Blowing Port Heater Layout for Low-Power Vehicle Cabin Heating
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vehicle heating devices using electric heaters face inefficiencies in heating airflow with limited electric power, as they often unnecessarily heat surrounding structures and struggle to position heaters immediately upstream of blowing ports, leading to suboptimal heat distribution.
Innovation Solution
An electric heater is arranged at each blowing port with a heat generating sheet formed into a strip shape, folded multiple times and housed in a case with pins, allowing efficient heating of airflow without excessive heating of surrounding structures, using a conductive fiber sheet that prevents short circuits and manages power effectively.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of energy
If a PTC heater with laminated structures and fins is used to heat air, then the heater can be arranged in foot ducts or instrument panels, but electric power is uselessly consumed in heating the fins and surrounding structure instead of efficiently heating the airflow
Solution Approach 1:
The heating function is segmented and positioned directly at each blowing port rather than using a single centralized heater. This allows the heat generating sheet to heat only the airflow passing through that specific port, eliminating waste heat to surrounding structures. The segmentation of heating zones matches the segmentation of airflow paths, ensuring efficient energy utilization.
Solution Approach 2:
The heat generating sheet acts as an intermediary element positioned between the blower and the blowing port. It directly heats the airflow as it passes through, serving as an efficient thermal mediator that converts electrical energy to thermal energy precisely where needed, without the intermediate step of heating fins or surrounding structures first.
2Temperature
If a PTC heater is arranged in a passage to warm the entire instrument panel, then the surrounding structure is heated, but only airflow cannot be efficiently heated and heat is consumed by temperature increase of the instrument panel
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of providing uniform heating to the entire instrument panel, the heating function is localized to specific blowing ports where airflow is discharged. Each heat generating sheet is positioned to heat only the local airflow stream, creating non-uniform but functionally appropriate temperature distribution that eliminates waste heat to unnecessary areas.
Solution Approach 2:
The heating function is extracted from the instrument panel structure itself and relocated to the airflow path at the blowing ports. This separates the heating function from the structural components, allowing the panel to remain at ambient temperature while only the airflow receives the necessary thermal treatment.
3Ease of manufacture
If a PTC heater is arranged in a passage, then the heater can be installed in the instrument panel, but it is difficult to arrange the heater at a position immediately upstream of a blowing port, causing heat to be taken by a duct or surrounding structure
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of using a traditional PTC heater with complex laminated structures and fins, the invention uses a simplified heat generating sheet that copies the essential heating function. This sheet can be easily formed and installed directly at the blowing port, replicating the heating effect without the cumbersome structure that causes heat loss to surrounding ducts.
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
This configuration enables efficient heating of airflow with uniform temperature distribution and reduced power consumption, suitable for both supplementary and main heating systems in vehicles, including electric vehicles, without overheating surrounding structures.
Implementation Method 1
a heat generating sheet, which generates heat by supplying electricity thereto
Implementation Method 2
the above heat generating sheet is formed of a conductive fiber sheet obtained by making a conductive fiber into paper
Data Source
AI summary
An electric heater (7) is individually arranged at a position immediately upstream of a blowing port (6) that blows an air fed by a blower (4) into a vehicle room. The electric heater (7) is formed of a cylindrical case (15) loaded in the blowing port (6) and a heat generating sheet (16) arranged in the case (15). The heat generating sheet (16) is formed of a conductive fiber sheet obtained by making a carbon fiber into paper. Furthermore, the heat generating sheet is formed into a continuous strip and radially folded along pins (22) of the case (15). The air is heated while flowing along a surface of the heat generating sheet (16).