U.S. patent application number 16/283807 was filed with the patent office on 2020-08-27 for thermoelectric dehumidifying device.
The applicant listed for this patent is Norm Pacific Automation Corp.. Invention is credited to Horng-Tsann Huang, Wen-Yu Weng.
Application Number | 20200271336 16/283807 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 1000003916438 |
Filed Date | 2020-08-27 |
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United States Patent
Application |
20200271336 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Huang; Horng-Tsann ; et
al. |
August 27, 2020 |
THERMOELECTRIC DEHUMIDIFYING DEVICE
Abstract
A thermoelectric dehumidifying device includes a case, on which
a first air inlet, a second air inlet, and an air outlet are
provided, and in which a thermoelectric element, a condenser, a
heatsink, and a fan are provided. The thermoelectric element has a
cold surface, to which the condenser is connected, and a hot
surface, to which the heatsink is connected. The fan is provided
between the second air inlet and the heatsink. Airflow flowing
through the condenser will be cooled and dehumidified. Each fin of
the condenser has a downwardly inclined bottom side, which
facilitates the dripping of the water droplets condensed thereon.
Said airflow will be mixed with external airflow drawn in through
the second air inlet, and then blown by the fan to flow through
fins of the heatsink, bringing away heat effectively and therefore
improving the dehumidifying efficiency of the device.
Inventors: |
Huang; Horng-Tsann; (Hsinchu
City, TW) ; Weng; Wen-Yu; (Hsinchu City, TW) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Norm Pacific Automation Corp. |
Hsinchu County |
|
TW |
|
|
Family ID: |
1000003916438 |
Appl. No.: |
16/283807 |
Filed: |
February 24, 2019 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F24F 13/222 20130101;
F24F 5/0042 20130101; F24F 3/14 20130101; F24F 2003/1446
20130101 |
International
Class: |
F24F 5/00 20060101
F24F005/00; F24F 3/14 20060101 F24F003/14; F24F 13/22 20060101
F24F013/22 |
Claims
1. A thermoelectric dehumidifying device, comprising: a case, which
has a first lateral surface and a second lateral surface, wherein
the first lateral surface and the second lateral surface are
separated by a first spacing; a horizontal length of the first
lateral surface and a horizontal length of the second lateral
surface are both greater than the first spacing; a thermoelectric
element, which is provided between the first lateral surface and
the second lateral surface, and divides a space between the first
lateral surface and the second lateral surface into an upper air
passage and a lower air passage, wherein an end of the upper air
passage communicates with an end of the lower air passage; the
thermoelectric element has a cold surface and a hot surface,
wherein the cold surface is located in the lower air passage, and
the hot surface is located in the upper air passage; a first air
inlet, which is provided on the case, and communicates with another
end of the lower air passage; a second air inlet, which is provided
on the case, and communicates with the end of the upper air
passage; an air outlet, which is provided on the case, and
communicates with another end of the upper air passage; a condenser
comprising a plurality of condensing fins, which are provided in
the lower air passage, and are arranged substantially parallel to
the first lateral surface in a spaced manner, wherein each of the
condensing fins has a top side connected to the cold surface, and a
bottom side far away from the cold surface; the bottom side of each
of the condensing fins is a free side, and is inclined downward in
a direction away from the first air inlet; a heatsink comprising a
plurality of heat dissipation fins, which are provided in the upper
air passage, and are arranged substantially parallel to the first
lateral surface in a spaced manner; wherein a bottom side of each
of the heat dissipation fins is connected to the hot surface; and a
fan, which is fixedly provided in the upper air passage, and is
located between the second air inlet and the heatsink.
2. The thermoelectric dehumidifying device of claim 1, wherein the
condensing fins comprise a plurality of long condensing fins and a
plurality of short condensing fins, which are provided in a
staggered manner, and any two adjacent ones of the long condensing
fins and the short condensing fins are spaced by a fin spacing.
3. The thermoelectric dehumidifying device of claim 2, wherein the
fin spacing is between 1.5 and 3.5 mm.
4. The thermoelectric dehumidifying device of claim 2, wherein a
height difference between a bottom side of each of the long
condensing fins and a bottom side of each of the short condensing
fin is between 2 and 4 mm.
5. The thermoelectric dehumidifying device of claim 1, wherein the
case further comprises a third lateral surface and a fourth lateral
surface, which are provided correspondingly; the third lateral
surface and the fourth lateral surface are both respectively
connected to the first lateral surface and the second lateral
surface; the first air inlet and the air outlet are provided on the
third lateral surface of the case.
6. The thermoelectric dehumidifying device of claim 5, wherein the
second air inlet are provided on the fourth lateral surface of the
case.
7. The thermoelectric dehumidifying device of claim 1, wherein the
case further comprises a connecting air passage, which is a hollow
passage with two open ends; the two open ends of the connecting air
passage are respectively connected to the end of the upper air
passage and the end of the lower air passage, so that the upper air
passage communicates with the lower air passage through the
connecting air passage.
8. The thermoelectric dehumidifying device of claim 7, wherein the
case further comprises a plurality of first deflectors, which are
provided along a wall of the connecting air passage.
9. The thermoelectric dehumidifying device of claim 1, wherein the
case further comprises a second deflector, which is provided
between the first air inlet and the lower air passage, and
communicates the first air inlet and the lower air passage.
10. The thermoelectric dehumidifying device of claim 1, wherein the
case further comprises a third deflector, which is provided between
the air outlet and the upper air passage, and communicates the air
outlet and the upper air passage.
11. The thermoelectric dehumidifying device of claim 1, wherein a
cross-sectional area of an airflow created by the fan is
substantially equal to a cross-sectional area of all of the heat
dissipation fins which are arranged substantially in parallel to
each other.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
[0001] The present invention relates generally to a thermoelectric
dehumidifying device, and more particularly to a slim type
thermoelectric dehumidifying device which has higher dehumidifying
efficiency compared to conventional thermoelectric dehumidifying
devices.
2. Description of the Prior Art
[0002] A conventional dehumidifier typically uses a gas compressor
to circulate refrigerant in tube passes involving a condenser and
an evaporator. Due to the change in pressure, the refrigerant
circulating in tube passes undergoes phase transitions between a
liquid state and a gaseous state. Specifically, at the evaporator
section, the refrigerant changes from a liquid state to a gaseous
state through evaporation. By absorbing the heat contained within,
the evaporation of the refrigerant cools the surrounding air which
is drawn into the dehumidifier and flows by the outside of the tube
passes. As the air temperature decreases, the moisture in the air
is removed in the form of condensed water droplets. On the other
hand at the condenser section, the dehumidified air, in turn, cools
the compressed high-temperature refrigerant which is sent out by
the gas compressor, so as to heat the dehumidified air before
venting it to the outside. The moisture contained in indoor air can
be removed in this way. However, this kind of dehumidifiers is
usually bulky since it has to accommodate at least a gas
compressor, a condenser, and an evaporator within, and therefore is
not suitable for cramped usage environments such as in wardrobes,
closets, or shoe cabinets.
[0003] In order to reduce the size of dehumidifiers, some
manufacturers replace gas compressors with thermoelectric cooling
modules, as disclosed in the published Japanese patent application
No. JPH06-163997, which can be referred to in FIG. 1. Said
published patent application discloses a thermoelectric device 21,
which includes a thermoelectric cooling module containing N-type
semiconductors 24 and P-type semiconductors 26 sequentially
connected and fixedly disposed between two thermoelectric
conductors 28, each of which is located on one of two opposite end
surfaces. The sequential connection between the N-type
semiconductors 24 and the P-type semiconductors 26 is capable of
urging the energy carriers in electric current to move toward the
same thermoelectric conductor 28 on one of the end surfaces.
Therefore, once the thermoelectric cooling module is supplied with
electric current, the energy carriers will accumulate at the same
thermoelectric conductor 28 on one end surface, heating the
thermoelectric conductor 28 on said end surface and making it
become a hot surface. At the same time, the other thermoelectric
conductor 28 on the other end surface correspondingly becomes a
cold surface, for the energy carriers in the electric current all
move in a direction away from this end surface. In the design of
the disclosed dehumidifier, the air flowing into the dehumidifier
is cooled by the cold surface of the thermoelectric cooling module
first, where the moisture in the air gets removed as being
condensed into water droplets on the cold surface. Before the
cooled and dehumidified air is vented to the outside, it flows by
the hot surface of the thermoelectric cooling module to bring away
heat from there.
[0004] When the thermoelectric cooling module is not supplied with
electricity, its two end surfaces would naturally have equal
temperatures. After being provided with electric current, the
energy on one end surface is gradually transferred to the other one
end surface by the energy carriers in the electric current, whereby
the end surfaces respectively become a cold surface and a hot
surface as described above. Along with the process that the
temperature at the cold surface approaches the temperature suitable
for condensing moisture, there is more and more energy being
reduced from the cold surface side and accumulated at the hot
surface, only cooled and dehumidified air has a smaller volume, and
therefore can only take away limited heat energy with it. Due to
this reason, when the cold surface and the hot surface have a great
temperature difference in between, the cold surface may not be able
to be further cooled since only limited heat energy can be
transferred to the hot surface. As a result, the cold surface
naturally has a poorer performance in condensing moisture. To solve
this problem, said published patent application discloses a design
that introduces an airflow into the dehumidifier from outside
before the cooled and dehumidified air reaches the hot surface. The
combined airflow formed by mixing the cooled airflow and the
outside airflow has a larger volume, so that the airflow utilized
to bring away the heat energy at the hot surface can have a larger
volume as well. More details about the design of said published
patent application: an opening 31 is provided where the airflow has
yet to reach the hot surface, and a cross-flow fan 29 is provided
at an air outlet, through which the airflow is vented after passing
through the hot surface. The cross-flow fan 29 provides an
air-drawing effect, whereby the outside air can be pulled into the
dehumidifier through the opening 31 to become a second airflow,
which can be mixed with the cooled and dehumidified air before
passing through the hot surface, whereby to bring away more heat
energy at the hot surface. The air-drawing effect of the cross-flow
fan 29 can create smooth and steady airflow, which has roughly
constant cross-sectional shape and area. Hence, the mixed airflow
which is formed by mixing the second airflow and the cooled airflow
by the drawing of the cross-flow fan 29 is smooth and steady.
However, when such mixed airflow passes by the hot surface, only
the heat energy at locations on the hot surface having contact with
the cross-section of the mixed airflow can be taken away, so that
the heat dissipation effect of the hot surface is still rather
limited. If the heat dissipation effect of the hot surface is
limited, so is the cooling effect of the cold surface of the
thermoelectric cooling module, leading to a poor
moisture-condensing performance on the cold surface, which hinders
the dehumidifying efficiency.
[0005] In order to increase the areas on the cold surface and on
the hot surface contacting with the airflow, the above-mentioned
published patent application further provides multiple fins 23
connected to the cold surface of the thermoelectric cooling module.
A top of each fin 23 is connected to the cold surface, while a
bottom thereof is a free side extending downward. The hot surface
of the thermoelectric cooling module also has multiple fins 23
connected thereto. When the airflow drawn into the dehumidifier
passes by the fins connected to the cold surface, the air
temperature will be decreased through the abundant contact with the
fins 23, so that the moisture in the airflow will condense on the
fins 23 into water droplets. These droplets will slide down along
the fins 23 toward the free side due to their own weight, and
eventually fall off from the fins. However, a water droplet would
not slide too quickly on the fin 23 where it condenses onto,
especially when it is light in weight and located near the top side
of the fin 23. Being light in weight, such a water droplet can only
slide slowly. It is only until the water droplet, in its slow-paced
sliding movement, happens to bump into another water droplet which
is also condensed on the same fin and merge into a heavier water
droplet, the sliding movement can be quickened. During the
slow-paced sliding movement of the water droplets, the airflow
keeps passing by the fins 23. However, those water droplets prevent
the airflow from contacting the portions of the fins which are
directly covered by the droplets, which hinders the cooling of the
airflow, and therefore interferes with the water droplet from
further condensing on the fins 23. As a result, the dehumidifying
efficiency of the airflow drawn into the dehumidifier is still not
satisfying.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] In view of the above, one aspect of the present invention is
to provide a thermoelectric dehumidifying device, which is a slim
cuboid with the air inlet/outlet provided on the short lateral
surface of the case, and therefore is adapted to be placed in a
cramped space for dehumidification. By providing the fan at a right
position, the heat dissipation effect of the hot surface of the
thermoelectric element could be improved, so that the temperature
at the cold surface could be well-maintained to provide a better
dehumidifying capability. Furthermore, the bottom of each
condensing fin is inclined downward in line with the flowing
direction of the airflow, and the bottoms of any two adjacent
condensing fins are not at the same height, so that the sliding and
dropping of the water droplets condensed on the condensing fins
could be accelerated, which could improve the efficiency for the
water droplets on the condensing fins to fall off. As a result, the
overall dehumidifying efficiency of the thermoelectric
dehumidifying device could be further enhanced.
[0007] The present invention provides a thermoelectric
dehumidifying device, which includes a case, a thermoelectric
element, a first air inlet, a second air inlet, an air outlet, a
condenser, a heatsink, and a fan. The case has a first lateral
surface and a second lateral surface, wherein the first lateral
surface and the second lateral surface are separated by a first
spacing. A horizontal length of the first lateral surface and a
horizontal length of the second lateral surface are both greater
than the first spacing. The thermoelectric element is provided
between the first lateral surface and the second lateral surface,
and divides a space between the first lateral surface and the
second lateral surface into an upper air passage and a lower air
passage, wherein an end of the upper air passage communicates with
an end of the lower air passage. The thermoelectric element has a
cold surface and a hot surface, wherein the cold surface is located
in the lower air passage, and the hot surface is located in the
upper air passage. The first air inlet is provided on the case, and
communicates with another end of the lower air passage. The second
air inlet is provided on the case, and communicates with the end of
the upper air passage. The air outlet is provided on the case, and
communicates with another end of the upper air passage. The
condenser includes a plurality of condensing fins, which are
provided in the lower air passage, and are arranged substantially
parallel to the first lateral surface in a spaced manner, wherein
each of the condensing fins has a top side connected to the cold
surface, and a bottom side far away from the cold surface. The
bottom side of each of the condensing fins is a free side, and is
inclined downward in a direction away from the first air inlet. The
heatsink includes a plurality of heat dissipation fins, which are
provided in the upper air passage, and are arranged substantially
parallel to the first lateral surface in a spaced manner; wherein a
bottom side of each of the heat dissipation fins is connected to
the hot surface. The fan is fixedly provided in the upper air
passage, and is located between the second air inlet and the
heatsink.
[0008] By utilizing the difference between the horizontal lengths
of the opposite lateral surfaces of the case and the first spacing
between the opposite lateral surfaces, and by providing the air
outlet and inlets between the first spacing, the thermoelectric
dehumidifying device could be a slim cuboid, and therefore is
adapted to be placed in a cramped space for dehumidification.
Furthermore, the fan provided between the second air inlet and the
heatsink could push the turbulent airflow, which is mixed by the
outside airflow and the dehumidified cold airflow, to flow between
the heat dissipation fins, which could effectively bring away the
heat energy on the heat dissipation fins and the hot surface of the
thermoelectric cooling module, whereby to maintain the low
temperature at the condensing fins and to ensure the dehumidifying
capability achieved by condensing water droplets. In addition, the
bottom side of each of the condensing fins is designed to be
inclined downward in line with the flowing direction of the
airflow, which could urge the water droplets condensed on each of
the condensing fins to slide in the downwardly inclined direction.
Moreover, a droplet could easily contact and combine with another
droplet condensed on the same or the adjacent condensing fin to
form a more massive droplet, whereby the dropping of water droplets
could be sped up. Therefore, the dehumidifying effect for the
airflow which enters the dehumidifying device could be
improved.
[0009] These and other objectives of the present invention will no
doubt become obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art after
reading the following detailed description of the preferred
embodiment that is illustrated in the various figures and
drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] FIG. 1 is a rough schematic view of the dehumidifying device
disclosed in the published patent application JPH06-163997.
[0011] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the thermoelectric
dehumidifying device of the present invention.
[0012] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the thermoelectric
dehumidifying device of the present invention seen from another
angle.
[0013] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the inner arrangements of
the thermoelectric dehumidifying device of the present
invention.
[0014] FIG. 5 is a 2D schematic view showing the upper air passage,
the lower air passage, and the connecting air passage of the
thermoelectric dehumidifying device of the present invention.
[0015] FIG. 6 is a 2D schematic view showing the inner arrangements
of the thermoelectric dehumidifying device of the present
invention.
[0016] FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing how the thermoelectric
element, the heat dissipation fin, and the condensing fin of the
thermoelectric dehumidifying device of the present invention are
connected.
[0017] FIG. 8 is a schematic view showing the comparison between
the cross-sectional area of the airflow produced by the fan and the
cross-sectional area of the heat dissipation fin in the
thermoelectric dehumidifying device of the present invention.
[0018] FIG. 9 is a schematic view showing how the water droplets on
the condensing fin of the thermoelectric dehumidifying device of
the present invention may contact another droplet to combine and
run down.
[0019] FIG. 10 is an enlarged schematic view showing part of FIG.
9.
[0020] FIG. 11 is a rough schematic view showing the flow path of
the airflow of the thermoelectric dehumidifying device of the
present invention.
[0021] FIG. 12 is a 2D schematic view showing the inner
arrangements of the thermoelectric dehumidifying device of another
embodiment of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0022] As shown in FIG. 2 to FIG. 8, a thermoelectric dehumidifying
device 100 of the present invention includes a case 10, a
thermoelectric element 20, a first air inlet 30, a second air inlet
40, an air outlet 50, a condenser 60, a heatsink 70, and a fan 80,
wherein the first air inlet 30, the second air inlet 40, and the
air outlet 50 are provided on the case 10, while the thermoelectric
element 20, the condenser 60, the heatsink 70, and the fan 80 are
provided in the case 10.
[0023] The case 10 includes a first lateral surface 101, a second
lateral surface 102, a third lateral surface 103, and a fourth
lateral surface 104, wherein the first lateral surface 101 and the
second lateral surface 102 are separated by a first spacing d1. A
horizontal length 1011 of the first lateral surface 101 and a
horizontal length 1021 of the second lateral surface 102 are both
greater than the first spacing d1. The third lateral surface 103
and the fourth lateral surface 104 are provided between the first
lateral surface 101 and the second lateral surface 102, and are
respectively connected to the first lateral surface 101 and the
second lateral surface 102. In the current embodiment, the ratio of
the horizontal length 1011 (1021) to the first spacing d1 is 3:1 to
4:1, so that the case 10 is a slightly slim cuboid as a whole,
which is adapted to be placed in cramped spaces such as in
wardrobes, closets, or shoe cabinets. The air outlet 50 and the
first air inlet 30 are vertically provided on the third lateral
surface 103, while the second air inlet 40 is provided on the
fourth lateral surface 104.
[0024] As shown in FIG. 2 to FIG. 6, the thermoelectric element 20
is provided between the first lateral surface 101 and the second
lateral surface 102. A space surrounded by the first lateral
surface 101, the second lateral surface 102, the third lateral
surface 103, and the fourth lateral surface 104 is divided into an
upper air passage 105 and a lower air passage 106 by the
thermoelectric element 20, wherein the upper air passage is above
and adjacent to the lower air passage. An end of the upper air
passage 105 and an end of the lower air passage 106 are
respectively connected to one of two ends of a connecting air
passage 107. A plurality of first deflectors 108 are provided along
a surrounding wall of the connecting air passage 107, so that the
connecting air passage 107 is a hollow passage with two open ends,
wherein one of the open ends is connected to the end of the upper
air passage 105, and the other one of the open ends is connected to
the end of the lower air passage 106. In this way, the upper air
passage 105 and the lower air passage 106 can communicate with each
other, and airflow can be guided to flow to the upper air passage
105 from the lower air passage 106. In the current embodiment, the
connecting air passage 107 is provided near the fourth lateral
surface 104.
[0025] A second deflector 109 is provided between the first air
inlet 30 on the third lateral surface 103 and another end of the
lower air passage 106, whereby to communicate the first air inlet
30 and the lower air passage 106, so that airflow can be guided to
flow to the lower air passage 106 from the first air inlet 30. A
third deflector 110 is provided between the air outlet 50 on the
third lateral surface 103 and another end of the upper air passage
105, whereby to communicate the air outlet 50 and the upper air
passage 105, so that airflow can be guided to flow to the air
outlet 50 from the upper air passage 105.
[0026] The thermoelectric element 20 has a cold surface 201 and a
hot surface 202, wherein the cold surface 201 is located in the
lower air passage 106, and the hot surface 202 is located in the
upper air passage 105. As shown in FIG. 7, the condenser 60
includes a plurality of long condensing fins 601 and a plurality of
short condensing fins 602. The long condensing fins 601 and the
short condensing fins 602 are provided in the lower air passage
106, and are arranged substantially parallel to the first lateral
surface 101 in a manner that the long condensing fins 601 and the
short condensing fins 602 are staggered. Each adjacent pair of the
long condensing fins 601 and the short condensing fins 602 is
spaced by a fin spacing d2, which is between 1.5 and 3.5 mm in the
current embodiment. A top side 601a of each of the long condensing
fins 601 and a top side 602a of each of the short condensing fins
602 are connected to the cold surface 201 of the thermoelectric
element 20, whereby to transfer the heat of the cold surface 201 to
the long condensing fins 601 and the short condensing fins 602. In
the current embodiment, the top sides 601a of the long condensing
fins 601 and the top sides 602a of the short condensing fins 602
are integrally connected together to be connected, or affixed, to
the cold surface 201. A bottom side 601b of each of the long
condensing fins 601 and a bottom side 602b of each of the short
condensing fins 602 are both a free side, and the bottom sides
601b, 602b of each two adjacent condensing fins 601, 602 have a
height difference d3 in between. In the current embodiment, the
height difference d3 is between 2 and 4 mm. The heatsink 70
includes a plurality of heat dissipation fins 701, wherein the heat
dissipation fins 701 are provided in the upper air passage 105, and
are arranged substantially parallel to the first lateral surface
101 in a spaced manner. Furthermore, the bottom side 701a of each
of the heat dissipation fins 701 is connected to the hot surface
202 of the thermoelectric element 20. In the current embodiment,
the bottom sides 701a of the heat dissipation fins 701 are
integrally connected together to be connected, or affixed, to the
hot surface 202, whereby to transfer the heat of the hot surface
202 to the heat dissipation fins 701.
[0027] As both shown in FIG. 6 and FIG. 8, the fan 80 is fixedly
provided in the upper air passage 105 near the fourth lateral
surface 104, and is between the second air inlet 40 and the
heatsink 70. A cross-sectional area of the airflow created by the
fan 80 is roughly equal to a cross-sectional area of the whole set
of the heat dissipation fins 701 which are arranged in parallel, so
that the airflow created by the fan 80 could pass by each one of
the heat dissipation fins 701 in a just-right way. In other words,
the airflow could be well utilized with no excessive energy
waste.
[0028] In the current embodiment, as shown in FIG. 7, the mutually
connected top sides 601a, 602a of the long condensing fins 601 and
the short condensing fins 602 of the condenser 60 can be integrally
made through aluminum extrusion. Furthermore, the long condensing
fins 601 and the short condensing fins 602 are arranged in a
parallel and staggered manner, so that the heat of the cold surface
201 can be transferred to the long condensing fins 601 and the
short condensing fins 602 through close connection between the top
sides 601a, 602a and the cold surface 201. Similarly, the mutually
connected bottom sides 701a of the heatsink 70 can also be
integrally made through aluminum extrusion, wherein the heat
dissipation fins 701 are arranged in a parallel and spaced manner,
whereby the heat on the hot surface 202 can be transferred to the
heat dissipation fins 701 through the close connection between the
bottom sides 701a and the hot surface 202.
[0029] In the current embodiment, the bottom side 601b of each of
the long condensing fins 601 and the bottom side 602b of each of
the short condensing fins 602 are both gradually inclined in a
direction away from the first air inlet 30, as shown in FIG. 6. In
other words, the bottom side 601b of each of the long condensing
fins 601 and the bottom side 602b of each of the short condensing
fins 602 are inclined downward in line with the flowing direction
of the airflow. There are various ways to implement said inclined
arrangements. For example, the bottom sides 601b of the long
condensing fins 601 and the bottom sides 602b of the short
condensing fins 602 can be made as inherently inclined, or those
bottom sides 601 can be made as non-inclined, and the long
condensing fins 601 and the short condensing fins 602 are connected
to the cold surface 201 at an inclined angle instead.
Alternatively, the long condensing fins 601 and the short
condensing fins 602 can be made with a non-inclined bottom side,
and are connected to the thermoelectric element 20 in a
non-inclined manner, but the thermoelectric dehumidifying device
100 itself is inclinedly provided in the case 10. The means of
implementation described here are not limitations of the present
invention, as long as the bottom sides 601b of the long condensing
fins 601, and the bottom sides 602b of the short condensing fins
602 can be rendered as downwardly inclined.
[0030] As shown in FIG. 5 to FIG. 11, a humid airflow A entering
the case 10 through the first air inlet 30 would be guided by the
second deflector 109 to flow toward the lower air passage 106. When
the airflow A enters the condenser 60 installed in the lower air
passage 106, the condensing fins 601, 602 and the airflow A would
have energy exchange as the relatively warm airflow A meets the
relatively cold condensing fins 601, 602, whereby the temperature
of the airflow A would gradually decrease. Once the temperature
decreases to a specific temperature, the moisture contained in the
airflow A reaches saturation, and would condense if the temperature
decreases any further. The temperature at this time point is called
dew point temperature. The moisture contained in the airflow A
would condense on the condensing fins 601, 602 as small water
droplets, which would be moved by the airflow A to slide down and
merge with each other along the downwardly inclined bottom sides
601b, 602b of the condensing fins 601, 602 in a direction toward
the fourth lateral surface 104, and would eventually leave the
condenser 60 by falling off from the condensing fins 601, 602,
whereby the moisture in the airflow A would be removed. After the
process, the airflow A becomes a dehumidified and cooled airflow B,
which would then flow into the upper air passage 105 along the
connecting air passage 107 connected to the lower air passage 106,
and would be drawn by the fan 80 to flow toward the heatsink 70
installed in the upper air passage 105. Since the fan 80 is
installed between the second air inlet 40 and the heatsink 70, the
fan 80 would also pull in an external airflow C from outside while
drawing the cooled airflow B. As a result, the cooled airflow B and
the external airflow C would be mixed to become a mixed airflow D
which is blown to the heatsink 70. When the mixed airflow D flows
through the heatsink 70, the mixed airflow D would contact and pass
by a surface of each of the heat dissipation fins 701, whereby to
bring away the heat energy on the heat dissipation fins 701. The
temperature of the mixed airflow D could be increased in this way,
so that the mixed airflow D would become a warm airflow E, which
would then be vented through the air outlet 50 provided on the
third lateral surface 103.
[0031] In the current embodiment, the bottom side 601b of each of
the long condensing fins 601 and the bottom side 602b of each of
the short condensing fins 602 are inclined downward in the
direction away from the first air inlet 30, as shown in FIG. 9 and
FIG. 10. When the airflow A contacts the condensing fins 601, 602
and condenses thereon, the weight of water droplets would drive the
water droplets to slide down along the condensing fins 601, 602.
Furthermore, the water droplets would be also pushed by the flowing
of the airflow A to run along the inclined bottom sides 601b, 602b
of the condensing fins 601, 602. With such design, the water
droplets would be urged to move in a downward direction away from
the first air inlet 30 and toward the fourth lateral surface 104.
When the water droplets on the short condensing fins 602 reaches
the bottom sides 602b thereof, they will contact the water droplets
on the adjacent long condensing fins 601; two contacted water
droplets would combine into a larger water droplet due to the
effect of surface tension, and this combined, larger water droplet
could slide down along the long condensing fin 601 at an
accelerated pace in a downward direction toward the fourth lateral
surface 104. Once the water droplets reach the bottom sides of the
long condensing fins 601, they would then fall off the condensing
fins 601, 602 in no time. As a result, the efficiency for the
condensing fins 601, 602 to condense water droplets could be
improved. More specifically, once water droplets leave the
condenser 60, they would no longer consume the cooling ability of
the thermoelectric element 20, whereby the condenser 60 could keep
exerting its cooling effect, enhancing the dehumidifying efficiency
for the airflow A. With the staggered design between the long and
short condensing fins 601, 602, the water droplets condensed on the
short condensing fins 602 would be more likely to be gathered onto
the long condensing fins 601. For example, if there are 6 short
condensing fins staggered with 5 long condensing fins (i.e., 11
condensing fins in total), the condensed water drops would be more
likely to converge onto the 5 long condensing fins (roughly the
half of the total number of the condensing fins) at bottom sides,
which would facilitates the water droplets to grow, and would
accelerates the sliding and falling of the water droplets.
[0032] It is worth mentioning that, during the sliding of a water
droplet, it could also combine with another water droplet on the
adjacent condensing fin to form a larger water droplet when it is
possible, even if it is yet to arrive at the corresponding bottom
side 601b, 602b. The subsequent sliding movement could be therefore
accelerated, whereby the water droplets could quickly leave the
condensing fins 601, 602.
[0033] The table below shows the dehumidifying ability for
thermoelectric dehumidifying devices implemented based on the
present invention, each of which has different condensing fin
spacing d2 and different height difference d3 between any two
adjacent condensing fins. The results are measured in the same
conditions (specifically, the devices are operated in rooms with
the same interior space, the same indoor humidity, and the same
room temperature), and are expressed by the weight of the extracted
water per hour. In these tests, the external volume of the
condenser 60 (which is about 40 mm long, 40 mm wide, and 38 mm
high) and the thickness of each condensing fin (which is between
1.0 and 1.3 mm) stay unchanged. Hence, with a greater fin spacing
d2, there will be fewer condensing fins. As for the height
difference d3, which is a shortened amount for the short condensing
fins 602 relative to the long condensing fins 601, we take 0 to 5
mm for testing. In addition, the average height of the condensing
fins in each test model is all the same (for example, when d3=2 mm,
each long condensing fin is 39 mm and each short condensing fin is
37 mm, so the average height is 38 mm; when d3=0, each long
condensing fin and each short condensing fin are both 38 mm, which
also have a 38 mm average height). With this requirement, the total
surface area of the condensing fins in each test model will be
equal, which excludes unnecessary variables for our comparison.
This table should be able to show how the changes in the fin
spacing d2 and the height difference d3 between each two adjacent
condensing fins 601, 602 would affect the dehumidifying effect.
TABLE-US-00001 Fin spacing d2 (mm) (number of fins) Change in
Amount of extracted 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4 height of fins water
(gram/hour) (16) (13) (11) (10) (9) (8) (Height of two (38/38) 0
14.6 15.0 15.3 15.0 14.5 14.1 adjacent fins) (39/37) 2 14.8 15.3
15.8 15.4 15.0 14.1 height difference (39.5/36.5) 3 15.2 15.9 16.4
16.0 15.4 14.3 d3 (mm) (40/36) 4 15.0 15.6 16.3 15.8 15.2 14.2
(40.5/35.5) 5 14.8 15.4 16.0 15.6 14.8 14.0
[0034] In the above experiments, the total number of condensing
fins varies due to different fin spacing. Among all test models,
those having a nonzero height difference d3 between two adjacent
condensing fins are able to extract more water from the ambient air
in comparison to the one having condensing fins of the same length.
The test models with a height difference d3 of 2 to 4 mm between
two adjacent condensing fins particularly have good performance. In
other words, the height difference d3 between two adjacent
condensing fins is preferably set as 2 to 4 mm for the best
moisture condensing efficiency.
[0035] Also, in the current embodiment, the fan 80 is provided
between the second air inlet 40 and the heatsink 70, as shown in
FIG. 8, which means the fan 80 is located at where the mixed
airflow D is yet to contact the heatsink 70. Therefore, the mixed
airflow D would be pushed by the fan 80 to pass between the heat
dissipation fins 701. When the mixed airflow D passes by, all of
the heat dissipation fins 701 will be contacted for heat exchange
at the same time. Creating airflow by drawing and by pushing are
different things that the airflow created by the former means would
be steady and smooth, while the airflow created by the latter means
would be turbulent, for such airflow would be moved by the rotation
of the blades of the fan. That is to say, if the mixed airflow D
passes between the heat dissipation fins 701 by being drawn, then
the resultant steady airflow would only have limited contact areas
with the heat dissipation fins 701, and therefore only a limited
part of the heat energy on the heat dissipation fins could be
brought away, which would lead to a poor heat dissipation effect.
However, in the current embodiment, the mixed airflow would be
pushed, instead of being drawn, by the fan 80, and the resultant
mixed airflow D would be turbulent, and would have larger contact
areas with the heat dissipation fins 701, whereby to bring away
more heat energy thereon. In this way, the heat dissipation effect
of the heat dissipation fins 70 and the hot surface 202 of the
thermoelectric element 20 could be enhanced, so that the cold
surface 201 of the thermoelectric element 20 could be maintained at
some low temperature suitable for condensing moisture, and the
dehumidifying efficiency could be improved as well.
[0036] Another embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG.
12, which is different from the previous embodiment by the number
of the thermoelectric elements 20 provided in the case 10. In other
words, there can be more than one thermoelectric element 20
connected in series or in parallel. In the current embodiment,
there are two thermoelectric elements 20 connected in series,
wherein the two cold surfaces 201 of the thermoelectric elements 20
are connected to the condenser 60, and the two hot surfaces 202 of
the thermoelectric elements 20 are connected to the heatsink 70.
With such design, there can be two thermoelectric elements 20 used
for dehumidification. Needless to say, there also can be more than
one condenser 60 and more than one heatsink 70. Furthermore, their
fins can be appropriately staggered in the flowing direction of the
airflow, whereby to facilitate a good heat dissipation effect for
the airflow which passes through.
[0037] With the structures described above, the benefits provided
by the present invention would include: [0038] (1) With the
downwardly inclined design of the bottom side of each condensing
fin, once the moisture in the airflow which enters the
thermoelectric dehumidifying device condenses on the condensing
fins into water droplets, these water droplets would quickly slide
downward and toward the fourth lateral surface, i.e., in the
flowing direction of the airflow and the inclined direction.
Meanwhile, by taking advantage of the height difference between the
bottom sides of every two adjacent condensing fins, the water
droplets on adjacent condensing fins could contact and combine with
each other, whereby the water droplets would be more likely to
gather on the long condensing fin, forming larger water droplets,
which could quickly fall off from the condensing fins. Since water
droplets could slide down on the condensing fin at a fast pace, any
location on one condensing fin which has a water droplet condensed
thereon would soon be able to contact the airflow again, and
another water droplet could be condensed at the same location
shortly afterward. In this way, the condensing efficiency could be
improved, whereby to enhance the dehumidifying effect applied to
the airflow passing by the condensing fins. [0039] (2) The
dehumidified and cooled airflow could be mixed with an external
airflow to become a mixed airflow, which would be pushed by the fan
to pass through the heatsink and get vented through the air outlet.
Since the mixed airflow is moved by the pushing of the fan, a
cross-section of the mixed airflow would neither have a static area
nor have a constant shape. In other words, the mixed airflow would
be a turbulent airflow. Therefore, when the mixed airflow passes
through the heatsink, it could have larger contact areas with the
heat dissipation fins, which could effectively bring away the heat
energy on the heat dissipation fins. In the condition that each
heat dissipation fin has a better heat dissipation effect, the
temperature of the hot surface of the thermoelectric element
connected to the heatsink could be easily lowered, so that the
energy on the cold surface of the thermoelectric element could be
further transferred to the hot surface. In this way, the cold
surface could be maintained to have a low temperature, and the
condensing fins could consequently have a low temperature as well,
which would facilitate the condensation on the condensing fins.
[0040] (3) The thermoelectric dehumidifying device in the present
invention has wide lateral surfaces and narrow lateral surfaces,
and the air inlets/outlet are provided on the narrow lateral
surfaces. With such design, the thermoelectric dehumidifying device
would be adapted to be placed in a cramped indoor space. In other
words, thermoelectric dehumidifying devices designed based on the
present invention could be implemented in slim types.
[0041] Those skilled in the art will readily observe that numerous
modifications and alterations of the device and method may be made
while retaining the teachings of the invention. Accordingly, the
above disclosure should be construed as limited only by the metes
and bounds of the appended claims.
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