US2592851A - Fan wheel - Google Patents

Description

April 15, 1952 R. B. BERANEK FAN WHEEL Filed April 10, 1950 m T m V m Patented Apr. 15, 1952 FAN WHEEL Rudolph Bruce Beranek, Columbus, Ohio, assignor to American Blower Corporation, Dearborn, Mich., a corporation oi Delaware Application April 10, 1950, Serial No. 154,989

3 Claims.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in rotors of the type having blade members cooperable with a fluid medium and relates more particularly to a fan or blower wheel for movement of air or gases.

An object of the invention is to provide a blower wheel of novel construction which may be easily and readily fabricated in quantity production.

Another object is to provide a blower wheel which may be completely assembled from sheet material parts, such as steel, and which will be durable and rigid in its proper usages.

Another object is to provide a novel and rapid method of constructing a rotor wheel having fluid contacting blade members.

This invention consists in the improved structure and cooperative arrangement of parts of the rotor wheel and in the method of construction thereof, all to be more fully described hereinafter and the novelty of which will be particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, to be taken as part of this specification, there are fully and clearly illustrated several preferred embodiments of the invention, in which drawings:

Figure 1 is an end view of a fan wheel embodying the invention,

Fig. 2 is a detail view, partly in section and enlarged with respect to Fig. 1, taken on the line II-II of Fig. 1,

' into an annulus or ring,

Fig. '7 is an enlarged'detail view of a portion of one of the carrying or rim members for supporting the blade members, shown in its wheelassembling stage and showing in dash-dot lines its completed blade member supporting stage,

Fig. 8 is an enlarged end view of one of the blade members,

Fig. 9 is an enlarged view of a blade member in rear or side elevation, and

Fig. 10 is a detail view of another preferred 'form of spacing and locking plate before being bent into annular form but having blade memz bers set in assembled position, one blade mem ber being in section for clarity.

Referring to the drawings by characters of reference, I designatesa supporting plate or disk member to which a shaft receiving hub member 2 is rigidly secured. The peripheral portion of the supporting member I has rigidly secured thereto an annular carrying or rim member 3 which is concentric with the hub *2. The carrying member 3 has a fiat annular body portion 4 with inner and outer peripheral portions or flanges 5, 6, respectively, which, as seen in Fig. 7, extend originally substantially normal or at right angles to the body portion 4 to receive other parts of the wheel assembly. These portions 5, #5 in their final stage of assembly are directed toward each other in overlying relation to the body portion 4, as by bending, so that the portions 5, 6 cooperate with the portion 4 to provide opposed facing channels I, 8. Received in the channels I, 8 are the inner and outer marginal portions '9, I0, respectively, of a blade member locking and spacing ring or annular plate member II having equispaced curved slots I2 therethrough with open inner ends and extending inward across the plate member from its inner periphery. Positioned between the plate member I I and the body portion 4 are the end flanges l3 of the air or gas moving blade members I4. The upper and lower flange edges adjacent the blade members underlie the flanges or peripheral portions 5, 6 such that they extend into the channels I, 8. The slots I'2 are designed to have a final shape which will conform to the blade members I4 which may be flat or have a backward or forward curvature as is well understood in the art. The blade members I4, as shown, have a curvature transverse to their length such as to conform to the final curvature of the slots I2, which also permits sliding movement of the blade members thereinto. At the flanges I3 each of the blade members I4 has a neck portion of reduced width formed by upper and lower edge recesses I5, I5, respectively, providing receiving spaces for the flange or peripheral portions 6 and 5, respectively. The flange or peripheral portions 5, 6 are clamped or stressed 'ghtly upon the marginal portions 9, I0, respectively, of the spacer member II to hold it and the flanges I3 rigidly against the body portion 4 and to the rim or carrying member 3. The flanges 5, 6 also seat at their edges against the blade members and particularly the bottom of the recesses I6 and I5, respectively, so as to position the blade members longitudinally of their receiving slots and transversely of the rim 3.

The other ends oi. the blade members l4 are provided with flanges 2B which are similar to the flanges l3 and which are spaced from the upper and lower edges of the blade members by recesses 2| similar to the recesses l5, l6. These other blade member end portions 22 are received in conforming slots in a locking and spacing ring or annularmember 23 similar to the annular-member II- and its slots. The annularmember 23 and flanges 20 are received in opposed facing channels 24, 2-5 in an annular carrying or rim member 25 similar to the member 3. The member 26 has inturned flanges or peripheral portionsZl, 28 which are similar to and..serveias:do thefianges 5, 6 to stress and clamp'the:marginahedges .of

the plate member 23 and the flanges'20 against the body portion of the rim. member.25.

The method of assembly or construction of this fan wheel permits of rapid and easy fabrication which is a highly desirable feature. The blade members! are preferably stamped and bent, or may be otherwise fabricated from thesheet materialrsuchas steel, to the form and configuration-desired, such as is shown in Figs. 2, 8 and 9, each having the transverse end flanges l3 and 20 and having the blade member end recesses.

After the ring or carrying members are stamped and cut or otherwise formed from the .sheet metal to the configuration of the dash-dot lines of Fig. 6, a pair of them are positioned in a substantially horizontal plane in spaced relation with the open slot :ends directed upward. The

blade members are then positioned or set in these slots, resting at :the bottoms of their recesses I aagainst the .closed. slot .ends. .Thecar- 5,3, 2'! and Rare then bent over and stressed againstzthe. inner and outer peripheral edges of their respective spacer plate members II and 23 which clampsthe :bladexmember flanges l3 and 20 tightly between their respective body portions 4 and-2S and their respective carrying members II and 23, thus tightly holdingthe ends of the blade members M in position,'as above described. Therimor carrying member 3 may then bese- "curedby any suitable means, suchas spot weldiingor' the like, to the hub plate I or 'to a hub .iplate secured to the blade members intermediate theirrends, so that the member 3 is concentric with the hub member 2.

:In Fig.110, the annular plate or carrying memthe plate members 30. In this form, Fig. 10, the length of the slots 33 between the flange portion 3| iand'theslot inner end 34 is of substantially the same arcuate length as the width of the blade members between therecesses l5 and 16, note the sectioned blade member in Fig. 10. Accordingly,

upon forming thegplate members '30 intoan annulus, each flange portion or car 3| passes through its blade member recess l5, locks over its blade member and extending circumferentially therebeyond looks or fits into the recess portion 5 or socket 32, so that none of the blade members can be slid out of its receiving slot. This locking of the blade members in their slots occurs duringthe bending of the'plate-members 30 into circular form, so that the blade members which are carried with the plate member end portions into the top position of the wheel can not drop downward in or out of their slots during the final stage of forming the wheel blade sub-assembly.

The wheelstructurethus partially formed is then positioned .inthe' facing channels of the opposed concentriczrim: members 3 and 26 and clamped therein as above described in connection with thecarrying members H and 23.

.Having thus described the invention, what is claimed and desired to be secured by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A rotor for cooperating with a fluid medium, comprising a supporting member adapted for concentric-mountingon a rotary shaft, an annular carrying member having a body portion secured concentrically to said supporting member, a plurality 0f. fluid medium contacting blade members extending normal to the plane of said carrying member and each having an end flange lyingagainstsaid carrying member, an annular locking member having a plurality of blade .member' spacing slots therethrough of greater length than the-depthof said-blade members :and:receiving saidblade members, said locking 735 membenseatedagainst and holding said flanges to said supporting member, said blade-members having-upper and loweredge recesses at said end flanges. said carrying member having inner and outer peripheral portions extending toward 40 each other in overlying relationto said body portion to provide channels, said locking member and saidflanges extending into said channels, said: peripheral portions extending into said recesses and engaging said blade members to pcsition said blade members longitudinally of said slots and said peripheral portions clamping said 'locking-member-and said flanges to said carrying member.

2. In:a:'fan whee1, concentric laterally spaced 5O annular plate: members, each having a body portion and inner and outer circumferential portionsexten'ding toward each other to form chan nels with said body portion, blade members 'curved transversely of'their length and extending 'in' length-between said plate members, each of said blade members having a blade portion and :havingendflanges'of' less width than said bladeportion, one at eachblade member end, ex-

tending itransverselymo" its length and seating 00 against its respective'body-portion, each of said -"bladeimembers having upper and lower edge recesses'zat its opposite ends between said blade portion and said flangeszand forming a neck t-portion'of'reduced width, annular blade member'spacing'and locking plates, lying one against each'of' the oppositersetsxof flanges, said locking plates and said flanges; extending into said channels, .saidilocking plates each having blade memberspacing slots therethrough conforming to blade member curvature and of greater length than said blademember'neck portion, said slots opening through theinner peripheral edges of said locking; plates, said circumferential portions of-said spaced-concentric platemembers extending into-.s'aidblade' member recesses andengaging said blade members to position said blade members longitudinally of said slots, said circumferential portions rigidly clamping said locking plates and said flanges to said concentric plate members, and said blade member edge recesses being of a depth and width substantially equal to the length of said channels so that the channels may be formed over the locking members and edge flanges after initial assembly without damaging the blade portions.

3. In a fan wheel, a plurality of blade members, each having a blade portion of predetermined width, and flanges of less width than said blade portion and extending transversely thereto, and upper and lower edge recesses at opposite ends forming a neck portion of reduced width between said blade portion and said end flanges, annular channel shaped blade supporting members, one at each end of said blade members and receiving said end flanges, annular spacer members co-operating one with each of said channel shaped members and having spacer slots receiving said neck portions for spacing said blade members, said spacer members being wider than said end flanges, said channel-shaped members having their channel flanges bent inward over the edges of said spacer members and said end flanges to hold the same compressively in position, and said edge recesses being of a width and depth greater than the length of the inwardly bent channel flanges to permit the inward bending of the same upon initial assembly without damaging said blade portions.

RUDOLPH BRUCE BERANEK.

REFERENCES CIEEE' The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATEE PATENTS Number Name Date 1,637,652 Ness Aug. 2, 1927 1,700,017 Bender Jan. 22, 1929 2,293,512 Levy Aug. 18, 1942 2,315,407 Evans Mar. 30, 1943 2,357,618 Swift Sept. 5,- 1944 2,470,966 Abbott May 24, 1949 2,496,179 Schwarz Jan. 3'1, 1950

Images