US5825642A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Power supply apparatus
Assignee: Sansha Electric Manufacturing Co Ltd
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Filing: 1997-05-27
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Granted: 1998-10-20
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Expires: 2017-05-27
Abstract
Abstract A power supply apparatus includes a housing containing therein a component which generates heat when operating, a fan for cooling the heat-generating component, and a driving unit for driving the fan. The housing also contains therein a temperature detector for detecting the temperature in the housing and providing a detected-temperature representing signal. In response to the detected-temperature representing signal, a control unit provides the driving unit with a control signal to change the rotation speed of the fan.
Inventors
- 👤 Hideo Ishii
- 👤 Haruo Moriguchi
- 👤 Nathaniel S. Hansen
- 👤 Michael R. Dumont
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-03 03:32
CPC Classifications
H; H05; H05K; H05K7/00; H05K7/20; H05K7/20009; H05K7/20209; H02; H02M; H02M3/00; H02M3/22; H02M3/24; H02M3/28
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 13
Claim 1
Independent Claim
217 words
A power supply apparatus comprising a housing, a component which generates heat when operating, said component being disposed in said housing, and a fan disposed in said housing for cooling said heat-generating component, wherein said power supply apparatus further comprises: a driving unit for driving said fan; a temperature detector for providing a temperature representative signal representing the temperature in said housing; means for calculating the difference between the value of said temperature representative signal and a predetermined reference value; and control signal generating means for generating a control signal causing said driving unit to apply to said fan a driving voltage for setting the rotation speed of said fan to zero during a time period when said difference indicates that the value of said temperature representative signal is smaller than said reference value, and generating a control signal causing said driving unit to apply to said fan a driving voltage which causes said fan to rotate at a substantially maximum rotation speed for only a predetermined time period in an initial portion of the time period when said difference indicates that the value of said temperature representative signal is equal to or greater than said reference value and then causes said fan to rotate at a rotation speed which is determined in accordance with said difference.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
217 words
A power supply apparatus comprising a housing, a component which generates heat when operating, said component being disposed in said housing, and a fan disposed in said housing for cooling said heat-generating component, wherein said power supply apparatus further comprises: a driving unit for driving said fan; a temperature detector for providing a temperature representative signal representing the temperature in said housing; means for calculating the difference between the value of said temperature representative signal and a predetermined reference value; and control signal generating means for generating a control signal causing said driving unit to apply to said fan a driving voltage for setting the rotation speed of said fan to zero during a time period when said difference indicates that the value of said temperature representative signal is smaller than said reference value, and generating a control signal causing said driving unit to apply to said fan a driving voltage which causes said fan to rotate at a substantially maximum rotation speed for only a predetermined time period in an initial portion of the time period when said difference indicates that the value of said temperature representative signal is equal to or greater than said reference value and then causes said fan to rotate at a rotation speed which is determined in accordance with said difference.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
26 words
The power supply apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said temperature detector detects the temperature in said housing and generates a signal representing the detected temperature.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
36 words
The power supply apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said temperature detector is a power detector for detecting output power of said power supply apparatus and generates a power representative signal representing the detected output power.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
85 words
The power supply apparatus according to claim 3 wherein said power detector comprises: a voltage detector for detecting an output voltage of said power supply apparatus and generating an output voltage representative signal representing the detected output voltage; a current detector for detecting an output current of said power supply apparatus and generating an output current representative signal representing the detected output current; and a multiplier for multiplying said output voltage representative signal by said output current representative signal to generate the power representative signal.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
38 words
The power supply apparatus according to claim 3 wherein said temperature detector is a current detector for detecting an output current of said power supply apparatus and generating an output current representative signal representing the detected output current.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
98 words
A power supply apparatus comprising a housing, a component which generates heat when operating, said component being disposed in said housing, and a fan disposed in said housing for cooling said heat-generating component, wherein said power supply apparatus further comprises: a driving unit for driving said fan; a power detector for detecting output power of said power supply apparatus and generating a power representative signal representing the detected output power; and a control unit for applying a control signal to said driving unit to change the rotation speed of said fan in accordance with said power representative signal.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
98 words
A power supply apparatus comprising a housing, a component which generates heat when operating, said component being disposed in said housing, and a fan disposed in said housing for cooling said heat-generating component, wherein said power supply apparatus further comprises: a driving unit for driving said fan; a power detector for detecting output power of said power supply apparatus and generating a power representative signal representing the detected output power; and a control unit for applying a control signal to said driving unit to change the rotation speed of said fan in accordance with said power representative signal.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
85 words
The power supply apparatus according to claim 6 wherein said power detector comprises: a voltage detector for detecting an output voltage of said power supply apparatus and generating an output voltage representative signal representing the detected output voltage; a current detector for detecting an output current of said power supply apparatus and generating an output current representative signal representing the detected output current; and a multiplier for multiplying said output voltage representative signal by said output current representative signal to generate the power representative signal.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
51 words
The power supply apparatus according to claim 6 wherein: said power supply apparatus is used with an arc welder or arc cutter; and said power detector detects an output current proportional to output power of said power supply apparatus and generates an output current representative signal representing the detected output current.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
120 words
The power supply apparatus according to claim 6 wherein said control unit comprises: means for calculating the difference between the value of said power representative signal and a predetermined reference value; and control signal generating means generating a control signal for setting the rotation speed of said fan to a predetermined constant value when said difference indicates that the value of said power representative signal is smaller than said reference value, and for setting the rotation speed of said fan to a value which is greater than said predetermined constant value and is determined in accordance with said difference when said difference indicates that the value of said power representative signal is equal to or greater than said reference value.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
85 words
The power supply apparatus according to claim 9 wherein said power detector comprises: a voltage detector for detecting an output voltage of said power supply apparatus and generating an output voltage representative signal representing the detected output voltage; a current detector for detecting an output current of said power supply apparatus and generating an output current representative signal representing the detected output current; and a multiplier for multiplying said output voltage representative signal by said output current representative signal to generate the power representative signal.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
51 words
The power supply apparatus according to claim 9 wherein: said power supply apparatus is used with an arc welder or arc cutter; and said power detector detects an output current proportional to output power of said power supply apparatus and generates an output current representative signal representing the detected output current.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2001-10-19 | 2002-04-20 | 2002-10-20 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2005-10-19 | 2006-04-20 | 2006-10-20 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2009-10-19 | 2010-04-20 | 2010-10-20 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |