KR101693348B1

KR101693348B1 - Active Air Flap

Info

Publication number: KR101693348B1
Application number: KR1020110023879A
Authority: KR
Inventors: 소원섭; 공태윤; 김재용; 박성욱
Original assignee: 한온시스템 주식회사
Priority date: 2011-03-17
Filing date: 2011-03-17
Publication date: 2017-01-06
Also published as: KR20120106046A

Abstract

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an active air flap for regulating cooling air flowing into a heat exchanger for a vehicle. More particularly, the present invention relates to an active air flap, To an active air flap.
The active air flap according to the present invention can prevent the door from being detached from the door due to foreign matter entering the door shaft, thereby reducing the loss of function of the active air flap caused by the detachment of the door, Thereby preventing the secondary damage caused by the secondary damages.

Description

Active Air Flap

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an active air flap for regulating cooling air flowing into a heat exchanger for a vehicle. More particularly, the present invention relates to an active air flap, To an active air flap.

Generally, in an engine room of a vehicle, various heat exchangers such as a radiator, an intercooler, an evaporator, a condenser, and the like for cooling each component in the vehicle such as an engine or the like, Respectively. Such heat exchangers generally have a heat exchange medium therein, and the heat exchange medium inside the heat exchanger and the air outside the heat exchanger exchange heat with each other, thereby cooling or dissipating heat. Therefore, in order for the various heat exchangers in the vehicle engine room to operate stably, it is natural that outside air should be supplied smoothly into the engine room. Hereinafter, the heat exchangers provided for cooling the vehicle parts or the vehicle interior as described above are collectively referred to as heat exchangers.

In recent years, automobile development tends to reduce the number of components and processes in order to improve productivity. In order to improve productivity, many parts are assembled to form an assembly, assembled in an assembly line, That is, a technique of modularization has been proposed. As a representative example of the module, a front end module in which a bumper including a heat exchanger, a head lamp, and a bumper beam stay is assembled and modularized can be mentioned.

1 is an exploded perspective view of a front end module, and FIG. 2 is a conventional AAF exploded perspective view. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a conventional AAF, and FIG. 4 is a partial enlarged view of FIG.

The front end module includes a front panel 11 and a support panel 12 extending from both ends of the front panel at a predetermined angle. A heat exchanger 30 is mounted on the rear side of the front panel 11 of the carrier 10 and a head lamp mounting portion 12a formed on the support panel 12 of the carrier 10 And a bumper 20 is mounted in front of the carrier 10 to be modularized.

The heat exchanger 30 may be modularized by a cooling module including a heat exchanger 30 and disposed behind the front panel 11 and may be formed in various ways according to the design. FIG.

In the front end module shown in FIG. 1, in order to smoothly flow outside air to the heat exchanger 30 provided in the inside of the carrier 10, an opening 21 are formed.

The opening 21 may be formed simply as a hole. In order to prevent foreign matter from entering the opening 21, a net or grill structure may be formed on the opening 21 And the like.

When the vehicle travels, the outside air is rapidly introduced into the opening 21, so that heat exchange can be smoothly performed in the heat exchanger 30 provided inside the carrier 10.

However, external air inflow due to the opening portion 21 does not contribute to improvement of aerodynamic force and fuel efficiency until the initial start of the vehicle and the engine temperature rise within a certain range.

Also, when the vehicle travels at a high speed, the flow of the air flowing into the opening portion 21 is also very fast, and thus the air resistance becomes very large. Since the air resistance is increased as the vehicle running speed increases, the vehicle engine must generate more energy, resulting in poor fuel economy.

The conventional opening 21 is a fixed structure in which only holes are formed and it is basically impossible to control the flow rate of the air flowing in the running of the vehicle and so on. There is a problem that the problem of reduction in fuel consumption due to an increase in the resistance of the air flowing into the engine room during driving can not be solved.

2, an active air flap (not shown) is disposed between the opening 21 and the heat exchanger 30 to regulate the amount of air introduced from the opening 21, ) 40 (hereinafter referred to as AAF).

The AAF 40 seals the opening 21 at the time of initial startup and until the engine temperature is within a certain range to help improve aerodynamics and fuel economy. When the engine temperature becomes a certain temperature or more, the opening 21 is opened It helps to cool the engine, and when the vehicle is running at high speed, the air flow rate is appropriately controlled to reduce the air resistance.

The AAF 40 includes a first air duct 41 positioned at the rear end of the opening 21 and guiding air introduced through the opening 21 and a second air duct 41 positioned on the first air duct 41, A door 42 which is coupled to the rear end of the first air duct 41 and which is rotatably coupled to the door 42, An air duct 43 and an actuator 44 provided on the second air duct 43 to rotate the door 42 by rotation; .

3 and 4, the shaft 42a, which is positioned on both sides of the door 42, is fitted into the insertion portion 43a formed on the second air duct 43. As shown in FIGS. However, due to the characteristics of the AAF 40 located at the front of the vehicle, foreign matter (dust and sand) can be easily introduced into the shaft 42a.

When the foreign substances are introduced into the shaft 42a of the door 42, the door operating force is increased and the shaft is abraded by the foreign substance, so that the door may be easily detached. Further, if the AAF function is lost due to door detachment, an additional problem may occur that the engine overheat and normal air-conditioner operation become impossible due to the increase in the temperature in the engine room.

Therefore, in order to prevent the AAF from escaping from the door, it is required to develop the technology of AAF that can block foreign substances from entering into the shaft.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a vehicular active air flap, which is capable of preventing foreign matter from flowing into the vicinity of a door shaft, The present invention provides an active air flap which is provided with a guide rail on an air duct so as to prevent foreign matter from entering the air duct.

An active air flap according to the present invention comprises a carrier (10) comprising a front panel (11) and a support panel (12) extending from both ends of the front panel (11) A bumper 20 having an opening 21 through which air flows to the rear of the carrier 10 and a heat exchanger 30 mounted on the rear side of the front panel 11 of the carrier 10, The active air flap 400 is disposed at the rear end of the opening 21 and flows through the opening 21 in the active air flap 400. In the active air flap 400, An air duct 430 for guiding air; A door 420 provided inside the air duct 430 and opening or closing the air duct 430 by rotating a shaft 420a formed at both ends of the air duct 430 by a rotation axis; And an actuator (440) provided in the air duct (430) and rotating the door (420) by rotation; The door 420 is spaced apart from the door 420 by a predetermined distance in a direction perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the shaft 420a and a protector 500 is formed to surround the shaft 420a.

At this time, the protection unit 500 is formed in the front side of the vehicle when the door 420 is closed.

A guide rail 600 is formed in the air duct 430 so that the protector 500 is inserted and slid.

In particular, the guide rail 600 includes a first rail 610 which abuts on one side of the protection unit 500 and a second rail 620 which abuts on the other side of the protection unit 500 .

The active air flap according to the present invention can prevent the door from being detached from the door due to foreign matter entering the door shaft, thereby reducing the loss of function of the active air flap caused by the detachment of the door, Thereby preventing the secondary damage caused by the secondary damages.

1 is an exploded perspective view of a FEM
FIG. 2 is a cross-
3 is a cross-
4 is a partial enlarged view of Fig. 3
Figure 5 is a front exploded perspective view of the AAF of the present invention
6 is a rear exploded perspective view of the AAF of the present invention
7 is a side view
Fig. 8 is a perspective view of the protective part and guide rail combined perspective view

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

1, the present invention is characterized by comprising a carrier 10 comprising a front panel 11 and a support panel 12 extending from both ends of the front panel 11, A bumper 20 having an opening 21 for allowing air to flow to the rear of the carrier 10 and a heat exchanger 30 mounted on the rear of the front panel 11 of the carrier 10 to form a core The present invention relates to an active air flap (hereinafter, referred to as an AAF) 400 provided in a front end module formed by a front end module to open or close the opening 21, An opening 21 through which the air flows may be formed so that the heat exchanger 30 is air-cooled.

The opening 21 is formed in the bumper 200 to allow the air to flow into the heat exchanger 30 smoothly. However, the amount of air entering the vehicle at the time of traveling at a high speed is also increased more than necessary, The air acts as a resistor, which causes the vehicle fuel consumption to be reduced.

The opening portion 21 is divided into an upper opening portion formed on the upper side of the bumper and a lower opening portion formed on the lower side of the bumper. The AAF 400 is shown as a single structure in the drawing, The AAF 400 may be installed in both the upper opening and the lower opening.

5 to 8, the AAF 400 of the present invention has a structure capable of opening or closing the opening 21 as required, and is located at the rear end of the opening 21, An air duct 430 for guiding air introduced through the air duct 21; A door 420 formed in the air duct 430 and opening or closing the air duct 430 according to the rotation; And an actuator 440 provided in the air duct 430 and rotating the door 420 by rotation.

As shown in the drawing, the AAF 400 of the present invention may include a guide duct 410 provided in front of the air duct 430.

The guide duct 410 may be formed in a cylindrical shape having front and rear openings. The guide duct 410 is located behind the opening 21 and guides the air flowing along the opening 21.

The air duct 430 is coupled to the rear end of the guide duct 410. The actuator 440 is installed at the center of the air duct 430. The door 420 is installed on both sides of the actuator 440 on the air duct 430. A coupling portion 430a is formed on one side and the other side of the air duct 430 on which the door 420 is installed so that the shaft 420a can be rotated about the shaft 420a .

The door 420 may have a conventional door configuration including a blade formed in the longitudinal direction and a shaft 420a projecting outward at both ends of the blade. The door 420 is located on the air duct 430 and opens or closes the air flowing through the opening 21. The blade 420 is rotated by the rotation of the shaft 420a with the shaft 420a as a rotation axis, It is opened when it is parallel with the air flow direction, and is closed when it is vertical. A link 420b is formed below the shaft 420a on the door 420 to connect the actuator 420 to the door 420 to rotate the door 420.

The actuator 440 may be provided at the center of the air duct 430. The actuator 440 is connected to the door 420 and rotates the door 420 according to an instruction from the control unit. That is, the door 420 is rotated by rotating the actuator 440 in one direction to open the air duct 430 and rotate the door 420 in the other direction to rotate the air duct 430 Can be closed. Since the actuator 440 is a conventional motor, detailed description thereof will be omitted.

In order to prevent foreign matter such as dust or sand from entering the joint 420a of the air duct 430 and the shaft 420a formed at both ends of the door 420, 420 and the air duct 430 have the following configuration.

Referring to FIGS. 6 and 7, the door 420 of the present invention may be formed with a protection unit 500.

The protection unit 500 is formed around the shaft 420a. The protection unit 500 is formed at a predetermined distance from the rotation axis of the shaft 420a. The protection unit 500 is spaced apart from the rotation axis by a predetermined distance. The protector 500 protrudes or extends outward in the longitudinal direction of the door 420.

At this time, the protector 500 may be formed on the front side of the vehicle to effectively prevent foreign matter from entering the shaft 420a and facilitate mounting and rotation of the door 420. That is, the protection unit 500 is formed on the front side of the vehicle when the door 420 hermetically closes the air duct 430. Accordingly, the protection unit 500 may be formed on one side of the door 420. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 8, foreign substances are prevented from flowing into the shaft 420a through the protection unit 500. FIG.

Referring to FIGS. 5 and 6, a guide rail 600 is formed in the air duct 430. The guide rail 600 is formed to correspond to the protection unit 500 when the door 420 is installed in the air duct 430. That is, the guide rail 600 is formed to be slidable with the protector 500 inserted therein. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 8, the guide rail 600 serves to secondarily block the foreign substances flowing into the shaft 420a and the engaging portion 430a.

The guide rail 600 includes a first rail 610 and a second rail 620. The first rail 610 is spaced apart from an engaging portion 430a of the air duct 430 and protrudes toward both ends of the door 420. [ The first rail 610 is formed to abut one side of the protection unit 500. The first rail 610 is formed on the air duct 430 so as to be convex toward the front of the vehicle. The second rail 620 is spaced apart from the coupling portion 430a of the air duct 430 and protrudes toward both ends of the door 420. [ The second rail 620 is formed so that the other side of the protection unit 500 is in contact with the second rail 620. The second rail 620 is formed on the air duct 430 so as to be convex toward the front of the vehicle.

Therefore, the protector 500 can be slid through the guide rail 600 when the door 420 is rotated, so that the door 420 can be firmly engaged with the air duct 430, .

The technical idea should not be interpreted as being limited to the above-described embodiment of the present invention. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. Accordingly, such modifications and changes are within the scope of protection of the present invention as long as it is obvious to those skilled in the art.

10: Carrier 11: Front panel
12: Support panel
20: bumper 21: opening
30: Heat exchanger
400: Active air flap
410: Guide duct
420: door 420a: shaft
420b: Link
421: first door 422: second door
430: Air duct
440: Actuator
500: Protection section
600: guide rail 610: first rail
620: second rail

Claims

And a support panel (12) extending from both ends of the front panel (11) and a front panel (11) And a heat exchanger (30) mounted on the rear side of the front panel (11) of the carrier (10) and having a core formed therein, the bumper (20) having an opening (21) In the active air flap 400,
The active air flap (400)
An air duct 430 positioned at a rear end of the opening 21 and guiding air introduced through the opening 21;
A door 420 provided inside the air duct 430 and opening or closing the air duct 430 by rotating a shaft 420a formed at both ends of the air duct 430 by a rotation axis; And
An actuator 440 installed on the air duct 430 and rotating the door 420 by rotation; , &Lt; / RTI &
Wherein a protector (500) is formed on the door (420) so as to surround the shaft (420a) while being spaced from the door (420) by a predetermined distance in a direction orthogonal to the rotation axis of the shaft (420a).

The method according to claim 1,
The protection unit 500 includes:
Is formed in a front side of the vehicle when the door (420) is closed.

3. The method of claim 2,
In the air duct 430,
Wherein a guide rail (600) is formed to slide the protection unit (500).

The method of claim 3,
The guide rail 600 includes a guide rail 600,
A first rail 610 abutting one side of the protection unit 500 and a second rail 620 abutting the other side of the protection unit 500.