Thermal management system and robot

Abstract

The utility model relates to a thermal management system and a robot, the thermal management system comprises a liquid gas tank, a control valve, a jacket, an exhaust valve and a heat pipe heat exchanger, the heat pipe heat exchanger comprises an evaporation section and a condensation section which are communicated, and a power element is arranged on the evaporation section, so that a liquid working medium in the evaporation section can absorb heat and be gasified and enters the condensation section. The condensation section is sleeved with the jacket, high-pressure liquefied gas is arranged in the liquid gas tank, and the liquid gas tank, the control valve, the jacket and the exhaust valve can be sequentially communicated so that the gaseous working medium in the condensation section can release heat, be liquefied and flow back to the evaporation section. According to the heat management system and the robot, the problems that the robot is high in noise and power consumption in the heat exchange process are solved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of robot thermal management, and in particular to a thermal management system and a robot. Background Art

[0002] With the advancement of science and technology, various sensors have emerged, which has created the prerequisites for the large-scale application of robots. It is understandable that robots cannot complete various complex movements without the power supply and motor drive. Usually, robots have multiple joints and corresponding drive motors. In addition, robots need to have enough energy to complete difficult and complex movements for a long time. Therefore, the battery power density on the robot is getting higher and higher. At the same time, the power density of the IGBT module (insulated gate bipolar transistor) associated with the drive motor is also increasing. Therefore, the heat exchange of the battery and IGBT module is particularly critical. At present, the heat exchange of robots mainly depends on compressor cooling. However, the frequent startup of the compressor will generate a lot of noise, and it will cause the robot to consume too much power, which is not conducive to the robot's endurance. Utility Model Content

[0003] Based on this, it is necessary to provide a thermal management system and a robot to solve the problems of high noise and excessive power consumption of the robot during the heat exchange process.

[0004] The thermal management system provided by the present application includes a liquid gas tank, a control valve, a jacket, an exhaust valve and a heat pipe heat exchanger, wherein the heat pipe heat exchanger includes a connected evaporation section and a condensation section, and the power element is arranged in the evaporation section so that the liquid working medium in the evaporation section can absorb heat and gasify and enter the condensation section. The jacket is arranged outside the condensation section, and a high-pressure liquefied gas is arranged in the liquid gas tank. The liquid gas tank, the control valve, the jacket and the exhaust valve can be connected in sequence so that the gaseous working medium in the condensation section can release heat and liquefy and flow back to the evaporation section.

[0005] In one embodiment, the thermal management system also includes a control module and a temperature sensor. The control module is electrically connected to the control valve, the exhaust valve and the temperature sensor, respectively. The temperature sensor is arranged on the power element. When the temperature sensor detects that the temperature of the power element is greater than or equal to a preset temperature, the control module can drive the control valve and the exhaust valve to open, so that the high-pressure liquefied gas in the liquid gas tank can enter the external atmosphere through the control valve, the jacket and the exhaust valve in sequence.

[0006] In one of the embodiments, the control valve, the heat pipe exchanger, the jacket and the power element are defined to correspond to each other and constitute a heat exchange branch, a plurality of heat exchange branches are arranged in parallel, and the liquid gas tank is connected to the exhaust valve through the plurality of heat exchange branches.

[0007] In one of the embodiments, a guide cover is provided in the evaporation section, one end of the guide cover is immersed in the liquid working medium in the evaporation section, and the other end extends out of the working medium liquid surface and toward the condensation section.

[0008] In one of the embodiments, the flow area of ​​the air guide cover tends to decrease along the direction from the evaporation section to the condensation section.

[0009] In one of the embodiments, the installation height of the liquid gas tank is greater than the installation height of the jacket.

[0010] In one embodiment, the liquid gas tank is a liquid nitrogen tank, a liquid oxygen tank, a liquid carbon dioxide tank or a liquid air tank.

[0011] In one embodiment, the power element is partially or completely immersed in the working medium of the evaporation section.

[0012] In one embodiment, the power element is attached to the outer surface of the evaporation section.

[0013] The present application also provides a robot, which includes the thermal management system described in any one of the above embodiments.

[0014] Compared with the prior art, the thermal management system and robot provided by the present application, when the control valve is opened, the high-pressure liquefied gas in the liquid gas tank can enter the jacket and exchange heat with the gaseous working medium in the condensing section, and the high-pressure liquefied gas absorbs heat and changes into a gaseous state, and then the exhaust valve is opened to allow the gasified gas to enter the external atmosphere through the exhaust valve. Since the above process does not have the operating noise of the compressor, the operating noise of the thermal management system is greatly reduced.

[0015] Furthermore, the power for releasing the high-pressure liquefied gas from the liquid gas tank comes from the compression energy of the high-pressure liquefied gas itself. Therefore, there is no need for the thermal management system to provide additional energy for the circulation of the high-pressure liquefied gas. Therefore, such an arrangement greatly reduces the system power consumption of the thermal management system.

[0016] Furthermore, the thermal management system of the present application has a simple structure and high heat exchange efficiency, which is conducive to large-scale mass production. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application or the conventional technology, the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the conventional technology descriptions are briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present application. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative work.

[0018] Figure 1 A front view of a robot according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0019] Figure 2 A side view of a robot according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0020] Figure 3 A connection pipeline diagram of a thermal management system according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0021] Figure 4 A connection pipeline diagram of the upper body of a robot according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0022] Figure 5 A connection pipeline diagram of the lower body of a robot according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0023] Figure 6 A system connection diagram of a thermal management system according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0024] Figure numerals: 1000, robot; 100, liquid gas tank; 200, control valve; 300, jacket; 400, exhaust valve; 500, heat pipe heat exchanger; 510, evaporation section; 520, condensation section; 600, power element; 610, battery; 620, chip; 630, IGBT module; 700, control module; 800, heat exchange branch. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0025] With the advancement of science and technology, various sensors have emerged, which has created the prerequisites for the large-scale application of robots. It is understandable that robots cannot complete various complex movements without the power supply and motor drive. Usually, robots have multiple joints and corresponding drive motors. In addition, robots need to have enough energy to complete difficult and complex movements for a long time. Therefore, the battery power density on the robot is getting higher and higher. At the same time, the power density of the IGBT module (insulated gate bipolar transistor) associated with the drive motor is also increasing. Therefore, the heat exchange of the battery and IGBT module is particularly critical. At present, the heat exchange of robots mainly depends on compressor cooling. However, the frequent startup of the compressor will generate a lot of noise, and it will cause the robot to consume too much power, which is not conducive to the robot's endurance.

[0026] See also Figure 1-Figure 6 In order to solve the problem of high noise and excessive power consumption of the robot 1000 during heat exchange, the present application provides a thermal management system and a robot 1000, the thermal management system includes a liquid gas tank 100, a control valve 200, a jacket 300, an exhaust valve 400 and a heat pipe heat exchanger 500, and the heat pipe heat exchanger 500 includes a connected evaporation section 510 and a condensation section 520. The power element 600 (including but not limited to a battery 610, a chip 620 and an IGBT module 630) is arranged in the evaporation section 510, so that the liquid working medium in the evaporation section 510 can absorb heat and gasify and enter the condensation section 520.

[0027] In this embodiment, if Figure 1 As shown, the chip 620 is disposed on the head of the robot 1000 , the battery 610 is disposed on the chest of the robot 1000 , and the IGBT module 630 is disposed on the limbs of the robot 1000 .

[0028] Specifically, in order to improve the heat dissipation effect of the power element 600 , in one embodiment, the power element 600 is partially or completely immersed in the working medium of the evaporation section 510 .

[0029] But not limited to this, in other embodiments, the power element 600 can also be attached to the outer surface of the evaporation section 510, that is, the power element 600 and the evaporation section 510 of the heat pipe exchanger 500 are in contact heat exchange, and the contact surface adopts a cold copper spraying process, or the contact surface adopts a tin soldering process.

[0030] Furthermore, it should be noted that the power elements 600 are all disposed at a relatively deep position inside the robot 1000 , and the condensing section 520 of the heat pipe exchanger 500 corresponding to the power elements 600 is disposed at a position close to the body surface of the robot 1000 .

[0031] Such arrangement can, on the one hand, prevent the power element 600 from being damaged by collisions, and prevent the power element 600 from scalding people who come into contact with it, and on the other hand, facilitate rapid exhaust of the exhaust valve 400.

[0032] Furthermore, the jacket 300 is arranged on the outside of the condensation section 520, and the liquid gas tank 100 is provided with high-pressure liquefied gas (including but not limited to liquid nitrogen, liquid oxygen, liquid carbon dioxide and liquid air), that is, the liquid gas tank 100 is a liquid nitrogen tank, a liquid oxygen tank, a liquid carbon dioxide tank or a liquid air tank.

[0033] The above-mentioned liquid gas is easily available, relatively cheap, and has safety protection, and can be directly discharged into the atmosphere without causing pollution.

[0034] Furthermore, in one embodiment, the volume of the liquid gas tank 100 ranges from 500 ml to 1500 ml.

[0035] Specifically, Figure 2 As shown, the liquid gas tank 100 is installed on the back of the robot 1000 (including but not limited to detachable snap-on and threaded connection, etc.) or hung on the body surface of the robot 1000.

[0036] like Figure 3 As shown, the liquid gas tank 100 , the control valve 200 , the jacket 300 and the exhaust valve 400 can be connected in sequence to form a cooling open circuit, so that the gaseous working medium in the condensation section 520 can release heat and liquefy and flow back to the evaporation section 510 .

[0037] It should be noted that the liquid gas tank 100 needs to be replaced regularly, or the liquefied gas needs to be replenished regularly.

[0038] In the thermal management system and robot 1000 provided by the present application, when the control valve 200 is opened, the high-pressure liquefied gas in the liquid gas tank 100 can enter the jacket 300 and exchange heat with the gaseous working medium in the condensing section 520, and the high-pressure liquefied gas absorbs heat and changes into a gaseous state, and then the exhaust valve 400 is opened to allow the gasified gas to enter the external atmosphere through the exhaust valve 400. Since the above process does not have the operating noise of the compressor, the operating noise of the thermal management system is greatly reduced.

[0039] Furthermore, the power for the liquid gas tank 100 to release the high-pressure liquefied gas comes from the compression energy of the high-pressure liquefied gas itself. Therefore, there is no need for the thermal management system to provide additional energy for the circulation of the high-pressure liquefied gas. Therefore, such a setting greatly reduces the system power consumption of the thermal management system.

[0040] Furthermore, the thermal management system of the present application has a simple structure and high heat exchange efficiency, which is conducive to large-scale mass production.

[0041] In one embodiment, if Figure 3-Figure 6 As shown, the installation height of the liquid gas tank 100 is greater than the installation height of the jacket 300.

[0042] This is conducive to the high-pressure liquefied gas entering the jacket 300 faster under the support of gravity.

[0043] However, it is not limited thereto. Since the pressure effect of high-pressure liquefied gas is much greater than the gravity effect, in other embodiments, the setting height of the liquid gas tank 100 can also be less than or equal to the setting height of the jacket 300.

[0044] In one embodiment, if Figure 4 and Figure 5 As shown, the control valve 200, the heat pipe exchanger 500, the jacket 300 and the power element 600 are defined to correspond to each other and constitute a heat exchange branch 800, a plurality of heat exchange branches 800 are arranged in parallel, and the liquid gas tank 100 is connected to the exhaust valve 400 through the plurality of heat exchange branches 800.

[0045] Such an arrangement can, on the one hand, dissipate heat for different power components 600 respectively, and on the other hand, improve the integration of the thermal management system.

[0046] But it is not limited thereto, in other embodiments, a plurality of power components 600 may also share one heat pipe heat exchanger 500 .

[0047] It should be noted that the heat exchange branch 800 of the upper body and the heat exchange branch 800 of the lower body of the robot 1000 can share a liquid gas tank 100, or they can use independent liquid gas tanks 100 respectively.

[0048] In another embodiment, the control valve 200, the heat pipe exchanger 500, the jacket 300, the power element 600 and the exhaust valve 400 are defined to correspond to each other and constitute a heat exchange branch (not shown), and multiple heat exchange branches are arranged in parallel, and the liquid gas tank 100 is connected to multiple heat exchange branches respectively.

[0049] Such an arrangement is beneficial to the distributed arrangement of the power components 600 .

[0050] In one embodiment, the evaporation section 510 of the heat pipe heat exchanger 500 is provided with a guide cover, one end of which is immersed in the liquid working medium in the evaporation section 510 , and the other end of which extends out of the working medium liquid surface and toward the condensation section 520 .

[0051] This is helpful to improve the flow guiding effect of the working medium in the heat pipe heat exchanger 500.

[0052] Further, in one embodiment, the flow area of ​​the shroud decreases along the direction from the evaporation section 510 to the condensation section 520 , that is, the inner diameter of the shroud decreases. Specifically, the shroud is in a conical cylindrical shape, and the tip of the shroud faces the condensation section 520 .

[0053] Such an arrangement can accelerate the rising rate of the gaseous working medium and form an exhaust effect similar to a chimney.

[0054] However, it is not limited thereto. In other embodiments, along the direction from the evaporation section 510 to the condensation section 520, the flow area of ​​the air guide cover may also show a trend of first decreasing and then increasing.

[0055] In one embodiment, if Figure 6 As shown, the thermal management system also includes a control module 700 and a temperature sensor (not shown). The control module 700 is electrically connected to the control valve 200, the exhaust valve 400 and the temperature sensor, respectively. The temperature sensor is arranged on the power element 600. When the temperature sensor detects that the temperature of the power element 600 is greater than or equal to the preset temperature, the control module 700 can drive the control valve 200 and the exhaust valve 400 to open, so that the high-pressure liquefied gas in the liquid gas tank 100 can enter the external atmosphere through the control valve 200, the jacket 300 and the exhaust valve 400 in sequence.

[0056] Specifically, if the power element 600 is a battery 610 , the temperature of the battery 610 can be controlled between 20° C. and 30° C.; if the power element 600 is an IGBT module 630 , the temperature of the IGBT module 630 can be controlled below 110° C.

[0057] The present application also provides a robot 1000, which includes the thermal management system described in any one of the above embodiments.

[0058] The technical features of the above-described embodiments may be arbitrarily combined. To make the description concise, not all possible combinations of the technical features in the above-described embodiments are described. However, as long as there is no contradiction in the combination of these technical features, they should be considered to be within the scope of this specification.

[0059] The above-described embodiments only express several implementation methods of the present application, and the descriptions thereof are relatively specific and detailed, but they cannot be understood as limiting the scope of the patent application. It should be pointed out that, for a person of ordinary skill in the art, several variations and improvements can be made without departing from the concept of the present application, and these all belong to the protection scope of the present application. Therefore, the scope of patent protection of the present application shall be subject to the attached claims.

[0060] In the description of the present application, it should be understood that the terms "center", "longitudinal", "lateral", "length", "width", "thickness", "up", "down", "front", "back", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inside", "outside", "clockwise", "counterclockwise", "axial", "radial", "circumferential" and the like indicate orientations or positional relationships based on the orientations or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing the present application and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the referred device or element must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore should not be understood as a limitation on the present application.

[0061] In addition, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of the indicated technical features. Therefore, the features defined as "first" and "second" may explicitly or implicitly include at least one of the features. In the description of this application, the meaning of "plurality" is at least two, such as two, three, etc., unless otherwise clearly and specifically defined.

[0062] In this application, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, the terms "installed", "connected", "connected", "fixed" and the like should be understood in a broad sense, for example, it can be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; it can be a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; it can be a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium, it can be the internal connection of two elements or the interaction relationship between two elements, unless otherwise clearly defined. For ordinary technicians in this field, the specific meanings of the above terms in this application can be understood according to specific circumstances.

[0063] In the present application, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, a first feature being “above” or “below” a second feature may mean that the first and second features are in direct contact, or the first and second features are in indirect contact through an intermediate medium. Moreover, a first feature being “above”, “above”, and “above” a second feature may mean that the first feature is directly above or obliquely above the second feature, or simply means that the first feature is higher in level than the second feature. A first feature being “below”, “below”, and “below” a second feature may mean that the first feature is directly below or obliquely below the second feature, or simply means that the first feature is lower in level than the second feature.

[0064] It should be noted that when an element is referred to as being "fixed to" or "disposed on" another element, it may be directly on the other element or there may be a central element. When an element is considered to be "connected to" another element, it may be directly connected to the other element or there may be a central element at the same time. The terms "vertical", "horizontal", "upper", "lower", "left", "right" and similar expressions used herein are for illustrative purposes only and do not represent the only implementation method.

[0065] Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as those commonly understood by those skilled in the art to which this application belongs. The terms used herein in the specification of this application are only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit this application. The term "and / or" used herein includes any and all combinations of one or more of the related listed items.

Claims

1. A thermal management system, characterized in that: The invention comprises a liquid gas tank (100), a control valve (200), a jacket (300), an exhaust valve (400) and a heat pipe heat exchanger (500), wherein the heat pipe heat exchanger (500) comprises an evaporation section (510) and a condensation section (520) which are connected to each other, and a power element (600) is arranged in the evaporation section (510) so that the liquid working medium in the evaporation section (510) can absorb heat, vaporize and enter the condensation section (520); The jacket (300) is sleeved on the outside of the condensing section (520), and the liquid gas tank (100) is provided with high-pressure liquefied gas. The liquid gas tank (100), the control valve (200), the jacket (300) and the exhaust valve (400) can be connected in sequence, so that the gaseous working medium in the condensing section (520) can release heat, liquefy and flow back to the evaporating section (510).

2. The thermal management system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The invention also comprises a control module (700) and a temperature sensor. The control module (700) is electrically connected to the control valve (200), the exhaust valve (400) and the temperature sensor respectively. The temperature sensor is arranged on the power element (600). When the temperature sensor detects that the temperature of the power element (600) is greater than or equal to a preset temperature, the control module (700) can drive the control valve (200) and the exhaust valve (400) to open, so that the high-pressure liquefied gas in the liquid gas tank (100) can enter the external atmosphere through the control valve (200), the jacket (300) and the exhaust valve (400) in sequence.

3. The thermal management system according to claim 1, characterized in that: It is defined that the control valve (200), the heat pipe heat exchanger (500), the jacket (300) and the power element (600) are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence and constitute a heat exchange branch (800), a plurality of the heat exchange branches (800) are arranged in parallel, and the liquid gas tank (100) is connected to the exhaust valve (400) through the plurality of the heat exchange branches (800).

4. The thermal management system according to claim 1, characterized in that: A flow guide cover is provided in the evaporation section (510), one end of the flow guide cover is immersed in the liquid working medium in the evaporation section (510), and the other end protrudes from the working medium liquid surface and extends in a direction close to the condensation section (520).

5. The thermal management system according to claim 4, characterized in that: Along the direction from the evaporation section (510) to the condensation section (520), the flow area of ​​the guide cover tends to decrease.

6. The thermal management system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The installation height of the liquid gas tank (100) is greater than the installation height of the jacket (300).

7. The thermal management system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The liquid gas tank (100) is a liquid nitrogen tank, a liquid oxygen tank, a liquid carbon dioxide tank or a liquid air tank.

8. The thermal management system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The power element (600) is partially or completely immersed in the working fluid of the evaporation section (510).

9. The thermal management system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The power element (600) is attached to the outer surface of the evaporation section (510).

10. A robot, characterized in that: Comprising a thermal management system as described in any one of claims 1 to claim 9.

Images