Scroll compressor lubrication control

A hermetic scroll compressor comprising:

• a hermetically sealed housing including therein a discharge chamber at discharge pressure and a suction chamber at suction pressure;
• said housing including an oil chamber containing oil;
• a fixed scroll member in said housing including an involute fixed wrap element;
• an orbiting scroll member disposed in said oil chamber, said orbiting scroll member including a plate portion having a face surface and a back surface, said face surface having an involute orbiting wrap element thereon intermeshed with said fixed wrap element, said orbiting scroll member plate portion having a flange extending radially beyond said orbiting wrap element, said flange including an upper peripheral edge, said oil in said oil chamber of sufficient depth of extend some of said oil above the upper peripheral edge of said orbiting scroll member;
• a thrust surface adjacent said orbiting scroll member back surface;
• seal means between said orbiting scroll member and said thrust surface for sealingly separating between respective portions of said plate portion back surface exposed to discharge pressure and suction pressure;
• drive means for causing said orbiting scroll member to orbit relative to said fixed scroll member;
• radial compliance means for creating a radial compliance force to bias said fixed scroll member and said orbiting scroll member radially toward one another, said radial compliance means controlling the volume of oil from said oil chamber used to lubricate said scroll members.

A method of wearing both the orbiting and fixed scroll wraps in a scroll compressor comprising:

• a hermetically sealed housing including therein a discharge chamber at discharge pressure and a suction chamber at suction pressure;
• a fixed scroll member in said housing including an involute fixed wrap element;
• an orbiting scroll member in said housing including a plate portion having a face surface and a back surface, said face surface having an involute orbiting wrap element thereon intermeshed with said fixed wrap element, said orbiting scroll member plate portion having a flange extending radially beyond said orbiting wrap element, said flange including a upper peripheral edge;
• a frame including a thrust surface adjacent said orbiting scroll member back surface, said flange being disposed radially outwardly of said thrust surface;
• seal means between said orbiting scroll member and said thrust surface for sealingly separating between respective portions of said plate portion back surface exposed to discharge pressure and suction pressure, said seal thereby experiencing a differential pressure;
• drive means for causing said orbiting scroll member to orbit relative to said fixed scroll member;
• an oil chamber in which said orbiting scroll member flange orbits, said chamber being substantially at suction pressure;
• the method comprising the steps of:
• forming an oil pool of sufficient depth in said oil chamber to extend said oil pool above said upper peripheral edge of said orbiting scroll flange so that oil is supplied to said intermeshed scrolls to control leakage between said scrolls;
• and
• operating the compressor to run together said orbiting scroll wrap and said fixed scroll wrap in a manner that as said scroll wrap elements wear together, the internal oil rate within the compressor is reduced to an equilibrium rate.