Patent Application
20070128039
This Non-provisional application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(a) on Patent Application No(s). 094142388 filed in Taiwan, Republic of China on Dec. 2, 2005, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
1. Field of Invention
The invention relates to a fan and an impeller thereof and, in particular, to a fan with a reinforced structure and an impeller thereof.
2. Related Art
Since the present electronic products are rapidly developed towards high performance, high frequency, high speed and more compact, the generated heat of the electronic products becomes greater. However, the electronic products may unstable in the high temperature, so that the reliability thereof is affected. Thus, the heat dissipation has become an important issue of the present electronic products.
The fan is a common heat dissipating device for the electronic product. As shown in
Since the need for heat dissipation is larger, the performance of the fan must be higher. In general, for increasing the airflow quantity, the size of the blades 101 is enlarged. To maintain the strength of the large-sized blades 101, the prior art adopts metal blades or adds a circular rib 13 for strengthening the structure of the blades 101. Herein, the circular rib 13 is disposed around the periphery of the blades 101.
However, the impeller 10 has limited space. In the same capacity, to provide the circular rib 13 makes the blades 101 disposed inwardly, which leads to the reduced active surfaces of blades 101. Thus, the airflow quantity and the air pressure are decreased.
Therefore, it is an important subject to provide a fan and an impeller thereof, which can provide large airflow quantity and have better structure strength.
In view of the foregoing, the invention is to provide a fan and an impeller thereof that can provide large airflow quantity and have better structure strength.
To achieve the above, a fan of the invention comprises an impeller and a motor. The impeller comprises a hub, a plurality of blades and a plurality of reinforced elements. The blades are disposed around the hub and at least one reinforced element is disposed between active surfaces of two adjacent blades. The blades and the reinforced elements are integrally formed as a single piece. The motor connects to the impeller for driving it to rotate.
To achieve the above, an impeller of the invention comprises a hub, a plurality of blades and a plurality of reinforced elements. The blades are disposed around the hub and at least one reinforced element is disposed between active surfaces of two adjacent blades. The blades and the reinforced elements are integrally formed as a single piece.
As mentioned above, the fan and impeller of the invention have at least one reinforced element on the active surfaces of the adjacent blades. In more detailed, one or more reinforced elements are disposed radially or axially between the adjacent blades. Herein, the reinforced elements can be located in misalignment and be integrally formed as a single piece with the blades to strengthen the structure of the blades. Compared with the prior art, since the reinforced elements are disposed on the active surfaces of the adjacent blades, the blades of the invention are unnecessary to be disposed inwardly under the condition of the same accommodation capacity. Thus, the fan of the invention can have larger blade area for providing larger airflow quantity and air pressure.
The invention will become more fully understood from the detailed description given herein below illustration only, and thus is not limitative of the present invention, and wherein:
The present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description, which proceeds with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein the same references relate to the same elements.
Referring to
The impeller 30 comprises a hub 301, a plurality of blades 302 and a plurality of reinforced elements 303. The blades 302 are disposed around the hub 301. The blades 302 and the hub 301 can be integrally formed as a single piece. The motor 31 can be accommodated in the hub 301 to drive the impeller 30 to rotate. Besides, the fan 3 may further comprise a fan frame 32, which has at least one inlet 321 and one outlet 322. The impeller 30 is accommodated in the fan frame 32. When the impeller 30 rotates, an airflow is formed to enter from the inlet 321 and exit through the outlet 322.
Referring to
In addition, referring to
The impeller 30, 30′ of the embodiment may further comprise a connecting portion 304, which connects the blades 302 to the hub 301. The connecting portion 304 is radially extended from the periphery of the hub 301 outwardly. The blades 302 are fixed to the connecting portion 304. In the embodiment, the connecting portion 304 is integrally formed as a single piece with the hub 301 and the blades 302. The connecting portion 304 is an arc structure, a plate structure or a structure with a circular rib.
The blades 302 can be made of plastic or metal. In addition, the blades 302 can be plate blades, forward leaning blades or backward leaning blades, and the cross section thereof can be arc, rod-like or wave-shaped.
With reference to
In summary, the fan and impeller of the invention disposes at least one reinforced element on the active surfaces of the adjacent blades. In more detailed, one or more reinforced elements are disposed radially or axially between the adjacent blades. Herein, the reinforced elements can be located in misalignment and be integrally formed as a single piece with the blades to strengthen the structure of the blades. Compared with the prior art, since the reinforced elements are disposed on the active surfaces of the adjacent blades, the blades of the invention are unnecessary to be disposed inwardly under the condition of the same accommodation capacity. Thus, the fan of the invention can have larger blade area for providing larger airflow quantity and air pressure.
Although the invention has been described with reference to specific embodiments, this description is not meant to be construed in a limiting sense. Various modifications of the disclosed embodiments, as well as alternative embodiments, will be apparent to persons skilled in the art. It is, therefore, contemplated that the appended claims will cover all modifications that fall within the true scope of the invention.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 094142388 | Dec 2005 | TW | national |
