Spherical Compressor Dead Center Elimination

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing spherical compressors experience clamping stagnation at the dead center due to zero torque, leading to inefficiencies and increased manufacturing and operation costs, particularly requiring high precision components and cooling mechanisms to mitigate friction-related issues.

Innovation Solution

A spherical compressor design featuring a cylinder body and cylinder head with a hemispherical inner cavity, a piston with a spherical top surface and angled side faces, and a turntable with a matching spherical surface, utilizing a sliding chute swinging mechanism to allow the piston and turntable to swing freely around a center pin, eliminating the dead center issue without the need for special cooling mechanisms.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If a pin boss and guide sleeve with concave sliding chute are added to prevent dead center locking, then the dead center problem is solved, but manufacturing precision requirements increase and cooling mechanisms are needed

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedead center preventionVSAvoidconcave sliding chute precision
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies spheroidality by using a spherical surface for the turntable instead of a flat surface with concave sliding chutes. The spherical turntable rotates within a spherical cavity, eliminating the need for precision-machined concave sliding chutes and guide sleeves. This curved surface approach maintains reliable dead center prevention while significantly reducing manufacturing precision requirements.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #14Spheroidality (Curvature)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent extracts and eliminates the complex anti-locking mechanism consisting of pin bosses, guide sleeves, and concave sliding chutes. By removing these components and replacing them with a simple spherical turntable rotating in a spherical cavity, the design achieves dead center prevention without the associated manufacturing precision demands and cooling requirements.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

2Ease of operation

If a concave sliding chute and guide sleeve mechanism is used to overcome dead center, then the turntable can continue rotating at zero torque points, but friction heat generation requires cooling mechanisms

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveturntable rotation continuityVSAvoidfriction heat
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSTemperature

Solution Approach 1:

The patent converts the potentially harmful friction heat issue into a beneficial low-friction rotation system. By using a spherical turntable rotating in a spherical cavity with proper lubrication, the design achieves continuous rotation at zero torque points while minimizing friction heat generation, eliminating the need for cooling mechanisms.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #22Blessing in disguise (Convert harm into benefit)

3Speed

If steel ball and concave sliding chute are highly matched for synchronous rotation, then turntable rotation is smooth, but abrasion occurs at contact surfaces

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveturntable rotation smoothnessVSAvoidcontact surface abrasion
Core Design Contradiction:
SpeedVSLoss of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The patent replaces the durable but high-friction steel ball and concave sliding chute contact system with a spherical turntable and spherical cavity configuration. This design achieves smooth turntable rotation while significantly reducing contact surface abrasion through proper lubrication, eliminating the need for highly matched, wear-prone components.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #27Cheap short-living objects (Disposable)

Data Source

PatentEP3447293B1Spherical compressor
Publication Date: 2021.09.22 SHENZHEN ZHONGKE ZHENGAN SCI & TECH PARTNERSHIP ENTERPRISE LLP
  • EP3447293B1 patent drawingFigure 1~2
  • EP3447293B1 patent drawingFigure 3~4
  • EP3447293B1 patent drawingFigure 5~6

AI summary

Disclosed is a spherical compressor. A cylinder body (2) and a cylinder head (1) are combined to form a spherical inner cavity. A sliding chute swinging mechanism is arranged between a piston shaft (301) and a piston shaft hole (105) or between a turntable shaft (501) and a turntable shaft hole (201). The turntable shaft (501) is driven to rotate so that a piston (3) swings along a sliding chute of the sliding chute swinging mechanism between the piston shaft (301) and the piston shaft hole (105) relative to the axis of the piston shaft hole (105), or a turntable (5) swings along the sliding chute of the sliding chute swinging mechanism between the turntable shaft (501) and the turntable shaft hole (201) relative to the axis of the turntable shaft hole (201), thereby forming a VI working chamber (1001) and a V2 working chamber (1002) with alternatively variable volumes in the spherical inner cavity. The invention has the advantages of a small number of parts, no dead center in mechanism movement and high operation efficiency.