Vehicle Seat Ventilation Through Recessed Cushion Channels
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing air-conditioned vehicle seats with stitched seat covers face uneven air conditioning due to insufficient airflow through cover stitching furrows, and current spacer media cannot form neat 90° angles or smooth edges, limiting the effectiveness of ventilation.
Innovation Solution
An air-conditioning mechanism for a vehicle seat with recessed depressions in the cushion core, connected by air-permeable channels and supported by molded parts, allowing for uniform airflow between zones and enabling a single ventilation device to suffice for all seat regions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If stitchings are used to connect the cover material, then the seat structure is simplified and manufacturing is easier, but the airflow connection through the stitching furrows becomes insufficient causing uneven air conditioning
Solution Approach 1:
An air-permeable connecting mechanism is introduced as an intermediary element between the stitching furrow and the air-circulating layer. This connecting mechanism includes air-permeable material that allows airflow to pass through the stitching furrow region, mediating between the structural requirement of stitching and the functional requirement of uniform airflow distribution.
2Reliability
If multiple blowers are used to ventilate all seat regions separately, then sufficient air supply to all zones is ensured, but the device complexity and energy consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple separate ventilation systems are merged into a single integrated ventilation system. The air-permeable connecting mechanism enables a single blower to supply air to multiple air-circulating layers through stitching furrow regions by creating flow connections that allow air to reach all zones through the previously obstructed stitching areas.
Solution Approach 2:
The stitching furrow region is given dual functionality: it maintains its structural role in connecting cover material while simultaneously serving as an airflow passage through the air-permeable connecting mechanism. This allows the same structural element to fulfill both mechanical and aerodynamic functions.
3Shape
If spacer fabric is placed only in furrow-free regions, then the appearance is improved and stitching furrows are avoided, but the ventilation of stitched seat surfaces becomes insufficient requiring additional blowers
Solution Approach 1:
The connecting mechanism incorporates air-permeable material that allows airflow through the stitching furrow region. This porous or permeable material enables air to pass through areas that would traditionally be blocked by stitching, maintaining both the structural integrity of the stitching and the effectiveness of ventilation.
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
Ensures a uniform air supply to all air-circulating layers, eliminating obstructions and allowing for customizable cover furrows, thus achieving efficient and comprehensive air conditioning with a single blower.
Implementation Method 1
The air conditioned zones and the at least one depression are connected together by an air-permeable connecting mechanism
Implementation Method 2
at least the portion of the cover drawn into the depression is porous, reticulated, perforated, punched or slit
Data Source
AI summary
An air-conditioning system for a seat includes a cushion having a cover and two air-conditioned zones proximate a surface facing a seat occupant, and an elongated depression between the zones, the depression having a floor which is recessed with respect to the zones and into which the cover is at least partially drawn into in the direction of the depression floor, the air-conditioned zones being at least partially distanced from the depression. The zones and the depression are connected by a plurality of air-permeable channels, the channels being located between the air-conditioned zones essentially on or above the depression floor. The depression, in the transverse direction, is at least partially air-permeable, despite the cover.