A cryopump comprises a refrigerator, a condensing array cooled by the refrigerator, a radiation shield surrounding the condensing array and cooled by the refrigerator. The radiation shield has a frontal opening covered by a frontal array that is also cooled by the refrigerator. The frontal array comprises louvers across an otherwise substantially open center region of the frontal opening and an orifice plate across an outer region of the frontal opening. The hybrid frontal array allows for pumping speeds approximating those of a louver frontal array but with flow control comparable to an orifice plate.

A cryopump comprises a refrigerator, a condensing array cooled by the refrigerator, a radiation shield surrounding the condensing array and cooled by the refrigerator. The radiation shield has a frontal opening covered by a frontal array that is also cooled by the refrigerator. The frontal array comprises louvers across an otherwise substantially open center region of the frontal opening and an orifice plate across an outer region of the frontal opening. The hybrid frontal array allows for pumping speeds approximating those of a louver frontal array but with flow control comparable to an orifice plate.

A helium management control system for controlling the helium refrigerant supply from a common manifold supplies cryogenic refrigerators with an appropriate helium supply. The system employs sensors to monitor and regulate the overall refrigerant supply to deliver an appropriate refrigerant supply to each of the cryogenic refrigerators depending on the computed aggregate cooling demand of all of the cryogenic refrigerators. An appropriate supply of helium is distributed to each cryopump by sensing excess and sparse helium and redistributing refrigerant accordingly. If the total refrigeration supply exceeds the demand, or consumption, excess refrigerant is directed to cryogenic refrigerators which can utilize the excess helium to complete a current cooling function more quickly. If the total refrigeration demand exceeds the total refrigeration supply, the refrigerant supply to some or all of the cryogenic refrigerators will be reduced accordingly so that detrimental or slowing effects are minimized based upon the current cooling function.

A helium management control system for controlling the helium refrigerant supply from a common manifold supplies cryogenic refrigerators with an appropriate helium supply. The system employs sensors to monitor and regulate the overall refrigerant supply to deliver an appropriate refrigerant supply to each of the cryogenic refrigerators depending on the computed aggregate cooling demand of all of the cryogenic refrigerators. An appropriate supply of helium is distributed to each cryopump by sensing excess and sparse helium and redistributing refrigerant accordingly. If the total refrigeration supply exceeds the demand, or consumption, excess refrigerant is directed to cryogenic refrigerators which can utilize the excess helium to complete a current cooling function more quickly. If the total refrigeration demand exceeds the total refrigeration supply, the refrigerant supply to some or all of the cryogenic refrigerators will be reduced accordingly so that detrimental or slowing effects are minimized based upon the current cooling function.

A cryogenic pump system includes a supply of liquid natural gas, a source of hydraulic fluid, a cryogenic pump, and an electronic control module. The cryogenic pump is operatively arranged with the supply of liquid natural gas and the source of hydraulic fluid. The cryogenic pump is configured to operate using the source of hydraulic fluid to compress at least some of the supply of liquid natural gas for delivery to an engine. The electronic control module is operably arranged with the cryogenic pump and configured to selectively operate the cryogenic pump. Control strategies for operating the cryogenic pump system are disclosed which have reduced power demands.

A vacuum pump including a pump main unit and a control unit is disclosed. The control unit includes a substrate having electronic elements mounted thereon and terminal pins soldered to the substrate at a first end edge of the substrate. The substrate is mounted to a plate via an attachment near a second end edge opposing the first end edge and the plate is mounted to the pump main unit. The terminal pins extend through the plate. Upon linear thermal expansion of the terminal pins, by reason of the location of the terminal pins near the first end edge and the attachment near the second end edge, stresses in the soldered pin connections are reduced. A molding material having a Shore hardness of less than 50, is molded around the electronic elements on the substrate in one embodiment.

A vacuum pump including a pump main unit and a control unit is disclosed. The control unit includes a substrate having electronic elements mounted thereon and terminal pins soldered to the substrate at a first end edge of the substrate. The substrate is mounted to a plate via an attachment near a second end edge opposing the first end edge and the plate is mounted to the pump main unit. The terminal pins extend through the plate. Upon linear thermal expansion of the terminal pins, by reason of the location of the terminal pins near the first end edge and the attachment near the second end edge, stresses in the soldered pin connections are reduced. A molding material having a Shore hardness of less than 50, is molded around the electronic elements on the substrate in one embodiment.

A cryopump includes: a cryopump container defining a cryopump intake port; a cryocooler including a first cooling stage and a second cooling stage; a radiation shield thermally coupled to the first cooling stage and extending from the cryopump intake port into the cryopump container; an intake port plate thermally coupled to the first cooling stage and extending along a plane perpendicular to an axial direction, a gas inlet being formed between the intake port plate and the radiation shield; a cryopanel unit thermally coupled to the second cooling stage and disposed inside the radiation shield, a frost accommodation space being formed between the cryopanel unit and the intake port plate; and a skirt thermally coupled to the first cooling stage and extending from an outer periphery of the intake port plate into the radiation shield, a gas flow path being formed between the skirt and the radiation shield.

A cryopump includes: a cryopump container defining a cryopump intake port; a cryocooler including a first cooling stage and a second cooling stage; a radiation shield thermally coupled to the first cooling stage and extending from the cryopump intake port into the cryopump container; an intake port plate thermally coupled to the first cooling stage and extending along a plane perpendicular to an axial direction, a gas inlet being formed between the intake port plate and the radiation shield; a cryopanel unit thermally coupled to the second cooling stage and disposed inside the radiation shield, a frost accommodation space being formed between the cryopanel unit and the intake port plate; and a skirt thermally coupled to the first cooling stage and extending from an outer periphery of the intake port plate into the radiation shield, a gas flow path being formed between the skirt and the radiation shield.

A cryopump system including a cryopump and a compressor configured to supply a high-pressure helium refrigerant to the cryopump includes a temperature measuring unit configured to measure a temperature of a second stage part among a first stage part and the second stage part of the cryopump, a monitoring unit configured to monitor whether the temperature of the second stage part reaches a predetermined second reference temperature, and a controller configured to incrementally increase an operating frequency of the compressor whenever the temperature of the second stage part reaches the predetermined second reference temperature.