System having an object supported by a vibration damping mount

Abstract

An object is mounted within the housing of a coffee machine via a mounting assembly that provides vibration damping for the object. The mounting assembly includes a set of at least three springs, each spring having a top end coupled to the housing and a suspended bottom end from which the object is supported. The top ends define an upper polygon, and the bottom ends define a lower polygon. The center of gravity of the object is along a vertical line passing through the lower polygon, and the springs are inclined inwardly toward the lower polygon.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a system having an object, such as a motor, that vibrates and is mounted by a mounting system for damping the vibrations. Background Art

[0002] Many household appliances use motors, pumps, grinders, or other actuators to provide (part of) the appliance's primary functionality. To prevent excessive vibration of the appliance housing and / or excessive mechanical vibration noise, suspension systems are used to reduce the mechanical vibrations transmitted from the actuator unit to the appliance housing. Suspension systems are also often used to reduce vibration-related noise and / or control acoustic characteristics (e.g., to alter noise perception).

[0003] Examples of standard suspension systems include automotive suspension components (coil springs, leaf springs, torsion bars, etc.), mounting systems for air conditioning units on buildings, refrigerator and freezer pump mounts, washing machine drum mounts, mounting systems for vibration or shock sensitive equipment (such as stereo systems, compact disc players) (e.g., as disclosed in US 2002 / 0053632), and mounts for motors in kitchen appliances. These use various combinations of springs and rubber mounts.

[0004] In most cases, placing the vibrating component on a rubber suspension or using a simple coil spring is sufficient. However, for some applications, this approach does not provide sufficient mechanical decoupling and / or adequate component stabilization or alignment. Examples include coffee grinders for fully automatic coffee machines, coffee machine pumps, and steam iron pumps, where a combination of springs and rubber motor suspension components and mounts are used.

[0005] Before explaining the system of the present invention, some basic vibration damping mounting systems will first be outlined.

[0006] Figure 1 An object 10 is shown mounted on top of a spring 12 which is mounted on an underlying support 14, and Figure 2 An object 10 is shown suspended from springs 12 which are suspended from a mount 14 above.

[0007] Figure 1 and Figure 2 is a 2D plane representation. To maintain the suspension function, the center of mass of the object is exactly the same as the mounting point of the spring. Otherwise, Figure 1 In the case of Figure 2 In a 3D model, the object will rotate about the bottom spring mounting point until the center of mass is once again aligned with the spring mounting point. These rotational movements change the orientation of the object, which can cause misalignment problems.

[0008] for Figure 1 For example, Figure 3 The arrangement can prevent tipping over. Figure 3 A second vertical spring 20 and a third horizontal spring 22 are added. The second spring 20 limits the rotation of the object, and the third spring 22 limits the lateral movement of the object.

[0009] for Figure 2 For example, the rotation around the object's spring mounting point can be given by Figure 4 The arrangement is limited by the addition of a second vertical pendulum spring 30. When the object attempts to rotate about its center of mass, it is now limited because the two springs 12, 30 are placed at a horizontal distance from the center of mass of the object.

[0010] Figure 2 and Figure 4 The freely suspended arrangement acts as a pendulum system. If the object is pushed to one side and then released, it will automatically swing back to its neutral bottom position, forming a stable and self-aligning arrangement.

[0011] Therefore, it is clear that placing an object on top of a spring arrangement is more complex to align and requires more springs than suspending an object from the spring arrangement. Generally speaking, the more springs there are, the higher the residual vibration force towards the device housing. Therefore, a suspension design that suspends the object is preferred because it requires fewer springs.

[0012] One of the main challenges in suspension systems is maintaining suspension performance while also accounting for all six degrees of freedom (6-DoF) of motion of the object being suspended. The 6-DoF includes three translational movements and three rotational movements (about the center of mass) of the object. If any of the 6 DoFs is neglected, the object is considered unstable, typically leading to positioning problems, instability, and / or additional vibration transmission (often through unintended contact points).

[0013] Figure 4 The double pendulum spring solution is suitable for designs in the 2D plane. Additional pendulum suspension points need to be added to provide a suspension point in the third dimension.

[0014] Figure 5 A spring suspension system for an object 10 is shown, which uses three vertical springs 50 suspended below a fixed rigid mounting point 14. The object can be assumed to be a point mass. The object is well aligned, but any excitation of the object will result in large horizontal movements and / or rotations about the vertical and horizontal axes.

[0015] Therefore, there is a need for an improved suspension mount. Summary of the Invention

[0016] The invention is defined by the claims.

[0017] According to an example of one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a system comprising:

[0018] a housing; and

[0019] An object mounted within a housing by a mounting member that provides vibration damping for the object, wherein:

[0020] The mount includes a set of at least three springs, each spring having a top end coupled to the housing and a depending bottom end;

[0021] The top defines a vertex of the upper polygon;

[0022] The base defines the vertex of the lower polygon;

[0023] The object is supported by the bottom ends of the set of springs; and

[0024] In the intended operating orientation of the system, the center of gravity of the object is along a vertical line passing through the lower polygon, and the line between the top and bottom ends of each spring is offset from the vertical direction so that the line tapers inwardly between the upper and lower polygons.

[0025] This mounting design suspends the object requiring vibration damping via a set of at least three springs (preferably exactly three springs). The springs surround the object, and their bottom ends define a stable support plane. The object is supported by these bottom ends. In particular, the bottom ends of the set of springs define the object's sole physical support, meaning it is completely suspended from above. The vertical offset angle means the springs pull the object toward the center, creating a pendulum effect. This stabilizes the mount and keeps the object properly aligned in the horizontal plane. This avoids the need for additional supports, springs, or damping systems, thereby reducing the number of components.

[0026] The object is thus suspended from a set of springs (such as a set of three tilted springs) connected to a lower polygon that serves as a stabilizing surface. This system utilizes the well-known pendulum effect to align the suspended object in a horizontal plane. The stabilizing surface provides stability for the object. This stabilization eliminates the need for additional supports, thereby improving suspension performance with a reduced number of parts.

[0027] The offset angle relative to the vertical is, for example, greater than 5 degrees, such as greater than 10 degrees. This applies during the normal operating orientation of the system. For example, for a system intended to be mounted on a horizontal surface such as a kitchen countertop, the angle applies when the system is mounted on a horizontal surface.

[0028] However, the offset angle relative to the vertical is preferably less than 45 degrees, such as less than 30 degrees.

[0029] The greater the angle, the greater the elastic force required to support the object vertically, but the stabilizing force is also greater.

[0030] The center of gravity of the object is preferably below the plane of the upper polygon. Thus, the object is suspended below the top polygon.

[0031] The vertical height from the plane of the lower polygon to the center of gravity is preferably less than the minimum distance between the center of gravity and the edge of the lower polygon when projected vertically onto the lower polygon. This makes the installation stable and will not fall over the edge of the lower polygon.

[0032] In one example, the center of gravity of the object is above the plane of the lower polygon. In this case, the upward vertical height is positive and should be less than the above minimum distance.

[0033] In another example, the center of gravity of the object is below the plane of the lower polygon. In this case, the upward vertical height is less than zero, so this automatically meets the requirement of being less than the minimum distance mentioned above.

[0034] The upper polygon and the lower polygon are preferably regular polygons.

[0035] The system may comprise exactly three springs.The upper polygon and the lower polygon are then triangles, preferably equilateral triangles.

[0036] The bottom end of each spring can include a support ring, and the object can include a set of legs that engage the support ring. This makes the system easy to assemble. Using the notch or cone on the bottom of the object, the object can be simply placed on the bottom end of the spring (e.g., a wire spring).

[0037] The top end of each spring may include a hook, and the housing may include a receiving area for receiving the hook. This in turn facilitates assembly. The springs do not need to be bolted or clamped or rotatably hooked to the housing, but can slide linearly into place.

[0038] The system includes a coffee machine. The object includes an actuator that vibrates during use, such as a motor or a component containing a motor. The component containing a motor is, for example, a coffee grinder, a fan or a pump.

[0039] These and other aspects of the invention will be apparent from and elucidated with reference to the embodiments described hereinafter. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0040] For a better understanding of the invention, and to show more clearly how it may be carried into effect, reference will now be made, by way of example only, to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0041] Figure 1An object is shown mounted on top of a spring which is mounted on a support below;

[0042] Figure 2 An object is shown suspended from a spring which is suspended from a support above;

[0043] Figure 3 Shows the Figure 1 Modification of the arrangement to prevent tipping;

[0044] Figure 4 Shows the Figure 2 Modification of the arrangement to rotate about the object spring mounting point;

[0045] Figure 5 shows a spring suspension system for an object using three vertical springs;

[0046] Figure 6 Shown for improving Figure 5 The first method of stability of the arrangement;

[0047] Figure 7 An arrangement according to the invention is shown;

[0048] Figure 8 shows the forces acting in the system;

[0049] Figure 9 shows the grinder viewed from below; and

[0050] Figure 10 Shown for support Figure 9 One of the springs in the grinder. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0051] The present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0052] It should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating exemplary embodiments of the devices, systems, and methods, are intended for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the devices, systems, and methods of the present invention will become better understood from the following description, the appended claims, and the accompanying drawings. It should be understood that the drawings are schematic and not drawn to scale. It should also be understood that the same reference numerals are used throughout the drawings to indicate the same or similar parts.

[0053] The present invention provides a system in which an object is mounted within a housing via a mount that provides vibration damping for the object. The mount includes a set of at least three springs, each spring having a top end coupled to the housing and a suspended bottom end from which the object is supported. The top ends define an upper polygon, and the bottom ends define a lower polygon. The center of gravity of the object is along a vertical line passing through the lower polygon, and the springs are inclined inwardly toward the lower polygon.

[0054] As above reference Figure 5 As described, three vertical suspension springs may be used to provide good alignment of the object, but any excitation of the object will result in large horizontal movements and / or rotations about the vertical and horizontal axes.

[0055] Figure 6 A first method for improving stability is shown. Rather than suspending the object from vertical springs, the springs are bent at an angle so that they exert an outward pulling force and support the vertical weight of the object. The combination of these outward forces prevents the object from moving away from its intended position in the horizontal plane. This, therefore, improves positional stability.

[0056] However, the object's rotational stability remains a concern.

[0057] The invention is based on positioning the attachment point of an object away from its center of mass, combined with Figure 6 The tilted spring method produces a stable surface.

[0058] Figure 7 An arrangement according to the invention is shown. It shows a part of a system comprising a housing and an object 10 mounted in the housing.

[0059] The housing is schematically represented as three posts 60 and a base 62. At the top of the posts is a top mounting point 64 for a set of three springs 70. Each spring 70 has a top end coupled to the housing at the mounting point 64 and a depending bottom end.

[0060] The top end (ie, the three mounting points 64) defines the vertices of the upper polygon, which in this example is a triangle, preferably an equilateral triangle. The bottom end of the spring also defines the vertices of the lower polygon, which in this example is also a triangle, preferably an equilateral triangle.

[0061] The lower polygon defines a stabilizing surface 66. However, this can be a virtual surface in the sense that no actual planar support is required. Instead, the polygon and the virtual surface are defined by the three mounting points at the bottom end of the spring 70. When the center of mass of the object lies within this stabilizing surface (or is vertically projected onto this stabilizing surface), the object will not rotate about the horizontal axis and therefore remains stable. The larger the (minimum) radius R from the center of mass to the edge of the lower polygon (defining the stabilizing surface), the more stable the object becomes.

[0062] The radius R is the minimum perpendicular distance from the position of the center of gravity projected onto the plane of the stability surface to the edge of the lower polygon.

[0063] In general, the rotational moment M about the center of mass is divided by the arm length, ie, radius R, so that by trying to lengthen the spring a smaller force is produced (if R is larger) trying to rotate the object.

[0064] Figure 7 The tilt spring used in Figure 6 (shown in Figure 1) thus stabilizes the object with respect to rotation about the vertical axis and stabilizes the object's position with respect to translation about the horizontal axis. Specifically, the positional stability is governed by the spring stiffness, rather than by friction at the hinge point. The spacing R further stabilizes the object with respect to rotation about the horizontal axis.

[0065] The greater the angle of the spring from the vertical, the greater the stability. However, this increased stability comes at the expense of additional tension required in the spring to hold the object at the correct height, since only a portion of the spring tension is used to support the object's weight.

[0066] Figure 8 The force F of the vertical strut is shown 柱 The direction of the force (the upward force required by the pillar to support the object). For each pillar, this is one-third of the weight of the object. The stabilizing force F 稳 Therefore, if the angle α is increased, the stabilizing force F 稳 , then the spring force F 弹簧 Need to increase to maintain the same vertical force F 柱 .

[0067] The tilt springs cause the upper and lower polygons to taper inwards; in this example, the upper polygon is a larger triangle than the lower polygon. The tilt springs pull the object toward the center, creating a pendulum effect. This stabilizes the mount and keeps the object properly aligned in the horizontal plane. This eliminates the need for additional supports, springs, or damping systems, thereby reducing the number of components.

[0068] The offset angle α of the spring relative to the vertical direction is, for example, greater than 5 degrees, such as greater than 10 degrees, or less than 45 degrees, such as less than 30 degrees.

[0069] Compared to standard objects mounted on spring or rubber mounting solutions, Figure 7 The arrangement provides improved mechanical decoupling. The design reduces the number of required components by avoiding the need for additional features to prevent misalignment or tipping of the suspended object.

[0070] The basic approach is to suspend the object using as few spring elements as possible and to place the suspension points far apart from each other in order to create a large stable surface, such as a triangle.

[0071] for Figure 7 In the arrangement, the center of mass of the object should be below the top mounting point 64 of the spring 70 in the vertical direction so that the object is indeed suspended. In addition, the vertical distance H from the center of mass of the object to the plane of the lower polygon (in this case, the stability triangle) should be less than R defined above. This will ensure that the object on the stable surface will not fall over its stable surface along one of the edges of the lower polygon.

[0072] Note that the object's centroid may be below the plane of the lower polygon, in which case H is negative, so that H is satisfied no matter how far below the plane of the lower polygon the centroid lies. <R。

[0073] The present invention has been tested for use in a grinder motor mounted on an integrated bean grinder of a coffee machine.

[0074] Figure 9 The grinder is shown viewed from below. It comprises a motor 90 driving a grinding wheel 92 within a housing 94. The housing has three support feet 96 defining a lower polygon 98. This mount is intended to achieve a noise reduction of approximately 10 dB, for example.

[0075] Figure 10 One of the springs is shown in FIG. It comprises a steel wire (in a closed shape) with a hook portion 100 at the top and a support ring 102 at the bottom. Each support foot of the grinder rests on a respective support ring. Each support foot comprises, for example, a protrusion, such as a conical protrusion, which fits through the support ring 102.

[0076] Therefore, the spring is a metal ring rather than a coil spring. The spring force primarily comes from the bend at the top of the hook portion. The hook portion 100 is, for example, pushed (linearly) into a slot in the coffee machine's housing, and the grinder then simply rests on the support ring 102. The inward extension of the support ring defines the effective angle of the spring. This angle is therefore defined between the effective contact points between the support ring and the object's foot and between the hook portion 100 and the housing.

[0077] Wire springs are beneficial when space around the object to be suspended is limited, especially when considering clearance requirements for functionality and drop testing. Wire springs also avoid resonant frequencies within the operating frequency range of the object (e.g., a grinder), ensuring adequate vibration isolation for noise reduction.

[0078] The system is also easy to assemble with a simple stacking operation. The springs do not need to be bolted, clamped, or rotatably hooked to the housing. Instead, they slide into place. The spring design is such that the object is placed on a low support ring with a simple interface (such as a notch or cone) to ensure that the spring and object remain connected.

[0079] When there are three springs, they are arranged in a triangle, so the housing of the coffee machine has three slots for accommodating the three springs, these three slots surrounding the area where the grinder will be located.

[0080] The above example is based on the use of three springs, and this represents the minimum number of components. However, more than three springs can be used, for example, using square upper and lower polygons for four springs, pentagonal upper and lower polygons for five springs, etc. It is conceivable to use up to ten springs, but it is preferable to use as few components as possible to achieve the desired damping performance.

[0081] The present invention is particularly meaningful for household appliances such as beverage machines (e.g. coffee machines). It can be used to suspend any motor or component with a motor, such as a pump or a grinder.

[0082] Indeed, the present invention is generally applicable to any coffee maker having a blower, pump, or motor mounted in a particular orientation.

[0083] Variations of the disclosed embodiments can be understood and effected by those skilled in the art in practicing the claimed invention based on a study of the drawings, the present disclosure, and the appended claims. In the claims, the word "comprising" does not exclude other elements or steps, and the indefinite article "a" or "an" does not exclude a plurality.

[0084] The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage.

[0085] If the term "adapted to" is used in the claims or the specification, it should be noted that the term "adapted to" is intended to be equivalent to the term "configured to."

[0086] Any reference signs in the claims should not be construed as limiting the scope.

Claims

1. A coffee machine, comprising: Housing (60, 62); as well as An object (10) comprising an actuator that vibrates in use, the actuator being mounted within the housing by a mounting that provides vibration damping for the object, wherein: The mounting member includes a set of at least three springs (70), each spring having a top end coupled to the housing and a depending bottom end; The top end defines a vertex of the upper polygon; The bottom end defines a vertex of a lower polygon (98); The object (10) is supported by the bottom ends of the set of springs so as to be suspended entirely from above; and In the intended operating orientation of the system, the center of gravity of the object is along a vertical line passing through the lower polygon, and the line between the top and bottom ends of each spring is offset from the vertical direction so that the line tapers inwardly between the upper and lower polygons.

2. The coffee machine according to claim 1, wherein The offset angle (α) of the line between the top end and the bottom end of each spring relative to the vertical direction is greater than 5 degrees.

3. The coffee machine according to claim 2, wherein: The offset angle (α) is greater than 10 degrees.

4. The coffee machine according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein: The offset angle (α) of a line between the top end and the bottom end of each spring relative to the vertical direction is less than 45 degrees.

5. The coffee machine according to claim 4, wherein: The offset angle (α) is less than 30 degrees.

6. The coffee machine according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein: The center of gravity of the object is located below the plane of the upper polygon.

7. The coffee machine according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein: The upward vertical height (H) from the plane of the lower polygon to the centroid is less than the minimum distance (R) between the centroid and an edge of the lower polygon (98) when projected vertically onto the lower polygon.

8. The coffee machine according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein: The center of gravity of the object is located above the plane of the lower polygon (98).

9. The coffee machine according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein: The center of gravity of the object is located below the plane of the lower polygon (98).

10. The coffee machine according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein: The upper polygon and the lower polygon are regular polygons.

11. Coffee machine according to any one of claims 1 to 3, comprising exactly three springs (70).

12. The coffee machine according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein: The bottom end of each spring includes a support ring (102), and the object includes a set of legs (96) that engage the support ring (102).

13. The coffee machine according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein: The top end of each spring includes a hook (100), and the housing includes a receiving area for receiving the hook.

14. The coffee machine according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein: The object comprises a motor or a component incorporating a motor.

15. The coffee machine according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein: The object comprises a coffee grinder.

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