Rotary compressor

Claim 1

A rotary compressor comprising: (a) a housing comprising a cylindrical body, a first end plate, and a second end plate; (b) an electric motor disposed in said housing, said electric motor comprising: (i) a stator coaxially disposed within said cylindrical body of said housing and separated therefrom by a first annular space and (ii) a rotor coaxially disposed within said stator and separated therefrom by a second annular space; (c) said cylindrical body of said housing, said first end plate of said housing, and said electric motor defining a first end chamber; (d) a crank shaft coaxially disposed within a cylindrical bore within said rotor and projecting axially therefrom, said crank shaft comprising: (i) a cylindrical body having a first end inside said rotor and a second end outside said rotor; (ii) an eccentric support surrounding said cylindrical body; (iii) an axial blind bore leading from said second end to a point within said rotor; (iv) at least one radial bore leading from said axial blind bore to the outer surface of said eccentric support part; and (v) a plurality of radial bores leading from said axial blind bore to the outer surface of said cylindrical bore within said rotor; (e) a piston surrounding said cylindrical body and said eccentric support part of said crank shaft; (f) an annular cylinder surrounding said piston, said annular cylinder being mounted in said cylindrical body of said housing; (g) a main bearing surrounding and journalling said cylindrical body of said crank shaft between said rotor and said eccentric support part of said crank shaft, said main bearing comprising: (i) a boss that extends into said rotor but that does not block said plurality of radial bores in said crank shaft and (ii) a flange that makes sealing contact with said annular cylinder and sliding contact with said piston; (h) a silencing plate extending from said flange of said main bearing to said boss of said crank shaft; (i) said silencing plate, said boss of said main bearing, and said flange of said main bearing defining a silencing chamber; (j) said silencing plate, said electric motor, said boss of said main bearing, and said cylindrical body of said housing defining a central chamber; (k) an end bearing surrounding and journalling said cylindrical body of said crank shaft between said eccentric support part of said crank shaft and said second end of said crank shaft, said end bearing comprising: (i) a boss that extends to said second end of said crank shaft and (ii) a flange that makes sealing contact with said annular cylinder and sliding contact with said piston; (l) said piston, said annular cylinder, said main bearing, and said end bearing defining a compression chamber; (m) an oil sump plate making sealing engagement with said flange of said end bearing and surrounding said boss of said end bearing and said second end of said cylindrical body of said crank shaft; (n) said oil sump plate, said flange of said end bearing, said boss of said end bearing, and said cylindrical part of said crank shaft defining an oil sump chamber; (o) said second end plate of said housing, said cylindrical body of said housing, said oil sump plate, said flange of said end bearing, and said annular cylinder defining a second end chamber; (p) a condenser, a capillary tube, and an evaporator in fluidic series externally of said housing; (q) a heat exchanger positioned externally of said housing; (r) a first path of fluid communication leading from said first end chamber through said condenser, said capillary tube, and said evaporator to said compression chamber; (s) a second path of fluid communication leading from said compression chamber through said flange of said main bearing to said silencing chamber; (t) a third path of fluid communication leading from said silencing chamber through said flange of said main bearing, said annular cylinder, said flange of said end bearing, and said second end chamber to said heat exchanger; (u) a fourth path of fluid communication leading from said heat exchanger to said second end chamber, said fourth path of fluid communication terminating in an outlet located at a level that, during use of the rotary compressor, is beneath the surface of lubricant in said second end chamber; (v) a fifth path of fluid communication beginning with an inlet that surrounds and is spaced from said outlet of said fourth path of fluid communication, whereby, during use of the rotary compressor, lubricant in said second end chamber enters said inlet of said fifth path of fluid communication and is entrained in compressed gas entering said fifth path of fluid communication from said fourth path of fluid communication, said fifth path of fluid communication leading from said second end chamber to said oil sump chamber; (w) a sixth path of fluid communication leading from said oil sump chamber through said axial blind bore in said crank shaft and said at least one radial bore to lubricate the interface between said eccentric support plate and said piston; (x) a seventh path of fluid communication leading from said oil sump chamber through said axial blind bore in said crank shaft, said plurality of radial bores, and between said rotor and said boss of said main bearing into said central chamber; (y) an eighth path of fluid communication leading from said central chamber through said second annular space to said first end chamber; and (z) a ninth path of fluid communication leading from said central chamber through said first annular space to said first end chamber.