WO2007097802A2 - Cooling fan with integral housing and impeller - Google Patents
Cooling fan with integral housing and impeller Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- WO2007097802A2 WO2007097802A2 PCT/US2006/048565 US2006048565W WO2007097802A2 WO 2007097802 A2 WO2007097802 A2 WO 2007097802A2 US 2006048565 W US2006048565 W US 2006048565W WO 2007097802 A2 WO2007097802 A2 WO 2007097802A2
- Authority
- WO
- WIPO (PCT)
- Prior art keywords
- fan
- blades
- blade
- impeller
- cooling fan
- Prior art date
Links
Classifications
-
- F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
- F04—POSITIVE - DISPLACEMENT MACHINES FOR LIQUIDS; PUMPS FOR LIQUIDS OR ELASTIC FLUIDS
- F04D—NON-POSITIVE-DISPLACEMENT PUMPS
- F04D29/00—Details, component parts, or accessories
- F04D29/26—Rotors specially for elastic fluids
- F04D29/32—Rotors specially for elastic fluids for axial flow pumps
- F04D29/325—Rotors specially for elastic fluids for axial flow pumps for axial flow fans
-
- F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
- F04—POSITIVE - DISPLACEMENT MACHINES FOR LIQUIDS; PUMPS FOR LIQUIDS OR ELASTIC FLUIDS
- F04D—NON-POSITIVE-DISPLACEMENT PUMPS
- F04D29/00—Details, component parts, or accessories
- F04D29/26—Rotors specially for elastic fluids
- F04D29/32—Rotors specially for elastic fluids for axial flow pumps
- F04D29/38—Blades
- F04D29/384—Blades characterised by form
Definitions
- the present invention relates generally to cooling fans and in particular to an impeller design to improve airflow and noise performance in axial fan designs.
- Prior art fans (e.g., Fig. 6) comprise a separate housing and fan assembly.
- the fan assembly fits into an air passage region provided in the housing.
- the circumference of the air passage must be larger than the circumference of volume of space defined by the rotating blades. Consequently, there is a gap between the tips of the fan blades and the housing wall which defines the air passage region. This gap can be large and accordingly reduce the performance of the air mover device.
- a cooling fan according to the present invention comprises fan blades having a primary blade component and a secondary blade (may also be referred to as the tip blade) component.
- the primary blade component produces an axial airflow.
- the secondary blades produce a radial airflow.
- the axial airflow and the radial airflow, respectively created by the primary blades and the secondary blades combine to provide an increase axial outflow, thus enabling a greater movement of air to increase the cooling effect of the fan.
- the resulting device improves aerodynamic efficiency. Tests have also shown reductiond in tonal noise as compared to conventional blade designs which do not incorporate a tip blade. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
- FIG. 1 shows a side view and a top view of a cooling fan according to an embodiment of the present invention.
- FIGs. 2A and 2B are schematic illustrations of fan blades according to the present invention.
- Fig. 3A illustrates axis of rotation.
- Fig. 3B illustrates radial direction.
- Fig. 4 illustrates the air flows produced by a fan in accordance with the present invention.
- Figs. 5 A and 5B illustrate variations of wire-frame housings in accordance with the present invention.
- FIG. 6 shows a conventional fan with a housing.
- Fig. 1 shows side view and top view images of a prototype for a cooling fan 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
- the images show an impeller unit 104 comprising a motor 124 and fan blades 126.
- the fan blades 126 are connected to a hub 122, which in turn is fixedly coupled to a rotor portion 128 of the motor 124.
- the impeller unit 104 is mounted to a fan housing 102.
- the fan housing consists only of a base portion 112 onto which the motor is mounted.
- the images of Fig. 1 also show wires for electrical connection to the motor 124.
- the illustrative embodiment of Fig. 1 shows that the fan blades 126 comprise a primary blade 132 and a secondary blade 136.
- the secondary blade 134 is disposed at the tip of the primary blade 132.
- the fan housing 102 comprises only the base portion 112, and is absent the conventional casing enclosure that encloses the fan blades in the radial direction. See, for example, Fig. 6 which shows a conventional cooling fan design.
- the conventional fan housing includes a base portion and a fan blade enclosure (casing) that encloses the fan blades along a radial direction, but is open in the axial direction to provide an axial air passage.
- FIGs. 2 A and 2B are illustrations showing configurations of a fan blade 226 in accordance with the present invention.
- Fig. 2A shows a primary blade 232 having a root end 242 that connects to the hub 222.
- the other end of the primary blade is referred to as the blade tip 244, or simply tip.
- a secondary blade 234 is disposed proximate the blade tip 244.
- the secondary blade 234 is formed substantially at the tip 244 of the primary blade 232.
- Fig. 2B illustrates that the secondary blade 234 does not have to be formed at the tip 244, and that some portion of the tip of the primary blade 232 may extend beyond the outer surface of the secondary blade. It is only necessary that the secondary blade 234 be disposed near the tip of the primary blade 232.
- Fig. 2 A further illustrates that the secondary blade 234 is disposed roughly in perpendicular relation to the primary blade 232. It will be appreciated that the secondary blade 234 can be provided at an angle ⁇ other than 90°. It will be further appreciated that the secondary blade 234, not unlike the primary blade 232, can be designed to have any suitable combination of parameters used in blade design, e.g., chord length, camber, and so on. In fact, the secondary blades 134 are characterized much in the same way as the primary blades 132. This is illustrated in Fig. 1, where the top view image assumes a direction of fan rotation as shown. For example, the primary blades 132 each has a leading edge 152 and a trailing edge 154. Similarly, the secondary blades 134 each has a leading edge 142 and a trailing edge 144.
- a cooling fan configured in accordance with the invention will create a radial inflow of air in addition to the normal axial inflow. The resulting axially-directed outflow of air is thus increased because of the additional radial inflow.
- a cooling fan according to the present invention is absent the conventional enclosure that houses the fan. The absence of the housing opens up the sides, allowing the secondary blades 134 to capture air from the radially-directed periphery of the fan blades 126.
- FIG. 4 shows various inflows that are produced by a cooling fan of the present invention.
- the axial airflow is the flow of air that is substantially parallel to the axis of rotation (Fig. 3A) of the blades.
- Fig. 4 also shows a radial inflow of air entering along the radial direction.
- the radial direction is the direction along which the primary blades extend from the hub toward the tip, as illustrated in Fig. 3B.
- the radial inflow results from a scooping action of air in the radial direction when the air is captured by the secondary blades 134 as the fan blades 126 turn.
- the air that is captured by the secondary blades 134 in the radial direction is forced in the axial direction and combines with the axial inflow to produce the axial outflow as illustrated in Fig. 4.
- the capture of air and subsequent redirection and combination with the axial inflow are controlled by design of the primary blades 132 and secondary blades 134.
- Parameters including camber angle, stagger angle, chord length, and number of blades are principal design parameters that control the capture effect of the secondary blades.
- the secondary blades 134 can be designed to produce an amount of radial air flow that is 10% of the axial air flow created by the primary blades 132. Such a design would result in roughly an increase in outgoing airflow by 10%.
- a secondary blade 134 is provided for each primary blade 132.
- alternate possible embodiments include providing secondary blades for only some of the primary blades.
- every n' h primary blade can be configured with a secondary blade proximate its tip.
- the number for n will depend on the total number of primary blades.
- the secondary blades should be evenly distributed among the primary blades to ensure the impeller 104 is balanced in order to avoid wobble during operation.
- symmetrical distribution of the secondary blades in the circumferential direction (or azimuthal direction) ensures a proper scooping action.
- the impeller can comprise a secondary blade for every other primary blade.
- the impeller can comprise every third primary blade provided with a secondary blade.
- FIG. 1 shows that the fan housing 102comprises only a base portion 112. There is no casing or enclosure within which the impeller unit 104 is housed.
- the embodiment of Fig. 1 is simple and cost-effective to build. However, it may be desirable to provide some kind of open-spaced enclosure to house the impeller 104 unit. This aspect of the present invention will now be discussed in connection with Figs. 5A and 5B.
- FIGs. 5 A and 5B show alternative embodiments to illustrate a further aspect of the present invention.
- Fig. 5A shows an embodiment in which a wire-frame cage 502 (represented by dashed lines) can be provided as an enclosure.
- the wire-frame members 512 can be solid members, tubular, have a circular cross-section, and so on. Note that the cage structure does not contain side walls in order to reduce obstructions to the flow of air in the radial directed during fan operation.
- Fig. 5B shows a variation where the cage 502 includes strut members 514 to add mechanical strength to the cage. Though the strut members 514 are provided on the sides of the cage, it is noted that they do not substantially occlude radially directed airflow. Based on the examples of cage construction shown in Figs. 5A and 5B, it can be appreciated that any suitable enclosure can be provided so long as the sides of such enclosure are sufficiently open to allow for adequate radially directed airflow. In this way, when an impeller of the present invention is operated within such an open-sided enclosure design, the secondary blades 136 can create a radially-directed inflow of air.
- the foregoing embodiment exemplars of the present invention show a fan housing that is substantially absent the enclosure.
- the reason for this is to reduce obstructions to the flow air in the of radial direction to facilitate the capture of air by the secondary blades 134.
- a fan housing that is absent the conventional enclosure may be a suitable embodiment for some uses, the present invention does not require the complete absence of an enclosure.
- the wire-frames of Figs. 5A and 5B are an example of such an enclosure.
- an enclosure (not shown) that is more that the wire cages of Figs. 5A and 5B can be provided with openings on its sides to allow for a radially-directed inflow of air (Fig.
- FIG. 6 shows what is meant by sides of the enclosure, in the context of this discussion).
- An enclosure having openings on its sides may be desirable in order to protect a user from the spinning fan blades, while at the same time improving the axial outflow provided by the present invention.
- the openings can be appropriately designed so that a sufficient amount of air can pass through, allowing the secondary blades 136 to create an adequate radial inflow and direct that flow into the axial outflow stream.
- the openings can be varied in terms of numbers, sizing, shapes (e.g., slotted, circular, etc), orientation (e.g., diagonal, horizontal, etc), and so on.
Landscapes
- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
- General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Structures Of Non-Positive Displacement Pumps (AREA)
- Motor Or Generator Cooling System (AREA)
Abstract
Description
Claims
Priority Applications (2)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
DE112006003159T DE112006003159T5 (en) | 2005-12-29 | 2006-12-18 | Cooling fan with integral housing and impeller |
JP2008548614A JP2009522490A (en) | 2005-12-29 | 2006-12-18 | Cooling fan with integral housing and impeller |
Applications Claiming Priority (4)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US75530305P | 2005-12-29 | 2005-12-29 | |
US60/755,303 | 2005-12-29 | ||
US11/637,510 | 2006-12-11 | ||
US11/637,510 US20070154309A1 (en) | 2005-12-29 | 2006-12-11 | Cooling fan with integral housing and impeller |
Publications (2)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
WO2007097802A2 true WO2007097802A2 (en) | 2007-08-30 |
WO2007097802A3 WO2007097802A3 (en) | 2008-01-10 |
Family
ID=38224598
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
PCT/US2006/048565 WO2007097802A2 (en) | 2005-12-29 | 2006-12-18 | Cooling fan with integral housing and impeller |
Country Status (5)
Country | Link |
---|---|
US (1) | US20070154309A1 (en) |
JP (1) | JP2009522490A (en) |
DE (1) | DE112006003159T5 (en) |
TW (1) | TW200730732A (en) |
WO (1) | WO2007097802A2 (en) |
Families Citing this family (2)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US20080253896A1 (en) * | 2007-04-13 | 2008-10-16 | Walls Gary C | High efficiency fan blades with airflow-directing baffle elements |
WO2015029245A1 (en) * | 2013-09-02 | 2015-03-05 | 三菱電機株式会社 | Propeller fan, air-blowing device, and outdoor unit |
Citations (1)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US5829956A (en) * | 1997-04-22 | 1998-11-03 | Chen; Yung | Fan blade assembly |
Family Cites Families (9)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US1873853A (en) * | 1930-09-18 | 1932-08-23 | Murray T Quigg | Rotor, impeller, or the like |
US5445215A (en) * | 1992-12-22 | 1995-08-29 | Herbert; Edward | Fan assembly with heat sink |
US5437541A (en) * | 1993-12-30 | 1995-08-01 | Vainrub; John | Blade for axial fan |
US5896917A (en) * | 1996-02-22 | 1999-04-27 | Lemont Aircraft Corporation | Active heat sink structure with flow augmenting rings and method for removing heat |
TW568508U (en) * | 2001-03-27 | 2003-12-21 | Delta Electronics Inc | Fan with good heat dissipation |
US6517315B2 (en) * | 2001-05-29 | 2003-02-11 | Hewlett-Packard Company | Enhanced performance fan with the use of winglets |
US6626640B2 (en) * | 2001-11-19 | 2003-09-30 | Durmitor Inc. | Fan with reduced noise |
TW585227U (en) * | 2001-12-31 | 2004-04-21 | Asia Vital Components Co Ltd | Improved structure for fan blade |
TW540641U (en) * | 2002-04-30 | 2003-07-01 | Delta Electronics Inc | Axial-flow fan with characteristics of increasing faxial-flow fan with characteristics of increasing flowing pressure and flowing amount of airflow |
-
2006
- 2006-12-11 US US11/637,510 patent/US20070154309A1/en not_active Abandoned
- 2006-12-18 DE DE112006003159T patent/DE112006003159T5/en not_active Withdrawn
- 2006-12-18 JP JP2008548614A patent/JP2009522490A/en active Pending
- 2006-12-18 WO PCT/US2006/048565 patent/WO2007097802A2/en active Application Filing
- 2006-12-22 TW TW095148353A patent/TW200730732A/en unknown
Patent Citations (1)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US5829956A (en) * | 1997-04-22 | 1998-11-03 | Chen; Yung | Fan blade assembly |
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
JP2009522490A (en) | 2009-06-11 |
DE112006003159T5 (en) | 2009-02-26 |
US20070154309A1 (en) | 2007-07-05 |
WO2007097802A3 (en) | 2008-01-10 |
TW200730732A (en) | 2007-08-16 |
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