Cooling medium circulation device

Abstract

The present disclosure introduces a cooling medium circulation device wherein a reservoir tank and a water pump are integrated and modularized, and various components, including the water pump, are controlled by a single integrated controller, thereby eliminating the need for an individual control driver for each component and thus resulting in the compactification of the entire module.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A cooling medium circulation device comprising:
 a reservoir tank in which a cooling medium is stored and which has an upper portion provided with a coolant inlet;   a water pump coupled to a lower portion of the reservoir tank so as to circulate the cooling medium; and   an integrated controller mounted to the reservoir tank so as to control an operation of the water pump.   
     
     
         2 . The cooling medium circulation device of  claim 1 , wherein the integrated controller is mounted on a side surface of the reservoir tank. 
     
     
         3 . The cooling medium circulation device of  claim 2 , wherein a mounting end is disposed on the side surface of the reservoir tank, and the integrated controller is fastened to the reservoir tank via the mounting end and spaced apart from the reservoir tank. 
     
     
         4 . The cooling medium circulation device of  claim 1 , wherein the integrated controller is installed at a position on the reservoir tank in which the integrated controller does not interfere with surrounding components comprising the water pump. 
     
     
         5 . The cooling medium circulation device of  claim 1 , wherein the integrated controller is configured to wirelessly communicate with the water pump to transmit an operation command to the water pump. 
     
     
         6 . The cooling medium circulation device of  claim 1 , further comprising a connector which is mounted to the reservoir tank, is electrically connected to the integrated controller, and has a wire connected to the water pump. 
     
     
         7 . The cooling medium circulation device of  claim 6 , wherein the integrated controller and the connector are arranged on the side surface of the reservoir tank, and the connector is disposed below the integrated controller. 
     
     
         8 . The cooling medium circulation device of  claim 1 , further comprising a bracket which is fixed to a vehicle body and on which the reservoir tank is mounted,
 wherein the bracket comprises:   a fastening part to which the side surface of the reservoir tank is fastened; and   a mounting part which is bent below the reservoir tank and on which the lower portion of the reservoir tank is seated.   
     
     
         9 . The cooling medium circulation device of  claim 1 , wherein the reservoir tank further comprises a valve connected to the coolant inlet, and the valve is configured to operate based on a command received via the integrated controller. 
     
     
         10 . The cooling medium circulation device of  claim 9 , wherein multiple water pumps or valves are arranged, and each water pump and each valve are configured to be individually controlled based on commands that are received from the integrated controller. 
     
     
         11 . The cooling medium circulation device of  claim 9 , wherein the integrated controller is configured to:
 collect various types of information by using sensors disposed in the reservoir tank; and   control each component, comprising the water pump and the valve, based on each type of information comprising information about a water level and a water temperature of the cooling medium stored in the reservoir tank.