Air vent for ventilation systems

Abstract

An air vent is provided that is capable of delivering a distributed divergent air flow with a predominant direction of flow that can be changed within a wide range of mutually perpendicular directions. In one embodiment, the air vent has an outlet grid that is generally ball shaped and that is rotatably mounted at an end of an air duct for rotation about its center. Each of the multiple outlet openings of the grid points to a direction that is different from pointing directions of all other outlet openings so that a divergent air flow is obtained. By rotating the ball shaped grid about its center, the predominant direction of air flow can nevertheless be changed in a within a wide range.

1 . An air vent for ventilation system in a vehicle, comprising an outlet grid having multiple outlet openings, wherein said outlet grid is generally ball shaped and is rotatably mounted at an end of an air duct for rotation about its center.  
   
   
       2 - 17 . (canceled)  
   
   
       18 . An air vent for a ventilation system in a vehicle, comprising an outlet grid having several parallel grid vanes, each of said grid vanes being pivotally mounted in a frame and having multiple outlet openings, said grid vanes being jointly movable to assume pivotal positions where they together form a substantially continuous surface, and said grid vanes further being jointly movable to assume pivotal positions where they together define parallel air outlet slits.  
   
   
       19 . The air vent according to  claim 18 , wherein each of said outlet openings is a nozzle defined by air deflection surfaces.  
   
   
       20 . The air vent according to  claim 19 , wherein said nozzles point in diverging directions.  
   
   
       21 . The air vent according to  claim 18 , wherein a set of movable baffle members is mounted in the frame upstream of said grid vanes.  
   
   
       22 . The air vent according to  claim 21 , wherein said baffle members are jointly pivotal about parallel axes that are perpendicular to pivotal axes of the grid vanes.