Air purifier

Abstract

An aspect of the present invention may provide an air purifier comprising: a frame assembly which includes a housing; a fan unit which provides blowing power to introduce outside air into the housing; and a main filter which filters air introduced into the housing to provide filtered air, wherein: the housing has an inlet for introducing outside air to the main filter, an intake hole for adding outside air to the filtered air, and an outlet for discharging air introduced through the inlet and the intake hole; and the frame assembly further includes a rib which is formed to extend on the flow path of the filtered air to cover the intake hole side in order to restrain the filtered air from flowing directly toward the intake hole.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an air purifier.BACKGROUND ART

[0002] In general, an air purifier is a device that sucks in polluted indoor air and purifies it into clean air by filtering out dust, odor particles, etc. contained in the air. Such an air purifier can purify indoor air by sucking in and purifying the surrounding polluted air, and then discharging the purified clean air outside of air purifier.

[0003] The air purifier may include an inlet for drawing air into the interior, a filter for filtering out dust, odor particles, and the like contained in the air drawn into the interior, and one or more outlets for discharging air filtered by the filter.

[0004] Such an air purifier has the drawback of low discharge air speed, resulting in a slow circulation of indoor air. The rotation speed of a fan could be increased to boost airflow, but the fan may cause excessive noise as its rotation speed increases.

[0005] A technology for increasing a airflow rate without excessively increasing the rotation speed of the fan is disclosed in Korean Patent Application Publication No. 10-2018-0018628 entitled “Air conditioning device” (Patent Document 1) of the present applicant. Patent Document 1 discloses an air conditioning device including: a housing having an air intake port for introducing external air, a first air outlet for discharging air, and a second air outlet for discharging air in a direction different from the first air outlet; an air treatment unit provided inside the housing to filter air introduced through the air intake port; a flow path conversion unit that rotates to cause the filtered air to flow to the first air outlet and the second air outlet; and a through-hole through which external air passes.

[0006] However, the air conditioning device of Patent Document 1 has the problem that when filtered air is discharged through the second air outlet, the flow rate and volume of the filtered air are still insufficient. In other words, since the housing of the air conditioner of Patent Document 1 is provided with only one air intake port, when filtered air is discharged through the second air outlet, external air is not additionally drawn into the housing to be discharged together with the filtered air.

[0007] In addition, even when filtered air is discharged through the first air outlet of the air conditioning device of Patent Document 1, the filtered air does not pass through the through-hole, but is simply discharged through the air outlet at the front side of the through-hole, so there is a problem that the flow rate and volume of the filtered air are still insufficient.PRIOR ART DOCUMENTPatent Document

[0008] Patent Document 1: Korean Patent Application Publication No. 10-2018-0018628 (Published on Feb. 21, 2018)DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTIONTechnical Problems

[0009] One embodiment of the present disclosure provides an air purifier in which, when filtered air is discharged through an outlet, external air can be drawn in through an intake port and discharged together with the filtered air.Technical Solution

[0010] In accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure, an air purifier comprises a frame assembly including a housing; a fan unit configured to provide a blowing force to draw external air into an interior of the housing; and a main filter for filtering the air drawn into the interior of the housing to provide filtered air, wherein the housing includes an inlet for introducing external air to the main filter, an intake port for adding external air to the filtered air, and an outlet for discharging air introduced through the inlet and the intake port, and wherein the frame assembly further includes a rib formed to extend along a flow path of the filtered air to cover a side of the intake port to restrict the filtered air from flowing directly toward the intake port.

[0011] The frame assembly may further include an intake guide part that provides an intake passage for guiding external air, drawn in through the intake port, into the interior of the housing, and the rib is disposed inside the housing to be provided around one side end portion of the intake guide part.

[0012] The housing may further include a vent for discharging the filtered air in a direction different from the outlet, the frame assembly may further include a flow path part extending from the vent toward the intake port to provide an air passage for guiding the filtered air to the vent, the intake guide part may extend from the intake port toward the flow path part, and is arranged to be spaced apart from the flow path part to form a gap with the flow path part, and the rib may be formed to cover at least a portion of the gap.

[0013] The air purifier may further comprise an opening / closing member that reciprocates inside the housing to open and close the outlet; and a driving unit that provides driving force for moving the opening / closing member, wherein the opening / closing member is moved by the driving unit to open the outlet so that filtered air is discharged through the outlet, or is moved by the driving unit to close the outlet so that filtered air is discharged through the vent.

[0014] An amount of air discharged through the outlet when the outlet is open may be greater than an amount of air discharged through the vent when the vent is open.

[0015] One side end portion of the intake guide part may be inserted into the other side end portion of the flow path part.

[0016] The frame assembly may further include an air guide part disposed inside the housing to provide a passage through which filtered air discharged from the fan unit flows to the outlet, and the rib may extend from an inner surface of the air guide part along a direction in which the flow path part extends.

[0017] A length of the rib in a horizontal direction perpendicular to a direction in which the rib extends may be formed to be greater than half of a length of the flow path part in the horizontal direction.

[0018] The rib may be disposed between the fan unit and the gap, and formed to be convex toward the fan unit.

[0019] The opening / closing member may be moved by the driving unit along a direction in which the flow path part extends.

[0020] At least a portion of the flow path part and at least a portion of the intake guide part may be formed in a tapered shape.

[0021] The gap may be formed to be smaller than a length of the outlet in a direction in which the flow path part extends.

[0022] When the opening / closing member closes the outlet, external air flows into the flow path part through the intake guide part, and filtered air flows into the flow path part through the gap, and when the opening / closing member opens the outlet, external air flowing from each of the flow path part and the intake guide part flows into the interior of the housing through the gap, and filtered air flows to the outlet.Effect of Invention

[0023] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the filtered air is not introduced into the intake port by the rib provided inside the housing and covering the intake port side, and the external air sucked in from the vent and the intake port is introduced into the housing, so that the filtered air and the external air can be discharged together through the outlet, which improves the discharge performance of the air purifier.

[0024] Further, since the outlet can be opened and closed by the opening / closing member so that the filtered air can be discharged through the outlet or the vent, the filtered air can be discharged in different directions by the movement of the opening / closing member.

[0025] Furthermore, when the vent is closed and the outlet 110c is open, more air can be discharged than when the vent 110b is open and the outlet 110c is closed, so that a larger volume of filtered air can be provided to a user by opening and closing the outlet 110c.

[0026] In addition, one side end portion of the intake guide part is inserted into the other side end portion of the flow path part, so that external air drawn in through the intake port can efficiently flow toward the air passage, and when the outlet is closed, filtered air in the housing can efficiently flow into the air passage through the gap.

[0027] Further, since the rib can be formed to extend from the inner surface of the air guide part, the flow of filtered air guided upward by the air guide part can be efficiently restricted, so that the filtered air can efficiently flow to the outlet or vent.

[0028] Furthermore, the rib is disposed between the fan unit and the gap and is formed to be convex toward the fan unit, so that the filtered air can flow on the left and right sides of the rib, which allows a negative pressure to be efficiently formed between the flow path part and the intake guide part.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0029] FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of an air purifier.

[0030] FIG. 2 is a rear perspective view of the air purifier of FIG. 1.

[0031] FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the air purifier of FIG. 1.

[0032] FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the air purifier of FIG. 2.

[0033] FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the air purifier of FIG. 4 as viewed from below.

[0034] FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the air purifier of FIG. 1 taken along line I-I.

[0035] FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of the upper side of the air purifier of FIG. 6.

[0036] FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of the air purifier of FIG. 1 taken along line II-II.

[0037] FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of the air purifier of FIG. 1 in a second operation mode.

[0038] FIG. 10 is an enlarged view of the upper side of the air purifier of FIG. 9.MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

[0039] Hereinafter, specific embodiments for implementing the technical idea of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0040] In addition, in describing the present disclosure, when it is determined that detailed descriptions of known configurations or functions may obscure the gist of the present disclosure, the detailed descriptions will be omitted.

[0041] Moreover, it should be understood that when a component is referred to as being ‘connected to’ another component, it may be directly connected to another component, but other components may exist between the components.

[0042] The terms used in the present specification are only used for describing the specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the present disclosure. Singular expressions include plural expressions unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

[0043] In addition, in the present specification, expressions such as upper, lower, side, etc. are described based on the drawings, and it is made clear in advance that they may be expressed differently if the direction of the object is changed. For the same reason, some components in the accompanying drawings are exaggerated, omitted, or schematically illustrated, and the size of each component does not entirely reflect the actual size.

[0044] Further, terms including ordinal numbers, such as first, second, etc., may be used to describe various components, but the components are not limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one component from another.

[0045] The meaning of “including” used in the present specification specifies specific features, regions, integers, steps, operations, elements and / or components, and does not exclude the presence or addition of other specific features, regions, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and / or groups.

[0046] Hereinafter, an air purifier 1 will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0047] Referring to FIGS. 1 to 3, the air purifier 1 is capable of purifying polluted air into clean air by filtering out dust, odor particles, and the like in the air drawn in. The air purifier 1 can draw in external air, and discharge clean air purified therein to the outside. The air purifier 1 may include a frame assembly 100, a fan unit 200, a main filter 300, a driving unit 400, an opening / closing member 500, an auxiliary filter 600, and a controller 700.

[0048] Referring further to FIGS. 4 and 5, the frame assembly 100 may be configured to draw in external air outside the air purifier 1 and discharge air filtered by the main filter 300. The frame assembly 100 may include a housing 110, a flow path part 120, an intake guide part 130, an air guide part 140, a rib 150, and an opening / closing member support part 160.

[0049] The housing 110 provides an accommodation space for accommodating the fan unit 200, the main filter 300, the driving unit 400, the opening / closing member 500, and the auxiliary filter 600, and may form an exterior appearance of the air purifier 1. In addition, the housing 110 may be formed with an inlet 110a for introducing external air, a vent 110b for introducing external air or discharging filtered air, an outlet 110c for discharging filtered air in a direction different from the vent 110b, and an intake port 110d for drawing in external air to be added to the filtered air. For example, the inlet 110a and the vent 110b may be formed on a front surface of the housing 110, the outlet 110c may be formed on an upper surface of the housing 110, and the intake port 110d may be formed on a rear surface of the housing 110.

[0050] Referring further to FIGS. 6 and 7, the flow path part 120 may be disposed inside the housing 110 and may provide an air passage 121 extending from the vent 110b toward the intake port 110d to guide filtered air to the vent 110b or to guide external air into the housing 110. By the air passage 121, the filtered air flowing inside the housing 110 may be discharged through the vent 110b. In addition, the filtered air introduced through the vent 110b may flow into the housing 110 through the air passage 121. The flow path part 120 may be supported by the air guide part 140 to be disposed inside the housing 110. In other words, the flow path part 120 may be formed to extend in a front-rear direction above the air guide part 140. The flow path part 120 may be formed to have a left-right length smaller than that of the air guide part 140. At least a portion of the flow path part 120 may be positioned inside the air guide part 140. In other words, one side end portion of the flow path part 120 on the front side may be in communication with the vent 110b, and the other side end portion of the flow path part 120 on the rear side may be positioned inside the air guide part 140. In addition, at least a portion of the flow path part 120 may be formed in a tapered shape. In other words, at least a portion of the flow path part 120 may be formed with an inner diameter that becomes smaller as it extends toward the interior of the housing 110.

[0051] The intake guide part 130 may provide an intake passage 131 for guiding external air drawn in through the intake port 110d to the interior of the housing 110. The intake guide part 130 may be arranged to extend in the front-rear direction from the intake port 110d toward the flow path part 120 and disposed to be spaced apart from the flow path part 120 so that a predetermined gap g is formed between them. One side end portion of the intake guide part 130 on the front side may be inserted into the other side end portion of the flow path part 120. In other words, the gap g may be formed in an up-down direction between one side end portion of the intake guide part 130 and the other side end portion of the inlet 110a. Through the gap g, the filtered air flowing inside the housing 110 can flow into the air passage 121. In addition, external air flowing in the air passage 121 through the gap g can flow into the interior of the housing 110. In addition, at least a portion of the intake guide part 130 may be formed in a tapered shape. In other words, at least a portion of the intake guide part 130 may be formed with an inner diameter that becomes smaller as it extends toward the interior of the housing 110.

[0052] The air guide part 140 is disposed inside the housing 110 and extends in the up-down direction to guide the filtered air discharged from the fan unit 200 to flow toward the outlet 110c. In other words, the air guide part 140, together with the housing 110, may form an internal space in which the filtered air flows. In addition, the rear end of the flow path part 120 and the front end of the intake guide part 130 may be located in the internal space of the air guide part 140. In other words, the gap g may be located inside the air guide part 140. By the air guide part 140, the filtered air flowing inside the housing 110 can flow to the outlet 110c or flow into the air passage 121 through the gap g. In addition, the air guide part 140 may include a first air guide 141 and a second air guide 142.

[0053] The first air guide 141 may extend in the up-down direction to guide the filtered air together with the second air guide 142. The first air guide 141 may extend upward from the lower side of the fan unit 200. In addition, the fan unit 200 may be provided between the first air guide 141 and the second air guide 142.

[0054] The second air guide 142 may extend in the up-down direction to guide the filtered air together with the first air guide 141. In other words, the filtered air can flow between the first air guide 141 and the second air guide 142. The second air guide 142 may extend upward from the lower side of the fan unit 200. The lower end of the second air guide 142 and the lower end of the first air guide 141 may be connected to each other.

[0055] Further, a portion of the second air guide 142 may have a shape that protrudes toward the first air guide 141. The protruding portion of the second air guide 142 may be positioned below the rib 150 and above the fan unit 200.

[0056] Referring further to FIG. 8, the rib 150 may be formed to extend along the flow path of the filtered air to cover the side of the intake port 110d to restrict the direct flow of filtered air toward the intake port 110d. The rib 150 may be disposed inside the housing 110 to be provided around one side end portion of the intake guide part 130. The bottom of the rib 150 may be positioned below the bottom of the front end of the flow path part 120, while left and right ends of the rib 150 may be positioned above the bottom of the front end of the flow path part 120.

[0057] In addition, the rib 150 may be formed to be disposed between the gap g and the fan unit 200 and cover at least a portion of the gap g when viewed from below. In addition, the length of the rib 150 in the left-right direction perpendicular to the direction in which the rib 150 extends may be formed to be greater than half of the length of the flow path part 120 in the left-right direction. In other words, the rib 150 may have a width in the left-right direction that is greater than that of the flow path part 120.

[0058] The rib 150 may be formed spaced apart from the bottom of the flow path part 120. The distance between the rib 150 and the flow path part 120 may be smaller than the distance between the rib 150 and the side portion of the air guide part 140. In addition, the distance between the rib 150 and the flow path part 120 may be larger than the gap g between the flow path part 120 and the intake guide part 130, may be smaller than the width of the rib 150 in the left-right direction, and may be smaller than the height of the rib 150 in the up-down direction.

[0059] Further, the rib 150 may be formed to be convex toward the fan unit 200. In other words, the rib 150 may have a shape corresponding to an outer surface (peripheral surface) of the flow path part 120 and may be formed along the outer surface. In addition, the rib 150 may have a shape in which both ends on the left and right sides are positioned higher than the central portion. In addition, both ends on the left and right sides of the rib 150 may be positioned higher than the bottom of the flow path part 120. By the rib 150, filtered air can flow between the rib 150 and the air guide part 140 to the gap g or the outlet 110c.

[0060] The rib 150 may be supported on at least one of the air guide part 140 and the rear surface of the housing 110. For example, the rib 150 may extend from the inner surface of the air guide part 140 along the direction in which the flow path part 120 extends. In other words, the rib 150 may extend in the front-rear direction from the inner surface of the air guide part 140 toward the rear surface of the housing 110. As another example, the rib 150 may extend from the rear surface of the housing 110 toward the inner surface of the air guide part 140.

[0061] The opening / closing member support part 160 may support the opening / closing member 500 so that the opening / closing member 500 can move. The opening / closing member support part 160 may be positioned inside the housing 110 and supported on the upper side of the air guide part 140 to be positioned above the flow path part 120. In addition, a rail 161 that guides the movement of the opening / closing member 500 may be formed on the opening / closing member support part 160. The rail 161 may be recessed downward from an upper surface of the opening / closing member support part 160 and may extend in the front-rear direction. Since an opening / closing guide part 530 may be inserted in the rail 161 and moved along it, the opening / closing member 500 can be guided in the front-rear direction.

[0062] The fan unit 200 can provide a blowing force to draw air into the internal space of the housing 110 through the inlet 110a. The fan unit 200 may be disposed inside the air guide part 140 to be positioned below the rib 150. By the blowing force of the fan unit 200, external air can be filtered by the main filter 300 and then flow upward through the air guide part 140 in the internal space of the housing 110.

[0063] The main filter 300 can filter air flowing into the internal space of the housing 110. For example, the main filter 300 may be a HEPA filter. The main filter 300 may be disposed between the inlet 110a and the fan unit 200.

[0064] The driving unit 400 can provide driving force to move the opening / closing member 500. By the driving force of the driving unit 400, the opening / closing member 500 can be moved in the front-rear direction. The driving unit 400 may include a motor 410 and a gear unit 420.

[0065] The motor 410 can provide driving force to rotate the gear unit 420. The motor 410 may be supported on the frame assembly 100. For example, the motor 410 may be supported on the air guide part 140 to be positioned above the flow path part 120.

[0066] The gear unit 420 can be rotated by the driving force of the motor 410 to move the opening / closing member 500. The gear unit 420 can be rotated about a rotation axis extending in the left-right direction. When the gear unit 420 is rotated in one direction about the rotation axis, the opening / closing member 500 can be moved rearward to close the outlet 110c. When the gear unit 420 is rotated in the other direction opposite to the one direction about the rotation axis, the opening / closing member 500 can be moved forward to open the outlet 110c.

[0067] The opening / closing member 500 is supported by the opening / closing member support part 160 to open and close the outlet 110c. The opening / closing member 500 can reciprocate in the front-rear direction inside the housing 110 by the driving force of the driving unit 400. When the opening / closing member 500 is moved forward, the outlet 110c can be opened, and when the opening / closing member 500 is moved backward, the outlet 110c can be closed. When the opening / closing member 500 opens the outlet 110c, filtered air flowing in the internal space of the housing 110 can flow to the outlet 110c by the air guide part 140. In addition, when the opening / closing member 500 opens the outlet 110c, external air can be drawn into the internal space of the housing 110 through the vent 110b and the intake port 110d due to the flow of filtered air to flow to the outlet 110c together with the filtered air. When the opening / closing member 500 closes the outlet 110c, the filtered air can flow into the air passage 121 through the gap g to be discharged from the vent 110b together with the external air drawn in through the intake port 110d. The opening / closing member 500 may include an opening / closing part 510, an opening / closing rack gear 520, and an opening / closing guide part 530.

[0068] The opening / closing part 510 can open and close the outlet 110c. The opening / closing part 510 may be disposed inside the housing 110 to be located above the auxiliary filter 600.

[0069] The opening / closing rack gear 520 may be provided on the opening / closing part 510 to be engaged with the driving unit 400 so that the opening / closing part 510 can be moved by the driving force. In other words, the opening / closing rack gear 520 may be disposed on a lower side of the opening / closing part 510 and may extend in the front-rear direction to be engaged with the gear unit 420. Through the opening / closing rack gear 520, the opening / closing part 510 can be moved in the front-rear direction when the gear unit 420 is rotated.

[0070] The opening / closing guide part 530 may be supported by the opening / closing member support part 160 to guide the movement of the opening / closing part 510 in the front-rear direction. In other words, the opening / closing guide part 530 may be engaged with the rail 161 of the opening / closing member support part 160 and moved along the extension direction of the rail 161 by the movement of the opening / closing part 510. For example, the opening / closing guide part 530 may be a wheel.

[0071] The auxiliary filter 600 can block foreign substances from entering the interior of the housing 110 through the outlet 110c or re-filter the filtered air flowing toward the outlet 110c. The auxiliary filter 600 may be supported by the opening / closing member support member 160 to be disposed between the flow path part 120 and the outlet 110c. In addition, the auxiliary filter 600 may be disposed between the flow path part 120 and the opening / closing member 500 when the opening / closing member 500 closes the outlet 110c.

[0072] The controller 700 can control the driving unit 400 based on a plurality of operation modes. The plurality of operation modes may include a first operation mode and a second operation mode.

[0073] The first operation mode is a mode for discharging filtered air through the vent 110b. The controller 700 can control the driving unit 400 to close the outlet 110c in the first operation mode. Under the control of the controller 700, in the first operation mode, the driving unit 400 can rotate the gear unit 420 in one direction so that the opening / closing member 500 moves rearward to close the outlet 110c. In the first operation mode, air drawn in through the intake port 110d flows into the air passage 121 of the flow path part 120, so that filtered air inside the housing 110 can flow into the air passage 121 of the flow path part 120 based on the Bernoulli principle and the Coanda effect. In other words, in the first operation mode, the filtered air guided by the air guide part 140 can flow into the air passage 510a of the flow path part 120 through the gap g and then be discharged through the vent 110b. In addition, in the first operation mode, external air can flow into the flow path part 120 through the intake guide part 130.

[0074] Referring further to FIGS. 9 and 10, the second operation mode is a mode for discharging filtered air through the outlet 110c. In the second operation mode, the controller 700 can control the driving unit 400 to open the outlet 110c. Under the control of the controller 700, in the second operation mode, the driving unit 400 can rotate the gear unit 420 in the other direction so that the opening / closing member 500 moves forward. In the second operation mode, filtered air inside the housing 110 is guided upward by the air guide part 140, and can be discharged through the outlet 110c without flowing into the gap g by the rib 150. In addition, in the second operation mode, the filtered air inside the housing 110 is moved upward on the left and right sides of the rib 150 to form a negative pressure between the flow path part 120 and the intake guide part 130. When the negative pressure is formed between the flow path part 120 and the intake guide part 130, external air can be drawn into the housing 110 through the air passage 121 and the intake port 110d and be discharged through outlet 110c together with the filtered air. In other words, in the second operation mode, the external air drawn in through the flow path part 120 and the intake guide part 130 can flow into the housing 110 through the gap g, and the filtered air can flow to the outlet 110c.

[0075] The controller 700 described above may be implemented by a computing device including a microprocessor, a measuring device such as a sensor, and a memory, and the implementation method is obvious to those skilled in the art, so that a further detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0076] Hereinafter, the operation and effects of the air purifier 1 will be described.

[0077] The rib 150, which is provided inside the housing of the air purifier 1 and covers the side of the intake port 110d, prevents filtered air from flowing into the intake port 110d, and external air drawn in through the vent 110b and the intake port 110d flows into the housing, so that the filtered air and the external air can be discharged together through the outlet 110c, which improves the discharge performance of the air purifier 1. In other words, the rib 150 is disposed between the fan unit 200 and the gap g, and is formed to be convex toward the fan unit 200, so that the filtered air can flow on the left and right sides of the rib 150, which efficiently forms negative pressure between the flow path part 120 and the intake guide part 130. In addition, external air can be drawn into the housing 110 through the vent 110b and the intake port 110d due to the negative pressure, and discharged together with the filtered air through the outlet 110c.

[0078] Further, since at least a portion of the flow path part 120 and at least a portion of the intake guide part 130 may be formed in a tapered shape, when negative pressure is formed between the flow path part 120 and the intake guide part 130, external air can efficiently and rapidly flow toward the interior of the housing 110.

[0079] Furthermore, even when both the outlet 110c and the vent 110b are open, the filtered air inside the housing 110 can be discharged through the outlet 110c by the rib 150.

[0080] In addition, since the rib 150 can be provided around one side end portion of the intake guide part 130, the filtered air can be prevented from flowing into the intake guide part 130. In other words, since the rib 150 can cover at least a portion of the gap g, the filtered air can be prevented from flowing directly into the air passage 121 or the intake passage 131 through the gap g.

[0081] Further, by opening and closing the outlet 110c using the opening / closing member 500, filtered air can be discharged through the outlet 110c or the vent 110b. In other words, the filtered air can be discharged in different directions depending on the movement of the opening / closing member 500.

[0082] Furthermore, when the vent 110b is closed and the outlet 110c is open, a larger amount of air can be discharged compared to when the vent 110b is open and the vent 110c is closed, so that the user can receive a greater amount of filtered air by opening and closing the outlet 110c.

[0083] In addition, one side end portion of the intake guide part 130 is inserted into the other side end portion of the flow path part 120, so that external air drawn in through the intake port 110d can efficiently flow toward the air passage 121. Further, since the external air drawn in through the intake port 110d can efficiently flow toward the air passage 121, when the outlet 110c is closed, filtered air inside the housing 110 can efficiently flow into the air passage 121 through the gap g.

[0084] Further, the rib 150 can be formed to extend from the inner surface of the air guide part 140 to efficiently restrict the flow of filtered air guided upward by the air guide part 140, so that the filtered air can efficiently flow to the outlet 110c or the vent 110b.

[0085] Furthermore, since the length of the rib 150 in a horizontal direction perpendicular to the extending direction of the rib 150 can be formed to be greater than half the length of the flow path part 120 in the horizontal direction, it is possible to effectively prevent the filtered air from directly flowing into the gap g.

[0086] In addition, since the gap g can be formed to be smaller than the length of the outlet 110c in the direction in which the flow path part 120 extends, when the outlet 110c is closed, air can quickly flow into the air passage 510a and be rapidly discharged through the vent 110b. In other words, the gap g is formed smaller than the internal space of the housing 110, so that air flowing inside the housing 110 can quickly flow into the air passage 121 based on the Bernoulli principle and the Coanda effect.

[0087] Although the embodiments of the present disclosure have been described as specific embodiments, this is merely an example, and the present disclosure should be construed as having the broadest scope according to the technical idea disclosed herein without being limited thereto. Those skilled in the art may implement a pattern of a shape not indicated herein by combining / substituting the disclosed embodiments, but this also does not deviate from the scope of the present disclosure. In addition, those skilled in the art may easily change or modify the disclosed embodiments based on the present specification, and it is clear that such changes or modifications also fall within the scope of the present disclosure.

Claims

1. An air purifier comprising:a frame assembly including a housing;a fan unit configured to provide a blowing force to draw external air into an interior of the housing; anda main filter for filtering the air drawn into the interior of the housing to provide filtered air,wherein the housing includes an inlet for introducing external air to the main filter, an intake port for adding external air to the filtered air, and an outlet for discharging air introduced through the inlet and the intake port, andwherein the frame assembly further includes a rib formed to extend along a flow path of the filtered air to cover a side of the intake port to restrict the filtered air from flowing directly toward the intake port.

2. The air purifier of claim 1, wherein the frame assembly further includes an intake guide part that provides an intake passage for guiding external air, drawn in through the intake port, into the interior of the housing, andthe rib is disposed inside the housing to be provided around one side end portion of the intake guide part.

3. The air purifier of claim 2, wherein the housing further includes a vent for discharging the filtered air in a direction different from the outlet,the frame assembly further includes a flow path part extending from the vent toward the intake port to provide an air passage for guiding the filtered air to the vent,the intake guide part extends from the intake port toward the flow path part, and is arranged to be spaced apart from the flow path part to form a gap with the flow path part, and the rib is formed to cover at least a portion of the gap.

4. The air purifier of claim 3, further comprising:an opening / closing member that reciprocates inside the housing to open and close the outlet; anda driving unit that provides driving force for moving the opening / closing member,wherein the opening / closing member is moved by the driving unit to open the outlet so that filtered air is discharged through the outlet, or is moved by the driving unit to close the outlet so that filtered air is discharged through the vent.

5. The air purifier of claim 4, wherein an amount of air discharged through the outlet when the outlet is open is greater than an amount of air discharged through the vent when the vent is open.

6. The air purifier of claim 3, wherein one side end portion of the intake guide part is inserted into the other side end portion of the flow path part.

7. The air purifier of claim 3, wherein the frame assembly further includes an air guide part disposed inside the housing to provide a passage through which filtered air discharged from the fan unit flows to the outlet, andthe rib extends from an inner surface of the air guide part along a direction in which the flow path part extends.

8. The air purifier of claim 7, wherein a length of the rib in a horizontal direction perpendicular to a direction in which the rib extends is formed to be greater than half of a length of the flow path part in the horizontal direction.

9. The air purifier of claim 3, wherein the rib is disposed between the fan unit and the gap, and is formed to be convex toward the fan unit.

10. The air purifier of claim 4, wherein the opening / closing member is moved by the driving unit along a direction in which the flow path part extends.

11. The air purifier of claim 3, wherein at least a portion of the flow path part and at least a portion of the intake guide part are formed in a tapered shape.

12. The air purifier of claim 3, wherein the gap is formed to be smaller than a length of the outlet in a direction in which the flow path part extends.

13. The air purifier of claim 4, wherein when the opening / closing member closes the outlet, external air flows into the flow path part through the intake guide part, and filtered air flows into the flow path part through the gap, and when the opening / closing member opens the outlet, external air flowing from each of the flow path part and the intake guide part flows into the interior of the housing through the gap, and filtered air flows to the outlet.

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