WO2018193181A1

WO2018193181A1 - Shutter for a device controlling an air flow in an air inlet for a front face module of a motor vehicle

Info

Publication number: WO2018193181A1
Application number: PCT/FR2018/050878
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jean-Paul Herlem; Sylvain Gerber
Original assignee: Valeo Systemes Thermiques
Priority date: 2017-04-20
Filing date: 2018-04-09
Publication date: 2018-10-25
Also published as: FR3065402A1; FR3065402B1

Abstract

The invention relates to a shutter (2) for a device (24) for controlling an air flow in an air inlet for a front face module of a motor vehicle, comprising: - a panel (4) for obstructing an air flow, and - a pivot pin (6) rigidly secured to the panel (4). According to the invention, the pivot pin (6) has a diameter that varies at least locally along its longitudinal axis.

Description

SHUTTER COMPONENT FOR A DEVICE FOR CONTROLLING AN AIR INTAKE AIR FLOW FOR A FRONT FACE MODULE

MOTOR VEHICLE

The present invention relates to the field of devices for regulating an air flow for air intake of a front-end module of a motor vehicle and a shutter and a support frame included in such a device. regulating device. The invention further relates to a method of manufacturing such a support frame. The device for regulating an air flow is also called an active calender, or an air intake control device. Such a device is sometimes referred to by the acronym AGS, derived from the English expression "Active Grille Shutter". The invention also relates to the front-end module for a motor vehicle comprising such a device for regulating an air flow.

The aerodynamics of a motor vehicle is an important feature because it influences in particular the fuel consumption (and therefore the pollution) as well as the performance of said vehicle. This is particularly important when the motor vehicle is traveling at high speed.

A motor vehicle includes an engine compartment in which are housed various components, such as a motor and heat exchangers. The motor vehicle comprises on a front face an air inlet allowing an outside air flow to enter the interior of the engine compartment and thereby cool the various components, including heat exchangers.

A device for regulating an air flow is arranged at the level of the air inlet on the front face of the motor vehicle, in other words directly on the outer front surface of the motor vehicle, and makes it possible to vary the flow rate of outside air entering the engine compartment. Of course, the control device is able to completely obstruct the air inlet so that the outside air flow can not penetrate into the engine compartment. An air flow control device for a front-panel module thus makes it possible to open or close the access of air via a grille of the motor vehicle. In the open position, the air can circulate through the shell and participate in cooling the engine of the motor vehicle. In the closed position, air does not enter via the grille, which reduces drag and thus reduces fuel consumption and C0 ₂ emissions. The AGS therefore reduces energy consumption and pollution when the engine does not need to be cooled by outside air. Such an air flow regulating device for the front panel module usually comprises flaps controlled by an actuator in order to reduce the drag coefficient and also to improve cooling and air conditioning performance. Known regulating devices generally comprise a plurality of flaps carried by a support frame at bearings arranged on the support frame with a clamp (more commonly known as "clamp") which is fixed to the support frame by means of closing screws thus the bearings so that the flaps can not escape. Such an assembly is complex and involves several risky steps where the elements of the device can be assembled in a wrong way. Indeed, the trunnions of the shutters can be assembled in a wrong direction, the clamp can be fixed upside down, etc., thus compromising the structural integrity of the assembly.

The present invention aims to overcome this disadvantage by providing a device for regulating an air flow that is simple and quick to assemble and prevents assembly error.

For this, the invention relates to a shutter for a device for regulating an air flow of an air intake for a front-end module of a motor vehicle comprising: a panel serving to obstruct at the flow of a flow of air,

- A pivot pin integral with the panel. According to the invention, the pivot pin has a diameter that varies at least locally along its longitudinal axis.

In other words, the pivot pin includes local deformation. In other words, the pivot pin has a shape different from a right cylinder, or cylinder of revolution, where the base is equal over its entire height. In other words, the pivoting trunnion comprises a part where the base or surface, for example circular, (also called the directrix) is equal over part of the height (generator) and a part where the base varies over part of the height .

Thus, the operator by assembling the shutters on the support frame, by the shape of the pivot pin, can directly introduce the shutter shutter within the bearing without worrying about the proper positioning of the shutter when of his installation. Indeed, the local deformation catches games, and manufacturing tolerances, the operator can thus arrange a shutter shutter within the support frame without worrying about the proper positioning of the shutter.

An aspect according to the invention is that the pivot pin has a shape arranged to allow its introduction into a bearing in a direction oblique to an axis of the bearing.

An aspect of the invention is that the pivot pin includes a chamfer. An aspect according to the invention is that the pivot pin comprises at least one or two rounded edges at one end.

An aspect according to the invention is that the pivot pin is olive-shaped.

Such local deformations, or removal of material, allow the shutter to rotate within the bearing more easily. The invention also relates to a support frame for a device for regulating an air flow of an air inlet for a front-end module of a motor vehicle comprising at least one bearing intended to receive a pivoting journal a shutter shutter as described above. According to the invention, the bearing has a shape arranged to trap the pivot pin when it is put in place, or introduced into the bearing.

Another aspect according to the invention is that the bearing has a recess with a closed contour.

The operator seeing a bearing with a closed contour has no choice but to introduce the pivot pin in the recess which avoids any assembly error. Another aspect according to the invention is that the bearing has a recess with an arcuate contour.

Another aspect according to the invention is that the bearing has a recess with a partially open contour on an angle less than 90 °.

The invention also relates to a device for regulating an air flow of an air intake for a front-end module of a motor vehicle comprising:

at least one component as described above,

a support frame as described above.

According to the invention, the pivoting trunnion and the bearing respectively have shapes that are configured to allow the shutter to pivot when the pivoting trunnion is introduced into the bearing so as to allow the introduction or introduction of the Shutter shutter within the support frame according to a composite movement different from a single pure translation.

An aspect according to the invention is that the compound movement comprises a first movement in translation in a transverse direction relative to the support frame and then in a second translational movement in a longitudinal or vertical direction relative to the support frame. The invention also relates to a method of manufacturing a support frame as described above, comprising the following steps:

- A mold closing step comprising a die, a punch and a drawer, wherein the punch is at least partially resting on the die and the drawer at least partially abuts against the die and the punch so as to form interstices between the drawer, the die and the punch;

a step of injecting the plastic material into the mold at the interstices;

a cooling step;

- A mold opening step where the drawer is removed and the punch is separated from the matrix.

Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will appear on reading the description which follows. This is purely illustrative and should be read in conjunction with the attached drawings in which:

- Figure 1 illustrates a shutter according to the invention according to a perspective view;

- Figure 2 illustrates a portion of a shutter according to the invention in a perspective view;

- Figure 3 illustrates a portion of a support frame and a shutter according to the invention in a view from above;

- Figure 4 illustrates a portion of an airflow control device according to the invention in a view from above;

- Figure 5 illustrates a support frame according to the invention in a perspective view;

- Figure 6 schematically illustrates a portion of the mold used for the implementation of the method of manufacturing the support frame according to the invention;

FIG. 7 illustrates a device for regulating an air flow according to the invention according to a perspective view.

Figure 1 illustrates a shutter shutter 2 according to the invention. Such a flap comprises a panel 4 comprising a leading edge and a trailing edge with respect to the flow of air. The leading edge of the flap is the front section of the aerodynamic profile constituted by the shutter shutter 2. The leading edge thus houses the stagnation point where the flow is divided into two sections (each passing from one side profile). The trailing edge is the rear part of the shutter shutter profile 2. The panel 4 here corresponds to a substantially flat and rectangular shaped surface capable of obstructing the flow of the air flow.

The shutter shutter 2 is able to pivot between two extreme positions, a position, or configuration, closed where the panel obstructs the flow of air flow it can not pass through the entrance of air and therefore can not enter the engine compartment, and an open position where the shutter shutter 2 is as little as possible to the passage of the airflow so that the air inlet is unobstructed and that the air flow can pass through the air inlet and thus enter the engine compartment. Of course, each shutter shutter 2 is adapted to adopt any intermediate position at the extreme positions.

To pivot, each shutter 2 comprises an axis of rotation which is characterized by a pivoting pin 6 in the form of a cylinder, in other words a cylindrical portion around which the shutter 2 receives a rotational movement . The shutter 2 further comprises a lever 20 corresponding to an arm adapted to engage a connecting rod 28, corresponding to an element integral with each shutter shutter 2 so as to cause the simultaneous rotation of each shutter shutter 2 when the rod is moved. Generally, an actuator not shown under the effect of a control that can be pneumatic, electrical and / or mechanical, actuates the rotation of one of the shutter shutters 2. This shutter shutter 2 is then pivotally driven according to a defined angle, for example in a range from 0 to 90 °. Either the shutters 2 terminate their respective stroke in a position where they extend along a plane defined by the longitudinal (X) and transverse (Y) axes, as shown in FIG. 7, this position corresponding to the open position wherein the flow of air flows through a support frame 14 which will be described later. Either these shutters 2 end their race in a position where they extend in a plane defined by the transverse axes (Y) and vertical (Z), that is to say that shutter shutters 2 end their stroke perpendicular to the open position. This position corresponding to the closed position in which the shutter shutters 2 close the support frame 14 and where the air does not flow through the support frame 14. The shutter shutters 2 can end their race in a configuration between these two extreme positions.

The shutter 2, following its rotation caused by the actuator, causes the translation of the movable rod 28, downwards or upwards along the vertical axis (z) of the support frame 14. The movable rod 28 , while moving causes the simultaneous rotation of each shutter 2 which adopt the same rotational movement as the first shutter shutter 2. According to the invention, the pivot pin 6 has a local deformation

8. This local deformation 8 here corresponds to a removal of material or a recess relative to a perfectly cylindrical trunnion.

As illustrated in FIG. 2, the shutter 2 comprises a journal 6 comprising a chamfer 10, in other words a pivoting journal 6 with a small bevel cut made on the sharp edge of the cylinder thus giving a pivoting journal 6 relatively cylindrical part of which has an oblique surface. Chamfer 10 may also be defined as a small area formed by a sloped edge. The chamfer can extend for example on a revolution of the height (or length) of the pivot pin 6.

As illustrated in Figure 3, the shutter 2 may also comprises a pivot pin 6 which comprises at least one rounded edge 12 at one end. Here, the pivot pin 6 comprises two edges rounded to a same end. In other words, the pivoting journal 6 comprises at least one rounded corner, or a radius, or an arcuate portion at its end which is intended to be introduced or placed in a bearing 18. can also define the rounded edge 12 as a non-tangent rounding 12 corresponding to a smooth transition between two intersecting planes, here the base 44 of the cylinder or director and the height 46 of the cylinder or generator, replacing at least a portion of the edge between these two surfaces by an arcuate section which is of convex section for the non-tangent rounding 12. According to another embodiment, the rounded edge 12 corresponds to a leave where at least a portion of the edge between the two intersecting planes 44,46 mentioned above is replaced by an arcuate section of concave section.

The bearing 18, as illustrated in Figure 3, may also include a rounded edge 48 to facilitate the introduction of the pivot pin 6.

According to a non-illustrated embodiment, the shutter 2 may also comprises a pivoting pivot in the form of olive, in other words of ellipsoidal shape. The invention also relates to a support frame 14 illustrated in the figure

5. The support frame 14 corresponds to a frame with two longitudinal sides and two lateral sides for a given thickness thus defining an inner surface 16 through which the flow of air can pass thus corresponding to the air inlet of the engine compartment. In other words, the support frame 14 comprises two crosspieces connected to one another by two lateral uprights so as to form a frame. The support frame 14 here has a rectangular shape so that the longitudinal sides are larger than the lateral sides. The set of shutters 2 are arranged in the inner surface 16 of the support frame 14 so that the set of shutters 2 are capable of covering the entire inner surface 16 of the support frame 14 as illustrated 7. The support frame 14 may be made of various rigid materials so as to serve as a support for the shutter shutters 2, however some elements, such as an actuator, may be subject to the support frame 14 without being included in the inner surface 16. The support frame 14 may adopt other polygonal shapes such as a square or a circle, the invention is not limited to the shape of the support frame 14.

The support frame 14 carries the shutter shutters 2. For this, the support frame 14 has bearings 18 corresponding to recesses, or orifices, made in the structure of the support frame 14, for example at the lateral sides . Each bearing 18 is intended to receive a journal 6 pivoting a shutter shutter 2 as described above. According to the invention, each bearing 18 has a shape arranged to trap the pivot pin 6 when it is placed in the bearing 18.

For this, each bearing 18 has a recess 22, that is to say a cavity, an orifice or a cut, made within the support frame 14, with a closed contour as shown in FIG. the recess 22 has a shape with a portion in an arc. As illustrated in Figure 5, the contour of the recess 22 is a circle of complementary shape to the pivot pin 6.

The bearing 18 may also have a recess 22 with a partially open contour at an angle of less than 90 ° so as to trap the pivot pin 6 when it is inserted into the bearing 18.

The invention also relates to a device 24 for regulating an air flow of an air intake for a front-end module of a motor vehicle comprising a shutter shutter 2 as described above and a support frame 14 as previously described. According to the invention, the pivoting journal 6 and the bearing 18 respectively have shapes that are configured to allow the shutter 2 to pivot when the pivoting journal 6 is inserted into the bearing 18 so as to allow the positioning, or the introduction of the shutter 2 within the support frame 14 in a two-step movement, different from a single pure translation.

The bearing 18, in particular the contour of the recess 22, and the pivot pin 6 of the shutter flap 2 are of complementary shapes so as to allow the introduction of the pivot pin 6 within the recess 22 of the bearing 18.

The shutter 2 further comprises a dust cover 26 corresponding to a disc for closing the bearing 18 once the pivot pin 6 introduced. This thus prevents external elements, such as small chips or dust from passing through the regulating device 24 via the bearings 18. As illustrated in FIG. 4, the shutter shutter 2 is introduced within of the obviously 2 according to a compound movement which comprises a first movement in translation F1 in a transverse direction (Y) relative to the support frame 14 and then in a second movement in translation F2 in a longitudinal direction (X) or vertical (Z) relative to the support frame 14. The first movement F1 is a translation in a direction oblique to the transverse plane (XY) at an angle of between 1 and 20 °, preferably 5 °, relative to the center of the recess 22. L introduction of the pivot pin 6 within the bearing 18 according to the first translational movement F1 at an inclined angle is possible due to the local deformation 8 of the pivot pin 6. Indeed, the removal of material, namely the chamfer 10 or the ellipsoidal shape of the olive 12, allows to have a little play to allow the operator to introduce a large majority, more than 75%, 6 of pivoting within the recess 22 as illustrated in Figure 3. In addition, having a shrinkage of material implies that there is less friction between the support frame 14 and the pivot pin 6 when the shutter shutter 2 changes position.

Once this first translational movement F1 is completed, generally when a portion of the flap, in particular the dust cover 26, abuts against the support frame 14, the pivoting pivot pin 6 is fully inserted into the recess. to a second translational movement F2 in a longitudinal or vertical direction relative to the support frame 14.

As illustrated in Figure 1, the shutter 2 comprises a lever 20 adapted to engage with a connecting rod 28. As shown in Figure 5, the frame support 14 may comprise bearings 18 with closed contours as well as bearings 18 with open contours, corresponding here to hemispherical cutouts, although any other polygonal shape is possible within the scope of the invention. The levers 20 can be introduced within these cuts.

Of course, an embodiment of the invention not illustrated, proposes that the levers 20 also include a local deformation 8 with a removal of material, such as a chamfer 10 or olive-shaped 12, so as to be introduced in bearings 18 with a closed or partially open contour.

Once the pivoting pin 6 has been inserted into the bearing 18 following a first translational movement F1, the lever 20 is inserted into the corresponding bearing 18, situated opposite the bearing 18 where the pivoting pin 6 has been inserted, as well as in the connecting rod 28 during the second movement in translation F2. The support frame 14 comprises a housing 30 which is arranged the connecting rod 28 and the actuator (not shown). The control device 24 further comprises a cover 32 for covering the housing.

The invention also relates to a method of manufacturing a support frame 14 as described above. To illustrate this process, a mold allowing such a manufacture has been partially shown schematically in FIG.

The mold 34 comprises a first part, a matrix 36 serving as a support for the support frame 14 once manufactured. The mold comprises a second part, a punch 38 adapted to at least partially abut against the die 36. The mold comprises a third portion, a drawer 40 adapted to come at least partially in abutment against the punch 38 and against the die 36 so as to form interstices 42 between these three elements. Unrepresented injection points are also present within these three elements, or only within the punch 38.

The method comprises the following steps. Firstly there is a mold closing step, for this the punch 38 at least partially bears on the die 36 and following this, the slide 40 at least partially abuts against the punch 38 and against the die 36. The plastic material is then injected into the mold 34 and accumulates at the two gaps 42. Then, following a cooling step, there is a step of opening the To this end, the drawer 40 is removed and the punch 38 is separated from the matrix 36. It is then possible to recover the support frame 14 according to the invention on the matrix 36.

It should be understood, however, that these exemplary embodiments are given by way of illustration of the object of the invention. The invention is not limited to these embodiments described above and provided solely by way of example. It encompasses various modifications, alternative forms and other variants that may be considered by those skilled in the art within the scope of the present invention and in particular any combination of the various embodiments described above.

Claims

claims

1. Shutter shutter (2) for a control device (24) for an air flow of an air intake for a front-end module of a motor vehicle comprising:

a panel (4) serving to prevent the flow of an air flow,

a pivoting journal (6) integral with the panel (4),

characterized in that the pivot pin (6) has a diameter which varies at least locally along its longitudinal axis.

2. Shutter shutter (2) according to claim 1, wherein the pivoting pin (6) has a shape arranged to allow its introduction into a bearing in a direction oblique to an axis of the bearing.

3. shutter (2) according to one of claims 1 or 2, wherein the pivoting journal (6) comprises a chamfer (10).

4. Shutter shutter (2) according to one of claims 1 or 2, wherein the pivot pin (6) comprises two rounded edges (12) at one end.

Support frame (14) for a control device (24) for an air flow of an air intake for a front-end module of a motor vehicle comprising at least one bearing (18) for receiving a journal (6) for pivoting a shutter (2), characterized in that the bearing (18) has a shape arranged to trap the pivot pin (6) when it is put in place in the bearing (18).

The support frame of claim 5, wherein the bearing (18) has a recess (22) with a closed contour.

7. Support frame according to one of claims 5 or 6, wherein the bearing (18) has a recess (22) with an arcuate contour.

A device (24) for regulating an air flow of an air intake for a front-end module of a motor vehicle comprising:

- at least one shutter (2) according to one of claims 1 to 4,

a support frame (14) according to one of claims 5 to 7,

characterized in that the pivoting journal (6) and the bearing (18) respectively have shapes configured to allow the shutter (2) to pivot when the pivot pin (6) is inserted into the bearing (18). so as to allow the establishment of the shutter (2) within the support frame (14) according to a different compound movement of a single pure translation.

9. Device for regulating (24) an air flow according to claim 8 wherein the compound movement comprises a first translational movement in a direction transverse to the support frame (14) and in a second movement in translation according to a longitudinal or vertical direction relative to the support frame (14).

10. A method of manufacturing a support frame (14) according to one of claims 5 to 7, comprising the following steps:

a step of closing a mold (34) comprising a matrix (36), a punch (38) and a slide (40), where the punch (38) at least partially bears on the matrix (36) and the slide (40) at least partially abuts against the die and the punch (38) so as to form gaps (42) between the slide (40), the die (36) and the punch (38);

a step of injecting the plastic material into the mold (34) at the interstices (42);

a cooling step;

- A step of opening the mold (34) where the drawer (40) is removed and the punch (38) is separated from the matrix (36).