초록 ▼

An air distribution blower housing for an air handler such as a residential furnace is designed with a volute-shaped outer wall that has an exponentially increasing expansion angle in the direction of air flow through the blower housing for at least a portion of the volute-shaped outer wall length.

An air distribution blower housing for an air handler such as a residential furnace is designed with a volute-shaped outer wall that has an exponentially increasing expansion angle in the direction of air flow through the blower housing for at least a portion of the volute-shaped outer wall length. This results in the blower housing having an enlarged air outlet opening that slows down and spreads out the air flow from the blower housing over a greater area of the furnace heat exchanger. The blower housing thereby enables less air pressure drop through the heat exchanger, which increases the efficiency of the blower motor operation. The design of the blower housing also efficiently turns the velocity head of the air flow through the housing to usable static air pressure at the housing air outlet.

대표청구항 ▼

1. An air handler comprising: an enclosure having an interior volume and a distribution air outlet opening on the enclosure that is adapted for communication with an air distribution system;a fan wheel in the enclosure interior volume, the fan wheel having an outer diameter dimension and a circumfer

1. An air handler comprising: an enclosure having an interior volume and a distribution air outlet opening on the enclosure that is adapted for communication with an air distribution system;a fan wheel in the enclosure interior volume, the fan wheel having an outer diameter dimension and a circumference dimension, the fan wheel having a center axis of rotation that defines mutually perpendicular axial and radial directions and the fan wheel being rotatable about the center axis of rotation in a rotation direction;a blower housing in the enclosure interior volume, the blower housing containing the fan wheel and having an air outlet opening, the air outlet opening having a minimum radial dimension, a ratio of the minimum radial dimension and the fan wheel outer diameter dimension being at least 0.73, the blower housing having an outer wall with a volute-shaped portion that extends from a first end of the volute-shaped portion around the fan wheel in the rotation direction to the second end of the volute-shaped portion, and the volute-shaped portion of the blower housing outer wall having first and second sections as the volute-shaped portion extends in the rotation direction around the fan wheel, where an expansion angle of the second section of the volute-shaped portion increases at an exponential rate of 1.5 to 2.1. 2. The air handler of claim 1, further comprising: the first section of the volute-shaped portion subtending an angle of at most 270° at the fan wheel center axis. 3. The air handler of claim 1, further comprising: the first section of the volute-shaped portion subtending an angle of 270° at the fan wheel center axis and the second section of the volute-shaped portion subtending an angle of 90° at the fan wheel center axis. 4. The air handler of claim 1, further comprising: an expansion angle of the first section of the volute-shaped portion increases at an exponential rate of 1.2 to 1.4. 5. The air handler of claim 1, further comprising: the air handler being a furnace. 6. The air handler of claim 1, further comprising: the volute-shaped portion of the outer wall consisting essentially of the first section and the second section of the volute-shaped portion. 7. An air handler comprising: an enclosure having an interior volume and a distribution air outlet opening on the enclosure that is adapted for communication with an air distribution system;a fan wheel in the enclosure interior volume, the fan wheel having an outer diameter dimension and a circumference dimension, the fan wheel having a center axis of rotation that defines mutually perpendicular axial and radial directions and the fan wheel being rotatable about the center axis of rotation in a rotation direction;a blower housing in the enclosure interior volume, the blower housing containing the fan wheel and having an air outlet opening, the air outlet opening having a minimum radial dimension, a ratio of the minimum radial dimension and the fan wheel outer diameter dimension being at least 0.73, the blower housing having an outer wall with a volute-shaped portion that extends from a first end of the volute-shaped portion around the fan wheel in the rotation direction to the second end of the volute-shaped portion, the first end of the volute-shaped portion being spaced radially a first distance dimension from the fan wheel axis of rotation and the second end of the volute-shaped portion being spaced radially a second distance dimension from the fan wheel axis of rotation that is larger than the first distance, and the volute-shaped portion of the blower housing outer wall having first and second sections with different generally increasing expansion angles as the volute-shaped portion extends in the rotation direction around the fan wheel, where the expansion angle of the second section of the volute-shaped portion increases at an exponential rate of 1.5 to 2.1. 8. The air handler of claim 7, further comprising: the first section of the volute-shaped portion extends over at most 270° of the fan wheel circumference dimension. 9. The air handler of claim 7, further comprising: the first section of the volute-shaped portion extends over 270° of the fan wheel circumference dimension and the second section of the volute-shaped portion extends over 90° of the fan wheel circumference dimension. 10. The air handler of claim 7, further comprising: the blower housing outer wall having a length that includes the volute-shaped portion and extends from a first end of the outer wall around the fan wheel in the rotation direction to the second end of the outer wall, the first end of the outer wall being spaced radially a first distance dimension from the fan wheel axis of rotation and the second end of the outer wall being spaced radially a second distance dimension from the fan wheel axis of rotation that is larger than the first distance; and,a ratio of the second distance dimension and the fan wheel outer diameter being at least 0.91. 11. The air handler of claim 7, further comprising: the air handler being a furnace. 12. The air handler of claim 7, further comprising: the volute-shaped portion of the outer wall consisting essentially of the first section and the second section of the volute-shaped portion. 13. An air handler comprising: an enclosure having an interior volume enclosed in opposite front and rear walls of the enclosure each having a width dimension, opposite left and right side walls of the enclosure each having a length dimension, and an opposite top and bottom of the enclosure, and a distribution air outlet opening on the enclosure that is adapted for communication of a distribution air stream from the enclosure to an exterior environment of the enclosure;a fan wheel in the enclosure interior volume, the fan wheel having an outer diameter dimension, an axis of rotation that defines mutually perpendicular axial and radial directions, and the fan wheel being rotatable in a rotation direction around the axis of rotation;a blower housing in the enclosure interior volume, the blower housing having an interior volume containing the fan wheel and an air flow outlet opening, the air outlet opening having a minimum radial dimension, a ratio of the minimum radial dimension and the fan wheel outer diameter dimension being at least 0.73, the blower housing having first and second side walls on axially opposite ends of the fan wheel, and the blower housing having an outer wall having a width dimension extending between the first and second side walls, the outer wall having a volute-shaped portion that spirals away from the fan wheel axis of rotation as it extends in the rotation direction from a first end of the volute-shaped portion at one side of the air flow outlet opening around the blower housing interior volume to a second end of the volute-shaped portion at an opposite side of the air flow outlet opening from the first end, the volute-shaped portion of the blower housing outer wall having first and second sections, the second section being spaced from the first end of the volute-shaped portion by the first section, and the second section of the volute-shaped portion having an expansion angle that increases at an exponential rate in a range of 1.5 to 2.1. 14. The air handler of claim 13, further comprising: the first section of the volute-shaped portion subtending an angle of at most 270° at the fan wheel center axis. 15. The air handler of claim 13, further comprising: the first section of the volute-shaped portion subtending an angle of 270° at the fan wheel center axis and the second section of the volute-shaped portion subtending an angle of 90° at the fan wheel center axis. 16. The air handler of claim 13, further comprising: an expansion angle of the first section of the volute-shaped portion increases at an exponential rate of 1.2 to 1.4. 17. The air handler of claim 13, further comprising: the air handler being a furnace. 18. The air handler of claim 13, further comprising: the volute-shaped portion of the outer wall consisting essentially of the first section and the second section of the volute-shaped portion. 19. The air handler of claim 13, further comprising: the outer wall having a straight portion that extends from the second end of the volute-shaped portion to the air flow outlet opening of the blower housing.