Separate Floor Air Drying With Targeted Heated Airflow
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing air circulation systems, such as HVAC, are inefficient in drying large wet floor areas without making the surrounding environment uncomfortable, as they require increasing heat and airflow throughout the building.
Innovation Solution
A self-contained, segregated floor drying system with a fan and heater, featuring a wireless transceiver for remote control and a positionable outlet to direct airflow over the floor, allowing independent operation from the building's HVAC system.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the building's HVAC system increases heat and airflow throughout the building to dry wet floors, then the drying efficiency is improved, but the comfort of building occupants deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides the building's air circulation into separate zones: a dedicated floor drying zone with its own fan and heater, and the rest of the building's HVAC system. This segmentation allows targeted drying of wet floors without subjecting the entire building to increased heat and airflow, thus maintaining occupant comfort while improving drying efficiency
Solution Approach 2:
The system applies heating and air circulation locally only to the area where floors need drying, rather than throughout the entire building. The localized heater and fan create a concentrated stream of warm air directed at the wet floor surface, achieving effective drying in the specific problem area without affecting overall building comfort
2Device complexity
If portable fans or heaters are temporarily set up to assist drying, then the system complexity is reduced, but the drying effectiveness deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The system combines multiple functions into a single integrated unit: a dedicated fan, heater, and control system are merged into one floor drying system. This consolidation provides sufficient heated air output for effective drying while maintaining simpler operation compared to coordinating multiple separate portable devices, achieving both drying effectiveness and operational simplicity
3Productivity
If the building's heat is turned up to dry floors, then the drying rate is improved, but the energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the heating function into a dedicated floor drying heater that operates independently from the building's main HVAC system. This allows the heater to be sized and controlled specifically for floor drying needs, providing high drying rate when needed while consuming less overall energy than heating the entire building, and enabling easy shutdown when drying is complete
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 solution efficiently dries wet floors without affecting the comfort of building occupants by providing targeted heated air, reducing drying time without increasing overall building heat or airflow.
Implementation Method 1
a fan... adapted to serve as an air circulation and drying system
Implementation Method 2
a heater... allowing the fan to blow air over the surface of the floor
Implementation Method 3
blow air over the surface of the floor, increasing the efficiency with which the floor is dried
Data Source
AI summary
An air circulation system adapted to dry floors that is segregated and separately controllable from the building's HVAC system. The system includes an air duct having an inlet and an outlet, a fan, and a heater. The inlet is adapted to drawn air in from either the surrounding environment or is connectable to the building's existing air circulation ductwork. The system is designed so that the outlet is positionable adjacently to a floor surface when the system is installed in a wall or to the exterior surface of a wall, thereby allowing the fan to blow air directly over the surface of the floor, increasing the efficiency with which the floor is dried. The present system further comprises a wireless transceiver for wirelessly controlling the functionality of the present system and various other activation mechanisms for separately controlling the fan and the heater without requiring direct user input.