JP2009180482A - Intercooler - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an intercooler capable of deforming both ends in the longitudinal direction of a side plate following thermal deformation of tubes without causing decline in pressing strength of fins by the side plate and dirt of a core part. <P>SOLUTION: In the intercooler 1, the core part 4 constituted by laminating the tubes 2 and the fins 3 alternately is arranged between a pair of tanks 6, and the side plate 7 is mounted on the outermost layer of the core part 4. Bending parts 7A bent to separate from the fins 3 are formed in the both ends in the longitudinal direction of the side plate 7. By forming opening parts 7a in the bending parts 7A, the both ends of the side plate 7 can be deformed following thermal deformation of the tubes 2. Projecting pieces 7B projecting to inner peripheral parts of the opening parts 7a formed on the bending parts 7A and pressing the fins 3 in the vicinity of the tanks 6 are formed on the side plate 7. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an intercooler for cooling high-temperature intake air supercharged by a supercharger, for example, in an engine with a supercharger.

  A vehicle equipped with an engine with a supercharger is provided with an intercooler for cooling the intake air that has been compressed by the supercharger and has reached a high temperature. This intercooler is configured by arranging a core portion formed by alternately laminating tubes and fins between a pair of tanks and attaching a side plate to the outermost layer of the core portion (see Patent Documents 1 and 2). The high-temperature intake air supplied from the supercharger is cooled by running wind to increase its density, and the engine charging efficiency is increased to improve the engine output.

  Here, an example of a conventional intercooler is shown in FIGS.

  FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a conventional intercooler, FIG. 6 is an enlarged detail view of part B of FIG. 5, and the intercooler 1 ′ shown in FIG. 5 is formed by alternately stacking tubes 2 and fins 3 (see FIG. 6). The core portion 4 is disposed between the pair of left and right tanks 5 and 6, and the side plate 7 is attached to the outermost layer (upper and lower surfaces) of the core portion 4.

  The one tank 5 is for introducing high-temperature and high-pressure intake air supplied from a supercharger (not shown), and has an intake inlet 5a that is open to the supercharger. An inlet pipe (not shown) extending from is connected. The other tank 6 is for discharging the intake air flowing from the one tank 5 through the tube 2 toward the intake system of an engine (not shown), and an intake outlet (not shown) is opened. In addition, an outlet pipe (not shown) connected to the engine intake system is connected to the intake outlet. The tanks 5 and 6 are airtightly attached to the left and right of the core portion 4 with a header plate (seat plate) 8 through which the tube 2 is inserted and a seal member (not shown) interposed therebetween.

  Further, as shown in detail in FIG. 6, the longitudinally opposite ends of the side plate 7 (only one longitudinal end of the upper side plate 7 is shown in FIG. 6) are folded away from the fins 3. A bent portion 7A is formed, and both end portions in the longitudinal direction of the side plate 7 are attached to the header plate 8 by caulking claw portions 8a formed on the header plate 8 by the bent portions 7A.

  By the way, with the recent increase in cooling efficiency due to higher performance of the engine, the size of the intercooler tends to be larger than before, and the length of the tube constituting the core portion of the intercooler is increased. For this reason, there has been a problem that the amount of thermal deformation of the tube heated by the high-temperature intake air flowing inside increases, and thermal distortion occurs in the connecting portion between the core portion and the tank, particularly the side plate.

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 7, a rectangular opening 7a is formed in a bent portion 7A formed at both longitudinal ends of the side plate 7 (only one longitudinal end of the upper side plate 7 is shown in FIG. 7). A configuration has been proposed in which the bending portion 7A is formed to reduce the rigidity, thereby allowing both end portions in the longitudinal direction of the side plate 7 to be deformed following the thermal deformation of the tube 2.
JP-A-7-253288 JP 2006-322651 A

  However, as shown in FIG. 7, when the opening 7a is formed in the bent portion 7A at both ends in the longitudinal direction of the side plate 7, the portion that holds the fin 3 of the bent portion is lost by the opening 7a. There was a problem that the strength against the internal pressure of the tube 2 could not be sufficiently ensured, and the allowable internal pressure of the intercooler 1 ′ as a whole was limited.

  In particular, dust accumulates in the opening 7a formed in the bent portion 7A of the upper side plate 7, and the dust flows down to the core portion 4 together with rainwater, and the core portion 4 as shown in FIGS. There was also a problem of smearing the left and right sides.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems. The object of the present invention is that the longitudinal end portions of the side plate are connected to the heat of the tube without lowering the holding strength of the fin by the side plate or causing the core portion to become dirty. An object of the present invention is to provide an intercooler that can be deformed following the deformation.

  In order to achieve the above object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, a core portion formed by alternately stacking tubes and fins is disposed between a pair of tanks, and a side plate is attached to the outermost layer of the core portion. Forming bent portions that are bent away from the fins at both longitudinal ends of the side plate, and forming openings at the bent portions so that both ends of the side plate are thermally deformed by the tube. In the intercooler that can be deformed by following, a protruding piece that protrudes to an inner peripheral portion of an opening formed in the bent portion and presses a fin in the vicinity of the tank is formed on the side plate.

  The invention according to claim 2 is characterized in that the intercooler according to claim 1 is arranged at the lower rear part of the front bumper of the vehicle.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, the loss of the pressing portion of the fin due to the opening formed in the bent portion at both ends in the longitudinal direction of the side plate is compensated by the protruding piece, and the fin is pressed by the protruding piece. The side plate does not cause a decrease in the holding strength of the fin, and the allowable internal pressure of the intercooler is not limited. Since the rigidity of both end portions in the longitudinal direction of the side plate is lowered by the openings formed in the bent portion, both end portions in the longitudinal direction of the side plate can be deformed following the thermal deformation of the tube. There is no problem of distortion or thermal stress.

  Moreover, since the opening formed in the bending part of the longitudinal direction both ends of the side plate is closed by the protruding piece, the dust does not accumulate in the opening and the core part is prevented from being contaminated by the dust.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, since the intercooler is disposed at the lower rear part of the front bumper of the vehicle, the low-temperature traveling wind directly hits the core portion of the intercooler, and the high-temperature intake air flowing through the tube of the core portion is traveling wind. It is cooled efficiently. For this reason, the density of the intake air is increased and the charging efficiency of the engine is also increased. As a result, the engine output is improved. Even if the intercooler is placed under the front bumper where dust is likely to collect, the openings formed in the bent portions at both ends in the longitudinal direction of the side plate are blocked by the protruding pieces, so that the core is contaminated by dust. It is prevented.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  1 is a side view of an automobile equipped with an intercooler for a vehicle according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a plan view of the automobile, FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a main part of the intercooler for a vehicle according to the present invention, and FIG. FIG.

  A vehicle body 11 of an automobile 10 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is supported by a pair of left and right front wheels 12 and a rear wheel 13 so as to be able to travel, and is disposed in an unillustrated engine room covered by a bonnet 14 at the front thereof. Accommodates an engine as a driving source, a transmission for shifting the rotation of the engine and transmitting it to an axle (not shown), and the like (both not shown). A pair of left and right front seats 16 and rear seats 17 are respectively arranged in the front and rear of the vehicle compartment 15 behind the engine room.

  A front bumper 18 and a rear bumper 19 for shock absorption extending in the vehicle width direction are attached to the front end and the rear end of the vehicle body 11, respectively.

  By the way, the engine is a supercharged engine, and includes an intercooler 1 for cooling high-temperature intake air pressurized by the supercharger. The intercooler 1 is formed so as to extend long in the vehicle width direction, and is disposed horizontally in the rear lower part of the front bumper 18 where the flow velocity of the traveling wind is fast and in the center in the vehicle width direction.

  Next, the intercooler 1 according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4, but the basic configuration of the intercooler 1 is the same as that of the conventional intercooler 1 ′ shown in FIGS. 5 to 7. The description of this again is omitted, and in FIGS. 3 and 4, the same elements as those shown in FIGS. 5 to 7 are denoted by the same reference numerals.

  The intercooler 1 according to the present invention has a rectangular opening at a bent portion 7A formed at both longitudinal ends of the side plate 7 (only one longitudinal end of the upper side plate 7 is shown in FIGS. 3 and 4). 7a is formed, and protruding pieces 7B that protrude from the inner peripheral portion of the opening 7a and press the fins 3 in the vicinity of the tank 6 are integrally formed at both ends in the longitudinal direction of the side plate 7. Here, a rib-like protrusion 7b is formed at the center in the width direction of the protruding piece 7B to increase strength and rigidity. 3 and 4 show only one longitudinal end portion of the upper side plate 7, but the other longitudinal end portion of the upper side plate 7 and both longitudinal end portions of the lower side plate 7 are also shown. A protruding piece similar to the protruding piece 7B is formed. In the present embodiment, the protruding piece 7B is formed integrally with the side plate 7. However, the protruding piece 7B is formed separately from the side plate 7, and the protruding piece 7B is joined to the side plate 7. May be.

  Thus, according to the intercooler 1 according to the present invention, the loss of the pressing portion of the fin 3 by the opening 7a formed in the bent portion 7A at both ends in the longitudinal direction of the side plate 7 is compensated by the protruding piece 7B. Since the fins 3 are pressed by the protruding pieces 7B, the pressing strength of the fins 3 by the side plates 7 does not decrease, the allowable internal pressure of the intercooler 1 is not limited, and the allowable internal pressure is higher than before. The boost pressure can be increased by setting. And since the rigidity of the longitudinal direction both ends of the side plate 7 is lowered by the opening 7a formed in the bent portion 7A, the longitudinal ends of the side plate 7 are deformed following the thermal deformation of the tube 2. The problem of thermal distortion and thermal stress does not occur.

  Further, since the opening 7a formed in the bent portion 7A at both ends in the longitudinal direction of the side plate 7 is blocked by the protruding piece 7B, the dust does not collect in the opening 7a, and the dust collected in the opening 7a. The conventional problem of dripping down the core part 4 along with rain water and the like to contaminate the core part 4 is solved.

  Therefore, as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the flow of the traveling air is fast in the intercooler 1. As a result, the core portion 4 is prevented from being soiled, and the high-temperature intake air flowing through the tube 2 of the core portion 4 can be efficiently cooled by the traveling wind. For this reason, the density of the intake air is increased, and the charging efficiency of the engine is also increased. As a result, the engine output is improved.

  In addition, although the above demonstrated the form which applied this invention especially to the vehicle intercooler, this invention is applicable similarly also to arbitrary intercoolers (heat exchanger) other than for vehicles. Of course.

It is a side view of the motor vehicle carrying the intercooler for vehicles which concerns on this invention. It is a top view of the motor vehicle carrying the intercooler for vehicles which concerns on this invention. It is a perspective view of the principal part of the intercooler for vehicles concerning the present invention. It is the A section enlarged detail drawing of FIG. It is a perspective view of the conventional intercooler for vehicles. It is the B section enlarged detail drawing of FIG. It is a fragmentary perspective view of the conventional vehicle intercooler.

Explanation of symbols

1, 1 'Intercooler 2 Tube 3 Fin 4 Core portion 5, 6 Tank 5a Tank intake inlet 7 Side plate 7A Side plate bent portion 7B Side plate protruding piece 7a Bending portion opening 7b Projecting piece protrusion 8 Header plate 8a Header plate claws 10 Automobile (vehicle)
11 Body 12 Front Wheel 13 Rear Wheel 14 Bonnet 15 Cab 16 Front Seat 17 Rear Seat 18 Front Pamper 19 Rear Bumper

Claims (2)

A core portion formed by alternately stacking tubes and fins is disposed between a pair of tanks, and a side plate is attached to the outermost layer of the core portion so that the fins are separated from the fins at both longitudinal ends of the side plate. In an intercooler that can be bent to form a bent portion, and that both ends of the side plate can be deformed following the thermal deformation of the tube by forming an opening in the bent portion,
An intercooler characterized in that a protruding piece that protrudes from an inner peripheral portion of an opening formed in the bent portion and presses a fin in the vicinity of the tank is formed on the side plate. 2. The intercooler according to claim 1, wherein the intercooler is disposed at a lower rear portion of a front bumper of the vehicle.

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