US1406299A - Air-cleaning device for internal-combustion engines - Google Patents

Description

I A. T SHIRT AND C. 1. WHITACHE AIR CLEANING DEVICE FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES;

APPLICATION mp0 JULY 22,1920.

1,406,299. I Patehted Feb. 14, 1922.

2 SHEETS-SiHEET I, v

, i figf g FATE ALFRED '1. STURT, or new YORK, n. Y., AND CLARENCE :r. wrrrraonn, or amiss- VILLE, WISCONSIN, assienon's'ro GENERAL Morons CORPORATION, or narrow, MICHIGAN, A CORPORATION or DELAWARE.

AIR-CLEANING DEVICE FOR INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINES.

iaoaeee.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Feb, 14, 1922.

Application filed July 22, 1920. Serial No. 398,231.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that we, ALFRED T. STURT and CLARENCE'J. WVHrrAonE, both citizens of the United States, and residents of New York, county of New York, and State of New York, and Janesville, county of Rock, and State of Visconsin, respectively, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in i-\irCleaning Devices for' Internal-Combustion Engines, of which the following is a full, clear, concise, and exact description, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which the invention relates to make and use the same, reference being made therein to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

Our invention relates to air cleaning devices designed for use in connection with internal combustion engines to remove foreign particles from the air which helps to form the combustible mixture used therein, such devices being used particularly in connection with tractors which have to operate in an atmosphere more or less charged with dust and the purpose thereof being to remove thedust and like foreign particles from the air before it'enters the carbureter and mixes with the liquid fuel to form a combustible mixture.

The principal object of our invention is to provide an improved air cleaning device of the class and for the purpose above stated which will efiectively remove dust and other solid particles from the air, and which at the same time will be self-cleaning so that the same when in use will require little or no attention in order to keep the device in proper operative condition.

A further object. of our invention is to provide an improved air cleaning device of the type above referred to which will be simple in construction, and of a form such that it may be easily manufactured, thereby providing an aircleanmg device which may be manufactured at a minimum of expense.

The preferred form of our improved air cleaning device is illustrated in the two sheets of drawings which accompany and form a part of this specification although the device illustrated may be modified in various ways without departing from our invention, the particular features of which are enumerated in the concluding claims.

Referring now to the drawings,

Figure 1 is a view showing an internal combustion engine in side elevation, the same being equipped with an air cleaning device made in accordance with our invention.

Figure 2 is a view showing the elements of our improved air cleaning device in section, and. upon a substantially vertical plane, the fabric air straining member of the cleaner being shown in the position it assumes when the engine is in operation.

Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 2 but showing the position which the fabric air straining member assumes when the engine is at rest, this view showing also a guard for protecting the air straining member from injury.

Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 3 but showing a section upon a plane transverse to theplane upon which .the sections appearing in Figures 2 and 3 are taken, the form of our invention illustrated being one in which the body or casing of the device is oblong in form with rounded ends.

Figure 5 is a fragmentary view showing a portion of the device in plan, and broken away in part.

Figure 6 is a fragmentary sectional view showing the construction, of the lower endof the casing of the cleaner, and the manner in which the fabric air cleaning device and the guard are secured thereto.

Figure 7 is a fragmentary view upon a horizontal plane illustrating for the most partcertain features of the guard member of the device.

Figure 8 is a fragmentary view taken upon a vertical plane indicated by the line 8 8, Figure 7 Figure 9 is a fragmentary view showing the holding means whereby the fabric cleaning member is fastened to the casing of the cleaner.

Referring now to the drawings, the reference numeral 11 designates an internal combustion engine which may be of any kind or type, and 12 a carbureter which likewise maybe of any type and the purpose of which is to form a combustible mixture for use in the engine.

The reference numeral 13 designates our improved air cleaning device as a whole, the same being supported from lugs 14: carried,

by the engine and preferably located upon the side of the crankcase thereof as best shown in Figure 1 by the use of brackets 15; the saidbrackets being secured as by means of rivetsfllG to the casing or housing 17 of the air cleaning device and, which housing provides ahollow shell or casing having a opening in one side thereof, the

shell or casing illustrated being one in whichthe entire lower end is open. The brackets 15 are shown as secured to the lugs 14 by means of bolts 33 and nuts 34, see Figure 5, in the form of our invention illustrated.

Secured at the lower end of the shell or casing 17 is a fabric air straining member 18, which member extends across the open lower end of the casing and is of substantially greater area than the said lower end; so that the straining member being loose as regards the opening across which it extends will be drawn up into the casing due to the suction action of the engine when the engine is in operation, and will fall into a position below the plane of the said lower end as shown in Figure 3 when the engine is at rest. This fabric air straining member 125 maybe made of any suitable material so long as it is sufiiciently flexible to operate in the manner above pointed out and so long as the material in question is one suitable for the purpose of intercepting the dust and other solid particles which may be entrained in-the entering stream of air such, for example, as the fabrics in common use in connection with vacuum sweeping or cleaning machines; and we have found such fabrics as are commonly usedwith cleaning devices of the type mentioned effective as the fabric air straining member of our improved air cleaning device.

The periphery of the air cleaning member 18 is secured to the lower end of the shell or casing 17 in any suitable manner, and pref erably in such a way as to be removable therefrom and replaceable relative thereto without difficulty. tion illustrated the lower edge of the casing is turned inward to provide a peripherally extending head 19 having a smooth curved external surface, and a similar peripherally extending groove 20 is provided in the wall of the casing just above the head 19. Both these elements or features of construction may be formed by the use of suitable rolls operating upon the comparatively thin sheet metal wall of the casing, the purpose of the head 19 being to avoid the presence of sharp edges at the lower end of the casing which might injure the air straining member as it is drawn into the casing as shown in Figure 1 2, and forced therefrom as shown in Figure 3; and the purpose of the groove 20 being to provide for the clamping of the periphery of the fabric air cleaning member in the said groove and to the lower end of the out, it being appreciated that operate the re In the form of our invencasing by means of a suitable holding member extending along said groove such, for example, as a spring 21 of such length that when it is inplace within the groove in the manner illustrated in the drawings the tension of the said spring will be sufficient to prevent the periphery of the air cleaning member from slipping out of the groove 20 when the device is in use.

As hereinbefore stated, the shell or casing 17 is preferably oblong in form with rounded ends or, more strictly speaking, oval or elliptical in crosssection, see Figure 5, although the shape of the casing is of secondary importance and may be varied within wide limits without departing from our invention. The upper end of the said shell or casing is closed as by a cover 22 which preferably tapers upwardly as shown, and the said cover is provided with an outlet opening 23 and with an elbow 24 at its central portion, which elbow communicates with a piece of flexible or other tubing 25 which leads to the air inlet of the carbureter 12; the opening, the elbow and the tubing forming an air outlet conduit from the 1n terior of the air cleaning device and an 2111' inlet conduit for the carbureter.

The fabric air cleaning member 18 is shown in the position which it occupies when the engine is at rest in Figure 3 of the drawing. When, however, the engine starts to notion of pressure along the air inlet cont t and within the casing 17 will drawthe straining member upward and into the interior of the casing, member is of materially the open end of the casing across which'it extends and hangs loosely beneath said open end as hereinbefore explained. V The said straining member will remain in'the posi-,

tion in which it is shown in Figure 2 as long as the engine continues in operation, during which the air passes through the said material and such solid particles as may be entrained therein are strained out therefrom and held upon the exterior surface of'the air straining member. a

When the engine ceases to operate, however, the air straining member will fall into the position in which it is shown in Figure 3, due to the cessation of the suction, during which movement the strainingmember is in a sense turned inside out and the layer of dust or other solid matter which may have accumulated upon the exterior surface thereof is broken up and falls from the said surface; the action being analogous in a sense to a shaking off the layer of dust and other solid particles which accumulated upon the outer surface of the said member while the engine was in operation. The fabric air cleaning member istherefore self-cleaning because of the construction above-pointed the accumuas the said, greater area than' which reason we preferably provide a guard for the said member, as shown in the drawings. This guard may be of various forms and constructions; although we prefer to employ a wire mesh guard as the same is light in weight, sufficiently strong for the purpose for which it is provided, and at the same time offers no appreciable obstruction of the flow of air to the air straining member. Such a guard is designated by the reference numeral 26; the same being shown as made up of two symmetrical parts of such form as to fit about the periphery of the lower end of the chamber 17, the said parts being secured together by means of bolts 27 and wing nuts 28; which bolts pass through registering eyes 29- formed at the ends of upper and lower supporting frame members 30 between which the wire mesh structure of the guard extends, the said structure being designated by the reference numeral 31. The two parts which form the guard in question are thus held together at both their upper and lower ends, and the upper and lower members 30 provide a rigid frame-work for supporting the intervening mesh portion 31 which is made of materially lighter wire.

The guard device as a whole is supported from the lower end of the shell or casing 17 by a projecting ridge 32 formed in the wall of the chamber by means of suitable rolls and above which ridge the upper of the frame members 30 of the guard lies when the guard is in place, as best shown in Figures 6, 7 and S of the drawings.

It will be appreciated that the guard as a whole may be readily removed from the casin b' unscrewin the wine nuts 28,

whereupon the fabric air straining member 18 may be removed from the casing if and when it becomes necessary to do so.

which, however, will be but seldom, as the said member is subjected to little wear when in use and will need to be replaced only .at long intervals; while the same is effectively protected from injury by external objects by the guard member as above pointed out.

Having thus described and explained our invention, we claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. In an air cleaning device of the class described, a hollow shell or casing having an open lower end; an outlet conduit leading from said casing; a fabric straining member extending across the open end of said casing and of greater area than said open end, so that said member is loose relative to said open end and is free to rise into said casing upon a reduction of pressure therein; meansfor securing the edge of said fabric straining member about the open lower end aforesaid; and a wire guard member supported from said casing and depending below the open lower end thereof.

2. In an air cleaning device of the class described, a hollow shell or casing having an inturned roundedbead at its lower end, and a peripherally extending exterior groove located adjacent and above said bead; an outlet conduit leading from said casing; a fabric straining member extending loosely across said open lower end and the periphery of which is secured in place in the groove aforesaid, and which member is free to rise into said casing upon a reduction of pressure therein; and a guard member extending about the open lower end of and secured to said casing, and depending below the said lower end.

3. In an air cleaning deviceof the class described, a hollow shell or casing having an open lower end, and a peripherally extend- 1ng exterior groove located adjacent. said lower end; an outlet conduit leading from said casing; a fabric straining member extending across the open end of said casing and of greater area than said open end, so

that said member is loose relative to said lower end and is free to rise into said casand a coil spring lying within said groove and adapted to hold the periphery of said fabric straining member in place therein.

4. In an air cleaning device of the class described, a hollow shell or casing having an open lower end; an outlet conduit leading from said casing; a fabric straining member extending across the open end of said casing and of greater area than said open end, so that said member is loose relative to said open-end and is free to rise into said casing upon a reduction of pressure therein; means for securing the edge of said fabric straining member about the open lower end aforesaid; and a guard member extending about and depending below the open lower end of said casing.

55. In an air cleaning device of the class described,an imperforate downwardly opening hollow shell or casing having an open lower end; an outlet conduit leading from mg upon a reduction of pressure therein;

paratively large area; a fabric straining member of greater area than and extending across said air inlet opening and loose relative thereto, so that substantially the Whole thereof is free to move into and out of said casing upon variation of pressure therein;

and means for securing said straining member to said casing about the periphery of the opening aforesaid. v i

In testimony whereof We aflix our signatures. v

ALFRED T. STURT.

o.- J. WHITACRE.

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