FR3134447A1 - HEAT EXCHANGER FOR MOTOR VEHICLES - Google Patents

Abstract

HEAT EXCHANGER FOR MOTOR VEHICLE The invention relates to a heat exchanger (500) for a motor vehicle, comprising at least one tube (1) for circulating a heat exchange fluid and a collector box (2) to which the circulation tube (1) is connected in a watertight manner, characterized in that it comprises removable mechanical means for fixing the circulation tube (1) in the collector box (2). Figure for abstract – figure 7

Description

Heat exchanger for motor vehicle

The invention relates to the field of heat exchange devices intended for motor vehicles. It finds a non-exclusive, but particularly advantageous, application to devices intended to carry out the thermal management of batteries of such vehicles, for example power batteries for electric or hybrid vehicles.

The heat exchangers used for such applications conventionally comprise, on the one hand, a plurality of tubes or channels in which a heat exchange fluid circulates, as well as, on the other hand, an inlet collector element, through which the heat exchange fluid is admitted into the aforementioned tubes or channels, and an outlet collector element, through which the heat exchange fluid leaves the aforementioned tubes or channels and the heat exchanger.

Industrially, the envelopes of the tubes and channels in which the heat exchange fluid circulates, as well as the collecting elements previously mentioned, are generally made of metallic materials, for example thin sheets, and the envelopes of the tubes or channels are assembled with the collector elements by brazing.

The technical problem to which the present invention aims to provide a solution is in particular that of the carbon footprint of such a manufacturing process, and the invention aims to reduce, in particular, the electrical consumption and therefore the emissions generated indirectly by such a brazing process.

To achieve its aim, the invention relates, according to a first aspect, to a heat exchanger for a motor vehicle, comprising at least one circulation tube for a heat exchange fluid and a collector box to which the circulation tube is connected in a watertight manner, characterized in that it comprises removable mechanical means for fixing the circulation tube in the collector box.

Advantageously, the removable means are thus easily dismantled to allow the separate recycling of the materials without having to resort to grinding, which makes it possible to improve the reduction of energy consumption and/or waste.

It should be understood here that the heat exchanger according to the invention comprises two collector boxes, each of which is placed at one end of the fluid circulation tube(s), the at least one circulation tube of the heat exchanger according to the invention being fitted, at each of its ends, into one of the collector boxes. In this way, the characteristics described and illustrated in this document for a collector box can advantageously apply indifferently to one or the other of the aforementioned collector boxes.

In the heat exchanger according to the invention, the collector boxes are configured to connect the circulation tube(s) to a heat exchange fluid supply source and for this purpose comprise an inlet connection through which the fluid The heat exchange is admitted into the heat exchanger according to the invention, and an outlet connection through which the heat exchange fluid leaves the exchanger.

According to a first configuration of the heat exchanger according to the invention, one of the collector boxes, located at one end of the at least one circulation tube, carries the inlet connection, and the other collector box, located at the opposite end, in its main direction of extension, of the at least one circulation tube, carries the outlet connection: the heat exchanger according to the invention has, in this case, a configuration known as the name I-shaped configuration.

According to a second configuration of the heat exchanger according to the invention, one of the collector boxes, located at one end of the at least one circulation tube, carries both the inlet connection and the outlet connection : the heat exchanger according to the invention has, in this case, a configuration known as a U-shaped configuration.

According to different embodiments, the heat exchanger according to the invention comprises several heat exchange fluid circulation tubes, or a single tube in which several circulation channels for this fluid are arranged. In what follows, and in particular in the detailed description of exemplary embodiments, the invention will be more particularly described and illustrated for a tube whose section perpendicular to its main direction of extension has an oblong shape, in which are arranged parallel several heat exchange fluid circulation channels to each other.

According to an optional characteristic of the heat exchanger according to the invention, the removable mechanical fixing means comprise a groove arranged in an exterior wall of the circulation tube and a locking clip configured to be received simultaneously in the groove and in a slot arranged in the collection box.

The shapes and dimensions of the slot arranged in the collector box, as well as the location, shapes and dimensions of the groove on the circulation tube, are therefore defined in such a way that when the circulation tube is fitted into the box collector, the locking clip inserted in the slot of the collector box is also engaged in the groove of the circulation tube directly opposite this slot.

According to a first mode of implementation of the invention, the blocking clip is independent of both the circulation tube and the collector box, and it is placed on these two elements after fitting the circulation tube into the collector box. According to another mode of implementation of the invention, the locking clip is integral with the collector box, and it is placed on the circulation tube when the latter is fitted into the collector box. In particular, in this mode of implementation it can be arranged across the passage of the circulation tube in a rest position and be elastically deformed by the passage of the circulation tube before returning to a rest position in the groove of the circulation tube. traffic.

According to an optional characteristic of the heat exchanger according to the invention, the circulation tube comprises, extending from an exterior wall, at least two peripheral lips located at a distance from each other in a longitudinal direction of the circulation tube, the at least two peripheral lips being arranged in the vicinity of the end of the circulation tube intended to be engaged in the collector box.

The longitudinal direction of the circulation tube is here to be understood as the main direction of extension thereof, that is to say also as the direction in which the heat exchange fluid flows within the latter and the direction extending between the collector boxes. It must therefore be understood here that the peripheral lips, located at a distance from each other, define a clearance zone between them. By extension, this longitudinal direction is also the longitudinal direction of the heat exchanger according to the invention and of the collector box thereof.

As mentioned, the peripheral lips are arranged near the end of the circulation tube intended to be engaged in the collector box. The circulation tube may include two peripheral lips as mentioned above at each of its ends by which it must be fitted into a collecting box. The closest peripheral lip, in the longitudinal direction previously defined, to the end of the circulation tube through which the latter is engaged in a collector box, is located at a distance, in the longitudinal direction, from the longitudinal end edge of the circulation tube. In other words, the invention provides for the presence of a longitudinal free space between the longitudinal end edge of the circulation tube and the peripheral lip closest, in the longitudinal direction, to this end edge. In the following, the peripheral lip closest, in the longitudinal direction, to the end edge of the circulation tube, will be designated as the proximal peripheral lip. In addition, the second peripheral lip adjacent to this proximal peripheral lip will be designated in the following as the distal peripheral lip.

With reference to the longitudinal direction, we also define a transverse direction of the heat exchanger, perpendicular to the aforementioned longitudinal direction: according to different configurations of the exchanger according to the invention, the transverse direction represents the direction of stacking of the tubes of circulation in the heat exchanger, or the direction of stacking of the circulation channels within a single circulation tube. We further define a vertical direction, perpendicular to both the longitudinal direction and the transverse direction, such that these directions form between them an orthogonal reference trihedron of the heat exchanger according to the invention.

With reference to these directions and orientations, the peripheral lips previously mentioned extend, within manufacturing tolerances, projecting from an exterior wall of the circulation tube, perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the heat exchanger according to the invention, that is to say that they extend substantially parallel to a vertical transverse plane of the previously defined trihedron. More precisely, these peripheral lips extend, within manufacturing tolerances, substantially parallel to each other.

According to an optional characteristic of the heat exchanger according to the invention, the removable mechanical fixing means comprise at least one first seal intended to be placed between the at least two peripheral lips of the circulation tube and at least one second seal seal intended to be placed between a peripheral lip of the circulation tube and the end of the circulation tube intended to be engaged in the collector box.

According to a first mode of implementation of the invention, the seals are placed on the circulation tube prior to its engagement in the collector box.

According to another mode of implementation of the invention, the seals are housed in grooves arranged in an interior face of a wall of the collector box. In this case, the seals are advantageously placed in the aforementioned grooves prior to engagement of the circulation tube in the collector box. Furthermore, in this case, in order to allow the installation of a seal in the clearance zone located between the two peripheral lips, the invention provides that the dimensions of the proximal peripheral lip, previously defined, are lower, on the one hand, to the dimensions of the seal intended to be placed in the aforementioned clearance zone and, on the other hand, to the dimensions of the second peripheral lip or distal peripheral lip, previously defined.

According to an optional characteristic of the heat exchanger according to the invention, the circulation tube has a chamfer at its end intended to be engaged in the collector box. The presence of this chamfer makes it possible, in particular, to facilitate the insertion and engagement of the circulation tube in the collector box.

According to an optional characteristic of the heat exchanger according to the invention, an interior face of a wall of the collector box forms a stop for engagement of the circulation tube in the collector box. Said wall of the collector box may include a shoulder configured to form said stop. More precisely, the invention provides that the shapes and dimensions of the shoulder are defined in such a way that when the circulation tube abuts against the latter, the locking clip can be engaged both in the slot of the collector box and into the groove of the circulation tube.

According to an optional characteristic of the heat exchanger according to the invention, the locking clip comprises a first locking hook configured to be inserted both in a first slot arranged in the collector box and in a first groove arranged in the tube circulation and a second blocking hook configured to be inserted both in a second slot arranged in the collector box and in a second groove arranged in the circulation tube, the first blocking hook and the second blocking hook being oriented at opposite each other in the longitudinal direction of the circulation tube. It should be noted that the opposite orientations of the locking hooks of the locking clip make it possible to reinforce and guarantee the blocking of the circulation tube in the collector box.

The first groove and the second groove are formed in transversely opposite edges of the circulation tube, and the slots are correspondingly arranged transversely opposite each other.

According to an optional characteristic of the heat exchanger according to the invention, the locking clip is made of a metallic material. More precisely, the material which makes up the locking clip, as well as the shapes and dimensions of this locking clip, are defined to give the latter an elasticity allowing, on the one hand, its deformation when it is placed on the circulation tube and in the slot of the collector box, and, on the other hand, its elastic return to its initial shape once the circulation tube is fitted into the collector box, in order to block these two elements together.

According to a second aspect of the invention, the invention extends to a method of assembling a circulation tube with a collector box of a heat exchanger as has just been described, the method of assembly comprising at least one step of engaging the end of the circulation tube in the collector box until the end of the circulation tube abuts against the shoulder arranged in an interior face of a wall of the collector box, and a step of engaging the locking clip in the groove of the circulation tube and in the slot of the collector box.

According to a first mode of implementation of the invention, the circulation tube is first engaged in the collector box until its end edge is in contact with the stop formed by the shoulder previously described , then the locking clip is put in place.

According to another mode of implementation of the invention, the locking clip is first placed in the slot of the collector box, then the circulation tube is engaged in the latter up to the stop previously mentioned. In this engagement, the locking clip is deformed to allow the circulation tube to engage and pass through the collector box, then, when the circulation tube abuts in the latter, the locking clip returns to its position. initial position by engaging in the groove of the circulation tube to lock it and the collector box together, in a snap-fit form.

The invention therefore makes it possible, by simple and inexpensive means and not requiring a brazing operation, to achieve the tight and reliable assembly of a circulation tube of a heat exchanger with a collector box in which this tube of circulation is nested.

Other characteristics, details and advantages of the invention will appear more clearly with the help of the description which follows and the drawings including:

• is a schematic perspective representation of a portion of a heat exchanger according to one embodiment of the invention, making visible in particular a circulation tube and a collector box,
• is a schematic perspective representation of a longitudinal end of a circulation tube of a heat exchanger according to the invention,
• is a schematic perspective view of a longitudinal end of a circulation tube such as that illustrated by , equipped with seals,
• is a schematic perspective view of a collector box of a heat exchanger according to the invention,
• is a cut perspective view, along a plane containing the previously defined longitudinal direction, of the collector box of the ,
• is a schematic perspective view of a locking clip of a heat exchanger according to the invention,
• schematically illustrates in perspective the assembly of a circulation tube and a collector box in a heat exchanger according to the invention,
• is a schematic cut perspective view of an assembly such as that illustrated by .

It should first be noted that if the figures present the invention in detail for its implementation, they can of course be used to better define the invention if necessary. It should also be noted that, in all of the figures, similar elements and/or fulfilling the same function are indicated by the same reference.

There is a schematic perspective view of a portion of a heat exchanger 500 according to the invention. The heat exchanger 500 comprises at least one circulation tube 1 which extends mainly in a longitudinal direction L, and a collector box 2, in which a longitudinal end of the circulation tube 1 is fitted in a sealed manner. The collector box 2 includes a connection 3 through which, according to different embodiments, a heat exchange fluid can be admitted into the collector box 2 and the circulation tube 1 or can exit the heat exchanger 500.

At the opposite longitudinal end of the circulation tube 1, not shown on the , the heat exchanger 500 comprises a second collector box similar to the collector box 2 shown and also equipped with a connection. The heat exchanger 500 as shown on the is therefore of the so-called "I" type as mentioned previously, in which the heat exchange fluid is admitted through a collector box 2 located at one end of the circulation tube 1 and rejected by the collector box 2 located at the opposite longitudinal end of the circulation tube 1. It should be noted that the invention also applies to a heat exchanger 500 of the so-called "U" type as previously described, in which the collector box 2 as shown on the would include an additional connection to have on the same collector box an inlet connection and an outlet connection for the admission of the heat exchange fluid into the heat exchanger 500 and the outlet of the heat exchange fluid from the exchanger thermal 500.

In the heat exchanger 500 as represented by the , the circulation tube 1 has, in section along a plane perpendicular to the longitudinal direction L previously defined, an oblong shape whose largest dimension, perpendicular to the longitudinal direction L, defines a transverse direction T of the heat exchanger 500.

There is a schematic view which makes the circulation tube 1 more particularly visible, in perspective.

The circulation tube 1 comprises an outer wall 10 of oblong shape which delimits an internal volume of the circulation tube 1, in which is provided a plurality of channels 11 configured to be traversed by a heat exchange fluid. According to the example more particularly illustrated by the , the channels 11 are substantially identical to each other, and they are stacked side by side in a stacking direction parallel to the transverse direction T previously defined.

The outer wall 10 of the circulation tube 1 comprises two grooves 12 placed opposite each other along the transverse dimension T of the circulation tube 1.

The circulation tube 1 also comprises two peripheral lips 4a, 4b, substantially parallel to each other within manufacturing tolerances and perpendicular to the longitudinal direction L previously defined.

The peripheral lips 4a, 4b extend at a distance from each other in the longitudinal direction L, that is to say they delimit between them, in this longitudinal direction L, on the circulation tube 1, a longitudinal clearance zone 40. In addition, the peripheral lip 4a closest, in the aforementioned longitudinal direction L, to the end edge 13 of the circulation tube 1, also designated as the proximal peripheral lip 4a, is arranged at distance, in the longitudinal direction L, from the aforementioned end edge. In other words, the circulation tube 1 has, between its end edge 13 and the proximal peripheral lip 4a, a longitudinal free space 41.

According to the invention, the peripheral lips 4a, 4b have similar shapes. Here, according to the example more particularly illustrated by the , the proximal peripheral lip 4a has, in the transverse direction T and in the vertical direction V previously defined, dimensions smaller than the dimensions, in these directions, of the peripheral lip 4b furthest from the aforementioned end edge 13, also designated in the following as distal peripheral lip 4b.

Finally, according to the example more particularly illustrated by the , the outer wall 10 of the circulation tube 1 comprises, at the end edge 13 of the circulation tube 1, two inclined sections 14 opposite in the transverse direction T previously defined, that is to say in the direction of the most large dimension of the oblong shape of the circulation tube 1. The inclined sides 14 thus form, at the longitudinal end of the circulation tube 1, two chamfers.

There schematically illustrates in perspective the end of the circulation tube 1 as represented by the , according to a particular embodiment of the invention. We find on the the circulation tube 1, its end edge 13, the groove 12, the peripheral lips 4a, 4b, and the chamfers 14 previously defined. We also find on the the clearance zone 40 and the longitudinal free space 41.

There illustrates the circulation tube of the this time equipped with two seals 5a, 5b, here O-rings, for example made of an elastomeric material. One of the seals 5a, designated in the following as the proximal seal 5a, is placed against the proximal peripheral lip 4a, in the longitudinal free space 41 previously defined, delimited between the proximal lip 4a and the end edge 13 of the circulation tube, and the other seal 5b, designated in the following as distal seal 5b, is placed between the peripheral lips 4a and 4b, in the clearance zone 40 which they delimit between them. It should be noted that the distal seal 5b occupies, in the longitudinal direction L, substantially the entire clearance zone 40 and is enclosed between the peripheral lips.

As shown in the , the dimensions, in the transverse direction T and in the vertical direction V, of the proximal seal 5a, are less than the dimensions, in these same directions, of the proximal peripheral lip 4a. In addition, the dimensions, in the transverse direction T and in the vertical direction V, of the distal seal 5b are, on the one hand, smaller than the dimensions, in these directions, of the distal peripheral lip 4b, and, on the other hand , greater than the dimensions, in these directions, of the proximal peripheral lip 4a. In other words, a dimension of transverse and vertical dimensions of the circulation tube 1 comprising its peripheral lips 4a, 4b, and its seals 5a, 5b, decreases, in the longitudinal direction, from the lip distal peripheral 4b up to the end edge 13 of the circulation tube 1.

In certain alternative embodiments, the distal peripheral lip 4b has the same dimension as the proximal peripheral lip. Thus, the dimension of transverse and vertical dimensions of the circulation tube 1 comprising its peripheral lips 4a, 4b, and its seals 5a, 5b, is equal, in the longitudinal direction, from the distal peripheral lip 4b up to the end edge 13 of the circulation tube 1.

We will now describe in more detail, with particular reference to Figures 4 and 5, the collector box 2 in which the circulation tube 1 is intended to be fitted into a heat exchanger 500 according to the invention.

As shown in the , the collector box 2 comprises a wall 20 of complex shape, which delimits an interior cavity 21 configured to receive the end of a circulation tube 1 such as that illustrated in Figures 2 and 3. More precisely, the cavity 21 has in a vertical and transverse section plane a substantially oblong shape which tends to decrease as the distance from the circulation tube increases and of which a major axis extends substantially, within manufacturing tolerances, in the transverse direction T of the heat exchanger 500 previously defined.

The interior cavity 21 is open at one of its longitudinal ends, and closed at its opposite longitudinal end. At its longitudinal end comprising the opening of the interior cavity 21, the wall 20 of the collector box forms a peripheral bead 23 which extends projecting from an exterior face 200 of the wall 20. More precisely, the bead 23 has a substantially flat docking face 24, within manufacturing tolerances, substantially parallel to a vertical transverse plane (T, V), which extends around the opening of the interior cavity 21. The docking face 24 is , for example, intended to be placed in contact with a complementary face of a protective casing of the circulation tube 1, not shown in the figures.

Indeed, to ensure the tightness of the docking face connection 24 with the casing, a seal is added between the two. This function is particularly interesting when the connectors are outside the battery pack.

Preferably, the collector box 2 is produced by an injection process of a plastic material: in this context, its wall 20 advantageously presents, as shown in , a set of molding and reinforcing ribs 22.

As has been mentioned, the collector box 2 includes an inlet or outlet connection 3. The connection 3 here has substantially the shape of a hollow cylinder which extends projecting from the exterior face 200 of the wall 20, substantially perpendicular to the latter, and which opens into the cavity 21. The connection 3 thus makes it possible to put the interior cavity 21 in fluid communication with the exterior of the collector box 2 and of the exchanger 500, for example with a heat exchange fluid supply device (connection 3 is then inlet connection for the heat exchanger 500), or with an element of the vehicle to be cooled/heated (connection 3 is then outlet connection for the heat exchanger 500). heat exchanger 500).

There makes the interior of the interior cavity 21 more particularly visible, with a sectional view along a median transverse longitudinal plane 600 as shown in the , passing through the middle, in the vertical direction V, of a vertical axis V1 of the interior cavity 21. We find on the the wall 20, the connector 3, the interior cavity 21, the bead 23 and its docking face 24.

The wall 20 of the collector box 2 comprises, on the side, in the longitudinal direction L, of the bead 23 opposite the docking face 24, two slots 25 which extend opposite each other according to the transverse direction T, each being located at a transverse end of the wall 20. More precisely, a first slot 25 and a second slot 25 each extend over a portion of the periphery of the wall 20, such that the two slots 25 do not communicate with each other. Advantageously, each slot 25 is substantially symmetrical, within manufacturing tolerances, with respect to the vertical transverse plane 600 previously defined.

Furthermore, the wall 20 of the collector box 2 is configured so that its interior face 201, that is to say its face located inside the interior cavity 21, has several peripheral shoulders 26, 27, 28, 29, longitudinally arranged between the slots 25 previously described and the longitudinal bottom of the interior cavity 21.

These shoulders are formed so that the transverse dimension of the shoulders, measured between the transverse ends respectively of the shoulders 26, 27, 28, 29 decreases, in the longitudinal direction L, from the slots 25 to the longitudinal bottom of the interior cavity 21 In other words, a dimension, measured between the transverse ends of the shoulder 29 closest to the longitudinal bottom of the interior cavity, is less than a dimension, measured between the transverse ends of the shoulder 28 immediately adjacent, and so on up to the shoulder 26 closest, in the longitudinal direction L, to the slots 25 previously described, the latter having the highest transverse dimension. Such a progressive evolution of the dimension of the shoulders is also noted on the vertical dimension of the shoulders, and as will be described below, this progressive evolution is planned so that the peripheral lips and the seals on board the tube of circulation cooperate with a respective shoulder.

In certain alternative embodiments, the transverse dimension of the shoulders, measured between the transverse ends respectively of the shoulders 26, 27, 28 is equal in the longitudinal direction L, from the slots 25 to the longitudinal bottom of the interior cavity 21. transverse dimension of the last shoulder in the longitudinal direction L, from the slots 25 to the longitudinal bottom of the interior cavity 21, here the shoulder 29, must be less than the previous shoulder, here the shoulder 28, in order to allow good maintenance of the joint in contact with it.

We will now describe in more detail, with reference to the , an exemplary embodiment of a blocking clip 6 as previously defined and forming part of the removable mechanical fixing means provided by the invention, the fixing clip being intended to block the circulation tube 1 and the collector box together 2 once the circulation tube 1 is fitted into the collector box 2.

According to the invention, the locking clip 6 is made of a wire, for example a metal wire, for example a substantially cylindrical wire whose diameter is between 1 and a few millimeters in order to present elastic deformation properties.

The locking clip 6 is here in the form of a folded wire comprising an elongated main part 60, at each end of which a hook 61 is formed by folding the wire. As shown in the , each hook 61 extends substantially perpendicular to the main part 60 of the locking clip 6, the hooks 61 being substantially parallel to each other. Each hook 61 comprises a first part 62 which extends from the aforementioned main part 60, and a second part 63 which extends from the free end of the first part 62, opposite the end by which the first part 62 of the hook 61 is attached to the main part 60 of the locking clip 6. As shown in , the second parts 63 of each hook 61 each extend substantially perpendicular to both the first part 60 previously described and the first part 62 of the corresponding hook 61. Preferably, the second parts 63 of each hook 61 extend opposite each other on either side of a plane 650 in which the main part 60 of the clip fits. blocking 6 and the first parts 62 of each hook 61. However, we can also imagine a hook 61 whose two parts extend in the same direction.

According to the example more particularly illustrated by the , the main part 60 of the locking clip 6 comprises, in the vicinity of each hook 61, a hoop 64 whose role is to give the main part 60 of the locking clip 6 a capacity for elastic deformation in the plane 650 previously defined, and in particular to allow the elastic deformation of the hooks 61 moving away from or towards each other. To this end, the aforementioned hoops 64 both extend in the aforementioned plane 650 and on the same side of the first part 60 of the locking clip 6.

We will now describe, with reference to Figures 7 and 8, the assembly of a circulation tube 1 such as that illustrated by Figures 2 and 3 with a collector box 2 such as that illustrated by Figures 4 and 5, and blocking these two elements together using removable mechanical means here taking the form of a locking clip such as that illustrated by the . There is a schematic perspective view of such an assembly, and the is a schematic view of this assembly in perspective cut along the vertical transverse plane 600 previously defined. We find in these figures the different elements, previously described, of the circulation tube 1 and the collector box 2, as well as the locking clip 6.

The assembly of the circulation tube 1 and the collector box 2 is carried out by nesting the end of the circulation tube 1 provided with peripheral lips 4a, 4b, and seals 5a, 5b, in the interior cavity 21 of the collector box 2, in the longitudinal direction L previously defined.

When the circulation tube 1 is fitted into the interior cavity 21 of the collector box 2, the respective dimensions of the peripheral lips 4a, 4b, the seals 5a, 5b, and the shoulders 26, 27, 28 result. , 29, previously described, that the shoulder 29 furthest away, in the longitudinal direction L, from the bead 23 of the outer wall 20 of the collector box 2, forms an abutment against which the proximal seal 5a of the tube of circulation 1 is placed, the transverse and vertical dimensions of the other shoulders allowing the passage until then of this proximal seal 5a and the end edge 13 of the circulation tube 1 inside the collector box.

Once the proximal seal 5a abuts against this shoulder 29 at the bottom of the collector box, each of the seals and the peripheral lips takes position facing the shoulders formed within the collector box, with a peripheral longitudinal space defined between the shoulder 29 of the bottom of the collector box and the neighboring shoulder 28 which forms a groove for receiving the proximal seal 5a previously defined, with a peripheral longitudinal space defined between the aforementioned neighboring shoulder 28 and the shoulder 27 which forms a receiving trench for the proximal peripheral lip 4a, with a peripheral longitudinal space defined between the following shoulder 27 mentioned above and the shoulder 26 closest to the opening of the interior cavity 21 which forms a receiving groove of the distal peripheral joint 5b, and with a peripheral longitudinal space defined between the shoulder 26 closest to the opening of the interior cavity 21 and the slots 25 previously defined which forms a receiving trench for the distal peripheral lip 4b previously described .

As is particularly visible on the , it results from the respective shapes and dimensions of the circulation tube 1 and the collector box 2 that, when the circulation tube 1 abuts against the internal surface of the cavity 201 of the bottom of the collector box, the grooves 12 arranged in the outer wall 10 of the circulation tube 1 are located, in the longitudinal direction L, facing the slots 25 arranged in the outer wall 20 of the collector box 2.

The blocking of the circulation tube 1 in the collector box 2 is then achieved by inserting the locking clip 6, on the one hand, into the slots 25 of the collector box 2, and, on the other hand, into the grooves 12 of circulation tube 1.

More precisely, when inserting the locking clip 6 into the slot(s) 25 and the groove(s) 12, the main part 60 of the locking clip 6 is previously placed substantially parallel to the transverse direction T against the exterior face 200 of the wall 20 of the collector box 2. In a first alternative, this main part 60 of the locking clip is permanently fixed on the exterior face 200 of the wall and in a second alternative, the clip blocking is carried out independently of the collector box and is attached against it. In each of these alternatives, the first parts 62 of the hooks 61 are capable of being elastically deformed, moving away from one another to then take position, by elastic return, both in the grooves 12 of the tube circulation 1 and in the slots 25 of the collector box 2. Once the clip in this position engaged in the grooves and slots, the second parts 63 of the hooks 61 extend outside the collector box 2, in across it, substantially parallel to the longitudinal direction L, opposite each other. The first parts 62 of the hooks 61 are engaged at the bottom, in the transverse direction T, respectively of the notches forming the groove 12 and the slots 25 previously described.

As a result, the locking clip 6 is thus blocked in the longitudinal direction L, both by the shape and dimensions of the grooves 12, by the shape and dimensions of the slots 25 and by the configuration of the second parts 63 of the hooks 61, in the transverse direction T, by the presence of the two hooks 61 which create a form of sandwiching the circulation tube 1, and, in the vertical direction V, by the opposite orientation of the second parts 63 of the hooks 61 which implies that the first part of one of the hooks is arranged along a vertical face of the collector box and that the first part of the other hook is arranged along the opposite vertical face of the collector box.

It should be noted that the sealing of the fitting of the circulation tube 1 in the interior cavity 21 of the collector box 2 is here achieved by the longitudinal succession of the two seals 5a, 5b, which are both in contact with the circulation tube 1 and with the interior face 201 of the wall 20 of the collector box 2. This serial arrangement of the seals, made possible by the cooperation of the shoulders and the seals abutting on the peripheral lips, increases the efficiency of the sealing function of the heat exchanger.

The invention, as it has just been described, therefore allows, by simple means, to produce a removable mechanical blocking of a circulation tube 1 and a collector box 2 of a heat exchanger 500, without carrying out welding or brazing which have a high carbon footprint, and enabling high performance sealing functions.

The invention cannot, however, be limited to the means and configurations described and illustrated, and it also applies to all equivalent means or configurations and to any combination of such means. In particular, according to an alternative embodiment not shown in the figures, the seals can be previously placed in the grooves, previously described, delimited respectively by the shoulders of the collector box 2. In this case, the chamfers 14 previously defined, made at the free end of the circulation tube 1, as well as the respective transverse and vertical dimensions of the peripheral lips 4a, 4b and the joints 5a, 5b take all their interest and make it possible to facilitate the insertion of the circulation tube 1 in the collector box 2. According to another alternative of the invention, previously mentioned, the locking clip 6 can be integral with the collector box 2 or previously installed in the slots 25 thereof: the presence of the hoops 64, previously described, on the main part 60 of the locking clip 6 is then particularly important since it allows elastic deformation of the locking clip, the result of which is a spacing, in the transverse direction T, of the hooks 61. one from the other in order to allow the passage of the circulation tube 1 and its peripheral lips 4a, 4b, the blocking of the circulation tube 1 with the collector box 2 then being achieved by a form of snap-fastening of the clip of locking 6 in the notches forming the groove 12, snap-fastening which results from the elastic return of the locking clip 6 to its initial shape.

Claims (10)

Heat exchanger (500) for a motor vehicle, comprising at least one tube (1) for circulating a heat exchange fluid and a collector box (2) to which the circulation tube (1) is connected in a sealed manner, characterized in that it comprises removable mechanical means for fixing the circulation tube (1) in the collector box (2). Heat exchanger (500) according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the removable mechanical fixing means comprise a groove (12) arranged in an outer wall (10) of the circulation tube (1) and a locking clip (6) configured to be received simultaneously in the groove (12) and in a slot (25) arranged in the collector box (2). Heat exchanger (500) according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the circulation tube (1) comprises, extending from an external wall (10), at least two peripheral lips (4a, 4b) located at a distance one from the other in a longitudinal direction (L) of the circulation tube (1), the at least two peripheral lips (4a, 4b) being arranged in the vicinity of the end of the circulation tube (1) intended to be engaged in the collector box (2). Heat exchanger (500) according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the removable mechanical fixing means comprise at least one first seal (5b) intended to be placed between the at least two peripheral lips (4a, 4b) of the tube circulation tube (1) and at least one second seal (5a) intended to be placed between a peripheral lip (4a) of the circulation tube (1) and the end of the circulation tube (1) intended to be engaged in the collection box (2). Heat exchanger (500) according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the seals (5a, 5b) are housed in grooves arranged in an interior face of a wall (20) of the collector box (2). Heat exchanger (500) according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the circulation tube (1) has a chamfer (14) at its end intended to be engaged in the collector box (2). Heat exchanger (500) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that an interior face of a wall (20) of the collector box (2) is configured to form a stop for engaging the circulation tube ( 1) in the collector box (2). Heat exchanger (500) according to any one of the preceding claims, in combination with claim 2, characterized in that the locking clip (6) comprises a first locking hook (61) configured to be inserted both into a first slot (25) arranged in the collector box (2) and in a first groove (12) arranged in the circulation tube (1), and a second locking hook (61) configured to be inserted into both a second slot (25) arranged in the collector box (2) and in a second groove (12) arranged in the circulation tube (1), the first locking hook and the second locking hook preferably being oriented opposite each other one from the other in the longitudinal direction (L) of the circulation tube (1). Heat exchanger (500) according to any one of the preceding claims, in combination with claim 2, characterized in that the locking clip (6) is made of a metallic material. Method of assembling a circulation tube (1) with a collector box (2) of a heat exchanger (500) according to one of the preceding claims, in combination with claim 2 and claim 7, the method of assembly comprising at least:
- a step of engaging the end of the circulation tube (1) in the collector box (2) until the end (13) of the circulation tube (1) abuts against the interior face (201) of the wall (20) of the collector box (2),
- a step of engaging the locking clip (6) in the groove (12) of the circulation tube (1) and in the slot (25) of the collector box (2).