EP4767791A1

EP4767791A1 - HEAT DISPENSING DEVICE, POWER DEVICE MODULE AND VEHICLE

Info

Publication number: EP4767791A1
Application number: EP24782431.1A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Dong HU; Kangfa XU; Xiaoting XU
Original assignee: Valeo Electrification SAS
Current assignee: Valeo Electrification SAS
Priority date: 2023-08-24
Filing date: 2024-08-16
Publication date: 2026-07-01
Also published as: CN221008935U; WO2025040007A1

Abstract

Disclosed is a heat dissipation apparatus for a power device module, comprising: a housing (100), wherein the housing is provided with an inlet pipe (110) and an outlet pipe (120) for a heat transfer fluid, the inlet pipe (110) comprises a fluid inlet (111) and a first docking end (112), and the outlet pipe (120) comprises a fluid outlet (121) and a second docking end (122); and a heat sink (200) detachably mounted in the housing (100), wherein the heat sink is internally provided with a circulation pipe (210) for the heat transfer fluid, and the circulation pipe comprises an inlet end (212) and an outlet end (222); wherein the inlet end (212) is arranged to dock with the first docking end of the inlet pipe, and the outlet end is arranged to dock with the second docking end of the outlet pipe; and wherein the circulation pipe is at least partially at a different level from the inlet pipe and/or the outlet pipe. Further disclosed are a power device module and a vehicle.

Description

HEAT DISSIPATION APPARATUS, POWER DEVICE MODULE AND VEHICLE

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a heat dissipation apparatus, and also to a power device module including such a heat dissipation apparatus and to a vehicle including such a power device module.

BACKGROUND

Components of a power device module may generate heat during operation, and the heat accumulation may affect the normal operation of the power device module and even cause damage to it. Therefore, the power device module is usually provided with a heat dissipation apparatus. The heat dissipation apparatus usually includes a heat sink and a housing arranged as an integral body. The heat sink and the housing arranged as the integral body can form a heat transfer fluid pipeline in the same plane to transfer heat from heat-generating elements of the power device module. However, such a heat dissipation apparatus cannot be flexibly constructed and adapted according to the actual needs of users, because the structure of the entire integrally formed heat dissipation apparatus needs to be modified according to different customer needs such as different installation environments, which often involves a lot of modification work. In addition, the heat transfer fluid pipeline in the same plane cannot achieve effective heat dissipation.
Therefore, there is still a need for a new heat dissipation apparatus that can overcome at least some of the problems of the prior art and bring other advantages.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

To this end, the present invention proposes a heat dissipation apparatus for a power device module. The heat dissipation apparatus comprises:
a housing, wherein the housing is provided with an inlet pipe and an outlet pipe for a heat transfer fluid, the inlet pipe comprises a fluid inlet and a first docking end, and the outlet pipe comprises a fluid outlet and a second docking end; and
a heat sink detachably mounted in the housing, wherein the heat sink is internally provided with a circulation pipe for the heat transfer fluid, and the circulation pipe comprises an inlet end and an outlet end;
wherein the inlet end is arranged to dock with the first docking end of the inlet pipe, and the outlet end is arranged to dock with the second docking end of the outlet pipe; and wherein the circulation pipe is at least partially at a different level from the inlet pipe and/or the outlet pipe.
Therefore, in the heat dissipation apparatus proposed by the present invention, the heat sink detachably mounted in the housing is provided, which allows to customize the structure of the housing for installation in a user's use environment according to different customer needs, thereby allowing the housing to be adapted to different installation environments in a flexible manner without having to change the structure of the heat sink itself. This can greatly simplify the design and manufacturing modifications made to adapt to different customer needs, thereby improving cost-effectiveness. In addition, the circulation pipe in the heat sink is arranged to be at least partially at a different level from the inlet pipe and/or the outlet pipe in the housing, which allows the circulation path of the heat transfer fluid in the heat dissipation apparatus to be extended without having to increase the length or width dimension of the heat dissipation apparatus, thereby facilitating the realization of an overall compact heat dissipation apparatus while improving the heat dissipation efficiency.
According to different embodiments, the heat dissipation apparatus proposed by the present invention may include one or more of the following further developments.
In some embodiments, the docking is docking in a vertical direction.
In some embodiments, the first docking end and/or the second docking end are/is open upwards in the vertical direction, and the inlet end and/or the outlet end are/is open downwards in the vertical direction.
In some embodiments, the inlet end and/or the outlet end are/is arranged on a corresponding downwardly extending bent portion of the circulation pipe.
In some embodiments, the first docking end is an elongated opening extending along a main extension direction of the inlet pipe, and the inlet end is an elongated opening matching the first docking end; and the second docking end is an elongated opening extending along a main extension direction of the outlet pipe, and the outlet end is an elongated opening matching the second docking end. The elongated opening allows a docking portion with a relatively large cross section to be realized without increasing the width dimension, thereby ensuring the flow rate of the heat transfer fluid to improve the heat dissipation efficiency of the heat dissipation apparatus.
In some embodiments, the heat dissipation apparatus further comprises a first sealing member arranged between the inlet end and the first docking end, and a second sealing member arranged between the outlet end and the second docking end.
The present invention further relates to a power device module, characterized in that the power device module comprises a heat-generating component and the heat dissipation apparatus according to the above description, wherein the heat dissipation apparatus is arranged to dissipate heat from the heat-generating component.
According to some embodiments, in the power device module proposed by the present invention, the heat-generating component comprises electronic and/or electrical components arranged along two sides of the circulation pipe. This allows efficient transfer of heat emitted by the electronic and/or electrical components.
According to some embodiments, in the power device module proposed by the present invention, the circulation pipe is arranged at a level higher than a fixing structure for mounting the electronic and/or electrical components. This prevents the fixing structure from adversely affecting the strength of the circulation pipe.
The present invention further relates to a vehicle. The vehicle comprises the power device module as described above.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order to describe more clearly the technical solutions provided by embodiments of the present disclosure, the drawings required by the embodiments will be briefly described below. It should be understood that the following drawings show only some embodiments of the present disclosure and should not be construed as limiting the scope, and that those of ordinary skill in the art, without inventive effort, can further obtain other relevant drawings on the basis of these drawings. In the drawings:
FIG. 1 shows a three-dimensional exploded schematic view of a power device module according to an embodiment, in which a heat sink and a heat-generating component are assembled together;
FIG. 2 shows a longitudinal cross-sectional schematic view of a heat dissipation apparatus according to an embodiment, in which an inlet pipe of a housing, a circulation pipe of a heat sink, and the connection between the two are shown;
FIG. 3 shows a transverse cross-sectional schematic view of a heat dissipation apparatus according to an embodiment, in which the docking between an inlet pipe of a housing and a circulation pipe of a heat sink is shown;
FIG. 4 shows a partial schematic view of a housing of a heat dissipation apparatus according to an embodiment, in which a first docking end and a second docking end are shown; and
FIG. 5 shows a partial schematic view of a heat sink of a heat dissipation apparatus according to an embodiment, in which an inlet end and an outlet end are shown.
DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS
A heat dissipation apparatus and a power device module according to embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the present disclosure clearer, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure will be explained clearly and completely below with reference to the drawings for the embodiments of the present disclosure. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some, not all, embodiments of the present disclosure.
Thus, the detailed description, provided below and in conjunction with the drawings, of the embodiments of the present disclosure, rather than being intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure for which protection is claimed, merely represents selected embodiments of the present disclosure. All other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art on the basis of the embodiments of the present disclosure without making inventive efforts also fall into the protection scope of the present disclosure.
Unless otherwise defined in the context, a singular form includes its plural form. Throughout this specification, the terms "comprising" , "having" , etc. are used herein to specify the existence of the mentioned characteristic, number, step, operation, element, component or combination thereof, without ruling out the existence or addition of one or more other characteristics, numbers, steps, operations, elements, components or combinations thereof.
In addition, although terms including ordinal numbers such as "first" , "second" , etc. may be used to describe various components, these components are not limited by these terms, which are merely used only to differentiate one element from another. For example, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, a first component may be referred to as a second component and, similarly, a second component may be referred to as a first component.
It should be understood that, in the description of the present invention, a directional or positional relationship indicated by terms like "upper" , "lower" , "left" , "right" , "inner" , "outer" , etc. is based on a directional or positional relationship shown in the drawing, or is a directional or positional relationship in which the disclosed product is usually placed when used, or is a directional or positional relationship usually understood by those skilled in the art; it is intended only for convenience of description of the present disclosure and brevity of description, instead of indicating or implying that the device or component in question must have a specific direction or be structured or operated in a specific direction, and therefore should not be construed as limiting the present disclosure.
Referring to FIGS. 1-5, the present invention proposes a heat dissipation apparatus 10, which may be used for a power device module 1. More specifically, the power device module 1 may include electronic and/or electrical components that generate heat during operation. The heat dissipation apparatus 10 proposed by the present invention is used to dissipate the heat emitted by the electronic and/or electrical components of the power device module 1.
In an embodiment, the heat dissipation apparatus 10 may include a housing 100 and a heat sink 200. The heat sink 200 may be mounted in the housing 100, and more specifically, may be mounted in the housing 100 in a detachable manner. The housing 100 may be provided with an inlet pipe 110 and an outlet pipe 120 for a heat transfer fluid. The inlet pipe 110 and the outlet pipe 120 may be directly cast in the housing 100, or may be formed by a tube embedded in the housing 100. The inlet pipe 110 may include a fluid inlet 111 and a first docking end 112 for the heat transfer fluid to flow into the heat dissipation apparatus 10, and the outlet pipe 120 may include a fluid outlet 121 and a second docking end 122 for the heat transfer fluid to flow out of the heat dissipation apparatus 10. In a specific embodiment, the heat dissipation apparatus 10 may further include a fluid temperature sensor (not shown) arranged at the fluid inlet 111 of the inlet pipe 110, which is used for sensing the temperature of the heat transfer fluid entering the inlet pipe 110. The heat sink 200 may be provided with a circulation pipe 210 for the heat transfer fluid. The circulation pipe 210 may include an inlet end 212 for the heat transfer fluid to enter the circulation pipe 210 and an outlet end 222 for the heat transfer fluid to flow out of the circulation pipe 210. The inlet end 212 is arranged to dock with the first docking end 112 of the inlet pipe 110 in the housing 100, and the outlet end 222 is arranged to dock with the second docking end 122 of the outlet pipe 120 in the housing 100, so that the circulation pipe 210 in the heat sink 200 can form a flow path for the heat transfer fluid in the heat dissipation apparatus 10 together with the inlet pipe 110 and the outlet pipe 120 in the housing 100. More specifically, the circulation pipe 210 in the heat sink 200 may be arranged at least partially at a different level from the inlet pipe 110 and/or the outlet pipe 120 in the housing 100, that is, there is an offset in the height direction shown in the figure.
Therefore, in the heat dissipation apparatus 10 proposed by the present invention, the heat sink 200 detachably mounted in the housing 100 is provided, which allows to customize the structure of the housing 100 for installation in a user's use environment according to different customer needs, thereby allowing the housing 100 to be adapted to different installation environments in a flexible manner without having to change the structure of the heat sink 200 itself. This can greatly simplify the design and manufacturing modifications made to adapt to different customer needs, thereby improving cost-effectiveness. In addition, the circulation pipe 210 in the heat sink 200 is arranged to be at least partially at a different level from the inlet pipe 110 and/or the outlet pipe 120 in the housing 100, which allows the circulation path of the heat transfer fluid in the heat dissipation apparatus 10 to be extended without having to increase the length or width dimension of the heat dissipation apparatus 10, thereby facilitating the realization of an overall compact heat dissipation apparatus 10 while improving the heat dissipation efficiency.
In some embodiments, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the above-mentioned docking is docking in a vertical direction. More specifically, the docking between the inlet end 212 of the circulation pipe 210 in the heat sink 200 and the first docking end 112 of the inlet pipe 110 of the housing 100 is performed in the vertical direction. In addition, the docking between the outlet end 222 of the circulation pipe 210 in the heat sink 200 and the second docking end 122 of the outlet pipe 120 of the housing 100 is also docking in the vertical direction. It should be noted that, in the sense of the present invention, the vertical direction corresponds to a "relative" vertical direction shown in the figure, which does not necessarily correspond to a real vertical direction in the actual use of the heat dissipation apparatus 10. More specifically, if the heat dissipation apparatus 10 is mounted in an orientation different from the orientation shown in the figure in the actual use environment, the vertical direction should be understood differently accordingly. More specifically, the inlet end 212 of the circulation pipe 210 of the heat sink 200 and the first docking end 112 of the inlet pipe 110 of the housing 100 face each other in the vertical direction, and additionally, the outlet end 222 of the circulation pipe 210 of the heat sink 200 and the second docking end 122 of the outlet pipe 120 of the housing 100 also face each other in the vertical direction. To this end, relative to the orientation shown in the figure, the first docking end 112 of the inlet pipe 110 of the housing 100 and/or the second docking end 122 of the outlet pipe 120 are/is open upwards in the vertical direction, and correspondingly, the inlet end 212 and/or the outlet end 222 of the circulation pipe 210 of the heat sink 200 are/is open downwards in the vertical direction.
In an embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the inlet end 212 and/or the outlet end 222 of the circulation pipe 210 of the heat sink 200 are/is each arranged on a corresponding downwardly extending bent portion 210a of the circulation pipe 210 (only the bent portion corresponding to the inlet end 212 is shown in the figure) . More specifically, the circulation pipe 210 of the heat sink 200 may include a horizontal extension part with a U-shape in a horizontal plane shown in the figure, and the horizontal extension part may include a first leg 210b and a second leg substantially parallel to each other, and an intermediate connecting section connecting the first leg 210b and the second leg. In this case, the inlet end 212 of the circulation pipe 210 of the heat sink 200 may be arranged at a free end of the bend portion 210a extending downwards from the end of the first leg 210b away from the intermediate connecting section, and additionally, the outlet end 222 of the circulation pipe 210 of the heat sink 200 may be arranged at a free end of the bend portion extending downwards from the end of the second leg away from the intermediate connecting section.
In an embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the inlet pipe 110 and/or the outlet pipe 120 of the housing 100 may be arranged to extend mainly in the horizontal direction, for example, in the form of a substantially straight line. Optionally, the inlet pipe 110 of the housing 100 may be arranged to be L-shaped, having a horizontal extension section 110b and a vertical extension section 110a bent upwards from the inner end of the horizontal extension section 110b, and the first docking end 112 may be arranged at a free end of the vertical extension section 110a. Also, optionally, the outlet pipe 120 of the housing 100 may also be arranged to extend mainly in the horizontal direction, for example, in the form of a substantially straight line. Optionally, the outlet pipe 120 of the housing may also be arranged to be L-shaped, having a horizontal extension section and a vertical extension section bent upwards from the inner end of the horizontal extension section, and the second docking end 122 may be arranged at a free end of the vertical extension section.
In some embodiments, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the first docking end 112 of the inlet pipe 110 in the housing 100 is an elongated opening extending along a main extension direction (the horizontal direction in the figures) of the inlet pipe 110. Correspondingly, the inlet end 212 of the circulation pipe 210 in the heat sink 200 is an elongated opening matched with the first docking end 112 of the inlet pipe 110 of the housing 100. More specifically, the heat dissipation apparatus 10 may further be provided with a first sealing member 300, which is more specifically an annular sealing member, between the inlet end 212 of the circulation pipe 210 of the heat sink 200 and the first docking end 112 of the inlet pipe 110 of the housing 100. More specifically, a first annular groove 113 for accommodating the first annular sealing member 300 may also be provided in the docking end surface of the first docking end 112 of the inlet pipe 110 of the housing 100. Similarly, the second docking end 122 of the outlet pipe 120 in the housing 100 is an elongated opening extending along the main extension direction (e.g., the horizontal direction) of the outlet pipe 120. Correspondingly, the outlet end 222 of the circulation pipe 210 in the heat sink 200 is an elongated opening matched with the second docking end 122. More specifically, the heat dissipation apparatus 10 may further be provided with a second sealing member 400, which is more specifically an annular sealing member, between the outlet end 222 of the circulation pipe 210 of the heat sink 200 and the second docking end 122 of the outlet pipe 120 of the housing 100. More specifically, a second annular groove 123 for accommodating the second annular sealing member 400 may further be provided in the docking end surface of the second docking end 122 of the outlet pipe 120 of the housing 100. Arranging the first docking end 112 and the second docking end 122 as elongated openings allows a docking portion with a relatively large cross section to be realized without increasing the width dimension, thereby ensuring the flow rate of the heat transfer fluid to improve the heat dissipation efficiency of the heat dissipation apparatus 10. The arrangement of the first sealing member 300 and the second sealing member 100 and the arrangement manner thereof ensure a good seal between the heat sink 200 and the housing 100, thereby effectively avoiding leakage of the heat transfer fluid.
It should be noted that the positions of the inlet pipe 110 and the outlet pipe 120 of the housing 100 shown in the figures are interchangeable.
According to another aspect of the present invention, the present invention further relates to a power device module 1. The power device module 1 includes a heat-generating component 20 and the heat dissipation apparatus 10 according to any one of the aforementioned embodiments. The heat dissipation apparatus 10 is configured to dissipate heat from the heat-generating component 20.More specifically, as shown in FIG. 1, according to some embodiments, in the power device module 1 proposed by the present invention, the heat-generating component 20 includes electronic and/or electrical components arranged along two sides of the circulation pipe in the heat sink. This allows efficient transfer of heat emitted by the electronic and/or electrical components. More specifically, the power device module 1 may further include electronic and/or electrical components arranged in a space of the heat sink 200 located on the inner side of the circulation pipe 210. In this case, a thermally conductive potting adhesive may be filled between these electronic and/or electrical components so as to conduct the heat dissipated by these electronic and/or electrical components to the circulation pipe 210, thereby allowing the heat to be dissipated via the heat transfer fluid in the circulation pipe 210.
According to some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 1, in the power device module 1 proposed by the present invention, the circulation pipe 210 of the heat sink 200 is arranged at a level higher than a fixing structure 30 for mounting the electronic and/or electrical components. This prevents the fixing structure 30 from adversely affecting the strength of the circulation pipe 210. For example, the fixing structure 30 includes a threaded hole and a screw screwed into the corresponding threaded hole.
According to another aspect of the present invention, the present invention further relates to a vehicle. The vehicle includes the power device module 1 as described above. More specifically, the vehicle may be an electrified vehicle, for example, a battery electric vehicle (BEV) , a hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) , a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) , a range-extended EV, or a fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV) . The vehicle may also be a hydrogen-powered vehicle.
While the exemplary embodiments of the heat dissipation apparatus and the power device module proposed by the present invention have been described in detail above with reference to preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art can understand that various modifications and variations may be made to the above specific embodiments without departing from the concept of the present invention, and that various combinations of the technical features and structures proposed by the present invention may be made without exceeding the scope of protection of the present invention.
The scope of the present disclosure is not defined by the embodiments described above but is defined by the appended claims and their equivalent scope.

Claims

A heat dissipation apparatus for a power device module (1) , characterized in that the heat dissipation apparatus (10) comprises:

a housing (100) , wherein the housing (100) is provided with an inlet pipe (110) and an outlet pipe (120) for a heat transfer fluid, the inlet pipe (110) comprises a fluid inlet (111) and a first docking end (112) , and the outlet pipe (120) comprises a fluid outlet (121) and a second docking end (122) ; and

a heat sink (200) detachably mounted in the housing (100) , wherein the heat sink (200) is internally provided with a circulation pipe (210) for the heat transfer fluid, and the circulation pipe comprises an inlet end (212) and an outlet end (222) ;

wherein the inlet end (212) is arranged to dock with the first docking end (112) of the inlet pipe (110) , and the outlet end (222) is arranged to dock with the second docking end (122) of the outlet pipe (120) ; and

wherein the circulation pipe (210) is at least partially at a different level from the inlet pipe (110) and/or the outlet pipe (120) .
The heat dissipation apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the docking is docking in a vertical direction.
The heat dissipation apparatus according to claim 2, characterized in that:

the first docking end (112) and/or the second docking end (122) are/is open upwards in the vertical direction; and

the inlet end (212) and/or the outlet end (222) are/is open downwards in the vertical direction.
The heat dissipation apparatus according to claim 3, characterized in that the inlet end (212) and/or the outlet end (222) are/is arranged on a corresponding downwardly extending bent portion (210a) of the circulation pipe (210) .
The heat dissipation apparatus according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that:

the first docking end (112) is an elongated opening extending along a main extension direction of the inlet pipe (110) , and the inlet end (212) is an elongated opening matching the first docking end (112) ; and

the second docking end (122) is an elongated opening extending along a main extension direction of the outlet pipe (120) , and the outlet end (222) is an elongated opening matching the second docking end (122) .
The heat dissipation apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the heat dissipation apparatus (10) further comprises a first sealing member (300) arranged between the inlet end (212) and the first docking end (112) , and a second sealing member (400) arranged between the outlet end (222) and the second docking end (122) .
The power device module, characterized in that the power device module (1)comprises a heat-generating component (20) and the heat dissipation apparatus (10) according to any one of the above claims, wherein the heat dissipation apparatus (10) is arranged to dissipate heat from the heat-generating component (20) .
The power device module according to claim 7, characterized in that the heat-generating component (20) comprises electronic and/or electrical components arranged along two sides of the circulation pipe (210) .
The power device module according to claim 8, characterized in that the circulation pipe (210) is arranged at a level higher than a fixing structure (30) for mounting the electronic and/or electrical components.
A vehicle, characterized in that the vehicle comprises the power device module (1) according to any one of Claims 7 to 9.