Vehicle Air Inlet Hatch for Heat Exchanger Access and Sealing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing air inlet systems for motor vehicles face challenges in minimizing air stream losses and accessing heat exchangers for repair or replacement without compromising the sealing beads and requiring dismantling of the entire front face of the vehicle.
Innovation Solution
A device with a housing featuring a hatch that can pivot to open and allow translational movement for accessing and removing heat exchangers, preserving sealing beads and avoiding full disassembly of the air regulation device.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of repair
If the entire air regulation device or front face of the vehicle is dismantled to access the heat exchanger, then the heat exchanger can be accessed for repair or replacement, but the sealing beads around the heat exchangers are compromised and the complexity of the operation increases
Solution Approach 1:
The housing is divided into two separable parts: a fixed wall that remains attached to the vehicle and a detachable hatch that can be removed independently. This segmentation allows access to the heat exchanger through the removable hatch without dismantling the entire air regulation device or front face, thereby preserving the sealing beads while enabling easy maintenance access.
2Ease of repair
If the entire air regulation device is dismantled to remove the heat exchanger, then the heat exchanger can be replaced, but the time and complexity of maintenance increases
Solution Approach 1:
The housing is segmented into a fixed wall and a removable hatch, allowing the hatch to be detached and the heat exchanger accessed directly without dismantling the entire device.
Solution Approach 2:
The hatch is extracted as a separate removable component from the housing. This extraction allows maintenance personnel to remove the hatch and access the heat exchanger quickly without having to disassemble the entire air regulation device, significantly reducing maintenance time and complexity.
3Ease of operation
If the hatch is positioned at the edge of the housing, then the structure is simpler, but the access to the heat exchanger is limited and the hatch cannot provide sufficient opening area
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of positioning the hinge at the edge of the housing (one-dimensional approach), the hinge is positioned at an intermediate point on the housing wall, creating a two-dimensional pivot arrangement. This allows the hatch to swing open to a greater extent and provide broader access to the heat exchanger, improving the ease of operation while maintaining reasonable structural complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to a device for adjusting (80) an air stream for an air inlet of a motor vehicle, comprising a housing (81) defining a flow duct (82) into which an air stream flows and in which a cooling unit comprising at least one heat exchanger (83) is at least partially arranged, the housing comprising a flap (85) designed to be placed in an open position providing access to the heat exchanger, said flap being designed to close the access in the closed position, said access (86) being designed in particular to enable removal of the heat exchanger through a substantially translational movement.