fastener means opening.

10. The invention of claim 9, wherein said flange means and said end wall means are formed integrally.

11. The invention of claim 7, wherein said displaced material comprises a series of loops axially spaced along said first line and alternatingly displaced along said second line in said first and second directions to form a thread-receiving opening for said threaded section of said screw.

12. The invention of claim 11, wherein said thread-receiving opening has an oblate cross section and said screw has a generally circular cross section.

13. The invention of claim 12, wherein said thread-receiving opening is tapered to match the pitch of said threaded section of said screw.

14. The invention of claim 11, wherein said thread-receiving opening is tapered to match the pitch of said threaded section of said screw.