Air/surface cleaning apparatus particularly configured for under-seat installation and operation within an occupied passenger bus
A system for decontaminating/neutralizing breathable air and surfaces in an occupied enclosed space, i.e., hydroponic greenhouses, aircraft, rail and road vehicles, in building ducts, or rooms, includes mounting an atmospheric hydroxyl radical generator along an inside surface of an occupied space having respective air inlets and air outlets. The hydroxyl radical generator includes a polygonal housing supporting a plurality of spaced crystal-spliced UV optics medical grade pure quartz, which emit/irradiate ultraviolet in the nanometer wavelength/ultraviolet spectrum of between 100 and 400 nanometers for deactivating and neutralizing atmospheric chemicals and pathogens in breathable air and surfaces. The hydroxyl radicals contact the walls of the reaction chamber housing. The hydroxyl radicals become created and excited to react quickly with impurities including VOC, virus, bacteria and fungi, rendering them inactivated and neutral. The breathable air passes through the polygonal housing and is decontaminated and neutralized of impurities before entering the occupied enclosed space.
1 . An air cleaning apparatus configured to be installed and to operate within an occupied enclosed interior space of a mass transit bus, said air cleaning apparatus comprising:
a main housing, said main housing comprising: a hollow rectangular cross-sectional shape formed of a top wall, a bottom wall, a first side wall, and a second side wall that form an opening at each of a first end and a second end of said main housing;
wherein said first side wall and said second side wall of said main housing each comprise: a height configured to fit between a bottom of a passenger seat and a floor surface of the mass transit bus when said air cleaning apparatus is mounted to the floor under the seat of the mass transit bus;
wherein each of said top wall, said bottom wall, said first side wall, and said second side wall comprise: a length configured to underlie the seat without extending beyond a medial end of the seat, when said air cleaning apparatus is mounted to the floor under the seat of the mass transit bus;
wherein each of said top wall and said bottom wall comprise: a width configured to underlie the seat without extending beyond a forward-facing end of the seat, when said air cleaning apparatus is mounted to the floor under the seat of the mass transit bus;
a first mounting flange configured to extend away from a first side of said bottom wall, said first mounting flange comprising: a plurality of openings each configured to receive a respective fastener to mount a first side of said air cleaning apparatus to the floor of the bus;
a second mounting flange configured to extend away from a second side of said bottom wall, said second mounting flange comprising: a plurality of openings each configured to receive a respective fastener to mount a second side of said air cleaning apparatus to the floor of the bus;
a hydroxyl generator, said hydroxyl generator comprising:
a generator housing, said generator housing comprising: a linearly elongated octagonal cross-sectional shape having an opening at and between each of its first end and its second end to form a chamber, and a reflective interior surface;
a plurality of UV lamps each mounted to said generator housing and suspended therein with an axis of a bulb of each lamp mounted parallel to a direction of said linearly elongated octagonal cross-sectional shape of said generator housing;
wherein each of said plurality of UV lamps is configured to emit one or more wavelengths of ultraviolet light being in the range of 100 nm to 400 nm;
a first generator filter, said first generator filter mounted to said first end of said generator housing, to thereby filter air passing into or out from said first end of said generator housing;
a second generator filter, said second generator filter mounted to said second end of said generator housing, to thereby filter air passing into or out from said second end of said generator housing;
a generator mounting bracket, said generator mounting bracket configured to secure said hydroxyl generator to an interior surface of said first side wall of said main housing, with a first end of said generator housing being positioned at a first distance away from said first end of said main housing, with a second end of said generator housing being positioned at a second distance away from said second end of said main housing, with a bottom surface of said octagonal shape of said generator housing being positioned a third distance away from said bottom wall of said main housing, and with a top surface of said octagonal shape of said generator housing being positioned a fourth distance away from said top wall of said main housing;
an exit grill, said exit grille mounted to, and configured to cover, said second end of said main housing;
wherein said exit grill comprises: a plurality of openings configured to admit passage of air therethrough;
an air blower, said air blower configured to blow and pressurize air into said chamber of said generator housing;
wherein said one or more wavelengths of ultraviolet light emitted by said plurality of UV lamps create hydroxyl radicals from water vapor contained within the pressurized air blown into said chamber of said generator housing that exit said plurality of openings in said exit grille and react with and inactivate impurities including volatile organic compounds, viruses, bacteria, and mold in the pressurized air and the interior surfaces of the bus.
2 . The air cleaning apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said plurality of UV lamps are positioned in an asymmetric, staggered arrangement across a width of said generator housing.
3 . The air cleaning apparatus of claim 2 , further comprising:
a first baffle, said first baffle positioned between said first end of said generator housing and said first end of said main housing, and being sized to block the one or more wavelengths of ultraviolet light emitted by said UV lamp from being emitted directly out said first end of said main housing;
a second baffle, said second baffle positioned between said second end of said generator housing and said second end of said main housing, and being sized to block the one or more wavelengths of ultraviolet light emitted by said UV lamp from being emitted directly out said second end of said main housing.
4 . The air cleaning apparatus of claim 3 , further comprising:
an inverter, said inverter configured to receive 12 VDC power from the bus, and to convert the received power to alternating current to power said air blower and said plurality of UV lamps.
5 . The air cleaning apparatus of claim 4 , further comprising:
a control box, said control box being mounted adjacent said hydroxyl generator, said control box including a microprocessor for controlling sensors and switches which control operation of said said plurality of UV lamps within said hydroxyl generator.
6 . The air cleaning apparatus of claim 5 , further comprising:
a main filter, said main filter mounted to said first end of said generator housing, to thereby filter air passing into said first end of said generator housing; and
wherein said air blower is positioned between said main filter and said first generator filter.
7 . The air cleaning apparatus of claim 6 , wherein said generator housing is formed of aluminum.
8 . The air cleaning apparatus of claim 7 , wherein said second distance is the same as said first distance.