Blower apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10550846-B2
Application number	US-201715608366-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 30, 2017
Priority date	Jun 8, 2016
Publication date	Feb 4, 2020
Grant date	Feb 4, 2020

Abstract

This blower apparatus includes an air blowing portion including a plurality of flat plates; a motor portion; and a housing. The housing includes an air inlet and an air outlet. At least one of the flat plates includes an inner annular portion, an outer annular portion arranged radially outside of the inner annular portion, ribs each of which is arranged to join the inner and outer annular portions to each other, and air holes each of which is surrounded by the inner and outer annular portions and circumferentially adjacent ones of the ribs. With the inner annular portion and the outer annular portion being joined to each other through the ribs, an increase in the opening area of each air hole, which is defined between the inner and outer annular portions, can be achieved. This leads to improved air intake efficiency, resulting in improved air blowing efficiency.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A blower apparatus comprising:
an air blowing portion arranged to rotate about a central axis extending in a vertical direction;
a motor portion arranged to rotate the air blowing portion; and
a housing arranged to house the air blowing portion and the motor portion; wherein
the housing includes:
an air inlet arranged above the air blowing portion, and arranged to pass through a portion of the housing in an axial direction; and
an air outlet arranged to face in a radial direction at least one circumferential position radially outside of the air blowing portion;

the air blowing portion includes a plurality of flat plates arranged in the axial direction with an axial gap defined between adjacent ones of the flat plates;
at least one of the flat plates includes:
an inner annular portion being annular, and centered on the central axis, and having a central hole arranged to pass therethrough in the vertical direction;
an outer annular portion being annular, centered on the central axis, and arranged radially outside of the inner annular portion;
a plurality of ribs each of which is arranged to join the inner annular portion and the outer annular portion to each other; and
a plurality of air holes each of which is surrounded by the inner annular portion, the outer annular portion, and two circumferentially adjacent ones of the ribs, and is arranged to pass through the flat plate in the axial direction; and
each air hole is arranged to be in communication with a space radially outside of the air blowing portion through the axial gap; and

the motor portion is arranged in the central hole,
wherein the ribs of the at least one flat plate are arranged at irregular intervals in a circumferential direction.

2. The blower apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein a number of ribs included in each of the at least one flat plate is identical and is a prime number.

3. The blower apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the number of ribs included in each of the at least one flat plate is prime to each of a number of slots of the motor portion and a number of poles of the motor portion.

4. The blower apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the flat plates include:
a first flat plate group including one or more of the flat plates in which the ribs are arranged at predetermined first circumferential positions; and
a second flat plate group including one or more of the flat plates in which the ribs are arranged at predetermined second circumferential positions different from the first circumferential positions; and

the one or more of the flat plates included in the first flat plate group and the one or more of the flat plates included in the second flat plate group are arranged to alternate with each other in the axial direction.

5. The blower apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the air blowing portion is caused by the motor portion to rotate to one side in a circumferential direction;
the flat plates include:
a top flat plate arranged at a highest position of all the flat plates;
a bottom flat plate arranged at a lowest position of all the flat plates; and
a plurality of intermediate flat plates arranged between the top flat plate and the bottom flat plate;

each of the top flat plate and the intermediate flat plates includes the inner annular portion, the outer annular portion, and the ribs; and
the ribs of each of the intermediate flat plates are arranged to axially overlap in part with the corresponding ribs of an upwardly adjacent one of the flat plates, and are displaced to an opposite side in the circumferential direction relative to the corresponding ribs of the upwardly adjacent one of the flat plates.

6. The blower apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein each rib includes, at an edge thereof on the one side in the circumferential direction, a slanting surface arranged to slant to the opposite side in the circumferential direction with decreasing height.

7. The blower apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein a center of the air inlet is arranged to coincide with the central axis.

8. The blower apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the motor portion includes:
a stationary portion including an armature and a bearing housing; and
a rotating portion including a shaft, a bearing member, and a magnet arranged radially opposite to the armature;

the bearing housing and a combination of the shaft and the bearing member are arranged to have a lubricating fluid therebetween;
the bearing housing and the rotating portion are arranged to together define a gap defining a seal portion therebetween, the seal portion having a surface of the lubricating fluid defined therein; and
in the seal portion, a distance between the bearing housing and the rotating portion is arranged to increase with increasing distance from the surface of the lubricating fluid.

9. The blower apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the motor portion includes:
a stationary portion including an armature and a bearing housing;
a rotating portion including a shaft and a magnet arranged radially opposite to the armature; and
a ball bearing arranged to connect the rotating portion to the stationary portion such that the rotating portion is rotatable with respect to the stationary portion.

10. The blower apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the housing includes a plurality of the air outlets at a plurality of circumferential positions.

11. A blower apparatus comprising:
an air blowing portion arranged to rotate about a central axis extending in a vertical direction;
a motor portion arranged to rotate the air blowing portion; and
a housing arranged to house the air blowing portion and the motor portion; wherein
the housing includes:
an air inlet arranged above the air blowing portion, and arranged to pass through a portion of the housing in an axial direction; and
an air outlet arranged to face in a radial direction at least one circumferential position radially outside of the air blowing portion;

the air blowing portion includes a plurality of flat plates arranged in the axial direction with an axial gap defined between adjacent ones of the flat plates;
at least one of the flat plates includes:
an inner annular portion being annular, and centered on the central axis, and having a central hole arranged to pass therethrough in the vertical direction;
an outer annular portion being annular, centered on the central axis, and arranged radially outside of the inner annular portion;
a plurality of ribs each of which is arranged to join the inner annular portion and the outer annular portion to each other; and
a plurality of air holes each of which is surrounded by the inner annular portion, the outer annular portion, and two circumferentially adjacent ones of the ribs, and is arranged to pass through the flat plate in the axial direction; and
each air hole is arranged to be in communication with a space radially outside of the air blowing portion through the axial gap;

the motor portion is arranged in the central hole,
wherein each of the ribs of each of the at least one flat plate and each of the ribs of an axially adjacent one or ones of the at least one flat plate are arranged at different circumferential positions.

Assignees

• Nidec Corp

Inventors

• Hino Yuko
• Yoo Seung-Sin
• Tsukamoto Tomoyuki
• Makita Akihiko

Classifications

• F04D25/0626

  Details of the lubrication · CPC title

• F01D1/36

  using fluid friction · CPC title

• F04D29/281

  for fans or blowers · CPC title

• F04D29/626

  Mounting or removal of fans · CPC title

• F04D17/08 Primary

  Centrifugal pumps · CPC title