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US 6,095,772 AGranted
Shaft coupling system
AssigneeThe Gorman-Rupp Company
InventorsLarry M. Ramey, Cecil Flynn, Shane A. Kinton
Life of this patent
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AssigneeThe Gorman-Rupp Company
InventorsLarry M. Ramey, Cecil Flynn, Shane A. Kinton
Estimating the term…
A shaft coupling system (10) is used to connect one shaft (23) to another shaft (44). The system (10) is suited for use in the environment of a pump (11) having a motor assembly (12) and a disposable pump assembly (13). The shaft (23) is driven by a motor (15) and carries a drive coupling device (24). The shaft (44) of the pump assembly (13) carries an impeller (47) at one end and a driven coupling device (49) at the other end. The drive coupling device (24) includes lugs (55) having helical guide surfaces (57, 58) and a helical drive surface (56). The driven coupling device (49) includes fingers (64) having helical guide surfaces (66, 67) and a helical driven surface (65). When the coupling devices (24, 49) are axially engaged, the guide surfaces (57, 58 and 66, 67) may engage each other and rotate the coupling devices (24, 49) relative to each other to position the fingers (64) between the lugs (55). Rotation of the shaft (23) by the motor (15) causes the drive surface (56) to engage the driven surface (65) which not only couples the shafts (23, 44) but also axially positions the impeller (47) in the pump assembly (13). A housing (14) for the motor (15) includes pins (19) which are received in slots (39) of the pump assembly (13) to attach the motor assembly (12) to the pump assembly (13).
A pump comprising a motor, a shaft carried by said motor, a pump assembly, a shaft carried by said pump assembly, and a device for coupling said shafts, said device including lugs and fingers, said lugs and said fingers being configured such that only upon activation of said motor to rotate said motor shaft, said fingers engage said lugs to couple said shafts.
A disposable pump assembly for use with a motor having a driven shaft and a coupling device of a predetermined configuration on the driven shaft, comprising a pump chamber, an impeller in said pump chamber, a pump shaft extending into said pump chamber and carrying said impeller at one end thereof, the other end of said pump shaft extending out of said pump chamber, and a shaft coupling device carried by said other end of said pump shaft, said shaft coupling device being of a predetermined configuration so as to be mateable with the predetermined configuration of the coupling device of the driven shaft, such that only upon activation of the motor to rotate the coupling device of the driven shaft relative to said shaft coupling device, the driven shaft is connected to said pump shaft.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.