STACKED/BAR PLATE CHARGE AIR COOLER INCLUDING INLET AND OUTLET TANKS
First Claim
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1. A charge air cooler for transferring heat between a coolant and charge air, the cooler comprising:
- a heat exchange core including a stack of embossed plate pairs, each plate pair defining a circuitous coolant flow path through the heat exchange core, and a plurality of elongated spacers interleaved with the plate pairs to at least partially define charge air flow paths between adjacent plate pairs through the heat exchange core;
a charge air inlet tank connected to a first side of the heat exchange core to direct the charge air into the charge air flow paths; and
a charge air outlet tank connected to a second side of the heat exchange core to collect the charge air from the charge air flow paths.
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Abstract
The present invention provides a charge air cooler for transferring heat between a coolant and charge air including a charge air inlet tank, a charge air outlet tank spaced from the inlet tank, and a heat exchange core positioned between the inlet and outlet tanks and including a stack of plate pairs. Each of the plate pairs can define a multi-pass path for the coolant. Elongated spacers can be positioned between adjacent plate pairs and extend between the inlet tank and the outlet tank on opposite sides of the heat exchange core to define flow paths for the charge air through the heat exchange core.
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Citations
23 Claims
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1. A charge air cooler for transferring heat between a coolant and charge air, the cooler comprising:
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a heat exchange core including a stack of embossed plate pairs, each plate pair defining a circuitous coolant flow path through the heat exchange core, and a plurality of elongated spacers interleaved with the plate pairs to at least partially define charge air flow paths between adjacent plate pairs through the heat exchange core; a charge air inlet tank connected to a first side of the heat exchange core to direct the charge air into the charge air flow paths; and a charge air outlet tank connected to a second side of the heat exchange core to collect the charge air from the charge air flow paths. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A charge air cooler for transferring heat between a coolant and charge air, the cooler comprising:
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a charge air inlet tank; a charge air outlet tank spaced from the inlet tank; and a heat exchange core positioned between the inlet and outlet tanks and including a stack of plate pairs, each of the plate pairs defining a multi-pass path for the coolant, first and second elongated spacers positioned between adjacent plate pairs and extending between the inlet tank and the outlet tank on opposite sides of the heat exchange core to define flow paths for the charge air through the heat exchange core. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A method of assembling a charge air cooler, the method comprising the acts of:
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embossing a plurality of plates; stacking the plurality of plates in plate pairs such that embossments of each plate pair at least partially define a flow path for a coolant; interleaving a plurality of elongated spacers between the plate pairs; securing a charge air inlet tank to the stacked plate pairs to receive the charge air and to distribute the charge air to flow paths defined between adjacent plate pairs; and securing a charge air outlet tank to the assembled plate pairs to receive the charge air from the flow paths. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23)
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Specification