Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
26MS0188/1384r 785-87-0040
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INTEGRATED AIR CLEANER ASSEMBLY
~ackground and Summary of the Invention:
The present invention relates to an air cleaner
5 assembly and more particularly to an air cleaner which
may include an integral resonator and mass airflow
sensor.
Carburated engines typically included an air
l0 cleaner situatfd upstream of the carburetor. With the
removal of the carburetor as typified by many of the
fuel injected engines in use today, it has been found
that the intake air as it enters the engine emits an
annoying acoustical sound. In reality this noise most
15 probably always existed with carbureted engines but due
to the inherent throttle action of the narrowed
carburetor venturi this no;se was attenuated. One early
solution to the noise problem was to include a resonator
in series with the air cleaner, the exit end of the
20 resonator being communicated to a throttle body of the
injection system. This type o~ installation, while
delivering clean air to the f n~ine and attenuating
engine noise, requires a serpentineli~e placement of the
above mentioned components. The installation of the air
25 cleaner and resonator is further complicated by those
systems which utilize a mass airflow sensor which must
be positioned upstream o the throttle body or clean air
intake of the engine. f
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26MS0188/1384r 785~87-0040
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- ~ 132~779
It is an object of the present invention to provide
an inteqral air cleaner resonator assembly. A further
object of the present invention is to provide such an
assembly which will act as an accumulator to decrease
5 air intake back-flow pressure.
Accordingly the invention comprises: a filter
assembly comprising: a first housing member comprising
first and second compartments. The first compartment
10 comprising an exit tube and an oppositely situated first
open end. The exit tube comprising a plurality of
radial inwardly extending stand-ofs. The second
compartment comprising an air inlet and an oppositely
situated second open end. The assembly further includes
15 means for sensing the mass of air exiting the exit tube
includin~ an exit conduit adapted to be received upon
and supported by the stand-offs. The exit conduit and
exit tube cooperate to form an inlet passage for a tuner
or resonator. The mass airflow means further includes
20 an entrance conduit, positioned upstream of the exit
conduit. The assembly additionally includes an insert
comprising tapered walls including first and second
ends. The first end defining an opening conformal to
the first open end of the first housing member and
25 adapted to be joined therewith. The second end defining
a hollow sleeve of substantially the same size as the
entrance conduit and adapted to sealingly mate
therewith, thereby enclosing in cooperation with the
first compartment a tuner volume communicated with the
30 tuner inlet passage. An air filter means may
additionally be positioned upon the insert opening for
filtering air. A second housing member is sealingly
positioned in engagement with the first housing member
and spaced from a portion of the air cleaner means to
35 communicate air received from the inlet through the air
cleaner means.
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26MS0188/1384r 785-87-0040
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Many other objects and purposes of the invention
will be clear from the following detailed description of
the drawings.
Brief Description of the Drawings
I~ The Drawings:
]O
FIGURE 1 diagrammatically illustrates an
assembly constructed in accordance with the present
invention.
, FIGURES 2 illustrates a cross-sectional view
taken through sections 2-2 and of FIGURE 1.
FIGURES 3 illustrate an assembly drawing of
20 an alternate embodiment.
Detailed Descr;ption of the nrawings
FIGURE 1 shows an air filter assembly 8 comprising
a housing 10 having interconnected first and second
housing members 12 and 14 respectively. As will be seen
below, the second housing member operates as a cover for
30the first housing member. The first and second housing
members are adapted to be ~oined together at location
16. The first housing member 12 includes the firs~ and
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. 26MS0188/1384r 785-87-0040
~4~'~ ~325~7~
second compartments generally shown as 18 and 20. More
particularly, the first housing member includes a bottom
22 and an extending wall 24 forming the exterior thereof
and an interior wall 26 which serves to divide the
5 housing into the first and second compartments 18 and
20. The bottom 22 includes a tubular extension or exit
tube 28 defining an open end 29 which is adapted to be
communicated to the clean air intake of the engine such
as a throttle body via a hose or similar connection.
lO The exterior wall 24 in cooperation with the wall 26
form an open end 30 of the first compartment 20. The
ends of the walls 24 include a flanged shoulder 3~. The
end of the wall 26 also includes a flanged shoulder 34.
The wall 24 in cooperation with wall 26 also cooperate
15 to define the second open end 36 of the second
compartment. As can be seen from FIGURE 1, the second
housing member 14 or cover is adapted to engage and seat
upon the flanged shoulder 32.
The exit tube 28 supports a plurality of radially
inwardly extending stand-offs 40 as more particularly
illustrated in FIGURE 2. The assembly 8 may optionally
include a mass airflow sensor generally illustrated as
50 for sensing the airflow exiting the e~it tube 28 and
25for generating a signal indicative thereof. The mass
airflow sensor 50 includes an exit conduit S2 adapted to
be received upon and supported by the various stand-offs
40. The exit conduit 52 of the mass airflow sensor 50
and the e~it tube 28 cooperate to form a tuner inlet
3060. The mass airflow sensor 50 further includes an
entrance conduit 56 positioned upstream of the exit
conduit 52. The particular mass airflow sensor utiliæed
in the assembly is of minor consequence. As an example,
the mass airflow sensor 50 may be of the hot wire
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26MS0188/1384r 785-87-0040
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anemometer type such as that shown in United States
Patent 4,637,251, comprising a measurement passage
parallel to a main passage formed within the entrance
and exit conduits 56 and 52 respectively. Sensing
5 electronics, generally shown as 58 are connected to the
hot wires to generate a signal indicative of the mass
flow of air in a known manner. The sensing electronics
58 may include a connector assPmbly 62 which is received
through an opening 64 in the bottom 22 of the first
10 housing member 12. In this manner the connector
assembly 62 and opening 64 form a means for orienting
the mass airflow sensor within the housing 10.
Appropriate seals 66 may be placed about the connector
assembly 62.
The assembly 8 further includes an insert 80
comprising tapered walls 82. The tapered walls e~tend
from an open end 84 to a second end 86. The tapered
wallæ proximate the open end 84 terminate in a radial
20 flange 85 adapted to mate with the flanged shoulder 32
formed about the open end 34 of the first compartment.
The second end 86 of the tapered walls join together to
form a hollow sleeve 90 of substantially the same size
as the entrance conduit 56 of the mass airflow sensor
25 and are adapted to ~ealingly mate therewith. As can be
seen, the insert in cooperation with the second
compartment 20, as well as the exterior of the mass
airflow sensor, cooperate to define a tuner volume 92.
The tuner volume in cooperation with the tuner inlet
30 passage are sized to resonate with or absorb acoustical
noise of a predetermined frequency(s) to thereby
diminish or eliminate same.
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26MS0188~1384r 785-87-0040
~2~7~
The relationships among the absorber frequency f,
turner volume V and other dimensions of the resonator
are related in the following equations:
5 f = ~ ~ wherein c = speed of sound ~in/sec],
2~r v Req = Equivalent Radius
CO = conductivity [in],
V = tuner volume [in3], Do = outer
tuner diameter
]0 Di = inner tuner diameter
f = frequenCY thz],
1 = tuner inlet length~
CO = ~ Reg 2
1.+ ~n~) Req.
Req =
~ -
It should be quite obvious from FIGURE 1 that if
the installation did not require a mass airflow sensor,
25 the dimension of ths hollow sleeve 90 may be extended
such that it mates with and is supported by the
stand-offs 40. Positioned upon the flange 85 of the
insert and supported by the flanged shoulder 32 of the
first compartment is an air cleaner element generally
30 designated as 100. The air cleaner element is sized to
completely cover the open end 30 of the first
compartment such that it is effecti~e to filter all of
the air input to the engine. As mentioned above, the
second housing member functions as a cover and is
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26MS0188/1384r 785-87-0040
~32~77~
adapted to seat upon the flanged shoulders 34 thereby
enclosing the ends 30 and 36 of the first and second
compartments respectively. In this manner, air received
at the inlet 102 of the second compartment is
5 communicated through the second compartment and directed
by the cover 14 to flow through the air filter element
100 .
In operation the e~it tube 28 is communicated to
10 the engine. Clean intake air is received at the inlet
102 of the housing 10 and filtered by the air cleaner
element 100. The amount of air may optionally be
measured by the mass airflow sensor 50, such air heing
communicated to the engine more specifically from the
15 exit conduit 52 of the mass airflow sensor and e~it tube
28. As~ the various cylinders of the engine move
downwardly during the combustion process, a vacuum is
created which sucks the intake air through the housing
10. It can be appreciated that this air is not in
20 continuous flow but varies in accordance with the motion
of the cylinders and as such the intake air will pulsate
in accordance with the speed of the engine. At certain
speeds of the engine, the intake air may cause an
objectionable sound which propagates up through the
25 clean air intake of the engine and if not attenuated
produces a bothersome sound for the vehicle operator.
This propagating air wave is received at the tu~er inlet
passage 60 and permitted to propagate into the tuner
volume 92 wherein ~he sound is attenua~ed. The tuner
30inlet 60 and tuner volume 9~ may be tuned to attenuate
air at a specific frequency or tuned to overlap a
plurality of frequencies. Further, as this air pulsing
takes place a back pressure is created. This pulsing
back pressure can distort the measuring accuracy of the
.
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26MS0188/1384r 785-87 0090
1 3 2 ~ 7 7 9
mass airflow sensor. It is through that in this
invention that the tuner volume 92 in conjuction with
the tuner inlet 60 will act as an accumulator such that
the back pressure pulses will be absorbed by the tuner
5 volume.
FIGURE 3 is an assembly view of an assembly similar
to that illustrated in FIGURE 1 and shows first and
second housing members 202 and 204 respectively. As
10 will be seen below, the second housing member 20~
operates as a cover for the assembly 200. The first and
second housing members are adapted to be joined
together. The second housing member 204 or cover is
adapted to enclose the assembly 200 by engagement with
15 the flanged shoulder 244 of the first housing member.
Fasteners such as 264 may be provided as part of the
cover and adapted to mate with engagement surfaces 266
formed as part of the first housing member.
The cover 204 may further include a tube 270 which
extends through a surface thereof. The tube 270 may be
optionall~ provided and adapted to communicate with the
positive crankcase ventilation (PCV) line 272.
The first housing member 202 comprises first and
second chambers or compartments generally shown as 210
and 211. More particularly, the first housing member
includes a bottom 212 and an axially e~tending wall 206
forming the e2terior thereof. Extending through ~he end
or bottom of the first housing member is a cylinder
219. The volume internal to the cylinder 214 defines
another chamber 211, designated as ~he second
26MS0188/1384r -9 ~ 13 2 ~ 7 ~19 785-87-0040
compartment of the first housing. The bottom includes a
tubular extention or exit tube 230 which is adapted to
be communicated to the clean air intake of the engine
such as a throttle-body via a hose or similar
5 connection. The assembly 200 includes a mass airflow
sensor generally illustrated as 50 for sensing the
airflow exiting the exit tube and for generating a
signal indicative thereof. Situated about the exit tube
230 are a plurality of stand-offs 232 (such as 40 of
FIGURE 1) adapted to receive an e~it conduit 52 of the
mass airflow sensor 50. The e~it conduit 52 of the
mass airflow sensor 50 and the e~it tube 230 cooperate
to form a resonator/tuner inlet 60. The mass airflow
sensor 50 further includes an entrance conduit 56
15 positioned upstream of the e~it conduit 52. The mass
airflow sensing electronics 58 may include a connector
assembly 62 which is received through an opening 234 in
~he bottom 212 of the first housing member 202. In this
manner the connector assembly 62 and opening 234 form a
20 means for orientating the mass airflow sensor within the
first housing member 202. Appropriate seals 262 may be
placed about the connector assembly.
The assembly 200 further includes an insert 240
25 comprising tapered walls 246. The tapered walls extend
from an open end 248 to one end of an extending passage
260. The tapered insert 240 is adapted to be received
upon- the flanged shoulders 242 defined about the open
end 244 of the first housing member 202. The opening
30248 of the insert is smaller than the opening 244 of the
first housing member. Th~ insert 240 includes a
radially extending wall 250 having formed therein an
opening 252 such that when the insert is positioned upon
the first housing member, the interior end 220 of the
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26MSOlB8/1384r 785-87-0040
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132~779
cylinder 214 e~tends therethrough. The insert 240
further includes the axially extending passage 260
adapted to receive the entrance condui~ 56 of the mass
airflow sensor 50. Appropriate sealing such as 262 may
5 be provided therebetween. As can be seen, the ïnsert in
cooperation with the first compartment 210, as well as
the exterior of the mass airflow sensor, cooperate to
defined a tuner or resonator volume. When the insert is
in place, the wall 250 therof also serves to enclose a
10 portion of the resonator volume 92. The tuner volume in
cooperation with the tuner inlet passage are sized to
resonate with or absorb acoustical noise of a
predetermined frequency(s) to thereby diminish or
eliminate same.
The~operation of the assembly 200 illustrated in
FIGURE 4 is substantially identical to the operation of
the assembly 10 illustrated in FIGURE 1.
Many changes and modifications in the above
described embodiment of the invention can, of course, be
carried out without departing from the scope thereof.
Accordingly, that scope i~ intended to be limited only
by the ~cope of the appended claims.
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