CN108551762B

CN108551762B - Air conditioner

Info

Publication number: CN108551762B
Application number: CN201780004483.4A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 森村英幸; 佐藤宪一郎; 金铉永
Original assignee: Samsung Electronics Co Ltd
Current assignee: Samsung Electronics Co Ltd
Priority date: 2016-01-21
Filing date: 2017-01-10
Publication date: 2021-04-23
Anticipated expiration: 2037-01-10
Also published as: CN108551762A; JP2017133820A; KR20170087807A

Abstract

An air conditioner includes a header for introducing refrigerant into a plurality of refrigerant tubes arranged in parallel in a vertical direction. The header includes a main header chamber extending in a vertical direction, and a plurality of sub-header chambers branched in a horizontal direction from the main header chamber and arranged in parallel in the vertical direction. The main header chamber includes a refrigerant inlet port configured to introduce a refrigerant in a gas-liquid mixed state into an interior of the main header chamber in a horizontal direction; and a flow direction changing mechanism provided to collide with the refrigerant discharged from the refrigerant inlet port and configured to change a flow direction of the refrigerant from a horizontal direction to a vertical direction.

Description

Air conditioner

Technical Field

The following description relates to an air conditioner provided with a header for a heat exchanger having a plurality of refrigerant tubes and distributing refrigerant to the plurality of refrigerant tubes.

Background

Conventional microchannel heat exchangers using headers include a microchannel heat exchanger in which the projection length of each of a plurality of refrigerant tubes formed in flat tubes projecting into a header is optimized in accordance with the flow rate of refrigerant during operation (refer to patent document 1), and a heat exchanger in which a mixing chamber, a distribution chamber, and a distribution channel are formed by providing at least one separation panel parallel or perpendicular to the axis of a header pipe within the header pipe (refer to patent document 2).

However, in the header described in patent document 1, the flow resistance due to the tube projecting portions of the flat tubes projecting into the header varies depending on the flow rate of the refrigerant. Therefore, it is difficult to uniformize the amount of refrigerant flowing into each flat tube with respect to the fluctuating flow rate. Also, when the flat tubes project into the header, a vortex occurs in the flow of the refrigerant in the projecting portion, so that the refrigerant cannot smoothly flow into each flat tube.

In addition, in the header pipe of patent document 2, since the flow resistance varies, it is difficult to uniformize the amount of refrigerant flowing into each flat tube with respect to a fluctuating flow rate. In addition, when a large number of separation plates are provided, or when the separation plates have a complicated shape, it is expensive.

In addition, as described in patent document 3, a plurality of sub-manifold ducts branch in the horizontal direction from a main manifold chamber extending in the vertical direction, and a flat tube is directly connected to each sub-manifold duct. This is to uniformly distribute the refrigerant with respect to each flat tube by distributing the refrigerant flowing into the main header chamber into each sub-header.

However, since the liquid refrigerant having a large specific gravity easily enters the flat tubes located on the lower side and the gas refrigerant is introduced into the flat tubes located on the upper side, uniform distribution of the refrigerant cannot be achieved.

Patent document

Patent document 1: japanese patent No.5626254

Patent document 2: japanese patent laid-open No.2014-66502

Patent document 3: U.S. patent publication No.2012/0291998

Disclosure of Invention

Additional aspects and/or advantages will be set forth in part in the description which follows and, in part, will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the disclosure.

The present disclosure has been developed to overcome the above-described shortcomings and other problems associated with conventional arrangements. One aspect of the present disclosure relates to an air conditioner including a header that may uniformly distribute a refrigerant in a gas-liquid mixed state to each of a plurality of refrigerant tubes arranged side by side in a vertical direction.

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, the header may include a main header chamber extending in a vertical direction, and may be configured to introduce the refrigerant flowing into the main header chamber to a plurality of refrigerant tubes arranged side by side in the vertical direction. The main header chamber may include a refrigerant inlet port configured to introduce the refrigerant in a gas-liquid mixed state into the interior of the main header chamber in a horizontal direction; and a flow direction changing mechanism provided to collide with the refrigerant flowing out of the refrigerant inlet port and configured to change a flow direction of the refrigerant from a horizontal direction to a vertical direction. Here, the refrigerant tube is, for example, a concept including a flat tube or a circular tube in which refrigerant flows and exchanges heat with air.

When the header is configured as described above, the refrigerant in a gas-liquid mixed state flowing into the main header chamber can flow toward the upper portion of the main header chamber by the flow direction changing mechanism, thereby preventing a large amount of refrigerant from flowing into the refrigerant tubes provided in the lower portion of the main header chamber and thereby sufficiently distributing the liquid refrigerant to the refrigerant tubes provided in the upper portion. In addition, by reducing the internal volume of the main header chamber, gas-liquid mixing can be promoted even in the case of a low flow rate refrigerant in which drift of the separated gas refrigerant and liquid refrigerant is likely to occur. Therefore, the refrigerant can be distributed into the refrigerant tubes in a state where the gas-liquid mixture ratio is similar to each other, so that the heat exchange efficiency in each refrigerant tube can become desirable.

A specific structure for distributing a refrigerant in a state in which a liquid refrigerant is sufficiently contained in a refrigerant tube disposed on an upper side among a plurality of refrigerant tubes arranged in parallel in a vertical direction, and for preventing the refrigerant from being excessively accumulated in a refrigerant tube disposed on a lower side, may include: and a plurality of sub-header chambers branched in a horizontal direction from the main header chamber and arranged in parallel in a vertical direction, wherein a plurality of refrigerant tubes are respectively connected to the plurality of sub-header chambers such that the refrigerant flowing into the main header chamber is divided into the plurality of refrigerant tubes by the plurality of sub-header chambers.

In order to manufacture a header having a structure capable of distributing refrigerant from a main header chamber to a plurality of sub-header chambers in a simple configuration, the main header chamber may be formed of a main header pipe extending in a vertical direction, and the plurality of sub-header chambers may be formed of a plurality of sub-header pipes arranged in parallel in the vertical direction with respect to an outer side surface of the main header pipe.

In order to improve reliability of refrigerant leakage by omitting a brazing process of bonding a plurality of sub-header pipes to a main header pipe to form a main header chamber and a plurality of sub-header chambers, the main header chamber and the plurality of sub-header chambers may be provided inside a single header pipe, the main header chamber may be formed by an inner surface of the header pipe and a first plate member provided to vertically partition an inside of the header pipe, and the plurality of sub-header chambers may be formed by the inner surface of the header pipe, a first plate member and a plurality of second plate members provided to horizontally partition the inside of the header pipe.

In order to effectively change the flow direction of the refrigerant introduced from the refrigerant inlet port to the upper side of the main header chamber without complicating the shape of the main header chamber, the refrigerant inlet port may be formed as an opening provided at a lower portion of a side surface of the main header chamber, and the flow direction changing mechanism may be formed as a resistance body extending in a vertical direction from the bottom of the main header chamber inside the main header chamber.

For example, in order that the flow direction changing mechanism may also be used as a structure in which two or more main header chambers are stacked in the vertical direction, the refrigerant inlet port may be formed as an opening provided at a lower portion of a side surface of the main header chamber, and the flow direction changing mechanism may be formed as a refrigerant collision portion formed by a portion of an inner side surface of the main header chamber facing the refrigerant inlet port.

In order to prevent the refrigerant introduced into the main header chamber from generating a vortex flow near the sub-header chambers and to reduce the flow resistance of the refrigerant as much as possible so that the refrigerant flows uniformly into each sub-header chamber and each refrigerant tube, the main header chamber may further include a refrigerant flow path extending in a vertical direction and having a hydraulic diameter smaller than that of the opening of the refrigerant tube; and a plurality of refrigerant outlet ports connected to the plurality of sub header chambers, respectively, and formed in parallel in a vertical direction, and the plurality of sub header chambers may not protrude from the plurality of refrigerant outlet ports into the interior of the main header chamber.

For example, in order to cause the refrigerant to uniformly flow from each sub-manifold chamber to each refrigerant pipe by restricting the inflow amount of the refrigerant into the sub-manifold chamber provided near the refrigerant inlet end, or by controlling the ease of introducing the refrigerant into each sub-manifold chamber, at least one of the plurality of sub-manifold chambers may be connected to the main manifold chamber through a throttle portion having a narrow flow path.

In order to distribute the refrigerant amount more uniformly in the vertical direction inside the main header chamber, the inside of the main header chamber may be partitioned in the vertical direction by at least one throttle plate provided with a throttle portion.

In order to promote uniformity of the amount of refrigerant flowing into each refrigerant tube by preventing the refrigerant from being linearly introduced into the sub-manifold chambers in the vicinity of the refrigerant inlet port, a resistance body may be provided to be partitioned between the refrigerant inlet port and some of the plurality of refrigerant outlet ports.

In order to improve the manufacturability of the header by forming a complicated flow path shape in a simple assembly operation without connecting a plurality of sub-header chambers to a main header chamber by, for example, brazing or the like, at least two pressure plates are assembled such that the main header chamber and the plurality of sub-header chambers are formed by a cavity formed between the two pressure plates and each refrigerant tube can be inserted into a through hole formed to penetrate one pressure plate in the sheet surface direction at a position where the sub-header pipe is formed. In addition, with this configuration, since the refrigerant pipe is inserted only into the sub header chamber, the assemblability is good, and even if the refrigerant pipe is inserted, nothing projects into the main header chamber, so the flow of the refrigerant is not disturbed.

Another method of manufacturing the primary and sub-manifold chambers may include a method of forming the primary and sub-manifold chambers by combining extrusion molded components.

In order to make the size of the inlet of the sub-manifold chambers automatically changed according to the flow rate of refrigerant flowing out of the refrigerant inlet port so that the refrigerant can be more uniformly distributed to each sub-manifold chamber regardless of the flow rate of the refrigerant, at least one tubular member includes an open first end, a second end covered by a cap having a hole, and a side surface on which at least one communication hole in fluid communication with the refrigerant outlet port is formed, the at least one tubular member may be inserted into the main manifold chamber, and the inner wall of the main manifold chamber may be provided with upper and lower stoppers on upper and lower sides of the tubular member so that the tubular member can move in a vertical direction within a predetermined range.

For example, in order to allow more refrigerant to flow into a predetermined sub-manifold chamber when the flow rate of the refrigerant is small and the force thereof is weak, the tubular member may be designed to contact the lower stopper such that the communication hole of the tubular member is offset from the sub-manifold chamber.

In contrast, in order to make it difficult for the refrigerant to flow into a predetermined sub-manifold chamber when the flow rate of the refrigerant is large and the force thereof is strong, the tubular member may be designed to contact the upper stopper such that the communication hole of the tubular member is aligned with the sub-manifold chamber.

In order to prevent the refrigerant introduced from the refrigerant inlet port from linearly flowing into the header chamber without colliding with the collision portion and to allow the refrigerant to uniformly flow into the sub-header chamber, the refrigerant inlet port may not be disposed to face the refrigerant outlet port.

For example, in order not to form a throttle portion at a connection portion between the main header chamber and the sub-header chamber in advance but to appropriately adjust the inflow amount of the refrigerant by setting the throttle portion later, the header may further include at least one sub-header insertion pipe inserted into at least one of the plurality of sub-header chambers, and an end of the sub-header insertion pipe may be provided to protrude into the main header chamber.

In order to achieve a structure in which the refrigerant is uniformly moved from the main header chamber to the plurality of sub-header chambers in a simple shape by eliminating a brazing bonding process while reducing manufacturing costs, the header pipes may be formed of electrically seamed tubes (electrically welded tubes), the first and second plate members may be plates formed through a pressing process, and the first and second plate members may be inserted into the electrically seamed tubes.

In a specific structure for forming the main header chamber extending in the vertical direction at low cost, the header pipe may have a substantially rectangular or substantially circular cross section, and the first plate member may be formed in a shape having a cross section of a flat plate, a substantially U-shape or a substantially L-shape.

In order to distribute the refrigerant uniformly in the vertical direction in the main header chamber with a simple structure, the throttle plate may be formed of a plate material having one or more holes.

A plurality of refrigerant tubes may be connected to the sub-manifold chamber adjacent to the refrigerant collision portion.

A heat exchanger having a header and a plurality of refrigerant tubes according to the present disclosure can uniformly distribute refrigerant to each refrigerant tube, thereby achieving efficient heat exchange throughout the heat exchanger.

With the header according to the present disclosure as described above, since the flow direction changing mechanism allows the introduced refrigerant to flow into the upper portion of the main header chamber, the refrigerant in a gas-liquid mixed state can be uniformly distributed to the refrigerant tubes of the upper portion and the refrigerant tubes of the lower portion. Also, since heat exchange can be uniformly performed in the entire heat exchanger, heat exchange efficiency can be improved as compared with a conventional heat exchanger.

Drawings

These and/or other aspects and advantages of the disclosure will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view schematically illustrating a header and microchannel heat exchanger according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view schematically showing the structure of a header according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 3A and 3B are views schematically showing the distribution state of the refrigerant in each of a conventional header and a header according to the embodiment;

fig. 4A and 4B are longitudinal sectional views schematically showing the embodiment;

fig. 5A and 5B are views schematically showing a state in which headers according to the embodiment are stacked in the vertical direction;

fig. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view schematically showing the embodiment;

fig. 7 is a longitudinal sectional view schematically showing the embodiment;

fig. 8 is a longitudinal sectional view schematically showing the embodiment;

fig. 9 is a longitudinal sectional view schematically showing the structure of a header according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 10A and 10B are longitudinal sectional views schematically showing the embodiment;

fig. 11A and 11B are longitudinal sectional views schematically showing the structure of a header according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 12A, 12B, and 12C are views schematically showing the structure of a tubular member of a header according to the embodiment;

13A, 13B, 13C and 13D are comparative views of the superheat zone of a conventional heat exchanger and a heat exchanger according to an embodiment;

fig. 14 is a longitudinal sectional view schematically showing the structure of a header according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 15 is an enlarged longitudinal cross-sectional view schematically illustrating a lower portion of a header according to an embodiment;

fig. 16 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view schematically showing a lower portion of a header according to the embodiment;

fig. 17 is a longitudinal sectional view schematically showing a header according to the embodiment;

FIG. 18 is an enlarged longitudinal cross-sectional view schematically illustrating a lower portion of a header according to an embodiment;

fig. 19 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view schematically showing a lower portion of a header according to the embodiment;

FIG. 20 is an enlarged longitudinal cross-sectional view schematically illustrating a lower portion of a header according to an embodiment;

fig. 21 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view schematically showing a lower portion of a header according to the embodiment;

fig. 22 is an enlarged perspective view schematically illustrating the structure of a header according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 23 is an exploded perspective view schematically illustrating the structure of a header according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 24 is a view showing the structure of a header according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 25 is an exploded perspective view schematically showing the structure of a header according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 26 is an exploded perspective view schematically illustrating the structure of a header according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 27 is an exploded perspective view schematically showing the structure of a header according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 28 is an exploded perspective view schematically illustrating the structure of a header according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 29 is an exploded perspective view schematically illustrating the structure of a header according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 30 is an exploded perspective view schematically showing the structure of a header according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 31 is an exploded perspective view schematically illustrating the structure of a header according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; and

fig. 32 is an exploded perspective view schematically illustrating the structure of a header according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Detailed Description

Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to the like elements throughout. The embodiments are described below in order to explain the present disclosure by referring to the figures.

Hereinafter, an air conditioner having a header according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The matters defined herein, such as a detailed construction and elements thereof, are provided to assist in a comprehensive understanding of the specification. It is therefore evident that the illustrative embodiments may be practiced without these specific details. Also, well-known functions or constructions are omitted to provide a clear and concise description of the exemplary embodiments. In addition, the dimensions of the various elements in the figures may be arbitrarily increased or reduced for facilitating a thorough understanding.

The terms "first," "second," and the like may be used to describe various elements, but these elements are not limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element from another.

The terminology used in the present application is for the purpose of describing example embodiments only and is not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. The singular expressions also include the plural meanings as long as they do not have different meanings in context. In the present application, the terms "comprises" and "comprising" mean the presence of the stated features, numbers, steps, operations, components, elements, or combinations thereof, as described in the specification, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, numbers, steps, operations, components, elements, or combinations thereof.

A manifold 100 and a microchannel heat exchanger HE using the manifold 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings.

The microchannel heat exchanger HE according to the present embodiment is used in, for example, an air conditioner, and may include a heat exchanging portion and a header, as shown in fig. 1. The heat exchange portion is composed of flat tubes 4 and fins 5 alternately stacked in the vertical direction. The flat tubes 4 are refrigerant tubes through which refrigerant flows. A plurality of flat tubes 4 form a heat exchanging portion, and a plurality of fins are formed on the periphery of each of the plurality of flat tubes 4. The header 100 is formed to distribute refrigerant with respect to each of the plurality of flat tubes 4, the refrigerant tubes constituting a heat exchange portion.

As shown in fig. 2, the header 100 includes a main header chamber 1 extending in the vertical direction, and a plurality of sub-header chambers 2 branched in the horizontal direction from the main header chamber 1 and arranged side by side in the vertical direction. A side surface of each of the plurality of sub manifold chambers 2 is provided with a through hole 2a, and one end of the flat tube 4 is inserted into the through hole 2 a.

The primary header chamber 1 forms a refrigerant flow path and is formed inside a primary header pipe having a substantially cylindrical shape except for a lower end portion. An inner side surface of a lower portion of the main header chamber 1 is provided with a refrigerant inlet port 11, the refrigerant inlet port 11 is open and connected to a refrigerant inlet pipe, an inner surface of the main header chamber 1 opposite to the refrigerant inlet port 11 is provided with a plurality of refrigerant outlet ports 12, and the refrigerant outlet ports 12 are respectively communicated side by side in a vertical direction with the plurality of sub header chambers 2. As shown in fig. 1, the refrigerant inlet port 11 is provided below any one of the plurality of refrigerant outlet ports 12, and the flow direction changing mechanism 3 for changing the flow of the refrigerant from the horizontal direction to the upward direction is formed in the direction in which the refrigerant is discharged from the refrigerant inlet port 11. In the present embodiment, the flow direction changing mechanism 3 is provided as the refrigerant collision portion 31 formed in the inner surface of the main header chamber 1 facing the refrigerant inlet port 11.

The refrigerant collision portion 31 is disposed closer to the central axis of the main header chamber 1 than the refrigerant outlet port 12 connected to the sub-manifold chamber 2, and adjacent to the refrigerant inlet port 11. Therefore, the refrigerant discharged from the refrigerant inlet port 11 collides with the refrigerant collision portion 31 at a predetermined velocity, and thereby the refrigerant in a gas-liquid mixed state is lifted by force in the main header chamber 1. In other words, the refrigerant flowing into the main header chamber 1 in the horizontal direction through the refrigerant inlet port 11 flows in the vertical direction through the refrigerant collision part 31 and flows toward the upper side of the main header chamber 1.

The hydraulic diameter of the refrigerant flow passage in the vertical direction formed inside the main header chamber 1 is formed smaller than the width of the flat tubes 4, i.e., the width of the openings of the end portions of the flat tubes 4. In the present embodiment, the hydraulic diameter of the main header chamber 1 is set to about half the width of the flat tubes 4. Also, when the hydraulic diameter of the primary header chamber 1 is made as small as possible, the refrigerant introduced from the refrigerant inlet port 11 can be more uniformly distributed to the uppermost portion of the primary header chamber 1.

In the present embodiment, the sub-manifold chambers 2 are formed inside sub-manifold ducts that are joined side by side in the vertical direction to the outer side surface of the main header duct. The sub-manifold chamber 2 is configured such that no part of the sub-manifold chamber 2 protrudes into the interior of the main manifold chamber 1. For this reason, even when the sub-manifold chamber 2 is connected to the main manifold chamber 1, it is possible to prevent generation of a vortex flow in the refrigerant flowing through the main manifold chamber 1, thereby easily uniformly distributing the refrigerant.

Hereinafter, in the conventional header 100A and the header 100 according to the present embodiment, a distribution state of the refrigerant in a gas-liquid mixed state to each of the plurality of sub-manifold chambers 2 and the plurality of flat tubes 4 is described with reference to fig. 3A and 3B.

If the refrigerant outlet port 12 connected to the sub-manifold chambers 2 is formed at substantially the same height in a substantially horizontal direction with respect to the refrigerant inlet port 11 as in the conventional header 100A, the influence of gravity is significant, and therefore, as shown in fig. 3A, most of the refrigerant injected from the refrigerant inlet port 11 flows linearly into the sub-manifold chambers 2 disposed on the lower side. As a result, in the conventional header 100A, almost no liquid refrigerant flows into the sub-header chamber 2 connected to the upper side of the main header chamber 1, and mainly, gas refrigerant flows into the sub-header chamber 2 connected to the upper side of the main header chamber 1. Therefore, in the conventional header 100A, the refrigerant is distributed into the plurality of flat tubes 4 in a vertically uneven gas-liquid mixed state.

In contrast, in the header 100 of the present embodiment, as shown in fig. 3B, the refrigerant injected from the refrigerant inlet port 11 first collides with the refrigerant collision portion 31, so that the flow of the refrigerant is changed to the upward direction of the main header chamber 1. As a result, the liquid refrigerant component can reach the upper side of the main header chamber 1, and the refrigerant can be uniformly distributed to each of the plurality of flat tubes 4.

With the header 100 according to the above-described embodiment, since the refrigerant collision portion 31 as the flow direction changing mechanism 3 is disposed so as to face the refrigerant inlet port 11, the flow direction of the refrigerant is changed upward, so that the refrigerant in a gas-liquid mixed state can flow uniformly in the vertical direction within the main header chamber 1.

Therefore, the refrigerant in substantially the same gas-liquid mixed state can be distributed from the main header chamber 1 to each of the plurality of flat tubes 4 via the plurality of sub-header chambers 2 regardless of the vertical direction. Further, the influence of the distribution ratio that varies according to the flow rate of the refrigerant in the inflow header 100 can be reduced.

Next, the header 100 according to the embodiment will be explained.

As shown in fig. 4A and 4B, a shape symmetrical to the refrigerant collision portion 31 provided at the lower end portion of the main header chamber 1 may be formed in the upper end portion of the main header chamber 1. In other words, an upper refrigerant collision part 31' symmetrical to the refrigerant collision part 31 may be formed in the upper end part of the main header chamber 1. At this time, the center point of the main header chamber 1 is the point-symmetrical center of the upper refrigerant collision part 31'. In other words, the upper end portion of the main header chamber 1 may be provided with an upper flow direction changing mechanism that is point-symmetric to the flow direction changing mechanism 3.

When the main header chamber 1 is formed as described above, as shown in fig. 5A and 5B, a plurality of headers 100 may be stacked in the vertical direction. Therefore, a larger and more efficient heat exchanger HE can be simply configured.

Further, the refrigerant collision portion 31 is not limited to be formed to extend straight in the axial direction of the main header chamber 1. In other words, the refrigerant collision portion 31 is not limited to be formed at substantially right angles to the refrigerant inlet port 11 as shown in fig. 4A. For example, as shown in fig. 4B, the refrigerant collision portion 31 may be formed as an inclined surface inclined from the central portion to the outer edge portion of the main header chamber 1. In other words, the refrigerant collision part 31 may be formed to be inclined from the center of the lower end of the main header chamber 1 to the lowermost sub-header chamber 2. Therefore, the refrigerant collision part 31 may be disposed to form an obtuse angle with the inflow direction of the refrigerant flowing into the refrigerant inlet port 11.

In addition, the shape of the main header chamber 1 is not limited to a substantially cylindrical shape. For example, as shown in fig. 6, the main header chamber 1 may be formed to have a longitudinal section such as a trapezoid, a triangular pyramid, a cone, or the like. At this time, the width of the top end of the main header chamber 1 may be formed to be smaller than the width of the bottom end thereof.

As an example, as shown in fig. 7, a sub-manifold insertion pipe 21 may be provided in the refrigerant inlet of each of the plurality of sub-manifold chambers 2 provided in the lower portion of the main manifold chamber 1, adjacent to the refrigerant inlet port 11. The sub-manifold insertion pipe 21 is provided so as to reduce the hydraulic diameter of the sub-manifold chamber 2. Accordingly, the diameter of the sub-manifold insertion pipe 21 is smaller than the diameter of the sub-manifold chamber 2. The sub-manifold insertion pipe 21 is disposed such that a part of the sub-manifold insertion pipe 21 protrudes to the inside of the main manifold chamber 1. With this configuration, it is difficult for the refrigerant to flow into the sub-manifold chambers 2 provided in the lower portion of the main manifold chamber 1, and the refrigerant in a gas-liquid mixed state easily flows into the sub-manifold chambers 2 provided in the upper portion, so that uniform distribution of the refrigerant can be easily achieved. On the other hand, fig. 7 shows a case where the sub manifold insertion pipes 21 are provided only in the lower three sub manifold chambers 2 of the main manifold chamber 1. However, the number of the sub-manifold chambers 2 in which the sub-manifold insertion pipes 21 are provided is not limited thereto. For example, the sub-manifold insertion pipes 21 may be provided only in the lowermost sub-manifold chamber 2.

Alternatively, the flow rate of the refrigerant flowing into each of the plurality of sub-manifold chambers 2 may be accurately set by installing the sub-manifold insert pipes 21 in all the sub-manifold chambers 2. For example, the inflow amount of refrigerant flowing into each of the plurality of sub-manifold chambers 2 may be set by gradually increasing the diameter of the plurality of sub-manifold insertion tubes 21 from the lower portion to the upper portion of the main header chamber 1. In other words, the inflow amount of the refrigerant flowing into each of the plurality of sub manifold chambers 2 may be determined by forming all the sub manifold insertion pipes of the plurality of sub manifold insertion pipes 21 to have different inner diameters. Alternatively, the plurality of sub-manifold insertion pipes 21 may be divided into at least two groups, and the inner diameters of the plurality of sub-manifold insertion pipes 21 of each group may be different for each group to set the inflow amount of the refrigerant flowing into each of the plurality of sub-manifold chambers 2. At this time, the sub-manifold insert pipes 21 in the group located at the upper portion of the main manifold chamber 1 may be formed to have a larger inner diameter than the sub-manifold insert pipes 21 in the group located at the lower portion of the main manifold chamber 1. The inner diameters of the plurality of sub-manifold insertion pipes 21 included in the same group may be formed to be the same. Further, as an embodiment, the inner diameters of the plurality of sub manifold chambers 2 may be formed to increase in order from the lower portion to the upper portion of the main manifold chamber 1 without using the sub manifold insertion pipe 21. Alternatively, the plurality of sub-manifold pipes 2 may be divided into at least two groups, and for each group, the inner diameters of the plurality of sub-manifold pipes 2 of each group may be different, and the inner diameters of the sub-manifold chambers 2 in the same group may be the same to set the inflow amount of the refrigerant flowing into the plurality of sub-manifold chambers 2.

As an example, as shown in fig. 8, the hydraulic diameter may be reduced by forming a throttle portion 22 in a connection portion between the main header chamber 1 and each of the plurality of sub header chambers 2. In other words, a throttle portion 22 having an inner diameter smaller than that of the sub manifold chamber 2 may be provided between the main manifold chamber 1 and each sub manifold chamber 2. The distribution state of the refrigerant with respect to the plurality of sub-manifold chambers 2 can be adjusted by adjusting the fluid resistance of each of the plurality of sub-manifold chambers 2 by setting the inner diameters of the plurality of throttle portions 22 to be different. For example, the inflow amount of the refrigerant flowing into the plurality of sub header chambers 2 may be adjusted by gradually increasing the inner diameters of the plurality of throttle portions 22 from the lower portion to the upper portion of the main header chamber 1. Alternatively, the inflow amount of the refrigerant flowing into the plurality of sub-manifold chambers 2 may be adjusted by: the plurality of throttle parts 22 are divided into at least two groups, the inner diameter of the throttle part 22 of each group is gradually increased from the lower portion to the upper portion of the main header chamber 1, and the inner diameters of the throttle parts 22 in the same group are made the same.

As shown in fig. 9, the header 100 according to the embodiment may include the resistance body 32 extending in the vertical direction from the bottom surface of the inner side of the main header chamber 1 as the flow direction changing mechanism 3 as described above, and disposed to face the refrigerant inlet port 11 adjacent to the refrigerant inlet port 11.

The resistance body 32 may be formed in a flat plate shape and may be provided with a plurality of small holes through which a portion of the refrigerant may pass in a horizontal direction. At this time, the small hole may be formed in a shape such as a slit. The refrigerant injected in the horizontal direction from the refrigerant inlet port 11 of the main header chamber 1 collides with the resistance body 32, so that the flow direction thereof is changed to the upward direction of the main header chamber 1.

As shown in fig. 9, in the header 100 in which the refrigerant inlet port 11 is formed to face at least one of the sub-manifold chambers 2, the resistance body 32 is provided between the refrigerant inlet port 11 and at least one of the sub-manifold chambers 2. Therefore, the refrigerant discharged from the refrigerant inlet port 11 is introduced into the sub-manifold chambers 2 through the plurality of small holes provided in the resistance body 32, and is not directly introduced into the sub-manifold chambers 2 provided behind the resistance body 32 in the lower portion of the main manifold chamber 1.

When the resistance body 32 is provided on the bottom of the main header chamber 1 as described above, the refrigerant in a gas-liquid mixed state introduced into the refrigerant inlet port 11 can be distributed in the vertical direction inside the main header chamber 1 so as to be uniformly distributed to each of the plurality of flat tubes 4.

As an example, the top end of the main header chamber 1 may be provided with an upper resistive body (not shown) symmetrical to the resistive body 32 point. Alternatively, in fig. 9, the resistance body 32 is disposed between the refrigerant inlet port 11 and some of the plurality of sub-manifold chambers 2 disposed in the lower portion. However, the resistance body 32 may be disposed below the lowermost subset chamber of the plurality of subset chambers 2. At this time, the refrigerant inlet port 11 is disposed not to face the sub-manifold chamber 2. When the resistance body 32 is provided as described above, it is not necessary to form a plurality of small holes or slots in the resistance body 32.

As shown in fig. 10A and 10B, an L-shaped pipe 33 inserted into the refrigerant inlet port 11 may be used instead of using the above-described resistance body 32. In other words, the curved portion of the L-shaped pipe 33 may be configured to function as the flow direction changing mechanism 3 as described above. With this configuration, the refrigerant collides with the inner surfaces of the bent portions of the L-shaped tubes 33, and is lifted in the upward direction inside the main header chamber 1.

Fig. 10A shows a case in which an L-shaped pipe 33 is provided in a side surface of the main header chamber 1, and a curved portion of the L-shaped pipe 33 faces at least one of the sub-header chambers 2. In the case of fig. 10A, a plurality of small holes may be formed in the bent portion of the L-shaped tube 33 so that the refrigerant is uniformly distributed to at least one sub-manifold chamber 2 facing the bent portion of the L-shaped tube 33. Therefore, a part of the refrigerant discharged through the L-shaped pipe 33 may be introduced into the at least one sub-manifold chamber 2 through the plurality of small holes of the bent portion.

Fig. 10B shows a case in which the L-shaped pipe 33 is disposed in the bottom of the main header chamber 1, and the curved portion of the L-shaped pipe 33 does not face the sub-header chamber 2. In the case of fig. 10B, since the bent portion of the L-shaped pipe 33 does not face the sub manifold chamber 2, a small hole is not formed in the bent portion of the L-shaped pipe 33.

As shown in fig. 11A, 11B, and 12A, the main header chamber 1 of the header 100 according to the embodiment is formed such that its sectional shape is a semi-cylindrical shape. In addition, as shown in fig. 11A and 11B, a tubular member 6 is inserted into the main header chamber 1. The tubular member 6 has an open end, another end closed by a cap 61 having a hole 62 formed therein, and a side surface in which a communication hole 63 capable of fluid communication with the refrigerant outlet port 12 is formed. The tubular member 6 is formed in a substantially semi-cylindrical shape, and is inserted into the interior of the main header chamber 1 so as to be slidable in the vertical direction. Therefore, the tubular member 6 does not rotate in the circumferential direction with respect to the main header chamber 1, and the communication hole 63 and the inlet of the sub-header chamber 2 always point in the same direction.

The interior of the primary header chamber 1 is provided with an upper stop 13 and a lower stop 14 to limit the range of movement of the tubular member 6. An upper stopper 13 and a lower stopper 14 are provided inside the primary header chamber 1 to limit the vertical movement distance of the tubular member 6 slidably provided in the primary header chamber 1.

As shown in fig. 11A, at the position where the tubular member 6 contacts the lower stopper 14, the communication hole 63 of the tubular member 6 is not aligned with the inlet of the sub manifold chamber 2 but is offset from the inlet. Therefore, when the amount of refrigerant flowing out of the refrigerant inlet port 11 is small and the force of the refrigerant (the pressure of the refrigerant) is weak, it is difficult for the refrigerant to flow into the sub-manifold chamber 2 provided in the middle portion of the main manifold chamber 1.

On the other hand, as shown in fig. 11B, at the position where the tubular member 6 contacts the upper stopper 13, the communication hole 63 of the tubular member 6 is aligned with the inlet of the sub manifold chamber 2. In this case, a large amount of refrigerant flows into the sub header chamber 2 provided in the middle portion of the main header chamber 1.

In addition, a flow direction changing mechanism 3 for changing the flow direction of the refrigerant flowing out of the refrigerant inlet port 11 may be provided on the bottom surface of the main header chamber 1. In fig. 11A and 11B, the resistance body 32 is provided as the flow direction changing mechanism 3. The resistance body 32 may be identical to the resistance body 32 of fig. 9 as described above. Therefore, the refrigerant horizontally introduced through the refrigerant inlet port 11 collides with the resistance body 32 and then moves in the upward direction inside the main header chamber 1.

Next, the effect of the header 100 according to the embodiment will be described with reference to fig. 13A to 13D. As shown in fig. 13A, for example, when the flow rate of the refrigerant in the conventional header 100A is relatively small, the superheated regions are formed as shown by α and β in fig. 13A, and uneven distribution occurs in the refrigerant flow rate. However, as shown in fig. 13B, when the header 100 according to the embodiment is applied, at the position where the tubular member 6 contacts the lower stopper 14 by its own weight, the communication hole 63 of the tubular member 6 deviates from the flow path of the sub-manifold chamber 2, so that the flow of the refrigerant from the tubular member 6 into the sub-manifold chamber 2 is restricted. Therefore, as shown in fig. 13B, the flow rate of the refrigerant flowing into the conventional header 100A of fig. 13A is insufficient for the portion α, and therefore the superheat region becomes smaller as shown in the portion α' of fig. 13B. This is because the side surface portion between the communication holes 63 of the tubular member 6 restricts the flow path of the sub-manifold chambers 2 in the region between the portions α and β shown in fig. 13A (in which the refrigerant excessively flows into the conventional header 100A), thereby making it difficult for the refrigerant to flow. Further, the refrigerant collides with the bottom of the cover 61 of the tubular member 6 and splashes downward, so that the refrigerant flows into a portion α of fig. 13A as a normal superheat region. In addition, the refrigerant is discharged to the upper side of the tubular member 6 through the hole 62 of the cap 61 of the tubular member 6, so that the refrigerant flows into the portion β of fig. 13A as a normal superheat region. As a result, as shown in fig. 13B, the superheat region is reduced to a β' portion.

On the other hand, in the conventional header 100A, when the flow rate of the refrigerant is large, for example, as in γ and δ of fig. 13C, the superheated areas are formed, the uneven distribution of the refrigerant flow is different from when the flow rate of the refrigerant is relatively small as described above, and the refrigerant generally tends to flow more upward. Thereby, the tubular member 6 performs the reverse operation to fig. 13B, so that the communication hole 63 of the tubular member 6 can be aligned with the flow path of the sub manifold chamber 2, as shown in fig. 13D. Accordingly, the refrigerant flows into a portion which is originally a normal superheat region without any resistance, and the refrigerant collides with the bottom of the cover 61 of the tubular member 6 and splashes downward, so that the flow of the refrigerant into the sub-manifold chamber 2 is promoted. As a result, the γ portion of fig. 13C, which is the conventional superheat region, is narrowed as shown by the γ' portion of fig. 13D. Further, since the refrigerant is discharged to the conventional uppermost superheated region above the tubular member 6 through the holes 62 of the cap 61 of the tubular member 6, the portion δ of fig. 13C, which is the conventional superheated region, is reduced to the portion δ' of fig. 13D.

The header 100 according to the above embodiment can achieve uniform heat exchange throughout the heat exchanger by reducing the superheat region, thereby improving the efficiency of the heat exchanger.

The header 100 according to the embodiment may be configured such that the communication hole 63 of the tubular member 6 is aligned with the sub manifold chamber 2 at a position where the tubular member 6 contacts the lower stopper 14, and the communication hole 63 of the tubular member 6 is offset from the sub manifold chamber 2 at a position where the tubular member 6 contacts the upper stopper 13. The inlet of the sub-manifold chamber 2 may not be completely covered by the outer surface of the tubular member 6, and the area of the communication hole 63 in fluid communication with the inlet of the sub-manifold chamber 2 is changed by the movement of the tubular member 6 in the vertical direction.

As an example, as shown in fig. 12B, a cover 61 may be formed to cover the bottom end of the tubular member 6. In addition, the shape of the communication hole 63 of the tubular member 6 may match the shape of the refrigerant outlet port 12. Alternatively, as shown in fig. 12C, the communication hole 63 may be formed in an oval shape so as to appropriately change the communication area.

As shown in fig. 14, the header 100 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure forms a main header chamber 1 and a plurality of sub-header chambers 2 by dividing the inside of one header pipe HT into a plurality of spaces in the vertical direction and the horizontal direction using a sheet. In detail, a vertical space (first space) defined by the first plate member 70 and provided with the refrigerant inlet port 11 serves as the main header chamber 1, the first plate member 70 having a flat plate shape and extending in the vertical direction inside the header pipe HT. On the other hand, a plurality of spaces (second spaces) formed by horizontally dividing one of two spaces divided by the first plate member 70 inside the header pipe HT by using a plurality of second plate members 71 arranged in parallel in the vertical direction, the first plate member 70 being provided with holes into which the flat tubes 4 are inserted, are used as the plurality of sub-manifold chambers 2.

The refrigerant inlet port 11 is provided on the lower side surface of the main header chamber 1, and the flow direction changing mechanism 3 is constituted by a portion of the first plate member 70 extending in the vertical direction from the bottom surface inside the main header chamber 1. In addition, the refrigerant inlet port 11 is provided below any one of the plurality of refrigerant outlet ports 12 that are in fluid communication with the sub-manifold chambers 2, and the flow direction changing mechanism 3 for changing the flow of the refrigerant from the horizontal direction to the upward direction is formed in the direction in which the refrigerant is discharged from the refrigerant inlet port 11. In the header 100 according to the embodiment, the flow direction changing mechanism 3 is the refrigerant collision portion 31 formed as a portion of the first plate member 70 facing the refrigerant inlet port 11 in the header pipe HT.

In the header 100 according to the embodiment, the hydraulic diameter of the main header chamber 1 is determined to be about half the width dimension of the flat tubes 4. Further, making the hydraulic diameter of the main header chamber 1 as small as possible makes it easier to distribute the refrigerant introduced from the refrigerant inlet port 11 more uniformly to the top portion of the first space 72.

The sub-manifold chamber 2 is provided not to protrude into the main manifold chamber 1, thereby preventing occurrence of a vortex flow in a communication portion between the first space 72 and the second space 73, so that it is possible to facilitate uniform distribution of the refrigerant.

At least a part of the main header chamber 1 is provided with a plurality of throttle plates 74 for partitioning the main header chamber 1 in the vertical direction and narrowing the flow path. As another example, only one throttle plate 74 may be provided. The throttle plate 74 is provided to protrude from the first plate member 70 into the interior of the main header chamber 1 in the horizontal direction, and partitions a space provided between the refrigerant inlet port 11 of the lower portion and some of the plurality of refrigerant outlet ports 12.

The sub-manifold chamber 2 located at the lowermost position is partitioned so as to be in fluid communication with three flat tubes 4, and the sub-manifold chambers 2 other than the lowermost sub-manifold chamber 2 are formed so as to be in fluid communication with one flat tube 4. In the header 100 shown in fig. 14, the lowermost sub-header chamber 2 is connected to three flat tubes 4; however, the number of the flat tubes 4 connected to the lowermost sub-manifold chamber 2 is not limited thereto. One or more flat tubes 4 may be connected to the lowermost subset chamber 2.

With the header 100 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure having the above-described structure, the refrigerant collision portion 31 as the flow direction changing mechanism 3 is disposed so as to face the refrigerant inlet port 11 so as to direct the flow direction of the refrigerant upward, so that the refrigerant in a gas-liquid mixed state can be uniformly distributed in the up-down direction inside the main header chamber 1. In addition, when the throttle plate 74 is disposed inside the main header chamber 1, the refrigerant flowing upward may be more uniformly distributed to the refrigerant outlet port 12.

In addition, as shown in fig. 15, in which the lower portion of the header 100 of fig. 14 is enlarged, a plurality of flat tubes 4 are connected to the header pipes HT in the lowermost sub-header chamber 2 adjacent to the refrigerant collision portion 31. Therefore, the amount of refrigerant to be distributed to one flat tube 4 can be reduced as compared to the other sub-manifold chambers 2. Therefore, it is possible to distribute substantially the same amount of refrigerant as the other flat tubes 4 to the flat tubes 4 provided at the portions where the refrigerant can be most easily introduced from the refrigerant inlet port 11.

As shown in fig. 16, at least one sub-manifold insertion pipe 21 may be added to the refrigerant outlet port 12. The distribution of refrigerant to the subset pipe chamber 2 can be controlled by using at least one subset pipe insert pipe 21. Alternatively, the distribution of the refrigerant to the sub-manifold chamber 2 may be controlled by projecting the sub-manifold insertion pipe 21 into the first space 72 to generate a vortex in the flow of the refrigerant. At this time, the amount of refrigerant introduced into the sub-manifold chamber 2 can be appropriately adjusted by: the protruding length of each of the plurality of sub-manifold insertion pipes 21 (which protrude into the first space 72) inserted into the plurality of sub-manifold chambers 2 is changed, and the inner diameter of each of the sub-manifold insertion pipes 21, that is, the diameter of each refrigerant outlet port 12 is changed.

The first plate member 70 is not limited to a member extending straight in the axial direction of the header pipes HT. For example, as shown in fig. 17, the first plate member 70 may be formed in an inclined surface inclined from the center to the outer edge in the radial direction as extending from the upper portion to the lower portion of the header pipe HT thereof. In other words, the first plate member 70 may be provided with an inclined surface inclined downward such that the width of the top end of the main header chamber 1 is smaller than the width of the bottom end of the main header chamber 1.

In addition, as shown in fig. 18, a plurality of micro-protrusions P projecting from the refrigerant outlet port 12 into the main header chamber 1 may be formed in a plurality of refrigerant outlet ports 12 provided in the lower portion of the header pipe HT adjacent to the refrigerant inlet port 11. At this time, the micro-protrusions P may be formed by burring the first plate member 70. At this time, by changing the diameter of the burring hole and the height of the burring, that is, the diameter and the height of each of the plurality of minute protrusions P, the fluid resistance of the sub manifold chamber 2 can be adjusted so as to adjust the distribution state of the refrigerant.

In addition, by providing the above-described micro protrusions P in all the sub-manifold chambers 2, the inflow amount of the refrigerant flowing into each sub-manifold chamber 2 can be finely set. For example, the inflow amount of refrigerant flowing into each of the plurality of sub-manifold chambers 2 may be set by gradually increasing the diameter of the plurality of micro-protrusions P from the lower portion to the upper portion of the main header chamber 1. In other words, the diameters of the plurality of micro protrusions P may be formed differently, so that the inflow amount of the refrigerant flowing into each of the plurality of sub header chambers 2 may be determined. Alternatively, the plurality of micro-protrusions P may be divided into at least two groups, and the diameter of the plurality of micro-protrusions P of each group may be different group by group to set the inflow amount of the refrigerant flowing into the plurality of sub-manifold chambers 2. At this time, the diameter of the micro-protrusions P of a group located at the upper portion of the main header chamber 1 may be larger than the diameter of the micro-protrusions P of a group located at the lower portion thereof, and the diameters of the plurality of micro-protrusions P included in the same group may be the same.

As shown in fig. 19, in the header 100 according to the embodiment, as the flow direction changing mechanism 3 as described above, the resistance body 32 may be provided to extend in the vertical direction from the bottom in the interior of the header pipe HT and face the refrigerant inlet port 1111 adjacent to the refrigerant inlet port.

The resistor 32 may be provided with a plurality of small holes 32a to allow some refrigerant to pass in a horizontal direction. As another example, the small hole may be formed as a slit or the like. The refrigerant discharged from the refrigerant inlet port 11 in the horizontal direction collides with the resistance body 32, so that the flow direction of the refrigerant can be changed to the upward direction of the header pipe HT.

When the header 100 is formed as described above, the refrigerant in a gas-liquid mixed state can be distributed in the vertical direction inside the main header chamber 1 so as to be uniformly distributed to each of the plurality of flat tubes 4.

Instead of using the above-described resistor 32, an L-shaped pipe 33 inserted into the refrigerant inlet port 11 as shown in fig. 20 and 21 may also be used. In other words, the curved portions of the L-shaped tubes 33 function as the flow direction changing mechanisms 3, so that the refrigerant colliding with the inner surfaces of the L-shaped tubes 33 is lifted in the upward direction of the header pipes HT.

Fig. 20 shows a case where the L-shaped pipe 33 is provided at a lower portion of one side surface of the main header chamber 1 such that a curved portion of the L-shaped pipe 33 faces at least one of the sub-header chambers 2. In other words, the top end 33-1 of the L-shaped tube 33 is positioned higher than the lowermost subset chamber 2. In the case of fig. 20, a plurality of small holes may be formed in the bent portion of the L-shaped tube 33 so that the refrigerant may be uniformly distributed to at least one sub-manifold chamber 2 facing the bent portion of the L-shaped tube 33. Therefore, some of the refrigerant discharged through the L-shaped pipe 33 may flow into the at least one sub-manifold chamber 2 through the plurality of small holes of the bent portion.

Fig. 21 shows a case where the L-shaped tubes 33 are disposed at the bottom of the main header chamber 1 such that the bent portions of the L-shaped tubes 33 do not face the refrigerant outlet port 12. In other words, the top end 33-1 of the L-shaped tube 33 is positioned lower than the lowermost refrigerant outlet port 12. In the case of fig. 21, since the bent portion of the L-shaped pipe 33 and the sub-manifold chamber 2 do not oppose each other, no small hole is provided in the bent portion of the L-shaped pipe 33.

Hereinafter, a method for manufacturing a header according to an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described.

The header 100 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure as described above may be manufactured by using a part molded by a press, by using an extrusion molded part, or by combining a press molded part and an extrusion molded part.

As shown in fig. 22, the manifold 100 may be configured such that at least two opposing

platens

201 and 202 having recessed portions combine such that the cavity formed between the two

platens

201 and 202 forms a primary manifold chamber 1 and a secondary manifold chamber 2 as described above. Referring to fig. 22, each of the two

platens

201 and 202 is provided with a vertical concave portion 203 formed in a vertical direction and a plurality of horizontal concave portions 204, and the plurality of horizontal concave portions 204 are in fluid communication with the vertical concave portion 203 and are formed in parallel. A lower concave portion 205 formed opposite to the horizontal concave portion 204 in the horizontal direction is provided at the lower end of the vertical concave portion 203. When the two

platens

201 and 202 are coupled, the vertical recessed portion 203 forms the main header chamber 1, the plurality of horizontal recessed portions 204 forms the plurality of sub header chambers 2, and the lower recessed portion 205 forms a refrigerant inlet pipe. In addition, the lower end of the vertical recessed portion 203 may be provided with a bracket to form the resistance body 32 as the flow direction changing mechanism 3. The upper end of the vertical recess 203 may be provided with a top resistance body 32' symmetrical to the resistance body 32. In addition, the sub-manifold insertion pipes 21 as described above may be provided in the horizontal concave portion 204.

In addition, as shown in fig. 22, a through hole 206 penetrating the platen 201 in the sheet surface direction may be formed at a position of one platen 201 where a plurality of sub-manifold chambers 2 are formed. The flat tubes 4 can be inserted into the through holes 206. In addition, the other pressure plate 202 may be provided with a fixing portion 207 surrounding the pressure plate 202 such that the two

pressure plates

201 and 202 are coupled to each other. As shown in fig. 22, the fixing portion 207 may be formed as a plurality of protrusions protruding from the outer circumference of the platen 202.

As shown in fig. 23, the main manifold chamber 1 and the plurality of sub-manifold chambers 2 may be formed by combining extrusion-molded parts.

For example, as shown in fig. 23, a plurality of sub-manifold chambers 2 may be made up of two extrusion molded parts 302 and 303. In other words, including the sub-manifold block 302 and the sub-manifold cover 303, the sub-manifold block 302 has a plurality of sub-manifold grooves 304 formed in the horizontal direction to constitute the sub-manifold chamber 2, and the sub-manifold cover 303 is coupled to the sub-manifold block 302 to cover the plurality of sub-manifold grooves 304. The sub manifold cover 303 is provided with a plurality of through holes 305, and the flat tubes 4 are coupled to the through holes 305 in portions corresponding to the plurality of sub manifold grooves 304. Both sides of the sub-manifold cover 303 extend to cover opposite side ends of the sub-manifold block 302, and both sides of the sub-manifold cover 303 are provided with a plurality of through holes 306 in fluid communication with the plurality of sub-manifold grooves 304. The main manifold chamber 1 may be formed by a main manifold cover 301 coupled to one side ends of a sub manifold block 302 and a sub manifold cover 303 coupled to each other. A refrigerant inflow block 307 having a refrigerant inlet port 11 may be provided at a lower end of the main header cap 301. The main header cap 301 and the refrigerant inflow block 307 may be formed by extrusion molding. The main manifold chamber 1 may be provided with a resistance body 32 and at least one sub-manifold insertion pipe 21.

As shown in fig. 24, the header 100 may be configured such that refrigerant tubes (e.g., a plurality of flat tubes 4, etc.) are directly connected to the main header chamber 1 without passing through the sub-header chamber 2. In other words, in order to obtain the effect of the present disclosure, at least the header 100 may include any one of the flow direction changing mechanisms 3 described in the above-described embodiments. For example, the heat exchanger HE may be provided with the header 100 of the present disclosure, a plurality of flat tubes 4 arranged at predetermined intervals in the vertical direction, and having a refrigerant input end connected to the header 100, a plurality of fins 5 arranged between the plurality of flat tubes 4, and a header 7 connected to a refrigerant output end of the plurality of flat tubes 4. The header 100 configured as described above can sufficiently deliver the refrigerant, the flow direction of which is changed by the above-described flow direction changing mechanism 3, to the upper portion inside the header 100, and can introduce the refrigerant sufficiently containing the liquid refrigerant into the flat tubes 4 provided at the upper portion. As a result, the state of the refrigerant flowing through each of the plurality of flat tubes 4 can be made substantially uniform, so that the heat exchange efficiency can be improved.

As shown in fig. 25, the header 100 may be formed of an insertion structure in which the header pipes HT are formed of electrically-spliced pipes, the first plate member 70 and the plurality of second plate members 71 are formed of press-processed plate materials, and the plurality of second plate members 71 are inserted into the first plate member 70. In detail, the electric joint pipe has a rectangular cross section with rounded corners, a pipe shape with opposite open ends extending in the up-down direction, and an insertion hole 408 into which a refrigerant inflow pipe 403 for forming the refrigerant inlet port 11 is inserted, and the insertion hole 408 is formed on a lower portion of a narrow-width side surface of the electric joint pipe. In addition, on the wide side surface of the electric joint pipe, flat-shaped holes 409 into which the plurality of flat tubes 4 are inserted are formed in parallel in the vertical direction at regular intervals. The first plate member 70 and the plurality of second plate members 71 are integrally assembled and then inserted into the electric joint pipe at one end thereof. An upper groove 406 into which the upper plate 401 is inserted is provided in the narrow width side surface of the upper end portion of the electric joint pipe, and a lower groove 407 into which the lower plate 402 is inserted is provided in the narrow width side surface of the lower end portion of the electric joint pipe. On opposite side surfaces of the electric joint pipe, which are narrow in width, upper and lower grooves are provided corresponding to the upper and

lower grooves

406 and 407, respectively, and supporting one ends of the upper and

lower plates

401 and 402. Additionally, at least one throttle slot 404 into which the throttle plate 74 is inserted may be provided at the edge of the electrically seamed tube. Throttle plate 74 may be provided with a plurality of throttle holes 405.

The first plate member 70 is provided with a plurality of refrigerant outlet ports 12 and a plurality of coupling grooves 411, the coupling grooves 411 being a part of the insertion structure and engaged with coupling protrusions 412 formed on the second plate member 71 at predetermined intervals in the vertical direction by a pressing process. The plurality of refrigerant outlet ports 12 and the coupling grooves 411 are formed on the plate member by a pressing process and then bent at the plate member to have a substantially U-shaped cross section such that the plurality of refrigerant outlet ports 12 are aligned with the narrow-width side surfaces of the header pipes HT.

On the other hand, the second plate member 71 is a plate member having a substantially rectangular shape, and is formed by a pressing process such that coupling projections 412, which are engaged with the coupling grooves 411 of the first plate member 70, project outward from opposite ends of the short side thereof.

According to the above structure, by eliminating the process of attaching the plurality of sub-header pipes to the main header pipe by brazing, reliability with respect to refrigerant leakage can be improved. In addition, a complicated refrigerant distribution structure can be realized only by simple assembly without a brazing process, so that the manufacturing cost can be greatly reduced.

The embodiment shown in fig. 25 may be constituted by a member obtained by joining a plate member 76 having a substantially U-shaped cross section to a corrugated member 77 formed by a pressing process, as shown in fig. 26, so as to form a plurality of sub-manifold chambers 2 as described above. The lower end of the corrugated member 77 is provided with a fixing projection 421 for fixing the corrugated member 77 without falling off the plate member 76. Thus, the corrugated member 77 is inserted and bonded to the plate member 76 having a substantially U-shaped cross section, thereby forming a plurality of sub manifold chambers 2. Alternatively, the corrugated member 77 may be integrally press-molded with the plate member 76.

As shown in fig. 25, the shape of the header 100 is formed such that the cross section of the flow path of the header pipe HT is a substantially rectangular shape, and the first plate member 70 has a substantially U-shaped cross section; however, the shape of the header 100 is not limited thereto. As shown in fig. 27, the flow path sectional shape of the header pipe HT may be a substantially circular section. At this time, the first plate member 70 forming the main manifold chamber 1 is formed in a flat plate shape, and the second plate member 71 forming the sub manifold chamber 2 may be formed in a flat plate shape having a shape corresponding to the circular arc section.

As shown in fig. 28, the flow path sectional shape of the header pipe HT is substantially rectangular, and the first plate member 70 forming the main header chamber 1 is formed in a shape having a substantially L-shaped section. Alternatively, the first plate member 70 may be formed in a flat plate shape. The second plate member 71 forming the sub manifold chamber 2 may be formed as a flat plate like a manifold as shown in fig. 25.

As shown in fig. 29, the throttle plate 74 provided in the main header chamber 1 may be provided with a substantially circular hole 405 or a substantially polygonal hole formed in the plate. As shown in fig. 30, the aperture of the throttle plate 74 may be formed in a slit shape 405'.

As shown in fig. 31 and 32, a gap g may be provided between the inner surface of the electrically seamed pipe and one end of the throttle plate 74 itself. In the case of fig. 31, the length of the throttle plate 74 is formed shorter than the width of the header pipe HT. Then, when the throttle plate 74 is inserted into the header pipe HT, a gap g through which refrigerant can pass is provided between one end of the throttle plate 74 and the inner surface of the header pipe HT. In the case of fig. 32, a groove is provided in the side face of the throttle plate 74. In this case, when the throttle plate 74 is inserted into the header pipe HT, a gap g through which refrigerant can pass is provided between the inner surface of the header pipe HT and the side surface of the throttle plate 74.

On the other hand, the heat exchanger HE according to the present disclosure is not limited to an air conditioner, and may be used for other refrigeration cycle apparatuses, such as a refrigerator, for example.

In the above-described embodiment, the flat tubes are used as the refrigerant tubes; however, the kind of the refrigerant pipe is not limited thereto. For example, a cylindrical tube for a fin-and-tube heat exchanger (fin-and-tube heat exchanger) may be provided in each sub-manifold chamber 2.

Although embodiments of the present disclosure have been described, additional variations and modifications will occur to those skilled in the art upon learning of the basic inventive concepts. Therefore, it is intended that the appended claims be interpreted as including the foregoing embodiments as well as all such variations and modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the present disclosure.

Claims

1. An air conditioner comprising:

a plurality of refrigerant tubes arranged in parallel; and

a header configured to introduce refrigerant into the plurality of refrigerant tubes, the header comprising:

a primary header chamber communicating with the plurality of refrigerant tubes through a plurality of refrigerant outlet ports aligned along a first surface of the primary header chamber, wherein the first surface is an inner surface of the primary header chamber;

a refrigerant inlet pipe horizontally connected to the main header chamber, including a refrigerant inlet port provided in a second surface of the main header chamber, which is opposite to a first surface of the main header chamber, and configured to horizontally introduce the refrigerant into the main header chamber, wherein the second surface is an inner surface of a lower portion of the main header chamber; and

a flow direction changing mechanism provided in a bottom of the main header chamber, offset from a first surface of the main header chamber in a direction toward the second surface to form a third surface, the third surface being a surface between the first surface and the second surface, and configured to change a flow of the refrigerant from a horizontal direction to an upward direction as the refrigerant introduced from the refrigerant inlet port collides with the third surface of the flow direction changing mechanism,

wherein the refrigerant flows to an upper side of the main header chamber, and the refrigerant flows into the plurality of refrigerant tubes.

2. The air conditioner as claimed in claim 1, wherein the header further comprises:

a plurality of sub-manifold chambers branched substantially perpendicular to the main manifold chamber and arranged in parallel,

wherein each of the plurality of sub-manifold chambers is connected to each of the plurality of refrigerant tubes, respectively, and

wherein the refrigerant introduced into the main header chamber is distributed into the plurality of refrigerant tubes through the plurality of sub-header chambers.

3. The air conditioner as claimed in claim 2, wherein

The main header chamber is formed by a main header pipe, and

the plurality of sub-manifold chambers are formed by a plurality of sub-manifold tubes connected to the main manifold tube.

4. The air conditioner as claimed in claim 2, wherein

The main header chamber and the plurality of sub-header chambers are disposed inside a header pipe,

the main header chamber is formed by an inner surface of the header pipe and a first plate member provided to partition an interior of the header pipe, and

the plurality of sub-manifold chambers are formed by an inner surface of the header pipe, the first plate member, and a plurality of second plate members provided to partition an interior of the header pipe.

5. The air conditioner as claimed in claim 2, wherein

The refrigerant inlet port is formed as an opening of the refrigerant inlet pipe and is provided at a side surface of the main header chamber, and

the flow direction changing mechanism is formed as a resistance body extending from an end portion of the main header chamber inside the main header chamber.

6. The air conditioner as claimed in claim 2, wherein

A refrigerant inlet port formed as an opening of the refrigerant inlet pipe and provided at a side surface of the main header chamber, and

the flow direction changing mechanism is formed integrally with an inner side surface of the main header chamber facing the refrigerant inlet port.

7. The air conditioner as claimed in claim 5, wherein the main header compartment further comprises:

a refrigerant flow path having a hydraulic diameter smaller than that of an opening of the refrigerant pipe; and

a plurality of refrigerant outlet ports respectively connected to the plurality of sub-manifold chambers and formed in parallel, and

wherein the plurality of sub-manifold chambers do not project from the plurality of refrigerant outlet ports into the interior of the main manifold chamber.

8. The air conditioner as claimed in claim 2, wherein

At least one of the plurality of sub-manifold chambers is connected to the main manifold chamber through a throttle portion having a narrow flow path.

9. The air conditioner as claimed in claim 8, wherein

The interior of the primary manifold chamber is divided by at least one throttle plate provided with the throttle portion.

10. The air conditioner as claimed in claim 8, wherein

Each of the plurality of sub manifold chambers is provided with the throttling part such that a plurality of throttling parts respectively correspond to the plurality of sub manifold chambers and at least one of:

the plurality of throttle portions are formed to have an inner diameter gradually increasing from a first portion to a second portion of the main header chamber, an

The plurality of throttling parts are divided into at least two groups, and the inner diameters of the plurality of throttling parts included in each of the at least two groups are formed to gradually increase from the first portion to the second portion of the main header chamber group by group.

11. The air conditioner as claimed in claim 7, wherein

The resistive body is provided as a partition between the refrigerant inlet port and some of the plurality of refrigerant outlet ports.

12. The air conditioner of claim 7, wherein at least one of:

the plurality of sub-manifold chambers are formed with an inner diameter gradually increasing from a first portion to a second portion of the main manifold chamber, an

The plurality of sub manifold chambers are divided into at least two groups, and the inner diameters of the plurality of sub manifold chambers included in each of the at least two groups are formed to gradually increase from the first portion to the second portion of the main manifold chamber group by group.

13. The air conditioner as claimed in claim 7, said main header compartment further comprising:

at least one tubular member that is disposed inside the main header chamber and that includes an open first end, a second end covered by a cover having a hole, and a side surface on which a plurality of communication holes capable of fluid communication with the plurality of sub-header chambers are formed, and

first and second stops disposed on an inner wall of the primary manifold chamber such that the tubular member is movable within the primary manifold chamber between the first and second stops.

14. The air conditioner as claimed in claim 7, wherein

The refrigerant inlet port of the primary header chamber is formed as an opening of the refrigerant inlet pipe and is not disposed to face the refrigerant outlet port.

15. The air conditioner as claimed in claim 5, further comprising:

a sub-manifold insertion conduit inserted into at least one of the plurality of sub-manifold chambers,

wherein an end of the sub-header insertion pipe protrudes into the main header chamber.