VEHICLE HEAT EXCHANGE MODULE

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001]The present invention relates to a vehicle heat exchange module, and more specifically, to a vehicle heat exchange module formed by modularizing components such as a heat exchanger into a single module.

BACKGROUND ART

[0002]Under the trend of environmentally friendly industrial development and development of energy sources that replace fossil fuels, the most notable fields in the automobile industry recently are electric vehicles and hybrid electric vehicles. An electric vehicle and a hybrid electric vehicle are provided with a battery to provide a driving force, and the battery is used not only for driving but also for cooling and heating.

[0003]In vehicles in which the driving force is provided using the battery, when the battery is used as a heat source for cooling and heating, it means that a traveling distance is reduced accordingly, and to overcome the above problem, a method of applying a heat management system widely used in household heating and cooling devices to vehicles has been proposed.

[0004]For reference, the heat management system absorbs low-temperature heat and transfers the absorbed heat to a side at a high temperature. As an example, the heat management system has a cycle in which liquid refrigerant is evaporated in an evaporator, the evaporated refrigerant takes heat from the surroundings to become a gas, and the gas discharges heat back to the surroundings by a condenser to be liquefied. When the heat management system is applied to electric vehicles or hybrid electric vehicles, there is an advantage that it is possible to secure a heat source which is lack in conventional general air conditioners.

[0005]A gas injection system has been introduced to improve operation performance of such a heat management system. A basic configuration of a conventional gas injection system using the form of a plate-type heat exchanger requires four components including a condenser, a receiver dryer, a plate-type heat exchanger (economizer), and an internal heat exchanger (IHX). However, since these components are installed separately, space efficiency is lowered and there are disadvantages in packaging, cost, and workability.

DISCLOSURE

Technical Problem

[0006]The present invention is directed to providing a vehicle heat exchange module formed by packaging components required for a basic configuration of a gas injection system using a plate-type heat exchanger into a single module so that cost reduction, lightweight, and workability increase are achieved.

[0007]Objects of the present invention are not limited to the above object, and other objects that are not described will be able to be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description.

Technical Solution

[0008]In a vehicle heat exchange module according to one embodiment of the present invention, which includes a water-cooled condenser, a receiver dryer, a first heat exchanger, and a second heat exchanger, which are used in a gas injection system, the water-cooled condenser, the receiver dryer, the first heat exchanger, and the second heat exchanger may be sequentially coupled into a single module to form a refrigerant flow path.

[0009]The receiver dryer may branch a refrigerant flow path, and one end may be connected to the first heat exchanger and the other end may be connected to an expansion valve.

[0010]The receiver dryer may include an inlet provided at one end of the receiver dryer and connected to the water-cooled condenser, a first branch part branched at the other end and connected to the first heat exchanger, and a second branch part branched at the other end and connected to the expansion valve.

[0011]The first heat exchanger and the second heat exchanger may be stacked and coupled horizontally or vertically.

[0012]The water-cooled condenser, the first heat exchanger, and the second heat exchanger may be coupled to a mounting frame, and the mounting frame may include a first mounting part to which the water-cooled condenser is coupled, and a second mounting part which is connected to the first mounting part and to which the first heat exchanger and the second heat exchanger are coupled.

[0013]The first mounting part and the second mounting part may be disposed to face each other, and the water-cooled condenser, the first heat exchanger, and the second heat exchanger may be coupled to surfaces opposite to facing surfaces.

[0014]The first heat exchanger and the second heat exchanger may include a plurality of stacked main plates through which a first refrigerant flows, first plates which are stacked between the main plates at positions corresponding to lower portions of the main plates and through which a second refrigerant flows, and second plates which are stacked between the main plates at positions corresponding to upper portions of the main plates and through which a second refrigerant flows.

[0015]The first heat exchanger and the second heat exchanger may include a plurality of stacked main plates through which a first refrigerant flows, first plates which are stacked between the main plates to have a part of an area of all the main plates and through which a branched first refrigerant flows, and second plates which are stacked between the main plates to have the remaining portion of the area of all the main plates and through which a second refrigerant flows.

[0016]The first heat exchanger may be a plate-type heat exchanger, and the second heat exchanger may be an internal heat exchanger (IHX).

[0017]The refrigerant flow path may include a first flow path along which a first refrigerant flows through the water-cooled condenser, the receiver dryer, the first heat exchanger, the second heat exchanger, and a chiller, a second flow path which is branched at the receiver dryer and along which the first refrigerant flows through an expansion valve, the first heat exchanger, and a compressor, and a third flow path along which a second refrigerant flows through an evaporator, the second heat exchanger, and the compressor.

[0018]In a vehicle heat exchange module according to another embodiment of the present invention, which includes a water-cooled condenser, a receiver dryer, a first heat exchanger, and a second heat exchanger, which are used in a gas injection system, wherein some of a first refrigerant which has passed through the water-cooled condenser may flow into the receiver dryer, and some other first refrigerant expands while passing through an expansion valve, and a high-temperature first refrigerant which has passed through the receiver dryer may be heat-exchanged with a low-temperature first refrigerant which has passed through the expansion valve in the first heat exchanger.

[0019]The high-temperature first refrigerant and the low-temperature first refrigerant, which flow through the first heat exchanger, may be heat-exchanged while flowing in opposite directions.

[0020]The high-temperature first refrigerant introduced into the first heat exchanger may be introduced to an upper side or lower side, and the low-temperature first refrigerant introduced into the first heat exchanger may be introduced to a side opposite to the upper side or lower side.

[0021]A second refrigerant introduced into the second heat exchanger may be heat-exchanged with the high-temperature first refrigerant introduced into the first heat exchanger and then introduced into a compressor.

Advantageous Effects

[0022]According to one embodiment of the present invention, it is possible to achieve cost reduction, lightweight, and workability increase by packaging components required for a basic configuration of a gas injection system using a plate-type heat exchanger into a single module.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0023]FIG. 1 is a view illustrating a vehicle heat exchange module according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0024]FIG. 2 is a side view illustrating the vehicle heat exchange module illustrated in FIG. 1.

[0025]FIG. 3 is a view illustrating structures of a first heat exchanger and a second heat exchanger of the vehicle heat exchange module according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0026]FIG. 4 is a view illustrating a flow of a fluid in the vehicle heat exchange module according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0027]FIG. 5 is a view illustrating a fluid line of the vehicle heat exchange module according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0028]FIG. 6 is a view illustrating a vehicle heat exchange module according to another embodiment of the present invention.

[0029]FIG. 7 is a view illustrating a flow of a fluid in the vehicle heat exchange module according to another embodiment of the present invention.

MODES OF THE INVENTION

[0030]Since the present invention may have various changes and various embodiments, specific embodiments are shown in the accompanying drawings and described in detail. However, it should be understood that it is not intended to limit specific embodiments and includes all modifications, equivalents, and substitutes included in the spirit and technical scope of the present invention. In describing the present invention, when it is determined that the detailed description of a related known technology may unnecessarily obscure the gist of the present invention, detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0031]Terms such as first and second may be used to describe various components, but the components should not be limited by the terms. The terms are used only for the purpose of distinguishing one component from another.

[0032]Terms used in the present application are only used to describe specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the present invention. The singular includes the plural unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. In the application, it should be understood that terms such as “comprise” and “have” are intended to specify that a feature, a number, a step, an operation, a component, a part, or a combination thereof described in the specification is present, but do not preclude the possibility of the presence or addition of one or more other features, numbers, steps, operations, components, parts, or combinations thereof.

[0033]In addition, throughout the specification, when a certain component is described as being “connected” to another, this does not just mean that two or more components are directly connected and may mean that two or more components are indirectly connected through another component, are physically connected, and electrically connected, or are referred to as different names depending on positions or functions thereof but are integrated.

[0034]Hereinafter, a vehicle heat exchange module according to embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, and in describing the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings, the same or corresponding components are denoted as the same reference numeral, and overlapping descriptions thereof will be omitted.

[0035]FIG. 1 is a view illustrating a vehicle heat exchange module according to one embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a side view illustrating the vehicle heat exchange module illustrated in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a view illustrating structures of a first heat exchanger and a second heat exchanger of the vehicle heat exchange module according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0036]As illustrated, a vehicle heat exchange module according to one embodiment of the present invention includes a water-cooled condenser 10, a receiver dryer 20, a first heat exchanger 30, and a second heat exchanger 40, which are used in a gas injection system, and the water-cooled condenser 10, the receiver dryer 20, the first heat exchanger 30, and the second heat exchanger 40 may be coupled into a single module to form a refrigerant flow path in the order of the water-cooled condenser 10, the receiver dryer 20, the first heat exchanger 30, and the second heat exchanger 40.

[0037]The water-cooled condenser 10 serves to heat-exchange a high-temperature and high-pressure gaseous fluid (refrigerant) discharged from a compressor 60 with an external heat source to condense into a high-pressure liquid. The receiver dryer 20 serves to increase condensation efficiency by re-condensing and super-cooling the condensed liquid refrigerant. In addition, the first heat exchanger 30 may be an economizer, and the second heat exchanger 40 may be an internal heat exchanger (IHX).

[0038]In the present embodiment, by integrating the water-cooled condenser 10, the receiver dryer 20, the first heat exchanger 30, and the second heat exchanger 40 included in the gas injection system, it is possible to achieve cost reduction, lightweight, and workability increase.

[0039]A mounting frame 1 is provided to modularize these components into a single module. The mounting frame 1 may include two frames, and the components may be mounted thereon. The mounting frame 1 may include a first mounting part 2 to which the water-cooled condenser 10 is coupled, and a second mounting part 4 which is connected to the first mounting part 2 and to which the first heat exchanger and the second heat exchanger 40 are coupled. The first mounting part 2 and the second mounting part 4 may be disposed to face each other, and the water-cooled condenser 10, the first heat exchanger 30, and the second heat exchanger 40 may be coupled to surfaces opposite to facing surfaces.

[0040]The above configuration of the mounting frame 1 is merely an example, and any type of the mounting frame 1 may be applied as long as the above components may be coupled thereto. Meanwhile, the receiver dryer 20 may not be directly coupled to the mounting frame 1 but may be connected to a side surface of the mounting frame 1 through a fluid pipe.

[0041]The receiver dryer 20 has an inlet 22 provided at one end (an upper end) and connected to the water-cooled condenser 10 to form a refrigerant flow path. In addition, the refrigerant introduced into the receiver dryer 20 may move downward and then may be branched at the other end (a lower end) and discharged. The refrigerant flow path is branched at the other end of the receiver dryer 20, a first branch 24 is connected to the first heat exchanger 30, and a second branch 26 is connected to an expansion valve 50.

[0042]In the present embodiment, the first heat exchanger 30 and the second heat exchanger 40 may be formed integrally, and in this case, the first heat exchanger 30 may be disposed at a lower side, and the second heat exchanger 40 may be disposed at an upper side. That is, the first heat exchanger 30 and the second heat exchanger may be stacked vertically and coupled.

[0043]In addition, referring to FIG. 3, the first heat exchanger 30 and the second heat exchanger 40 may include a plurality of stacked main plates 32 through which a first refrigerant flows, first plates 34 which are stacked between the main plates 32 at positions corresponding to lower portions of the main plates 32 and through which a branched first refrigerant flows, and second plates 44 which are stacked between the main plates 32 at positions corresponding to upper portions of the main plates 32 and through which a second refrigerant flows.

[0044]On the other hand, the first heat exchanger 30 and the second heat exchanger 40 may include the plurality of main plates 32 through which the first refrigerant flows, the first plates 34 which are stacked between the main plates 32 to have a part of the area of all the main plates 32 and through which the branched first refrigerant flows, and the second plates 44 which are stacked between the main plates 32 to have the remaining portion of the area of all the main plates 32 and through which the second refrigerant flows.

[0045]Referring to FIG. 4, a high-temperature first refrigerant passing through the water-cooled condenser 10, the receiver dryer 20, the first heat exchanger 30, and the second heat exchanger 40 may be heat-exchanged with a low-temperature first refrigerant flowing through the first plate 34 and a low-temperature second refrigerant flowing through the second plate 44. In this case, the low-temperature first refrigerant flowing through the first plate 34 may be discharged to the second branch 26 of the receiver dryer 20 and then introduced into the first plate 34 through the expansion valve 50.

[0046]FIG. 5 is a view illustrating a fluid line of the vehicle heat exchange module according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0047]Referring to FIG. 5, the refrigerant flow path may include a first flow path along which the first refrigerant flows through the water-cooled condenser 10, the receiver dryer 20, the first heat exchanger 30, the second heat exchanger 40, and a chiller 70, a second flow path which is branched from the receiver dryer 20 and along which the first refrigerant flows through the expansion valve 50, the first heat exchanger 30, and the compressor 60, and a third flow path along which the second refrigerant flows through the evaporator, the second heat exchanger 40, and the compressor 60.

[0048]In this way, when the refrigerant flow path is formed, the water-cooled condenser 10, the receiver dryer 20, the first heat exchanger 30, the second heat exchanger 40, and the expansion valve 50 may integrally modularized.

[0049]FIG. 6 is a view illustrating a vehicle heat exchange module according to another embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 7 is a view illustrating a flow of a fluid in the vehicle heat exchange module according to another embodiment of the present invention. In the drawings, the same component as the above embodiment is denoted as the reference numeral greater than a hundred, and detailed descriptions thereof will be omitted for convenience.

[0050]Referring to FIG. 6, in the present embodiment, a first heat exchanger 130 and a second heat exchanger 140 may be formed integrally, and in this case, unlike the above embodiment, the first heat exchanger 130 and the second heat exchanger 140 may be disposed to be stacked in a horizontal direction.

[0051]Here, an inlet 122 connected to a water-cooled condenser 110 is connected to one end (a lower end) of the receiver dryer 120, and refrigerant is branched at an end of the inlet 122. A first branch 124 is connected to the one end (the lower end) of the receiver dryer 120, and a second branch 126 may be connected to the expansion valve 150. In the present embodiment, a connection portion of the branches 124 and 126 of the receiver dryer 120 slightly differs from that of the above embodiment, but is not limited thereto, and any configuration for connecting a flow path may be applied. In addition, an outlet 128 on the other end (an upper end) of the receiver dryer 120 may be connected to the first heat exchanger 130.

[0052]Referring to FIG. 7, a first refrigerant, which is some of the refrigerant introduced into the inlet 122 through the water-cooled condenser 110, may flow into the first branch 124 and flow to the first heat exchanger 130, the second heat exchanger 140, and the chiller 70 through the receiver dryer 120 along a first flow path. In addition, the first refrigerant introduced into the second branch 126 through the inlet 122 may flow to the expansion valve 150, the first heat exchanger 130, and the compressor 60.

[0053]Although the above description has been made with reference to specific embodiments of the present invention, those skilled in the art will be able to understand that the present invention may be variously modified and changed without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention described in the appended claims.