Patent Application
20240255238
The present application relates to the field of heat exchange technologies, and in particular to a connector and a heat exchanger having the same.
Microchannel heat exchangers have the characteristics of high refrigeration efficiency and small volume, and their applications are developing rapidly. In some cases, it is necessary to install connectors at a collecting tube of the microchannel heat exchangers. Connectors, such as adapter seats, are often used in heat exchangers to connect the collecting tube with inlet and outlet tubes of the heat exchangers, so as to increase the strength of the joint parts and facilitate the connection to inlet and outlet tubes. Generally, the adapter seats are formed by machining. Compared to the collecting tube of the heat exchangers, the material of the adapter seats is thicker, which is not conducive to the welding connection between the collecting tube of heat exchanger and the adapter seats, and the joint parts are not easy to position.
A connector according to embodiments of the present application includes a tubular portion, a flange portion and a plurality of first protruding portions. The tubular portion includes a first through hole and a first wall. The first wall is arranged around the first through hole, the first wall has a thickness in a radial direction of the first through hole, and the first wall includes a first end face including a first opening. The flange portion is located at an end of the tubular portion in an axial direction of the tubular portion, includes a first side face arranged around the first wall, and further includes a second end face and a third end face which are arranged along the axial direction of the tubular portion. The second end face and the first wall intersect at a first side edge, the second end face and the first side face intersect at a second side edge, and a perimeter of the first side edge is smaller than a perimeter of the second side edge. The third end face and the first wall intersect at a third side edge, the third end face and the first side face intersect at a fourth side edge, a perimeter of the third side edge is smaller than a perimeter of the fourth side edge. The third end face includes a second hole, and the first through hole communicates the first opening with the second hole along the axial direction of the tubular portion. The plurality of first protruding portions are arranged along a circumferential direction of the first through hole. Each first protruding portion is connected with the third end face and the first wall, and located outside the first through hole in the axial direction of the tubular portion. Each first protruding portion has a thickness in the radial direction of the first through hole, and a maximum thickness of the plurality of first protruding portions is smaller than a minimum thickness of the first wall.
A connector according to embodiments of the present application includes a tubular portion, a flange portion and a circular ring portion. The tubular portion includes a first through hole and a first wall. The first wall is arranged around the first through hole, the first wall has a thickness in a radial direction of the first through hole, and the first wall includes a first end face including a first opening. The flange portion is located at an end of the tubular portion in the axial direction of the tubular portion, includes a first side face arranged around the first wall, and further includes a second end face and a third end face which are arranged along the axial direction of the tubular portion. The second end face and the first wall intersect at a first side edge, the second end face and the first side face intersect at a second side edge, and a perimeter of the first side edge is smaller than a perimeter of the second side edge. The third end face and the first wall intersect at a third side edge, the third end face and the first side face intersect at a fourth side edge, and a perimeter of the third side edge is smaller than a perimeter of the fourth side edge. The third end face includes a second hole, and the first through hole communicates the first opening with the second hole along the axial direction of the tubular portion. The circular ring portion includes a circular ring wall connected with the third end face and the first wall. The circular ring portion is located outside the first through hole in the axial direction of the tubular portion. The circular ring portion includes a second through hole penetrating through the circular ring wall in the axial direction of the tubular portion, and the second through hole is communicated and concentrically arranged with the first through hole. The circular ring portion has a thickness in the radial direction of the first through hole, and a maximum thickness of the circular ring portion is smaller than a minimum thickness of the first wall.
A heat exchanger according to embodiments of the present application includes a connector and a collecting tube. The connector is a connector of the above embodiments, the first protruding portion or the circular ring portion of the connector is inserted into the collecting tube, and the connector is communicated with the collecting tube.
tubular portion 1, first through hole 11, first wall 12, first end face 121, first opening 1211, step portion 122, flange portion 2, first side face 21, second end face 22, third end face 23, second hole 231, first protruding portion 3, circular ring portion 4, circular ring wall 41, second protruding portion 411, second through hole 42, first side edge 51, second side edge 52, third side edge 53, fourth side edge 54, connector 100, collecting tube 200.
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present application will be described in detail and examples of the embodiments are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. The embodiments described below by referring to the accompanying drawings are illustrative and intended to explain the present application, but not to be construed as limitations of the present application.
In the related art, in order to connect inlet and outlet tubes with a collecting tube of heat exchangers, an adapter seat is designed to have an upper part and a lower part, in which the upper part is small and the lower part is large. A circular tube of the upper part is welded with the inlet and outlet tubes, and a circular tube of the lower part is inserted into a hole of the collecting tube. A wall thickness of the collecting tube is generally 1 mm-3 mm, which easily leads to insufficient welding length of the adapter seat and the collecting tube, and is easy to cause the welding position of the adapter seat and the collecting tube to crack due to insufficient strength in long-term use.
In order to prevent the welding position between the adapter seat and the collecting tube from cracking, some related technologies propose to add a tile-like component to form an assembly with the adapter seat. However, the tile and the adapter seat are not integrally formed, and only the overlapping area of the joint part between the tile and the adapter seat can be increased, which effectively increases the welding strength. On the other hand, the part of the adapter seat inserted into the collecting tube is too long, which hinders the refrigerant from flowing into the collecting tube, thus affecting the heat exchange performance.
In other related technologies, the tile and the adapter seat are formed into one piece, so that the overlapping area between the adapter seat and the collecting tube becomes the contact area between the tile and the collecting tube, and the welding strength is improved by increasing the size of the tile. However, in this solution, prior to the welding, it cannot be fixed with collecting tube by riveting and must be fixed with collecting tube by spot welding, which increases the production process.
Hereinafter, a connector according to embodiments of the present application will be described with reference to
As shown in
The tubular portion 1 includes a first through hole 11 and a first wall 12, and the first wall 12 is arranged around the first through hole 11. The first wall 12 has a thickness in a radial direction of the first through hole 11, and includes a first end face 121 including a first opening 1211.
As shown in
The flange portion 2 is located at an end of the tubular portion 1 in an axial direction of the tubular portion 1. The flange portion 2 includes a first side face 21, and the first side face 21 is arranged around the first wall 12. The flange portion 2 also includes a second end face 22 and a third end face 23 which are arranged along the axial direction of the tubular portion 1. The second end face 22 and the first wall 12 intersect at a first side edge 51, the second end face 22 and the first side face 21 intersect at a second side edge 52, and a perimeter of the first side edge 51 is smaller than a perimeter of the second side edge 52. The third end face 23 and the first wall 12 intersect at a third side edge 53, the third end face 23 and the first side face 21 intersect at a fourth side edge 54, and a perimeter of the third side edge 53 is smaller than a perimeter of the fourth side edge 54. The third end face 23 includes the second hole 231, and the first through hole 11 communicates the first opening 1211 with the second hole 231 along the axial direction of the tubular portion 1.
As shown in
The first protruding portion 3 is connected with the third end face 23, and connected with the first wall 12. The first protruding portion 3 is located outside the first through hole 11 in the axial direction of the tubular portion 1. A plurality of first protruding portions 3 are provided and arranged along the circumferential direction of the first through hole 11. The first protruding portion 3 has a thickness in the radial direction of the first through hole 11, and a maximum thickness of the first protruding portion 3 is less than a minimum thickness of the first wall 12.
As shown in
The connector 100 according to embodiments of the present application has the characteristics of convenient positioning and installation.
As illustrated in
The tubular portion 1 includes a first through hole 11 and a first wall 12, and the first wall 12 is arranged around the first through hole 11. The first wall 12 has a thickness in the radial direction of the first through hole 11, and includes a first end face 121 including a first opening 1211.
As shown in
The flange portion 2 is located at an end of the tubular portion 1 in the axial direction of the tubular portion 1. The flange portion 2 includes a first side face 21, and the first side face 21 is arranged around the first wall 12. The flange portion 2 also includes a second end face 22 and a third end face 23 which are arranged along the axial direction of the tubular portion 1. The second end face 22 and the first wall 12 intersect at a first side edge 51, the second end face 22 and the first side face 21 intersect at a second side edge 52, and the perimeter of the first side edge 51 is smaller than the perimeter of the second side edge 52. The third end face 23 and the first wall 12 intersect at the third side edge 53, the third end face 23 and the first side face 21 intersect at the fourth side edge 54, and the perimeter of the third side edge 53 is smaller than the perimeter of the fourth side edge 54. The third end face 23 includes the second hole 231, and the first through hole 11 communicates the first opening 1211 with the second hole 231 along the axial direction of the tubular portion 1.
As shown in
The circular ring portion 4 includes a circular ring wall 41, and the circular ring wall 41 is connected with the third end face 23 and the first wall 12. The circular ring portion 4 is located outside the first through hole 11 in the axial direction of the tubular portion 1, and the circular ring portion 4 includes a second through hole 42. The second through hole 42 penetrates through the circular ring wall 41 in the axial direction of the tubular portion 1, and the second through hole 42 is communicated and concentrically arranged with the first through hole 11. The circular ring portion 4 has a thickness in the radial direction of the first through hole 11, and a maximum thickness of the circular ring portion 4 is smaller than a minimum thickness of the first wall 12.
As shown in
The connector 100 according to embodiments of the present application has the characteristics of stable structure, strong reliability and little influence on the flow of fluid in the collecting tube 200.
In some embodiments, the first protruding portion 3 and the circular ring portion 4 can be obtained by extruding the material of the tubular portion. In some embodiments, the first protruding portion 3 is formed by extruding the material of an inner wall of the tubular portion, which reduces the stress concentration on the connector compared with machining work, and is beneficial to improving the structural strength and saving materials.
In some embodiments, the circular ring wall 41 includes a second protruding portion 411, and the second protruding portion is located at an end of the circular ring wall 41 away from the flange portion 2. A plurality of second protruding portions 411 are provided and arranged along the circumferential direction of the first through hole 11.
As shown in
In some embodiments, a hydraulic diameter of the second through hole 42 is smaller than a hydraulic diameter of the first opening 1211.
The second through hole 42 communicates with the collecting tube 200, and the hydraulic diameter of the first opening 1211 is larger than the hydraulic diameter of the second through hole 42, which can reduce the pressure at the second through hole 42, improve the strength of the joint part, reduce the obstruction of the connector 100 when the refrigerant enters the collecting tube 200, and reduce the influence on the heat exchange effect.
In some embodiments, at least one longitudinal section of the flange portion 2 includes a sector ring face, the longitudinal section is parallel to the axial direction of the tubular portion 1, and the sector ring face at least includes two circular arcs. The two circular arcs protrude towards the first end face 121 in the axial direction of the tubular portion 1.
As shown in
In some embodiments, the flange portion 2 is formed by extruding the material of the tubular portion, and in other embodiments, the protruding portion or the circular ring portion and the flange portion are formed by integrally extruding the material of the tubular portion. Compared with the machined connector, such connector saves processing materials, and is integrally formed, which improves the overall strength and reduces the stress concentration distribution on the connector.
In some embodiments, a plane perpendicular to an axis direction (i.e., the axial direction of the tubular portion) is defined as a first plane, a projection of the flange portion 2 on the first plane is ellipse or nearly elliptical, a thickness of the first wall 12 is T, and a length of a short axis of the ellipse is not less than a sum of 4T and a diameter of the first through hole 11.
As shown in
In some embodiments, a length of a long axis of the ellipse is greater than twice the diameter of the first through hole 11. As shown in
In some embodiments, the first wall 12 includes a step portion 122 located in the first through hole 11, the step portion 122 protrudes from the first wall 12 in the radial direction of the first through hole 11 and extends in the axial direction of the first through hole 11, and the diameter of the first through hole 11 at the step portion 122 is smaller than a diameter of the first opening 1211.
As shown in
The heat exchanger according to embodiments of the present application includes a connector 100 and a collecting tube 200. The connector 100 is a connector 100 described above, the first protruding portion 3 or the circular ring portion 4 of the connector 100 is inserted into the collecting tube 200, and the connector 100 is communicated with the collecting tube 200.
The heat exchanger according to embodiments of the present application has the characteristics of simple installation, uniform heat exchange and long service life.
In some embodiments, the heat exchanger is a microchannel heat exchanger, and the first protruding portion 3 or the circular ring portion 4 of the connector 100 has a flared portion (not shown in the figures), and the flared portion is located in the collecting tube 200.
As shown in
In the description of the present disclosure, it should be understood that the orientation or positional relationship indicated by the terms “center”, “longitudinal”, “transverse”, “length”, “width”, “thickness”, “up”, “down”, “front”, “rear”, “left”, “right”, “vertical”, “horizontal”, “top”, “bottom”, “inside”, “outside”, “clockwise”, “counterclockwise”, “axial”, “radial” and “circumferential” and the like, is based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the attached drawings, which is only for the convenience of describing the present disclosure and simplifying the description, and does not indicate or imply that the referred device or element must have a specific orientation, and be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, so it cannot be understood as a limitation of the present disclosure.
In addition, the terms “first” and “second” are only used for purpose of description, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of indicated technical features. Therefore, the feature defined as “first” or “second” may explicitly or implicitly include at least one such feature. In the description of the present disclosure, “a plurality of” means at least two, such as two, three, etc., unless otherwise specifically defined. In the present disclosure, unless otherwise expressly defined, terms such as “install”, “interconnect”, “connect”, “fix” shall be understood broadly, and may be, for example, fixed connections, detachable connections, or integral connections: may also be mechanical or electrical connections or intercommunication: may also be direct connections or indirect connections via intervening media: may also be inner communications or interactions of two elements. For those skilled in the art, the specific meaning of the above terms in the present disclosure can be understood according to the specific situations.
In the present disclosure, unless otherwise expressly defined and specified, a structure in which a first feature is “on” or “below” a second feature may include an embodiment in which the first feature is in direct contact with the second feature, or may further include an embodiment in which the first feature and the second feature are in indirect contact through intermediate media. Furthermore, a first feature “on”, “above”, or “on top of” a second feature may include an embodiment in which the first feature is right or obliquely “on”, “above”, or “on top of” the second feature, or just means that the first feature is at a height higher than that of the second feature, while a first feature “below”, “under”, or “on bottom of” a second feature may include an embodiment in which the first feature is right or obliquely “below”, “under”, or “on bottom of” the second feature, or just means that the first feature is at a height lower than that of the second feature.
In the description of the present disclosure, terms such as “an embodiment”, “some embodiments”, “an example”, “a specific example” or “some examples” means that a particular feature, structure, material, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment or example is included in at least one embodiment or example of the present disclosure. Thus, the appearances of these terms in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily referring to the same embodiment or example of the present disclosure. Furthermore, the particular features, structures, materials, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments or examples. In addition, without contradiction, those skilled in the art may combine and unite different embodiments or examples or features of the different embodiments or examples described in this specification.
Although the embodiments of the present disclosure have been shown and described above, it can be understood that the above embodiments are illustrative and shall not be understood as limitation to the present disclosure, and changes, modifications, alternatives and variations can be made in the above embodiments within the scope of the present disclosure by those skilled in the art.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 202121168233.4 | May 2021 | CN | national |
This application is a national phase entry under 35 USC § 371 of International Application PCT/CN2022/095085, filed on May 25, 2022, which claims the priority to and benefits of Chinese Patent Application No. 202121168233.4 filed on May 27, 2021, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/CN2022/095085 | 5/25/2022 | WO |
