Patents by Inventor Fritz C. Catterfeld

Fritz C. Catterfeld has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 4893986
    Abstract: A two-stage, high-pressure centrifugal pump comprises a pump housing and at least one pair of external inlets and outlets for charging and discharging each stage of the pump. The inlets and outlets are located through the periphery of the pump for allowing on-line maintenance. Prerotator vanes are located along the interior wall of the pump housing and convey a fluid from the external inlet to the impeller while reducing the inlet relative velocity at the impeller inlet and primarily at the impeller inlet tip. A pair of face-to-face impellers located along the pump shaft are designed to increase the fluid velocity while transferring fluid to a vaneless radial diffuser. The diffuser then decreases fluid velocity and increases fluid pressure due to increasing diffuser volume. From the diffuser the fluid is conveyed into a fold-over volute which is likewise designed to increase fluid pressure while additionally eliminating flow patterns which would increase losses within the system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 1985
    Date of Patent: January 16, 1990
    Assignee: Rockwell International Corporation
    Inventors: Fritz C. Catterfeld, George S. Wong
  • Patent number: 4644202
    Abstract: A pancake, d.c., brushless electric motor 10 and pump 32 in which the rotating parts of the pump 32 are integral with the rotor 18 of the motor 10. The motor and pump housing is hermetically sealed from the flow of the pumped fluid. A small portion of fluid is leaked through a seal 38 and acts to cool the motor 10 and to lubricate a sleeve bearing 24 which supports the rotor 18 on the motor's stationary shaft 26. The rotor 18 has permanent magnets 22 divided into two sets which lie on opposite sides of the poles of the stator coils 14 and, therefore, the magnetic thrust between stator and rotor is balanced out.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 15, 1985
    Date of Patent: February 17, 1987
    Assignee: Rockwell International Corporation
    Inventors: Ralph E. Kroy, Fritz C. Catterfeld
  • Patent number: 4644207
    Abstract: An integral combination of two motor pumps wherein two pumps 12, 14 are operated preferably from the motor shafts 41, 43 of a centrally located, pancake-type, d.c., brushless electric motor 10, the entire combination being housed in a unitary casing. The stator 22 is located within a central peripheral cavity between a pair of rotor faces 26, 28 in which are set spaced permanent mangets 32, 34 which react with the commutated d.c. fields of the stator coils to rotate the rotors 36, 38. Each rotor, e.g. 38, is integral with a motor shaft section which is integrally coupled with a pump shaft, e.g., 44. The pump shaft 44 supports an inducer 46 and an impeller 48 which pump a fluid that is also sent through passages in the motor 10 to lubricate the sleeve bearings 54 and to cool the motor components. The speeds of the rotor 36, 38 can be individually adjusted, for example, by adjusting the number of permanent magnets 32, 34 in each rotor face 26, 28.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 15, 1985
    Date of Patent: February 17, 1987
    Assignee: Rockwell International Corporation
    Inventors: Fritz C. Catterfeld, Ralph E. Kroy
  • Patent number: 4443152
    Abstract: A multi-section inline axial flow pump is designed to pump a large volume of liquids containing solids in suspension. The pump consists essentially of a tandem-blade row, high-head axial inducer, a ten-stage low-pressure section and a ten-stage high-pressure section driven by one or more externally connected electric motors.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 26, 1979
    Date of Patent: April 17, 1984
    Assignee: Rockwell International Corporation
    Inventors: George S. Wong, Fritz C. Catterfeld, Clifford A. Hauenstein
  • Patent number: 4428717
    Abstract: A highly wear-resistant impeller for centrifugal pumps of composite construction comprising a base and a cover plate formed of material which can be worked with relative ease and an insert sandwiched between said base and cover plate formed of high temperature and wear-resistant material.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 21, 1981
    Date of Patent: January 31, 1984
    Assignee: Rockwell International Corporation
    Inventor: Fritz C. Catterfeld
  • Patent number: 4307995
    Abstract: A multistage, vaneless centrifugal pump having an input stage, an output stage, and a plurality of intermediate stages with each of said intermediate stages comprising a divider plate serving to separate successive stages, and a center plate having a recess formed in the rear surface of said center plate serving as a vaneless radial diffuser and having a recess formed in the front surface of said center plate serving to receive fluid from a preceding stage and to guide said fluid in a helically converging path to be delivered to the input of an impeller.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 1, 1980
    Date of Patent: December 29, 1981
    Assignee: Rockwell International Corporation
    Inventor: Fritz C. Catterfeld
  • Patent number: 4199152
    Abstract: The hydrostatic seal for high-differential pressure situations comprises an annular retainer plate having forward and aft ends for mounting the seal. To the annular retainer plate there is detachably mounted an annular seal housing having at least one purge fluid feed hole, at least one anti-rotation lug, and an annular aft end pressure restoration pocket. Coaxially located along the interior wall of the seal housing is an outer pressure gap interposed between the seal housing and a floating seal sleeve. The seal sleeve contains at least one purge fluid transfer hole radially located through the floating seal sleeve, an anti-rotation lug for mating with each anti-rotation lug of the seal housing, a plurality of inner pressure restoration pockets, and a pair of forward and aft axial seal balance lands. Coaxially located along the interior wall of the floating seal sleeve is an annular seal sleeve which rotates in conjunction with the rotating shaft.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 19, 1979
    Date of Patent: April 22, 1980
    Assignee: Rockwell International Corporation
    Inventor: Fritz C. Catterfeld
  • Patent number: 4179239
    Abstract: This application discloses a modular pump unit that can be stacked in line with any number of similar units, limited only by the total capacity of the drive shaft. The single modular units are without shaft bearings, they are attached to each other with an axial adjustment self-centering coupling. The shaft bearing units are separate and mounted to a pump unit on each end of the modular bank.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 23, 1978
    Date of Patent: December 18, 1979
    Assignee: Rockwell International Corporation
    Inventor: Fritz C. Catterfeld
  • Patent number: 4060141
    Abstract: A deep well drill is disclosed which utilizes as a prime mover a multistage hydraulic turbine. The system is self-propelled by means of a cylindrical clam shell assembly. The shell sections are spread apart and locked against the surrounding wall of the drilled hole by means of hydraulic cylinders. A hydraulic motor drives the turbine and drill assembly by means of a threaded shaft downward until fully extended. The clam shell is then retracted, and by reversing the hydraulic motor, follows the turbine drill downward until the start position is reached and the cycle is repeated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 6, 1976
    Date of Patent: November 29, 1977
    Assignee: Rockwell International Corporation
    Inventor: Fritz C. Catterfeld
  • Patent number: 3946556
    Abstract: An integrated nozzle is designed to deflect the jet from a waterjet pump in a watercraft before it leaves the nozzle for watercraft steering. The nozzle may be so configured to be steerable in both the horizontal and vertical planes. The integrated nozzle and steering mechanism with thrust reversal mechanism attached thereto allows a full thrust capability without appreciable friction losses inherent in conventional waterjet steering buckets.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 25, 1974
    Date of Patent: March 30, 1976
    Assignee: Rockwell International Corporation
    Inventor: Fritz C. Catterfeld