Water tank with thermally insulating partition
AssigneeRheem Manufacturing Company
InventorsHarsha Satyanarayana, Christopher M. Hayden, Abigail McMonigal
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The disclosed technology includes a liquid storage tank having a heating element, an inlet for receiving unheated liquid, an outlet for outputting heated liquid, and a partition configured to divide the tank into a first portion and a second portion. The partition can have an aperture such that the first portion and the second portion are in fluid communication. The liquid storage tank can include an actuator in mechanical communication with the partition and configured to linearly move at least a portion of the partition based at least in part on the temperature of liquid within the tank.
Claims20
A liquid storage tank comprising:
- a tank configured to hold a liquid therein;
- a heating element disposed within the tank;
- an inlet for receiving unheated liquid into the tank;
- an outlet for outputting heated liquid from the tank;
- and
- a thermal partition configured to divide an interior space of the tank into a first portion, which includes the heating element and the outlet, and a second portion, which includes the inlet, wherein the first portion is below the second portion,
- wherein the thermal partition has an aperture through which the first portion and the second portion are in fluid communication, and
- wherein the thermal partition has a conical shape which tapers toward the first portion such that the aperture is positioned at a lowest point of the conical shaped thermal partition.
A liquid storage tank comprising:
- a tank configured to hold a liquid therein;
- a heating element disposed within the tank;
- an inlet for receiving unheated liquid into the tank;
- an outlet for outputting heated liquid from the tank;
- a thermal partition to divide an interior space of the tank into a first portion and a second portion, the first portion positioned below the second portion, the thermal partition having a conical shape which tapers toward the first portion, and wherein the thermal partition has an aperture disposed at a lowest point of the conical shape such that the first portion and the second portion are in fluid communication;
- and
- an actuator in mechanical communication with the thermal partition and configured to linearly move at least a portion of the thermal partition based at least in part on a temperature of liquid in the tank.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.