Automotive Air Nozzle With Hidden Slat Control for Uniform Airflow

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing air nozzles for motor vehicles fail to provide a pleasant air flow distribution and an attractive design, as they often have visible slats that protrude and do not allow for uniform airflow direction adjustment.

Innovation Solution

The air nozzle features rotatably mounted slats coupled by lateral coupling rods, with a central control lamella and an actuating element accessible through a cover mask, allowing for hidden slat adjustment and diffused airflow via a ring guide and adjusting ring with operable elements, enabling uniform airflow distribution and improved aesthetics.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of operation

If slats are made visible and protruding for adjustment, then airflow direction control is achieved, but aesthetic appearance deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveairflow direction controlVSAvoidaesthetic appearance
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSShape

Solution Approach 1:

The slats are extracted from the visible front area and relocated to the rear part of the housing. The rear housing contains the slats that can be adjusted independently, while the front housing presents a clean, aesthetic appearance without protruding adjustment elements. This separation allows airflow control functionality to be maintained while eliminating the visual defect.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

2Ease of manufacture

If slats are fixed in position, then manufacturing simplicity is improved, but airflow distribution uniformity deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvemanufacturing simplicityVSAvoidairflow distribution uniformity
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of manufactureVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The housing is segmented into a front housing and a rear housing that can be adjusted independently. The rear housing contains the slats that can be pivoted to different positions, allowing airflow distribution to be optimized without complicating the overall manufacturing process. The segmentation enables independent adjustment of the rear housing relative to the front housing.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

3Adaptability or versatility

If slats are made adjustable with multiple components, then airflow direction flexibility is improved, but device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveairflow direction flexibilityVSAvoidstructural complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The slats are merged with the rear housing to form an integrated assembly that can be adjusted as a unit. The coupling rod connects the slats to the rear housing, allowing them to move together while maintaining a relatively simple structure. This merging reduces the number of separate components compared to having independently adjustable slats within the front housing.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Data Source

PatentEP2291294B1Air nozzle
Publication Date: 2012.12.05 DR SCHNEIDER KUNSTWERKE GMBH
  • EP2291294B1 patent drawingFigure 1~3
  • EP2291294B1 patent drawingFigure 4~8
  • EP2291294B1 patent drawingFigure 9~11

AI summary

The invention relates to an air nozzle for conducting an air flow out of an air supply shaft or a pipe from a heating, ventilating or air conditioning system, in particular in a motor vehicle, with a housing which has a connection on the rear side for the air supply shaft and an air outlet opening on the front side. The air outlet opening contains air-guiding elements having slats which are adjustable via a coupling rod. The axes (4) of the individual slats (5) are arranged in a slat ring (2) having one or two lateral coupling rods (3), wherein the central slat (5) is designed as a control slat and has an actuating element (6) for adjusting the slats (5). The slat ring (2) is inserted with the slats (5) in an annular guide (7) in the receptacle (1) and is coupled to an adjusting ring (8) which is mounted rotatably in the annular guide (7) and the outer circumference of which has operating elements (9) for rotating the slat ring (2). The opening of the adjusting ring (8) contains a covering mask (10) having a central aperture through which the actuating element (6) for the slats (5) is accessible or from which the actuating element operably protrudes. Figure 1.