Pump housing construction

Abstract

A pump ( 16 ) has a clamshell housing ( 12, 14 ) with walls ( 34, 36, 46, 50, 52 ) that come together and seal to create chambers ( 22, 24 ) which contain a pressure difference relative to ambient pressure.

1 . A pumping unit comprising: 
 a motor pump for pumping a working fluid through a flow path in communication with a load outside of the pumping unit; and    a clam shell housing having first and second sections enclosing the motor pump, each section having inlet walls defining a portion of an intake chamber and outlet walls defining a portion of an exhaust chamber, wherein the inlet walls of the first section seal against the inlet walls of the second section to define a sealed intake chamber in the flow path for passage of the working fluid and wherein the outlet walls of the first section seal against the outlet walls of the second section to define a sealed exhaust chamber in the flow path for passage of the working fluid.    
   
   
       2 . The pumping unit of  claim 1 , wherein at least one of the inlet and outlet walls has an edge which is overmolded with an elastomeric seal material.  
   
   
       3 . The pumping unit of  claim 1 , wherein the intake and exhaust chambers are in communication with associated inlet and outlet ports of the pumping unit.  
   
   
       4 . The pumping unit of  claim 1 , wherein an edge of at least one of the inlet and outlet walls in each of the first and second sections contains a half-circular recess, and wherein the half circular recesses come together to seal around a circular port of the pumping unit when the first and second sections are brought together.  
   
   
       6 . The pumping unit of  claim 1 , wherein the inlet walls of first and second sections mate in end to end contact to define at least part of the intake chamber and the outlet walls of the first and second sections mate in end to end contact to define at least part of the exhaust chamber.  
   
   
       7 . The pumping unit of  claim 1 , wherein an end of at least one of the inlet and outlet walls of at least one of the first and second sections seals against a side surface of at least one of the inlet and outlet walls of the other of the first and second sections to define at least part of at least one of the intake and exhaust chambers.  
   
   
       8 . The pumping unit of  claim 7 , wherein the end is tapered.  
   
   
       9 . The pumping unit of  claim 8 , wherein the end is overmolded with an elastomeric sealing material.  
   
   
       10 . The pumping unit of  claim 9 , wherein the elastomeric sealing material is tapered.  
   
   
       11 . The pumping unit of  claim 1 , wherein at least one of the inlet and outlet walls includes at least a portion of an intake port formed therein.  
   
   
       12 . The pumping unit of  claim 1 , wherein at least one of the inlet and outlet walls includes at least a portion of an exhaust port formed therein.  
   
   
       13 . The pumping unit of  claim 1 , wherein the inlet walls of the first and second sections seal against an intake port of the motor pump and the outlet walls of the first and second sections seal against an exhaust port of the motor pump.  
   
   
       14 . The pumping unit of  claim 1 , wherein inlet walls of the first and second sections seal against one another in end to end contact.  
   
   
       15 . The pumping unit of  claim 1 , wherein outlet walls of the first and second sections seal against one another in end to end contact.  
   
   
       16 . The pumping unit of  claim 1 , wherein end edges of the inlet and outlet walls of the first and second sections are overmolded with an elastomeric sealing material.  
   
   
       17 . The pumping unit of  claim 16 , wherein the end edges are tapered.  
   
   
       18 . A pumping unit comprising: 
 a motor pump for pumping a working fluid through a flow path in communication with a load outside of the pumping unit; and    a clam shell housing having first and second sections enclosing the motor pump, each of the first and second sections has one or more walls that seal against one or more walls of the other section to define a sealed pressure or vacuum chamber of the working fluid within the walls when the first and second sections are brought together to enclose the motor pump.