Optimization of the Flow Path Efficiency in a Vacuum Cleaner Fan

Similar to washing machines, refrigerators, and televisions, vacuum cleaners have become an essential appliance in modern society. Many vacuum cleaners have been launched in the market; to meet the demands of consumers, their performance is continually being improved, and their sizes are becoming ever smaller. As vacuum cleaners decrease in size, the motor and fan, which are the main components, also need to be miniaturized. The full-size model is mainly an upright or a canister type, which has high suction power, but it is inconvenient to carry. Otherwise, a compact model is mainly a stick type or handheld type, which is cordless and lightweight; it has recently become popular. However, compact models have different characteristics compared to full-size models. For example, the motors of compact models must rotate more rapidly than those of full-size models, and the input torques and the diameters of the inlet ports of the cleaning orifices in compact models are smaller than those of full-size models. Therefore, the flow characteristics of compact models are quite different than those of full-size models. The flow inside a turbo fan rotating at high speed is different from the flow through a general fan, due to the very low pressure at the inlet of the fan, where the low-pressure state gradually returns to atmospheric pressure as the air passes through the fan and diffuser. In this process, the flow inside the fan and diffuser becomes quite complex and unstable [1]. In fact, it is difficult to grasp the flow through each element in a fan motor unit; thus, only the overall performance and flow characteristics of a fan are obtained through experimental results for real applications. In addition, it is unclear how the internal components of a fan motor unit affect its performance. It is uncertain as to whether the analysis results for each Optimization of the Flow Path Efficiency in a Vacuum Cleaner Fan Son, I.-H. – Noh, Y. – Choi, E.-H. – Choi, J.Y. – Ji, Y.J. – Lim, K. In-Hyuk Son1 – Yoojeong Noh1,* – Eun-Ho Choi2 – Ju Yong Choi3 – Young Jin Ji4 – Kyungnae Lim4 1 Pusan National University, School of Mechanical Engineering, Republic of Korea 2 Pusan National University, Pusan Educational Center for Computer Aided Machine Design, Republic of Korea 3 Kyungsung University, Department of Mechatronics Engineering, Republic of Korea 4 LG Electronics, Motor R&D Department, Republic of Korea