Double-sided cooler
A cooler includes a coolant flow path between a first cooling plate and a second cooling plate segmented into a plurality of flow path segments along a flow-path traverse direction. The plurality of flow path segments includes at least one first flow path segment and at least one second flow path segment. Each first flow path segment includes: a first inner plate partitioning an internal space thereof into a first space and a second space and having a first nozzle that jets the coolant from the first space toward the second cooling plate. Each second flow path segment includes: a second inner plate partitioning an internal space thereof into a first space and a second space and having a second nozzle that jets the coolant from the second space toward the first cooling plate. The first inner and second inner plates are aligned in the flow-path traverse direction.
1. A double-sided cooler comprising:
a first cooling plate and a second cooling plate opposing each other and configured to receive coolant in between;
a plurality of heating elements, each heating element of the plurality of heating elements being attached to an outer surface of a corresponding one of the first cooling plate and the second cooling plate;
an inlet port configured to pass the coolant, the inlet port being disposed on a first end of the double-sided cooler; and
an outlet port configured to pass the coolant, the outlet port being disposed on a second end of the double-sided cooler,
wherein:
a coolant flow path between the first cooling plate and the second cooling plate is segmented into a plurality of flow path segments by a plurality of partition plates in contact with both the first cooling plate and the second cooling plate in a flow-path traverse direction that is orthogonal to both a normal direction of the first cooling plate and a flow direction of the coolant flowing from the inlet port to the outlet port,
the plurality of flow path segments includes at least one first flow path segment and at least one second flow path segment independent from the at least one first flow path segment,
each of the at least one first flow path segment includes:
a first inner plate partitioning an internal space of the first flow path segment into a first first-cooling-plate-side space on a first cooling plate side and a first second-cooling plate-side space on a second cooling plate side, the first inner plate including a first nozzle configured to jet the coolant from the first first-cooling-plate-side space toward the second cooling plate;
a first upstream closing plate closing the first second-cooling-plate-side space on an inlet port side of the first nozzle; and
a first downstream closing plate closing the first first-cooling-plate-side space on an outlet port side of the first nozzle,
each of the at least one second flow path segment includes:
a second inner plate partitioning an internal space of the second flow path segment into a second first-cooling-plate-side space on the first cooling plate side and a second second-cooling-plate-side space on the second cooling plate side, the second inner plate including a second nozzle configured to jet the coolant from the second second-cooling-plate-side space toward the first cooling plate;
a second upstream closing plate closing the second first-cooling-plate-side space on an inlet port side of the second nozzle; and
a second downstream closing plate closing the second second-cooling-plate-side space on an outlet port side of the second nozzle, and
the first inner plate and the second inner plate are aligned in the flow-path traverse direction.
2. The double-sided cooler according to claim 1 , wherein:
the coolant flow path is divided into an upstream part and a downstream part along the flow direction,
the upstream part in each of the at least one first flow path segment includes:
the first inner plate;
the first upstream closing plate; and
the first downstream closing plate,
the downstream part in each of the at least one first flow path segment includes:
the second inner plate;
the second upstream closing plate; and
the second downstream closing plate,
the upstream part in each of the at least one second flow path segment includes:
the second inner plate;
the second upstream closing plate; and
the second downstream closing plate, and
the downstream part in each of the at least one second flow path segment includes:
the first inner plate;
the first upstream closing plate; and
the first downstream closing plate.
3. The double-sided cooler according to claim 2 , wherein a communicating space is disposed at a boundary between the upstream part and the downstream part, the communicating space communicating corresponding flow path segments of the plurality of flow path segments that are adjacent to each other in the flow-path traverse direction.
4. The double-sided cooler according to claim 1 , wherein
the plurality of flow path segments includes a plurality of the first flow path segments and a plurality of the second flow path segments, and
the first inner plates and the second inner plates are aligned and alternating in the flow-path traverse direction.
5. The double-sided cooler according to claim 1 , wherein the first flow path segment and the second flow path segment are divided into no more than two layers in the normal direction of the first cooling plate.
6. The double-sided cooler according to claim 1 , wherein each flow path segment of the plurality of flow path segments includes only one of either the first inner plate or the second inner plate.