JP4510974B2 - Variable temperature cushion device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an apparatus including a heat pump that reduces the temperature of a cushion that operates in a Stirling cycle, for example, a mattress, or a cushion for use as a seat and backrest, which provides a selectively variable temperature and outer surface of the apparatus.
[0002]
[Prior art]
For example, there are numerous situations in which a cushion, such as an automobile seat or backrest, can be selectively cooled or heated to make it comfortable when someone sits or rests against the cushion. In cold environments, especially in winter, it is desirable to heat the seat cushions in a relatively short time to warm the passengers sitting or leaning before the automatic operation of the automatic heating device. In order for the operation to be sufficiently performed, the refrigerant of the engine needs to have a sufficiently high temperature. In the warmer seasons, cars with conventional air conditioners that direct cooling air directly in front of passengers and inside the car may experience air at the parts that directly face and contact the seat and back cushions in undesirably high temperatures and humidity. Not hitting, this makes the car occupants more uncomfortable. In both warm and cold season situations, the warmth or coldness of the cushion itself increases the level of individual comfort.
[0003]
Certain more effective chemicals (eg, Freon) are excluded as materials for air conditioners because they are considered harmful to the environment. At this time, all other replacement materials known for this purpose do not have the same high level of efficiency and are actually inferior to Freon. In addition, future cars must operate with less power to essentially save fuel and reduce harmful products, which gradually reduces the proportion of power available by the air conditioner or heating device.
[0004]
In US Pat. No. 5,002,336 by Steve Feher, the seat and backrest for cooling or heating desired when the heat pump used for this purpose is a thermoelectric unit is shown, which is a conventional air conditioning technology. Achieves the desired function with a much smaller energy requirement than if the entire interior of the car is adjusted by. However, even when considering other known conventional techniques, it is believed that there is room for improvement in increasing the overall efficiency of operation.
[0005]
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,002,336, the seat and back structure includes an air chamber for receiving temperature-controlled air, the structure of the air chamber being a metal wire spring coil having a side wall opening or a relatively rigid plastic tube. Formed from. In order to function properly, the seat structure should allow the conditioned air to pass through the air chamber easily, with the weight that the occupant sits on or leans so that the air flow is not so closed. I must.
[0006]
In addition, automotive seat manufacturers consider that the inner support (eg, spring coil) must create a visible seat surface aesthetic and it is undesirable to break the decorative aesthetic of the seat. . In this regard, it has been found that simply increasing the thickness of a comfortable layer disposed on a wire spring or rigid plastic tube is inconsistent with its original purpose. This is because this reduces heat transfer and reduces overall operating efficiency.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In describing the various aspects of the present invention, the term “cushion” as used herein refers to the “seat” used with the above-described device, the “back”, A product called “mattress pad”. These terms are used when referring to either “seat”, “backrest” or “mattress pad”.
[0008]
Accordingly, a main object of the present invention is to provide a variable temperature cushion that includes an inner air chamber for selectively receiving variable temperature air, the air chamber being configured not to close during use. Or, the contact is not uncomfortable, does not give an external signature of the chamber forming means, and does not require a relatively thick outer comfort layer that produces an extract that is prohibited at the level of heat transfer.
[0009]
As a first embodiment of the cushion, a strong and flexible composite is used to form a plurality of loosely woven tubes held between a pair of similarly woven sheaths made from the same material. Resin filaments are used. In this way, a flexible and porous air permeable pad is provided, which is flexible so that the occupant can rest on the pad and resist closing the tubular chamber by sitting or sleeping. Stiff enough, in this way, conditioned air passes along the tubular part, passes out through the woven wall and adjusts the area around the air chamber formed in the cushion can do. The tube is made from woven plastic filaments, which are not fixed at the crossing points, but instead the filaments slide freely on each other, resulting in a better sitting comfort for the user.
[0010]
The provided cushion pad has a bottom and side walls that are impermeable to air, while a loosely woven upper cover of the fabric provides air permeability. To add more flexibility and comfort, an intermediate density and low open cell change foam layer is inserted between the fabric cover and the cushioned air chamber structure described in the immediately preceding paragraph. The The foam layer must be structured to provide good air and vapor permeability.
[0011]
A conditioned air inlet duct is attached to the trailing edge of the cushion and transmits air to the cushion along a predetermined number of isolated grooves. When conditioned air is supplied to a pair of cushions (for example, a seat and a backrest), the duct sends a flow of air from a plurality of separated grooves to each cushion.
[0012]
The air permeable fabric tube cushion structure can be dimensioned to act as a mattress or pad that is arranged in a conventional mattress of the same dimensions.
[0013]
A heat pump that preferably includes a Stirling cycle conditioner is used to selectively reduce the temperature of the compressed air that is moved along the flexible hose to the cushion inlet duct. In practice, Stirling cycle conditioners are 5 to 6 times more efficient than thermoelectric coolers and are less expensive to manufacture. Also, with respect to the amount of heat that is sent, the Stirling pump is smaller than the corresponding thermoelectric unit and is approximately the same in weight per unit heat sent.
[0014]
Preferably, the Stirling heat pump is a sealed free piston unit that includes a pair of helical coil springs coaxial with the balance mass to reduce unwanted vibrations.
[0015]
A ceramic or resistive PTC heater attached to the conditioner warms the air during a heating mode in which the cooling portion of the conditioner is maintained inactive. The heater has a heat exchanger with a pin or post structure that further promotes heat transfer to and from the atmosphere.
[0016]
Collected condensate to the cooling conditioner can fall along the weight path to the receiving trap and then along the conduit to the felt pad. The electric heater evaporates the condensate from the felt to the ambient air.
[0017]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to FIG. 1, the present invention will be illustrated and described in connection with a pair of cushions 10 and 12. The pair of cushions 10 and 12 are manufactured in accordance with the principles of the present invention and are particularly adapted for use in automobiles. The cushion 10 includes a seat and the cushion 12 is a backrest. The structure of the two cushions 10 and 12 is identical, so only the structure of the cushion 10 will be described in detail.
[0018]
Referring to FIG. 2, the cushion 10 includes a cushion bottom, two sidewalls, and an outer lower layer 14 covering the rear side, these sides being made of a number of different materials, the main physical properties being air And impermeable to the passage of moisture. In particular, the inner portion 16 described below provides the comfort necessary to form an air chamber that receives temperature-conditioned air, while providing the necessary rigidity to prevent closing all or any portion of the air chamber during use. Have.
[0019]
A relatively thin foam layer 19 of low to medium density and open structure is disposed over the upper surface of the air chamber portion 16 to allow good air and vapor permeability. This foam layer provides comfort to the user. Over the foam layer 19, a woven fabric cover or layer 20 is disposed, which is a fabric that is sufficiently open so that air can easily pass therethrough.
[0020]
From the cushion structure described above, the side, rear and bottom surfaces of the cushion are impermeable to air and the upper and leading edge surfaces facing the user's foot are highly permeable to both air and steam. . Thus, in fact, the seat cushion forms an air chamber, which receives compressed air in the manner described above, which is optionally covered by a cushion that is not covered by the user's body for heating or cooling. Exit through the permeable part.
[0021]
To further detail the cushion structure, reference is made to FIG. As described above, the cushion 10 includes the impermeable layer 14 that covers the bottom and side surfaces of the cushion except the front surface. Similarly, there is an outermost upper fabric layer 20 and a lower foam pad 19. The interior of the air chamber between the foam pad 19 and the impermeable layer 14 is filled with a tubular pad 32 that includes a plurality of tubular members 34, which are parallel to each other and parallel to the foam pad 19. The axial direction of each of the tubular members 34 extends from the rear surface to the front side for purposes of illustration. More particularly, the tubular members are woven from elastic plastic filaments 36 and are arranged in edge contact relationship to form a substantially flat sheet of tubing. The individual tubular members are secured together by first and second open fabric layers 38 and 40, and the first and second open fabric layers 38 and 40 are manufactured from filament 36 and are in the plane of the tubular member. Located on both sides and woven together with it. In this method, there is a single structure that allows air to move in a transverse direction through both walls of the open fabric sheet as well as the tubular member on each side for only moderate back pressure, and the air flow is that of the tubular member. Limited by very low back pressure when moving along the axial direction through itself. In use, the tubular pad 32 described above not only provides a more flexible and relatively soft layer than sitting separately, but also prevents the tubular passage from being closed during use. Furthermore, the woven filament structure is not visible in the upper layer 20 to give the appearance of the lower coil. An important aspect of layers 38 and 40 interconnected with the woven structure of the tube is that the filaments are not sealed to each other at tolerance points and can move when subjected to pressure (FIG. 11). Is considered to add a soft touch during use of the cushion. On the other hand, the woven structure and natural physical characteristics of the fibers are such that when subjected to pressure, the filaments do not close to a very large extent during use, instead of moving relatively.
[0022]
A suitable material for making the tubular pad 32 is manufactured by Tetko, New York, and sold under the trade name “Tublar Fabric”.
FIG. 3 shows an air inlet duct 42 for use in introducing and distributing temperature-controlled air from a single heat pump 44 to both the seat and back cushions 10 and 12, which will be described in detail later. To do. Referring to the plan view, the duct may be divided into four separate grooves 46, 48, 49 and 50 for distribution to both the seat and the back at corresponding different points measured across the width of each cushion. I understand. Further, the duct has a separation wall 52, and the separation wall 52 separates the distribution of the plurality of grooves of the backrest from the plurality of grooves distributed to the seat cushion (see FIG. 1).
[0023]
More specifically, the flexible multi-groove conduit 53 includes an end 54 interconnected to a heat pump 44 that receives a source of conditioned air, and a fitting 55 detachably connected to the duct 42. And having an end. In this way, the duct 42 has each of the grooves with an individual conditioned air source.
[0024]
The conditioned air inlet duct 42 is arranged as follows with respect to the cushion. That is, an outer inlet fitting 56 to which a flexible conduit fitting 55 for introducing conditioned air is connected is disposed adjacent to the side of the cushion. This allows interconnection to the heat pump via a flexible hose so that it does not interfere with the position of the sheet and proves very convenient during use. Most of today's cars have a strip of fabric sewn into the curve line between the backrest and seatrest, and the symmetrical location of the air inlet duct fitting in this case presents the possibility of interference with the installation. Reduce.
[0025]
In the overall operation of the cushion and related equipment described in this regard, the conditioned air flow is compressed along the flexible conduit hose from the heat pump 44 to the air inlet duct 42 where the seat rest and backrest It is separated into two approximately equal parts by a wall 52 for transmission or distribution to the cushion. Finally, the conditioned air is divided into four approximately equal parts for each of the cushions and is distributed along the cushion forward in the case of a seat and upward in the case of a backrest. In addition to heating or cooling the cushion material surface facing the user, the structure described above allows the conditioned air through convection through the cushion to be transmitted relatively uniformly and easily, A very small amount of airflow can be sent to the passenger using the cushion.
[0026]
Normally, conditioned air is used to produce the desired cushion, but this is the case for the corresponding high efficiency operation compared to devices that rely on relatively high Δt operation and thermoelectric elements (eg Peltier elements). Another heat pump that has been found to be most advantageous for the purpose is a Stirling cycle pump with a free piston located in a sealed chamber (see FIG. 5). In this overall aspect, the Stirling cycle heat pump 44 has a “cold” end 58 and at the same time exhausts air containing waste heat at a second or “hot” end 60. It can be seen that the low temperature end 58 of the heat pump is surrounded by an air chamber 61, which has a main heat exchanger fin 62 fixed to the outermost end surface of the low temperature end 58 with good heat conduction relationship. Siege. A main blower 64 consisting of a fan driven by an electric motor is fixed to the outer end of the air chamber 61 and draws air from the heat exchanger fins 62, which are cooled by a heat pump to cause the flexible hose 66 to Pressurize the air that is sent to the cushion. At the same time, an auxiliary fan (not shown) is placed in another air chamber associated with the “hot end” 60 of the heat pump. The purpose of the auxiliary fan is to remove the waste heat accumulated at the high temperature end and release it to the outside of the heat pump (see arrow in FIG. 4).
[0027]
Although the use of a heat pump has been described in a cooling mode, it is desirable to have a means for heating the air when it is cold and cold. For this purpose, the heat from the hot end of the Stirling engine can be sent to the cushion instead of the cooler air, which is completely satisfactory with the need for this device to be large and expensive. It is not a thing. It has been found that instead of using a Stirling cycle in heating mode, a positive temperature coefficient category ceramic or resistor heater 70 is preferably located at the cold end 58 of the heat pump inside the heat exchanger chamber 61. . A sufficient amount of current (eg, 100 to 150 watts) is passed through heater 70 to raise the airflow temperature to the cushion to 43.3 ° C. (about 110 ° F.) for use in heating mode, The operation of the Stirling heat pump is stopped. Accordingly, the main blower 64 that receives heat from the heater 70 passes the heated air along the same passage as when used in the cooling mode along the flexible hose 66 to the cushion.
[0028]
While other heat pumps operating on the Stirling cycle principle have been found effective, the practical structure of the present invention was made by Sunpower, Inc., Ohio, Ohio, and is marketed under the trade name M223. Excellent results can be achieved with a linear free piston heat pump driven by The temperature of the air applied to the cushion is 4 ° C., the ambient temperature, and 2.5 watts of cooling is obtained for every watt input to the Stirling pump.
[0029]
FIG. 5 shows in cross section the main components of a Stirling device 44 useful in practicing the present invention. The device has a housing 72 that encloses a sealed chamber 74 that is entirely filled with gas and is located inside. The free piston 76 is elastically attached to the housing by a spring 77 that is movable toward and away from the inner orifice 78. Magnet 80 and coil 82 surround the piston to drive the piston by being electrically excited via conductors 84 and 86. A displacer 88 is provided on the opposite side of the orifice 76 and is resiliently attached by a spring 90 to allow limited gas pressure induced motion toward and away from the orifice 78.
[0030]
In use, the coil 82 is applied with an electrical pulse to cause the piston 76 to reciprocate. The piston 76 is supplied with compressed gas through the orifice 78 and moves the displacer 88 to the expansion space 92. Between the pulse drive and the next pulse drive, the piston is returned by a spring 77 and similarly the displacer is returned by a spring 90. Due to the above-described reciprocating motion, the temperature of the housing end adjacent to the expansion gap 92 decreases, and the temperature of the opposite housing end increases.
[0031]
A continuing nuisance is to eliminate the condensate that is collected in the heat exchanger fins 62 of the main heat exchanger during operation during the cooling operation. Most carmakers have expressed the view that draining condensate by draining excess condensate through the car floor is not easy or desirable. This is because the drain opening is clogged or blocked, resulting in unwanted condensate on the car floor. In the present invention, in order to solve this problem, a condensate removing means 94 having a condensate trap 96 is provided. The condensate trap 96 includes an aluminum plate 98 on which the felt pad 100 is provided. It is fixed. Various ceramic or resistive heaters 102 with a positive temperature coefficient that preferably reduce the possibility of overheating are located on the top surface of the aluminum plate and interconnected with a suitable power source (not shown). A conduit 104 connected to the heat pump and continuing to the seat cushion and backrest has a loop 106 which receives the condensate dripping onto it along the gravity path. Is placed underneath. The drain means 108 (or felt core) interconnected inside the loop or trap is routed along a gravity path that emptyes the condensate directly to the felt pad 100. In operation, the condensate captured by the trap and sent along the drain means that wets the felt pad is evaporated by the heater 102 to return the condensate to the atmosphere.
[0032]
Referring to FIG. 8, an overall size cushion 110 is shown that is sufficient for one or more occupants to sit on. In particular, the cushion 110 is constructed similar to the cushion shown in detail in FIG. 2 and described above with a tubular pad 112, a top foam pad 114 having a permeable top layer, a non-permeable outer layer, and a bottom 118. Optionally, the entire foam pad 114 can be eliminated.
[0033]
The cushion 110 can also be used as a separate individual mattress or pad disposed on a conventional mattress 120 as shown in FIG. More particularly, in this embodiment, the cushion 110 is placed in this position by a layer 124 that is placed in the center of a fabric covering 122 such as a fit sheet and is sewn or otherwise secured to the covering 122. Fixed. In the area of the cushion opposite the person's feet above it, the cushion is surrounded by a layer of material 125 that reduces the cooling effect of this area. The cushion assembly is secured onto the mattress by elastic bands, stitched or other conventional fastening means. Such cushions are considered advantageous for medical use in bedridden patients. The conditioned air is sent from the Stirling pump to the cushion 110 via a suitable conduit in the same manner as in the previously described embodiment (FIG. 8).
[0034]
In FIG. 12, a cross-sectional view of another configuration of a Stirling cycle heat pump 130 having vibration and noise delay means 132 is shown. In normal operation, a Stirling cycle heat pump with a free working piston is maintained with a certain amount of vibration and noise to a minimum, and this heat pump is placed in the car, in close proximity to the so-called front seat. . More particularly, a cylindrical mass portion 134 having first and second axial extensions 136 and 138 held within first and second helical springs 140 and 142 is mounted within heat pump outer housing 44. The extensions 136 and 138 are coaxial with the movement path (not shown) of the piston of the heat pump. In operation, the oscillating motion and noise introduced by the operation of the pump piston are damped by the counter inertia operation of the mass portion 134.
[0035]
FIG. 13 further includes a set of pin-shaped fins 146 that serve to be operated as a heat exchanger, which heat exchanger in improving operating efficiency during heating by the PTC ceramic / resistor 70. It has been found to have particular advantages. The pin-like shape is considered to be superior to the normally flat fin shape of conventional heat exchangers in efficiently receiving compressed air movement.
[0036]
While the invention has been described in connection with a preferred embodiment, those skilled in the art will recognize that the modifications shown within the scope of the claims can be made.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a side view in which a part of a cushion of a temperature adaptive seat according to the present invention is cut.
FIG. 2 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional view of a seat cushion.
FIG. 3 is a side view of a cushion and an inlet duct.
FIG. 4 is a side view showing a part of the heat pump in cross section.
5 is a cross-sectional view of a free piston type Stirling cycle apparatus used in the heat pump of FIG. 4. FIG.
6 is a perspective view of a condensate removing unit used with the heat pump of FIG. 4. FIG.
FIG. 7 is a perspective view, in cross section, of a portion of flexible conduits interconnected with a cushion inlet duct.
FIG. 8 is a schematic partial cross-sectional view of another version of a cushion used as a sleeping pad.
9 is a side view of the present invention shown with the condensate handling means of FIG. 6. FIG.
10 is a side view of the cushion of FIG. 8 shown assembled to a mattress.
FIG. 11 is an enlarged partial sectional view of the air chamber forming means of the present invention.
FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view of another Stirling pump configuration for use with the present invention.
FIG. 13 is a drawing of another embodiment of a heating device for use with the present invention.

Claims (20)

(A) a centrally located air chamber with top, bottom and side surfaces made of interwoven synthetic monofilament fibers forming a plurality of substantially parallel tubes arranged in parallel in a single plane a is the length of the wall of the tube is knitted to open, compressed conditioned air that has been received in the gas chamber, along the through passage in the longitudinal direction of the tube, and the tube can move along the through passage you cross the direction of the axis, wherein the tube includes a gas chamber which is provided with a sufficiently large rigidity in the transverse direction to the extent that does not collapse during use,
(B) an air and moisture impermeable layer covering the bottom and side surfaces of the air chamber;
(C) a cushion having an air permeable foam sheet covering the upper surface of the air chamber;
Duct means attached to the air chamber so as to extend through the impermeable layer of air and moisture;
Means for releasably connecting to the air duct means for selectively cooling or heating the compressed air flow including a Stirling cycle heat pump to cool the compressed air flow. .   The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the Stirling cycle heat pump is a linear free piston device driven by an electric motor.   The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the inter-woven fibers of the air chamber are bonded to a major surface of a mesh layer that is woven and released.   2. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising means for receiving condensate from the Stirling pump and evaporating the condensate to the atmosphere.   5. The means for receiving the condensate has a metal plate having an absorption pad on one main surface, and a heating means disposed between the metal plate and the pad. Equipment.   6. The apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the heating means is an electric resistance heater having a positive temperature coefficient.   The apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the heating unit is a ceramic heater having a positive temperature coefficient.   The apparatus of claim 1 wherein a pair of variable temperature cushioning devices are interconnected with duct means.   The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the duct means comprises a plurality of separated air passages arranged in a fixed parallel relationship. (A) an air chamber made of synthetic knitted and interwoven synthetic monofilament fibers forming a plurality of substantially parallel tubes arranged side by side in a single plane, wall of the tube is knitted to open, in use, said air chamber compressed conditioned air is received in the along the through passage in the longitudinal direction of the tube, and the longitudinal axis of the tube air chamber can be moved along the path you cross was woven to release the first and second monofilament arranged on both sides of the plane of the parallel tubes layer secures the parallel tubes When,
(B) an air and moisture impermeable layer covering the bottom and side surfaces of the air chamber;
(C) a cushion pad having an air permeable foam sheet that covers the upper surface of the air chamber and is arranged so that the lower air chamber tube does not rise;
Air duct means interconnected to the cushion pad air chamber;
And a cooling / heating means releasably connected to the air duct means for selectively cooling or heating the compressed air sent to the cushion air chamber via the air duct means.   The cooling and heating means for selectively cooling and heating the air flow includes a heat pump having a low temperature end and a high temperature end, and a heat pump air chamber connected to the duct means in a relationship surrounding the low temperature end of the heat pump. A main blower attached to send air from the heat pump air chamber to the cushion air chamber through the duct means, and an electric resistance heater attached to the heat pump air chamber, the heat pump and the electric resistance heater 11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the devices are operated separately and separately to selectively provide a heating mode or a cooling mode.   The apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the heat pump is a free piston pump driven by an electric motor in a Stirling cycle.   A heat exchanger fin is fixed to the cold end of the heat pump and is placed in the heat pump chamber and an absorbent felt pad is placed outside the heat pump chamber to receive moisture condensate exiting the heat fin along the path of gravity The apparatus of claim 11 wherein the heating means contacts the felt pad to evaporate the condensate.   The felt pad is attached to a metal plate, and the heating means includes a resistive heater disposed between the metal plate and the felt pad in good thermal conductive contact with each other. The apparatus of claim 13.   15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the resistive heater is a positive temperature coefficient ceramic heater.   A container having an open top receives condensate dripping from a fin, and the drain pipe receives condensate from the container dripping onto a felt pad by moving outside the pipe along the pipe by gravity. Item 14. The device according to Item 13.   11. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the duct means has a plurality of individual grooves, and the air adjusted along the grooves is sent simultaneously to the cushion air chamber. The transfer our variable temperature air throughout without closed chains, the user is sitting, can withstand a more consuming lying, a cushion selectively receive air of variable temperatures,
A plurality of hollow tubes with longitudinal axes arranged in parallel relation to each other to form a pad, with individual tubes arranged in a single plane, said tubes at the intersections of fibers; A plurality of hollow-centered tubes having side walls made of synthetic plastic fibers woven to maintain an open and woven structure so that the fibers can slide together;
Fiber, a synthetic plastic fiber layer woven open to allow each other a slide for fixing the pad tube in relation spaced apart by a fixed predetermined distance,
An impermeable layer surrounding the sides and bottom of the tube pad;
An air vapor permeable foam layer covering the pad and connected to a side surface of the impermeable layer. Means for providing cooling air including a Stirling cycle, a free piston heat pump with a cold end during operation, pad blower means for moving air from the heat pump cold end to the pad, and the heat pump cold end Interconnecting duct means and positive temperature coefficient heating means attached to the cold end of the heat pump, wherein the positive temperature coefficient heating means allows air to move to the pad when the Stirling cycle heat pump does not operate. The cushion according to claim 18, wherein the cushion operates to heat.   20. Pin-shaped heat exchanger fins are located immediately adjacent to the heating means, the fins contacting cold conditioned air at the cold end when the Stirling cycle heat pump operates. Cushion as described in.

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