The Devilbiss Company

Champion Spark Plug Company

Illinois Tool Works Inc.

Asahi Sunac Corporation

Ransburg Corporation

Weinstein, Richard

Richard Weinstein

David M Seitz

Kenneth J Coeling

James J Gimple

J Thomas Schaffer

Richard A Moser

James W Davis

Robert K Campbell

An improved hand held rotary atomizer spray gun is disclosed. The spray gun includes a housing with a depending handle. A paint tube within the housing delivers paint to a rotatable bell atomizer which is mounted adjacent the front of the gun. A turbine assembly includes a turbine rotor which drives a turbine shaft which mounts the bell atomizer. The turbine shaft is supported by a bearing air chamber. A turbine air passageway and a bearing air passageway supply turbine air to the turbine rotor and bearing air to the bearing air chamber. When a trigger is squeezed paint is supplied to the atomizer bell while turbine air rotates the turbine shaft and the bell atomizer. An air shuttle assembly prevents air flow to the turbine unless sufficient bearing air is flowing to the bearing air chamber. In a preferred embodiment shaping air is supplied to shaping air openings in a housing air cap and the atomizer bell includes serrations on its inner edge. The shaping air directs the atomized paint particles toward the target. A supplemental crossover passageway provides shaping air to the turbine to maintain proper turbine speed during initial delivery of paint to the atomizing bell. In another embodiment, a high voltage ladder is mounted within the handle and its outlet internally charges the paint to a high voltage. In this embodiment electrostatic forces and mechanical forces are used to atomize the paint particles.

Hand held rotary atomizer spray gun

An improved HVLP spray gun which operates from an air supply source and an improved nozzle therefor are disclosed. The HVLP gun has a fluid nozzle including a first, integral, laterally extending portion including pressure reduction orifices which are calibrated, relative to a fluid passage in the nozzle, so that the spray gun operates as an HVLP spray gun. The fluid nozzle includes a second laterally extending portion including a surface, against which atomization air impinges after exiting the calibrated pressure reduction orifices, and a plurality of longitudinally extending air distribution holes, wherein atomization air, after passing through the calibrated pressure reduction orifices, is directed radially outwardly in an expansion chamber where the low velocity air is pressure equalized before exiting through the air distribution holes and being directed within the air cap inwardly toward a fluid atomizing annulus. An improved air driven HVLP paint spray gun which is especially lightweight and can be used to spray all types of coating materials including corrosive waterborne paints is also disclosed. A spray gun having a reduced trigger force needed to activate the gun is also disclosed. It is preferred that the leading edge of the fluid tip is doubly tapered so as to introduce the pressurized air directly onto the exiting fluid stream, which produces finer atomization with lower air volume consumption.

HVLP spray gun and integrated fluid nozzle therefor

A voltage block device for use with electrostatic spraying apparatus for conductive coatings is disclosed. The device maintains an air gap which electrically isolates a grounded paint supply from a charged spray head to prevent the leakage of potential to the grounded paint supply. The device comprises a tube made of non-conductive material and having ends which are closed by upper and lower caps to define a closed space which is pressurized. A valve secured in the upper cap delivers paint into the closed space to raise the level of conductive coating material therein to the level of an external sensor. In a first mode of operation, valve interlock circuitry opens the valve when the spray head is not charged and the sensor detects a low level of coating material. The valve closes if the level of conductive coating material in the closed space reaches the external sensor or the spray head becomes charged, restoring an air gap which electrically isolates the grounded paint supply. In a second mode of operation, the valve interlock circuitry includes a timer and opens and closes the valve intermittently, when needed, so it dispenses discreet bodies of conductive coating material separated from each other, the upper cap and the conductive coating material in the cylinder by one or more air gaps having a combined length sufficient to electrically isolate the grounded paint supply. This valve cycle is repeatable and permits continuous charged operation of the spray head.

Voltage block for electrostatic spraying apparatus

The rotary atomizer coater is particularly adaptable to a high voltage rotary atomizer coater which can be robot mounted. A rotatable bell cup, which is mounted on a turbine driven shaft is positioned within a housing. A fluid tube within the housing includes a fluid discharge tip which extends through an inlet opening in the bell cup for supplying charged coating fluid directly to the inner surface of the bell cup interior which is open to atmosphere. An electrical resistor is mounted between the fluid discharge tip and a power supply within the housing. When a grounded object approaches the bell cup, the current between the bell cup and the grounded object will increase and voltage drop across the resistor results, thereby reducing the voltage at the bell cup and diminishing the potential for a high energy spark.

Rotary atomizer coater

An arc preventing electrostatic power supply suitable for operating an electrostatic paint atomizer such as a rotary atomizer. High voltage control is based on the high voltage current, as measured in the ground return path. The power supply is controlled to provide a substantially constant high voltage DC output up to a predetermined current and an output voltage which rapidly drops off as the current increases above the predetermined current. The magnitude of an AC component superimposed on the high voltage DC current is detected to determine incipient arcing. Upon detecting an incipient arcing condition, the output voltage is interrupted for a predetermined short time. When the output voltage is turned back on, it is ramped up from a low level back to the normal high voltage level. While the output voltage is less than a predetermined low level, the sensitivity of the incipient arc detection circuit is increased. The output voltage is again interrupted for the predetermined short time whenever an incipient arcing event is detected.

Arc preventing electrostatic power supply

Electrostatic coating apparatus including apparatus for establishing an electrostatic field for indirectly charging atomized droplets of paint or other coating material discharged from an atomizer. A flexible tube is formed into an annulus and is positioned coaxially with the atomizer. Pins extend through the tube and have short ends which project towards a workpiece to be coated. The tube is formed from an insulating outer layer and a semi-conducting inner layer having a high distributed resistance. The pins extend through the inner layer which is connected through a large resistance to a high voltage power supply. The apparatus is particularly useful for charging electrically conductive and semi-conductive materials delivered to the atomizer from a grounded source.

Indirect charging electrostatic coating apparatus

A rotary atomizer includes a manifold assembly adapted to be attached to a mechanism for moving the atomizer and an air bearing turbine motor housing assembly releasably secured to the manifold assembly. Sources of pressured fluid for actuating the atomizer and coating fluid are connected to the manifold which has fittings for releasably sealing to apertures in the rear cover of the housing assembly. The opposite end of the housing includes a shaping air cap and a shaping air ring which cooperate to define an annulus for discharging a thin ring of shaping air over the peripheral edge of an atomizer bell to direct fluid particles toward a target. Exhaust air from the turbine motor is vented to the inside of the housing and directed to a chamber behind the atomizer bell to aid in directing the fluid particles. A magnetic speed pickup generates a signal which is coupled through a circuit that electrically isolates the high voltage which is applied to the atomizer to electrically charge the coating particles.

Air bearing rotary atomizer

The present invention relates to a mounting structure for securely and accurately positioning an object on a rotatable shaft. In the preferred embodiment, the mounting structure is utilized to position a rotary bell on a rotatable shaft of a rotary atomizer coater. More specifically, the mounting structure includes a rotatable shaft member having an axis and adapted to be connected to a rotating drive mechanism. The shaft member is provided with a first tapered mounting position. An object is adapted to be securely mounted on the shaft member for rotation therewith, and is provided with an internal bore having a second tapered mounting portion engageable with the first tapered mounting portion. The first and second tapered mounting portions cooperate to accurately align the object with respect to the shaft member. In accordance with the present invention, one of the first and second tapered mounting portions includes a plurality of axially spaced apart and generally annular grooves defining tapered land surface portions therebetween. The other one of the first and second tapered mounting portions defines a tapered surface engageable with the tapered land surface portions for securely and accurately positioning the object on the shaft member. In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the grooves are uniformly spaced apart and have a predetermined width which is substantially equal to the width of each of the tapered land surface portions. Also, one of the first and second tapered mounting portions which includes the grooves is formed of a material such as aluminum, while the other one of the first and second tapered mounting portions is formed of a harder material such as steel.

Mounting structure for rotating bodies

An inproved rotary paint atomizing device of the type having an internal chamber for receiving paint from a paint feed tube extending coaxially through a drive shaft which rotates the device at a high speed. An annular insert is clamped between the drive shaft and the device for forming a rear wall of the paint receiving chamber. The insert prevents paint from splashing into the annular space between the rotating drive shaft and the stationary paint feed tube. When the device is removed from the shaft. The separate insert permits easy access to the paint receiving chamber for cleaning.

Rotary atomizing device

A rotary atomizer including a manifold assembly adapted to be attached to a mechanism for supporting and/or moving the atomizer and an air bearing turbine motor housing assembly releasably secured to the manifold assembly. Sources of pressured fluid for actuating the atomizer and coating fluid are connected to the manifold which has fittings for releasably sealing to apertures in the rear cover of the housing assembly. The opposite end of the housing includes a shaping air cap and a shaping air ring which cooperate to define an annulus for discharging a thin ring of shaping air over the peripheral edge of an atomizer bell to direct fluid particles toward a target. Exhaust air from the turbine motor is vented to the inside of the housing and directed to a chamber behind the atomizer bell to aid in directing the fluid particles. A magnetic speed pickup generates a signal which is coupled through a circuit that electrically isolates high voltage which is applied to the atomizer to electrostatically charge the coating particles.

Air turbine driven rotary atomizer

Rotary atomizer with high voltage isolating speed measurement

Rotary automizer with air cap and retainer

An improved rotary paint atomizing device in the form of a bell and a cover plate which is releasably attached to the front center of the bell. Paint fed along the axis of the device onto a conical projection on the back surface of the cover plate accelerates and flows outward in a radial direction. The cover plate surface is curved so that as the paint flows outwardly, it also flows first forward and then back until it reaches radial slots formed in a peripheral rim on the cover plate where the cover plate contacts an interior bell surface. Paint discharges from the slots onto a conical interior bell surface and flows in wide, closely spaced ribbons which merge into a uniform, continuous thin sheet before it is discharged from the bell edge. As the paint discharges from the bell edge, the sheet produces extremely fine uniform ligaments which break up to produce fine, uniform small paint particles.

Rotary paint atomizing device

A rotary atomizer (20) includes a manifold assembly (22) adapted to be attached to a mechanism for moving the atomizer and an air bearing turbine motor housing assembly (21) releasably secured to the manifold assembly. Sources of pressured fluid for actuating the atomizer and coating fluid are connected to the manifold (29) which has fittings (32, 33, 34, 35, 36) for releasably sealing to apertures (42) in the rear cover (43) of the housing assembly. The opposite end of the housing includes a shaping air cap (24) and a shaping air ring (25) which cooperate to define an annulus for discharging a thin ring of shaping air over the peripheral edge of an atomizer bell (26) to direct fluid particles toward a target. Exhaust air from the turbine motor (46) is vented to the inside of the housing and directed to a chamber (79) behind the atomizer bell to aid in directing the fluid particles. A magnetic speed pickup (103, 104) generates a signal which is coupled through a circuit (105, 106) that electrically isolates the high voltage which is applied to the atomizer to electrostatically charge the coating particles.

Growing community of inventors

Toledo, OH, United States of America

Richard Weinstein