Cooling heat exchanger

Abstract

To provide a novel cooling heat exchanger obtained by combining a metal member and a synthetic resin member, the cooling heat exchanger being capable of preventing distortion of the cooling heat exchanger even under a high-temperature environment, and improving manufacturing efficiency.SOLUTION: In a cooling heating exchanger 10 in which a metal plate 14 to be superimposed on a cooling object 12 and a plate-shaped resin member 18 having a concave groove 16 are superimposed and fixed onto each other, and a cooling flow path 22 through which a heat medium flows is formed between the metal plate 14 and the resin member 18 by covering an opening 20 of the concave groove 16 with the metal plate 14, the resin member 18 is divided into a plurality of divided bodies 30, each of the divided bodies 30 is superimposed and fixed onto the metal plate 14, adjacent divided bodies 30 are separated from each other, and spaces between the divided bodies 30 form bulging allowance portions 32 that allow the divided bodies 30 to bulge and deform.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a cooling heat exchanger that is provided in, for example, an electric vehicle or a hybrid vehicle and cools an object to be cooled, such as a battery pack. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, cooling units for cooling heat generating elements such as batteries mounted on electric vehicles, hybrid vehicles, etc. have been proposed, and such cooling units are described, for example, in International Publication No. 2020 / 196878 (Patent Document 1).

[0003] Patent document 1 describes first to sixth embodiments of a cooling unit, and all of the embodiments include a metal plate-shaped lid body that is overlaid on the object to be cooled (e.g., a battery cell) and a resin box body with a flow path for allowing the refrigerant to flow inside, and the opening of a groove provided in the box body is covered by the plate-shaped lid body to form a cooling flow path for the refrigerant to flow. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2020 / 196878 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, the difference in linear expansion coefficient between the metal member and the synthetic resin member is relatively large, and when heat is applied to both members, the synthetic resin member expands more easily than the metal member. Therefore, in a cooling unit as described in Patent Document 1, for example, due to heat generation from a heat generating body (body to be cooled) or when the vehicle is exposed to a high temperature environment, the synthetic resin member may expand more than the metal member, causing the cooling unit to distort and causing the refrigerant to leak from the cooling unit. In addition, when one large metal member and one large synthetic resin member are used, there is a risk that handling and manufacturing efficiency may decrease.

[0006] The present invention has been made against the background of the above-mentioned circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a novel cooling heat exchanger that combines metal components and synthetic resin components, which can prevent distortion of the cooling heat exchanger even in a high-temperature environment, for example, and also makes it possible to improve manufacturing efficiency. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The following describes preferred embodiments for understanding the present invention, but the embodiments described below are merely illustrative and may be combined with one another as appropriate, and the multiple components described in each embodiment may be recognized and used independently as far as possible, and may also be combined with any of the components described in another embodiment as appropriate. As a result, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described below, and various other embodiments may be realized.

[0008] The first aspect is a cooling heat exchanger in which a metal plate to be placed on an object to be cooled and a plate-shaped resin member having a groove are placed on top of and fixed to each other, and the opening of the groove is covered by the metal plate to form a cooling flow passage through which a heat medium flows between the metal plate and the resin member, and the resin member is divided into a plurality of segments, each of which is placed on top of and fixed to the metal plate, adjacent segments are separated from each other, and the spaces between the segments form expansion-permitting portions that allow the segments to bulge and deform.

[0009] According to this aspect, the resin member has a divided structure consisting of a plurality of divided bodies, and the gap between the adjacent divided bodies forms a bulging allowance portion that allows the divided bodies to bulge and deform. As a result, when the cooling heat exchanger is exposed to a high-temperature environment and a relatively large temperature change is applied, for example, the metal plate and the resin member bulge and deform, but the bulging allowance portion suppresses the distortion of the cooling heat exchanger due to the bulging deformation of the resin member, which is particularly susceptible to influence. In detail, the larger the joint area between the metal plate and the resin member, the larger the distortion of the cooling heat exchanger due to the difference in the linear expansion coefficient between the metal plate and the resin member tends to be. According to this aspect, by providing a bulging allowance portion between the plurality of resin members that is not fixed to the metal plate, the occurrence of distortion of the cooling heat exchanger is suppressed in the bulging allowance portion. Therefore, even in a high-temperature environment, distortion of the cooling heat exchanger due to the bulging deformation of the resin member is prevented from occurring. Furthermore, since the resin member can be used as a relatively small divided body, it is possible to improve the ease of handling of the resin member (each divided body) and the manufacturing efficiency when manufacturing the cooling heat exchanger.

[0010] In a second aspect, in the cooling heat exchanger according to the first aspect, the adjacent divided bodies are provided at a predetermined interval in the longitudinal direction of the metal plate.

[0011] According to this aspect, since adjacent divided bodies are spaced apart from each other in the longitudinal direction of the metal plate, it is possible to prevent each divided body from becoming excessively elongated compared to, for example, a case in which adjacent divided bodies are spaced apart from each other in the short direction of the metal plate, and this further improves the handleability of each divided body and the manufacturing efficiency when manufacturing the cooling heat exchanger. Effect of the Invention

[0012] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a heat exchanger for cooling that can prevent distortion even in a high-temperature environment and can also improve manufacturing efficiency. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a cooling heat exchanger according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the cooling heat exchanger shown in FIG. 1 from the bottom side. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view of the III-III section in FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the cooling heat exchanger shown in FIG. 1; [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a metal plate constituting the cooling heat exchanger shown in FIG. 1; [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a resin member constituting the cooling heat exchanger shown in FIG. 1; DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0014] In order to clarify the present invention more specifically, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

[0015] 1 to 4 show a cooling heat exchanger 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The cooling heat exchanger 10 is provided in, for example, an electric vehicle or a hybrid vehicle, and is superimposed on an object to be cooled 12 (shown by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 3) such as a battery pack that generates heat in the electric vehicle or hybrid vehicle, to cool the object to be cooled 12. In the following description, the up-down direction basically refers to the up-down direction in FIG. 3.

[0016] More specifically, in the cooling heat exchanger 10, a metal plate 14 that is placed on the object to be cooled 12 and a plate-shaped resin member 18 having a groove 16 are placed on top of each other and fixed to each other, and the opening (upper opening 20) of the groove 16 is covered by the metal plate 14, thereby forming a cooling flow path 22 through which a heat transfer medium (refrigerant) flows between the metal plate 14 and the resin member 18.

[0017] The metal plate 14 is preferably made of a metal having excellent thermal conductivity, such as copper (including copper alloys) or aluminum (including aluminum alloys). In this embodiment, the metal plate 14 is made of aluminum. In particular, as shown in FIG. 5 and other figures, the metal plate 14 is a substantially rectangular plate, and the four peripheral sides are composed of a pair of long sides 24, 24 and a pair of short sides 26, 26 connecting the long sides 24. The thickness of the metal plate 14 is not limited, but in this embodiment, it is made relatively thin.

[0018] Further, the metal plate 14 has through holes 28 formed therethrough in the thickness direction at positions corresponding to the inlet portion 38 and the outlet portion 40 of the overlapping resin member 18 (each of the divided bodies 30, 30 described later). In this embodiment, at one end portion (lower left portion in FIG. 5) in the direction in which the short side 26 of the metal plate 14 extends, a pair of through holes 28, 28 are provided spaced apart from each other at both ends in the direction in which the long side 24 extends, and at the other end portion (upper right portion in FIG. 5) in the direction in which the short side 26 extends, a pair of through holes 28, 28 are provided spaced apart from each other in the central portion in the direction in which the long side 24 extends, so that four through holes 28 are formed in one metal plate 14.

[0019] The resin member 18 is made of a hard synthetic resin, and may be made of, for example, a fiber-reinforced synthetic resin. As shown in FIG. 6 and other figures, the resin member 18 is generally rectangular plate-shaped overall, and has a certain plate thickness. Here, the resin member 18 is divided into a plurality of divided bodies 30, and in this embodiment, the resin member 18 is composed of two divided bodies 30, 30. The outer shapes of the divided bodies 30 are generally the same, and the divided bodies 30 are arranged adjacent to each other and spaced apart from each other. The gaps between these divided bodies 30 are bulging allowance portions 32 that allow the bulging deformation of each divided body 30, as described later. In the bulging allowance portion 32, the size of the gap between each divided body 30 (the separation distance between each divided body 30 in the direction of the long side 24 of the metal plate 14) is not limited, and is set, for example, taking into consideration the amount of bulging deformation expected in each divided body 30.

[0020] In this embodiment, adjacent segments 30 are provided at a predetermined interval (expansion allowance portion 32) in the longitudinal direction (direction in which long side 24 extends) of metal plate 14. Particularly in this embodiment, when each segment 30 is overlapped and fixed to metal plate 14, each segment 30 (i.e., resin member 18) is configured not to protrude outward beyond metal plate 14 in its entirety. That is, each segment 30 is formed to be smaller than the metal plate 14 divided in half in the direction in which long side 24 extends, and in each segment 30, the direction in which long side 24 extends in metal plate 14 is the short side direction, and the direction in which short side 26 extends in metal plate 14 is the longitudinal direction.

[0021] Each divided body 30 is formed with a groove 16 that opens upward (has an upper opening 20). In this embodiment, the grooves 16 formed in each divided body 30 have the same shape, and in this embodiment in particular, the grooves 16 in adjacent divided bodies 30 are symmetrical to each other. Therefore, in the following description, the groove 16 in one divided body 30 will be described, and the groove 16 in the other divided body 30 will be given the same reference numeral in the drawings and will not be described. The groove 16 is formed with a depth that does not penetrate the divided body 30 in the plate thickness direction (vertical direction), and is a groove shape with a bottom.

[0022] Although the shape of the groove 16 is not limited, the groove 16 of this embodiment has a plurality of parallel passages 34 extending parallel to the short side 26 of the metal plate 14. Between adjacent passages 34, 34 in the parallel direction of the passages 34, partitions 35 extending parallel to the short side 26 of the metal plate 14 are provided. The upper surface of each partition 35 is at the same vertical position as the upper surface of the portion of the divided body 30 where the groove 16 is not formed. Also, each passage 34 (each partition 35) is formed with a relatively long length dimension in the longitudinal direction of each divided body 30 (the direction in which the short side 26 of the metal plate 14 extends). The grooves 16 (cooling flow passages 22) in each divided body 30 are formed so that the direction in which the short side 26 of the metal plate 14 extends is the longitudinal direction as a whole, and the direction in which the long side 24 of the metal plate 14 extends is the transverse direction. Since each cooling flow path 22 is formed by covering each groove 16 with the metal plate 14, the region including each cooling flow path 22 (each groove 16) is the flow path forming region in the entire resin member 18, and the flow path forming region in the entire resin member 18 is formed with the direction in which the long side 24 of the metal plate 14 extends as the longitudinal direction and the direction in which the short side 26 of the metal plate 14 extends as the transverse direction. Therefore, in this embodiment, the divided bodies 30 are arranged at predetermined intervals in the longitudinal direction of the flow path forming region in the entire resin member 18.

[0023] The passages 34 are connected at both ends in the longitudinal direction of each passage 34 by a connecting passage 36 extending in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of each passage 34 (parallel to the long side 24 of the metal plate 14). In particular, in this embodiment, the outermost passage 34 in the parallel direction of each passage 34 extends beyond the connecting passage 36 at one end in the longitudinal direction, and an inlet portion 38 and an outlet portion 40 are formed by the portion of each outermost passage 34 in the parallel direction that extends beyond the connecting passage 36. The positions of the inlet portion 38 and the outlet portion 40 are not limited, but in this embodiment, the inlet portion 38 is formed in the lower left of the recessed groove 16 in FIG. 6, and the outlet portion 40 is formed in the upper right of FIG. 6.

[0024] The metal plate 14 is placed on each divided body 30 having the above-mentioned structure, and each divided body 30 is fixed to the metal plate 14. The method of fixing each divided body 30 to the metal plate 14 is not limited, but for example, they are fixed by adhesion or welding, and the openings (upper openings 20) of each groove 16 are liquid-tightly sealed by the metal plate 14. Specifically, the upper surface of the part of each divided body 30 where each groove 16 is not formed and the upper surface of each partition part 35 are placed on the metal plate 14, thereby covering the upper openings 20 of each passage 34 and each connecting passage 36 to form a tunnel-like passage. That is, by covering the upper openings 20 of each passage 34, a plurality of tunnel-like passages are formed in parallel in the long side 24 direction of the metal plate 14, and each of these tunnel-like passages is connected by a tunnel-like passage formed by covering the upper openings 20 of each connecting passage 36 and extending in the long side 24 direction. As a result, the tunnel-shaped passages are interconnected to form a cooling flow passage 22 through which the coolant flows.

[0025] Here, in the metal plate 14, through holes 28 are formed at positions corresponding to the inlet portion 38 and the outlet portion 40, respectively, and the cooling flow passage 22 is connected to the external space through these through holes 28. That is, the inlet portion 38 and the through hole 28 provided at the position corresponding to the inlet portion 38 form an inlet 42 that allows the coolant to flow into the cooling flow passage 22 from the outside, and the outlet portion 40 and the through hole 28 provided at the position corresponding to the outlet portion 40 form an outlet 44 that allows the coolant to flow out of the cooling flow passage 22 to the outside.

[0026] The refrigerant flowing through the cooling flow passage 22 is not limited, but may be chiller water used in a chiller (cooling water circulation system) conventionally provided in a vehicle, and specifically may be water, alcohol (methanol, ethanol, etc.), glycol, etc. In addition, the refrigerant source of the refrigerant flowing through the cooling flow passage 22 is not limited, but may be, for example, a separate chiller including a pump (not shown) or a chiller already installed in the vehicle. By employing a chiller including a pump as the refrigerant source, the refrigerant can be caused to flow through the cooling flow passage 22.

[0027] In the metal plate 14 in the cooling heat exchanger 10 configured as described above, a heat generating body (cooling target 12) that generates heat when electricity is applied, such as a battery pack, is placed on the surface (upper surface) opposite to the surface on which the resin member 18 is superimposed. In addition, for example, an inlet tube 46 connected to a pair of inlets 42, 42 is provided on the upper surface of the metal plate 14, and one end of the inlet tube 46 extends to the outside of the cooling heat exchanger 10 and is connected to a refrigerant source (not shown). Furthermore, an outlet tube 48 is connected to the pair of outlets 44, 44, and one end of the outlet tube 48 extends to the outside of the cooling heat exchanger 10 and is connected to a refrigerant source (not shown). That is, in the cooling heat exchanger 10 in this embodiment, a circulation system is configured in which the refrigerant that flows from the refrigerant source through the inlet tube 46 flows into each cooling flow path 22 from each inlet 42, flows through each cooling flow path 22, and then returns to the refrigerant source through each outlet 44 and the outlet tube 48. The inlet and outlet tubes 46, 48 are provided at positions outside the cooling target 12 on the upper surface of the metal plate 14. Therefore, in this embodiment, one cooling flow passage 22 extending from the inlet 42 to the outlet 44 is provided in each divided body 30, and a pair of cooling flow passages 22, 22 are provided in parallel in the cooling heat exchanger 10.

[0028] In the cooling heat exchanger 10 having such a structure, when a heat generating body (subject to be cooled 12) such as a battery pack is placed on the metal plate 14, the subject to be cooled 12 generates heat, and the heat generated in the subject to be cooled 12 is transferred to the metal plate 14. The heat transferred to the metal plate 14 is cooled (heat exchanged) by the refrigerant flowing in each cooling flow passage 22, and a rise in temperature of the subject to be cooled 12 and the metal plate 14 is prevented. Meanwhile, the refrigerant that flows into the cooling flow passage 22 from each inlet 42 is heated as it flows through the cooling flow passage 22, and flows out of each outlet 44 at a higher temperature than when it flowed in from each inlet 42, and reaches a refrigerant source (not shown). In this refrigerant source, the refrigerant is cooled again, and flows into the cooling flow passage 22 through each inlet 42.

[0029] That is, the temperature of the refrigerant rises as the cooling target 12 generates heat and the refrigerant flows in each cooling flow path 22, and the temperature of the resin member 18 (each divided body 30) constituting each cooling flow path 22 also rises. Alternatively, the temperature of the cooling heat exchanger 10 rises when the vehicle is exposed to a high temperature environment. In such a temperature change, the difference in linear expansion coefficient between the metal plate 14, which is a member made of metal, and the resin member 18 (each divided body 30), which is a member made of synthetic resin, is relatively large, and the resin member 18 (each divided body 30) expands more than the metal plate 14. For example, when the resin member is one member as in the conventional structure, the difference between the expansion amount of the metal plate and the expansion amount of the resin member becomes large, and there is a risk of distortion occurring between the metal plate and the resin member. However, in the cooling heat exchanger 10 of this embodiment, the resin member 18 is composed of each divided body 30, and an expansion allowance portion 32 is provided between each divided body 30. As a result, the expansion deformation of each divided body 30 is permitted by the expansion allowing portion 32, and even if each divided body 30 expands and deforms, contact between each divided body 30 is avoided, and distortion between the metal plate 14 and the resin member 18 (each divided body 30) can be avoided.

[0030] In particular, by making the resin member 18 into each relatively small divided body 30 rather than one large member, the resin member 18 (each divided body 30) can be handled more easily, which can improve the manufacturing efficiency of the cooling heat exchanger 10.

[0031] In this embodiment, adjacent segments 30 are provided at a predetermined interval in the longitudinal direction (the direction in which the long sides 24 extend) of the metal plate 14. This prevents the segments from becoming excessively elongated in a plan view, compared to when the segments are provided side by side in the lateral direction of the metal plate, for example, and can further improve the ease of handling of the segments 30 and the manufacturing efficiency of the cooling heat exchanger 10.

[0032] Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail above, the present invention is in no way limited by the specific description of such an embodiment, and can be implemented in various forms with various changes, modifications, improvements, etc. based on the knowledge of those skilled in the art, and it goes without saying that all such embodiments are included within the scope of the present invention as long as they do not deviate from the spirit of the present invention.

[0033] For example, in the above embodiment, the cooling channels 22 are provided in each divided body 30 in parallel, but this is not limited to this. That is, the cooling channels provided in each divided body may be connected in series by connecting the outlet provided in one divided body and the inlet provided in the other divided body. In the above embodiment, the two inlets at the lower left in FIG. 1 are the inlets 42, 42, and the two in the upper right in FIG. 1 are the outlets 44, 44 in the metal plate 14, but this is not limited to this, and the two inlets at the upper right in FIG. 1 may be the inlet and the outlet, respectively, and these may be connected by tubes or the like to connect the two cooling channels in series as described above.

[0034] In the above embodiment, the metal plate 14 is provided with the through holes 28, and the inflow and outflow tubes 46, 48 are connected above the metal plate 14 by opening the inflow and outflow ports 42 and 44 upward. However, the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. That is, for example, a through hole may be provided in a bottom wall portion constituting each inflow portion and each outflow portion of each divided body, and each inflow portion and each outflow port may be opened downward to connect the inflow and outflow tubes below the resin member (each divided body). Alternatively, a through hole may be provided in a peripheral wall portion constituting each inflow portion and each outflow portion, and each inflow portion and each outflow port may be opened to the side to connect the inflow and outflow tubes to the side of the resin member (each divided body).

[0035] In the above embodiment, each groove 16 includes a plurality of parallel passages 34 and a connecting passage 36 connecting each of the passages 34, but the present invention is not limited to this. The opening (upper opening) of the groove is covered with a metal plate to form a cooling flow path, and the extension direction, length, width, depth, and other aspects of the cooling flow path can be set arbitrarily. However, from the viewpoint of cooling efficiency (heat exchange efficiency), it is preferable that the cooling flow path is provided over a wide area of ​​the divided body.

[0036] In the above embodiment, the shapes of the segments 30 and the grooves 16 (cooling channels 22) are substantially the same, but this is not limited to the above. The segments may be different in shape or size, and the grooves (cooling channels) provided in the segments may be different in shape.

[0037] In the above embodiment, the resin member 18 is divided into two divided bodies 30, 30, and the divided bodies 30 are arranged side by side in the direction in which the longitudinal direction (long side 24) of the metal plate 14 extends, but this is not limited to the above embodiment. The resin member may be divided into three or more divided bodies, and the divided bodies may be arranged side by side in the short side direction instead of or in addition to the longitudinal direction of the metal plate. When three or more divided bodies are provided, it is not necessary that all the spaces between the divided bodies are made into the expansion-allowing portion, and it is sufficient that at least one of the spaces between the divided bodies is made into the expansion-allowing portion. In the above embodiment, the width dimension of the expansion-allowing portion 32 (the separation distance between the divided bodies 30) is set to a size such that the divided bodies 30 do not come into contact with each other when the divided bodies 30 are expanded and deformed, but the width dimension of the expansion-allowing portion may be set to a size such that the divided bodies come into slight contact with each other when the divided bodies are expanded and deformed, so that distortion does not occur in the cooling heat exchanger.

[0038] In the above embodiment, one inlet tube 46 is connected to each of the inlets 42, 42, but a separate inlet tube may be connected to each of the inlets. Similarly, in the above embodiment, one outlet tube 48 is connected to each of the outlets 44, 44, but a separate outlet tube may be connected to each of the outlets.

[0039] In the above embodiment, the cooling heat exchanger 10 is mounted on an electric vehicle or a hybrid vehicle, and the object to be cooled 12 is a battery pack, but the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. For example, the heat generating body to be cooled may be an in-vehicle part other than a battery pack, or may be a part used in something other than a vehicle, and the cooling heat exchanger according to the present invention may be applied to a vehicle other than an electric vehicle or a hybrid vehicle, or to something other than a vehicle. [Explanation of symbols]

[0040] 10 Cooling heat exchanger 12 Cooling target 14 Metal Plate 16 Groove 18 Resin parts 20 Upper opening (opening) 22 Cooling Channel 24 Long side 26 Short Side 28 Through hole 30 divided bodies 32 Expansion allowance part 34 Passage 35 Partition 36 Connecting Passage 38 Inlet 40 Outlet 42 Inlet 44 Outlet 46 Inlet tube 48 Outlet tube

Claims

1. A heat exchanger for cooling, comprising a metal plate to be placed on an object to be cooled and a plate-shaped resin member having a groove, which are placed on top of each other and fixed to each other, and an opening of the groove is covered with the metal plate to form a cooling flow path through which a heat medium flows between the metal plate and the resin member, the resin member is divided into a plurality of divided bodies, and each of the divided bodies is overlapped and fixed to the metal plate, The adjacent divided bodies are spaced apart from each other, and the space between the divided bodies forms an expansion-permitting portion that permits the divided bodies to expand and deform.

2. 2. The cooling heat exchanger according to claim 1, wherein adjacent divided bodies are provided at a predetermined interval in the longitudinal direction of the metal plate.

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