Abstract:
A vehicle component or apparatus usable in a motor vehicle is described herein, along with one or more examples of methods of manufacturing the same. The vehicle component may function to provide the feature of blocking water entering from a grill opening from reaching the engine. In situations where flooding occurs and the water level rises, thus immersing portions of the car such as the wheels, the vehicle component may block some of the water from rising beyond a certain level and thus reduce the likelihood that water may reach and damage the engine. In addition or alternatively, the vehicle component may function to separate air flow entering from the lower grill and upper grill openings, respectively, thereby increasing the efficacy of engine cooling by the air flows.

Description:
BACKGROUND 
       [0001]    1. Field 
         [0002]    The present invention relates to an apparatus for blocking water, for example, as used in motor vehicles to protect certain parts, such as the engine from getting wet. More particularly, the present invention relates to a vehicle component capable of blocking water and other substances from entering the engine, for example, while the vehicle is in operation. Furthermore, another potential benefit may be achieved when the water blocking component is coupled to an engine cooling component or the water blocking component is configured to act as an engine cooling component. 
         [0003]    2. Description of the Related Art 
         [0004]    Consumers may purchase motor vehicles such as cars, trucks and vans for a number of reasons. This list of reasons may include “looks” or how attractive a vehicle is in the eyes of the purchaser. It follows then that vehicle design and manufacturing companies attempt to make vehicles that offer, among other benefits, an attractive exterior. So, in order to sell more vehicles, car manufacturing companies are inclined to design a more attractive vehicle. To achieve this end, vehicles that have a larger grill have been determined to be more attractive to a significant portion of the purchasing public. However, another important factor in attracting customers is reliability. To this end, protecting the engine of a vehicle so that the vehicle may continue to run is well understood by most drivers to be of the utmost importance. In other words, most drivers even with the most basic understanding of vehicles would know that keeping a vehicle&#39;s engine in a functional state is important. Along this vein, much advancement has been made to protect the engine in a number of different scenarios. For example, upon detection of impact collisions, some engines are designed to drop beneath the vehicle and out of harms way before taking on damage. However, one area of engine protection that has not been fully developed is how to protect the engine when the vehicle is in, for example, a very wet environment where floods may occur frequently. 
         [0005]    Based on the above, vehicles with large grills and reliable engine performance thus are desirable commercially. However, one drawback to incorporating a larger grill is that the surface area of the grill is increased for which water may be able to find its way through the grill. If water should travel into the engine in an unintended way, the consequences may be severe. For example, the engine may cease to function and the driver may have to spend a large sum of money to buy a functional engine and replace the non-functional engine. 
         [0006]    One solution currently practiced is to place the air intake duct leading into the engine inside the interior of the engine compartment. However, by moving the air intake duct to the interior of the engine compartment, the engine intake air is heated and performance of the vehicle may be decreased, and in particular, engine life or performance may be compromised. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0007]    The present invention includes a vehicle component configured to block water and other substances from rising from below and entering into the air intake duct, thereby allowing the air intake duct to remain exterior to or outside of the engine compartment. For example, in situations where flooding occurs and the water level rises, thus immersing portions of the vehicle such as the wheels, the vehicle component may block the water from rising beyond a certain level and thus reduce the likelihood that water may reach and damage the engine. Furthermore, the vehicle component may function as an engine cooling device. In one embodiment, this may be achieved by integrating the water blocking device of the vehicle component to an engine cooling device of the vehicle component. 
         [0008]    In one embodiment, the vehicle component configured to block rising water and/or cool the engine may be integrated with the bumper absorber. In this manner, the bumper absorber may be manufactured with the vehicle component attached or integrated. In one embodiment, the bumper absorber may be manufactured using the same materials as the vehicle component. For example, a commercial-grade foam may be used in manufacturing the bumper absorber and the vehicle component. 
         [0009]    In one embodiment, the vehicle component may be non-integrated and separate from to the bumper absorber. That is, the vehicle component may be attachable to one of a number of other vehicle parts within the internal cavity of the vehicle including by not limited to the steel bumper reinforcement typically located adjacent to the bumper absorber. 
         [0010]    In one embodiment, the vehicle component may include a water blocking portion and a vehicle cooling (e.g., engine cooling) portion. The water blocking portion and the vehicle cooling portion may be attached to a reinforcement portion, for example, with an adhesive. When deployed in the vehicle, the water blocking portion may be located closer to the ground when compared to the vehicle cooling portion. In this embodiment, the water blocking portion may also function as a second vehicle cooling portion. That is, the water blocking portion may work in connection with the vehicle cooling portion to enhance cooling of the engine of the vehicle. 
         [0011]    In one embodiment, the portion of the vehicle component that blocks the water may be a first layer, and the portion of the vehicle component that functions to cool the engine may be a second layer. These two layers may be attached to one another, or may be attached to a first side and a second side, respectively, of a reinforcement layer. 
         [0012]    This Summary is included as to introduce, in an abbreviated form, various topics to be elaborated upon below in the Detailed Description. This Summary is not intended to identify key or essential aspects of the claimed invention. This Summary is similarly not intended for use as an aid in determining the scope of the claims. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0013]    The features, obstacles, and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the detailed description set forth below when taken in conjunction with the drawings, wherein: 
           [0014]      FIG. 1  depicts a front view of a vehicle according to one or more embodiments described herein; 
           [0015]      FIG. 2  depicts a vehicle component with a water blocking portion according to one or more embodiments described herein; 
           [0016]      FIG. 3A  depicts a vehicle component with an engine cooling portion according to one or more embodiments described herein; 
           [0017]      FIG. 3B  depicts a vehicle without a vehicle component for cooling the engine of the vehicle according to one or more embodiments described herein; 
           [0018]      FIG. 4  depicts a perspective view of a bumper integrated with a vehicle component configured to block water and cool the engine according to one or more embodiments described herein; 
           [0019]      FIG. 5  depicts a side view of a bumper integrated with a vehicle component configured to block water and cool the engine according to one or more embodiments described herein; 
           [0020]      FIG. 6  depicts a perspective view of a vehicle component configured to block water and cool the engine according to one or more embodiments described herein; 
           [0021]      FIG. 7  depicts a side view of a vehicle component with a curved surface according to one or more embodiments described herein; and 
           [0022]      FIG. 8  depicts the results of one example of a performance test comparing a lower grill open area for a vehicle without the water blocking vehicle component, and the lower grill open area for a vehicle with the water blocking vehicle component according to one or more embodiments described herein. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0023]    Apparatus, systems and methods that implement the embodiments of the various features of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings. The drawings and the associated descriptions are provided to illustrate some embodiments of the present invention and not to limit the scope of the present invention. Throughout the drawings, reference numbers are re-used to indicate correspondence between referenced elements. 
         [0024]    Turning to  FIG. 1 , a front view of a vehicle  100  is shown. The vehicle  100  may include, among other parts and components, an upper grill  105 , a hood  110 , a bumper  115  and a lower grill  120 . Generally, the hood  110  may be lifted open by the driver to access the engine and other portions of the vehicle otherwise concealed when the hood  110  is lowered and locked into place. The upper grill  105  and the lower grill  120 , in addition to providing aesthetic appeal, further function to allow airflow into and out of the engine compartment to cool the engine. The bumper  115  functions as a safety device to protect the driver during collisions (e.g., front-end crashes). 
         [0025]      FIG. 2  is a side view of a portion of a vehicle. Certain vehicle parts have been omitted for clarity.  FIG. 2  further diagrams the problematic situation when water has entered the vehicle (e.g., during a flood, heavy rains, situations where the vehicle is driven over a body of water and the like). In this example, as shown, water  250  may enter from outside the vehicle as shown by arrow  240  and continue to rise in the direction of arrow  215  towards an inlet duct  220 , and may enter an engine  235  via an air filter box  220  and a tube  230 , but for being blocked by a vehicle component  245 . As shown, the vehicle component  245  significantly reduces any opportunity that the rising water  250  may have to enter the inlet duct  220 . In other words, the vehicle component  245  functions as a barrier and may redirect the water  250  back down towards the ground or to an area away from the inlet duct  220 . While illustrated here to be located between the upper grill  260  and the lower grill  255 , attached to the bumper foam  275 , the vehicle component  245  may be located elsewhere in the vehicle (e.g., between the lower grill  255  and the bumper  205 ). In this manner, the vehicle, and in particular, the engine may remain operable and dry even in situations where the water level is rising (e.g., during water fording situations). 
         [0026]    In one embodiment, the vehicle component  245  may extend to completely “wall off” the area between the bumper  205  and the upper grill  260  or the radiator  270  to completely block off any channel for the water  250  to enter the upper region of the vehicle where the opening for the inlet duct  220  is located. In another embodiment, the vehicle component  245  may extend to about 75 millimeters away from the radiator  270  leaving a small gap. For this embodiment, the additional benefit of protecting the radiator  270 , among other vehicle parts, during a front end collision is achievable. That is, during a crash or collision where the front bumper  205  receives an impact or force, the bumper foam  275  and the attached vehicle component  245  may stroke or displace a distance of about 75 millimeters or more before coming into contact with the radiator  270 . Therefore, by designing the vehicle component  245  to be a distance of at least 75 millimeters away from the radiator  270 , contact (and any damage resulting from the contact) may be avoided during these incidents. While this example discusses preserving a gap of 75 millimeters between the radiator  270  and the edge of the vehicle component  245 , different gaps may be designed by shortening the vehicle component  245 . That is, any gap size, e.g., between 0-300 centimeters is desirable. While some water  250  may seep through the opening, a majority of the water is blocked and thus the vehicle component  245  still effectively prevents the water level from rising sufficiently to a level where some water may enter the inlet duct  220 . In this manner, the vehicle component  245  thereby may achieve the goal of preventing the water  250  from entering the engine  235 . In other words, even if the water  250  gets past the vehicle component  245 , the water might not reach the inlet duct  220  because the overall water level is still being reduced by the vehicle component  245 . 
         [0027]      FIG. 3A  illustrates an enlarged side view of the area beneath the hood  210  of the vehicle. As shown, the vehicle component  245  may have a further function of engine cooling. In other words, if desired, the vehicle component  245  can also act or function as an engine cooling component. As shown by arrows  305  and  310  to designate air flow, the air may enter the vehicle and cool the engine through the lower grill  255  and the upper grill  260 , respectively. The air may enter the vehicle, for example, as the vehicle is driven. Since the engine may begin to heat up during operation, the air may enter the vehicle and cool the engine, thereby preventing overheating and allow the engine to continue to function effectively. Arrow  310  depicts the air entering through the upper grill  260 . Arrow  305  depicts the air entering through the lower grill  255 . As shown, the vehicle component  245  effectively separates the path of air shown by the arrow  310  and the path of air shown by the arrow  305 . In this manner, the air paths  305  and  310  do not impede each other and the air  310  entering from the upper grill  260  may cool the engine simultaneously with the air  305  entering from the lower grill  255 . While this embodiment describes the vehicle component  245  having both water blocking and engine cooling features, alternative embodiments where the structure providing the water blocking feature and the structure providing the engine cooling feature are separated are also possible and described in detailed herein. 
         [0028]      FIG. 3B  illustrates the scenario where the vehicle component  245  is not included. As shown, the air paths  305  and  310  are not separated, and the air path  305  may form a “wall” or otherwise prevents air path  310  from cooling the engine. As a result, the engine might not receive the advantage of being cooled by both air currents  305  and  310 , and may overheat or suffer a reduction in effectiveness. In other words, without having the vehicle component  245  separating the two air currents  305  and  310  (as shown in  FIG. 3A ), a reduction in engine cooling may result. 
         [0029]    Turning to  FIG. 4 , one embodiment of a bumper absorber  400  is illustrated with an absorber portion  405  and an extension portion  410 . The bumper absorber  400  may be a foam absorber. In this embodiment, the extension portion  410  may be a vehicle component  245  described above to provide water blocking features and/or engine cooling features. As shown, the extension portion  410  may be integrated as part of the bumper absorber  400 , and connected to the absorber portion  405 . As manufactured, the extension portion  410  and the absorber portion  405  may be constructed as one piece using substantially the same material (e.g., a construction grade foam), where the extension portion  410  may be substantially orthogonal to the absorber portion  405 . The extension portion  410  may be configured to function as a water blocking component and may have a width substantially spanning the space between the absorber portion  405  and a radiator (e.g., radiator  270 ). In this manner, the extension portion  410  may prevent water from rising above the height of the bumper absorber  400  and thereby decrease the risk of having the water enter into an inlet duct leading to the engine. Alternatively or in addition, the extension portion  410  may also promote engine cooling by separating the air entering the upper grill  260  (e.g., generally located above the bumper absorber  400 ) and the air entering the lower grill  255  (e.g., generally located below the bumper absorber  400 ). As shown, the extension portion  410  may further include an opening  415 . The opening  415  may function to allow vehicle access to a hood lock. The extension portion  410  may span the entire front portion of the vehicle. 
         [0030]      FIG. 5  illustrates a side view of the bumper absorber  400 . Here, the extension portion  410  is divided into an engine cooling portion  505  and a water blocking portion  510 . The engine cooling portion  505  sits on top of the water blocking portion  510 . In one embodiment, the engine cooling portion  505  may be constructed out of a different material than the water blocking portion  510 . For example, the engine cooling portion  505  may be constructed out of a heat resistant material or coated with a heat resistant paint. In this manner, the engine cooling portion  505  may assist to cool the air before the air reaches the engine thereby increasing the efficacy of the engine cooling. The water blocking portion  510  may be constructed out of a water-resistant or water repelling material. Alternatively, the water blocking portion  510  may be coated with a water-repellant paint or seal. In one embodiment, the water blocking portion  510  may be considered as a second engine cooling portion (where the first engine cooling portion is engine cooling portion  505 ). That is, the surface of the water blocking portion  510  may also function to separate air flow entering from a lower grill opening. 
         [0031]    In one embodiment, the extension portion  410  might not be attached to the bumper absorber  400 . Instead, the extension portion  410  may be held in place by screws, bolts, adhesive and the like, attaching the extension portion  410  to metal reinforcements (e.g., bumper reinforcement  280  of  FIG. 2 ) located adjacent to the extension portion  410  (not shown). The metal reinforcements may function to hold the extension portion  410  and to further provide support or reinforcement to the bumper foam  400 . This embodiment may be advantageously used to retrofit already existing vehicles with the extension portion  410 . 
         [0032]      FIG. 6  illustrates an exemplary embodiment of the extension portion (e.g., extension portion  600 ) which may be suitable for retrofitting into older vehicles or vehicles otherwise already existing in the marketplace. As shown, the extension portion  600  may include one or more layers. For example, in this embodiment, three layers are shown. A first layer  605  may be an engine cooling layer. As shown, the first layer  605  may be attached to a second layer  610 . The second layer  610  may be a reinforcing layer. That is, the second layer  610  may provide structural support to the first layer  605 . Since the first layer  605  is configured to be a barrier for air entering the vehicle through the upper grill, a strong current of air may dent, damage or otherwise bend the first layer  605 . However, by having the first layer  605  substantially in contact and reinforced by the second layer  610  such negative effects may be reduced and/or eliminated. The second layer  610  may be attached on the other side to a third layer  615 . The third layer  615  may function to prevent air entering from beneath the car and/or from a lower grill opening to rise past the third layer  615  and impact the path of the air current entering through the upper grill. In addition, the third layer  615  may act as a barrier to rising water and may function to prevent water from reaching the vehicle engine. As shown, the second layer  610  may also provide structural support to the third layer  615 . Especially effective in situations where the pressure caused by the water contacting the third layer  615 , the second layer  610  may fortify the third layer  615  to increase the effectiveness of the third layer  615  in being able to repel the water. In addition, one or more screws  620  may be employed to fix the extension portion  600  to the vehicle (e.g., screwing the extension portion  600  to a foam absorber reinforcement component). In one embodiment, the three layers may be of equal uniform thickness. However, alternatively, each layer may be of different thicknesses. For example, the reinforcement layer  610  may be thicker than each of the first layer  605  and the third layer  615 . By having a thicker reinforcement layer  610 , both the first layer  605  and the third layer  615  may be significantly bolstered while keeping the overall thickness of the combined three layers at a minimum. The materials used to construct each of the three layers  605 ,  610  and  615  may be identical. For example, a large piece of highly-dense foam may be used to construct the three layers. Alternatively, each of the three layers may be constructed of different materials. For example, the first layer  605  may be a sheet of smooth, lightweight plastic or heat-resistant polymer suitable for deflecting and/or cooling the air. The second layer  610  may be a harder, sturdier substance such as a metal or a hard plastic suitable for reinforcement functionality. The third layer  615  may be a water-resistant plastic suitable for acting as a barrier to water. The implementation of multiple layers as described in this embodiment may be equally adaptable into any of the other embodiments described herein. 
         [0033]      FIG. 7  illustrates a side view of an embodiment of a water-blocking/engine cooling apparatus  700 . Generally,  FIG. 7  may look and operate similarly to the extension portion shown in  FIG. 4  or  FIG. 6 . However,  FIG. 7  may be modified to include curved edges or lips. That is, the extension portion may include a first lip on a first surface or layer (e.g., an engine cooling layer  710 ) and a second lip on a second surface or layer (e.g., a water blocking layer  730 ). The respective lips or curved edges of the surfaces or layers are configured to better direct airflow toward the engine (e.g., with respect to the engine cooling layer  710 ) or water away from the engine (e.g., with respect to water blocking layer  730 ). Arrows  735  and  740  illustrate the direction of airflow and water flow directed by the lipped portions of layers  710  and  730 , respectively. As shown, apparatus  700  includes two reinforcement layers  715  and  720 . The reinforcement layer  715  may be closer to the engine cooling layer  710  and may be configured to structurally support the engine cooling layer  710 . Conversely, the reinforcement layer  720  may be closer to the water blocking layer  730 . Accordingly, the reinforcement layer  720  may be configured to structurally support the engine cooling layer  730 . In addition, the respective reinforcement layers may act to keep heat from being transferred from the engine cooling layer  710  to the water blocking layer  730 , and vice versa. By preventing heat transfer from the water blocking layer  730  to the engine cooling layer  710 , the engine cooling layer  710  may remain cooler and more effectively cool air flow traveling to the engine, thereby cooling the engine. Thus, in one embodiment, the reinforcement layers  715  and  720  may be heat-resistant layers. 
         [0034]      FIG. 8  illustrates one potential advantage of the extension portion (e.g., extension portion  400 , extension portion  600  and/or water-blocking/engine cooling apparatus  700 ). As shown, the lower grill area/air duct height relationship may be improved. That is, a larger grill area may be incorporated without raising the air duct height. Such an advantage may be desirable in situations where a vehicle may be designed to have a larger grill (which as discussed herein may have significant commercial impact as some individuals prefer vehicles with larger grill sizes) without increasing the likelihood that the water may enter the engine through the air duct. Indeed, the lower grill area may be increased from 250 cm squared to 400 cm squared at an air duct height of 720 millimeters, an improvement of over 60%. In other words, the lower grill open area may be increased by 60% for an air duct height of 720 millimeters without increasing the risk of the water undesirably entering the engine by employing an extension portion described herein. 
         [0035]    In another embodiment, the shape of the extension portion (e.g., extension portion  400 , extension portion  600  and for water-blocking/engine cooling apparatus  700 ) may be further modified. As shown in  FIG. 4 , one possible shape is a dual winged extension portion. However, one alternative shape may be an extension portion without the cut-out for the hood lock. Such an extension portion may be advantageous in a situation where the placement or attachment of the extension portion is varied (e.g., being located beneath the bumper foam reinforcements). In another embodiment, a single lip edge may be possible. For situations where overheating of the engine is reduced but with an increased chance of flooding (e.g., cold and rainy or flooding climates), the upper lip (e.g., as shown in  FIG. 7 ) might not be practical or necessary, but a larger lip may be desirable to further prevent flooding. The reverse is also possible for situations or locales that are hot and dry. 
         [0036]    In other embodiments as discussed herein, many different materials may be used to construct the extension portion. For example, foams, plastics, metals and the like may be mixed and matched to achieve the preferred results. And even among one material, different densities may be employed. For example, a foam may be used to construct each layer of  FIG. 7 . However, different densities of foam may be employed for each layer depending on the function of the layer. For a layer utilized mainly to deflect water, a very dense foam may be desirable so that the water is not absorbed into the foam. Alternatively, for a layer utilized to mainly deflect air, a lighter, less dense foam may be used to keep the weight of the component light since water deflection is not required for the layer. 
         [0037]    Skilled artisans may implement the described functionality in varying ways for each particular application, but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing a departure from the scope of the disclosed apparatus and/or methods. 
         [0038]    The previous description of the disclosed examples is provided to enable any person of ordinary skill in the art to make or use the disclosed methods and apparatus. Various modifications to these examples will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the principles defined herein may be applied to other examples without departing from the spirit or scope of the disclosed method and apparatus. The described embodiments are to be considered in all respects only as illustrative and not restrictive and the scope of the invention is, therefore, indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description. All changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are to be embraced within their scope.