Electric heater
Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional electric heaters suffer from low heat utilization efficiency due to temperature stratification in a vertical direction, leading to discomfort as users experience 'hot head and cold feet' due to convective heat being transferred to the top of a room, rather than being evenly distributed.
Innovation Solution
An electric heater design featuring a housing with an air inlet and outlet, where the heating member is placed within an air duct, and a convection member is used to blow heated air from the duct to the outlet positioned near the ground, reducing vertical temperature stratification and enhancing heat distribution across the body.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If natural convection heat transfer is used, then heating is achieved through density difference, but temperature stratification occurs in vertical direction
Solution Approach 1:
The patent inverts the conventional top-outlet design by placing the air outlet at the bottom and air inlet at the top. This reversal causes heated air to be discharged downward near the ground, creating upward convection currents that distribute heat evenly throughout the vertical space, eliminating temperature stratification and improving heat utilization efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces vertical dimensionality to heat distribution by positioning the outlet at the bottom and utilizing buoyancy-driven upward flow. This creates a three-dimensional convection pattern that distributes heat across both horizontal and vertical dimensions, rather than allowing heat to accumulate only at the top.
2Ease of operation
If heated air rises naturally, then convection occurs, but lower personnel activity area remains cold
Solution Approach 1:
By inverting the outlet position to the bottom, the patent ensures heated air is discharged into the lower personnel activity area first. The natural buoyancy then carries this warm air upward through the occupied space, ensuring the lower areas remain warm and eliminating the 'cold feet' sensation.
3Loss of energy
If air outlet is at top, then heated air is discharged upward, but vertical temperature stratification increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent reverses the conventional outlet positioning from top to bottom. This inversion causes heated air to be discharged downward near the ground, where it then rises naturally through the entire vertical space, creating uniform temperature distribution and eliminating stratification.
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 ensures that warm air circulates from the ground up, improving heat utilization efficiency and user comfort by evenly heating both upper and lower body parts, eliminating the 'hot head and cold feet' issue.
Implementation Method 1
the heating member is configured for heating the air entering from the air inlet to the air duct during energization
Implementation Method 2
the convection member is configured for blowing a heated air from the air duct to the air outlet for discharging
Implementation Method 3
the wind blows into a room from a position close to the ground under an action of the convection member, and floats up under an action of buoyancy
Data Source
AI summary
Some embodiments of the present disclosure provide an electric heater, which includes: a housing provided with an air inlet and an air outlet, and the housing internally having an air duct communicated between the air inlet and the air outlet; and a heating member and a convection member both being assembled in the air duct, wherein the heating member being configured for heating the air entering from the air inlet to the air duct during energization, the convection member being configured for blowing a heated air from the air duct to the air outlet for discharging. Herein the air outlet is provided on a bottom end of the housing close to a ground.