Air heating apparatus

• US 9,816,425 B1
• Filed: 06/10/2016
• Issued: 11/14/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 02/03/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: JR Koop, Inc.
• Original Assignee: JR Koop, Inc.
• Inventors: Koopmann, Richard R., Thompson, Nathan, Tooley, Luke, Naglestad, Joseph, Wielenga, Chris
• Primary Examiner(s): Savani, Avinash
• Assistant Examiner(s): Heyamoto, Aaron
• Application Number:
  US15/178,798
• Time in Patent Office: 522 Days
• Field of Search: 126 99 R, 126247, 126110 A, 60320
• CPC Class Codes: F01N 5/02 the devices using heat
• CPC Class Codes: F01P 9/00 Cooling having pertinent characteristics not provided for in, or of interest apart from, groups F01P1/00 - F01P7/00 profiting from waste heat of combustion-engine cooling F02G5/00
• CPC Class Codes: F04C 2/00 Rotary-piston machines or pumps with non-parallel axes of co-operating members F04C3/00; with the working-chamber walls at least partly resiliently deformable F04C5/00; with fluid ring or the like F04C7/00; rotary-piston pumps specially adapted for elastic fluids F04C18/00; rotary-piston machines or pumps in which the working-fluid is exclusively displaced by, or exclusively displaces, one or more reciprocating pistons F04B
• CPC Class Codes: F24D 2200/26 Internal combustion engine
• CPC Class Codes: F24H 3/06 the air being kept separate from the heating medium, e.g. using forced circulation of air over radiators
• CPC Class Codes: F28D 15/00 Heat-exchange apparatus with the intermediate heat-transfer medium in closed tubes passing into or through the conduit walls ; Heat-exchange apparatus employing intermediate heat-transfer medium or bodies F28D17/00, F28D19/00, F28D20/00 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/12 Improving ICE efficiencies

Abstract

An air heating apparatus may comprise a housing with a path through an interior of the housing between openings in the housing. An isolating wall may divide the interior into primary and secondary chambers, and may have a transfer opening through which the path extends from the primary to secondary chambers. An air heating assembly may comprise an engine in the primary chamber, a heat generator in the primary chamber and connected to the engine, and a main heat exchanger in the secondary chamber and in fluid communication with the heat generator to transfer heat generated by the heat generator to air flowing along the path. The apparatus may include an air movement assembly configured to move air along the path and comprises a primary fan between the primary and secondary chambers to move air from the primary chamber to the secondary chamber.

Claims

1. An air heating apparatus comprising:

a housing having at least one inlet opening and at least one outlet opening such that air may flow along a path through an interior of the housing between said openings, the housing including an isolating wall dividing the interior of the housing into a primary chamber adjacent to the inlet opening and a secondary chamber adjacent to the outlet opening, the isolating wall isolating an interior of the secondary chamber from an interior of the primary chamber, a transfer opening being formed in the isolating wall and through which air on the path is forced to move to pass from the interior of the primary chamber into the interior of the secondary chamber;

an air heating assembly positioned in the interior of the housing and configured to heat air moving along the path, the air heating assembly comprising;

an engine in the primary chamber configured to rotate a drive shaft;

a heat generator in the primary chamber and operatively connected to the engine to generate heat in a fluid from rotation energy from the engine;

a main heat exchanger in the secondary chamber and in fluid communication with the heat generator to transfer heat generated by the heat generator to air flowing along the path;

an engine exhaust heat recovery apparatus configured to transfer exhaust heat of the engine to the air flowing along the path; and

an air movement assembly configured to move air along the path through the interior of the housing, the air movement assembly comprising a primary fan positioned along the path between the primary and secondary chambers to move air on the path from the primary chamber to the secondary chamber, the primary fan being positioned at the transfer opening wall such that operation of the primary fan pulls air from the primary chamber and pushes the air into the secondary chamber along the path and from the secondary chamber out of the housing through the outlet opening;

wherein air moves from the primary chamber to the secondary chamber through only said transfer opening between the primary and secondary chambers to form a single said path for air flow from the inlet opening and the outlet opening through the housing;

wherein the engine exhaust heat recovery apparatus comprises an exhaust heat exchanger, the heat exchanger being in fluid communication with the exhaust of the engine such that exhaust gases from the engine pass through the exhaust heat exchanger after exiting the engine.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the exhaust heat exchanger is located in the secondary chamber.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the exhaust heat exchanger forms a primary exhaust heat exchanger of the engine exhaust heat recovery apparatus;

and

wherein the engine exhaust heat recovery apparatus comprises a secondary exhaust heat exchanger in the primary chamber, the secondary exhaust heat exchanger being in fluid communication with the primary exhaust heat exchanger such that exhaust gases from the engine pass through the secondary exhaust heat exchanger after exiting the primary exhaust heat exchanger.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein the exhaust heat exchanger is located in the secondary chamber and the a secondary exhaust heat exchanger is located in the primary chamber.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the air movement assembly further comprises a secondary fan positioned in the primary chamber to draw air through the engine exhaust heat recovery apparatus through which coolant for the engine passes to recover heat from operation of the engine.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein both of the primary and secondary fans are operatively connected to the engine to be rotated by the engine to move air along the path.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the main heat exchanger is located further downstream in the path than the engine and the heat generator, and the main heat exchanger being located adjacent to the outlet opening of the housing.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the air heating assembly further comprises an engine waste heat recovery assembly in the primary chamber configured to transfer waste heat of the engine to the air flow along the path.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein the engine waste heat recovery assembly comprises a radiator through which coolant from the engine passes through.

10. An air heating apparatus comprising:

a housing having at least one inlet opening and at least one outlet opening such that air may flow along a path through an interior of the housing between said openings, the housing including an isolating wall dividing the interior of the housing into a primary chamber adjacent to the inlet opening and a secondary chamber adjacent to the outlet opening, the isolating wall isolating an interior of the secondary chamber from an interior of the primary chamber, a transfer opening formed in the isolating wall and through which air on the path is caused to move in order to pass from the interior of the primary chamber into the interior of the secondary chamber;

an air heating assembly positioned in the interior of the housing and configured to heat air moving along the path, the air heating assembly comprising;

an engine in the primary chamber configured to rotate a drive shaft;

a heat generator in the primary chamber and operatively connected to the engine to generate heat in a fluid from rotation energy from the engine;

a main heat exchanger in the secondary chamber and in fluid communication with the heat generator to transfer heat generated by the heat generator to air flowing along the path;

an engine exhaust heat recovery apparatus configured to transfer exhaust heat of the engine to the air flowing along the path, the engine exhaust heat recovery apparatus comprising an exhaust heat exchanger in one of the chambers; and

an air movement assembly configured to move air along the path through the interior of the housing, the air movement assembly comprising;

a primary fan positioned along the path between the primary and secondary chambers to move air on the path from the primary chamber to the secondary chamber, the primary fan being positioned at the transfer opening in the isolating wall in a manner effective to move air from the primary chamber to the secondary chamber and from the secondary chamber out of the housing through the outlet opening; and

a secondary fan positioned in the primary chamber to draw air through an engine exhaust heat recovery apparatus through which coolant for the engine passes to recover heat from operation of the engine; and

wherein both of the primary and secondary fans are operatively connected to the engine to be rotated by the engine to move air along the path.

11. The apparatus of claim 10 wherein the exhaust heat exchanger is located in the secondary chamber.

12. The apparatus of claim 10 wherein the exhaust heat exchanger forms a primary exhaust heat exchanger of the engine exhaust heat recovery apparatus;

and

wherein the engine exhaust heat recovery apparatus comprises a secondary exhaust heat exchanger in the primary chamber, the secondary exhaust heat exchanger being in fluid communication with the primary exhaust heat exchanger such that exhaust gases from the engine pass through the secondary exhaust heat exchanger after exiting the primary exhaust heat exchanger.

13. The apparatus of claim 12 wherein the exhaust heat exchanger is located in the secondary chamber and the secondary exhaust heat exchanger is located in the primary chamber.

14. An air heating apparatus comprising:

a housing having at least one inlet opening and at least one outlet opening such that air may flow along an air flow path through an interior of the housing between said openings, the air inlet opening being located upstream in the air flow path and the air outlet opening being located downstream in the air flow path, the housing including an isolating wall dividing the interior of the housing into a primary chamber adjacent to the inlet opening and a secondary chamber adjacent to the outlet opening, the isolating wall having a transfer opening positioned between the primary and secondary chambers, the air flow path extending from the primary chamber through the transfer opening of the isolating wall into the secondary chamber;

an air heating assembly positioned in the interior of the housing and configured to heat air moving along the air flow path, the air heating assembly comprising;

an internal combustion engine in the primary chamber configured to rotate a drive shaft and having an exhaust with combustion exhaust gases;

an engine waste heat recovery assembly positioned in the primary chamber downstream from the secondary exhaust heat exchanger to receive air flow from the secondary exhaust heat exchanger, the engine waste heat recovery assembly being configured to transfer waste heat from coolant fluid of the engine to the air flow along the air flow path;

a heat generator positioned in the primary chamber downstream of the engine waste heat recovery assembly and operatively connected to the drive shaft of the engine to generate heat in a fluid from rotation energy from the engine, the heat generator heating the fluid without utilizing an open flame;

a primary exhaust heat exchanger positioned in the secondary chamber downstream from the engine waste heat recovery assembly to receive air flow from the engine waste heat recovery assembly, the primary heat exchanger being in fluid communication with the exhaust of the engine such that exhaust gases from the engine pass through the primary exhaust heat exchanger after exiting the engine;

a main heat exchanger positioned in the secondary chamber downstream from the primary exhaust heat exchanger to receive air flow from the primary exhaust heat exchanger, the main heat exchanger being in fluid communication with the heat generator to transfer heat generated by the heat generator to air flowing along the air flow path; and

an air movement assembly including;

a primary fan positioned at the transfer opening in the isolating wall such that operation of the primary fan pulls air from the primary chamber and pushes the air into the secondary chamber along the path;

a secondary fan positioned in the primary chamber to draw air through the engine exhaust heat recovery apparatus; and

wherein both of the primary and secondary fans are operatively connected to the engine to be rotated by the engine to move air along the path.

15. The apparatus of claim 14 additionally comprising a secondary exhaust heat exchanger positioned in the primary chamber downstream from the inlet opening of the housing in the air flow path to receive air flow from the inlet opening, the secondary exhaust heat exchanger being in fluid communication with the primary exhaust heat exchanger such that exhaust gases from the engine pass through the secondary exhaust heat exchanger after passing through the primary exhaust heat exchanger.