Air filters and air purifiers using high-density filter paper

Abstract

Air filter (1), comprising: a nonwoven filter paper (10) configured to have air permeability and to filter foreign substances in polluted air passing through the air filter (1), wherein the nonwoven filter paper (10) comprises a pleated section (10-1...10-N) pleated at predetermined intervals, and the pleated section (10-1...10-N) comprises a dense layer (15, 17) comprising a first polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fiber (20-2) and a second polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fiber (20-1), wherein under heat treatment the first PET fiber (20-2) exhibits greater shrinkage than the second PET fiber and the second PET fiber (20-1) is deformed, wherein the polluted air passing through the air filter is converted into fresh air, wherein the second PET fiber (20-1) has a diameter of 15 µm and the content of the first PET fiber is 5 up to 20 kg.-% based on the total weight of the dense layer (15, 17), wherein the dense layer (15, 17) has an inner dense layer (15) comprising a second PET fiber (20-1) and an outer dense layer (17) comprising a first PET fiber (20-2) in contact with the second PET fiber (20-1), wherein by applying hot air to the second PET fiber (20-1) and the first PET fiber (20-2) the first PET fiber (20-2) has shrunk more than the inner dense layer (15) and the first PET fiber (20-2) is bonded to the second PET fiber (20-1) to form the outer dense layer (17), wherein the predetermined intervals of the pleated part (10-1...10-N) are uniform throughout the entire part of a front end (10A) that is an end part of the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper (10) and a rear end (10B), which is an end part of the other side, and wherein the regular intervals form the fold part (10-1...10-N) as a ""-shaped, rigid skeleton (10D) by forming a shoulder-adapted structure.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present invention relates to an air filter, an air purifier, and a vehicle using the same. In particular, the air purifier comprises high-density filter paper, thereby expanding the use of recycled parts. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] Generally, an engine compartment of a vehicle contains an intake system that supplies fresh air to an engine, in which the intake system contains an air cleaner that filters foreign matter contained in the outside air, introduced from outside, to create fresh air.

[0003] The air purifier includes an air filter. The air-permeable air filter may include a pleated filter paper. The filter paper may be a nonwoven filter paper comprising a fiber material and / or a paper filter formed from filter paper made of paper material, such as a paper filter.

[0004] Furthermore, the air purifier can be a flap type (or general type) or a slide-in type according to the air filter removal / installation structure. To this end, the air filter using non-woven filter paper basically includes a rubber seal to ensure airtightness with the air purifier housing and a plastic frame to prevent its shape from changing due to the characteristics of the fiber material. In addition, the air filter can be a fixing stem non-application type and a fixing stem application type, depending on whether the fixing stem is used for compression deformation of the rubber seal. Furthermore, the air filter using filter paper includes urethane foam to ensure airtightness with the air purifier housing while preventing the filter paper from changing its shape.

[0005] Therefore, the fixing stem non-application type air filter using the non-woven filter paper and the air filter using filter paper is applied to the flap type (or general type) air purifier, and the fixing stem application type air filter using non-woven filter paper is applied to the insert type air purifier.

[0006] However, the air filter using non-woven filter paper contains the rubber cap and the plastic frame or the rubber cap, the plastic frame, and the fixing shaft, so it may have a complicated structure and be very expensive and heavy.

[0007] On the other hand, the air filter using filter paper contains only urethane foam, and as a result, it can be advantageous in terms of structure, cost, and weight compared to the air filter using non-woven filter paper. However, if the air filter using filter paper is contaminated with water or other foreign matter, the air filter using filter paper may have reduced durability. For example, if the air filter using filter paper comes into contact with water, the air filter using filter paper may be seriously deformed.

[0008] In particular, the nonwoven fabric used in the air filter is made by bonding a binder, so the fibers are bonded together at intersecting points. A binder-type nonwoven fabric can prevent deformation of the shoulder-shaped structure. For example, "⋏"-shaped peaks adhere to each other and prevent an increase in ventilation resistance. However, the plastic frame cannot be recycled (reused). As a result, replacing all parts of the air filter may require replacement, which may increase service costs. Furthermore, the parts are not recycled (reused), and environmental pollution may be high due to the increased number of parts.

[0009] The foregoing is merely intended to aid in understanding the background of the present invention and is not intended to imply that the present invention lies within the scope of the prior art already known to those skilled in the art. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0010] In preferred embodiments, the present invention provides an air filter and an air purifier using high-density filter paper. Specifically, the high-density filter paper may include a pleated part, further developed from the advantage of thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper with a dense layer, heat-deformed, and may have a shoulder-adjusted pleated structure using rigid rib spreading at a "⊏"-shaped interval to increase strength while reducing ventilation resistance. As such, the number of recyclable (reusable) parts can be increased, thereby reducing cost, weight, and replacement costs and preventing environmental pollution.

[0011] Other aspects and advantages of the present invention can be understood from the following description and will become apparent by reference to embodiments of the present invention. It will also be apparent to those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains that the objects and advantages of the present invention may be realized by the means as claimed and combinations thereof.

[0012] In one embodiment, an air filter using a high-density filter paper may comprise a nonwoven filter paper configured to have air permeability and filter foreign matter in polluted air passing through the air filter. Preferably, the nonwoven filter paper is thermally bonded. Specifically, the nonwoven filter paper may include a pleated part that is continuously adjacent to each other and folded at predetermined intervals. The thickness of the pleated part may be ensured by a dense layer comprising a first polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fiber and a second polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fiber. Specifically, under heat treatment, the first PET fiber has greater shrinkage than the second PET, and the second PET fiber is deformed. Preferably, the nonwoven filter paper may be a thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper.

[0013] The term "nonwoven fabric" as used herein refers to a fibrous material formed from long fibers that are bonded, pressed, or spunbonded by chemical, mechanical, heat, or solution treatment. A preferred nonwoven fabric may comprise an interwoven fiber structure held or bonded using a binder or adhesive, not woven or knitted.

[0014] Unless otherwise stated, the nonwoven filter paper herein may be a thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper which may be formed by heat treatment.

[0015] Preferably, the polluted air that passes through the air filter can be converted into fresh air.

[0016] The term "dense layer" as used herein refers to a layer comprising a densified fiber composition, or having an increased density of the fiber composition thereof. Preferred dense layers may be formed from a first PET fiber that can shrink substantially under heat treatment, thereby substantially reducing the volume thereof and substantially increasing the density of the fiber composition. Preferred dense layers may have a density of approximately 300 kg / m 3 up to approx. 500 kg / m 3 preferred middle layers can have a density of approx. 80 kg / m 3 up to approx. 140 kg / m 3 preferred bulk layers can have a density of approx. 20 kg / m 3 up to approx. 40 kg / m 3 have.

[0017] The term "foreign matter," as used herein, refers to a material or substance that is not part of the original design, part, or assembly. Foreign matter may include foreign substances introduced by, or substances inadvertently generated by, the original design.

[0018] The term "polluted air" as used herein refers to an air composition containing foreign substances or significant amounts of foreign substances that may be introduced from other sources, e.g., pollution, vehicle exhaust, which do not constitute the natural atmospheric air composition of the Earth.

[0019] The term “fresh air” as used herein refers to an air composition that can conveniently contain as much oxygen as the natural atmospheric air composition of the earth, for example at least about 20% oxygen gas, and in addition, it can not contain any pollutants or hazardous materials such as particles, dust or emulsions introduced by industrial or external pollution sources such as vehicles, factories, sand and the like.

[0020] The term "nonwoven fabric" as used herein refers to a fibrous material formed from long fibers that are bonded, pressed, or spunbonded by chemical, mechanical, heat, or solution treatment. A preferred nonwoven fabric may comprise an interwoven fiber structure held or bonded using a binder or adhesive, not woven or knitted.

[0021] Unless otherwise stated, the nonwoven filter paper herein may be a thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper which may be formed by heat treatment.

[0022] For example, the second PET fiber contained in the dense layer of the nonwoven filter paper may melt upon heat treatment and serve as a binder or adhesive to form the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper. The second PET fiber may have a diameter of 15 μm, and the first PET content may be approximately 5 to 20 wt% based on the total weight of the dense layer. The dense layer may be formed by applying heat, such as hot air, in the heat treatment process so that the first PET fiber can shrink and bond to the second PET fiber.

[0023] Preferably, the dense layer comprises an inner dense layer comprising the second PET fiber and an outer dense layer comprising the PET fiber in contact with the second PET fiber. The inner dense layer may be further provided with an intermediate layer and a bulk layer on the other side, provided with an outer dense layer. Preferably, the intermediate layer may be bonded to the inner dense layer, and the bulk layer is bonded to the intermediate layer.

[0024] The predetermined intervals of the pleat portion may be uniform throughout the entire region of the front end, which is one end portion of the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper, and the rear end, which is one end portion of the other side. The uniform intervals may suitably form, for example, a "⊏"-shaped rigid skeleton as the pleat portion. The rigid skeleton may be continuously formed by folding the pleat portion in a shoulder-matched structure throughout the entire region of the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper. Other configurations of the pleat portion would also be suitable, for example, differently shaped skeleton features or other topographies.

[0025] The thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper can be formed into a rectangular body and thus inserted into the inner space of a plastic frame, with its rear, left, and right surfaces adhering to the plastic frame. Additionally, the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper can be bonded to a urethane foam overlapping an upper surface of an edge of the plastic frame, and locking shafts can be bonded to the left and right side surfaces of the plastic frame.

[0026] In another embodiment of the present invention, an air purifier may comprise: an air filter comprising a nonwoven filter paper having a pleated part for filtering foreign matter from polluted air and converting the polluted air into fresh air, formed in a shoulder-fitted structure of a "⊏"-shaped rigid framework to increase air permeability and strength, and comprising a dense layer of a first polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fiber and a second polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fiber; a plastic frame provided with an inner space into which the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper in a rectangular parallelepiped shape is inserted; a urethane foam bonded to an upper surface at one edge of the plastic frame; locking shafts bonded to the left and right side surfaces of the plastic frame;an air cleaner housing comprising a filter-containing space into or from which the air filter can be inserted or removed from above; and a lid configured to be connected to the air cleaner housing to open and close the upper surface of the filter-containing space in an up-and-down folding manner.

[0027] Preferably, the nonwoven filter paper is thermally bonded.

[0028] The air cleaner housing may be further provided with a lid configured to form the filter-holding space on an upper surface, to allow the air filter to be inserted or removed from the upper surface, and to allow the filter-holding space to be opened and closed in an up-and-down folding manner.

[0029] Preferably, the air filter may comprise the urethane foam to press the nonwoven filter paper, e.g., the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper, from an upper side thereof.

[0030] The air purifier may further comprise a sliding door configured to form the filter enclosing space on a side surface of the surface, to be able to insert or remove the air filter in a pulling manner and to be able to open and close the filter enclosing space in a sliding manner.

[0031] Preferably, the air filter may comprise a plastic frame provided with an inner space having front, rear, left and right surfaces adhered to the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper and inserted therein the urethane foam overlapped on an upper surface of an edge of the plastic frame to press the nonwoven filter paper from an upper side thereof, and locking shafts connected to the left and right side surfaces of the plastic frame

[0032] According to yet another embodiment of the present invention, an air purifier may comprise: an air filter comprising a nonwoven filter paper having a pleated part for filtering foreign matter from polluted air and converting the polluted air into fresh air, formed in a shoulder-fitted structure of a "⊏"-shaped rigid framework to increase air permeability and strength, and comprising a dense layer of a first polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fiber and a second polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fiber; a plastic frame having an inner space into which the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper is inserted in a rectangular parallelepiped shape, a urethane foam bonded to an upper surface at one edge of the plastic frame, and locking shafts bonded to the left and right side surfaces of the plastic frame;an air cleaner housing comprising a filter-holding space into or from which the air filter can be inserted or removed in a pulling manner; and a sliding door configured to be connected to the air cleaner housing to open and close a side inlet of the filter-holding space in a sliding manner.

[0033] According to yet another embodiment of the present invention, a vehicle may include: an air cleaner comprising an air filter using a nonwoven filter paper including a pleated part, filtering foreign matter from polluted air and converting the polluted air into fresh air, formed in a shoulder-fitted structure of a "⊏"-shaped rigid framework to increase air permeability and strength and comprising a dense layer of a first polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fiber and a second polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fiber; and an intake manifold configured to supply an engine with fresh air from which foreign matter of the outside air introduced into the air cleaner has been filtered.

[0034] Specifically, the first PET fiber exhibits greater shrinkage under heat treatment than the second PET fiber, and the second PET fiber can be deformed. Preferably, the nonwoven filter paper can be thermally bonded.

[0035] Preferably, the intake system may comprise an intake manifold into which the fresh air flows.

[0036] Other embodiments of the invention are disclosed infra. SHORT DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

[0037] It should be understood that the attached drawings are not necessarily to scale and present a somewhat simplified representation of various preferred features of the basic principles of the present invention. The specific design features of the present invention as recited herein, including, for example, specific dimensions, orientations, locations, and shapes, will be determined in part by the particular intended use and application environment. In the figures, reference numerals refer to the same or equivalent parts of the present invention throughout different figures of the drawing.

[0038] The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be better understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0039] Fig. 1 shows an exemplary air filter comprising a high-density filter paper according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention and frame structure thereof;

[0040] Fig. 2 shows an exemplary dense layer of an exemplary thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper according to an exemplary embodiment of the invention;

[0041] Fig. 3 shows an exemplary thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention having a “⊏” shape;

[0042] Fig. 4 shows an exemplary assembly of a thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

[0043] Fig. 5 shows an exemplary insert-type air cleaner comprising the air filter using high-density frame paper with a frame structure of an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

[0044] Fig. 6 shows an exemplary air filter using high density filter paper according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention in a frameless structure;

[0045] Fig. 7 shows an exemplary flap-type (or general type) air cleaner comprising an exemplary air filter using high-density frame paper in a frameless structure according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention; and

[0046] Fig. 8 shows an exemplary vehicle including an exemplary intake system including an exemplary air cleaner according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0047] The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an", "an" and "the" are intended to include the plural forms unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It is further to be understood that the terms "comprising" and / or "comprising", when used in this specification, indicate the presence of the recited features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and / or components, but do not exclude the presence of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and / or groups thereof. As used herein, the term "and / or" includes any and all combinations of one or more list items.

[0048] Unless explicitly stated or obvious from the context, the term "approx." used herein is to be understood as meaning a range of variation within the normal tolerance of the technique, for example, within 2 standard deviations of the mean. "Approx." can be understood as within 10%, 9%, 8%, 7%, 6%, 5%, 4%, 3%, 2%, 1%, 0.5%, 0.1%, 0.05%, or 0.01% of the stated value. Unless clearly indicated otherwise by the context, all numerical values ​​herein are understood to include the term "approx."

[0049] The terms "vehicle" or "vehicles..." or similar terms as used herein are intended to include all motorized vehicles in general, including sport utility vehicles (SUVs), buses, trucks, various commercial vehicles, watercraft including a variety of boats and ships, aircraft, and the like, also including hybrid vehicles, electric-powered vehicles, plug-in hybrid-electronic vehicles, hydrogen-powered vehicles, and other alternative fuel vehicles (e.g., fuels derived from resources other than petroleum). As referred to herein, a hybrid vehicle is a vehicle that has two or more power sources, for example, both gasoline-powered and electric-powered vehicles.

[0050] Hereinafter, the embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, and these embodiments can be implemented in various forms by a person having ordinary skill in the art concerning the present invention, and therefore the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described herein.

[0051] Fig. Figure 1 shows an exemplary air filter using a high density filter paper. As shown in Fig. 1, contains the frame air filter 1 thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10 , urethane foam 30 , a plastic frame 40 , and locking shafts 50 . The thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10 and the urethane foam 30 cannot be recycled, but the plastic frame 40 and the blocking shaft 50 are recycled.

[0052] In an exemplary embodiment, the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10 have a rectangular, parallelepid shape (rectangular body), with the first to Nth fold part as 10-1 , ... 10-N . The pleats may be folded adjacent to each other so that a front end 10A , which is an end part, and a rear end 10B , which is another end part, may have a predetermined length and width and the front end 10A and the rear end 10B can have a predetermined height and interval. A folded interval of the first, ... Nth fold part 10-1 , ..., 10-N may have a predetermined interval (for example, rigid skeleton 10D from Fig. 3) at which each of the first to Nth fold parts 10-1 , ... 10-N Air permeability can also be increased. Furthermore, the thickness of the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10a bulk layer 11 , an intermediate layer 13 , and a high density layer, and the high density layer may contain an inner dense layer 15 and an outer dense layer 17 For example, bulk layer 11 with the intermediate layer 13 be connected, the intermediate layer 13 can be connected to the inner dense layer 15 connected, and the inner dense layer 15 can be connected to the outer dense layer 17 This is based on the bulk layer 11 , the intermediate layer 13 can be connected to a surface of the bulk layer 11 be connected, the inner dense layer 15 can be connected to a surface of the intermediate layer 13 connected, and the outer dense layer 17 can be connected to a surface of the inner dense layer 15 As a consequence, the bulk layer11 a surface of the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10 form and the outer dense layer 17 the other surface of the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10 form.

[0053] In an exemplary embodiment, the urethane foam 30 on one edge of the plastic frame 40 positioned to ensure airtightness of an edge part of the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10 to secure.

[0054] In an exemplary embodiment, the plastic frame 40 a frame filled with the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10 to ensure the durability while maintaining the shape of the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10 .

[0055] In an exemplary embodiment, the locking shaft 50be shaped as a rod connected to a holder which can be grasped by hand and can be connected to shaft clamps 40-1 provided on the left and right side of the plastic frame 40 be connected.

[0056] Meanwhile, Fig. 2 an exemplary method for producing the inner dense layer 15 and the outer dense layer 17 , which is a high density layer of thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10 As shown in Fig. 2 the high density layer may contain i) a highly shrinkable polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fiber 20-2 mixed in an amount of approximately 5 to 20 wt.% based on the total weight of the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper and ii) a binding polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fiber 20-1with a diameter of approximately 15 μm. During a heat treatment process in the filter paper manufacturing process, hot air can be applied to the second PET fiber 20-1 and the first PET fiber 20-2 to connect between them to form the outer dense layer 17 to form, for example because the first PET fiber 20-2 may have shrunk more than the inner dense layer 15 As a result, the inner dense layer 15 and the outer dense layer 17 the high density layer so that the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10 can be formed with high density.

[0057] Meanwhile, Fig. 3 a state in which the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10 can be produced in a ”⊏” shape. As shown in Fig. 3 the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10be folded in a predetermined folding size, while the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10 a pair of upper and lower rollers 300-1 and 300-2 happens, a rigid skeleton 10D can be continued on a straight part. For example, the upper roller 300-1 with a size-forming part 310 be equipped, defining the folding size on a surface interval L and the lower roller 300-2 can be formed with a skeleton part 320 be equipped, forming the rigid skeleton 10D at interval t between adjacent surfaces. Therefore, by the pair of rotating upper and lower rollers 300-1 and 300-2 a thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper material 1000 In the process, the size-forming part 310 the upper roller 300-1 the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper material 1000at a predetermined surface interval L. In particular, at the same time the skeleton forming part 320 the lower roller 300-2 the rigid skeleton 10D at interval t between the adjacent surface interval L, so that the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10 can be folded, while the rigid frame 10D with a trapezoidal shape is continuously formed. Next, the trapezoidal shape of the rigid framework 10D have a ”⊏” shape, due to the adhesion of the rigid skeleton 10D , and therefore, a shoulder-adapted folding structure spread out at the “⊏”-shaped intervals can be completed. In this case, the rigid framework 10D by a pressure force of the lower roller 300-2 be formed.

[0058] Therefore, the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10With the high-density layer, it ensures the following advantages compared with a binder-bonding type nonwoven fabric. Here, thermal bonding refers to a process for producing a dry nonwoven fabric, which can be produced by, for example, a cotton blending process, a card pile process, a heat fusion process, and a winding process, and binder bonding refers to a production process in which binder is added to bond fibers together at intersecting points.

[0059] The thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper can be deformed by heat, and therefore the shoulder-adjusted pleated structure, which supports the rigid framework 10D used, spread out at the ”⊏”-shaped intervals to avoid increasing the ventilation resistance, can be easily applied. Therefore, as shown in Fig. 6, the plastic frame 40 and the blocking shaft 50be removed, due to the reinforcement of the strength by the surface pressure distribution of the ”⊏”-shaped rigid framework 10D and high dust removal efficiency by reducing ventilation resistance, and therefore a frameless air filter 1-1 be used.

[0060] Meanwhile, Fig. 4 an exemplary structure of an exemplary thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10 .

[0061] The thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10 can be the first to Nth fold part as 10-1 , ... 10-N form, at the part of the front end 10A and the rear end 10B . The first to Nth fold part 10-1 and 10-N can be formed in the shoulder-adapted fold structure, with a ventilation interval due to the ”⊏”-shaped rigid framework 10Dand therefore it can have a rectangular, parallelepiped shape without increasing the ventilation resistance, compared to the structure in which the rigid framework 10D is not formed.

[0062] The thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10 can be inserted into an inner space of the plastic frame in a rectangular housing shape to adhere and be fixed to the front, rear, left, and right wall surfaces of the plastic frame respectively 40 , and can be inserted into an inner space of the urethane foam 30 which is in contact with an upper surface of the edge of the plastic frame 40 overlapped to make it easier to assemble.

[0063] In an exemplary embodiment, the locking shaft 50 be connected with shaft clamp 40-1 on the left and right side of the plastic frame 40 . The blocking shaft 50can be rotated by operating the handle (counterclockwise to unlock or clockwise to lock). As a result, the operation of the locking shaft 50 the plastic frame 40 move to the urethane foam 30 to compress and airtightness of the frame air filter 1 which is installed in the air purifier.

[0064] Meanwhile, Fig. 5 an example of an insert type air purifier 100-1 . As shown in Fig. 5, the insert type air purifier 100-1 an air purifier housing 110 with a filter-containing space into or from which the frame air filter 1 can be inserted or removed in a sliding manner, mounted on a side surface thereof, and a sliding door 120 connected to the air purifier housing 110by a door hinge, so that a side inlet of the filter-containing space can be opened and closed in a sliding manner.

[0065] Furthermore, the insert type air purifier 100-1 be equipped with an air purifier base, which is integrated into the air purifier housing 110 can be integrated or which is connected to the air purifier housing 110 The air purifier base can be connected as a bracket to the intake system or similar, which draws outside air into the air purifier housing 110 can introduce, and can discharge fresh air, from which foreign substances through frame air filters 1 removed and can supply an engine with fresh air.

[0066] In particular, the frame air filter 1 a thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10 , the urethane foam 30 , the plastic frame 40 , and the locking shaft50 included, and can be conveniently the same as frame air filter 1 which uses high density filter paper as in Fig. 1 to Fig. 3.

[0067] As such, when replacing the used frame air filter 1 in the insert type air purifier 100-1 the sliding door 120 be opened to use the frame air filter 1 and then the used thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10 , and the urethane foam used 30 in the plastic frame 40 connected to the locking shaft 50 be replaced by a new product, thereby replacing the used frame air filter 1 with a new product. As a result, a slide-in type air filter 100-1Costs caused by filter replacement can be minimized and environmental pollution can also be minimized by recycling the plastic frame 40 and the blocking shaft 50 .

[0068] Meanwhile, show Fig. 6 and Fig. 7 each an exemplary frameless air filter 1-1 which uses high density filter paper and an example flap type (or general type) air purifier 100-2 .

[0069] Referring to Fig. 6 is the frameless air filter 1-1 configured so that a thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10 , which cannot be recycled, and the urethane foam 30 The thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10 and the urethane foam 30 can be the same as the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10 from Fig. 1 to Fig. 3.

[0070] Referring to Fig. 7 the flap type air purifier 100-2 an air purifier housing 110 contain the filter-containing space into or from which the frameless air filter 1-1 can be inserted or removed from above can be formed on an upper surface and a lid 120-1 , connected to the air purifier housing 110 by a door hinge so that an upper chamber of the filter-containing space can be opened or closed in an up-and-down folding manner.

[0071] Furthermore, the insert type air purifier 100-2 be equipped with an air purifier base, which is integrated into the air purifier housing 110 can be integrated or which is connected to the air purifier housing 110 The air purifier base can be connected as a bracket to the intake system or similar, which draws outside air into the air purifier housing 110can introduce, and can discharge fresh air, from which foreign substances through the frameless air filter 1-1 removed and can supply an engine with fresh air.

[0072] Therefore, when replacing the frameless air filter 1-1 the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper used 10 and the urethane foam 30 in the frameless air filter used 1-1 cannot be recycled, and therefore the lid 120-1 be opened to access the frameless air filter used 1-1 As such, the frameless air filter used can 1-1 be replaced by a new product. However, unlike the frame air filter 1 , the frameless air filter can 1-1 not the plastic frame 40 and the locking shaft 50 which are recycled parts, so that it can have a simpler structure.

[0073] Meanwhile, Fig. 8 an exemplary, opened part of the engine compartment 200-1 . As shown in Fig. 8 the engine compartment 200-1 of the vehicle with an intake system 100 together with the engine 200-2 be equipped.

[0074] For example, the engine 200-2 different types of engine, such as a gasoline engine, a diesel engine, an LPG engine, and a CNG engine.

[0075] For example, the inlet system 100 an inlet manifold 110 included to the engine 200-2 to supply with fresh air and the air distributor 110 can be used with the insert type air purifier 100-1 be connected in which the frame air filter 1 can be used to provide fresh air or the flap type air purifier 100-2 , in which the frameless air filter 1-1 Therefore, the insert type air purifier100-1 be the same as the insert type air purifier 100-1 shown in Fig. 5 and the flap type air purifier 100-2 can be the same as the flap type air purifier 100-2 shown in Fig. 7.

[0076] As such, the frame air filter can 1 or the frameless air filter 1-1 the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10 with high-density layer, so that the use of recycled parts that do not cause environmental pollution can be expanded.

[0077] As described above, the air filter comprising the high-density filter paper according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention may have the high-density layers 15 and 17 included, provided at the thickness of the folding parts 10-1 and 10-Nwhich filters foreign substances from the polluted air and converts the polluted air into fresh air, the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper 10 which uses the ”⊏”-shaped rigid framework, reducing the ventilation resistance and increasing the strength through the high density layers 15 and 17 In particular, the high density layers can be formed from highly shrinkable polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fiber 20-2 and the binding polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fiber 20-1 and can therefore be easily deformed by heat. In addition, the air filter comprising high-density filter paper in the insert-type air purifier 100-1 and the flap type air purifier 100-2 be used, configured for the inlet system 100 from vehicle 200, thereby reducing cost, weight, and replacement costs, and in particular, increasing the number of recyclable (or reusable) parts to prevent environmental pollution.

[0078] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the high-density filter paper may include a high-density layer to achieve a combination of the advantages of nonwoven filter paper with those of filter paper, thereby simplifying the structure of the air filter. Specifically, the curved mountain-shaped structure, which maintains the shoulder-adjusted shape structure in which the mountains adhere to each other, may be deformed to increase the durability and strength of the air filter.

[0079] Furthermore, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the air filter with the high-density filter paper can have lower cost and weight than those of the conventional nonwoven fibers bonded with a binder, and in particular, the plastic frame and the shaft can be removed or recycled (or reused).

[0080] Furthermore, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the air purifier including the air filter using the high-density filter paper can achieve about 13% reduction in cost, about 32% reduction in weight, and about 13% reduction in air filter replacement cost compared with the flap type (or general type) air purifier, and about 3.4% reduction in cost, about 9.4% reduction in weight, and about 40% reduction in air filter replacement cost compared with the insert type air purifier.

[0081] Furthermore, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the air cleaner comprising the air filter using the high-density filter paper and the vehicle comprising the intake system using the same can recycle the plastic frame, the shaft, and the like when the air filter is replaced to reduce the discarded parts to the non-woven filter paper and the urethane foam, thereby preventing environmental pollution.

[0082] The foregoing exemplary embodiments are merely examples to enable a person of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention pertains (hereinafter referred to as a person skilled in the art) to easily carry out the present invention. Accordingly, the present invention is not limited to the foregoing exemplary embodiments and the accompanying drawings, and therefore, the scope of the present invention is not limited to the foregoing exemplary embodiments. Accordingly, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that substitutions, modifications, and variations can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims and may therefore also be within the scope of the present invention.

Claims

[1] Air filter, comprising: a nonwoven filter paper configured to have air permeability and to filter foreign matter in polluted air passing through the air filter, wherein the nonwoven filter paper comprises a pleated part folded at predetermined intervals, and the pleated part comprises a dense layer comprising a first polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fiber and a second polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fiber, wherein under heat treatment the first PET fiber has greater shrinkage than the second PET and the second PET fiber is deformed. [2] The air filter according to claim 1, wherein the polluted air passing through the air filter is converted into fresh air. [3] The air filter according to claim 1, wherein the nonwoven filter paper is thermally bonded. [4] The air filter according to claim 1, wherein the second PET fiber has a diameter of about 15 μm and the content of the first PET is about 5 to 20 wt% based on the total weight of the dense layer. [5] The air filter according to claim 4, wherein the dense layer is formed by applying hot air in the heat treatment process so that the first PET fiber bonds to the second PET fiber. [6] The air filter according to claim 5, wherein the dense layer comprises an inner dense layer comprising the second PET fiber and an outer dense layer comprising the first PET fiber in contact with the second PET fiber. [7] The air filter according to claim 6, wherein the inner dense layer further comprises an intermediate layer and a bulk layer on the other side provided with the outer dense layer. [8] The air filter of claim 7, wherein the intermediate layer is bonded to the inner dense layer and the bulk layer is bonded to the intermediate layer. [9] The air filter according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined intervals of the pleat part are uniform in the entire part of a front end which is one end part of the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper and a rear end which is one end part of the other side. [10] The air filter according to claim 9, wherein the regular intervals form the pleat part as a “⊏”-shaped rigid skeleton. [11] The air filter according to claim 10, wherein the rigid skeleton is continuously formed by folding the pleat part in a shoulder-fitted structure throughout the entire area of ​​the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper. [12] Air purifiers including: an air filter comprising a nonwoven filter paper, wherein the nonwoven filter paper has a pleated part, filtering foreign matter from polluted air and converting the polluted air into fresh air, formed in a shoulder-fitted structure of a "⊏"-shaped rigid skeleton and comprising a dense layer comprising a first polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fiber and a second polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fiber, and wherein under heat treatment, the first PET fiber has a larger shrinkage than the second PET and the second PET fiber is deformed; a plastic frame comprising an inner space into which the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper is inserted in a rectangular parallelepiped shape, a urethane foam bonded to an upper surface at one edge of the plastic frame, and locking shafts bonded to the left and right side surfaces of the plastic frame; and an air cleaner housing comprising a filter-containing space into or from which the air filter can be inserted or removed. [13] The air purifier according to claim 12, wherein the nonwoven filter paper is thermally bonded. [14] The air cleaner according to claim 12, wherein the air cleaner case is further provided with a lid configured to form the filter-holding space on an upper surface, to insert or remove the air filter from the upper surface, and to open and close the filter-holding space in an up-and-down folding manner. [15] The air purifier according to claim 14, wherein the air filter comprises the urethane foam to press the nonwoven filter paper from an upper side thereof. [16] The air purifier according to claim 12, wherein the air purifier further comprises a sliding door configured to form the filter accommodating space on a side surface of the surface to be able to insert or remove the air filter in a pulling manner and to be able to open and close the filter accommodating space in a sliding manner. [17] The air cleaner according to claim 16, wherein the air filter comprises a plastic frame provided with an inner space having front, rear, left and right surfaces adhered to the thermally bonded nonwoven filter paper and inserted therein the urethane foam overlapped on an upper surface of an edge of the plastic frame to press the nonwoven filter paper from an upper side thereof, and locking shafts connected to the left and right side surfaces of the plastic frame. [18] Vehicle comprising: an intake system configured to supply an engine with fresh air, from which foreign matter of the outside air introduced into the air cleaner is filtered, the air cleaner comprising an air filter using a nonwoven filter paper having a pleated part, filtering foreign matter from polluted air and converting polluted air into fresh air, formed in a shoulder-fitted structure in a “⊏”-shaped rigid framework to increase air permeability and strength, and comprising a dense layer of a first polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fiber and a second polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fiber. [19] The vehicle of claim 18, wherein under heat treatment, the first PET fiber has a larger shrinkage than the second PET and the second PET fiber is deformed. [20] A vehicle according to claim 19, wherein the intake system comprises an intake manifold into which the fresh air flows.

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