Heat Wheel Preheating Textile Web Ducts Inside Housing

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing heat treatment devices for textile webs suffer from significant heat losses and increased overall height due to external routing of lines for indirect preheating of fresh air using exhaust air, which complicates insulation and increases construction costs.

Innovation Solution

The heat wheel is connected directly to the warm sides of ducts for fresh and exhaust air within the housing, eliminating the need for external pipes and allowing the ducts to act as thermal insulation, reducing heat losses and maintaining a compact device height.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Loss of energy

If heat exchangers are arranged outside the housing with external piping, then preheating of fresh air by exhaust air is achieved, but heat losses increase and device height increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveheat lossesVSAvoidexternal piping arrangement
Core Design Contradiction:
Loss of energyVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent merges the heat exchanger (heat wheel) with the housing structure by positioning it inside the housing and integrating the duct connections directly to the heat wheel. This eliminates external piping and reduces heat losses by keeping all thermal components within the insulated housing envelope.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The heat wheel is nested within the housing structure, with its duct connections integrated into the housing's internal space. The first and second ducts are routed internally to connect to the heat wheel, creating a compact nested arrangement that eliminates external pipes and reduces overall device height.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #7Nested doll (Nesting)

2Ease of manufacture

If external pipes are used for conducting fresh air and exhaust air, then preheating function is implemented, but insulation effort increases and heat losses cannot be completely avoided

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveinsulation effortVSAvoidheat losses from external pipes
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of manufactureVSLoss of energy

Solution Approach 1:

The ducts are merged with the housing's thermal envelope by routing them entirely within the insulated housing. This eliminates the need for separate external insulation of pipes, as the housing's insulation serves as the thermal barrier for all air conduits.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The housing's thermal insulation serves a dual function: it insulates the housing itself and simultaneously insulates the ducts routed within it. This self-service approach eliminates the need for additional insulation layers on external pipes.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

3Temperature

If heat wheel is arranged outside the housing, then preheating of fresh air is achieved, but overall device height is significantly increased

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvepreheating of fresh airVSAvoidoverall device height
Core Design Contradiction:
TemperatureVSLength of stationary object

Solution Approach 1:

The heat wheel is repositioned from an external vertical arrangement to an internal horizontal arrangement within the housing. By utilizing the housing's internal volume and routing ducts horizontally through the chambers, the solution maintains effective preheating while minimizing the vertical dimension of the overall device.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

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 reduces heat losses, simplifies cleaning, improves aesthetics, and maintains a similar device height without additional effort, while ensuring efficient preheating of fresh air.

Implementation Method 1

a heat wheel (7) which is arranged for preheating the fresh air by means of the exhaust air

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectHeat exchange: Heat Exchanger

Implementation Method 2

The heat wheel is connected directly to the warm sides of ducts for fresh air and for exhaust air within the housing

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectThermal energy transfer: Conduction (thermal)

Implementation Method 3

the housing (6) is thermally insulated and temperatures of 150°C to 250°C prevail within the housing during operation

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectThermal insulation: Thermal Insulation

Data Source

PatentEP2601467B1Apparatus for the heat treatment of a web of textile material
Publication Date: 2016.11.16 A MONFORTS TEXTILMASCHINEN GMBH & CO KG
  • EP2601467B1 patent drawingFigure 1~2
  • EP2601467B1 patent drawingFigure 3
  • EP2601467B1 patent drawingFigure 4

AI summary

The invention relates to an apparatus for the heat treatment of a web of textile material (3) comprising a housing (6), means for guiding the web of material (3) in the housing (6), means for blowing heated treatment gas (5) onto the web of material (3), at least part of the treatment gas being supplied as fresh air and exhaust gas being carried away, and a heat wheel (7) for preheating the fresh air by means of the exhaust gas. It is intended to improve the apparatus in such a way as to create lines for indirectly preheating fresh air by means of exhaust air without any significant additional expenditure and without the height of the apparatus being any greater, or significantly greater, than in the case of apparatuses without preheating. This is achieved by the heat wheel (7) being connected directly to warm sides of the ducts (9, 10) for the fresh air and for the exhaust air, the warm sides of the ducts (9, 10) being routed exclusively inside the housing (6).