This invention relates to a support for an axial gaseous fluid impeller appliance, particularly a support allowing the housing of an axial impeller appliance to be inserted in a conduit of smaller diameter and fix it to a surface, whatever the length of the appliance housing.
Means are known for coupling the members of a conduit in which said axial impeller appliance may be applied, such as a fume extraction, forced ventilation, air conditioning, etc. installation, such coupling means normally being of the plug-in system or the flange and annular grooved clamp system.
On the other hand, these appliances have to be firmly attached to a surface and, at the same time, must be reliably connected to the smaller diameter conduits of the installation, which requires frustoconical diameter adaptor parts which are connected to the installation at one end and to the housing of the axial impeller appliance at the other end.
This arrangement requires the provision of means for anchoring the housing to a surface and means for ensuring the connection between said housing and the frustoconical adaptor parts and between the latter and the installation conduits.
To overcome this drawback, with a reduction of the number of special members, the solution was adopted of rigidly associating both frustoconical adapter parts with a rigid bridge, with the purpose of engaging the housing of the appliance between both adaptor parts and attaching them thereto by flange and annular grooved clamp arrangements, at the same time as the ensemble could be attached to a surface by means of said rigid bridge (see ES-A-2 020 637).
This solution has the drawback that an ensemble of frustoconical adaptor parts and a rigid bridge are needed for each length of axial impeller appliance, which represents having to stock a large number thereof. On the other hand, this solution does not facilitate the assembly of two or more appliances in series, making it necessary to double the number of parts used in the installation.
With a view to obviating these new drawbacks, the solution has been adopted of having independent support parts, which may be associated together by a simple member, notably reducing the storage problems.
In accordance with the foregoing solution, the support of the invention has been developed, which is formed by at least two independent support feet, each integrating one half of an annular grooved clamp and pivoting and fixation means for the other free half, which ensemble simultaneously retains respective juxtaposed flanges of a coupling member to the conduit and of a frustoconical adaptor part for coupling to the housing of the axial impeller, at the same time as said support feet are associated with each other by a resistant connecting plate which, being provided with automatic coupling means to the base of each foot, allows the axial impeller appliance to be attached to a surface.
One feature of the invention is that the support feet are provided at the base thereof with a recess for stable insertion of one end of the connecting plate, in which recess there are the automatic coupling means for the of the connecting plate. These means consist of pairs of teeth which, mounted to resilient tongues situated in said bases of the support feet, engage windows open in the ends of the connecting plates.
The invention contemplates that one of the end support feet be provided with a single recess, while the remaining end and intermediate support feet, for when two or more axial impeller appliances are to be mounted in series, are provided with two recesses facing in opposite directions.
A further feature of the invention is that the half annular grooved clamp of each support foot is provided with an opening at the lowermost point of the bottom thereof for the passage of a tab, provided with a window, and which extends radially from the flange of the coupling part to the conduit and engages a retaining tooth disposed on the support foot. This arrangement may be realized with two or more tabs and the corresponding openings and retaining teeth.
Yet a further feature of the invention is that the housing of the axial impeller appliance is provided with bayonet means for coupling thereof to the frustoconical adaptor parts, in such a way that the male members of the bayonet arrangement are regularly arranged on the outside of the mouths of the housing of the axial impeller appliance, while the female members are situated on the inside of the mouths of the frustoconical parts.
The invention also contemplates that the male members are formed by elongate circular section pins and the female members are formed by an axial inlet and a path narrowing in the perimetrical direction and terminating in a retaining seat, which is slightly larger than a semi-circle of the circular section.
Finally, it is contemplated that the free half of the annular grooved clamp is provided at one end with a T-shaped boss which mates with a double hook provided in one end of the support foot half of the clamp, at the same time as the former is provided at the other end thereof with a housing for a bolt which is screwed into a nut inserted in the end of the latter opposite the joint.
To facilitate an understanding of the foregoing ideas, there is described hereafter the object of the invention, with reference to the accompanying illustrative drawings, in which:
The support according to the invention is applicable to the assembly of a axial gaseous fluid impeller appliance 1, of the type known as helical, helicentrifugal and the like, to be inserted in a conduit of smaller section which communicates a gaseous fluid take-up area with a receiving area therefor.
The axial impeller appliance 1, which does not form part of the invention, is conventionally attached to a conduit by inserting it between two lengths of the latter, as shown in Figures 2, 3 and 4, by means of frustoconical adaptors 2, which are also conventional and known as reducers that, in cooperation with coupling parts 3 thereof to the conduit 4, shown in Figure 4, are mounted in support feet 5 and 5A attached to a surface.
The frustoconical adaptors 2 are provided, on the one hand, at the smaller diameter opening thereof, with a flange 6 which abuts, on assembly, a flange 7 of the coupling parts 3, while, on the other hand, at the larger diameter opening thereof they are provided with coupling members of bayonet type to the axial impeller appliance 1. In the case shown in Figures 6 and 7, the male members of the bayonet coupling are formed by bosses 8 situated on the periphery of the mouths of the axial impeller appliance 1, while the female members are formed by slots 9 that are located on the mouth of the frustoconical adaptors 2 and are formed by an axial inlet 10 and a path 11 tapering in the perimetral direction to terminate in a retaining housing 12 for the corresponding boss 8.
The axial impeller appliance 1 is conventionally provided with an electric motor, an impeller 13 and a terminal box 14.
The support feet 5 and 5A, which are independent one of the other, as shown in Figures 1 and 2, each comprise a fixed half 15A of an annular grooved clamp 15 and pivoting and fixation means for the other free half 15B. This assembly determines a simultaneous retaining arrangement for the flanges 6 of the frustoconical adaptors 2 and 7 of the coupling parts 3 of adaptation to the axial impeller appliance 1, as shown in Figure 3.
These support feet 5 and 5A are formed by a base member 16-16A and a wall 17 in which there is formed the fixed half 15A of the annular grooved clamp 15.
Said support feet 5 and 5A are connected together, as may be seen in Figures 1, 3 and 4, by a resistant connecting plate 18, provided with automatic engagement means with the base 16 and 16A of each of the support feet 5 and 5A.
The said support feet 5 and 5A are provided at their bases 16 and 16A, respectively, with a double recess 19 and a single recess 19A in which there are to be found the automatic means for coupling to the connecting plate 18, consisting of snap-fit arrangements formed by teeth 20 mounted on resilient tongues 21 situated on said bases 16 and 16A and engaging in windows 22 open in the connecting plate 18.
The support foot 5A to be located at one end is provided with only one single recess 19A, while the support foot 5 to be located at the other end or inserted, as shown in Figure 4, is provided with a double opposed recess 19. In an extreme situation, with a view to cheapening the product, the single support feet 5A may be replaced by double support feet 5.
The fixed halves 15A of the annular grooved clamps 15 of each support foot 5 or 5A are provided, as shown in Figures 8 and 9, with an opening 23 at the lowermost point of the bottom 24 of the groove for the passage of a tab 25 having a window 26 and which extends radially from the edge of the flange 7 of the coupling part 3 to the conduit, said window 26 of the tab 25 mating, when assembling the ensemble, with a resilient retaining tooth 27 provided centrally in the wall 17 of the support feet 5 and 5A. There may be two or more openings 23 in the bottom 24 of the groove of the fixed half 15A and tabs 25, depending on the height of the wall 17 of the support feet 5 and 5A.
The free halves 15B of the annular grooved clamps 15 of each support foot 5 or 5A are provided, as shown in Figures 1 to 4 and in detail in Figure 5, with a T-shaped boss 28, at one end, which mates with a double hook 29 provided at one end of the fixed half 15A corresponding to the support foot 5 or 5A, at the same time as the free half 15B is provided at the other end thereof with a housing 30 for a bolt 31 which is threaded in a nut 32 inserted in a housing 33 of the other end of the corresponding fixed half 15A.
The connecting plate 18 is formed by a simple metal sheet, which, further to the snap-fit windows 22, is provided with holes 34 for attachment thereof to a surface.
In Figure 4 there is to be seen the retainer 35 ensuring the coupling of the housing of the axial impeller appliance 1 and the frustoconical adaptor parts 2 effected by the bayonet means formed by the bosses 8 and slots 9.