当前申请(专利权)人：
EDWARDS LIMITED
原始申请(专利权)人：
EDWARDS LIMITED
当前申请(专利权)人地址：
Incorporated in the United Kingdom, Innovation Drive, Burgess Hill, West Sussex, RH15 9TW, United Kingdom
摘要：
A stator blade unit (1, Fig 1) for a turbomolecular pump comprises an array of polymer stator blades 2. The blade unit (1, Fig 1) may be formed in two semi-circular halves which link together to form a whole disk (Fig 2). The unit (1, Fig 1) may have an inner 6 and/or outer 7 rim which may be adapted to couple to adjacent stator blade units. The rims 6, 7 may also be formed as spacers so as to allow a rotor to fit between two adjacent units and the adjacent units linkable (25/26, Fig 5a/b). The blades 2 may be made from injection molding or additive manufacture (ie. 3D printing) and may be formed to have a softer polymer coating or layer on the blades 2. Further, the inlet side of the unit may be smoother than the outlet side of the blade to improve efficiency. The invention serves to be easy to manufacture, allows for more complex geometries, easy to produce to narrower tolerances and cheaper than the prior art. Also claimed are a method of manufacturing a stator blade unit suitable for use in a turbomolecular pump by injection moulding and a stator blade unit suitable for use in a turbomolecular pimp, with a unitary structure made by fluid moulding or additive manufacturing, having an array of blades and an outer rim.
权利要求：
CLAIMS
1. A stator blade unit for a turbomolecular pump comprising an array of
polymer stator blades.
2. A stator blade unit according to claim 1 wherein the stator blades axially
overlap.
3. The stator blade unit according to any preceding claim further comprising
an inner rim and/or an outer rim adjoined to the array of stator blades.
4. The stator blade unit according to claim 3 wherein the outer rim comprises
an integrally formed spacer for preventing clashing between the stator
blades and an adjacent rotor.
5S. The stator blade unit according to claim 4 wherein the integrally formed
spacer is configured to engage with an axially adjoining stator array within
a stator stack.
6. The stator blade unit according to any one of claims 3 to 5 wherein the inner
rim is configured to couple with an inner rim of another stator blade unit.
/. The stator blade unit according to any preceding claim wherein the stator
blade unit is in the form of a single unitary structure.
8. A stator blade unit according to any one of claims 1 to 6 comprising at least
two sections arranged such that stator blades of one section are alternately
arranged with stator blades of the at least one other section.
9. A stator blade unit according to claim 8 wherein each section is in the form
of single unitary structure.
10. The stator blade unit according to any preceding claim wherein the stator
blade unit is injection moulded or additive manufactured, preferably an
injection moulded polymer stator blade unit.
11. The stator blade unit according to any preceding claim wherein the stator
unit comprises polymer stator blades each comprising one or more inner
polymer layers and an outermost polymer layer, wherein the outermost
polymer layer comprises a polymer that is less hard than the polymer
forming the one or more inner layers.
12. The stator blade unit according to any preceding claim wherein the unit is
substantially semi-annular.
138. The stator blade unit according to claim 12 wherein the stator blade unit is
configured to mate with a second substantially semi-annular stator blade
array to form an annular stator blade array.
14. The stator blade unit according to any preceding claim wherein each stator
blade comprises an inlet-side face and an outlet-side face and wherein the
inlet-side face has a different roughness to the outlet-side face, preferably
wherein the inlet-side face is less rough than the outlet-side face.
156. A method of manufacturing a stator blade unit for a turbomolecular pump
comprising the step of injection moulding a single unitary structure
comprising an array of stator blades.
16. The method according to claim 15 wherein an inner rim and/or outer rim are
co-moulded with the stator blades.
17. The method according to claim 16 wherein the outer rim comprises an
integrally formed spacer for preventing clashing between the stator blades
and an adjacent rotor.
18. The method according to claims 15 to 17 comprising the steps of injection
moulding a first unitary structure comprising an array stator blades, injection
moulding a second unitary structure comprising an array stator blades, and
combining the first and second structures to form a stator blade unit.
19. The method according to claim 18 wherein, when combined, the stator
blades of the first structure are alternately arranged with stator blades of the
second structure.
20. The method according to any one of claims 15 to 19 wherein the stator
blades overlap.
21. A stator blade unit manufactured according to or obtainable by the method
of any one of claims 15 to 20.
22. A stator blade unit for a turbomolecular pump wherein the stator unit
comprises an array of stator blades each comprising one or more inner
layers and an outermost polymer layer, wherein the outermost polymer layer
comprises a polymer that is less hard than a material forming one or more
of the inner layers.
23. A stator blade unit for a turbomolecular pump comprising a fluid substrate
moulded or additive manufactured unitary structure comprising an array of
stator blades and an outer rim, wherein the outer rim comprises an integrally
formed spacer for preventing clashing between the stator blades and an
adjacent rotor.
24. A stator blade unit according to claim 23 comprising at least two sections
each comprising an array of stator blades arranged such that stator blades
of one section are alternately arranged with stator blades of the at least one
other section.
25. A stator blade unit according to claim 24 wherein the sections are single
unitary structures.
26. A stator blade unit according to claim 23 to 25 wherein adjacent stator
blades overlap.
27. A stator blade unit for a turbomolecular pump comprising an array of stator
blades wherein a stator blade has a polymer coated edge.
28. A stator blade stack comprising at least one stator blade unit according to
any one of claims 1 to 14 or 21 to 27.
29. A turbomolecular pump comprising at least one stator blade unit according
to any one of claims 1 to 14 or 21 to 27.
30. A method of assembling a turbomolecular pump, the pump comprising a
stator stack comprising at least one annular stator array comprising an array
of machined or pressed metallic stator blades, the method comprising the
steps of removing the one or more annular stator arrays from the stator
stack and replacing the one or more removed annular stator arrays with one
or more annular stator arrays comprising a stator unit according to any one
of claims 1 to 14 or 21 to 27.