Patent Publication Number: US-6988676-B2

Title: Turbine drive rotary spray cleaner

Description:
This application claims the benefit of provisional application No. 60/189,195, filed Mar. 14, 2000. 

   The present invention relates to improvements for a rotary spray cleaner having a plurality of spray nozzles, especially a rotary spray cleaner which would be used in cleaning the interior of a vessel. Particular aspects of the invention which are disclosed include a planetary gear drive for speed reduction and an interchangeable orifice portion for modifying fluid flow immediately prior to an impeller for generating torque and speed to be transferred to the planetary gear drive, where the speed is reduced and rotation of the spray nozzles is accomplished. 
   BACKGROUND OF THE ART 
   The concept of using pressurized cleaning fluid to provide the motive power for rotating a rotary spray cleaner is well known. A variety of different gear arrangements to accomplish this have been provided in the prior art. A particularly desirable goal in designing these spray cleaners is to make them small enough so that they can be inserted into the smaller access ports in the vessel to be cleaned. These access ports are usually about three inches in diameter in a tank car having compartments. Some solutions have even located the motive power source external to the vessel. 
   A continuing concern with using the pressurized fluid to provide the motive power is that the pressure required to be maintained for effective cleaning is so great that the rotational speed will be too fast. While gear reduction, even through the use of planetary gear drives, has been used, the gear box employed must be sufficiently shielded from the pressurized fluid, which may be caustic or corrosive, that rotational speed of the nozzles may be effectively changed only be changing fluid pressure or flow. 
   The long-felt need of the market, therefore, is for a compact rotary spray cleaner with significant gear reduction, but also with a generally accessible means being provided for additional interchangeable adjustment of the rotational speed of the nozzles. 
   One such attempt in the prior art is illustrated by U.S. Pat. No. 5,954,271, to Le. This patent goes to great lengths to isolate the gear drive so that it is not located between the fluid inlet and the nozzles, but is instead distal to the nozzles. This means that there is no ability to adjust rotational rate, and the gear drive is not easily interchanged in any case. Part of the reason why the gear drive is difficult to change is that it is positioned distal to the spray head. 
   It is therefore, an advantage of the present invention to provide a compact rotary spray cleaner which may be inserted into access ports no greater than three inches in diameter, use the pressurized cleaning fluid to provide motive power to rotate the nozzles through which the fluid exits the cleaner, and in which the rotational speed of the nozzles may be adjusted by a readily accessible means other than the pressure of the cleaning fluid. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   This and other advantages are provided by a rotary spray cleaner comprising a main body, and a rotating spray body, with an internal flow conduit in the main body and the rotating spray body. The main body, which has a fluid inlet, is located at the proximal end of the spray cleaner. The rotating spray body is located at the distal end of the spray cleaner, and it further comprises at least one spray head, with each of the spray heads having a plurality of spray nozzles. The internal flow conduit communicates the fluid inlet to each said spray nozzle. 
   The main body further comprises a drive train, and the flow conduit in the main body passes around the drive train in an annular passage. In at least one embodiment, this annular passage is coaxial with the drive train in the main body. 
   In at least one embodiment, a vaned rotor in the flow conduit is connected to an input shaft of the drive train, which comprises a planetary gear set in which torque from the input shaft is transferred at a reduced speed to a output drive system that is fixedly connected to the rotating spray body so that rotation of the rotating spray body relative to the main body about a longitudinal axis of the cleaner effects rotation of the at least one spray head about a radial axis of the cleaner. In such an embodiment, a first bevel gear fixed to the main body meshes with at least one second bevel gear, with one of such second bevel gears fixed to the at least one spray head, resulting in spray head rotation as the spray body rotates relative to the main body. 
   In at least one embodiment of the invention, a removable orifice portion is positioned in the flow conduit between the fluid inlet and the vaned rotor. This orifice portion comprises a flow divider and a stator, especially a flow divider having a conate projection that extends in to the flow conduit to reduce flow area. The flow divider further has a plurality of openings to further reduce flow area, with each of the plurality of openings in the flow divider being radially offset from an axis of the flow divider, inducing a radial component to flow velocity. Typically, the stator is positioned after the flow divider in the orifice portion and has a plurality of openings therein. In many embodiments, the total cross-sectional area of the stator openings is smaller than a total cross-sectional area of the flow divider openings and the stator openings are positioned to direct fluid flowing in the flow conduit at an angle relative to the vaned rotor. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Better understanding of the present invention will be had when reference is made to the accompanying drawings, wherein identical parts are identified by identical reference numerals and wherein: 
       FIG. 1  is a side sectional drawing of the spray cleaner of the present invention; 
       FIG. 2  is an enlarged isometric view of the flow divider of the present invention, isolated from the spray cleaner; 
       FIG. 3  is an enlarged isometric view of the stator of the present invention, isolated from the spray cleaner; and 
       FIG. 4  is an enlarged isometric view of the assembled orifice portion of the present invention, isolated from the spray cleaner. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
   Reference is made first to  FIG. 1 , which shows a side sectional view of the spray cleaner  10  of the present invention. This spray cleaner  10  is generally elongate. It has a main body  12  at a first or proximal end of the cleaner  10  and a rotating spray body  14  located at a second or distal end of the cleaner. Additionally, the rotating spray body  14  has at least one spray head  16  mounted thereon, the at least one spray head having a plurality of spray nozzles  18 . 
   The spray cleaner  10  operates in a quite simple manner. The main body  12  is provided with an inlet  20 , adapted for connection to a fluid source (not shown). Pressurized fluid from the fluid source enters the cleaner  10  through the inlet  20 , where the fluid enters an internal flow conduit  22  This conduit  22  provides a closed communication from the inlet  20  to the spray nozzles  18 . In the embodiment illustrated, the pressurized fluid in the conduit  22  of the spray cleaner  10  is forced to pass through an orifice portion  24 , which will be described in more detail below. This orifice portion  24 , which is removably inserted into the main body, allows the direction area and flow path available to the pressurized fluid to be controlled without affecting the volumetric flow rate through the cleaner  10 . Immediately beyond the orifice portion  24 , and again in the conduit, is a vaned rotor assembly  26 . As the pressurized fluid in the conduit  22  passes through the rotor assembly  26 , it imparts torque to a shaft  28 , which constitutes a first portion of a drive train  30 . This drive train  30  is mounted inside the main body  12 , towards the first or proximal end of the cleaner  10 . Because the drive train  30  is so proximally located, the pressurized fluid in the conduit  22  passes around the drive train in an annular passage  32  coaxial with the drive train, between the drive train and the wall  34  of the main body. In this manner, the cooling effect of the flowing fluid in the conduit can remove frictional heat generated in the drive train  30 . The drive train  30  also contains a multi-stage planetary gear set, shown generally as  36 . This planetary gear set  36  has a ring gear (not specifically shown) fixed to a body  40  which ultimately is fixed to the main body  12 . The planetary gear set  36  receives drive torque through the shaft  28 . The planetary gear set  36  transfers the torque, at a reduced speed, to an output drive system  42 . This output drive system  42  is fixedly connected to the rotating spray body  14 , so the rotation of drive system  42  relative to main body  12  results in rotation of the rotating spray body  14  relative to the main body. The rotation of the spray body  14  occurs about a longitudinal axis A of the spray cleaner  10 . This rotation, in conjunction with additional rotation described below, permits the nozzles  18  to reach the entire interior surface of a vessel being cleaned. 
   Focusing further on details of the rotating spray body  14 , the spray head  16  is mounted in a manner so that it may rotate about an axis B, which is effectively radial to the axis A of the cleaner  10 . This rotation is accomplished by the interaction of bevel gears  44 ,  46 . Bevel gear  44  is fixed to the main body and bevel gear  46  is fixed to the spray head  16 . When spray body  14  rotates relative to main body  12  due to the torque from the pressurized fluid flow, the meshing of bevel gears  44 ,  46  results in rotation of spray head  16 . When the rotation of spray body  14  and spray head  16  are combined, the spray nozzles  18 , two of which are shown in  FIG. 1 , disperse pressurized fluid throughout the entire vessel being cleaned. In some prior art embodiments, the spray head  16  has been positioned more centrally along length of the cleaner  10 , but a problem with such a medial positioning is that the longitudinal body of the cleaner, including both the main body and the distal portions thereof, can block the spray emerging from nozzles  18 . 
   In order for the pressurized fluid to flow from annular passage  32  to the nozzles  18 , it is necessary to provide additional portions of the internal flow conduit  22  in both main body  12  and spray body  14 . For example, portions of that conduit are shown in  FIG. 1  as reference numerals  48 ,  50  and  52 . The internal flow conduit  22  will be provided with appropriate seals connecting the various portions, taking into consideration the pressure and compositions of the pressurized fluid. Such sealing techniques will be well known to one of skill in this art. 
   Attention is focused now on  FIGS. 2 through 4 , which show the orifice portion  24  in enlarged isolation view, with a representation of the fluid flow therethrough illustrated. This orifice portion  24  comprises two elements: a flow divider  62  and a stator  64 .  FIG. 2  shows the flow divider  62  in isolation with streams  70  of pressurized fluid illustrated. Upstream of flow divider  62 , the pressurized fluid has an available flow area effectively equal to the area defined by the circumference of the flow divider. However, the flow divider  62  has two ways to cut down the flow area. First, a conate projection  66  extends into the fluid flow path and reduces the area. Then, a plurality of openings  68  in the flow divider  62  further reduce the area, so that the cross-sectional flow area is now defined by the combined areas of the openings. Cross-sectional flow area in each openings  68  is constant, but the central axes of the flow paths through the flow divider  62  are not aligned with the central axis of the flow divider, so the discharge angle of the pressurized fluid is set as the fluid passes through the flow divider. This angularity divides what was previously an axial velocity into both axial and radial components. 
     FIG. 3  shows the stator  64 , also isolated from the rest of the cleaner  10 , but with pressurized fluid flow paths  80  clearly illustrated. In most embodiments anticipated, the openings  72  in the stator  64  will correspond to and be registerable upon the openings  68  in flow divider  62 . Further, in these embodiments, the openings  72  in the stator  64  are slightly smaller in cross-sectional area than those in flow divider  62 , which allows a final increase in flow velocity and further assists in locating the flow angle relative to the vaned rotor assembly  26 . Also, many embodiments of the stator  64  will increase the angularity of flow with respect to the central axis A of the cleaner  10 . This principle is best viewed in  FIG. 4 , which shows flow divider  62  and stator  64  in their proper operating positions. Particularly note the change in the angularity of the fluid flow paths  70 ,  80 . 
   The adjustments to fluid flow, both in area and angularity, in the orifice portion  24  affect the transfer of kinetic energy in the fluid to mechanical energy in the rotor assembly  26 . Since it not desirable to change the rotor assembly  26 , the angle of the vanes on the rotor assembly or the speed reduction ratio provided by the planetary gear set  36  in any routine manner, the ability provided by the present invention to change the orifice portion  24  by changing either the flow divider  62 , the stator  64 , or both, allows an additional aspect of control over the operating speed of the cleaner. Because the orifice portion is positioned so close to the fluid inlet, it is easily interchangeable with alternate orifice portions. As is shown, the orifice portion is seated in the flow conduit effectively transverse to the longitudinal axis of the cleaner. 
   Further advantages of the present invention over prior art devices will also be recognized by those of ordinary skill and such further advantages also define the scope of the present invention.