CN210174568U

CN210174568U - Heating, ventilating and air conditioning unit for vehicle

Info

Publication number: CN210174568U
Application number: CN201920411554.9U
Authority: CN
Inventors: Tao Bao; 鲍韬
Original assignee: Valeo Automotive Air Conditioning Hubei Co Ltd
Current assignee: Valeo Automotive Air Conditioning Hubei Co Ltd
Priority date: 2019-03-28
Filing date: 2019-03-28
Publication date: 2020-03-24
Anticipated expiration: 2029-03-28

Abstract

A heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) unit for a vehicle is described. The HVAC unit includes a housing having a tongue with a hole, and a bracket. A tongue is disposed on the underside of the housing and a hole is disposed in the tongue. The bracket is adapted to be removably coupled with the housing and configured to secure the HVAC unit in the vehicle. The bracket includes a groove and a pin. The groove is adapted to receive the tongue when the housing is received on the cradle. The pin projects perpendicularly from the groove to engage a hole provided in the tongue when the groove is coupled with the tongue.

Description

Heating, ventilating and air conditioning unit for vehicle

Technical Field

The present invention relates generally to a Heating Ventilation Air Conditioning (HVAC) unit and, more particularly, to an HVAC unit having an assembly for installing the HVAC unit in a vehicle.

Background

Generally, an HVAC (heating ventilation air conditioning) unit is provided in a vehicle for comfortable driving of an occupant in the vehicle. The HVAC unit may experience some vibration in the vehicle, which may cause undesirable noise and may reduce the life of the HVAC unit. To withstand such vibrations, the HVAC unit needs to be securely coupled to the vehicle. Typically, the HVAC unit is coupled to the vehicle in such a way that the HVAC unit uses brackets to withstand vibrations in all three axes (i.e., X, Y and the Z axis). The bracket is attached to the vehicle to couple the HVAC unit in the vehicle. The bracket may be fastened to the HVAC unit by screws on all three axes to withstand vibrations during movement of the vehicle. However, this method of fixing the HVAC unit requires more screws to mount the HVAC unit in the vehicle to securely fasten the HVAC and absorb vibration. As the number of screws mounting the HVAC unit increases, the cost and time of assembling the HVAC unit in the vehicle also increases.

Accordingly, there is a need for an HVAC unit having an assembly for securing the HVAC unit in a vehicle without the need for screws or minimal screws.

SUMMERY OF THE UTILITY MODEL

In this specification, some elements or parameters may be indexed, such as a first element and a second element. In this case, unless otherwise noted, the index is used only to distinguish and name similar but not identical elements. No priority should be inferred from such an index, as these terms can be switched without traitor the present invention. Additionally, the index does not imply any order of installing or using the elements of the invention.

In view of the foregoing, embodiments of the present invention herein provide a heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) unit for a vehicle. The HVAC unit includes a housing having at least one tongue with an aperture and a bracket. At least one tongue is provided on the bottom side of the housing and the aperture is provided in the at least one tongue. The bracket is adapted to be removably coupled with the housing and configured to secure the hvac unit in the vehicle. The bracket also includes at least one groove and a pin. The at least one groove is adapted to receive the at least one tongue when the housing is received on the bracket. A pin projects perpendicularly from the at least one groove to engage a hole disposed in the at least one tongue when the at least one groove is coupled with the at least one tongue.

In an embodiment, the bracket further comprises a clamp disposed on an edge of the bracket to hold the bracket and the housing together. In another embodiment, a first complementary hole is provided in the bracket and a second complementary hole is provided in the housing to receive the screw when the housing is mounted on the bracket. A second complementary hole in the bracket may be juxtaposed with a clip provided at an edge of the bracket.

In another embodiment, a hole is disposed at a proximal end of the at least one tongue relative to the bottom side of the housing, and a pin is disposed at a top of the at least one groove to couple with the hole. The bracket may also include an elongated portion protruding at an angle from the at least one groove to couple the bracket with the vehicle. The at least one groove may be a "U" shaped groove and the at least one tongue may be a "U" shaped tongue. The holes may be square holes and the pins may be square pins. The bracket is adapted to withstand six-directional vibrations in three axes.

According to another aspect of the present invention, an HVAC unit for a vehicle is provided. The HVAC unit includes a housing and a bracket. The housing has an elongated portion and a recess projecting from the elongated portion. The groove also includes a pin projecting perpendicularly from the groove. The bracket is adapted to be removably coupled to the housing and configured to secure the HVAC unit (100) in the vehicle. The bracket also includes a tongue and a hole. The tongue is adapted to slide into the groove when the housing is secured to the bracket. A hole is provided in the tongue to receive the pin of the groove when the groove is coupled with the tongue.

In one embodiment, the pin is disposed proximally of the groove relative to the elongate portion. In another embodiment, a hole is provided at the top of the tongue to engage a pin provided in the groove. The bracket may further include a clip disposed on an edge of the bracket to hold the bracket and the housing together.

Drawings

Other features, details and advantages of the invention may be inferred from the following description of the invention. A more complete appreciation of the invention and many of the attendant advantages thereof will be readily understood as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

fig. 1 shows a schematic diagram of a Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) unit according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 2A shows a schematic view of a tongue having a hole in a housing of the HVAC unit of fig. 1, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2B shows a schematic view of a bracket having a groove and a pin to couple with a housing of the HVAC unit of FIG. 1, according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 illustrates an exploded view of the HVAC unit showing a bracket with the groove and pin of FIGS. 1 and 2B; and

fig. 4A, 4B and 4C illustrate different groove-pin and tongue-hole configurations in HVAC units.

Detailed Description

It must be noted that the attached drawings disclose the invention in a sufficiently detailed manner to be implemented, which contributes to a better definition of the invention when required. However, the present invention should not be limited to the embodiments disclosed in the specification.

The utility model relates to a Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) unit, it has the support that is used for installing the HVAC unit in the vehicle with minimum quantity of screw. For example, a conventional HVAC unit may require more than two screws to install the HVAC unit in the vehicle, which may result in a large portion of cost. To accommodate more screws, the HVAC unit must have complementary features, which results in manufacturing the HVAC unit cumbersome. To alleviate the above-mentioned problems, the HVAC unit of the present invention includes a housing and a bracket having complementary features to couple with the housing. The HVAC unit includes a housing including a tongue and a hole, and a bracket. The bracket includes a groove and a pin adapted to couple with the tongue and the hole, respectively. The bracket is adapted to couple with the housing when the tongue couples with the groove and the hole couples with the pin, respectively. The bracket is also coupled to the vehicle to securely mount the HVAC unit in the vehicle. Due to the housing and the bracket having complementary features (e.g., tongue-groove and hole-pin assemblies) to couple to each other, the HVAC unit can be installed in the vehicle with a minimum number of screws, such as one screw.

While aspects related to the tongue and groove assemblies provided in an HVAC unit to install the HVAC unit in a vehicle as described above and hereinafter may be implemented in any number of tongue and groove assemblies to install the HVAC unit in a vehicle, embodiments are described in the context of the following systems.

Fig. 1 shows a schematic diagram of a heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) unit 100 for a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention. The HVAC unit 100, hereinafter referred to as an HVAC unit, includes a housing 102 and one or more brackets 108 adapted to be removably coupled to the housing 102. The housing 102 includes one or more tongues 104 disposed on the bottom side of the housing 102. In other words, one or more tongues 104 are disposed in housing 102 such that one or more tongues 104 protrude toward the base of the vehicle chassis. Further, each of the one or more tongues 104 includes an aperture 106 disposed between the proximal and distal ends of the one or more tongues 104. In one embodiment, aperture 106 is disposed at a proximal end of one or more tongues 104, relative to a bottom of housing 102. For the sake of brevity and greater clarity, the following description is described with one cradle 108 and a single tongue 104 disposed in the housing 102, however, it is not limited to any number of cradles and tongues.

Bracket 108 is removably coupled to housing 104 and is configured to secure HVAC unit 100 in the vehicle. In other words, the bracket 108 may be detached from the housing 104 when the bracket 108 is coupled to the housing 104. Bracket 108 also includes a first portion 116A having one or more grooves 110, and a second portion 116B adapted to couple with a vehicle. In an embodiment, the second portion 116B is an elongated portion that projects at an angle from the first portion to couple the bracket 108 to the vehicle. The first portion 116A of the bracket 108 is coupled to the housing 104 of the HVAC unit 100 and the second portion 116B of the bracket 108 is coupled to the vehicle, thereby installing the HVAC unit 100 in the vehicle. For the sake of brevity and greater clarity, the following description will be described with respect to a single recess 110, but it does limit the stent to having more than one recess. Groove 100 receives tongue 104 of housing 102 when the housing is coupled to bracket 108. In other words, tongue 104 of housing 104 slides into groove 110 when housing 102 is coupled with bracket 108. Bracket 108 also includes a pin 112, which pin 112 projects perpendicularly from groove 110 to engage with a hole 106 provided in tongue 104 when groove 110 is coupled with tongue 104. In an embodiment, the pin 112 is disposed in the first portion 116A of the bracket 108 such that the pin 112 is formed above the recess 110 in the first portion 116A of the bracket 108.

Fig. 2A shows a schematic view of a tongue 104 according to an embodiment of the invention, the tongue 104 having a hole 106 provided in the housing 102. Tongue 104 also includes a first complementary hole 202A to receive a screw when housing 102 is mounted on bracket 108. In one embodiment, aperture 106 is a square aperture and tongue 104 is a "U" shaped tongue. A hole 106 is provided at the proximal end of tongue 104 relative to the bottom side of housing 102.

Fig. 2B shows a schematic view of a bracket 108 having a groove 110 and a pin 112 to couple with the housing 102 of the HVAC unit 100, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The bracket 108 also includes a clamp 114, the clamp 114 being disposed at a second portion 116B of the bracket 108 to hold the bracket 108 and the housing 102 together when the bracket 108 is coupled with the housing 102. In other words, the clamp 114 is disposed at an edge of the bracket 114 to couple with the tongue 104 disposed in the housing 102. Additionally, a second complementary aperture 202B is provided in the bracket 108 such that the second complementary aperture 202B is complementary to the first complementary aperture 202A when the housing 102 is mounted on the bracket. In one embodiment, the second complementary aperture 202B is juxtaposed with the clamp 114 disposed at an edge of the bracket 108. In one embodiment, a pin 112 is disposed at the top of the groove 110 to couple with the aperture 106 disposed in the housing 102. In other words, the placement of the pin 112 varies based on the location of the hole 106 in the housing 103. For example, if aperture 106 is disposed at the distal end of tongue 104 relative to the bottom of housing 102, pin 112 is disposed at the bottom of the groove to couple with aperture 106.

FIG. 3 illustrates an exploded view of the HVAC unit 100 showing the bracket 108 with the groove 110 and pin 112 of FIG. 1. The groove 110 provided in the bracket 108 is complementary to the tongue 104 provided in the housing 102 of the HVAC unit 100. Further, the pin 112 provided in the bracket 108 coincides with a hole provided in the housing to receive the pin 112 inside the hole. The HVAC unit 100 may also include a heat exchanger (not shown) and a control door. Furthermore, the components in the HVAC unit 100 function in a known manner and are not explained again to simplify the description. Tongue 104 slides into groove 110 when housing 102 is assembled in a cradle. At the same time, pin 112 engages hole 106 when tongue 104 is received in groove 110. In addition, screws are tightened into first and second

complementary screws

202A and 202B to enable a secure connection between bracket 108 and housing 102. When the tongue 104 slides into the groove 110 of the bracket 108, it is easy to mount the HVAC unit with a minimum number of screws to absorb vibration in all three axes (X-Y-Z axes).

Fig. 4A, 4B, and 4C illustrate different groove-pin and tongue-hole configurations in the HVAC unit 100. For example, fig. 4A shows a schematic view of an HVAC unit 100 having a groove 110 along with a pin 112 in the housing 102 and a tongue 104 and a hole 106 in the bracket, according to another embodiment of the present invention. According to another aspect of the present invention, the housing may include a groove 110 along with a pin 112 instead of a tongue 104 and a hole 106. According to this aspect of the invention, tongue 104 and hole 106 are disposed in bracket 108. In other words, groove 110, along with pin 112, are swapped in their positions with tongue 104, along with hole 106. For example, tongue 104 is disposed in bracket 108 along with hole 106, and groove 110 is disposed in housing 102 along with pin 112. When housing 102 is secured to cradle 108, tongue 104 disposed in cradle 108 slides into groove 110 disposed in housing 102. Meanwhile, when groove 110 is coupled with tongue 102, hole 106 receives pin 112 disposed in housing 102.

Fig. 4B shows a schematic view of an HVAC unit 100 having a tongue 104 with a pin 112 in the housing 102 and a groove 110 and a hole 106 in the bracket 108, according to another embodiment of the present invention. Tongue 104, disposed in housing 102, is adapted to slide into groove 110, disposed in bracket 108. Meanwhile, when groove 110 is coupled with tongue 104, hole 106 receives pin 112 disposed in housing 102.

Fig. 4C shows a schematic view of an HVAC unit 100 having a groove 110 with a hole 106 in the housing 102 and a tongue 104 and a pin 112 in the bracket 108, according to another embodiment of the present invention. Tongue 104, disposed in bracket 108, is adapted to slide into groove 110, disposed in housing 102. Meanwhile, when groove 110 is coupled with tongue 102, hole 106 receives pin 112 disposed in bracket 108.

In no event should the present invention be limited to the embodiments specifically described in this document, as other embodiments are possible. The utility model can be extended to any equivalent device and any technically operated device combination.

Claims

1. A heating, ventilation and air-conditioning unit (100) for a vehicle, characterized in that said heating, ventilation and air-conditioning unit (100) comprises:

a housing (102) comprising at least one tongue (104) disposed on a bottom side of the housing (102), wherein a hole (106) is disposed in the at least one tongue (104); and

a bracket (108) adapted to be removably coupled with the housing (102) and configured to secure the hvac unit (100) in a vehicle, the bracket (108) further comprising:

at least one groove (110), the groove (110) being adapted to receive at least one tongue (104) when the housing (102) is received on the bracket (108); and

a pin (112) projecting perpendicularly from the at least one groove (110) to engage a hole (106) provided in the at least one tongue (104) when the at least one groove (110) is coupled with the at least one tongue (104).

2. The hvac unit (100) of claim 1, wherein the bracket (108) further comprises a clip (114) disposed on an edge of the bracket (108) to hold the bracket (108) and the housing (102) together.

3. The hvac unit (100) of claim 1 or 2, wherein a first complementary hole (202A) is provided in the bracket (108) and a second complementary hole (202B) is provided in the housing (102) to receive a screw when the housing (102) is mounted on the bracket (108).

4. The hvac unit (100) of claim 3, wherein the second complementary hole (202B) in the bracket (108) is juxtaposed with a clip (114) disposed at an edge of the bracket (108).

5. The hvac unit (100) of claim 1 or 2, wherein the aperture (106) is disposed proximate the at least one tongue (104) relative to the underside of the housing (102), and wherein the pin (112) is disposed at the top of the at least one groove (110) to couple with the aperture (106).

6. The hvac unit (100) of claim 1 or 2, wherein the bracket (108) further comprises an elongated portion (116B) protruding at an angle from the at least one groove (110) to couple the bracket (108) with a vehicle.

7. The hvac unit (100) of claim 1, wherein the at least one groove (110) is a "U" shaped groove and the at least one tongue (104) is a "U" shaped tongue.

8. The hvac unit (100) of claim 1, wherein the aperture (106) is a square aperture and the pin (112) is a square pin.

9. The hvac unit (100) of claim 1, wherein the bracket (108) is adapted to withstand six-directional vibration in three axes.

10. A heating, ventilation and air-conditioning unit (100) for a vehicle, characterized in that said heating, ventilation and air-conditioning unit (100) comprises:

a housing (102) comprising an elongated portion (116B) and a groove (110) protruding from the elongated portion (116B), wherein the groove (110) has a pin (112) protruding perpendicularly from the groove (110); and

a bracket (108) adapted to be removably coupled to the housing (102) and configured to secure the hvac unit (100) in a vehicle, the bracket (108) further comprising:

a tongue (104), the tongue (104) adapted to slide into the groove (110) when the housing (102) is secured to the bracket (108); and

a bore (106) disposed in the tongue (104) to receive a pin (112) of the groove (110) when the groove is coupled with the tongue (104).

11. The hvac unit (100) of claim 10, wherein the pin (112) is disposed proximally of the groove (110) relative to the elongated portion (116B).

12. A hvac unit (100) as set forth in claim 10 or 11 wherein said aperture (106) is disposed at the top of the tongue (104) for engagement with a pin (112) disposed in a groove (110).

13. The hvac unit (100) of claim 10, wherein the bracket (108) further comprises a clip (114) disposed on an edge of the bracket (108) to hold the bracket (108) and the housing (102) together.