Acoustiflo, LLC

H.j. Heinz Company

Welbilt Inc.

David C Hustvedt

Anders O Hustvedt

James T Bauder

Jerry L Mills

Robert J Alvarez

James T Peel

James R Cowles

Particular embodiments of the inventive technology present a method for optimizing fan performance by, e.g., adjusting fan efficiency and/or acoustics to match, or more closely match, system design requirements or preferences. Embodiments may involve the selection of a size of centrifugal fanfrom the plurality that can fit inside a certain housing, forming a fan unit that provides an annular output; such selection may be made to achieve certain performance goals. Add-on appurtenances such as one or more of, e.g., an annular housing extension, fixed vanes, and acoustic treatment, may be used to tailor the fan unit to meet system requirements, e.g., regarding efficiency, acoustic/sonic performance (e.g., noise generated by the fan), and/or static efficiency.

Modular fan unit apparatus and methods

Embodiments of the inventive technology may include an automatically reconfigurable flow blocking damper to prevent back flow; applications include, e.g., centrifugal fans that may at times be susceptible to such back flow, such as centrifugal fans established in an array and discharging to a common space. A clutch may effect damper engagement with rotatable componentry such that the damper is engaged with rotatable componentry when the damper is in open configuration, and effect damper disengagement from rotatable componentry such that the damper is disengaged from rotatable componentry when the damper is in closed configuration. The clutch may, in particular embodiments, act to prevent rotational imbalance problems otherwise observed when the damper is engaged to and rotates with rotatable componentry.

Automatic fan inlet closure apparatus and methods

Particular embodiments of the inventive technology may be described as an air handling shroud for establishment at the inlet area of a fan, the shroud adapted to realign and/or redistribute fan inlet flow so as to reduce fan-generated noise without unacceptably impairing fan efficiency and/or performance. Certain embodiments present a lattice arrangement of cells through which air flows; the shroud may protrude up from an inlet face lying in a plane defined by the fan (e.g., by the fan housing or an inlet cone). It may have a hemispherical shape and a lower resistance-per-area sector at the pole (or polar region) thereof. Optional componentry includes but is not limited to a flow obstructer established at a fan proximal portion of the shroud, and acoustic material established on surfaces of the cells of the shroud.

Fan inlet air handling apparatus and methods

At least one embodiment of the present inventive technology focuses on a vaneless diffuser adapted for establishment extra-radially of a centrifugal fan, wherein the diffuser may effect an optimal transformation of velocity pressure into static pressure of a fluid (e.g., air) impelled by a centrifugal fan by decreasing that fluid's tangential velocity as it travels through the diffuser, without causing recirculation of air output from the diffuser back into the diffuser. Such diffuser may effect such a decrease in tangential velocity by radially extending the interface through which impelled air is output from the diffuser to a downflow fluid handling environment such as, e.g., a scroll and/or a plenum. The diffuser may converge in a direction parallel with the axis of rotation of the centrifugal fan to avoid fluid recirculation and/or may incorporate acoustical material so as to reduce the amount of material necessary for effective noise reduction as compared with convention noise reduction methods.

Centrifugal fan diffuser

The present invention includes a system and method for air flow improvement in central air handling systems primarily for buildings and clean rooms. It may include a return flow path, a reversing element, an axial flow device, and a supply flow path where at least a portion of a supply flow path is substantially parallel to the return flow path and one of the flow paths at least partially surrounds the other flow path and could include an annulus between the supply and return flow paths and may provide uniform flow to the axial flow device. The system could include a filter which could be inclined, converging, or a skewed flow face filter, or combinations thereof. It may also include a coil, with a variety of shapes including flat, circular, or frustoconical and could be arranged perpendicular to a primary flow direction of the one or both of the flow paths. The system might also include at least one boundary layer affecting element. A remote access and replacement filter changing element may be included. To assist in turning the flows in such a system, possibly in combination with the reversing element, a conditioning element oriented at some angle to a primary flow direction and selected from a group consisting essentially of conditioning elements affecting filtration purity and temperature may be included. The above may be especially applicable to clean rooms and may include an air handling system for undivided and divided zones to filter the zone specific contaminants.

Methods for air handling in buildings and clean rooms

Air handling system for buildings and clean rooms

The production of hot soup from soup concentrate involves the use of an apparatus that includes a housing having a refrigerated first section and a second section. A soup concentrate container is positioned within the refrigerated section for receiving soup concentrate and a discharge device is operatively associated with the soup concentrate container for discharging a predetermined amount of soup concentrate from the soup concentrate container. A nozzle which is adapted to be connected to a source of hot water is positioned in the second section of the housing for producing a stream of water. A movable tray is also positioned in the second section for receiving a cup or the like in which is to be mixed hot water and soup concentrate. A tray driving device is connected to the tray for moving the tray between various positions at which a cup is placed on the tray, soup concentrate is discharged into the cup and hot water is dispensed into the cup. A nozzle driving device is connected the nozzle for moving the nozzle and effecting a stirring action within the cup through movement of the hot water stream to thereby mix the hot water and soup concentrate in the cup.

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Boulder, CO, United States of America

David C Hustvedt