Electronics housing for a rotary machine, and rotary machine, in particular a pump, having an electronics housing of this kind

Abstract

The invention relates to an electronics housing for a rotary machine, in particular a pump, consisting of a housing body and a housing cover which is fastened to the housing body by means of at least one connecting means, characterized in that the at least one connecting means is a flexible strip, the length of which is dimensioned so as to allow the removed cover to be placed on the housing body.

Description

[0001] Description

[0002] Electronic housing for a rotary machine as well as rotary machine, in particular pump, with such an electronic housing

[0003] The invention relates to an electronics housing for a rotary machine, in particular for a pump, comprising a housing body and a housing cover, which is attached to the housing body by means of at least one flexible connecting element.

[0004] The necessary electronics for controlling and regulating rotary machines such as pumps, especially heating circulator pumps, are typically housed in a separate electronics enclosure. This enclosure is either mounted on the pump or motor housing of the machine or installed separately from the pump. In addition to the electronic components for control, the enclosure may also contain connection points for external power and / or signal lines, as well as display and / or operating elements. For commissioning the machine or for maintenance or repair purposes, the electronics enclosure must be opened, which is facilitated by a removable cover.

[0005] Often, for space reasons and better accessibility, display and control elements are integrated directly into the housing cover. When opening the housing cover, care must be taken to avoid damaging any connecting cables between the electronics in the cover and the electronics in the housing body. This means that the cover either cannot be completely removed from the housing body and set aside, or the connecting cables must be disconnected beforehand. Precisely because of the integrated electronics in the housing cover, the manufacturer advises against completely removing the cover from the device body, as placing the removed cover in a remote location while working on the electronics housing poses the risk of contaminating and / or even damaging the electronics located there.

[0006] Therefore, a suitable solution is being sought for the design of an electronics enclosure that simplifies opening the enclosure, but is also easy and inexpensive to implement.

[0007] This problem is solved by an electronics housing according to the features of claim 1. Advantageous embodiments of the electronics housing are the subject of the dependent claims.

[0008] According to the invention, it is proposed that the at least one connecting element be at least one flexible band whose length is dimensioned to allow the removed cover to be placed on the housing body. For opening and placing the cover, or for reclosing the housing body, the cover can remain secured to the body by means of the at least one band; that is, there is no need to completely disassemble the cover. Due to the flexibility of the band and its sufficient length, the cover can be moved relative to the housing body, in particular, partially removed from the body and ideally placed on a horizontal support surface of the housing body. In particular, the cover can be pivoted or rotated about the band attachment point relative to the housing body, so that the cover can be placed with its outer surface on the device body.

[0009] Generally, using at least one flexible strap to secure the lid to the device body is sufficient. A more stable design uses at least two flexible straps spaced apart and, for example, arranged parallel to each other. The ends of the at least two straps can be attached along a side edge or top edge of the lid, particularly near the corners. The opposite ends of the at least two straps are attached to the device body, particularly along an outer edge or top edge.

[0010] At least one flexible band is preferably made of an elastic material, such as rubber. The use of nitrile rubber (NBR) or ethylene propylene diene monomer rubber (EPDM) is advantageous.

[0011] According to a preferred embodiment, at least one opening is provided in the housing body, into which one end of the flexible band is threaded and ideally secured against being pulled out. Such an opening can, for example, be slot-shaped, e.g., as a T-slot.

[0012] It is particularly preferred if the opening provides access to a space behind it within the housing body to allow the insertion of the tape section through the opening. For example, it is provided that at least 30%, preferably at least 40%, ideally at least 50% of the total tape length can be inserted through the opening into the space behind it when the electronics housing is closed, so that the tape is "tidy" within the device body when the lid is closed. Ideally, such a space is separated from the electronics located within the housing by at least one partition or other means to prevent unwanted contact between the tape and the electronics inside the housing when the lid is closed.

[0013] Preferably, the at least one flexible strap has at least one crossbar at its end, i.e., at the end adjacent to the device body, to prevent the strap from being completely pulled out of the housing opening. In this case, the longitudinal dimension of the crossbar is larger than the corresponding opening diameter, e.g., the slot width, so that the crossbar abuts the edge of the opening from the room side. If the strap is made of an elastic material, it can, despite the crossbar, be inserted through the opening for assembly purposes with increased force, or, if necessary, pulled out to completely remove the cover.

[0014] The end of the strap on the lid side can be attached to the lid in the same way as it is attached to the body. However, a strap design with a hook contour on the lid-side end is advantageous, as this allows the strap to be locked into place by inserting it into a corresponding recess on the lid.

[0015] Furthermore, at least one second crossbar may be provided in the area of ​​the lid-side end. Such an additional crossbar is intended to prevent the flexible band from being fully inserted into the opening of the device body when the lid is removed from the band. This prevents the loose end from disappearing inside the device body.

[0016] Due to the differing designs of the end sections, the band is asymmetrical to a transverse axis, which offers advantages during assembly, as the asymmetrical shape reduces the risk of incorrect final assembly.

[0017] As already explained in the introduction, some electronic components are spatially separated, with at least some of the electronic components located within or on the lid. Typically, the lid area houses any display or control elements, which are electrically connected to the system board located in the housing. At least one ribbon cable is particularly suitable for this electronic connection, ideally longer than the length of the at least one flexible band used to attach the lid to the housing. In this case, the electronic connection can remain active when the lid is removed and, in particular, when the lid is placed on the housing, thus avoiding or at least reducing the risk of damage or incorrect assembly when closing the lid.According to an advantageous embodiment, at least one flexible band is not implemented by a separate component, but rather by the electronic ribbon cable itself. The electrical cable connection is preferably made with a suitable and / or reinforced insulating material that provides the necessary flexibility and stability. Ideally, the cover is attached to the device housing solely by means of the electrical ribbon cable; additional band components or any connecting elements can then be dispensed with, and the entire construction of the electronic housing becomes significantly simpler and more cost-effective.

[0018] In this case, too, it can be advantageous if the electrical connection between the electronics in the lid and the system board in the device housing is divided between at least two separate ribbon cables, thus enabling symmetrical attachment of the lid to the housing. Alternatively, a hybrid design can also be advantageous, in which at least one connection is implemented using a ribbon cable and a second connection is made of a different material, for example, an elastic material, as already mentioned in relation to the first embodiment.

[0019] In addition to the electronic housing according to the invention, the present invention also relates to a rotary machine, preferably a pump, particularly preferably a centrifugal pump, and ideally a heating circulator pump, with an electronic housing mounted on the pump housing according to the present invention. The rotary machine therefore benefits from the same advantages and properties as those already described above with reference to the electronic housing according to the invention. For this reason, a repetitive description is omitted.

[0020] Further advantages and features of the invention will be explained in more detail below with reference to the exemplary embodiments shown in the figures. These show:

[0021] Figure 1: a perspective side view of the device according to the invention

[0022] Rotary machine, Figure 2: the heating circulation pump according to Figure 1 with open cover according to a first embodiment variant,

[0023] Figure 3: Different representations of a flexible band for the

[0024] Implementation of the invention,

[0025] Figure 4: a cross-sectional view of the heating circulation pump according to Figure 2 with closed cover,

[0026] Figure 5: A front view of the electronics housing of the

[0027] Heating circulation pump as shown in Figure 2,

[0028] Figure 6: a second alternative of the heating circulation pump with a

[0029] Flat ribbon cable as a flexible ribbon,

[0030] Figure 7: the version according to Figure 6 with closed lid,

[0031] Figure 8: the version of Figure 6 with the lid open, and

[0032] Figure 9: another representation of the embodiment according to Figure 6 with the lid open.

[0033] Figure 1 shows a perspective view of a rotary machine designed as a heating circulator pump. The hydraulic section of the pump is designated by reference numeral 1. A heat sink s is mounted on the electric drive motor 2 attached to the hydraulic section 1; this heat sink forms the underside of the electronics housing 10. The upper part of the electronics housing 10 is made of plastic and consists of two parts: the device body 11 and the housing cover 12. Electronic display and control elements 13 are arranged on the cover 12, enabling control of the pump and the reading of pump parameters from the outside. The cover 12 of the electronics housing 10 can be opened for maintenance or installation work, for example, to connect the pump's electronics to external signal and power supply lines or to carry out repairs and maintenance on the electronics.The cover 12 is screwed to the device housing 11 by several screw connections 14. To open the cover 12, the screw connections 14 must first be loosened. The screws 14 are designed to be captive, so that they remain in the cover 12 after being detached from the housing 11. After loosening the screws 14, the cover 12 can be pulled off the housing and pivoted upwards, for example, to place it on the horizontal support surface 11a of the housing 11 and the heat sink 3.

[0034] The cover 12 remains secured to the housing body 11 by two flexible bands 20, preventing it from being completely removed. This has the advantage of preserving the necessary electronic connection cable 30 and the resulting electronic link between the circuit board 16 in the housing cover 12 and the system board 15 in the housing body 11. It also prevents the installer from carelessly setting the cover 12 aside, which could damage the sensitive electronics 13, 16 inside the cover 12.

[0035] The structure of the flexible bands 20 used can be seen in Figure 3, which shows a single flexible band in a side, front, and oblique perspective view. The band 20 is essentially characterized by an elongated, rectangular body made of elastic material, in particular rubber, the end 21 of which, facing the lid, is provided with a hook structure 26, allowing the band 20 to be inserted into a hook receptacle 17 provided on the inside of the lid 12, e.g., a slot-shaped opening, and to be locked to the lid. The end 22 facing the housing also has a first crossbar 23 with a round profile shape, which can be inserted into a corresponding T-slot 24 of the housing body 11. In the area of ​​the lid-side end 21, a second cross brace 25 is provided, the transverse dimension of which is identical to the first brace 23, but has a polygonal profile shape instead of a round profile shape.The second crossbar 25 is intended to prevent the strap 20 from sliding completely through the T-slot 24 into the housing 11 with its free end when the cover 12 has been detached from the cover-side end 21.

[0036] As can be seen from the cross-sectional view in Figure 4, the flexible band 20 is guided through the opening 24 of the housing body 11 and thus extends into a space 27 behind it in the housing body 11. This space 27 is spatially separated from the system board 15 by at least one partition 28, so that the flexible band 20, which is located inside the space 27 when the cover 12 is closed, cannot come into contact with the system board 15.

[0037] When the cover 12 is closed, as shown in Figure 4, a certain length of the flexible band 20 is guided through the T-slot 24 into the chamber 27, where it lies securely and neatly within the separate chamber 27. When the cover 12 is opened, it can first be removed from the housing body 11, causing this length of the flexible band 20 to be pulled out of the housing chamber 27 through the opening 24 until the first crossbar 23 abuts the inner edge of the T-slot 24 and prevents further removal. The exposed length of the flexible band 20 is dimensioned such that the cover 12 can be pulled far enough away from the housing 11 and pivoted upwards, in particular by approximately 270°, and thus placed on the top 11a of the housing 11 with its outer surface facing down. See the illustration in Figure 5.

[0038] Figure 5 also shows that the system board 15 is protected behind a further partition 18, so that direct access to the system board 15 is not possible through the opening of the cover 12. Only the interfaces 19 are freely accessible for wiring the pump electronics. The connecting cable 30 is routed through an opening in the partition 18 to the slot on the system board 15.

[0039] A different embodiment is shown in Figures 6 to 9. In this embodiment, instead of a flexible rubber band for attaching the cover 12 to the body 11, at least one flexible band is provided directly by the electrical ribbon cable 30', which electrically connects the system board 15 to the board 16 in the cover 12. This ribbon cable 30' is equipped at its end with the corresponding plug-in terminal 31, which is inserted into a complementary counterpart 32 on the respective boards 15 and 16. The ribbon cable 30' is sufficiently long so that the cover 12 can still be removed from the body 11 and conveniently pivoted upwards onto the top surface 11a.

[0040] Ideally, in this embodiment, the electronic contact between the circuit boards 15 and 16 is distributed across two separate ribbon cables 30', so that, similar to the first embodiment, the fastening of the cover 12 is also distributed across two flexible bands. This is evident in Figures 8 and 9, which show the heating circulation pump with the cover 12 open. As can be seen particularly in Figure 8, a protective wall 18 is also provided here, behind which the system board 15 is arranged. The protective wall 18 is provided with two slots 34 through which the ribbon cables 30' are routed. The corresponding openings or slots 34 are dimensioned such that the ribbon cable, in particular the connector 31, cannot be pulled through, thus preventing damage to the ribbon cable when the cover 12 is torn off or removed.However, the slots 34 are provided with grooves 35 running at an angle to them, so that for assembly purposes the ribbon cables 30' can first be pushed in from the edge of the circuit board 15 and rotated about 90° within the slot 34.

Claims

Patent claims 1. Electronic housing (10) for a rotary machine, in particular a pump (1), comprising a housing body (11) and a housing cover (12) which is attached to the housing body (11) by means of at least one connecting means, characterized in that the at least one connecting means is at least one flexible band (20, 30') whose length is dimensioned to allow the removed cover (12) to be placed on the housing body (11).

2. Electronic housing according to claim 1, characterized in that the at least one band (20) consists of an elastic material, in particular rubber, e.g. nitrile rubber, NBR, or ethylene propylene diene monomer rubber, EPDM.

3. Electronic housing according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the at least one band (20) is threaded into an opening (24) provided for this purpose in the housing body (11), in particular into a slot in the form of a T-slot.

4. Electronic housing according to claim 3, characterized in that the tape (20) can be inserted at least partially into a space (27) accessible via the opening (24) for storing the tape (20) with the lid (12) closed, in particular a length section of about 50% or more of the total The band length can be brought into the room area (27).

5. Electronic housing according to claim 4, characterized in that the space (27) is spatially separated from the electronics (15) within the housing body (11) by at least one partition (28).

6. Electronic housing according to one of claims 3 to 5, characterized in that the at least one band (20) has a crossbar (22) at its end to prevent the band (20, 30') from being completely pulled out of the opening (24) of the housing (11).

7. Electronic housing according to one of claims 3 to 5, characterized in that the at least one band (20) has a crossbar (23) at the lid-side end (21) to prevent the band from being completely threaded when the lid (12) is loosened.

8. Electronic housing according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the lid-side end (22) of the band (20) is provided with a hook (26) to fix the band (20) to the lid (12).

9. Electronic housing according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the at least one band (20) is asymmetrical about a transverse axis.

10. Electronic housing according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the cover (12) is connected to the housing body (11) via at least two bands (20, 30').

11. Electronic housing according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that an electrical connection in the form of a flexible cable (30, 30') is provided between an electronic component (16) installed on the cover (12) and the electronic component (15) installed in the housing body (11), in particular consists of a flat ribbon cable.

12. Electronic housing according to claim 11, characterized in that the at least one flexible band (30') is an electrical cable band, in particular the cover is attached to the device body (12) by means of two electrical cable bands (30'), wherein the cable bands (30') serve for the electrical contact of electronic components (13) fixed to the cover (12) with the system board (15) in the device body (11).

13. Electronic housing according to claim 12, characterized in that the cover (12) is attached to the body by means of at least two bands (20'), wherein a first band (30') is an electrical cable band and a second band (20) consists of another material, e.g., an elastic material.

14. Rotary machine, preferably a pump, particularly preferably a centrifugal pump, with an electronic housing (10) mounted on the pump housing (1) according to one of the preceding claims.

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