Gas separation – Combined or convertible – In environmental air enclosure
Reexamination Certificate
1999-03-30
2001-06-26
Simmons, David A. (Department: 1724)
Gas separation
Combined or convertible
In environmental air enclosure
C055S416000, C055S471000, C055S473000, C454S187000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06251155
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an automatic warehouse for a clean room, and specifically to the supply and circulation of clean air to the automatic warehouse.
2. Description of the Related Art
In an automatic warehouse for a clean room, a fan is provided at the bottom of a rack, and air is sucked from the outside of the automatic warehouse and is treated by means of a clean filter, and clean air is supplied to each rack from a path provided at the rear of the rack. However, if the ceiling height of the clean room is increased, the rack height of the automatic warehouse is likely to increase, and there is concern that the clean air from the fan does not reach the top of the rack.
It is an object of the present invention to permit clean air to be supplied almost uniformly to each rack even if the height of the rack is increased.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an automatic warehouse provided with a wall facing the outside rear of the rack for forming a clean air path to the rack, and the invention comprises an air intake port for introducing clean air from the ceiling section of a clean room at a top of the clean air path, and an air supply means and a filter for sucking and purifying air from the loading space, and for supplying air to the clean air path, wherein the air supply means and the filter are provided at the bottom of the rack.
Preferably, the above automatic warehouse is disposed so as to penetrate through at least two floors of the clean room, and has an entrance for carrying an article of each floor in and out.
Preferably, the air supply means is constructed so as to eject a part of the sucked air to the outside of the automatic warehouse.
The present invention comprises an air intake for introducing clean air from the ceiling section of a clean room at the top of a clean air path, and an air supply means and a filter for sucking and purifying air from the loading space, and for supplying air to the clean air path, wherein the air supply means and the filter are provided at the bottom of the rack. Thus, at the upper part of the rack, the clean air from the ceiling section of the clean room is supplied via the clean air path. The air supplied from the clean air path to the rack flows into the loading space, is sucked by the air supply means at the bottom of the rack, and is treated by means of the filter, and is then returned to the clean air path. Therefore, the clean air from the ceiling section is supplied to the upper part of the rack, and the clean air from the air supply means and the filter is supplied to the lower part of the rack. Because the air in the loading space is sucked by the air supply means, the flow of clean air at the upper part of the rack is accelerated, and making it possible to prevent non-circulating air from settling in the upper part of the rack. As a result, clean air can be supplied almost uniformly at the whole rack.
Even if the height of the rack increases, the clean air can be supplied uniformly. Thus, the present invention provides an automatic warehouse whose height is substantially equivalent to the full height of two floors of the clean room, for example. The lower end of the automatic warehouse comes into contact with the floor of the clean room to which grating or the like is applied on the lower floor, and the upper end thereof reaches the vicinity of the ceiling of the upper floor. By doing this, an article between the first and second floors of the clean room can be carried in the automatic warehouse. In comparison with the case in which one automatic warehouse is provided on each floor, only one loading device is employed, thus making it possible to reduce the dead space at the lower part of the automatic warehouse or in the vicinity of the ceiling.
In the present invention, a part of the sucked air from the loading space is ejected to the outside of the warehouse via the floor surface of the automatic warehouse or the lower wall surface. The amount of clean air brought in from the ceiling section is equal to that ejected from the automatic warehouse to the outside, thus making it possible to increase the clean air intake quantity.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5525106 (1996-06-01), Iizuka et al.
patent: 3-172203 (1991-07-01), None
patent: 7-172506 (1995-07-01), None
patent: 9-150912 (1997-06-01), None
patent: 10-291607 (1998-11-01), None
Hopkins Robert A.
Murata Kikai Kabushiki Kaisha
Simmons David A.
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