PUMP FOR USE IN STEAM CLEANING DEVICES

Description

RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of pending Chinese Patent Application No. 201220197438.X filed May 4, 2012, the entire teachings of which are incorporated herein by reference. This application is additionally a Continuation-in-Part of pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/742,910, filed Jan. 16, 2013, the entire teachings of which are incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is related to water pumps used in steam cleaning devices, and more specifically to a mechanically driven plunger pump.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Water pumps are machines which transfer fluid or increase fluid pressure. With advances in development of water pump technology, the range of the water pump applications is widening.

Water pumps are indispensable components of many steam cleaning devices. Prior art steam cleaning devices generally employ either mechanical or electromagnetic water pumps. For instance, an electromagnetic water pump is taught in Chinese Patent No CN100420856C, which drives a rotator by electromagnetic induction so that the rotator rotates impellors to generate increased water pressure. However, electromagnetic water pumps are expensive to manufacture and require special connectors according to each application. Alternatively, while mechanical water pumps of the prior art are less expensive to manufacture, they suffer from inconsistent water flow, and can be inconvenient to use. Therefore, there exists a need for improvements in water pumps for use in steam cleaning devices.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides a low-cost water pump capable of consistent and reliable water flow.

To realize this, an exemplary water pump is depicted and described herein which consists of a plunger pump with check valve and a transmission assembly, the check valve having a water inlet and a water outlet. The transmission assembly consists of a gear system, an eccentric wheel, and a plunger pump push block. An output shaft of the gear system drives rotation of the eccentric wheel. The push block includes a reset structure which makes one end of the push block engage the eccentric wheel. The other end of the push block is secured to the plunger with check valve.

The plunger pump with check valve includes the water inlet and the water outlet, a first check valve port, a second check valve port, a first check valve spring, a second check valve spring, a plunger pump unit, a first seal ring, a second seal ring on the plunger, and a friction plate. The first check valve port and the spring include the water inlet unit while the second check valve port and the second check valve spring include the water outlet unit. The water inlet and water outlet are connected to the plunger pump unit separately. The first seal ring is disposed at the front end of the plunger. The friction plate passes through the second seal ring and is disposed at the tail end of the plunger. The gear system is energized by the power source of the steam cleaning device.

In comparison to the prior art, this new pump possesses at least the following advantages:

1. It employs rotational operation so that, at a low manufacturing cost, it can utilize the same power source as the steam cleaning device.

2. It employs a mechanical plunger pump which transfers power from the eccentric wheel and pushes the pump plunger to pump the water through the check valve to the boiler so that the water supply is continuous and consistent.

3. The eccentric wheel assembly drives the plunger pump in a simple structural arrangement, to eliminate common failures inherent in electromagnetic pumps, such as fluid flow inconsistencies and failures caused by overheating from blockages or dry operation.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a water pump for use in a steam cleaning device in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the pump; and

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of the water pump's plunger with check valves;

Wherein:

• 101 is the gear transmission system,
• 102 Is the eccentric wheel,
• 103 is the plunger pump push block,
• 104 is the plunger with check valves,
• 105 is the water outlet,
• 106 is the water inlet,
• 107 is the first check valve port,
• 108 is the second check valve port,
• 109 if the first check valve spring,
• 110 is the second check valve spring,
• 111 is the water inlet unit,
• 112 is the water outlet unit;
• 113 is the plunger pump unit,
• 114 is the first seal ring,
• 115 is the second seal ring,
• 116 is the plunger, and
• 117 is the friction plate.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Reference is not made to FIGS. 1 through 3 where there is shown an exemplary water pump for use in steam cleaning devices according to the invention.

The water pump consists of: gear transmission system 101, eccentric wheel 102, plunger pump push block 103, plunger pump with check valve 104, pump water outlet 105, pump water inlet 106. The gear transmission system 101 connects to the eccentric wheel 102. The eccentric wheel 102 connects to the plunger pump push block 103. The plunger pump push block 103 connects to the plunger pump with check valve 104. The plunger pump with check valve 104 is equipped with the pump water outlet 105 and the pump water inlet 106.

The plunger pump with check valve includes the water inlet unit 112, the water outlet unit 111, the first check valve port 107, the second check valve port 108, the first check valve spring 109, the second check valve spring 110, the plunger pump unit 113, the first seal ring 114, the second seal ring 115, and the friction plate 117. The first check valve port 107 and the first check valve spring 109 are disposed in the water inlet unit 112 while the second check valve port 108 and the second check valve spring 110 are disposed in the water outlet unit 111. The water inlet unit 112 and water outlet unit 111 are connected to the plunger pump unit 113 separately .The first seal ring 114 is disposed at the front end of the plunger 113. The friction plate 117 passes through the second seal ring 115 and is disposed at the tail end of the plunger 113.

The gear transmission system 101 generates the power to drive the rotation of the eccentric wheel 102. Then the eccentric wheel 102 pushes the push block 103 that connects to the friction plate 117 to drive the reciprocation of the plunger 113 so that water is supplied to the boiler.