Hermetic scroll type compressor with refrigerant fluid flow through the drive shaft

Claim 1

In a scroll type compressor with a hermetically sealed housing, the compressor comprising a fixed scroll disposed within said housing and having a first end plate and a first spiral element extending therefrom, said first end plate of said fixed scroll dividing said housing into a discharge chamber and a suction chamber into which said first spiral element extends, an orbiting scroll having a second end plate from which a second spiral element extends, said first and second spiral elements interfitting at an angular and radial offset to form a plurality of line contacts which define at least one pair of sealed off fluid pockets, a drive mechanism operatively connected to said orbiting scroll to effect orbital motion of said orbiting scroll, a rotation prevention means for preventing the rotation of said orbiting scroll during orbital motion whereby the volume of said fluid pockets changes to compress fluid in said pockets, the improvement comprising: said drive mechanism including a drive shaft having an axial bore linked with at least one radial bore, said axial bore extending from an opening at one end of said drive shaft to a closed end near an opposite end of said drive shaft, at least one said radial bore extending through said drive shaft linking said axial bore near its closed end to said suction chamber, said housing provided with a refrigerant gas inlet port extending therethrough and terminating near said opening of said axial bore such that a portion of the refrigerant gas entering said compressor through said inlet port flows through said axial bore and out of said at least one radial bore and into said suction chamber.