Vehicle Air-Conditioning Unit Shielding for High-Voltage Containment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Vehicle air-conditioning units with high-voltage components are at risk of exposure or dispersal during collisions, posing safety hazards to passengers and handlers due to the potential breakage or deformation of the unit's case, which can lead to accidental contact with energized components.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle air-conditioning unit design featuring a protecting structure made of conductive or flexible materials, arranged outside the case, to prevent high-voltage components from scattering or being exposed, with a grounding circuit for enhanced safety and a frame-like structure using multiple protecting members to absorb impacts and maintain containment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If high-voltage components are stored in a case of the air-conditioning unit, then the electric instrument can be compactly arranged, but the case may break or deform during collision causing high-voltage components to be exposed or scattered
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a nested protecting structure where an inner protecting member is placed inside the case and an outer protecting member is placed outside the case. This nested arrangement provides multiple layers of protection for the high-voltage components, ensuring they remain contained even if the case breaks during collision.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies beforehand cushioning by providing a protecting structure with inner and outer protecting members before any collision occurs. These protecting members are pre-positioned to absorb and distribute impact forces, preventing the case from breaking open and exposing high-voltage components during accidental collisions.
2Weight of moving object
If the case is made of resin for lightweight construction, then the air-conditioning unit weight is reduced, but the case strength is insufficient to prevent breakage during significant impact
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs composite materials by combining a resin case with metal or rigid protecting members. The resin case maintains lightweight properties while the metal protecting members (inner and outer) provide the necessary strength and impact resistance to prevent case breakage during significant collisions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes the resin case as a flexible shell that can deform during impact without completely failing. The thin resin case maintains its containment function while the rigid protecting members provide the primary structural strength needed to prevent catastrophic failure during collision.
3Reliability
If a protecting structure is added outside the case, then high-voltage components are prevented from scattering, but the device complexity and manufacturing difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the protecting structure into distinct functional components: an inner protecting member inside the case and an outer protecting member outside the case. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized for its specific protective function and simplifies manufacturing and assembly compared to a single complex protecting structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces the case itself as an intermediary element between the high-voltage components and the external environment. The case serves as the primary containment structure, while the inner and outer protecting members provide additional layers of protection, creating a simplified multi-layer system rather than a single complex protecting structure.
Data Source
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AI summary
[Object] To prevent high-voltage components which constitute an electric instrument stored in a case from being exposed, dropping out, or scattering to an outside from the case even when the case of an air-conditioning unit has a significant impact. [Solving Means] In a vehicle air-conditioning unit 1 in which air is introduced from an outside into a case 4 and air-conditioned air is fed into a cabin with an air blower 6, a protecting structure 25 for preventing an electric instrument 10 from scattering is provided.