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US 10,293,072 B2Granted
Air purifier for transportation vehicles
OwnerFariborz Taghipourinventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A vehicle air purification system has a photocatalyst activated by photons emitted via an ultraviolet light emitting diode (UV-LED). The photocatalyst on a supporting structure is positioned to contact airflow passing through or over the photocatalyst. Chemical contaminants and microorganisms are eliminated from the airflow that makes contact with the photocatalyst structure.
Claims22
An air purification system comprising:
- a housing, the housing elongated in an axial direction and having an inlet for permitting air to be purified to enter an interior of the housing and outlet for permitting purified air to be exhausted from the interior of the housing and the housing defining an air-flow path through which an airflow is capable of moving between the inlet and the outlet, a portion of the air-flow path elongated in the axial direction and shaped so that the airflow capable of moving within the portion of the air-flow path flows in the axial direction;
- an ultraviolet light emitting diode (UV-LED) supported within the interior of the housing and arranged to emit ultraviolet (UV) radiation into the portion of the air-flow path with an optical axis of the UV-LED and corresponding UV radiation having a directional component oriented substantially in the axial direction;
- and
- a photocatalyst structure supported in a central region of the portion of the air-flow path where it is positioned to be irradiated by the UV radiation from the UV-LED and where the airflow is capable of flowing in the axial direction toward the photocatalyst structure on an inlet side of the photocatalyst structure and where the airflow is capable of flowing in the axial direction away from the photocatalyst structure on an outlet side of the photocatalyst structure, the inlet side opposing the outlet side, the photocatalyst structure comprising a photocatalyst;
- one or more flow-shaping elements, each flow-shaping element supported in the air-flow path and shaped to provide at least one airflow guiding surface, wherein at least a portion of the airflow guiding surface extends from a location downstream of the UV-LED to a location upstream of the photocatalyst structure for directing the airflow toward the inlet side of the photocatalyst structure;
- and
- wherein the UV-LED is arranged to emit radiation directed toward the inlet side of the photocatalyst structure.
4 more elements
A method of purifying air, the method comprising:
- creating an airflow in an axial direction through an air-flow path of a reactor, the air-flow path elongated in the axial direction;
- locating an ultraviolet light emitting diode to emit ultraviolet (UV) radiation in the air-flow path with an optical axis of the UV-LED and corresponding UV radiation having a direction component oriented substantially in the axial direction;
- locating a photocatalyst structure in a central region of the air flow path such that the airflow flows in the axial direction toward the photocatalyst structure on an inlet side of the photocatalyst structure and where the airflow flows in the axial direction away from the photocatalyst structure on an outlet side of the photocatalyst structure, the outlet side opposing the inlet side;
- activating the photocatalyst with UV radiation emitted from the UV-LED;
- locating one or more flow-shaping elements in the air-flow path, each flow-shaping element shaped to provide at least one airflow guiding surface, wherein at least a portion of the airflow guiding surface extends from a location downstream of the UV-LED to a location upstream of the photocatalyst structure for directing the airflow toward the inlet side of the photocatalyst structure;
- and
- wherein the UV-LED is arranged to emit radiation directed toward the inlet side of the photocatalyst structure.
4 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.