Air Conditioning and Filtration System
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Solution Overview
Problem
Air conditioning and filtration systems in heavy equipment vehicles face challenges with airborne contaminants entering through the vacuum created for air intake, leading to clogged filters and increased downtime, and fail to accommodate diverse housing requirements, especially exacerbated by the commercial uptake of autonomous vehicles.
Innovation Solution
An air conditioning and filtration system that includes a pre-treatment system for filtering external air, pressurization means to positively pressurize filtered air, and a combination of filtration and air conditioning means, with additional filtration cartridges and downstream filters to address contaminants like sulphur dioxide, ammonia, and diesel particulate, housed in stackable units for efficient operation across various enclosures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If a vacuum is created to draw air through evaporator/heater cores, then air conditioning function is achieved, but airborne contaminants including dust ingress into the system
Solution Approach 1:
The system inverts the traditional vacuum-based air intake approach by using positive pressure to push air through the system. The pressurization means creates positive pressure to force air through the evaporator/heater cores and subsequent filtration stages, preventing contaminant ingress while maintaining air conditioning function.
Solution Approach 2:
The pre-treatment system performs preliminary filtration of air before it enters the main air conditioning system. This preliminary action removes a significant portion of contaminants before the air reaches the main filtration stages, reducing the burden on downstream filters and minimizing clogging.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If extensive sealing structures are employed to minimize contaminant ingress, then contamination is reduced, but the sealing structures become difficult to maintain
Solution Approach 1:
The system extracts the sealing requirement from complex internal structures by using positive pressure containment. Instead of relying on extensive sealing structures throughout the air path, the positive pressure system contains air flow through pressure differentials, eliminating the need for complex seals and making the system easier to maintain.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If filtration is focused on external intake only, then external contaminants are captured, but filters clog rapidly causing increased downtime
Solution Approach 1:
The filtration system is segmented into multiple stages: pre-treatment filtration, main filtration, and post-pressurization filtration. This segmentation distributes the filtration load across multiple filters and stages, preventing any single filter from clogging rapidly and reducing downtime for replacements.
Solution Approach 2:
The pre-treatment system performs preliminary filtration to remove a significant portion of contaminants before air enters the main filtration system. This preliminary action protects downstream filters from rapid clogging, extending their service life and reducing maintenance downtime.
4Ease of manufacture
If a single air conditioning system is designed, then it serves one housing type, but it cannot accommodate diverse housing requirements including autonomous vehicle cabins
Solution Approach 1:
The air conditioning system is designed with universal components and modular architecture that can accommodate multiple housing types and configurations. The system can be adapted to serve both operator cabins and autonomous vehicle housings, providing multi-functionality without requiring completely separate designs for each application.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The system effectively reduces contaminant ingress, minimizes filter clogging, and allows for flexible implementation across different housings, enhancing operational efficiency and reducing downtime by using a combination of pre-treatment, pressurization, and multiple filtration stages.
Implementation Method 1
pressurisation means for positively pressurising air filtered by the pre-treatment system
Implementation Method 2
a pre-treatment system for initially filtering air drawn from an external environment
Implementation Method 3
at least one circulation means, each circulation means operable to draw air from the external environment through the pre-treatment system and pressurisation means
Data Source
AI summary
An air conditioning and filtration system (10) comprising a pre-treatment system (12) for initially filtering air drawn from an external environment; pressurisation means (50) for positively pressurising air filtered by the pre-treatment system (12) and at least one circulation means (106). Each circulation means (106) draws air from the external environment through the pre-treatment system (12) and pressurisation means (50) as well as air from at least one enclosed area (1) for combination into an air stream. The air stream is thereafter directed to at least one set of filtration means (94) and air conditioning means (96) before being conveyed to at least one of the at least one enclosed areas (1).