US3615075A

US3615075A - Molded plastic humidifier

Info

Publication number: US3615075A
Application number: US849341A
Authority: US
Inventors: Richard I Heiman; Everett D Wiseman; Trueman P Jordan
Original assignee: Vernco Corp
Current assignee: Vernco Corp
Priority date: 1969-08-12
Filing date: 1969-08-12
Publication date: 1971-10-26
Anticipated expiration: 1988-10-26

Abstract

A HUMIDIFYING APPARATUS, THE PREFERRED FORM OF WHICH COMPRISES AN UPPER ROLLER, A LOWER ROLLER, A FORAMINOUS BELT TRAINED ABOUT THE ROLLERS, AND A ONE-PIECE, INTEGRALLY MOLDED, UPSTANDING PLASTIC HOUSING. THE HOUSING IS FORMED TO PROVIDE, AT ITS LOWER PORTION, A LIQUID-TIGHT RESERVOIR FOR RECEIVING WATER, FIRST MEANS FOR JOURNAL MOUNTING THE LOWER ROLLER FOR ROTATION IN THE RESERVOIR BELOW ITS INTENDED WATER LEVEL, AND SECOND MEANS FOR SUPPORTING THE UPPER ROLLER ABOVE THE INTENDED MAXIMUM WATER LEVEL OF THE RESERVOIR. THE FIRST MEANS IS PREFERABLY FORMED TO INCLUDE, AT EACH SIDE OF THE RESERVOIR, AN UPSTANDING FLANGE HAVING A GENERALLY V-SHAPED, UPWARDLY OPENING NOTCH FORMED THEREIN FOR RECEIVING THE ADJACENT END OF THE LOWER ROLLER, THE LOWER ROLLER BEING WEIGHTED SO THAT IT IS GRAVITY BIASED TOWARD ITS SEATING IN THE NOTCHES. THE SECOND MEANS IS PREFERABLY FORMED TO INCLUDE, AT EACH SIDE OF THE HOUSING, A PAIR OF SPACED-APART, INWARDLY EXTENDING FLANGES ARRANGED TO RECEIVE THEREBETWEEN THE ADJACENT END OF THE UPPER ROLLER. A BLOCK FOR JOURNAL MOUNTING EACH END OF THE UPPER ROLLER IS PROVIDED, EACH BLOCK EXTENDING BETWEEN AND BEING SUPPORTED BY ONE PAIR OF FLANGES. THE MOTOR FOR DRIVING THE UPPER ROLLER, THE BLOCKS FOR JOURNALLING THE UPPER ROLLER, AND THE GEAR BOX FOR DRIVINGLY CONNECTING THE MOTOR TO THE UPPER ROLLER ARE SUPPORTED IN SLOTS FORMED IN THE FLANGES AT THE SIDES OF THE HOUSING.

Description

26, 1971 R. l. HEIMAN ErAL MOLDED PLASTIC HUMIDIF'IER 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 12. 1969 l'ji INVENTORS Y. NN J/m M M A R ED 0 W W l ATAmfiv HEM mw VR Oct. 26, 1971 Filed Aug. 12, 1969 R. l. HEIMAN ETAL MOLDED PLASTIC HUMIDIFIER '3 Shca tsI -Sheot 5 Fig. 7

i 2 I66 II INVENTORS RICHARD I. HEIMAN EVERETT D. WISEMAN TRUEMAN P. JORDAN ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,615,075 MOLDED PLASTIC HUMIDHFIER Richard I. Heirnan, Everett D. Wiseman, and Trueman P. Jordan, Columbus, Ind., assignors to Venice Corporation, Columbus, Ind.

Filed Aug. 12, 1969, Ser. No. 849,341 Int. Cl. Bolt 3/04 U.S. Cl. 261-30 27 (Ilaims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A humidifying apparatus, the preferred form of which comprises an upper roller, a lower roller, a foraminous belt trained about the rollers, and 'a one-piece, integrally molded, upstanding plastic housing. The housing is formed to provide, at its lower portion, a liquid-tight reservoir for receiving water, first means for journal mounting the lower roller for rotation in the reservoir below its intended water level, and second means for supporting the upper roller above the intended maximum water level of the reservoir. The first means is preferably formed to include, at each side of the reservoir, an upstanding flange having a generally V-shaped, upwardly opening notch formed therein for receiving the adjacent end of the lower roller, the lower roller being weighted so that it is gravity biased toward its seating in the notches. The second means is preferably formed to include, at each side of the housing, a pair of spaced-apart, inwardly extending flanges arranged to receive therebetween the adjacent end of the upper roller. A block for journal mounting each end of the upper roller is provided, each block extending between and being supported by one pair of flanges. The motor for driving the upper roller, the blocks for journalling the upper roller, and the gear box for drivingly connecting the motor to the upper roller are supported in slots formed in the flanges at the sides of the housing.

The present invention relates to humidifying apparatus, and more particularly to the provision of a humidifying apparatus comprising, as means for lifting water upwardly into an air stream, a pair of rollers, a foraminous belt trained about the rollers, means for driving one of the rollers and a water-filled reservoir in which one of the rollers is disposed so that the belt continuously picks up water from the reservoir. Convention-ally, a blower is used to force air through the water-laden belt, thereby to dampen the air. It will be appreciated that humidifiers or humidifying devices of this type are conventional.

Reference is made to the Sprouse et al. Pat. 3,203,676 which discloses a humidifying device of the type with which the present invention is concerned. This patent discloses the use of a frame upon which a pair of spacedapart rollers are journal mounted, the foraminous belt being trained about the rollers. The frame, with the rollers and belt thereon, is movable into and out of the humidifier housing, the lower end of the frame and the lower roller being disposed, when the frame is in the housing, in the reservoir of the humidifying device. It is believed to be conventional, therefore, to provide a humidifying device comprising a sheet metal housing into which a receptacle is placed to provide a reservoir and to provide a belt-frame which extends downwardly into the reservoir.

The present invention is an improvement over such conventional humidifying apparatus because the bel frame is eliminated and the separate receptacle is eliminated.

It is a primary object of the present invention, therefore, to provide a humidifying apparatus comprising a one-piece, integrally molded, upstanding plastic housing Patented Oct. 26, 1971 formed to provide, at its lower portion, a liquid-tight reservoir for receiving water.

It is another object to provide such an apparatus including first means for journal mounting a lower roller for rotation in the reservoir below its intended water level, second means for supporting an upper roller above the intended maximum water level of the reservoir, and a foraminous belt trained about the rollers.

Another object of the present invention is to provide such an apparatus in which the lower roller is weighted to provide a predetermined tension on the foraminous belt trained about the rollers.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide such an apparatus in which the said first means is formed to include, at each side of the reservoir, an upstanding flange having a generally V-shaped, upwardly opening notch formed therein for receiving the adjacent end of the lower roller. The weight of the lower roller is effective to bias the ends of the lower roller toward their seats, respectively, in these notches.

Still a further object of the present invention is to provide such an apparatus in which the said second means, i.e., the means for supporting the upper roller, is formed to include, at each side of the housing, a pair of spacedapart, inwardly extending flanges arranged to receive therebetween the adjacent end of the upper roller, and further including a block extending between and supported by the flanges of each pair to journal mount the end of the upper roller extending therebetween. Each block may be provided with an upwardly opening notch for receiving the adjacent end of the upper roller or one or both of the blocks may be used to support *a trunniontype bearing which extends into a bore in the end of the upper roller.

As this description progresses, it will be seen that each block which journal mounts an end of the upper roller is preferably provided with a pair of ears which extend into and rest on the bottoms of vertically extending slots formed in the flanges between which the block extends. Further, the motor which drives the upper roller is mounted on a frame which provides a pair of runners for engaging, respectively, slots formed in one pair of flanges. That is, the motor and its frame is simply dropped into these slots in the flanges and the weight of the motor holds it in position. Still further, a gear is mounted on the end of the upper roller which is adjacent the motor and another gear is mounted on the output shaft of the motor, these gears being drivingly connected by means of an idler gear which is journal mounted in a block, which may be the same block which journal mounts the adjacent end of the upper roller, extending between the flanges which provide a mounting for the motor. The gear on the upper roller is biased into engagement with the idler gear by the tension on the foraminous belt, which tension is provided by the weight of the lower roller, and the gear on the output shaft of the motor is biased into engagement with the idler gear by the weight of the motor. One advantage of this structure for mounting the upper roller and the motor is that the block supporting the idler gear protects the motor against water damage caused by seepage of water from the upper roller and the belt thereon.

Particularly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a humidifying apparatus comprising such a onepiece, integrally molded, upstanding plastic housing formed in such a manner that the hardware associated with the apparatus, including the upper and lower rollers, drive motor, and the bearing box for the upper roller can be assembled by dropping the components in their proper position in the housing,

Additionally, it is an object of the present invention to provide a humidifying apparatus constructed in such a manner that the drive means associated with the water lifting means of the apparatus can be assembled by dropping the components of the drive means into their respective proper positions in the apparatus.

Other objects and features of the present invention will become apparent as this description progresses.

To the accomplishment of the above and related objects, the present invention may be embodied in the form illustrated in the accompanying drawings, attention being called to the fact, however, that the drawings are illustrative only, and that change may be made in the specific construction illustrated and described, so long as the scope of the appended claims is not violated.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a decorative humidifier constructed in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged, sectional view taken from FIG. 1 generally along the line 22;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary and enlarged sectional view taken from FIG. 2 generally along the line 3-3;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged plan view of the humidifier of FIG. 1 with the top cover removed;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged, exploded and fragmentary perspective view showing the preferred structure for mounting the upper roller and its drive motor;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged, exploded and fragmentary perspective view showing the preferred structure for journal mounting the lower roller; and

FIG. 7 is a somewhat diagrammatical exploded perspective view showing how the housing of the humidifier of FIG. 1 may be molded.

Referring now to the drawings and particularly to FIGS. 1-6, it will be seen that there is illustrated a decorative, console-type humidifying apparatus 10 comprising a housing 12 and a top cover 14 provided with a vent opening 16 through which moistened air emanates from the apparatus 10. The opening 16 is provided with conventional grill work as illustrated in FIG. 1.

The illustrative humidifying apparatus 10 further comprises an upper roller 18, a lower roller 20, and a foraminous belt 22 trained about the rollers. The belt 22 and

rollers

18 and 20 comprise foraminous means movable through a continuous path as will become apparent as this description progresses.

It will be appreciated that the lower roller 20 is disposed in the lowermost portion of the housing 12 while the upper roller 18 is disposed generally parallel to the lower roller and directly thereabove in the upper portion of the housing 12. A blower means 24, which may be a conventional motor-driven fan and Venturi ring as illustrated, is mounted in an opening 26 in the rear wall 28 of the housing 12. As viewed in FIG. 2, this opening 26 and, consequently, the blower means 24 are disposed at a level just below the upper roller 18.

In accordance with the present invention, the housing 12 is a one-piece, integrally molded, upstanding plastic housing formed to provide, at its lower portion, a liquidtight reservoir for receiving water. Specifically, the housing 12, in addition to providing a means on which and in which the components, including the

rollers

18, 20, belt 22 and blower means 24, are mounted, provides a reservoir for holding water into which the belt 22 is continually dipped.

The housing 12 includes, in addition to the aforementioned rear wall 28, a bottom or floor 30, a left-side wall 32 (FIG. 2), a right-side wall 34, and a front wall 36 all joined together to provide a liquid-tight reservoir having an intended maximum liquid level as indicated at 42 in FIG. 2. It will be appreciated that the maximum liquid level is substantially below the opening 26 for the blower means 24. 'It will also be appreciated that the lower roller 20 is well below the intended maximum liquid level 42. In fact, as clearly seen in FIG. 2, the foraminous belt 22 will be wetted when the upper roller 18 is driven and there is, for instance, at least an inch of water in the reservoir provided by the walls of the housing.

For convenience, the reservoir is indicated by the reference numeral 44.

For decorative reasons primarily, the front wall 36 is formed to provide a left, front panel section 38 and a right, front panel section 40 which lie in different planes, as illustrated. Further, primarily for decorative reasons, the

Walls

32, 34, and

panel sections

38, 40 are provided with centrally located recesses. The decorative features and the manner in which they are obtained will be discussed further as this description progresses. It will be appreciated, however, that the decorative recesses and ridges strengthen the housing 12.

The housing 12 is molded to provide, in addition to the rear wall 28,

side walls

32, 34 and front wall 36, a pair of

flanges

46, 48 extending inwardly from the left wall 32 and a pair of

flanges

50, 52 extending inwardly from the right wall 34. The

flanges

46, 48 are spaced apart and parallel and they extend vertically from the bottom 30 to a point just above the axis of the upper roller 18 as illustrated in FIG. 2. The upper edges of these

flanges

46, 48 are indicated by the reference numeral 54. Similarly, the

flanges

50 and 52 are spaced apart and parallel and vertically extending from the bottom 30 to the same height as the

flanges

46, 48. The upper, horizontally extending edges of the

flanges

50, 52 are indicated, respectively, by the

reference numerals

56, 58.

The inwardmost extent of each

flange

46, 48, at any point in its height, is nowhere exceeded at any higher point. That is, in the illustrative embodiment, the inwardmost edges of the

flanges

46, 48 are parallel and vertically extending. For reasons which will become apparent as this description progresses, the vertically extending and parallel edges of the

flanges

46, 48 facilitate the molding of the housing 12. Similarly, the inwardmost edges of the

flanges

50, 52 are parallel and vertically extending.

The

flanges

46, 48 define a channel which receives the left-hand ends of the

rollers

18, 20 and the

flanges

50, 52 define a channel which receives the right-hand ends of the rollers. The housing 12 is molded to provide, at each side of the reservoir 44, an

upstanding flange

62, 64 providing a generally V-shaped, upwardly opening notch for receiving the adjacent end of the lower roller 20. The flange 62, which is preferably vertically extending, extends between the

flanges

46, 48 as illustrated in FIG. 3 and the flange 64, which likewise is preferably vertically extending, extends between the

flanges

50, 52 as best illustrated in FIG. 6. In the illustrative embodiment, the left-hand end of the roller 20 is provided with a reduced shank portion which is journal mounted in the notch in the flange 62 and the right-hand end of the roller is provided with a reduced shank portion which is journal mounted in the notch in the flange 64. The lower roller 20 is restrained against significant axial movement by the

flanges

62 and 64.

The humidifying apparatus 10 is assembled by extending the lower roller '20 into the closed loop provided by the endless belt 22 and lowering the roller 20, which is weighted, into the reservoir 44. The weight of the roller 20 will serve to urge or bias the roller toward its seating position in the notches in the

flanges

62, 64. When the roller 20 is first used with a new clean belt 22, the ends of the roller will not necessarily be seated in the bottoms of the notches. Thus, in this description and in the appended claims, the terms journal mounted, as far as the ends of the roller 20 are concerned, are intended to mean that the ends of the roller are received, respectively, in the notches in the

flanges

62, 64 and rotatable therein. As the weight of the belt 22 increases with lime deposits, the ends of the roller 20 will move to the bottoms of the notches.

The

flanges

62, 64 are thus means integrally formed with the housing 12 for journal mounting the lower roller 20. It will be observed that, preferably, there is no mechanical means, other than the

flanges

62, 64, for supporting roller or holding it against axial and transaxial movement.

The left-hand end of the upper roller 18 may be journal mounted by a block 68 extending between and supported by the

flanges

46, 48. Specifically, as illustrated in FIG. 4, the block 68, which may be nothing more than a flat plastic member, is formed with an upwardly opening notch for receiving and supporting the reduced left-hand end portion of the roller 18. The block 68 is inserted into elongated, downwardly extending slots 78 formed in the

flanges

46, 48. That is, each

flange

46, 48 is formed with a downwardly extending slot entering its upper edge 54 and terminating with a bottom at a point therebelow. The block 68 is provided with ears extending into and resting on, respectively, the bottoms of the slots 70 in the

flanges

46, 48. Preferably, the slots 70 extend vertically and have a width which is equal to or just slightly less than the thickness of the block 68. Thus, it will be apparent that the only assembly effort required for journal mounting the left-hand end of the roller 18 is to insert the block 68 downwardly into the slot 70. An alternative form of the block 68 is shown in FIG. 2. In FIG. 2, it will be seen that the block 68' which is supported in the slots 79 carries a trunnion-type bearing plug 69 which extends into a bore 69 in the left-hand end of the roller 18.

Each of the

flanges

50, 52 is provided with a

slot

74, 76 entering its

upper edge

56, 58 and terminating with a bottom at a point therebelow and a

second slot

78, 80 also entering its upper edge and terminating with a bottom at a point therebelow as best seen in FIG. 5. These

slots

74, 76, 78, 80 are preferably vertically extending to facilitate the molding operation.

A gear box 84 is arranged to extend between the flanges 50, S2 and to be supported thereby. Specifically, this gear box 84 is provided with a pair of cars 86 arranged to extend into and to rest on, respectively, the bottoms of the

slots

74, 76. As best seen in FIG. 5, the ears 86 are flat and hook-shaped and of approximately the same thickness as the width of the

slots

74, 76. That is, each ear 86 is provided with a downwardly extending portion 88, the portion 88 of one ear engaging the front side of the flange 52 while the portion 88 of the other car engages the rear side of the flange 50.

The gear box 84 is formed with a vertically extending wall section 90 having an upwardly opening notch 92 formed therein for receiving and journal mounting the right-hand end, reduced shank portion 18' of the upper roller 18. That is, the wall section 90 of the gear box 84 supports the right-hand end of the upper roller 18 in the same manner that the block 68 (FIG. 4) supports the left-hand end of the upper roller. Thus, the wall section 90 is, in eifect, a journal block for the right-hand end of the upper roller.

The gear box 84 is formed with a second vertically extending wall section 94 with an upwardly opening notch 96 formed therein. This wall section 94 is preferably parallel to the wall section 90 and the notch 96 is formed to be in axial alignment with a vertically elongated slot 98 formed in the wall section 90. An idler gear 108 is journal mounted in the gear box 84. Specifically, the idler gear 100 is mounted on a shaft 102, the lefthand end of which is journal mounted in the bottom of the slot 88 and the right-hand end of which is journal mounted in the bottom of the notch 96.

A driven gear 108 is mounted on the shank portion 18 of the roller 18 for rotation therewith so that, when the shank portion is bottomed in or approaching the bottom of the slot 92, the gear 108 will be in proper meshing engagement with the left-hand portion 100a of the idler gear 100. The tension on the belt 22 yieldingly urges the gear 108 downwardly into engagement with the idler gear. Since the tension on the belt 22 is provided by the weight of the lower roller, it can be said that the gear 108 is urged into engagement with the idler gear 108 by the weight of the lower roller 20. The shank portion 18 does not necessarily rest on the bottom of the slot 92 so that, in some cases, the end of the roller 18 providing the shank portion 18' may be supported by the gear 108 resting on the gear 100a.

The drive motor 110 for the upper roller 18 is mounted on a frame 112 by means such as the illustrated screws 115 (FIG. 5), which frame is provided with a pair of

runners

114, 116 which extend into the

slots

78, 80. Thus, the motor 110 is assembled into the humidifying apparatus 10 merely by dropping the frame 112 on which the motor is mounted into the

slots

78, 80. The position of the motor in the

slots

78, 80 is maintained by the weight of the motor. As illustrated, each

runner

114, 116 is preferably provided with grooves for engaging the edges of the

slot

78, 80 in which the runner is disposed.

A driving gear 118 is mounted on the output shaft of the motor 118, so that, when the

runners

114, 116 are received, respectively, in the

slots

78, 80, the output shaft of the motor is received in the notch 96 and the gear 118 is in meshing engagement with the portion 10% of the idler gear 100. The gear 118 is yieldingly urged into engagement with the idler gear 100 by the weight of the motor 119. Preferably, when the

runners

114, 116 are resting or in near contact with the bottoms of the

slots

78, 80, the gear 118 is properly meshed with the idler gear 106. The

runners

114, 116 may not rest directly on the bottoms of the

slots

78, 80 and, in fact, the frame 112 may be supported by the gear 118 resting on the gear 1061).

From the above description, it will be appreciated that the gear box 84, i.e., the

walls

90 and 94, separate the roller 18 and the belt 22 trained about the roller from the motor 110, thereby to prevent water damage of the motor by seepage of water from the roller toward the motor.

It will be appreciated that, with the structure illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5, the upper and

lower rollers

18, 20 may be removed by pulling vertically upwardly on the upper roller, the motor 110 may be removed by pulling vertically upwardly on the motor, and then the gear box 84 can be removed by pulling vertically upwardly thereon.

While the slots 70 in the

flanges

46, 48 and the

slots

74, 76, 78, 80 in the

flanges

50, 52 are shown as entering the upper edges of the flanges, it will be appreciated that, since the flanges are preferably plastic and somewhat flexible, the slots do not have to be open-ended. Thus, if the slots are not open-ended, the devices installed between the flanges may be so installed by physically separating the flanges so that the ears on the devices can be inserted into their respective slots. The manner in which such closedend slots can be formed during the molding process will be discussed hereinafter.

As illustrated, a float-switch assembly 124, including a float 126, is disposed within the channel provided by the

flanges

50, 52. The float 126 will conventionally operate a switch (not shown) which operates a lamp (not shown) to provide an indication that the water level in the reservoir 44 is below an acceptable level. The position of the float 126 in FIG. 2 is merely a matter of convenience in the drawing and does not show any particular water level.

A light is disposed within a box 128 which is mounted on the flange 52 as illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 4. Preferably, the flange 52 is provided with a vertically extending slot (not shown) into which a hook 130 on the light box 128 extends. This light box 128 may be removed, therefore, by lifting the box upwardly to disengage the hook 130 from the bottom of the slot and then pulling forwardly, i.e., away from the flange 52, on the box.

It will be appreciated that the

rollers

18, 20, belt 22, gear box 84 and drive motor 110 comprise means for lifting water from the reservoir 44 upwardly into the air current provided by the blower means 24. While the illustrated means for lifting water upwardly into the air stream is the preferred means, it will be appreciated that, within the scope of the present invention, other means, such as a rotating foraminous disc or drum may be used 7 to lift water upwardly from the reservoir 44 into the air stream provided by the blower means 24.

Referring now to FIG. 7, it will be seen that there is illustrated a housing 12 in association with

portions

136, 138, 140, 142, 144, 146 and 148 of a plastic injection mold. These portions 136148 are conventionally made of steel and proportioned and designed so that when they are placed in their proper respective molding positions, they cooperate to form a cavity which, when filled with molten plastic which subsequently hardens, will define the housing 12.

The base portion 136, i.e., the portion of the mold which forms the bottom 30 of the housing 12, may be stationary. This base portion 136 preferably includes, extending upwardly from its top surface, a three-sided projection (not shown) which forms the cavity 150 which extends about the left-hand and right-hand sides and front of the bottom portion of the housing 12. This cavity 150, as best seen in FIG. 2, gives the lower portion of the housing a decorative contour.

After the housing 12 is formed, the portion 138 of the mold which defines the exterior surface of the back wall 28 may be moved in the direction of the arrow 152. It will be appreciated that this portion 138 may have, on its front vertically extending surface, a boss which defines the opening 26. Likewise, after the molding operation, the

portions

140, 142 are moved, respectively, in the directions of the

arrows

154, 156 outwardly from the base portion 136. The portion 140, which defines the exterior surface of the left-hand side wall 32, includes a centrally-located boss 158 which forms a centrally-located recess 160 in the wall 32. Similarly, the portion 142 which defines the righthand side wall 34 includes a boss 162 which defines the centrally-located recess 164 in the wall 34.

The

wall sections

38, 40 are defined, respectively, by

mold portions

144, 146 which are drawn, respectively, in the directions of the

arrows

166, 168 after the housing 12 is molded. The portion 144 includes a boss (not shown) forming the recess 170 in the panel section 38 and the portion 146 includes a boss (not shown) forming the recess 172 in the panel section 40. In some cases, the

die pieces

144 and 146 may be integrally connected and pulled perpendicular to the surface 138.

The mold portion 148 which defines the interior structure of a housing 12 is drawn, after the molding operation, vertically upwardly as indicated by the arrow 174. This mold portion 148 is provided with slots which define the

flanges

46, 48, 50, 52, 62, and 64, all of which are preferably vertically extending. It will be appreciated by those familiar with molding arts that the inwardmost extent of each

flange

46, 48, 50, 52, at any point in its height, preferably will be nowhere exceeded at any higher point. Thus, the inwardmost edges of these

flanges

46, 48, 50, 52, are parallel and vertically extending to facilitate the removal of the mold portion 148. The open upper ends of the

slots

70, 74, 76, 78, 80 likewise facilitate the withdrawal of the mold portion 148. That is, each of these

slots

70, 74, 76, 78, 80 may be formed by a rigid member in the mold portion 148 which extends across the void in the mold which forms the flange in which the slot is provided.

A slot in a flange, such as the slot into which the hook 130 on the box 128 extends, which is not open-ended as is, for instance, one of the slots 70, may be defined by a member which projects into the void in the mold portion 148 forming the flange, which member is retractable from the void after the molding operation to permit withdrawal of the portion 148.

The housing 12, with its integrally formed

flanges

46, 48, 50, 52, 62 and 64, is thus uniquely proportioned and designed for fabrication by a one-shot molding process. That is, once the mold portions 13 6-148 are brought into a proper physical relationship to define a cavity corresponding to the housing 12 structure, the entire structure, including the

flanges

46, 48, 50, 52, 62, 64, the slots and notches in these flanges, and the opening 26 in the back wall 28 are formed by injecting molten plastic into the cavity and letting it harden before the mold portions are separated.

After the housing 12 is formed as discussed in conjunction with FIG. 7, the humidifying apparatus 10 can be completely assembled in a matter of minutes because of the manner in which the

rollers

18, 20, belt 22, motor 110, and gear box 84 are supported in the housing. Of course, it will take very little time to mount the blower means 24- in the opening 26-.

Because the humidifying apparatus 10 is so easy to assemble, it is also easy to repair.

What is claimed is:

1. A humidifying apparatus comprising a housing, flange means disposed in said housing, foraminous means, means for driving said foraminous means through a continuous path, and means for supporting said foraminous means for movement through said path, said supporting means including means engaging said flange means, whereby said supporting means is connected to said flange means, said flange means including a pair of upstanding flanges, each of said flanges providing a slot, and in which said engaging means includes portions extending, respectively, into said slots, said foraminous means including a roller and a foraminous belt trained about said roller, said flange means including a pair of upstanding flanges receiving therebetween one end of said roller, each of said flanges being provided with a slot, said supporting means including a block for journal mounting said one end of said roller, said block extending between said flanges, said engaging means including portions extending outwardly from said block and, respectively, into said slots, each of said flanges being provided with a second slot, and said drive means including a motor having an output shaft and a frame on which said motor is mounted, said frame being disposed between said flanges and provided with portions extending, respectively, into said second slots.

2. A humidifying apparatus comprising a one-piece, integrally molded, upstanding plastic housing formed to provide, at its lower portion, a liquid-tight reservoir for receiving water, and to provide, above the intended maximum water level of said reservoir, means for supporting a blower means, a foraminous belt, a pair of rollers about which said belt is trained, and drive means for one of said rollers, and said housing being formed to provide integral first means for supporting one of said rollers for rotation in said reservoir below its intended water level and to provide integral second means for supporting the other of said rollers above the intended maximum water level of said reservoir and generally parallel to said one roller, said first means providing a pair of upwardly extending laterally spaced apart webs having upwardly opening notches therein receiving and journal mounting said one roller.

3. The invention of claim 2 in which said second means includes, at each side of said housing, a pair of spacedapart, inwardly and downwardly extending integral flanges defining a downwardly extending channel at each side of said housing, the ends of said rollers extending, respectively, into said channels, said webs extending, respec tively, between said flanges of said channels, the flanges of one of said channels being provided with downwardly extending slots, and means for supporting said drive means, the last said means including means received in said slots.

4. A humidifying apparatus comprising a housing, flange means disposed in said housing, foraminous means, means for driving said foraminous means through a continuous path, and means for supporting said foraminous means for movement through said path, said supporting means including means engaging said flange means, whereby said supporting means is connected to said flange means, said foraminous means including a roller and a foraminous belt trained about said roller, said flange means including a pair of upstanding flanges receiving therebew tween one end of said roller, each of said flanges being provided with an upper edge and a first slot entering said upper edge and terminating with a bottom at a point therebelow, said supporting means including a block for journal mounting said one end of said roller, said block extending between said flanges, said engaging means including car portions extending into and resting on, respectively, the bottoms of said first slots, each of said flanges being provided with a second slot entering its upper edge and terminating with a bottom at a point therebelow, and said drive means including a motor having an output shaft and a frame on which said motor is mounted, said frame being provided with portions extending into and resting on the bottoms, respectively, of said second slots.

5. The invention of claim 4 including a driven gear mounted on said one end of said roller for rotation therewith, an idler gear journal mounted on said block and meshed with said driven gear, and a driving gear mounted on the output shaft of said motor.

6. The invention of claim 5 in which the rotational axis of said idler gear is below the axes of said driving and driven gears, and in which said driving and driven gears are yieldably biased downwardly into meshing engagement with said idler gear.

7. The invention of claim 6 in which said driven gear is biased downwardly by the tension on said belt and in which said driving gear is biased downwardly by the weight of said motor.

8. A humidifying apparatus comprising an upper roller, a lower roller, a foraminous belt trained about said rollers, drive means for one of said rollers, and a one-piece, integrally molded, upstanding plastic housing formed to provide, at its lower portion, a liquid-tight reservoir for receiving Water, and to provide integral first means for journal mounting said lower roller for rotation in said reservoir below its intended water level, and to provide integral second means for supporting said upper roller above the intended maximum water level of said reservoir.

9. The invention of claim 8 in which said first means is formed to include, at each side of said reservoir, an upstanding flange having an upwardly opening notch formed therein for receiving the adjacent end of said lower roller, and in which said lower roller is weighted so as to be biased toward its seating in said notches.

10. The invention of claim 8 in which said first means includes, at each side of said reservoir, an upstanding flange having a generally V-shaped, upwardly opening notch formed therein for receiving the adjacent end of said lower roller, said lower roller being weighted so as to be biased toward its seating in said notches.

11. The invention of claim 8 in which said second means is formed to include, at each side of said housing, a pair of spaced-apart, inwardly and downwardly extending flanges defining a downwardly extending channel at each side of said housing, in which the ends of each of said rollers extend, respectively, into said channels, in which said first means is formed to include, at the lower end of each of said channels, an upwardly extending web extending between the flanges of said channel and providing an upwardly opening notch for receiving and journal mounting said lower roller, said lower roller being weighted to be biased toward a seating position at the bottoms of said notches.

12. The invention of claim 11 including a block extending between the flanges of each of said channels and providing an upwardly opening notch for receiving and journal mounting the end of the upper roller extending into the channel.

13. The invention of claim 11 in which said flanges and said web are vertically extending and the inwardmost extent of each such flange at any point in its height being nowhere exceeded at any higher point.

14. The invention of claim 8 in which said second means is formed to include, at one side of said housing, flange means, and further comprising a block engaged with and supported by said flange means and arranged to journal mount the end of said upper roller which is adjacent to said one side of said housing, said flange means being formed securely to engage said block.

15. The invention of claim 14 in which said flange means is formed to provide at least one slot and in which said block is provided with an ear portion extending into said slot, the engagement of said ear portion in said slot being effective to support said block on said flange means.

16. The invention of claim 15 in which said flange means is provided with at least one other slot and in which said drive means includes a motor and a frame on which said motor is mounted, said frame having a portion extending into said other slot to support said drive means on said flange means.

17. The invention of claim 8 in which said second means is formed to include, at each side of said housing, a pair of spaced-apart, inwardly extending flanges arranged to receive therebetween the adjacent end of said upper roller, and further comprising a block extending between and supported by the flanges of each pair to journal mount the end of said upper roller extending therebetween.

18. The invention of claim 17 in which one end of said upper roller is formed with a concentric bore entering one of its ends and including aplug-type trunnion bearing extending into said bore, said bearing being carried by the block adjacent said one end.

19. The invention of claim 17 in which each of said flanges is formed with an elongated slot and in which each of said blocks is provided with ear portions extending into, respectively, the slots in the flanges between which the block extends.

20. The invention of claim 19 in which each of said flanges of one of said pair of flanges is formed with a second slot and in which said drive means includes a motor having an output shaft and a frame on which said motor is mounted, said frame having portions extending into, respectively, the second slots.

21. The invention of claim 20 including a driven gear mounted on the end of said upper roller extending between said one pair of flanges, an idler gear journal mounted on the block extending between said one pair of flanges and meshed with said driven gear, and a driving gear mounted on the output shaft of said motor and meshed with said idler gear.

22. The invention of claim 17 in which each of said flanges is formed with an upper edge and an elongated, downwardly extending slot entering its upper edge and terminating with a bottom at a point therebelow, and in which each of said blocks is provided with ears extending into and resting on, respectively, the bottoms of the slots in the flanges between which the block extends.

23. The invention of claim 22 in which each of said flanges of one of said pairs of flanges is formed with a second slot entering its upper edge and terminating with a bottom at a point therebelow, and in which said drive means includes a motor and a frame on which said motor is mounted, said frame providing a pair of runners extending into the second slots.

24. The invention of claim 23 including a driven gear mounted on the end of said upper roller extending between said one pair of flanges, an idler gear journal mounted on the block extending between said one pair of flanges and meshed with said driven gear, and a driving gear mounted on the output shaft of said motor and meshed with said idler gear.

25. The invention of claim 24 in which the rotational axes of said gears are parallel with the axis of said idler gear being below the axes of said driven and driving gears, said driving and driven gears being yieldably biased into meshing engagement with said idler gear.

26. The invention of claim 24 in which the rotational axes of said gears are parallel with the axis of said idler gear being below the axes of said driven and driving gears,

1 1 said driving gear being yieldably biased into meshing engagement with said idler gear by the weight of said motor, and said driven gear being yieldably biased into meshing engagement with said idler gear by the tension on said belt.

27. The invention of claim 26 in which said first means includes, at each side of said reservoir, an upstanding flange having an upwardly opening notch formed therein for receiving the adjacent end of said lower roller, said lower roller being weighted so as to be biased toward its seating in said notches, the weight of said lower roller providing a predetermined tension on said belt.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 6/1919 Camberus 261-80 12 Grunwaldt 26-80 Wied (308 RE.)

Robic 26192 Mobley 26130 X Myklebust 26129 Sprouse et al 26 l80 X Ticknor 26130 X Hrapshaw 261--29 DElia et al 26180 X U.S. Cl. X.R.