Modulated UV Sanitizing System for Vehicle Safety
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current UV light sanitizing systems in vehicles, such as aircraft, face challenges in efficiently disinfecting surfaces while minimizing energy consumption and ensuring safety for occupants, as they often deactivate or reduce UV light output upon occupancy, which can prolong disinfection times and increase energy costs.
Innovation Solution
A dynamic UV light sanitizing system that modulates irradiance based on occupancy using a UV lamp, occupancy sensor, and control unit, adjusting power output in response to transient or persistent occupation to maintain effective disinfection while ensuring safety and optimizing energy use.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If the UV lamp is immediately deactivated upon detection of occupancy, then safety of occupants is improved, but disinfection effectiveness deteriorates due to reduced UV dose and extended disinfection time
Solution Approach 1:
The UV lamp's irradiance is dynamically adjusted based on occupancy duration. For transient occupancy (short duration), the irradiance is reduced to a low level rather than completely deactivated, allowing continuous low-level disinfection while ensuring safety. For persistent occupancy (long duration), the irradiance is completely deactivated to ensure safety. This dynamic adjustment resolves the contradiction by adapting the UV output to the specific occupancy scenario.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the irradiance parameter of the UV lamp based on occupancy detection. When occupancy is detected, the control unit modifies the irradiance from high level (for disinfection) to low level or zero (for safety), depending on the duration of occupancy. This parameter change allows the system to balance between maintaining disinfection effectiveness and ensuring occupant safety.
2Productivity
If the UV lamp operates at high irradiance continuously, then disinfection effectiveness is improved, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The UV lamp operates in periodic cycles rather than continuously. The control unit alternates between high irradiance operation (when unoccupied or transiently occupied) and low or zero irradiance operation (when persistently occupied). This periodic action pattern allows the system to achieve necessary disinfection effectiveness while significantly reducing overall energy consumption compared to continuous high irradiance operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The system applies partial action by using low irradiance instead of high irradiance during transient occupancy periods. This partial action (low level UV emission) is sufficient for continuous disinfection maintenance while consuming far less energy than full-power operation, thus resolving the contradiction between disinfection effectiveness and energy consumption.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If the UV lamp power output is reduced to a low level upon occupancy, then safety is improved, but disinfection time is extended and productivity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically selects between two operational modes based on occupancy duration: low-level continuous operation for transient occupancy and complete shutdown for persistent occupancy. This dynamic mode selection prevents the system from being stuck in a suboptimal low-power state, thereby minimizing disinfection time loss while maintaining safety.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary disinfection at high irradiance before occupancy is detected or during transient occupancy periods. This preliminary action ensures that a significant portion of the required UV dose is delivered before the lamp needs to reduce power for safety reasons, thereby reducing the overall impact on disinfection time.
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 system ensures efficient disinfection of vehicle surfaces by maintaining high UV light intensity when unoccupied and reducing it during occupancy, thereby extending operation time and reducing energy consumption, while ensuring safety by avoiding excessive UV exposure to people.
Implementation Method 1
The UV lamp is configured to emit UV light into a target space
Implementation Method 2
The occupancy sensor is configured to monitor the target space and generate sensor signals indicative of an occupancy of the target space by at least one person
Data Source
AI summary
A system and method for sanitizing a target space include an ultraviolet (UV) lamp, an occupancy sensor, and a control unit operably connected to the occupancy sensor and the UV lamp. The UV lamp is configured to emit UV light into the target space. The occupancy sensor is configured to monitor the target space and generate sensor signals indicative of an occupancy of the target space by at least one person. The control unit is configured to receive the sensor signals generated by the occupancy sensor and to modulate an irradiance of the UV light emitted by the UV lamp over time based on the occupancy of the target space.