US3342466A

US3342466A - Air humidifier

Info

Publication number: US3342466A
Application number: US434264A
Authority: US
Inventors: Flury Karl
Original assignee: Defensor AG
Current assignee: Defensor AG
Priority date: 1964-02-29
Filing date: 1965-02-23
Publication date: 1967-09-19
Anticipated expiration: 1984-09-19
Also published as: AT251836B; NL6501179A; DE1267815B; FR1423526A; CH407478A; GB1094812A

Description

Sept. 19, 1967 K. FLURY AIR HUMIDIFIER Filed Feb. 23, 1965 ma 2: NW

E: l I

Inven m- KzI'Z FZury United States Patent 3,342,466 AIR HUMIDIFIER I Karl Flury, Adliswii, Zurich, Switzerland, assignor to Defensor, Zurich, Switzerland Filed Feb. 23, 1965, Ser. No. 434,264 Claims priority, application Switzerland, Feb. 29, 1964, 2,573/ 64 5 Claims. (Cl. 26191) The present invention relates to an air humidifier comprising at least two centrifugal distributor discs, spaced axially apart one above the other, motor-driven and with a central opening to which a suction pipe extending into a tank of liquid is connected, and means for distributing to all the distributor discs the liquid entering through the suction pipe.

In existing air humidifiers of this type, the distributor discs and their spacers are rigidly connected to form one assembly, which it may or may not be possible to remove as a whole for cleaning purposes. The spacers are so designed that they allow the liquid taken in through the suction pipe to pass through to the upper side of the discs and distribute it as evenly as possible over the discs.

The essential distinguishing feature of the air humidifier here proposed is that the inner peripheral portion of at least one of the series of distributor discs, adjacent to the central opening, is of undulating form around the periphery and bears against the inner peripheral portion of the adjacent distributor disc, this undulating portion serving to maintain a space between the remaining portions of the said two distributor discs and at the same time to distribute the flow of liquid to these discs.

One construction of air humidifier in accordance with the invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a vertical axial section through part of the air humidifier comprising two distributor discs arranged one above the other; and

FIGURE 2 is a perspective drawing of a section of the two distributor discs.

The air humidifier illustrated has an electric driving motor 10, with vertical spindle 11. The means of attachment of the motor are not shown in the drawing. On motor spindle 11 is a dished hub member 12. The lower end of spindle 11 has a screw-threaded extension 13, to which a detachable vertical intake pipe 14 is attached. Intake pipe 14, which has a tubular lower portion and funnel-shaped upper portion, contains a threaded central part 15, joined to the upper portion by a number of radial fins 16. The open lower end of intake 14 extends into tank 17, which contains a supply of liquid 18 for humidifying the air.

Between hub 12 and the top end of intake 14 are fitted two

centrifugal distributor discs

19 and 20, each of which has a circular central opening 21 through which pass spindle 11 and a portion of hub 12.

Distributor discs

19 and 20 are centred on hub 12 by a number of radial fins 22 extending from the hub and engaging the inner periphery defining openings 21.

The inner peripheral portion 19a of the lower disc 19, adjacent to opening 21 is flat. The corresponding inner peripheral portion 20a of upper disc 20, on the contrary, is undulating, as can be seen more clearly in FIGURE 2. The undulation of peripheral portion 20a is in steps between two planes, with the result that the troughs and the crests of the undulation lie in respective planes. The undulating inner peripheral portion 20a of upper disc 20 bears on the fiat inner peripheral portion 19a of lower disc 19. Thus, the sector-shaped portions of the wave troughs lie fiat on plane peripheral portion 19a, while the likewise sector-shaped portions of the wave' crests lie against shoulder 12a of hub 12.

"ice

Distributor discs

19 and 20 are not rigidly intercom nected but are fitted separately to centring fins 22 and held together and against shoulder 12a of hub 12 by means of intake pipe 14. The undulating shape of inner peripheral portion 20a of the one distributor disc 20 results in all the other (and more particularly the outer) portions of both the

discs

19 and 20, being spaced from one another. By virtue of the undulating shape of peripheral portion 20a, moreover, the liquid carried upwards by intake pipe 14 is distributed over the upper faces of both

distributor discs

19 and 20. The peripheral distances between the upward and downward steps of the undulation are equal. This ensures that equal quantities of liquid are carried to the upper and lower distributor discs. The liquid for lower disc 19 flows through beneath the wave crests of part 20a, while the liquid for upper disc 20 flows over the wave troughs in part 20a.

The two

distributor discs

19 and 20 are surrounded in conventional manner by a stationary impact-surface ring 25, which is made up of a series of narrow plates. The purpose of impact-surface ring 25 is to divide into fine droplets of mist the thin films of liquid thrown outwards by the outer peripheries of

distributor discs

19 and 20. On the underside of lower distributor disc 19 are a number of fan-blades 26 for producing a current of air which flows through between the plates of impactsurface ring 25, catches up the mist droplets formed there and carries them off into the atmosphere that is to be humidified.

The mode of operation of air humidifiers of this kind is well known.

Should it become necessary to free

distributor discs

19 and 20 and intake 14 from deposits of lime and dirt, intake pipe 14 should be unscrewed from motor spindle 11, as can readily be done by preventing distributor disc 19 from turning. The two

distributor discs

19 and 20 are then removed from hub 12. This leaves

members

14, 19 and 20 completely free, so that they can easily be cleaned. To reassemble the humidifier, one first fits upper disc 20 and then lower disc 19 on to centring fins 22 of hub 12, after which intake 14 is screwed to threaded extension 13 of motor spindle 11. The tightening of this screw connection holds

discs

19 and 20 in position. There is no need to arrange the two

discs

19 and 20 in any particular radial position relative to one another or to hub 11, nor are any spacers required between the distributor discs. The proportion in which the liquid is distributed to the lower and upper discs always remains the same, without any special steps needing to be taken to ensure this.

It is also possible for a similar arrangement to be adopted with three or more distributor discs. With three discs, for example, the lowermost would have a flat peripheral portion, like that of disc 19 in the example illustrated. The middle disc would have an undulating inner peripheral portion like that of disc 20, except that the peripheral length of the wave troughs would be twice as large as that of the wave crests. The inner portion of the topmost disc would again be similarly undulating, except that here the wave crests, while of the same height, would have a peripheral length twice as large, as that of the wave troughs. To assemble the air humidifier, the wave troughs of the topmost disc would be placed in the larger wave troughs of the middle disc, which in turn would lie on the flat inner peripheral portion of the lowermost disc. The liquid brought in through the intake connection would then necessarily flow in equal thirds to the upper side of all three distributor discs. In addition, the third disc would need to be so shaped that its flat outer portion was spaced away from the middle disc when the inner peripheral portions of all three discs were clamped between the intake connection and the hub.

The distributor discs of the air humidifiers described may with advantage be made of plastics or sheet metal.

What I claim is:

1. An air humidifier comprising at least two centrifugal distributor discs spaced axially apart oneabove the other and with a central opening,- a suction pipe connected to the central opening of the lowermost of the discs and extending into a tank of liquid, a motor in driving connection with the discs to rotate same, the inner peripheral portion of at least one of the distributor discs, adjacent to the central opening, being of undulating form around the inner periphery and bearing against the inner peripheral portion of another one of the distributor discs, said undulating portion serving to maintain a space between the remaining portions of the said distributor discs and at the same time to distribute to the discs the flow of liquid entering through the suction pipe.

2. An air humidifier as defined in claim 1, in which the undulating portion of said one distributor disc bears on a fiat portion of said another distributor disc.

3. An air humidifier as defined in claim 1, in which the undulating portion is stepped alternately in opposite directions between two planes.

4. An air humidifier as defined in claim 1, in which the number of the distributor discs is two, the peripheral lengths between the upward and downward steps of the undulating portion being substantially equal.

5. An air humidifier as defined in claim 1, in which the suction pipe is detachably screwed on to a threaded end of a spindle of the motor, a hub member being mounted on the motor spindle, all the distributor discs being individually fitted loosely over a centring member of said hub, said centring member extending into the central opening of the discs, said discs being held to one another and to the hub by means of the suction pipe screwed on the motor spindle.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,083,057 12/1913 Clawson 261-91 1,957,316 5/1934 Buckley et al. 26191 2,537,833 1/1951 s 261-91 3,108,147 10/1963 Flury.

FOREIGN PATENTS 257,663 10/1948 Switzerland.

HARRY B. THORNTON, Primary Examiner.

E. H. RENNER, Assistant Examiner.

Claims

1. AN AIR HUMIDIFIER COMPRISING AT LEAST TWO CENTRIFUGAL DISTRIBUTOR DISCS SPACED AXIALLY APART ONE ABOVE THE OTHER AND WITH A CENTRAL OPENING, A SUCTION PIPE CONNECTED TO THE CENTRAL OPENING OF THE LOWERMOST OF THE DISCS AND EXTENDING INTO A TANK OF LIQUID, A MOTOR IN DRIVING CONNECTION WITH THE DISCS TO ROTATE SAME, THE INNER PERIPHERAL PORTION OF AT LEAST ONE OF THE DISTRIBUTOR DISCS, ADJACENT TO THE CENTRAL OPENING, BEING OF UNDULATING FORM AROUND THE INNER PERIPHERY AND BEARING AGAINST THE INNER PERIPHERAL PORTION OF ANOTHER ONE OF THE DISTRIBUTOR DISCS, SAID UNDULATING PORTION SERVING TO MAINTAIN A SPACE BETWEEN THE REMAINING PORTIONS OF THE SAID DISTRIBUTOR DISCS AND AT THE SAME TIME TO DISTRIBUTE TO THE DISCS THE FLOW OF LIQUID ENTERING THROUGH THE SUCTION PIPE.