Duct having air direction feature
AssigneeFca US LLC
InventorsNicholas O Kaltsounis, Marius Neagu
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An air intake duct configured to provide intake air to a first component and a second component. The duct includes a first conduit that provides the intake air to the first component and a second conduit that provides the intake air to the second component, wherein an air direction feature in the form of an elongated ridge is formed in the air intake duct at an intersection between the first conduit and the second conduit, and the air direction feature is located and oriented in the air intake duct to control an amount of the intake air that is permitted to enter each of the first conduit and the second conduit, and to control a swirl direction of the intake air as the intake air travels over elongated ridge and enters each of the first conduit and the second conduit.
Claims14
A vehicle comprising:
- a first component having a first rotating device configured for receipt of intake air;
- a second component having a second rotating device configured for receipt of the intake air;
- an air intake duct configured to receive the intake air and provide the intake air to each of the first and second components, the duct including an inlet in communication with a first conduit that provides the intake air to the first component and in communication with a second conduit that provides the intake air to the second component,
- wherein an air direction feature in the form of an elongated ridge is formed in the air intake duct at an intersection between the first conduit and the second conduit, and
- wherein the air direction feature is located and oriented in the air intake duct to control an amount of the intake air that is permitted to enter each of the first conduit and the second conduit, and to control a swirl direction of the intake air as the intake air travels over elongated ridge and enters each of the first conduit and the second conduit such that the intake air that enters each of the first and second conduits swirls in a direction that matches a rotation direction of the first and second rotating devices, respectively.
A method for manufacturing an air intake duct having an inlet configured for receipt of intake air and in communication with a first conduit that provides the intake air to a first component and in communication with a second conduit that provides the intake air to a second component, the method comprising:
- determining a position of the first component and the second component relative to one another;
- determining a rotation direction of a rotating device of each of the first component and the second component;
- determining a length each of the first conduit and the second conduit based on the positions of the first component and the second component;
- determining a location and an orientation of an air direction feature that is located in the air intake duct at a position between the first conduit and the second conduit;
- and
- molding the air intake duct including the inlet, first conduit, the second conduit, and the air direction feature located between the first conduit and the second conduit,
- wherein the step of determining the location and orientation of the air direction feature includes adjusting the location of the air direction feature based on a volume of intake air to be received by each of the first component and the second component, and adjusting an orientation of the air direction feature such that the intake air that enters each of the first and second conduits swirls in a direction that matches the rotation directions of each of the rotating devices.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.