Stacked/bar plate charge air cooler including inlet and outlet tanks

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.

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.   
   
   
       2 . The charge air cooler of  claim 1 , wherein each of the embossed plate pairs define a plurality of passes along the coolant flow paths between the charge air inlet tank and the charge air outlet tank. 
   
   
       3 . The charge air cooler of  claim 2 , wherein a plurality of dimples are formed in a plate of one of the plate pairs along at least one of the plurality of passes. 
   
   
       4 . The charge air cooler of  claim 2 , wherein arcuately-shaped protrusions are positioned along the plate pairs to distribute the coolant between the plurality of passes. 
   
   
       5 . The charge air cooler of  claim 1 , further comprising arcuately-shaped protrusions formed along at least one of the plates of each plate pair to direct the coolant through the circuitous coolant flow paths. 
   
   
       6 . The charge air cooler of  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of elongated spacers extend between the charge air inlet tank and the charge air outlet tank on opposite sides of the heat exchange core. 
   
   
       7 . The charge air cooler of  claim 1 , further comprising a corrugated fin positioned between two of the plurality of spacer bars. 
   
   
       8 . The charge air cooler of  claim 1 , wherein the elongated spacers seal the heat exchanger core. 
   
   
       9 . A charge air cooler for transferring heat between a coolant and charge air, the cooler comprising:
 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.   
   
   
       10 . The charge air cooler of  claim 9 , wherein each plate pair defines a circuitous coolant flow path through the heat exchange core. 
   
   
       11 . The charge air cooler of  claim 9 , further comprising a plurality of substantially parallel embossments formed along at least one of the plates of each of the plate pairs defining the multi-pass path for the coolant. 
   
   
       12 . The charge air cooler of  claim 9 , further comprising arcuately-shaped protrusions formed along at least one of the plates of each of the plate pairs to define a circuitous portion of the coolant path. 
   
   
       13 . The charge air cooler of  claim 9 , further comprising dimples formed along at least one of the passes of the coolant path. 
   
   
       14 . The charge air cooler of  claim 9 , further comprising a corrugated fin positioned between the first and second elongated spacers and between adjacent plate pairs. 
   
   
       15 . The charge air cooler of  claim 9 , wherein the elongated spacers form a seal between the adjacent plate pairs. 
   
   
       16 . A method of assembling a charge air cooler, the method comprising the acts of:
 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.   
   
   
       17 . The method of  claim 16 , further comprising forming a plurality of passes along the coolant flow path between the plate pairs and between the embossments. 
   
   
       18 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein embossing the plurality of plates includes forming arcuately-shaped embossments along the plurality of plates to at least partially define the plurality of passes. 
   
   
       19 . The method of  claim 16 , further comprising dimpling the plurality of plates between the embossments to form turbulators positioned along the coolant flow path. 
   
   
       20 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein embossing the plurality of plates includes forming arcuately-shaped embossments formed along at least one of the embossed plate pairs to define a serpentine flow path. 
   
   
       21 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein interleaving the plurality of elongated spacers between the plate pairs includes positioning the plurality of elongated spacers between the charge air inlet tank and the charge air outlet tank on opposite sides of heat exchange core. 
   
   
       22 . The method of  claim 16 , further comprising positioning a corrugated fin between two of the plurality of elongated spacers and along the charge air flow path. 
   
   
       23 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein interleaving the plurality of elongated spacers between the plate pairs includes sealing opposite sides of the stacked plate pairs.