Lubricating system for multiple piston compressor units and driven parts thereof

Claim 1

A multiple reciprocating piston type compressor unit including a driven shaft having a wedge-shaped hollow rotor with an opening therein, a bell-shaped cylindrical housing having an open end and an end having journal means to concentrically mount said shaft and rotor therein for rotation, an inlet means through a wall of said housing adjacent said rotor for introducing a refrigerant gas containing a suspension of oil therein, a wobble plate adjacent an angular surface of said wedge-shaped rotor oscillating in response to rotation of the rotor, a cylinder block in said housing adjacent said wobble plate, means mounted in said cylinder block to prevent rotation of said wobble plate, roller bearing means for journaling said shaft and rotor in the housing and between the surfaces of said wobble plate, said wobble plate comprising a ring formed with spherical piston connecting rod sockets, said cylinder block being formed with annularly spaced cylinders, a piston with a spherical socket within a skirt portion thereof in each of said cylinders, each cylinder being aligned in concentric position with respect to one of said ring connecting rod sockets, connecting rods with spherical ends conformable with said aforementioned sockets, one rod end being mounted in one of said ring sockets and the other spherical rod end of each respective rod being mounted in said spherical socket within the skirt portion of one of said pistons, a manifold head portion mounted over the open end of the housing, said mainfold head portion having an annular suction chamber and an annular exhaust chamber, pairs of intake and exhaust reed valve means mounted between said cylinder block and said mainfold head portion, each of said reed valves means being positioned to function as intake and exhaust valves during the respective suction and discharge strokes of said pistons, an outlet from the exhaust chamber of said mainfold head portion to an air conditioning system, and duct means leading to the surfaces of each of said respective bearing means, whereby a mixture of refrigerant and oil supplied through said inlet in the wall of the housing is separated and distributed by centrifugal action and the affinity of the oil for the bearing surfaces when said compressor is activated to rotate said rotor adjacent to said inlet in the wall of the housing and the refrigerant is exhausted from said exhaust chamber outlet of the manifold head portion.