Patent 11111929 was granted and assigned to Rinnai on September, 2021 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
A rotational shaft is placed through insertion holes of rubber washers sandwiching a portion of an impeller having a mount hole. The impeller is mounted on the rotational shaft with a nut on a threaded distal end portion of the rotational shaft. The rotational shaft of the motor includes a locking surface. The insertion holes of the rubber washers each have the same shape as the cross-sectional shape of the rotational shaft. The mount hole of the impeller includes a spacing portion extending at an angle from the linear portion of the insertion hole of each rubber washer away from the locking surface of the rotational shaft. Although the impeller rotates with respect to the rotational shaft under a frictional force applied from the nut tightened against the rotational shaft, this structure prevents metallic contact between the impeller at the mount hole and the locking surface of the rotational shaft.