ACTIVE AIRFLOW ACCESSORY FOR TEMPERATURE CONTROL OF A ROOM

Abstract

Disclosed is a portable airflow accessory for temperature control of a room, which provides efficient directed airflow of conditioned air from a small air conditioning (AC) unit toward a location selected by a user. The airflow accessory comprises a flexible conduit including a plurality of segments, including a first segment having an air inflow aperture, and second segment having an air outflow aperture. The flexible conduit has attached thereto, adjacent to the air inflow aperture, at least a portion of a fastener that allows the flexible conduit to be removably attached to an air outflow vent of a room AC unit. The airflow accessory further comprises a fan disposed within the flexible conduit at a junction of the first segment and the second segment, to facilitate movement of air introduced into the air inflow aperture through the flexible conduit towards the air outflow aperture

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

At least one embodiment of the present invention pertains to temperature control of a room, and more particularly, to an active airflow accessory for temperature control of a room.

BACKGROUND

In homes and businesses where high volume air conditioning (HVAC) is unavailable, wall- and window-mounted air conditioning (AC) units are commonly used for in-room cooling. However, these types of AC units tend to be expensive and inefficient at cooling a room in order to cool the user.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

One or more embodiments of the present invention are illustrated by way of example and not limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings, in which like references indicate similar elements.

FIG. 1A illustrates an example of a portable, active airflow accessory (“the airflow accessory”).

FIG. 1B illustrates how the airflow accessory can be coupled to a room AC unit.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example exploded view of the airflow accessory.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example of the air inflow end of the flexible conduit.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example of the housing and air outflow end of the airflow accessory.

FIG. 5A shows an example of the flexible conduit when it has been stretched/expanded.

FIG. 5B shows an example of the flexible conduit in its normal, relaxed state.

FIG. 6 shows a side cross-sectional view of the flexible conduit with a fan mounted therein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Introduced here is a portable, active airflow accessory for temperature control of a room (hereinafter “the airflow accessory”). The airflow accessory provides efficient directed airflow of conditioned air produced by a small (e.g., single-room) AC unit (e.g., a wall- or window-mounted AC unit) toward a location selected by a person (the user), such as where the user is sitting, working or lying down in a room. The airflow accessory includes a flexible conduit to direct the airflow. The flexible conduit can be made of coiled duct tubing, for example. The airflow accessory is “active” in that it includes one or more powered rotary fans, embedded within the conduit, to promote airflow through the conduit. Note that while the airflow accessory is described herein primarily for use with cooling systems, it can also be used with heating systems. Thus, the terms “air conditioning” and “AC” as used herein are intended to refer to either cooling or heating.

In certain implementations, the airflow accessory comprises a flexible conduit including a plurality of segments. The plurality of segments include a first segment that has an air inflow aperture of the flexible conduit, and a second segment that has an air outflow aperture of the flexible conduit. Attached to flexible conduit, adjacent to the air inflow aperture, is at least a portion of a fastener that allows the flexible conduit to be removably attached to an air outflow vent of a room AC unit, such as a wall- or window-mounted AC unit. The airflow accessory further comprises a powered rotary fan disposed within the flexible conduit at a junction of the first segment and the second segment. The fan is designed to compensate for airflow resistance caused by the shape of the flexible conduit. The fan is arranged so that, when it is in operation, the fan facilitates movement of air from the AC unit through the flexible conduit towards the air outflow aperture.

In certain embodiments, the airflow accessory further comprises a second fan disposed within the flexible conduit close to the air outflow aperture. The second fan is arranged so that, when in operation, the second fan further facilitates movement of air towards the air outflow aperture.

In certain embodiments, the airflow accessory further comprises a housing attached to the air outflow aperture of the flexible conduit. The housing can have an at least partially open portion that forms an air outflow aperture of the airflow accessor. The airflow accessory can further include a second fan contained within the housing that, when in operation, further facilitates movement through the flexible conduit of air towards the air outflow aperture of the airflow accessory. The housing may include a flat surface to facilitate stable positioning of the second fan on a surface, such as the floor or a table, at a location selected by the user. The housing can include an external switch connected to switch power to both the first fan and the second fan (if present) on or off.

The fastener that attaches the first segment to the air conditioning unit can comprise, for example, a hook-and-loop type fastener, such as Velcro. Alternatively, any other known or convenient type of fastener or fastening technique can be used, such as one or more clips, adhesive tape, a cinch-cord, etc. One or more implementations of the airflow accessory are now further described with reference to the accompanying figures.

FIG. 1A shows the airflow accessory according to at least one possible implementation. As shown, the airflow accessory 1 includes a flexible conduit 2 and at least one fan 3 disposed within the flexible conduit 2 to facilitate airflow through the flexible conduit 2. The flexible conduit 2 can be made of, for example, coiled duct tubing, which can expand and contract lengthwise. The coiled nature of such tubing has a tendency to impede airflow through its interior space. The purpose of the fan(s) 3, therefore, is to facilitate the flow of air through the flexible conduit 2. In FIG. 1A, two fans 3A and 3B are shown, although other implementations may include only one fan, or more than two fans. In particular, a longer flexible conduit 2 may necessitate a greater number of fans 3. If only one fan 3 is used, preferably it is placed approximately midway between an air inflow aperture 4 of the airflow accessory 1 and an air outflow aperture 5 of the airflow accessory 1. Each fan 3 can be, for example, a conventional, off-the-shelf consumer electrical rotary fan designed to provide air circulation in a room.

The flexible conduit 2 includes multiple segments 6 and 7, where a first fan 3A is disposed inside the flexible conduit 2 at the junction of the first segment 6 and a second segment 7. In some embodiments, the segments 6 and 7 may initially be physically separate parts that are coupled to each other and/or to a housing of the first fan 3A during the manufacturing process. In other embodiments, the segments 6 and 7 may be contiguous portions of the same physical piece of tubing, whose adjacent ends are defined by the location of the first fan 3A within the flexible conduit 2.

In certain embodiments, the flexible conduit 2 as a substantially circular cross-sectional shape and has an inner diameter, and each of the fans 3 has a round housing that has an outer diameter matching the inner diameter of the flexible conduit 2. In other implementations, the flexible conduit 2 may have a different cross-sectional shape, such as rectangular, and each of the fans 3 may have a housing shaped and configured so as to anchor the fan within the interior of the flexible conduit 2.

One end of the flexible conduit includes the air inflow aperture 4, which is designed to be removably attached to the air outflow vent of a small AC device, such as a wall- or window-mounted AC unit. FIG. 1B illustrates how the flexible conduit 2 can be connected to such an AC device 11. A second fan 3B can be mounted within or coupled to the opposite end of the flexible conduit 2, at the air outflow end 5 of the airflow accessory 1. In the illustrated embodiment, the second fan 3B is mounted within a box-shaped housing 12, which includes the air outflow aperture 5 of the airflow accessory 1. One or more flat surfaces of the housing enable the second fan 3B to be placed in a stable manner on the floor, table, or other flat surface in a room, where the user desires it to be located for optimal cooling according to the user's criteria.

In FIG. 1A, the housing 12 includes a louvered vent 14 to provide the air outflow aperture 5. The louvered vent 14 can be similar to the wall- and ceiling-mounted air outflow vents commonly used in many residential heating/cooling systems. Additionally, the housing 12 may include an external power switch 15, to which all of the fans 3 are wired in parallel, to enable the user to switch all of the fans 3 on and off. In other implementations, a separate switch can be provided for each fan. Conductive wiring 18 from the switch 15 can be run along either the exterior or interior surface of the flexible conduit, or between outer and inner linings of the flexible conduit 2, to the fans 3 and to a standard electrical wall plug 16 through a standard 12 volt AC/DC power adapter 17.

FIG. 2 illustrates an exploded view of the airflow accessory, for an implementation in which the flexible conduit is made of separate physical segments. FIG. 3 illustrates the air inflow end of the flexible conduit in greater detail. As shown, the air inflow end can include an adapter 31 connected to the flexible conduit 2, to better conform to the size and/or shape of the air outflow vent 32 of a typical AC unit 11 to which it is designed to attach. The adapter 31 (which for purposes of this description can be considered part of the flexible conduit 2) can be removably attached to the air outflow vent 32 of the AC unit 11, so as to cover most if not all of the air outflow vent 32. Any of various types of conventional fasteners can be used to attach the adapter to the air outflow vent, such as hook-and-loop (e.g., Velcro) as shown, one or more clips, adhesive tape, etc. As shown in FIG. 3, a first portion 35A of the fastener may be attached to the end of the flexible conduit 2 while a second portion 35B of the fastener may be attached to the AC unit 11. FIG. 4 illustrates the housing 12 and air outflow end of the airflow accessory in greater detail. As shown, the air outflow aperture can be provided by a louvered vent 14, which can be at least partially removable, to enable maintenance access to the fan 3B.

Referring now to FIGS. 5A and 5B, if the flexible conduit 2 is implemented as coiled duct tubing, it can be formed from a compressible/expendable wire coil 51 with a dual cylindrical lining. The wire coil 51 is wrapped around the interior lining 52, and the exterior lining 53 encloses the wire coil 51. The exterior ling 53 and interior lining 52 can be attached to each other at the midpoints between rungs of the coil 51. FIG. 5B shows an example of the flexible conduit 2 in its normal, relaxed state, whereas FIG. 5A shows an example of the flexible conduit 2 when it has been stretched/expanded. FIG. 6 illustrates how a fan 3A may be placed within the flexible conduit 2 at the junction between two segments 6 and 7 of the flexible conduit 2. The fan 3A is viewed in FIG. 6 from a direction perpendicular to the direction of airflow (indicated by the horizontal arrows). As shown, the housing 61 of the fan 3A can have an outer diameter that matches the cross-sectional diameter of, and that attaches to, the inner lining 52.

Unless contrary to physical possibility, it is envisioned that (i) the methods/steps described herein may be performed in any sequence and/or in any combination, and that (ii) the components of respective embodiments may be combined in any manner.

Any or all of the features and functions described above can be combined with each other, except to the extent it may be otherwise stated above or to the extent that any such embodiments may be incompatible by virtue of their function or structure, as will be apparent to persons of ordinary skill in the art. Unless contrary to physical possibility, it is envisioned that (i) the methods/steps described herein may be performed in any sequence and/or in any combination, and that (ii) the components of respective embodiments may be combined in any manner.

Although the subject matter has been described in language specific to structural features and/or acts, it is to be understood that the subject matter defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above. Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed as examples of implementing the claims, and other equivalent features and acts are intended to be within the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. An airflow accessory for temperature control of a room, comprising: a flexible conduit including a plurality of segments, the plurality of segments including a first segment that has an air inflow aperture of the flexible conduit and a second segment that has an air outflow aperture of the flexible conduit, the flexible conduit having attached thereto, adjacent to the air inflow aperture, at least a portion of a fastener that allows the flexible conduit to be removably attached to an air outflow vent of a room air conditioning unit; anda fan disposed within the flexible conduit at a junction of the first segment and the second segment, the fan being arranged so that, when in operation, the fan facilitates movement of air introduced into the air inflow aperture through the flexible conduit towards the air outflow aperture.

2. The airflow accessory of claim 1, further comprising a second fan disposed within the flexible conduit proximate to the air outflow aperture, the second fan being arranged so that, when in operation, the second fan facilitates movement of air towards the air outflow aperture.

3. The airflow accessory of claim 1, further comprising: a housing attached to the air outflow aperture of the flexible conduit, the housing having an at least partially open portion that forms an air outflow aperture of the airflow accessory; anda second fan contained within the housing that, when in operation, facilitates movement through the flexible conduit of air towards the air outflow aperture of the airflow accessory.

4. The airflow accessory of claim 3, wherein the housing includes a flat surface to facilitate stable positioning of the second fan on a surface.

5. The airflow accessory of claim 4, wherein the housing includes a switch connected to switch power to both the first fan and the second fan on or off.

6. The airflow accessory of claim 1, wherein the fastener comprises a hook-and-loop type fastener.

7. The airflow accessory of claim 1, wherein the plurality of segments of the flexible conduit are coiled duct tubing segments.

8. An airflow accessory for temperature control of a room, comprising: a flexible conduit including a plurality of segments, the plurality of segments including a first segment that has a first end that includes an air inflow aperture of the flexible conduit, the plurality of segments further including a second segment that has a second end including an air outflow aperture of the flexible conduit, the first end having mounted thereon at least a portion of a fastener that allows the first segment to be removably attached to an air outflow vent of a room air conditioning unit;a first fan disposed within the flexible conduit at a junction of the first segment and the second segment, the first fan being arranged so that, when in operation, the first fan facilitates movement through the flexible conduit of air introduced into the first end towards the second end; anda housing attached to the second end of the flexible conduit, the housing having an at least partially open portion that forms an air outflow aperture of the airflow accessory, the housing containing a second fan that, when in operation, facilitates movement through the flexible conduit of air towards the air outflow aperture of the airflow accessory.

9. The airflow accessory of claim 8, wherein the housing includes a flat surface to facilitate stable positioning of the second fan on a surface.

10. The airflow accessory of claim 9, wherein the housing includes a switch to selectively switch power to the first fan and the second fan on or off.

11. An airflow accessory for temperature control of a room, comprising: a flexible conduit including a plurality of coiled duct tubing segments, the plurality of coiled duct tubing segments including a first coiled duct tubing segment that includes an air inflow aperture of the flexible conduit, the plurality of coiled duct tubing segments further including a second coiled duct tubing segment that includes an air outflow aperture of the flexible conduit, the flexible conduit having mounted thereon, adjacent to the air inflow aperture, at least a portion of a fastener that allows the first segment to be removably attached to an air outflow vent of a room air conditioning unit;a first fan disposed within the flexible conduit at a junction of the first coiled duct tubing segment and the second coiled duct tubing segment, the first fan being arranged so that, when in operation, the first fan facilitates movement through the flexible conduit of air introduced into the first end towards the second end; the second coiled duct tubing segment having an inner diameter, the first fan having an outer diameter matching and attached to the inner diameter of the second coiled duct tubing segment; anda housing attached to the second end of the flexible conduit, the housing having an at least partially open portion that forms an air outflow aperture of the airflow accessory, the housing containing a second fan that, when in operation, facilitates movement through the flexible conduit of air towards the second end.

12. The airflow accessory of claim 11, wherein the housing includes a flat surface to facilitate stable positioning of the second fan on a surface.

13. The airflow accessory of claim 11, wherein the housing includes a switch connected to switch power to both the first fan and the second fan on or off.

14. The airflow accessory of claim 11, wherein the fastener comprises a hook-and-loop type fastener.