Thermoelectric personal environment appliance
View Patent ↗A personal environment appliance and a vent for a personal environment appliance are provided. The appliance includes at least one thermoelectric module over at least one inlet port. The appliance further includes at least one main outlet port spaced from the at least one inlet port and at least one waste outlet port spaced from the at least one inlet port. The appliance further includes at least one filter between the at least one inlet port and the at least one thermoelectric module. The vent includes a plurality of first tubular conduits generally parallel to one another and each first tubular conduit having a ratio of the length divided by the width, The vent further includes a plurality of second tubular conduits generally parallel to one another and having a ratio of the length divided by the width. The plurality of second tubular conduits generally surrounds the plurality of first tubular conduits. The ratios of the second tubular conduits are sufficiently large such that air flow from the second tubular conduits is substantially laminar.
1. A personal environment appliance comprising:
at least one inlet port;
at least one thermoelectric module comprising a main flow conduit and a waste flow conduit, the at least one thermoelectric module over the at least one inlet port;
at least one main outlet port spaced from the at least one inlet port and in fluidic communication with the main flow conduit;
at least one waste outlet port spaced from the at least one inlet port and in fluidic communication with the waste flow conduit;
at least one filter between the at least one inlet port and the at least one thermoelectric module; and
at least one fan configured to drive a first air flow from the at least one inlet port, through the at least one filter, through the main flow conduit, and through the at least one main outlet port, the at least one fan further configured to drive a second air flow from the at least one inlet port, through the waste flow conduit, and through the at least one waste outlet port, wherein the first air flow has a first volumetric flow rate that is less than a second volumetric flow rate of the second air flow.
2. The appliance of claim 1 , wherein the at least one main outlet port is on a first side of the appliance and the at least one waste outlet port is on a second side of the appliance, the second side different from the first side.
3. The appliance of claim 2 , wherein the the first air flow through the at least one main outlet port is generally towards a user of the appliance and the second air flow through the at least one waste outlet port is in a generally upward direction away from the user.
4. The appliance of claim 1 , wherein the at least one fan is further configured to drive the second air flow from the at least one inlet port, through the at least one filter, through the waste flow conduit, and through the at least one waste outlet port.
5. The appliance of claim 1 , wherein the at least one thermoelectric module is positioned so that condensation formed on the at least one thermoelectric module drips onto the at least one filter.
6. The appliance of claim 1 , wherein the thermoelectric module comprises at least one thermoelectric element comprising a main side in thermal communication with the main flow conduit and comprising a waste side in thermal communication with the waste flow conduit.
7. The appliance of claim 6 , wherein the main flow conduit comprises one or more main heat exchangers in thermal communication with the main side and the waste flow conduit comprises one or more waste heat exchangers in thermal communication with the waste side.
8. The appliance of claim 7 , wherein the one or more main heat exchangers comprises a plurality of portions which are substantially thermally isolated from one another along a direction of the first air flow through the main flow conduit.
9. The appliance of claim 7 , wherein the one or more waste heat exchangers comprises a plurality of portions which are substantially thermally isolated from one another along a direction of the second air flow through the waste flow conduit.
10. The appliance of claim 1 , wherein the first air flow through the main flow conduit is substantially parallel to the second air flow through the waste flow conduit.
11. The appliance of claim 10 , wherein the first air flow through the main flow conduit and the second air flow through the waste flow conduit are in the substantially same direction.
12. The appliance of claim 11 , wherein the first air flow through the at least one main outlet port and the second air flow through the at least one waste outlet port are in different directions.
13. The appliance of claim 1 , wherein the first air flow from the main flow conduit to the at least one main outlet port is substantially thermally isolated from the second air flow from the waste flow conduit to the at least one waste outlet port.
14. The appliance of claim 13 , wherein the appliance comprises a substantially thermally insulating material between the first air flow and the second air flow.
15. The appliance of claim 1 , further comprising a housing substantially enclosing the at least one thermoelectric module, the at least one filter, and the at least one fan, the housing comprising at least two separate elements which are configured to be coupled together to form the housing.
16. The appliance of claim 15 , wherein the at least two separate elements, when coupled together to form the housing, provide a main flow path for the first air flow from the main flow conduit to the at least one main outlet port and a waste flow path for the second air flow from the waste flow conduit to the at least one waste outlet port, wherein the main flow path and the waste flow path are substantially thermally isolated from one another.
17. The appliance of claim 16 , wherein the at least two separate elements comprise one or more recesses and one or more protrusions which mate together when the at least two separate elements are assembled together so as to provide a substantially airtight seal of the main flow path, the waste flow path, or both.
18. The appliance of claim 1 , wherein the thermoelectric module comprises a main side and the main flow conduit comprises a main heat exchanger in thermal communication with the main side, the main heat exchanger comprising at least one thermally conductive sheet having a first plurality of folds and a second plurality of folds such that the sheet forms a plurality of fins.
19. The appliance of claim 18 , wherein the first plurality of folds are in thermal communication with the main side.
20. The appliance of claim 19 , wherein the second plurality of folds are coupled to a thermally insulative sheet generally parallel to the main side, the thermally insulative sheet at least partially bounding the main flow conduit.
21. The appliance of claim 1 , wherein the thermoelectric module comprises a waste side and the waste flow conduit comprises a waste heat exchanger in thermal communication with the waste side, the waste heat exchanger comprising at least one thermally conductive sheet having a first plurality of folds and a second plurality of folds such that the sheet forms a plurality of fins.
22. The appliance of claim 21 , wherein the first plurality of folds are in thermal communication with the waste side.
23. The appliance of claim 22 , wherein the second plurality of folds are coupled to a thermally insulative sheet generally parallel to the waste side, the thermally insulative sheet at least partially bounding the waste flow conduit.
24. The appliance of claim 1 , wherein the first air flow comprises a volumetric flow rate of 5 to 10 cubic feet per minute.
25. The appliance of claim 1 , wherein the second air flow comprises a volumetric flow rate 1.5 to 3 times the volumetric flow rate of the first air flow.
26. A method of adjusting the personal environment of a user, the method comprising:
providing an appliance comprising:
at least one inlet port;
at least one thermoelectric module comprising a main flow conduit and a waste flow conduit, the at least one thermoelectric module over the at least one inlet port;
at least one main outlet port spaced from the at least one inlet port and in fluidic communication with the main flow conduit;
at least one waste outlet port spaced from the at least one inlet port and in fluidic communication with the waste flow conduit; and
at least one filter between the at least one inlet port and the at least one thermoelectric module; and
driving a first air flow from the at least one inlet port, through the at least one filter, through the main flow conduit, and through the at least one main outlet port, wherein the first air flow through the main flow conduit is cooled or heated according to control settings selected by a user; and
driving a second air flow from the at least one inlet port, through the waste flow conduit, and through the at least one waste outlet port.
27. The method of claim 26 , further comprising directing the first air flow through the at least one main outlet port generally towards a user of the appliance and directing the second air flow through the at least one waste outlet port generally upward away from the user.
28. The method of claim 26 , wherein driving the second air flow comprising driving the second air flow from the at least one inlet port, through the at least one filter, through the waste flow conduit, and through the at least one waste outlet port.
29. The method of claim 26 , further comprising allowing condensation formed on the at least one thermoelectric module to drip onto the at least one filter and allowing the condensation to evaporate from the at least one filter.
30. The method of claim 26 , wherein the control settings selected by the user allow a user to determine the amount of temperature change according to a plurality of discrete levels or continuous adjustment.