Articulating Blower Arrays and Methods

Abstract

Aspects of the disclosure relate to air-moving devices, methods, and systems. An articulating blower array may include a blower bank having one or more blower units and a control unit. The blower bank may include an inlet at a first side, an outlet at a second side opposite the first side, an array of one or more blower units between the inlet and the outlet and configured to eject a thrusted airflow from the outlet in substantially the same direction as an airflow ingested into the inlet, and an articulating joint configured to articulate a blower angle of the blower bank around an axis of rotation. The control unit may be coupled to the blower bank module and configured to control one or more operational settings of the blower bank. The articulating blower array may be a tow-behind articulating blower array.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . An air-moving device comprising:
 a blower bank defining a linear airflow path between a first side of the blower bank and a second side of the blower bank opposite the first side, the blower bank comprising:
 an inlet at the first side of the blower bank; 
 an outlet at the second side of the blower bank; 
 an array of one or more blower units positioned between the inlet and the outlet, each blower unit being configured to eject a thrusted airflow from the outlet in substantially the same direction as an ingested airflow into the inlet; and 
 an articulating joint configured to rotate the blower bank around an axis of rotation; and 
   a computing device communicatively coupled to the blower bank and comprising:
 one or more processors; and 
 memory storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the computing device to:
 modify a blowing angle of the blower bank at least by controlling rotation of the blower bank around the axis of rotation via the articulating joint; and 
 control operation of the one or more blower units of the blower bank. 
 
   
     
     
         2 . The air-moving device of  claim 1 , further comprising a tow hitch coupled to the blower bank. 
     
     
         3 . The air-moving device of  claim 1 , further comprising at least one battery configured to power the one or more blower units. 
     
     
         4 . The air-moving device of  claim 1 , wherein the inlet has a bell mouth shape. 
     
     
         5 . The air-moving device of  claim 1 , wherein the blower bank further comprises a grate positioned upstream of the one or more blower units. 
     
     
         6 . The air-moving device of  claim 1 , wherein the articulating joint comprises a stopper configured to limit rotation of the blower bank to a maximum degree of rotation around the axis of rotation. 
     
     
         7 . The air-moving device of  claim 1 , wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the computing device to control operation of the one or more blower units at least by independently controlling each blower unit of the one or more blower units. 
     
     
         8 . The air-moving device of  claim 1 , wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the computing device to cause output of a visual indicator of an area receiving at least a portion of the thrusted airflow ejected from the outlet of the blower bank. 
     
     
         9 . A tow-behind blower comprising:
 a blower bank defining a linear airflow path between a first side of the blower bank and a second side of the blower bank opposite the first side and comprising an array air-moving devices configured to ingest an airflow from the first side of the blower bank and eject a thrusted airflow from the second side of the blower bank;   an articulating joint configured to rotate the blower bank around an axis of rotation; and   a tow hitch coupled to the blower bank between the first side of the blower bank and the second side of the blower bank and configured to couple to a vehicle.   
     
     
         10 . The tow-behind blower of  claim 9 , further comprising:
 a control unit coupled to the blower bank and configured to control operation of the array of air-moving devices; and   a wheeled chassis attached to at least one of the control unit or the blower bank;   wherein the blower bank is positioned between the control unit and the tow hitch.   
     
     
         11 . The tow-behind blower of  claim 10 , wherein:
 the control unit is coupled to the blower bank via a second articulating joint that provides a sweep angle between the control unit and the blower bank;   the tow hitch is configured to couple to the vehicle via a third articulating joint; and   the second articulating joint and the third articulating joint are configured to articulate such that, when driven by the vehicle, the wheeled chassis maintains substantially the same direction as the vehicle.   
     
     
         12 . The tow-behind blower of  claim 10 , wherein the array of air-moving devices is powered by at least one of: a battery, an alternating current power source, an internal combustion engine, or a power take-off generator. 
     
     
         13 . The tow-behind blower of  claim 10 , wherein:
 each air-moving device of the array of air-moving devices is configured to be independently operated; and   the control unit is configured to control operation of a combination of air-moving devices based on a blowing characteristic associated with the combination of air-moving devices. The tow-behind blower of  claim 10 , wherein the control unit comprises one or more of:   a line laser;   a sensor; or   a camera configured to provide a visual indication of a blowing direction of the blower bank.   
     
     
         15 . A method of controlling a tow-behind blower comprising:
 providing a user interface configured to receive user input indicating selection of one or more operational settings of a blower bank of a tow-behind blower, wherein the blower bank defines a liner airflow path between a first side of the blower bank and a second side of the blower bank and comprises:
 an inlet at the first side of the blower bank; 
 an outlet at the second side of the blower bank; and 
 an array of one or more blower units positioned between the inlet and the outlet, each blower unit being configured to ingest an airflow at the inlet and eject a thrusted airflow from the outlet in substantially the same direction as the ingested airflow; and 
 an articulating joint configured to rotate the blower bank around an axis of rotation; 
   receiving, at the user interface, user input indicating a selection of at least one operational setting of the one or more operational settings; and   based on the user input indicating the selection of the at least one operational setting, controlling, by a computing device, operation of the blower bank by:
 rotating the blower bank around the axis of rotation to modify a blowing angle of the blower bank; and 
 controlling operation of at least one blower unit of the one or more blower units. 
   
     
     
         16 . The method controlling a tow-behind blower of  claim 15 , wherein controlling operation of the at least one blower unit comprises:
 applying a first power setting to a first subset of blower units; and   applying a second power setting, different from the first power setting, a second subset of blower units different from the first subset of blower units.   
     
     
         17 . The method controlling a tow-behind blower of  claim 15 , wherein:
 the user input indicating the selection of the operational setting comprises an indication of a desired blowing characteristic; and   controlling operation of the at least one blower unit comprises, based on the indication of the desired blowing characteristic, applying a first power setting to a first subset of blower units and a second power setting to a second subset of blower units.   
     
     
         18 . The method controlling a tow-behind blower of  claim 15 , wherein controlling operation of the at least one blower unit comprises providing power to a first subset of blower units and providing no power to a second subset of blower units. 
     
     
         19 . The method controlling a tow-behind blower of  claim 15 , further comprising halting rotation of the blower bank around the axis of rotation based on the inlet satisfying a threshold proximity to the ground. 
     
     
         20 . The method controlling a tow-behind blower of  claim 15 , wherein the array of blower units comprises a plurality of rows of blower units and a plurality of columns of blower units arranged in a grid.