Patent Publication Number: US-2006013699-A1

Title: Hydraulic pump

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
      The present invention relates to a pump and particularly to a high efficiency hydraulic pump.  
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
      A conventional pump, as shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 , generally has a power equipment  1  such as a motor to drive and rotate an arched vane  2  to draw water from a lower level water supply zone through a water inlet  3 . The water is driven by the arched vane  2  and delivered to a high level water supply zone through a water outlet  4 .  
      However the driving effect resulting from the rotating arched vane  2  is limited. The water pumping height between the low level water supply zone and the high level water supply zone achievable by the rotating arched vanes  2  has a limitation. Moreover, when the arched vane  2  rotates, a great friction occurs between the vane and the water that causes unnecessary energy loss. This also reduces pump efficiency.  
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
      In view of the aforesaid disadvantages, the primary object of present invention is to provide a high efficiency hydraulic pump to reduce energy loss.  
      The hydraulic pump according to the invention aims to deliver water from a low level water supply zone to a high level water supply zone. It includes a power equipment, a slant board and a water delivery mechanism. The power equipment has a power output shaft which has an axis as the rotation center of the power output shaft. The slant board is coupled on the power output shaft and driven by the power equipment to rotate. The slant board also has a rotation center from which a normal line may be drawn to form an angle difference with the axis of the output shaft. The water delivery mechanism includes a cylinder and a piston. The cylinder has a cylindrical housing chamber which has an opening, and a suction port and a discharge port that include respectively an one way valve to connect and communicate respectively with the low level water supply zone and the high level water supply zone. The piston is housed in the housing chamber. The slant board may be rotated to push the piston and a returning spring so that the piston is moved reciprocally in the housing chamber.  
      The foregoing, as well as additional objects, features and advantages of the invention will be more readily apparent from the following detailed description, which proceeds with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       FIG. 1  is a schematic view of a conventional pump.  
       FIG. 2  is a schematic view of a conventional arched vane.  
       FIG. 3A  is a schematic view of the present invention.  
       FIG. 3B  a schematic view of the present invention in an operating condition according to  FIG. 3A .  
       FIG. 4A  is a schematic view of the water delivery mechanism in an operating condition.  
       FIG. 4B  is a schematic view of the water delivery mechanism in another operating condition.  
       FIG. 5A  is a schematic view of a first embodiment of the present invention.  
       FIG. 5B  is a side view according to  FIG. 5A .  
       FIG. 6  is a schematic view of a second embodiment of the present invention.  
       FIG. 7A  is a schematic view of a third embodiment of the present invention.  
       FIG. 7B  is a schematic view of the slant board in an adjustment operation according to  FIG. 7A .  
       FIG. 8  is a schematic view of a fourth embodiment of the present invention.  
       FIG. 9  is a schematic view of a fifth embodiment of the present invention. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
      Please referring to  FIGS. 3A and 3B , the power equipment (not shown in the drawings) according to the invention includes a power output shaft  10  which has an axis  11  serving as the rotation center of the power output shaft  10 . The most commonly used power equipment is the motor. However, other equipment that can provide rotational power such as wind mills, water mills and the like may also be used.  
      A slant board  20  is provided to couple with the power output shaft  10  and be driven by the power equipment to rotate. The slant board  20  also has a rotation center  201  from which a normal line may be drawn to form an angle θ with the axis  11 . A water delivery mechanism  30  is provided that includes a cylinder  40 , a piston  50  and a returning spring  45 . The cylinder  40  has a cylindrical housing chamber  401  which has an opening  402 , and a suction port  60  and a discharge port  70  remote from the opening  402  that connect and communicate respectively with a low level water supply zone and a high level water supply zone. The suction port  60  and the discharge port  70  have respectively an one way valve  75  which has a blocking member  752  coupled with an elastic element  751  to close the suction port  60  and the discharge port  70  so that water flows in only through the suction port  60  and flows out through the discharge port  70 .  
      The piston  50  has an outer diameter formed according to the inner diameter of the housing chamber  401 . It is placed in the housing chamber  401  through the opening  402 . The piston  50  has an O-ring  51  to enhance air tightness. The returning spring  45  is located between the piston  50  and the cylinder  40 . The piston  50  has a top end  52  exposed to be in contact with the outer area of the slant board  20  outside the rotation center  201 . The top end  52  is semi-spherical so that the slant board  20  can push the piston  50  more smoothly during rotation. Through the rotation of the slant board  20 , the piston  50  and the returning spring  45  are pushed and returned so that the piston  50  is moved reciprocally in the housing chamber  401 . To reduce friction, the surface of the housing chamber  401  may be coated with a layer of poly-terafluoroethylene (PTFE) or the like that has a low friction coefficient.  
      Referring to  FIGS. 4A and 4B , when the piston  50  is moved reciprocally in the housing chamber  401 , the movement can be divided in two stages. The first stage is water suction, and the piston  50  is moved outwards from the cylinder  40  to expand the volume of the housing chamber  401 . Due to pressure difference, water in the low level water supply zone is sucked into the housing chamber  401  through the suction port  60 . The second stage is water discharge, and the housing chamber  401  is filled with water, and the piston  50  is moved inwards of the cylinder  40  to compress the water and discharge the water through the discharge port  70  to the high level water supply zone. By means of the continuously reciprocal movements of the piston  50  in the cylinder  40 , water may be delivered from the low level water supply zone to the high level water supply zone.  
      Referring to  FIGS. 5A and 5B , in order to improve hydraulic efficiency, a plurality of water delivery mechanisms  30  may be clustered on a bracket  80  around and within the covering scope of the slant board  20 . The slant board  20  can drive the water delivery mechanisms  30  to increase the hydraulic efficiency. It is to be noted that during rotation of the slant board  20 , the rotation center  201  rotates on the same location where is not a desirable location for installing the water delivery mechanisms  30 .  
      Referring to  FIG. 6 , a plurality of water delivery mechanisms  31  may also be directly and integrally formed in a strut  35 . Namely a plurality of housing chambers  401  are formed respectively on desired locations of the strut  35  by machining to house respectively a piston  50 .  
      Referring to  FIGS. 7A and 7B , the slant board  20  may also be pivotally coupled on the power output shaft  10 . An adjustment bolt  90  is coupled on an anchor board  91  which is fixedly mounted on the power output shaft  10 . An adjustment rod  92  is provided that has two ends pivotally coupled on the slant board  20  and the adjustment bolt  90 . By adjusting the adjustment bolt  90 , the angle θ between the normal line of the slant board  20  and the axis  11  may be altered to change the displacement of the piston  50 . Consequently the amount of water being pumped may be changed. Therefore the angle θ may be adjusted according to water requirement. Moreover, in order to avoid deviation of the power output shaft  10 , a plurality of adjustment bolts  90  may be provided and evenly and symmetrically spaced on the anchor board  91  relative to the power output shaft  10 .  
      Referring to  FIG. 8 , the slant board  20  may also have a circular trough  21  formed on the surface that is coaxial with the rotation center  201 . The piston  50  is fastened to a guiding member  22  which is wedged in the circular trough  21 . When the slant board  20  rotates, the piston  50  is driven to move reciprocally in the housing chamber  401 . Referring to  FIG. 9 , a circular track  23  may also be adhered to the slant board  20  to couple with a guiding member  24  fastened to the piston  50 . Similarly, when the slant board  20  rotates, the piston  50  is driven to move reciprocally in the housing chamber  401 . If adjusting the angle θ is required for the fourth and fifth embodiments, the mechanism employed in the third embodiment may be adopted. In such an occasion, the guiding members  22  and  24  and the piston  50  have to be bridged by a universal joint (not shown in the drawings) to prevent the rotation of the slant board from being hindered after the angle θ has been adjusted.  
      In summary, the hydraulic pump according to the invention uses the piston  50  to compress water and move the water from the low level water supply zone to the high level water supply zone. It does not have friction loss occurred to the conventional arched vane. It can pump the water to the high level water supply zone at a higher hydraulic efficiency and a higher water level.  
      While the preferred embodiments of the invention have been set forth for the purpose of disclosure, modifications of the disclosed embodiments of the invention as well as other embodiments thereof may occur to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, the appended claims are intended to cover all embodiments which do not depart from the spirit and scope of the invention.