Abstract:
A method of reducing the height of a sealed compressor incorporates the use of a non-cylindrical portion of the stator windings on the compressor motor. A non-cylindrical portion provides a space between the sealed housing and the windings that can accommodate an additional component. In one embodiment, the additional component is the electrical connection, and in another embodiment, the additional component is an oil heater. Typically, these components were mounted axially beyond the extent of the motor stator, and thus required additional space. The present invention thus allows a smaller height compressor profile.

Description:
This application is a continuation in part of Ser. No. 09/320,942, filed May 27, 1999. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to placing components such as power terminal connections or a heater in a sealed compressor preferably to reduce the length of the compressor unit. 
     Modern compressors often include a compressor pump unit mounted within a sealed housing structure. The sealed housing structure receives the compressor pump unit and an electric motor for driving the compressor pump unit. A crankcase supports the pump unit. 
     Refrigerant and oil are allowed to flow within the compressor housing to perform various functions such as cooling the motor, etc. Various structure assists in moving the oil throughout the compressor housing. 
     The electric motor includes a stator mounted in a lower portion of the housing below the crankcase. There is typically a “dead” space between the stator and the crankcase. This space is used for allowing connection of an electrical connection through the sealed housing and to the motor. The overall height of the scroll compressor is defined by the necessary components, such as the motor, crankcase, and other components, as well as the “dead” space between the stator and the crankcase. 
     Another area of a sealed compressor which may sometimes not be used as efficiently as desired is near the lower end of the compressor shell. There are stator windings at both ends, and typically there is space left beneath the stator windings for the inclusion of components such as an oil heater. Again, this dead space undesirably increases the overall length of the sealed compressor. 
     Prior art motors have had a small deformed portion at the winding area where a motor protector has been packaged. However, the protector is essentially a part of the motor. Other components of the compressor have typically not been packaged in the length of the motor. 
     It is, thus, desirable to eliminate “dead” space and reduce the overall height of the scroll compressor. In some applications, there may be other areas that would be useful for packaging the electrical connection. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention reduces the height of a sealed compressor. Preferably, the invention provides components other than a motor component at the stator winding level and a method for carrying out same so as to eliminate unnecessary space within the compressor housing. Within this application the term “component” extends to associated electrical elements such as the electrical connection, a crankcase heater, or other components that are not part of the motor itself. 
     In one embodiment, a terminal connection is made within the stator winding height of a compressor. The compressor includes a compressor pump unit, a motor for driving the compressor pump unit, and a housing surrounding the compressor pump unit and the motor. The motor includes a stator having stator windings and a rotor wherein the stator extends along an axis for a fixed axial length and the rotor rotates about the axis. A set of terminal pins extends through the housing for providing electrical connection of the motor. The terminal pins are mounted on the inside of the housing within an axial length of the stator to reduce the height of the scroll compressor. 
     To aid in packaging the connection within the stator winding level, the stator winding itself may be deformed inwardly toward the axis of rotation to allow connection of the connector and terminal pins. 
     For purposes of this application, the electrical connection is defined as a “component”. The stator may be blanked by any manufacturing technique, and the method for deforming the stator inwardly, or alternatively, originally forming it with the desired shape, forms no portion of this invention, and is within the skill of the worker in this art. 
     In a second embodiment, the component may be an element such as an oil heater positioned near a lower end of the sealed housing. The lower windings are deformed or manufactured to have a non-cylindrical shape at one circumferential location to provide space to accommodate this component. As with the other embodiment, this decreases the required overall height of the compressor. 
     In a most preferred embodiment, the compressor pump unit is a scroll compressor. 
     These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention can be best understood from the following specification and drawings, the following of which is a brief description. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of the inventive connector incorporated in the compressor housing; 
     FIG. 2 is a top view of the stator according to a first embodiment of the present invention; 
     FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the compressor housing according to a second embodiment of the present invention; 
     FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the terminal pins and mating connector according to a first connector configuration; 
     FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the terminal pins and mating connector according to a second connector configuration; 
     FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the stator in the compressor housing illustrating the method for connecting the terminal pins to the motor; and 
     FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the stator in the compressor housing illustrating a second method for connecting the terminal pins to the motor. 
     FIG. 8 shows an alternative embodiment. 
     FIG. 9 shows an alternative embodiment. 
     FIG. 10 shows a terminal pin embodiment. 
     FIG. 11 shows another embodiment of the present invention. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a compressor incorporating the inventive connector. Compressor  20  is a scroll compressor and receives a pump unit  22  including a crankcase  24 , an orbiting scroll  26 , and a non-orbiting, or fixed scroll  28 . An end cap  30  encloses the top end of the compressor  20 . While a scroll compressor is illustrated, other compressor types can be used with the invention. 
     A lower bearing mount  32  receives a lower bearing  34 . A lower end cap  35  closes the lower end of the compressor. The bearing  34  mounts a shaft  36 . Between the end caps  30  and  35  a generally cylindrical housing  38  receives and encloses all components  24 ,  26 ,  28 ,  30 ,  32 ,  34 ,  36  and a motor  39 , as shown in FIG.  1 . The motor  39  includes a rotor  40  that rotates about an axis  41  and a stator  42  having stator windings  44 . 
     In the prior art, space has been provided axially between the motor  39  and crankcase  24  to allow electrical connection to be made to the motor  39 . In the present invention, however, the space is eliminated by having the electrical connection  46 , including connector  47 , located between the stator winding  44  and the inside wall of the housing  38 . Electrical connection  46  is coupled to power supply  48 , which supplies power to the motor  39 . An appropriate motor protector  50  is also included in compressor  20  coupled to motor  39  and having wires  52  that extend from electrical connection  46  to motor protector  50 . 
     As shown in FIG. 2, the stator windings  44  may be deformed as shown at  45  in order to accommodate connector  47  of electrical connection  46 . In this case the windings  44  are deformed inwardly toward the axis  41 . The deformation  45  can be done by deforming the windings when they are formed. The deformation can be by processes known as blanking, coining or other methods. The electrical component, here connector  47 , is incorporated into the space  45 . Essentially, space  45  is a non-cylindrical portion of the otherwise mostly cylindrical windings. 
     Alternatively, or in combination, the cylindrical housing  38  may be deformed outwardly as shown at  49 , and away from the axis  41  to accommodate the connector  47 , as shown in FIG.  3 . 
     Typically, electrical connections have been made by sliding a connector onto the terminal pins in a direction generally perpendicular to the rotational axis. The prior art required the dead space. 
     Alternative connection configurations are shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 to accommodate placement of connector  47  between stator windings  44  and cylindrical housing  38 . In FIG. 4, terminal pins  54  of electrical connection  46  extend generally perpendicular to the axis  41  of rotation. Connector  47  has cooperating slots  56  for receiving each of the pins  54  when slid onto the pins  54  downwardly in a direction generally parallel to the axis  41  of rotation. 
     In FIG. 5, terminal pins  54  are bent upward at a 90 degree angle so that they are parallel to axis  41 . The cooperating slots  56  are, thus, positioned so that they can be slid onto pins  54  in the downward motion. 
     FIG. 6 illustrates the physical connection of connector  47  to electrical connection  46 . The stator  42  is initially pressed or heat shrunk into housing  38 . The connector  47  is connected to stator  42  by wires  52 , but is unconnected to electrical connection  46 , as shown in phantom at  60 . 
     Connector  47  can then be slid onto the pins  54  of electrical connection  46  in a direction generally parallel to the axis of rotation. 
     The present invention, however, also allows the connector  47  to be slid onto the pins  54  first followed by placement of the stator  42 , as shown in FIG.  7 . With this embodiment, the prior art type connectors which slide in a direction perpendicular to the axis could also be used. Most preferably, the stator will be initially partially inserted, and the connection then made. The stator will then be fully inserted and secured. 
     As shown in FIG. 8, another embodiment  80  incorporates a stator winding  82  positioned to be spaced from the shell  84 . The connector  86  is positioned to receive the electrical connection  88  in a generally tangential direction relative to the shell  84 . Thus, a space  90  allowing the tangential movement is added to one extreme of the space  45 . 
     In sum, the terminal pin connections are positioned in a location such that they reduce the required space. In several embodiments the electrical connection is made by connecting the pins with a connector which moves in a direction that does not include a substantial radial component. Preferably the direction is parallel to the axis of rotation, tangential to the shell, or a combination of the two. Further, while the connection is shown within the axial length of the stator, other components may receive the connector. As an example, the inventive connector insertion facilitates positioning upwardly in the axial length of the crankcase, such as for example in the area generally indicated by  95  in FIG.  1 . 
     FIG. 9 shows another embodiment  92 , where the connection to the motor is made after the connector  94  has been attached to the terminal pins  96  and after the stator  98  has been attached to the housing  100 . In one embodiment, a pigtail connector  102  is utilized which is connected to the terminal pins  96 . Once that connection is made and motor stator  98  has been connected to the housing, the pigtail connection  102  is then connected to the motor  98  at  104 . The pigtail connector  102  is shown in phantom at  103  unconnected to the motor, and in solid line connected to the motor. Again, the exact structure of the connector is within the skill of a worker in this art. It is the concept of such a connection which is inventive here. 
     FIG. 10 shows an embodiment  110  of the electrical connection wherein the connector and terminal pins  112  and  114  include a locking structure. In one example, a bump  116  is formed that will snap into an opening  118  in the opposed connector. This will prevent inadvertent movement of the pins relative to each other. 
     FIG. 11 shows another component which can be incorporated into a non-cylindrical portion of the stator windings. A cross-section of FIG. 11 would look similar to that shown in FIG.  2 . In the FIG. 11 embodiment  150 , motor stator  152  incorporates windings  154  which have the non-cylindrical portion. A center housing shell  156  is attached to a bottom shell  158 , shown somewhat schematically. An oil heater, otherwise known as a crankcase heater  160 , is incorporated into the space provided by the non-cylindrical portion of the windings  154 . Again, a cross-section of the windings  154  would look similar to that shown in FIG.  2 . Providing the non-cylindrical portion at one circumferential location provides a space for incorporation of the electric component, here oil heater  160 , similar to the way space is provided for the electric component connection in the FIG. 2 embodiment. 
     Although a preferred embodiment has been disclosed, a worker of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that certain modifications come within the scope of the invention. For that reason, the following claims should be studied to determine the true scope and content of this invention.