Skylight Motor Thermal Insulation and Wide-Angle Ventilation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing skylights with automated control devices face safety issues due to the risk of ignition near motor structures, require fire safety equipment, and have limited ventilation capacity due to restricted opening angles, as well as malfunctioning at high temperatures.
Innovation Solution
A skylight design featuring a casing with a thermal insulation layer surrounding the motor and a reducer to increase the maximum inclination angle of the cover, eliminating the need for fire safety equipment and enabling operation at high temperatures while enhancing ventilation by allowing wider opening.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Extent of automation
If automated control devices with motors are installed in skylights, then remote opening and closing capability is achieved, but fire safety risks increase due to ignition potential near motor structures
Solution Approach 1:
The skylight system is divided into separate functional zones: the motorized control mechanism is isolated in one area while the cover opening mechanism operates independently in another. This spatial segmentation reduces the concentration of potential ignition sources and improves fire safety while maintaining automation capability.
Solution Approach 2:
A thermal insulation layer acts as an intermediary barrier between the motor structure and surrounding combustible materials. This intermediary element prevents heat transfer and eliminates the direct thermal pathway that could lead to ignition, allowing automated motors to operate safely near roof structures.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If fire safety equipment is added to protect motor structures, then fire risk is reduced, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent converts the potentially harmful heat generated by motors into a manageable parameter by using thermal insulation materials that are inherently fire-resistant. Rather than adding active fire suppression systems, the design passively manages thermal energy, transforming a safety liability into a controlled thermal environment.
Solution Approach 2:
The motor housing and surrounding structures are designed with fire-resistant and thermally insulating materials that create an inert thermal environment. This passive protective atmosphere prevents combustion without requiring active fire detection or suppression equipment, simplifying the overall system.
3Stability of the object's composition
If control devices guide covers at small angles (10°-15°), then structural integrity is maintained, but ventilation capacity is significantly reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The cover positioning system transitions from static fixed-angle guidance to dynamic adjustable-angle operation. The cover can be positioned at multiple angles including fully open configurations, allowing the system to adapt between maintaining structural integrity at smaller angles and maximizing ventilation capacity at larger angles based on operational requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The operating angle parameter of the cover is changed from the conventional restricted range (10°-15°) to a wider range that includes fully open positions. This parameter change enables the skylight to provide both structural stability when partially closed and maximum ventilation when fully open, eliminating the trade-off between these two requirements.
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 skylight reduces the risk of fires, eliminates the need for special safety equipment, and significantly increases ventilation capacity by allowing the cover to open to at least 45°, meeting fire resistance standards and improving operational reliability.
Implementation Method 1
a casing with a thermal insulation layer surrounding the motor and a reducer
Data Source
Figure 1~2
AI summary
It is provided a skylight (1) comprising a support frame (2) integral with, or part of, a roof of a building and defining a support plane (2a), a cover (3) comprising a frame (30) counter-shaped to the frame (2), extending over a covering plane (3a) and constrained in a compliant way to the frame (2) by means of constraint means (4) defining a rotation axis (4a) lying on the support plane (2a) around which the frame (30) can be rotated to be closed or opened like a book with respect to the frame (2) respectively resting on or moving away from the frame (2) so as to define a closing configuration and an opening configuration, a control rod (5) defining an expansion trajectory (5a) and connected to the cover (3) in a zone distanced from the constraint means (4) in such a way that said expansion trajectory (5a) is transverse to said covering plane (3a), a control device (6) integral to the hinge (2) and comprising a motor (60) operatively connected to the control rod (5) and configured to move the control rod (5) along the expansion trajectory (5a) with respect to the frame (2) to realise the opening and closing configurations and a casing (7) defining inner walls (70) and including at least the motor (60) and at least one insulation layer (71) positioned on the inner walls (70) and including thermal insulating material surrounding the motor (60).