JP4196070B2 - Vane rotary air pump - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an oilless air pump used in a fuel cell for mobile devices.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, as this type of vane rotary compressor, in FIGS. 9 and 10, a cylindrical rotor 14 is disposed in a cylindrical cylinder 13 whose inner surface is separated from the central axis of the cylinder 13 by a predetermined amount. a plurality of vane groove 16 is provided in its axial direction to the rotor 14, which are in the vane grooves 16 plate-shaped vanes 17 are fitted in a slidable state, the tip of the vane 17 It is configured to slide with the inner surface of the cylinder 13. Further, the front plate 11 and the rear plate 12 are disposed on the end surface of the cylinder 13 so as to sandwich the rotor 14 and the vane 17, so that the rotor 13 and the vane 17 are surrounded by the cylinder 13, the rotor 14, the vane 17, the front plate 11 and the rear plate 12. A plurality of compression spaces 18 are formed. The cylinder 13 includes a suction port 19 and a discharge port 20 around it. The rotor 14 includes a mechanical shaft 15 that transmits driving force. Further, an oil supply case 25 is provided behind the rear plate 12, and an oil reservoir 26 is formed therein. An oil control valve unit 29 for supplying the lubricating oil in the oil reservoir 26 to the groove 16 of the rotor 14 through the oil supply passage 28 formed in the rear plate 12 is housed in the oil supply case 25.
[0003]
When power is transmitted from an engine or motor (not shown) to a mechanical shaft 15 via a belt (not shown), the rotor 14 rotates clockwise in FIG. 10 and the refrigerant gas returned from the refrigeration cycle is sucked. The air is sucked into the compression space 18 in the cylinder 13 through the port 19 and compressed. The compressed high-pressure gas is discharged from the discharge port 20 and enters the oil supply case 25. The lubricating oil is separated in the oil supply case 25 and only the refrigerant gas goes out to the refrigeration cycle. The separated lubricating oil is temporarily stored in the oil reservoir 26 and then supplied from the oil control valve unit 29 to the groove 16 of the rotor 14 through the oil supply passage 28. As a result, the back pressure is applied to the vane 17 by the pressure of the lubricating oil, and the vane 17 slides on the inner surface of the cylinder 13. (For example, see Patent Document 1)
[0004]
[Patent Document 1]
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-214875 (2nd page, FIGS. 1 and 4)
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In the above conventional configuration, a small amount of lubricating oil supplied to the back surface of the vane 17 flows into the compression space 18 from the gap between the groove 16 and the vane 17, and this lubricating oil lubricates between the vane 17 and the rotor 14 and the rotor 14 and the front. Although the lubrication between the plate 11 and the rear plate 12 has been performed, even if this mechanism is applied to an air pump that supplies air to the fuel cell, the oilless operation that is essential for this type of air pump is difficult. Had problems.
[0006]
Moreover, in the said conventional structure, it is the structure provided with the suction inlet 19 and the discharge outlet 20 in the outer peripheral part of the cylinder 13, and had the subject that the outer diameter of the whole compressor became large.
[0007]
The present invention solves such conventional problems. Currently, mobile fuel cells are under development, and there is no suitable air pump for supplying air to the cells of the fuel cell. The characteristics required for this type of air pump are that the supply air does not contain impurities such as oil, that is, an oil-less mechanism, and the supply air amount is about 10 liters / min. In order to overcome the pressure loss that occurs in the air passage of the fuel cell system and to send in air, the supply pressure needs to be Δp = 2 to 5 kPa, and the size is about φ30 mm or less because it is necessary to incorporate it into the mobile device There must be a low noise level.
[0008]
Accordingly, the present invention provides an oilless air pump that can be operated oil-less, can reduce the outer diameter of the entire pump, and suppress wear caused on sliding parts even if operated for a long period of time, and has a long life. With the goal.
[0009]
It is another object of the present invention to provide an oilless air pump with low noise and low vane jumping on the sliding surface of the rotor.
[0010]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention arranges a cylindrical rotor in a cylinder whose inner surface is eccentric from the central axis of the cylinder by a predetermined amount, and this rotor is arranged in the direction of the central axis. a plurality of grooves provided in these grooves is fitted a vane slidably state, the front plate and the rear plate arranged on the end face of the cylinder so as to sandwich the rotor and vanes create multiple pump space, The central axis of the rotor is equipped with a mechanical shaft to form a pump mechanism, and a motor is arranged on the opposite side of the pump mechanism through a rear plate. This motor drives the mechanical shaft to expand and contract the pump space. thereby constituting an air pump resulting action, the front plate provided with a discharge port through the suction port penetrating, the rear plate, the front plate Comprising a girder suction port and substantially the same shape at a position opposed through the pump mechanism portion relative to the discharge port and the depression-shaped suction port and pseudo discharge port, further cylinder intake port and a rear provided in the front plate A communication hole for communicating with a suction port provided on the plate is provided.
[0011]
In the above configuration, the suction port and the discharge port are not provided around the cylinder, and the front plate is provided with the pump suction port and the discharge port, so that the outer diameter of the pump mechanism is reduced to 30 mm or less, and the mobile Miniaturization applicable to the fuel cell for equipment can be realized. Furthermore, since the rear plate is provided with a suction port and a pseudo discharge port having substantially the same shape, the forces acting on the side surfaces of the rotor and the vane are balanced to reduce friction loss and wear on the sliding surface. Will be suppressed.
[0012]
Further, according to the present invention, an annular groove is provided on at least one end face of the front plate or the rear plate so as to face all of the plurality of vane rear spaces, and the annular groove is communicated with the discharge port or the suction port. . Since air of discharge pressure or suction pressure is always guided to the annular groove, the air freely enters and exits the back space of the vane, and the vane can easily reciprocate in the groove. In addition, when discharge pressure is applied to the back of the vane, gas force acts on the vane from the back in addition to centrifugal force, so the vane is pressed against the cylindrical inner wall, and smooth vanes that do not cause jumps or the like are generated. The sliding is realized. As a result, it is possible to realize an air pump with a low noise level and less leakage.
[0013]
In the present invention, the sliding surfaces of the vane, the front plate, and the rear plate are provided with a self-lubricating material.
[0014]
In the above configuration, it constitutes a vane of a material having a self-lubricating property causes is fitted in a slidable state in the groove of the rotor, with a front plate and a rear plate provided with a self-lubricating material on the sliding surface, By arranging these plates on the end face of the cylinder with the rotor and the vane sandwiched therebetween, lubrication with oil on the sliding surface is unnecessary and basically an oil-less operation is possible.
[0015]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
[0016]
(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a vane rotary type air pump according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the vane rotary type air pump according to the first embodiment, and FIG. 1 corresponds to the AA sectional view in FIG. A vane rotary type air pump main body 101 according to the first embodiment includes a pump mechanism 102 and a motor 1 19. First, the pump mechanism 102 will be described. A cylindrical rotor 107 is disposed in a cylinder 103 having a cylindrical inner surface 104 with a central axis separated from the central axis of the cylinder 103 by a predetermined amount, and the rotor 107 has two grooves in the direction of the central axis. 108 is provided, in these grooves 108, is fitted a plate-like vane 109 made of a carbon composite material having the self-lubricating property in a slidable state, the inner surface 104 of the tip portion of the vane 109 cylinder 103 sliding It is configured to move. In the present embodiment, the rotor 107 is made of an aluminum alloy to reduce the weight. The cylinder material is an aluminum alloy having a silicon content of about 10%. Next, a front plate 111 and a rear plate 112 are arranged on both end surfaces of the cylinder 103 so as to sandwich the rotor 107 and the vane 109. Thus, a plurality of pump spaces 124 are formed surrounded by the cylinder 103, the rotor 107, the vane 109, the front plate 111, and the rear plate 112. Here, the front plate 111 and the rear plate 112 are coated with a self-lubricating material such as molybdenum disulfide.
[0017]
Next, the front plate 111 constituting the first embodiment is shown in FIG. 3, and the rear plate 112 is shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 are views as seen from the direction BB in FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the front plate 111 is provided with a suction port 113 and a discharge port 114, and the discharge port 114 is provided with a discharge pipe 115. Here, although the suction port 113 is a through-hole, the discharge port 114 is a hollow port having a through-hole at the center thereof, and is provided with a discharge pipe 115 so as to face the through-hole. On the other hand, the rear plate 112 shown in FIG. 4 is provided with a hollow suction port 117 and a hollow pseudo discharge port 130. Here, the suction port 113 and the suction port 117 have substantially the same shape when viewed from the BB direction, and the discharge port 114 and the pseudo discharge port 130 have the same shape when viewed from the BB direction. is doing. In FIG. 2, the suction ports (113, 117) and the discharge ports (114, 130) on the pump mechanism 102 are indicated by a one-dot chain line.
[0018]
Next, the motor 119 will be described. A motor 119 is disposed on the side of the rear plate 112 opposite to the pump mechanism so as to be in direct contact with the rear plate 112. The motor 119 is a DC motor including a rotor 121 having a cylindrical coil 120 and a permanent magnet. The rotor 121 of the motor 119 includes a long shaft 110. The shaft 110 is supported by motor bearings 122 and 123 inside the motor 119, but extends outward from the motor 119, and in the pump mechanism 102, the bearing 116 in the front plate 111 and the bearing in the rear plate 112. In addition to being supported by 118, it is fixed to the rotor 107 and plays a role of transmitting the rotational force generated by the motor 119 to the rotor 107.
[0019]
With the above configuration, when the motor 119 is energized, the shaft 110 and the rotor 107 coupled thereto are rotated in the direction of the arrow in FIG. At this time, the vane 109 moves to the outside in the vane groove 108 by the centrifugal force of rotation, and the tip of the vane 109 rotates while contacting and sliding on the inner surface 104 of the cylinder. As a result, the pump space 124 exhibits an expansion / contraction action, so that air is sucked from the suction port 113 of the front plate 111, and a part thereof directly enters the pump space 124. The remaining air passes through the suction passage 105 penetrating the cylinder 103 and then is sucked into the pump space 124 through the suction port 117 provided in the rear plate 112. The air that has entered the pump space 124 rises in pressure (approximately ΔP = 2 to 5 kPa) during approximately one rotation, and then exits from the discharge pipe 115 through the discharge port 114 provided in the front plate 111.
[0020]
In the above configuration, the vane 109 is made of a carbon composite material, and the front plate 111 and the rear plate 112 are coated with a self-lubricating material such as molybdenum disulfide on the sliding surfaces, and the rotor 107 and the vane 109 are formed. Since the two plates 111 and 112 are arranged on the end face of the cylinder 103 so as to be sandwiched, friction loss on each sliding surface is reduced and wear is reduced, and lubrication with oil on the sliding surface becomes unnecessary. As a result, oilless operation can be realized.
[0021]
Further, by providing a suction port 113 and a discharge port 114 in the front plate 111 without providing a suction port and a discharge port around the cylinder 102, the outer diameter of the pump mechanism unit 101 can be reduced to 30 mm or less. Therefore, the miniaturization applicable to the fuel cell for mobile devices has been realized.
[0022]
In the air pump that performs the suction / exhaust from one direction by providing the suction port 113 and the discharge port 114 in the front plate 111 as described above, the rear plate 112 also has a suction port 117 that is substantially the same shape as the front plate 111 and a pseudo-pump. Since the discharge port 130 is provided, when the rotor 107 rotates, the pressure acting on the side surfaces of the rotor 107 and the vane 109 is balanced, and these are strongly pressed against either the front plate 111 or the rear plate 112. The friction loss is reduced and the wear is suppressed. As a result, an oilless air pump with low power consumption and long life can be provided.
[0023]
(Embodiment 2)
Next, the cross section of the vane rotary type air pump concerning Embodiment 2 of this invention is shown in FIG. Further, FIG. 6 shows a B direction arrow view of the front plate 111C according to the second embodiment. As shown in FIG. 6, the front plate 111 </ b> C is provided with an annular groove 131 at a position facing the back space of all the vanes 109, and a communication groove 132 that connects the annular groove 131 to the suction port 113. . With this configuration, since the air at the suction pressure is always guided to the back space of the vane 109, the air can freely enter and exit in the back space of the vane 109, and the vane 109 easily reciprocates in the vane groove 108. Will be able to.
[0024]
In addition, since centrifugal force acts on the vane 109 during operation, the vane 109 moves quickly in the vane groove 108 and is always pressed against the inner surface 104 of the cylinder 103. Therefore, when the vane 109 slides, the inner surface is moved. The phenomenon of rising from 104 does not occur, and noise reduction and high performance can be achieved.
[0025]
(Embodiment 3)
On the other hand, FIG. 7 shows a cross section of a vane rotary type air pump according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention. FIG. 8 shows a B direction arrow view of the rear plate 112D according to the third embodiment. As shown in FIG. 8, the rear plate 112D is provided with an annular groove 133 at a position facing the back space of all the vanes 109, and a communication groove 134 that communicates the annular groove 133 with the pseudo discharge port 130. Yes. With this configuration, the back space of the vane 109 is always maintained at the discharge pressure, and thus the gas force due to the discharge pressure acts on the vane 109 during operation together with the centrifugal force from the back surface. Because of the resultant force, the vane 109 is always pressed against the inner surface 104 of the cylinder 103, so that the vane 109 can be prevented from floating from the inner surface 104 when sliding. As a result, noise due to the jump of the vane 109 can be prevented and leakage from the tip of the vane 109 can be reduced, and the discharge flow rate of the pump can be increased, that is, the performance can be improved.
[0026]
【The invention's effect】
As is apparent from the above, the present invention provides a fuel cell by providing a suction port and a discharge port having the same shape on both the front plate and the rear plate, balancing the pressure on the left and right sides, and reducing wear. It enables oilless operation, which is indispensable as a pump that supplies air, and reduces noise.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a transverse sectional view of a vane rotary type air pump showing a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of a vane rotary type air pump showing a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a front plate view of the vane rotary type air pump showing the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a rear plate view of the vane rotary type air pump showing the first embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a vane rotary type air pump showing a second embodiment. Fig. 6 is a front plate view of a vane rotary type air pump showing a second embodiment of the invention. Fig. 7 is a third embodiment of the invention. FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of a vane rotary type air pump showing a third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 9 is a rear plate view of a vane rotary type air pump showing a third embodiment of the present invention. 10] I-I line cross-sectional view of a conventional vane rotary compressor EXPLANATION OF REFERENCE NUMERALS
101 Air Pump Body 102 Pump Mechanism 103 Cylinder 107 Rotor 109 Vane 110 Shaft 111 Front Plate 112 Rear Plate 113 Suction Port 114 Discharge Port 119 Motor 117 Suction Port 130 Pseudo Discharge Port 131 Circular Groove 132 on Front Plate 132 Communication Groove 133 Ring groove 134 on rear plate Communication groove

Claims (3)

A cylindrical rotor is disposed in a cylinder having an inner surface with a central axis separated from the central axis of the cylinder by a predetermined amount. The rotor is provided with a plurality of vane grooves in the direction of the central axis. the vane groove to fit the vanes in slidable state, the front plate and the rear plate arranged on the end face of the cylinder so as to sandwich the rotor and the vane produces a plurality of pump spaces, the center of the rotor A shaft is provided with a mechanical shaft to constitute a pump mechanism, a motor is disposed on the opposite side of the pump mechanism through the rear plate, and the motor drives the mechanical shaft so that the pump space is formed. An air pump that generates a telescopic action, wherein the front plate includes a penetrating intake port and a penetrating discharge port, and the rear plate includes the fluorocarbon Arranged substantially the same shape a and recess-shaped suction port and pseudo discharge port for the suction port and a discharge port provided in the plate at a position opposed through the pump mechanism, the cylinder, the front plate A vane rotary air pump characterized in that a communication hole is provided for communicating between the suction port provided and the suction port provided in the rear plate.   An annular groove is provided on at least one end surface of the front plate or the rear plate so as to face all of the plurality of vane rear spaces, and the annular groove communicates with the discharge port or the suction port. The vane rotary type air pump according to claim 1, wherein   2. The vane rotary air pump according to claim 1, wherein a sliding surface of the vane, the front plate, and the rear plate is provided with a self-lubricating material.

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