Oil air cooler

Abstract

Oil air cooler (10) with an oil-flowed cooling element (12) which is directly connected to a connection flange (14), wherein the connection flange (14) has an inlet (16) and an outlet (18) for the oil volume flow through the cooling element (12), and with a thermostatic valve (30) arranged in the connection flange (14), wherein the connection flange (14) is designed such that, with the thermostatic valve (30) closed, the oil flow is directed directly from the inlet (16) to the outlet (18) of the connection flange (14) without passing through the cooling element (12) and wherein a return line (26) directly connected to an outlet channel (24) of the cooling body (12) opens into a cooling body outlet opening (28) of the connection flange (14) and the returning oil is introduced directly back into the connection flange (14) after passing the cooling body (12).

Description

[0001] The invention relates to an oil-air cooler with an oil-flowing heat sink.

[0002] Oil-to-air coolers are used in automotive engineering, for example, as transmission oil coolers. Such oil coolers are typically installed in the wheelhouse of a vehicle and therefore require a very compact design.

[0003] It is known, for example, to bypass the cooling element when the engine is cold by using a thermostatic valve and to only switch it on when the temperature of the oil in the oil circuit exceeds a certain value.

[0004] DE 10 2006 003 271 A1 describes a thermostatic valve for connecting an automatic transmission to an oil-to-air cooler. This thermostatic valve opens or closes the connection between an inlet channel for oil coming from the transmission and an outlet channel to the oil-to-air cooler.

[0005] Such thermostat valves are fluidly coupled to the oil-air cooler via lines, with the thermostat valve being vibration-decoupled from the vehicle via rubber mounts.

[0006] DE 299 09 871 U1 discloses an oil cooler for a vehicle having a bypass controlled by a thermostatic valve. The thermostatic valve is integrated into an outlet in a lower section of the oil cooler. An inlet, spatially separated from the outlet, is provided at an upper section of the oil cooler. The oil cooler has two heat exchanger sections arranged one above the other and connected to each other via a central chamber. When the engine is cold, the bypass is opened, and a portion of the oil flows from the central chamber to the outlet through the bypass. The heat exchanger section between the inlet and the central chamber is always flowing.

[0007] DE 297 19 311 U1 shows an oil-to-air cooler with a heat exchanger. At the upper end of the heat exchanger, a connection flange is provided with two connections separated by a partition. The partition has an opening that can be closed or opened by a thermostatic valve. When the opening is closed, the oil passes through the heat exchanger in two opposite directions until it returns to the connection flange and is discharged. When the opening is open, however, the oil flows only through the connection flange without passing through the heat exchanger.

[0008] The object of the invention is to create an oil-air cooler that can be even more easily installed in the wheel house of a vehicle.

[0009] This is achieved according to the invention by an oil-air cooler having the features of claim 1. The connecting flange is thus attached directly to the oil-air cooler, without the need for any intermediate piping or the like.

[0010] According to the invention, the thermostatic valve is located directly in the connection flange and does not need to be housed separately in the circuit. Vibration isolation of the thermostatic valve is also eliminated, as this is achieved via the elastic mounting of the oil-air cooler or the connection flange itself. This allows the size of the oil-air cooler and its attachments to be reduced.

[0011] A return line directly connected to an outlet channel of the heat sink opens into a heat sink outlet opening in the connection flange. This way, the returning oil, after passing through the heat sink, is directly fed back into the connection flange and from there back into the oil circuit.

[0012] Preferably, the connecting flange has a heat sink inlet opening that opens directly into an inlet channel of the heat sink. The channels in the connecting flange and the heat sink thus merge directly into one another.

[0013] The inlet and outlet of the connecting flange preferably open into the same side of the connecting flange, which simplifies installation.

[0014] The return line can run laterally from one end of the heatsink to the opposite end, which also reduces the overall space requirement of the oil-air cooler.

[0015] Preferably, the inlet and outlet are located on top of the connection flange to allow good accessibility.

[0016] The oil-air cooler is preferably a vehicle oil-air cooler and in particular a transmission oil cooler.

[0017] Further features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description of an exemplary embodiment in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: - Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an oil-air cooler according to the invention; and - Fig. 2 the oil air cooler in Fig. 1 in a side view.

[0018] The figures show an oil-to-air cooler 10. This oil-to-air cooler 10 is housed in the wheelhouse of a vehicle and is very compact overall.

[0019] The oil-air cooler 10 comprises an oil-flowing heat sink 12, which is directly connected to a connecting flange 14.

[0020] The connecting flange 14 has an inlet 16 and an outlet 18 for an oil flow, for example, supplying a vehicle's transmission, which flows through the cooling body 12. The connecting flange 14 and thus the entire oil-air cooler 10 are mounted in the vehicle's wheelhouse via a mounting plate 20. The end of the nozzle-shaped inlet 16 and the outlet 18 are each designed as a quick-coupling nozzle.

[0021] The heat sink 12 is constructed in a known manner and has at one end an inlet channel 22 running across the entire width of the heat sink, via which the oil is distributed over a surface or in several channels (not shown) onto the central part of the heat sink 12 provided with cooling fins.

[0022] At the other end, the oil, after flowing through the central section, is collected in an outlet channel 24 that also extends across the entire width of the heat sink 12. The inlet and outlet channels 22, 24 form distribution and collection chambers, respectively, that extend across the entire width of the heat sink 12 and into which all the channels of the central section merge.

[0023] The inlet channel 22 is directly connected to the connecting flange 14 in terms of flow and is also arranged in the immediate vicinity thereof, so that a heat sink inlet opening of the connecting flange 14 opens directly into the inlet channel 22 of the heat sink 12.

[0024] The connecting flange 14 is a body that is geometrically offset from the inlet channel 22, but preferably either merges into the inlet channel 22 as one piece or is directly attached to it. This attachment can be achieved via material-to-material connections, but also via screw connections or the like.

[0025] The inlet and outlet 16 and 18, respectively, are located on the same side of the connecting flange 14; in this case, they protrude upwards. However, it should be noted that, for space reasons, the top, or more generally, the front face of the flange 14 is tilted relatively slightly toward the main plane of the heat sink 12 (the vertical plane in the drawings), so that the protruding tubes forming the inlet 16 and outlet 18, respectively, protrude less upwards.

[0026] From the outlet channel 24, the returning oil flows into a return line 26 centrally connected to the outlet channel 24, which runs laterally next to the wide side of the heat sink 12 and, as can be seen in the figures, opens into a heat sink outlet opening 28 of the connection flange 14 on a narrow side of the heat sink 12 in the lower region of the connection flange 14. The return line 26 is a so-called riser pipe, which is a component of the oil-air cooler 10.

[0027] A thermostatic valve 30 is arranged in the connecting flange 14 itself in such a way that, when closed, it can divide the connecting flange 14 into two separate flow areas 32 and 34.

[0028] The thermostatic valve 30 is housed entirely within the connecting flange 14. When the thermostatic valve 30 is closed, typically when the incoming oil has a temperature below a specified limit and thus no further cooling is required, the oil flow flows directly from the inlet 16 through the first flow area 32 to the outlet 18 and from there back into the oil circuit without passing through the heat sink 12.

[0029] When the thermostat valve 30 is open, however, the incoming oil flows from the inlet 16 through the first flow area 32, passes the thermostat valve 30, and enters the inlet channel 22 of the heat sink 12 via the second flow area 34. The oil then flows through the heat sink 12 and returns to the connection flange 14 via the outlet channel 24 and the return line 26, and from there back into the outlet line 18.

[0030] The connection flange 14 is of course divided in such a way that when the thermostat valve 30 is open, no direct backflow can occur from the inlet 16 to the outlet 18. The liquid flows are in the Fig. 2 only indicated schematically.

[0031] A control unit (not shown here) for controlling and regulating the thermostatic valve 30 can also be accommodated in the connecting flange 14.

Claims

[1] Oil-air cooler (10) with an oil-flowing heat sink (12) which is directly connected to a connecting flange (14), wherein the connecting flange (14) has an inlet (16) and an outlet (18) for the oil volume flow which flows through the heat sink (12), and with a thermostatic valve (30) arranged in the connecting flange (14), wherein the connecting flange (14) is designed such that the oil volume flow is guided directly from the inlet (16) to the outlet (18) of the connecting flange (14) when the thermostat valve (30) is closed, bypassing the cooling body (12), without flowing through the cooling body (12) and wherein a return line (26) directly connected to an outlet channel (24) of the heat sink (12) opens into a heat sink outlet opening (28) of the connecting flange (14) and the returning oil is fed directly back into the connecting flange (14) after passing through the heat sink (12). [2] Oil-air cooler (10) according to claim 1, characterized by that the connecting flange (14) has a heat sink inlet opening which opens directly into an inlet channel (22) of the heat sink (12). [3] Oil-air cooler (10) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the inlet (16) and the outlet (18) open into the connecting flange (14) on the same side. [4] Oil-air cooler (10) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the return line (26) runs laterally from the heat sink (12) from one end to its opposite end. [5] Oil-air cooler (10) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the inlet (16) and the outlet (18) are mounted on the top of the connecting flange (14). [6] Oil-air cooler (10) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the oil-air cooler (10) is a vehicle oil-air cooler. [7] Oil-air cooler (10) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that an end face of the connecting flange (14), from which the inlet (16) and outlet (18) extend, is tilted relative to a main plane of the heat sink (12).

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