Vertically mounted electric pump with easy maintenance

Abstract

The present application relates to a vertical electric pump for easy maintenance. A vertical electric pump (10) for moving a liquid comprises a sealed casing (11) which encloses, inside it: a mechanical section (12) comprising a suction port (13) and a delivery port (14), the mechanical section (12) containing an assembly (19) for moving the liquid, which comprises one or more impellers (20) arranged alternately with diffusers (21) and keyed on a drive shaft (22); an electromechanical section (15) comprising an electric motor (16), in turn comprising a rotor (17) and a stator (18) which surrounds the rotor (17), the rotor (17) being keyed on the drive shaft (22); the electric pump (10) comprises a set of instruments (24, 25a, 25b, 26) for controlling and monitoring the operation of the electric pump. The set of instruments (24, 25a, 25b, 26) for controlling the operation of the electric pump (10) is completely accessible from a single side of said electric pump (10).

Description

[0001] This invention relates to a vertical electric pump.

[0002] An electric pump is a device used to move liquids (usually water), drawing liquid from a first area through a suction conduit and transporting the liquid to a second area through a delivery conduit.

[0003] The electric pump includes an external containment jacket, which encapsulates the pump's interior.

[0004] - A mechanical section, comprising a suction port and a delivery port, wherein a suction conduit and a delivery conduit are connected, and the mechanical section includes one or more impellers arranged alternately with diffusers keyed to a drive shaft adapted to rotate the impellers for moving liquid.

[0005] - The electromechanical section includes an electronic board for controlling an electric pump and an electric motor housed in a housing, which in turn includes a rotor and a stator, with a drive shaft extending from the rotor and the stator surrounding the rotor.

[0006] In this specification, the term "vertical electric pump" is understood to mean an electric pump having a vertical configuration for use and a vertically extending axis, wherein the mechanical section is in the lower part of the electric pump and the electromechanical section is in the upper part of the electric pump, the electromechanical section being located above the mechanical section.

[0007] Vertical electric pumps typically have an expansion tank and a set of instruments for controlling and monitoring the operation of the electric pump. This set of instruments includes, for example:

[0008] -user interface,

[0009] - One or more pressure sensors,

[0010] - One-way valve (OWV), which is fluidly inserted between the delivery port and the expansion tank.

[0011] This background technology has some drawbacks.

[0012] The expansion tank and the components that make up the set of instruments are typically arranged in different locations and / or on the side of the electric pump, or even opposite each other, and the expansion tank and these components are not always easily and quickly accessible and / or visible if needed and / or for maintenance.

[0013] This led to lengthy and complicated maintenance procedures.

[0014] Another drawback is that, because these components are arranged in different locations and / or on the sides of the electric pump, they are not always easily accessible and / or visible, so the user needs to remember where the components of interest are located and / or retrieve that information from the electric pump's manual before he can perform any operation.

[0015] This results in longer maintenance times, and consequently, similar periods of interrupted operation of the electric pumps.

[0016] Furthermore, the arrangement of the expansion tanks and the instrumentation for controlling and monitoring the operation of the electric pump, located in different positions and / or on the sides of the electric pump, results in a considerable space requirement.

[0017] The object of the present invention is to provide a vertical electric pump that improves upon the prior art in one or more of the aforementioned aspects.

[0018] Within this scope, the objective of the present invention is to provide a vertical electric pump having an expansion tank and components for controlling and monitoring the operation of the electric pump, the expansion tank and these components being easily and quickly accessible.

[0019] Another objective of the present invention is to provide a vertical electric pump that, if necessary, does not require the user to remember / find information about the location of the tank and / or the components of the instrumentation system used to control and monitor the operation of the electric pump.

[0020] Another objective of the present invention is to provide a vertical electric pump that has a smaller space requirement than similar electric pumps of known types.

[0021] Another objective of this invention is to overcome the shortcomings of the prior art in a manner that can replace any existing solution.

[0022] Another objective of the present invention is to provide a vertical electric pump that is highly reliable, relatively easy to provide, and cost-competitive.

[0023] This objective, as will become more apparent below, and these and other objectives, are achieved by a vertical electric pump for moving liquids, which includes a sealing sleeve that encapsulates the liquid within itself:

[0024] - A mechanical section, including an intake port and a delivery port, comprising an assembly for moving the liquid, the assembly including one or more impellers arranged alternately with a diffuser and keyed to a drive shaft.

[0025] - The electromechanical section includes an electric motor, which in turn includes a rotor and a stator surrounding the rotor, the rotor being keyed to the drive shaft.

[0026] The electric pump includes a set of instruments for controlling and monitoring the operation of the electric pump.

[0027] The electric pump is characterized in that the set of instruments used to control and monitor the operation of the electric pump can be accessed entirely from one side of the electric pump.

[0028] Further features and advantages of the invention will become more apparent from the description of a preferred, but not exclusive, embodiment of the vertical electric pump according to the invention illustrated in the accompanying drawings by way of non-limiting example, in which:

[0029] Figure 1 This is a general perspective view of the vertical electric pump according to the present invention;

[0030] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 A cross-sectional view of a portion of a vertical electric pump.

[0031] Referring to the accompanying drawings, the vertical electric pump for moving liquids according to the present invention is generally indicated by reference numeral 10.

[0032] The electric pump 10 includes a sealing sleeve 11 that encapsulates the interior of the pump.

[0033] -Mechanical section 12, which includes a suction port 13 and a conveying port 14.

[0034] -Mechanical and electrical section 15, which includes an electric motor 16, which in turn includes a rotor 17 and a stator 18 surrounding the rotor 17.

[0035] The mechanical section 12 includes an assembly 19 for moving liquid, the assembly 19 including one or more impellers 20, which are arranged alternately with diffuser 21 and keyed to drive shaft 22.

[0036] In another embodiment (not shown in the figure), the electric pump has a single impeller. In this case, a diffuser is not present because it is not necessary.

[0037] The rotor 17 of the motor 16 is also keyed to the drive shaft 22.

[0038] The sheath 11 has a generally cylindrical shape.

[0039] The drive shaft 22 has an extension axis parallel to the extension axis of the electric pump 10 and substantially coincides with the extension axis X of the sheath 11.

[0040] The extension axis of the suction port 13 is substantially coincident with the extension axis X of the sheath 11.

[0041] The electric pump 10 includes an expansion tank 23 and a set of instruments for controlling and monitoring its operation.

[0042] The expansion tank 23 is adapted to absorb any so-called water hammer phenomenon and has a generally cylindrical shape and an extension axis parallel to the extension axis X of the sheath 11.

[0043] A set of instruments for controlling and monitoring the operation of the electric pump 10 includes one or more operating elements, which include:

[0044] -User interface 24,

[0045] - and / or one or more pressure sensors 25a, 25b,

[0046] - and / or a one-way valve (OWV) 26, which is fluidly inserted between the delivery port 14 and the expansion tank 23.

[0047] exist Figure 1 In the embodiment shown, the electric pump 10 includes two pressure sensors:

[0048] - A first pressure sensor 25a, which is fluidly connected to the suction port 13.

[0049] - A second pressure sensor 25b is fluidly connected to the delivery port 14.

[0050] One feature of the electric pump 10 is that the instrumentation used to control and monitor the operation of the electric pump 10 can be accessed entirely from one side of the electric pump 10.

[0051] Similarly, the expansion tank 23 can also be accessed from the same side of the electric pump 10 that is accessible for the control and monitoring of the instrumentation.

[0052] Furthermore, the expansion tank 23 and the instrumentation for controlling and monitoring the operation of the electric pump 10 are fully visible from one side of the electric pump 10, which coincides with the side from which they are accessible.

[0053] The expansion tank 23 and all the components of the instrumentation for control and monitoring are generally arranged on the same side of the electric pump 10, generally located on one side / near the outer surface of the sheath 11.

[0054] This allows users to quickly and easily access the components of the instrument cluster used for control and monitoring, as well as the expansion tank 23, from one side.

[0055] In this way, to ensure that users can easily and quickly perform maintenance, it is sufficient to install the electric pump 10 with access from only one side, which is equipped with an instrument set for controlling and monitoring the operation of the electric pump 10.

[0056] Furthermore, this arrangement of the expansion tank 23 and the instrument group for controlling and monitoring the operation of the electric pump 10 allows for a reduction in the overall space occupied by the electric pump 10 relative to similar electric pumps of known types.

[0057] Specifically, the electric pump 10 includes:

[0058] - A housing 27 made of plastic material, which at least partially includes the upper portion of the sheath 11.

[0059] - An enclosure 40 made of plastic material, which at least partially includes the upper part of the expansion tank 23.

[0060] The outer shell 40 is laterally adjacent to the outer shell 27.

[0061] After the outer casing 40 has been removed, the expansion tank 23 can be easily removed from the electric pump 10.

[0062] The housing 27 is associated with the outer surface of the sheath 11 and has a generally flat surface 28 parallel to the extending axis X of the sheath 11.

[0063] The user interface 24 is housed in the surface 28, which is also generally flat and parallel to the extending axis X of the sheath 11.

[0064] The electric pump 10 includes an electronic board 31, pressure sensors 25a, 25b and a user interface 24 connected to the electronic board 31.

[0065] The electronic board 31 is housed inside the housing 27 and is generally parallel to the user interface 24.

[0066] The electric pump 10 has a footing 29 below the housing 11, which includes two parallel manifolds 30a and 30b (these two manifolds 30a and 30b are adapted to be fluidly connected to the hydraulic system (not shown) to which the electric pump 10 is applied):

[0067] -First manifold 30a,

[0068] - Second manifold 30b.

[0069] The first manifold 30a is fluidly connected to the delivery port 14, while the second manifold 30b is fluidly connected to the suction port 13.

[0070] The extension axis of the second manifold 30b is perpendicular to the extension axis X of the sheath 11.

[0071] The extension axis of each manifold is generally parallel to the surface 28 of the housing 27; in this way, no space is occupied that could hinder the maintenance of the instrumentation used to control and monitor the operation of the electric pump 10.

[0072] In practice, it has been found that the present invention achieves the intended purpose and objective, and a vertical electric pump has been provided having an expansion tank and components for controlling and monitoring the operation of the electric pump, the expansion tank and these components being easily and quickly accessible.

[0073] The present invention provides a vertical electric pump that, if needed, eliminates the need for the user to remember / find information about the location of the tank and / or the components of the instrumentation system used to control and monitor the operation of the electric pump.

[0074] It should be noted that the present invention provides a vertical electric pump that has a smaller space footprint than similar electric pumps of known types.

[0075] The invention conceived thus allows for numerous modifications and variations, all of which are within the scope of the appended claims; furthermore, all details may be replaced by other technically equivalent elements.

[0076] In practice, the materials used (as long as they are compatible with the specific application) and the possible shapes and sizes can be arbitrary, depending on requirements and existing technology.

Claims

1. A vertical electric pump (10) for moving liquids, comprising a sealing sleeve (11) encapsulating: - A mechanical section (12), comprising an intake port (13) and a delivery port (14), the mechanical section (12) containing an assembly (19) for moving the liquid, the assembly comprising one or more impellers (20), the one or more impellers (20) being alternately arranged with a diffuser (21) and keyed to a drive shaft (22), - Electromechanical section (15), which includes an electric motor (16), which in turn includes a rotor (17) and a stator (18) surrounding the rotor (17), the rotor (17) being keyed to the drive shaft (22). The electric pump (10) includes a set of instruments (24, 25a, 25b, 26) for controlling and monitoring the operation of the electric pump (10). in, The set of instruments (24, 25a, 25b, 26) used to control and monitor the operation of the electric pump (10) are completely arranged on one side of the electric pump (10) and are accessible from the outside of the electric pump (10); The electric pump (10) also includes an expansion tank (23) accessible from one side of the electric pump (10) to which a set of instruments (24, 25a, 25b, 26) for controlling and monitoring the operation of the electric pump (10) are mounted; the electric pump (10) also includes two pressure sensors: - A first pressure sensor (25a), which is fluidly connected to the suction port (13), and - A second pressure sensor (25b) is fluidly connected to the delivery port (14); The set of instruments (24, 25a, 25b, 26) used for controlling and monitoring the operation of the electric pump (10) includes: a user interface (24), a second pressure sensor (25b), and a one-way valve (26) fluidly inserted between the delivery port (14) and the expansion tank (23).

2. The electric pump (10) according to claim 1, characterized in that, The set of instruments (24, 25a, 25b, 26) used to control and monitor the operation of the electric pump (10) are fully visible from one side of the electric pump (10).

3. The electric pump (10) according to claim 1, characterized in that, The sheath (11) has a generally cylindrical shape, and the expansion tank (23) and the components of the set of instruments (24, 25a, 25b, 26) for controlling and monitoring the operation of the electric pump (10) are generally arranged on the same side of the electric pump (10), and the components of the expansion tank (23) and the set of instruments (24, 25a, 25b, 26) for controlling and monitoring the operation of the electric pump (10) are generally located on one side of the outer surface of the sheath (11) or near one side of the outer surface of the sheath (11).

4. The electric pump (10) according to claim 3, characterized in that, The electric pump (10) includes: - A housing (27), which at least partially comprises the upper portion of the sheath (11), - Casing (40), which at least partially comprises the upper portion of the expansion tank (23).

5. The electric pump (10) according to claim 4, characterized in that, The housing (27) is associated with the outer surface of the sheath (11) and has a generally flat surface (28) parallel to the extension axis (X) of the sheath (11). The surface (28) of the housing (27) accommodates the user interface (24), which is also generally flat and parallel to the extension axis (X) of the sheath (11).

6. The electric pump (10) according to claim 4, characterized in that, The electric pump (10) includes an electronic board (31), one or more pressure sensors (25a, 25b) and the user interface (24) are electrically connected to the electronic board (31), the electronic board (31) is housed in the housing (27) and is generally parallel to the user interface (24).

7. The electric pump (10) according to claim 5, characterized in that, The electric pump (10) is provided with a base (29) below the sheath (11), the base (29) including two parallel manifolds (30a, 30b) adapted for fluid connection to a hydraulic system: - First manifold (30a). - Second manifold (30b).

8. The electric pump (10) according to claim 7, characterized in that, The first manifold (30a) is fluidly connected to the delivery port (14), and the second manifold (30b) is fluidly connected to the suction port (13).

9. The electric pump (10) according to claim 7, characterized in that, The extension axis of each of the manifolds (30a, 30b) is generally parallel to the surface (28) of the housing (27).

10. The electric pump (10) according to claim 9, characterized in that, The extension axis of the second manifold (30b) is perpendicular to the extension axis (X) of the sheath (11).

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