Electrostatic spray apparatus
AssigneeSpeeflo Manufacturing Corporation
InventorClarence C. Reeves
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A pneumatic system is disclosed for regulating the acceleration and running speed of an air turbine and alternator used in electrostatic spray apparatus having a self-contained electrical power supply. The air turbine includes a rotor which is arranged to be biased in a first direction of rotation by a flow of impinging drive air and in a second opposite direction by a flow of impinging brake air. The flows of air cooperatively result in rotation of the turbine in a desired direction of operation and enable a minimized period of acceleration for a predetermined running speed.
Claims17
An electrostatic spray coating apparatus including means for emitting a spray of coating material and electrode means for applying an electric charge to the emitted coating material, and an energy conversion assembly for converting the energy of a fluid under opressure into electrical energy for use in said spray apparatus,
- said assembly including a turbine operably connected to a generator for providing an electrical output, said turbine having a rotor adapted to be pneumatially operated by pressurized air delivered to the spray apparatus from a remote supply thereof,
- said assembly also including pneumatic drive means and pneumatic brake means cooperatively arranged to accelerate said rotor from rest to a predetermined running speed in a predetermined time interval, said pneumatic drive means comprising a first air stream arranged to drive said turbine in a first rotational direction and said pneumatic brake means comprising a second air stream arranged to drive said turbine in an opposite second rotational direction, said streams of air cooperatively accelerating and maintaining the rotation of said rotor in said first direction, said first and second air streams being derived from a common chamber to which pressurized air is delivered at a constant pressure, said common chamber having an annular configuration and extending around said rotor.
An electrostatic spray coating apparatus including means for emitting a spray of coating material and electrode means for applying an electric charge to the emitted coating material, and an energy conversion assembly for converting the energy of a fluid under pressure into electrical energy for use in said spray apparatus, said assembly including a turbine operably connected to an alternator for providing an electrical output, said turbine having a rotor adapted to be driven by impinging drive and brake air flows, said drive air flow being arranged to bias said rotor in a first direction of rotation and said brake air flow being arranged to bias said rotor in an opposite second direction of rotation, said air flows cooperatively causing rotation of said rotor in said first direction of rotation, said air flow being derived from a common chamber to which supply air is delivered at a constant pressure, said common chamber having an annular configuration and extending around said rotor.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.