JPH07305983A - Heat exchanger - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a heat exchanger wherein a pipe can be provisionally fastened in a reliable manner to a header without the need for any special working such as welding, caulking, etc. CONSTITUTION:A pipe 4 is inserted through cutouts of an upper plate 3a and a lower plate 3b of a header tank 3 in a state that an expanded part 4a of the pipe 4 is positioned within the header tank 3, and two heat transfer tubes 1, which are adjacent to each other, are received by a recess 4b of the pipe 4. By this method, the inserted portion of the pipe 4 is held between the upper plate 3a and the lower plate 3b, and the movement of the pipe 4 in its axial direction is restricted. Therefore, the pipe 4 is provisionally fastened in a reliable manner to the header tank 3 without the need for any special working such as welding, caulking, etc. In this case, the expanded part 4a of the pipe 4 is also held between both the inner faces of the upper plate 3a and the lower plate 3b. Further, since the recess 4b of the pipe 4 abuts against the heat transfer tubes 1, positioning of the pipe 4 in a direction in which the pipe 4 is inserted is ensured, and the movement of the pipe 4 toward its coming-off direction is restricted by the expanded part 4a thereof.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a heat exchanger used as a condenser of an air conditioner, a heater core for a vehicle or the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a heat exchanger of this type, as described in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 4-177094, two core plates are attached to each other and a U-shaped heat medium flow is provided inside. A large number of heat transfer tubes forming channels, fins interposed between the heat transfer tubes, a pair of header tanks with both ends of each heat transfer tube inserted and connected, and inserted into the side surface of one header tank Equipped with connected heat medium inflow and outflow pipes, the heat medium flowing into one header tank via the inflow pipe is distributed to each heat transfer pipe to exchange heat with the external air in contact with the fins. After that, it is known that these are collected in the other header tank and discharged to the outside through an outflow pipe.

[0003]

By the way, in the case of manufacturing the heat exchanger, after each component is temporarily fixed, it is put in a furnace and joined by brazing. At that time, the heat medium inflow and outflow pipes are inserted into the holes provided in the header tank, and temporarily fixed by MIG welding or caulking in this state. However, in the temporary fixing by MIG welding, there is a problem that a weld bead is generated on the back side of the welded portion, which causes the flow of the heat medium to be obstructed, and the heat medium easily leaks along the weld bead. there were.
In addition, there is a problem in that the temporary fixing by crimping has low reliability, and a step for crimping is separately required to complicate the assembling work.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to reliably temporarily fix a pipe to a header without requiring special processing such as welding or caulking. It is to provide a heat exchanger.

[0005]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a plurality of heat transfer tubes for circulating a heat medium and a pair of headers in which both ends of each heat transfer tube are inserted and connected. And a heat exchanger provided with a heat medium inflow or outflow pipe inserted and connected to the side surface of at least one header, while forming the header by at least two members divided in the cross-sectional radial direction, Each member forming the header is provided with a notch for inserting and sandwiching the pipe.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the heat exchanger according to the first aspect, the insertion end of the pipe is provided with a notch for receiving the insertion end of the heat transfer tube.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the heat exchanger according to the first or second aspect, the insertion end of the pipe is provided with an enlarged portion enlarged in the radial direction.

[0008]

According to the heat exchanger of claim 1, the pipe for inflowing or outflowing the heat medium is inserted into the notch of the header tank and is sandwiched by each member forming the header tank. The movement of the pipe in the axial direction is regulated, and the pipe is securely temporarily fixed to the header tank without requiring special processing such as welding or caulking.

According to the heat exchanger of the second aspect, in addition to the function of the first aspect, since the notch provided at the insertion end of the pipe receives the insertion end of the heat transfer tube, the notch and the heat transfer tube. Positioning in the insertion direction of the pipe is performed by contact with the pipe.

According to the heat exchanger of claim 3, in addition to the effect of claim 1 or 2, the movement of the pipe in the pull-out direction is restricted by the enlarged portion provided at the insertion end of the pipe.

[0011]

1 to 6 show an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is an overall perspective view of a heat exchanger, FIG. 2 (a) is an exploded view thereof, and FIG. 2 (b) is FIG. FIG. 3A is a sectional view taken along line XX of FIG. 3A, FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a header tank, and FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged view of a pipe.

In this heat exchanger, a large number of heat transfer tubes 1 for circulating a heat medium, a large number of fins 2 for releasing the heat of each heat transfer tube 1 to the outside, and a heat transfer medium for each heat transfer tube 1 are distributed or It is composed of a pair of header tanks 3 to be assembled, and two pipes 4 for inflowing or outflowing the heat medium from the outside to one of the header tanks 3.

Each heat transfer tube 1 is formed by bonding two vertically rectangular core plates 1a, which are arranged at regular intervals. Each core plate 1
An inlet portion 1b and an outlet portion 1c of the heat medium that project upward at a widthwise interval are provided in the upper portion of a, and a partition portion 1d that extends in the vertical direction is provided at the center of the inner surface thereof.
As a result, a U-shaped heat medium passage is formed inside each heat transfer tube 1 as shown by the solid line arrow in FIG. A large number of ribs 1e are provided on the inner surface of each core plate 1a so that the ribs 1e strengthen the heat transfer tube 1 and stir and mix the heat medium.

Each fin 2 is made of a heat conductive thin plate bent in a wave shape, and is interposed between each heat transfer tube 1.
Further, the fins 2 arranged at both ends of each row of the heat transfer tubes 1 are covered with the end plates 2a.

Each header tank 3 is composed of two members divided in the radial direction, that is, a pair of upper and lower plates 3a and 3b having a substantially U-shaped cross section, which are located above each heat transfer tube 1. Adjacent to each other. The upper plate 3a and the lower plate 3b are integrally joined by partially overlapping the side surfaces, and both ends thereof are closed by two side plates 3c. Further, the lower plate 3b is provided with a large number of holes 3d into which the inlet portion 1b or the outlet portion 1c of each heat transfer tube 1 is inserted. Further, in one of the header tanks 3, a partition plate 3e is provided in the center in the longitudinal direction, and a cutout 3f for inserting each pipe 4 is provided on one side surface of the upper plate 3a and the lower plate 3b. It is provided at a position corresponding to both sides of 3e.

The pipes 4 are arranged at a distance from each other and are inserted into the side surfaces of one of the header tanks 3 via the cutouts 3f. The tip of each pipe 4 is enlarged in the radial direction, and a cutout 4 for receiving the heat transfer tube 1 inserted in the header tank 3 is provided in the enlarged portion 4a.
b is provided. Further, both ends of the notch 4b are formed in a tapered shape so that the heat transfer tube 1 can be easily received.

In the heat exchanger configured as described above, the heat medium flowing into one header tank 3 via one pipe 4 is distributed to approximately half the heat transfer tubes 1 partitioned by the partition plate 3e. The heat is exchanged with the outside air through the fins 2 while flowing through the heat transfer tube 1. After that, the heat medium gathers in the other header tank 3 and is distributed to the remaining half of the heat transfer tubes 1, flows through the heat transfer tubes 1 and flows into the other header tank 3, and then the other pipe. It is discharged to the outside via 4.

In the case of assembling the heat exchanger, first, each component is temporarily fixed, then placed in a furnace and joined by brazing. At that time, as shown in FIG. 5, the pipe 4 is inserted into the cutouts 3f of the upper plate 3a and the lower plate 3b of the header tank 3 with the enlarged portion 4a positioned inside the header tank 3, and Cutout 4
Two heat transfer tubes 1 adjacent to each other are received in b. As a result, the inserted portion of the pipe 4 is sandwiched between the upper plate 3a and the lower plate 3b, and movement of the pipe 4 in the axial direction is restricted. Therefore, the pipe 4 can be mounted without special processing such as welding or caulking. It is securely temporarily fixed to the header tank 3. In this case, the enlarged portion 4a of the pipe 4 is also clamped by the inner surfaces of the upper plate 3a and the lower plate 3b. Further, the notch 4b of the pipe 4 is brought into contact with the heat transfer tube 1 to position the pipe 4 in the insertion direction, and the movement of the pipe 4 in the removal direction is restricted by the enlarged portion 4a.

As described above, according to the heat exchanger of this embodiment, the header tank 3 is formed by the upper plate 3a and the lower plate 3b which are divided into two parts, and the pipe 4 inserted in the header tank 3 is arranged in the upper part. Since it is sandwiched by the plate 3a and the lower plate 3b, the pipe 4 can be securely temporarily fixed to the header tank 3 without requiring special processing such as welding or caulking, and always has good joining and productivity. Can be improved.

In the above embodiment, the heat transfer medium passage of the heat transfer tube 1 is formed in a U shape and the header tanks 3 are arranged adjacent to each other. However, for example, both ends of a straight tube-shaped heat transfer tube are shown. The present invention can be applied to a type in which a header is arranged.

FIG. 7 shows a modification of the notch of the pipe 4, and the notch 4 is in contact with the two heat transfer tubes 1 at two points from both sides.
c is provided. In this case, since the notch 4c can be slightly plastically deformed in the contact portion with the heat transfer tube 1,
By press-fitting the notch 4c into the heat transfer tube 1, the pipe 4 can be temporarily fixed more firmly.

FIG. 8 shows a modification of the header tank. The header tank 5 shown in FIG. 8 is formed to have a larger thickness than that of the above embodiment. In this case, although the pipe 4 sandwiched between the upper plate 5a and the lower plate 5b of the header tank 5 makes the enlarged portion 4a contact only the upper plate 5a, sufficient temporary fixing can be performed.

FIG. 9 shows another modification of the header tank. The header tank 6 shown in FIG. 9 has an elliptical cross section. In this case, since the pipe 4 sandwiched between the upper plate 6a and the lower plate 6b of the header tank 6 has the enlarged portion 4a in contact with the curved surfaces of the upper plate 6a and the lower plate 6b at two points, the pipe 4 has an axial direction. Movement is regulated more reliably. The cross-sectional shape of the header tank may be oval or polygonal, as well as circular or elliptical.

10 and 11 show a modification of the pipe. The pipe 7 shown in FIG. 10 has an elliptical cross section and is inserted into the header tank 6 having an elliptical cross section shown in FIG. In this case, since the pipe 7 has a large diameter, it is formed uniformly without an enlarged portion, and the header tank 6 has the upper plate 6a and the lower plate 6b corresponding to the shape of the pipe 7 as shown in FIG. Each of the semi-elliptical notches 6c is provided.

[0025]

As described above, according to the heat exchanger of the first aspect, the pipe can be reliably temporarily fixed to the header tank without requiring special processing such as welding and caulking. Good joining can always be achieved and productivity can be improved.

According to the heat exchanger of the second aspect, in addition to the effect of the first aspect, it is possible to reliably position the pipe in the inserting direction.

According to the heat exchanger of the third aspect, in addition to the effect of the first or second aspect, the movement of the pipe in the pulling direction can be surely regulated.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall perspective view of a heat exchanger showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the heat exchanger and a cross-sectional view taken along line XX of the heat exchanger.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a header tank

FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged view of a pipe.

FIG. 5 is a partial side view showing a temporarily fixed state of the heat exchanger.

FIG. 6 is a partial cross-sectional partial plan view showing a temporarily fixed state of the heat exchanger.

FIG. 7 is a partial cross-sectional plan view showing a modified example of the notch of the pipe.

FIG. 8 is a partial side view showing a modification of the header tank.

FIG. 9 is a partial side view showing another modification of the header tank.

FIG. 10 is a partial side view showing a modified example of the pipe.

FIG. 11 is a partially exploded view showing a modified example of the pipe.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Heat transfer tube, 3 ... Header tank, 3a ... Upper plate, 3b ...
Lower plate, 3f ... Notch, 4 ... Pipe, 4a ... Enlarged portion, 4
b, 4c ... Notches, 5 ... Header tank, 5a ... Upper plate, 5b ... Lower plate, 6 ... Header tank, 6a ... Upper plate, 6
b ... lower plate, 6c ... notch, 7 ... pipe, 7a ... notch.

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A plurality of heat transfer tubes that circulate a heat transfer medium, a pair of headers in which both ends of each heat transfer tube are inserted and connected, and a heat transfer medium inflow or outflow connected and connected to a side surface of at least one of the headers. In the heat exchanger including the pipe, the header is formed by at least two members divided in the radial direction of the cross section, and each member forming the header is provided with a notch for inserting and sandwiching the pipe. A heat exchanger characterized by that. 2. The heat exchanger according to claim 1, wherein the insertion end of the pipe is provided with a notch for receiving the insertion end of the heat transfer tube. 3. The heat exchanger according to claim 1, wherein an enlarged portion enlarged in the radial direction is provided at the insertion end of the pipe.