Non-contacting, gap-type seal having a ring with a patterned seal face

In a gap-type, grooved face seal having a stationary sealing ring and a relatively rotating sealing ring with opposed radially extending faces, one of said rings being sealingly affixed to a housing and the other sealingly affixed to a shaft, and in at least one of said rings, a seal face including an ungrooved dam portion extending inwardly from one circumference of said seal face of said at least one of the sealing rings;

• the improvement characterized in
• an annular groove portion having a first and a second periphery defining a radial width W taken in a radial direction between the first and the second periphery, said second periphery defining a boundary between said annular grooved and ungrooved portions the groove portion comprising:
• at least one continuous groove which is contiguously connected from said first periphery to said second periphery around the complete circumference of said annular groove portion,
• a plurality of spaced apart first lands disposed around said first periphery of the annular groove portion, each of said first lands being substantially triangular in shape and having at least three triangle sides, each triangle side comprising generally a shallow arc, one of said triangle sides defining a triangle base, which base is coextensive with said first periphery of said annular groove portion and is defined by an arc portion thereof, and an intersection point of said other two triangle sides, said intersection point being opposed along a generally radial direction relative to said triangle base, each of said first lands having a geometrical height H.sub.1 as measured along a radius between said base and said intersection point, and
• a plurality of circumferentially spaced apart second lands disposed around a second periphery of the annular groove portion and being separated from said first lands by said continuous groove, each of said second lands essentially having a quadrilateral shape comprising at least four sides, each of said sides being defined by shallow arcs, a first of said sides being coextensive with said second periphery of said annular groove portion and being defined by an arc section thereof, and a second of said sides being opposed to and generally parallel to said first side and being radially separated therefrom, said second side comprising a shallow arc which is circumferentially disposed, said quadrilateral having a geometrical height H.sub.2 defined as the radial dimension between said first and second sides,
• wherein at least one of said first lands is circumferentially disposed between two of said second lands and wherein the dimensions of said radial width W, and said geometrical heights H.sub.1, H.sub.2 are as follows:
• H.sub.1 >0;
• H.sub.2 >0;
• and
• W-H.sub.1 <H.sub.2.

A seal face pattern for at least one ring in a mechanical end face seal for sealing between a housing and a relatively rotating shaft, the seal comprising a first sealing ring sealingly attached to the housing and a second sealing ring sealingly attached to the relatively rotating shaft, the seal face comprising:

• a generally planar surface extending outwardly from the inner circumference to the outer circumference of said ring face, the surface including
• at least two annular bands disposed radially sequentially on said seal face, each of said bands having an inner diameter and an outer diameter boundary, said annular bands comprising a radially inwardly disposed band and at least one annular band disposed radially outwardly of said radially inwardly disposed band, said at least two annular bands being radially adjacent each other, so that the inner diameter boundary of one band coincides with the outer diameter boundary of an adjacent band,
• each of said bands including a plurality of circumferentially adjacent, substantially triangular lands, each triangular land having a radially outwardly disposed base side and a relatively inwardly disposed first intersection point of the other two sides, said other two sides being essentially mirror images of each other and being disposed on opposite sides of a radial centerline which is taken through said first intersection point and the axial centerline of said seal face, the triangle base sides of circumferentially adjacent triangular lands in a radially inwardly disposed band being essentially contiguous having a common second intersection point, the first intersection point of said outwardly disposed band being coincident with said second common intersection point of said annular band which is immediately radially inwardly disposed;
• and
• an ungrooved portion extending inwardly from one of the circumference of the seal face of said at least one ring.

In a gap-type, grooved face seal having a stationary sealing ring and a relatively rotating sealing ring with opposed radially extending faces, one of said rings being sealingly affixed to a housing and the other sealingly affixed to a shaft, the seal being capable of sealing irrespective of the direction of shaft rotation, at least one of the seal rings of said seal having a seal face comprising:

• an ungrooved portion extending inwardly from a first circumference and toward a second circumference of the seal face of said at least one ring;
• and
• a grooved portion extending from said second circumference of said seal face of said at least one ring, said grooved portion being adjacent said ungrooved portion and including a plurality of discrete essentially semicircular grooves being evenly spaced around said grooved portion and separated from each other by a plurality of lands, each said essentially semicircular groove being open at said second circumference, a locus of said essentially semicircular groove being disposed radially inwardly of said second circumference, each said groove further comprising within it an essentially circular land having a diameter smaller than that of said essentially semicircular groove and being disposed at the inner peripheral section of said groove, said outer peripheral section of said groove having two intersecting points with said second circumference of said seal face, such that each intersection of said outer peripheral section of said groove with said second circumference defining a predetermined acute angle with said second circumference to provide a fluid entrance effect.