Parallel-Flow Heat Exchanger with Break-Line Fins for L-Shape Bending
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing parallel-flow heat exchangers face performance degradation and increased machining steps when bent into an L-shape, and the use of shield materials to block airflow further reduces heat exchange efficiency.
Innovation Solution
A heat exchanger design featuring flat tubes and fins with a break line that breaks during bending, minimizing stress on the tubes and eliminating the need for an L-shaped connection pipe and shield materials, thus maintaining efficiency without additional machining steps.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If the heat exchanger is bent into an L-shape to fit limited storage space, then ease of storage is improved, but the flat tubes and fins are deformed causing degradation in heat exchange performance
Solution Approach 1:
The fin is divided into multiple sections by introducing break lines, allowing it to be segmented during bending. This segmentation enables the fin to flex and break at predetermined locations rather than deforming the flat tubes, thus maintaining tube integrity and heat exchange performance while accommodating L-shape configuration for compact storage
Solution Approach 2:
Break lines are pre-formed on the fins during manufacturing before the heat exchanger is installed. These preliminary structural modifications create predetermined weak points that will break during bending operations, preventing unintended deformation of critical components like flat tubes and ensuring performance is maintained
2Volume of moving object
If an L-shaped connection pipe is used to form the heat exchanger with an L-shape, then ease of storage is improved, but extra machining steps such as brazing are required
Solution Approach 1:
The L-shaped connection pipe is removed from the design. Instead, the heat exchanger body itself is bent into an L-shape by breaking the fins at predetermined break lines. This extraction of the separate connection pipe eliminates the need for extra machining steps like brazing while still achieving the required L-shape configuration for compact storage
Solution Approach 2:
The function of the separate L-shaped connection pipe is merged into the heat exchanger body itself. By bending the entire heat exchanger into an L-shape through controlled fin breaking, the connection function is integrated directly into the heat exchange structure, eliminating additional components and manufacturing steps
3Stability of the object's composition
If shield material is affixed to block airflow in gaps between L-shaped connection pipes, then structural integrity is improved, but heat exchange efficiency is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The shield material that blocks airflow is removed from the design. By eliminating the L-shaped connection pipes and bending the heat exchanger body directly, the gaps that required shielding no longer exist. This extraction eliminates the need for shield material while preserving structural integrity through the break line design
Solution Approach 2:
The potential harm of fin deformation during bending is converted into a benefit by using the fin break as a controlled failure point. The fin is designed to break at predetermined break lines, which actually benefits the structure by allowing controlled flexibility while protecting the flat tubes from deformation, eliminating the need for shield material
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This configuration minimizes deformation of flat tubes and maintains heat exchange efficiency by allowing the fin to break along a predetermined line during bending, eliminating the need for extra machining and shield materials.
Implementation Method 1
when bending is performed on the heat exchanger, a stress acts on a fin and thus causes the fin to be broken along a break line
Data Source
AI summary
A heat exchanger includes flat tubes spaced apart from each other and located in parallel, a header that connects end portions of the flat tubes, and a fin joined between the flat tubes adjacent to each other. The fin is provided with a break line that breaks the fin when bending is performed. A cut is provided at both ends of the break line on the fin including a first end and a second end, and extends parallel to the airflow direction from the first end to the second end.