Charge air cooler with dual flow path conduit
AssigneeFord Global Technologies, LLC
InventorsCharles A. Cockerill, Shuya Shark Yamada
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An engine cooling system comprises a charge air cooler having an inlet, a plurality of heat exchange passages fluidically coupled to the inlet, and an outlet fluidically coupled to the heat exchange passages, and a conduit coupled to the outlet and an intake manifold of an engine, the conduit divided to include a first and second flow path to the intake manifold with a valve positioned at an inlet of the first flow path. In this way, accumulated condensate in the charge air cooler may be moved to the engine during low intake velocity conditions.
Claims20
An engine cooling system, comprising:
- a charge air cooler having an inlet, a plurality of heat exchange passages fluidically coupled to the inlet, and an outlet fluidically coupled to the heat exchange passages and positioned at a bottom of the charge air cooler;
- a conduit coupled to and between the outlet and an intake manifold of an engine, the conduit divided to include a first and second flow path to the intake manifold with a valve positioned in the first flow path, the valve closed to block an inlet of the first flow path during a first condition and opened during a second condition;
- and
- a throttle positioned upstream of the charge air cooler.
An engine system, comprising:
- a charge air cooler including an outlet positioned at a bottom of the charge air cooler;
- an intake manifold;
- a conduit coupling the outlet to the intake manifold, the conduit divided into a first flow path and a second flow path by a common interior dividing wall, the first and second flow paths downstream from the charge air cooler;
- a flap valve to selectively block intake air from flowing through the first flow path;
- a condensation collection tube coupled to the second flow path;
- a throttle positioned upstream of the charge air cooler;
- the valve closed to block an inlet of the first flow path during a first condition and opened during a second condition.
A method for an engine, comprising:
- during a first condition, flowing intake air from an outlet of a charge air cooler to an intake manifold via a first flow path and a second flow path, the outlet positioned at a bottom of the charge air cooler, the first flow path and the second flow path sharing a common interior dividing wall;
- and
- during a second condition, flowing the intake air into the charge air cooler from a throttle and from the outlet to the intake manifold via the second flow path and not the first flow path by closing a flap valve positioned in the first flow path to block the first flow path.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.