Vacuum pumping system
AssigneeEdwards Limited
InventorsChristopher Mark Bailey, Michael Roger Czerniak
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A vacuum pumping system which comprises a plurality of vacuum pumping arrangements for evacuating a flammable gas stream and exhausting the gas stream through an exhaust outlet. A housing houses the vacuum pumping arrangements and forms an air flow duct for an air flow for mixing with the exhaust gas stream output from the exhaust outlet in a mixing region in the housing. An airflow generator generates an air flow through the air flow duct to cause mixing of air with the flammable gas stream to a percentage of the flammable gas in the air flow lower than the lower flammability limit of the flammable gas. An airflow sensor senses the flow of air for determining if the air flow is sufficient to dilute the flammable gas to lower than said percentage.
Claims23
A vacuum pumping system comprising:
- a plurality of vacuum pumping arrangements for evacuating a flammable gas stream and exhausting the gas stream through one or more exhaust outlets;
- a housing for housing the vacuum pumping arrangements and forming an air flow duct for an air flow for mixing with the exhaust gas stream output from the one or more exhaust outlets in a mixing region in the housing;
- an airflow generator for generating an air flow through the air flow duct to cause mixing of air with the flammable gas stream to a percentage of the flammable gas in the air flow lower than the lower flammability limit of the flammable gas;
- and
- an air flow sensor for sensing the flow of air for determining if the air flow is sufficient to dilute the flammable gas to lower than said percentage.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.