Inlet pipe for a heat exchanger

Abstract

The invention relates to an inlet pipe (1) for a heat exchanger (100), said inlet pipe (1) comprising a box (11) and a cover (12), said box (11) comprising at least one opening (40) formed in said box (11), said cover (12) comprising a peripheral edge (50), said peripheral edge (50) surrounding an internal portion (51) of the cover (12), the cover (12) being disposed to overlap the opening (40), the peripheral edge (50) being welded to said box (11), said inlet pipe (1) being characterized in that said box (11) is assembled to the internal portion (51) by means of at least one reinforcing member (60), in particular two reinforcing members (60). Abstract figure: Figure 2

Description

Title of the invention: Inlet duct for a heat exchanger technical field

[0001] The invention relates to the field of heat exchangers, particularly for motor vehicles. Previous technique

[0002] It relates more particularly to a heat exchanger comprising a heat exchange bundle defining first circulation channels for the circulation of a gas to be cooled, and second circulation channels for the circulation of a coolant. Such a heat exchanger can be implemented, in particular, in the form of a charge air cooler for a motor vehicle internal combustion engine, the gas to be cooled then being the engine's charge air.

[0003] Indeed, supercharged or turbocharged internal combustion engines, in particular diesel engines, are supplied with compressed air called boost air from a turbocharger driven by the exhaust gases of the engine.

[0004] However, this compression has the effect of heating the air, which is at an excessively high temperature. For proper engine operation, it is desirable to cool it to lower its temperature before it enters the engine cylinders. A heat exchanger, known as a charge air cooler, is conventionally used for this purpose. This cooler's function is to cool the charge air by exchanging heat with another fluid, such as outside air or a liquid like the water in the engine's cooling system, thus forming an air-to-air or liquid-to-air type heat exchanger.

[0005] As is known, a heat exchanger, and more specifically a charge air cooler, comprises heat exchange and fluid flow elements through which fluids circulate, exchanging heat with each other. Numerous fluid combinations can be considered, whether liquids and / or gases. Many structural configurations are possible. Heat exchangers are known that comprise a heat exchange bundle consisting of a stack of plates arranged parallel to each other in one or more parallel rows. These plates are arranged to define, on the one hand, first circulation channels for a first fluid and, on the other hand, second circulation channels for a second fluid, exchanging heat with the first fluid.

[0006] These plates can be alternated with flow disturbance elements of a fluid, for example a gaseous fluid such as charge air. According to a known solution, a heat exchanger includes an inlet duct and an outlet duct for the gaseous fluid such as charge air, located on either side of the core. These ducts allow the intake and exhaust of charge air through the heat exchanger.

[0007] The intake and exhaust ducts of such a heat exchanger are subjected to mechanical and thermal stresses. The gas intake duct, in particular, must be able to withstand the high pressures and temperatures of the exhaust gases from the turbocharger. The invention aims, in particular, to provide a heat exchanger capable of adapting to the mechanical stresses and temperature conditions on the side of the gas intake manifold. The invention further aims to provide such a heat exchanger that is particularly suitable as a charge air cooler. Summary

[0008] To this end, the present invention proposes an inlet pipe for a heat exchanger, said inlet pipe comprising a box and a cover. The said box also includes at least one opening provided in the said box. The intake box cover includes a peripheral edge, said peripheral edge surrounding an internal portion of the cover. The lid is positioned to cover the opening of the box, so that the inner portion faces said opening. The peripheral edge is secured to the box by welding, preferably by vibration welding. The intake duct is characterized in that the box is assembled to the internal portion of the cover using at least one reinforcing member, in particular two reinforcing members.

[0009] According to one embodiment of the invention, said box is configured to be disposed at one end of a heat exchange bundle of the heat exchanger. Said box comprises, in addition to the opening, an inlet and an outlet. The outlet of said box is directly connected to the heat exchange bundle.

[0010] According to one embodiment of the invention, the opening of the box is surrounded by a perimeter, the peripheral edge of the lid being attached to the perimeter of the opening.

[0011] The reinforcing element provides mechanical reinforcement to the weld. Attaching the inner portion of the lid to the box optimizes the mechanical reinforcement by distributing the forces over a more central area. The forces applied by the reinforcing element are thus distributed over the entire peripheral edge.

[0012] According to one embodiment of the invention, the reinforcing elements are chosen from among screws or nuts or rivets.

[0013] In this way, the screws or nuts or rivets make it possible to reinforce the attachment of the lid to the box.

[0014] According to one embodiment of the invention, the box includes at least one first passage, in particular a through passage, said first passage being configured to cooperate with the reinforcing member, in particular with a screw.

[0015] The reinforcing element passes through the first passage of the box.

[0016] According to one embodiment of the invention, the internal portion of the cover includes at least one first orifice, in particular blind, said first orifice being configured to cooperate with the reinforcing member.

[0017] According to an example of an embodiment of the invention, each of the first orifices of the internal portion is positioned opposite each of the passages of the box.

[0018] According to one embodiment of the invention, the first orifice includes a thread, said thread being configured to cooperate with the reinforcing member, in particular with a screw.

[0019] According to one embodiment of the invention, the reinforcing element, for example the screw, passes through the first passage of the box to fit the thread of the first orifice.

[0020] The reinforcing element thus passes through the first opening of the box to fit into the first orifice of the internal portion of the lid. In the case of a first threaded orifice, the interaction of said thread with the reinforcing element exerts a force, this force strengthening the connection between the lid and the box.

[0021] According to an embodiment of the invention, the internal portion of the lid comprises at least one rib, in particular two ribs, said rib extending from the internal portion towards the box.

[0022] The rib is formed from the same material as the cover. This rib extends from the inner portion of the cover towards the housing. The rib serves two functions. The first function is to guide air along the intake duct. The second function is to provide mechanical reinforcement to the cover.

[0023] According to an example of an embodiment of the invention, said rib comprises at least one first orifice.

[0024] According to one embodiment of the invention, the reinforcing members are fixing tabs belonging to the box and / or to the internal portion of the lid.

[0025] According to one embodiment of the invention, the box and the lid are made of plastic material.

[0026] The plastic material allows for a low weight of the intake duct, as well as a high degree of shape modularity, the use of plastic allowing for modify the geometry of the box and lid by adapting the tools.

[0027] According to one embodiment of the invention, the box entrance has a circular cross-section.

[0028] According to one embodiment of the invention, the outlet of the box has a substantially rectangular cross-section.

[0029] According to an example of an embodiment of the invention, the box includes at least one second passage, in particular two second passages, said second passages preferably being arranged around the entrance of the box.

[0030] The second passages cooperate with fastening members to fix the inlet of the intake duct to an air inlet channel. The fastening members do not pass through the opening.

[0031] According to one embodiment of the invention, the cover comprises at least one second opening, in particular a blind opening, or in particular two second openings, each of the second openings being arranged opposite a second passage. In particular, the second openings comprise a thread, said thread being configured to cooperate with fastening elements, in particular screws.

[0032] In this way, the fasteners pass through the second passages of the box and cooperate with the threads of the second openings in the cover. In this way, not only is the air intake channel fixed to the inlet of the intake duct, but the cover is also fixed to the box via the fasteners.

[0033] Thus, the lid is attached to the box at the peripheral edge, by welding, but also by means of the reinforcing members and the fixing members.

[0034] According to an embodiment of the invention, the box includes at least one third orifice, in particular blind, in particular two third orifices, the third orifices comprising a thread, said thread cooperating with fastening elements, in particular screws.

[0035] According to one embodiment of the invention, the intake pipe forms a bend, in particular a bend between 160° and 200°.

[0036] The invention also relates to a heat exchanger, in particular a charge air re-cooler, comprising an inlet duct according to the invention. Brief description of the drawings

[0037] Other features, details and advantages will become apparent upon reading the detailed description below, and upon analysis of the accompanying drawings, on which:

[0038] [Fig. 1] is a perspective view of a heat exchanger comprising an inlet duct according to the invention.

[0039] [Fig.2] is an exploded view of the intake duct of [Fig. 1].

[0040] [Fig.3] is a perspective view of the intake duct box of [Fig. 1] Description of the implementation methods

[0041] To facilitate reading the figures, the different elements are not necessarily drawn to scale. In these figures, identical elements bear the same reference numerals. Certain elements or parameters may be indexed, that is, designated, for example, as first element or second element, or first parameter and second parameter, etc. This indexing aims to differentiate similar, but not identical, elements or parameters. This indexing does not imply a priority of one element or parameter over another. The designations 'first', 'second', 'third', etc., can thus be interchanged.

[0042] The invention relates to an intake duct 1 for a heat exchanger 100, in particular a heat exchanger for cooling the charge air of an internal combustion engine, such as a diesel engine in a motor vehicle. Such a heat exchanger 100 is shown [Fig. 1]. Such a heat exchanger 100 may be an air-liquid heat exchanger, that is, a heat exchanger in which the fluids exchanging heat are air and a liquid such as water. In the case of a charge air cooler, the liquid is preferably water from the so-called "low-temperature" cooling circuit of said engine; this is typically glycol water. Of course, the invention is not limited to charge air coolers for motor vehicles and can be applied to other types of heat exchangers.

[0043] The heat exchanger 100 shown in [Fig. 1] comprises a heat exchange bundle 20 which, in the example, is formed by an assembly of stacked plates. The heat exchange bundle 20 is framed on one side by a gas inlet duct 1 and on the other side by a gas outlet duct 2. The two gas inlet ducts 1 and 2 are, in the illustrated example, assembled respectively on two opposite faces of the heat exchange bundle 20. The gas outlet duct 2 can be fixed directly or indirectly to the cylinder head of the engine. The inlet ducts 1 and 2 outlet ducts can be molded to the desired shape and are assembled on either side of the heat exchange bundle 20.

[0044] The inlet pipe 1 for a heat exchanger 100 includes a box 11 and a cover 12. As shown [Fig.1], said box 11 is configured to be disposed at one end of a heat exchange bundle 20 of the heat exchanger 100.

[0045] The box 11 is shown in more detail [Fig. 2]. The box 11 comprises an inlet 31 and an outlet 32, the outlet 32 ​​being arranged opposite the exchange beam of heat 20.

[0046] The box 11 includes an opening 40, shown [Fig. 3], formed in the box 11. The opening 40 of the box 11 is surrounded by a perimeter 4L

[0047] The cover 12, represented in particular in [Fig.2], includes a peripheral edge 50, said peripheral edge 50 surrounding an internal portion 51 of the cover 12.

[0048] The cover 12 is arranged to cover the opening 40, so that the internal portion 51 of the cover faces the opening 40.

[0049] The peripheral edge 50 of the cover 12 is secured to the box 11 by welding, preferably by vibration welding. In particular, the peripheral edge 50 of the cover 12 is secured to the perimeter 41 of the opening 40.

[0050] In the illustrated example [Fig.2], the box 11 is assembled to the internal portion 51 using two reinforcing members 60.

[0051] The reinforcing elements 60 provide mechanical reinforcement to the weld. Attaching the inner portion 51 of the cover 12 to the box 11 optimizes the mechanical reinforcement by distributing the forces over a more central area. The forces applied by the reinforcing elements 60 are thus distributed over the entire peripheral edge 50.

[0052] The reinforcing elements 60 are preferably chosen from screws or nuts or rivets.

[0053] In this way, the screws or nuts or rivets make it possible to reinforce the attachment of the cover 12 to the box 11.

[0054] In the embodiment shown [Fig.2], the box 11 includes two first through passages 61, said first passages 61 being configured to cooperate with the reinforcing members 60, here with screws.

[0055] The reinforcing elements 60 pass through the first passages 61 of the box 11.

[0056] The internal portion 51 of the cover 12 includes two first orifices 62, configured to cooperate with the reinforcing members 60.

[0057] Each of the first orifices 62 of the internal portion 51 is positioned opposite each of the passages 61 of the box 11.

[0058] The first orifices 62 include threads, said threads being configured to cooperate with the reinforcing members 60, here with screws.

[0059] The reinforcing members 60 pass through the first passages 61 of the box 11 to fit the threads of the first orifices 62.

[0060] The reinforcing members 60 thus pass through the first passages 61 of the box 11 to come to rest in the first orifices 62 of the internal portion 51 of the cover 12. The cooperation of the threads with the reinforcing members 60 exerts a force, this force reinforcing the bonding of the cover 12 and the box 11.

[0061] The internal portion 51 of the lid 12 comprises two ribs 70, said ribs 70 extending from the internal portion 51 towards box 11.

[0062] The ribs 70 are formed from the same material as the cover 12. These ribs extend from the inner portion 51 of the cover 12 towards the box 11. The ribs 70 perform two functions. The first function is to guide the air along the intake duct 1. The second function is to provide mechanical reinforcement to the cover 12.

[0063] The ribs 70 include the first orifices 62.

[0064] According to an example of an embodiment not shown, the reinforcing members 60 can be fixing tabs belonging to the box 11 and / or to the internal portion 51 of the cover 12.

[0065] According to one embodiment of the invention, the box 11 and the lid 12 are made of plastic material.

[0066] The plastic material allows for a low weight of the intake pipe 1, as well as a high degree of modularity in shape, the use of plastic allowing the geometry of the box 11 and the cover 12 to be modified by adapting the tools.

[0067] The inlet 31 of the box 11 has a circular cross-section.

[0068] The outlet 32 ​​of the box 11 has a substantially rectangular cross-section.

[0069] The box 11 includes two second passages 63, said second passages 63 being arranged around the inlet 31 of the box 11.

[0070] The second passages 63 cooperate with fastening members to fix the inlet 31 of the intake duct 1 to an air inlet channel. The fastening members do not pass through the opening 40.

[0071] The cover 12 includes at least two second orifices 64, each of the second orifices 64 being arranged opposite a second passage 63, the second orifices 64 including a thread, said thread being configured to cooperate with fastening elements, here screws.

[0072] In this way, the fastening members pass through the second passages 63 of the box 11 and cooperate with the threads of the second orifices 64 of the cover 12. In this way, not only is an air inlet channel fixed to the inlet 31 of the intake duct 1, but the cover 12 is also fixed to the box 11 via the fastening members.

[0073] Thus, the cover 12 is attached to the box 11 at the peripheral edge 50, by welding, but also by means of the reinforcing members 60 and the fixing members.

[0074] The box 11 includes two third blind orifices 65, the third orifices 65 including a thread, said thread cooperating with fastening elements, here screws.

[0075] The intake pipe 1 forms a bend, in particular a bend between 160° and 200°.

Claims

Demands

1. Inlet pipe (1) for a heat exchanger (100), said inlet pipe (1) comprising a box (11) and a cover (12), said box (11) comprising at least one opening (40) formed in said box (11), said cover (12) comprising a peripheral edge (50), said peripheral edge (50) surrounding an internal portion (51) of said cover (12), the cover (12) being arranged to cover the opening (40), so that the internal portion (51) faces said opening (40), the peripheral edge (50) being joined to said box (11) by welding, preferably by vibration welding, said inlet pipe (1) being characterized in that said box (11) is assembled to the internal portion (51) using at least one reinforcing member (60), in particular two reinforcing members (60).

2. Inlet conduit (1) according to the preceding claim, the reinforcing members (60) being selected from screws or nuts or rivets.

3. Intake duct (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, the box (11) comprising at least one first passage (61), in particular through, said first passage (61) being configured to cooperate with the reinforcing member (60), in particular with a screw.

4. Inlet conduit (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, the internal portion (51) of the cover (12) comprising at least one first orifice (62), in particular blind, said first orifice (62) being configured to cooperate with the reinforcing member (60).

5. Inlet conduit (1) according to claims 3 and 4, each of the first orifices (62) of the internal portion (51) being positioned opposite each of the passages (61) of the box (11).

6. Inlet conduit (1) according to any one of claims 4 to 5, the first orifice (62) comprising a thread, said thread being configured to cooperate with the reinforcing member (60), in particular with a screw.

7. Inlet conduit (1) according to the preceding claim, in combination with claim 5, the reinforcing member (60), for example the screw, passing through the first passage (61) of the box (11) to fit the thread of the first orifice (62).

8. Inlet conduit (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, the internal portion (51) of the cover (12) comprising at less one rib (70), in particular two ribs (70), said rib (70) extending from the internal portion (51) towards the box (H).

9. Inlet conduit (1) according to the preceding claim, in combination with claim 4, the rib (70) comprising at least one first orifice (62).

10. Heat exchanger (100), in particular charge air cooler, comprising an inlet duct (1) according to any one of the preceding claims.

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