JP2015045285A - Air cleaner - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To remove water entering into a dirty chamber in a harmless state without forming a drain hole in a case.SOLUTION: An air cleaner has a dirty chamber 6 and a clean chamber 7 partitioned with a filter element 4. An air inlet 8 is opened to the dirty chamber 6 and an air outlet 9 is opened to the clean chamber 7. Part of the filter element 4 is formed as a water suction part 13 which reaches the bottom of a body 1. When rain water or washing water enters into the body, the water is sucked upward from the water suction part 13 and exposed to an air flow, and then it is gradually evaporated and removed into an intake system. The gradual evaporation avoids the event that harmful effects are given to the intake system or combustion is disturbed. The need for the drain hole is eliminated to preclude water from flowing into the body 1 when the bottom of the body 1 is flooded.

Description

  The present invention relates to an air cleaner used for an internal combustion engine.

  The air cleaner has a case and a filter element. The interior of the case is divided into a dirty room and a clean room by the filter element. The dirty room has an air intake and the clean room has an air outlet. ing. The case is often composed of a main body and a lid, and it is general that an air intake port is provided in the main body and an air outlet is provided in the lid.

  The air cleaner has a vertical type (for example, Patent Document 1) in which a clean chamber and a dirty chamber are arranged above and below the filter element, and a horizontal type in which a clean chamber and a dirty chamber are arranged on the left and right sides of the filter element. (For example, Patent Document 2). In any case, rainwater and washing water may enter the dirty chamber from the air intake, and there may be a drain hole at the bottom of the dirty chamber.

JP 2012-229637 A JP2013-96315A

  Now, in the case of an internal combustion engine for automobiles, the vertical height of the engine room may be restricted depending on the structure of the automobile, and the internal combustion engine may have to be placed in a slanted posture with a large inclination. In this case, the air cleaner often has to be disposed below the engine room.

  However, the bottom of the engine room may be submerged in the water due to heavy rain or flooding, etc., so that water enters the air cleaner from the drain hole and the filter element gets wet, reducing the intake performance. Or water may pass through the filter element and enter the combustion chamber.

  The present invention has been made to improve the current situation.

  It is inevitable that water such as rain water and washing water enter the dirty room of the air cleaner from the air intake. Therefore, it is necessary to treat the water that has entered the dirty chamber from the air intake without providing a drain hole. This inventor considered this point and came to complete this invention.

  That is, the air cleaner of the present invention has a dirty chamber and a clean chamber partitioned by a filter element, the dirty chamber has an air intake opening, and the clean chamber has an air outlet, The dirty chamber has a structure in which water can be accumulated, and the dirty chamber is provided with a water absorbing portion that sucks water accumulated at the bottom of the dirty chamber toward the filter element.

  In this case, the water absorbing portion may be configured by projecting a part of the filter element downward, or may be attached to the filter element as a member made of a water absorbing material different from the filter element. That is, the water absorption part may be an integral part of the filter element or a separate part. In any case, the number, shape, and arrangement position can be arbitrarily set.

  In the present invention, even if water flows into the dirty chamber from the air intake, the water is sucked up by the water absorption part and exposed to the air flow flowing through the dirty chamber, and gradually evaporated by the air flow and sucked into the intake system. The Since the evaporation (vaporization) of the water is performed gradually, the evaporated water does not adversely affect the intake system or inhibit combustion.

  As described above, in the present invention, even if a water drain hole is not provided in the air cleaner, the water that has entered the inside from the air intake port can be treated and removed in a harmless state using the function of the air cleaner. Therefore, while preventing water from flowing into the air cleaner in an abnormal situation where the engine room is submerged, even if water enters in a normal state, it can be eliminated without causing any harm.

  In addition, since the problem of water intrusion from the drainage hole is eliminated by eliminating the need for the drainage hole, it is also possible to place the air cleaner at a lower position than the conventional one. The freedom of layout can also be improved. Since the filter element is periodically replaced, the water absorption part is also replaced together with the filter element. Accordingly, there is no problem of functional deterioration due to deterioration of the water absorbing portion.

It is a vertical front view of a 1st embodiment. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line II-II in FIG. 1, and (A) to (C) show different configurations. (A) is sectional drawing which shows 2nd Embodiment, (B) is sectional drawing which shows 3rd Embodiment, (C) is sectional drawing which shows 4th Embodiment. (A) is sectional drawing which shows 5th Embodiment, (B) is sectional drawing which shows 6th Embodiment.

(1). First Embodiment Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. First, a first embodiment shown in FIGS. The air cleaner according to the present embodiment is a vertical type, and a case 3 is constituted by a main body 1 that opens upward and a lid 2 that covers the main body 1 from above. A filter element 4 is disposed inside the case 3. The main body 1 and the lid 2 are circular, but may be square.

  The filter element 4 is made of fiber as a raw material, such as non-woven fabric and paper, and has a porous structure with air permeability. Therefore, the filter element 4 has a property of absorbing water by capillarity (water absorption). doing. The filter element 4 is folded in a zigzag shape (or a bellows shape) in order to increase the air passage area. The edge member 5 is fixed to the outer periphery by welding or the like, and the edge member 5 is sandwiched between the main body 1 and the lid 2. It is.

  Therefore, the inside of the case 3 is divided into a dirty chamber 6 positioned below the filter element 4 and a clean chamber 7 positioned above the filter element 4. The main body 1 is opened to the dirty chamber 6. An air intake 8 is provided, and the lid 2 is provided with an air outlet 9 opened to the clean chamber 7. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the air outlet 9 is positioned above and the air intake port 8 is positioned below, with the filter element 4 interposed therebetween.

  The air intake 8 is bent in a crank shape so as to bend downward and then change its posture horizontally. Therefore, the start end 8 a of the air intake 8 is located above the main body 1. Of course, the form of the air intake 8 can be set arbitrarily. Moreover, although the air intake 8 and the air outlet 9 are provided in the other side on both sides of the axial center of case 3, the relative attitude | position of the air intake 8 and the air outlet 9 can be changed arbitrarily as needed ( It may be provided in the same direction.)

  Groove-shaped flange portions 10 and 11 are provided at the opening edge of the main body 1 and the opening edge of the lid 2, respectively, and the flange portions 10 and 11 are sandwiched between a plurality of clips 12 arranged in a circumferential direction.

  In the present embodiment, the filter element 4 has a zigzag shape when viewed from a direction orthogonal to the air flow direction. The filter element 4 is extended downward in such a manner that two front and rear portions along the air flow direction are in contact with or close to the bottom of the main body 1. Therefore, in this embodiment, the water absorption part 13 is formed integrally with the filter element 4. Moreover, the water absorption part 13 is arrange | positioned with the attitude | position like a baffle plate which crosses the flow of air.

  As a form of the water absorbing portion 13 in a plan view, in FIG. 2A, both the front and rear water absorbing portions 13 are formed so as to extend to the inner periphery of the main body 1. Therefore, the dirty chamber 6 is completely shielded by the front and rear water absorption portions 13, and thus air flows through the front and rear water absorption portions 13.

  In the example shown in (B) of FIG. 2, the water-absorbing portion 13 on the near side as viewed from the air flow direction does not reach the inner surface of the main body 1, and there is a space between the water-absorbing portion 13 and the inner surface of the main body 1. On the other hand, the water absorption part 13 located in front of the air flow direction is in contact with the inner surface of the main body 1. Therefore, a part of the air reaches the front water absorption part 13 by winding the left and right sides of the front water absorption part 13. For this reason, the air flow resistance by the front and rear water absorbing portions 13 is smaller than in the case of (A).

  In the example shown in FIG. 2C, an air passage is vacant on the left and right outer sides of the front and rear water absorbing portions 13. Therefore, a part of the air flows to the back without passing through the front and rear water absorption parts 13. Therefore, the air flow resistance by the front and rear water absorbing portions 13 is further smaller than in the case of (B). In (A) to (C), each water absorbing portion 13 extends in series in the left-right direction, but it is also possible to adopt a form in which either one or both are intermittent in the left-right direction. Moreover, the water absorption part 13 can also be provided only in one place or three places or more toward the air flow direction.

  In the above configuration, when water enters from the air intake 8 and accumulates at the bottom of the main body 1 for some reason, the water is sucked up by the water absorbing portion 13 by capillary action and spreads over the entire water absorbing portion 13 (or the water absorbing portion). It extends beyond 13 to the location of the filter element 4). Since air flows through the dirty chamber 6 and passes through the air or the water absorption part 13, the water sucked up by the water absorption part 13 is exposed to the air flow and gradually evaporates. 9 is discharged to the intake system.

  Since water evaporates gradually, it does not adversely affect the members of the intake system or inhibit combustion. Therefore, the water flowing into the dirty chamber 6 can be rendered harmless and discharged without providing a drain hole. In addition, although water may flow into the dirty chamber 6 in the form of a mist, the mist of water adheres to the water absorption part 13 and the filter element 4 and is evaporated by the air flow.

(2). Other Embodiments Next, other embodiments shown in FIG. 3 and the following will be described. In 2nd Embodiment shown to FIG. 3 (A), the bottom of the main body 1 is formed in the taper shape, and the water absorption part 13 is arrange | positioned in the deepest position of the bottom. In this embodiment, even if the amount of water is small, the water is collected in a narrow range, so that the water flowing into the dirty chamber 6 can be quickly discharged.

  In the third embodiment shown in FIG. 3 (B), the bottom of the main body 1 is formed in a tapered shape, while a large number of water absorbing portions 13 are arranged at different heights. That is, the water absorption part 13 located at the deepest part of the bottom is brought into contact with or close to the bottom, and the water absorption part 13 located in front of the water absorption part 13 becomes higher from the bottom as it goes closer to the front, and the deepest of the bottom. The water-absorbing part 13 on the front side of the water-absorbing part 13 located at the location is in contact with or close to the bottom surface of the main body 1.

  In this embodiment, since the number of the water absorption parts 13 immersed in this will increase when the depth of the water accumulated in the main body 1 increases, the water absorption performance is increased in proportion to the depth of the water. Therefore, the water removal performance is excellent.

  In the fourth embodiment shown in FIG. 3C, the water absorbing portions 13 are arranged on both the left and right sides in the air flow direction. In the illustrated example, the water absorbing portions 13 are arranged at two left and right locations, but may be arranged at three or more locations. In this case, the air flow resistance caused by the water absorbing portion 13 is reduced. Since the water absorption part 13 also has an air filtering function, it is preferable to design the number, arrangement, height, etc. of the water absorption parts 13 in consideration of the flow of the air flow so that the air passes through the entire filter element 4 evenly. .

  FIG. 4A shows an example in which the water absorbing portion 13 is configured separately from the filter element 4. Among these, in 5th Embodiment of FIG. 4 (A), the water absorption part 13 is being fixed to a part of filter element 4 by adhesion | attachment or welding. On the other hand, in 6th Embodiment shown to FIG. 4 (B), the water absorption part 13 is being fixed to the filter element 4 by stapler or sewing.

  The water absorption part 13 may be made of the same material as the filter element 4 or may be manufactured from a material different from the filter element 4. Thus, when the water absorption part 13 is comprised separately from the filter element 4, the lower end part of the water absorption part 13 is closely_contact | adhered to the bottom face of the main body 1, or the material excellent in water absorption and air permeability is used. The water absorption can be improved.

  The present invention can be embodied in various ways other than the above-described embodiment. For example, the above embodiment is applied to a vertical type in which a clean chamber, a filter element, and a dirty chamber are arranged vertically, but the present invention is a vertical type in which a clean chamber, a filter element, and a dirty chamber are arranged in a horizontal direction. Is also applicable.

  Moreover, when making a water absorption part into a separate member from a filter element, the raw material can employ | adopt various things. For example, not only fiber type but also sponge-like resin type can be used. Also, the form can be arbitrarily selected. For example, it is possible to form a multifilament in a twisted string shape, and to make a large number of the filaments hang down from the filter element. A plurality of materials may be combined.

  The present invention can be embodied in an air cleaner for an internal combustion engine. Therefore, it can be used industrially.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Body which comprises case 2 Lid which comprises case 3 Case 4 Filter element 6 Dirty room 7 Clean room 8 Air intake 9 Air outlet 13 Water absorption part

Claims (1)

It has a dirty chamber and a clean chamber partitioned by a filter element. The dirty chamber has an air intake opening, the clean chamber has an air outlet, and water is present at the bottom of the dirty chamber. It is a configuration that can accumulate,
The dirty chamber is provided with a water absorbing portion that sucks water accumulated at the bottom of the dirty chamber toward the filter element.
Air cleaner.

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