Patent ID: 6993910

Claim:
A fluid machine comprising: a housing; a driving device air-tightly housed in the housing and having a function of an expansion device for collecting heat energy from working fluid and converting the collected heat energy into mechanical rotational energy, the driving device further having a function of a compressor device when the driving device is operatively driven by a rotational force from an outside driving source; a switching device for switching an operational mode of the driving device from the expansion device to the compressor device or vice versa; a driven means comprising an electric rotating device and air-tightly housed in the housing, the electric rotating device being operatively connected to the driving device and being driven by the mechanical rotational energy from the driving device to generate an electric power when the device is operating as the expansion device; a first driving shaft rotationally supported by the housing and operatively connected at its one end to the outside driving source and at its other end to the driving device for transmitting driving force from the outside driving source to the driving device; a second shaft operatively connected to both the driving device and the driven means, so that the power transmission from the driving device to the driven means and vice versa is selectively performed; a shaft seal device provided on the first driving shaft for air-tightly sealing the inside of the housing from the outside of the housing; and a power transmission control device operatively provided in a path between the first driving shaft and the second shaft, so that power transmission from the second shaft to the first driving shaft is cut off.