Electric heating device for heating fluids

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10895403-B2
Application number	US-201615350928-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 14, 2016
Priority date	Nov 17, 2015
Publication date	Jan 19, 2021
Grant date	Jan 19, 2021

Abstract

An electric heating device for heating fluids, comprising a housing, inlet and outlet connection pieces arranged at inlet and outlet openings of the housing, respectively, a flow path in the housing through which the fluid to be heated flows leading from the inlet connection piece to the outlet connection piece, and an electric heating unit attached to the housing. The flow path comprises inlet and outlet chambers and at least two flow channels running side by side from the inlet to the outlet chambers. A separating wall separates two flow channels from one another. Each flow channel has an inlet section connected to the inlet chamber and defining an inlet flow direction and an outlet section connected to the outlet chamber and defining an outlet flow direction. The inlet connection piece is oriented in the inlet flow direction and/or the outlet connection piece is oriented in the outlet flow direction.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An electric heating device for heating fluids, comprising:
a housing having an upper housing part, a lower housing part and housing walls arranged on the upper and lower housing parts, the housing walls including two base walls wherein the upper housing part and the lower housing part each define one of the base walls;
an inlet connection piece arranged at an inlet opening of the housing and an outlet connection piece arranged at an outlet opening of the housing;
a flow path through which the fluid to be heated can flow and which is disposed inside the housing and leads from the inlet connection piece to the outlet connection piece;
an electric heating unit attached to at least one of the housing walls outside of the flow path;
wherein the flow path comprises an inlet chamber, an outlet chamber and at least two flow channels running side by side from the inlet chamber to the outlet chamber;
wherein each of the at least two flow channels starts at the inlet chamber and ends at the outlet chamber;
wherein at least one of the housing walls is a separating wall that separates two side-by-side channels of the at least two flow channels from one another wherein opposite sides of the separating wall defines a portion of each of the two side-by-side channels;
wherein each of the at least two flow channels has an inlet section connected to the inlet chamber and defining an inlet flow direction and each of the at least two flow channels has an outlet section connected to the outlet chamber and defining an outlet flow direction and wherein each of the at least two flow channels are disposed between and partially defined by the base walls on the upper and lower housing parts;
wherein the inlet connection piece is oriented in the inlet flow direction and/or the outlet connection piece is oriented in the outlet and wherein the housing walls arranged on the upper and lower housing parts define at least one gap between the housing walls permitting fluid leakage from one of the side-by-side fluid channels to the other side-by-side fluid channel.

2. The heating device according to claim 1 , wherein the base walls extend transversely to the separating wall.

3. The heating device according to claim 2 , wherein the base walls are planar and the at least two flow channels run parallel thereto.

4. The heating device according to claim 3 , wherein the inlet connection piece and the at least two flow channels are arranged on opposite sides of a plane defined by one of the base walls.

5. The heating device according to claim 3 , wherein the outlet connection piece and the at least two flow channels are arranged on opposite sides of a plane defined by one of the base walls.

6. The heating device according to claim 2 , wherein, when viewed transversely to the base walls, the inlet connection piece is centered with the inlet sections of the at least two flow channels.

7. The heating device according to claim 2 , wherein the separating wall projects from one of the base walls toward the other base wall and the at least one gap permitting fluid leakage from one of the side-by-side fluid channels to the other side-by-side fluid channel is disposed between the separating wall and the other base wall.

8. The heating device according to claim 1 , wherein, when viewed transversely to one of the base walls, the outlet connection piece is oriented to the outlet section of an outer one of the at least two flow channels, which is adjacent to an outer side wall, which connects the base wall of the lower housing part and the base wall of the upper housing part.

9. The heating device according to claim 2 , wherein a section of the inlet chamber adjacent to the at least two flow channels is limited by a section of each of the base walls.

10. The heating device according to claim 1 , wherein the inlet chamber and/or the outlet chamber comprises a tapering section.

11. The heating device according to claim 1 , wherein the open cross section of the inlet chamber decreases continuously towards the inlet connection piece.

12. The heating device according to claim 11 , wherein, when viewed transversely to the base walls, the inlet chamber has a width that decreases towards the inlet connection piece.

13. The heating device according to claim 11 , wherein, when viewed transversely to the flow direction and along the base walls, the inlet chamber has a height that increases towards the inlet connection piece.

14. The heating device according to claim 1 , wherein the open cross section of the outlet chamber decreases continuously towards the outlet connection piece.

15. The heating device according to claim 14 , wherein, when viewed transversely to the base walls, the outlet chamber has a width that decreases towards the outlet connection piece.

16. The heating device according to claim 14 , wherein, when viewed transversely to the flow direction and along the base walls, the outlet chamber has a height that increases towards the outlet connection piece.

17. The heating device according to according to claim 2 , wherein the separating wall projects from a first one of the base walls and has a width which decreases with increasing distance from the first base wall and wherein the electric heating unit is attached to the first base wall.

18. The heating device according to claim 1 , wherein the separating wall starts at the inlet chamber and ends at the outlet chamber.

19. An electric heating device for heating fluids, comprising:
a housing having an upper housing part, a lower housing part and housing walls arranged on the upper and lower housing parts, the housing walls including two base walls wherein the upper housing part and the lower housing part each define one of the base walls;
an inlet connection piece arranged at an inlet opening of the housing and an outlet connection piece arranged at an outlet opening of the housing;
a flow path through which the fluid to be heated can flow and which is defined inside the housing and leads from the inlet connection piece to the outlet connection piece;
an electric heating unit attached to at least one of the housing walls outside of the flow path;
wherein the flow path comprises an inlet chamber, an outlet chamber and at least two flow channels running side by side from the inlet chamber to the outlet chamber;
wherein the base walls define opposing surfaces of each of the at least two flow channels;
wherein at least one of the housing walls is a separating wall that extends transversely to the base wall and separates two adjacent flow channels of the at least two flow channels from one another with opposite sides of the separating wall defining a portion of each of the two adjacent flow channels;
wherein each of the at least two flow channels has an inlet section connected to the inlet chamber and defining an inlet flow direction and each of the at least two flow channels has an outlet section connected to the outlet chamber and defining an outlet flow direction;
wherein each of the two adjacent flow channels define a curved path and the two adjacent flow channels define different lengths from the inlet chamber to the outlet chamber and a shorter length channel of the two adjacent flow channels has a larger open cross sectional area than a longer length channel of the two adjacent flow channels; and
wherein the inlet connection piece is oriented in the inlet flow direction and/or the outlet connection piece is oriented in the outlet flow direction.

Assignees

• Borgwarner Ludwigsburg Gmbh

Inventors

• Hermida Domínguez Xoan Xosé
• Sweeney Stephen
• Mccarthy Cian

Classifications

• F24H1/142 Primary

  using electric energy supply · CPC title

• F24H9/0015

  in water channels · CPC title

• F24H1/121 Primary

  using electric energy supply · CPC title

• F24H9/1818

  Arrangement or mounting of electric heating means · CPC title