Please download the presentation made at the 2007 I-CAR International Annual Meeting for more detail on how EARS works! Click on the link, below, to download.
The principle behind EARS is to convert exhausted and previously wasted air back into energy. Not only does this mean that this “wasted” air is recycled and a previously untapped energy source is used, but the system also increases the power of the air compressor by around 50 percent meaning that you can use a smaller compressor to power bigger tools.
An EARS fitted machine uses about half the power of a similar conventional machine with the resulting significant savings in power and environmental costs.
The system simply taps into the exhaust port of the air tool. The core component is the manifold. The exhausted air is directed through a low-pressure hose into the EARS intake manifold. This creates a high pressure on the intake of the compressor so instead of only one bar of pressure (i.e. atmosphere) being able to enter the compressor cylinder, the EARS system can have up to four bar allowing the compressor to compress three times more air in one revolution.
Although the EARS fitted machines are capable of delivering four times the power, working the machine at this level would put too great a stress on the air compressor motor. To minimize stress on the motor while optimizing performance, EARS fitted machines are tuned to deliver about twice the volume of similar-sized conventional machines.
Pneumatic tools are also notoriously noisy and the EARS system is able to reduce the noise generated by up to 50 percent. The EARS air tool has two ports – one is high-pressure air IN; and the other is low-pressure exhausted air OUT. And once the extra EARS low-pressure hose is fitted to the air tool, noise is reduced by up to 50 percent.
The EARS system also has other benefits including improving occupational health and safety because it removes any potential hazard the exhausted air may cause for the operator of the tools.
The EARS system also reduces moisture and heat within the air system thereby prolonging the life of the air tools. When air is compressed it creates a lot of heat and when suddenly exhausted – as is the case when using the air tools – that air is cooled significantly (by up to 35 degrees). In the EARS system, that cooled, exhausted air is now being recycled into the compression system to keep it cool. Moisture is reduced because the EARS system is not sucking in fresh, ambient air (which contains humidity) to fill the compressors. It is simply recycling the air.
(C) 2010 Michigan Pneumatic Tool, Inc and EARS North America
