Patent Application
20100296364
The invention relates to a guiding device for agitators, in particular submersible motor agitators. Submersible motor agitators are normally mounted in large pools, for example sewage treatment pools, with guiding devices being arranged at the pool edge. Guiding devices such as this in this case have to carry out the following tasks:
First, the submersible motor agitator must be guided from the pool edge into the pool. Furthermore, a stop must be provided on the guiding device, which defines the position of the unit in the pool and ensures the necessary distance between the agitating member and the pool bottom. Furthermore, the guiding device is intended to provide the capability to vary the outlet flow direction, which is induced by the submersible motor agitator, with reference to the pool wall. Furthermore, the guiding device must withstand all the forces which occur during operation of the submersible motor agitator and must introduce the forces and moments into the pool wall or the pool top and the pool bottom. In this case, it is necessary to compensate for the weight forces of the submersible motor agitator itself, the torque about the submersible motor agitator axis, the axial thrust through the agitating member, any lateral forces caused by the flow in the pool and by any aeration devices, as well as forces caused by inhomogeneity or density differences of the liquid medium.
Furthermore, the guiding device must be designed such that any inclinations of the pool bottom can be taken into account, with wall mounting being possible.
In known guiding devices, a submersible motor agitator is guided from the pool edge into the pool via quadrilateral tubes with a square cross section. A portion of the guiding devices has a rigidly attached guide tube. In this case, it is not possible to vary the outlet flow direction of the flow induced by the submersible motor agitator.
In general, it is desirable in the case of submersible motor agitators for the size of the housing units for the submersible motor agitator itself and the components of the guiding device to be kept as small as possible, in order to keep transport costs and transport volumes as low and small as possible. In this case, it may be advantageous for the guiding device to make use of components which do not necessarily need to be delivered at the same time but can easily be procured additionally by the customer in the delivery location.
In addition, guiding devices are already known which include the capability to adjust the outlet flow direction of the flow induced by the submersible motor agitator. Two fundamental designs are in principle known in this case. On the one hand, there is a design in which the guide tube axis also forms the rotation axis at the same time. In another design, the rotation axis is located outside the guide tube.
An increased manufacturing effort is required for guiding devices which have a rotation axis outside the guide tube axis. In this case, a shorter quadrilateral tube is welded onto the lower face of the guide tube, that is to say in the area of the pool bottom, and can be mounted on a guide pin on the pool bottom. In some alternative embodiments, an additional welded part is pushed into the lower face of the guide tube and then forms the rotation point outside the guide tube axis. This results in more stringent requirements for the connection of the two parts, in order to allow the forces which are exerted on the system to be safely absorbed. Other guiding devices are known in which a holder for a spherical element is welded on the lower face of the guide tube and is mounted in a bush on the pool bottom, and thus forms a rotation point outside the guide tube axis.
On the other hand, in solutions in which the rotation axis lies within the guide tube, the attachment and removal of the submersible motor agitator during lowering into the pool and/or removal from the pool are particularly disadvantageous. In known embodiments, the submersible motor agitator can only be lifted out when the submersible motor agitator axis is at right angles to the pool wall. Furthermore, the adjusting lug by means of which the outlet flow direction is adjusted must be completely removed in order to allow the submersible motor agitator to be detached from the guide tube.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,581,182 discloses a guiding device which has a lower support for the guide tube so as to allow matching to the inclination of the pool bottom. This mount has no capability to rotate about the guide tube axis, as a result of which the outlet flow direction of the agitator flow induced by the agitator cannot be adjusted. Furthermore, in order to remove the submersible motor agitator, the guides for the sliding carriage on the side of the guide tube facing the wall must be removed.
In contrast, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,671,872, it is possible to vary the outlet flow direction of the submersible motor agitator using the guiding device. An upper attachment of the guide tube is provided with four clamping jaws, in a circular clamp, for this purpose. This arrangement is also subject to the disadvantage that it is complex and difficult to remove the guides for the sliding carriage on the side of the guide tube facing the wall.
A guiding device according to U.S. Pat. No. 4,431,597 is constructed in a similar manner. In this case, the capability of the guide tube to rotate is arranged considerably above the pool upper edge. However, the disadvantage in this case is that the entire sliding carriage must be removed when the submersible motor agitator is to be detached.
It is an object of the invention to provide a submersible motor agitator which can be installed or fitted and can be removed without complex fitting work, even in the case of a guiding device in which the rotation axis coincides with the axis of the guide tube.
This and other objects have been achieved in accordance with the present invention by the submersible motor agitator guiding device as described and claimed hereinafter.
A guiding device for submersible motor agitators is accordingly specified, which comprises at least one guide tube which is held at one end in a lower mount or attachment such that it can rotate about its axis and is connected at the other end, at its opposite end area, via an adjusting lug to an upper mount or attachment, where the upper attachment comprises a bracket which can be mounted in a fixed position and by means of which the adjusting lug can be attached via screws in predetermined angular positions.
Furthermore, a sliding carriage is provided for holding the submersible motor agitator. The carriage surrounds the guide tube on three sides and has clamps or holders on its side which does not surround the guide tube, which clamps or holders clasp the lateral edges of the guide tube and leave an intermediate space between them.
According to the invention, the area of the adjusting lug between the guide tube and the bracket is narrower than the intermediate space between the clamps or holders of the sliding carriage. The sliding carriage can therefore be pulled off the guide tube without having to undertake complex measures to remove the adjusting lug. This means that the guiding device retains its full stability even during installation and/or removal of the carriage carrying the submersible motor agitator. Because it is not necessary to remove the adjusting lug, it also is not necessary to ensure in a different manner that all the forces acting on the guide tube are actually reliably absorbed.
Preferred refinements of the invention will become apparent from the following description.
In one preferred embodiment, the clamps or holders of the sliding carriage are be formed by guide elements.
A molding, which can be inserted into the guide tube and whose shape is matched thereto, can be connected to the lower face of the adjusting lug. This allows the guide tube to be connected to the adjusting lug in a very simple manner. An extension which, for example, is likewise in the form of a quadrilateral tube can be connected on the upper face of the adjusting lug. At least one opening for receiving an adjusting tool, for example a fitting lever, may be provided in this extension.
In the case of very long guiding devices, the guide tube can also be supported by a center support. This once again advantageously comprises a fixed-position bracket and a connecting lug, which is likewise narrower in the area between the guide tube and the bracket than the intermediate space between the clamps or holders of the sliding carriage. In such case, the sliding carriage can therefore be moved along the entire height of the guide tube without in the meantime having to remove the connecting lug.
In addition, in the area of the center support, the connecting lug has in each case on the lower face, and advantageously on the upper face as well, moldings having a cross-sectional shape which matches the guide tube and which can be inserted into the respective guide tube pieces.
These moldings as well as the molding of the adjusting lug may advantageously have a coating composed of a resilient or elastic material, which on the one hand simplifies assembly and on the other hand, if designed appropriately, ensures that the guide tube is firmly seated.
According to a further advantageous refinement of the invention, the brackets of the upper and/or center support have curved longitudinal slots, and at least one connecting element, such as a threaded screw, passes through these longitudinal slots and connects the respective adjusting lug or connecting lug to a holding plate. In this case, the connecting element is advantageously joined to a guide plate or to guide rollers, which are guided in the longitudinal slot.
The adjusting lug and the bracket can be connected to one another via a plurality of screws. This makes it possible to transfer the comparatively high forces that occur from the guide tube into the pool wall.
A series of screw holes may be provided in the guide plate, allowing the adjusting lug to be attached after pivoting through a predetermined pivoting angle.
The invention will be described in further detail hereinafter with reference to illustrative preferred embodiments shown in the accompanying drawing figures in which:
The guide tube 14 for the guiding device 10 can rotate about its own axis. For this purpose, it is held in a lower mount 16 such that it can rotate. On its opposite end area, the guide tube is connected via an adjusting lug 18 to an upper mount. This upper mount comprises a bracket 20 which is attached to the pool wall 5 at a fixed position. The submersible motor agitator 12 is mounted on the guide tube via a sliding carriage 22. The sliding carriage 22 surrounds the guide tube 14 on three sides, as shown in
As can clearly be seen from
The submersible motor agitator can be fixed by supporting it on a supporting plate 28, which is firmly connected to the guide tube by clamping screws. This supporting plate 28 forms a lower stop for the submersible motor agitator. This reliably makes it possible to prevent the agitating member 32 on the submersible motor agitator from coming into contact with the pool bottom 7.
The upper attachment 18, 20 of the guiding device 10 will be explained in more detail with reference to
A quadrilateral tube is welded onto the lower face of the adjusting lug 18 and can be inserted as a molding 38 into the guide tube 14. A coating 40 composed of a resilient or elastic material is provided on the molding 38, which is in the form of a quadrilateral tube, and ensures that the molding 38 is seated tightly in the guide tube 14. An extension 42, which is likewise in the form of a quadrilateral tube and has four recesses 44, is welded on the upper face of the adjusting lug 18. An adjusting tool can be inserted into these recesses, in a manner which is not illustrated in any more detail here, by means of which the guiding device and therefore the submersible motor agitator installed thereon can be pivoted.
As is clear from
The screw holes 54 are arranged in the adjusting lug so as to allow the guiding device to be pivoted in steps in both directions.
By way of example,
A further embodiment of the invention is shown in
In the area between the guide tube 12, which in the present case is formed from a plurality of pieces, and the bracket 62, the connecting lug 64 is likewise narrower than the intermediate space between the guide rollers 24 of the sliding carriage 22. The sliding carriage 22 can therefore easily likewise be removed without having to remove the center support 60 itself to do so in this case.
As can easily be seen in
The foregoing description and examples have been set forth merely to illustrate the invention and are not intended to be limiting. Since modifications of the described embodiments incorporating the spirit and substance of the invention may occur to persons skilled in the art, the invention should be construed broadly to include all variations within the scope of the appended claims and equivalents thereof.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 2007 062 563.6 | Dec 2007 | DE | national |
This application is a continuation of international patent application no. PCT/EP2008/010564, filed Dec. 12, 2008, designating the United States of America and published in German on Jul. 2, 2009 as WO 2009/080224, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. Priority is claimed based on Federal Republic of Germany patent application no. DE 10 2007 062 563.6, filed Dec. 22, 2007.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | PCT/EP2008/010564 | Dec 2008 | US |
| Child | 12820785 | US |
