Pump and pump assembly

• US 10,519,956 B2
• Filed: 11/23/2016
• Issued: 12/31/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/23/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ecotech Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Ecotech Marine, LLC
• Inventors: Lawyer, Justin, Clasen, Patrick, Marks, Timothy
• Primary Examiner(s): Bobish, Christopher S
• Application Number:
  US15/359,792
• Publication Number:
  US 20170074270A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,133 Days
• Field of Search: 417420
• CPC Class Codes: F04D 13/024 a magnetic coupling
• CPC Class Codes: F04D 13/025 Details of the can separating the pump and drive area
• CPC Class Codes: F04D 13/06 the pump being electrically driven
• CPC Class Codes: F04D 29/22 specially for centrifugal pumps
• CPC Class Codes: F04D 29/426 especially adapted for liquid pumps
• CPC Class Codes: F04D 29/445 especially adapted for liquid pumps
• CPC Class Codes: F04D 29/5806 Cooling the drive system
• CPC Class Codes: F04D 29/588 cooling or heating the machine F04D29/5886, F04D29/5893 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F04D 29/5893 heat insulation or conduction

Abstract

Provided is a fluid pump assembly. The pump has a pair of housings magnetically coupled to each other. The first housing contains a drive motor and a magnetic assembly. The second housing contains a magnetic assembly and a blade for imparting movement to a fluid. As the first magnetic assembly is rotated by the drive motor, the magnetic connection to the assembly in the second housing causes the second magnet to rotate, driving the blade.

Claims

1. An aquarium pump, comprising:

a housing having a top portion, an open bottom, a side portion extending between said top portion and said open bottom, at least one air inlet vent, and at least one air outlet vent;

a casing disposed in said housing and having an exterior surface, a plurality of cooling fins disposed on the exterior surface, and a top endcap and a bottom endcap enclosing an interior of the casing;

a drive motor disposed in the casing, the drive motor comprising a rotatable shaft extending through the bottom end cap;

a magnet non-rotatably connected to the rotatable shaft proximate the open bottom and rotatable with the rotatable shaft;

a fan operably associated with the magnet and rotatable with the magnet and configured to draw air through the at least one air inlet vent, along the plurality of fins, and to be discharged through the at least one air outlet vent, wherein said fan comprises a ring having a flat surface and a plurality of spaced blades arranged around the ring on the flat surface, said blades extending away from the flat surface in an axial direction relative to said shaft; and

a bottom cover closing the open bottom, and configured to mount on an outside of an aquarium.

2. The pump of claim 1, wherein the at least one air inlet vent comprises a plurality of first air vents positioned about said top portion and the at least one air outlet vent comprises a plurality of second air vents disposed about said side portion proximate said open bottom.

3. The pump of claim 1, wherein the blades are arranged around the circumference of the ring and configured in overlapping relation or non-overlapping relation.

4. The pump of claim 1, wherein the ring has a diameter less than a diameter of said housing, and said blades spaced inwardly relative to said housing.

5. The pump of claim 4, wherein each of said blades is arcuate and has a first end proximate the circumference of said ring and a second end proximate said casing.

6. The pump of claim 1, wherein each of said fins has a rounded end surface adjacent said top portion.

7. The pump of claim 1, wherein each of said fins has a chamfered, beveled, or rounded outer edge extending therealong.

8. The pump of claim 1, wherein a friction material extends from an exterior of said cover.

9. The pump of claim 1, further comprising a plate disposed between the magnet and the fan, said plate formed from a material reducing magnetic flux emanating from said drive motor.

10. The pump of claim 1, wherein said top and bottom end caps are formed from a material having a first thermal conductivity and said fins are formed of a material having a second thermal conductivity, the second thermal conductivity being greater than the first thermal conductivity.

11. The pump of claim 10, wherein the top and bottom end caps are formed of aluminum.

12. The pump of claim 1, wherein said housing is formed of a polymer material.

13. An aquarium pump, comprising:

a dry side portion and a wet side portion, a spacer disposed between said wet side and dry side portions and maintaining said portions in spaced relation;

a. said dry side portion a housing having a top portion, an open bottom, a side portion extending between said top portion and said open bottom, at least one air inlet vent, and at least one air outlet vent;

a casing disposed in said housing and having an exterior surface, a plurality of cooling fins disposed on the exterior surface, and a top endcap and a bottom endcap enclosing an interior of the casing;

a drive motor disposed in the casing, the drive motor comprising a rotatable shaft extending through the bottom end cap;

a magnet non-rotatably connected to the rotatable shaft proximate the open bottom and rotatable with the rotatable shaft;

a fan operably associated with the magnet and rotatable with the magnet and configured to draw air through the at least one air inlet vent, along the plurality of fins, and to be discharged through the at least one air outlet vent, wherein said fan comprises a ring having a flat surface and a plurality of spaced blades arranged around the ring on the flat surface, said blades extending away from the flat surface in an axial direction relative to said shaft; and

a bottom cover closing the open bottom, and configured to mount on an outside of an aquarium;

b. said wet side portion comprising a rotatable magnet and an operatively associated blade rotatable therewith;

wherein said wet side magnet and said dry side magnet have sufficient magnetic attraction therebetween to maintain said dry side portion and said wet side portion in fixed position when oriented in juxtaposed relation on opposite sides of the aquarium.

14. The pump of claim 13, wherein a friction material is disposed on an exterior of the bottom cover for reducing relative rotation between said dry side portion and said wet side portion when the pump is operated.

15. The pump of claim 13, wherein the at least one air inlet vent comprises a plurality of first air vents positioned about said top portion and the at least one air outlet vent comprises a plurality of second air vents disposed about said side portion proximate said open bottom.

16. The pump of claim 13, wherein the fins are uniformly disposed about said casing and extend between said top endcap and said bottom end cap.

17. The pump of claim 15, wherein the fan is configured to draw air into the first air inlet vents upon operation of the motor and to discharge air through the second air outlet vents.

18. The pump of claim 13, wherein each of the blades extending arcuately from said ring.

19. An aquarium pump, comprising:

a housing having a top portion, an open bottom, a side portion extending between said top portion and said open bottom, at least one air inlet vent, and at least one air outlet vent;

a casing disposed in said housing and having an exterior surface, a plurality of cooling fins disposed on the exterior surface, and a top endcap and a bottom endcap enclosing an interior of the casing, wherein the housing is made from a first material having a first thermal conductivity and the casing is made from a second material having a second thermal conductivity, the first thermal conductivity is lower than the second thermal conductivity;

a drive motor disposed in the casing, the drive motor comprising a rotatable shaft extending through the bottom end cap;

a magnet non-rotatably connected to said rotatable shaft proximate the open bottom and rotatable with said rotatable shaft;

a fan operably associated with said magnet and rotatable with said magnet and configured to draw air through the at least one air inlet vent, along the plurality of fins, and to be discharged through the at least one air outlet vent, wherein the fan is configured to provide laminar air flow, wherein said fan comprises a ring having a flat surface and a plurality of spaced blades arranged around the ring on the flat surface, said blades extending from the flat surface in an axial direction relative to said shaft; and

a bottom cover closing the open bottom, and configured to mount on an outside of an aquarium.