This application claims benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C § 119 to Japanese Patent Application No.2002-348156, filed on Nov. 29, 2002, the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference herein.
Embodiments of the present invention relate to a heat exchanger.
Published Japanese Translation of PCT International Application No. 2001-525051 discloses a conventional heat exchanger 50. In
The heat exchanger 50 causes a first fluid flowing in from the inlet manifold 54 to circulate along a given passage formed by the header pipes 53 and the tubes 51. In the heat exchanger 50, heat exchange takes place efficiently between the first fluid passing inside the tubes 51 and a second fluid passing outside the tubes 51.
In the heat exchanger 50, as shown in
As shown in
When the heat exchanger 50 is manufactured as previously described, in order to insert the upper end portion of the header pipe 53 on the −X side directly into the inlet manifold 54, the manifold side connection hole 54b (which has the same shape as the upper end portion of the header pipe 53 on the −X side) is formed on the lower surface of the inlet manifold 54. Therefore, as shown in
An object of the present invention is to provide a heat exchanger in which an inlet manifold and an outlet manifold are configured in small sizes so as to downsize the entire heat exchanger.
To attain the above object, the present invention provides a heat exchanger including a header pipe having a fluid circulation hole inside, an inlet manifold having an inlet hole inside, an outlet manifold having an outlet hole inside, a first coupling member which has a first coupling hole inside and one end of which is connected to one end of the header pipe and the other end of which is connected to the inlet manifold, and a second coupling member which has a second coupling hole inside and one end of which is connected to the other end of the header pipe and the other end of which is connected to the outlet manifold, Herein, in the first coupling member, one end of the first coupling hole is opened to one end of the fluid circulation hole and the other end of the first coupling hole is opened to the inlet hole. Meanwhile, in the second coupling member, one end of the second coupling hole is opened to the other end of the fluid circulation hole and the other end of the second coupling hole is opened to the outlet hole.
According to the present invention, the header pipe is connected to the inlet manifold and the outlet manifold through the coupling members. Therefore, it is possible to freely form manifold side connection holes of the inlet manifold and the outlet manifold without dependence on the shapes of the end portions of the header pipe. Hence, it is possible to downsize the entire heat exchanger by configuring the inlet manifold and the outlet manifold in small sizes.
First to fourth embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to
(First Embodiment)
As shown in
Each tube 2 is made of an aluminum material (such as A1050) and is formed into a flat plate shape. A plurality of circulation holes (not shown) with openings at both ends are formed inside each tube 2. The plurality of circulation holes are arranged along the Z axis mutually in parallel. The first ends (+Z side) of the tubes 2 are inserted into upper tube insertion holes (not shown) of the upper header pipe 4a and are fixed to the upper header pipe 4a by brazing. The second ends (−Z side) of the tubes 2 are inserted into lower tube insertion holes (not shown) of the lower header pipe 4b and are fixed to the lower header pipe 4b by brazing.
Each corrugated fin 3 is made of an aluminum material (such as A3003) and is formed into a corrugated shape. Each corrugated film 3 is fixed between two adjacent tubes 2 by brazing.
The upper header pipe 4a is made of an aluminum material (such as A3003). Fluid circulation holes 10a, 10b, 10c, and 10d, each of which has openings on both ends, are formed inside the upper header pipe 4a. The fluid circulation holes 10a, 10b, 10c, and 10d are arranged along the X axis mutually in parallel. A partition wall 11 is provided at a central part inside the upper header pipe 4a. The partition wall 11 partitions each of the fluid circulation holes 10a, 10b, 10c, and 10d into two regions (a +X side portion and a −X side portion). The upper tube insertion holes are formed on a lower surface of the upper header pipe 4a at even intervals along the X axis and the Y axis. One end of each upper tube insertion hole is opened to one of the fluid circulation holes 10a, 10b, 10c, and 10d.
Four fluid circulation holes (not shown), each having openings on both ends, are formed inside the lower header pipe 4b. The fluid circulation holes are arranged along the X axis mutually in parallel, The lower tube insertion holes are formed on an upper surface of the lower header pipe 4b at even intervals along the X axis and the Y axis. One end of each lower tube insertion hole is opened to one of the four fluid circulation holes.
As shown in
The first set of coupling members 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d disposed on the first end (+X side) of the upper header pipe 4a are formed into cylindrical shapes of the same size. Diameters of the manifold side connection holes 13a, 13b, 13c, and 13d are the same as diameters of the first set of coupling members 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d, respectively. Diameters of the pipe side connection holes 17a, 17b, 17c, and 17d are the same as the diameters of the first set of coupling members 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d, respectively. Coupling holes 16a, 16b, 16c, and 16d are formed inside the first set of coupling members 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d, respectively. One (i.e., first) end (−X side) of each of the coupling members 5a, 5b, 5c and 5d is inserted into the pipe side connection holes 17a, 17b, 17c and 17d, respectively. The other (i.e., second) end (+X side) of each of the coupling members 5a, 5b, 5c and 5d is inserted into the manifold side connection holes 13a, 13b, 13c and 13d, respectively. The upper header pipe 4a is connected to the inlet manifold 6 through the first set of coupling members 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d. The first set of coupling members 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d are fixed to the upper header pipe 4a and the inlet manifold 6 by brazing. The fluid circulation holes 10a, 10b, 10c, and 10d communicate with the inlet hole 12 of the inlet manifold 6 through the coupling holes 16a, 16b, 16c, and 16d. Diameters of the coupling holes 16a, 16b, 16c, and 16d are gradually reduced toward the +Y direction, in other words, starting from an inlet portion 6a of the inlet manifold 6.
As shown in
The second set of coupling members 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d disposed on the second end (−X side) of the upper header pipe 4a are formed into cylindrical shapes of the same size. Diameters of the manifold side connection holes 15a, 15b, 15c, and 15d are the same as the diameters of the second set of coupling members 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d, respectively. Diameters of the pipe side connection holes 18a, 18b, 18c, and 18d are the same as the diameters of the second set of coupling members 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d, respectively. Coupling holes 16a, 16b, 16c, and 16d are formed inside the second set of coupling members 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d, respectively. One (i.e., first) end (+X side) of each of the coupling members 5a, 5b, 5c and 5d is inserted into the pipe side connection holes 18a, 18b, 18c and 18d, respectively. The other (i.e., second) end (−X side) of each of the coupling members 5a, 5b, 5c and 5d is inserted into the manifold side connection holes 15a, 15b, 15c and 15d, respectively. The upper header pipe 4a is connected to the outlet manifold 7 through the second set of coupling members 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d. The second set of coupling members 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d are fixed to the upper header pipe 4a and the outlet manifold 7 by brazing. The fluid circulation holes 10a, 10b, 10c, and 10d communicate with the outlet hole 14 of the outlet manifold 7 through the coupling holes 16a, 16b, 16c, and 16d. The diameters of the coupling holes 16a, 16b, 16c, and 16d are gradually reduced toward the +Y direction, in other words, starting from an outlet portion 7a of the outlet manifold 7.
A first fluid flowing inside the heat exchanger 1 travels from the inlet manifold 6 to the outlet manifold 7 via the following pathway: the first set of coupling members 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d; the +X side portion of the upper header pipe 4a; the tubes 2 located below the +X side portion of the upper header pipe 4a; the lower header pipe 4b; the tubes 2 located below the −X side portion of the upper header pipe 4a; the −X side portion of the upper header pipe 4a; and the second set of coupling members 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d. In the heat exchanger 1, heat exchange mainly takes place between the first fluid passing inside the tubes 2 and a second fluid passing outside the tubes 2 efficiently.
The heat exchanger 1 of the above-described configuration has the following advantages.
As the upper header pipe 4a is connected to the inlet manifold 6 and the outlet manifold 7 through the first and second sets of coupling members 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d, it is not necessary to form the manifold side connection holes on the inlet manifold 6 and the outlet manifold 7 in the same shapes as the end portions of the upper header pipe 4a. Therefore, in a cross-section parallel to a Y-Z plane, the area of the inlet manifold 6 or the output manifold 7 becomes the same as or smaller than the area of the end portion of the upper header pipe 4a. As a result, it is possible to downsize the inlet manifold 6 and the output manifold 7, and thereby to downsize the heat exchanger 1.
Moreover, it is possible to sufficiently reduce the sizes of the manifold side connection holes of the inlet manifold 6 and the outlet manifold 7 as compared to the sizes of conventional manifold connection holes, which is advantageous in terms of pressure resistance. It is also possible to sufficiently reduce the thicknesses of the inlet manifold 6 and the outlet manifold 7 as compared to the thicknesses of a conventional inlet manifold and a conventional outlet manifold. Thus, weight reduction of the heat exchanger 1 is achieved.
It is possible to adjust flow rates of the fluid flowing into the fluid circulation holes 10a, 10b, 10c, and 10d of the header pipe 4a by changing the diameters of the coupling holes 16a, 16b, 16c, and 16d of the coupling members 5a, 5b, 5c, and 6d. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent a drift (a flow with unbalanced flow rate distribution) of the fluid inside the header pipe 4a.
(Second Embodiment)
In comparison with the heat exchanger 1 of the first embodiment, a heat exchanger 31 is different in configurations of the coupling members 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d, of the pipe side connection holes at the end portion of the upper header pipe 4a, of the manifold side connection holes of the inlet manifold 6, and of the manifold side connection holes of the outlet manifold 7. To be more specific, in the heat exchanger 1, the coupling members 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d are severally inserted into the pipe side connection holes and into the manifold side connection holes to connect the upper header pipe 4a to the inlet manifold 6 (or the outlet manifold 7). In the heat exchanger 31, a single coupling member 21 is inserted into a pipe side connection hole and a manifold side connection hole to connect the upper header pipe 4a to the inlet manifold 6 (or the outlet manifold 7). The other members are configured as similar to those in the heat exchanger 1 of the first embodiment, and therefore, description thereof will be omitted.
As shown in
The coupling members 21 are elliptic cylinders having the same cross-sectional shape as the shape of the pipe side connection holes 20 and the manifold side connection holes. One end of each coupling member 21 is inserted into each pipe side connection hole 20 of the upper header pipe 4a. The other end of each coupling member 21 is inserted into the manifold side connection hole of the inlet manifold 6 (or the outlet manifold 7). Both the ends of each coupling member 21 are fixed to the upper header pipe 4a and the inlet manifold 6 (or the outlet manifold 7) by brazing. Coupling holes 22a, 22b, 22c, and 22d are formed inside each coupling member 21. One ends of the coupling holes 22a, 22b, 22c and 22d communicate with the fluid circulation holes 10a, 10b, 10c and 10d, respectively, and the other ends thereof communicate with the inlet hole 12 of the inlet manifold 6 (or the outlet hole 14 of the outlet manifold 7). Diameters of the coupling holes 22a, 22b, 22c, and 22d are gradually reduced starting from the inlet portion 6a of the inlet manifold 6 (or the outlet portion 7a of the outlet manifold 7).
The heat exchanger 31 thus configured has the following characteristics.
Since the upper header pipes 4a is connected to the inlet manifold 6 and the outlet manifold 7 through the coupling members 21, it is not necessary to form the manifold side connection holes to be formed on the inlet manifold 6 and the outlet manifold 7 in the same shapes as the end portions of the upper header pipe 4a. Therefore, it is possible to downsize the inlet manifold 6 and the output manifold 7, and thereby to downsize the heat exchanger 31.
It is possible to sufficiently reduce the sizes of the manifold side connection holes of the inlet manifold 6 and of the outlet manifold 7 as compared to the sizes of conventional manifold connection holes, which is advantageous in terms of pressure resistance. It is also possible to sufficiently reduce the thicknesses of the inlet manifold 6 and the outlet manifold 7 as compared to the thicknesses of conventional inlet manifold and outlet manifold, Thus, weight reduction of the heat exchanger 31 is achieved.
It is possible to adjust flow rates of the fluid flowing into the fluid circulation holes 10a, 10b, 10c, and 10d of the upper header pipe 4a by changing the diameters of the coupling holes 22a, 22b, 22c, and 22d of the coupling members 21. Thus, it is possible to prevent a drift (a flow with unbalanced flow rate distribution) of the fluid inside the upper header pipe 4a.
(Third Embodiment)
As shown in
The heat exchanger 32 thus configured has the following characteristics. It is possible to reduce manufacturing costs because all the coupling members 5a, 5b, 5c and 5d have the same structure. Moreover, it is not necessary to consider a fitting order when fitting the coupling members 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d to the upper header pipe 4a and the inlet manifold 6 (or the outlet manifold 7). Accordingly, it is possible to shorten manufacturing time.
(Fourth Embodiment)
As shown in
The heat exchanger 33 thus configured has the following characteristics. It is possible to reduce manufacturing costs because all the coupling holes 22a, 22b, 22c and 22d have the same structure. Moreover, it is not necessary to consider a fitting order when fitting the coupling member 21 to the upper header pipe 4a and the inlet manifold 6 (or the outlet manifold 7). Accordingly, it is possible to shorten manufacturing time.
(Other Embodiments)
Various modifications can be made in the heat exchanger of the present invention without limitations to the first to fourth embodiments.
For example, as shown in
In the first to fourth embodiments, the inlet manifold 6 and the outlet manifold 7 are connected to both the ends of the upper header pipe 4a. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and positions where the inlet manifold 6 and the outlet manifold 7 are disposed may be any end of the upper header pipe 4a and the lower header pipe 4b.
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Number | Date | Country | |
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20050051318 A1 | Mar 2005 | US |