FOIL FAN BLADE AND CEILING FAN
A rotary foil fan blade includes an elongated support member and at least one foil member mounted on the support member. The foil member is substantially shorter in length than the elongated support member. A ceiling fan includes a central blade hub and an array of foil fan blades mounted on the central hub.
This application claims the benefit of priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/866,914, filed Nov. 22, 2006, the disclosure of which is herein incorporated by reference.
FIELD OF THE INVENTIONThis invention relates in general to ceiling fans and relates more particularly to a lightweight foil fan blade and to a ceiling fan including foil fan blades.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONCeiling fans are popular commercial and consumer items. They move air in a room to more evenly distribute the air and keep the room at a more constant temperature. Ceiling fans are often used to cool people by providing a stream of air over their bodies. The air stream enhances body cooling by evaporating any surface body moisture and by removing heat from the surface of the skin.
The blades of ceiling fans are typically elongated members of one and a half to two feet or more in length. The fan blade can be a solid member of wood, metal or plastic. The solid blades are heavy and require a more powerful, energy consuming motor to rotate them. The fan blade can be a more lightweight structure including a rigid frame covered with a lightweight material, such as fabric or plastic. (See: U.S. Pat. No. 5,110,261, issued May 5, 1992, inventor Junkin, and U.S. Pat. No. 6,419,451 B1, issued Jul. 16, 2002, inventors Moody et al.). These blades use a more lightweight and less energy consuming motor. The blades are typically set at an angle to the horizontal to facilitate air flow. The fan blades are often decorative in nature, assuming different shapes and having different decorations on them. Because fan blades are generally fixed, they can only produce a fixed flow of air in one direction.
There exists a need for a ceiling fan having blades that are light in weight, that are aesthetically pleasing and that can be configured to give various air patterns in a room.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONAccording to a feature of the present invention, there is provided a rotary fan blade including an elongated support member and at least one foil member mounted on the support member, wherein the foil member is substantially shorter than the elongated support member.
According to another feature of the present invention, there is provided a ceiling fan including a plurality of fan blades, wherein each of the fan blades includes an elongated support member and at least one foil member mounted on said support member, wherein the foil member is substantially shorter in length than the elongated support member.
An advantage of the present invention is that the foil fan blade is lightweight and can be designed to be aesthetically pleasing. Further, a ceiling fan having a plurality of foil fan blades can be powered with an energy efficient motor and configured to give various air patterns in a room. Even further, the invention provides a sectional blade arm for breakdown to reduce shipping and storage space.
The present invention is disclosed with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:
Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views. The examples set out herein illustrate several embodiments of the invention but should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention in any manner.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTReferring now to
Foil blade 14 is substantially shorter in length than the length of elongated support member 12. As shown in
The support members 86 may be segmented to allow the fan blades 82 to be packaged in smaller boxes and to provide some flexibility in the length of the fan blades 82 and number of foil blades 84 included in each fan blade 82. Each of the segments may include one or more foil blades 84. The segments are connected at a joint 88, such as the one shown in
While it is preferred that the orientation and the distance from the hub 22 of the foil blades 14 are determined when the fan is designed and are not adjustable, the following embodiments describe alternative fans with adjustable foils or support members.
While the invention has been described with reference to preferred embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted for elements thereof to adapt to particular situations without departing from the scope of the invention. Therefore, it is intended that the invention not be limited to the particular embodiments disclosed as the best mode contemplated for carrying out this invention, but that the invention will include all embodiments falling within the scope and spirit of the appended claims.
Claims
1. A rotary fan blade comprising:
- an elongated support member; and
- at least one foil member mounted on said support member;
- wherein said foil member is substantially shorter in length than said elongated support member.
2. The rotary fan blade of claim 1 wherein said foil member is mounted on the end of said support member.
3. The rotary fan blade of claim 1 including a plurality of foil members mounted on said support member at different locations along the length of said support member.
4. The rotary fan blade of claim 1 wherein said support member is a hollow rod having one of a square, circular, triangular, or air foil cross-sectional shape.
5. The rotary fan blade of claim 1 wherein said support member is a solid rod having one of a square, circular, triangular, or air foil cross-sectional shape.
6. The rotary fan blade of claim 1 wherein said support member is made of one or more of metal, plastic, wood, graphite, or composites.
7. The rotary fan blade of claim 1 wherein said foil member has an air foil shape.
8. The rotary fan blade of claim 1 wherein said foil member is tilted at an angle to the horizontal.
9. The rotary fan blade of claim 1 wherein said support member includes a first partially hollow segment, a second telescoping segment partially slidably mounted in said first segment, and fasteners for joining the blade arm sections at joint in apertures in said first segment for holding said first and second segments together.
10. The rotary fan blade of claim 1 wherein said support member includes a first partially hollow segment, a second telescoping segment partially slidably mounted in said first segment, a ball mounted near the end of said second segment, a series of apertures in said first segment, and a spring mounted on said second segment for biasing said ball into one of said apertures to hold said first and second segments together.
11. The rotary fan blade of claim 1 wherein said support member includes a first hollow segment, a second telescoping segment partially slidably mounted in said first segment, a centrifugal force tension spring connecting said first and second segments together, opposing slots in said first segment, and stabilization tabs on said second segment which project through said slots on said first segment; wherein when said rotary fan blade is rotated rapidly, said second segment extends outwardly by centrifugal force against the tension force of said spring, and said tabs ride in said slots.
12. A ceiling fan comprising:
- a central blade hub; and
- a circumferential array of fan blades mounted on said central blade hub;
- wherein each of said fan blades includes an elongated support member, and at least one foil member mounted on said support member, wherein said foil member is substantially shorter in length than said elongated support member.
13. The ceiling fan of claim 12 wherein said elongated support members are sinuous in shape.
14. The ceiling fan of claim 13 wherein said foil members are sinuous in shape.
15. The ceiling fan of claim 12 wherein said fan blades are fixedly mounted to said central blade hub.
16. The ceiling fan of claim 12 wherein said fan blades are adjustably mounted to said central blade hub.
17. The ceiling fan of claim 12 wherein said fan blades are mounted for axial rotation to said central blade hub and including a mechanism for rotating said fan blades in order to change the pitch of said foil members.
18. The ceiling fan of claim 12 wherein said support members each comprise two or more segments, each of the segments supporting one or more of said foils.
19. A ceiling fan comprising:
- a central blade hub;
- a circumferential array of foil blades spaced from said central blade hub; and
- an assembly for mounting said circumferential array of foil blades on said central blade hub.
20. The ceiling fan of claim 19 wherein said assembly includes inner and outer blade support rings for supporting said foil blades and a plurality of support members radially extending between said central blade hub and said inner blade support ring.
Type: Application
Filed: Nov 21, 2007
Publication Date: Jun 12, 2008
Inventor: Thomas Cartwright (Stuart, FL)
Application Number: 11/943,785
International Classification: F04D 29/64 (20060101); F04D 29/34 (20060101);