Refrigeration Apparatus

This application claims benefit of Chinese Patent Application No. 202410710920.6, filed Jun. 3, 2024, and all the benefits accruing therefrom under 35 U.S.C. § 119, the contents of which in their entirety are herein incorporated by reference.

This application relates to the field of a refrigeration/cooling apparatus, and specifically to a refrigeration apparatus that utilizes a main fan to cool an electronic control device.

This application aims to provide a refrigeration apparatus to at least solve or alleviate some of the problems existing in the prior art.

This application provides a refrigeration apparatus for cooling an electronic control device by using a main fan, the refrigeration apparatus including: a heat exchanger; a first air duct with an air inlet disposed corresponding to the heat exchanger; a fan disposed at an air outlet of the first air duct, corresponding to the heat exchanger across the first air duct; a second air duct with an air outlet opened on a side of the first air duct and an air inlet open to an atmosphere; and an electronic control device disposed in the second air duct.

In one or more embodiments, the first air duct and the second air duct are perpendicular to each other.

In one or more embodiments, the air outlet of the second air duct is opened on the side of the first air duct while being immediately adjacent to the heat exchanger.

In one or more embodiments, the electronic control device includes an electronic control unit and heat dissipation fins disposed around the electronic control unit.

In one or more embodiments, the heat dissipation fins include air duct-parallel heat dissipation fins disposed parallel to an airflow direction in the second air duct, and air duct flow-guiding heat dissipation fins disposed at a predetermined angle relative to the airflow direction in the second air duct.

In one or more embodiments, the air duct flow-guiding heat dissipation fins are disposed on a side of the electronic control unit closer to the air inlet of the second air duct.

In one or more embodiments, a cross-sectional area X of the air inlet of the first air duct and a cross-sectional area Y of the air outlet of the second air duct satisfy a mathematical relationship of Y<0.05X.

In one or more embodiments, a cross-sectional area C of the air inlet of the second air duct and a cross-sectional area D of the air outlet of the second air duct satisfy a mathematical relationship of C>D.

In one or more embodiments, the refrigeration apparatus further includes: a filter screen disposed at the air inlet of the second air duct.

In one or more embodiments, the refrigeration apparatus further includes: a flow guide plate disposed at the air outlet of the second air duct while being close to a side of the heat exchanger and configured to guide air from the second air duct and air from the first air duct.

List of Reference Numerals: Heat exchanger, first air duct, first air duct inlet, first air duct outlet, fan, second air duct, second air duct inlet, second air duct outlet, second air duct extension, electronic control device, electronic control unit, air duct-parallel heat dissipation fin, filter screen, and flow guide plate.

It should be noted that working principles, features, advantages, and the like of a refrigeration apparatus according to this application will be explained below by way of embodiments. However, it should be understood that all descriptions are only given for exemplification and therefore these embodiments should not be understood as forming any limitation on the present application.

In addition, for any single technical feature described or implicit in the embodiments mentioned herein, or any single technical feature illustrated or implicit in the drawings, this application still allows any combination or deletion between these technical features (or equivalents thereof) without any technical obstacles, thereby obtaining more other embodiments of this application that may not be directly mentioned herein.

During operation of a refrigeration apparatus, an electronic control device controls components in the refrigeration apparatus to operate. However, in the process of delivering high-power electric energy, electrical components generate a large amount of heat. If the electronic control device is not cooled in time, the efficiency and reliability of the electronic control device will be reduced, and even the electronic components inside the electronic control device will be damaged.

A traditional solution is to use a self-controlled fan to dissipate heat for an electronic control device, but the fan is susceptible to dust and dirt and is sensitive to dust. Another traditional solution is to add liquid coolant to cool the electronic control device, but this solution requires higher cost and more space to install a cooling system.

The refrigeration apparatus of the present disclosure at least solves or alleviates some of the problems described above.

is a diagram of a partial structure and an airflow pattern of a refrigeration apparatus according to one or more embodiments of this application, andis a schematic diagram of a partial structure of the refrigeration apparatus according to one or more embodiments of this application. Referring toand, the refrigeration apparatus according to one or more embodiments includes: a heat exchanger, a first air duct, a first air duct inlet, a first air duct outlet, a fan, a second air duct, a second air duct inlet, a second air duct outlet, and an electronic control device.

As illustrated in, the heat exchangeris disposed corresponding to the first air duct inlet, and the fanis disposed at the first air duct outlet, corresponding to the heat exchangeracross the first air duct, thereby forming an air path by sequentially connecting the heat exchanger, the first air duct inlet, the first air duct, the first air duct outlet, and the fan. That is, when the fanoperates, air in the atmosphere flows through the air path formed by the heat exchanger, the first air duct inlet, the first air duct, the first air duct outlet, and the fanin sequence, and then is discharged from the refrigeration apparatus.

is a schematic diagram of a partial structure viewed from a side where the heat exchangerof the refrigeration apparatus is located in some embodiments, but due to obstructions such as equipment in a viewing direction, the first air duct outlet, the fan, the second air duct, the second air duct inlet, the second air duct outletand connectivity relationships thereof involved in some embodiments cannot be completely illustrated in. Therefore, one or more embodiments of this application are further described through cross-sectional views taken along lines A-A and B-B of the refrigeration apparatus in.is a cross-sectional view taken along the line A-A of the refrigeration apparatus inaccording to one or more embodiments of this application, andis a cross-sectional view taken along the line B-B of the refrigeration apparatus inaccording to one or more embodiments of this application.is a schematic diagram of a partial structure of the refrigeration apparatus inaccording to one or more embodiments of this application.

Referring to,, and, the second air ductis disposed on the side of the first air ductwhile being substantially perpendicular to the first air duct. The second air ducthas the second air duct inletand the second air duct outlet, and the electronic control deviceis further provided in the second air duct. Specifically, the second air duct outletis preferably opened on a side of the first air ductwhile being immediately adjacent to the heat exchanger. When the fanoperates, a negative pressure is formed in the first air duct, and air in the atmosphere enters the second air ductfrom the second air duct inlet, flows out of the second air duct outlet, and then merges, in the first air duct, with the air in the first air duct. The merged air flows through the fanand then is discharged from the refrigeration apparatus.

In some embodiments, since the heat exchangerand the fanare disposed correspondingly while being relatively close to each other, the first air ductis relatively short in an airflow direction. However, this application is not limited thereto. When the heat exchangerand the fanare far away from each other, the heat exchangerand the fanmay also be connected by increasing a length of the first air ductin the airflow direction. Any configuration in which air that exchanges heat with a refrigerant in the heat exchanger, can merge with air that exchanges heat with heat dissipation fins of the electronic control deviceafter passing through the electronic control deviceand the merged air can be controlled to be discharged from the refrigeration apparatus through the fanand the first air duct outlet, shall fall within the protection scope of this application.

In addition, the first air ductillustrated inin some embodiments is shorter in the airflow direction and wider in a direction substantially perpendicular to the airflow direction, which still conforms to the feature that “the second air ductis disposed substantially perpendicular to the first air duct” in this application. The expression “the second air ductis disposed substantially perpendicular to the first air duct” in this application means that a direction of air flowing in the second air ductis substantially perpendicular to a direction of air flowing in the first air duct, which is particularly clarified herein.

In addition, as illustrated in, in some embodiments, a plane on which the fanis located and a plane on which the heat exchangeris located are not parallel to each other. Regardless of whether the fanand the heat exchangerare disposed in parallel, any configuration where the fanprovides the heat exchangerwith airflow required for cooling shall belong to the situation where “the fanis disposed corresponding to the heat exchangeracross the first air duct” as defined in this application.

In addition, in some embodiments, since the heat exchanger, the fanand the electronic control deviceare all correspondingly disposed while being relatively close to each other, the second air ductis disposed corresponding to the electronic control device. However, this application is not limited thereto. When the heat exchanger, the fan, and the electronic control deviceare far away from each other, the second air ductmay also be connected to the first air ductby extending a pipeline of the second air duct. Any configuration in which air that exchanges heat with a refrigerant in the heat exchangercan merge with air that exchanges heat with heat dissipation fins of the electronic control deviceafter passing through the electronic control deviceand the merged air can be controlled to be discharged from the refrigeration apparatus through the fanand the first air duct outlet, shall fall within the protection scope of this application.

In addition, a partial structure of the electronic control deviceis used to form a part of the second air duct, which also conforms to the spirit of this application and falls within the protection scope of this application.

Specifically, in some embodiments,is a diagram of a structure and an airflow pattern of the refrigeration apparatus according to one or more embodiments of this application. Referring to, when the heat exchangerand the electronic control deviceare disposed at a relatively far distance from each other, a second air duct extensionmay be further disposed between the heat exchangerand the electronic control device, and the second air duct extensionallows the second air ductto communicate with the second air duct outlet. The second air duct outletis opened on the side of the first air ductwhile being immediately adjacent to the heat exchanger. An air path is constructed by sequentially connecting the second air duct inlet, the second air duct, the second air duct extension, the second air duct outlet, and the first air duct. That is, when the fanoperates, a negative pressure is formed in the first air ductand the second air duct extension, air in the atmosphere enters the second air ductfrom the second air duct inletand exchanges heat with the electronic control device. The air after heat exchange flows through the second air duct extension, enters the first air ductthrough the second air duct outlet, and then merges, in the first air duct, with the air in the first air duct. The merged air flows through the fanand then is discharged from the refrigeration apparatus.

According to the refrigeration apparatus in one or more embodiments of this application, when the fanoperates, due to a pressure difference caused by the operation of the fan, air in the atmosphere flows through the heat exchanger, exchanges heat with the refrigerant in the heat exchanger, takes away heat released by the refrigerant during a condensation process, and then flows into the first air duct. At this time, the second air duct outletis opened on the side of the first air ductand the second air duct inletis open to the atmosphere, and therefore, dues to the pressure difference caused by the operation of the fan, air in the atmosphere also enters from the second air duct inlet, flows through the second air duct, exchanges heat with the electronic control devicedisposed in the second air duct, takes away heat generated by electrical components of the electronic control deviceduring operation, merges to the first air ductthrough the second air duct outlet, and then is discharged from the refrigeration apparatus. Alternatively, when the second air duct extensionis provided, the air flows into the second air duct extensionafter passing through the second air duct, and then merges to the first air ductthrough the second air duct outlet.

Meanwhile, the second air duct outletis opened on the side of the first air duct. Although the air flowing through the electronic control deviceexchanges heat with the electronic control deviceand then enters the first air duct, a heat exchange efficiency of the heat exchangeris not affected because the second air duct outletis located downstream of an air path of the heat exchanger.

is a schematic diagram of a partial structure of the refrigeration apparatus according to one or more embodiments of this application. Referring to, the electronic control deviceof the refrigeration apparatus in some embodiments further includes an electronic control unit, air duct-parallel heat dissipation fins, and air duct flow-guiding heat dissipation fins (not illustrated). The air duct-parallel heat dissipation finsare disposed on both sides of the electronic control unitwhile being substantially parallel to an airflow direction in the second air duct, thereby maximizing a heat exchange area between the fins and flowing air and reducing pressure drop caused by friction with surfaces of the heat dissipation fins during air circulation.

Although not illustrated in, preferably, the air duct flow-guiding heat dissipation fins may be provided between the electronic control unitand the second air duct inletat a predetermined angle relative to the airflow direction in the second air duct, so as to adjust and control the air entering from the second air duct inletto flow to both sides of the electronic control unitat a predetermined angle and perform heat exchange with the air duct-parallel heat dissipation finsdisposed on both sides of the electronic control unit, thereby reducing airflow resistance caused by the electronic control unitblocking the air entering from the second air duct inlet. Therefore, even if a self-controlled fan directly assigned to the electronic control unit is not driven, the flow of the air in the second air ductcan be ensured to better exchange heat with the air duct-parallel heat dissipation fins, thereby improving a heat dissipation efficiency of the electronic control unit.

With the arrangement of the first air ductand the second air ductprovided in some embodiments, through the operation of one fan, a cooling air path can be established separately for the heat exchangerand the electronic control deviceto simultaneously cool the heat exchangerand the electronic control devicewithout requiring a dedicated self-controlled cooling fan for the electronic control unit, thereby saving the cost and avoiding the possibility that the electronic control deviceis overheated due to a failure of the self-controlled cooling fan and an operation of the refrigeration apparatus becomes abnormal.

Meanwhile, through the parallel arrangement of respective air paths of the first air ductand the second air duct, the air flowing through the heat exchangerflows into the first air ductafter completing heat exchange with the heat exchanger, merges with the air flowing through the electronic control devicethrough the second air ductand completing heat exchange with the electronic control device, and is discharged to the outside of the refrigeration apparatus. This avoids the problem in the prior art that in some refrigeration equipment units, the heat exchangerand the electronic control deviceare disposed in series, and thus the air first exchanges heat with the heat exchanger(or the electronic control device), causing the air temperature to rise, and then exchanges heat with the electronic control device(or the heat exchanger), thereby reducing a heat exchange effect.

In some embodiments, the air duct-parallel heat dissipation finsand the air duct flow-guiding heat dissipation fins are disposed around the electronic control unit, but this application is not limited thereto. Any heat dissipation fins that facilitate heat transfer from the electronic component of the electronic control unitto the air flowing in the second air ductand can improve the heat dissipation efficiency of the electronic control unitshall fall within the protection scope of this application. In addition, in some embodiments, the air duct-parallel heat dissipation finsand the air duct flow-guiding heat dissipation fins are disposed densely. However, this application is not limited thereto. The arrangement number of the heat dissipation fins can also be considered according to a model of the electronic control unit, a model of the fan, an operating condition of the electronic control unit, an operating condition of the fan, a size of the heat dissipation fin, and the like.

In addition, in some embodiments, the air duct flow-guiding heat dissipation fins are disposed between the electronic control unitand the second air duct inlet, but this application is not limited thereto. The air duct flow-guiding heat dissipation fins may be disposed at other positions, for example, between the electronic control unitand the second air duct outlet. Any configuration that can reduce airflow resistance in the second air ductand improve the heat exchange efficiency of the heat dissipation fins shall fall within the protection scope of this application.

In some embodiments, the a cross-sectional area X of the first air duct inletand a cross-sectional area Y of the second air duct outletsatisfy a mathematical relationship of Y<0.05X.

In this way, according to heat exchange requirements of the heat exchangerand the electronic control device, the mathematical relationship between the cross-sectional area of the second air duct outletand the cross-sectional area of the first air duct inletmay be set to adjust and distribute an amount of air that flows through the heat exchangerand enters the first air ductthrough the first air duct inletand an amount of air that flows through the second air ductand enters the first air ductfrom the second air duct outlet, thereby matching and satisfy the heat exchange requirements of the heat exchangerand the electronic control device.

In addition, preferably, a cross-sectional area C of the second air duct inletand a cross-sectional area D of the second air duct outletsatisfy a mathematical relationship of C>D.

The cross-sectional area of the second air duct inletis greater than the cross-sectional area of the second air duct outlet, which is more conducive to airflow intake in the second air duct, and can also ensure the amount of air flowing in the second air ductwhen a self-controlled fan directly assigned to the electronic control deviceis not driven. Meanwhile, a throttling effect of the second air duct outletis conducive to making an air pressure before an outlet of the second air ductto be greater than an air pressure after the outlet of the second air duct, thereby facilitating the air in the second air ductto flow into the first air duct.

It should be noted that the specific values of X, Y, C and D may be set according to the model of the heat exchanger, the model of the electronic control unit, the model of the fan, the operating conditions of the heat exchanger, the electronic control unitand the fan, and the like, and are not particularly limited.

According to the refrigeration apparatus provided in one or more embodiments, a driving force generated when the fanoperates enables external air to exchange heat with the refrigerant in the heat exchange process of the heat exchanger, take away the heat released by the refrigerant in the condensation process, and then enter the first air ductfrom the first air duct inlet. Meanwhile, by setting the cross-sectional area X of the first air duct inletand the cross-sectional area Y of the second air duct outletto satisfy the mathematical relationship, the amount of air that flows through the heat exchangerand enters the first air ductthrough the first air duct inletand the amount of air that flows through the second air ductand enters the first air ductthrough the second air duct outletare adjusted and distributed, so that the heat exchange requirement of the heat exchangercan be fully satisfied, and the amount of air flowing through the second air ductcan be ensured to be sufficient to meet a heat dissipation requirement of the electronic control devicedisposed in the second air ductand take away the heat generated by the electrical components in the electronic control unitduring operation.

In some embodiments, as illustrated in, the refrigeration apparatus further includes a filter screenand a flow guide plate.

is a diagram of a structure and an airflow pattern of the refrigeration apparatus according to the one or more embodiments of this application. The filter screenis disposed at the second air duct inlet, and the flow guide plateis disposed at the second air duct outletwhile deflecting toward the fan, providing guidance for air from the second air ductand air from the first air duct, and further guiding the air from the second air ductand the air from the first air ductto be discharged from the refrigeration apparatus. That is, the flow guide plateguides the air from the second air ductto the fan, and the flow guide plateguides the air from the first air ductto the fan.

In this way, the filter screenis disposed at the second air duct inletto reduce a possibility that foreign matters enter with the air from the second air duct inletand adhere to the air duct-parallel heat dissipation finsor the air duct flow-guiding heat dissipation fins, resulting in a decrease in the heat dissipation efficiency of the electronic control device. Meanwhile, a possibility is reduced that foreign matters enter the first air ductthrough the second air duct outletand adhere to blades of the fan, resulting in an increase in energy consumption of the fan.

A mesh density of the filter screenin some embodiments is not particularly limited. As long as grilles, baffles, and the like can block larger foreign objects, the same technical effects can be achieved, and the grilles, the baffles, and the like are all within the protection scope of this application.

The flow guide plateis disposed at the second air duct outletwhile being close to a side of the heat exchanger, and the flow guide plateis used to block air in a localized portion of the first air duct, that is, near the second air duct outletand change a flowing direction of the air, thereby reducing a pressure in the localized portion of the first air duct, that is, near the second air duct outlet, and further guiding the air from the second air ductto enter the first air duct.

A specific structure in an angle and a length of the flow guide platemay be appropriately set as required, and any structure capable of appropriately reducing an air pressure near the second air duct outletto facilitate the guidance of the air from the second air ductinto the first air ductshall fall within the scope of this application.

The above embodiments are merely exemplary embodiments of this application and are not intended to limit this application. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, and improvements made within the spirit and principles of this application shall be included in the protection scope of this application.