Apparatus Employing Shear Forces To Transmit Energy Having Flow Altering Structures Configured To Increase Heat Rejection From A Working Fluid And Related Method
AssigneeBorgWarner Inc.
InventorsJonathan B. STAGG, Samuel E. SETTINERI
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A device that employs shear forces to transmit energy includes an outer housing assembly, a disk, and a reservoir with a working fluid. The disk is received in and rotatable relative to the outer housing assembly. A working cavity is formed between a rotor portion of the disk and the outer housing assembly into which the working fluid is received to create shear forces. A plurality of flow altering structures are disposed on the outer housing assembly and are configured to reduce a thickness of a boundary layer of the working fluid in the working cavity in areas that are local to the flow altering structures.
Claims20
A method for operating an apparatus that employs shear forces in a viscous fluid to transmit energy, the method comprising:
- providing an apparatus has an outer housing assembly, a disk and a reservoir, the outer housing assembly having a working cavity, the disk being rotatable in the outer housing assembly, the disk having a rotor portion that is rotatably received in the working cavity, the working cavity being in fluid communication with the reservoir;
- rotating the rotor within the outer housing assembly to generate a flow of a working fluid through the working cavity and to apply a shear force to the working fluid flowing through working cavity;
- and
- inducing movement of the working fluid at a plurality of discrete locations on the outer housing assembly in a direction that is transverse to a boundary layer of the working fluid that is adjacent to the first annular surface.
An apparatus that employs shear forces in a viscous fluid to transmit energy, the apparatus comprising:
- a housing having a working cavity that is bounded by a first annular wall, a second annular wall and a circumferentially extending wall that is disposed axially between the first and second annular walls, the first annular wall having a plurality of first concentric fluid grooves;
- a rotor portion that is received in the working cavity and rotatable relative to the housing, the rotor portion having a first side, a second side and an outer circumferential surface, the first side having a plurality of first concentric ribs, each of the first concentric ribs being received in an associated one of the plurality of first concentric fluid grooves;
- and
- a reservoir that is adapted to store a working fluid therein, the reservoir being coupled in fluid communication with the working cavity;
- wherein a plurality of flow altering structures are disposed on at least one of the first annular wall and the circumferentially extending wall, the flow altering structures being configured to promote heat transfer between the working fluid and the housing to reject heat from the working fluid that is created by shear forces acting on the working fluid when the working fluid travels through the working chamber.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.