JP2001105838A - Air duct connection structure of vehicular air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide the air duct connection structure of a vehicular air conditioner which can reduce the number of parts, work man hours and costs and prevent the leak of an air by the dispersion at an assembly time. SOLUTION: In the air duct connection structure of a vehicular air conditioner mounted with a cluster 5 having a cylindrical blow out duct 11 in a cluster opening 1g formed in an instrument panel 1 and connected with the downstream port 4b of an air duct 4 connected to an air conditioning unit 3 to the blow out duct 11, an engaging piece 1k is formed projectingly inward on the edge of the cluster opening 1g and an expansion part 4d expanding outward is formed to the outer periphery of the air duct 4 and also a recessed groove 4g with which the engaging piece 1k is engaged is formed on the expansion part 4d so as to extend to the periphery direction and the deformation of the air duct 4 to the radius direction inside is regulated by inserting the blow out duct 11 in the air duct 4.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a connection structure of an air duct of an air conditioner provided on an instrument panel of an automobile or the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In general, an automobile is provided with an air conditioner for maintaining the temperature in a passenger compartment in a comfortable state. This air conditioner has an instrument panel 50 as shown in FIG.
A cluster 52 having a cylindrical air blow-out duct 51 is attached to a cluster opening 50a formed in the instrument panel 50, and a downstream port 53a of an air duct 53 arranged in the instrument panel 50 is connected to an air inlet 51a of the blow-out duct 51. It has a connected structure.

Conventionally, as a connection structure for such an air duct 53, a plurality of bosses 50b are formed at the edge of the cluster opening 50a of the instrument panel 50, and an opening flange 53b of the air duct 53 is attached to each boss 50b by a tapping screw. It is general that it is fastened and fixed by 56 or the like.

[0004]

However, in the above-described conventional air duct connection structure, the air duct 53 is attached with the tapping screw 56, and there is a problem that the cost increases as the number of parts and the number of working steps increase.

Further, in the above-mentioned conventional structure in which the opening flange 53b of the air duct 53 is screwed to the instrument panel 50, the air duct 53 and the cluster 52 are liable to cause a floating or a gap S due to a variation at the time of assembling. There is a concern that air may leak from the air.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional circumstances, and can reduce the number of parts and the number of work steps to reduce the cost, and can prevent air leakage due to variations during assembly. The purpose of the present invention is to provide an air duct connection structure.

[0007]

According to the present invention, a cluster having a cylindrical air outlet duct is mounted on a cluster opening formed in an instrument panel, and a downstream port of an air duct connected to an air conditioning unit is connected to the air outlet duct. In the air duct connection structure for a vehicle air conditioner to be connected, an engaging piece is formed to protrude inward at an edge of the cluster opening, and a bulging portion bulging outward is formed at an outer peripheral portion of the air duct. In addition, a concave groove in which the engaging piece engages is formed in the bulging portion so as to extend in the circumferential direction, and the blowing duct is inserted into the air duct to restrict the radial inward deformation of the air duct. It is characterized by doing.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, an expanding portion is formed at a downstream end of the air duct so as to expand outward, and the blowing duct is inserted into the air duct on an outer wall of the blowing duct. In this case, a rib is formed which engages with the expanded portion when the rib is formed.

A third aspect of the present invention is characterized in that, in the first or second aspect, the swelling portion is formed with an inclined portion extending to the opening end of the downstream port following the concave groove.

A fourth aspect of the present invention is characterized in that, in any one of the first to third aspects, the engaging piece is engaged with a slight gap between the engaging piece and the bottom surface of the concave groove. .

[0011]

In order to connect the air duct according to the present invention, the concave portion of the air duct is engaged with the engaging piece of the instrument panel and temporarily held, and the blow-out duct is inserted from the front of the instrument panel into the air duct. And install the cluster in the cluster opening of the instrument panel. This restricts the air duct from deforming inward by the blow-out duct, and restricting the air duct from deforming outward by the engagement piece.

According to the air duct connection structure according to the present invention, the engagement piece is formed so as to protrude at the edge of the cluster opening of the instrument panel, and the bulge is formed at the outer periphery of the air duct. Since the airflow duct is inserted into the air duct, the airflow duct regulates the radial inward deflection and deformation of the air duct, and the airflow duct flexes and deforms. Is restricted by the engagement piece of the instrument panel, and it is possible to prevent the air duct from shifting or coming off. As a result, it is possible to eliminate the need for fixing with a conventional tapping screw or the like, to reduce the number of parts and the number of work steps, and to reduce the cost accordingly.

[0013] Further, since the blowing duct is inserted into the air duct to restrict the bending and deformation of the air duct, it is possible to prevent a floating or gap from being generated between the blowing duct and the air duct, and to prevent air leakage. is there.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the flared portion is formed at the downstream end of the air duct, and the rib that engages with the flared portion is formed on the outer wall facing the bulging portion of the blowing duct. The inward deformation of the downstream end can be more reliably restricted.

[0015] Further, since an expanding portion that expands outward is formed at the downstream end of the air duct, the expanding portion functions as a guide when the blow-out duct is inserted, and the insertion operation can be easily performed. .

According to the third aspect of the present invention, since the swelling portion is formed with the inclined portion extending toward the downstream port following the groove, the inclined portion is pressed radially inward to engage the groove. It becomes easy to fit the mating pieces, and the workability when fitting the air duct to the instrument panel can be improved.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, since a slight gap is provided between the engagement piece and the concave groove, variations in assembling the instrument panel with the cluster and the air duct can be absorbed, and stress and distortion can be reduced. Generation can be avoided, and as a result, the sealing performance between the ducts can be improved.

[0018]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. 1 to 6 are views for explaining an air duct connection structure of a vehicle air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional side view of an air duct connection portion (a cross section taken along line II of FIG. 6). FIG. 2 and FIG. 2 are cross-sectional plan views (cross-sectional views taken along the line II-II in FIG. 6) of the air duct connection portion, and FIG.
4 is a front view of a downstream port of the air duct, FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a downstream port portion of the air duct, FIG. 5 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a main part of an air duct connecting portion, and FIG. 6 is a perspective view of an instrument panel.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes an instrument panel disposed in front of a front seat (not shown) of an automobile. A steering shaft (not shown) is inserted and supported on the driver's seat side of the instrument panel 1. Recess 1
a, an instrument unit mounting opening 1b is formed above the concave portion 1a, and a glove box opening 1c is formed on the passenger seat side. An air conditioning control panel and an audio mounting opening 1d are formed at the center of the instrument panel 1 in the vehicle width direction, and an ash tray mounting opening 1d is formed below the opening 1d.
e is formed.

An air conditioner 2 is provided on the instrument panel 1. The air conditioner 2 includes an air conditioning unit 3 that heats or cools air, an air duct 4 that blows air from the air conditioning unit 3, and a center cluster 5 that blows out the air blown by the air duct 4 into a vehicle interior.
And an air conditioning control panel (not shown) provided with a switching lever and a temperature adjusting lever.

Cluster openings 1f and 1g are formed at the left, right end and center of the instrument panel 1, respectively. The left and right cluster openings 1f are provided with the side clusters 6, and the central cluster opening 1f and 1g, respectively. Each center cluster 5 is mounted on 1 g.

The air duct 4 is routed in the instrument panel 1. The air duct 4 connects the upstream port 4a to the air duct 3a of the air conditioning unit 3, and each of the downstream ports branched from the upstream port 4a into three. The mouth 4b is connected to the center cluster 5 and the left and right side clusters 6, respectively.

The connection part of the air duct 4 which is a feature of this embodiment is composed of a center cluster 5, a left and right side cluster 6
Therefore, only the air duct connection part of the center cluster 5 will be described below.

The center cluster 5 is made of resin and has an elliptical cluster body 10 extending in the vehicle width direction;
It comprises a pair of left and right outlet ducts 11, 11 arranged in the cluster body 10. The cluster body 10 is attached and fixed to the instrument panel 1 via a fitting mechanism or a fastening mechanism. The cluster body 10 includes a flange portion 10a that covers the periphery of the cluster opening 1g and a pair of left and right openings 10b. Each opening 1
A register 12 for adjusting the wind direction is provided in 0b so as to be able to swing vertically and horizontally.

The blowing duct 11 has a cylindrical duct body 11a formed with a blowing section 11b having a diameter larger than that of the cylindrical duct body 11a, and a plurality of mounting pieces 1 formed on the blowing section 11b.
1c is formed so as to protrude outward, and each mounting piece 11c is fastened and fixed by a tapping screw 13 to a boss 10c integrally formed on the back surface of the cluster body 10. The opening 10b is inserted into the blowing portion 11b, and a rectifying nozzle portion 11d is integrally formed within the duct main body 11a.

An inwardly extending opening cylindrical portion 1j is formed at the periphery of the cluster opening 1g of the instrument panel 1, and protrudes radially inward from the upper and lower edges of the opening cylindrical portion 1j. The engagement piece 1k is bent.

The air duct 4 is made of a soft polyurethane resin having flexibility. The downstream port 4b of the air duct 4 has a cylindrical shape, and the duct body 11a of the blowing duct 11 is provided in the downstream port 4a. Has been inserted. The inner diameter of the downstream port 4b is the same as that of the duct body 11a.
Is formed to be approximately the same as or slightly larger than the outer diameter of
This increases the airtightness between the downstream port 4b and the duct main body 11a.

Further, at the opening end of the downstream port 4b of the air duct 4, an expanding portion 4c that expands outward is formed in a curved shape, and the expanding portion 4c is formed over the entire circumference of the opening. . The expanded portion 4c functions as a guide when inserting the blowing duct 11.

In the upper and lower sides of the downstream port 4b of the air duct 4, bulging portions 4d, 4d are formed to bulge outward, respectively, at portions facing the engaging piece 1k. Each of the bulging portions 4d has a substantially triangular shape in a longitudinal sectional view.
A concave groove 4g extending in the circumferential direction at the top of the later inclined portions 4e, 4f.
Is formed. The rear inclined portion 4f has a concave groove 4.
The downstream port 4b is elastically deformed left and right in an elliptical shape and expands when the upper and lower inclined portions 4f, 4f are pressed inward in the radial direction. It has become.

Above the outer wall of the blow-out duct 11 and the portion facing the lower bulging portion 4d, a rib 11f that extends forward and inclines so as to bridge the duct body 11a and the blow-out portion 11b is formed upright. The rib 11f is engaged with the expanding portion 4c. The bulging portion 4d is slightly pressed outward by the rib 11f via the expanding portion 4c.

An engaging piece 1k of the instrument panel 1 is engaged in the upper and lower concave grooves 4g, 4g, and the engaging piece 1k has a radius between the upper and lower inclined portions 4f, 4f. With the downstream port 4b pressed inward in the direction, the downstream
It is inserted into g and fitted.

As shown in FIG. 5, when the air duct 4 is connected, a slight gap a is provided between the engagement piece 1k and the bottom surface of the concave groove 4g. 4g of concave groove
Is set to be larger than the dimension c between the general outer peripheral surface of the downstream port 4b and the lower surface of the concave groove 4g. With such a dimensional relationship, the air duct 4 is prevented from coming off or coming off. it can. Note that the depth dimension b of the concave groove 4g may be increased so that the dimension c becomes substantially zero.

Next, the operation and effect of this embodiment will be described. To assemble the air conditioner 2 of the present embodiment, the downstream port 4b of the air duct 4 is inserted into the instrument panel 1 into the cluster opening 1g with the upper and lower inclined portions 4f, 4f pressed inward. Then, the engaging piece 1k is inserted into the concave groove 4g. Thereby, the air duct 4 is temporarily held by the instrument panel 1.

Next, the air outlet duct 11 of the center cluster 5 is inserted into the air duct 4 and the rib 1
1f is engaged with the widening portion 4c, and the cluster 5 which has been removed in this state is fixed to the instrument panel 1. Thereby, the downstream port 4b of the air duct 4 is connected to the duct body 11a.
, The inward deformation is restricted, and the engaging piece 1k restricts the outward deformation. The instrument assembly thus assembled is attached to the vehicle body, and the upstream port 4a of the air duct 4 is connected to the air duct 3 of the air conditioning unit 3.
Connect to a.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, the engagement pieces 1k are formed at the upper edge and the lower edge of the cluster opening 1g of the instrument panel 1, and the engagement pieces 1k of the downstream port 4b of the air duct 4 are formed at the engagement pieces 1k. A bulging portion 4d is formed to bulge at the opposing portion, and a concave groove 4g with which the engaging piece 1k is engaged is formed at the top of the bulging portion 4d. Since the main body 11a is inserted, the duct main body 11a restricts the radial inward bending and deformation of the downstream port 4b, and the engaging piece 1k restricts the radial outward bending and deformation. Thus, the air duct 4 can be prevented from shifting or coming off. As a result, the conventional tapping screw can be dispensed with, and the number of parts and the number of work steps can be reduced accordingly.

In this embodiment, the inner diameter of the downstream port 4b of the air duct 4 and the duct body 11a
Of the duct main body 1 in the downstream port 4b.
Since 1a is inserted, the airtightness between the two 4b and 11a can be improved, the bending and deformation of the downstream port 4b can be prevented, and the problem of floating and gap can be eliminated to prevent air leakage.

In the present embodiment, an outwardly expanding portion 4c is formed at the opening end of the downstream port 4b, and a portion of the blowing duct 11 facing the bulging portion 4d is engaged with the expanding portion 4c. Since the rib 11f that slightly presses the expanding portion 4c outward is formed, the inward deformation of the downstream port 4b can be more reliably restricted.

An expanding portion 4 is formed at the opening end of the downstream port 4b.
c, the expanded portion 4 c is
Will function as a guide when inserting the information, and the insertion operation can be easily performed.

In this embodiment, the groove 4 is formed in the bulging portion 4d.
g, an inclined portion 4f extending to the opening end is formed.
By pressing the upper and lower inclined portions 4f, 4f inward in the radial direction, the engagement piece 1k can be easily fitted into the concave groove 4g, and the work when fitting the air duct 4 to the instrument panel 1 is facilitated. Performance can be improved.

Further, since a slight gap a is provided between the engagement piece 1k and the concave groove 4g, variations in assembling the instrument panel 1, the center cluster 5, and the air duct 4 can be absorbed, and stress and stress can be reduced. Generation of distortion can be avoided, and the sealing performance between the ducts 4 and 11 can be improved. Incidentally, in the conventional structure in which the air duct is fixed to the instrument panel with a tapping screw or the like, there is a problem that stress is likely to be distorted due to variations at the time of assembly.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional side view (a sectional view taken along line II of FIG. 6) of a connection portion of an air duct according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional plan view of a connection portion of the air duct (FIG. 6).
II-II section view).

FIG. 3 is a front view of a downstream port of the air duct.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a downstream port of the air duct.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged sectional view of a main part of a connection portion of the air duct.

FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view of an instrument panel provided with the air duct.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing a conventional general air duct connection portion.

[Description of Signs] 1 Instrument panel 1g Cluster opening 1k Engagement piece 2 Air conditioner 3 Air conditioning unit 4 Air duct 4b Downstream port 4c Expanding part 4d Swelling part 4f Inclined part 4g Concave groove 5 Center cluster 11 Blow-out duct 11f Rib

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Hiroki Sugiura 1-3 Terminaki Kitamachi, Okazaki City, Aichi Prefecture F-term in Nippon Sekisou Kogyo Co., Ltd. 3D044 BA03 BA12 BA14 BB01 BC07 BC13 BC30 BD11 3L011 BL02 BR00

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A vehicle air conditioner in which a cluster having a cylindrical blowing duct is mounted on a cluster opening formed in an instrument panel, and a downstream port of an air duct connected to an air conditioning unit is connected to the blowing duct. In the air duct connection structure of the device, an engaging piece is formed to protrude inward at an edge of the cluster opening, and a bulging portion that bulges outward is formed on an outer peripheral portion of the air duct. A concave groove in which the engaging piece engages is formed so as to extend in the circumferential direction, and the blow-out duct is inserted into the air duct to restrict deformation of the air duct inward in the radial direction. Air duct connection structure for air conditioner. 2. The air duct according to claim 1, further comprising an expanding portion extending outward at a downstream end of the air duct, wherein the expanding duct is inserted into an outer wall of the air duct when the air duct is inserted into the air duct. An air duct connection structure for a vehicle air conditioner, wherein a rib that engages with the opening is formed. 3. The air duct connection structure for a vehicle air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the swelling portion is formed with an inclined portion extending to the opening end of the downstream port following the concave groove. 4. An air conditioner for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said engagement piece is engaged with said bottom surface of said concave groove with a slight gap. Air duct connection structure.