Ventilation – Vehicle – Having inlet airway
Reexamination Certificate
2002-02-19
2003-08-12
Boles, Derek S. (Department: 1724)
Ventilation
Vehicle
Having inlet airway
Reexamination Certificate
active
06604992
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to the field of moisture collection and drainage in HVAC systems. More specifically, the present invention relates to the re-direction of collected moisture in an HVAC housing element to a preexisting moisture drain external to the vehicle interior compartment.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
In HVAC systems designed for vehicular applications, moisture entrained in the incoming air stream is a persistent problem. In any of the air paths chosen for the incoming and recirculated air, drains are necessarily provided at low points for the collected moisture to be drained away.
Most systems have a drain, for example, in the exterior air intake plenum for the system. The air intake plenum is typically exteriorly mounted on or near the front wall of a vehicle compartment, for example, and takes air from the cowling area of the vehicle immediately adjacent a rear portion of the engine compartment hood and/or immediately forward of the base area of the vehicle windshield. Melting ice, collected rainwater, wiper swept water, etc., can collect in this area and become a part of the incoming ventilating air for the vehicle. Moisture that separates from the air in this exterior portion of the air tract is collected in the air intake plenum outside of the interior compartment and is drained away by gravity through a drain positioned at or near a low point in the air intake plenum.
Once the incoming air has passed through the front wall of the, vehicle and has been directed to a vehicle interior upwind air tract and either through the heater core and/or A/C evaporator, another drain is provided for moisture separating in this portion of the air tract and a tube typically directs water through the front wall or vehicle floor to the vehicle exterior.
These respective drains, however, do not always effectively collect all of the moisture that is deposited as the air passes through the system. For example, as incoming air is passed through the vehicle compartment wall the incoming air typically first encounters the air recirc housing. This housing includes a door(s) that enables outside air into the vehicle interior and/or restricts incoming air and recirculates the air already present in the vehicle interior through the heater core and/or A/C evaporator segments of the vehicle ventilating air tract. Moisture collecting within this recirc housing element is left to collect in the relatively flat lower portion of this housing until dryer air passes through the housing and re-entrains the moisture or other drying action occurs. If this process takes considerable time, this collected moisture can become a source of unwelcome odor and bacterium. In addition, the continuous presence of moisture in proximity to the recirc housing seal elements can contaminate the seals with mold resulting in the same bad odors. Physical damage to the foam comprising the seals can also result when the mold acts as a gluing agent and sticks the respective seals to the recirc housing air pathways and tearing the seals upon activation of the recirc housing doors. The result is an incomplete seal between the recirc housing door and housing and airflow through the housing is no longer completely controllable.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In view of the drawbacks and disadvantages identified in the prior art, it is the object of this invention to provide a simple and reliable system for collecting and draining water ingested into the air intake system of a vehicle mounted HVAC system recirc housing. The system includes a sloped bottom wall of the vehicle interior mounted air recirc housing in combination with an extended trough shaped sill structure, located adjacent the sloped bottom wall, that directs collecting moisture to exit the vehicle interior compartment and flow exteriorly into the air intake air plenum. Owing to the necessary drain already provided in the air intake plenum, the moisture is removed from the recirc housing without the addition of a separate drain and tube inside the vehicle interior compartment.
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Boles Derek S.
Valeo Climate Control Corp.
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