US1340058A - Air-cleaner for internal-combustion engines - Google Patents

Description

A R. LAMBERT.

Am CLLANER FOR INTERNAL cumsusnow ENGINES.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 2,19X5].

Patented May 11, 1920.

ALVAN R. LAMBERT, 0F ANDERSON, INDIANA.

AIR-CLEANER FOR INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 11, 1920.

Application filed December 2, 1919. Serial No. 341,946.

To all whom it may com-era Be it known that I, ALVAN R. LAMBERT, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of Anderson, county of Madison, and State of Indiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements-in Air-Cleaners for Intermil-Combus tion Engines, of which the following is a full and clear specification.

The object of this invention is to remove the dust from the air that is inspirated into the carbureter of an internal combustion engine, to thereby insure an ample supply of clean air. Heretofore many cxpedicnts have been tried out and put into practice for accomplishing this purpose, but so far as Iam aware they have either been de fective to the point of impracticability or have been of such nature as to demand more attention on the part of the attendant than can be obtained in the general run of cases. It is my object to provide a simple apparatus and method requiring no attention on the part of the attendant or operator and which will not gather and collect the dust reparated from the air but will thrm it t into the surrounding atmosphere. Obviously my invention will have its highest utility in connection with gasolene tractors, in which machines the problem of obtaining a supply of clean air is an exceedingly important as well as diflicult one.

In the drawing- .Figure 1 is a side elevation of an ap pliance embodying one form of my inven tion' Figs. 2 and 3 are transverse sectional views looking in the direction of the arrows respectively applied to each line.

In the. d awing annexed, a designates the intake pi p12 oi" the carburetor of an internal combustion engine; I) a shaft arranged in alinement with. the center of the intake-end of the pipe and terl'ninating a short distance from said end. This shaft is adapted to be rotated rapidly in any suitable manner, preferably by connection with one of the adjacent shafts of the engine.

Afiixed to the shaft b so as to rotate therewith is a fan-like device consisting of an imperforate disk 0 aflixed to the shaft at a distance from its end, another disk aloosely surrounding the intake pipe a a short distance from its intake end, and a series of blades 0 rigidly connecting the disks or heads 0 and (l and consisting of flat straight blades radially arranged with respect to the axis of the shaft and havin their longitudinal edges lying ap roxlmately parallel therewith. These lades are preferably equally spaced around the disks -d and their inner longitudinal edges terminate short of a circle described by the inlet-end of the intake pipe, so as to thereby form a sort of cage surrounding the intake pipe.

To brave. the head (7. I connect the same by means of bars 7 with a hub g fastened on the extreme inner end of the shaft b, these bars inclining inwardly and being arranged in spaced relation around the intake pipe.

In operation, the shaft b is driven rapidly from a suitable shaft of the engine to thus keep the body of air surrounding the intake pipe in whirling motion. The rapidly rotating blades 0 not only whirl the air body but also serve to strike and throw away from the intake-end any particles of dust that. would be entrained in the air that is inspirated by the engine into the intake pipe. It will be understood that this fanning appliance is rotated very rapidly and that in addition to the cleaning action exerted by impact on the dust particles there will be a further force, namely, centrifugal force, tending to drive the artieles to the outer edge of the W'hir in}; mass of air. I have been unable to determine from actual tests of this appa ratus whether or not the impact action of the blades is of greater influence in cleaning the'air than merely centrifugal action, as it is impossible to devise any testing method which would determine which is the most important factor. I have found, however, from actual tests that heavilydust-laden air is thoroughly cleaned of its dust by an apparatus built in accordance with my drawings before it enters the intake, and I have further observed that no appreciable rarefaction of the air at the center of the revolving body of air takes place, so that an ample supply of air at approximately atmosp eric pressure is maintained at all times at the center of the fan appliance, where the intake air. is drawn from. In actual tests, I have found that the engine prodnres pruetieally the same llnl'se power with my appliance in operation as it did without the a iplianee, thus show in; that the air Within [be fun is maintained at least :1[ |)|'uXll|Hll l V at atnmspherir pressure. ln lll'ilt'hltl. I hav slightly inclined the blades eulwardly -40 as tn inr'rease the tenden y ml the blades to throw the dust 'intwardly awa" from the fan, but I believe it to be essential that the blades shall not be inelined tn the radial to any considerable extent, as that would, in my judgment, tend to rarely the air at the renter and thus materially ('ennteraet the inspirational function (it the engine.

It will be rmdu'stund that l mu net mnlined in the speeitie ennstrnltiun nl' appze time; lnrein shlm'n and dewiibed as the smile may be gr atly varied Wilhullt de]'1arl- H;- l'z in 5hr iril nl' {b irwwdhn: m de iiinin1h"ilillmnmwlnh'd l't'i-il it: pre

ferred embodiment having been speeilieally described, what is elaimed as new is:

in r-(m'ibination with the intake of the carbureter "1 an internal eombustinn engine, a shaft terminating shurt (if said in take and having means for driving it from the engine, an imperfnrah: disk fastened to said shaft at a distanee from the end thereof, anether disk having a ventral hule into whieh the end of the intake pipe ml the earbureter extends brace bars rigidly connecting this latter disk with the end 01' the shaft, and a series of blades or paddles extending from one disk t0 the other and arranged in a eireinnferential series, the inner lengitudinal edges of these blades terminating short 01 the center of the disks to thereby provide a free air-space at the renter ml the fan applianee in line with the intake 91" the rarbnreter.

ln testinmny whereof l hereunto allix my sip-nut u re.

ALVAN R. LAMBERT

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