Air flow device for vehicle

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11148501-B2
Application number	US-202016798508-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 24, 2020
Priority date	Sep 30, 2015
Publication date	Oct 19, 2021
Grant date	Oct 19, 2021

Abstract

An air flow device for a vehicle including an instrument panel dashboard, and a blower, the air flow device comprising a first outlet on a front upper surface portion of the instrument panel dashboard from which an air is sent along the front upper surface to a first inlet on the instrument panel dashboard into which the air blown from the first outlet is drawn; and a second outlet on a back upper surface portion of instrument panel dashboard from which an air is sent along the back upper surface to a second inlet on the instrument panel. The blower outlets are installed so as to open parallel to the blower inlets along an upper surface portion of the instrument panel dashboard.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An air flow device for a vehicle,
the vehicle including:
a vehicle compartment;
a windshield at a front of the vehicle compartment;
an instrument panel dashboard disposed below the windshield; and
a seat disposed closer to a back end of the vehicle than the instrument panel dashboard,
wherein the instrument panel dashboard includes:
an upper surface that faces upward in opposition to the windshield; and
a lower surface that faces downward in opposition to a floor of the vehicle, and

wherein the upper surface includes:
(i) a front part adjacent to an edge of the windshield, wherein the front part of the upper surface faces upward in opposition to the windshield in a perpendicular direction; and
(ii) a back part closer to the back end of the vehicle than the front part, wherein the back part of the upper surface diagonally faces an upper part of the seat of the vehicle, and wherein the back part is inclined more than the front part and is adjacent to the front part, and

the air flow device comprising:
a first inlet disposed on the front part of the upper surface adjacently to the edge of the windshield, the first inlet extending along the edge of the windshield;
a first outlet disposed on the front part of the upper surface, the first outlet extending along a direction parallel to the first inlet;
a second inlet disposed on the back part of the upper surface, the second inlet extending along the direction parallel to the first inlet;
a second outlet disposed on the back part of the upper surface apart from the second inlet, the second outlet extending along the direction parallel to the first inlet; and
a blower coupled to the first inlet, the first outlet, the second inlet, and the second outlet via a flow path,
wherein the blower makes a first air flow along the upper surface from the first outlet to the first inlet, and makes a second air flow along the upper surface from the second outlet to the second inlet, and
wherein a flow direction of the first air flow and a flow direction of the second air flow are identical.

2. The air flow device according to according to claim 1 , wherein the air flow device further comprises a guide including a plasma actuator on the upper surface of the instrument panel dashboard.

3. The air flow device according to claim 1 , wherein, in the extending direction of the first inlet, the first outlet, the second inlet, and the second outlet have lengths substantially identical to a length of the first inlet.

4. The air flow device according to claim 1 , wherein the upper surface of the instrument panel dashboard gradually inclines downward to a back of the vehicle.

5. The air flow device according to claim 1 , wherein the first inlet, the first outlet, the second inlet, and the second outlet are further coupled to a cooling heat exchanger that cools air via the flow path.

6. The air flow device according to according to claim 5 ,
wherein the lower surface of the instrument panel dashboard gradually inclines upward to a back of the vehicle,
wherein the air flow device further comprises:
a lower surface outlet disposed on the lower surface of the instrument panel dashboard; and
a lower surface inlet disposed on the lower surface of the instrument panel dashboard apart from the lower surface outlet, and wherein the lower surface outlet is coupled to a heating heat exchanger that heats air, and a third air flow heated by the heating heat exchanger is flown from the lower surface outlet into the lower surface inlet.

Assignees

• Subaru Corp

Inventors

• Ikeo Masahiko
• Masatani Motonari
• Mizuno Takako
• Mikami Hiroaki
• Nishina Hirotake

Classifications

• B60H2001/00214

  Devices in front of the passenger compartment · CPC title

• B60H1/3414 Primary

  with means for adjusting the air stream direction (B60H1/345 takes precedence) · CPC title

• B60H1/00021 Primary

  Air flow details of HVAC devices · CPC title

• B60H1/00071

  the air passing only one heat exchanger · CPC title

• B60H2001/003

  Component temperature regulation using an air flow · CPC title