Ventilation – Vehicle – Roof structure
Reexamination Certificate
2000-07-06
2002-03-26
Lu, Jiping (Department: 3749)
Ventilation
Vehicle
Roof structure
C454S138000, C454S139000, C454S099000, C454S158000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06361428
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a ventilation system for a vehicle. More specifically, the invention relates to a ventilation system, which is capable of actively or passively moving air between the upper region of the interior of the vehicle and the atmosphere outside the vehicle as well as circulating air within the upper region of the interior of the vehicle. The ventilation system is capable of actively moving air between the interior of the vehicle and the outside atmosphere whether the vehicle is stationary or moving. The ventilation system is also capable of actively or passively moving air between the interior of the vehicle and the outside atmosphere in rainy weather while preventing the entry of moisture through the ventilation system into the interior of the vehicle.
RELATED ART
In vehicles which have occupant cabins with high ceilings and heating ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems with supply and return ducts concentrated near the lower portion of the occupant cabin, there is generally very little circulation or replacement of the air in the upper portion of the occupant cabin. Thus, it is often the case that the vehicle's HVAC system is not capable of rapidly effecting and maintaining a comfortable environment in the upper portion of the occupant cabin. When the vehicle's air conditioner is operated, the warm air in the upper portion of the vehicle interior is slow to mix with the cool air introduced into the lower portions of the occupant cabin by the vehicle's air conditioning system. Furthermore, because there is very little replacement of the air in the upper portion of the vehicle's interior, it can stagnate and become stale.
There exist a few designs, which aim to improve the condition of the environment in the upper portion of the occupant cabin. One such design is the inclusion of vent windows in the upper portion of the exterior structure of the occupant cabin to allow for fluid communication between the interior of the occupant cabin and the outside atmosphere when the vent windows are open. While this system allows for ventilation of the upper portion of the interior of the occupant cabin, it can not be utilized in rainy weather without introducing moisture into the interior of the occupant cabin. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,779,536 and 6,004,202, disclose a design which has a ventilating duct with an inlet adjacent the ceiling of the vehicle interior and an outlet to the outside atmosphere near the floor of the vehicle interior. This design allows air to move between the upper portion of the interior of the vehicle and the atmosphere outside the vehicle. The design relies on positive cabin pressure, which is only achieved when the vehicle is moving forward, to actively move the air between the upper portion of the interior of the vehicle and the atmosphere outside the vehicle. Other systems disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,189,987 and 5,081,912 and 5,690,549 show ventilation systems which are mounted to the roof of a vehicle's occupant cabin and have fans for actively moving air between the interior of the occupant cabin and the outside atmosphere.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
As a result,—an object of the present invention is to provide a ventilation system
10
which is capable of actively or passively moving air between the upper portion of the interior
11
of the occupant cabin
12
and the outside atmosphere
13
, whether the vehicle is stationary or in motion, under any weather conditions, without allowing the entry of moisture through the ventilation system
10
into the interior
11
of the vehicle.
The present invention is a ventilation system
10
for mounting to an upper portion of the exterior structure
14
of a vehicle's occupant cabin
12
. One or more components
15
of the exterior structure
14
of the occupant cabin
12
define an opening
16
through the upper portion of the exterior structure
14
of the occupant cabin
12
. Air can move through this opening
16
from the interior
11
of the occupant cabin
12
to outside the occupant cabin
12
and vice versa. A duct
17
is mounted to the vehicle. An outer wall
18
of a first end
19
of the duct
17
is mated to an outer surface
20
of one or more components
15
of the exterior structure
14
of the occupant cabin
12
. The outer wall
18
of the first end
19
of the duct
17
surrounds at least a portion of the opening
16
in the exterior structure
14
of the occupant cabin
12
. Thus the interior
21
of the duct
17
is in fluid communication with the opening
16
in the exterior structure
14
of the occupant cabin
12
. A second end
22
of the duct
17
is positioned at a point below the first end
19
of the duct
17
and is open to, and in fluid communication with, the outside atmosphere
13
. The ventilation system
10
has a fan
23
, which is mounted to the vehicle. The fan
23
is mounted at a position such that either the inlet area
24
or the outlet area
25
of the fan
23
is located near, and is in fluid communication with, the opening
16
in the exterior structure
14
of the occupant cabin
12
.
Thus the ventilation system
10
of the present invention accomplishes all of its objects. The fan
23
of the ventilation system
10
can be used to actively move air from the upper portion of the interior
11
of the occupant cabin
12
, through the ventilation system
10
, and into the outside atmosphere
13
. This mode of operation of the ventilation system
10
is shown in FIG.
1
. If the fan
23
is made to move air in the reverse direction the ventilation system
10
can move air from the outside atmosphere
13
, through the ventilation system
10
, and into the upper portion of the interior
11
of the occupant cabin
12
. When the fan
23
is not in operation the ventilation system
10
passively moves air between the outside atmosphere
13
and the interior
11
of the vehicle's occupant cabin
12
. Because the second end
22
of the duct
17
is positioned below the first end
19
of the duct
17
, moisture is prevented from entering the interior
11
of the occupant cabin
12
through the ventilation system
10
.
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Mattes Patrick J.
Tosconi James J.
Calfa Jeffrey P.
International Truck and Engine Corp.
Lu Jiping
Powell Neil T.
Sullivan Dennis Kelly
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