Laminated disc cooler and automobile

Abstract

To provide a laminated disc cooler that has high durability enabling use particularly in a commercial vehicle field.SOLUTION: A laminated disc cooler 1 comprises a plurality of heat exchange plates 3 that are arranged in mutually upper and lower positions so as to constitute a laminate 2, and a bottom tank 4 that is arranged at a terminal end of the laminate 2 and connected to a connection plate 5. The connection plate 5 is formed as an all-in-one metal plate having a recess 6. The connection plate 5 is housed at least in an almost complete shape connection manner within the recess 6.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a stacked disc cooler comprising a plurality of heat exchanger plates arranged one above the other to form a stack, and a connecting plate arranged at the end of the stack, and further to a motor vehicle equipped with such a stacked disc cooler.

[0002] Stacked disk coolers, in particular stacked disk oil coolers, generally consist of connecting plates and individual heat exchanger plates, with or without turbulence inserts, stacked one on top of the other for heat transfer, as well as cover disks and corresponding connections, in particular oil or refrigerant connections.

[0003] In particular, commercial vehicles require higher durability than can be achieved by conventional aluminum coolers from the commercial vehicle field, compared to private cars. Furthermore, commercial vehicles also require much greater cooling performance than private cars, and for this reason, oil coolers for commercial vehicles are often made from special steel. However, oil coolers made from special steel are much more expensive and heavier than oil coolers made from aluminum.

[0004] The shift to electrification has significantly changed the entire technology landscape, not only in the automotive sector but also in the commercial vehicle sector. While commercial vehicles still require oil coolers for their transmissions and axles, these must be smaller and more compact than ever before, as they must be integrated into the extremely limited installation space of the transmissions and axles.

[0005] Commercial vehicles with electric drives also require much lower operating pressures than current commercial vehicles with internal combustion engines. Another important parameter in electric commercial vehicles is weight, and for this reason, oil coolers made of aluminum are once again being considered as a solution for electric commercial vehicles. Nevertheless, the demands on electric commercial vehicles are still too high for conventional oil coolers made of aluminum.

[0006] Therefore, the present invention addresses the problem of providing an improved embodiment for a stacked disc cooler, which allows its use in particular in the commercial vehicle sector.

[0007] This problem is solved according to the invention by the subject matter of independent claim 1. Advantageous embodiments are the subject matter of the respective dependent claims.

[0008] The present invention is based on the general idea of ​​a stacked disk cooler, particularly a stacked disk oil cooler, known per se, comprising a plurality of heat exchanger plates arranged one above the other to form a stack and a connecting plate arranged at the end of the stack, but with the connecting plate being made one-piece and relatively thick so that a bottom tank arranged at the lower end of the heat exchanger plate stack can be received, preferably completely form-fit, in a recess formed in the connecting plate. This allows for an embodiment that can withstand relatively severe and high vibrations without problems. At the same time, by making the thick connecting plate relatively deep, the structural height of the stacked disk cooler according to the present invention can be reduced or the performance of the stacked disk cooler can be improved by arranging additional heat exchanger plates in the recess of the connecting plate. The stacked disk cooler according to the present invention, which includes a one-piece metal plate as the connecting plate according to the present invention, offers particularly high vibration resistance, making it possible for the first time to use the stacked disk cooler according to the present invention in electrically driven commercial vehicles. Furthermore, the one-piece connecting plate reduces the reject rate and simplifies the assembly of the stacked disk cooler. Furthermore, by placing the stack of heat exchanger plates deep within the recess of the thick connecting plate, more heat exchanger plates can be stacked one on top of the other, thereby improving the performance of the stacked disk cooler of the present invention. Adding two layers, i.e., four heat exchanger plates, can increase cooling performance by approximately 10% and reduce pressure loss by approximately 20%. Alternatively, by placing the stack of heat exchanger plates of the stacked disk cooler of the present invention deep within the recess, the structural height can be reduced for the same required cooling performance, thereby improving vibration resistance. The recess formed in the connecting plate preferably has an edge extending around the entire periphery of the recess, and the bottom tank and the stack of heat exchanger plates are brazed around this edge. Brazing to the edge of the recess around the entire periphery further improves vibration resistance. Therefore, the connecting plate of the present invention reduces the load applied to the stack of heat exchanger plates.

[0009] In one advantageous refinement of the laminated disc cooler according to the invention, the connecting plate has a consistent height h1, excluding the recess, which is greater than the height h2 of the bottom tank. This size relationship between the two heights h1 and h2 already leads to a thicker form of the connecting plate, where the height h1 of the connecting plate may be 1.2 or 1.4 times the height h2 of the bottom tank. The size relationship h1>h2 and the consistent height h1 already result in increased vibration resistance of the connecting plate, which allows the use of the laminated disc cooler according to the invention in the commercial vehicle sector.

[0010] In an advantageous refinement of the laminated disc cooler according to the invention, the connecting plate is manufactured as a stamped aluminum part. Forming the connecting plate as a stamped aluminum part offers the great advantage that, despite its thickness, the connecting plate remains relatively light due to the low density of aluminum. Furthermore, manufacturing the connecting plate as a stamped aluminum part allows for inexpensive yet high-quality production.

[0011] In an alternative embodiment of the stacked disc cooler according to the invention, the connecting plates are manufactured as forged parts, which are distinguished by their high elasticity and dynamic load-bearing capacity, and even sudden peak loads can be reduced by plastic flow, thereby minimizing the risk of brittle fracture, which is a major advantage, especially when used in electric commercial vehicles, due to the high vibrations that occur in commercial vehicles.

[0012] In a further advantageous embodiment of the laminated disk cooler according to the invention, the recesses are at least partially reworked, for example in the region of the edges, in particular milled or ground. If relatively smooth edges can be formed, they allow for even, and therefore very dense and strong, soldering to the corresponding flanges of the bottom vessel. Purely theoretically, instead of soldering, gluing is also conceivable.

[0013] Advantageously, the side angle α of the edge of the recess corresponds to the flange angle β of the flange of the bottom vessel, so that in the assembled stacked disc cooler, the edge can be connected to the bottom vessel in a surface-to-surface manner. The surface-to-surface connection between the edge of the connecting plate and the flange of the bottom vessel, and thus for example by surface gluing or surface soldering, results in a particularly tight connection, which in turn allows for better absorption of pressure pulsations occurring during operation.

[0014] In a further particularly preferred embodiment of the stacked disc cooler according to the invention, the side angle α is in the range of 80° to 90°, in particular about 87°. The bottom vessel thus has a relatively upright flange, and the recess, which is formed complementary to this flange, also has a relatively upright edge. This allows for a form-fitting fit of the bottom vessel into the connecting plate, so that the edges of the connecting plate provide lateral support for both the bottom vessel and the lower part of the stack of the stacked disc cooler. This allows for significantly increased vibration resistance.

[0015] In a further particularly preferred embodiment of the stacked disc cooler according to the invention, a spacer plate is arranged between the bottom vessel and the connecting plate. This type of spacer plate provides a resting area on which the bottom vessel rests on the bottom of the recess in the connecting plate. A major advantage of this type of spacer plate is that it provides a brazing material reservoir from which brazing material can be drawn into the gap between the flange of the bottom vessel and the edge of the recess during brazing of the stacked disc cooler. Since stamped or forged connecting plates do not have a brazing material coating, both sides of the spacer plate are coated with brazing material, which ensures a sufficient amount of brazing material for brazing the vessel edge (flange) of the bottom vessel to the connecting plate.

[0016] Advantageously, the bottom plate is brazed to the adjacent heat exchanger plate and the connecting plate. The bottom plate is the lower connection of the stack of stacked disc coolers, and the heat exchanger plate and / or the bottom vessel may be brazed, for example. This allows a relatively simple, yet high-quality, fluid-tight connection between the individual heat exchanger plates and between the heat exchanger plate and the bottom vessel or between the bottom vessel and the connecting plate by simply stacking them on top of each other and placing the stacked stacked disc coolers in a brazing furnace.

[0017] The invention is further based on the general idea of ​​equipping a motor vehicle with the stacked disc cooler described in the above paragraphs, thereby providing the motor vehicle with the advantages described for the stacked disc cooler. The motor vehicle may in particular be a commercial vehicle, particularly preferably an electrically driven commercial vehicle. In particular, the advantages of this type of motor vehicle according to the invention lie in the stacked disc cooler being relatively compact and yet still having high performance, which at the same time has high vibration resistance, as the bottom vessel of the stack is preferably completely housed in the recess of the connecting plate, which is a great advantage, especially when used in commercial vehicles.

[0018] Further important features and advantages of the invention emerge from the dependent claims, the drawings and the corresponding description of the drawings based on the drawings.

[0019] It will be apparent that the features listed above and further described below can be used not only in the respective combinations listed, but also in other combinations or alone, without departing from the scope of the invention. The components listed above and further described below of a higher-level unit, such as a facility, device or assembly, which are shown separately, may form separate components or elements of this unit, or may be regions or sections integrated into this unit, even if shown differently in the drawings.

[0020] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention are illustrated in the drawings and explained in detail in the following description, wherein like reference numerals refer to identical or similar or functionally identical elements. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0021] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram of a stacked disk cooler according to the present invention; [Figure 2] 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a stacked disc cooler according to the invention in the region of a connecting plate and a bottom tank inserted in a recess of the connecting plate; FIG. [Figure 3] 1 is a perspective cross-sectional view schematically illustrating a stacked disk cooler according to the present invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 3 is a schematic detail view from FIG. 2. [Figure 5] 1 is a schematic bottom view of a stacked disk cooler according to the present invention; FIG.

[0022] 1 to 5, a stacked disk cooler 1, in particular a stacked disk oil cooler, according to the invention has a plurality of heat exchanger plates 3 arranged one above the other to form a stack 2 and a bottom tank 4 arranged at the lower end of the stack 2. The bottom tank 4 is connected, in particular soldered, to a connecting plate 5. Here, according to the invention, the connecting plate 5 is designed as a one-piece metal plate with a recess 6, in which the bottom tank 4 is received at least almost completely in a form-locking manner. That is, an edge 7 of the recess 6 is formed in a form-locking manner with a flange 8 of the bottom tank 5, so that the bottom tank 5 is fixed in the recess 6 in a form-locking manner.

[0023] Looking more closely at the connecting plate 5, it can be seen that the connecting plate 5 has a consistent height h1 (see Figures 3 and 4) except for the recess 6, which height h1 is greater than the height h2 of the bottom tank 4. This already leads to a relatively thick construction of the connecting plate 5, which however provides the great advantage that the stacked disc cooler 1 according to the invention, in particular the stacked disc oil cooler, has a relatively high vibration resistance and can therefore also be used in the commercial vehicle sector, in particular in commercial vehicles with electric drive.

[0024] The connecting plate 5 can be formed as a stamped aluminum part, which has the great advantage of high strength and simultaneously low weight. Due to the fact that aluminum also has a high thermal conductivity, improved heat dissipation and therefore improved cooling can also be achieved via the connecting plate 5 formed as a stamped aluminum part.

[0025] Alternatively, it is of course also possible for the connecting plate 5 to be formed as a forged part. Forming it as a forged part has the great advantage that in this case the connecting plate 5 has high ductility, which in particular significantly reduces the risk of brittle fracture, which is of crucial importance in particular in the event of vibrations occurring during operation, in particular also in the event of pressure pulsations.

[0026] The recess 6 of the final document 5 can be at least partially post-machined, in particular milled, for example at the edge 7. This makes it possible to achieve a surface contact of the edge 7 with the flange 8 of the bottom tank 4 and thus a very tight and strong connection, for example by gluing or soldering.

[0027] The side angle α of the edge 7 of the recess 6 preferably corresponds to the flange angle β of the flange 8 of the bottom tank 4, so that when the bottom tank 4 is inserted into the recess 6 of the connecting plate 5, the edge 7 can be connected to the bottom tank 4 in a surface-like manner. This makes it possible to achieve a particularly strong but also tight connection.

[0028] The side angles α, β may lie in the range of 80° to 90°, in particular may be, for example, approximately 87°, so that a particularly secure fixation of the stack 2 transversely to the stacking direction can be ensured by the edge 7 of the connecting plate 5.

[0029] 2 to 4, a spacer plate 9 can be seen between the bottom vessel 4 and the connecting plate 5. The spacer plate 9 holds the bottom vessel 4 at a distance from the bottom of the recess 6. This type of spacer plate 9 can be used, for example, to provide a brazing material reservoir 10. This brazing material reservoir 10 can store brazing material, which can be drawn into the capillary gap between the edge 7 of the recess 6 of the connecting plate 5 and the flange 8 of the bottom vessel 4 during subsequent brazing of the stacked disc cooler 1. This type of brazing material reservoir 10 can also be provided around the upper edge of the recess 6. Since the stamped or forged connecting plate 5 does not have a brazing material coating, both sides of the spacer plate 9 are coated with brazing material, which ensures a sufficient amount of brazing material for brazing the vessel edge (flange 8) of the bottom vessel 4 to the connecting plate 5.

[0030] The joining of the heat exchange plates 3 to each other, and also to the bottom vessel 4 or to the connecting plate 5, is generally carried out by soldering, which makes it possible to provide not only a tight but also a very strong and particularly vibration-resistant joint.

[0031] The stacked disc cooler 1 according to the present invention is used in a motor vehicle 11, in particular a commercial vehicle 12, which may also be electrically driven. This makes it possible for the first time to use aluminum stacked disc coolers in the commercial vehicle sector, which was previously impossible due to the lack of vibration resistance. This can be achieved by a relatively thick connecting plate 5 having a height h1 and a recess 6 in which the bottom trough 4 of the stack 2 of the stacked disc cooler 1 is preferably completely accommodated.

[0032] Furthermore, a chamfer 13 (see FIG. 5), in particular a segmented chamfer, can be arranged at the inlet and / or outlet openings, which reduces the pressure loss. A "segmented chamfer" is understood in this case to mean a certain sub-region 14 (see FIG. 5) of the chamfer 13, which is specified to a certain tolerance range. The optimum chamfer contour is calculated by CFD simulation, simulated and integrated into the 3D model, in which case a smaller pressure loss can be achieved due to a gradual transition.

[0033] While the connections on the connecting plate 5 are usually made by means of additional tube pieces, the stacked disc cooler 1 according to the invention allows for direct adaptation of the tube pieces to the connecting plate 5. Thus, better tolerances and increased robustness of the connections can be obtained.

[0034] For this purpose, the connecting plate 5 may have holes 17, e.g. 10 mm deep, for accommodating the connecting parts (not shown), so that the connecting parts can be supported against loads on the peripheral wall surface 15 or base surface 16 (see FIG. 1).

Claims

1. a plurality of heat exchange plates (3) arranged one above the other to form a stack (2); a bottom tank (4) located at the end of the stack (2) and connected to a connecting plate (5); A stacked disc cooler (1), in particular a stacked disc oil cooler, comprising: The stacked disc cooler (1) is configured such that the connecting plate (5) is formed as a one-piece metal plate having a recess (6), and the bottom vessel (4) is accommodated at least almost completely in the recess (6) in a form-fitting manner.

2. The connecting plate (5) has a consistent height h except for the recess (6). １ and the height h １ is the height h of the bottom tank (4) ２ Stacked disc cooler (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that it is greater than

3. 3. The stacked disc cooler (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the connecting plate (5) is manufactured as a stamped aluminum part.

4. 3. The stacked disc cooler (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the connecting plate (5) is manufactured as a forged part.

5. 5. The stacked disc cooler (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the recess (6) is at least partially post-machined, in particular milled.

6. 6. The laminated disc cooler (1) according to claim 1, wherein the side angle α of the edge (7) of the recess (6) corresponds to the flange angle β of the flange (8) of the bottom tank (4), so that in the assembled laminated disc cooler (1), the edge (7) is surface-connected to the bottom tank (4).

7. Stacked disc cooler (1) according to claim 6, characterized in that the side angle α is in the range of 80° to 90°, in particular about 87°.

8. 8. The stacked disc cooler (1) according to claim 1, wherein a spacer plate (9) is arranged between the bottom vessel (4) and the connecting plate (5), and the spacer plate (9) is particularly coated with solder on both sides.

9. 9. The stacked disc cooler (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the bottom vessel (4) is soldered to the adjacent heat exchanger plate (3) and to the connecting plate (5).

10. A motor vehicle (11) equipped with a stacked disc cooler (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

11. 11. The motor vehicle (11) according to claim 10, characterized in that the motor vehicle (11) is configured as a commercial vehicle (12), in particular as an electrically driven commercial vehicle.

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