Benefit of different types of fan

Going by the definition of fan, it is an apparatus with rotating blades that creates current of air for cooling and ventilation. This definition remains valid for any type of fan, though different types of ventilator fans may have different benefits.

Some example of fans and their uses are mentioned below:

Ceiling fans:

These are most commonly used fans around the world. Ceiling fans are postpone from the ceiling and gives air in the entire room. In most cases these fans have three blades attached to a centrally fixed motor, which rotates and along with it rotates the blades, giving air in the room. There are many verities of ceiling fans too that one can find in the market. Like there are few with lights and there are few with artistic designs on the blades. Even the blade sizes differ according to the room. For instance in big churches or railway stations one may find fans with really big blades. These big blades are to cover more area with just one equipment.

Table fans:

 Unlike ceiling fans these are not hung from the ceilings instead these are to be kept on a table or a stand. Table fans have an oscillator gearbox and oscillator shaft, which helps these fans to give air from one direction to another, covering almost the half of the room. These are good for small office or personal spaces.

Pedestal fans:

 Pedestal fans are very similar to table fans but these come with an inbuilt stand so that you do not have to search for a table to keep these fans. Most of the pedestal fans have wheels at the base, to make the movement smooth. Also some come with an oscillating head to cover more and large areas.

Tower fans: 

These are very sleek model of fans and can fit in small spaces. These look very modern and produce minimum noise. A very positive point about these fans is that these fans won’t tip over like other heavy head tower or table fans.

Wall Mount Fans:

 These are copy of table fans with only difference of it does not require any table and can be mounted on the wall directly. These are perfect with limited floor spaces. These are quite powerful fans and usually have two strings attached to increase the speed and to control the movement of the head. These are apt for warehouses, factories, garages and alike.

Box Fans:

These are one of the multipurpose fans that can be placed either on the floor or even in an open window. It helps in clearing stagnate air.

Bathroom Exhaust Fans:

 Ventilation is very important in bathroom, otherwise the blocked air will create a stink in the entire house or nearby area. This is good to clear out the odour from the bathrooms. It also prevents excessive moisture and eliminates other nuisance caused by this.

Window fans:

Sometimes it is not enough to keep the windows open to get the fresh air, so to bring fresher and cool air inside, window fans are apt. These fans save a lot of floor and table space too.

Computer cooling fan:

These types of fans are basically installed inside a computer device and are fixed to keep the device cool and avoid over heating

Centrifugal fan:

 These types of fans are very commonly used in blow dryers, leaf blowers, air mattress inflators & other inflatable items like toys and other structures. These are also used for many industrial purposes.  

Brief History Fans

Brief History of Fans

The earliest electric fans appeared in the early 1880’s. The fan was basically a blade attached to an electric motor. The development of the fields of Electrical Engineering and Aeronautical Engineering paralleled each other in the industry of electric fans.

The early electric motors were bipolar. They were direct current, with all exposed workings. The early blades were adapted from the windmill, with usually six pie shaped flat leafs of brass. Speed control was attained using resistance. In almost all cases resistance wire was used, and in a few cases, the light bulb was used a resistance. These early fans were either a novelty, or an expensive appliance, used in large offices or wealthy homes.

After Tesla’s work on Alternating Current motors, most makers moved toward that standard. In the early 1890’s, motors were becoming enclosed. Fan cages appeared. The cage was not there to protect the user, as much as to protect the expensive fan and blade from damage. The blade designs remained six wings. The Alternating Current motor was controlled using induction, rather than resistance.

Around 1900, blade designs began to change, along with increased competition. The earliest oscillating fans began to appear. First they were wind driven, and by 1904 the first mechanical oscillating fan appeared. By 1906, all electric motor theory was done. The only improvement on motor design would come in the 1930’s. The biggest improvement in motors was improved insulation for copper wires used to wind motors. Until the early 1890’s, these wires were covered with silk, and later cotton covered wire as insulation. An enamel insulation improved, smaller wires could be used, and thus smaller motors made.

By 1910, most fan makers were using rounded edge blades, if not designs they had patented themselves. All major manufacturers were making some form or wind driven, or mechanical oscillator. Motors were all enclosed by now as well as smaller in size.

The decade of 1910-1920 brought major changes. Around 1910, electric fans were being made for residential use. These “Residential Fans” were made for the bedroom. They had six wings, and ran at a slower speed for quietness. Fans were still a major appliance. By 1912, makers were able to “spin” brass housings on small fans. Shortly afterward, they could “spin” or stamp steel for motors as well as bases. As World War 1 neared, there were brass shortages, due to the need for brass in ammunition. By the end of this decade, brass cages had been replaced by steel cages. All blades were now rounded in shape. Motors shrank from 8” diameter down to 5”. Almost all makers used black as their color on the fan bodies, but General Electric went to a deep green color.

By 1920, refrigerated air was appearing in commercial buildings. Fan makers began to market fans more towards residential use, as the new refrigerated displaced their commercial markets. Makers began testing with design changes. Two competitors introduced fans designed as radio speakers, in a brown wood-grain finish. Late that decade, General Electric introduced the overlapping blade, which operated much more quietly. These early blades also were made of aluminum, rather than steel. Aluminum was being used more now in manufacturing.

Early in 1930, a young woman named Jane Evans came to St. Louis to do some interior design work. She was introduced to the President of Emerson Electric. She proposed a radical stylish design. In 1932 Emerson introduced the Silver Swan. It used a blade made of aluminum, but was based on a yacht propeller design. The design was a major success, and probably helped Emerson survive the Depression. More and more aluminum was used for blades and designs varied greatly. Many colors were offered including Ivory, Forest Green, Dark Brown, Chrome, Nickel, Motors received their last important change. Emerson introduced the capacitor start motor. These started faster, ran quieter and were much more efficient. Motors were now as small as 4” in diameter and could propel a 16” blade made of aluminum. Cast aluminum blades appeared, using the latest aeronautical designs.

In the 1940’s we were a Nation at war. Fan makers used their capacity to help with the war effort. Few if any electric fans were made for the market. There were no design changes. Production restarted after war ended, with the same designs as pre-war.

By 1950, air conditioning was becoming available for homes. A few makers offered fans for homes with wooden cases, to blend with the televisions. The introduction of residential refrigerated air, was the onset of decline for the table fan. During the decade of the 1950’s, not much changed in fans. Cost cutting took over design as a selling point. Cheaper fans were made. Some used nylon for gears, versus brass or steel. Colors introduced were Grey, Aqua, Turquoise, as well as wrinkled finishes in paint.

By the 1960’s, most makers began to phase out their fan lines. By the late 1960’s, the last of the good fans were being made.

Information Provided by Steve Cunningham

  

First Fan Inventor

Inventor Electric Fan

Between the years 1882 and 1886, New Orleans, LA resident Schuyler Skaats Wheeler invented a fan powered by electricity. It was commercially marketed by the American firm Crocker & Curtis electric motor company. In 1882, Philip Diehl introduced the electric ceiling fan.

Definition of Electric Fan 

A household electric floor fan. A mechanical fan is a machine used to create flow within a fluid, typically a gas such as air. The fan consists of a rotating arrangement of vanes or blades which act on the fluid. The rotating assembly of blades and hub is known as an impeller, a rotor, or a runner.

First Invented Ceiling Fan

The electrically powered ceiling fan was invented in 1882 by Philip Diehl; he had engineered the electric motor used in the first electrically powered Singer sewing machines, and in 1882 adapted that motor for use in a ceiling-mounted fan.

First Invented Hand Fan

In ancient Japan, hand fans, such as oval and silk fans was influenced greatly by the Chinese fans. The earliest visual depiction of fans in Japan dates back to the 6th century CE, with burial tomb paintings showed drawings of fans. The folding fan was invented in Japan, with date ranging from the 6th to 9th centuries.