Radiator fan module of a motor vehicle

Abstract

The invention relates to a radiator fan module (1), in particular of a motor vehicle, with a fan frame (3) having a fan wheel recess (5) and with a cooler (2) connected to the fan frame (3) or attachable to the latter, wherein a cooler-side joining element (9) and a locking element (10) are provided in the region of joining interfaces (4) between the cooler (2) and the fan frame (3), and wherein the fan frame (3) has joining contours (11) corresponding to the cooler-side joining elements (9) and locking contours (12) corresponding to the locking elements (10).

Description

The invention relates to a radiator fan module, in particular of a motor vehicle, which is preferably driven electrically (electromotively), having a fan shroud and having a radiator which is fastened or can be fastened to the fan shroud.Modern internal combustion engines, in particular four-stroke engines in motor vehicles, are typically cooled with a cooling liquid which is conducted via the internal combustion engine of the motor vehicle. In this case, the cooling liquid absorbs the thermal energy generated by the internal combustion engine and removes the latter. The heated cooling liquid flows through a heat exchanger, also referred to as a radiator, which is mounted on the front side of the motor vehicle. By means of the cooler, an air flow absorbs the thermal energy from the coolant and cools it before the cooled coolant flows back to the internal combustion engine again, whereby the coolant circuit is closed.In order to convey the air through the cooler, a cooler fan, also referred to as a fan system or fan device, is provided upstream of the cooler (upstream) or downstream of the cooler (downstream) in the flow direction, which fan typically has a fan wheel, which is usually driven by electric motor, as the conveying element for the air. Such a fan wheel is rotatably arranged within a fan wheel recess in the form of a continuous opening of a fan shroud. The fan shroud is typically connected to the radiator and forms a radiator fan module therewith.Due to the manufacturing process or the interaction of the components of the radiator fan module to be connected, the tolerances of the fan shroud and / or of the radiator can be very large. This leads to problems during the assembly of the radiator fan module and can lead to undesired noise generation between the fan shroud and the radiator.The object of the invention is to specify a suitable cooling fan module. In particular, a mechanical interface between the radiator and the fan shroud that is particularly suitable with regard to ease of assembly, tolerance compensation and / or as low a level of noise as possible is to be specified.This object is achieved according to the invention with the features of claim 1. Advantageous embodiments and developments are the subject matter of the dependent claims (dependent claims).Details regarding the spatial directions in a coordinate system of a motor vehicle (vehicle coordinate system) regarding the typical position or position of a radiator fan module or of a radiator and of a fan shroud of the motor vehicle with respect to the vehicle body thereof are given below. The axis of abscissa (X axis) is oriented along the vehicle longitudinal direction, and the axis of ordinate (Y axis) is oriented along the vehicle transverse direction, and the axis of application (Z axis) is oriented along the vehicle height.The radiator fan module is provided and configured in particular for installation in a motor vehicle, for example for mounting in the engine compartment on a body part. The radiator fan module has a radiator and a fan shroud fastened thereto, in particular via mechanical joining interfaces or holders, or connectable to the radiator. The fan shroud suitably has at least one opening or recess (fan wheel recess) for a fan wheel which is preferably driven by electric motor.In the area of (mechanical) joint interfaces between the radiator and the fan shroud, also referred to below as holders, preferably on the radiator side, joint elements and a suitably identical number of detent elements are provided. The fan shroud has joining contours corresponding to the cooler-side joining elements and also latching contours corresponding to the ratchet elements.In an advantageous embodiment, the respective detent element is a detent hook formed onto the cooler. The corresponding latching contour is preferably a casing-side latching recess into which the cooler-side latching element latches in the joint connection between the cooler and the fan casing.Expediently, additionally or alternatively, a number of spring elements is provided in the region of the joining interfaces between the cooler and the fan shroud. The respective spring element is preferably arranged in the region of one of the, for example between one of the, joining elements and the catch element assigned to it. The spring elements, which are preferably formed on the radiator, bear in a suitable manner on the free end side under spring prestress on the fan shroud. In other words, by means of the spring elements provided in the region of the holders or the joining interfaces, the fan shroud and the cooler are held against one another while avoiding a relative movement. This prevents or at least reduces noise of the radiator fan module.Preferably, the joining elements and the detent elements are provided on opposite cooler sides, which run in particular in the Z direction with respect to the vehicle coordinate system. The corresponding joining contours and latching contours are provided on opposite frame sides, which run in particular in the Z direction with respect to the vehicle coordinate system.According to an expedient configuration, one of the cooler-side joining elements is configured as an, in particular cylindrical, plug-in pin having a round, in particular circular, pin cross section. In a suitable manner, one of the joining contours corresponding to the respective cooler-side joining elements is formed as a round, in particular circular, plug-in opening.Additionally or alternatively, one of the cooler-side joining elements is designed as a plug pin, in particular with a curved or trapezoidal pin cross section, and the corresponding joining contour is designed as a curved or trapezoidal plug opening. Particularly preferably, a round, in particular circular or cylindrical, and a plug-in pin which is curved or trapezoidal in cross section, preferably on the radiator, and corresponding joining contours, preferably on the fan shroud, are provided.The cooler suitably has at least two, preferably four, joining elements and at least two, preferably four, latching elements and at least two, preferably four, spring elements. It is particularly expediently provided that the radiator has on opposite radiator sides, which extend in particular in the Z direction with respect to a vehicle coordinate system, in each case two joining elements spaced apart from one another and two latching elements respectively assigned to them and two spring elements respectively assigned to these and the corresponding joining elements.Particularly preferably, the radiator has four joining and latching elements, suitably including in each case one spring element, as holders which are designed for corresponding joining interfaces in the fan shroud. The lower left-hand holder expediently has a round plug-in pin with a circular dome as a joining element and the spring element and the latching element for producing a snap-action function on the radiator, which snap-action pin latches into the corresponding interface-side contour of the fan shroud.The upper left-hand holder expediently has a plug pin with a curved, preferably trapezoidal, geometry as spring element and the spring element and the latching element for producing a snap-action function on the radiator, which snap-action pin latches into a corresponding bore as joining contour of the fan shroud. Alternatively, the upper left-hand holder on the cooler can also be designed as a round joining element or a joining element which is circular in cross section.The right-hand upper and lower holder suitably has a plug pin with a rectangular geometry as a joining element and the spring element and the latching element for producing a snap-action function on the radiator, which snap-action pin latches into a corresponding bore as a joining contour of the fan shroud.The combination of round and curved or trapezoidal mounting in the form of the correspondingly configured plug pins as preferably cooler-side joining elements enables a rotation of the cooler with respect to the fan shroud or the latter with respect to the cooler about the correspondingly round or circular joining element. The plug pin with the curved or trapezoidal geometry as a joining element and the corresponding joining contour, in particular in the fan shroud, make it possible to follow the rotational movement to the desired extent, which makes it possible to compensate for tolerances in a particularly effective manner. By means of the latching connections, in particular in conjunction with the spring elements, a particularly easily manageable or reliable joining connection between the radiator and the fan shroud is made possible.The advantages achieved with the invention consist in particular in the fact that a cooler fan module is provided between a cooler and a fan shroud with the joint interfaces formed by holders in the form of joining, latching or spring elements, in which module large (manufacturing) tolerances can also be compensated and undesired noise generation is prevented or at least considerably reduced.An exemplary embodiment of the invention is explained in more detail below with reference to a drawing. Shown therein are: FIG. 1 shows a perspective illustration of a radiator fan module with a radiator and with a fan shroud connected to the latter at joint interfaces, FIG. 2 shows a perspective illustration of the cooler with a number of joining elements and latching elements and spring elements, in particular as holders in the region of the joining interfaces, FIG. 3 shows a sectional view along the line III-III in FIG. 1 of two different plug-and-latch connections in the region of an upper and a lower left-hand joint interface between the radiator and the fan shroud, FIG. 4 shows a sectional view along the line IV-IV in FIG. 1 of the joint connection in the region of the upper left joint interface between the radiator and the fan shroud, FIG. 5 shows a detail V in FIG. 1 on a larger scale with a curved joining element of the cooler in a corresponding joining contour of the fan shroud, FIG. 6 shows a sectional illustration along the line VI-VI in FIG. 1 of the joint connection in the region of the lower left joint interface between the cooler and the fan shroud, FIG. 7 shows a detail VII in FIG. 1 on a larger scale with a round joining element of the cooler in a corresponding joining contour of the fan shroud, FIG. 8 shows a sectional view along the line VIII-VIII in FIG. 1 of the joint connection in the region of the upper right joint interface between the radiator and the fan shroud, and FIG. 9 shows a sectional illustration along the line IX-IX in FIG. 1 of the joint connection in the region of the lower right joint interface between the cooler and the fan shroud.Corresponding parts are provided with the same reference numerals in all figures.FIG. 1 shows a radiator fan module 1 with a radiator 2 and with a fan shroud 3 fastened thereto. The fan shroud 3 has a recess (fan wheel recess) 5. This has an inner retaining ring 6, which is connected to an inner ring 8 via struts 7. This is provided or set up in a manner not shown in more detail for holding an electric motor driving a fan wheel.As can be seen in conjunction with FIGS. 2 to 7, the holders provided in the region of the joint interfaces 4 between the radiator 2 and the fan shroud 3 are formed from radiator-side joint elements 9 and detent elements 10. The fan shroud 3 has joining contours 11 in the form of plug-in openings corresponding to the cooler-side joining elements 9 and also latching contours 12 corresponding to the ratchet elements 10. The detent elements 10 are detent hooks formed on the cooler 2. The corresponding latching contours 12 are frame-side latching recesses into which the cooler-side ratchet element 10 latches in the joint connection between the cooler 2 and the fan frame 3.FIG. 2 shows the cooler 2 with the joining elements 9 formed on it and the likewise formed-on latching elements 10. In the exemplary embodiment, the joining elements 9 and the detent elements 10 are arranged on cooler sides which are opposite in the Y direction and extend in the Z direction-in relation to the vehicle coordinate system shown in FIG. 1. The corresponding joining contours 11 and the latching contours 12 are arranged on the shroud sides of the fan shroud 3 which are opposite in the Y direction and extend in the Z direction.In the exemplary embodiment, the joining elements 9, the latching elements 10, the corresponding joining contours 11 and the latching contours 12 are provided on the narrow sides of the cooler 2, which is rectangular here, and of the fan shroud 3, which is likewise rectangular. It is possible to see the joining elements 9 and the latching elements 10 in the corner regions of the radiator 2 and the joining contours 11 and the latching contours 12 in the corner regions of the fan shroud 3.As can be seen from FIGS. 3 to 7, the respective spring element 13 is provided at the joining interfaces 4 between the radiator 2 and the fan shroud 3 in the region of the joining elements 9 and latching elements 10. The spring element 13 is designed as a bent or curved tab which is integrally formed on the radiator 2 and, in the joined state, bears on the tab-end side, which is mechanically prestressed, on the fan shroud 3 on the (inner) side facing the radiator 2.As is comparatively clearly evident from FIG. 5, the cooler-side joining element 9 there is formed as a plug pin with a trapezoidal pin cross section. The corresponding joining contour 11 of the fan shroud 3 is designed as a curved or trapezoidal plug-in opening. The joining element 9 designed as a plug pin is seated with play in the plug opening as a corresponding joining contour 11 of the fan shroud 3.As is comparatively clearly evident from FIG. 7, the cooler-side joining element 9 there is formed as a round or cylindrical plug-in pin with a circular pin cross section. The joining contour 11 of the fan shroud 3 corresponding to this joining element 9 is designed as a round or circular plug-in opening.According to FIGS. 8 and 9, the cooler-side joining elements 9 provided on the right-hand side of the cooling fan module 1 in the exemplary embodiment are designed as rectangular plug pins and the corresponding frame-side joining contours 11 are likewise designed as rectangular plug openings.During assembly, the cooler 2 is placed on the fan shroud 3 in the X direction. The cooler 2 is rotatable about the circular joining element 9. The contact between the cooler 2 and the fan shroud 3 is a linear contact here. The rotational movement is made possible on account of the curved geometry of the upper left-hand joining element 9 of the cooler 2 in the exemplary embodiment and the corresponding joining contour 11 of the fan shroud 3. The contact between the cooler 2 and the fan shroud 3 is a surface contact here.The joining elements 9 on the right-hand side of the radiator fan module 1 in the exemplary embodiment are mounted in the corresponding joining contours 11 of the fan shroud 3. The contact between the cooler 2 and the fan shroud 3 is a surface contact here. Existing tolerances of the holders 4 from left to right are compensated for by their snap-action function, in particular by or by means of the latching elements 10.In the exemplary embodiment, four mechanical joint interfaces or holders 4 are provided, namely in each case two joint interfaces or holders 4 on the right and left sides of the radiator fan module 1.In summary, the invention relates to a radiator fan module 1 having a fan shroud 3 having a fan impeller recess 5 and having a radiator 2 connected to it or fastenable to it, wherein in the region of a joint interface 4 between the radiator 2 and the fan shroud 3 a respective cooler-side joint element 9 and a detent element 10 are provided, and wherein the fan shroud 3 has joint contours 11 corresponding to the joint elements 9 and detent contours 12 corresponding to the detent elements 10.The claimed invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments. Rather, other variants of the invention can also be derived herefrom by the person skilled in the art within the scope of the disclosed claims without departing from the subject matter of the claimed invention, for example also the use in hybrid or electric vehicles. In particular, all individual features described in connection with the various exemplary embodiments can also be combined in another manner within the scope of the disclosed claims without departing from the subject matter of the claimed invention.List of reference characters1 Cooling fan module 2 Cooler 3 Fan shroud 4 Holder / joint interface 5 Fan impeller / recess 6 Retaining ring 7 Struts 8 Inner ring 9 Joining element 10 Detent element 11 Joining contour 12 Detent contour 13 Spring element

Claims

Radiator fan module (1), in particular of a motor vehicle, having a fan shroud (3) and having a radiator (2) which is connected to the fan shroud (3) or can be fastened to the latter, - wherein a respective radiator-side joining element (9) and a detent element (10) are provided in the region of a number of joining interfaces (4) between the radiator (2) and the fan shroud (3), and - wherein the fan shroud (3) has joining contours (11) which correspond to the radiator-side joining elements (9) and detent contours (12) which correspond to the detent elements (10).Radiator fan module (1) according to Claim 1, characterized in that a number of spring elements (13) is provided in the region in the joining interface (4) between the radiator (2) and the fan shroud (3).Radiator fan module (1) according to Claim 2, characterized - in that the respective spring element (13) is arranged in the region of the respective joining element (9) and the ratchet element (10) assigned thereto, and / or - in that the spring elements (13) are integrally formed on the radiator (2) and bear on the free end side against the fan shroud (3) under spring prestress.Radiator fan module (1) according to one of Claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the detent element (10) is a detent hook which is integrally formed on the radiator (2), and the corresponding detent contours (12) is a frame-side detent recess or opening into which the radiator-side detent element (10) engages in the joint connection between the radiator (2) and the fan frame (3).Radiator fan module (1) according to one of Claims 1 to 4, characterized - in that the cooler-side joining elements (9) and detent elements (10) are provided on opposite radiator sides and / or - with respect to a vehicle coordinate system (X, Y, Z) - in the Z direction, and - in that the corresponding joining contours (11) and detent contours (12) are provided on opposite shroud sides and / or - with respect to a vehicle coordinate system (X, Y, Z) - in the Z direction.Cooling fan module (1) according to one of Claims 1 to 5, characterized in that one of the cooler-side joining elements (9) is designed as a plug-in pin having a round, in particular circular, pin cross section.Cooling fan module (1) according to one of Claims 1 to 6, characterized in that one of the joining contours (11) which corresponds to the respective cooler-side joining element (9) is designed as a round, in particular circular, plug-in opening.Radiator fan module (1) according to one of Claims 1 to 7, characterized in that one of the cooler-side joining elements (9) is designed as a plug pin with a curved, in particular trapezoidal, pin cross section and the corresponding joining contour (11) is designed as a trapezoidal plug opening.Cooling fan module (1) according to one of Claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the cooler (2) has at least two, preferably four, joining elements (9) and at least two, preferably four, latching elements (12) and / or at least two, preferably four, spring elements (13).Radiator fan module (1) according to one of Claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the radiator (2) has, on mutually opposite radiator sides, which run in particular in the Z direction with respect to a vehicle coordinate system (X, Y, Z), in each case two mutually spaced-apart joining elements (9) and two latching elements (12) assigned in each case to these and / or spring elements (13) assigned to the corresponding joining elements (9).

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