US 6,981,690 B2
Air-passage opening/closing device
Yoshihiko Okumura, Kariya (Japan); Katsumi Nishikawa, Kariya (Japan); Takahiro Tokunaga, Kosai (Japan); and Koji Ito, Nagoya (Japan)
Assigned to DENSO Corporation, Kariya (Japan)
Filed on May 16, 2005, as Appl. No. 11/130,340.
Application 11/130340 is a division of application No. 10/397124, filed on Mar. 26, 2003.
Claims priority of application No. 2002-88831 (JP), filed on Mar. 27, 2002; application No. 2002-351215 (JP), filed on Dec. 03, 2002; and application No. 2003-29597 (JP), filed on Feb. 06, 2003.
Prior Publication US 2005/0215190 A1, Sep. 29, 2005
Int. Cl. F16K 7/18 (2006.01)
U.S. Cl. 251—250 10 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. An air passage switching device comprising:
a case for defining an air passage having a first opening and a second opening, wherein the case has an outer periphery for forming the first opening and the second opening, and a partition portion provided between the first opening and the second opening for partitioning the first opening and the second opening from each other;
a first film member for opening and closing the first opening;
a second film member for opening and closing the second opening;
a first fixing portion for fixing a first end of the first film member to the case on the outer periphery of the first opening;
a first film winding shaft to which a second end of the first film member opposite to the first end of the first film member is connected, the first film member being wound around the first film winding shaft from the second end and being unwound from the first film winding shaft;
a second fixing portion for fixing a first end of the second film member to the case on the outer periphery of the second opening;
a second film winding shaft to which a second end of the second film member opposite to the first end of the second film member is connected, the second film member being wound around the second film winding shaft from the second end and being unwound from the second film winding shaft;
a drive shaft for driving the first and second film winding shafts, the drive shaft disposed rotatably at the partition portion; and
a moving mechanism through which a rotation force of the drive shaft is transmitted to the first and second film winding shafts to move the first and second film winding shafts on the outer periphery of the first and second openings, wherein:
the first and second film winding shafts are located at two sides of the drive shaft;
the first film winding shaft is movable on the outer periphery of the first opening to be separated from and to be approached to the first fixing portion;
the second film winding shaft is movable on the outer periphery of the second opening to be separated from and to be approached to the second fixing portion; and
the first and second film winding shafts are operatively linked by the drive shaft through the moving mechanism.