Information
-
Patent Grant
-
6435818
-
Patent Number
6,435,818
-
Date Filed
Wednesday, August 30, 200023 years ago
-
Date Issued
Tuesday, August 20, 200221 years ago
-
Inventors
-
Original Assignees
-
Examiners
- Lopez; F. Daniel
- Woo; Richard
-
CPC
-
US Classifications
Field of Search
US
- 415 119
- 415 206
- 415 203
- 415 200
- 415 2131
- 415 2141
- 417 42314
- 417 42315
- 417 312
-
International Classifications
-
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.
US Referenced Citations (11)