Electric fan with impediment buffering

Abstract

An electric fan includes a fan body having a fan shaft coupled to a fan motor. A fan motor bracket is connected to a fixing portion of the fan motor. A swivel shaft is coupled to the fan motor bracket. A sleeve is mounted around the swivel shaft and is coupled to an output shaft of a swivel motor. The sleeve includes an inner periphery having grooves. The swivel shaft receives an elastic element extending in a radial direction of the swivel shaft. A ball is mounted to an end of the elastic element. The ball is biased by the elastic element to be partially received in one of the grooves. If the fan body is impeded during the swiveling movement, the ball moves inward and compress the elastic element, disengaging the swivel shaft from the sleeve to reduce damage to the sleeve and the output shaft of the motor.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.