Seal for a controllable coolant pump

Abstract

A controllable coolant pump which has a pump housing. In the pump housing a pump shaft is arranged, which connects a drive wheel to an impeller wheel. In the operating state of the coolant pump, during a rotation of the impeller wheel, coolant is sucked in via a cover disk which is mounted in front of a suction space, and is conveyed into an annular channel of the pump housing. A delivery volume of the coolant pump can be influenced via an actuator which interacts with an axially displaceable guide plate assigned to the impeller wheel. An elastic sealing element is provided for effective sealing of an annular gap which is produced in a functionally required manner between the impeller wheel and the guide plate. The sealing element is inserted in an annular groove of the impeller wheel and is supported sealingly on a cylindrical section of the guide plate.

1 - 9 . (canceled) 
     
     
         10 . A controllable coolant pump comprising:
 a pump housing having an annular channel;   an impeller wheel, which is arranged within the pump housing, having a guide plate, which can be displaced axially by means of an actuator, in an operating state, a rotation of the impeller wheel sucks in a coolant via a suction space and conveys the coolant into the annular channel of the pump housing, and the guide plate can influence a volume of the coolant that can be delivered;   a pump shaft, which is a hollow shaft, arranged within the pump housing and connects a drive wheel to the impeller wheel; and   an elastic sealing element sealing an annular gap between the impeller wheel and the guide plate in all operating states of the coolant pump.   
     
     
         11 . The controllable coolant pump according to  claim 10 , wherein the impeller wheel has an outer contour with a circumferential radially oriented annular groove formed in the outer contour, and wherein the guide plate has an axially orientated, cylindrical section and the annular groove formed in the outer contour of the impeller wheel receives the sealing element, which is supported sealingly on the cylindrical section of the guide plate. 
     
     
         12 . The controllable coolant pump according to  claim 11 , wherein the cylindrical section of the guide plate has a length that exceeds a maximum actuating travel of the guide plate. 
     
     
         13 . The controllable coolant pump according to  claim 10 , wherein the sealing element has a seal hack, which is inserted in the annular groove of the impeller wheel and two sealing lips, which are connected by the seal back in order to seal the annular gap. 
     
     
         14 . The controllable coolant pump according to  claim 13 , further comprising a spreading element inserted between the sealing lips of the sealing element. 
     
     
         15 . The controllable coolant pump according to  claim 13 , wherein the sealing element is a diagonally slotted sealing element for sealing the annular gap between the impeller wheel and the guide plate. 
     
     
         16 . The controllable coolant pump according to  claim 13 , wherein the seal back is reinforced for stiffening the sealing element. 
     
     
         17 . The controllable coolant pump according to  claim 10 , wherein the cover disk has a receptacle for a seal in a largest circumferential region, which seals a gap size between the cover disk and the guide plate in an end position of the guide plate. 
     
     
         18 . The controllable coolant pump according to  claim 17 , wherein the seal and the sealing element are made of plastic. 
     
     
         19 . The controllable coolant pump according to  claim 18 , wherein the plastic is PEEK.