Oil-Injected Compressor with a Temperature Switch

• US 20090041589A1
• Filed: 03/08/2006
• Published: 02/12/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/09/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Knorr-Bremse Systeme FüR Schienenfahrzeuge GmbH (Estate of Heinz Hermann Thiele)
• Original Assignee: Knorr-Bremse Systeme FüR Schienenfahrzeuge GmbH (Estate of Heinz Hermann Thiele)
• Inventors: Schmid, Michael, Zieglgansberger, Nils, Hering, Karl, Liebert, Konrad
• Granted Patent: US 8,317,484 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 417/32
• CPC Class Codes: F04C 18/16 with helical teeth, e.g. chevron-shaped, screw type for non-parallel axes of movement F04C18/48
• CPC Class Codes: F04C 2270/19 Temperature
• CPC Class Codes: F04C 2270/70 Safety, emergency conditions or requirements
• CPC Class Codes: F04C 28/28 Safety arrangements; Monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: F04C 29/0007 Injection of a fluid in the working chamber for sealing, cooling and lubricating sealing only F04C27/00; lubrication only F04C29/02; cooling F02B47/02, F02D21/00, F02M25/00
• CPC Class Codes: F04C 29/026 Lubricant separation

Abstract

An oil-injected compressor, with an oil circuit for lubrication, and an oil separating device which is used to separate the oil from the compressed air. A self-resetting temperature switch, which is used to switch off the compressor unit when the maximum temperature limit of the incoming compressed air is reached, is provided in the region of the inlet of the compressed air, which contains oil, in the oil separating device. At least one non-self-resetting additional temperature switch is provided in the internal area of the oil separating device, which immediately switches off the compressor unit following a fire or an explosion of the compressed air, which contains oil, and which is contained in the oil separating device.

Claims

1. An oil-injected compressor for production of compressed air, an oil circuit for lubrication of the compressor, and an oil separator device for separation of the oil from the compressed air/oil mixture, including:

a self-resetting temperature switch in an area of the inlet of the compressed air/oil mixture into the oil separator device for switching off the compressor unit when the air/oil mixture flowing in reaches a maximum temperature limit;

at least one additional non-self-resetting temperature switch in an internal area of the oil separator device which trips and switches the compressor unit off in the event of a fire or detonation of the compressed air/oil mixture contained in the oil separator device; and

a device for forcing extinguishants into the internal area of the oil separator device when the additional temperature switch trips.

2. The oil-injected compressor as claimed in claim 1, wherein the additional temperature switch is in the form of a fuse link.

3. The oil-injected compressor as claimed in claim 1, wherein the additional temperature switch is arranged in the internal area of the oil separator device in which the compressed air flowing out of it is at a high flow speed.

4. The oil-injected compressor as claimed in claim 3, wherein the additional temperature switch is arranged in the compressed-air flow in the area between an outlet-side pressure-maintenance valve and a fine separator of the oil separator device.

5. The oil-injected compressor as claimed in claim 3, wherein the additional temperature switch is arranged on the outlet side of the compressed-air flow in the area immediately after the pressure-maintenance valve.

6. The oil-injected compressor as claimed in claim 1, including an optical indication means which signals the tripping of the additional temperature switch.

7. The oil-injected compressor as claimed in claim 1, wherein the compressor unit is in the form of a multistage compressor unit with an oil separator device following each stage, with an additional temperature switch being provided on the oil separator device of each compressor stage.