Finned Tube Patents (Class 29/890.046)
  • Publication number: 20020088119
    Abstract: A method of manufacturing a heat exchanger includes processes of: arranging tubes at a predetermined pitch on a set base; inserting fins into spaces each defined between the tubes; compressing the tubes and the fins in the direction of arrangement thereof; mounting hollow headers to longitudinal ends of the tubes, each header having slits engaged with a corresponding end of the tubes; and attaching end covers to both ends of the headers, each cover closing holes which open at the corresponding end of the headers.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 28, 2001
    Publication date: July 11, 2002
    Applicant: CALSONIC KANSEI CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hiroshi Chikuma, Yoshinobu Okuno, Takahiro Nakakomi
  • Patent number: 6408938
    Abstract: An aluminum alloy containing (in wt. %): 0.2-0.5 Fe; 0.7-1.2 Si; 1.2-1.6 Mn; up to 0.3 Mg; up to 0.5 Cu; up to 0.2 Zn; up to 0.1 Ti is used to make the fins of heat exchangers particularly car radiators. The finstock has high post braze strength and thermal conductivity, and has a sufficiently electronegative potential as to be capable of acting as a sacrificial anode for the heat exchanger tubes. By virtue of the absence of Sn, In, and Cr, these heat exchangers can be scrapped and melted for re-use.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 20, 1998
    Date of Patent: June 25, 2002
    Assignee: Alcan International Limited
    Inventors: Alan Gray, Richard Kendall Bolingbroke, John Michael Evans
  • Patent number: 6354248
    Abstract: The present invention relates to heat exchange elements and heat exchange assemblies and water heaters containing such heat exchange elements. The inventive heat exchange elements include an elongated support member or spine, from which extends either a single vane which is the length of the support member of a series of vanes. The heat exchange element is able of be positioned parallel to the longitudinal axis of a flue. The heat exchange element may impart helical motion to the flue gases in one embodiment, but in another embodiment no helical motion is imparted to the flue gases. The embodiment of the invention includes several methods of manufacture of the heat exchange elements. The embodiments of the water heater and heat exchange assembly also disclose the use of a baffle for use in association with the elements, to improve the efficiency of the elements at the upstream end of the water heater.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 12, 1999
    Date of Patent: March 12, 2002
    Assignee: Southcorp Australia Pty. Ltd.
    Inventor: Brendan V. Bourke
  • Publication number: 20010022219
    Abstract: A plate type heat pipe comprises: (1) a container including a plate member having a surface to which a heat generating part is connected, and another plate member positioned in such manner to face the plate member and to form a hollow portion therebetween, (2) a folded portion extended outward of the container, which is formed in such manner that end portions of respective plate member and another plate member are placed to form layers, and thus placed layers are folded in one side to cause the hollow portion to be hermetically sealed, and (3) a working fluid enclosed in the hollow portion.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 10, 1999
    Publication date: September 20, 2001
    Inventors: MASAMI IKEDA, MASAAKI YAMAMOTO, TATSUHIRO UEKI
  • Patent number: 6286465
    Abstract: A water heater includes a water tank, a combustion chamber below the tank and communicating with the flue tube, and a flue system. The flue system includes a flue tube, and a cruciform fin metallurgically bonded to the flue tube wall and dividing the flue tube into four flue chambers extending substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the flue tube. The flue system also includes a removable baffle hanging in each flue chamber. The baffles include adjustable turbulation surfaces to control the quality of combustion in the water heater.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 28, 2000
    Date of Patent: September 11, 2001
    Assignee: AOS Holding Company
    Inventors: Dennis R. Hughes, Marc W. Akkala, Kevin M. Field, Robert F. Poehlman
  • Patent number: 6282895
    Abstract: A heater head assembly for a multi-cylinder heat engine the stirling engine, such as a multi-cylinder Stirling engine, having a plurality of regenerators and cylinders. Each regenerator has a regenerator manifold and each cylinder has a cylinder manifold. First identical cast heater tubes connect the regenerator manifold to first heater tube openings in a heater head manifold. Second identical cast heater tubes connect second heater tube openings in the heater head manifold to the cylinder manifold. The first and second heater tubes are parallel with respect to each other and form a pair of partial concentric staggered arrays. The heater tubes are rotationally asymmetric, having fin sections with less surface area upstream than downstream and thicknesses which decrease radially away from the central passageways of said heater tubes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 14, 1997
    Date of Patent: September 4, 2001
    Assignee: STM Power, Inc.
    Inventors: Lennart N. Johansson, Stephen C. Matthews, Amedee Roy, William H. Houtman
  • Patent number: 6266882
    Abstract: A method for forming an heat exchanger fin collar for a plate-fin heat exchanger having close tolerance dimensions for achieving greater contact area on the tube. The fin collar includes an elongated fin portion for dissipating heat and a leg connected with the fin portion. The leg has a height and includes a straight contact portion substantially perpendicular to the fin portion, wherein the contact portion has a contact height along which the contact portion contacts the tube. The height is in the range of 0.008 to 0.080 inches. It also includes a first curved end portion having a first radius extending from a first end of the contact portion and a stepped transitional portion connecting the contact portion and the elongated fin portion. The transitional portion has a second curved end portion having a second radius, wherein the second curved end portion extends from the contact portion opposite the first end.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 20, 1999
    Date of Patent: July 31, 2001
    Assignee: Carrier Corporation
    Inventors: Amer F. Ali, Michael P. McCabe, Daniel P. Gaffaney
  • Publication number: 20010006106
    Abstract: The invention relates to heat-exchanger tubes structured on both inner and outer sides with excellent heat-transfer characteristics, which have recesses on the outside and ribs with specific dimensions on the inside. The structuring tools utilized for the various method modifications are adjusted in such a manner that they are not only able to create aligned, continuous grooves and non-aligned, spaced apart recesses but also secondary structures. The heat-exchanger tubes provided preferably with smooth end sections and smooth intermediate sections are utilized in particular in shell and tube heat-exchangers.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 19, 2000
    Publication date: July 5, 2001
    Inventors: Andreas Beutler, Guenter Fetzer, Ronald Lutz, Gerhard Schuez, Andreas Schwitalla
  • Patent number: 6253452
    Abstract: A method for manufacturing a cylindrical radiator that includes the step of drawing material to form an elongated blank material having a hollow cylindrical base section and multiple heat-radiating fins radially projecting from the outer circumference of the base section. Next, the elongated blank material is cut to form a plurality of blanks. Then, a top portion of each blank is bored to separate the top portions of the heat-radiating fins from each other. A fan seat is installed into a central through hole of the base section to complete the manufacturing of the cylindrical radiator.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 23, 1999
    Date of Patent: July 3, 2001
    Inventors: Hsin-Yi Chen, Hui-Chia Huang
  • Patent number: 6167620
    Abstract: A method for transporting heat exchanger fins and forming a core subassembly for a heat exchanger uses a universal fin tray for all subassemblies instead of different tray sizes for different core subassemblies. The method includes indexing core plates forward under a stationary fin stuffing box, loading fins into the universal fin tray, indexing the loaded fins forward one at a time corresponding to the number of fins required, pushing required fins into the fin stuffing box when indexing reaches number required for the core subassembly, and pushing fins out of the fin stuffing box into the plates forming the core subassembly. A universal fin tray size, a stationary fin box, and a stationary cut off are used for all core sizes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 11, 1999
    Date of Patent: January 2, 2001
    Assignee: Ford Motor Company
    Inventors: Gerald Joseph Selm, Kevin Bennett Wise, Carl Eckardt Schornhorst