Gas separation – Combined or convertible – In motor vehicle
Reissue Patent
1999-11-03
2001-05-01
Smith, Duane S. (Department: 1724)
Gas separation
Combined or convertible
In motor vehicle
C055S471000, C055S482000, C055S490100, C055S498000, C055S502000, C055S507000, C454S158000
Reissue Patent
active
RE037150
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates generally to the field of air filters, and in particular to air filters which may be used to filter air being drawn into a closed space, such as the inside of a vehicle.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Modern vehicles are built to withstand the extremes of climate. Therefore, the human occupied portion of the vehicle tends to be a closed space which can be heated, or cooled, to an appropriate temperature for any human occupants. Being a closed space, however, requires that fresh air be provided to the interior.
Most vehicles, therefore, are provided with a fresh air intake conduit which allows fresh air from the outside to be passed into the interior of the vehicles. The majority of vehicles are equipped with a turbine fan blower air circulation system. This is widely used in both older and new vehicles. However, the so called “fresh air” from the outside is not fresh at all. For example, in a traffic jam, with a large number of vehicles producing fumes, the fresh air in-take of one vehicle may be simply taking in the fumes of a vehicle in front or at the side of it. This is especially true in urban and congested areas where overall air pollution is a serious problem.
In the past, this has been dealt with by the use of integrally built air filter conduit systems which are intended to be made part of the car. Ford's 1995 Mercury Mystique model has incorporated an occupant air filter, by redesigning the air circulation conduits to accept such a filter. In addition to Ford's design, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,192,346 to Kowalczyk shows a specialized conduit containing an air filter, which is inserted into the vehicle's air system between the fresh air inlet and the inside of the vehicle. However, this design is one that needs to be installed in the factory, and additionally requires a heater to keep the filter functioning correctly. Such a device is awkward, expensive to build and install, and generally impractical.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
What is required, therefore, is a device which can easily and efficiently filter the fresh air intake into a vehicle's air system. Preferably such device would be easy to build and install. Also, such a device would preferably be able to be used in a number of different vehicles from different manufacturers, and yet would provide consistent results. Such an occupant air filter could be retrofit into existing vehicles, without the need for modifications to the ducts, conduits or plenums and would apply to turbine fan blowers. Further, the device should be replaceable, in the event it becomes clogged with dirt or pollutants. Thus as well as being easy to insert into a standard vehicle, it should also be easy to demount.
Therefore, according to the present invention there is provided an air filtering device for inserting into a fresh air turbine fan intake conduit for occupants of a vehicle, where the conduit includes a generally circular rim extending around the lower perimeter of the conduit from an inside face of said conduit, said air filter device comprising:
a generally circular bottom base unit, said bottom base unit including a perimeter mounting portion to allow said bottom base unit to be retained in said air conduit, said perimeter mounting portion comprised of opposed outwardly extending mounting lips separate by a outwardly opening mounting groove, said mounting lips being resiliently flexible to mount over said rim and sufficiently stiff to retain said air filtering device in position on said rim.
said bottom base unit including air filter mounting means, and
an air filter retained in said air filter mounting means of said bottom base unit, said air filter being sized and shaped to be inserted into a cavity located within a blower;
wherein said device is mountable in standard air circulation ducting of a vehicle by retaining said generally circular rim in said mounting groove without the need to modify said air circulation ducting.
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3M Innovative Properties Company
Bond William J.
Griswold Gary L.
Smith Duane S.
Sprague Robert W.
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