JP2021127699A - Filter element and air cleaner - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a filter element that can improve versatility, and to provide an air cleaner.SOLUTION: A filter element 14 includes: a filter part 20; and a hard frame part 21 provided along an outer peripheral edge of the filter part 20. A projection part 22 projecting toward the outside is installed across the whole circumference of an outer peripheral surface of the frame part 21. A flexible seal part 26 is installed across the whole circumference of a tip part 25 of the projection part 22 so as to cover the tip part 25 of the projection part 22. A recess part 24 is installed across the whole circumference of a base end part 23 of the projection part 22.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

The present invention relates to an air cleaner of an internal combustion engine and a filter element used for the air cleaner.

Conventionally, as this kind of air cleaner, for example, those shown in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2 are known. The air cleaner described in Patent Document 1 includes a bottomed square box-shaped first housing having an inlet, a bottomed square box-shaped second housing having an outlet, and a filter element. The first housing has a first flange formed so as to project outward over the entire circumference so as to surround the opening. The second housing has a second flange formed so as to project outward over the entire circumference so as to surround the opening.

The filter element has a rectangular filter portion in a plan view made of filter paper, and a seal portion made of an elastic member formed on the outer peripheral edge of the filter portion over the entire circumference. The air cleaner described in Patent Document 1 is assembled so that the seal portion of the filter element is sandwiched between the first flange of the first housing and the second flange of the second housing.

In this case, inside the second flange in the second housing, the seal portion of the filter element is placed on the first flange and the second flange due to the negative pressure generated in the space surrounded by the first housing and the second housing when the air cleaner is used. A convex portion is formed over the entire circumference to prevent the filter element from being drawn inward from between the flange and losing its shape.

On the other hand, the air cleaner described in Patent Document 2 has a bottomed square box-shaped lower housing having an inlet (corresponding to the first housing of Patent Document 1) and a bottomed square box-shaped upper housing having an outlet (Patent). It includes a second housing of Document 1 (corresponding to the second housing) and an element (corresponding to the filter element of Patent Document 1). The element has a filtering portion made of a non-woven fabric and an outer peripheral frame made of a hard synthetic resin provided over the entire outer peripheral portion of the filtering portion.

On the outer peripheral surface of the outer peripheral frame, a protruding portion protruding outward is formed over the entire circumference, and the protruding portion is covered with a seal over the entire circumference. The air cleaner described in Patent Document 2 is assembled so that the seal of the element is sandwiched between the open edges of the lower housing and the upper housing.

In this case, since the element has a structure in which the non-woven fabric filtration portion is surrounded by a hard synthetic resin outer peripheral frame, negative pressure is generated in the space surrounded by the lower housing and the upper housing when the air cleaner is used. However, the seal is not pulled inward from between the open edges of the lower housing and the upper housing. Therefore, the upper housing is not formed with the convex portion formed in the second housing of Patent Document 1 described above.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2017-141743 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2001-295710

By the way, in the air cleaner of Patent Document 1, when the element of Patent Document 2 is used instead of the filter element, the convex portion formed inside the second flange in the second housing of Patent Document 1 is patented. It hits the protruding portion formed on the outer peripheral surface of the outer peripheral frame of the element of Document 2. Therefore, the element of Patent Document 2 cannot be used for the air cleaner of Patent Document 1. Therefore, there is room for improvement in improving the versatility of the element.

The present invention has focused on such problems existing in the prior art. An object of the present invention is to provide a filter element and an air cleaner that can improve versatility.

Hereinafter, means for solving the above problems and their actions and effects will be described.
The filter element that solves the above-mentioned problems is a filter element including a filtration portion and a hard frame portion provided along the outer peripheral edge of the filtration portion, and the outer peripheral surface of the frame portion faces outward. A protruding portion is provided over the entire circumference, and a flexible seal portion is provided over the entire circumference so as to cover the tip portion of the protruding portion at the tip portion of the protruding portion. The gist is that the end portion is provided with a recess over the entire circumference.

Generally, the housing of an air cleaner using a so-called filter paper type filter element having a filter part made of filter paper and a seal part made of an elastic member formed on the outer peripheral edge of the filter part is an inlet and a first. A bottomed box-shaped first housing having one opening and having a first flange formed so as to project outward over the entire circumference so as to surround the first opening, and having an outlet and a second opening. It is provided with a bottomed box-shaped second housing having a second flange formed so as to project outward over the entire circumference so as to surround the second opening. Then, the air cleaner is assembled by sandwiching the seal portion of the filter paper type filter element between the first flange of the first housing and the second flange of the second housing. In this case, inside the second flange in the second housing, the seal portion of the filter element is placed on the first flange and the second flange due to the negative pressure generated in the space surrounded by the first housing and the second housing when the air cleaner is used. A convex portion is formed over the entire circumference to prevent the filter element from being drawn inward from between the flange and losing its shape.

According to this configuration, a recess is provided at the base end of the protrusion over the entire circumference. Therefore, when assembling to the housing of an air cleaner in which a filter paper type filter element is used, the recess at the base end of the protrusion A convex portion formed inside the second flange in the second housing is inserted. That is, when the filter element of this configuration is assembled to the housing of the air cleaner in which the filter paper type filter element is used, the frame portion and the protruding portion do not hit the convex portion, so that the filter element of this configuration can be assembled to the housing without any problem. Can be done. Therefore, versatility can be improved.

The air cleaner that solves the above problems includes a bottomed box-shaped first housing having an inlet and a first opening, a bottomed box-shaped second housing having an outlet and a second opening, and a filter element having the above configuration. The first housing surrounds the first opening and has a first flange formed so as to project outward over the entire circumference, and the second housing surrounds the second opening and The filter element has a second flange formed so as to project outward over the entire circumference, and the seal portion is sandwiched between the first flange of the first housing and the second flange of the second housing. A convex portion protruding toward the first housing side is formed on the inside of the second flange in the second housing over the entire circumference, and the convex portion is inserted into the concave portion of the filter element. The gist is that.

According to this configuration, the filter element having the above configuration can be assembled to the housing of the air cleaner in which the filter paper type filter element is used, so that the versatility of the filter element having the above configuration can be improved.

The plan view of the air cleaner which assembled the resin frame type filter element of one Embodiment to the housing for the filter paper type filter element. Bottom view of FIG. FIG. 1 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a main part of FIG. FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a main part of the resin frame type filter element of one embodiment. An enlarged cross-sectional view of a main part of an air cleaner using a filter paper type filter element. An enlarged cross-sectional view of a main part of an air cleaner using a resin frame type filter element of a comparative example.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the air cleaner of the internal combustion engine will be described with reference to the drawings.
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the air cleaner 11 is arranged in the intake passage of the engine which is an in-vehicle internal combustion engine. The air cleaner 11 has a first housing 12 made of synthetic resin having a first opening 12a and having a bottomed rectangular box shape, and a second housing 13 made of synthetic resin having a second opening 13a and having a bottomed rectangular box shape. And a filter element 14 arranged between the first housing 12 and the second housing 13.

A cylindrical inlet 15 through which air flows is provided on the side wall of the first housing 12. On the outside of the first opening 12a in the first housing 12, a first flange 16 is provided so as to surround the first opening 12a and project outward over the entire circumference. A cylindrical outlet 17 through which air flows is provided on the side wall of the second housing 13.

On the outside of the second opening 13a in the second housing 13, a second flange 18 is provided so as to surround the second opening 13a and project outward over the entire circumference. In the second flange 18, the base end portion 18a faces the first flange 16, and the tip end portion 18b is bent at a right angle toward the first housing 12 side. The tip portion 18b of the second flange 18 is located slightly outside the first flange 16. Inside the second flange 18 of the second housing 13, a convex portion 19 projecting toward the first housing 12 side is formed over the entire circumference. The convex portion 19 is located slightly inside the inner peripheral surface 12b of the first housing 12.

The filter element 14 includes a plan-view rectangular filter portion 20 for filtering air, and a plan-view rectangular frame-shaped frame portion 21 made of a hard synthetic resin provided along the outer peripheral edge of the filter section 20. It is a so-called resin frame type filter element. The filtration unit 20 is configured by, for example, folding a rectangular non-woven fabric. At the center of the outer peripheral surface of the frame portion 21, a protruding portion 22 projecting outward is provided over the entire circumference.

The base end portion 23 of the projecting portion 22 is provided with a recess 24 into which the convex portion 19 of the second housing 13 is inserted over the entire circumference. That is, the base end portion 23 of the protruding portion 22 extends so as to be curved toward the second housing 13 so that the recess 24 is formed on the second housing 13 side. In this case, the convex portion 19 is inserted so as not to come into contact with the concave portion 24. The tip portion 25 of the protrusion 22 is provided with a flexible seal portion 26 over the entire circumference so as to cover the tip portion 25 of the protrusion 22.

The seal portion 26 is made of a flexible material such as rubber so as to form a substantially U shape in a cross-sectional view, and is attached so as to sandwich the tip portion 25 with respect to the tip portion 25 of the protrusion 22. Lip portions 26a are provided in pairs on the first flange 16 side and the second flange 18 side of the seal portion 26. When no external force acts, the pair of lip portions 26a extend obliquely with respect to the tip portion 25 so as to be separated from each other as shown in FIG.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the sealing portion 26 is sandwiched between the first flange 16 and the second flange 18 and seals between the first flange 16 and the second flange 18. In this case, the pair of lip portions 26a come into contact with the first flange 16 and the second flange 18, respectively, in a state of being compressed and elastically deformed by the first flange 16 and the second flange 18. Between the recess 24 and the seal portion 26 in the protrusion 22, a restraining portion 27 that prevents the seal portion 26 from coming off from the tip portion 25 of the protrusion 22 is provided over the entire circumference.

The restraining portion 27 is formed integrally with the base end portion 23 of the protruding portion 22, and projects toward the second flange 18 side. That is, the suppressing portion 27 covers the opening side of the substantially U-shaped seal portion 26, and prevents other members or the like from being caught on the opening side of the sealing portion 26 when handling the filter element 14. It prevents at least a part of the seal portion 26 from coming off from the tip portion 25 of the protruding portion 22.

At positions adjacent to the protrusion 22 on the outer peripheral surface of the frame portion 21 of the filter element 14 on the side opposite to the recess 24 side, a plurality of substantially rectangular plate-shaped ribs 28 protruding outward are arranged in the circumferential direction. It is provided at intervals. Each rib 28 is integrally formed with the frame portion 21. The tip of each rib 28 in the protruding direction of the frame portion 21 from the outer peripheral surface is close to the inner peripheral surface 12b of the first housing 12.

At the end of each rib 28 opposite to the recess 24 side, a tapered portion 28a is formed in which the height of protrusion from the outer peripheral surface of the frame portion 21 gradually decreases as the distance from the recess 24 increases. The first housing 12 and the second housing 13 are fastened by a clamp (not shown).

Here, FIG. 5 shows a so-called filter paper type having a filtering portion 30 formed by folding the filter paper and a sealing portion 31 made of an elastic member such as rubber formed on the outer peripheral edge of the filtering portion 30 over the entire circumference. An air cleaner 33 using the filter element 32 of the above is shown. The air cleaner 33 is formed by assembling a filter paper type filter element 32 to the first housing 12 and the second housing 13 described above. That is, the above-mentioned first housing 12 and second housing 13 are housings for the filter paper type filter element 32.

Therefore, inside the second flange 18 in the second housing 13, the sealing portion 31 of the filter element 32 and the first flange 16 are formed by the negative pressure generated in the space surrounded by the first housing 12 and the second housing 13. A convex portion 19 is formed over the entire circumference to prevent the filter element 32 from being drawn inward from between the second flange 18 and losing its shape.

Further, FIG. 6 shows an air cleaner 41 using a general resin frame type filter element 40 as a comparative example of the above-mentioned filter element 14. In the filter element 40, the frame portion 21 is changed to the frame portion 42 in the filter element 14. The frame portion 42 is provided with a protruding portion 43. The protruding portion 43 is obtained by omitting the base end portion 23 and the suppressing portion 27 from the above-mentioned protruding portion 22. That is, the protruding portion 43 has the same configuration as the tip portion 25 of the protruding portion 22 described above.

The air cleaner 41 is formed by assembling the filter element 40 to the first housing 44 and the second housing 45. In the second housing 45, the convex portion 19 is omitted in the second housing 13 described above, and the inner peripheral surface 45a is flush with the inner peripheral surface 44a of the first housing 44.

Then, when the general resin frame type filter element 40 of FIG. 6 is to be assembled to the above-mentioned first housing 12 and second housing 13 which are the housings for the filter paper type filter element 32 of FIG. The frame portion 42 and the protruding portion 43 of the filter element 40 correspond to the convex portion 19 of the second housing 13.

Therefore, the general resin frame type filter element 40 cannot be assembled to the above-mentioned first housing 12 and second housing 13, which are housings for the filter paper type filter element 32. Therefore, the general resin frame type filter element 40 can only be assembled to the first housing 44 and the second housing 45, which are dedicated housings.

In this respect, the above-mentioned filter element 14 has a concave portion 24 into which the convex portion 19 of the second housing 13 is inserted. Therefore, not only the first housing 44 and the second housing 45, which are the housings for the general resin frame type filter element 40, but also the above-mentioned first housings 12 and the first housings 12 and the housings for the filter paper type filter element 32. 2 It can also be assembled to the housing 13.

Therefore, by changing the general resin frame type filter element 40 to the filter element 14, the first housing 44 and the second housing 45, which are the housings for the general resin frame type filter element 40, can be abolished. That is, the above-mentioned first housing 12 and second housing 13, which are housings for the filter paper type filter element 32, can be shared with the filter element 32 and the filter element 14.

Next, a method of assembling the air cleaner 11 will be described.
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, when assembling the air cleaner 11, first, the filter element 14 is inserted into the first housing 12 from the first opening 12a from the rib 28 side. At this time, even if the position of the filter element 14 is slightly displaced with respect to the first opening 12a, the tapered portion 28a of each rib 28 slides on the upper end portion of the peripheral wall of the first housing 12, so that the filter element 14 can be moved. It is guided to the central portion in the first housing 12.

Subsequently, the filter element 14 is inserted into the first housing 12, and the seal portion 26 is placed on the first flange 16. At this time, since the gap between the filter element 14 and the inner peripheral surface 12b of the first housing 12 is narrowed by each rib 28, rattling in the first housing 12 is suppressed. Subsequently, the second housing 13 is covered with the filter element 14 from the second opening 13a side so as to cover the side of the filter element 14 opposite to the first housing 12 side.

At this time, in the second flange 18, the base end portion 18a sandwiches the seal portion 26 with the first flange 16, and the convex portion 19 is inserted into the concave portion 24 of the filter element 14 in a non-contact state. After that, the assembly work of the air cleaner 11 is completed by fastening the first housing 12 and the second housing 13 with a clamp (not shown).

As described above, although the filter element 14 is a resin frame type filter element, it can be assembled to the above-mentioned first housing 12 and second housing 13 which are housings for the filter paper type filter element 32 (see FIG. 5). can. Therefore, the first housing 12 and the second housing 13 can be shared with the filter paper type filter element 32 and the resin frame type filter element 14.

According to the embodiment described in detail above, the following effects are exhibited.
(1) In the filter element 14, the base end portion 23 of the protruding portion 22 in the frame portion 21 is provided with a concave portion 24 into which the convex portion 19 can be inserted over the entire circumference. Generally, a housing of an air cleaner 33 in which a so-called filter paper type filter element 32 having a filter portion 30 made of filter paper and a seal portion 31 made of an elastic member formed on the outer peripheral edge of the filter portion 30 is used. Is a bottomed rectangular box-shaped first housing 12 having an inlet 15 and a first opening 12a and having a first flange 16 formed so as to surround the first opening 12a so as to project outward over the entire circumference. And a bottomed rectangular box-shaped second housing 13 having an outlet 17 and a second opening 13a and having a second flange 18 formed so as to surround the second opening 13a so as to project outward over the entire circumference. And have. Then, the air cleaner 11 is assembled by sandwiching the seal portion 31 of the filter paper type filter element 32 between the first flange 16 of the first housing 12 and the second flange 18 of the second housing 13. In this case, inside the second flange 18 in the second housing 13, the seal portion 31 of the filter element 32 is formed by the negative pressure generated in the space surrounded by the first housing 12 and the second housing 13 when the air cleaner 11 is used. A convex portion 19 is formed over the entire circumference to prevent the filter element 32 from being drawn inward from between the first flange 16 and the second flange 18 and losing its shape.

According to this configuration, since the recess 24 is provided in the base end portion 23 of the protrusion 22 over the entire circumference, when the filter paper type filter element 32 is assembled to the housing of the air cleaner 33, the protrusion is provided. A convex portion 19 formed inside the second flange 18 in the second housing 13 is inserted into the concave portion 24 of the base end portion 23 of the 22. That is, when the resin frame type filter element 14 is assembled to the first housing 12 and the second housing 13 of the air cleaner 33 in which the filter paper type filter element 32 is used, the frame portion 21 and the protruding portion 22 do not hit the convex portion 19. Therefore, the filter element 14 can be assembled to the first housing 12 and the second housing 13 without any problem. Therefore, the versatility of the filter element 14 can be improved.

(2) In the filter element 14, a plurality of ribs 28 protruding outward are spaced apart in the circumferential direction at positions adjacent to the protruding portion 22 on the outer peripheral surface of the frame portion 21 on the side opposite to the recess 24 side. Is provided. According to this configuration, when the filter element 14 is assembled to the first housing 12, the distance between the inner peripheral surface 12b of the first housing 12 and the filter element 14 can be shortened as compared with the case where each rib 28 is not provided. can. Therefore, rattling of the filter element 14 in the first housing 12 can be suppressed as compared with the case where each rib 28 is not provided. In addition, when the filter element 14 is assembled to the first housing 12, each rib 28 guides the filter element 14 into the first housing 12, so that the assembling property of the filter element 14 to the first housing 12 can be improved.

(3) In the filter element 14, each rib 28 is integrally formed with the frame portion 21. According to this configuration, the number of parts can be reduced as compared with the case where each rib 28 is formed separately from the frame portion 21.

(4) In the filter element 14, between the concave portion 24 of the protruding portion 22 and the sealing portion 26, a suppressing portion 27 for suppressing the seal portion 26 from coming off from the protruding portion 22 is provided over the entire circumference. According to this configuration, the restraining portion 27 can prevent the sealing portion 26 from coming off from the protruding portion 22. That is, since the suppressing portion 27 can prevent other members from being caught on the opening side of the sealing portion 26 when handling the filter element 14, at least a part of the sealing portion 26 can be prevented from coming off from the tip portion 25 of the protruding portion 22. Can be suppressed.

(Change example)
The above embodiment may be changed as follows.
-The suppression unit 27 may be omitted.

-Each rib 28 may be formed separately from the frame portion 21.
-Each rib 28 may be omitted.
The number, shape, and position of the ribs 28 formed on the frame portion 21 may be appropriately changed.

-In each rib 28, the tapered portion 28a may be omitted.

11 ... Air cleaner 12 ... 1st housing 12a ... 1st opening 13 ... 2nd housing 13a ... 2nd opening 14 ... Filter element 15 ... Inlet 16 ... 1st flange 17 ... Outlet 18 ... 2nd flange 19 ... Convex part 20 ... Filtration Part 21 ... Frame part 22 ... Protruding part 23 ... Base end part of protruding part 24 ... Recessed part 25 ... Tip part of protruding part 26 ... Seal part 27 ... Suppressing part 28 ... Rib

Claims (5)

A filter element including a filtration unit and a hard frame portion provided along the outer peripheral edge of the filtration unit.
On the outer peripheral surface of the frame portion, a protruding portion protruding outward is provided over the entire circumference.
A flexible sealing portion is provided on the tip of the protruding portion over the entire circumference so as to cover the tip of the protruding portion.
A filter element characterized in that a concave portion is provided over the entire circumference at a base end portion of the protruding portion. A plurality of ribs protruding outward are provided at positions adjacent to the protruding portion on the outer peripheral surface of the frame portion on the side opposite to the concave portion side at intervals in the circumferential direction. The filter element according to claim 1. The filter element according to claim 2, wherein each rib is integrally formed with the frame portion. Claims 1 to claim that an suppressing portion for suppressing the seal portion from coming off from the protruding portion is provided between the concave portion and the seal portion in the protruding portion over the entire circumference. The filter element according to any one of 3. A bottomed box-shaped first housing having an inlet and a first opening, a bottomed box-shaped second housing having an outlet and a second opening, and any one of claims 1 to 4. With the described filter elements
The first housing has a first flange that surrounds the first opening and is formed so as to project outward over the entire circumference.
The second housing has a second flange that surrounds the second opening and is formed so as to project outward over the entire circumference.
In the filter element, the seal portion is sandwiched between the first flange of the first housing and the second flange of the second housing.
Inside the second flange of the second housing, a convex portion protruding toward the first housing side is formed over the entire circumference.
An air cleaner characterized in that the convex portion is inserted into the concave portion of the filter element.

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