Abstract:
An air treatment module, in particular for thermal treatment of air to be introduced into the vehicle interior of a vehicle, includes a support arrangement to be fixed to a vehicle, a fan arrangement supported by the support arrangement, a first heat exchanger arrangement, supported on the support arrangement, for thermal treatment of air forwarded by the fan arrangement, further including a heating device and a second heat exchanger arrangement receiving heat from the heating device, the heating device and the second heat exchanger arrangement being supported on the support arrangement.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
   Not applicable. 
   STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
   Not applicable. 
   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   The present invention relates to an air treatment module, and more particularly for the thermal treatment of air to be introduced into a vehicle interior of a vehicle. 
   In the development of new vehicles, different system components of such a vehicle are planned for integration into the overall system in different time phases. This also above all concerns heating systems which are provided in a vehicle as supplementary or auxiliary heaters. A reason why such heaters are above all often first planned in a comparatively late development phase is that, among other things, the magnitude of the heating power deficit of the drive unit, and therefore which heating device will be required, for example as a supplementary heater, can often be first determined only comparatively late. 
   TECHNICAL FIELD 
   In the planning of such systems in a vehicle, there is furthermore the requirement of keeping the system costs concerned as small as possible. In particular, those system regions which are also already fixedly planned as regards the available constructional space are not to be adversely affected by the additional integration of such a device in a vehicle. Solutions frequently result in which the heating devices are installed in free spaces situated somewhere in the engine space. This in turn has the consequence that comparatively long hose pipes have to be prepared, in fact both for the fluid to be heated, in general a water/glycol mixture, and also for supplying the heating device with fuel. Furthermore, such spaces for building-in are often not uniformly available, particularly because of the different drive units available for different vehicle types, so that even with the same vehicle type, depending on the use of different drive units, different possibilities of building in additional devices such as a heating device have to be sought. 
   From DE 196 37 020 A1, a heating device is known which is connected via hose pipes to the system regions to be heated. The waste heat arising in the heating device is used in an exhaust gas heat exchanger to heat air to be introduced into the vehicle interior. 
   From DE 39 43 335 A1, a vehicle heating device is known in which the heat exchanger of the heating device is connected directly to the heating air heat exchanger and thus these two system components are combined into one unit. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   The present invention has as its object to provide an air treatment module, in particular for the thermal treatment of air to be introduced into a vehicle interior of a vehicle, which with simple construction makes possible an integration into different system environments, for example provided by different vehicle types. 
   According to the present invention, this object is attained by an air treatment module, in particular for the thermal treatment of air to be introduced into the vehicle interior of a vehicle, including a support arrangement to be fixed to a vehicle, a fan arrangement supported by the support arrangement, a first heat exchanger arrangement, supported on the support arrangement, for thermal treatment of air forwarded by the fan arrangement, further including a heating device and a second heat exchanger arrangement receiving heat from the heating device, the heating device and the second heat exchanger arrangement being supported on the support arrangement. 
   In the air treatment module according to the invention, all the essential system components thereof are thus provided on a single support arrangement, which can then be installed, already combined into one constructional unit, on a vehicle. Thus there are omitted, besides the separate mountings for different system regions, also the hose connection pipes or respectively electrical and fuel connecting leads known from the prior art. 
   In a particular embodiment, it can be provided that the support arrangement has a closure region which, with a support arrangement fixed to a vehicle, substantially completely closes an opening in a fire barrier separating a vehicle interior from an engine space, and that the second heat exchanger arrangement and/or the heating device is supported on the support arrangement in the region of the closure region. It is ensured by this arrangement that in general a heating device having an open flame for heating can be situated completely outside the vehicle interior also separated from the engine space by the fire barrier. In particular, it can also be provided that the heat exchanger arrangement and/or the heating device is supported on a side of the closure region to be positioned facing the engine space. 
   In order to be able to produce the connection between the two heat exchanger arrangements in a simple manner, a fluid outlet of the second heat exchanger arrangement is arranged on a side of the closure region to be positioned facing the vehicle interior, and it is further provided that a fluid outlet of the second heat exchanger arrangement is directly connected to a fluid inlet of the first heat exchanger arrangement, and/or that a fluid outlet of the first heat exchanger arrangement is directly connected to a duct system leading to a drive unit. In order to then be able with such an arrangement to achieve the connection to the cooling medium system of the drive unit in a simple manner, a fluid inlet of the second heat exchanger arrangement is connected to a hose pipe connection to an engine heat exchanger. 
   It can further be provided in the air treatment module according to the invention that the support arrangement is formed like a housing and has an outlet region for air flowing through this for entry into the vehicle interior. Furthermore, it can be provided for further system integration that an air conditioning device is supported on the support arrangement. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING 
     The present invention is described in detail hereinafter with reference to the accompanying Figure, which shows a view in principle of a vehicle region containing a module according to the invention. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
   The vehicle region  10  which can be seen in the FIGURE is divided by a fire barrier  12  substantially into a forward situated engine space  14  and a vehicle interior generally denoted by  16 . In this vehicle interior  16  there are situated an instrument panel  18 , the steering wheel  22  supported on a steering column  20 , and also further vehicle components not further described here. The engine space  14  is closed upwardly by an engine hood  24  which is then adjoined by a windshield  26  of the vehicle  10  in the rearward direction. An air treatment module  28  with its essential system components is inserted in the vehicle interior  16 . This air treatment module  28  includes a housing arrangement generally denoted by  30  and basically also forming a support for the various system components of the module  28 . This housing  30  can be integrated into the vehicle  10  from the side of the vehicle interior  16 , with all the components provided or supported thereon. Here a housing region  34  containing an air fan  32  comes substantially in front of the windshield  26  and under the engine hood  24 , so that fresh air can reach the region of the fan  32 , as indicated by an arrow P 2 , in the transition region between the engine hood  24  and the windshield  26 . It should be mentioned that here the fire barrier  12  can for example have a shape corresponding to the shape of the housing region  34  and partially surrounding this. A heat exchanger  38  is provided or supported in a housing region  36  adjoining the housing region  34 . The air forwarded by the fan  32  leaves this fan  32  in the direction of arrows P 2  such that it flows toward the heat exchanger  38  and passes through this or flows along its surface, in order to come into heat exchange contact with the heat exchanger  38 . In an outlet region  40  of the housing  30 , the thermally treated air leaves the heat exchanger  38  and is delivered into the vehicle interior  16  via various delivery points  42 . Some of these delivery points  42  can be equipped with throttle flaps in order to be able to affect the air flow or air distribution in the vehicle interior  16 . 
   It can further be seen in the FIGURE that an opening  44  is formed in the fire barrier  12 . A housing region  46 , for example matching in its shape the geometry of the opening  44 , extends partially through this opening  44 , so that when the housing  30  is integrated into the vehicle  10  the opening  44  in the fire barrier  12  is substantially completely closed by means of this closure region  46  of the housing  30 . Here it can be advantageous to provide additional adapter regions in the closure region  46  for insertion for different vehicle types, in order to be able to match various geometries of the opening  44 . 
   In the housing region  46 , a heating device  48  with a further heat exchanger  50  is supported on the housing  30 . It can be seen that the heat exchanger  50 , or an outlet region thereof, passes through the housing  30  in the housing region  46 , so that it is situated with its outlet opening  52  on that side of the housing region  46  which is positioned, or to be positioned, facing the vehicle interior  16 . An inlet region  56  of the heat exchanger  38  provided for the air to be heated is directly connected to this outlet region  52  of the heat exchanger  50 . In a corresponding manner, an outlet region  58  of the heat exchanger  38  is connected to a duct region  60  leading to the drive unit. 
   The heating device  48 , preferably to be operated with the same fuel as the drive unit of the vehicle  10 , thus transfers combustion heat to the heat exchanger  50 . The fluid contained in this is conducted by a forwarding pump (not shown) to the outlet opening  52  and enters the heat exchanger  38  there. After this fluid or this liquid has flowed through the heat exchanger  38  and thus transferred heat energy to air flowing through this heat exchanger  38 , the fluid leaves the heat exchanger  38  then leaves the heat exchanger  38  in the region of the outlet opening  58  in the direction of the drive unit, from which it then comes back to an inlet opening  62  of the heat exchanger  50 . In this manner, the heat provided by the fuel-operated heating device  48  is very efficiently used; use can take place both for heating the vehicle interior  16  and also for heating the drive unit. It is also possible by corresponding circuit design to selectively heat only the vehicle interior  16  or the drive unit. 
   The mounting of the heating device  48  and also of the heat exchanger  50  allocated to this on the housing  30  can for example take place in that the heating device  48  is indirectly supported on the housing  30  in that it is fixed to the heat exchanger  50  which in turn is supported on the housing  30 . Here the construction of the system region formed by the heating device  48  and the heat exchanger  50  can for example be such that the heat exchanger  50  is substantially pot-like and it of double-walled construction with heat exchanger housing and heat exchanger internal housing, so that the fluid to be heated can flow through the volume region enclosed between the tow heat exchanger housings. The heating device  48 , substantially including a heating burner with combustion chamber, flame tube, fuel supply and combustion air fan, can then, as indicated schematically in the FIGURE, be inserted in the heat exchanger  50  of substantially pot-like construction and be supported on this. Thus the heating device  48 , as already stated, is then thereby indirectly supported on the housing  30  or on its housing region  46 , such that the heat exchanger  50  supporting the heating device  48  is fixed thereto, for example fixed by screws. It is of course also possible here to design the heat exchanger  50 , for example the said heat exchanger housing thereof, integrally with the housing  30  or the housing region  46  thereof, so that by the integral design the heat exchanger  50  or a region thereof is supported on the housing  30 . The heating device  48  can also then be again indirectly supported on the housing  30  by means of the heat exchanger  50 . It is of course also possible to fix the heating device  48  additionally or separately directly to the housing  30 . It is of course also possible, in the same way as the said housing region of the heat exchanger  50 , to provide other housing regions of the housing  30  as integral components of an overall housing, such as e.g. the two housing regions  34 ,  35  which receive the fan  32  and the heat exchanger  38 . In each case the advantage results that all the essential system components of the air treatment module  28  according to the invention are supported on a single housing  30 , for example assembled from several housing parts or formed substantially in one piece, and can be integrated together with this into the vehicle  10 . Preferably it is not required to provide any hose pipe connections between the two heat exchangers  50  and  38 , which for example would be required if the heating device  48  with the associated heat exchanger  50  were to be fitted somewhere in another region of the engine space  14 . Likewise it is ensured that the heating device  48  is situated completely on that side of the fire barrier  12  or also of the housing region  46  which is positioned facing the engine space  14  or is situated in this. The heating device  48  is thus situated completely outside the vehicle interior  16 . The direct connection between the two heat exchangers can for example take place in that these or their respective housings are directly set against each other with the interposition of sealing members and are connected together. For this purpose, a connecting stub or the like can be provided at least on one of the heat exchangers or on the housing thereof. It is likewise also possible that a comparatively short pipe duct portion, constituted separately from the heat exchangers  50 ,  38 , produces a connection, for example when the housing of the heat exchanger  50  is formed separately from the housing region  46  and is to be bridged over by means of such a pipe duct portion of the housing region  48 . Since such pipe duct portions can have a comparatively short length in the region of a few centimeters; a connection to be considered as direct in the sense of the present invention can also thereby be generated. 
   It is mentioned that very varied modifications can of course be made to the module  28  according to the invention without thereby departing from the basic principle of providing all system components essential to the module on the module itself. Thus it is of course possible to embody the housing  30  with another shape. It is likewise possible to additionally provide an air conditioning unit on the housing  30 , possibly also, with the use of the heat exchanger  38 , to take heat from the air forwarded by the fan  32  in order thus to introduce cooled air into the vehicle interior  16 . Furthermore it is a matter of course that the housing  30  can likewise have different shapes, conforming to the position of the various air outlet points  42 . It is also furthermore a matter of course that the fan  30  can also be changed over to circulating air operation, by connection with corresponding current supplies, for example on the instrument panel  18 , and the air to be thermally treated is then not drawn from outside but from the vehicle interior  16 , is thermally treated and if necessary also filtered, and then conducted into the vehicle interior  16  again. Further more it is of course also possible to simultaneously also provide on the module  28  embodied according to the invention a control unit for the various system components, and the said unit can then be connected by a connecting lead to the electronic system of the vehicle itself.