Electric / electronic component for a motor vehicle and method for cooling an electric or electronic part of an electric / electronic component for a motor vehicle

Abstract

The invention relates to an electric / electronic component (10) for a motor vehicle, comprising a housing (12) enclosing a receiving chamber (14), at least one electric or electronic part (16) which is received in the receiving chamber (14), a heat-conducting element (18) which is arranged on a surface, to be cooled, of the part (16) and is designed to conduct heat away from the part (16), and a cooling liquid guiding device (20) which is designed to guide a dielectric cooling liquid (22) to the heat-conducting element (18), as a result of which the cooling liquid (22) can flow against and around the heat-conducting element (18), as a result of which heat is dissipated from the heat-conducting element (18) to the cooling liquid (22).

Description

[0001] Electrical / electronic component for a motor vehicle and method for cooling an electrical or electronic component of an electrical / electronic component for a motor vehicle

[0002] The invention relates to an electrical / electronic component for a motor vehicle and a method for cooling an electrical or electronic component of an electrical / electronic component for a motor vehicle.

[0003] From DE 10 2007 014 382 A1, a cooling arrangement for cooling an inverter circuit is known, which supplies current to an electric traction motor for driving at least one drive wheel of a motor vehicle. The cooling arrangement comprises a housing compartment with a space containing the components of the inverter circuit, an inlet opening for fresh coolant fluid, and an outlet opening for used coolant fluid, which are connected to the space containing the components of the inverter circuit. Furthermore, the cooling arrangement includes a liquid dielectric coolant and a coolant distributor for spraying the liquid dielectric coolant, while it is in a liquid phase, into the space and onto the components of the inverter circuit.Furthermore, the cooling arrangement includes a condenser for liquefying the dielectric coolant, which, upon absorbing enough heat from the components of the inverter circuit, has transitioned from the liquid phase state to a vapor phase state, and a pump to circulate the dielectric coolant, while it is primarily in the liquid phase state, from the collection tank and the condenser to the room in order to cyclically cool the components of the inverter circuit.

[0004] Furthermore, US patent 2003 / 0193780 A1 discloses a modular spray cooling system for cooling electronic components in enclosures, wherein the electronic components radiate heat and consequently need to be cooled.

[0005] Furthermore, a method for temperature regulation of an electronic component is known from US patent 2017 / 0257981 A1. In this method, a nozzle generates a coolant jet that impinges on the electronic component. The coolant jet and the electronic component are immersed in a volume of coolant. A heat exchanger and a pump are also provided, the pump drawing a flow of coolant from the coolant volume through the heat exchanger and into the nozzle, thereby forming the coolant jet. A heater may be provided to warm the coolant on its way from the pump to the nozzle.

[0006] The object of the present invention is to provide a solution by which an electrical or electronic component of an electrical / electronic component can be cooled particularly efficiently.

[0007] This problem is solved according to the invention by the subject matter of the independent claims. Further possible embodiments of the invention are disclosed in the dependent claims, the description, and the figures. Features, advantages, and possible embodiments set forth in the description for one of the subject matter of the independent claims are to be regarded, at least analogously, as features, advantages, and possible embodiments of the respective subject matter of the other independent claims, as well as of any possible combination of the subject matter of the independent claims, optionally in conjunction with one or more of the dependent claims.

[0008] The invention relates to an electrical / electronic component for a motor vehicle, in particular a passenger car. In the automotive environment, this primarily concerns electronic control units, voltage converters such as DC / DC converters, switching relay boxes (R-boxes), or battery management systems for cell voltage control (BMS, CSC), charging sockets, in particular a vehicle-side housing housing for a charging plug to accommodate a charging cable connector during charging, or high-voltage cables, in particular high-voltage charging cables including cable couplings. Such components are typically either not cooled at all or only passively cooled in the automotive environment, or cooled by cooling plates attached to the housing of such a component, which are provided with a flow channel for coolant. The coolant is then cooled in a vehicle-side coolant circuit.Transferring heat from electrical / electronic components into an electrically conductive coolant, especially a water / glycol mixture, requires a physical electrical separation between the component and the coolant, while simultaneously ensuring thermal contact with the coolant. However, electrically non-conductive materials are also poor thermal conductors, so this arrangement always presents a high thermal resistance. Therefore, a separate insulating and thermally conductive element is often needed, and a large driving temperature difference between the component and the coolant is required to overcome this thermal resistance.Consequently, the maximum permissible temperature of the coolant, necessary for cooling and preventing overheating of the electrical / electronic component, must be significantly reduced. This makes the design of a cooling plate more complex, as the cooling plate typically needs to be large and heavily ribbed. Furthermore, the required coolant flow rate is considerably increased, and the diameter of the necessary coolant supply and return lines is particularly large. As a result of the high coolant flow rate, the proportion of electrical power required to operate a coolant pump is also significantly higher.Furthermore, a particularly large housing is necessary if several electrical / electronic components are to be accommodated within a single housing, as the individual components must be spaced further apart than required by their purely electrical interconnection. This is necessary to limit their local heat input into the cooling plate sufficiently to allow for the required heat dissipation into the coolant. The cooling plate can function as a large, heavy heat exchanger plate, which is also multi-layered, consisting of electrical insulation / thermal bonding and metallic layers that facilitate a broad, even distribution of the coolant flow. Passively cooled electrical / electronic components are often limited in their component-specific performance, as they could reach their operating temperature limit even at low electrical loads without active cooling.Furthermore, with passively cooled electrical / electronic components, waste heat generated during operation is lost to the environment and cannot be used for waste heat recovery.

[0009] The electrical / electronic component according to the invention comprises a housing enclosing a receiving space. Furthermore, the electrical / electronic component comprises at least one electrical or electronic component which is received in the receiving space. In addition, the electrical / electronic component comprises a heat-conducting element which is arranged on a surface of the component to be cooled and is designed to conduct heat away from the component. The heat-conducting element is, in particular, manufactured separately from the component. The component is, for example, a high-performance chip. Furthermore, the electrical / electronic component comprises a coolant supply device which is configured to supply a dielectric coolant to the heat-conducting element. The coolant supply device is configured to supply the coolant to the heat-conducting element in the form of a liquid coolant flow.Spraying or atomizing the coolant is not intended. This allows the coolant to flow onto and around the heat transfer element, thereby transferring heat from the element to the coolant. The dielectric fluid is a dielectric. A dielectric is a substance with weak or no electrical conductivity in which charge carriers are not freely mobile. The heat transfer element may be designed as a heat pipe. A heat pipe, also known as a heat tube, is a component that transfers heat via an evaporation and condensation cycle. When heat is applied to one end of the heat pipe, a working fluid evaporates and flows—driven by a temperature or pressure gradient—along an adiabatic zone to the condenser.The heat pipe allows for a high heat flux density by utilizing the enthalpy of vaporization of a medium. In this way, large amounts of heat can be transferred over a small cross-sectional area. By directing the coolant to the heat transfer element, causing it to flow onto and around the element, directed jet cooling or direct flow occurs. This allows the heat transfer element to be absorbed particularly efficiently by the coolant, thus enabling the heat transfer element to be cooled very efficiently. In other words, heat generated in the component during operation is carried away from the component by the heat transfer element, thereby cooling the component. This heat, carried away from the component by the heat transfer element, is then transferred to the coolant.The coolant is designed to remain essentially in a liquid state. Furthermore, a significant amount of gas is intended to be present in the receiving chamber. This means that the chamber is not completely filled with coolant. The coolant is designed to actively flow towards and around the heat transfer element, allowing heat to be transferred from the element to the coolant with exceptional efficiency. The presence of a significant amount of gas in the housing facilitates the imposition of a flow pattern onto the coolant, ensuring that the coolant flows around the heat transfer element.Because the volume of coolant flowing within the receiving chamber is particularly small, the flow direction and velocity of the coolant can be controlled with exceptional precision. The direct flow of coolant to or around the heat-conducting element enables highly efficient cooling of the electronic component. This allows multiple components, if the electrical / electronic component comprises several parts, to be positioned very close together within the receiving chamber, resulting in a particularly compact design for the electrical / electronic component.

[0010] In a possible embodiment of the invention, the coolant guide device is configured to circulate the coolant in an open cooling circuit. An open cooling circuit is open to the atmosphere. This makes it particularly easy to ensure that the significant gas content is present in the receiving chamber. Furthermore, the housing can be designed very simply, since it consequently does not have to withstand high overpressure or underpressure. In another possible embodiment of the invention, the coolant guide device, together with the heat-conducting element, defines a flow channel extending along the heat-conducting element, through which the coolant can flow to cool the heat-conducting element.The flow channel has a height of 0.5 to 5 mm and / or a width of 1 to 100 mm and / or a length corresponding to an outer dimension of the heat-conducting element. The flow channel is thus directly bounded by the heat-conducting element on at least one side, ensuring that the coolant flowing in the channel flows directly along an outer surface of the heat-conducting element. This allows for particularly efficient heat transfer from the heat-conducting element to the coolant. Because the flow channel extends at least substantially over the entire length of an outer dimension of the heat-conducting element, the heat-conducting element is cooled particularly efficiently along its entire length by the flow of coolant. This allows a particularly large amount of heat to be transferred from the heat-conducting element to the coolant in a very short time.By jointly defining the flow channel using the coolant guide and the heat transfer element, the coolant flows only within specific, defined areas of the receiving space, namely the flow channel. This allows the heat transfer element to be adequately cooled even with a very small volume of coolant, as this small volume is efficiently guided to the heat transfer element and along its surface. A sieve and / or a grid can be arranged in an outlet area of ​​the flow channel. These are designed to divide any gas bubbles that form when the coolant locally evaporates within the flow channel into many smaller gas bubbles. These smaller bubbles then flow into the surrounding coolant and condense very quickly due to their extremely high surface area relative to their volume.This allows for local evaporation of the coolant in the flow channel without causing an unacceptably high pressure increase in the cooling circuit.

[0011] In this context, it may be provided, in particular, that at least one packing element is arranged within the receiving space as a coolant guide device, especially a molded part or a bed of multiple packing elements. The at least one packing element is designed to delimit the flow channel. For example, the packing element can be made of closed-cell foam, which effectively prevents the coolant from flowing into the packing element and simultaneously keeps the weight of the packing element particularly low. The flow channel can be delimited or formed particularly easily by means of the at least one packing element, and by using the at least one packing element and utilizing gravity, it can be ensured that the coolant flows reliably into the at least one flow channel.If the receiving chamber is filled with at least one packing material and the coolant is simply poured into the receiving chamber from above, the coolant distributes itself due to gravity into the respective areas of the receiving chamber kept clear by the at least one packing material, in particular the at least one flow channel. This allows for a particularly simple flow pattern of the coolant in the receiving chamber.

[0012] In a further possible embodiment of the invention, the heat-conducting element is provided with a multi-ribbed ribbing along which the coolant can be guided. The coolant can be guided particularly easily by means of the ribs. Thus, a flow direction can be imposed on the coolant particularly easily by means of the ribs. Furthermore, the design of the heat-conducting element with ribs allows for a particularly large heat exchange surface between the coolant and the outer surface of the heat-conducting element, which features the ribbing. This results in a particularly high heat transfer and, consequently, particularly efficient cooling of the heat-conducting element by means of the coolant.

[0013] In this context, it is particularly important that the fins are aligned with their longitudinal direction in the predetermined flow direction of the coolant. This makes it especially easy to ensure that the coolant flowing towards the fins follows the predetermined direction. The fins thus allow the coolant to be guided within the receiving chamber with particular ease and precision, enabling it to be directed precisely to areas with increased cooling requirements. Furthermore, the fins may be arranged to radiate outwards from a central flow point, with the coolant guidance system designed to direct the coolant to this point, ensuring that the heat transfer element is exposed to the coolant flow at that point.Starting from the point of inflow, the cooling fluid can then be distributed in a star shape along the surface of the heat-conducting element by means of the fins, whereby an outer surface of the heat-conducting element can be cooled particularly efficiently and over a large area by means of the cooling fluid.

[0014] In a further possible embodiment of the invention, the heat-conducting element is bonded to the component, in particular by means of a thermally conductive adhesive. This allows for a particularly efficient heat transfer from the component to the heat-conducting element. Furthermore, it ensures that the heat-conducting element is held securely to the component and that the risk of the heat-conducting element detaching from the component is particularly low.

[0015] In a further possible embodiment of the invention, the heat-conducting element is positioned against an area of ​​locally increased thermal mass within the component. This area of ​​increased thermal mass exhibits particularly high thermal conductivity. Heat flows generated within the component can be temporarily buffered by means of this area of ​​increased thermal mass before being dissipated away from the component by the heat-conducting element. Thus, this area of ​​locally increased thermal mass can be cooled particularly efficiently by means of the heat-conducting element.

[0016] The invention further relates to a method for cooling an electrical or electronic component of an electrical / electronic system for a motor vehicle. The component is arranged in a receiving space enclosed by a housing of the electrical / electronic system. A heat-conducting element is arranged on a surface of the component to be cooled, which is designed to conduct heat away from the component. In the method, a dielectric coolant is supplied to the heat-conducting element by means of a coolant guide device of the electrical / electronic system, whereby the heat-conducting element is exposed to and surrounded by the coolant. This transfers heat from the heat-conducting element to the coolant and consequently cools the heat-conducting element.In this process, the heat-conducting element is directly surrounded or flowed upon by the cooling liquid, which allows for a particularly efficient heat transfer from the heat-conducting element to the cooling liquid.

[0017] Further features of the invention may become apparent from the claims, the figures, and the description of the figures. The features and combinations of features mentioned above in the description, as well as the features and combinations of features shown below in the description of the figures and / or in the figures themselves, can be used not only in the combinations specified, but also in other combinations or on their own, without departing from the scope of the invention.

[0018] The drawing shows in:

[0019] Fig. 1 shows a schematic sectional view of an electrical / electronic component for a motor vehicle in a first embodiment;

[0020] Fig. 2 shows a schematic sectional view of the electrical / electronic component in a second embodiment;

[0021] Fig. 3 shows a schematic sectional view of the electrical / electronic component in a third embodiment;

[0022] Fig. 4 shows a schematic sectional view of the electrical / electronic component in a fourth embodiment;

[0023] Fig. 5 shows a schematic sectional view of the electrical / electronic component in a fifth embodiment, as well as part of a vehicle battery of the motor vehicle;

[0024] Fig. 6 is a schematic sectional view of a section of the electrical / electronic component; Fig. 7 is a schematic top view of a heat-conducting element of the electrical / electronic component, the heat-conducting element being shown in a first embodiment;

[0025] Fig. 8 shows a schematic top view of the heat conducting element in a second embodiment;

[0026] Fig. 9 shows a schematic top view of the heat-conducting element in a third embodiment; and

[0027] Figs. 10a-10f show sectional views of the electrical / electronic component, with the inlets and outlets for a coolant, which is to be led into a receiving space of the housing of the electrical / electronic component, being designed and arranged differently in the different figures.

[0028] In the figures, identical and functionally equivalent elements are provided with the same reference symbols.

[0029] Figures 1 to 5 show sectional views of an electrical / electronic component 10 in different configurations. The electrical / electronic component 10 is designed for use in a motor vehicle. In particular, the electrical / electronic component 10 is a control unit, an electrical storage device, or a DC / DC converter. In each configuration, the electrical / electronic component 10 comprises a housing 12 that encloses and defines a receiving space 14. At least one electrical or electronic component 16 is received in the receiving space 14. This component 16 is in particular a chip, especially a high-performance chip, a current conductor, or a battery cell.Furthermore, the electrical / electronic component 10 comprises at least one heat-conducting element 18, which is arranged on a surface of the component 16 to be cooled and is designed to conduct heat away from the component 16. The electrical / electronic component 10 also comprises a coolant guide 20, which is configured to guide a dielectric coolant 22 to the at least one heat-conducting element 18, causing the coolant 22 to flow onto and around the heat-conducting element 18. By flowing the coolant 22 around and onto the heat-conducting element 18, heat can be transferred from the heat-conducting element 18 to the coolant 22, thereby cooling the heat-conducting element 18. In particular, the coolant guide 20 is configured to circulate the coolant 22 in an open cooling circuit.In particular, it is provided that the respective heat-conducting elements 18 are bonded to the associated components 16, especially by means of a thermally conductive adhesive. This means that the adhesive used for bonding has a particularly high thermal conductivity.

[0030] Furthermore, it may be provided that the respective heat conducting element 18 is located in an area of ​​locally increased thermal mass of the component 16.

[0031] As can be seen particularly well in Figures 1 to 5, the coolant supply device 20 can include a pump 24 by means of which the coolant 22 can be pumped. Figure 1 only shows how the coolant 22 flows into and out of the receiving chamber 14 of the housing 12. Figure 1 does not show how the coolant 22 is cooled and returned to the receiving chamber 14 after being drawn off. Figures 2 to 5 show differently configured cooling systems for the coolant 22. Figure 2 shows how the coolant 22 is circulated within the electrical / electronic component 10.Here, the coolant 22 is passed through a coolant-water heat exchanger 26, by means of which the coolant circuit 28 within the electrical / electronic component is coupled to a vehicle coolant circuit of the motor vehicle for heat transfer. Fig. 3 shows how the coolant circuit 28, which circulates within the electrical / electronic component 10, is thermally connected to a heat sink by means of a heat pipe 30. Fig. 4 shows how the coolant 22, which is pumped by the feed pump 24, which has a power output of 2 to 5 W and is therefore capable of pumping up to 300 l / h of liquid, is cooled in a coolant-air heat exchanger 32 by releasing heat to the ambient air.Figure 5 shows how the coolant 22 is integrated into a vehicle battery immersion cooling circuit by being fed into the vehicle battery 34 for immersion cooling of battery cells 36 of the vehicle battery 34, whereby the coolant 22 is cooled back via an internal vehicle battery heat sink 38. The coolant 22 is connected to the internal vehicle battery immersion cooling circuit by means of hydraulically parallel supply and return lines.

[0032] Figure 6 shows a schematic sectional view of a section of the electrical / electronic component 10. Figure 6 depicts component 16, onto which the heat-conducting element 18 is placed. The heat-conducting element 18 is thermally connected to component 16, in this case by adhesive bonding. In the embodiment shown in Figure 6, the heat-conducting element 18 comprises a base plate 40, which can serve as a heat distributor and therefore has a thickness S of 1 mm, or which can serve as a heat buffer and therefore has a thickness S of 2 to 5 mm. Furthermore, the heat-conducting element 18 comprises a rib 42, which is arranged on the side of the base plate 40 facing away from component 16. The rib 42 is made of extruded light metal. Figure 6 also shows a filler element 44, which is placed on the heat-conducting element 18. The filling body 44 is a foam body.It can therefore be provided that the coolant guide device 20 within the receiving space 14 comprises at least one packing element 44, which is configured to guide the coolant 22 to the heat-conducting element 18 and / or, together with the heat-conducting element 18, to define a flow channel 46 through which the coolant 22 can flow to cool the heat-conducting element 18. It is possible that the coolant guide device 20 comprises several packing elements 44. For example, the coolant guide device 20 can comprise a packed bed of a plurality of packing elements 44. The at least one packing element 44 is, in particular, a molded part.

[0033] If the filler material 44 and the heat-conducting element 18 together define the flow channel 46, then this channel can, in particular, have a height of 0.5 to 5 mm and / or a width of 1 to 100 mm and / or a length corresponding to an outer dimension of the heat-conducting element 18. Figures 7 to 9 show the ribbing 42 of the heat-conducting element 18 in different configurations in top views. In the configuration shown in Figure 7, the heat-conducting element 18 is designed with a multi-part base plate 40, which makes it particularly easy to create a star-shaped distribution of the individual ribs 48 or flow channels 50 defined by the ribs 48. For the sake of clarity, only individual ribs 48 and flow channels 50, as well as the arrows indicating the flow of the coolant 22, are labeled with their respective reference numerals in Figures 7 to 9.In the embodiments of the heat-conducting element 18 shown in Figures 8 and 9, the heat-conducting element 18 has only a single-piece base plate 40 on which the ribbing 42 is arranged. In the present embodiments shown in Figures 7 to 9, the heat-conducting element 18 has an inlet point 52 located at least substantially in the center. The coolant 22 is guided to the inlet point 52 by means of the coolant guide device 20, whereby the ribbing 42 of the heat-conducting element 18 at the inlet point 52 is exposed to the coolant 22, and the coolant 22 is distributed from the inlet point 52 into the respective flow channels 50 by means of the respective ribs 48.This allows the coolant 22 to flow particularly evenly over an outer surface of the heat-conducting element 18, especially through the ribbing 42, thus enabling the heat-conducting element 18 to be cooled particularly evenly by the coolant 22. The heat-conducting element 18 can therefore have ribbing 42 comprising several fins 48, along which the coolant 22 can be guided. The fins 48, with their respective longitudinal extensions, define a flow direction for the coolant 22. In other words, the fins 48, with their respective longitudinal extensions, are aligned according to a flow direction defined for the coolant 22. The fins 48 can extend, at least substantially, in a star-shaped pattern from the point of entry 52.

[0034] Figures 10a to 10f show a partial view of the electrical / electronic component 10, showing only the housing 12 enclosing the receiving chamber 14, a return line 54 of the coolant guide system 20, and a filling opening 58 for the coolant 22 closed with a blanking plug 56. Figures 10a and 10b show the return line 54 arranged on the underside of the housing 12, with the return line 54 not protruding into the receiving chamber 14. This allows for complete emptying of the receiving chamber 14 of the coolant 22, thus preventing the formation of dead water during emptying. In the embodiments shown in Figures 10c to 10f, the return line 54 is also shown on the underside of the housing 12. However, the return flow 54 has an overhang 60 into the receiving chamber 14.This supernatant 60 ensures that a minimum residual volume of coolant 22 remains in the receiving chamber 14, which can, for example, serve as thermal mass in the event of a fault. Figures 10e and 10f show respective embodiments in which, during operation, the coolant level 22 lies above an upper edge of the supernatant 60, allowing coolant 22 to be drawn from the center of the coolant volume via the return line 54, specifically from the center of the receiving chamber 14. This effectively prevents air intake during operation, particularly regardless of the installation orientation or dynamic operating position.

[0035] In particular, the housing 12, as can be seen in Figures 10a to 10f, is designed to include a plurality of outlet openings for receiving and integrating a return line for the coolant circuit 28. This allows the return line to be precisely integrated or connected to the lowest outlet opening in a given installation position of the electrical / electronic component 10, while remaining outlet openings are each closed with a blanking plug 56, as shown in Figures 10a to 10f. Figures 10a to 10b show an identically designed housing 12 in different orientations. Figures 10c and 10d show an identically designed housing 12 in different orientations. Figures 10e and 10f show an identically designed housing 12 in different orientations.In this way, the housing 12 of the electrical / electronic component 10 can be designed as a single, identical housing unit for a variety of different installation positions of the electrical / electronic component 10, within which other internal components are also identical for all installation positions. The selection of the connection fitting to be used for the return line can be made during final assembly of the electrical / electronic component 10 in the vehicle. The same applies to the variable integration of the return line within the electrical / electronic component 10, for example, in the form of an overflow fitting, which is either placed over a connection fitting during installation or, particularly when there are only a few different installation positions, is pre-assembled multiple times for each installation position of the electrical / electronic component 10.

[0036] Alternatively or additionally, at least partially, one or more supply or return lines can be integrated into the housing 12, particularly in the form of a double wall which itself has a structural-mechanical function similar to a sandwich panel. In this way, the electrical / electronic component 10 can be manufactured to be particularly lightweight, space-saving, and cost-effective.

[0037] By means of directed jet cooling or direct flow of the dielectric coolant 22 onto the respective heat-conducting element 18, locally required high heat flux densities can be achieved on the surfaces of the component 16 to be cooled, which represent a local hotspot within the electrical / electronic component 10. These high heat flux densities are systematically impossible with non-directed immersion cooling. It is designed so that a large proportion of the free internal volume in the housing 12 remains filled with gas, in particular air, so that the jet cooling of the respective heat-conducting element 18 contributes to high local cooling rates at the associated component 16, while simultaneously minimizing the amount of coolant 22 required in the housing 12.It is specifically provided that the jet cooling using the coolant 22 is arranged within the housing 12 in such a way that an open dielectric cooling circuit is formed, with its supply and return lines 54 designed to allow modular connection of the housing 12 to different types of heat sinks for this dielectric cooling circuit. This allows the immersion-temperature-controlled electrical / electronic component 10 to be integrated into virtually any system environment, such as a coolant cooling circuit, a refrigeration circuit / heat pipe, an airflow as a heat sink, or parallel immersion cooling circuits. This allows the waste heat from the at least one component 16 of the electrical / electronic component 10 to be introduced into a system environment at a particularly high temperature level, which is very close to the operating temperature of the respective component 16.As a result, costly additional cooling measures for components 16, whose operating temperature is only slightly above a maximum ambient temperature or a coolant temperature in a coolant circuit, particularly in a vehicle coolant circuit, can be avoided. These additional system requirements include, for example, auxiliary air-refrigerant coolers in the refrigerant cooling circuit or an additional refrigeration circuit with a separate chiller, which can also be called an evaporator, and a separate refrigerant valve. Consequently, fluid-water heat exchangers or chillers used to integrate the immersion-temperature-controlled electrical / electronic component 10 into vehicle systems can be significantly smaller, lighter, and / or less expensive than analogous heat exchangers, chillers, and similar components that require thermal connection to a cooling plate.

[0038] The respective components 16 are arranged within the housing 12 of the electrical / electronic component 10. A flow channel 46 and / or a flow gap can be configured between the component 16 or the heat-conducting element 18 and a part of the housing 12, a part of a circuit board, or a holder for the component 16. This flow channel 46 or flow gap has, in particular, a height of approximately 0.5 to 5 mm and a width of approximately 1 to approximately 100 mm, as well as a length that approximately corresponds to an outer dimension of the component 16. In this way, a flow area for the coolant 22 is formed along a wall of the component 16 to be cooled. The heat-conducting element 18 has the ribbing 42 on at least a part of its outer wall.The heat-conducting element 18 is thus designed in the manner of a heat distributor, which can also be referred to as a spreader, and is thermally connected to an outer wall of the associated component 16, for example by bonding, in particular with a thermally conductive adhesive. In this way, an increase in the effective heat exchanger surface area or the heat transfer from the heat-conducting element 18 to the coolant 22 is achieved.In the design of the heat-conducting element 18 with the ribbing 42, it is particularly provided that the ribbing 48 is aligned to suit the flow pattern of the coolant 22, for example, parallel or at a shallow angle to a directed, jet-like local fluid flow of the coolant 22, or converging in a star-shaped pattern towards a location on the wall of the heat-conducting element 18 where a fluid jet flow of the coolant 22 approaches at a large angle of up to 90°, in particular the point of approach 52. In this way, the ribbing 42 supports a directed fluid flow of the coolant 22 on the wall of the heat-conducting element 18, which is in particular subjected to a targeted local flow or is directly jet-cooled.

[0039] The heat-conducting element 18 and / or the component 16 can have a locally increased thermal mass, in particular a metal body such as aluminum and / or copper. In this way, very dynamic, small-scale, or short-term heat flows, for example in the inner region of the component 16, can be thermally buffered without causing an impermissible increase in the operating temperature of the component 16 or the coolant 22. In particular, an efficient combination of increased thermal mass and a finned heat-conducting element, especially a finely finned heat-conducting element, is possible.

[0040] The component 16 and / or the heat-conducting element 18 can be designed with a flow region or a flow channel, in particular at least one flow channel 50, wherein an outlet region of the flow region or the flow channel is designed with a screen or grid, for example at the end of the component 16 or heat-conducting element 18 exposed to the flow, wherein a characteristic mesh size or grid openings of the screen or grid is significantly smaller than the hydraulic diameter or the flow cross-section of the flow region, wherein the characteristic mesh size or the grid openings in particular have only 1% to 50% of the hydraulic diameter or the flow cross-section.This arrangement ensures that, in the event of local evaporation of the coolant 22, particularly limited, intermittent local evaporation, at component 16 or the heat-conducting element 18, the resulting gaseous formation of the coolant 22, and thus at least one gas bubble, is dispersed into a formation of numerous, very small bubbles as it passes through the sieve or grid. In extreme cases, this can lead to foaming, with the bubbles then flowing into the surrounding liquid coolant 22 and condensing there particularly rapidly due to their very high surface area relative to their gas volume. In this way, a thermally very effective cooling effect can be achieved by allowing local evaporation of the coolant 22 at component 16 or the heat-conducting element 18 without causing an unacceptably high pressure increase in the dielectric cooling circuit.

[0041] As can be seen in Fig. 3, the dielectric coolant circuit 28 can be thermally connected to the heat pipe 30, which is particularly planar. The heat pipe 30 can in turn be thermally connected directly or indirectly to the coolant 22, whereby particularly high heat transfer rates, especially of more than 1000 W / Km, occur in an evaporator section of the heat pipe 30. 2This allows for a low overall mass of the electrical / electronic component 10, particularly with the flat heat pipe 30 acting as a spreader. The component 16 and the heat-conducting element 18 can be arranged together within an enclosure or a local flow housing, which is equipped with an inlet and an outlet for the coolant 22. In this way, the heat-conducting element 18, and optionally also the component 16, can be directly exposed to the coolant 22 in a single-phase flow, or optionally with permissible local evaporation.Alternatively, the component 16 and the at least one heat-conducting element 18 can be arranged within an enclosure that is open at the top when installed. This enclosure can be equipped with an inlet for the coolant 22, allowing for a flow of coolant 22 around the heat-conducting element 18 and / or the component 16 during operation, adapted to the component 16. This ensures that, particularly when parked, a minimum amount of coolant 22 remains around the component 16 and the heat-conducting element 18. The individual component 16 can thus be surrounded by a kind of reservoir filled with coolant 22, with the coolant 22 remaining in this reservoir at the end of ferry operation, at least partially covering the component 16. In this way, thermally safe operation of the electrical / electronic component 10 can be ensured during parking, and the consequences of malfunctions can be particularly well avoided.

[0042] The coolant routing device 20 can include a supply line that carries the coolant 22 from a housing wall of the housing 12 to the respective heat-conducting elements 18 or components 16. The supply line or supply flow channel can be formed through the wall or walls of components surrounding the component 16 or the heat-conducting element 18, such as housing interiors or flow-conducting components. The coolant circuit 28 can further include a collection area for the coolant 22, which can be arranged downstream of at least one of the components 16. The coolant routing device 20 can also include the return line 54, by means of which the coolant 22 can be carried from the collection area to a housing wall.A return line or return flow channel of the coolant guidance device 20 can be formed through the wall(s) of components surrounding the component 16 or the heat-conducting element 18, in particular the inner sides of housings or flow-conducting parts. An outlet opening or discharge area for the coolant 22 can be arranged in a supply line or supply section, by means of which the coolant 22 can be directed into areas or parts of the component 16 or the heat-conducting element 18 or an enclosure belonging to the component 16.

[0043] The return line can lead from the housing wall into the interior of the housing 12, such that, in the installed position, the return line forms a sump for the coolant 22 within the housing 12, as shown in Figures 10c to 10f. In this way, particles circulating in the coolant circuit 28 that sink to the bottom in the coolant 22 can be separated. A sump can be formed in the housing 12, and this sump can be designed with a drain opening in the housing wall at its lowest geodetic point in the installed position, allowing accumulations of particles or condensate, in particular water condensate, to be discharged from the coolant circuit 28, for example, during servicing.The return line, or return flow section, can extend from the housing wall into the interior of the housing 12, such that one end of the return line is located at the lowest geodetic point. This prevents the accumulation of particles, condensate, or degraded fluid in the housing 12, and ensures that no sludge or dead water area is formed. Instead, coolant 22 with defined material properties, particularly dielectric insulation, is always present throughout the housing 12. Such a configuration is shown in Figures 10a and 10b. The return line can form a gas collection chamber in the area above its inlet opening inside the housing 12.In this way, the entire interior of the housing 12 is not permeated by the coolant 22, but a gas space is formed in the receiving chamber 14 with a reduced volume of coolant 22, which serves as the necessary expansion space for the coolant 22 at changing operating temperatures.

[0044] The pump 24 can be designed as an impeller or screw pump. The pump 24 can be arranged, in particular, in a supply line or in a return line, or on or in a housing wall of the housing 12, or in a part of the coolant circuit 28 located outside the housing 12. The coolant 22 can be supplied to different components 16, which are immersion-cooled and / or directly jet-cooled and / or jet-cooled with spreaders, fins, or thermal masses, and / or cooled by at least temporary local evaporation of the coolant 22. This allows immersion-temperature-controlled components 16 with different cooling requirements for a given heat quantity and operating temperatures to be operated within a single housing 12 with only one coolant circuit 28.

[0045] Within the housing 12, particularly in the receiving chamber 14, a packing material, for example a packing of spheres, made of foam, for example closed-cell foam such as polyurethane, polyethylene, or polystyrene, particularly with a sphere diameter of 1 mm to 8 mm, can be arranged. This packing material can be used to confine the volume of the coolant 22 within the housing 12, away from the flow areas around the at least one component 16 or the at least one heat-conducting element 18. At the same time, the gas-filled pores in the foam composite, which is particularly soft, can provide an expansion volume for the coolant 22.It is possible that molded parts, for example made of closed-cell rigid foam, are arranged within the housing 12, particularly in the receiving chamber 14, which enclose the at least one component 16 and / or the at least one heat-conducting element 18, forming free flow areas or channels for the coolant 22. These molded parts allow for the targeted creation of supply and return flow areas, as well as the respective flow paths around the components 16 and the heat-conducting elements 18, respectively, while simultaneously filling a large proportion of a volume in the receiving chamber 14 for the coolant 22 that is not geometrically constrained, particularly dead water areas.

[0046] Due to the particularly efficient cooling of the components 16, the housing 12 can be provided with particularly low weight and volume, since when several components 16 are provided, the components 16 can be arranged particularly close together within the receiving space 14.

[0047] The coolant circuit 28 can be connected to a vehicle coolant circuit, which then serves as a heat sink for the coolant circuit 28 during operation. The coolant-water heat exchanger 26, through which both the coolant circuit 28 and the coolant of the vehicle coolant circuit flow, can thermally connect the coolant circuit 28 to the vehicle coolant circuit. Alternatively or additionally, the coolant circuit 28 can be connected to a vehicle refrigerant circuit. The coolant circuit 28 can be thermally connected to the vehicle refrigerant circuit by means of an evaporator, also known as a chiller, through which both the coolant circuit 28 and a refrigerant flow.

[0048] As shown in Fig. 3, the coolant circuit 28 can be connected to a vehicle-side heat pipe 30, in particular a thermosiphon or a thermoloop, whereby this heat pipe 30 serves as a heat sink for the coolant circuit 28 during operation. The heat pipe 30 is thermally connected to the coolant circuit 28 via its evaporator. In this way, a direct mechanical connection between the heat pipe 30 and the components 16, which can be particularly sensitive to shock, is avoided, thus ensuring the mechanical robustness of the electrical / electronic component 10. Furthermore, this arrangement is compatible with any type of mechanical or functional design or integration of the condenser section of the heat pipe 30.For example, a subsequent heat sink can be a connection to a coolant circuit or a refrigeration circuit, or to a thermal mass such as a chassis structural component of the vehicle, or to the ambient air.

[0049] As shown in Fig. 4, the coolant circuit 28 can be connected to the coolant-air heat exchanger 32, which is permeated by both the coolant 22 and air, in particular ambient air, thus using the vehicle environment as a heat sink. A practically accessible air path, for example in a wheel well of the vehicle or in the area of ​​the chassis, can be used to guide the ambient air into the coolant-air heat exchanger 32. The coolant-air heat exchanger 32 can be equipped with its own fan, in particular an axial fan or rotary fan, similar to an auxiliary oil cooler, but with a particularly low cooling capacity requirement. In this way, the coolant circuit 28 can be operated independently of the vehicle's cooling systems.Furthermore, the coolant circuit 28 and the associated coolant-air heat exchanger 32 can be arranged significantly apart. Alternatively or additionally, the coolant circuit 28 can be connected to an immersion cooling circuit of the vehicle battery 34, as shown in Fig. 5, where the vehicle battery 34 is, in particular, a high-voltage storage device. In this configuration, the immersion cooling circuit of the vehicle battery 34 serves as a heat sink for the coolant circuit 28. Specifically, the coolant circuit 28 and the immersion cooling circuit of the vehicle battery 34 are hydraulically connected in parallel, particularly by means of the pump of the immersion cooling circuit of the vehicle battery 34 acting as a common pump. In this way, the coolant circuit 28 can be integrated particularly easily into existing immersion architectures of the vehicle battery 34.

[0050] Alternatively or additionally, the coolant circuit 28, as shown in Fig. 1, is provided to have a section extending outside the housing 12, into which a separate fluid pump, such as an inline impeller pump, can be integrated. In this way, an electrical / electronic component 10 located further away from the high-voltage storage device, or an electrical / electronic component 10 with an increased delivery pressure requirement – ​​for example, to support jet cooling in the electrical / electronic component 10 – can be practically integrated into a motor vehicle.

[0051] Overall, the invention shows how an immersion-temperature-controlled electrical / electronic component 10 can be provided.

[0052] Reference symbol list

[0053] 10 Electrics / Electronics Component

[0054] 12 cases

[0055] 14 Recording room

[0056] 16 components

[0057] 18 Heat conducting element

[0058] 20 Coolant routing device

[0059] 22 Coolant

[0060] 24 Feed pump

[0061] 26 Coolant-water heat exchangers

[0062] 28 Coolant circuit

[0063] 30 Heat Pipe

[0064] 32 Coolant-to-Air Heat Exchangers

[0065] 34 Vehicle battery

[0066] 36 battery cells

[0067] 38 Vehicle battery heat sink

[0068] 40 Base plate

[0069] 42 ribbing

[0070] 44 Filler particles

[0071] 46 Flow channel

[0072] 48th rib

[0073] 50 Flow channel

[0074] 52 Inflow point

[0075] 54 return

[0076] 56 blind plugs

[0077] 58 Filling opening

[0078] 60 overhang

Claims

Patent claims 1. Electrical / electronic component (10) for a motor vehicle, comprising a housing (12) enclosing a receiving space (14), at least one electrical or electronic component (16) which is received in the receiving space (14), a heat conducting element (18) which is arranged on a surface of the component (16) to be cooled and is designed to conduct heat away from the component (16), and a coolant guide device (20) which is configured to guide a dielectric coolant (22) to the heat conducting element (18), whereby the heat conducting element (18) can be exposed to and surrounded by the coolant (22), whereby heat can be transferred from the heat conducting element (18) to the coolant (22).

2. Electrical / electronic component (10) according to claim 1, characterized in that the coolant guidance device (20) is configured to circulate the coolant (22) in an open cooling circuit (28).

3. Electrical / electronic component (10) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the coolant guide device (20) together with the heat conducting element (18) defines a flow channel (46) extending along the heat conducting element (18), through which the coolant (22) can flow for cooling the heat conducting element (18), wherein the flow channel (46) has in particular a height of 0.5 to 5 millimeters and / or a width of 1 to 100 millimeters and / or a length corresponding to an outer dimension of the heat conducting element (18).

4. Electrical / electronic component (10) according to claim 3, characterized in that at least one filling element (44), in particular a molded part or a, is arranged within the receiving space (14) as a coolant guide device (20). a packing consisting of a large number of packing materials, which is designed to limit the flow channel (46).

5. Electrical / electronic component (10) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the heat conducting element (18) has a ribbing (42) comprising several ribs (48) along which the cooling fluid (22) can be guided.

6. Electrical / electronic component (10) according to claim 5, characterized in that the ribs (48) are aligned with their longitudinal extension direction in the predetermined flow direction of the coolant (22).

7. Electrical / electronic component (10) according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that the ribs (48) extend in a star shape from a flow point (52), and the coolant guide device (20) is configured to guide the coolant (22) to the flow point (52) so that the heat conducting element (18) at the flow point (52) is exposed to the coolant (22).

8. Electrical / electronic component (10) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the heat conducting element (18) is bonded to the component (16), in particular by means of a heat-conducting adhesive.

9. Electrical / electronic component (10) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the heat conducting element (18) is in contact with an area of ​​locally increased thermal mass of the component (16).

10. Method for cooling an electrical or electronic component (16) of an electrical / electronic component (10) for a motor vehicle, wherein the component (16) is arranged in a receiving space (14) enclosed by a housing (12) of the electrical / electronic component (10) and wherein a A heat-conducting element (18) is arranged on a surface of the component (16) to be cooled and is designed to conduct heat away from the component (16), wherein in the method a dielectric coolant (22) is guided to the heat-conducting element (18) by means of a coolant guide device (20) of the electrical / electronic component (10), whereby the heat-conducting element (18) is cooled by the The coolant (22) flows towards and around the heat transfer element (18) to the coolant (22).

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