Antivibration suspension device for a blower

Abstract: In a photocopying and/or printing machine, the blower (10) or fan used for internal ventilation is suspended from the structure (32) of the machine by means of springs (30) slung between the blower casing (12) and the machine structure to eliminate the transmission of vibrations to delicate members in the machine itself.

Description: The present invention relates to antivibration suspension device for a blower according to the preamble of claim 1. More particularly it relates to a suspension for preventing the transmission of the vibrations of a rotor of an electric motor and of an impeller of the blower to the supporting structure. Background of the Invention In machines such as photocopiers and laser printers it is necessary to create ventilation inside the machine to remove the heat generated by certain parts of the machines. For this purpose, fans or blowers are used. In these the impellers are often not correctly dynamically balanced, with the result that vibrations are generated which are harmful to good machine operation. The prior art devices for damping these vibrations include the use of damping materials such as rings or cushion pads of special rubber placed between the blower and its supporting structure in order to reduce the transmission of vibrations. An example of this device can be found in the United Kingdom Patent No. GB 1553218, in which a device comprising a motor and a motor driven fan mounted on a plate is disclosed. The plate is in turn mounted on a fixed structure by means of a resilient vibration preventing member made of rubber. The solution provided by this device is technically satisfactory. However, it has the disadvantage that it is expensive, requiring the construction of dedicated parts made of special rubber and the supporting structure to be adapted to the shape and dimensions of the blower which it is designed to support. From German Patent No. DE 1454571, which corresponds to the preamble of claim 1, a device comprising a motor and a motor driven fan mounted in a casing is disclosed. The casing is in turn mounted in a noise absorbing rigid structure by means of rubber bellows and springs. This document does not teach which is the best geometrical arrangement of the springs, nor what parameters should be used to calculate the characteristics of the springs in order to effectively reduce the transmission of the vibrations. Even though these prior art solutions are satisfactory, they require the construction of usually expensive special rubber parts, and the supporting structure has to be adapted to the shape and dimensions of the blower which it is designed to support. Summary of the Invention Preferred embodiments of the present invention provide a suspension device for a blower which has a very simple, light structure and none of the drawbacks described above. In a preferred embodiment of the invention the blower or fan used for internal ventilation of a photocopier or the like is suspended from the structure of the machine by means of springs slung between the blower casing and the machine structure. This eliminates the transmission of vibrations to delicate parts of the machine. The invention is defined in the appended claims to which reference should now be made. Brief Description Of The Drawings A preferred embodiment of the invention will now be described in detail by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of a suspension device embodying to the invention; Figure 2 is a diagrammatic front elevation of the suspension device of Figure 1; Figure 3 is a diagrammatic plan view of the suspension device of Figure 1. Detailed Description Of A Preferred Embodiment With reference to Figures 1, 2 and 3, a blower 10 comprises a casing 12 on which there rotates an impeller 14 having blades 16 which lie in the axial direction. The impeller 14 is turned by an electric motor 18 fixed to the casing 12, its rotor being connected directly to the shaft of the impeller. The casing 12 is so shaped as to define an air outlet 20 and inlet 22. The unit formed by the blower and its motor is used, for example, in a photocopying machine in a laser printer to create internal ventilation in order to stabilise the temperature of working members of the machine. During the rotation of the impeller of the blower and of the rotor of the motor, two main types of vibration are set up. The first type of vibrations are caused by variations in the speed of rotation of the impeller rotor unit due to irregularities in the torque provided by the motor and to irregularities in the resistance encountered by the impeller blades. The second type of vibrations are caused by imperfections in the constructions either of the rotor, or of the impeller, with the result that imperfectly balanced eccentric masses cause vibrations in radial directions as they rotate. Consequently the blower-motor unit may oscillate and transmit vibrations to the photocopier structure and disturb the correct operation of delicate and precise devices within the machine, such as the optical system or the image developing means. To overcome this problem, the blower motor unit is suspended from the structure 24 of the machine by means of a system of helical traction springs 30 slung between the casing 12 and a rigid frame 32 of the machine. In the embodiment shown in the figures, four helical springs are used, two on each side. These are individually anchored at four prints A, B, C, D respectively (Fig. 3) on a plate 34 forming part of the casing 12 lying parallel to the axis of the impeller 14; these points are situated at the vertices of a rectangle. The springs 30 may have identical mechanical characteristics or, in certain cases, different mechanical characteristics from each other. To simplify the mounting and reduce costs, it is preferable to use identical springs. It may however be that the weight of the motor 18, which is fixed at one end 13 of the casing 12, is greater than the weight of the blower. The centre of gravity of the complete unit may therefore be in an asymmetric position, shifted towards the motor. In this case it will be necessary to use two sets of springs, one consisting for example of two sets of springs on the motor side whose stiffness has a determined value, and the other consisting for example of two springs mounted at the opposite end of the casing 12 whose stiffness has a value lower than the former. The stiffness and dimensions of the springs are so determined that the motor-blower unit is suspended in a position that is approximately near and parallel to the position which it would adopt if it were fixed rigidly to the frame 32. It has been found that the best position for the blower 10 to be suspended, in order to reduce transmissions of vibrations to a minimum, is that in which those ends of the springs that are fixed to the blower are at a lower level than the ends fixed to the frame 32 by a distance "a" (Fig. 2) which is not more than 7 mm. In corresponding fashion the two pairs of springs arrange themselves symmetrically with their axis inclined in a vertical plane by an angle α of between 5° and 15° with respect to a horizontal straight line. It is preferable for the angle α to be approximately 10°. Moreover, to compensate for the radial component of the vibrations of the motor-blower unit in a horizontal plane, the springs of each pair are slung divergent fashion so as to form an angle β with each other of between 10° and 30° (Fig. 3). In general, let P be the total weight of the blower 10 and motor 18, n the number of springs used to support the unit, and α and β the angles defined above. Then the load C which each spring must support when in use is given by the equation: C = KP/n, in which K is a number between 4 and 11.5 that corresponds to the reciprocal of the product sin α cos β/2. Each of the springs should preferably be preloaded with a load of between 15% and 25% of a maximum load to which it is subjected in the supporting position. The extension δL of the spring under maximum load is designed as appropriate to be between 35% and 45% of the initial length of the spring in the unloaded state. Measurements have been made of the maximum amplitude of the vibrations transmitted to the lens of a photocopier, using one example of a blower mounted in two different ways: in case A, the blower is mounted in the conventional way with interposed rubber blocks, while in case B the blower, of total weight P = 500 g, is suspended as shown in the figures, with four identical springs having the following characteristics: Spring diameter 6 mm Wire diameter 0.65 mm Number of turns 12 mm Initial length 19 mm Extension δL 8 mm Elastic characteristic Km 83.2 mm In case A the vibrations transmitted to the lens from the blower have an amplitude of approximately 20 µm, while in case B the blower-motor unit is arranged in a position in which the springs form an angle α of approximately 10° and the vibrations of the lens are reduced to an amplitude of 0.4 µm, or one fiftieth of that encountered in case A.

Claims: An antivibration suspension device for a blower (10) mounted on a rigid structure (32), the blower having a casing (12), an impeller (14) with blades (16) which rotates on the casing, and a motor (18) mounted on the casing so as to turn the impeller, the suspension device comprising elastic means connecting the casing of the blower to the rigid structure, characterised in that the elastic means comprises two sets of springs (30) mounted at opposite ends of the casing, each spring being anchored by its first end to the side of the casing and by its second end to a fixed point on the rigid structure, each of the springs (30) being so proportioned that when the blower is in a suspended position, the first end of the spring is at a lower level than the second end by a distance "a" which is not more than 7 mm. An antivibration suspension device according to claim 1, characterised in that each of the springs is slung between the casing and the rigid structure with an extension δL of between 35% and 45% of the initial length of the spring. An antivibration suspension device according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that a longitudinal axis of each of the springs forms an angle α of between 5° and 15°, measured in a vertical plane relative to a horizontal straight line. An antivibration suspension device according to claim 3, characterised in that the angle is 10°. An antivibration suspension device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterised in that each of the springs has dimensions such as to enable it to support a load C given by C=KP/n, in which P is total weight of the blower, n is total number of springs and K is a positive number of between 4 and 11.5. An antivibration suspension device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterised in that each of the sets of springs comprises at least two springs forming an angle β with each other of between 10° and 30° measured in a horizontal plane.

Inventors: BORTOLIN RENATO, OLIVERO MICHELE, BORTOLIN, RENATO, OLIVERO, MICHELE
Applicants: OLIVETTI CANON IND SPA, OLIVETTI-CANON INDUSTRIALE S.P.A.
Application year: 1993
Main classification: F04D29
IPC codes: H02K5, F04D29, G12B9, F25D1