JP5852978B2 - Thermal flow meter - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an air flow sensor for measuring a mass flow rate in a pipe, and more particularly to a passage structure of a thermal flow meter.

  There is an airflow sensor as a device for measuring the mass flow rate of airflow in a pipe. The air flow sensor has a structure in which a part of the airflow in the pipe, which is the main passage, is taken into the sub-passage and led to the sensor unit. A hot wire, a silicon element, or the like is disposed in the sensor unit, and the mass flow rate in the pipe is measured by utilizing the fact that the hot wire, the silicon element, or the like is cooled by an air flow and the electric resistance value changes.

  Patent Document 1 describes a thermal flow rate measuring device in which a plurality of grooves or streak-like protrusions are formed on the inner wall of a sub-passage. In this thermal flow rate measuring device, the liquid material adhering to the wall surface of the sub-passage is captured by a groove or a streak-like projection by surface tension, and the captured liquid material is captured along the groove or the streaky projection in the sub-passage. Move to outer surface. As a result, the liquid material is discharged from the outlet portion of the sub-passage without adhering to the sensor element for flow rate measurement (see paragraphs 0053-0055).

  Patent Document 2 describes an intake air amount measuring device having a flow obstruction part that forms a trip edge (Stolperkante) on the upstream side of a measurement element. The trip edge is provided at the inlet opening edge of the measurement passage, and a groove-like recess is formed on the measurement passage wall surface downstream of the trip edge. The groove-like recess has a flow separation area that is temporally and spatially stable and always occurs in the same place. This separation area has the effect of preventing or weakening the occurrence of different separation areas each time the place where it appears unstable in time (page 7).

JP 2002-257608 A Japanese National Patent Publication No. 9-508213

  In Patent Document 1, the groove or streak-like protrusion is provided to move the liquid material adhering to the sub-passage wall surface to the outer circumferential surface of the sub-passage so as not to leave the sub-passage wall surface due to surface tension. There is no technical idea of capturing a flying liquid contained in an air current with a groove or streak. Moreover, in patent document 1, in order to capture a target object in a groove | channel or a line-shaped protrusion using surface tension, the target object to capture is limited to a liquid body and cannot capture a solid substance.

  In Patent Document 3, the trip edge and the groove-like recess are provided to prevent the occurrence of separation areas that are unstable in time and appear differently each time. There is no consideration for. Since the shape of the passage from the trip edge to the groove-like recess is formed in a staircase shape, the effect of capturing the contaminated material is not sufficient.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a thermal type flow meter that can reduce the amount of contaminants contained in the fluid to be measured reaching the sensor unit and reduce the measurement error of mass flow rate and the frequency of detection of abnormal values. There is to do.

  In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the thermal flow meter of the present invention has a widened portion whose width is widened to the upstream side in the sub-passage, and the widened portion causes separation of the fluid flow. Generate eddy currents. The pollutant contained in the fluid to be measured and flowing into the sub-passage is captured by the vortex, and the pollutant reaching the sensor unit is reduced. The widened portion can be formed by, for example, a partition structure or a hollow structure.

  In the present invention, the fouling substance is a substance that may foul the sensor part, and includes both a solid (solid substance) and a liquid (liquid substance). In many cases, the pollutant is granular, and for example, the solid granular material includes dust, and the liquid granular material includes, for example, water droplets and oil mist.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to generate a vortex in the widened portion in the sub-passage, and it is possible to capture the contaminated material flowing into the sub-passage in the vortex. Thereby, the pollutant which reaches | attains a sensor part can be reduced, and the measurement error of a mass flow rate and the detection frequency of an abnormal value can be reduced.

  Problems, configurations, and effects other than those described above will be clarified by the following description of embodiments.

The front view which shows the external appearance of the thermal type flow meter which concerns on this invention. The left view which shows the external appearance of the thermal type flow meter which concerns on this invention. The rear view which shows the external appearance of the thermal type flow meter which concerns on this invention. The right view which shows the external appearance of the thermal type flow meter which concerns on this invention. The front view which shows the state of the housing which removed the front cover and the back cover from the thermal type flow meter which concerns on this invention. The left view which shows the state of the housing which removed the front cover and the back cover from the thermal type flow meter which concerns on this invention. The rear view which shows the state of the housing which removed the front cover and the back cover from the thermal type flow meter which concerns on this invention. The right view which shows the state of the housing which removed the front cover and the back cover from the thermal type flow meter which concerns on this invention. FIG. 2C is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. 2C. The circuit diagram which shows the flow volume detection circuit of the thermal type flow meter which concerns on this invention. The top view of the flow volume detection part (flow volume detection element) which concerns on this invention. The figure which shows the Example (Example 1) which provided the partition-like structure in the subchannel | path as a structure which generate | occur | produces a vortex | eddy_current. The figure which shows the Example (Example 2) which provided the partition-like structure in the subchannel | path as a structure which generate | occur | produces a vortex | eddy_current. The figure which shows the figure which shows the Example (Example 3) which provided the hollow-shaped structure instead of the partition-shaped structure 10. FIG. Sectional drawing which shows the Example (Example 4) from which the structure of a subway differs from Examples 1-3.

  Hereinafter, examples will be described with reference to the drawings.

  First, an outline of a thermal flow meter which is an embodiment of an air flow sensor according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1A to 4.

  FIG. 1 shows the appearance of a thermal flow meter 300. 1A is a front view of a thermal flow meter 300, FIG. 1B is a left side view, FIG. 1C is a rear view, and FIG. 1D is a right side view.

  The thermal flow meter 300 includes a housing 302, a front cover 303, and a back cover 304. The housing 302 has an external connection part (connector part) having a flange 312 for fixing the thermal flow meter 300 to the intake body constituting the main passage and an external terminal for electrical connection with an external device. 305 and a measurement unit 310 for measuring a flow rate and the like. A sub-passage groove for making a sub-passage is provided inside the measurement unit 310. A circuit including a flow rate detection unit 602 for measuring the flow rate of the measurement target gas 30 flowing through the main passage and a temperature detection unit 452 for measuring the temperature of the measurement target gas 30 flowing through the main passage inside the measurement unit 310. A package 400 is provided (see FIG. 2A).

  In the thermal flow meter 300, the measurement unit 310 is supported in a cantilever manner in the main passage by fixing the flange 312 to the intake body.

  The measurement unit 310 of the thermal flow meter 300 has a shape that extends long from the flange 312 toward the center of the main passage 124, and a portion of the gas to be measured 30 such as intake air is taken into the sub-passage at the tip. There are provided an inlet 350 and an outlet 352 for returning the gas 30 to be measured from the auxiliary passage to the main passage 124.

  The inlet 350 of the thermal flow meter 300 is provided on the distal end side of the measuring unit 310 extending from the flange 312 toward the center of the main passage, so that the gas in the portion near the center away from the inner wall surface of the main passage can be obtained. It can be taken into the secondary passage. Thereby, it becomes difficult to be influenced by the temperature of the inner wall surface of the main passage, and a decrease in measurement accuracy of the gas flow rate and temperature can be suppressed.

  Moreover, fluid resistance is large near the inner wall surface of the main passage, and the flow velocity is lower than the average flow velocity of the main passage. In the thermal flow meter 300 of the present embodiment, the inlet 350 is provided at the distal end of the thin and long measuring unit 310 extending from the flange 312 toward the center of the main passage, so that the gas having a high flow velocity at the center of the main passage is provided. Can be taken into the auxiliary passage (measurement passage). Further, since the outlet 352 of the sub passage is also provided at the tip of the measuring unit 310, the gas flowing in the sub passage can be returned to the central portion of the main passage having a high flow velocity.

  The measuring unit 310 has a shape that extends long along the axis from the outer wall of the main passage 124 toward the center, but has a narrow shape as shown in FIGS. 1B and 1D. That is, the measurement unit 310 of the thermal flow meter 300 has a side surface with a thin width and a substantially rectangular front surface. As a result, the thermal flow meter 300 can be provided with a sufficiently long sub-passage with a reduced fluid resistance with respect to the gas to be measured 30.

  That is, in the thermal type flow meter of the present embodiment, the shape of the measuring unit 310 projected on the orthogonal plane orthogonal to the flow direction of the airflow 30 flowing through the main passage 124 is in the first direction 50 on the orthogonal plane. A defined length dimension and a thickness dimension defined in a second direction 51 perpendicular to the first direction 50 on the orthogonal plane (see FIG. 1B), the thickness dimension being a length The shape is smaller than the dimensions.

  The temperature detection unit 452 for measuring the temperature of the measurement target gas 30 is located at the center of the measurement unit 310 at the position where the upstream outer wall in the measurement unit 310 is recessed toward the downstream side from the upstream outer wall to the upstream side. It is provided with a shape that protrudes toward the surface.

  The front cover 303 and the back cover 304 are formed in a thin plate shape and have a shape with a wide cooling surface. For this reason, the thermal flow meter 300 has an effect that air resistance is reduced, and further, the thermal flow meter 300 is easily cooled by the gas to be measured flowing through the main passage 124.

  An external terminal and a correction terminal (not shown) are provided inside the external connection unit 305. The external terminal includes a terminal for outputting a flow rate and temperature as measurement results, and a power supply terminal for supplying DC power. The correction terminal is a terminal used to store a correction value related to the thermal flow meter 300 in a memory inside the thermal flow meter 300.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, the configuration of the sub-path and the circuit package configured in the housing 302 will be described.

  FIG. 2 shows a state of the housing 302 with the front cover 303 and the back cover 304 removed from the thermal flow meter 300. 2A is a front view of the housing 302, FIG. 2B is a left side view, FIG. 2C is a rear view, and FIG. 2D is a right side view. FIG. 3 is a partially enlarged view showing a state in which the circuit package 400 is disposed inside the sub-passage groove, and is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 2C. Note that FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram for ease of explanation. In FIG. 3, details are omitted and simplified with respect to the detailed shape shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. Yes.

  The housing 302 is provided with a sub-passage groove for forming a sub-passage on the distal end side of the measuring unit 310. In this embodiment, auxiliary passage grooves are provided on both the front and back surfaces of the housing 302.

  By covering the front cover 303 and the back cover 302 on the front surface and the back surface of the housing 302, the sub-passage is completed on both surfaces of the housing 302. With such a structure, when the housing 302 is molded (resin molding process), molds provided on both surfaces of the housing 302 are used, and both the front side sub passage groove 332 and the back side sub passage groove 334 are formed in the housing 302. It is possible to mold all as a part of.

  In FIG. 2C, a part of the gas 30 to be measured flowing through the main passage is taken into the back side sub-pass groove 334 from the inlet groove 351 forming the inlet 350 and flows through the back side sub-pass groove 334. The back side sub-passage groove 334 has a shape that becomes deeper as it advances, and as the gas flows along the groove, the measured gas 30 gradually moves in the front side direction. The back side sub-passage groove 334 is provided with a steeply inclined portion 347 that suddenly deepens in the upstream portion 342 of the circuit package 400. A part of the air having a small mass moves along the steeply inclined portion 347 and flows in the upstream portion 342 of the circuit package 400 toward the measurement channel surface 430 shown in FIG. 2A. On the other hand, a foreign substance having a large mass cannot easily flow along the steeply inclined portion 347 because it is difficult to change the course due to centrifugal force, and flows toward the measurement channel rear surface 431 shown in FIG. 2C. Thereafter, it passes through the downstream portion 341 of the circuit package 400 and flows through the front side sub-passage groove 332 shown in FIG. 2A.

  Reference is now made to FIG. The left part of FIG. 3 is the terminal part of the back side auxiliary passage groove 334, and the right side part is the starting end part of the front side auxiliary passage groove 332. Although not clearly shown in FIG. 3, through portions are provided on the left and right sides of the circuit package 400 having the measurement flow path surface 430, and the back sides are provided on the left and right sides of the circuit package 400 having the measurement flow path surface 430. The sub passage groove 334 and the front side sub passage groove 332 are connected.

  In the front side sub-passage groove 332 illustrated in FIG. 2A, the air as the measurement target gas 30 that has moved from the upstream portion 342 of the circuit package 400 to the front side sub-passage groove 332 flows along the measurement channel surface 430. Then, heat transfer is performed with the flow rate detection unit 602 for measuring the flow rate via the heat transfer surface 437 provided in the flow rate detection unit 602, and the flow rate is measured. The measurement target gas 30 that has passed through the measurement flow path surface 430 and the air that has flowed from the downstream portion 341 of the circuit package 400 to the front side sub-passage groove 332 both flow along the front side sub-passage groove 332 and form an outlet groove 352. It is discharged from 353 to the main passage.

  In this embodiment, the flow path constituted by the back side auxiliary passage groove 334 is curved toward the flange direction from the front end of the housing 302, and the gas flowing through the auxiliary passage at the most flange side position is in contrast to the flow of the main passage. In this reverse flow portion, the back side sub-passage provided on one side of the housing 302 (the inlet side sub-passage provided on the back side) is the front side provided on the other side. It leads to an auxiliary passage (exit-side auxiliary passage provided on the surface side).

  In this embodiment, the front end side of the circuit package 400 is not configured to be supported by the housing 302 but has a hollow portion 382. The space of the upstream portion 342 of the circuit package 400, the space of the downstream portion 341 of the circuit package 400, and the cavity portion 382 are configured to penetrate the front surface side and the back surface side of the housing 302. That is, the space of the upstream portion 342, the space of the downstream portion 341, and the cavity portion 382 are in communication through the front side sub passage groove 332 on the front surface side of the housing 302 and the back side sub passage groove 334 on the back surface side. Further, the space on the measurement flow path surface 430 side and the space on the measurement flow path back surface 431 side are separated by the circuit package 400 inserted into the housing 302, and are not separated by the housing 302. That is, one space formed by the space of the upstream portion 342, the space of the downstream portion 341, the cavity portion 382, the space on the measurement flow channel surface 430 side, and the space on the measurement flow channel back surface 431 side is the surface of the housing 302. The circuit package 400 inserted in the housing 302 protrudes in a cantilever manner in this one space. With such a configuration, the sub-passage grooves can be formed on both surfaces of the housing 302 in a single resin molding step, and the structure connecting the sub-passage grooves on both surfaces can be formed together.

  The circuit package 400 is fixed by being embedded in a fixing portion 372, 373, 376 of the housing 302 by a resin mold.

  Further, the circuit package 400 can be inserted into the housing 302 and mounted simultaneously with the resin molding of the housing 302. In addition, by setting it as the structure which penetrated either the upstream part 342 or the downstream part 341 of the circuit package 400, the sub channel | path shape which connects the back side sub channel groove 334 and the front side sub channel groove 332 is carried out by one resin molding process. It is also possible to mold.

  A back side sub-passage inner peripheral wall 392 and a back side sub-passage outer peripheral wall 391 are provided on both sides of the back side sub-passage groove 334. The back-side sub-passage of the housing 302 is formed by closely contacting the front ends of the back-side sub-passage inner peripheral wall 392 and the back-side sub-passage outer peripheral wall 391 with the inner surface of the back cover 304. Further, a front side sub-passage inner peripheral wall 393 and a front side sub-passage outer peripheral wall 394 are provided on both sides of the front side sub-passage groove 332. The front side sub-passage inner peripheral wall 393 and the front-side sub-passage outer peripheral wall 394 and the front end portion in the height direction and the front side. When the inner surface of the cover 303 is in close contact, a front side sub-passage of the housing 302 is formed.

  The gas to be measured 30 taken from the inlet 350 and flowing through the back side sub-passage constituted by the back side sub-passage groove 334 is guided from the left side of FIG. 3, and a part of the gas to be measured 30 is upstream of the circuit package 400. It flows through the flow path 386 formed by the projection 356 provided on the surface of the measurement flow path surface 430 of the circuit package 400 and the front cover 303 through the penetrating part 342. The other gas to be measured 30 flows through the flow path 387 formed by the measurement flow path back surface 431 and the back cover 304. Thereafter, the gas to be measured 30 that has flowed through the flow path 387 moves toward the front side sub-passage groove 332 through the penetration portion of the downstream portion 341 of the circuit package 400, and merges with the gas to be measured 30 that is flowing through the flow path 386. To do. The gas 30 to be measured flows through the front side auxiliary passage groove 332 and is discharged from the outlet 352 to the main passage.

  The measured gas 30 led to the flow path 386 from the back side sub-passage groove 334 through the penetration part of the upstream part 342 of the circuit package 400 is bent more than the flow path guided to the flow path 387. A sub-passage groove is formed. Thereby, a substance having a large mass, such as dust, contained in the measurement target gas 30 is collected in the flow path 387 with less bending.

  In the flow path 386, the protrusion 356 forms a throttle, and the measurement target gas 30 is made into a laminar flow with little vortex. Further, the protrusion 356 increases the flow velocity of the measurement target gas 30. Thereby, measurement accuracy improves. The protruding portion 356 is provided on the cover facing the heat transfer surface exposed portion 436 of the flow rate detecting portion 602 provided on the measurement channel surface 430.

  As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2C, a hollow portion 336 is formed in the housing 302 between the flange 312 and the portion where the sub passage groove is formed. In the hollow portion 336, a terminal connection portion 320 that connects the connection terminal 412 of the circuit package 400 and the inner end 361 of the external terminal of the external connection portion 305 is provided. The connection terminal 412 and the inner end 361 are electrically connected by spot welding or laser welding.

  Next, the circuit configuration of the flow rate detection unit 602 will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 4 is a circuit diagram showing the flow rate detection circuit 601 of the thermal type flow meter 300. Note that a measurement circuit related to the temperature detection unit 452 described in the embodiment is also provided in the thermal flow meter 300, but is omitted in FIG. The flow rate detection circuit 601 includes a flow rate detection unit 602 having a heating element 608 and a processing unit 604. The processing unit 604 controls the amount of heat generated by the heating element 608 and outputs a signal representing the flow rate based on the output of the flow rate detection unit 602 via the terminal 662. In order to perform the processing, the processing unit 604 includes a central processing unit (hereinafter referred to as a CPU) 612, an input circuit 614, an output circuit 616, a memory 618 that holds data representing a relationship between a correction value, a measured value, and a flow rate, A power supply circuit 622 is provided to supply a constant voltage to each necessary circuit. The power supply circuit 622 is supplied with DC power from an external power source such as an in-vehicle battery via a terminal 664 and a ground terminal (not shown).

  The flow rate detector 602 is provided with a heating element 608 for heating the measurement target gas 30. The voltage V1 is supplied from the power supply circuit 622 to the collector of the transistor 606 constituting the current supply circuit of the heating element 608, and a control signal is applied from the CPU 612 to the base of the transistor 606 via the output circuit 616. Based on this, current is supplied from the transistor 606 to the heating element 608 via the terminal 624.

  The flow rate detection unit 602 includes a heat generation control bridge circuit 640 for controlling the amount of heat generated by the heating element 608 and a flow rate detection bridge circuit 650 for measuring the flow rate. One end of the heat generation control bridge circuit 640 is supplied with a constant voltage V3 from the power supply circuit 622 via a terminal 626, and the other end of the heat generation control bridge circuit 640 is connected to the ground terminal 630. A constant voltage V2 is supplied from one end of the flow rate detection bridge circuit 650 from the power supply circuit 622 via a terminal 625, and the other end of the flow rate detection bridge circuit 650 is connected to the ground terminal 630.

  The heat generation control bridge circuit 640 includes a resistor 642 that is a resistance temperature detector whose resistance value changes based on the temperature of the heated measurement target gas 30, and includes a resistor 642, a resistor 644, a resistor 646, and a resistor 648. This constitutes the bridge circuit 640. The potential difference between the intersection (connection portion) A of the resistor 642 and the resistor 646 and the intersection (connection portion) B of the resistor 644 and the resistor 648 is input to the input circuit 614 via the terminal 627 and the terminal 628, and the CPU 612 The amount of heat generated by the heating element 608 is controlled by controlling the current supplied from the transistor 606 so that the potential difference between B is a predetermined value, which is zero volts in this embodiment. The CPU 612 of the processing unit 604 heats the measurement target gas 30 with the heating element 608 so that the measurement target gas 30 is higher than the original temperature by a certain temperature (for example, always 100 ° C.). A potential difference between the intersection A and the intersection B when the temperature of the gas 30 to be measured heated by the heating element 608 becomes higher than the initial temperature by a certain temperature so that this heating control can be performed with high accuracy. The resistance value of each resistor constituting the heat generation control bridge 640 is set so that becomes zero volts.

  The flow rate detection bridge 650 includes four resistance temperature detectors, a resistor 652, a resistor 654, a resistor 656, and a resistor 658.

  A potential difference between an intersection (connection portion) C between the resistor 652 and the resistor 656 and an intersection (connection portion) D between the resistor 654 and the resistor 658 is input to the input circuit 614 through the terminal 631 and the terminal 632. For example, each resistance of the flow rate detection bridge 650 is set so that the potential difference between the intersection C and the intersection D becomes zero when the flow of the measurement target gas 30 is zero.

  As will be described later, the resistor 652 and the resistor 654 are arranged on the upstream side with respect to the measurement target gas 30 flowing in the forward direction. Further, the resistor 656 and the resistor 658 are arranged on the downstream side with respect to the measurement target gas 30 flowing in the forward direction. When the gas to be measured 30 flows in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 4, the resistor 652 and the resistor 654 arranged on the upstream side are cooled by the gas to be measured 30 and arranged on the downstream side of the gas to be measured 30. The resistor 656 and the resistor 658 are heated by the measurement target gas 30 heated by the heating element 608, and the temperature of the resistor 656 and the resistor 658 rises. For this reason, a potential difference is generated between the intersection C and the intersection D of the flow rate detection bridge 650. This potential difference is input to the input circuit 614 through the terminal 631 and the terminal 632. Based on the potential difference between the intersection C and the intersection D, the CPU 612 retrieves data representing the relationship between the potential difference stored in the memory 618 and the flow rate of the main passage 124 to obtain the flow rate of the main passage. An electrical signal representing the flow rate of the main passage determined in this manner is output via a terminal 662. Note that the terminal 664 and the terminal 662 illustrated in FIG. 4 are newly described with reference numerals, but are included in the connection terminal 412 illustrated in FIGS. 2A and 2C described above.

  The memory 618 stores correction data for reducing measurement errors such as variations obtained based on actual measured values of gas after the circuit package 400 is produced. The correction data is written into the memory 618 using an external terminal or a correction terminal provided in the external connection unit 305.

  FIG. 5 is a plan view of the flow rate detection unit (flow rate detection element). The flow rate detection unit (flow rate detection element) 602 is made as a rectangular semiconductor chip, and the measurement target gas 30 in the forward direction extends in the direction of the arrow from the left side to the right side of the flow rate detection unit 602 shown in FIG. Flowing.

  A rectangular diaphragm 672 in which the thickness of the semiconductor chip is reduced is formed in the flow rate detection unit (flow rate detection element) 602 formed of a semiconductor chip. The diaphragm 672 includes a thin region (that is, the above-described thin area). Heat transfer surface) 603 is provided. A gap is formed on the back side of the thin region 603.

  The thermal conductivity is lowered by reducing the thickness of the diaphragm 672, and the diaphragm 672 is connected to the resistor 652, the resistor 654, the resistor 658, and the resistor 656 provided in the thin region 603 (heat transfer surface 437) of the diaphragm 672. The heat transmitted from the outside through the diaphragm 672 is suppressed.

  A heating element 608 is provided at the center of the thin region 603 of the diaphragm 672, and a resistor 642 constituting the heating control bridge 640 is provided around the heating element 608. Resistors 644, 646, and 648 constituting the heat generation control bridge 640 are provided outside the thin region 603. The resistors 642, 644, 646, and 648 formed in this way constitute a heat generation control bridge 640.

  Further, upstream of the heating element 608, a resistance 652 and a resistance 654, which are upstream resistance thermometers, are arranged on the upstream side in the direction of the arrow where the measurement target gas 30 in the forward direction flows. On the downstream side in the direction of the arrow through which the measurement gas 30 flows, a resistor 656 and a resistor 658 that are downstream resistance temperature detectors are arranged. In order to improve measurement accuracy, the resistor 652 and the resistor 654 are arranged so that the distance to the heating element 608 is substantially the same, and the resistor 656 and the resistor 658 are substantially the same distance to the heating element 608. Are arranged as follows.

  The thermal flow meter 300 according to the present embodiment can measure the flow rate even with respect to the reverse flow (the gas to be measured flowing in the reverse direction with respect to the forward direction). “Upstream” and “downstream” are determined based on the flow of the measurement target gas 30 in the forward direction.

  Further, both end portions of the heating element 608 are connected to terminals 624 and 629 described on the lower side of FIG. Here, as shown in FIG. 4, a current supplied from the transistor 606 to the heating element 608 is applied to the terminal 624, and the terminal 629 is grounded as a ground.

  Resistor 642, resistor 644, resistor 646, and resistor 648 are connected to terminals 626 and 630, respectively. A constant voltage V3 is supplied to the terminal 626 from the power supply circuit 622, and the terminal 630 is grounded as a ground. Further, connection points between the resistor 642 and the resistor 646 and between the resistor 644 and the resistor 648 are connected to a terminal 627 and a terminal 628, respectively. The terminal 627 outputs the potential at the intersection A, and the terminal 628 outputs the potential at the intersection B. A constant voltage V2 is supplied to the terminal 625 from the power supply circuit 622, and the terminal 630 is grounded as a ground terminal. The connection point between the resistor 654 and the resistor 658 is connected to the terminal 631, and the terminal 631 outputs the potential at the intersection B. A connection point between the resistor 652 and the resistor 656 is connected to a terminal 632, and the terminal 632 outputs a potential at the intersection C.

  Since the resistor 642 is formed in the vicinity of the heating element 608, the temperature of the gas warmed by the heat generated from the heating element 608 can be accurately measured. On the other hand, the resistors 644, 646, and 648 are arranged away from the heating element 608, and thus are not easily affected by heat generated from the heating element 608. For this reason, the control which raises the to-be-measured gas 30 only by predetermined temperature can be performed with high precision.

  Next, the structure which generate | occur | produces the eddy current which capture | acquires a pollutant is demonstrated.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example in which a partition-like structure is provided in the sub-passage as a configuration for generating a vortex. FIG. 6 is an enlarged view of the auxiliary passage portion of FIG. 2C. As described above, the sub-passage 2 shown in FIG. 6 is configured by combining a plurality of sub-passage grooves. Hereinafter, the sub-passage grooves will be referred to as the sub-passage 2 without distinction. In FIG. 6, a part of the configuration shown in FIG. 2C is simplified or omitted.

  Reference numeral 1 denotes a body of a thermal flow meter, which includes a housing 302, a front cover 303, and a back cover 304. Reference numeral 32 denotes a pipe wall, and reference numeral 124 denotes a main passage inside the pipe wall 32. When the thermal flow meter is attached to an automobile internal combustion engine, the piping wall 32 is the wall of the intake pipe. The body 1 is inserted into the main passage 124. Reference numeral 2 denotes a sub-passage, which is provided inside the body 1. Reference numeral 2a denotes one end of the sub-passage 2, and in this embodiment, an end on the inlet side when the fluid flows in the forward direction. 2b is the other end of the sub-passage 2, and in this embodiment is the end on the outlet side when the fluid flows in the forward direction. The end portion 2a on the inlet side and the end portion 2b on the outlet side open to the main passage 124. When the thermal flow meter is attached to an automobile internal combustion engine, the fluid is air. When detecting the flow rate during reverse flow, the inlet side and the outlet side are interchanged. In the following description, a case where the thermal flow meter is attached to an internal combustion engine of an automobile will be described.

  In this embodiment, the air is assumed to flow in the forward direction as indicated by the arrow 30. When the airflow flows in the direction of FIG. 6, 2 a becomes the inlet (inlet opening) of the sub-passage 2 as described above. Reference numeral 602 denotes a flow rate detection unit (flow rate detection element), which is composed of a silicon element. Reference numeral 400 denotes a circuit package which is a support for the silicon element 602. The circuit package is a member that fixes the position of the silicon element 602 in the sub-passage 2. A portion of the body 1 between the flange 312 and the sub passage 2 is provided with a flow rate detection circuit (circuit module) 601 shown in FIG. The mass flow rate in the sub passage 2 is measured by the flow rate detection unit 602 and the circuit module 601. Reference numeral 10 denotes a partition structure provided in the sub-passage 2.

  When the air flow 30 in the main passage 124 includes a contaminated material, the contaminated material may collide with the silicon element 602 and be damaged, or may adhere to the silicon element 602 and cause a measurement error. Further, when the airflow in the main passage 124 includes water droplets, if the water droplets adhere to the silicon element 602, an abnormality occurs in the measured value of the mass flow rate. In order to solve these problems, a partition-like structure 10 is provided in the sub-passage 2. The partition-like structure 10 is configured by a wall portion (wall member) provided so as to block a part of the inlet opening 2a of the sub-passage 2 to reduce the opening area.

  The partition structure 10 reduces the opening area of the sub-passage inlet 2a and shields part of the airflow 30 flowing from the sub-passage inlet 2a into the sub-passage 2. Thereby, the amount of pollutants flowing into the sub passage 2 is reduced. In addition, a part of the air flow 30 a flowing into the sub-passage 2 forms a vortex 30 b on the downstream side of the partition structure 10. Part of the fouling material flowing into the sub-passage 2 is captured by the vortex 30b, and further part of the fouling matter adheres to the sub-passage 2 and the partition wall 10 around the vortex 30b. As a result, the amount of contaminants contained in the airflow 30a flowing into the sub-passage 2 reaching the silicon element 602 can be reduced, and the mass flow measurement error and the abnormal value detection frequency can be reduced.

  By the partition-like structure 10, the width of the passage is widened on the downstream side of the partition-like structure 10, and the widened portion 2 w is formed in the sub-passage 2. That is, the passage width is Wa at the partition structure 10, but the passage width is expanded to Wb (Wb> Wa) in the widened portion 2w. The partition-like structure 10 is provided in a bowl shape with respect to the air flow 30. For this reason, the airflow separated by the partition structure 10 generates a vortex in the widened portion 2w. The widened portion 2w becomes a vortex generating chamber in which a vortex is generated.

  As described above, the body 1 of the thermal flow meter is made thin. That is, the body 1 is perpendicular to the center line 33 (see FIG. 1B) extending from the fixing portion (flange 312) that cantilever-supports the body 1 toward the distal end portion 1a, and perpendicular to the side surface of the body 1 (the front cover 303). The dimension in the direction perpendicular to the back cover 304 (in the thickness direction of the body 1 or the housing 302) flows in the dimension in the direction of the center line 33 of the body 1 (in the length direction of the body 1 or the housing 302) or the main passage 124. It is made small with respect to the dimension in the flow direction of the air current (the width direction of the body 1 or the housing 302). For this reason, the front cover 303 and the back cover 304 that form the side walls of the sub-passage 2 are also made very thin. For this reason, if the widened portion 2w is formed in the front cover 303 or the back cover 304, the dimension (depth) in the widening direction cannot be increased. For this reason, it is difficult to generate a vortex of sufficient strength (size) to capture the fouling material. Moreover, if a contaminated thing adheres to the wall surface of the widening part 2w, the widening part 2w will be buried by slight adhesion of a fouling thing. For this reason, it is preferable to widen the passage in the length direction of the body 1.

  Further, when the thermal flow meter is attached to the intake pipe, it is often attached so that the flange 312 side is on the top and the tip end 1a side is on the bottom. In this case, it is preferable to provide the widened portion 2w on the outer peripheral surface 2c side, which is positioned below the inner peripheral surface 2d side located on the upper side. When the internal combustion engine is stopped, the contaminated matter supplemented by the vortex can be held in the widened portion 2w.

  Further, the widened portion 2w where the vortex is generated is provided on the upstream side of the flow rate detecting unit 602, but it is preferable that a long flow path is provided between the widened portion 2w and the flow rate detecting unit 602. This is to prevent the influence of the vortex generated in the widened portion 2w from reaching the flow rate detecting unit 602. For this reason, the widened portion 2w is preferably provided directly below the inlet opening 2a of the sub passage 2. That is, the widened portion 2w is preferably provided in the vicinity of the inlet opening 2a on the downstream side of the inlet opening 2a.

  In the present embodiment, the concavo-convex portion having the channel height h ′ smaller than the channel height h of the partition structure 10 on the wall surface of the widened portion 2 w (the wall surface of the sub-passage 2 on the downstream side of the partition structure 10). 12 is provided. Part of the fouling material flowing into the sub-passage 2 is captured by the vortex flow 30b, and further adheres to the sub-passage 2 around the vortex flow 30b and the wall surface of the partition structure 10 (the wall surface of the widened portion 2w). Since the concavo-convex portion 12 locally inhibits the flow of the vortex 30b in the vicinity thereof, the contaminants in the vortex 30b are more likely to adhere to the wall surface. That is, the wall surface of the widened portion 2w holds the fouling material. As a result, it is possible to further reduce the amount of contaminants reaching the silicon element 602 and reduce the mass flow measurement error and the abnormal value detection frequency.

  Although the above-described effects can be obtained by providing the uneven portion 12, the uneven portion 12 is not necessarily provided. The airflow often contains oil droplets. The oil droplets adhering to the wall surface of the widened portion 2w can replace the adhesive, and dust and other solid matter captured by the vortex can be held on the wall surface of the widened portion 2w.

  In the present embodiment, a discharge port (communication hole) 11 communicating with the main passage 124 is provided in the sub-passage 2 on the downstream side of the partition structure 10. Part of the fouling material flowing into the sub-passage 2 is captured by the vortex 30b, and further part of the fouling matter adheres to the sub-passage 2 and the partition wall 10 around the vortex 30b. However, when the amount of adhesion is large and the discharge port 11 is not present, if the fouling material accumulates on the wall surface, the region where the vortex flow 30b is formed is reduced thereby, so that the fouling material is captured by the vortex flow 30b. Will decrease. Therefore, the discharge port 11 that communicates with the main passage 124 is provided in the sub-passage 2 (particularly, the widened portion (vortex generation chamber) 2 w) on the downstream side of the partition-like structure 10. As a result, part of the contaminated matter trapped in the vortex flow 30 b and the contaminated matter adhering to the wall surface are discharged to the main passage 124 through the discharge port 11. For this reason, the amount of fouling substances adhering to and accumulating on the sub-passage 2 around the vortex 30b and the wall surface of the partition structure 10 is reduced, and the reduction of the region (vortex generation chamber 2w) where the vortex 30b is formed can be suppressed.

  If the volume of the widened portion (vortex generating chamber) 2w can be increased, the discharge port 11 is not necessarily provided. Further, even when the volume of the widened portion (vortex generating chamber) 2w has a sufficient volume for accumulating the contaminants, the contaminants captured by the vortex are provided outside the secondary passage 2 by providing the discharge port 11. You may make it discharge | emit actively.

  Embodiment 3 according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 7 is a view showing an embodiment in which a partition-like structure is provided in the sub passage as a configuration for generating a vortex.

  In the present embodiment, only the shape of the local part of the partition-like structure 10 is different from that in FIG. A part of the airflow 30 is smoothly introduced into the sub-passage 2 by making a part of the partition-like structure 10 a curved structure 10a. As a result, the pressure loss at the sub-passage inlet 2a is reduced. Therefore, when the opening area of the sub-passage inlet 2a is the same as that in the first embodiment, the amount of the contaminants reaching the silicon element 602 is equal to that in the first embodiment. While decreasing, the mass flow rate of the airflow reaching the silicon element 602 can be increased. As a result, it is possible to suppress the sensor sensitivity from being lowered when the airflow 30 is under the condition of a low air volume.

  In FIG. 6, although the uneven | corrugated | grooved part 12 and the discharge port 11 which were demonstrated in Example 1 are not provided, you may provide both the uneven | corrugated | grooved part 12 and the discharge port 11 similarly to Example 1, or any one.

  A third embodiment according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating Example 3 in which a hollow structure 13 is provided instead of the partition structure 10.

  In the present embodiment, the hollow structure 13 is constituted by a concave portion provided on the flow path wall on the outer periphery (outer periphery) side of the sub-passage 2. The upstream wall surface 13a constituting the concave portion 13 has the same structure as the partition structure 10 of the first embodiment and performs the same function. In this embodiment, since the concave portion 13 is formed in the vicinity of the inlet opening 2a, the wall surface 13a constitutes a partition wall that partitions the main passage 124 and the inside of the sub passage 2 including the concave portion 13. The wall surface 13b on the downstream side constituting the concave portion 13 is not configured in the first or second embodiment.

  Due to the hollow structure 13, a part of the air flow 30 a flowing into the sub-passage 2 forms a vortex 30 b inside the hollow structure 13. Part of the fouling material that flows into the sub-passage 2 is captured by the vortex 30 b, and part of the fouling matter adheres to the wall surface of the hollow structure 13. As a result, it is possible to reduce the amount of contaminants reaching the silicon element 602, and to reduce the mass flow measurement error and the abnormal value detection frequency. In the present embodiment, due to the presence of the wall surface 13b, the performance of capturing and accumulating the contaminants is improved.

  In this embodiment, the concavo-convex portion 12 and the discharge port 11 are configured in the same manner as in the first embodiment, and have the same effects as those in the first embodiment. You may make it the structure which does not provide both the uneven | corrugated | grooved part 12 and the discharge port 11, or any one.

  In each of the above-described embodiments, the sub-passage 2 opens toward the upstream side so that the flow path is swiveled approximately 360 degrees, and the inlet opening 2a faces the flow direction of the fluid flowing through the main passage 124, and the outlet opening. 2b is opened toward the downstream side in the fluid flow direction. The configurations related to the partition-like structure 10 and the cavity-like structure 13 described above, and the concavo-convex portion 12 and the discharge port 11 provided accompanying the partition-like structure 10 and the cavity-like structure 13 are described in Patent Document 1 and Patents described in the background art. You may provide in the auxiliary | assistant channel | path disclosed by literature 2. FIG.

  FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing an example in which the configuration of the sub-passage is different from the above-described embodiment. In FIG. 9, only the portion of the sub-passage of the body 1 (housing 302) is shown. 9 shows a cross section substantially similar to FIGS.

  The sub-passage 2 of the present embodiment has an inlet passage portion 2i that communicates with the inlet opening 2a and a measurement passage 2m that branches from the middle of the inlet passage portion 2i toward the flange 312. The inlet passage portion 2 i extends from the inlet opening 2 a toward the downstream side along the flow direction of the airflow 30 flowing through the main passage 124. The downstream end of the inlet passage portion 2i communicates with the outlet 2f. The outlet 2f opens at a side surface at one end of the body 1 in the thickness direction. The measurement passage 2m is provided with a flow rate detector 602 mounted on the circuit package 400 in the middle thereof.

  A portion 30c of the air flow 30a flowing into the inlet passage portion 2i from the inlet opening 2a flows toward the outlet 2f and flows out from the outlet 2f to the main passage 124. A portion 30d of the air flow 30a flows into the measurement passage 2m from the inlet opening surface 2e of the measurement passage 2m, flows through the passage portion provided with the flow rate detection unit 602, and flows out from the outlet 2b to the main passage 124. The measurement passage 2m of the sub passage 2 is branched in the middle of the inlet passage portion 2i so that the air flow 30a is divided in the middle of the inlet passage portion 2i.

  The pollutant contained in the airflow 30a flowing into the inlet passage portion 2i from the inlet opening 2a goes straight through the inlet passage portion 2i and is discharged from the outlet 2f to the main passage 124.

  The entrance opening 2a is provided with a partition-like structure 10 and a widened portion (vortex generation chamber) 2w. There is a high possibility that polluted matter having a large mass goes straight through the inlet passage portion 2i and is discharged from the outlet 2f to the main passage 124. That is, the pollutant with a large mass cannot change the flow direction toward the measurement passage 2m at the inlet opening surface 2e due to inertia. However, the pollutant with a small mass may be carried by the air flow 30d and flow into the measurement passage 2m. Therefore, the partition structure 10 and the widened portion (eddy current generation chamber) 2w are provided on the side where the inlet opening surface 2e is opened, and the eddy current generated in the widened portion 2w causes a small amount of contaminated material flowing in the vicinity of the inlet opening surface 2e. I try to capture it.

  In this embodiment, the partition-like structure 10 is provided, but the cavity-like structure 13 may be provided. Moreover, you may provide both the uneven | corrugated | grooved part 12 and the discharge port 11 in the partition-like structure 10 and the cavity-like structure 13, or any one.

  Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various designs can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention described in the claims. It can be changed. For example, the above-described embodiment has been described in detail for easy understanding of the present invention, and is not necessarily limited to one having all the configurations described. Further, a part of the configuration of an embodiment can be replaced with the configuration of another embodiment, and the configuration of another embodiment can be added to the configuration of an embodiment. Furthermore, it is possible to add, delete, and replace other configurations for a part of the configuration of each embodiment.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Body, 2 ... Subpassage, 2w ... Widening part (eddy current generation chamber), 400 ... Circuit package, 10 ... Partition structure, 10a ... Pressure loss reduction structure provided in partition structure, 11 ... Discharge port, 12 ... Uneven portion, 13 ... hollow structure, 30 ... airflow in main passage, 30b ... vortex flow, 32 ... wall of piping, 124 ... main passage inside piping wall, 602 ... flow rate detection portion (silicon element).

Claims (9)

A sub-passage that captures a part of the airflow flowing through the main passage and a flow rate detector that measures the mass flow rate of the airflow flowing through the sub-passage and is provided with a measuring unit located in the main passage, and the airflow flowing through the main passage The shape of the measurement unit projected onto the orthogonal plane orthogonal to the flow direction of the liquid crystal is a length dimension defined in the first direction on the orthogonal plane and the first direction on the orthogonal plane. A thickness dimension defined in a vertical second direction, wherein the thickness dimension is smaller than the length dimension, and flows through the main passage based on a measured value of the mass flow rate in the sub-passage. In a thermal flow meter that detects the mass flow rate of airflow,
In the sub-passage part upstream of the flow rate detector, a widened part having a wider passage width than the upstream side,
The wider section is a thermal type flow meter, characterized in that formed on the wall surface side for partitioning the sub through passage in said first direction. The thermal flow meter according to claim 1,
The widened portion generates a vortex, and captures the contaminants contained in the airflow by the generated vortex. The thermal flow meter according to claim 2,
The widened portion holds a fouling material on its wall surface. In the thermal type flow meter according to claim 3,
The secondary passage has a back side secondary passage groove formed on the back surface of the housing member and a front side secondary passage groove formed on the surface of the housing member,
The back side sub-passage groove has an inlet opening surface that opens at one end and faces the upstream side so as to face the airflow flowing through the main passage,
The front side sub-passage groove has an outlet opening surface that opens toward one downstream side in the flow direction of the airflow flowing through the main passage at one end, and the other end communicates with the other end of the back side sub-passage groove. And
Therefore, a sub-passage that turns approximately 360 degrees is formed between the inlet opening surface and the outlet opening surface. The thermal flow meter according to claim 4, wherein
The thermal flow meter, wherein the widened portion is provided on an outer peripheral wall surface side of the back side auxiliary passage groove. The thermal flow meter according to claim 1,
The thermal flow meter , wherein the widened portion has a communication hole communicating with the main passage. The thermal flow meter according to claim 1,
A thermal flow meter , wherein a concavo-convex shape is formed on a wall surface of the widened portion. The thermal flow meter according to claim 1,
The thermal flow meter, wherein the widened portion is formed by a partition-like structure formed so as to narrow an opening area of an inlet opening surface of the sub passage. The thermal flow meter according to claim 1,
The thermal flow meter, wherein the widened portion is formed by a hollow structure formed on the downstream side of the inlet opening surface of the sub-passage.

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