Cowl Vent Grille Positioning for Windshield Sealing
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
The existing methods for arranging and mounting a cowl grille with respect to a vehicle windshield are complex and involve intricate sealing processes, requiring either placement over the lower edge with staples or integration into the windshield's outer surface, which complicates assembly and sealing.
Innovation Solution
The cowl grille is positioned partially below the lower edge of the windshield, overlapping with it, and secured using clips that can be formed from the grille material or attached to it, allowing for easier assembly and disassembly, with a design that includes a low wall for water collection and ventilation air inlets, and passage holes for wiper shafts.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the cowl grille is placed over the lower edge of the windshield with a flexible seal held by staples, then the grille can be securely attached and water can be sealed off, but the assembly becomes complex and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the complex sealing system (flexible seal, staples, adhesive profiles) from the traditional arrangement. Instead, the cowl grille is positioned below the windshield lower edge where it is naturally covered by the windshield glass, creating an inherent seal without additional components. This extracts the sealing function from the assembly process and replaces it with the geometric arrangement itself.
Solution Approach 2:
Rather than placing the grille over the windshield edge and sealing it, the patent inverts the arrangement by positioning the grille below the edge so that the windshield glass covers and seals it. This inversion eliminates the need for separate sealing components while maintaining water tightness.
2Reliability
If the cowl grille is integrated into the windshield's outer surface with clipping and sealing, then secure attachment is achieved, but assembly complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the clipping and sealing components from the assembly process. The cowl grille is simply positioned below the windshield lower edge, where the windshield glass naturally covers and secures it. This extracts the attachment and sealing functions from complex mechanisms and replaces them with a simple positional relationship.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of attaching the grille to the outer surface of the windshield, the patent inverts the arrangement by placing the grille below the edge so that the windshield glass covers it. This inversion provides both attachment security and sealing without additional components.
3Ease of manufacture
If the cowl grille is placed below the windshield edge without overlap, then assembly is simpler, but water can rise between the grille and windshield through capillarity and wind pressure
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by positioning the cowl grille in a specific location below the windshield lower edge before any water flow occurs. The overlap arrangement is pre-established to prevent water from rising between the grille and windshield through capillarity or wind pressure, eliminating the need for complex sealing systems.
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 arrangement simplifies the assembly and sealing of the cowl grille, effectively directing runoff water away from the overlap area and ensuring air intake for the vehicle's ventilation system while maintaining a secure attachment to the vehicle structure.
Implementation Method 1
the scuttle grille and the windshield overlap over a zone long enough to prevent runoff water from rising between the windshield and the scuttle grille by capillarity
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3~4
AI summary
The arrangement has rapid fixation units i.e. clips (4), for fixing a cowl vent grille on a structure (2) of a vehicle, where the grille is spaced from a windscreen (3) fixed on a structure of the vehicle. The grille has a portion (11) arranged below a lower edge of the windscreen of the vehicle, and is partially overlapped with the windscreen. The grille has passage holes (6) that are defined by mounting flanges (8) for allowing passage of wind screen wiper axes (7), respectively.