Patent Application
20160030871
1. Field of the Disclosure
Embodiments of this disclosure generally relate to a magnetic filter seal.
2. Description of the Related Art
An air filtration system enhances air quality by removing impurities, such as odors, volatile organic compounds, dust, pollen, mold, and bacteria, from the air. The air filtration system has a holding frame for mounting a filter assembly. The filter assembly has a filter frame for supporting one or more filter elements comprised of a media configured to remove air impurities. The filter element may be configured as a gas phase and/or particulate filter element, for example using activated carbon filter media and/or wet laid or spun-bonded media and the like. As air flows into the filter assembly and through the filter elements, the air impurities are captured by the filter media.
When the filter assembly is mounted to the holding frame, however, a small, non-sealed gap is formed between the exterior of the filter assembly and the interior of the holding frame. Air that flows through the gap bypasses the filter assembly and is not filtered. Thus, the efficiency of the air filtration system is compromised.
Therefore, there is a need for apparatus and methods for preventing air flow from bypassing a filter assembly of air filtration systems.
An filter assembly comprising a filter frame having an open front end and an open rear end, wherein the open rear end has an outer shoulder; a filter media coupled to the filter frame; and a magnetic seal coupled to the outer shoulder of the filter frame, wherein the magnetic seal is disposed about the entire circumference of the open rear end of the filter frame.
An air filtration system comprising a filter assembly having a filter frame and a filter media, the filter frame having an outer shoulder; a holding frame having an inner shoulder, wherein the filter frame is mounted in the holding frame such that the outer shoulder of the filter frame engages the inner shoulder of the holding frame; and a magnetic seal disposed between the outer shoulder of the filter frame and the inner shoulder of the holding frame.
So that the manner in which the above recited features can be understood in detail, a more particular description of the embodiments briefly summarized above may be had by reference to the embodiments below, some of which are illustrated in the appended drawings. It is to be noted, however, that the appended drawings illustrate only typical embodiments and are therefore not to be considered limiting of its scope, for the embodiments may admit to other equally effective embodiments.
In the embodiment depicted in
The magnetic seal 400 is disposed between the outer shoulder 215 of the filter frame 210 and the inner shoulder 315 of the holding frame 300. In one embodiment, the magnetic seal 400 is adhered to the outer shoulder 215 of the filter frame 210, for example using a pressure sensitive adhesive. The magnetic seal 400 forms a seal by the magnetic attachment and attraction to the materials forming the outer and inner shoulders 215, 315 to prevent air from flowing through the space between the outer shoulder 215 and the inner shoulder 315, thereby bypassing the filter media 220 when the filter assembly 200 is mounted in the holding frame 300. The seal formed by the magnetic seal 400 is disposed about the entire circumference of the open rear end of the filter frame 210 and thus the space between the outer and inner shoulders 215, 315 when the filter assembly 200 is mounted to the holding frame 300.
The magnetic seal 400 has a substantially square or rectangular shape but may include any other shape corresponding to the outer shoulder 215 of the filter frame 210 and/or the inner shoulder 315 of the holding frame 300. The magnetic seal 400 can be formed from a single piece of magnetic material, or from a plurality of strips of magnetic material, the ends of which are coupled together by an adhesive 410 as illustrated in
The filter frame 210 further includes one or more openings 230 through which air can flow and be directed through the filter media 220. Air impurities are captured by the filter media 220 to clean the air flowing through the filter assembly 200. The filter media 220 may be configured as a gas phase and/or particulate filter element, for example using activated carbon filter media and/or wet laid or spun-bonded media and the like. The filter media 220 may be formed out of glass, polymer fibers, and/or any other suitable type of filtering media. The filter assembly 200 may include a width within a range of about 280 mm to about 600 mm, a height within a range of about 280 mm to about 900 mm, and a depth of about 280 mm to about 900 mm.
The holding frame 300 has four sides including an upper panel 310A, a lower panel 310B, a right side panel 320A, and a left side panel 320B. The panels 310A, 310B, 320A, 320B are coupled together, such as by welded, riveted, and/or threaded connections, to form a substantially square or rectangular shaped tubular structure (e.g. a quadrilateral tube) with a front (first) open end, a back (second) open end, and an open interior disposed between the front and back open ends into which the bag filter assembly 200 can be inserted. The panels 310A, 310B, 320A, 320B may alternatively be an integral single piece member. The holding frame 300 may have a width selected to accommodate the filter assembly 200.
The panels 310A, 310B, 320A, 320B may be formed from metallic materials, such as iron, steel, nickel, cobalt, and/or any other material sufficient to structurally support the filter assembly 200. The rear sides of the panels 310A, 310B, 320A, 320B form the inner shoulder 315, which supports and prevents the filter assembly 200 from being inserted entirely through the holding frame 300. The holding frame 300 may optionally include one or more attachment members 330, such as spring clips, that are configured to securely attach the filter assembly 200 to the holding frame 300. If the magnetic seal 400 provides a sufficient force to secure the filter assembly 200 to the holding frame 300, the attachment members 330 may be omitted.
Since the magnetic seal 400 is coupled to the outer surface of the outer shoulder 215 of the filter frame 210, to assemble the air filtration system 100, the filter assembly 200 simply is inserted into the front end of the holding frame 300. The outer shoulder 215 of the filter frame 210 engages the inner shoulder 315 of the holding frame 300 with the magnetic seal 400 disposed therebetween to prevent air from flowing between the outer shoulder 215 of the filter frame 210 and the inner shoulder 315 of the holding frame 300. The inner shoulder 315 also prevents the filter assembly 200 from being inserted entirely through the holding frame 300.
In one embodiment, the holding frame 300 may be permanently installed in a larger surrounding structure, such as an air duct of a building ventilation system. The magnetic seal 400 can be used with the filter assembly 200 on existing holding frames 300 to improve the efficiency of air filtration systems by preventing unfiltered air from bypassing the filter media 220 of the filter assembly 200. Although illustrated herein as a bag filter assembly 200, the magnetic seal 400 can be used with any type of filter assembly having a filter frame that is mountable to the holding frame 300.
While the foregoing is directed to certain embodiments, other and further embodiments may be devised without departing from the basic scope thereof, and the scope thereof is determined by the claims that follow.
