Diaphragm Compressor Planetary Gear Motion Transmission
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing diaphragm compressors driven by electric motors face issues with reduced durability due to wobbling motion of the piston rod, leading to additional flexing work on the membrane, increased wear, complex structure, and high assembly and production costs.
Innovation Solution
The use of an epicyclic gear with a crank mechanism that converts rotational movement into a purely translational movement of the piston rod, eliminating wobbling and reducing flexing work on the membrane, combined with a compact design that minimizes unnecessary components and assembly complexity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If conventional motion transmission means are used to convert rotary motion to piston rod movement, then the compressor can operate, but the piston rod experiences wobbling motion that causes additional flexing work on the diaphragm
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the conventional crank mechanism with a planetary gear system that directly converts rotary motion to linear motion without intermediate wobbling. The planetary gears (including sun gear, planet gears, and ring gear) create a mechanical advantage that eliminates the need for crank rotation, thereby preventing diaphragm flexing while maintaining effective motion conversion.
Solution Approach 2:
The planetary gear system acts as an intermediary mechanism between the motor and the diaphragm. Instead of directly coupling the motor to a crank that causes wobbling, the patent introduces planetary gears as a mediating transmission system that transforms the motion in a controlled manner, eliminating harmful flexing while preserving the driving force.
2Ease of operation
If conventional crank mechanisms are used for motion conversion, then rotary motion can be converted to piston movement, but the structure becomes complex with increased manufacturing and assembly costs
Solution Approach 1:
The planetary gear system serves multiple functions simultaneously: it converts rotary motion to linear motion, provides mechanical advantage for force multiplication, and eliminates the need for separate crank mechanisms. This multi-functionality reduces the number of components needed compared to conventional designs while maintaining full motion conversion capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The planetary gear system employs a nested structure where planet gears are positioned around the sun gear, and all components are contained within a compact housing. The concentric arrangement of gears allows for space-efficient design, reducing the overall footprint and simplifying the mechanical structure compared to extended crank mechanisms.
3Ease of operation
If wobbling motion is present in the piston rod, then motion conversion is achieved, but energy is lost due to unnecessary flexing work on the diaphragm
Solution Approach 1:
The patent substitutes the energy-inefficient crank mechanism with a planetary gear system that directly transmits force in a linear direction. This eliminates the energy losses associated with diaphragm flexing during wobbling motion, as the planetary gears maintain constant engagement and transmit power efficiently without creating harmful motion patterns.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This design significantly increases the service life of the diaphragm compressor by converting all drive energy into pumping work, reducing manufacturing and assembly costs, and ensuring efficient use of space within the compressor housing.
Implementation Method 1
the motion transmission means are formed by a planetary gear system whose output element is a crank, whose input shaft is eccentric to the axis of rotation of the drive shaft
Implementation Method 2
whose input shaft is eccentric to the axis of rotation of the drive shaft and whose output shaft has an axial offset from the input shaft corresponding to the eccentricity of the input shaft to the axis of rotation of the drive shaft
Implementation Method 3
a compressor chamber (80, 82) whose volume can be changed by the movement of the diaphragm (72, 74)
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~3
Figure 4
AI summary
Diaphragm compressors having an electric motor (10) with a drive shaft (18), movement transmission means (32, 42, 50, 52) which can be set in motion by way of the drive shaft (18) and via which a rotational movement of the drive shaft (18) can be converted, a piston rod (58) which is coupled to an output member (40) of the movement transmission means (32, 42, 50, 52) and to a diaphragm (72, 74), a compressor chamber (80, 82) which is delimited by way of the diaphragm (72, 74) and a compressor head (76, 78), and the volume of which can be varied by way of the movement of the diaphragm (72, 74), are known. In order to avoid damaging tumbling work of the diaphragm, it is proposed according to the invention that the movement transmission means (32, 42, 50, 52) are formed by way of an epicyclic gear mechanism (44), the output member (40) of which is configured as a crank (42), the input shaft (48) of which is guided eccentrically with respect to the rotational axis of the drive shaft (18), and the output shaft (38) of which has an axial offset (A) with respect to the input shaft (48), which axial offset (A) corresponds to an eccentricity (E) of the input shaft (48) with respect to the rotational axis of the drive shaft (18).