NOISE REDUCING SILENCER WITH SPIRAL CHAMBERS FOR A COMPRESSOR
A noise reducing silencer for a compressor, the silencer including a housing, a spirally shaped silencer core provided in the housing and having an inlet and an outlet, a connecting element connected to the silencer core to connect the outlet of the silencer core to an inlet of a compressor. The silencer core is provided to reduce noise during operation of the compressor, where the silencer core can include two spiral chambers stacked on each other. The spiral chambers can also include hollow walls that form the spiral chambers and that are filled with sound absorbing material.
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This application claims priority to provisional application No. 62/717,175, filed Aug. 10, 2018, and provisional application No. 62/719,726, filed Aug. 20, 2018, which are incorporated herein by reference.
FIELD OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention relates generally to a compressor, and more particularly to a silencer for reducing the noise emitted from certain compressors, especially reciprocating compressors or piston compressors.
BACKGROUNDCompressors typically include a motor that drives a compressor element to pressurize air. The compressor element can be a reciprocating compressor or piston compressor, a centrifugal compressor, a scroll compressor, a screw compressor having male and female compressor elements, or the like. All such compressor elements have a suction side for receiving inlet air, e.g., through an inlet air filter, and an outlet side for discharging the compressed air to a tank and/or distribution header for distributing the compressed air to a network of users. During the compression process, due to the large volume of air provided through the air inlet of the compressor, noise is generated at the air inlet or suction side.
For example, in a reciprocating compressor, which is widely used in various industrial and domestic applications, the motor is used to drive a crankshaft that moves pistons in a reciprocating manner, where gas enters the suction side, typically through an inlet manifold, is compressed via the pistons being driven in a reciprocating manner, and then discharged at high pressure into a tank.
However, during operation of the reciprocating compressor, noise is emitted from the air inlet or suction side of the reciprocating compressor when the air is drawn through the inlet manifold, e.g., due to the turbulence of the air moved through the inlet. Typically, the prior art reciprocating compressor has little to no provisions to reduce the noise it generates or employs conventional structures to reduce this noise. For example, one conventional structure draws the inlet air through a large, bulky, and remotely mounted baffling box, where such structure is costly and restricts the inlet air flow by employing a long tube that connects the suction side or air inlet of the compressor to the large baffling box, which reduces the efficiency of the compressor.
In view of such drawbacks, there is a need to provide a simpler, smaller, and more cost-effective structure for reducing the noise generated at the air inlet of compressors that does not reduce the efficiency of the compressor.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention is provided to solve the deficiencies of the prior art by providing improvements over the prior art in several ways. For example, it is an object of the present invention to provide a silencer that costs less, is much smaller, and can be attached directly to the compressor air inlet to reduce or eliminate restriction to the inlet air flow.
In order to achieve the objectives of the present invention, a noise reducing silencer is provided that is attached directly to the compressor air inlet of a compressor. The noise reducing silencer has a silencer core which reduces and/or eliminates the noise at the air inlet to provide a quieter compressor without adding significant extra costs and without significantly reducing efficiency. In one embodiment of the invention, the silencer comprises a housing, a silencer core, where the silencer core comprises two spiral chambers that are stacked on each other. In another embodiment, the two spiral chambers comprise hollow walls forming the spiral chambers, where the hollow walls comprise sound absorbing material. In order to reduce costs and size, the noise reducing silencer can be incorporated into a conventional air filter for a compressor and/or include filtering elements. The noise reducing silencer may be attached directly to the compressor intake/air inlet. The noise reducing silencer can also be attached to the air filter as a separate element.
The spiral chambers can be made of metal, plastic, a composite material, or a combination thereof or include material to dampen the noise.
The features and objects of the present invention are more clearly understood from the detailed description of preferred embodiments taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
In the various figures, similar elements are provided with similar reference numbers. It should be noted that the drawing figures are not necessarily drawn to scale, or proportion, but instead are drawn to provide a better understanding of the components thereof, and are not intended to be limiting in scope, but rather provide exemplary illustrations.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention will be described with respect to particular embodiments and with reference to certain drawings but the invention is not limited thereto and can be combined interchangeably with certain features in the different embodiments.
The noise reducing silencer 200 is provided at the air inlet 12 to reduce and/or eliminate the noise generated when the air is suctioned or drawn into the air inlet 12 of the compressor element 10. The noise reducing silencer 200 can be used to replace the standard air filters used for reciprocating air compressors by including air filter media in the noise reducing silencer, or be attached to the standard air filters, e.g., series connection.
As seen in
In this embodiment of the invention, the noise reducing silencer 200 includes a silencer core 220 that comprises first spiral chamber 222, and second spiral chamber 224, which are rigidly connected to and separated by support 226. Thus, spiral chambers 222 and 224 are stacked on each other to reduce noise. First end seal 249 abuts first spiral chamber 222, and guides air flow from opening 216 through the aperture in the center of first end seal 249 and into the center of first spiral chamber 222. Second end seal 250 abuts second spiral chamber 224, and guides airflow from the center of second spiral chamber 224 through the aperture in the center of second end seal 250 and into outlet 2121 in base 212. Base 212 and cover 214 may be provided with indentations to hold silencer core 220 and filtering element 240 in fixed positions. Each of the spiral chambers 222, 224 is provided with an inlet and an outlet, where the outlet of the second spiral chamber 224 can be connected to a connecting element or channel provided along an inner side of the windings of the second spiral chamber 224 for connecting to the outlet 2121 of the base 212. While two spiral chambers 222, 224 are illustrated in this embodiment, a single spiral chamber or more than two spiral chambers can be used, where the number of spiral chambers are determined based on a number of factors, including the size of the noise reducing silencer. In some embodiments, one to six spiral chambers can be used.
The end seals 249, 250 are constructed of a composite material or rubber to seal the spiral chambers and direct the air flow through the silencer core 220. Additionally, a filtering element 240 can be placed around the silencer core 220. Filtering element 240 includes a filter screen 244 to provide a supporting surface for the filter 242. The filter 242 can include a variety of filtering media for example, coalescing filters, particulate filters, and carbon filters, to remove at least solid particles, liquids, aerosols, hydrocarbon vapours, etc. The filtering element can be further configured to reduce high frequency noise, e.g., based on the material and construction of the filtering element, e.g., using noise reducing material such as composite material and firmly mounting the filter screen. The base 212 of the noise reducing silencer 200 is also configured so that it can be coupled to the air intake port, e.g., air inlet, of the compressor, for example, by being fit into the air intake port of the compressor. The size of the assembled noise reducing silencer may be closely matched to the size of the standard air filters that are typically used for reciprocating air compressors.
In the embodiment of the invention that includes the filtering element 240, the noise reducing silencer 200 is constructed in a way so that the at least two spiral chambers are provided centrally in the housing 210. The filter screen 244 is then provided along an outer side and surrounding second spiral chamber 224 of the spirally shaped silencer core 220, and the filter 242 is provided along an outer surface of the filter screen 244. The housing 210, base 212, and cover 214 enclose the elements of the noise reducing silencer 200.
The operation of the noise reducing silencer 200 is provided as follows: Air is drawn through the opening 216 in the cover 214 into the noise reducing silencer 200 centrally through the first end seal 249 and through the first spiral chamber inlet 227 (shown in
Typically, in such compressor elements, noise is generated at the air inlet due to the suction of air, however, in the present invention, the noise from the suction of air is reduced and/or eliminated by the noise reducing silencer 200. Without limiting the invention by theory, it is understood that the spiral chambers 222, 224 create an extended and indirect path for the sound to travel by forcing the air to travel through. The windings of the spiral chambers preferably include two windings. However, more or less windings are within the scope of the invention. That is, it is understood that the spiral shape of the spiral chambers prevents a straight path for the sound to travel and the sound is instead reflected from all surfaces causing noise cancellation and attenuation. For example, the spiral windings provide a sealed surface for a broad spectrum of sound frequencies that are diffused or absorbed by the spiral chambers 220. The number of windings that are appropriate depends on the application and volume of air to be passed through the spirally shaped silencer core 220. In other words, it is appreciated that this stacked dual chamber reduces air flow restriction to the compressor by not only providing a wider inlet opening, but reduces the noise by creating an extended and indirect path for the noise generated at the air inlet of the compressor to travel.
Noise reduction can be further enhanced by coating the spiral chambers with a sound absorbing material, such as sound proofing paint or gel, foam, fiberglass, ceramics or the like. This concept can be stacked for increased noise reduction. The end seals 249, 250 can also be coated with the sound absorbing material for further noise reduction.
The spirally shaped silencer core 220 can be made of a composite material, such as plastic, rubber, metal, carbon, natural fibers, fiberglass, or a combination thereof, to absorb a broad spectrum of frequencies and can further include porous or corrugated tubes or foams inside the spirally wound silencer core 220 to further absorb noise.
Specifically, as illustrated in
Additionally, a filtering element 440 is placed around second spiral chamber 424 of the silencer core 420 and includes a filter screen 444 to provide a supporting surface for the filter 442, where the filtering element can be further configured to reduce high frequency noise, e.g., based on the material and construction of the filtering element, e.g., using noise reducing material such as composite material and firmly mounting the filter screen. A space may be provided between the exterior surface of filter element 440 and the interior surface of housing 410, whereby air flows out of first spiral chamber 422, through the space, through filter element 440, through second spiral chamber inlet 428 (shown in
Specifically, as illustrated in
In view of such structure and features, the present invention solves the deficiencies of the prior art by providing a noise reducing silencer for a compressor installation which includes a silencer core that is configured to reduce and/or eliminate noise generated at an air inlet of a compressor. This is an improvement over the prior art in several ways. These features cost less than a baffle box provided at an air inlet of a compressor. The present invention allows a smaller size silencer due to the compact arrangement of the silencer core, and may be attached directly to the compressor inlet with the air filter to reduce or eliminate restriction to the inlet air flow.
The invention discussed herein is directed to specific embodiments, but the design is not limited to the description of the exemplary invention but only by the scope of the appended claims. As a result, there are multiple embodiments that employ the beneficial characterises of the invention, each providing a different advantage and which are combinable and/or interchangeable with various aspects of the different embodiments of the invention that do not depart from the spirit and scope of the invention.
Claims
1. A noise reducing silencer for a compressor, said silencer comprising:
- a housing; and
- a spirally shaped silencer core provided in the housing and having a core inlet and a core outlet, wherein the silencer core comprises two spiral chambers that are stacked on each other.
2. The silencer according to claim 1, further comprising end seals, wherein the housing comprises a base and a cover enclosing the housing and the end seals are provided to seal the spiral chambers from the base and the cover, respectively; and said silencer further comprising a connecting element configured to connect the outlet of the silencer core to an air inlet of the compressor.
3. The silencer according to claim 2, further comprising a filter element and a filter screen configured in a way to support the filter element, wherein said filter element and filter screen are provided circumferentially around an outer side of at least one of the spiral chambers within the housing.
4. The silencer according to claim 1, wherein the spiral chambers are coated with a sound absorbing material.
5. The silencer according to claim 1, wherein the spiral chambers comprise at least two windings.
6. The silencer according to claim 1, wherein the spiral chambers comprise hollow walls forming the spiral chambers which are filled with sound absorbing material.
7. The silencer according to claim 1, further comprising a filter element and a filter support configured in a way to support the filter element, wherein said filter element and filter support are provided at an out flow side of the core outlet.
8. The silencer according to claim 1, wherein the spirally shaped silencer core comprises composite material.
9. The silencer according to claim 1, wherein the housing comprises a base and a cover for enclosing the housing, and wherein said housing comprises at least one opening for an inlet airflow.
10. The silencer according to claim 1, wherein the inlet of the silencer core is provided centrally in a first spiral chamber of the spiral chambers and wherein the outlet of the silencer core is provided centrally in a second spiral chamber of the spiral chambers.
11. The silencer according to claim 10, wherein an outlet of the first spiral chamber is provided as a lateral outlet along an outer surface of the first spiral chamber and an inlet of the second spiral chamber is provided as a lateral inlet along an outer surface of the second spiral chamber.
12. A compressor installation comprising:
- a motor;
- a compressor element;
- and a noise reducing silencer connected to an air inlet of the compressor element, said silencer comprising a housing, a spirally shaped silencer core provided in the housing, and a connecting element that connects the outlet of the silencer core to the air inlet of the compressor element, said silencer core comprising spiral chambers that are stacked on each other, each having an inlet and an outlet,
- wherein the silencer core is configured in a way to reduce noise generated from a gas entering into the compressor during operation.
13. The compressor installation according to claim 12, wherein the compressor is a reciprocating compressor, and the gas is air.
14. The compressor according to claim 12, wherein the spiral chambers comprise hollow walls filled with sound absorbing material.
15. A noise reducer for a compressor, said noise reducer comprising:
- a housing;
- a noise reducer core provided in the housing, said reducer core comprising a first spiral chamber configured to guide an air flow from the interior of the first spiral chamber to the exterior of the first spiral chamber.
16. The noise reducer according to claim 15, wherein said reducer core further comprises a second spiral chamber configured to guide an air flow from the exterior of the second spiral chamber to the interior of the second spiral chamber.
17. The noise reducer according to claim 16, further comprising a filtering element and said reducer configured to guide an air flow through said filtering element.
18. The noise reducer according to claim 17, further comprising a support that abuts said first spiral chamber, said second spiral chamber, and said filtering element within said housing.
19. The silencer according to claim 1, wherein the spirally shaped silencer core is configured to reduce noise generated at the core inlet and reduce the air flow restriction to the compressor during operation.
20. The noise reducer according to claim 15, wherein the reducer core is configured to reduce noise generated at an inlet of the reducer core and reduce the air flow restriction to the compressor during operation.
Type: Application
Filed: May 22, 2019
Publication Date: Feb 13, 2020
Applicant: QUINCY COMPRESSOR LLC (Bay Minette, AL)
Inventors: Tingrong REN (Spanish Fort, AL), Steve CENTERS (Daphne, AL), Gerald KALAPOS (Spanish Fort, AL), Byron WALKER (Loxley, AL), Erik BACCIN (Daphne, AL)
Application Number: 16/419,529