Heat exchanger

Abstract

A heat exchanger wherein the pipe member is formed in a single stage to reduce the height of the heat exchanger in the thickness direction to enable the heat exchanger to be mounted below the floor of an automobile and wherein the pipe member is prevented from being broken. The heat exchanger includes: fin members formed as corrugated fins and having engagement recesses formed in curved sections; and a pipe member formed by connecting straight pipe sections by U-shaped bend sections, the straight pipe sections being arranged by means of the fin members.

1 . A heat exchanger comprising:
 a plurality of fin members formed as corrugated fins by folding a sheet material into a corrugated shape, so as to provide curved sections n formed due to the folding that press-deformed into a recessed shape to form engagement recesses; and   a meanderingly shaped pipe member including a plurality of straight pipe sections arranged in parallel with the fin members therebetween, the straight pipe sections being connected by U-shaped return bends; in which   the straight pipe sections engage with the engagement recesses of the fin members, and upon such engagement an outer diameter of the pipe member is in the range of 8 mm to 12 mm, and a facing distance between curved top sections of the fin members that project farthest outward of the curved sections of neighbouring fin members is in the range of 0.5 mm to 5.0 mm, and a height of protrusion of the fin members from a surface of the straight pipe sections is less than or equal to 11 mm and satisfies, within said range of 0.5 mm to 5.0 mm for the facing distance, the formula y distance, the formula y>22.46 x −0.29  in which y is a height of protrusion of the fin members from the surface of the pipe member/facing distance between the curved top sections, and x is a facing distance between the curved top sections.   
     
     
         2 . The heat exchanger according to  claim 1 , wherein a sheet thickness of the sheet material forming the fin members is in the range from 0.2 mm to 0.5 mm. 
     
     
         3 . The heat exchanger according to  claim 1  or  2 , wherein a fin arrangement distance is in the range from 1.6 mm to 2.2 mm.