JP2017057767A - Air cleaner - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an air cleaner which inhibits a moisture content contained in suctioned air from contacting with a filter part of a filter element.SOLUTION: An air cleaner 10 includes: a first case 20 having an upper opening 21 and an inlet 25; a second case 30 having a lower opening 31 and an outlet 35; and a filter element 40 provided between the upper opening 21 of the first case 20 and the lower opening 31 of the second case 30. A communication hole which allows the interior and exterior of the first case 20 to communicate with each other is formed on a bottom wall 24 of the first case 20. A guide wall 27, which is formed by a porous material and inserted into the communication hole, is provided protruding within the first case 20.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention is provided between a first case having a first opening and an inlet, a second case having a second opening and an outlet, and the first opening of the first case and the second opening of the second case. The present invention relates to a filter element and an air cleaner provided.

  An example of this type of air cleaner is described in Patent Document 1. The air cleaner for in-vehicle internal combustion engines described in Patent Document 1 includes a case having an upper opening and an inlet, and a cap having a lower opening and an outlet. Further, a part of the bottom wall of the case is a drainage portion formed of a porous material. For example, when it rains, moisture is sucked into the case together with air through the inlet, and the moisture is collected at the bottom of the case. According to the air cleaner described in Patent Literature 1, the water accumulated at the bottom of the case as described above is absorbed by the numerous pores of the drainage portion formed of the porous material. And the absorbed water evaporates from the outer surface of a drain part, or is dripped, and is discharged | emitted outside the case.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-343937

  By the way, in the case of the air cleaner of patent document 1, the water | moisture content inhaled into the case through the inlet will contact the filtration part of a filter element, and will moisten the filtration part. Therefore, the problem that a filtration part tends to become weak and the problem that it is easy to be clogged arise.

  In addition, this air cleaner discharges water staying at the bottom of the case to the outside through the drainage portion. For this reason, when the amount of water staying at the bottom of the case is large, the water may be taken away by air and may come into contact with the filtration portion of the filter element.

  The objective of this invention is providing the air cleaner which can suppress the water | moisture content contained in the inhaled air contacting a filtration part of a filter element.

  An air cleaner for achieving the above object includes a first case having a first opening and an inlet, a second case having a second opening and an outlet, a first opening of the first case, and a second case of the second case. And a filter element provided between the openings. A communication hole that communicates the inside and the outside is formed in the lower wall of the first case, and a guide wall that is formed of a porous material and is inserted into the communication hole is projected from the inside of the first case. ing.

  According to this configuration, when the air sucked into the first case through the inlet flows along the guide wall formed by the porous material or passes through the guide wall, moisture contained in the air guides it. It will be captured by the wall. In this way, moisture is separated from the air by the guide wall. The trapped moisture moves down along the guide wall due to its own weight and is discharged to the outside of the first case through the communication hole.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, it can suppress that the water | moisture content contained in the inhaled air contacts the filtration part of a filter element.

The perspective view of one embodiment of an air cleaner. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the air cleaner taken along line 2-2 in FIG. 1. The perspective view of the 1st case of the embodiment. FIG. 4 is a partial cross-sectional view of the first case along line 4-4 in FIG. 3. The top view of the air cleaner of the embodiment. It is sectional drawing which shows the procedure which manufactures the air cleaner of the embodiment, Comprising: (a) is a figure which shows the lower mold | type which comprises a shaping | molding die, an upper mold | type, a slide mold | type, and the nonwoven fabric used as a guide wall mutually spaced apart. , (B) is a diagram showing a state in which the mold is closed. It is sectional drawing which shows the procedure which manufactures the air cleaner of the embodiment, (a) is a figure which shows the state with which molten resin was filled in the cavity, (b) is the 1st case taken out from the shaping | molding die, The figure which shows a shaping | molding die mutually spaced apart. The fragmentary sectional view of the 1st case of a modification. The top view of the air cleaner of another modification. Sectional drawing of the air cleaner of another modification.

Hereinafter, an embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the air cleaner 10 is provided in an intake passage of an in-vehicle internal combustion engine, and includes a first case 20 having an upper opening 21 and a second case 30 having a lower opening 31. ing. Both the first case 20 and the second case 30 are made of a hard synthetic resin material. The upper opening 21 of the first case 20 and the lower opening 31 of the second case 30 are both rectangular.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, a flange 22 is formed on the periphery of the upper opening 21 of the first case 20. A cylindrical inlet 25 for introducing air from an inlet duct (not shown) into the inside of the first case 20 protrudes outward from the peripheral wall 23 of the first case 20.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a flange 32 is formed on the periphery of the lower opening 31 of the second case 30. A cylindrical outlet 35 that supplies air toward a combustion chamber (not shown) of the internal combustion engine projects outwardly from the peripheral wall 33 of the second case 30.

  A filter element 40 for filtering air is provided between the upper opening 21 of the first case 20 and the lower opening 31 of the second case 30. The filter element 40 has a rectangular shape in plan view corresponding to the shapes of the upper opening 21 of the first case 20 and the lower opening 31 of the second case 30.

  The filter element 40 includes a filtration part 41 formed by folding a filter medium such as filter paper, and a seal part 42 formed on the periphery of the filtration part 41. The seal portion 42 is formed of closed cell polyurethane resin.

  The seal portion 42 is held in a compressed state by the flange 22 of the first case 20 and the flange 32 of the second case 30. The seal portion 42 seals between the first case 20 and the second case 30.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the bottom wall 24 of the first case 20 is formed with an arc-shaped communication hole 26 that communicates the inside and outside of the first case 20. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a guide wall 27 formed of a porous material is inserted into the communication hole 26. The porous material of this embodiment is a nonwoven fabric formed of, for example, polypropylene fibers. As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the guide wall 27 has an upright portion 271 that protrudes into the first case 20 and a bent portion 272 that is bent at a right angle at the lower end of the upright portion 271. .

As shown in FIG. 3, the upright portion 271 has a plate shape curved along the arc shape of the communication hole 26.
As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, a frame body 28 made of the same synthetic resin material as that of the first case 20 is fixed to the peripheral portion of the upright portion 271, specifically the upper edge portion and both side edge portions. ing. The frame body 28 is formed integrally with the bottom wall 24. With this frame body 28, the rigidity of the peripheral portion of the guide wall 27 is higher than the rigidity of other portions of the guide wall 27.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the upper half of the bent portion 272 is located inside the communication hole 26, while the lower half of the bent portion 272 protrudes outside the first case 20. Therefore, the lower end of the guide wall 27 protrudes outside the first case 20.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the guide wall 27 is located on the axis of the inlet 25, and the curved concave surface of the upright portion 271 faces the opening of the inlet 25. The air from the inlet 25 is smoothly guided toward the outlet 35 by the concave surface of the guide wall 27, so that the pressure loss in the air cleaner 10 is reduced.

  Next, with reference to FIG.6 and FIG.7, the procedure which manufactures the 1st case 20 of this embodiment is demonstrated. 6 and 7 are diagrams schematically showing the flange 22 and the inlet 25 of the first case 20 and portions corresponding thereto for the sake of simplicity of explanation.

As shown in FIG. 6A, the molding die 50 for molding the first case 20 includes a lower die 51, an upper die 52, and a slide die 53.
As shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B, when the mold 50 is closed, the inner surface of the concave portion 522 formed on the lower surface of the convex portion 521 of the upper mold 52 is opposed to the same inner surface. The portion of the non-woven fabric that becomes the upright portion 271 of the guide wall 27 is compressed by the inner surface of the slide mold 53. Further, the lower end portion of the nonwoven fabric that becomes the bent portion 272 of the guide wall 27 is bent and compressed by the lower surface of the slide die 53 and the upper surface of the concave portion 511 of the lower die 51 facing the lower surface. At this time, the cavity 61 is formed by the concave portion 511 of the lower mold 51, the convex portion 521 of the upper mold 52, and the slide mold 53. Further, a cavity 62 is formed by the portion of the nonwoven fabric that becomes the upright portion 271 of the guide wall 27 and the upper portion of the recess 522.

Subsequently, molten resin is supplied to the cavities 61 and 62 through a supply passage (not shown).
As a result, as shown in FIG. 7A, the peripheral wall 23 and the bottom wall 24 of the first case 20 are molded by the molten resin filled in the cavity 61. Further, the frame body 28 is formed by the molten resin filled in the cavity 62. Here, since the upright portion 271 and the bent portion 272 of the guide wall 27 are compressed in the above-described manner, the molten resin is preferably prevented from penetrating into the nonwoven fabric.

  Finally, as shown in FIG. 7B, when the first case 20 is removed from the mold 50, the thickness of the guide wall 27 that has been compressed by the mold 50 is restored to the original state. Thereby, the bent portion 272 of the guide wall 27 protrudes downward from the bottom wall 24 of the first case 20.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described.
When the air sucked into the first case 20 through the inlet 25 flows along the guide wall 27 formed by the porous material or passes through the guide wall 27, moisture contained in the air is guided by the guide wall 27. Will be captured. In this way, moisture is separated from the air by the guide wall 27. The trapped moisture moves down the guide wall 27 due to its own weight and is discharged to the outside of the first case 20 through the communication hole 26.

According to the air cleaner according to the present embodiment described above, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) A communication hole 26 is formed in the bottom wall 24 of the first case 20 so as to communicate inside and outside. The guide wall is formed in the first case 20 by a porous material and is inserted into the communication hole 26. 27 is protrudingly provided.

According to such a structure, it can suppress that the water | moisture content contained in the inhaled air contacts the filtration part 41 of the filter element 40 by having the said effect | action.
(2) The guide wall 27 is located on the axis of the inlet 25. In this case, since the guide wall 27 faces the opening of the inlet 25, the moisture sucked together with the air into the first case 20 through the inlet 25 is easily captured by the guide wall 27. For this reason, the water | moisture content contained in the inhaled air can be captured effectively, and can be discharged outside.

(3) A frame body 28 is provided at the peripheral portion of the guide wall 27, and the rigidity of the peripheral portion of the guide wall 27 is higher than the rigidity of other portions of the guide wall 27.
According to such a configuration, the durability of the guide wall 27 can be increased by reinforcing the guide wall 27 by the frame body 28. Further, by providing the frame body 28 at the peripheral portion of the guide wall 27, the rigidity of the peripheral portion of the guide wall 27 can be easily increased as compared with other portions of the guide wall 27.

  (4) The frame body 28 is integrally formed with the bottom wall 24 of the first case 20. For this reason, compared with the structure by which the frame 28 and the bottom wall 24 of the 1st case 20 are made into a different body, the number of the components of the air cleaner 10 can be reduced.

(5) The lower end of the guide wall 27 protrudes outside the first case 20.
According to such a configuration, when the wind flowing in the engine room hits the lower end of the guide wall 27, moisture existing at the lower end portion of the guide wall 27 is easily taken away. Thereby, the discharge of moisture by the guide wall 27 is promoted.

<Modification>
In addition, the said embodiment can also be changed as follows, for example.
-Outlet 35 can also be provided in the top wall 34 (refer FIG.1 and FIG.2) of the 2nd case 30. FIG.

As shown in FIG. 8, it is possible to prevent the lower end portion of the guide wall 27 from being bent.
The lower end of the guide wall 27 may be located inside the communication hole 26. That is, the lower end of the guide wall 27 may not protrude from the bottom wall 24 of the first case 20.

  -As shown in FIG. 9, the inlet 25, the guide wall 27, and the outlet 35 can also be arrange | positioned. In this case, the air is easily diffused by the guide wall 27, and the air passes through a wider portion of the filtering portion 41 of the filter element 40. For this reason, the amount of dust trapped by the filter element 40 can be increased.

  In the above-described embodiment, the configuration in which the first case 20 and the second case 30 are opposed to each other up and down is illustrated. However, as illustrated in FIG. 10, the first case 20 and the second case 30 are opposed to the left and right. It may be arranged. In this case, the lower part of the peripheral wall 23 of the first case 20 corresponds to the lower wall. An inlet 25 is provided on the bottom wall 24 of the first case 20, and an outlet 35 is provided on the top wall 34 of the second case 30. A communication hole that communicates the inside and the outside is formed in a portion corresponding to the lower wall of the peripheral wall 23, and a guide wall 27 that communicates with the communication hole is provided inside the first case 20. ing. Even in such a configuration, the effect according to the effect (1) of the embodiment can be obtained.

The frame body 28 can be formed separately from the bottom wall 24 of the first case 20.
The frame body 28 can be omitted. In this case, it is preferable to increase the rigidity of the peripheral edge by, for example, hot pressing the peripheral edge of the nonwoven fabric to be the guide wall 27.

If the guide wall is formed of a highly rigid porous material, the rigidity of the peripheral edge of the guide wall need not be higher than the rigidity of other parts of the guide part.
-A guide wall can also be arrange | positioned in the position which remove | deviated from the axis line of the inlet 25. FIG. Even in this case, mist-like water contained in the air flowing meandering inside the first case 20, that is, relatively small water droplets can be captured by the guide wall.

  -The porous material which forms a guide wall can also be formed, for example with a sponge.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Air cleaner, 20 ... 1st case, 21 ... Upper opening (1st opening), 22 ... Flange, 23 ... Perimeter wall, 24 ... Bottom wall (lower wall), 25 ... Inlet, 26 ... Communication hole, 27 ... Guide wall 271: Upright portion, 272: Bending portion, 28: Frame body, 30: Second case, 31: Lower opening (second opening), 32 ... Flange, 33 ... Perimeter wall, 34 ... Top wall, 35 ... Outlet, 40 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS ... Filter element, 41 ... Filtration part, 42 ... Seal part, 50 ... Mold, 51 ... Lower mold, 52 ... Upper mold, 53 ... Slide type.

Claims (6)

A filter case provided between a first case having a first opening and an inlet, a second case having a second opening and an outlet, and a first opening of the first case and a second opening of the second case In an air cleaner comprising:
The lower wall of the first case is formed with a communication hole that communicates inside and outside,
Inside the first case, a guide wall formed of a porous material and inserted through the communication hole is projected.
Air cleaner. The guide wall is located on an axis of the inlet;
The air cleaner according to claim 1. The rigidity of the peripheral edge of the guide wall is higher than the rigidity of other parts of the guide wall.
The air cleaner according to claim 1 or 2. A frame is provided on the peripheral edge of the guide wall,
The air cleaner according to claim 3. The frame is integrally formed with a lower wall of the first case;
The air cleaner according to claim 4. A lower end of the guide wall protrudes outside the first case;
The air cleaner as described in any one of Claims 1-5.

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