Fan motor/impeller mounting system

A centrifugal blower comprising:

• a housing having an inlet side wall through which a circular inlet opening is formed and bordered by a peripheral edge portion of said inlet side wall;
• a centrifugal blower impeller rotatably disposed within said housing coaxially with said inlet opening and having a rotational drive axis perpendicular to said inlet side wall;
• a cylindrical drive motor coaxially and drivingly coupled to said impeller and defining with said peripheral edge portion of said inlet side wall an annulus through which inlet air may be drawn into said impeller;
• and
• mounting apparatus for securing said drive motor to said inlet side wall said housing, said mounting apparatus including:
• a plurality of elongated mounting legs each having an inner end portion, an outer end portion, and an intermediate portion extending between said inner end portion and said outer end portion,
• first means for securing said inner end portions of said mounting legs to said cylindrical drive motor in a circumferentially spaced relationship around said rotational drive axis, said first means including a belly band structure coaxially and releasably clamped to said cylindrical drive motor, and means for anchoring said inner mounting leg end portions to said belly band structure at circumferentially spaced locations thereon, and
• second means for securing said outer end portions of said mounting legs to said inlet side wall of said housing,
• said intermediate portion of each of said mounting legs extending adjacent and generally parallel to a line extending between the outer end portion of the mounting leg and the center of gravity of the combined mass of said impeller and said drive motor,
• each of said inner mounting leg end portions, from its attachment location on said belly band structure, extending axially inwardly past said belly band structure toward said impeller, and then curving back in an axially outward direction to join the intermediate portion of the mounting leg.

A centrifugal blower comprising:

• a housing having an inlet side wall through which a circular inlet opening is formed and bordered by a peripheral edge portion of said inlet side wall;
• a centrifugal blower impeller rotatably disposed within said housing coaxially with said inlet opening and having a rotational drive axis perpendicular to said inlet side wall;
• a cylindrical drive motor coaxially and drivingly coupled to said impeller and defining with said peripheral edge portion of said inlet side wall an annulus through which inlet air may be drawn into said impeller;
• and
• mounting apparatus for securing said drive motor to said inlet side wall of said housing, said mounting apparatus including:
• a plurality of elongated bent metal mounting rods each having an inner end portion, an outer end portion, and an intermediate portion extending between said inner end portion and said outer end portion,
• first means for securing said inner end portions of said mounting rods to said cylindrical drive motor in a circumferentially spaced relationship around said rotational drive axis, and
• second means for resiliently securing said outer end portions of said mounting rods to said inlet side wall of said housing for translational movement relative thereto along outer end axes extending parallel to said inlet side wall, and rotational movement relative to said inlet side wall about said outer end axes,
• each of said intermediate portions of said mounting rods, from the inner end portion of the rod, sloping axially and radially outwardly relative to said cylindrical drive motor.