Gerotor pump or motor

Claim 2

A fluid pump or motor comprising: a casing having inlet and outlet ports; a shaft mounted in said casing for rotation about its longitudinal axis; a pair of assemblies axially spaced apart on said shaft, each assembly including an inner member mounted for rotation with said shaft having external gear means meshing with internal gear means on the inside of an outer member mounted for orbital movement on said casing, means including said gear means forming a plurality of fluid chambers surrounding said shaft; passage means in communication between a first group of said chambers and one of said ports and between a second group of said chambers and the other of said ports; and drive link means mounted on said casing and interconnecting said outer members to maintain said outer members in a predetermined orbital phase relationship.

Claim 3

The fluid pump or motor of claim 1 wherein said drive link means includes a pair of wobble pins on opposite sides of said shaft supported intermediate their ends from said casing and having opposite outer ends engaging said outer members to orbit the same in synchronism with each other as said shaft rotates in said casing.

Claim 4

The fluid pump or motor of claim 1 wherein said drive link means comprises a pair of crank shafts mounted for rotation in said casing on opposite sides of said shaft, each crank shaft including a pair of eccentric spindles on opposite ends engaging said outer members to orbit the same in synchronism with each other as said shaft rotates.

Claim 5

A fluid pump or motor comprising: a casing having inlet and outlet ports; a shaft mounted in said casing for rotation about its longitudinal axis; a pair of gerotor assemblies axially spaced apart on said shaft, each assembly including a star member mounted for rotation with said shaft having external lobes meshing with lobes on the inside of a ring member mounted for orbital movement on said casing, said meshing lobes forming a plurality of expanding and collapsing fluid chambers around said shaft; passage means in communication between expanding fluid chambers and one of said ports and between collapsing chambers and the other of said ports; and drive link means mounted on said casing and interconnecting said ring members to maintain said collapsing chambers of one gerotor assembly on the opposite side of said shaft from the collapsing chambers of thE other gerotor assembly as said shaft rotates in said casing.

Claim 6

A fluid pump or motor comprising: a casing having inlet and outlet ports; a shaft mounted in said casing for rotation about its longitudinal axis; a pair of gerotor assemblies axially spaced apart on said shaft, each assembly including a star member mounted for rotation with said shaft having external lobes meshing with lobes on the inside of a ring member mounted for orbital movement on said casing, said meshing lobes forming a plurality of expanding and collapsing fluid chambers around said shaft; passage means in communication between expanding fluid chambers and one of said ports and between collapsing chambers and the other of said ports; and drive link means mounted on said casing and interconnecting said ring members to maintain said collapsing chambers of one gerotor assembly on the opposite side of said shaft from the collapsing chambers of thE other gerotor assembly as said shaft rotates in said casing.

Claim 7

The fluid pump or motor of claim 1 wherein said drive link means includes a pair of wobble pins on opposite sides of said shaft supported intermediate their ends from said casing and having opposite outer ends engaging said ring members to orbit the same in synchronism with each other as said shaft rotates in said casing.

Claim 8

The fluid pump or motor of claim 1 wherein said drive link means comprises a pair of crank shafts mounted for rotation in said casing on opposite sides of said shaft, each crank shaft including a pair of eccentric spindles on opposite ends engaging said ring members to orbit the same in synchronism with each other as said shaft rotates.

Claim 9

The fluid pump or motor of claim 1 wherein said passage means includes valve means disposed between said spaced gerotor assemblies for directing fluid between said chambers of said ports.

Claim 10

The fluid pump or motor of claim 7 wherein said valve means includes an annular valve bushing mounted on said shaft including a plurality of longitudinal passages spaced apart, alternate ones of said passages in communication with fluid chambers adjacent opposite ends of said sleeve.

Claim 11

The fluid pump or motor of claim 8 wherein said passages in said bushing have one end opening onto an end of said sleeve and an opposite end thereof spaced longitudinally inward from an opposite end of said sleeve.

Claim 12

The fluid pump or motor of claim 9 wherein alternate passages have their opposite ends terminating along a pair of longitudinally spaced apart rings around said sleeve spaced inwardly of the opposite ends thereof.

Claim 13

The fluid pump or motor of claim 10 wherein said passage means includes a pair of annular grooves in said casing around said valve sleeve, each groove in communication with passages terminating along one of said rings and one of said ports.

Claim 14

The fluid pump or motor of claim 11 including a fixed annular sleeve mounted in said casing between said grooves and said valve bushing, said sleeve having a first set of ports in communication with one of said grooves and a set of said passages terminating along one of said rings and a second set of ports in communication with the other of said grooves and a set of said passages terminating along the other of said rings.

Claim 15

A fluid pump or motor comprising: a casing having inlet and outlet ports; a shaft mounted in said casing for rotation about its longitudinal axis; a pair of gerotor assemblies axially spaced apart on said shaft, each assembly including a star member mounted for rotation with said shaft having external lobes meshing with lobes on the inside of a ring member mounted for orbital movement on said casing, said meshing lobes forming a plurality of expanding and collapsing fluid chambers around said shaft; passage means in communication between expanding fluid chambers and one of said ports and between collapsing chambers and the other of said ports; said passage means including at least one valve passage extending between said gerotor assemblies, a valve slidably disposed in said valve passage for controlling fluid flow into and out of said gerotor assemblies and operatively interconnected with said ring members for movement in response to the relative orbital position thereof; and drive link means mounted on said casing and interconnecting said ring members to maintain said collapsing chambers of one gerotor assembly on the opposite side of said shaft from the collapsing chambers of the other gerotor assembly as said shaft rotates in said casing.

Claim 16

A fluid pump or motor comprising: a casing having inlet and outlet ports; a shaft mounted in said casing for rotation about its longitudinal axis; a pair of gerotor assemblies axially spaced apart on said shaft, each assembly including a star member mounted for rotation with said shaft having external lobes meshing with lobes on the inside of a ring member mounted for orbital movement on said casing, said meshing lobes forming a plurality of expanding and collapsing fluid chambers around said shaft; passage means in communication between expanding fluid chambers and one of said ports and between collapsing chambers and the other of said ports; said passage means including at least one valve passage extending between said gerotor assemblies, a valve slidably disposed in said valve passage for controlling fluid flow into and out of said gerotor assemblies and operatively interconnected with said ring members for movement in response to the relative orbital position thereof; and drive link means mounted on said casing and interconnecting said ring members to maintain said collapsing chambers of one gerotor assembly on the opposite side of said shaft from the collapsing chambers of the other gerotor assembly as said shaft rotates in said casing.

Claim 17

The fluid pump or motor of claim 10 wherein said passage means includes a pair of sub-passages each having one end in communication with said valve passage at spaced locations thereon and an opposite end in communication with a fluid chamber of one of said gerotor assemblies at a position angularly spaced around said shaft from said valve passage.

Claim 18

The fluid pump or motor of claim 14 including a pair of annular fluid channels around said shaft and spaced apart axially of said valve passage and in communication therewith on a side opposite said one end of said sub-passages, said valve including means normally blocking communication between said channels and an opposite sub-passage when said valve is in a neutral position and opening communication therebetween when moved out of said neutral position.

Claim 19

The fluid pump or motor of claim 14 wherein said opposite end of said sub-passages comprise wall ports formed in said casing adjacent the end of a fluid chamber formed between a star and ring member of a gerotor assembly.

Claim 20

The fluid pump or motor of claim 16 wherein one of said wall ports is angularly spaced around said shaft from the other of said wall ports.

Claim 21

The fluid pump or motor of claim 17 wherein said wall ports are spaced 90* from said valve passage.

Claim 22

The fluid pump or motor of claim 13 wherein said valve includes a pair of actuating stems projecting outwardly at opposite ends, said ring members including beveled cam surfaces thereon engaging said stems for reciprocating said valve in said valve passage as said ring members orbit around said star members.

Claim 23

The fluid pump or motor of claim 19 including a plurality of said valve passages parallel of said shaft and equally angularly spaced apart therearound, each of said passages having open opposite ends facing said cam surfaces on said ring members, one of said valves in each of said valve passages activated by said cam surfaces and a pair of said sub-passages for each of said valve passages for communication with said fluid chambers of said gerotor assemblies.

Claim 24

The fluid pump or motor of claim 20 wherein said cam surfaces of said ring members are of frustroconical shape in opposed spaced apart relation axially of said shaft.