Benchtop Dust Collector

Abstract

A bench-top dust collector has a front or intake side where air is directed by a cowling into a pre-filter and then a final filter that are held in a frame. A rear compartment holds an array of small high velocity fans that pull the air through the filters to a plenum in the rear compartment. The filtered air in the plenum is discharged through a grill in a downward and rearward direction. The unit is compact and configured to be about the size and shape of an attaché case.

Claims

1. A bench-top dust collector that captures dust emanating from a dust-producing tool or device that lacks adequate dust collection connection to a dust extractor, comprising: a filter housing having a peripheral wall adapted for removably housing a dust capturing final filter, the housing having an open front side and an open rear side; a rear compartment adjoined to the rear side of the filter housing, and dimensioned to mate with the open side of the filter housing; the rear compartment having a panel on which are mounted an array of fans for moving air in the direction from said filter housing to rearward, and a rear wall spaced from said panel and array of fans to define a filtered air plenum formed within said rear compartment; said rear wall having a perforated grille formed in a portion thereof for allowing discharge of air from said plenum.

2. A bench-top dust collector according to claim 1 wherein said filter housing comprises a filter frame having a predetermined height and predetermined width, and wherein a front to back dimension from the front opening of said filter frame to the back wall of said rear compartment is no greater than approximately half that of the smaller of said height and said width of the filter frame.

3. A bench-top dust collector according to claim 2 wherein said width and height of said filter frame are approximately 25 inches wide and 16 inches high respectively and said front to back distance is no greater than about 8 inches.

4. A bench-top dust collector according to claim 1 wherein said array of fans includes at least two rows of fans, disposed one row above the other and each row having two or more fans.

5. A bench-top dust collector according to claim 1 wherein the fans in said array include high pressure fans, creating about 2 inches of water-column pressure, to achieve greater filtration efficiency.

6. A bench-top dust collector according to claim 1 wherein the fans of said array of fans have continuously variable fan speeds.

7. A bench-top dust collector according to claim 1 further including a washable pre-filter is positioned in advance of said final filter at said open front of said filter frame.

8. A bench-top dust collector according to claim 1 wherein said final filter includes a primary filter that has deep pleats, with depths of substantially 2 to 4 inches.

9. A bench-top dust collector according to claim 1, further comprising a cowling removably attached onto filter retaining flanges on said filter housing at the open front side thereof.

10. A bench-top dust collector according to claim 1 wherein a cowling is permanently affixed to filter retaining flanges of said housing.

11. A bench-top dust collector according to claim 9 wherein said cowling is formed of a top vane and a pair of side vanes each extending along the top or respective side of the front opening of the frame and with a breadth extending in a forward direction for about three inches.

12. A bench-top dust collector according to claim 9 wherein said cowling forms an aerodynamic air wall that extends from about 24 inches in front of the dust collector to said open front of the frame, such that any dust produced in a region withing about 24 inches in front of the filter frame is directed thereto and is drawn into the filter housing of the dust collector.

13. A bench-top dust collector according to claim 1 wherein said back wall of said rear compartment includes noise-deadening material.

14. A bench-top dust collector according to claim 1 comprising a power converter within the rear compartment that provides low-voltage direct current to said array of fans.

15. A source dust collector comprising a filter housing with an open front side and an open rear side, the filter housing containing at least one high performance dust filter situated within the housing between said open front side and said open rear side of the filter housing; a rear compartment situated against the rear side of the filter housing and including a mounting plate on which at least one high-static-pressure high flow fan is mounted to induce air flow from said filter housing into said rear compartment, the rear compartment having a rear wall defining a filtered air plenum, with at least a portion of said rear wall being perforated to permit air flow to rearward from said plenum; and an intake air cowling attached on at least sides and top of the filter housing front side.

16. A source dust collector according to claim 15, wherein said cowling comprises right and left vanes attached along respective right and left sides of said first opening and a top vane attached along an open upper edge of the front opening; with said vanes each being angled out away from said flow axis; and configured to create an aerodynamic three dimensional air wall that extends approximately twenty-four inches from the front side of the filter housing; whereby dust arising from any dusti-making activities within said aerodynamic air wall will be contained and drawn into the dust collector.

17. A source collector according to claim 15, wherein said rear compartment mounting plate holds a plurality of high-static-pressure fans arranged in an array, configured to create an even flow over the surfaces of the media of the filter.

18. A source collector according to claim 15, wherein the vanes of said cowling are removably attached onto edge flanges on the open front side of said filter housing.

19. A source collector according to claim 17, wherein said vanes are detachable from said edge flanges.

Description

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

[0035] FIGS. 1 and 2 are right front and left front perspectives of a bench-top dust control unit embodying this invention.

[0036] FIGS. 3 and 4 are left rear and right rear perspectives thereof.

[0037] FIG. 5 is a top plan view thereof.

[0038] FIG. 6 is a rear (air discharge side) elevation thereof.

[0039] FIG. 7 is a front (intake side) elevation thereof;

[0040] FIGS. 8 and 9 are left side and right side elevations, respectively.

[0041] FIG. 10 is an exploded assembly view thereof showing the parts, in order from the front (here, left to right) as intake cowling, front frame, pre-filter, fine or final filter, and front mounting plate, showing a small-fan array.

[0042] FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing individual vanes of the cowling and the front or intake side of the frame.

[0043] FIG. 12 is a perspective view showing the front side of the frame with the cowling vanes in place.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0044] With reference to the Drawing Figures, and initially to FIGS. 1 and 2 thereof, a preferred embodiment of the bench-top dust collector or DC 10 has the intake or front side 12, visible with cowling 14, the latter is formed here of a top horizontal vane and vertical left and right vanes, attached onto a frame 16 formed of sheet steel, and with a pre-filter 18 of a washable polyester material being held in the frame 16, and within the zone formed by the cowling 14. A rear compartment 20 is situated at the opposite side of the frame 16. This compartment 20 holds the fans and other electrical components, and has various control elements disposed on one or both sides, as detailed later on. The unit has an air flow axis the extends from the front to the back of the unit, and extends forward from the center of the front side 12.

[0045] The cowling's right and left vanes may be attached along respective right and left sides of the front or first opening and a top vane attached along an open upper edge of the front opening. Favorably the vanes are each angled out away from said flow axis or air into and through the dust collector. The cowling is thus configured to create an aerodynamic three dimensional air wall that extends approximately twenty-four inches from the front side of the filter housing.

[0046] FIGS. 3 and 4 show more of the visible detail of the rear compartment 20, including a carry handle 22 situated at a top surface and upper panel portion 24 of the rear wall of the compartment and a lower panel 26 here formed as a perforated grille, which in other embodiments could be mesh or cage. This lower panel grille 26 serves as the outlet or discharge area for the filtered exhaust air from the DC. As seen here the rear side has the upper wall portion 24 angled outward from the top to where it meets the lower wall portion 26, and the lower wall portion or outlet grille 26 is thus angled somewhat downward and rearward, so the exhaust air is optimally directed to minimize mixing and disruption of the flow of intake or dust laden air to the intake side 12. Also shown here on the left (FIG. 3) of the rear compartment 20 is a side control cluster 28, here with a power switch, speed control knob, auxiliary power outlet, and power cable socket. The accessory outlet may have a feature that automatically turns the dust collector on and off when the power tool is turned on and off, either by sensing current demand or by a wireless signal. An ethernet connector may optionally be provided for remote automated control. Also shown on each side wall of the rear compartment is a respective latch mechanism 30, for mechanically holding the rear compartment 20 to the frame 16 (and to the filters contained within it).

[0047] Not shown here, there can be a cork strip provided along the bottom wall of the rear compartment to serve as a resting surface for the unit on a workbench.

[0048] FIG. 5 is a top plan of the desktop DC 10, showing the cowling 14, the frame 16, and the rear compartment 20 with the carry handle 22, here in the form of a strap. The front elevation of FIG. 6 shows the rear or discharge side of the rear compartment 20 with the solid upper portion 24 and lower perforated grille portion 26. Three of the fans 40 (to be discussed shortly) are here are visible or partly visible through the small openings in the grille 26, as is a low-power direct-current supply 42. The latter is provided for the fans and for other electric elements within the compartment 20. A blanket layer of a sound absorbing material, or mechanical baffle structure, may be present on the inside surface of the upper portion 24, to reduce fan nose and other process noise from the unit.

[0049] FIG. 7 is a front elevation of the desktop DC 10 here showing the edges of the primary filter of pre-filter 18 being retained behind flanges 38 around the opening formed by the frame 16. This arrangement also holds in the final filter or high performance filter 36 which is hidden in this view (see FIG. 10). The side elevations of FIGS. 8 and 9 show the side vanes of the cowling 14 as will as the frame 16 and rear compartment 20 with latches 30, and on the left end (FIG. 9) the control cluster 28. At the bottom corners of the rear compartment 20, as seen in FIGS. 8 and 9 and also in FIGS. 1 to 4, there are foot members 32 projecting outward for additional stability and to keep the unit from tipping.

[0050] FIG. 10 is an exploded or assembly view of the benchtop DC 10 with the elements positioned, in order from left front to right rear, as the cowling 14, the sheet metal frame 16, the primary filter or pre-filter 14, and behind that the final filter 36, illustrated as pleated media 60 held together in a fiber frame 62. The spaces between pleats serve as repositories for retaining collected dust until it can be removed, or the filter 36 replaced. So long as the media 60 is not saturated with dust, much of the collected loose dust can be pulled out from the filter 58 by means of a vacuum cleaner or the like. This view also shows the arrangement of the small low-power fans 40. Here six fans arranged in two rows of three fans each are mounted on a sheet metal panel in the rear compartment 20 at the front side of the filter 58. These fans can all be variable speed, and can be controlled for optimal operation or to limit fan noise. The interior space of the rear compartment 20 defines a plenum for the filtered air to flow to the outlet or exhaust at the grille 26. Also as seen here, strips of resilient foam 64 are present at the side edges of the front of the rear compartment. This holds the components in place with moderate compression when the frame 16 is clamped to the rear compartment 20.

[0051] FIGS. 1 11 and 12 show the configuration of the unassembled inlet side cowling, and assembled cowling, respectively, as three pieces, namely, a top vane 44T and left and right side vanes 44L and 44R, respectively. The top vane 44T has tabs or projections that can be held in place between the pre-filter 18 and the flange 38 of the frame 16, and the remaining vanes 44L and 44R are installed in like manner to the left and right sides between the pre-filter 18 and flanges 38. The three vanes mutually support one another to hold the cowling 14 in place without need for screw fasteners. Notches and tabs may be provided on the lower ends of the side vanes 44L and 44R and on the bottom one of the frame flanges 38 to hold the cowling components in place.

[0052] Not visible in these views are two female threaded inserts or threaded openings in the top part of the rear compartment 20. Screw eyes may be attached here to serve for attaching to cables for suspending the benchtop DC 10, for example next to a lathe or wherever the workpiece is not on or adjacent the workbench.

[0053] The size, shape, appearance, and other features of the benchtop dust collectors of this invention can vary widely from the above described embodiment, depending on the needs for the specific shop or workplace. While the embodiment described here is intended to be plugged into a provided AC electrical outlet, a battery powered benchtop dust collector unit would clearly be within the realm of the present invention, either with replaceable rechargeable power batteries, or with internal rechargeable batteries and a plug-in recharger. The arrangement of the rear compartment 20 with a rear air discharge does not preclude the design of other embodiments which may have a side discharge.

[0054] The dust collector of these embodiments may have caster wheels to facilitate easy positioning during use. Also a variable height stand for the unit may be provided to position the unit at a desired level, which may be useful where the workpiece is not resting on a workbench. Also, the source dust collector may be adapted for use as a downdraft table unit by placing it on its back and adding a perforated work surface.

[0055] The scope and spirit of the present invention is not to be limited to the aforementioned embodiments, but is to be measured by reference to the appended claims.