Patent Abstract:
A nozzle for ventilating a vehicle interior, having a housing which has an air outflow opening which can be closed by a panel when not in use, and having an insert which accommodates air-guiding vanes in a pivotable manner and which is held movably in the housing for the purpose of moving the air-guiding vanes out of the air outlet opening during closing of the panel. In order to integrate the nozzle housing in dashboards of differing design, the insert is designed as a frame-like slide which can be displaced longitudinally in the housing and can be moved into the depth of the housing by a defined displacement path to enable the panel to close the air outflow opening.

Full Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The invention relates to a nozzle for ventilating a vehicle interior, such as used to direct air from an air conditioning system. 
     2. Description of Prior Developments 
     In the case of a known air nozzle of this type (DE 197 48 998 C1), in order for the air nozzle when not in use to have a covering which can be closed in a visually neat manner and which fits unobtrusively into the harmony and aesthetics of the interior trim, the nozzle insert carrying the air-guiding vanes is designed as a roller-like, hollow pivoting insert. This insert is mounted pivotably about its roller axis and has a casing opening which is essentially congruent with the air outflow opening. The roller insert is coupled to the panel designed as a rolling and closing screen in such a manner that with increasing pivoting of its casing opening away from the air outflow opening, it covers the opening to the same extent with the rolling and closing screen. This constructive configuration of the air nozzle always requires the nozzle front side to have an external contour curved in the form of a circular arc, which signifies a restriction on the structural freedom of the design of the dashboard in which such air nozzles are generally arranged. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The invention is based on the object of constructively modifying a nozzle for ventilating a vehicle interior of the type mentioned above in such a manner that the shape of the nozzle housing, in particular its front contour, can be configured in any desired manner without having to omit a covering for the nozzle opening when not in use. 
     The air nozzle according to the invention has the advantage that, in contrast to the roller insert, a slide can be constructively adapted to any configuration of the front contour of the nozzle housing without a problem and places no demands on the configuration of the front contour of the nozzle housing in terms of design. The air nozzle can therefore advantageously be used in all dashboards or instrument panels of differing design. Moving a slide into the depth of the nozzle housing to enable the panel to close the air outflow opening causes the air-guiding vanes to be displaced sufficiently far out of the air outlet opening that the movement of the panel in order to close the outlet opening is not impeded. This is also necessary in particular, since the gripping strip conventionally fitted onto an air-guiding vane and intended for manual pivoting of the air-guiding vanes and for setting of the air outflow direction has to protrude somewhat out of the air outlet opening over the contour of the housing, to enable the gripping strip to be gripped in an ergonomic manner, and would therefore never permit the closing of the panel. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The invention is described below in more detail with reference to exemplary embodiments illustrated in the drawing, in which, in each case in a largely schematic illustration: 
     FIG. 1 shows a longitudinal section of a nozzle for ventilating the central plane of a vehicle interior, 
     FIG. 2 shows part of a section along the line II—II in FIG. 1, 
     FIG. 3 shows a plan view in the direction of arrow III in FIG. 1, 
     FIG. 4 shows an identical illustration as in FIG. 1 of a nozzle according to a further exemplary embodiment. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     The nozzle illustrated in longitudinal section in FIG. 1 is used for the ventilation of the central plane of a vehicle interior and is integrated as a so-called central nozzle in the dashboard  10  of a motor vehicle. As can be seen in the front view, part of which is illustrated in FIG. 3, two such central nozzles for separately ventilating the left-hand and right-hand halves, i.e. the driver&#39;s side and front-passenger&#39;s side, of the vehicle interior are inserted into the middle of the dashboard  10 . The illustration here is of the central nozzle which is on the left in FIG. 3 when not in use and of the right central nozzle when in use. When in use, conditioned air flows out of the nozzle and ventilates the associated region of the passenger interior, and when not in use no ventilation takes place. Each nozzle is assigned an adjusting wheel  11  for regulating the quantity of air flowing out. In FIG. 3, only the adjusting wheel  11  assigned to the left central nozzle is illustrated. 
     Each nozzle has a housing  12  which is inserted into a recess in the dashboard  10 , has an air outflow opening  13  on the front side and, with its end side  121  which faces away from the air outflow opening  13 , is fitted on an air duct (not illustrated here) via which conditioned air is fed to the nozzle from an air-conditioning system. The quantity of air flowing into the housing  12  from the air duct is regulated by means of a pivoting flap  14  which is coupled via a linkage  15  to the adjusting wheel  11  and, by manual actuation of the adjusting wheel  11 , the flap can be pivoted about its pivot axis  16  into any desired pivoted position. In the one final pivoted position (illustrated by dash-dotted lines in FIG.  1 ), the pivoting flap  14  covers the entire housing cross section  12 , with the result the nozzle is completely closed. In its other final pivoted position, the pivoting flap  14  is aligned parallel to the axis of the housing  12  and releases the housing cross section completely. 
     Arranged in the housing  12  is a frame-shaped slide  17  whose frame sides bear against the inner wall of the housing  12  with a clearance, and which can be displaced longitudinally in the direction of the housing axis. In order to exclude any possible tilting of the slide  17  in the housing  12 , the slide  17  is guided by guide pins, protruding from opposite frame sides, in longitudinal guides  18  which are incorporated in the housing wall. Air-guiding vanes  19 ,  20  are accommodated in a pivotable manner in the frame-shaped slide  17 . A first set of air-guiding vanes  19  aligned parallel to one another is aligned horizontally, and a second set, which is arranged upstream of the first set, as seen in the direction of flow of the air, of air-guiding vanes aligned parallel to one another is aligned vertically. 
     In order to pivot the air-guiding vanes  19 ,  20  about their respective pivot axes, a gripping strip  21  is fitted onto one of the horizontally aligned air-guiding vanes  19 . Vertical displacement of the gripping strip  21  enables the air-guiding vanes to be pivoted, and horizontal displacement of the gripping strip  21  enables the vertical air-guiding vanes  20  to be pivoted. The front edges of the horizontal air-guiding vanes  19  are aligned with the front frame opening  171  of the slide  17 , which frame opening, for its part, is flush with the air outflow opening  13  of the housing  12 , in the front position (illustrated in FIG. 1) of the slide  17 . In this front slide position, the gripping strip  21  protrudes through the air outflow opening  13  and protrudes over the front contour of the housing  12  in a manner favorable for grasping it. 
     The air outflow opening  13  of the housing  12  can be covered completely by means of a panel  22 , the panel  22  being designed in such a manner that when the air outflow opening  13  is fully closed, the nozzle and the dashboard  10  appear as a solid surface. In the exemplary embodiment of FIGS. 1-3, the panel is designed as a rolling and closing screen  23 , specifically, preferably as a flexible plastic component which is accommodated in a displaceable manner laterally in two guide grooves  24  which are each incorporated on one of each of the opposite housing walls. Alternatively, the rolling and closing screen  23  can also be composed of a multiplicity of parallel bar-type vanes which are connected to one another in a movable manner and enter with their ends in the guide grooves  24 . The guide grooves  24  are of curved design and extend laterally over the entire outflow opening  13  and partially in the longitudinal direction of the housing  12 . The last-mentioned section of the guide grooves  24  is of sufficiently long dimensions that the rolling and closing screen  23  can be brought completely out of the region of the air outflow opening  13  and can be accommodated by this section of the guide groove  24 . In FIG. 3, the left central nozzle is illustrated with the air outflow opening  13  concealed by the rolling and closing screen  23 , and the right central nozzle is illustrated with the air outflow opening  13  released by the rolling and closing screen  23 . 
     In the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 1, the rolling and closing screen  23  and the slide  17  are driven by a common electric motor  25 , the electric motor  25  displacing the slide  17  axially in the housing  12  via a gear mechanism  26  and a coupling linkage  27 , and displacing the rolling and closing screen  23  in the guide grooves  24  via a gear mechanism  28 . The displacement path s, by which the slide  17  can be moved from its frontmost position (illustrated in FIG. 1) into the depth of the housing  10 , is dimensioned in such a manner that the air-guiding vanes  19 ,  20  and the gripping strip  21  release the movement space, required by the rolling and closing screen  23 , within the air outflow opening  13  between the two guide grooves  24 . 
     The electric motor  25  is switched on by means of the adjusting wheel  11  so as to rotate in one or other direction of rotation, and automatically switches off after the air outflow opening  13  is closed or opened. If the pivoting flap  15  is brought by the adjusting wheel  11  into its closing position (illustrated by dash-dotted lines in FIG.  1 ), the motor  25  is switched on at the end of the rotational path of the adjusting wheel  11 . Via the gear mechanism  26  and the coupling linkage  27 , the slide  17  is first of all moved into the depth of the housing  12  by the displacement path s, and then via the gear mechanism  28 , the rolling and closing screen  23  is slid completely over the air outflow opening  13 . If the rolling and closing screen  23  covers the air outflow opening  13  entirely, the electric motor  25  is shut down by a limit switch. If the adjusting wheel  11  is then moved out of this position in the opposite direction, resulting in the pivoting flap  14  being moved out of its closing position (illustrated by dash-dotted lines in FIG.  1 ), the electric motor  25  is switched on beforehand, and, in a reverse sequence, first of all draws the rolling and closing screen  23  away from the air outflow opening  13  and then slides the slide  17  back into its front position (illustrated in FIG.  1 ). When the slide  17  reaches its final position, the electric motor  25  is shut down by a limit switch. 
     In an alternative embodiment of the invention, the linkage  15  between the pivoting flap  14  and the adjusting wheel  11  can be omitted, and the pivoting flap  14  can be driven by the electric motor  25 . The adjusting wheel  11  then just specifies the pivoting angle of the pivoting flap  15  in accordance with the desired quantity of air, and a control unit connected to the adjusting wheel  11  activates the electric motor  25  in such a manner that the pivoting flap  14  takes up the selected pivoted position. 
     In a further alternative design of the air nozzle in FIG. 1, the electric motor  25  can be omitted, and the displacement movement of the slide  17  can be derived from the rotational movement of the adjusting wheel  11 . In this case, the adjusting wheel  11 , after it has transferred the pivoting flap  14  into its closing position (illustrated by dash-dotted lines in FIG.  1 ), can be advanced by an additional path in which the slide  17  is displaced into the depth of the housing  12  by the displacement path s. If the adjusting wheel  11  is rotated back again, the slide  17  is first of all displaced into its front position and then, on further rotation of the adjusting wheel  11 , the pivoting flap  14  is moved out of its closing position. The rolling and closing screen  23  is transferred into its closing position covering the air outflow opening  13  and into its open position completely releasing the air outflow opening  13  by hand. For this purpose, a gripping element (not illustrated in FIG.  1 ), which protrudes out of the air outflow opening  13  over the front side of the housing  12 , is fastened to the rolling and closing screen. Alternatively, the rolling and closing screen  23  can also be actuated via the adjusting wheel  11 , the closing movement of the rolling and closing screen  23  again following the displacement movement of the slide  17 , or the opening movement of the rolling and closing screen  23  preceding the displacement movement of the slide  17  into its front position. 
     The air nozzle illustrated schematically in longitudinal section in FIG. 4 differs from the air nozzle described in FIGS. 1-3 insofar as the panel  22  for closing and releasing the air outflow opening  13  is designed as a covering plate  29  which is matched to the front contour of the housing  12  and can be pivoted by means of two arms  30  fastened rotatably to the housing  12 . In the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 4, the covering plate  29  is pivoted by hand, to which end there is fastened to the lower end of the covering plate  29  a gripping element  31  which protrudes over the front contour of the housing  12  through the air outflow opening  13  and can be grasped by hand. As is not illustrated in more detail, the displacement movement of the slide  17  into the depth of the housing  12  and out of the depth of the housing  12  is derived from the pivoting movement of the covering plate  29 , specifically in such a manner that before the covering plate  29  starts to be pivoted over the air outflow opening  13 , the slide  17  is moved into the depth of the housing  12  by the displacement path s, and at the end of the movement pivoting the covering plate  29  away from the air outflow opening  13 , is replaced back into the front position (as is illustrated in FIG.  1 ). 
     In a further exemplary embodiment, the opening of the covering plate  29  can be triggered by means of an automatic touch control (not illustrated here in more detail). Briefly touching the covering plate  29  causes its locking to be released, and the covering plate  29  pivots by means of spring force into its open position releasing the air outflow opening  13 . The covering plate  29  is transferred by hand, with the opening spring becoming stressed, into its closing position.

Technology Classification (CPC): 1