TEXTILE MACHINE HAVING AN ENERGY RECOVERY DEVICE

Abstract

A textile machine comprising a plurality of workstations for processing fibres and/or threads; at least one unit through which air flows, located centrally and/or at the individual workstations; and an energy recovery device. In order to provide a textile machine having an energy recovery device which has high energy efficiency, the energy recovery device has a rotational element which: can be fluidically connected to a supply air line and/or exhaust air line of the unit; can be driven by an air flow; and is connected to a generator for electricity generation.

Claims

1. A textile machine comprising: a plurality of workstations for processing fibres and/or threads and having at least one unit through which air flows, located centrally and/or at the individual workstations; and an energy recovery device connected to a supply air line and/or an exhaust air line of the at least one unit and having a rotational element which can be driven by an air flow and which is connected to a generator for electricity generation.

2. The textile machine according to claim 1, wherein the energy recovery device comprises a housing body connected to the exhaust air line of the at least one unit and having a flow cross-section which widens from a housing inlet up to a housing outlet.

3. The textile machine according to claim 2, wherein the rotational element is arranged in a region of the housing outlet.

4. The textile machine according to claim 1, wherein an axis of rotation of the rotational element extends in a plane which is not oriented perpendicularly or parallel to a flow direction.

5. The textile machine according to claim 4, wherein the axis of rotation is arranged in such a way that the axis of rotation is oriented relative to the air flow independently or by control.

6. The textile machine according to claim 2, wherein the housing body has a guide plate which extends in a region between the housing inlet and the housing outlet and divides the air flow through the housing body, and the rotational element is arranged in a region between the guide plate and a housing wall.

7. The textile machine according to claim 2, wherein a housing wall has a housing opening and the rotational element is arranged on an outside of the housing body in a region of the housing opening in such a way that the air flow flowing through the housing body produces a suction flow which drives the rotational element.

8. The textile machine according to claim 1, wherein the energy recovery device is designed to be integrated into a supply air line.

9. The textile machine according to claim 1, wherein the energy recovery device is arranged in a region of an outlet of a compressed-air-generating device.

10. The textile machine according to claim 1, wherein the supply air line and/or the exhaust air line which belongs to the at least one unit and in which the energy recovery device is arranged comprises a duct extending in a longitudinal direction of the textile machine.

11. The textile machine according to claim 1, wherein the energy recovery device is designed to be integrated into a compressed air line leading to the at least one unit.

12. The textile machine according to claim 1, wherein the energy recovery device is arranged in a region of an outlet of a spiral housing of a compressed-air-generating fan wheel.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0022] Embodiment examples of the present invention are explained below with reference to the drawing. In the drawings:

[0023] FIG. 1 shows a schematic perspective illustration of an energy recovery device having a rotational element in the form of a blade wheel;

[0024] FIG. 2 shows a schematic perspective illustration of a first embodiment of a housing body for arranging on an exhaust air line of a unit through which air flows;

[0025] FIG. 3 shows a schematic side-view illustration of the housing body of FIG. 2 with a rotational element of an energy recovery device;

[0026] FIG. 4 shows a schematic illustration of a second embodiment of a housing body with a rotational element;

[0027] FIG. 5 shows a schematic illustration of a third embodiment of a housing body with a rotational element; and

[0028] FIG. 6 shows a schematic illustration of the arrangement of an energy recovery device in a feed line.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0029] FIG. 1 shows a schematic illustration of an energy recovery device 12 having a rotational element, which is arranged on a frame body 2 and is in the form of a blade wheel 3. The frame body 2 of the energy recovery device 12 can be arranged e.g. on a support frame 4 of a housing body 1a (this housing body is shown in FIG. 2). The housing body 1a can be connected, by a housing inlet 5, to an exhaust air line (not shown here) of a unit (not shown here either) through which air flows. Proceeding from the housing inlet 5, the opening cross-section of the housing body 1a widens up to the housing outlet 6.

[0030] The housing body 1a acts as a diffuser because of its cross-section widening from the housing inlet 5 up to the housing outlet 6, and as a result the flow velocity of the air flowing through the housing body 1a is reduced and the static pressure is increased, so that the rotational element 3, which can be arranged in the region of the housing outlet 6 (see FIG. 3), can be driven particularly reliably. The rotational energy of the rotational element 3 is converted into electrical energy by a generator (not shown here) connected to the rotational element 3, and this electrical energy can be used in any way.

[0031] Another embodiment of a housing body 1b is shown in FIG. 4. In this embodiment, the housing body 1b has a lateral housing opening 8. The air flow flowing through the housing body 1b from the housing inlet 5 to the housing outlet 6 produces a suction flow outside of the housing body 1b in the region of the housing opening 8, and this suction flow drives a blade wheel 3 which is arranged there and which belongs to the energy recovery device 12.

[0032] In another embodiment of the housing body 1c, the housing body 1c has a guide plate 7, which extends from the housing outlet 6 toward the housing inlet 5. By the guide plate 7, part of the air flow flowing through the housing body 1c is split off and fed between the guide plate 7 and the housing wall of the energy recovery device 12 (see FIG. 5).

[0033] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 6, the blade wheel 3 of the energy recovery device 12 is arranged within a supply air line 10, which leads from a compressed-air source 9 to a unit 11 driven by the compressed air. The compressed-air source 9 can have, for example, a spiral housing, in the exit region of which the energy recovery device 12 is arranged.

LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS

[0034] 1a, 1b, 1c Housing body [0035] 2 Frame body [0036] 3 Rotational element/blade wheel [0037] 4 Support frame [0038] 5 Housing entry [0039] 6 Housing exit [0040] 7 Guide plate [0041] 8 Housing opening [0042] 9 Compressed-air source [0043] 10 Supply air line [0044] 11 Unit [0045] 12 Energy recovery device