Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning seat assembly

This patent application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Pat. App. No. 61/825,465 filed May 20, 2013, which is incorporated herein by reference for all that it contains.

The present invention relates generally to seats that allow a user to rest in a sitting position and more specifically to seats designed to regulate the temperature of a user. The concept of temperature regulated seating is well known and especially prevalent in passenger vehicles such as automobiles, boats, airplanes, and the like.

Some have attempted to regulate the temperature of a seated person by blowing temperature regulated air on the person. A common arrangement to accomplish this is to supply air through conduits in a seat to a surface of the seat in contact with a user. The surface in contact with the user often comprises discrete air outlets or an air-permeable fabric to allow the air to impact the user.

For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,761,399 to Bargheer et al., which is incorporated herein for all that it discloses, describes a motor vehicle seat with an air supply device integrated in its backrest and/or head restraint including an air outlet duct having an outlet opening arranged on the front side of the head restraint, for supplying the head, neck and shoulder region of an occupant with hot air, and an air inlet duct having an inlet opening arranged on the rear side of the backrest, with a heating element being assigned to the air supply device.

In another example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,976,734 to Stoewe, which is incorporated herein for all that it discloses, describes a vehicle seat with a backrest cover at least partially air permeable wherein air exchange passes through the air-permeable regions. This may take the form of a woven or knitted textile which covers a ventilating fan arranged in the backrest.

Despite the benefits of such systems, it would be desirable to have an increased amount of heat exchange between a temperature regulated seat and a user.

A seat assembly may regulate the temperature of a user by allowing fluid to flow against the user's body before dissipating. In one embodiment, this may be accomplished by a seat assembly comprising a seat body with a contact surface in contact with a user. The contact surface may comprise one or more elongated depressions that, in combination with the user, may form at least one duct through which fluid may flow.

A cross-section of the elongated depressions may comprise an opening width at an opening that is smaller than a maximum width thereof. This may aid in preventing the user from obstructing the flow of fluid though the ducts.

The elongated depressions may taper from a central portion of the contact surface toward a distal end, an opposing distal end, or both. Other elongated depressions may extend from a central portion of the contact surface toward a peripheral portion of the contact surface and, further, may taper from the central portion toward the peripheral portion where they may comprise openings for dispensing fluid therefrom. When used in conjunction with a passenger vehicle, fluid dispensed from the opening may flow into a passenger compartment to regulate the temperature of the compartment.

At least one conduit may pass from the contact surface to an opposing surface of the seat assembly. In various embodiments the conduit may comprise at least one inlet at the opposing surface and a tube may be connected to the at least one inlet and held with a fastener. The tube may connect to a heating, ventilation, or air conditioning (HVAC) system.

The conduit may further comprise at least one outlet for fluid connection with the elongated depressions. The outlet may comprise a diffuser for dividing fluid flowing through the conduit. The outlet may also comprise a valve for controlling the volume of fluid flowing through the conduit.

The contact surface of the seat assembly may be formed at least partially from one or more cushions disposed on an inner surface thereof that may have one or more troughs disposed thereon. The cushions may be spaced from one another and may comprise peripheral edges continuous with internal surfaces of the troughs.

Further, the cushions may be detachable from the inner surface and attached to the inner surface with hook and loop fasteners, buttons, buckles, magnets, straps, slots and tabs, or a combination thereof.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a vehicle comprising a passenger compartment with a seat assembly disposed therein.

FIG. 2 is an orthogonal view of an embodiment of a seat assembly with one or more elongated depressions and a flow of fluid disposed therein.

FIG. 3 a is a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of a seat body with a contact surface comprising a duct formed from an elongated depression and a portion of a user.

FIG. 3 b is a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of a seat assembly comprising a trough disposed between cushions.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an embodiment of a seat assembly connected to an HVAC system (not shown).

FIG. 5 a is a magnified, partially cutaway view of a diffuser disposed in an outlet of a seat assembly.

FIG. 5 b is a magnified, partially cutaway view of an embodiment of a valve that may be adjusted to control a volume of fluid flowing through an outlet of a seat assembly.

In FIG. 1 , an embodiment of a vehicle 99 capable of transporting a user (not shown) from one location to another is shown. A seat assembly 100 may be secured within the vehicle 99 to support the user. While the vehicle 99 is portrayed as an automobile, it should be understood that a variety of vehicle types may be used, such as, but not limited to, land vehicles, aircraft, and watercraft. It should be further understood that such a seat assembly could also be used in non-moving areas such as residential homes, professional offices, or any other place that can accommodate a seat assembly.

The vehicle 99 may comprise a passenger compartment 111 in which a user may sit. The passenger compartment 111 may be open to the environment, as shown, or closed to the environment. It may be desirable to regulate the temperature of the user. However, regulating the temperature of a user may be significantly more difficult in open compartments compared to closed compartments due to additional exposure to the environment. The present invention provides a seat assembly that makes regulating the temperature of a user easier in both open and closed environments.

FIG. 2 shows an embodiment of a seat assembly 200 that may help regulate the temperature of a user (not shown). The seat assembly 200 may comprise a seat body 229 that may be rigid to form a support for the user and also a contact surface 203 to make contact with the user. One or more elongated depressions 202 may be disposed in the contact surface 203 .

To regulate the temperature of the user, a fluid 204 may be passed through the elongated depressions 202 for exchanging heat and/or moisture with the user. The fluid 204 may flow from one or more outlets 217 disposed in the one or more elongated depressions 202 toward a peripheral portion 209 of the contact surface 203 in order to distribute flow of fluid 204 . The fluid 204 may be dispensed from one or more openings 210 at the peripheral portion 209 for ejection of the fluid 204 . The ejection of the fluid 204 may contribute to regulating a temperature within a passenger compartment 211 .

To maintain a relatively constant velocity of fluid 204 , the cross sectional area of the elongated depressions 202 may need to be reduced. Reducing the cross sectional area may be accomplished by a tapering of the elongated depressions 202 from a central portion 208 of the contact surface 203 toward the peripheral portion 209 and/or toward a distal end 230 and/or opposing distal end 231 .

FIG. 3 a shows an embodiment of a contact surface 303 a and a portion of a user 301 a in contact with the contact surface 303 a . The contact surface 303 a may comprise one or more elongated depressions 302 a disposed thereon. A combination of the user 301 a and the elongated depressions 302 a may form one or more ducts 305 a through which fluid may flow. The elongated depressions 302 a may comprise an opening width 306 a at an opening 326 a , and a maximum width 307 a , wherein the opening width 306 a may be smaller than the maximum width 307 a to aid in preventing a portion of the user 301 a from obstructing the flow of the fluid in the ducts 305 a.

FIG. 3 b shows an embodiment of a base 329 b with one or more cushions 319 b disposed on an inner surface 320 b of the base 329 b . The inner surface 320 b may comprise one or more troughs 321 b disposed thereon. The cushions 319 b may be spaced on either side of the troughs 321 b and comprise peripheral edges 322 b continuous with an internal surface 323 b of the troughs 321 b . A user 301 b may make contact with a contact surface 303 b forming a duct 305 b through which a fluid (not shown) may flow. The cushions 319 b may be attached to the inner surface 320 b with a tab 325 b and slot 324 b connection as shown. Cushions may also be attached with hook and loop fasteners, buttons, buckles, magnets, straps, or other known methods. Further, the cushions 319 b may be detachable from the inner surface 320 b to allow for easier cleaning and/or to exchange for a different style, shape or fabric.

FIG. 4 shows an embodiment of a seat assembly 400 connected to an HVAC system (not shown) by a tube 415 . A conduit 412 may penetrate from a contact surface 403 through to an opposing surface 413 and comprise an inlet 414 for connection to the tube 415 . The tube 415 may be connected to the inlet 414 and may be held with a fastener 416 , such as, but not limited to, hook and loop fasteners, buttons, buckles, magnets, straps, slots and tabs, or other known methods. The HVAC system may pass a fluid through the tube 415 and conduit 412 to the seat assembly 400 .

FIG. 5 a shows an embodiment of a diffuser 518 a that may be disposed in one or more elongated depressions 502 a and be capable of distributing a fluid 504 a from an HVAC system (not shown) into the elongated depressions 502 a . The fluid 504 a may flow through a conduit 512 a , out from an outlet 517 a , and past the diffuser 518 a . The diffuser 518 a may be angled in such a way to divide the flow of the fluid 504 a into one or more directions through various elongated depressions 502 a . A division of the flow of fluid 504 a may be desirable for preventing flatulence of a user from being distributed through the one or more elongated depressions 502 a toward a distal end 530 a.

FIG. 5 b shows an embodiment of a valve 518 b and a baffle 532 b that may be disposed in one or more elongated depressions 502 b and capable of controlling a volume of fluid 504 b flowing out from an outlet 517 b and past the valve 518 b , wherein the valve 518 b may be rotatable relative to the baffle 532 b . A valve of this type may be combined with a diffuser (not shown) to both control the volume of a flow of fluid and the direction of the flow of fluid.

Whereas the present invention has been described in particular relation to the drawings attached hereto, it should be understood that other and further modifications apart from those shown or suggested herein, may be made within the scope and spirit of the present invention.