JPH09113176A - Heat exchanger with adaptor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To attempt to improve the flexibility of selecting the position for an inlet, an outlet or a transfer passage for heat exchange fluid by fixing the adapter for communicating fluid with both headers to the exterior of a heat exchanger so as to connect to a fluid conduit. SOLUTION: The adapter 90 has an inner plate and an outer plate, and the inner plate has a peripheral edge flange, and first and second openings 98 aligned with the nipple of the side member of a heat exchanger. The outer plate has a first bulged part extended to the zone for surrounding one of the openings 98 from one of the adapter ports, and a second bulged part extended to the zone for surrounding the other opening 98 from the other adapter port. The upper end has an integral nipple 106 to receive a tube joint for connecting to the conduit of heat exchange fluid. Thus, the problems accompanied with the structure of conventional heat exchanger, and the use of inlet and outlet tube joints and transfer joint are avoided.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

The present invention relates to a heat exchanger,
Particularly, it relates to a manifold system used for a heat exchanger.

[0002]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Various types of heat exchangers are in use today, many of which have a core structure which includes two or more parallel spaced tubular headers. A plurality of heat exchange tubes (hereinafter, simply referred to as “tubes”) are extended between the headers and fluidly communicate with the inside of the headers. Further, between the headers, a plurality of fins are arranged in heat exchange relation with each tube. Here, "fluid communication" means that the fluid is connected in such a manner as to allow the fluid to flow therethrough.

In this type of construction, it is common to provide side members to increase strength and to provide a place for mounting the required components. The side members are
Usually a plate extending between the corresponding ends of the two headers. If the fins are serpentine fins, it is common to join the furthest row of serpentine fins to the side members. Various fixtures can be used in connection with the side members.

A typical example of such a structure uses an inlet pipe joint and an outlet pipe joint connected to either one header or both headers. When a heat exchanger is installed in, for example, a vehicle, the location of the conduits connected to the heat exchanger often depends on the location of the vehicle hood and other components under the dashboard. In addition, the heat exchanger design is subject to other constraints such as a request for an aerodynamically good shape of the exterior of the vehicle to improve fuel efficiency and a request for maximizing the interior space of the vehicle. The heat exchanger shall be housed in a given enclosure area (space) under the hood or dashboard of the vehicle and at a location where conduits may be freely laid to the inlet and outlet fittings of the header. There must be. It is not unusual for the header inlet and outlet fittings to be used to increase the enclosure area for housing the heat exchanger in the direction of extension from one header to the other.

Further, when the conduits are connected to both of the two facing headers, at least the connection points of the conduits to the headers must be separated from each other, so that a new space is required for installing the heat exchanger. It raises the above problem. Further, if tubular headers are used, a plurality of parallel slots are longitudinally spaced in the sidewalls of each header for receiving the ends of tubes extending between the headers. In many such constructions, the sidewalls of the header opposite those slots are formed with flat wall portions for drilling holes to receive inlet and outlet fittings or transfer fittings. This requires additional processing work, but it is desirable to eliminate such additional processing work.

[0006]

The present invention is directed to overcoming one or more of the problems set forth above. Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved heat exchanger and, in particular, a new and improved manifold system for connecting to the heat exchanger header.

[0007]

According to one embodiment of the present invention, in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, first and second cylindrical headers are arranged in parallel with each other and are arranged in parallel with each other. A plurality of pipes extending between the two headers and connected so that both ends are in fluid communication with the insides of the corresponding headers, and a plurality of pipes are arranged between the headers in a heat exchange relationship with the plurality of pipes. A plurality of fins, and a side extending between both headers along both sides of the array of the plurality of tubes and the plurality of fins, the side being fastened to a corresponding one of both ends of the header. In the heat exchanger consisting of the side member, one of the side members has an internal passage, and the internal passage is
Provided is a heat exchanger having a first port in fluid communication with one end of one header at one end thereof and a second port in fluid communication with one end of the other header at the other end.

In a preferred embodiment, the fin is a meandering fin and is joined to the side member. In one embodiment of the present invention, the one side member is provided with two of the internal passages, and each of the internal passages is provided with two first ports and two second ports in total, and the two first ports are provided. One port is in fluid communication with different headers.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the second port is opposite the side of the side member having the array of tubes and fins so that it can be easily connected to a fixture or the like. Provided on the side wall on the side. In one embodiment of the present invention, an additional header is provided in close proximity to one of the headers connected to the internal passage, and the additional header is provided with the second port of the internal passage. Make fluid communication.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, an additional set of first and second headers and a plurality of tubes (second set).
Are arranged side by side in the first set, and the first header and the first header of both sets are in close proximity to each other, and the second header and the second header of both sets are in close proximity to each other. And juxtapose the second set. The side member is provided with three internal passages each having a first port and a second port. The first port of the first passage and the first of the second passage
The port is in fluid communication with the first header of each set, and the second port of the first passage and the second passage is located opposite the side of the array of tubes of each set. Both ports of the third passage are in fluid communication with the respective second header of the set to form a transfer passage.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the side member is constituted by a pair of plates, and the internal passage is formed at an interface between the plates. In one embodiment, a spacer is interposed between the plates to form a laminated side member. In another embodiment, one plate is formed with a peripheral flange and the other plate is abutted against the one plate to fit inside the peripheral flange.

[0012]

1 and 2, there is shown a heat exchanger made in accordance with the present invention including a pair of elongated tubular headers 10 and 12 having an oval cross section. Headers 10 and 12 are spaced apart and parallel to each other and have compound curved pressure dome or corrugations 14 on their opposite sides, as is known in the art.
Slots 16 are formed in the sidewall of the header between these pressure domes 14 to receive the ends 18 of the normally extruded elongated flat tubes 20.

As shown in FIG. 1, a plurality of elongated flat tubes 20 extend between the headers 10 and 12 in parallel with each other and are spaced apart from each other. A plurality of fins 22 are extended so as to have a heat exchange relationship. The fins 22 are typically brazed to each tube 20 if they are serpentine fins as shown in FIG. 1, but if plate fins are used, they do not use metallurgical bonds and simply mechanical contact. Is used.

A first side member 30 and a second side member 32 are provided along both sides of the array of tubes 20 and fins 22.
The structure of the heat exchanger is completed by providing.
The first side member 30 is of a conventional type and has inwardly protruding ear pieces 34 at both ends thereof, and these ear pieces 34 are fixed to the corresponding headers 10 and 12 by brazing or the like. The fins 22 adjacent to the first side member 30 are also typically fixed to the first side member 30 by brazing.
The side members 30 and 32 serve to stabilize the entire heat exchanger structure against various forces experienced during use. For example, when mounted in a vehicle, the heat exchanger undergoes significant vibrations, pressure cycles, and heat cycles, but the side members 30, 32 suffer from the destruction that occurs during such vibrations, pressure cycles, and heat cycles. Gives strength to withstand the required force.

The ends of the headers 10, 12 proximate the side members 30 are sealed by a conventional cap 36. The second side member 32 is constructed according to the present invention and is different from the first side member 30. That is, the second
The side member 32 includes an inner manifold plate (hereinafter, also simply referred to as “inner plate”) 38, an outer manifold plate (hereinafter, also simply referred to as “outer plate”) 40, and a spacer plate 42. The inner manifold plate 38 has nipples 44 integrally formed at both ends thereof, and each nipple 4
4 are tightly received in the adjacent open ends of the respective headers 10, 12 and are brazed and sealed to the open ends.

The spacer plate 42 has three internal passages, as will be described in detail later, and the outer manifold plate 40 is opposite to the nipple 44 (see FIG. 1), that is, the tubes 20 and the fins 22. It has a pair of integrally molded nipples 46 projecting away from the side where the nipples are located. Each nipple 46 can receive a fitting or nipple 48 having a threaded end 50 that can be connected to a fluid conduit. The nipples 44, 46 can be stamped on the respective plates 38, 40.

As can be seen in FIG. 2, in this embodiment there are two headers 10 and 12 between the two headers.
A row of tubes 20 extends. That is, there are provided two cores (also referred to as "modules") each consisting of a header 10, a header 12, and a row of tubes 20 extending between them. Those cores are
The headers 10 and 10 are closely arranged, and the headers 12 and 12 are closely arranged so as to be arranged side by side.

The fins 22 may be a single set of fins extending across both cores, or each core may have its own fins if desired. In this configuration, the inner manifold plate 38 has a total of four nipples 44, two at each end.
As seen in FIG. 2, two upper nipples 44 are inserted into their respective headers 10 and two lower nipples 46 are inserted into their respective headers 12.

The spacer plate 42 has a first internal cutout 60 that aligns with the two upper nipples 44.
Therefore, the cutout 60 has two upper headers 10 and 10.
Fluid communication between the two modules and serves as a transfer passage from one module to the other. The spacer plate 42 also has a first internal passage 62 and a second internal passage 64 shaped as shown in FIG. These internal passages are formed by cutouts in the spacer plate 42. As shown in FIG. 2, the first internal passage 62
Connects the upper nipple 48 and the lower left nipple 44 so that the upper nipple 48 is in fluid communication with the lower left header 12. The cutout 64 or second internal passage extends from the lower right header 12 to the lower nipple 48 and places the lower nipple 48 in fluid communication with the lower right header 12.

As can be seen from the above description, one of the nipples or fittings 48, 48 can be used as a fluid inlet to the heat exchanger and the other can be used as a fluid outlet.
The fluid is passed through one module into the lower header 12 of that module, rises through the tube 20 and into the upper header 10, from which it passes through the transfer passage 60 to the upper header 10 of the other module. Move to. Then, the fluid flows down through the pipe 20 into the lower header 12 of the other module, and finally flows out of the system through the other pipe joint 48.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the side member 3
2 consists of an inner plate 38 and an outer plate 40,
Although it is a laminated structure in which an internal passage is formed at the interface between the two, a two-piece structure may be preferable in some cases. An example of such a side member having a two-piece structure will be described with reference to FIGS. In FIG. 3, the inner plate 70 of this side member is basically flat, but has a peripheral flange 72 extending from one surface thereof and a nipple 74 integrally provided on both ends of the other surface. Have. These nipples 7
4 serves the same function as the nipple 44 of the embodiment of FIG. 2 and will not be described further. Inner plate 70
Is very suitable for coupling to serpentine fins because it is flat.

On the other hand, the outer plate 76 of the side member shown in FIG. 4 is sized and shaped to fit inside the peripheral flange 72 of the inner plate 70. Near the upper end of one surface of the outer plate 76, an elongated bulged portion (bubble) 78 is formed by stamping so as to straddle the two upper nipples 74, 74 of the inner plate 70 and cover both nipples. The nipples 74, 74 and the bulging portion 78 form a transfer passage corresponding to the transfer passage 60 in the embodiment of FIG.

Additional bulges 80 and 82 are further formed on the surface of the outer plate 76 on the side where the bulges 78 are formed. The bulging portions 80 and 82 correspond to the cutouts (internal passages) 62 and 64 of the embodiment of FIG. 2, respectively, and are configured so as to project at the upper ends to the side opposite to the side having the inner plate 70, respectively. It has integral nipples 84, 84 formed by stamping. The nipples 84, 84 are adapted to receive fittings for connecting to conduits for heat exchange fluid in a known manner. The lower ends of the bulging portions 80 and 82 extend downward to positions covering the lower left nipple 74 and the lower right nipple 74 of the inner plate 70, respectively, and pass through the same heat exchanger as the heat exchanger shown in FIG. An exchange fluid can be passed through.

FIG. 5 is an exploded view showing the manner in which the inner plate 70 of FIG. 3 and the outer plate 76 of FIG. 4 are assembled.
The outer plate 76 is flat except the portion where the bulging portions 78, 80, 82 are formed, and the inner plate 7
Since it abuts against 0, if a typical joining process such as brazing is performed, the flat portions of both plates 70 and 76 are brazed to each other, and the passages defined by the bulges 78, 80 and 82 are made to each other, and , Seal from outside the heat exchanger. As mentioned above, brazing is preferably used as a method of assembling this heat exchanger. In a typical example, each component of the heat exchanger is made of aluminum, and a brazing clad is attached to one or both of the components to be brazed at a portion where brazing is required. Wear it.

As is apparent from the above description, the present invention realizes the usual functions provided by the side members and adds new functions thereto. That is, according to the present invention, the side members are configured to also provide a fluid inlet, a fluid outlet and / or a transfer passage for the heat exchanger. As a result, the presence of the pipe fittings necessitates increasing the enclosure area of the heat exchanger between the upper and lower headers 10 and 12 in the direction extending from one header to the other (ie, in the vertical direction). Never be. Further, the present invention allows each pipe joint to be connected to the heat exchanger at a location other than the header, thus increasing design flexibility.

In the illustrated embodiment, the fitting is shown as lying in the plane of the heat exchanger,
If desired, plates such as plates 70 and 76 may be extended in either the front or back direction of the heat exchanger of the heat exchanger (either left or right as viewed in FIGS. 2-4) and bulge in that extension. Part, and the pipe fitting on the side of the heat exchanger, not
It may be configured so that it can be arranged all or at the rear. Similarly, the nipples 46 and / or 84 may be deflected 90 ° (or any angle) from the position shown and directed in the anterior-posterior direction of the heat exchanger, if desired. Further, although the tubular headers 10 and 12 are illustrated as being formed by a single member, as long as the internal passage of the side member is a passage as shown in the drawing, the tubular header is formed by using two or more members. The header may be formed.

The heat exchanger described above is replaced by the nipple 4 described above.
It may be desirable to use in connection with systems having fluid conduits that are not aligned with 6,84. In such a case, an adapter 90 can be attached to the heat exchanger. The adapter 90 can be used for both a heat exchanger having a side member having a laminated structure (FIG. 2) and a heat exchanger having a side member having a two-piece structure (FIGS. 3 to 5). The adapter 90 lengthens the internal passage of the side member,
It serves to introduce new passage endpoints to adapt a single basic configuration heat exchanger for use in a number of different environments with inlet and outlet ports located at different locations.

The adapter 90 comprises an inner plate 92 and an outer plate 94, as shown in FIGS. The inner plate 92 has a peripheral flange 96 and first and second openings 98 that align with the nipples 46 or 84 of the side members of the heat exchanger described above. These openings 98
Is sized to closely receive and braze nipples 46 or 84 to form a fluid tight joint. The outer plate 94, on the other hand, is sized and shaped to fit inside the peripheral flange 96 of the inner plate 92 and has first and second adapter ports 100 near its upper end. These ports 100 are arranged to align with the particular fluid conduit of the system in which the heat exchanger is to be installed. In the example shown here, the ports 100 and 100 are laterally aligned and extend perpendicular to the plane of the side member 32, but the ports 100 and 100 are lateral to accommodate any other installation environment. Member 32
It may be arranged at a different angle other than the right angle with respect to the plane.

Further, the outer plate 94 extends from one of the adapter ports 100 to the area surrounding one of the openings 98, and the first bulge 102, and from the other adapter port 100 to the other opening 98. It has the 2nd bulge part 104 extended even to the area. First bulge 102
Is the upper opening 98 of the inner plate 92 and the outer plate 9
Stamping on one side of the outer plate 94 to extend between and cover the two left adapter ports 100 to form a duct from the left adapter port 100 to one of the side member nipples 46 or 84. It is formed by processing. Similarly, the second bulge 104 extends between the lower opening 98 of the inner plate 92 and the right adapter port 100 of the outer plate 94 to cover them.
From the right adapter port 100 to the side member nipple 4
Stamped on one side of the outer plate 94 to form a duct to another one of 6 or 84.

The bulges 102 and 104 are provided at their upper ends with
An integral nipple 10 formed by stamping so as to project to the side opposite to the side on which the inner plate 92 is present.
6, 106. These nipples are adapted to receive fittings for connecting to conduits for heat exchange fluid.

The outer plate 94 has bulges 102, 10
Since the portion other than the portion where 4 is formed is flat and abuts against the inner plate 92, if a typical joining process such as brazing is performed, the flat portions of both plates 92 and 94 are brazed to each other, The passages defined by the bulges 102, 104 are sealed to each other and to the outside of the heat exchanger. FIG. 8 shows a heat exchanger fitted with the adapter of FIGS. 6 and 7. In some cases, instead of the two-piece structure adapter having a passage (bulging portion) formed by stamping, a laminated structure adapter having a cutout in the central portion can be used.

As is apparent from the above description, the improvement according to the invention allows the heat exchanger to be adapted for use in a wide variety of different types of systems. A particular heat exchanger may be suitable for use in a particular application, but the heat exchanger may not be able to because the inlet and outlet fluid conduits are not aligned with the inlet and outlet ports of the heat exchanger. is there. While reconfiguring heat exchangers to align with specific inlet and outlet ports is costly and inefficient, the adapter of the present invention allows a single heat exchanger to be used in many different ways. Allows to adapt to the system. In any event, the use of the present invention avoids many of the above-mentioned problems associated with conventional heat exchanger constructions and their use of inlet and outlet fittings and transfer joints.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an elevational view of a heat exchanger made in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an elevation view of the heat exchanger viewed from the right side of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a diagram of one piece of a side member according to a modified embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a view of another part of the side member according to the modified embodiment of FIG.

5 is an exploded view showing an assembly mode of the parts of FIG. 3 and the parts of FIG. 4. FIG.

FIG. 6 is an exploded elevational view of an adapter made in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a side view of the adapter of FIG.

FIG. 8 is a side view of a heat exchanger fitted with the adapter of FIGS. 6 and 7.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10, 12: Cylindrical header 18: End 20: Pipe 22: Fins 30, 32: Side member 38: Inner plate 40: Outer plate 42: Spacer plate 44, 46: Nipple 48: Nipple or pipe joint 60: Transfer Passages 62, 64: Inner passage 70: Inner plate 72: Peripheral flange 74: Nipple 76: Outer plate 78: Swelling portion 80: Swelling portion 82: Swelling portion 84: Nipple 90: Adapter 92: Inner plate 94: Outside Plate 96: Peripheral flange 98: First and second openings 100: First and second adapter ports 102, 104: First and second bulges 106: Nipple

Front Page Continuation (72) Inventor Dennis Sea Granecke 5611 Bradford Avenue, Racine, Wisconsin, USA

Claims (13)

[Claims] 1. A first and a second tubular header, which are spaced apart from each other in parallel, and a space which is spaced apart from each other and extends between the two headers, and both ends are in fluid communication with the insides of the corresponding headers. Connected to each other, a plurality of fins arranged in a heat exchange relationship with the plurality of tubes between the headers, and both sides of an array of the plurality of tubes and the plurality of fins. A side member extending along the section between the headers and fastened to a corresponding one of the ends of the header, wherein one of the side members defines an internal passage. The internal passage has at its one end a first port in fluid communication with one end of one header, and at the other end has a second port in fluid communication with one end of the other header, said first port A first duct in fluid communication with the second duct;
An adapter is provided having a second duct in fluid communication with the port, thereby extending the internal passage, the internal passage comprising a first adapter port and a second adapter port provided on the adapter and spaced apart from each other. A heat exchanger characterized by being extended to. 2. The fin is a meandering fin, and is connected to the both side members.
A heat exchanger according to item 1. 3. The inner passage is formed in the one side member with two inner passages.
And each of the internal passages is provided with one of the first port and one second port, and the first ports of the two internal passages are in fluid communication with different headers. The heat exchanger according to claim 1. 4. The second port is provided on a side wall of the one side member opposite to a side on which the plurality of tubes and the plurality of fins are arranged. The heat exchanger according to Item 1. 5. An additional header is provided in close proximity to one of the headers, one of which is connected to the internal passage, and a second port of the internal passage is connected to a fluid port of the additional header. The heat exchanger according to claim 1, which is in communication with each other. 6. A second set of similar first and second headers and tubes is provided juxtaposed to the first set of first and second headers and tubes.
The first headers and the first headers of the both sets are closely arranged to each other, and the second headers and the second headers of both sets are arranged to be closely close to each other, and the one side member is respectively the first side member. A first internal passage having three first, second and third internal passages each having a port and a second port;
The port and the first port of the second internal passage are respectively the first
In fluid communication with the first header of the set and the first header of the second set, and with the second port and the second port of the first internal passage.
The second port of the internal passage has a first set and a second set, respectively.
The first and second ports of the third internal passage are located on the side opposite to the side of the array of tubes of the set, and the first and second ports of the third internal passage are respectively the second header of the first set and the second header of the second set. The heat exchanger according to claim 1, which is in fluid communication with the heat exchanger. 7. The heat exchange according to claim 1, wherein the one side member includes a pair of plates, and the internal passage is formed at an interface between the pair of plates. vessel. 8. One of the plates has a peripheral flange, and the other plate is abutted against the one plate and fitted inside the peripheral flange. The heat exchanger according to claim 7, wherein the heat exchanger is a heat exchanger. 9. The heat exchanger according to claim 7, wherein the one side member has a spacer between the pair of plates and is a laminated side member. 10. A first and a second cylindrical headers, which are spaced apart from each other in parallel, and a pair of headers, which are spaced apart from each other in parallel and extend between the both headers. A pair of juxtaposed first and second heat exchange modules comprising a plurality of tubes connected in fluid communication, and arranged in a heat exchange relationship with the plurality of tubes disposed between the headers A plurality of fins coupled to each other, extending between the headers along both sides of the array of tubes and fins, and fastened to corresponding ones of both ends of the headers, respectively. A side member, wherein one of the side members is a first, a second and a third member.
One internal passage, each internal passage has a first port and a second port at one end and the other end, respectively, and the first port of the first internal passage and the first port of the second internal passage are , Respectively in fluid communication with the first header of the first heat exchange module and the first header of the second heat exchange module, the second port of the first internal passage and the second port of the second internal passage each having a first The heat exchange module and the second heat exchange module are arranged on the side opposite to the side where the plurality of tubes are arranged, and the first and second ports of the third internal passage are respectively connected to the first heat exchange module. A second header and a second header of the second heat exchange module in fluid communication to form a transfer passage, and the one side member is provided with a substantially flat adapter having a pair of internal passages; The adapter And a third port in fluid communication with a corresponding one of the second ports and a third port that is spaced from the third port and opposite to the third port side. A heat exchanger having a fourth port, the fourth port of the pair of internal passages being adapted to be respectively connected as a fluid inlet and a fluid outlet for the heat exchanger. 11. The heat exchanger according to claim 10, wherein the fins are meandering fins and are coupled to the both side members. 12. The heat exchange according to claim 10, wherein the adapter comprises a pair of plates, and the first and second ducts are arranged at an interface of the pair of plates. vessel. 13. One of the plates has a peripheral flange, and the other plate is abutted against the one plate and fitted inside the peripheral flange. The heat exchanger according to claim 12, wherein the heat exchanger is a heat exchanger.