Low vibration blower housing and motor mount

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6435818
  • Patent Number
    6,435,818
  • Date Filed
    Wednesday, August 30, 2000
    23 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, August 20, 2002
    21 years ago
Abstract
A blower housing having a casing with a resilient bottom piece and a rigid top piece assembling with the bottom piece to define an interior of the casing is provided. The bottom piece of the blower housing directly abuts a blower mounting surface. The top piece supports a blower motor. The bottom piece is constructed from a vibration dampening material. The top piece is constructed from a rigid material. The vibration absorbing material attenuates noise and other vibrations transmitted from the blower motor and impeller of the blower housing to the blower mounting surface and other associated structures.
Description




BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION




(1) Field of the Invention




The invention relates to blowers for high efficiency furnaces for drawing combustion gases into the furnace and propelling the products of combustion into the exhaust pipe to be vented to atmosphere. More specifically, the invention relates to the construction of the blower housing.




(2) Description of the Related Art




Blowers to which the present invention is directed are common in the art. The blower is used on high efficiency furnaces (e.g. 90%) to draw combustion air into the furnace from outside the home. Generally, these blowers are located downstream of a combustion chamber or combustion tubes in the furnace, depending upon the style of furnace. Combustion air is drawn into the combustion chamber or combustion tubes, mixed with fuel, and ignited to generate heat for the furnace. The exhaust gases are then drawn into the suction of the blower and discharged from the blower to an exhaust pipe that vents to outside atmosphere.





FIG. 1

shows a blower


20


of the prior art arranged on a blower mounting surface


21


of a furnace


22


. The blower


20


includes a blower motor (


47


) and a blower housing


24


. In

FIG. 1A

, the blower motor has been removed from its center mount


26


on top of the blower housing


24


to show greater detail of the blower housing


24


. The blower housing


24


has a side wall


28


extending between a top piece


30


and a bottom piece


32


. Locator surfaces


33


A,


33


B are provided on the top and bottom pieces


30


,


32


to align the top and bottom pieces


30


,


32


. The locator surfaces


33


A,


33


B also form a seal between the top and bottom pieces


30


,


32


to contain exhaust gases within the blower housing


24


. The top piece


30


is molded with the center mount


26


recessed to receive the blower motor (not shown). The side wall


28


, top piece


30


, and bottom piece


32


form a volute


34


for the blower housing


24


. When the blower


20


is energized, an impeller (not shown), operably connected to a shaft of the blower motor (not shown), rotates in the volute


34


to draw exhaust gases through an inlet hole


35


in the center of the bottom piece


32


and to compress gases in the volute


34


. The pressurized exhaust gases are directed into a discharge pipe


36


that extends outward and away from the blower


20


and the furnace


22


. Mounting feet


38


for attaching the blower


20


to the blower mounting surface


21


of the furnace


22


are provided on the side wall


28


of the blower housing


24


.





FIG. 1B

shows the blower


20


arranged on the blower mounting surface


21


in the furnace


22


. The blower housing


24


is positioned to allow the impeller (not shown) to draw exhaust gases directly from the combustion chamber or combustion tubes (not shown) into the blower housing


24


. The discharge pipe


36


is coupled to an exhaust pipe


39


using a gasket


40


to vent the exhaust gases to atmosphere. The top piece


30


is attached to the blower mounting surface


21


using mechanical fasteners


41


through holes


42


on the mounting feet


38


. The mechanical fasteners


41


have a screw head driving end


43


and an opposite driven end


44


spaced from the driving end


43


by a shaft


45


. The screw head driving end


43


engages a seating surface


46


on the mounting foot


38


and holds the top piece


30


onto the blower mounting surface


21


. The bottom piece


32


is preferably held in position between the top piece


30


and the blower mounting surface


21


by compression from the mechanical fasteners


41


.




Typically, the impeller rotates at a high rate of speed to generate sufficient air flow into the combustion chamber and combustion tubes and to draw the exhaust gases out into the exhaust pipe


39


. As shown in

FIG. 1B

, the blower motor


47


is positioned directly atop of the blower housing


24


and the shaft (not shown) of the blower motor


47


is directly coupled to the impeller (not shown) in the blower housing


24


. The high speed rotation of the impeller and the motor


47


tends to create noise and other vibrations that are transferred directly into the blower housing


24


. As shown in

FIG. 1B

, the blower


20


is directly mounted onto the blower mounting surface


21


of the furnace


22


. Therefore, noise and vibrations are transmitted directly to the blower mounting surface


21


in the furnace


22


. This vibration results in unwanted noise being transmitted into the associated structures of the furnace


22


such as ducting where the noise can be transmitted throughout the house. The vibration also contributes to decreased life span of the blower


20


.




In the prior art to combat these problems, the installation of the blower housing onto the furnace mounting surface generally involved installing cushioning mounts


48


and other vibration absorbing gaskets between the blower housing


24


and the blower mounting surface


21


.




What is needed to overcome the disadvantages of the prior art is to form a blower housing which has sound dampening qualities integrally formed in the housing to reduce noise and vibration transmitted from the motor and impeller into the blower mounting surface. Such a blower housing would have the vibration absorbing material integrally formed in the housing so that gaskets and other additional cushioning devices are not needed. Moreover, such a blower housing would be sufficiently sturdy to withstand high temperature exhaust gases passing through it.




SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




In order to overcome the disadvantages of the prior art, the blower of the present invention includes a blower housing having a resilient bottom piece and a rigid top piece covering over the bottom piece to enclose an interior of the blower housing. The bottom piece of the blower housing directly abuts the exterior mounting surface of the furnace. The top piece of the blower housing supports the blower motor.




The bottom piece of the blower housing may be made from a vibration dampening material. Materials such as sanoprene and viram are suitable for dampening and attenuating vibrations and withstanding the heat from the products of combustion. The top piece of the blower housing may be made from a material such as polypropylene to provide a rigid foundation for the blower motor and for material compatibility the bottom piece.




The top piece of the blower housing includes an annular lower support portion for supporting the blower motor and an annular upper portion extending above and around the lower portion. The upper portion of the top piece of the blower housing has an outer peripheral edge and at least one lug extending outward beyond outer peripheral edge. The bottom piece of the blower housing has a flange that aligns with the lug of the top piece when the blower housing is assembled. The flange interlocks with the lug to detachably engage the top piece to the bottom piece. The top piece, side wall and bottom piece form a volute for the blower housing.




The lug on the top piece has a lug hole to receive a mechanical fastener. The flange on the bottom piece preferably has a flange hole that receives the mechanical fastener therethrough when the mechanical fastener joins the top piece to the blower mounting surface of the furnace. The mechanical fastener preferably attaches the blower housing to a blower mounting surface of the furnace such that the blower housing is positioned between a blower motor and exterior mounting surface of the furnace. The mechanical fastener has a driven end and a driving end. The driven end is inserted into the blower mounting surface of the furnace and the driving end is located above the lug on the upper portion of the top piece.




In another aspect of the present invention, the blower housing is provided with an improved seal between the top and bottom pieces. Preferably, the blower housing includes a bottom piece having a disk shaped bottom portion with an outer perimeter border. The bottom piece has an upstanding annular wall extending outward from the bottom disk around the outer perimeter border. The upstanding annular wall has an interior surface that forms a portion of the volute for the blower housing and an exterior surface surrounding the interior surface. The upstanding wall has an annular end axially opposite the bottom disk portion that extends between the exterior and interior surfaces of the upstanding wall. The annular end has an annular lip axially spaced from the annular end.




The top piece fits over the bottom piece to enclose the volute and form a casing for the blower. The top piece has a lower portion recessed into the top piece and extending into the casing. The lower portion receives the blower motor. The top piece has an upper portion which extends around and above the lower portion. The upper portion has a primary groove and an outer peripheral edge surrounding the primary groove. The primary groove has an annular outer side wall and an annular inner side wall spaced apart by an annular groove wall. The groove wall preferably has a secondary groove intermediate the coterminous edges of the groove wall and inner and outer side walls. The inner side wall of the primary groove abuts the interior surface of the upstanding wall of the bottom piece and the annular lip of the bottom piece is received in the secondary groove when the casing is assembled.




The inner side wall of the primary groove preferably has an annular rib extending outward from the side wall into the primary groove. The interior surface of the upstanding annular wall preferably has an annular notch on its interior surface. In this arrangement, the annular notch receives the annular rib in the primary groove when the bottom piece is fully assembly with the top piece. This construction provides a positive indicator of sealing between the top and bottom pieces when the blower housing is assembled.




To provide further structural integrity to the top and bottom pieces when the casing is assembled, the lug on the top piece is preferably provided with a depending leg. The depending leg extends downward and away from the outer peripheral edge of the top piece and is received in the flange hole.




The blower housing of the present invention may be installed on a furnace without the use of sound absorbing or other vibration dampening devices. The two piece assembly of the blower housing facilitates assembly of the blower housing and installation of the blower housing onto the furnace mounting surface.











BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS




Further objects and features of the invention are revealed in the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment of the invention and in the drawings wherein:





FIG. 1

is an exploded, perspective view of a blower of the prior art;





FIG. 1B

is a side view of the blower of the prior art installed on a mounting structure of a furnace;





FIG. 2

is a side view of a blower of the present invention installed on the mounting structure of the furnace;





FIG. 3

is a perspective view of a blower housing of the blower of

FIG. 2

;





FIG. 4

is a top, perspective view of a top piece of the blower housing of

FIG. 3

;





FIG. 5

is a bottom, perspective view of the top piece of

FIG. 4

;





FIG. 6

is a top, perspective view of a bottom piece of the blower housing of

FIG. 3

;





FIG. 7

is a bottom, perspective view of the bottom piece of

FIG. 6

;





FIG. 8

is a cross-sectional view of the top piece installed with the bottom piece to form the blower housing of

FIG. 3

; and





FIG. 9

is a cross-sectional view of the top piece installed with the bottom piece to form the blower housing of FIG.


3


.











Corresponding reference numerals indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views of the drawings.




DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT





FIG. 2

shows the blower of the present invention installed in a furnace. The blower


50


includes a blower motor


52


and a blower housing


54


. The blower housing


54


has an annular upstanding wall


56


extending between a top piece


58


and bottom piece


60


. The bottom piece


60


is mounted on a blower mounting surface


21


in the furnace


22


, or the furnace bonnet, using mechanical fasteners


41


. The driving end


43


of each of the fasteners


41


seats against the top most portion of top piece


58


and the driven end


44


is installed in the blower mounting surface


21


on the furnace


22


. In the arrangement shown in

FIG. 2

, the bottom piece


60


is preferably held in position between the top piece


58


and the blower mounting surface


21


by compression from the mechanical fasteners


41


.




As shown in

FIG. 2

, the blower


50


is mounted on a blower mounting surface


21


on the furnace


22


where the blower housing


54


is positioned to allow the impeller (not shown) to draw exhaust gases directly from the combustion chamber or combustion tubes (not shown) into the blower housing


54


. A discharge pipe


61


is coupled to an exhaust pipe


62


using a gasket


64


to vent the exhaust gases to atmosphere.





FIG. 3

shows a perspective view of the blower housing


54


with top piece assembled on the bottom piece


60


. The top piece


58


covers over the bottom piece


60


to tightly enclose the blower housing


54


and prevent exhaust gases from leaking from the blower housing


54


during operation. The top piece


58


has a lower portion


66


that is recessed into the top piece


58


and extends into the blower housing casing


54


. The diameter of the recessed lower portion


66


is sized to accommodate the blower motor


52


. The lower portion


66


has mounting fittings


68


for securing the blower motor to the top piece


58


. The lower portion


66


may also have screw fittings


70


for securing the motor to the top piece


58


. At the center of the lower portion


66


, a through hole


72


is provided to allow a shaft (not shown) from the blower motor to pass into the interior of the blower housing


54


to be coupled with the impeller (not shown). The top piece


58


has an upper portion


74


which extends around and above the lower portion


66


and includes a seating surface


76


for the mechanical fasteners


41


.





FIGS. 4 and 5

provide greater detail of the top piece


58


. The upper portion


74


of the top piece


58


has an outer peripheral edge


78


and lugs


80


extending radially outward beyond the outer peripheral edge


78


. The lugs


80


preferably have arcuate lug holes


82


formed therein to allow minor positioning of the blower housing


54


on the blower mounting surface


21


of the furnace


22


when the blower


50


is installed on the furnace


22


. Preferably, each of the lugs


80


has a depending leg


84


extending downward and away from the outer peripheral edge


78


of the top piece


58


. Each leg


84


preferably has an exterior surface


86


and an arcuate interior surface


88


which gives each leg


84


a generally concave aspect when it is installed on the blower housing


54


. The arcuate interior surface


88


of the depending leg


84


preferably has a circumferential guide portion


90


that conforms to the upstanding annular wall


56


on the bottom piece


60


. The circumferential guide portion


90


on the depending leg


84


supports and aligns the top piece


58


with the bottom piece


60


during operation. The depending leg


84


bears some of the weight of the blower motor when the blower


50


is installed on the blower mounting surface


21


of the furnace


22


.




As shown in

FIG. 5

, an annular locating groove


92


is provided around the upper portion


74


radially inward of the outer peripheral edge


78


. The annular locating groove


92


is positioned a sufficient distance away from the outer peripheral edge


78


, lug hole


82


, and depending leg


84


to so as not to interfere with the seal between the top piece


58


and bottom piece


60


when the blower housing


54


is assembled. Greater detail of the annular locating groove


92


and seal between the top and bottom pieces


58


,


60


will be discussed later with reference to FIG.


8


.





FIGS. 6 and 7

provide detail of the bottom piece


60


of the blower housing


54


. The bottom piece


60


has a bottom disk portion


94


with a center inlet hole


95


that allows the blower


50


to draw exhaust gases into the housing


54


during blower operation. The bottom disk portion


94


has an outer perimeter border


96


and the upstanding annular wall


56


extends outward and away from the outer perimeter border


96


. The underside of the bottom disk portion


94


of the blower housing


54


is generally flat so that it may be mounted flush against the blower mounting surface


21


of the furnace


22


. The upstanding annular wall


56


has an interior surface


98


which defines a portion of a volute


100


of the blower housing


54


and an exterior surface


102


that surrounds the interior surface


98


. The discharge pipe


61


extends outward and away from the annular wall


56


and communicates with the volute


100


to direct pressurized exhaust gases from the blower housing


54


. The discharge pipe


61


may have a boss end


105


to allow connection to the exhaust pipe


62


, as required. Preferably, the bottom disk portion


94


, the upstanding wall


56


, and the discharge pipe


61


are formed monolithically.




The bottom piece


58


is provided with a plurality of mounting flanges


106


circumferentially spaced around the outer perimeter border


96


of the bottom disk portion


94


. Each of the mounting flanges


106


extends radially outward from the outer perimeter border


96


and has a flange hole


108


therethrough. Each of the mounting flanges


106


preferably aligns with a corresponding lug


80


on the top piece


58


. The alignment of the lugs


80


and flanges


106


may be such that the top piece


58


and bottom piece


60


are assembled in only one orientation. Similar to the lug hole


82


, the flange hole


108


is also preferably arcuate to allow minor adjustment of the blower


50


when the blower


50


is mounted on the blower mounting surface


21


of the furnace


22


. To maximize the diameter of the upstanding annular wall


56


, an inner edge


110


of the flange hole


108


may be formed flush with the exterior surface


102


of the upstanding annular wall


56


.




Preferably, the flange hole


108


is also formed to receive the depending leg


84


of the top piece


58


when the blower


50


is assembled. As shown in

FIG. 9

, the flange hole


108


preferably has a step recess


112


which is shaped to receive the depending leg


84


from the lug


80


of the top piece


58


and a through hole


113


. The through hole


113


allows the mechanical fastener to be directed from the lug


80


and lug hole


82


on the top piece


58


to the blower mounting surface


21


on the furnace


22


when the blower


50


is secured to the blower mounting surface


21


on the furnace


22


. The step recess


112


positively aligns the depending leg


84


and captures a bottom portion of the circumferential guide portion


90


of the depending leg


84


so that the top piece


58


and bottom piece


60


remain positively engaged during operation of the blower


50


. It is preferred that the bottom piece


60


be held in position by the compressive forces exerted by the mechanical fastener


40


on the top piece


58


. The step recess


112


bears some of this compressive force and stabilizes the position of the bottom piece


60


adjacent the blower mounting surface


21


of the furnace


22


.




Details of the attachment between the top and bottom pieces are best shown in FIG.


8


. The upstanding annular wall


56


of the bottom piece


60


has an upper section


114


that cooperates with the annular groove


92


in the upper portion


74


of the top piece


58


. The upper section


114


includes an annular end


116


that extends between the interior and exterior surfaces


98


,


102


of the upstanding wall


56


. The annular end


116


has a lip


118


extending axially outward from the bottom disk portion


94


intermediate the coterminous edges of the annular end


116


and the interior and exterior surfaces


98


,


102


of the upstanding annular wall


56


. Preferably, the annular lip


118


has a triangular shaped cross section to allow a locking-type fit between the top and bottom pieces


58


,


60


. The upper section


114


also includes an annular notch


120


extending around the interior surface


98


of the upstanding wall


56


.




The annular groove


92


formed in the upper portion


74


of the top piece


58


includes a primary groove


122


and a secondary groove


124


. The primary groove


122


includes an annular inner side wall


126


and an annular outer side wall


128


spaced apart from the annular inner side wall


126


by an annular groove wall


130


. When the top piece


58


is installed on the bottom piece


60


, the annular inner side wall


126


abuts the interior surface


98


of the upstanding annular wall


56


, and the annular outer side wall


128


faces the exterior surface


102


of the upstanding annular wall


56


. The annular outer side wall


128


may be formed with a lead-in taper


132


to allow the top and bottom pieces


58


,


60


to more easily fit together.




The primary groove


122


also includes an annular rib


134


axially spaced below the annular groove wall


130


. The annular rib


134


cooperates with the annular notch


120


in the upstanding annular wall


56


of the bottom piece


58


to form a first sealing area


136


for the blower housing


54


. When the top piece


58


is fully installed on the bottom piece


60


, the top piece


58


will snap fit onto the bottom piece


60


as the annular rib


134


slides across the interior surface


98


of the upstanding annular wall


56


and into the annular notch


120


. The rib


134


and notch


120


provide a positive lock indication for a blower assembly operator when assembling the blower housing


54


during manufacture.




The secondary groove


124


in the annular groove


92


on the upper portion


74


of the top piece


58


is formed internal to primary groove


122


. The secondary groove


124


is formed intermediate the coterminous edges of the annular groove wall


130


and inner and outer side walls


126


,


128


. The secondary groove


124


has a triangular shaped cross section that matches the geometry of the annular lip


118


on the upstanding wall


56


of the bottom piece


60


. The secondary groove


124


provides a secondary sealing area


138


for the blower housing.




In assembling the blower housing


54


into the arrangement shown in

FIG. 3

, the top piece


58


may be installed with the bottom piece


60


to create the blower housing


54


of the present invention. The upper section


114


of the annular wall


56


of the bottom piece


60


may be inserted into the annular groove


92


on the underside of the top piece


58


and positively locked in place to seal the blower housing


54


.




The depending legs


84


of the lug


80


of the top piece


58


may be inserted into the step recess


112


formed in the flange hole


108


such that the circumferential guide portion


90


of the interior arcuate surface


88


of the depending lug


84


mounts flush against the exterior surface


102


of the upstanding annular wall


56


of the bottom piece


60


and a bottom portion of the leg


84


is nested within the recess


112


of the flange hole


108


. Preferably, the lengths of the depending legs


84


are sized such that when the upper section


114


of the annular wall


56


is fully inserted into the annular groove


92


in the top piece


58


, the leg


84


is captured by the flange hole


108


. The lugs


80


and matching flanges


106


may have irregular angular placement along each of the respective top and bottom pieces


58


,


60


to provide a keying assembly for the blower housing


54


such that the top and bottom pieces


58


,


60


may be assembled in only one orientation.




Each of the top and bottom pieces


58


,


60


may be formed from materials that are capable of withstanding relatively high temperatures from the exhaust gases being expelled from the blower housing


54


. To provide vibration dampening capability, the bottom piece may be made from viram or sanoprene. The top piece of the blower housing may be constructed from a polypropylene material that is sufficiently rigid and sturdy to prevent deformation under the weight of the blower motor during high temperature operation. Polypropylene is sufficiently rigid and does not require any stiffening panels as might be otherwise required should the entire blower housing itself be made from a rubber material. The polypropylene is also sufficiently rigid to prevent misalignment of the impeller during high temperature operation of the blower and furnace.




Although the Figures shows the bottom piece formed with the upstanding wall and discharge pipe extending from the upstanding wall, the top piece may be formed with an upstanding wall and the discharge pipe extending from the upstanding similar to blower housing shown in FIG.


1


A. Similarly, each of the top and bottom pieces may have a portion of the upstanding wall and a portion of the discharge pipe formed therein. The primary consideration for forming the bottom piece is to provide vibration dampening material between the motor and impeller and the blower mounting surface of the furnace. The bottom piece must also be constructed in such a way to resist deformation by the weight of the motor during high temperature operation so that the radial clearance between the impeller and the bottom piece is maintained.




As is apparent to those skilled in the art, by locating the lugs


80


on the upper portion


74


of the blower housing


54


, the diameter of the upstanding annular wall


56


can be increased. By moving the driving end


42


of the mechanical fastener


40


above the lug


80


on the top piece


58


, the clearance between the screw head driving end


42


and the upstanding annular wall


56


of the blower housing


50


can be eliminated. The mechanical fastener


40


used to secure the blower housing to the blower mounting surface of the furnace may run directly down the exterior surface


102


of the upstanding annular wall


56


because there is sufficient clearance on the upper portion


74


of the top piece


58


for the screw head driving end


42


of the mechanical fastener


40


.




Additionally, since the top piece


58


snap fits with the bottom piece


60


to create a sealed unit, the blower housing more effectively contains exhaust gases. By locating the lugs


80


on the outer peripheral edge


78


of the upper portion


74


of the top piece


58


, the upper portion


74


of the top piece


58


may flex inward such that the normally tapered outer side wall


128


of the primary groove


122


contacts the exterior surface


102


of the upstanding wall


56


. Thus, the combination of the primary seal


136


and internal secondary seal


138


provides improved sealing characteristics for the blower housing


54


not found in the prior art.




Although the description of the blower housing presented herein refers to a primary and secondary seals formed on respective portions of the top and bottom pieces, it should be noted that the location and combination of the components comprising the primary and secondary seals may reversed and positioned on the other of the top and bottom pieces of the blower housing.




By constructing the bottom piece of the blower housing with a sound dampening material, excessive noise and vibration being transmitted by the blower motor and impeller is dampened and attenuated before reaching the blower mounting surface of the furnace. This prevents the noise from being transmitted into associated duct work throughout the house. The lower noise and vibrations increases the life of the blower.




Various other changes to the preferred embodiment of the invention described above may be envisioned by those of ordinary skill in the art. However, those changes and modification should be considered as part of the invention which is limited only by the scope of the claims appended hereto and their legal equivalents.



Claims
  • 1. A gas moving system comprising:a gas chamber structure having an blower mounting surface; a blower motor; and a blower housing having a resilient bottom piece and a rigid top piece assembling with the bottom piece to define an interior of the blower housing, the interior of the blower housing having an impeller for moving gases, the bottom piece of the blower housing directly abutting the blower mounting surface of the gas chamber structure, the top piece supporting the blower motor.
  • 2. The gas moving system of claim 1, wherein:the bottom piece of the blower housing includes the volute and the discharge pipe.
  • 3. The gas moving system of claim 2, wherein:the volute and discharge pipe are monolithically formed with the bottom piece of the blower housing.
  • 4. The gas moving system of claim 1, wherein:the bottom piece is made from one of the group consisting of sanoprene, and viram, and the top piece is made from polypropylene.
  • 5. The gas moving system of claim 1, wherein:the bottom piece dampens vibration from the blower motor and impeller.
  • 6. The gas moving system of claim 5, wherein:the bottom piece limits the vibrations from being transmitted to the gas chamber structure.
  • 7. The gas moving system of claim 1, wherein:the top piece and bottom piece of the blower housing are keyed to allow assembly of the top and bottom pieces in a single configuration.
  • 8. The gas moving system of claim 1, wherein:one of the top piece and bottom piece has an annular groove and the other of the top piece and bottom piece has a matching sealing surface that cooperates with the groove, the annular groove receives the sealing surface when the top piece is assembled with the bottom piece to enclose the interior of the blower housing.
  • 9. The gas moving system of claim 1, wherein:one of the top piece and bottom piece has a lug located on its outer periphery and the other of the top piece and bottom piece has a matching flange located on its outer periphery, the flange and lug are adapted to detachably engage together when the top piece is installed on the bottom piece.
  • 10. The gas moving system of claim 1, wherein:the lug has a lug hole therethrough to receive a mechanical fastener, the mechanical fastener attaches the blower motor directly to the blower mounting surface of the gas chamber structure with the top and bottom pieces arranged between the blower mounting surface of the gas chamber and the blower motor.
  • 11. A blower housing comprising:a casing having a bottom piece with an upstanding wall and a discharge pipe and a top piece attaching to the bottom piece and covering over the upstanding wall to seal the casing, the bottom piece being made of a vibration absorbing material, the top piece being made of a rigid material.
  • 12. The blower housing of claim 11, wherein:the bottom piece is made from one of the group consisting of sanoprene and viram, and the top piece is made from polypropylene.
  • 13. The blower housing of claim 11, wherein:the top piece and bottom piece of the casing are keyed to allow assembly of the top and bottom pieces in a single configuration.
  • 14. The blower housing of claim 11, wherein:one of the top piece and bottom piece has a plurality of lugs located on its outer periphery and the other of the top piece and bottom piece has a plurality of matching flanges located on its outer periphery, each of the flanges has a hole therethrough that is adapted to receive its respective lug when the casing is assembled.
  • 15. The blower housing of claim 11 further comprising:an annular groove on the top piece being configured to receive a portion of the upstanding annular wall when the casing is assembled.
  • 16. A blower comprising:a casing having a resilient bottom piece and a rigid top piece assembling with the bottom piece to define an interior of the casing, the casing having a volute and a discharge pipe and the interior of the casing having a impeller to compress gas against the volute and direct the gas into the discharge pipe; and a motor being supported by the top piece and operably driving the impeller.
  • 17. The blower of claim 16 further comprising:an annular upstanding wall extending axially outward from the bottom piece of the casing, the annular upstanding wall having the discharge pipe extending outward therefrom.
  • 18. The blower of claim 16, wherein:the upstanding wall and the discharge pipe are monolithically formed with the bottom piece.
  • 19. The blower of claim 18, wherein:the bottom piece is made from one of the group consisting of rubber, sanoprene, and viram, and the top piece is made from polypropylene.
  • 20. The blower of claim 16, wherein:the bottom piece dampens vibration from the motor and impeller.
  • 21. The blower of claim 19, wherein:the top piece and bottom piece of the casing are keyed to allow assembly of the top and bottom pieces in a single configuration.
  • 22. The blower of claim 16, wherein:the casing has external lugs with lug holes therethrough on its outer periphery; and the top piece is connected directly to an external device by mechanical fasteners that pass through the lug holes whereby the bottom piece is positioned between the top piece and the external device.
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5443364 Mistry et al. Aug 1995 A
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