Patent Application
20090136363
Booster pumps are commonly used to drive pressure cleaners for swimming pool and spa applications. For such pressure-side pool cleaners to operate, the booster pump must increase the water pressure of the system to about 50 pounds per square inch (PSI) in order to have sufficient pressure at the cleaner to clean the pool. Typically, this pressure increase is achieved by using a single-stage centrifugal pump with a large diameter impeller.
A drawback of such systems is that to provide a pump capable of such increased pressures, the diameter of the impeller must be increased. Larger diameter impellers require additional power to drive them, leading to greater power consumption and reduced efficiency. Another drawback of such systems is that the motor for driving the pump as well as the pump itself are typically larger than desired. In general, smaller motor and pump assemblies are preferred because less power is required to operate them.
In some embodiments, a booster pump to pressurize fluid for use by a pool cleaner in a pool or spa is provided. The booster pump includes a front housing and a motor housing. The front housing includes an inlet to receive fluid from the pool or spa. A plurality of diffuser units are positioned in the front housing. The motor housing detachably couples to the front housing and has an outlet to provide fluid to the pool cleaner. A submersible motor is positioned in the motor housing and is operatively coupled to the diffuser units. A space is defined between an outer surface of the motor and an interior surface of the motor housing. A self-contained fluid flow path is formed from the inlet, through the diffuser units, and through the space to the outlet.
Other aspects of the disclosure will become apparent by consideration of the detailed description and accompanying drawings.
Before any embodiments of the disclosure are explained in detail, it is to be understood that the disclosure is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the following drawings. The disclosure is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or of being carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. The use of “including,” “comprising,” or “having” and variations thereof herein is meant to encompass the items listed thereafter and equivalents thereof as well as additional items. Unless specified or limited otherwise, the terms “mounted,” “connected,” “supported,” and “coupled” and variations thereof are used broadly and encompass both direct and indirect mountings, connections, supports, and couplings. Further, “connected” and “coupled” are not restricted to physical or mechanical connections or couplings.
In some embodiments, the booster pump 10 can include two diffuser units 26. Each diffuser unit 26 can form a “stage” of the booster pump 10 for pressurizing fluid. The booster pump 10 can have an increased number of diffuser units 26 or stages to provide the booster pump 10 with greater pressurizing capability. For example, the booster pump 10 can have one, two, three, four or more diffuser units 26. The front housing 12 shown in
In operation, the booster pump 10 is submerged into a body of fluid, such as a pool or spa. The footing 24 can be mounted to a wall or floor of the pool or spa to secure the booster pump 10 in position. The motor 30 is operated to drive the diffuser units 26 so as to draw fluid into the booster pump 10 through the inlet port 20, pressurize the fluid, and expel pressurized fluid through the outlet port 22. The drive shaft 32 rotates the impellers of the diffuser units 26, which creates a fluid current. The fluid current draws fluid into the booster pump 10 through the inlet port 20, as indicated by arrow 40 (as shown in
Because more diffuser units 26 can be selectively added to the booster pump 10 to provide increased pressurizing capabilities, the individual diffuser units 26 need not be sized so as to be capable of pressurizing fluid to the same degree. Thus, in one embodiment, the impellers of the diffuser units 26 are approximately 4 inches in diameter. Each additional diffuser unit 26 provides approximately a 175 percent to 200 percent increase in the pressurizing capability of the booster pump 10. However, because each diffuser unit 26 is relatively small in size, the power required to operate the motor 30 is minimally increased. In general, this is because the power required to overcome the inertia of a larger impeller is greater than the power required to overcome the hydraulic drag in the system. Therefore, by using multiple smaller diffuser units 26, a higher output pressure is achieved with less power consumption.
As the fluid passes over the motor 30, the fluid absorbs heat generated by the motor 30. The fluid continually flows over the motor 30 during operation of the booster pump 10, carrying heat generated by the motor 30 away from the motor 30 and acting as a cooling system for the motor 30. The heat carried away by the flowing fluid is dispersed into the remaining fluid in the pool or spa, which acts as a heat sink. In addition, as the fluid passes over the motor 30, the fluid absorbs and dampens motor vibration and noise.
In the embodiment illustrated in
Thus, the disclosure provides, among other things, a multi-stage hydraulic pump with a submersible motor. Various features and advantages of the disclosure are set forth in the following claims.
This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/999,960 filed on Oct. 23, 2007, the entire contents of which is incorporated herein by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60999960 | Oct 2007 | US |
