Heat exchange system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9592717-B2
Application number	US-201214362345-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 3, 2012
Priority date	Dec 5, 2011
Publication date	Mar 14, 2017
Grant date	Mar 14, 2017

Abstract

A heat exchange system includes a first heat exchanger that radiates heat of at least a cooling cycle, a cooler circuit in which a coolant for a heat-emitting device flows, a plurality of heat exchangers that are connected to the cooler circuit and radiate heat of the coolant, and a blower that sends air to the first heat exchanger and the plurality of heat exchangers to cool. The plurality of heat exchangers are arranged in a blowing direction of the blower, and separately radiate heat of the cooler circuit. The heat exchanger, which is disposed on the windward side, of the plurality of heat exchangers is thermally connected to the first heat exchanger, and the heat exchanger disposed on the windward side radiates heat by itself and also radiates heat through the first heat exchanger.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A heat exchange system comprising:
a first heat exchanger that radiates heat of at least a cooling cycle;
a cooler circuit in which a coolant for a heat-emitting device flows;
a plurality of heat exchangers that are connected to the cooler circuit and radiate heat of the coolant;
a blower that sends air to the first heat exchanger and the plurality of heat exchangers to cool, wherein
the plurality of heat exchangers are arranged in a blowing direction of the blower and separately radiate heat of the cooler circuit,
one heat exchanger of the plurality of heat exchangers is disposed on a windward side and is thermally connected to the first heat exchanger, and the one heat exchanger disposed on the windward side radiates heat by itself and also radiates heat through the first heat exchanger,
the plurality of heat exchangers comprises a second heat exchanger that is the one heat exchanger disposed on the windward side and a third heat exchanger that is disposed on a leeward side, the second heat exchanger being disposed adjacent to or integrally with the first heat exchanger, and
the second heat exchanger and the third heat exchanger are arranged in a manner that the coolant which serves as internal fluid flows through the heat exchangers in parallel, and
a flow control valve that controls a flow rate of the coolant in the second heat exchanger, the flow control valve is located between the second heat exchanger and a branch point of the cooler circuit where the coolant is branched and flows into the second heat exchanger and the third heat exchanger in parallel.

2. The heat exchange system according to claim 1 , wherein
the first heat exchanger comprises an air-conditioning heat exchanger that is a part of a first fluid circuit air-conditioning a passenger compartment of a vehicle, and
the cooler circuit comprises a second fluid circuit that cools the heat-emitting device other than an engine of the vehicle.

3. The heat exchange system according to claim 1 , wherein
the first heat exchanger comprises a heat exchanger that radiates heat of brine flowing in a liquid-cool condenser after a refrigerant compressed by a compressor is cooled by the liquid-cool condenser.

4. The heat exchange system according to claim 1 , wherein
the first heat exchanger and the one heat exchanger disposed on the windward side, of the plurality of heat exchangers, comprise a three-fluid heat exchanger that transfers heat using a part of a core.

5. The heat exchange system according to claim 1 , wherein
the second heat exchanger and the third heat exchanger are arranged in a manner that the coolant which serves as internal fluid flows through the heat exchangers in series.

6. The heat exchange system according to claim 5 , wherein
the third heat exchanger is disposed on an upstream side and the second heat exchanger is disposed on a downstream side in a flow direction of the internal fluid.

7. The heat exchange system according to claim 5 , wherein
the second heat exchanger disposed on the windward side and the third heat exchanger disposed on the leeward side are arranged in a manner that the coolant which serves as internal fluid flows in series from the third heat exchanger to the second heat exchanger and that the coolant flows to be a counter flow against a flow of air.

8. The heat exchange system according to claim 1 , wherein
the refrigerating cycle comprises a heat pump cycle that is capable of cooling and heating air in a passenger compartment of a vehicle, and includes a cooling/heating switching unit that switches a heating cycle and the cooling cycle from each other, and
the first heat exchanger of the cooling cycle operates as a heat absorber when being switched to the heating cycle.

9. The heat exchange system according to claim 1 , wherein
the refrigerating cycle comprises a heat pump cycle that is capable of cooling and heating air in a passenger compartment of a vehicle, and includes a cooling/heating switching unit that switches a heating cycle and the cooling cycle from each other,
the first heat exchanger of the cooling cycle operates as a heat absorber when being switched to the heating cycle, and
the flow control valve is controlled so that the coolant flows to the second heat exchanger when the heating cycle operates.

10. The heat exchange system according to claim 1 , wherein
the refrigerating cycle comprises a heat pump cycle that is capable of cooling and heating air in a passenger compartment of a vehicle, and includes a cooling/heating switching unit that switches a heating cycle and the cooling cycle from each other,
the first heat exchanger of the cooling cycle operates as a heat absorber when being switched to the heating cycle,
the cooler circuit is provided with a heat-storage bypass passage bypassing at least the second heat exchanger, and a passage switching unit switching the coolant to flow into the heat-storage bypass passage or the second heat exchanger, and
the passage switching unit causes the coolant which has passed through the heat-storage bypass passage to flow into the second heat exchanger at a time of defrosting the heat absorber.

11. The heat exchange system according to claim 10 , wherein
the passage switching unit causes the heat-storage bypass passage to store heat by flowing the coolant at a time of not defrosting, and
the passage switching unit stops the coolant from flowing into the heat-storage bypass passage and allows the coolant, which has stored heat, to flow into the second heat exchanger at the time of defrosting.

12. The heat exchange system according to claim 1 , wherein
the heat-emitting device of the cooler circuit comprises a device other than an engine, and
the third heat exchanger is integrated with a heat exchanger for the engine.

13. The heat exchange system according to claim 12 , wherein
the third heat exchanger and the heat exchanger for the engine transfer heat to each other using a part of a core and are integrally formed as a three-fluid heat exchanger that exchanges heat with air.

14. The heat exchange system according to claim 12 , wherein
the first heat exchanger and the second heat exchanger transfer heat to each other using a part of a core and are integrally formed as a first three-fluid heat exchanger on a windward side, and
the third heat exchanger and the heat exchanger for the engine transfer heat to each other using a part of a core and are integrally formed as a second three-fluid heat exchanger on a leeward side.

15. The heat exchange system according to claim 14 , wherein
the first three-fluid heat exchanger and the second three-fluid heat exchanger are further integrated with each other, so that the first heat exchanger, the second heat exchanger, the third heat exchanger, and the heat exchanger for the engine transfer heat to each other using a part of a common core.

16. The heat exchange system according to claim 1 , wherein
the heat exchange system further has a heat-storage bypass passage bypassing the second heat exchanger, and a passage switching unit switching the coolant to flow into the heat-storage bypass passage or the second heat exchanger, and the passage switching unit is position at a connection point connecting the heat-storage bypass passage to the cooler circuit.

17. The heat exchange system according to claim 1 further comprising:
a control device configured to control the opening of the flow control valve when it is determined that a temperature of the coolant is higher than or equal to a predetermined temperature

Assignees

• Denso Corp

Inventors

• Katoh Yoshiki

Classifications

• B60H1/32281

  comprising a single secondary circuit, e.g. at evaporator or condenser side · CPC title

• B60H1/3213

  for increasing the efficiency in a vehicle heat pump · CPC title

• B60H1/3227

  characterised by the arrangement or the type of heat exchanger, e.g. condenser, evaporator (condensed liquid drainage means B60H1/3233) · CPC title

• F28F9/0278

  in the form of stacked distribution plates or perforated plates arranged over end plates · CPC title

• F28F2009/0287

  having passages for different heat exchange media · CPC title