PATENT CLAIM ANALYSIS

Application Number: 16091961
Application Type: Utility
Filing Date: 2018-10
Publication Date: 2019-04
Patent Classification: ["416", "185000"]

Abstract:
Provided are non-limiting embodiments of a wear-resistant impeller having a non-conventional blending provided between a surface of a vane and a surface of at least one of a front side shroud (15) and a rear side shroud (16). The impeller may comprise both a rear side blending gland a front side blending (2), and the front side blending (2) may comprise a different geometry from the rear side blending (3). The blending preferably comprises a bulbous geometry which is uniquely adapted for optimizing flow patterns adjacent to the vane and between the front and rear side shrouds in a manner which discourages the formation of horseshoe vortices proximate the leading edge (6) of the vane (1) during operation. Through the reduction, mitigation, or elimination of horseshoe vortices, local high velocities and turbulence are generally minimized, and wear experienced by portions of the impeller (e.g., to one or more vanes) from flows of abrasive slurry can be reduced. Accordingly, the useable life of an impeller may be improved.

Claim (Index 18):
An impeller for a centrifugal pump comprising a vane ( 1 ) extending in a Z-direction between an front side shroud ( 15 ) which is annular in shape, and a rear side shroud ( 16 ) which is annular in shape; the vane ( 1 ) comprising a radially inward leading edge ( 6 ), a radially outward trailing edge ( 7 ), a pressure side ( 4 ) which is generally convex in shape, and a suction side ( 5 ) which is generally concave in shape, the vane ( 1 ) further being connected to the front side shroud ( 15 ) and to the rear side shroud ( 16 ), the impeller further comprising at least one of a front side blending ( 2 ) and a rear side blending ( 3 ); the front side blending ( 2 ) being provided proximate a central region of the impeller and adjacent to the front side shroud ( 15 ) between a surface of the vane ( 1 ) and a surface of the front side shroud ( 15 ); the front side blending ( 2 ) extending from a first point (s 1 ) on the pressure side ( 4 ) of the vane( 1 ), circumferentially along the vane's perimeter, and peripherally around the leading edge ( 6 ) of the vane ( 1 ), to a second point (s 6 ) on the suction side ( 5 ) of the vane ( 1 ) along the vane's perimeter;\n the rear side blending ( 3 ) being provided proximate a central region of the impeller and adjacent to the rear side shroud ( 16 ) between a surface of the vane ( 1 ) and a surface of the rear side shroud ( 16 ); the rear side blending ( 3 ) extending from a first point (p 1 ) on the pressure side ( 4 ) of the vane ( 1 ), circumferentially along the vane's perimeter, and peripherally around the leading edge ( 6 ) of the vane ( 1 ), to a second point (p 4 ) on the suction side ( 5 ) of the vane ( 1 ) along the vane's perimeter; each of the front side blending ( 2 ) and rear side blending ( 3 ) being provided proximate to and extending from the leading edge ( 6 ) of the vane ( 1 ); wherein each of the front side blending ( 2 ) and rear side blending ( 3 ) are configured with a geometry which geometrically differs from a conventional radius fillet ( 8 ), the geometry of each of the front side blending ( 2 ) and the rear side blending ( 3 ) discouraging the formation of horseshoe vortices proximate the leading edge ( 6 ) of the vane ( 1 ) during operation; wherein by virtue of discouraging the formation of horseshoe vortices proximate the leading edge ( 6 ) of the vane ( 1 ) during operation, each of the front side blending ( 2 ) and the rear side blending ( 3 ) are adapted to resist wear to the vane ( 1 ) caused by abrasion during operation, thereby extending the life of the impeller; wherein a width of the rear side blending ( 3 ) increases from a first width (w 1 ) near the first point (p 1 ) of the rear side blending ( 3 ), to a larger third width (w 3 ) near the second point (p 4 ) of the rear side blending ( 3 ), as the rear side blending ( 3 ) progresses circumferentially along the vane's perimeter and peripherally around the leading edge ( 6 ) from the first point (p 1 ) of the rear side blending ( 3 ) to the second point (p 4 ) of the rear side blending ( 3 ); and wherein the rear side blending ( 3 ) further comprises a transitional second width (w 2 ) between the first width (w 1 ) and the third width (w 3 ) at a point along the vane's perimeter which is circumferentially disposed between the first point (p 1 ) of the rear side blending ( 3 ) and the second point (p 4 ) of the rear side blending ( 3 ); wherein the leading edge ( 6 ) is substantially encompassed between the first point (p 1 ) of the rear side blending ( 3 ) and the second point (p 4 ) of the rear side blending ( 3 ) when viewed along said Z-direction in a plane which is perpendicular to said Z-direction; wherein the transitional second width (w 2 ) of the rear side blending ( 3 ) is larger than the first width (w 1 ) and smaller than the third width (w 3 ).

Metadata:
- Claim Count in Document: 67.0
- Percentile: 97.0
- Lexical Diversity: 2.03125
- Patent Class: 416.0
- Transitional Phrase Type: open
- Component Type: 1
- Foreign Priority: False
- Related Applications: ['14106405', '12736934', '13661657', '14683686', '12481357']

Analysis Scores:
- 35 USC 101 Eligibility (BERT): 0.7688881388276484
- 35 USC 102 Novelty (BERT): 0.4480577272045298
- Combined Prediction Score: 0.7368050976653365
- Mean Citation Score: 248.6956380000001
- Max Citation Score: 252.57944
- Similarity Product: 179.60565223560334

Labels:
- Claim Label 101: 1
- Claim Label 102: 1
- Claim Label 103: 0
- Claim Label 112: 0
- Combined Label: 1
- Label 101 Adjusted: 1

Dataset: test