Fan motor
The fan motor design addresses air diffusion and reverse flow issues by aligning impeller blades with shroud and base planes, improving airflow efficiency and reducing resistance.
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- JP · JP
- Patent Type
- Applications
- Current Assignee / Owner
- MINEBEAMITSUMI INC
- Filing Date
- 2024-12-25
- Publication Date
- 2026-07-07
AI Technical Summary
Existing fan motors struggle to effectively suppress air diffusion and reverse flow, which affects their performance characteristics.
The fan motor design includes a configuration where the impeller blades face specific planes of the shroud and base, with angled orientations to minimize air diffusion and reverse flow, enhancing airflow paths and reducing backflow.
This design significantly improves the PQ characteristics by increasing airflow rate and reducing air resistance, resulting in enhanced performance.
Smart Images

Figure 2026112628000001_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] The present invention relates to a fan motor, and particularly to a technique for suppressing the diffusion and reverse flow of air from an impeller.
Background Art
[0002] A fan motor is known as a blower widely used for cooling, ventilation, air conditioning of home appliances, OA equipment, industrial equipment, and air conditioning and air blowing for vehicles. As this type of fan motor, a casing is composed of an upper casing and a lower casing, an impeller and a motor are housed inside the casing, the impeller rotates by the drive of the motor, and the air inhaled from the suction port is blown out outward from the casing through an air outlet formed over the entire circumference of the side surface of the casing as the impeller rotates (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
[0003] In the fan motor of Patent Document 1, a wall housing portion is formed in an upper shroud formed in the upper casing, and a wall that protrudes axially upward at the peripheral edge of the impeller and is housed in the wall housing portion is formed to form a labyrinth structure, thereby suppressing the reverse flow of air.
Prior Art Documents
Patent Documents
[0004]
Patent Document 1
Summary of the Invention
Problems to be Solved by the Invention
[0005] In a fan motor, there is a strong desire to effectively suppress the diffusion and reverse flow of air and improve the PQ characteristics. One object of the present invention is to provide a fan motor capable of improving the PQ characteristics by suppressing the diffusion and reverse flow of air.
Means for Solving the Problems
[0006] The present invention relates to a fan motor comprising, in the direction of rotation axis, a base, a shroud, and an impeller disposed between the base and the shroud, wherein the impeller comprises a plurality of blades, the shroud has a plane facing the blades, the first surface of the blades facing the shroud extends along the plane of the shroud, the plane of the base facing the impeller extends along the plane of the shroud, and the second surface of the blades facing the base extends along the plane of the base.
[0007] According to the present invention, it is possible to effectively suppress air diffusion and backflow to improve PQ characteristics. [Brief explanation of the drawing]
[0008] [Figure 1] This is a perspective view showing a fan motor according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] This is a plan view showing a fan motor of an embodiment. [Figure 3] Figure 2 shows a cross-sectional view along line III-III (A) and a magnified view of a portion of (A) (B). [Figure 4] This is a perspective view showing the impeller in the embodiment. [Figure 5] This is a plan view showing the impeller in the embodiment. [Figure 6] This is a cross-sectional view taken along the line VI-VI in Figure 5. [Figure 7] This graph shows the relationship between airflow and static pressure in an embodiment of the present invention. [Modes for carrying out the invention]
[0009] 1. Fan motor configuration Figure 1 is a perspective view showing a fan motor 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and Figure 2 is a plan view. The fan motor 100 includes a casing 110 composed of a resin upper casing 120 and a resin lower casing 130. The casing 110 has a rectangular shape (including a nearly square shape) in plan view, but is not limited to this, and may be circular.
[0010] Legs 121 are formed at the four corners of the upper casing 120, projecting downwards. The legs 121 are formed by creating roughly rectangular notches at the corners of the upper casing 120 and extending downwards from the edges of the notches.
[0011] The lower casing 130 has a projection 131 that protrudes upward, and the upper end of the projection 131 is connected to the lower end of the leg 121. The projection 131 has the same axial cross-sectional shape as the leg 121. The upper end of the projection 131 has a step 131a formed on the inner circumference side, which is lowered by one step. On the other hand, the lower end of the leg 121 has a step 121a formed on the inner circumference side, which protrudes by one step downward. The steps 121a and 131a are fitted together and joined to each other, for example, by adhesive.
[0012] A through hole 132 is formed on the radially outer side of the projection 131, and a metal collar 133 is fixed around the through hole 132. The collar 133 is integrally formed with the lower casing 130 by insert molding. For example, a bolt is inserted through the through hole 132 and tightened into a screw hole in the device to which the fan motor 100 will be mounted.
[0013] A circular intake port 122 is formed in the center of the upper casing 120. In addition, outlet ports 112 are formed around the entire circumference of the casing 110, excluding the legs 121 and projections 131. In other words, multiple outlet ports 112 are formed between adjacent projections 131. Inside the casing 110, a flow path 111 is formed by the base 135 and shroud 123, which will be described later, connecting the intake port 122 and the outlet ports 112. An impeller 160 is positioned in the flow path 111 in a rotatable manner. When the impeller 160 rotates clockwise in the figure, air is drawn in from the intake port 122 by the action of the blades 164 of the impeller 160. The drawn-in air passes between the blades 164 and is blown out radially outward from the impeller 160, passing through the flow path 111 and being discharged from the outlet ports 112.
[0014] As shown in Figure 3, a motor 140 is positioned in the center of the casing 110. The motor 140 is an outer rotor type brushless DC motor. In this description, the direction of the motor 140's shaft 141 is referred to as the "axial direction," the direction perpendicular to the axial direction is referred to as the "radial direction," and the direction in which the shaft 141 rotates is referred to as the "circumferential direction." Also, terms indicating directions such as "up" and "down" are based on Figure 3.
[0015] An annular projection 134 is formed in the center of the lower casing 130, projecting upward in the axial direction. A cylindrical metal bearing holder 142 is fixed to the annular projection 134 with adhesive. Ball bearings 143 are fixed to both sides of the bearing holder 142 in the axial direction by means of press-fitting, adhesive, or other means. The shaft 141 is fixed to the ball bearings 143 in a rotatable manner by means of press-fitting, adhesive, or other means.
[0016] At the upper end of the shaft 141, a rotor yoke 144 made of a soft magnetic material (iron material) is fixed by means such as press-fitting. The rotor yoke 144 has a bottomed cylindrical shape, and an annular rotor magnet 145 is fixed to the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion thereof by an adhesive. The rotor magnet 145 is magnetized in a state where the polarities of the magnetic poles alternate as NSNS··· along the circumferential direction. Between the rotor yoke 144 and the ball bearing 143, a coil spring 146 for applying a preload to the ball bearing 143 is interposed.
[0017] A stator 150 is fixed to the outer periphery of the bearing holder 142. The stator 150 is composed of a stator core 151, an insulator 152, and a stator coil 153. The stator core 151 has a structure in which a plurality of thin plates of a soft magnetic material such as an electromagnetic steel sheet are laminated and caulked and fixed to each other. The stator core 151 includes a core back portion 151a having an annular shape and a plurality of pole teeth (teeth) 151b radially extending outward in the radial direction from the core back portion 151a.
[0018] A resin insulator 152 is integrally formed on the stator core 151 by insert molding, and the stator coil 153 is wound around the plurality of pole teeth 151b via the insulator 152. The insulator 152 insulates the stator core 151 and the stator coil 153. Note that the insulator 152 may be formed by adhering separate parts divided in the axial direction to each other.
[0019] The core back portion 151a has an opening penetrating in the axial direction. The opening of the core back portion 151a is fitted to the outer peripheral surface of the bearing holder 142, and the lower end surface of the core back portion 151a is placed on the annular projection 134 of the lower casing 130, thereby positioning the stator core 151 in the axial direction. Note that the present invention is not limited to this, and the outer peripheral surface of the bearing holder 142 may be press-fitted into the opening of the core back portion 151a.
[0020] At a position facing the outer peripheral surface of the pole teeth 151b of the stator core 151, the rotor magnet 145 faces the outer peripheral surface of the pole teeth 151b with a gap (magnetic gap) therebetween. In other words, in the radial direction, the outer peripheral surface of the pole teeth 151b and the rotor magnet 145 face each other through the magnetic gap. Also, a circuit board 154 is disposed below the insulator 152. The circuit board 154 is electrically connected to the stator coil 153, and by periodically switching the polarity of the current applied to the stator coil 153 by a drive circuit formed on the circuit board 154, a driving force is generated that causes the rotor magnet 145 to rotate about the shaft 141, and the impeller 160 rotates.
[0021] 2. Structure of the impeller The impeller 160 in the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 to 6. Prior to the description of the impeller 160, each part of the casing 110 located at a position facing the blades 164 of the impeller 160 will be described. As shown in FIG. 3, in the radial direction, the upper casing 120 includes a shroud 123 facing the suction port 122.
[0022] The shroud 123 includes a bell mouth 124 formed with a circular arc-shaped cross section at the upper edge of the inner circumference, an inner peripheral portion 125 of a cylindrical curved surface continuously extending axially downward from the bell mouth 124, and a plane 126 extending radially outward from the lower end portion of the inner peripheral portion 125 and facing the lower casing 130. The plane 126 includes an inclined surface (plane) 126a whose axial thickness increases as it goes radially outward, and a second plane 126b extending radially outward from the inclined surface 126a.
[0023] The lower casing 130 is provided with a base 135 at its periphery. The base 135 has a plane 136 facing the upper casing 120, and the plane 136 has an inclined surface 136a whose axial thickness decreases as it extends radially outward, a second plane 136b extending radially inward from the inclined surface 136a, and a third plane 136c extending radially outward from the inclined surface 136a. Air is blown radially by this third plane 136c and the second plane 126b of the shroud 123. The inclined surface 136a of the base 135 is parallel to the inclined surface 126a of the shroud 123. A recess 137 is formed on the radially inward side of the second plane 136b, which is recessed axially downward.
[0024] Next, the impeller 160 will be described. In Figure 4, reference numeral 161 denotes a cylinder. The cylinder 161 is a bottomed cylindrical shape, and the impeller 160 is rotatably supported by the motor 140 by fitting the cylinder 161 over the rotor yoke 144 and bonding it. An annular plate 162 is formed on the outer circumferential surface of the cylinder 161, extending radially outward and axially downward. The annular plate 162 has an arc-shaped cross-section that is convex axially downward and extends to a position radially inward from the inclined surface 136a of the base 135.
[0025] The annular plate 162 has a plane 163 facing the lower casing 130, and the plane 163 comprises a curved surface 163a with an arc-shaped cross-section and a horizontal surface 163b extending radially outward from the curved surface 163a. The horizontal surface 163b faces the second plane 136b of the base 135 (see Figure 3(B)).
[0026] Multiple blades 164 are integrally formed on the upper surface of the annular plate 162. All blades 164 have the same shape and are evenly arranged in the circumferential direction, facing the outer circumference of the cylinder 161 with a constant gap in the radial direction. Furthermore, the blades 164 are backward-facing blades that are curved so as to be concave in the opposite direction to the direction of rotation, and are arranged at an inclination in the direction of rotation indicated by arrow R in Figure 5 relative to the annular plate 162, and also at an inclination downward toward the radially outward direction, as shown in Figure 6.
[0027] Each blade 164 has a first surface 164a facing upward in the axial direction, and this first surface 164a is provided on each of the multiple blades 163, forming the same shape. Furthermore, each blade 164 has a second surface 164b facing downward in the axial direction, and this second surface 164b is provided on each of the multiple blades 164, forming the same shape. The first surface 164a and the second surface 164b are parallel to each other.
[0028] The first surface 164a of the blade 164 extends along the inclined surface 126a of the shroud 123. This creates an airflow path between the first surface 164a and the inclined surface 126. The inclined surface 136a of the base 135, which faces the blade 164, also extends along the inclined surface 126a of the shroud 123. The second surface 164b of the blade 164 extends along the inclined surface 136a of the base 135. This creates an airflow path between the second surface and the inclined surface 136a.
[0029] A ring 165 is integrally formed on the periphery of the first surface 164a of the blade 164. This connects the blades 164 to each other. In the radial direction, an annular plate 162 extends to a position midway between the ring 165 and the outer surface of the cylinder 161. Thus, the blades 164 are firmly connected to the cylinder 161, as they are connected to each other at their periphery by the ring 165 and at their inner circumference by the annular plate 162. The top surface 165a of the ring 165 faces the second plane 126b of the shroud 126.
[0030] In the fan motor 100 with the above configuration, the first surface 164a of the blade 164 extends along the inclined surface 126a of the shroud 123, and the second surface 164b of the blade 164 extends along the inclined surface 136a of the base 135. Therefore, by appropriately adjusting the gap between the base 135 and shroud 123, which form the space in which the blade 164 rotates, and the blade 164 facing them, the airflow generated by the blade 164 can be increased as much as possible, and the backflow of air from the gap and the diffusion of air in directions other than centrifugal can be suppressed. P is static pressure (Pa), Q is airflow rate (m³). 3The PQ characteristics can be improved when the value is set to ( / min).
[0031] In particular, in the fan motor 100 with the above configuration, the blades 164 are angled downwards with radial outward orientation, so the orientation of the blades 164 is obtuse with respect to the direction of the air flowing in axially from the intake port 122. As a result, the air drawn in axially from the intake port 122 flows in a direction that is inclined downwards with respect to the horizontal direction, so the deflection of the airflow is gentle and the resistance the air receives from the flow path 111 is small, and therefore the PQ characteristics can be further improved.
[0032] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, an air passage is formed between the first surface 164a of the blade 164 and the inclined surface 126 of the shroud 123, and an air passage is formed between the second surface 164b of the blade 164 and the inclined surface 136a of the base 135. As a result, air flows towards the outlet 112 through these passages, suppressing air diffusion and backflow.
[0033] In the above embodiment, the annular plate 162 extends to a position radially inward from the inclined surface 136a of the base 135. Therefore, in the radial direction, the annular plate 162 faces the inclined surface 136a with a gap between them. As a result, the action of the vanes 164 is fully exerted, contributing to the improvement of the PQ characteristics. Furthermore, since the annular plate 162 has a cross-sectional shape that is convex downward in the axial direction, the air drawn in from the intake port 122 is smoothly deflected radially outward.
[0034] In the above embodiment, a recess 137 is formed radially inward of the base 135. The annular plate 162 of the impeller 160 is positioned axially above the recess 137, and air passes over the annular plate 162. Therefore, the recess 137 can contribute to reducing the weight of the fan motor 100 without causing turbulence in the airflow.
[0035] 3. Example of changes The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications are possible as follows. i) The blade 164 can be extended horizontally without being tilted downward.
[0036] ii) The annular plate 162 may be omitted, and the blades 164 may be formed directly on the outer surface of the cylinder 161. In this case, the inclined surface 136a of the base 135 can be extended to the cylinder 161. iii) The shape of the wing 164 is not limited to a backward-facing wing and is arbitrary. iv) The present invention is not limited to radial fan motors as described in the above embodiments, but can also be applied to axial fan motors and centrifugal fans.
[0037] 4. Examples The relationship between airflow rate, wind pressure, and wind speed was investigated by operating the fan motor 100 of the above embodiment. For comparison, the same investigation was conducted with a comparative example to which the present invention was not applied. The results are shown in Figure 7. As shown in Figure 7, it was confirmed that the fan motor of the present invention has a larger airflow rate than the comparative example, and that the wind pressure and wind speed relative to the airflow rate are significantly improved. [Industrial applicability]
[0038] This invention can be used in fan motors used for air supply, ventilation, cooling, etc., in home appliances, office automation equipment, and air conditioning systems for industrial and vehicle use. [Explanation of symbols]
[0039] 100...Fan motor, 110...Casing, 111...Flow path, 112...Outlet, 120...Upper casing, 121...Legs, 121a...Step, 122...Inlet, 123...Shroud, 124...Bell mouth, 125...Inner circumference, 126...Plane, 126a...Inclined surface (plane), 126b...Second plane, 130...Lower casing, 131...Protrusion, 131a...Step, 132...Through hole, 133...Collar, 134...Annular projection, 135...Base, 136...Plane, 136a...Inclined surface, 136b...Second plane, 136c...Third plane, 137...Recess, 140...Mo 141...Shaft, 142...Bearing holder, 143...Ball bearing, 144...Rotor yoke, 145...Rotor magnet, 146...Coil spring, 150...Stator, 151...Stator core, 151a...Core back section, 151b...Poles, 152...Insulator, 153...Stator coil, 154...Circuit board, 160...Impeller, 161...Cylinder, 162...Annular plate, 163...Plane, 163a...Curved surface, 163b...Horizontal surface, 164...Blade, 164a...First surface, 164b...Second surface, 165...Ring, 165a...Top surface, R...Arrow.
Claims
1. In the axis of rotation, the base and the shroud, The impeller is positioned between the base and the shroud, and the impeller has a plurality of blades. The shroud has a plane facing the vane, The first surface of the vane facing the shroud extends along the plane of the shroud, The plane of the base facing the impeller extends along the plane of the shroud, The second surface of the blade facing the base extends along the plane of the base. Fan motor.
2. The plane of the shroud facing the vane is provided with an inclined surface. The first surface of the vane facing the shroud is inclined along the inclined surface of the shroud. The plane of the base facing the vane is inclined along the inclined surface of the shroud, The second surface of the blade facing the base is inclined along the inclined surface of the base. The fan motor according to claim 1.
3. In the radial direction, the inner circumference of the shroud is located between the outer and inner circumferences of the blade. The inner circumference of the shroud forms an inclined surface of the shroud. The fan motor according to claim 2.
4. The plane of the shroud and the plane of the base form a flow channel that extends radially. The fan motor according to claim 1 or 2.
5. The fan motor according to claim 2, wherein the impeller comprises a cylinder rotatably supported by a motor and an inclined plate extending radially outward from the outer circumferential surface of the cylinder toward the lower side in the direction of rotation and perpendicular to the direction of rotation, and the blades are formed on the axial upper surface of the inclined plate.
6. The fan motor according to claim 1, wherein a recess is provided on the radially inner side of the base, opposite to the inclined plate, and recesses downward in the direction of the rotation axis.