ARRANGEMENT FOR PREVENTING MIST AND ICE FORMATION ON THE SIDE WINDOW OF A MOTOR VEHICLE

Abstract: Arrangement for preventing mist and ice formation on the windows of a motor vehicle, primarily a rear side-window in the door of the vehicle. Known proposals for overcoming mist and ice formation on the rear side-windows of a vehicle have involved air being supplied to the said windows via ducts from the regular ventilation system of the vehicle. For the purpose of achieving an operationally effective and, from the point of view of assembly and production, advantageous solution, the present invention is characterized essentially in that a fan (12) and an inlet and an outlet duct (11 and 13) are arranged between an outer and an inner panel (7 and 6) in the door of the vehicle below the window (4) in question. The fan (12) draws air from the vehicle interior and blows it out towards the window (4) which can thereby be quickly cleared of mist and ice.

Description: Arrangement for preventing mist and ice formation on the side window of a motor vehicle The present invention relates to an arrangement for preventing mist and ice formation on a side window in a door of a motor vehicle / to which window is connected at least one air-supply duct with an outlet located at the bottom part of the window, via which duct and outlet air is fed from a fan arranged in the vehicle. It is a generally known problem that the indows of a vehicle easily become misted and even ice up when the vehicle is used in cold weather. The ventilation system of the vehicle is rated so as to quickly free the vehicle windscreen of mist and ice, and air is also generally supplied to the adjacent front side-windows to quickly achieve good visibility through the latter. From Swedish Patent Specification 209924 it is also known to supply air from a mixing box arranged in the front part of a vehicle to all the windows of the vehicle. The disadvantage of the said solution is the requirement for long air ducts and a plurality of connection couplings, which result in high pressure drops and risks of leakage. In order to achieve the effect of distinctly i proving the visibility in the event of misted windows in the latter case, an extremely high fan capacity is required. To ach eve this with only one large fan Located centrally in the vehicle involves difficulties from the viewpoint of space, noise, etc. Keepins the rear .s.ide-A«tτιdo«s O 5. ve icle free Of mist is especially problematic. One proposal for solving this problem involves arranging a smaller fan in the centre pillar of the vehicle in order to supply air through the pillar and to blow the air out towards the adjacent rear side-window. However, the solution requires special measures to* be taken in a load-bearing part of the vehicle bodywork and also involves other disadvantages, such as those related to the possibility of simple installation of the air ducts and fan. The present invention relates to a simple arrangement a fxrπs aclt evTTg τn i —-anti c«-fτ^ V tr ws tn a vehicle, especially the rear side-windows of a conventional passenger car. For this purpose the present invention is characterized in that the fan is arranged in the door side below the window between an outer bodywork panel of the door and an inner inside-wall panel of the door and in that the fan draws air through an inlet duct, the inlet of which is located in the inside-wall --a!τrel^orø^ The invention is furthermore characterized in that the fan, the outlet duct and the inlet duct constitute a single un t. parts into one unit result in considerable advantages. The unit can be easily and quickly installed in the vehicle and located favourably, from the point of view oi ; cu jse;y ijitSviϊ e also improving the opportunities for keeping the side windows of the vehicle free of mist and ice. In an advantageous embodiment of the invention the unit is mounted in a rear door of the vehicle, wherein the invention is characterized n that the fan and the outlet duct are arranged in the front part of the door with the air outlet arranged at the bottom front part of the indow and in that the outlet is provided with air-directing surfaces which guide the air from the outlet obl quely upwards, backwards and inwards towards the indow. By position ng the outlet close to the bottom front part of the window and also by designing it with aii— directing surfaces which guide the outlet air obliquely upwards, backwards and inwards towards the window, an advantageous location from the viewpoint of installation in the door can be combined with guidance of air which is effective from the point of view of visibility. Other features characterizing the invention emerge from the attached patent clai s and the following description of an advantageous embodiment of the invention. In the description, reference is made to the attached figures in which Figure 1 illustrates schematically an arrangement according to the invention in a rear door of a motor vehicle. Figure 2 illustrates schematically the arrangement according to the invention essentially according to a cross- section A-A in Figure 1, F igure 3 stioys =aπ ; advantageous .eτπfco^τment ori 'the air outlet of the arrangement according to the invention viewed from above and Figures 4a, 4b show outlets essentially according to section B-B and section C-C in Figure 3. Figure 1 shows a rear door 1 located directly behind the centre pillar 2 in a conventional passenger car. Door 1 has a window 4 which opens and closes vertically and a fixed .w ndow 5 , together, wi .,an inner .j an.el , - "facing towards ttie vefiicle interior, and made of moulded wood fibre material, which panel is fixed to door 1 otherwise made of sheet metal. Figure 2 shows schematically how door 1 comprises an outer sheet metal panel 7 and an inner reinforcing sheet-metal structure 8 welded thereto, to which is secured, in addition to inner panel 6, a door handle 9 and (not shown) arrangements for a door lock and a window regulator trrank.. Ventilation unit 10 according to the invention is secured to the said inner panel 6 in a location in the front part of the door. Ventilation unit 10 consists of an integral unit comprising inlet duct 11, fan 12 and _ xmtlet duct 13. O-.utlet. duct -13 has an .outlet close to the front part of bottom edge 14 of window 4, while inlet duct 11 has an inlet in the bottom part of the door. The run of the said ducts is adapted to the design of inner door panel 6. Inner panel 6 is in fact .designed .top a d- -a bo om- part 15 and 16, pressed in towards the outside of door 1 / of which parts the top contains the handle 9 and locking mechanism Cnot shown) while the bottom forms a storage pocket 17 together with a wall element 18 located inside and facing towards the interior. The said top and bottom parts 15 and 16 are surrounded by beam-like projections in inner panel 6 which face towards the interior. The shape of ventilation unit 10 is matched to the said projections 19, for which reason it receives a well-protected location also in terms of the sound insulation of ventilat on unit 10 relat ve to the interior. Ventilation unit 10 consists of two housing halves 21 and 22 formed of plas ic material with an essentially vertical joint face which essentially runs in or parallel to the longitudinal plane of symmetry of ducts 11, 13. Housing halves 21, 22 are attached to each other by means of snap elements (not shown) and thus also accommodate fan 12, which consists of electric motor 20 which drives impeller 23. Motor 20 is elastically mounted in rubber support 24 which in turn rests against a surrounding bearing housing 25 formed in the one housing half 21. Via cable 26 the motor obtains the necessary electrical energy from a controllable electric circuit (not shown) . The inlet to and the outlet from the ventilation unit pass through openings in the inner panel and are thus provided with inlet and outlet nozzles 28 and 30. Nozzles 28, 30 constitute separate parts which, with outer edges 29 and 31, rest against the surface of inner panel 6 that faces towards the interior, at the same time as they are connected to the outlet and inlet respectively of ducts 11, 13. Furthermore, nozzles 28, 30 are secured to ducts 11, 13 by means of snap and/or separate fasteners 32. OutLet duct 13 together, with the ao.z--.le 30 p >v ide.s the discharge air with a direc ion wh ch is obliquely inwards towards rear side-window 4. The latter is, in a manner customary in modern cars, slightly curved and 5 angled in such a wa that its upper part is located closer to the centre of the vehicle than its lower part. This means that the direction of discharge of the air is generally almost vertical or even - as shown in Figure 2 - at a slight angle inwards towards the 0 interior. Outlet nozzle 30 shown in Figures 3, 4a and 4b guides ------- t-fte-- d sctιarge _τr -frrøug three ozzles -34, 35 and 36, separated from each other, of which two 34, 36 are separated from the third 35 by a Longitudinal central wall 37. the said two nozzles 34, 36 are situated further from window 4 than the third nozzle 35 and they are moreover located in the longitudinal direction on both sides of the third nozzle 35, viewed towards the front of the vehicle. The first and second nozzles 34, 35 each have a central guide plate 38 and 39 respect vely, which, together with connecting envelope surfaces 41 and 42 respectively from the corresponding design of outlet duct 13 in the respective ventilation housing half 21, ^., g ; τe^ ^ First nozzle 34 thus gives the air a direction corresponding to arrow a in Figure 1 and has a smaller angle relative to the horizontal plane than second nozzle 35. The direction of air flow from the said 5dec.fid,JM)«le 3S in Figira 1„ Te third nozzle 36 consists of an essentially vertical hole which gives the exhaust air a corresponding vertical direction corresponding to arrow c in Figure 1. The design of outlet nozzle 30 thus provides several separate air streams which, without disturbing each other to any great extent, flow over the whole window 4. By this means, a completely mist-free window is achieved in a relatively short time, starting at a central front part at eye-level of the back seat passenger . In addition, inlet 28 of ventilation unit 10 is advantageously located in such a way as to capture an air stream (arrow d) from the ventilation air ducts which, in passenger cars, usually discharge under the front seats. The said air stream d originates from the regular ventilation system (not shown here) of the vehicle and supplies, when required, heated air to the footwells for the back seat passengers. The ventilation unit according to the invention can consequently capture the heated air and convey it further at increased pressure to the rear side-window, which consequently increases the possibility of quickly achieving good visibility through the latter. Nor, of course, should the possibility be excluded here of incorporating separate electrical heating in ventilation unit 10. The electrical control of fan 12 of ventilation unit 10 can expediently be carried out at the same time as the control of the fan of the regular ventilation system. It can also follow switching of an electric heating arrangement for the rear window of the vehicle and/or a separate switch on the corresponding door. It is also possible to control the fan by a sensor which senses the presence of mist. -Tfee ©xemplary embodiment de_3-cτtbed not tfiiS be regarded as Limiting the present invention, but rather it can be modified in a number of embodiments within the scope of the patent claims which follow.

Claims: CLAIMS 1. Arrangement for preventing mist and ice formation on a side window (4) in a door (1) of a motor vehicle, to which window (4) is connected at least one air supply duct (13) with an outlet (30) located at the bottom part of the window, via which duct (13) and outlet air is fed from a fan (12) arranged in the vehicle, characterized in that the fan (12) is arranged in the door side below the window (4) between an outer bodywork panel (7) of the door and an inner inside-wall panel (6) of the door and in that the fan (12) draws air through an inlet duct (11), the inlet of which is located in the inside-wall panel towards the vehicle interior. 2. Arrangement according to Claim 1 , characterized in that the fan (12), the outlet duct (13) and the inlet duct (11) constitute a single integral unit (10). 3. Arrangement according to Claim 1 or 2 mounted in a rear vehicle-door (1), characterized in that the fan (12) and the outlet duct (13) are arranged in the front part of the door with the air outlet (30) arranged at the bottom front part of the window and in that the outlet (30) is provided with air-directing surfaces (38, 39) which guide the air from the outlet (30) obliquely upwards, backwards and inwards towards the window (4) . 4. Arrangement according to Claim 2 or 3, characterized in that the unit (10) comprises two housing halves (21, 22) with a dividing plane essentially vertical and parallel to the longitudinal pl^ane of symmetry of the ducts Cll, 1 ), an-electric fan motor (20) elastically mounted in one housing half together with an impeller (23) attached to the drive shaft of the fan motor and accommodated between the housing halves (21, 22 ) . 5. Arrangement according to Claim 4, characterized in that the outlet (30) comprises a first nozzle (34) in the one housing half (21) and a second nozzle (35) in the second housing half ( 22 ) , which first and second nozzles (34, 35) are separated by a wall (37) located essential Ly in the joint face. 6. Arrangement according to Cla m 5, characterized in that the first nozzle (34) is provided with aii— directing surfaces (38, 41) which give the outlet air a direction other than the direction which the outlet air obtains from the air-directing surfaces (39, 42) located in the second nozzle (35). 7. ATTang_τπert ajccOr-ά rrg to £l-aτm 6., characterized in that the first nozzle (34) is located to a substantial extent behind the second nozzle (35). 8. Arrangement according to Claim 7, characterized in that the second nozzle (35) is located closer to the -window (4 ) than the f rst -nozzle T34) an directs the exhaust air obliquely backwards at a greater angle relative to the horizontal plane than the first nozzle (34). 9,. -Arrangement a,ccordtnjg "to any one τof tfre preceding claims, characterized in that the unit (10) is attached to the inner panel (6) of the door, which panel, towards the interior, has preformed inward projecting wall parts < tø) in which the unit <10) is it ed ^

Inventors: NILSSON STEN, NILSSON, STEN
Applicants: SAAB SCANIA AB, SAAB-SCANIA AKTIEBOLAG
Application year: 1987
Main classification: B60H1
IPC codes: B60H1, B60J1, B60S1