Drive system for a plurality of worm driven compressors

Claim 1

In a worm compressor plant having at least two worm compressors, with parallel axes, having respective drive gears driven by a common driving gear, the gears being arranged in a transmission gear housing and the common driving gear being secured to a central main drive shaft rotatably mounted in axially spaced bearings and coupled to a common driving motor having a flywheel: the improvement comprising said motor having a motor drive shaft, coaxial with said main drive shaft, and with an end Spaced axially from an adjacent end of said main drive shaft; said flywheel being mounted on said end of said motor drive shaft; said motor including a motor housing having an annular flange adjacent said end of said motor drive shaft; a cylindrical housing part having one open end connected peripherally to said motor housing flange and a partition wall at the other end, spaced axially from said one open end, forming the cover of said transmission gear housing; said housing part serving as an intermediate member between said motor flange and said transmission gear housing; a main bearing arranged in said partition wall; said main drive shaft extending through said main bearing and having a free end within said transmission gear housing, and said common driving gear being secured to said free end of said main drive shaft within said transmission gear housing; a second bearing mounted in said flywheel and receiving that opposite end of said main drive shaft which is spaced axially from the end of said motor drive shaft carrying said flywheel; and a coupling connecting said flywheel to said main drive shaft intermediate said main and second bearings; whereby said housing part surrounds only said coupling and further provides a support for said main drive shaft, and whereby an accurate mounting of the individual components of said worm compressor plant, with proper axial alignment, may be readily and easily attained; the axially aligned relations of said main drive shaft, said motor drive shaft, said flywheel, said motor flange and said coupling being maintained even when one or more of said compressors with the associated respective drive gears must be dismounted.