# US 2017/0254246 A1 · Heating device for a motor vehicle operating fluid tank with a ptc plastic element > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2017/0254246 A1 - Document ID: US20170254246A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 15/444,985 - Filed: 2017-02-28 - Published: 2017-09-07 - Earliest claimed: 2016-03-03 - Assignees: Röchling Automotive SE & Co. KG - Applicants: Röchling Automotive SE & Co. KG - Inventors: Fabrizio CHINI; Luca MARINI; Ivan DE METRI; Francesca BRUNORI; Stefano DALPEZ - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20170254246A1 ## CPC - F01N 3/2896: {Liquid catalyst carrier} - F01N 3/206: {Adding periodically or continuously substances to exhaust gases for promoting purification, e.g. catalytic material in liquid form, NOx reducing agents} - F01N 3/2066: {Selective catalytic reduction [SCR]} - H05B 1/0236: {for vehicles} - H05B 3/0014: {Devices wherein the heating current flows through particular resistances} - H05B 3/44: heating conductor arranged within rods or tubes of insulating material - H05B 3/78: Heating arrangements specially adapted for immersion heating - F01N 2610/02: the substance being ammonia or urea - F01N 2610/10: the substance being heated, e.g. by heating tank or supply line of the added substance - H05B 2203/02: Heaters using heating elements having a positive temperature coefficient - Y02A 50/20: Air quality improvement or preservation, e.g. vehicle emission control or emission reduction by using catalytic converters - Y02T 10/12: Improving ICE efficiencies - F01N: GAS-FLOW SILENCERS OR EXHAUST APPARATUS FOR MACHINES OR ENGINES IN GENERAL; GAS-FLOW SILENCERS OR EXHAUST APPARATUS FOR INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINES (arrangements in connection with gas exhaust of propulsion units in vehicles B60K13/00; combustion-air intake silencers specially adapted for, or arranged on, internal-combustion engines F02M35/00; protecting against, or damping, noise in general G10K11/16) - H05B: ELECTRIC HEATING; ELECTRIC LIGHT SOURCES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; CIRCUIT ARRANGEMENTS FOR ELECTRIC LIGHT SOURCES, IN GENERAL - Y02A: TECHNOLOGIES FOR ADAPTATION TO CLIMATE CHANGE - Y02T: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES RELATED TO TRANSPORTATION ## Abstract A heating device (10) for a motor vehicle operating fluid tank, in particular for storing aqueous urea solution, wherein the heating device (10) has two electrical conductors (12, 14), an element (16) made from PTC plastic, which is electrically arranged between the two electrical conductors (12, 14) and is in electrical contact with the two electrical conductors (12, 14), and a shell (18, 20), which protects the electrical conductors and the PTC plastic element (16) from the outside environment (22) at least in some sections, which is characterized in that at least one electrical conductor (12, 14) is made at least in some sections from a metal foil (12, 14), in particular aluminum foil, and that the shell (18, 20) is an insulating surface, in particular a plastic film (18, 20) that is preferably bonded to the metal foil. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A heating device for a motor vehicle operating fluid tank comprising: at least two electrical conductors; an element made from PTC plastic arranged between two of said at least two electrical conductors and in electrical contact with said two of said at least two electrical conductors; and a shell that protects at least sections of the electrical conductors and the PTC plastic element from the outside environment; wherein at least one of the two of said at least two electrical conductors is formed at least in part from a metal foil, and that the shell is an insulating surface. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The heating device according to claim 1, wherein the section of the electrical conductor formed from the metal foil is a meandering conductor path. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The heating device according to claim 1, wherein the PTC plastic element is made by extrusion or/and injection molding or/and thermoforming from a semi-finished product. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The heating device according to claim 1, wherein the section of the electrical conductor formed from the metal foil is bonded to the insulating surface, by means of an adhesive or/and by means of a vacuum. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The heating device according to claim 1, wherein that the PTC plastic element is formed with one or two metal foils and is bonded to the metal foils by co-extrusion. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The heating device according to claim 1, wherein an electrically conducting material that is different from the PTC plastic is applied on at least one side of the PTC plastic that faces toward an electrical conductor. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The heating device according to claim 6, wherein the electrically conducting material is applied by means of a precipitation process, or by applying a liquid or paste-like electrically conductive substance. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The heating device according to claim 1, wherein both electrical conductors are formed at least in sections. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The heating device according to the preamble of claim 1, wherein the two electrical conductors are molded over or around with PTC plastic in the injection molding process. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The heating device according to claim 1, wherein the two electrical conductors are applied on a hard shell substrate made from PTC plastic. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The heating device according to claim 10, wherein the two electrical conductors are accommodated between two hard shell substrates made from PTC plastic. ### Claim 12 (depends on 9) The heating device according to claim 9, wherein an assembly comprising the electrical conductors and the PTC plastic which encases them is encased at least in sections by a plastic film. ### Claim 13 (depends on 1) The heating device according to claim 1, wherein the two electrical conductors are coaxially arranged, wherein the two PTC plastic elements are radially arranged between the two electrical conductors, and an insulating shell, is provided, which fully encases the two conductors and the PTC plastic element and extends axially jointly with them radially outside of the radial outer electrical conductor. ### Claim 14 A motor vehicle operating fluid tank comprising: a filling opening; an extraction opening that is different from the filling opening; and a heating device having at least two electrical conductors, an element made from PTC plastic arranged between two of said at least two electrical conductors and in electrical contact with said two of said at least two electrical conductors, and a shell that protects at least sections of the electrical conductors and the PTC plastic element from the outside environment, wherein at least one of the two of said at least two electrical conductors is formed at least in part from a metal foil, and that the shell is an insulating surface. ### Claim 15 (depends on 1) The heating device according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the two of said at least two electrical conductors is formed at least in part from aluminum foil. ### Claim 16 (depends on 1) The heating device according to claim 1, wherein the shell comprises an a plastic film bonded to the metal foil. ### Claim 17 (depends on 1) The heating device according to claim 1, wherein the PTC plastic element is made by extrusion or/and injection molding or/and thermoforming from a plate-like semi-finished product. ### Claim 18 (depends on 1) The heating device according to claim 1, wherein the section of the electrical conductor formed from the metal foil is bonded to the insulating surface configured as a plastic film by means of an adhesive or/and by means of a vacuum. ### Claim 19 (depends on 1) The heating device according to claim 1, wherein the section of the electrical conductor formed from the metal foil is bonded to the insulating surface configured as a plastic film by means of an electrically conducting adhesive or/and by means of a vacuum. ### Claim 20 (depends on 6) The heating device according to claim 6, wherein the electrically conducting material is applied by means of chemical or galvanic precipitation or chemical or physical gas phase precipitation, or by applying a liquid or paste-like electrically conductive substance. ### Claim 21 (depends on 1) The heating device according to claim 1, wherein both electrical conductors are formed completely from a metal foil. ### Claim 22 (depends on 9) The heating device according to claim 9, wherein an assembly comprising the electrical conductors and the PTC plastic which encases them is encased completely by a plastic film. ### Claim 23 (depends on 13) The heating device according to claim 13 wherein the insulating shell is a plastic shell.