Split-Blade Damper Assembly to Reduce HVAC Pressure Loss and Noise
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional HVAC system dampers restrict airflow, leading to significant pressure differentials and increased energy consumption due to their small stroke angle, which results in reduced operational efficiency and noisy turbulent airflow.
Innovation Solution
A split-blade damper design with concentric inner and outer blades, each rotating independently, allows for a larger stroke angle and reduced pressure differential, enabling precise control of airflow while minimizing friction and turbulence.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If conventional dampers are used to control airflow, then airflow restriction is achieved, but pressure differential increases and energy efficiency decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The damper blade is divided into multiple segments that can rotate independently relative to each other. This segmentation allows the blade to conform to the duct wall geometry more closely, reducing turbulence and pressure differential while maintaining airflow control capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The damper blade segments are designed to be dynamically adjustable, allowing each segment to rotate to an optimal angle that follows the contour of the duct wall. This dynamic adaptation reduces flow restriction and energy consumption compared to fixed-angle conventional dampers.
2Device complexity
If conventional dampers with small stroke angle are used, then simple control is achieved, but turbulent airflow and noise increase
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the blade into multiple independently rotatable sections, the damper can achieve a larger effective stroke angle that follows the duct wall contour. This reduces flow separation and turbulence, thereby decreasing noise and harmful airflow patterns while maintaining relatively simple control mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention transitions from a single-plane rotation conventional damper to a multi-dimensional configuration where blade segments can rotate at different angles. This dimensional change allows the blade to wrap around duct corners and follow wall contours, reducing turbulence and noise generation.
Data Source
AI summary
A damper to manage air flow includes a housing that defines a passageway through which the air flow is directed. The damper includes a ring having a flat surface that terminates at an outside dimension and at an inside dimension, where the outside dimension is disposed to fit within the passageway and is pivotably rotatable along an axis that bisects the passageway. The damper also includes a disc having a flat surface that terminates at an outside dimension that is nested within the inside dimension of the ring in a gimballed relationship and is pivotably rotatable along the axis. The damper further includes an actuator coupled to the ring and the disc, where the actuator is configured to separately rotate each of the ring and the disc about the axis.