KR101138668B1 - Heat exchanger - Google Patents

Abstract

According to the invention, a plurality of tubes arranged in parallel so that the heat exchange medium flows; First and second headers provided at both ends of the tubes; A pin disposed between the tubes; A first tank coupled to the first header and a second tank coupled to the second header; A heating element installed in a space formed by the first or second header and the first or second tank, the base having a plurality of parallel wall surfaces formed on the base and having a heating wire embedded therein; One heat exchanger is provided.

Description

Heat exchanger

Figure 1 is a schematic perspective view of a heat exchanger according to the prior art, showing a heat exchanger having a honeycomb heat exchange medium heater.

FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the heat exchanger shown in FIG. 1.

3 is a schematic perspective view of a heat exchanger according to the present invention, and includes a heat exchanger having a heating element.

4 is a schematic perspective view illustrating an example of a heating element provided in the heat exchanger illustrated in FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a schematic perspective view of another example of a heating element provided in the heat exchanger illustrated in FIG. 3.

6 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a heat exchanger and a flow path conversion valve provided therein according to the present invention.

<Brief Description of Major Codes in Drawings>

31. First header 32. Second header

33.Tube 34.Pin

35. First tank 36. Second tank

37. First heating element 38. Second heating element

The present invention relates to a heat exchanger, and more particularly to a heat exchanger that can improve the initial operating efficiency of the heat exchanger by installing a heating element inside the heat exchanger.

Typically, a vehicle is equipped with a variety of heat exchangers, in particular a heater core (heater core) for heating the vehicle interior. The heater core is typically installed inside the air conditioner case of the vehicle engine, and transfers heat of the heat exchange medium heated by the engine to the interior of the vehicle through a flow of air forcibly blown by the blower.

The problem with the heater core is that the heat exchange action through the heater core cannot be adequately performed until the vehicle engine is sufficiently heated, and thus the heating of the vehicle interior is delayed. For example, when the vehicle is started in winter, the temperature of the heat exchange medium rises only after a predetermined time has elapsed since the engine is operated, thereby allowing heating of the vehicle through the heater core. At this time, the driver or passenger in the vehicle must withstand the cold until heat exchange in the heater core occurs. One way to solve this problem is to insert the initial heating element inside the heater core to preheat the heat exchange medium.

1 and 2 show a schematic exploded perspective view and a cross-sectional view of a heat exchanger proposed in the prior art. These will be disclosed in patent 297,681 by the applicant of the present invention.

Referring to the drawings, a heat exchange medium heater 20 is provided inside the heater core 10. The heater core 10 includes upper and lower headers 13 and 14 having tube insertion holes (not shown) formed at predetermined intervals, and a plurality of tubes 15 having both ends inserted into tube insertion holes of the respective headers. And upper and lower tanks 16 and 17 coupled to the upper and lower headers 13 and 14, respectively, to form a heat exchange medium passage 18, and installed inside the upper tank 16 to enter the heat exchange medium passage. And a baffle 18c that divides into the passage 18a and the outflow side passage 18b. In addition, the upper tank 16 is provided with an inlet pipe 11 communicating with the inlet side passage 18a and an outlet tube 12 communicating with the outlet side passage 18b. The heat dissipation fin 39 is provided between the tubes 15 to widen the heat dissipation surface area.

In addition, an inlet side passage 18a formed by the upper header 13 and the upper tank 16 is provided with a heat exchange medium heater 20 which is the heating means for heating the heat exchange medium. As shown in FIG. 2, the heat exchange medium heater 20 includes a main body 22 having a connector portion 21 exposed to one side of the upper tank 16 and the inflow side passage and having a heat generating portion 22a. And an insulating layer (not shown) formed on the surface of the main body 22. Here, the main body 22 has a plurality of through holes 22b through which a heat exchange medium passes, and has a honeycomb shape. The connector portion 21 exposed to the upper tank 16 is provided with a material that is in close contact with the upper tank 16 to maintain the airtight with the upper tank 16 and includes a cover member 24 coupled to the upper tank.                         

The heat exchanger having the above configuration allows the heat exchange medium heater 20 to electrically heat the heat exchange medium when the heat exchange medium is not sufficiently heated by the engine heat so that the heating action by the heat exchanger can be achieved in a faster time.

The heat exchanger as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 has the following problems. First, the configuration of the heat exchange medium heater 20 having a honeycomb shape is not easy. The heat exchange medium heater 20 has a honeycomb shape in order to minimize the resistance to the heat exchange medium flow in the upper tank 16 of the heat exchanger. In practice, the heating element itself has a honeycomb shape. It is a difficult task. Moreover, heating of the heat exchange medium is easy only when a heating wire is provided on each wall constituting the honeycomb, and thus it is not easy to form the heating wire on the wall.

In addition, the honeycomb-shaped heat exchange medium heater 20 has a problem in that, although its cross section is designed to minimize the flow resistance of the heat exchange medium, in practice, it generates a considerable flow resistance, thus reducing the heat exchange efficiency. have.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved heat exchanger.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a heat exchanger in which a period in which heating of a vehicle interior is delayed can be minimized.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a heat exchanger in which heat exchange efficiency can be improved.

In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, a plurality of tubes arranged in parallel so that the heat exchange medium flows; First and second headers provided at both ends of the tubes; A pin disposed between the tubes; A first tank coupled to the first header and a second tank coupled to the second header; A heating element installed in a space formed by the first or second header and the first or second tank, the base having a plurality of parallel wall surfaces formed on the base and having a heating wire embedded therein; One heat exchanger is provided.

Also according to the present invention, a plurality of tubes arranged in parallel; First and second headers provided at both ends of the tubes; A fin disposed between the tubes; A first tank coupled to the first header and a second tank coupled to the second header; Installed in the space formed by the first or second header and the first or the second tank, the heating element consisting of a base and a plurality of protruding pins formed on the base and the built-in hot wire inside the base; A heat exchanger is provided, which is provided.

According to one feature of the invention, a cable is connected to the heating element so that a current can be applied to the heating wire built in the heating element.

According to another feature of the invention, the base of the heating element is arranged in the opposite direction with respect to the open end of the tube.                     

According to another feature of the invention, the first header and the inlet pipe connected to the space formed by the first tank; An outlet pipe connected to the second header and a space formed by the second tank; And a flow path conversion valve connected to the inflow pipe and the outflow pipe so as to form a closed heat exchange medium circuit defined in the heat exchanger according to the position of the vane.

According to another feature of the invention, the heating element only operates while the temperature of the heat exchange medium is below a predetermined temperature.

According to another feature of the invention, the flow path conversion valve forms a closed heat exchange medium circuit only during operation of the heating element.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to an embodiment shown in the accompanying drawings.

3 is a schematic exploded perspective view of a heat exchanger according to the present invention, which relates to a heater core installed in an air conditioning case of a vehicle.

Referring to the drawings, the heat exchanger extends between the first header 31 and the second header 32 respectively installed on the upper and lower portions, and the first header 31 and the second header 32 so that an end thereof is extended. A plurality of tubes 33 inserted into the headers, pins 34 disposed between the tubes 33, a first tank 35 coupled to the first header 31, and the second A second tank 36 is coupled to the header 32.

According to one feature of the invention, a first heating element 37 is provided inside the space formed by the first header 31 and the first tank 35, the second header 32 and the second The second heating element 38 is provided inside the space formed by the tank 36. A heating wire is built into the first heating element 37 and the second heating element 38, and the heating wire is connected to a cable 43 connected to the outside of the heat exchanger. Therefore, the first heating element 37 and the second heating element 38 may be electrically heated.

4 is a schematic enlarged perspective view of the first and second heating elements 37 and 38 shown in FIG. 3.

Referring to the drawings, the heating element is formed in a state in which a plurality of walls 51 extend in parallel on the base 55. Grooves 52 are formed between the parallel walls 51. The heating wire may extend inside the base 55, and the heating wire may also extend on the wall 51. A side wall 53 is formed at one end of the wall 51, and a cable connector 54 is formed at the side wall 53. An electric cable extending from the outside can be connected through the cable connector 54, and the heat exchange medium can be prevented from contacting the cable or the heating wire of the heating element by a seal (not shown). The grooves 52 between the walls 51 provide a flow space through which the heat exchange medium flows. In addition, since the contact area is increased with the wall 51 in which the heat wire is embedded while the heat exchange medium flows in the groove 52, heating of the heat exchange medium through the heat wire can be made more quickly and efficiently.

The heating element as described above may be formed of a ceramic having a high thermal conductivity while being insulator, and a space in which a heating wire may be embedded or a heating wire may be formed.

Referring back to FIG. 3, it can be seen that the bases 55 of the heating element described in FIG. 4 face in the opposite direction to the end of the tube 33 in the space formed by the tank and the header. That is, the base 55 of the heat generating elements 37 and 38 is installed so as not to close both open ends of the tube 33.

Meanwhile, a connector 42 to which an external cable 43 may be connected is installed at one side of the first header 31, and a connector to which an external cable 45 may be connected to one side of the second header 32 ( 44) is installed. These connectors 42 and 44 allow the cables 43 and 45 to be stably held on one side of the header and ensure a seal against the openings formed in the sides of the header 31 and to the heating elements 37 and 38. To enable the connection of the cable.

On the other hand, the inlet pipe 39 and the outlet pipe 40 are connected to opposite sides of the first and second headers 31, 32 on which the connectors 42, 44 are formed. In order to connect the inlet pipe 39, the first header 31 and the first tank 35 have half insertion holes 41 formed therein, and the first header 31 and the first tank 35 may be coupled to each other. When openings corresponding to the cross-sectional shape of the inlet pipe 39 are formed. Similarly, half insertion slots are formed in the second header 32 and the second tank 36.

As can be readily seen from FIG. 3, the heat exchange medium flowing from the inlet pipe 39 can easily flow along the grooves 52 (FIG. 4) formed in the first heating element 37, It can be heated quickly by the first heating element 37 at the time of flow. In addition, there is no flow resistance caused by the heating element even when the heat exchange medium flows into the tube 33 through the ends of the tubes 33, and similarly, the flow resistance by the second heating element 38 in the space in which the second heating element 38 is installed. none.                     

Figure 5 shows another embodiment of the heating element provided in the heat exchanger according to the present invention.

Referring to the drawings, the heating element is composed of a base 50 having a planar shape and a plurality of protruding pins 57 extending on the base 50. One side of the base 50 is provided with a side wall 58, the side wall 58 is formed with a cable connector (59).

The heating wire extends inside the base 50. Since the heating wire generates heat by a current applied through the cable, the heat exchange medium contacting the surface of the base 50 may be heated. At this time, a plurality of protruding pins 57 are provided to improve heat exchange between the base 50 and the heat exchange medium.

The heating element shown in FIG. 5 may also be installed in a space consisting of a tank and a header of the heat exchanger shown in FIG. At this time, the base 56 is installed so as to be opposite to the open ends of the tubes 33.

6 shows an enlarged view of the configuration of the heat exchanger according to the present invention.

Referring to the drawings, as illustrated in FIG. 3, the first header 31 and the second header 32 extend between the first header 31 and the second header 32 so that an end thereof is extended. A plurality of tubes 33 inserted into the headers, pins 34 disposed between the tubes 33, a first tank 35 coupled to the first header 31, and the second A cross section of a heat exchanger having a second tank 36 coupled to the header 32 is shown. In addition, the inlet pipe 30 and the outlet pipe 40 have insertion holes formed by the first header 32 and the second tank 35, and insertion holes formed by the second header 32 and the second tank 36, respectively. Is installed on.

According to a feature of the invention shown in FIG. 6, the inlet pipe 39 and the outlet pipe 40 are connected to a flow path conversion valve 61. The vane for changing the flow path is provided inside the flow path conversion valve 61.

When the vanes are in the position as indicated in reference numeral 62a, the heat exchange medium can only be circulated by convection on the inside of the heat exchanger only, and the engine may be placed through the inlet pipe extension 65 or the outlet pipe extension 66. It is not circulated to a water jacket (not shown). Alternatively, the heat exchange medium inside the heat exchanger can be circulated to the water jacket (not shown) of the engine when the vanes of the flow path conversion valve 61 are in the position as indicated by reference numeral 62b.

The flow path conversion valve 61 can improve the efficiency of the heating operation of the heat exchanger. That is, in the initial operation of the heat exchanger, the heat of the heat exchange medium is entirely made by the heating elements 37 and 38, and the heat generated by the engine is not transmitted to the heat exchanger. It is desirable not to release it in place. Therefore, the vane of the flow path conversion valve 61 is kept in the closed state indicated by reference numeral 62a to prevent the heated heat exchange medium from leaking to another place outside the heat exchanger or the introduction of the external cold heat exchange medium. Thereafter, when the engine is heated to supply the heat exchange medium with a high temperature from the water jacket of the engine to the heat exchanger, the vane of the flow path conversion valve 61 is switched to the open state indicated by reference numeral 62b, and the heating elements 37 and 38 are turned on. Heating can be stopped.                     

Operation of the heating element and the flow path conversion valve of the heat exchanger as shown in Figure 6 may be made in conjunction with each other. For example, the operation of the heating elements 37 and 38 allows the operation of the heating elements 37 and 38 only when the temperature of the heat exchange medium measured by the heat exchange medium sensor (not shown) is lower than or equal to a predetermined temperature, and a current is applied to the heating elements 37 and 38. In the meantime, the vane of the flow path conversion valve 61 is placed in the closed state indicated by reference numeral 62a to prevent the outflow of the heat exchange medium. Thereafter, after the temperature of the heat exchange medium rises above the predetermined temperature or after the operating time of the heating element is made for a predetermined time, the operation of the heating elements 37 and 38 is stopped and the flow path conversion valve 61 is opened with the reference numeral 62b. By converting to a state, a high temperature heat exchange medium can be supplied from an engine water jacket. These operating scenarios can be set differently depending on the design intent.

The heat exchanger according to the present invention has an advantage that the heating of the vehicle interior can be quickly achieved by providing a heating element capable of rapidly heating the heat exchange medium without causing a flow resistance to the flow of the heat exchange medium flowing in the heat exchanger. In addition, it has the advantage that the production of the heating element is easy.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to one embodiment shown in the accompanying drawings, this is merely exemplary, and those skilled in the art may understand that various modifications and equivalent other embodiments are possible therefrom. will be. Therefore, the true scope of protection of the present invention should be defined only by the appended claims.

Claims (6)

A plurality of tubes disposed in parallel so that the heat exchange medium flows; First and second headers provided at both ends of the tubes; A pin disposed between the tubes; A first tank coupled to the first header and a second tank coupled to the second header; A heating element installed in a space formed by the first header or the second header and the first tank or the second tank, the base having a heating wire embedded therein; An inlet pipe connected to a space formed by the first header and the first tank; An outlet pipe connected to a space formed by the second header and the second tank; And a flow path conversion valve connected to the inflow pipe and the outflow pipe so as to form a closed heat exchange medium circuit defined in the heat exchanger according to the position of the vane. The method of claim 1, Heat exchanger, characterized in that a plurality of parallel wall surface is formed on the base of the heating element. The method of claim 1, Heat exchanger, characterized in that a plurality of protruding fins are formed on the base of the heating element. The method of claim 1, And a cable is connected to the heating element so as to apply a current to the heating wire built in the heating element. The method of claim 1, And the base of the heating element is disposed in an opposite direction with respect to the open end of the tube. 6. The method of claim 5, And the flow path conversion valve forms a closed heat exchange medium circuit only during operation of the heating element.

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