Straddled Vehicle ECU Cooling Air Passage Design
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional straddled vehicles face challenges in effectively cooling electronic control units and other vehicle parts due to the placement of radiators, which can lead to increased temperatures and require either enlarging air passages or altering inlet orientations, resulting in increased vehicle size or weight.
Innovation Solution
A straddled vehicle design featuring a radiator positioned forward of the internal combustion engine, with a support cover and outer cover forming a tubular air passage that includes a groove portion with an inlet opening forward of the radiator, allowing air to flow in without being heated, and outlet ports to enhance airflow and prevent stagnation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If the inlet opening of the air passage is enlarged to increase the amount of air flowing through the air passage, then the cooling effect on the electronic control unit is improved, but the pressure the side cover receives from the air increases, requiring increased rigidity of the side cover or its support structure, which leads to an increase in vehicle size or weight
Solution Approach 1:
The inlet opening is repositioned from a lateral position to a forward-facing position located above the radiator. This spatial reconfiguration allows air to be drawn from the front of the vehicle, bypassing the radiator's heat zone, thereby providing cool air to the electronic control unit without requiring an enlarged opening that would generate excessive air pressure on the side cover.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a separate air intake path through the front of the vehicle that serves as an intermediary source of cool air. This alternative air supply route mediates between the need for cooling the electronic control unit and the need to avoid excessive forces on the side cover structure.
2Temperature
If the inlet opening is oriented downward to avoid heated air from the radiator, then the cooling effect is improved by preventing warm air entry, but the amount of air flowing through the air passage becomes insufficient, failing to increase the cooling effect
Solution Approach 1:
The inlet opening is positioned in the vertical dimension above the radiator and oriented forward, rather than downward. This three-dimensional positioning allows the opening to access cool air from the front of the vehicle while maintaining sufficient opening area to provide adequate airflow quantity to the electronic control unit.
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 design effectively cools vehicle parts by directing unheated air through the air passage, reducing the influence of radiator heat and preventing dust or rain entry, while maintaining structural integrity without increasing the vehicle's size or weight.
Implementation Method 1
as the vehicle runs, unheated air flows through the air passage from the front of the vehicle toward the rear
Implementation Method 2
the support cover is arranged between the internal combustion engine and the vehicle part... Heat radiated from the internal combustion engine is blocked by the support case
Data Source
AI summary
A straddled vehicle includes a radiator arranged forward relative to an internal combustion engine and an ECU arranged sideward of the internal combustion engine. At least a portion of a tubular air passage through which the air for cooling the ECU passes is formed between a support cover supporting the ECU and an outer cover. A front cover, an upper cover and an under cover form a groove portion, which extends rearward from a front end portion located upward and forward relative to the radiator and is recessed inward in the vehicle width direction. An inlet opening that communicates with the air passage is formed in the groove portion.