Portable generator

• US 6,100,599 A
• Filed: 01/15/1999
• Issued: 08/08/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 01/19/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Fukuda, Akira, Kouchi, Toshifumi
• Primary Examiner(s): Ponomarenko, Nicholas
• Application Number:
  US09/232,473
• Time in Patent Office: 571 Days
• Field of Search: 290/1 R, 290/1 A, 290/1 B, 290/2, 322/1
• US Class Current: 290/1.00A
• CPC Class Codes: F02B 2063/046 Handles adapted therefor, e.g. handles or grips for movable units
• CPC Class Codes: F02B 2075/027 four
• CPC Class Codes: F02B 63/04 for electric generators
• CPC Class Codes: F02B 63/048 Portable engine-generator combinations
• CPC Class Codes: F02B 75/16 Engines characterised by number of cylinders, e.g. single-cylinder engines F02B75/26 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F02B 77/11 Thermal or acoustic insulation
• CPC Class Codes: F05C 2201/021 Aluminium

Abstract

A portable generator includes a metal shroud surrounding at least a crankcase and a cylinder block of an engine. The engine is directly mounted to the shroud. The shroud forms an effective radiating element and gives an additional heat-radiating surface to the engine, thereby increasing the heat radiation capacity of the engine. Heat generated from the engine while running can, therefore, be radiated efficiently. The shroud is mounted within a sound insulating case, so that the portable generator has a double sound-insulating structure. The noise-proofing property of the portable generator is, therefore, very high.

Claims

1. A portable generator comprising:

an engine;

a generator body driven by said engine;

a sound insulating case which contains said engine and said generator body;

a cooling and ventilating shroud made of metal and surrounding at least a crankcase and a cylinder block of said engine;

said engine being directly mounted to a portion of said shroud; and

said shroud being connected to said sound insulating case through a vibration-proof member so that said shroud is accommodated within said sound insulating case.

2. A portable generator according to claim 1, wherein said generator body is disposed on an inlet side of said shroud, said engine has a muffler disposed on an outlet side of said shroud, and said generator body is a permanent-magnet outer roller generator having an outer rotor driven for rotation by said engine, and a cooling fan attached to said outer rotor for taking outside air into said sound insulating case from an inlet formed therein, then introducing the outside air into said shroud to successively cool said engine and said muffler, and finally exhausting the outside air from the sound insulating case.

3. A portable generator according to claim 1, wherein said shroud is a split shroud formed from a steel plate and composed of a pair of right and left shroud halves joined together at an upper and a lower portion of said shroud, each of said joined upper and lower portions of said split shroud being connected to said case via said vibration-proof member.

4. A portable generator according to claim 2, wherein said shroud is a split shroud formed from a steel plate and composed of a pair of right and left shroud halves joined together at an upper and a lower portion of said shroud, each of said joined upper and lower portions of said split shroud being connected to said case via said vibration-proof member.