Heat Exchanger with heat exchange chambers and plate members utilizing respective medium directing members and method of making same

Abstract

A heat exchange unit having a plurality of chamber assembly coupled to a plate member, said chamber assembly including an inlet flow tube, an outlet flow tube, and a plurality of walls defining a chamber interior. Disposed within the chamber interior is a medium-directing member, having an inclined surface, diverting the heat exchange medium from the initial flow direction so that it disperses within the chamber interior, in to at least two distinct flow patterns. The heat exchange medium exits the chamber, via the outlet, in the initial line of flow. The chambers are interconnected by tubes to form assemblies. A plurality of plate member having plurality of chamber assembly is arranged on a spaced relation between manifolds to complete the medium flow.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0001]1. Field of the Invention[0002]The present invention relates generally to heat exchangers and, more specifically, to a heat exchanger having plurality of disk assemblies coupled to a plate member, each disk assemblies having a tube and a chamber apparatus, said chamber apparatus having a medium directing member within for transporting heat exchange medium.[0003]2. Discussion of the Related Art[0004]Heat exchangers are commonly utilized in systems where it is desired for heat to be removed. Typical basic heat exchangers are made of pipes, which channel heat exchanging medium. Headers or manifolds are attached to each end of the pipes. These headers and manifolds act as receptacles for the heat exchanging medium. The efficiency of the pipe heat exchangers is limited by the amount of surface area available for the transfer of heat. In a tube and chamber heat exchanger, plurality of tube and chamber extend in spaced relation between a pair of header or m...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0012]In an embodiment of the present invention, the flow tube, the chamber, and the plate member for a heat exchanger are provided, for example, for a condenser, evaporator, radiator, etc. The heat exchanger may also be a heater core, intercooler, or an oil cooler for an automotive application (i.e., steering, transmission, engine, etc.) as well as for non-automotive applications. An advantage of the present invention is that the heat exchanger has larger surface area for radiating heat over a shorter distance than that of a conventional heat exchanger, with the surface area provided by the flow tube and the chamber, along with extended heat exchanging surfaces provided by the plate member. With a provision of a large surface area for heat exchanging purposes, the efficiency of a heat exchanger is greatly increased. Another advantage of the present invention is that the overall length and weight of the enhanced tube for heat exchanging applications may be less compared to a conventional heat exchanger, which in turn provides for a lower overall cost as less raw material and less packaging is necessary. Additionally, the flow tube and the chamber may be made from a thicker gage material, while the plate member may be made of thinner gage material. This allows the flow tube and the chamber to handle heat exchanging medium requiring higher internal pressure, which may be common in applications such as a condenser for an air conditioner, for example. Usage of thin gage material for the plate member improves heat conductivity of the plate member, while significantly increasing the surface area for heat exchanging purposes, without adversely affecting cost or the weight. Furthermore, the smaller footprint of the present invention lends itself to be used in applications where space is limited. Yet another advantage of the present invention over a conventional heat exchanger is that the manufacturing process may be simpler because the present invention requires less fragile components and less manufacturing steps. Furthermore, during the assembly process, the plate member on which flow tube and chamber are coupled to, assists in positioning the flow tube and the chamber assembly, acting akin to an assembly tray during the manufacturing process, holding in place components during the assembly process. The entire unit may be brazed together, or any portion of the unit can be brazed first, and then additional components may be brazed or soldered together.

[0013]In another embodiment of the present invention, more than one chamber may be used, which will further increase the surface area of the enhanced tube for the heat exchanger. Also, a first chamber may be connected directly to another chamber. Furthermore, more than one chamber may be coupled to a plate member. In another embodiment of the present invention, more than one plate member may be coupled to a chamber. When plurality of chambers are coupled to the plate member, the plate member provides an economical means to maximize the heat exchanging capability of a heat exchanger by filling the voids between plurality of column of chambers to increase the overall surface area of the heat exchanger, without greatly increasing the size of a heat exchanger.

[0014]In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the tube size may vary between the chambers, and if more than one chamber is used, the chamber size may vary from one chamber to the next.

[0015]In another embodiment of the present invention, plurality of tube size and chamber size positioned on a plate member may vary from one to the next.

[0016]In a further embodiment of the present invention, each chamber may disperse heat exchanging medium throughout the chamber, which further enhances the heat exchanging capabilities of the present invention. Also, each chamber may also mix heat exchanging medium.

[0017]In yet a further embodiment of the present invention, each chamber may include a medium-directing member and medium redirection members that direct and redirect heat exchanging medium in a particular directions through the chamber.

Problems solved by technology

The efficiency of the pipe heat exchangers is limited by the amount of surface area available for the transfer of heat.

However, the pressure resistance is reduced, and the thinner tubes are more prone to damage.

Also, the assembly process is complicated because of the fragile nature of the parts.

In addition, the extruded tubes are prone to plugging during the manufacturing process, particularly if a brazing process is utilized.

The complexity of the extruding process potentially results in higher costs and higher defect rates.

The overall cost for the flat tube heat exchanging system will be higher because a higher powered compressor may be necessary to move the heat exchanging medium through the smaller openings of the tubes.

Conversely, if a higher powered compressor is not utilized, then additional tubes will be necessary to obtain the desired heat exchanging performance because the smaller tubes reduce the flow of the heat exchange medium significantly.

The additional tubes will increase the overall cost for the heat exchanging system.

Due to the nature of the flat tube heat exchanger assembly, if the assembly fixture is even slightly off tolerances, the entire heat exchanger assembly may not braze properly.

For this type of heat exchanger assembly, significant investment must be made in precision assembly machines and fixtures, in addition to having components made to a very high-precision tolerances, causing the assembly cost of a heat exchanger to rise significantly, in addition to having to pay more for precision made components.

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