US20230407880A1

US20230407880A1 - Tower fan and shell thereof

Info

Publication number: US20230407880A1
Application number: US18/046,349
Authority: US
Inventors: Saul Lin
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2022-06-21
Filing date: 2022-10-13
Publication date: 2023-12-21
Also published as: TW202400900A; CN117267173A; TWI827102B

Abstract

A tower fan has a shell, and the shell has a bottom plate, an outlet structure disposed on the bottom plate, and a top plate disposed on the outlet structure. The outlet structure has a shell plate module, an inlet module, and a guiding column each made by aluminum extrusion. The inlet module is detachably mounted on the bottom plate, and the top plate is configured to engage with the inlet module. The outlet structure is modular and is made by aluminum extrusion, which not only improves efficiency and convenience of detaching the shell but also decreases difficulties and costs of manufacturing the shell. The shell of the tower fan can further have multiple outlet structures disposed in mirror symmetry and multiple fan modules each corresponding to a respective outlet structure. Tower fans with double or more air volume can be provided without making extra molds.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a tower fan and a shell thereof, and particularly to a tower fan and a shell thereof that is convenient for a consumer to detach and clean.

2. Description of Related Art

A fan is an electronic device commonly used to improve indoor air convection and cool off an indoor environment. For different operating environments, multiple kinds of fans are available on the market for consumers to choose.
A conventional tower fan commonly provided on the market mainly has a base and a fan body pivotally mounted on the base. The fan body has a columnar shell, a driving motor, and a fan unit. The shell is formed by plastic molds and has multiple inlet holes and an outlet hole. The multiple inlet holes and the outlet hole are respectively formed on two opposite sides of the shell. The driving motor is disposed inside the shell. The fan unit is connected to the driving motor and is capable of being driven by the driving motor to rotate and create a vortex. The vortex then causes an airflow outside the shell to flow into an interior of the shell from the multiple inlet holes and then flow out of the shell from the outlet hole.
Particularly, the shell of the fan body of the conventional tower fan is columnar, which not only reduces space occupation but also improves convenience of storage. Also, by using the fan unit which is cylindrical and has smaller fan blades, movement of the fan blades is imperceptible when the fan unit rotates, which helps to keep tranquility of the environment.
When the conventional tower fan has been used for a period of time, the multiple inlet holes and the outlet hole where the airflow pass for a long time may be covered with dust and dirt, which not only affects output air volume of the conventional tower fan but also causes allergens such as dust mites to breed at where dust and dirt cover. Furthermore, the allergens may be brought by the airflow and flow through the outlet hole to an indoor environment, which causes the consumers to suffer from health issues such as allergies or discomfort of the respiratory tract when using the conventional tower fan. Therefore, it is necessary to regularly clean the dust and dirt on the interior of the shell of the conventional tower fan.
However, the shell of the conventional tower fan is mainly composed of two shell bodies produced by the plastic molds and engaged with each other, and components such as the fan unit and the driving motor are positioned and supported by positioning structures inside the two shell bodies of the shell. Once the consumers try to disassemble the shell for cleaning, to disassemble or assemble the shell is really difficult since the positioning structures make interior configurations of the two shell bodies of the shell complicated.
Moreover, as mentioned above, for positioning the fan unit and the driving motor, the two shell bodies of the shell of the conventional tower fan have the positioning structures, and the positioning structures are all formed by the plastic molds. Thereby, not only difficulties of manufacturing the shell of the fan body are substantially increased, but costs of manufacturing the shell are also expensive.
To overcome the shortcomings of the conventional tower fan mentioned above, the present invention tends to provide a tower fan and a shell thereof to mitigate or obviate the aforementioned problems.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The main objective of the present invention is to provide a tower fan and a shell thereof that is convenient for a consumer to detach and clean and decreases costs of making molds of the shell of the tower fan.
The shell of the tower fan in accordance with the present invention has an outlet side and has a bottom plate, at least one outlet structure, and a top plate. The at least one outlet structure is disposed on the bottom plate and has a shell plate module, an inlet module, and a guiding column. Each one of the shell plate module, the inlet module, and the guiding column is made by aluminum extrusion. The inlet module is detachably mounted on the bottom plate and forms multiple inlet holes. The at least one outlet structure has a vortex space enclosed by the guiding column, the shell plate module, and the inlet module which are arranged in order. An outlet opening is formed between the shell plate module and the guiding column, faces the outlet side of the shell, and communicates with the vortex space. The top plate is disposed on the shell plate module and the guiding column of the at least one outlet structure, is configured to engage with the inlet module of the at least one outlet structure, and has at least one axial hole formed on the top plate and aligned with a center of the vortex space of the at least one outlet structure.
The tower fan in accordance with the present invention has a base, a controlling module, the shell described above, and at least one fan module. The controlling module is disposed in the base, and the shell is disposed on the base. The at least one fan module is disposed inside the shell and has a driving motor and a fan blade assembly. The driving motor is disposed on the bottom plate of the shell and is electrically connected to the controlling module. The fan blade assembly has a blower, a shaft, and a sleeve. The blower is connected to the driving motor and is capable of being driven by the driving motor to rotate and create a vortex. The shaft protrudes from an end of the blower and is inserted into a respective one of the at least one axial hole of the top plate of the shell. The sleeve is sheathed on the shaft and is disposed in the at least one axial hole.
In the tower fan in accordance with the present invention, a rotating speed of the driving motor of the fan module can be controlled by the controlling module. When the driving motor operates, the fan blade assembly is driven by the driving motor to rotate and drives an airflow outside the shell to flow through the multiple inlet holes of the inlet module and into the vortex space. The airflow then flows along a rotating direction of the blower of the fan blade assembly. When the airflow flows to where the guiding column is disposed, the guiding column guides the airflow to flow toward the outlet opening. The airflow then flows out of the shell from the outlet opening, which provides effects such as indoors ventilation and cooling off.
The tower fan and the shell thereof in accordance with the present invention have the following advantages.
1. The outlet structure of the shell is modular with the inlet module detachably engaged with the top plate and the bottom plate, so the inlet module can be easily detached for washing and cleaning the inlet module. Efficiency and convenience of detaching are sharply improved.
2. The shell is mainly composed of the shell plate module, the inlet module, and the guiding column which are engaged together, and each one of the shell plate module, the inlet module, and the guiding column is made by aluminum extrusion. Thus, difficulties of manufacturing and costs of making molds can be significantly decreased.
3. As described above, the outlet structure of the shell of the tower fan is modular, so a manufacturer can manufacture a tower fan that has multiple groups of said outlet structures disposed in mirror symmetry according to demands of different products without making extra molds; the manufacturer then disposes multiple said fan modules each corresponding to a respective one of the multiple groups of said outlet structures, and products of the tower fan with different air volumes can be provided for consumers to choose. The manufacturer can effectively improve a variety of products of the tower fan without affording costs of making large molds for large tower fans, and thus customized demands can be satisfied.
Other objectives, advantages and novel features of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a first preferred embodiment a shell of a tower fan in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional side view of the shell of the tower fan in FIG. 1 , showing an outlet structure, a top plate, and a cover of the shell;

FIG. 3 is another enlarged cross-sectional side view of the shell of the tower fan in FIG. 1 , showing the outlet structure and a bottom plate of the shell;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged exploded view of the outlet structure and the bottom plate of the shell of the tower fan in FIG. 1 ;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged exploded view of an inlet module, an outlet module, the top plate, and the cover of the shell of the tower fan in FIG. 1 ;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged exploded view of the inlet module, the outlet module, and the bottom plate of the shell of the tower fan in FIG. 1 ;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged exploded view of a shell plate module, a guiding column, and the top plate of the shell of the tower fan in FIG. 1 ;

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional top side view of the shell of the tower fan in FIG. 1 ;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a shell of a second preferred embodiment of a tower fan in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional top side view of the shell of the tower fan in FIG. 9 ;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a third preferred embodiment of a shell of a tower fan in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional top side view of the shell of the tower fan in FIG. 11 ;

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a first preferred embodiment of a tower fan in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 14 is an enlarged cross-sectional side view of the tower fan in FIG. 13, showing the outlet structure, the top plate, and the cover of the shell of the tower fan;

FIG. 15 is another enlarged cross-sectional side view of the tower fan in FIG. 13 , showing the shell and a base of the tower fan.

FIG. 16 is an enlarged exploded view of an inlet module, an outlet module, and the cover of the tower fan in FIG. 13 ;

FIG. 17 is an enlarged exploded view of the inlet module and the outlet module of the tower fan in FIG. 13 ;

FIG. 18 is an enlarged exploded view of the top plate, the shell plate module, the guiding column, and a fan blade assembly of the tower fan in FIG. 13 ;

FIG. 19 is a cross-sectional top side view of the tower fan in FIG. 13 , showing direction of airflows inside the tower fan;

FIG. 20 is a perspective view of a second preferred embodiment of a tower fan in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 21 is a cross-sectional top side view of the tower fan in FIG. 20 , showing direction of airflows inside the tower fan;

FIG. 22 is a perspective view of a third preferred embodiment of a tower fan in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 23 is a cross-sectional top side view of the tower fan in FIG. 22 , showing direction of airflows inside the tower fan; and

FIG. 24 is an enlarged perspective view of the tower fan in FIG. 13 , showing a decorating cloth disposed on the cover.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

With reference to FIGS. 1 to 12 , several preferred embodiments of a shell 10 a, 10 b, 10 c of a tower fan in accordance with the present invention are shown. The shell 10 a, 10 b, 10 c has an outlet side, a bottom plate 11, at least one outlet structure 12, and a top plate 13.
With reference to FIGS. 3 to 12 , the at least one outlet structure 12 is disposed on the bottom plate 11 and has a shell plate module 121, an inlet module 122, and a guiding column 123. Each one of the shell plate module 121, the inlet module 122, and the guiding column 123 is made by aluminum extrusion. The shell plate module 121, the inlet module 122, and the guiding column 123 are arranged circularly, are arranged in order, and enclose a vortex space 124 of the at least one outlet structure 12. An outlet opening 125 of the at least one outlet structure 12 is formed between the shell plate module 121 and the guiding column 123, faces the outlet side of the shell 10 a, 10 b, 10 c, and communicates with the vortex space 124. The inlet module 122 is detachably mounted on the bottom plate 11 and forms multiple inlet holes 1221 thereon.
With reference to FIGS. 2, 5, and 7 , the top plate 13 is disposed on the shell plate module 121 and the guiding column 123. The top plate 13 is configured to engage with the inlet module 122 and has at least one axial hole 131 formed on the top plate 13. The at least one axial hole 131 communicates with the vortex space 124 of the at least one outlet structure 12 and is aligned with a center of the vortex space 124 of the at least one outlet structure 12.
With reference to FIGS. 2 to 6 , the inlet module 122 has multiple inlet plates 1222, a top positioning plate 1223, a bottom positioning plate 1224, and multiple limiting components 1225. Each one of the multiple inlet plates 1222, the top positioning plate 1223, and the bottom positioning plate 1224 is made by aluminum extrusion. Each one of the multiple inlet plates 1222 has two limiting grooves 1226, and each one of the two limiting grooves 1226 is formed on a respective one of two opposite sides of the corresponding inlet plate 1222. The top positioning plate 1223 is disposed on top sides of the multiple inlet plates 1222 and is detachably engaged with the top plate 13. The bottom positioning plate 1224 is disposed on bottom sides of the multiple inlet plates 1222 and is detachably engaged with the bottom plate 11. Each one of the multiple limiting components 1225 is mounted through a respective one of the top positioning plate 1223 and the bottom positioning plate 1224 and is inserted into a respective one of the two limiting grooves 1226 of a corresponding one of the multiple inlet plates 1222.
With reference to FIGS. 3 to 6 , the at least one outlet structure 12 has an outlet module 126 disposed on the outlet side of the shell 10 a, 10 b, 10 c. The outlet module 126 has at least one outlet plate 1261, at least one blocking tab 1262, and multiple outlet holes 1263 formed on the at least one outlet plate 1261. The multiple outlet holes 1263 communicate with the vortex space 124. The at least one blocking tab 1262 is disposed on a top end of the at least one outlet plate 1261 and is configured to engage with the top plate 13.
With reference to FIGS. 1, 2, and 5 , the shell 10 a, 10 b, 10 c further has a cover 14. The cover 14 covers on the top plate 13 and has at least one opening hole 141 formed on the cover 14 and aligned with the at least one axial hole 131 of the top plate 13. The cover 14 further has multiple magnets 142 fixed on a bottom of the cover 14, multiple engaging pins 143, and at least one assembling pin 144. The multiple magnets 142 are capable of magnetically attracting and being attached to the top plate 13. The multiple engaging pins 143 and the at least one assembling pin 144 are both formed on the bottom of the cover 14. The top plate 13 has multiple top engaging holes 132 and at least one top assembling hole 133 which are formed on the top plate 13. The top positioning plate 1223 of the inlet module 122 forms multiple corresponding holes 1227, and each one of the multiple corresponding holes 1227 is aligned with a respective one of the multiple top engaging holes 132 of the top plate 13. Each one of the multiple engaging pins 143 is mounted through a respective one of the multiple corresponding holes 1227 and a respective one of the multiple top engaging holes 132. The blocking tab 1262 of the outlet module 126 forms at least one positioning hole 1264 aligned with the at least one top assembling hole 133 of the top plate 13. The at least one assembling pin 144 is mounted through the at least one top assembling hole 133 of the top plate 13 and the at least one positioning hole 1264 of the blocking tab 1262.
With reference to FIGS. 3, 4, and 6 , the bottom plate 11 forms multiple bottom engaging holes 111, and the bottom positioning plate 1224 of the inlet module 122 has multiple engaging protrusions 1228. Each one of the multiple engaging protrusions 1228 of the bottom positioning plate 1224 is inserted into a respective one of the multiple bottom engaging holes 111 of the bottom plate 11.
With reference to FIGS. 3, 4, and 6 , the bottom plate 11 forms multiple bottom assembling holes 112, and the at least one outlet plate 1261 of the outlet module 126 has multiple assembling protrusions 1265 protruding from a bottom edge of the at least one outlet plate 1261. Each one of the multiple assembling protrusions 1265 is configured to be inserted into a respective one of the multiple bottom assembling holes 112 of the bottom plate 11.
With reference to FIGS. 2 and 3 , the shell plate module 121 has multiple shell plates 1211 and multiple positioning units 1212. Each one of the multiple shell plates 1211 is made by aluminum extrusion and has two positioning grooves 1213 formed on two sides of the corresponding shell plate 1211. Each one of the multiple positioning units 1212 is mounted through a respective one of the top plate 13 and the bottom plate 11 and screwed into a respective one of the two positioning grooves 1213 of a respective one of multiple shell plates 1211.
With reference to FIGS. 1 and 8 to 12 , an amount of said outlet structure 12 of the shell 10 a, 10 b, 10 c of the tower fan can be decided upon demands.
With reference to FIGS. 1 and 8 , a first preferred embodiment of the shell 10 a of the tower fan in accordance with the present invention has one said outlet structure 12.
With reference to FIGS. 9 and 10 , a second preferred embodiment of the shell 10 b of the tower fan in accordance with the present invention has two said outlet structures 12. The two outlet structures 12 are disposed in mirror symmetry and on the bottom plate 11. The two shell plate modules 121 of the two outlet structures 12 are disposed adjacently, and the inlet module 122 of each one of the two outlet structures 12 is located on a respective one of two opposite sides of the two outlet structures 12.
With reference to FIGS. 11 and 12 , a third preferred embodiment of the shell 10 c of the tower fan in accordance with the present invention has four said outlet structures 12, two guiding plates 15, two connecting plates 16, and a communicating space 17. The four outlet structures 12 are defined as two front outlet structures 12 a and two rear outlet structures 12 b. The two front outlet structures 12 a are disposed at a spaced interval, in mirror symmetry, and near the outlet side of the shell 10 c. The two rear outlet structures 12 b are adjacently disposed in mirror symmetry and are located on a side of the shell 10 c being opposite to the outlet side of the shell 10 c. The communicating space 17 is formed between the two front outlet structures 12 a and the two outlet openings of the two rear outlet structures 12 b. Each one of the two guiding plates 15 is disposed on the guiding column 123 of a respective one of the two rear outlet structures 12 b and extends toward the outlet side of the shell 10 c. Each one of the two connecting plates 16 is connected to the guiding column 123 of a respective one of the two rear outlet structures 12 b and the shell plate module of a respective one of the two front outlet structures 12 a.
With reference to FIGS. 13 to 23 , several preferred embodiments of a tower fan in accordance with the present invention are shown. The tower fan has a base 20, a controlling module 30, the shell 10 a, 10 b, 10 c as described above, and at least one fan module 40.
With reference to FIG. 15 , the controlling module 30 is disposed in the base 20.
With reference to FIGS. 13 to 23 , the shell 10 a, 10 b, 10 c is disposed on the base 20.
With reference to FIGS. 13 to 23 , the at least one fan module 40 is disposed inside the shell 10 a, 10 b, 10 c and has a driving motor 41 and a fan blade assembly 42. The driving motor 41 is disposed on the bottom plate 11 and is electrically connected to the controlling module 30. The fan blade assembly 42 has a blower 421 connected to the driving motor 41, a shaft 422 protruding from an end of the blower 421, and a sleeve 423. The blower 421 is capable of being driven by the driving motor 41 to rotate and create a vortex. The shaft 422 is inserted into the at least one axial hole 131 of the top plate 13. The sleeve 423 is sheathed on the shaft 422 and disposed in the corresponding axial hole 131. The driving motor 41 is capable of driving the shaft 422 to drive the blower 421 to rotate.
With reference to FIGS. 13 and 19 to 23 , an amount of said outlet structure 12 of the shell 10 a, 10 b, 10 c and said fan module 40 of the tower fan can be decided upon consumer demands. Detailed configurations are described below.
With reference to FIGS. 13 and 19 , in a first preferred embodiment of the tower fan, the shell 10 a has one said outlet structure 12 and one said fan module 40. The fan module 40 is disposed inside the outlet structure 12 and located in the vortex space 124 of the outlet structure 12.
With reference to FIGS. 20 and 21 , in a second preferred embodiment of the tower fan, the shell 10 b has two said outlet structures 12 and two said fan modules 40. The two outlet structures 12 are disposed in mirror symmetry and on the bottom plate 11, the two shell plate modules 121 of the two outlet structures 12 are disposed adjacently, and the inlet module 122 of each one of the two outlet structures 12 is located on a respective one of two opposite sides of the two outlet structures 12. Each one of the two fan modules 40 is disposed in the vortex space 124 of a respective one of the two outlet structures 12. The two fan blade assemblies 42 of the two fan modules 40 are disposed in mirror symmetry, and the driving motor 41 of each one of the two fan modules 40 has a driving direction being opposite to the driving direction of the driving motor 41 of the other one of the two fan modules 40.
With reference to FIGS. 22 and 23 , in a third preferred embodiment of the tower fan, the shell 10 c has four said outlet structures 12, two guiding plates 15, two connecting plates 16, and a communicating space 17, and the tower fan has four said fan modules 40. The four outlet structures 12 are defined as two front outlet structures 12 a and two rear outlet structures 12 b.
With reference to FIG. 23 , the two front outlet structures 12 a are disposed at a spaced interval, in mirror symmetry, and near the outlet side of the shell 10 c. The two rear outlet structures 12 b are adjacently disposed in mirror symmetry and are located on a side of the shell 10 c being opposite the outlet side of the shell 10 c. The communicating space 17 is formed between the two front outlet structures 12 a and the two outlet openings 125 of the two rear outlet structures 12 b. Each one of the two guiding plates 15 is disposed on the guiding column 123 of a respective one of the two rear outlet structures 12 b and extends toward the outlet side of the shell 10 c. Each one of the two connecting plates 16 is connected to the guiding column 123 of a respective one of the two rear outlet structures 12 b and the shell plate module 121 of a respective one of the two front outlet structures 12 a.
With reference to FIG. 23 , the four fan modules 40 are defined as two front fan modules 40 a and two rear fan modules 40 b. Each one of the two front fan modules 40 a is disposed in the vortex space 124 of a respective one of the two front outlet structures 12 a. The two fan blade assemblies 42 of the two front fan modules 40 a are disposed in mirror symmetry, and the driving motor 41 of each one of the two front fan modules 40 a has a driving direction being opposite to the driving direction of the driving motor 41 of the other one of the two front fan modules 40 a.
Each one of the two rear fan modules 40 b is disposed in the vortex space 124 of a respective one of the two rear outlet structures 12 b. The two fan blade assemblies 42 of the two rear fan modules 40 b are disposed in mirror symmetry, and the driving motor 41 of each one of the two rear fan modules 40 b has a driving direction being opposite to the driving direction of the driving motor 41 of the other one of the two front fan modules 40 b.
With reference to FIGS. 13 and 19 to 23 , a consumer can control a rotating speed of the driving motor 41 of the at least one fan module 40 by operating the controlling module 30. The driving motor 41 rotates with the rotating speed set by the consumer and drives the blower 421 of the fan blade assembly 42 to rotate. At the time, the blower 421 creates a vortex and drives an airflow outside the shell 10 a, 10 b, 10 c to flow through the multiple inlet holes and into the vortex space 124, and the airflow flows along a rotating direction of the blower 421. When the airflow flows to where the guiding column 123 is disposed, the guiding column 123 guides the airflow to flow toward the outlet opening 125. The airflow then flows through the outlet opening 125 to an outside of the shell 10 a, 10 b, 10 c, which provides effects such as indoors ventilation and cooling off.
With reference to FIGS. 13 and 19 , in the first preferred embodiment of the tower fan in accordance with the present invention, the fan module 40 can create a vortex to drive an airflow outside the shell 10 a to flow through the multiple inlet holes 1221 of the inlet module 122 and into the vortex space 124, and the airflow is driven by the fan blade assembly 42 to flow around the blower 421.
With reference to FIG. 19 , when the airflow flows to where the guiding column 123 is disposed, the guiding column 123 guides the airflow to flow toward the outlet opening 125 of the outlet structure 12. The airflow then flows through the outlet opening 125 and flows to an outside of the shell 10 a from the outlet side of the shell 10 a.
With reference to FIGS. 20 and 21 , in the second preferred embodiment of the tower fan in accordance with the present invention, each one of the two fan modules 40 is capable of creating a vortex to drive an airflow outside the shell 10 b to flow through the multiple inlet holes 1221 of the inlet module 122 of a respective one of the two outlet structures 12 and into the vortex space 124 of the corresponding outlet structure 12, and the airflow then flows along a rotating direction of the blower 421 of the corresponding fan module 40.
With reference to FIG. 21 , when the airflow flows to where the guiding column 123 of the corresponding outlet structure 12 is disposed, the guiding column 123 of the corresponding outlet structure 12 guides the airflow to flow toward the outlet opening 125 of the corresponding outlet structure 12. The airflow then flows through the outlet opening 125 of the corresponding outlet structure 12 and flows to an outside of the shell 10 b from the outlet side of the shell 10 b.
With reference to FIGS. 22 and 23 , in the third preferred embodiment of the tower fan in accordance with the present invention, each one of the two front fan modules 40 a can drive an airflow outside the shell 10 c to flow through the multiple inlet holes 1221 of the inlet module 122 of a respective one of the two front outlet structures 12 a and into the vortex space 124 of the corresponding front outlet structure 12 a, and each one of the two rear fan modules 40 b can also drive an airflow outside the shell 10 c to flow through the multiple inlet holes of the inlet module 122 of a respective one of the two rear outlet structures 12 b and into the vortex space 124 of the corresponding rear outlet structure 12 b at the same time. Then, the airflow flows along a rotating direction of the blower 421 of the corresponding fan module 40 in the vortex space 124 of the corresponding outlet structure 12.
With reference to FIG. 23 , when the airflow flows to where the guiding column 123 of the corresponding outlet structure 12 is disposed, the guiding column 123 guides the airflow to flow toward the outlet opening 125 of the corresponding outlet structure 12. At the time, the airflow flowing through the outlet opening 125 of each one of the two front outlet structures 12 a can directly flow to an outside of the shell 10 c from the outlet side of the shell 10 c; the airflow flowing through the outlet opening 125 of each one of the two rear outlet structures 12 b first flows into the communicating space 17 by guidance of the two guiding plates 15 and then flows to an outside of the shell 10 c from the outlet side of the shell 10 c.
As described above, in some preferred embodiments, the tower fan in accordance with the present invention has multiple outlet structures 12 being modular and disposed in mirror symmetry and multiple fan modules 40 configured to be set with clockwise or counter clockwise rotating directions for different demands. By collocation of the multiple fan modules 40 with clockwise or counter clockwise rotating directions, the tower fan in accordance with the present invention can double the air volume or magnify the air volume four times. Thus, there is no need to make molds repeatedly or afford the cost of making a large mold of a large tower fan to increase an air volume. Also, with different collocations of the multiple fan modules 40 and the multiple outlet structures 12, the product varieties of the tower fan can be sharply increased and customized demands can also be satisfied.
With reference to FIG. 19 , the guiding column 123 not only guides the airflow in the shell 10 a, 10 b, 10 c but is able to collocate with the shell plate module 121 to increase structural strength of the tower fan.
With reference to FIGS. 14, 16, and 17 , when the tower fan is under operation for a period of time, the multiple inlet holes 1221 of the inlet module 122 and the multiple outlet holes 1263 of the outlet module 126 may be covered with dust and dirt. At the time, a consumer can detach and clean the inlet module and the outlet module 126.
With reference to FIGS. 14 and 16 , the first preferred embodiment of the tower fan in accordance with the present invention is taken as an example for description below. When the consumer wants to detach the inlet module 122 and the outlet module 126, the consumer first needs to remove the cover 14 to detach each one of the multiple engaging pins 143 from the corresponding engaging hole 132 of the top plate 13 and the respective corresponding hole 1227 of the top positioning plate 1223 of the inlet module 122 and detach the at least one assembling pin 144 from the at least one assembling hole 133 of the top plate 13 and the at least one positioning hole 1264 of the blocking tab 1262. Thus, the consumer can detach the inlet module 122 and the outlet module 126 from the top plate 13 without any manual tool and without detaching the top plate 13.
With reference to FIGS. 14 and 16 , when trying to take the inlet module 122 down, the consumer only needs to lift up the inlet module 122 to detach each one of the multiple engaging protrusions 1228 of the bottom positioning plate 1224 of the inlet module 122 from the corresponding engaging hole 111 of the bottom plate 11, and the consumer can completely remove and clean the inlet module 122.
With reference to FIGS. 16 and 17 , when trying to remove the outlet module 126, the consumer only needs to lift up the outlet module 126 to detach each one of the multiple assembling protrusions 1265 of the outlet module 126 from the corresponding bottom assembling holes 112 of the bottom plate 11, and the consumer can completely remove the outlet module 126 to clean the outlet module 126.
With reference to FIGS. 16 and 17 , when finishing cleaning the inlet module 122 and the outlet module 126, the consumer can directly insert each one of the multiple engaging protrusions 1228 into the corresponding engaging hole 111 and align each one of the multiple corresponding holes 1227 with the corresponding top engaging hole 132.
With reference to FIGS. 16 and 17 , then, the consumer can insert each one of the multiple assembling protrusions 1265 into the corresponding bottom assembling holes 112 and align the at least one positioning hole 1264 with the at least one top assembling hole 133 of the top plate 13.
With reference to FIG. 14 , finally, the consumer can directly cover the top plate 13 with the cover 14 with the multiple magnets 142 magnetically attracting and being attached to the top plate 13. Thus, each one of the multiple engaging pins 143 is mounted through the corresponding engaging hole 132 and the respective corresponding hole 1227, and the at least one assembling pin 144 is mounted through the at least one top assembling hole 133 of the top plate 13 and the at least one positioning hole 1264 of the blocking tab 1262. With all configurations described above, it is convenient for a consumer to detach and clean the inlet module 122 and the outlet module 126 to prevent the consumer from health problems of the respiratory tract caused by the dust and the dirt accumulating on the inlet module 122 and the outlet module 126.
Additionally, with reference to FIGS. 18 and 19 , the at least one outlet structure 12 can further have at least one first decorating lath 127 and at least one second decorating lath 128. The shell plate module 121 has at least one decorating groove 1214 formed on an outer side of a respective one of the multiple shell plates 1211, and the at least one first decorating lath 127 is disposed in the at least one decorating groove 1214. The guiding column 123 has at least one assembling groove 1231 formed on an outer side of the guiding column 123. The at least one second decorating lath 128 is disposed in the at least one assembling groove 1231 of the guiding column 123. The at least one first decorating lath 127 and the at least one second decorating lath 128 are for better outlook of the tower fan.
Furthermore, the at least one first decorating lath 127 and the at least one second decorating lath 128 are both made of solid wood. The at least one first decorating lath 127 and the at least one second decorating lath 128 made of solid wood and the multiple shell plates 1211 and the guiding column 123 made of aluminum contrast each other in appearance. Thus, the outlook of the tower fan in accordance with the present invention is not monotonous and has a sense of depth to enhance the overall texture and the appearance of the tower fan.
With reference to FIG. 16 , the cover 14 covers on the top plate 13 with the multiple magnets 142 magnetically attracting and being attached to the top plate 13. At the time, each one of the multiple engaging pins 143 is mounted through the corresponding engaging hole 132 and the respective corresponding hole 1227, and the at least one assembling pin 144 is mounted through the at least one top assembling hole 133 of the top plate 13 and the at least one positioning hole 1264 of the blocking tab 1262. With the configuration of the cover 14, the top plate 13, the inlet module 122, and the outlet module 126 described above, the inlet module 122 and the outlet module 126 can be mounted quickly and effectively.
Also, the consumer can directly take the cover 14 down to detach each one of the multiple engaging pins 143 from the corresponding engaging hole 132 of the top plate 13 and the respective corresponding hole 1227 of the top positioning plate 1223 of the inlet module 122 and detach the at least one assembling pin 144 from the at least one assembling hole 133 of the top plate 13 and the at least one positioning hole 1264 of the blocking tab 1262. Thus, the consumer can quickly detach and clean the inlet module 122 and the outlet module 126 without any manual tool, significantly improving a convenience of detaching the inlet module 122 and the outlet module 126.
The cover 14 can also be made of solid wood to increase the overall texture and the appearance of the tower fan. Besides, with reference to FIG. 24 , the cover 14 can have a decorating cloth 145 disposed on the at least one opening hole 141. The decorating cloth 145 can cover the sleeve 423 when the cover 14 covers on the top plate 13. With the cover 14 made of solid wood and the decorating cloth 145, the overall texture and the appearance of the tower fan can further be improved.
Moreover, with reference to FIGS. 13 and 19 , the at least one outlet plate 1261 of the outlet module 126 can stop the consumer to put any of their limbs into the vortex space 124, which prevents injury when operating the tower fan.
In conclusion, the tower fan in accordance with the present invention has the shell 10 a, 10 b, 10 c being modular with each one of the shell plate module 121, the inlet module 122, and the guiding column 132 made by aluminum extrusion, which not only significantly lowers difficulties and costs of manufacturing the tower fan but also allows the consumer to quickly detach the inlet module 122 without any manual tool and clean the inlet module 122. Thus the convenience and efficiency of detaching inlet module 122 is improved. In addition, the tower fan can have multiple said outlet structures 12 being modular and disposed in mirror symmetry and multiple fan modules 40 corresponding to the multiple outlet structures 12 to be assembled as a large tower fan capable of providing double or more air volume. As a result, various products can be manufactured without making extra molds, which can sharply increase the product varieties of the tower fan and satisfy different customized demands.
Even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with details of the structure and features of the utility model, the disclosure is illustrative only. Changes may be made in the details, especially in matters of shape, size, and arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A shell of a tower fan having an outlet side and comprising:

a bottom plate;

at least one outlet structure disposed on the bottom plate and having

a shell plate module, an inlet module, and a guiding column, each one of the shell plate module, the inlet module, and the guiding column made by aluminum extrusion, and the inlet module detachably mounted on the bottom plate and forming multiple inlet holes;

a vortex space enclosed by the shell plate module, the inlet module, and the guiding column arranged in order; and

an outlet opening formed between the shell plate module and the guiding column, facing the outlet side of the shell, and communicating with the vortex space; and

a top plate disposed on the shell plate module and the guiding column of the at least one outlet structure, configured to engage with the inlet module of the at least one outlet structure, and having

at least one axial hole located on the top plate and aligned with a center of the vortex space of the at least one outlet structure.

2. The shell of the tower fan as claimed in claim 1, wherein the inlet module has

multiple inlet plates, each one of the multiple inlet plates made by aluminum extrusion and having

two limiting grooves, each one of the two limiting grooves formed on a respective one of two sides of the inlet plate;

a top positioning plate disposed on top sides of the multiple inlet plates and detachably engaged with the top plate;

a bottom positioning plate disposed on bottom sides of the multiple inlet plates and detachably engaged with the bottom plate; and

multiple limiting components, each one of the multiple limiting components mounted through a respective one of the top positioning plate and the bottom positioning plate and inserted into a respective one of the two limiting grooves of a corresponding one of the multiple inlet plates.

3. The shell of the tower fan as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one outlet structure has

an outlet module disposed on the outlet side of the shell and comprising

at least one outlet plate having

multiple outlet holes formed on the at least one outlet plate and communicating with the vortex space; and

a blocking tab disposed on a top end of the at least one outlet plate and configured to engage with the top plate.

4. The shell of the tower fan as claimed in claim 2, wherein the at least one outlet structure has

an outlet module disposed on the outlet side of the shell and comprising

at least one outlet plate having

5. The shell of the tower fan as claimed in claim 4, wherein

the shell has

a cover covering the top plate and having

at least one opening hole formed on the cover and aligned with the at least one axial hole of the top plate;

multiple magnets fixed on a bottom of the cover and being capable of magnetically attracting and being attached to the top plate; and

multiple engaging pins and at least one assembling pin both formed on the bottom of the cover;

the top plate of the shell has multiple top engaging holes and at least one top assembling hole, and the multiple top engaging holes and the at least one top assembling hole are formed on the top plate;

the top positioning plate of the inlet module forms multiple corresponding holes, and each one of the multiple corresponding holes is aligned with a respective one of the multiple top engaging holes of the top plate;

each one of the multiple engaging pins is mounted through a respective one of the multiple corresponding holes and a respective one of the multiple top engaging holes;

the blocking tab of the outlet module forms at least one positioning hole aligned with the at least one top assembling hole of the top plate; and

the at least one assembling pin is mounted through the at least one top assembling hole of the top plate and the at least one positioning hole of the blocking tab.

6. The shell of the tower fan as claimed in claim 2, wherein

the bottom plate forms multiple bottom engaging holes;

the bottom positioning plate has multiple engaging protrusions; and

each one of the multiple engaging protrusions of the bottom positioning plate is configured to be inserted into a respective one of the multiple bottom engaging holes.

7. The shell of the tower fan as claimed in claim 5, wherein

the bottom plate forms multiple bottom engaging holes;

the bottom positioning plate has multiple engaging protrusions; and

8. The shell of the tower fan as claimed in claim 3, wherein

the bottom plate forms multiple bottom assembling holes;

the at least one outlet plate of the outlet module has multiple assembling protrusions protruding from a bottom edge of the at least one outlet plate; and

each one of the multiple assembling protrusions is configured to be inserted into a respective one of the multiple bottom assembling holes of the bottom plate.

9. The shell of the tower fan as claimed in claim 5, wherein

the bottom plate forms multiple bottom assembling holes;

10. The shell of the tower fan as claimed in claim 1, wherein the shell plate module has

multiple shell plates, each one of the multiple shell plates made by aluminum extrusion and having

two positioning grooves, each one of the two positioning grooves formed on a respective one of two sides of the shell plate; and

multiple positioning units, each one of the multiple positioning units mounted through a respective one of the top plate and the bottom plate and screwed into a respective one of the two positioning grooves of a respective one of the multiple shell plates.

11. The shell of the tower fan as claimed in claim 5, wherein the shell plate module has

two positioning grooves; each one of the two positioning grooves formed on a respective one of two sides of the shell plate; and

multiple positioning units; each one of the multiple positioning units mounted through a respective one of the top plate and the bottom plate and screwed into a respective one of the two positioning grooves of a respective one of the multiple shell plates.

12. The shell of the tower fan as claimed in claim 1, wherein

the shell has two said outlet structures disposed in mirror symmetry and on the bottom plate;

the two shell plate modules of the two outlet structures are disposed adjacently; and

the inlet module of each one of the two outlet structures is located on a respective one of two opposite sides of the two outlet structures.

13. The shell of the tower fan as claimed in claim 1, wherein the shell has four said outlet structures, two guiding plates, two connecting plates, and a communicating space;

the four outlet structures are defined as two front outlet structures and two rear outlet structures;

the two front outlet structures are disposed at a spaced interval, in mirror symmetry, and near the outlet side of the shell;

the two rear outlet structures are adjacently disposed in mirror symmetry and are located on a side of the shell being opposite to the outlet side of the shell;

the communicating space is formed between the two front outlet structures and the two outlet openings of the two rear outlet structures;

each one of the two guiding plates is disposed on the guiding column of a respective one of the two rear outlet structures and extends toward the outlet side of the shell; and

each one of the two connecting plates is connected to the guiding column of a respective one of the two rear outlet structures and the shell plate module of a respective one of the two front outlet structures.

14. A tower fan comprising:

a base;

a controlling module disposed in the base;

the shell as claimed in claim 1, wherein the shell is disposed on the base; and

at least one fan module disposed inside the shell and having

a driving motor disposed on the bottom plate of the shell and electrically connected to the controlling module; and

a fan blade assembly having

a blower connected to the driving motor and being capable of being driven by the driving motor to rotate and create a vortex;

a shaft protruding from an end of the blower and inserted into the at least one axial hole of the top plate; and

a sleeve sheathed on the shaft and disposed in the at least one axial hole.

15. The tower fan as claimed in claim 14, wherein

the two shell plate modules of the two outlet structures are disposed adjacently;

the inlet module of each one of the two outlet structures is located on a respective one of two opposite sides of the two outlet structures;

the tower fan has two said fan modules, and each one of the two said fan modules is disposed in the vortex space of a respective one of the two outlet structures;

the two fan blade assemblies of the two fan modules are disposed in mirror symmetry; and

the driving motor of each one of the two fan modules has a driving direction being opposite to that of the driving motor of the other one of the two fan modules.

16. The tower fan as claimed in claim 14, wherein

the shell has four said outlet structures, two guiding plates, two connecting plates, and a communicating space;

the two rear outlet structures are adjacently disposed in mirror symmetry and are located on a side of the shell being opposite the outlet side of the shell;

each one of the two guiding plates is disposed on the guiding column of a respective one of the two rear outlet structures and extends toward the outlet side of the shell;

each one of the two connecting plates is connected to the guiding column of a respective one of the two rear outlet structures and the shell plate module of a respective one of the two front outlet structures;

the tower fan has four fan modules defined as two front fan modules and two rear fan modules;

each one of the two front fan modules is disposed in the vortex space of a respective one of the two front outlet structures;

the two fan blade assemblies of the two front fan modules are disposed in mirror symmetry, and the driving motor of each one of the two front fan modules has a driving direction being opposite to that of the driving motor of the other one of the two front fan modules;

each one of the two rear fan modules is disposed in the vortex space of a respective one of the two rear outlet structures; and

the two fan blade assemblies of the two rear fan modules are disposed in mirror symmetry, and the driving motor of each one of the two rear fan modules has a driving direction being opposite to that of the driving motor of the other one of the two rear fan modules.

17. The tower fan as claimed in claim 14, wherein the inlet module of the shell has

multiple limiting components; each one of the multiple limiting components mounted through a respective one of the top positioning plate and the bottom positioning plate and inserted into a respective one of the two limiting grooves of a corresponding one of the multiple inlet plates.

18. The tower fan as claimed in claim 14, wherein the at least one outlet structure of the shell has

an outlet module disposed on the outlet side of the shell and comprising

at least one outlet plate having

19. The tower fan as claimed in claim 17, wherein the at least one outlet structure of the shell has

an outlet module disposed on the outlet side of the shell and comprising

at least one outlet plate having

20. The tower fan as claimed in claim 19, wherein

the shell has

a cover covering the top plate and having

the top positioning plate of the inlet module forms multiple corresponding holes; each one of the multiple corresponding holes is aligned with a respective one of the multiple top engaging holes of the top plate;