Refrigeration system with linear motor trimming of displacer movement
AssigneeHelix Technology Corporation
InventorsNeils O. Young, Robert Henderson, Peter J. Kerney
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A split Stirling refrigerator includes a pneumatically driven displacer, the displacer is driven substantially through an entire stroke by the pressure differential across a piston element extending from the displacer. A small linear trimming motor is provided to assure proper phasing of the displacer movement with the refrigerator pressure wave, to prevent overstroke, and to assure complete stroke of the displacer.
Claims9
A refrigerator having a gas displacer which reciprocates in a housing to displace gas in a working volume of gas through a regenerator, the fluid pressure in the working volume varying between maximum and minimum pressures, the refrigerator further comprising:
- a spring volume of gas having a fluid pressure intermediate the maximum and minimum pressures in the working volume;
- a piston element extending axially from the displacer into the spring volume, the cross sectional areas of the piston element and the displacer being such that the pressure differential across the piston element, between the working volume and the spring volume, drives the displacer through a substantially full stroke, substantially retarded relative to the fluid pressure in the working volume, in each direction;
- and
- electrically powered linear motor drive means for driving the displacer in each of two directions to trim the movement of the displacer resulting from the pressure differential across the piston the load handling capability of the linear motor drive means being substantially less than the load of the driven displacer.
A refrigerator having a gas displacer which reciprocates in a housing to displace gas in a working volume of gas through a regenerator, the fluid pressure in the working volume varying between maximum and minimum pressures, the refrigerator further comprising:
- a spring volume of gas having a fluid pressure intermediate the maximum and minimum pressures in the working volume;
- a piston element extending axially from the displacer into the spring volume, the cross sectional area of the piston element being such that the pressure differential across the piston element, between the working volume and the spring volume, drives the displacer element through a substantially full stroke in each direction;
- sensor means for sensing the axial position of the displacer;
- and
- electrically powered linear drive means responsive to the sensor means for driving the displacer in each of two directions to trim phasing and amplitude of the movement of the displacer resulting from the pressure differential across the piston the load handling capability of the linear drive means being substantially less than the load of the driven displacer.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.