Patents Examined by Rhonda Barton
  • Patent number: 6126395
    Abstract: An impeller includes a vane component integrally molded with a plurality of vanes having predetermined tilt angles that change continuously from a central portion of rotation, and a bottomed cylindrical component formed with a rotating shaft body, so that the vanes have an ideal shape with tilt angles that match the rotational peripheral velocity. For this purpose, the impeller of an axial fan serves as a rotor arranged to be rotatable with respect to a stator fixed to a main body of the axial fan. The impeller includes a bottomed cylindrical component formed by injection molding from a predetermined resin material such that a shaft body axially supported by a rotary bearing of the main body is formed at a central portion of rotation thereof, and a vane component formed by injection molding from a predetermined resin material such that a plurality of vanes are equidistantly formed thereon.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 28, 1999
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2000
    Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Copal
    Inventor: Hiroyuki Shingai
  • Patent number: 6126392
    Abstract: An improved centrifugal pump having an integral pump/orifice plate located at either the pump discharge nozzle or suction nozzle for improved fluid flow measurements through the pump casing, and a process for measuring fluid flow through such a centrifugal pump casing is disclosed wherein the static pressure of a fluid being pumped by the pump is measured at a first point in the inlet or outlet area of the pump and at a second point removed along the nozzle, the pressures are compared to a pre-determined flow constant of the casing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 5, 1998
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2000
    Assignee: Goulds Pumps, Incorporated
    Inventor: Eugene P. Sabini
  • Patent number: 6126387
    Abstract: A pump housing PH surrounding an impeller 21 comprises an inlet port 19 and an outlet port 20 disposed in a spaced-apart relationship from each other in a direction of rotation of the impeller 21, a pump passage 23 corresponding to vane grooves 22 of the impeller 21 and extending from the inlet port 19 to the outlet port 20 along the direction of the impeller rotation, and a partition 25 for partitioning between the outlet port 20 and the inlet port 19 along the direction of the impeller rotation. A passage-communicating portion 29 for communication between the inlet port 19 and the pump passage 23 is offset from the partition 25 in the direction of the impeller rotation, and a passage-enlarged portion 30 is provided between the partition 25 and the passage-communicating portion 29.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 5, 1999
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2000
    Assignee: Aisan Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Shigeru Yoshida, Yoshihiro Takami, Masaru Matsuda
  • Patent number: 6123503
    Abstract: A blower/dryer assembly of the type comprising an electric motor, an impeller attached to the output shaft of the motor to be driven thereby, a molded plastic toroidal housing surrounding the impeller and a discharge nozzle attached to the impeller housing. The housing is attached to an adapter plate on the base plate of the motor by means of threaded fasteners arranged in a circular pattern which pass through slotted openings in the adapter plate and into reinforcement plates on the inside surface of the impeller housing. The slotted openings permit the angular relationship between the impeller housing and the adapter plate to be non-incrementally varied over a substantial angular range. The impeller housing is formed of a large diameter clearance opening in the surface immediately adjacent the motor end plate so as to receive therein the large diameter adapter plate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 30, 1998
    Date of Patent: September 26, 2000
    Assignee: Belanger, Inc.
    Inventors: Michael J. Belanger, Robert J. Wentworth
  • Patent number: 6120251
    Abstract: The rotor comprises, for each blade, an inner and an outer flap stop which are fixed to the blade and have a bearing surface which is planar with a cylindrical portion, facing an inner and an outer flap stop fixed to the hub and with torus-shaped bearing surfaces with their convexness facing towards the flap stops of the blade and in the shape of an arc of a circle centered on the axis of drag of the blade.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 11, 1998
    Date of Patent: September 19, 2000
    Assignee: Eurocopter
    Inventors: Sylvie Garcin, Etienne Jean Rampal
  • Patent number: 6113348
    Abstract: An impulse turbine comprises at least one runner keyed to a drive shaft in association with a distributor unit which has, for each runner, a circular outlet for the supply of fluid from the distributor unit to the blades of a respective runner. Each outlet is arranged coaxially inside the respective runner and the distributor unit is shaped in a manner such as to define a substantially circular path for the fluid and to cause the fluid to emerge from the distributor unit through the at least one outlet predominantly tangentially relative to the outlet.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 3, 1999
    Date of Patent: September 5, 2000
    Assignee: Dalesby Limited
    Inventor: Pietro Barozzi
  • Patent number: 6106233
    Abstract: A process for joining a base for an airfoil to a disk for an integrally bladed rotor stage in a gas turbine engine includes providing a disk having a radially outer rim with a slot defined therein by a recessed surface, and further includes providing a base having a longitudinally extending root portion facing opposite a longitudinally extending support portion for supporting the airfoil. The root portion has a root surface and the support portion has an outer surface. The process further includes bringing the root surface of the root portion into contact with the recessed surface bounding the slot, applying pressure and relative movement between the base and the rim to achieve during welding, substantial contiguity between the root surface and the recessed surface over the area of the recessed surface, resulting in a substantially continuous linear friction weld between the base and the rim.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 25, 1999
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2000
    Assignee: United Technologies Corporation
    Inventors: Herbert L. Walker, Stephen A. Hilton, JoAnn Barbieri, John P. Fournier, Richard D. Trask
  • Patent number: 6102658
    Abstract: A coolable airfoil is provided which includes an internal cavity, an external wall, a plurality of first cooling apertures, and a plurality of second cooling apertures. The external wall includes a suction side portion and a pressure side portion. The wall portions extend chordwise between a leading edge and a trailing edge and spanwise between an inner radial surface and an outer radial surface. The first cooling apertures are disposed in the external wall adjacent the trailing edge, exiting the airfoil through the pressure side portion. The second cooling apertures are disposed in the external wall adjacent the trailing edge, exiting the airfoil through the suction side portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 22, 1998
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2000
    Assignee: United Technologies Corporation
    Inventors: William S. Kvasnak, Ronald S. LaFleur
  • Patent number: 6099250
    Abstract: A cooling fan mounting arrangement, which includes a network apparatus, the network apparatus having an upright side wall, one set of air vents at the upright side wall, and one pair of positioning means for example screw rods spaced from the upright side wall at a distance, and a cooling fan fastened to the screw rods and spaced from the upright side wall at a distance and aimed at the air vents at the upright side wall, the cooling fan has two mounting frames formed on the periphery thereof and outwardly diagonally extended in reversed directions at same elevation, the mounting frames each having a positioning means, for example, a through hole respectively coupled to the screw rods at the network apparatus and locked by a respective locking member, for example, a lock nut.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 28, 1999
    Date of Patent: August 8, 2000
    Assignee: D-Link Corporation
    Inventor: Ching-Rong Ko
  • Patent number: 6099254
    Abstract: In a helicopter having three or more rotor blades, and with mechanical actuation of the rotor blades by a swash plate and a superimposed electrohydraulic active control system, in addition to three regulating units (18) is an actuator (4) between a rotatable part (9) of the swash plate and a rotorblade mount (2) of each rotor blade. This arrangement allows for the safe actuation of individual blades in helicopter noise reduction, and increased efficiency at a modest constructional effort.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 30, 1998
    Date of Patent: August 8, 2000
    Assignee: ZF Luftfahrttechnik GmbH
    Inventors: Achim Blaas, Michael Platzer, Hans-Jurgen Gotte
  • Patent number: 6092988
    Abstract: A centrifugal blower assembly is disclosed. The blower assembly includes a centrifugal fan driven by an electric motor. The blower assembly housing includes a pre-swirler having a plurality of guide vanes which impart a predetermined amount of rotation to a volume of air as the air enters the centrifugal blower assembly. The guide vanes are disposed in a ring at the air inlet of the blower housing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 6, 1998
    Date of Patent: July 25, 2000
    Assignee: Ford Motor Company
    Inventor: Monier Bibawy Botros
  • Patent number: 6086327
    Abstract: A vane assembly for an engine is disclosed, the vane assembly having a vane including a blade having a spindle disposed at one end thereof and a bushing mounted on the spindle. The bushing includes first and second half portions, each half portion having a generally semicircular body having a first finger disposed at a first end of a first side of the body, a second finger disposed at a second end of the first side of the body and a third finger disposed on a second side of the body, between the first and second ends of the body, the first and second fingers having a distance between them which is not less than a width of the third finger. The first and second half portions are snap fit onto the spindle of the vane such that the third finger of the second half portion is located between the first and second fingers of the first half portion, and the third finger of the first half portion is located between the first and second fingers of the second half portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 20, 1999
    Date of Patent: July 11, 2000
    Assignee: Mack Plastics Corporation
    Inventors: James P. Mack, Edward J. Mack
  • Patent number: 6077039
    Abstract: An electric fan having induce illumination and shock device is composed of a fan provided with a transparent housing at the top end of the rod. The inner net with a fixed pieces around the edge thereon, is fastened with the outer net of the fan. The arrangement allows for the fan to blow the air, to illuminate the darkness at night, and to shock the mosquitoes without any obstacles.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 13, 1998
    Date of Patent: June 20, 2000
    Inventor: Ming Chun Hsu
  • Patent number: 6074165
    Abstract: A vacuum pump is provided with back-up bearings in addition to magnetic bearings for supporting its rotor with respect to the pump housing. The rotor has a hollow rotary shaft extending backwards enclosing in its inner space a forwardly protruding tubular shaft affixed to the pump housing, and another cylindrical member affixed to the rotor protrudes backward inside this fixed tubular shaft. One set of back-up bearings is provided on the outer surface of the fixed tubular shaft spaced from the inner surface of the rotor shaft and another set of back-up bearings is provided on the inner surface of the fixed tubular shaft, spaced from the protruding cylindrical member. The back-up bearings thus positioned can be made smaller for improved dynamic emergency capabilities.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 10, 1998
    Date of Patent: June 13, 2000
    Assignee: Varian, Inc.
    Inventors: Fausto Casaro, Alain Laager, Roland Siegwart
  • Patent number: 6068445
    Abstract: In a cooling system for the leading-edge region of a hollow gas-turbine blade, a duct (3), through which flow occurs longitudinally, extends from the blade root up to the blade tip and is defined in the region of the blade body (4) by the inner walls of the leading edge (5), the suction side (6) and the pressure side (7) and by a web (8). The inner walls of the suction side and the pressure side are provided with a plurality of ribs (9), which run slantwise and at least approximately in parallel. The suction-side ribs and the pressure-side ribs are offset from one another over the blade height. The ribs (9) run radially inward from the web (8) in the direction of the leading edge (5), merge into the radial in the region of the leading edge and are led around the leading edge. The deviation of the ribs (9) from the slant into the radial is effected with the smallest possible radius.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 8, 1998
    Date of Patent: May 30, 2000
    Assignee: ABB Research Ltd.
    Inventors: Alexander Beeck, Bruce Johnson, Bernhard Weigand, Pey-Shey Wu
  • Patent number: 6065938
    Abstract: A rotor for a turbomachine has slots formed therein at an angle to an axis of rotation of the rotor. Blades have at least one blade root with at least two regions of different rigidity that are adapted and preferably matched to different regions of rigidity of the slot. The blade roots can be fitted into the slots. A blade for a rotor is also provided. The invention is especially suitable for use in gas-turbine compressors, as a result of which local stresses at slots can be greatly reduced.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 1998
    Date of Patent: May 23, 2000
    Assignee: Siemens Aktiengesellschaft
    Inventor: Carsten Bartsch
  • Patent number: 6065929
    Abstract: Inducer equipment adapted to a pump having large induction capacity which cludes a case surrounding an inducer rotor having a plurality of blades leaving clearance relative to the case. The clearance between the peripheral portions of the blades and the case is of an increased value greater than the value of the normal clearance over a zone which extends both into a cylindrical first portion of the inside wall of the case upstream from the inducer rotor and into a portion of the inside wall of the case adjacent to the cylindrical first portion and overlapping an upstream portion of the inducer rotor over a distance from the leading edges of the blades of the inducer rotor. The ratio between the clearance of increased value and the clearance of normal value is advantageously greater than 10.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 2, 1998
    Date of Patent: May 23, 2000
    Assignee: Societe Nationale D'Etude et de Construction de Moteurs D'Aviation
    Inventors: Philippe Morel, Philippe Geai, Noel David
  • Patent number: 6062818
    Abstract: The resonator includes pendular bodies, each oscillating around an axis on a support coaxial with the rotor mast and rotated by the rotor head around the axis of the rotor at a rotational speed above the rotational speed of the rotor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 1998
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2000
    Assignee: Eurocopter
    Inventors: Thomas Manfredotti, Michel Anthoine
  • Patent number: 6062815
    Abstract: A unitized seal impeller thrust system includes an impeller unit which includes a tubular neck portion that has flat surfaces on opposite sides of one another. The impeller unit includes a plurality of radially extending blades and a circular trough surrounding the neck portion. The system further includes a seal head assembly which is secured within the trough, and a seal seat assembly which engages the seal head assembly. The system further includes a thrust washer which engages the seal seat assembly and the retainer ring which is secured to the tubular neck portion at an end of the neck portion. The retainer ring also engages the thrust washer in a ball and socket type arrangement. The system provides a unitized seal, impeller, thrust system that is capable of preload testing and/or leak testing before assembly of the pump unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 5, 1998
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2000
    Assignee: Freudenberg-NOK General Partnership
    Inventors: Robert S. Holt, John C. Dahlheimer
  • Patent number: 6062810
    Abstract: A turbomolecular pump evacuates gas in an apparatus (or a chamber) by means of a rotor having blades and/or spiral grooves which rotates at a high speed. The turbomolecular pump includes a casing housing a rotor and a stator therein, a pumping section comprising the rotor and the stator, a valve element capable of opening or closing an intake port of the casing, and a supporting member for supporting the valve element. The supporting member extends through at least one of the rotor and the stator. The turbomolecular pump further includes an actuating mechanism for actuating the valve element, and the actuating mechanism is provided at a side opposite to the intake port with respect to the rotor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 13, 1998
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2000
    Assignees: Ebara Corporation, Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventors: Matsutaro Miyamoto, Hiroshi Sobukawa, Toshiharu Nakazawa, Atsushi Shiokawa, Junichi Arami