CA2485327A1 - Portable breathing zone air cleaner - Google Patents
Portable breathing zone air cleaner Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- CA2485327A1 CA2485327A1 CA 2485327 CA2485327A CA2485327A1 CA 2485327 A1 CA2485327 A1 CA 2485327A1 CA 2485327 CA2485327 CA 2485327 CA 2485327 A CA2485327 A CA 2485327A CA 2485327 A1 CA2485327 A1 CA 2485327A1
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- air
- filter
- user
- clean air
- breathing zone
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Abandoned
Links
Classifications
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B01—PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL
- B01D—SEPARATION
- B01D46/00—Filters or filtering processes specially modified for separating dispersed particles from gases or vapours
- B01D46/10—Particle separators, e.g. dust precipitators, using filter plates, sheets or pads having plane surfaces
Abstract
The objective of this invention is to provide a means of reducing personal exposure indoors to certain airborne contaminants including particulates and chemicals including those given off or generated by the individual or by his activities and thus avoid subsequent symptoms caused by inhaling these materials. The invention is for use indoors by individuals with hypersensitivity to certain airborne contaminants. This invention provides a solution to the problem of reducing human exposure to suspended particles and other airborne contaminants in indoor air that a person breathes. The invention is an air filtering/cleaning device that creates a region of slow laminar flow of clean air in front of the outlet of the filter, directing clean air to the user's breathing zone.
The filter is for use by persons in bed or in a sitting location such as a desk or sofa. The slow, laminar flow does not cause discomfort to the user and at the same time displaces contaminated room air from the user's breathing zone.
The filter is for use by persons in bed or in a sitting location such as a desk or sofa. The slow, laminar flow does not cause discomfort to the user and at the same time displaces contaminated room air from the user's breathing zone.
Description
Description of the Invention One embodiment of the invention includes a stable base (1) containing a fan or blower (2), an air intake opening (3), and a rigid passageway or air duct (4) for directing the air to a plenum (5). The passageway (4) is of a telescopingly adjustable length, making use of a sliding arrangement to adjust the height of the plenum above the floor and a set screw to fix the height (6). The plenum provides two functions: a partition that stops air movement horizontally and a support for a mechanical air filter (7) that also functions as a diffuser of air flow. During operation, air is drawn by the fan (2) into the air intake (3) and blown through the passageway (4) leading to the plenum (5). The air flow causes a uniform pressure to build-up uniformly inside the plenum (S) and consequently across the diffuser/mechanical air filter (7) installed on the open side of the plenum.
The cleaned air exits perpendicularly to the face of the diffuser/mechanical air filter with or without activated charcoal (7) in a laminar flow pattern as a column of clean air (8) emanating from the face of the air filter, displacing the ambient air in the direction normal to the face of the diffuser/mechanical filter (?). The back of the plenum is solid and provides a partition that stops the movement of room air in the vicinity of the diffuser/mechanical air filter.
The invention is shown in a sketch on Figure 1. The invention incorporates a stable base( 1 ), permitting the unit to stand adjacent to the side of a bed or at the head of a bead, or beside a desk or a chair, where the subject would normally spend a lot of time. The height (above the floor) of the plenum (5) with its diffuser/filter (7) attached is adjustable to permit lining up the centre of the outlet of the filter with the same height as the user's face, so that the face will intercept the column of filtered air emanating from the diffuser/filter surface. In this manner, the air cleaner effectively displaces the ambient air in the subject's breathing zone with filtered air. The filtered air emanates from the diffuser filter at a velocity low enough to prevent discomfort from drafts, yet high enough to cause a laminar flow that displaces ambient air in the breathing zone with little or no mixing. This effect is achieved at a velocity of the air emanating from the filter face (8) ranging between 2 and 5 inches per second. In this range, air speed is sufficiently low to create a laminar flow without causing Saul Stricken November 19, 2004 Patent Application for a Portable Breathing Zone Air Cleaner the sensation of a draft within the space 6 inches to 36 inches in front of the diffuser/filter.
A throughput of air of 10 to 25 cu ft per sq. ft of surface area of diffuser/filter would result in air flow velocity in the desired range of 2-5 inches/second. By trial and error, this velocity range was found to be acceptable to most subjects, yet permit, while the fan or blower is running, the formation of a moving column of air perpendicular to the face of the diffuser/filter with little mixing with ambient room air within a 36 inch distance from the face of the diffuser/filter. Higher velocities can cause the sensation of a draft and discomfort, especially for sedentary or supine subjects. Lower velocities may not achieve sufficiently uniform displacement of ambient air with filtered air to significantly reduce exposure of occupants to airborne contaminants in the local ambient air.
Construction One embodiment of the invention is composed of four main components: a housing (made of coated wood or plastic producing no material emissions) that doubles as a base with a fan or blower with an air inlet and an air duct outlet, a plenum with an inlet and with a large outlet opening, and an air diffuser/filter covering the outlet opening of the plenum.
Figures 2 and 3 illustrate one possible embodiment of the invention. Exploded views with typical dimensions of the base unit and of the plenum which holds the diffuser/filter element are shown. The length of the air duct outlet of the base is used to adjustably join the base unit to the plenum by a sliding telescoping connection, fixed by a set-screw. The telescoping connection is useful for adjusting (raising and lowering the height of) the diffuser/filter to optimize the flow of cleaned air into the subject's breathing zone. All materials used are selected for their low emission characteristics and where necessary, are coated with impervious low emission surface coatings such as shellac and odorless paint The resistance to air flow of the diffuser/filter is selected to cause a build-up of pressure in the plenum behind the diffuser/filter that is uniform across the entire face of the filter. A
typical filter medium configuration is a 1" thickness of fibrous non-woven fabric with a covering on the front and back surfaces of non-woven single layer porous fabric for support of the filter medium. The fabric must be of a non-allergenic type of material such as polyester fiber. The combined resistance of the filter medium and the front and rear layers of fabrics is necessary to produce the required static pressure build up in the plenum to produce a uniform flow of air emanating perpendicularly from the surface of the filter.
The Diffuser/filter element captures airborne particulates by mechanical entrapment and by adsorption to the fiber surfaces. The smallest particles may be attracted to the fiber and held there by Van der VVaal forces because of the low air velocity through the filter medium.
The filter may also include adsorbing material such as activated charcoal to remove volatile organic compounds from the air. The filter has to be replaced regularly in order to maintain the air cleaner operating effectively.
Background It has been established from field testing in houses that there is a strong correlation between indoor particulate levels and occupancy~2. The research showed that exposure of house occupants to airborne particles appears to be directly linked to their activities when they are in the home as a result of their movements. The furnace filter appears to have only a small to moderate effect on the exposure of an individual to respirable particles in the home.
When occupants are moving around, they stir up the dust, and the dust cloud "follows"
them around as they generate new clouds of dust. The dust in this cloud is usually not affected by the quality of the furnace filter or room air filter because the filter is far away from where the dust is being generated, and it normally takes several hours for the dust to be removed from most of the volume in the room, once all occupants have left the room.
A certain percentage of the population have sensitivities to certain solid particles such as micro flora, micogens and mould spores and to gaseous chemicals dissolved in the air in a building such as volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from perfumes, from moulds or materials on their own skin and hair, as well as from chemicals and solvents such as formaldehyde. Individuals who are hypersensitive to long-term exposure to some of these materials and chemicals may exhibit certain reactions such as an immune response to respiratory exposure to the allergen, with resulting symptoms such as such as asthma, bronchitis, allergic rhinitis, nasal congestion, sleep disturbance and in extreme cases, if uncorrected, altered brain function.
Humans, pets and materials such as carpeting generate airborne particulates such as allergens, molds, bacteria, viruses and chemicals that spread out into the occupied space.
The rate of production of particles associated with human activities and occupancy indoors is normally much higher than the rate of removal of particles from the air by room-by-room or central air cleaners. The result is that conventional mechanical air cleaners produce a small or insignificant reduction in the level of air contaminants surrounding a person, and thus produce a small reduction in human exposure to indoor levels of particulates or chemicals in the air that the person breathes indoors.
The cleaned air exits perpendicularly to the face of the diffuser/mechanical air filter with or without activated charcoal (7) in a laminar flow pattern as a column of clean air (8) emanating from the face of the air filter, displacing the ambient air in the direction normal to the face of the diffuser/mechanical filter (?). The back of the plenum is solid and provides a partition that stops the movement of room air in the vicinity of the diffuser/mechanical air filter.
The invention is shown in a sketch on Figure 1. The invention incorporates a stable base( 1 ), permitting the unit to stand adjacent to the side of a bed or at the head of a bead, or beside a desk or a chair, where the subject would normally spend a lot of time. The height (above the floor) of the plenum (5) with its diffuser/filter (7) attached is adjustable to permit lining up the centre of the outlet of the filter with the same height as the user's face, so that the face will intercept the column of filtered air emanating from the diffuser/filter surface. In this manner, the air cleaner effectively displaces the ambient air in the subject's breathing zone with filtered air. The filtered air emanates from the diffuser filter at a velocity low enough to prevent discomfort from drafts, yet high enough to cause a laminar flow that displaces ambient air in the breathing zone with little or no mixing. This effect is achieved at a velocity of the air emanating from the filter face (8) ranging between 2 and 5 inches per second. In this range, air speed is sufficiently low to create a laminar flow without causing Saul Stricken November 19, 2004 Patent Application for a Portable Breathing Zone Air Cleaner the sensation of a draft within the space 6 inches to 36 inches in front of the diffuser/filter.
A throughput of air of 10 to 25 cu ft per sq. ft of surface area of diffuser/filter would result in air flow velocity in the desired range of 2-5 inches/second. By trial and error, this velocity range was found to be acceptable to most subjects, yet permit, while the fan or blower is running, the formation of a moving column of air perpendicular to the face of the diffuser/filter with little mixing with ambient room air within a 36 inch distance from the face of the diffuser/filter. Higher velocities can cause the sensation of a draft and discomfort, especially for sedentary or supine subjects. Lower velocities may not achieve sufficiently uniform displacement of ambient air with filtered air to significantly reduce exposure of occupants to airborne contaminants in the local ambient air.
Construction One embodiment of the invention is composed of four main components: a housing (made of coated wood or plastic producing no material emissions) that doubles as a base with a fan or blower with an air inlet and an air duct outlet, a plenum with an inlet and with a large outlet opening, and an air diffuser/filter covering the outlet opening of the plenum.
Figures 2 and 3 illustrate one possible embodiment of the invention. Exploded views with typical dimensions of the base unit and of the plenum which holds the diffuser/filter element are shown. The length of the air duct outlet of the base is used to adjustably join the base unit to the plenum by a sliding telescoping connection, fixed by a set-screw. The telescoping connection is useful for adjusting (raising and lowering the height of) the diffuser/filter to optimize the flow of cleaned air into the subject's breathing zone. All materials used are selected for their low emission characteristics and where necessary, are coated with impervious low emission surface coatings such as shellac and odorless paint The resistance to air flow of the diffuser/filter is selected to cause a build-up of pressure in the plenum behind the diffuser/filter that is uniform across the entire face of the filter. A
typical filter medium configuration is a 1" thickness of fibrous non-woven fabric with a covering on the front and back surfaces of non-woven single layer porous fabric for support of the filter medium. The fabric must be of a non-allergenic type of material such as polyester fiber. The combined resistance of the filter medium and the front and rear layers of fabrics is necessary to produce the required static pressure build up in the plenum to produce a uniform flow of air emanating perpendicularly from the surface of the filter.
The Diffuser/filter element captures airborne particulates by mechanical entrapment and by adsorption to the fiber surfaces. The smallest particles may be attracted to the fiber and held there by Van der VVaal forces because of the low air velocity through the filter medium.
The filter may also include adsorbing material such as activated charcoal to remove volatile organic compounds from the air. The filter has to be replaced regularly in order to maintain the air cleaner operating effectively.
Background It has been established from field testing in houses that there is a strong correlation between indoor particulate levels and occupancy~2. The research showed that exposure of house occupants to airborne particles appears to be directly linked to their activities when they are in the home as a result of their movements. The furnace filter appears to have only a small to moderate effect on the exposure of an individual to respirable particles in the home.
When occupants are moving around, they stir up the dust, and the dust cloud "follows"
them around as they generate new clouds of dust. The dust in this cloud is usually not affected by the quality of the furnace filter or room air filter because the filter is far away from where the dust is being generated, and it normally takes several hours for the dust to be removed from most of the volume in the room, once all occupants have left the room.
A certain percentage of the population have sensitivities to certain solid particles such as micro flora, micogens and mould spores and to gaseous chemicals dissolved in the air in a building such as volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from perfumes, from moulds or materials on their own skin and hair, as well as from chemicals and solvents such as formaldehyde. Individuals who are hypersensitive to long-term exposure to some of these materials and chemicals may exhibit certain reactions such as an immune response to respiratory exposure to the allergen, with resulting symptoms such as such as asthma, bronchitis, allergic rhinitis, nasal congestion, sleep disturbance and in extreme cases, if uncorrected, altered brain function.
Humans, pets and materials such as carpeting generate airborne particulates such as allergens, molds, bacteria, viruses and chemicals that spread out into the occupied space.
The rate of production of particles associated with human activities and occupancy indoors is normally much higher than the rate of removal of particles from the air by room-by-room or central air cleaners. The result is that conventional mechanical air cleaners produce a small or insignificant reduction in the level of air contaminants surrounding a person, and thus produce a small reduction in human exposure to indoor levels of particulates or chemicals in the air that the person breathes indoors.
Claims (5)
1. An air cleaning device that effectively reduces human exposure to airborne indoor contaminants in sedentary or sleeping individuals.
2. An air cleaning device that is portable and adjustable for use in various locations to form a laminar, slow moving field of cleaned air near to and directed at the face of the person, effectively displacing (contaminated) ambient air.
3. Production of a laminar flow field is sufficiently slow that it does not feel drafty or bothersome to the user, does not disturb the user during sleep, rest or work done in front of it.
4. A device that blocks the lateral movement of room air on one side and produces a uniform displacement of room ambient air with clean air in a laminar, non-mixing manner on the opposite side to produce a clean air zone for the user.
5. A device that specifically provides the means by which human exposure to airborne contaminants can be reduced for sedentary or sleeping individuals by displacing contaminated air in their breathing zone and replacing it with clean air within a limited volume in front of the filter, rather than by mixing clean air with room ambient air.
Priority Applications (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA 2485327 CA2485327A1 (en) | 2004-11-18 | 2004-11-18 | Portable breathing zone air cleaner |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA 2485327 CA2485327A1 (en) | 2004-11-18 | 2004-11-18 | Portable breathing zone air cleaner |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA2485327A1 true CA2485327A1 (en) | 2006-05-18 |
Family
ID=36406111
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA 2485327 Abandoned CA2485327A1 (en) | 2004-11-18 | 2004-11-18 | Portable breathing zone air cleaner |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CA (1) | CA2485327A1 (en) |
Cited By (2)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US10926210B2 (en) | 2018-04-04 | 2021-02-23 | ACCO Brands Corporation | Air purifier with dual exit paths |
| USD913467S1 (en) | 2018-06-12 | 2021-03-16 | ACCO Brands Corporation | Air purifier |
-
2004
- 2004-11-18 CA CA 2485327 patent/CA2485327A1/en not_active Abandoned
Cited By (3)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US10926210B2 (en) | 2018-04-04 | 2021-02-23 | ACCO Brands Corporation | Air purifier with dual exit paths |
| USD913467S1 (en) | 2018-06-12 | 2021-03-16 | ACCO Brands Corporation | Air purifier |
| USD927671S1 (en) | 2018-06-12 | 2021-08-10 | ACCO Brands Corporation | Air purifier |
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| FZDE | Dead |