Unitary Cowl Top Ventilator With Integral Seals
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing cowl top ventilator assemblies for motor vehicles are complex, costly, and prone to quality issues due to their multipart nature, which complicates inventory, handling, and installation, and often fail to provide a reliable water or gas-tight seal.
Innovation Solution
A unitary cowl top ventilator component is fabricated using a high-strength structural polymer with integral elastomeric seals, manufactured through a multiple shot injection molding process, creating a tight, fusion-bonded seal that engages the windshield, hood, and plenum, enhancing sealing performance and structural integrity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a multicomponent structure with separate sealing gaskets is used, then the sealing function is provided, but the device complexity and manufacturing cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the rigid structural member and elastomeric sealing member into a single unitary component through overmolding. The elastomeric material is molded directly onto the rigid structural member, creating integral seals that eliminate the need for separate sealing gaskets. This merging of components resolves the technical contradiction by maintaining reliable sealing functionality while significantly reducing device complexity and the number of parts.
2Reliability
If a multicomponent structure with separate sealing gaskets is used, then the sealing function is provided, but the manufacturing cost and inventory complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The overmolding process integrates the sealing function directly into the structural member, eliminating the need to manufacture and inventory separate sealing gaskets. This reduces manufacturing steps, assembly operations, and inventory complexity while ensuring consistent water-tight sealing through the integral bond between materials.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses a composite structure combining rigid structural material (such as nylon or ABS) with elastomeric material (such as thermoplastic elastomer). This composite approach allows each material to perform its optimal function - the rigid material provides structural support while the elastomeric material provides flexible sealing - while being manufactured as a single integrated component that reduces overall manufacturing cost.
3Reliability
If a multicomponent structure with separate sealing gaskets is used, then the sealing function is provided, but the quality of the seal deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
By merging the structural member and sealing member into a unitary component through overmolding, the patent eliminates interfaces between separate parts where gaps or misalignments could occur. The integral bond created by the overmolding process ensures consistent gas-tight sealing without the quality variations that arise from assembling separate components.
Solution Approach 2:
The overmolding process performs the sealing function during the primary manufacturing operation itself, rather than requiring a separate assembly step. The elastomeric material is molded onto the rigid structural member in the same manufacturing cycle, ensuring precise positioning and consistent seal quality from the outset, eliminating the need for subsequent assembly operations that could compromise seal integrity.
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 solution provides a high-quality, cost-effective, and simplified cowl top ventilator assembly with integral seals that effectively prevents water and gas ingress/exhaust, improving reliability and reducing complexity in manufacturing and installation.
Implementation Method 1
manufactured by a multiple shot injection molding process which provides for a tight, fusion bond between the structural material and the elastomeric sealing material
Data Source
AI summary
A unitary cowl top ventilator component has a body of rigid, polymeric material which defines a structural member of the component. A first body of polymeric material is fusion bonded to a first portion of the structural member to provide a windshield seal, and a second body of polymeric material is fusion bonded to a second portion of the structural member to provide a hood seal. In some instances the hood seal is a bulb-type seal, and in other instances it is a blade seal.