Fan unit air flow control

Abstract

A fan unit comprises a top having an inlet opening, at least one side for enclosing the fan unit, and an outlet opening. A fan blower is disposed on a blower mounting, the fan blower being for drawing air through the inlet opening and for discharging air through the outlet opening. At least one pair of guide baffles extends inwardly from a lower end of the at least one side towards the outlet opening, the pair of guide baffles and the blower mounting forms an air flow channel therebetween. The air flow channel creates a constriction on air flow to raise air pressure within the air flow channel. This creates substantially mono-directional air flow in the air flow channel and through the outlet opening. The air flow therefore has reduced turbulence such that noise from said fan unit is minimised.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0001] The present invention relates to a fan unit air flow control and refers particularly, though not exclusively, to a fan unit air flow control for reducing noise from a fan unit in a clean room facility. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] It is common for modern production and testing facilities to control the quantity of particles in the air that circulates within clean room facility in order to ensure the quality of the output of the clean room facility. Whether be it wafer dies, compact discs or memory disk drives, effective fan units are needed to not only keep the particle content within the clean room at acceptable levels, but also to circulate the air which workers breathe. As such, the fan units tend to be relatively powerful. [0003] However, such powerful fan units create excessive noise. Insulation material has been used to line the internal sides of the casing of the fan units to reduce the noise generated by the fan blowers. However, such an e...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

"The patent describes a fan unit that creates a constriction on air flow to reduce noise and create a mono-directional air flow through the outlet opening. The fan unit includes a top, side, and outlet opening, with a fan blower and guides to direct airflow. The fan unit may also have plates, baffles, and a noise insulating material. The technical effects of this design include reduced noise, improved air flow, and improved air conditioning."

Problems solved by technology

However, such powerful fan units create excessive noise.

However, such an elementary method often does not reduce the noise to a satisfactory level for workers inside the clean room facility.

The problem associated with the noise in a clean room facility is exacerbated in a confined space or enclosures such as, for example, a multi-storey wafer fabrication plant.

Where there is low height clearance, the noise from fan units may be quite pronounced.

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