Patent Grant
11684225
This application claims priority to Japanese Patent Application No. 2018-174740, filed on Sep. 19, 2018, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
The present invention relates to a portable blower having a blowout pipe for blowing out an air flow.
A portable blower is a tool in which a fan thereof is driven using a prime mover such as an engine or an electric motor equipped therein, to perform, using an air flow ejected from the fan, a cleaning work collecting fallen leaves, dust and the like or a collecting work collecting chopped grass and the like. The basic constitution of the portable blower is such that a portable body, which may be a backpack type or a handheld type, is equipped with the above-mentioned prime mover and the fan, and a blowout pipe for blowing out the air flow is connected to a fan case of the fan.
In a conventional portable blower, a bent base portion of a blowout pipe, the base portion having an operation lever, is connected to an outlet port of the fan case opened downward. Holding the operation lever, an operator of the portable blower performs the works described above by blowing out an air flow while changing the direction of the blowout port of the blowout pipe.
[PTL 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2017-8685.
The conventional portable blower described above has a structure in which, since the direction of the blowout port of the blowout pipe is changed repeatedly during a task, the bent base portion of the blowout pipe is connected slidably to the outlet port of the fan case. In this type of portable blower, attempting to increase the pressure and volume of the air flow to be blown out leads to an increase in the output of the prime mover and an increase in the diameter of the blowout pipe, resulting in enlargement of the main body. Enlargement of the main body leads to an increase in the weight of the portable blower, which eventually increases the physical burden on the operator and consequently drops the productivity. For this reason, reducing the weight of the main body is required in order to reduce the workload.
As a way to reduce the weight of the main body in order to meet this requirement, use of a fan case made of a fiber-reinforced resin of low specific gravity is considered. However, a fan case made of a fiber-reinforced resin of low specific gravity easily causes some new problems, for example, the connection between the outlet port of the fan case and the base portion of the blowout pipe (“pipe base portion,” hereinafter) is easily worn due to a sliding motion of the pipe base portion with respect to the outlet port, and as a result, a fitting portion of the connection, for example, becomes shaved, causing the blowout pipe to wobble with respect to the fan case, thereby reducing workability or, in some cases, a failure of falling off of the blowout pipe is easily occurred.
The present invention was contrived in order to address such problems. Specifically, in reducing the weight of the fan case for the purpose of reducing the workload, the present invention aims to prevent wobbling and removal of the blowout pipe having the pipe base portion connected to the outlet port of the fan case.
In order to achieve this object, the present invention includes the following constitution.
A portable blower including a portable main body in which a pipe base portion of a blowout pipe is connected to an outlet port of a fan case, wherein, the fan case is formed of a fiber-reinforced resin of low specific gravity, the pipe base portion has a bent shape and is connected slidably to a pipe connecting portion of the outlet port, and a slide-contact-receiving member that is formed of a wear-resistant material is attached to the pipe connecting portion at a slide-contact point of the pipe base portion.
According to the portable blower characterized as above, because the fan case is formed of a fiber-reinforced resin of low specific gravity, the weight of the main body can be reduced, thereby reducing the workload of the portable blower which can be used for tasks while carrying the main body on back. In addition, even when a task involving sliding of the pipe base portion of the blowout pipe is repeatedly performed, attaching the slide-contact-receiving member formed of a wear-resistant material to the slide-contact point of the pipe base portion in the pipe connecting portion can prevent such problems as wobbling and removal of the blowout pipe attributed to wear of the pipe connecting portion.
An embodiment of the present invention is now described hereinafter with reference to the drawings. In the following description, like reference numerals shown in different drawings represent parts with like functions, and redundant descriptions of the drawings are omitted accordingly.
As shown in
In the portable blower 1, a pipe base portion 7 of a blowout pipe 6 is connected to the outlet port 5A of the fan case 5. As shown by the arrow in
A space in which air flows is formed inside the fan case 5 by sticking a pair of split bodies together. Similarly, the pipe connecting portion 10 of the fan case 5 is formed by a pair of split bodies divided into two, wherein the pipe base portion 7 is clamped by this pair of split bodies and one end portion of the pipe base portion 7 is connected to the pipe connecting portion 10. A pipe main body of the blowout pipe 6 or a flexible pipe portion is connected to the other end portion of the pipe base portion 7 formed in a bent shape.
The fan case 5 and the pipe connecting portion 10 of the fan case 5 are each formed of a fiber-reinforced resin of low specific gravity in order to reduce the weight of the main body. More specifically, carbon fiber reinforced polypropylene having a specific gravity of 1.1 or less, such as PP-CF20, can be used as the material for forming the fan case 5 and the pipe connecting portion 10.
A holding portion 10A to which the slide-contact-receiving member 20 is attached is formed inside the pipe connecting portion 10. Also, a projecting portion 10B is provided inside the pipe connecting portion 10. The projecting portion 10B is formed partially along a circumferential direction of the pipe base portion 7 connected to the pipe connecting portion 10, and a joining portion (screw hole) 10C of the split bodies of the pipe connecting portion 10 is provided on the projecting portion 10B. A section excluding the projecting portion 10B is the holding portion 10A, and the slide-contact-receiving member 20 is attached to the section inside the pipe connecting portion 10 excluding the projecting portion 10B.
In the examples shown in
The slide-contact-receiving member 20 further includes a fitting portion 20B for holding the pipe base portion 7 in a retaining manner. As shown in
As shown by the arrow in
The slide-contact-receiving member 20 is formed of a wear-resistant material. Examples of the wear-resistant material include glass fiber reinforced polyamide. Although the slide-contact-receiving member 20 can be constituted by the pair of split members described above, the slide-contact-receiving member 20 can also be constituted by a C-ring-type integrated body, as shown in
As described above, according to the portable blower 1 of the embodiment of the present invention, the weight of the main body can be reduced by forming the fan case 5 from a fiber-reinforced resin of low specific gravity, thereby reducing the workload of the portable blower 1 which is used for tasks while carrying the main body thereof. Furthermore, even when a task involving sliding of the pipe base portion 7 of the blowout pipe 6 is repeatedly performed, attaching the slide-contact-receiving member 20 formed of the wear-resistant material to the slide-contact point of the pipe base portion 7 in the pipe connecting portion 10 can prevent such a problem as removal of the blowout pipe 6 attributed to wear of the pipe connecting portion 10.
In the portable blower 1, the pipe connecting portion 10 is constituted of a pair of split bodies for clamping the pipe base portion 7, the projecting portion 10B projecting toward the inside of the pipe connecting portion 10 is formed partially along the circumferential direction of the pipe base portion 7, the projecting portion 10B being provided with the joining portion 10C of the split bodies in the pipe connecting portion 10, and the slide-contact-receiving member 20 is attached to the section inside the pipe connecting portion 10 excluding the projecting portion 10B.
According to this configuration, the slide-contact-receiving member 20 can be attached inside the pipe connecting portion 10 including the joining portion 10C, without shifting the pipe connecting portion 10 to the outside of the fan case 5. In a case where the slide-contact-receiving member 20 is provided entirely on the inside of the pipe connecting portion 10 without providing the projecting portion 10B projecting partially toward the inside of the pipe connecting portion 10, the pipe connecting portion 10 including the joining portion 10C inevitably needs to be shifted to the outside of the slide-contact-receiving member 20. In such a case, the position of the pipe base portion 7 to be connected is shifted to the outside of the fan case 5, causing the blowout pipe 6 to swing left and right at a position away from the center of gravity of the main body (i.e., away from the body of the operator), and consequently increasing the workload. However, the portable blower 1 can prevent such problems, achieving favorable workability.
In the portable blower 1, the slide-contact-receiving member 20 can easily be attached to the pipe connecting portion 10 by configuring the slide-contact-receiving member 20 into the pair of split members corresponding to the pair of split bodies of the pipe connecting portion 10 as described above or by configuring the slide-contact-receiving member 20 into a C-ring shape as shown in
The fitting portion 20B that is fitted to the fitting projection 7A projecting outward along the circumferential direction of the pipe base portion 7 is formed in the slide-contact-receiving member 20. Thus, wear of the fitting portion 20B attributed to a sliding motion of the pipe base portion 7 can be prevented by the wear-resistant material, and removal of the pipe base portion 7 from the pipe connecting portion 10 can be prevented by keeping the fitting projection 7A fitted in the fitting portion 20B.
In the portable blower 1, the slide-contact-receiving member 20 includes the engaging portion 20A coming into engagement with the end portion of the projecting portion 10B, and the holding portion 10A of the pipe connecting portion 10 is provided with the detent projection 10D for locking the slide-contact-receiving member 20. Therefore, the slide-contact-receiving member 20 moves as the pipe base portion 7 slides with respect to the pipe connecting portion 10, and this movement of the slide-contact-receiving member 20 can prevent wear of the holding portion 10A.
In the portable blower 1, in a case where the slide-contact-receiving member 20 wears, the slide-contact-receiving member 20 only needs to be replaced, keeping part replacement to the minimum at the time of maintenance. Thus, when using the portable blower 1 such that the pipe base portion 7 is slid repeatedly, the whole fan case does not need to be replaced.
Although the slide-contact-receiving member 20 is attached as a separate member to the fan case, the slide-contact-receiving member 20 is placed only in the slide-contact point of the pipe base portion 7. Therefore, an increase in the weight of the entire fan case can be suppressed to a minimum. In the configuration shown in
In the portable blower 1, the base end portion of the pipe base portion 7 is provided with the taper portion 7B, the inner surface of which expands in diameter toward the base end thereof, and the storing recess 10E for storing the taper portion 7B is provided inside the pipe connecting portion 10. According to this configuration, the air flow blown out of the fan case 5 can be allowed to smoothly flow into the pipe base end portion 7, and entry of dust into the slide-contact part between the outer periphery of the pipe base portion 7 and the slide-contact-receiving member 20 can be inhibited. Consequently, wear of the pipe connecting portion 10 attributed to slide contact of the pipe base portion 7 can be further reduced.
Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described above in detail with reference to the drawings, specific constitutions of the present invention are not limited thereto, and design modifications and the like not departing from the gist of the present invention are also included in the present invention.
1 Portable blower
2 Machine frame (backpack base)
3 Fan
4 Prime mover
5 Fan case
5A Outlet port
6 Blowout pipe
7 Pipe base portion
7A Fitting projection
7B Taper portion
10 Pipe connecting portion
10A Holding portion
10B Projecting portion
10C Joining portion (joining hole)
10D Detent projection
10E Storing recess
20 Slide-contact-receiving member
20A Engaging portion
20B Fitting portion
21 O-ring
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-174740 | Sep 2018 | JP | national |
| Number | Name | Date | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1583528 | Clements | May 1926 | A |
| 5806133 | Iida | Sep 1998 | A |
| 20040216262 | Taomo | Nov 2004 | A1 |
| Number | Date | Country |
|---|---|---|
| 2017008685 | Jan 2017 | JP |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20200085265 A1 | Mar 2020 | US |
