Variable-Shape Air Vent With Pivoting Slats for Durable Airflow Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing air vents with shape-changing membranes are unprotected against environmental influences, leading to reduced adjustability and service life.
Innovation Solution
An air vent design with pivotable sections and elastic connecting means, allowing for robust and adjustable airflow direction control, featuring pivotable slats connected by membranes for enhanced durability and adjustability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If membranes are used to change the shape of walls in air ducts, then the direction and speed of air stream can be influenced, but the membranes are exposed and unprotected against environmental influences
Solution Approach 1:
The walls are divided into multiple pivotable sections (first section, second section, third section for the first wall; fourth section, fifth section, sixth section for the second wall) that can be independently adjusted. This segmentation allows the air vent to achieve complex airflow directions while protecting each section individually, extending service life through modular design.
Solution Approach 2:
The wall sections are designed to be dynamically adjustable through pivotable connections, allowing the air vent to change airflow direction and speed in real-time. The elastic connecting means enable smooth transitions between positions while maintaining reliability through controlled movement rather than exposed flexible membranes.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple pivotable sections are used to improve adjustability, then airflow direction can be influenced more effectively, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Adjacent wall sections are connected by elastic connecting means (membranes) that combine multiple functions: mechanical connection, elastic restoration, and sealing. This merging reduces the number of separate components needed while maintaining the pivotable adjustment capability across all sections.
Solution Approach 2:
The elastic connecting means serve multiple purposes simultaneously: they act as hinges for pivoting, provide elastic restoring force for automatic return to neutral position, and seal the gaps between sections. This multi-functionality reduces overall device complexity despite having multiple adjustable sections.
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 design results in a reliable, cost-effective air vent with improved adjustability and extended service life, capable of influencing airflow direction effectively.
Implementation Method 1
The first section, the second section and the third section are connected to one another, at least in their respectively adjacent regions, by at least one first elastic connecting means
Data Source
AI summary
An air outflow device has a housing and an air duct which is formed between a first wall that has a variable shape and a second wall that has a variable shape and is arranged at a distance to the first wall. The first wall has a first section, which is pivotally mounted relative to the housing on the air duct outlet side, a second section, the downstream end of which is pivotally mounted on the first section, and a third section whose downstream side is pivotally mounted on the upstream end of the second section and whose upstream side is mounted on the air duct inlet side. The second wall has a fourth section, which is pivotally mounted relative to the housing on the air duct outlet side, a fifth section, the downstream end of which is pivotally mounted on the fourth section, and a sixth section whose downstream side is pivotally mounted on the upstream end of the fifth section and whose upstream side is mounted on the air duct inlet side. The first section, the third section, the fourth section, and the sixth section are each designed in the form of an individual lamella. The second section and/or the fifth section is made of at least one lamella.