FR3039264A1 - HOUSING FOR A HEAT EXCHANGER AND HEAT EXCHANGER COMPRISING SAID HOUSING - Google Patents

Abstract

Housing adapted for a first fluid, intended to circulate within an exchange beam of a heat exchanger for exchanging a determined quantity of heat with a second fluid circulating within said exchange beam, said housing comprising a housing inlet for guiding said first fluid to the interior of the heat exchanger, and an outlet housing for guiding said first fluid to the outside of the heat exchanger, the exchange beam comprising a first lateral end and a second lateral end, said input box comprising at least one wall, the output box comprising at least one wall, so that the wall of the input box and the wall of the output box cooperate along a junction line for covering the first lateral end of the exchange beam.

Description

Field of the invention

The present invention relates to a heat exchanger, such as a heat exchanger for a motor vehicle. More specifically, the invention relates to a heat exchanger adapted to be used during the cooling of the charge air or recirculated exhaust gas. The invention also relates to a housing adapted for said heat exchanger.

State of the art

Nowadays, within a motor vehicle, the internal combustion engine of said motor vehicle can be combined with a turbocharger to improve the performance of said engine. Thus, the internal combustion engine is powered with compressed air also called "supercharging air". The use of the turbocharger induces a high temperature of said charge air introduced into the internal combustion engine. Therefore, it is known to associate said turbocharger, a heat exchanger to cool the charge air prior to its introduction into the internal combustion engine.

Such a heat exchanger generally comprises a housing, consisting of walls, and an exchange beam disposed inside the housing. The exchange beam comprises an assembly of plates positioned one above the other and forming in combination a conduit for guiding a first fluid intended to be cooled, such as the supercharging air, from a first inlet to a first exit. The shell of the exchange bundle is generally provided with a second inlet and a second outlet for a second fluid, such as a coolant. The housing of the exchange beam is adapted to guide the second fluid from the second inlet to the second outlet. In order to improve the heat exchange between the first fluid and the second fluid, the assembly of the plates can be completed by corrugated spacer elements. The heat exchanger is also connected to an inlet box for conveying the charge air into the heat exchanger and to an outlet box in order to evacuate the cooled charge air to the engine. outside the heat exchanger. The input box and the output box are adapted to be connected to the ends of the exchange beam, in particular by means of a welding process.

However, the position of the input and output boxes is defined according to the volume available within the motor vehicle. Thus, frequently, the space available for welding the input box and the output box on the housing of the exchange beam is relatively limited. Indeed, the available space does not allow easy passage of the welding torch for connecting the ends of the exchange beam housing with the input box or the output box. The ends of the housing of the exchange beam are therefore difficult to reach. It is then possible to tilt the welding torch so as to reach said ends to be welded. However, such inclination produces flows of the material to be welded, which degrades the appearance of the heat exchanger.

Therefore, there is a need to improve the design techniques of a heat exchanger, according to the prior art, including the assembly of the exchange beam housing with the input and output boxes.

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION The heat exchanger according to the present invention aims to remedy in particular the disadvantages of heat exchangers, as disclosed in the state of the art, by proposing an improved design of a housing for a heat exchanger. intended to cool the charge air or the recirculated exhaust gas.

A first object of the invention relates to a housing adapted for a first fluid, intended to circulate within an exchange beam of a heat exchanger to exchange a determined amount of heat with a second fluid circulating within said beam exchange, said housing comprising an inlet housing for guiding said first fluid to the interior of the heat exchanger, and an outlet housing for guiding said first fluid to the outside of the heat exchanger, the exchange beam comprising a first lateral end and a second lateral end, said input housing comprising at least one wall, the output housing comprising at least one wall, so that the wall of the input housing and the wall of the output housing cooperate along a junction line to cover the first lateral end of the exchange beam.

Advantageously, at least one wall comprises a holding means.

Advantageously, the wall of the input box and the wall of the output box are welded to the junction line by a welding torch.

Advantageously, a spacing is left between the exchange beam and the walls of the inlet and outlet boxes, this spacing allowing the expansion of the beam by limiting the stresses on the walls of the input and output boxes.

Advantageously, the input box comprises a second wall, the output box comprises a second wall, so that the wall of the input box and the wall of the output box cooperate along a second line of junction. to cover the second lateral end of the exchange beam.

Advantageously, the input box and the output box do not cover the second lateral end of the exchange beam.

A second object of the invention relates to a heat exchanger comprising a housing according to the first object of the invention.

Brief descriptions of the drawings

The objects, objects and features of the present invention as well as its advantages will appear more clearly on reading the description which follows, of the preferred embodiments of a heat exchanger according to the invention, with reference to the drawings in which FIG. 1 schematically shows an exploded view of a heat exchanger according to a first embodiment; FIG. 2 schematically shows an assembled view of the heat exchanger according to FIG. 1; FIG. 3 shows an exemplary embodiment of an assembly of a heat exchanger according to the invention, by means of a welding torch; FIG. 4 shows a sectional view of the heat exchanger according to FIGS. 1 and 2; FIG. 5 schematically shows an exploded view of a heat exchanger according to a second embodiment; FIG. 6 schematically shows another view of the exchanger according to FIG. Figure 5.

Detailed Description of the Embodiments

The purpose of the following detailed description is to explain the invention in a sufficiently clear and complete manner, particularly by way of examples, but should not be considered as limiting the scope of protection to particular embodiments. and the examples presented below.

FIG. 1 illustrates a first embodiment of a heat exchanger 1 according to the invention, intended to be used within a motor vehicle for cooling the supercharging air or the recirculated exhaust gas according to the known system. under the name "EGR" for Exhaust Gas Recirculation, in English. Heat exchanger 1 is generally called a charge air cooler (RAS).

Figure 1 shows, schematically, the heat exchanger 1 in an exploded view. The heat exchanger 1 comprises an exchange beam 2 adapted for a heat exchange between a first fluid, such as charge air, and a second fluid such as a coolant. The exchange beam 2 comprises a stack of plates 4 of generally rectangular shape. The ends of the exchange bundle 2 comprise a first lateral end and a second lateral end. The first lateral end is divided into a first lateral surface 10 and a second lateral surface 12. The second lateral end is divided into a third lateral surface 6 and a fourth lateral surface 8. The exchange beam 2 is adapted to delimit first circulation channels for the first fluid to be cooled and second circulation channels to allow the circulation of the second fluid. The exchange beam 2 also comprises an inlet pipe 14 corresponding to the inlet of said second fluid within the heat exchanger 1 and an outlet pipe 16 corresponding to the outlet of the second fluid. The heat exchanger 1 also comprises a housing adapted for the first fluid and the housing comprising an inlet housing 18 and an outlet housing 20. The inlet housing 18 has an inlet 22 for the first fluid in the direction of flow. the arrow 24. The outlet housing 20 defines a collecting volume of the first fluid. The first fluid exits the outlet housing 20 in the direction of the arrow 26.

As shown in FIG. 1, the input housing 18 comprises a longitudinal input wall 27, a first lateral wall 30 adapted to cover the first lateral surface 10 and a second lateral wall 28 adapted to cover the third lateral surface 6 of the exchange beam 2. Similarly, the outlet housing 20 comprises a longitudinal outlet wall 31, a first side wall 34 adapted to cover the second lateral surface 12 of the exchange beam 2 and a second side wall 32 adapted to cover the fourth lateral surface 8 of the exchange beam 2.

FIG. 2 shows the heat exchanger 1, after assembly of the exchange beam 2 with the input box 18 and the outlet box 20. As shown in FIG. 2, the first end of the exchange beam 2, comprising the first lateral surface 10 and the second lateral surface 12, is completely covered by the first wall 30 of the input box 18 juxtaposed with the first wall 34 of the output box 20. Similarly, the second end of the beam of 2, comprising the third lateral surface 6 and the fourth lateral surface 8, is completely covered by the second wall 28 of the input housing 18 juxtaposed to the second wall 32 of the output housing 20.

Thus the input box 18 and the output box 20 are assembled on the exchange beam 2 so that the first wall 30 of the input box 18 and the first wall 34 of the output box 20 share a first line of Similarly, the second wall 28 of the input housing 18 and the second wall 32 of the output housing 20 share a second connecting line 36.

In FIGS. 1 and 2, the connecting lines 36 and 37 are straight, equidistant from the longitudinal inlet and outlet walls 27 and 31, perpendicular to the planes of the plates 4 of the bundle 2. However, this is only one exemplary embodiment. The shape and location of the junction lines 36 and 37 are directly related to the size of the input and output boxes 18 and 18, the object of the invention being to create an easy passage of the welding torch to connect the input box and the output box on the exchange beam. Thus, the walls 28, 32, 30, 34 may have any shape, the rectangular shape is a particular example. The junction lines 36 and 37 may be curved, the rectilinear shape is a particular example. The surfaces of the walls 28, 32, 30, 34 may be very different provided that they are complementary in order to cover the lateral ends of the exchange bundle 2. The fact that the surfaces of the walls 28, 32, 30, 34 are of identical dimensions in the figures is a particular example.

The first walls 30, 34 and the second walls 28, 32 may comprise at least one holding means 38. In the visible part of FIGS. 1 and 2, the holding means 38 are lugs positioned on the second wall 32 of the housing. output 20 so that when the input housing 18 is assembled with the output housing 20, said holding lugs 38 ensure optimum holding of the second walls 28, 32, along the second connecting line 36, before performing the welding process. Advantageously, holding lugs 38 are also arranged on the first wall 34 of the outlet housing 20 to ensure optimal retention of the first walls 30, 34, along the first junction line 37, before carrying out the method of welding.

FIG. 3 shows an exemplary embodiment of the welding process at the first junction line 37 between the first wall 30 of the input box 18 and the first wall 34 of the output box 20. As shown in FIG. the welding process is performed by means of a welding tool 42, such as a welding torch. The location of the first connecting line 37 makes it possible to use the welding tool 42 along an axis perpendicular to the plane of the first lateral end of the exchange bundle 2. Thus, the user of the welding tool 42 has a relatively large freedom of use to carry out the welding process. Therefore, it is no longer necessary for a user to tilt the welding tool in a specific direction to access the junction line. Any material flows generated by such manipulations of the welding tool are avoided. At the end of the welding process, the first joining line 37 takes the form of a first weld line.

In the remainder of the description, the nature and advantages of the first weld line as described below are also applicable to the second weld line (not shown) resulting from the realization of the welding process at the level of the second junction line 36.

The weld line made between the first walls 30 and 34 may be located in the middle of the first lateral end of the exchange bundle 2 when the dimensions of the first wall 30 and the second wall 34 are identical. Since the walls 28, 32, 30, 34 may be of any shape, the position of the first and second connecting lines 37, 36 vary according to the dimensions of the first walls 30, 34 and second walls 28, 32. Therefore, the position of the weld lines varies accordingly.

FIG. 4 shows the assembly of the second wall 28 of the input box 18 assembled on the second lateral end of the exchange beam 2. The figure is a section of FIG. 2 in a plane intersecting the wall 28 and parallel to the one passing through the two junction lines 36 and 37. As shown in FIG. 4, the assembly of the input box 18 on the exchange beam 2 makes it possible to maintain a free space 50 between the second lateral end of the beam exchange 2 (and thus plates 4) and the second wall 28 of the input housing 18. The free space 50 allows the plates 4 of the exchange beam 2 to expand if necessary during a temperature rise related to the circulation of the first fluid, such as supercharging air within the exchange beam 2. Thus, the possible problems of deterioration of the plates of the exchange bundle 2 and / or the heat exchanger housing, related with thermal shock that between the charge air and the coolant, are avoided. Consequently, the presence and the position of the weld lines thus obtained make it possible to deport the mechanical stresses undergone by the exchange beam 2 towards the input box 18 and, similarly, towards the outlet box 20. Thus, the presence of the first walls 30, 34 and the second walls 28, 32 guarantees optimum protection for the exchange beam 2.

Finally, the design of the module comprising the input box 18, the output box 20 and the heat exchanger 1 according to the invention makes it possible to reduce the number of connections required to produce the heat exchanger 1. Production times associated with carrying out the welding process are therefore also significantly reduced. Indeed, according to the first embodiment of the invention only two vertical lines of welding (along the two junction lines 26 and 37) are necessary in order to assemble the input box 18 and the output box 20 on the exchange beam 2.

Figures 5 and 6 show a second embodiment of the invention. In this example, only the first lateral end of the beam 2 poses problems of accessibility of the welding torch.

The beam 2 is brazed together in a U-shaped bundle of three plates, the plate 40 covering the second end of the bundle 2.

The input and output boxes 20 respectively comprise only one wall 30 and 34. As in the first embodiment, the input box 18 and the output box 20 are assembled on the exchange beam 2 so that the first wall 30 of the input housing 18 and the first wall 34 of the output housing 20 share a first connecting line 37 and completely cover the first lateral end of the beam 2.

Three vertical weld lines are required in order to assemble the input box 18 and the output box 20 on the exchange bundle 2. The first vertical weld line is located along the first junction line 37. two other vertical welding lines are located at the junction between the lateral edges of the plate 40 and the inlet and outlet boxes 18 and 20.

As in the first embodiment, the walls 30, 34 may comprise at least one holding pin 38 to ensure optimum retention of these walls along the first connecting line 37, before carrying out the welding process.

Similarly, the resulting space between the wall obtained by the assembly of the walls 30 and 34 and the first lateral end of the beam, allows a better resistance of the exchanger to thermal shocks (expansion of the beam).

This second embodiment has the same advantages as the first: the problem of accessibility of the welding torch is solved, the number of connections necessary to produce the heat exchanger 1 is reduced (three vertical lines of welding at Instead of four) Thus, the production times associated with the realization of the welding process are also reduced, - the space between the first lateral end of the bundle and the housing allows expansion of the bundle without constraint on the case,

An additional advantage of the second embodiment over the first is a cost reduction. Indeed, the manufacture of the inlet and outlet housings 18 with side walls as described in the invention is not simple and therefore has a cost impact. Limit the number of walls to the strict minimum (two instead of four) in relation to the accessibility problems of the welding torch makes it possible to save on the final cost of the exchanger while solving the initial problem of accessibility of the welding torch.

Claims (8)

1. Housing adapted for a first fluid, intended to circulate within an exchange bundle (2) of a heat exchanger (1) for exchanging a determined quantity of heat with a second fluid flowing in said bundle of heat exchange (2), said housing comprising an inlet housing (18) for guiding said first fluid to the interior of the heat exchanger (1), and an outlet housing (20) for guiding said first fluid to the outside of the heat exchanger (1), the exchange beam (2) comprising a first lateral end and a second lateral end, said input housing (18) comprising at least one wall (30), the output housing (20) having at least one wall (34) so that the wall (30) of the input housing and the wall (34) of the output housing cooperate along a connecting line (37) to cover the first lateral end of the exchange beam (2), Housing according to claim 1, wherein at least one wall (30, 34) comprises a holding means (38), 3. Housing according to claim 1, wherein at least the holding means (38) is a holding lug, Housing according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the wall (30) of the inlet housing and the wall (34) of the outlet housing are welded to the joint line (37) by a welding tool. such as a welding torch, 5. Housing according to any one of the preceding claims characterized in that a spacing (50) is left between the exchange beam (2) and the walls (30, 34) of the input and output boxes, this spacing allowing expansion of the beam by limiting the stresses on the walls (30, 34) of the input and output boxes, 6. Housing according to any one of claims 1 to 5 characterized in that the input housing (18) comprises a second wall (28), the output housing (20) comprises a second wall (32), so that the wall (28) of the input housing and the wall (32) of the output housing cooperate along a second connecting line (36) to cover the second lateral end of the exchange beam (2), 7. Housing according to any one of claims 1 to 5 characterized in that the input housing (18) and the output housing (20) do not cover the second lateral end of the exchange beam (2), 8. Heat exchanger (1) comprising a housing according to any one of the preceding claims.