US3231011A

US3231011A - Heat radiating device

Info

Publication number: US3231011A
Application number: US384434A
Authority: US
Inventors: Shenuski John
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1964-07-22
Filing date: 1964-07-22
Publication date: 1966-01-25
Anticipated expiration: 1983-01-25

Description

Jan. 25, 1966 J. SHENUSKI 3,231,011

HEAT RADIATING DEVICE Filed July 22, 1964 F/G/ 4i INVENTOR. JOHN SHENUSKI ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,231,011 HEAT RADIATING DEVECE John Shenuski, 503 Back Laue, Newington, Conn. Filed July 22, 1964, Ser. No. 384,434 2 Claims. (Cl. 165-80) This invention relates to an improved heat radiating device of the type customarily used with a heat source having a cylindrical outside configuration such as pipes, fiues, and the like.

In the prior art it has been common to use fins of high conductivity material secured in contact with pipes, or a similar heat source so as to transfer thermal energy from the heat source to the surrounding air, for instance. One of the most common types of heat radiating devices is an array of fins fixed at right angles to a pipe carrying hot water. This arrangement is in general use for heating homes and other small buildings by disposing a series of such heat radiating devices about the inside perimeter of the building.

Still other prior art arrangements provide channels to surround a heat source and thereby transfer heat from the source to the surrounding medium. In these arrangements, it is common for the channels or fins to be aligned in a nearly vertical position in order to effect heat transfer by convection.

The present invention by a unique configuration is adapted to enclose a heat source and effect heat transfer by convection regardless of the angular disposition of the heat source. Additionally, the present invention is readily arranged in pressure contact with the heat source by a simple, reliable, and effective means made possible through the improved configuration of the device.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved heat radiating device which is simple and inexpensive to fabricate, as well as being adaptable to use on heat sources of different sizes.

Another principal object of the present invention is to afford improved heat transfer by convection regardless of the spatial disposition of the heat source.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a heat radiating device which is resiliently expandable to enclose a heat source in pressure contact.

Other objects and additional advantages of the present invention will be apparent from a reading of the follow ing detailed description and the claims taken together with the attached drawing wherein:

FIG. 1 is a front elevation showing several typical employments of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken through section 2-2 of FIG. 1, and,

FIG. 3 is an isometric view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

The present invention in its preferred embodiment comprises a sheet of flexible or resilient material having high thermal conductivity, which material is formed into contiguous corrugations. The corrugations preferably have a substantially greater depth than pitch and are also skewed rather than being parallel to an edge of the material. With the relatively deep corrugations, the heat radiating device is readily expandable to enclose heat sources of a variety of sizes. Additionally, the deep corrugations provide a greater exposure of heat radiating surface, therefore affording more efilcient heat transfer.

l ice The skewed corrugations assume a spiral-like configuration when the heat radiating device is expanded to enclose a pipe, for instance. This affords one of the principal advantages of the present invention in that improved heat transfer by convection of the currents of the surrounding air is achieved regardless of the disposition of the heat source, i.e., whether the heat source has a major axis which is horizontal or vertical.

Generally V-shaped, contiguous corrugations are particularly effective as they provide for maximum contact of the air in the inner V-shaped channels with the heat source for heat transfer by convection therewithin and also in the outer V-shaped channels while simultaneously allowing the radiating surfaces to function efiiciently. As can be seen in FIGURE 2, this type corrugation has generally planar side wall portions which converge, desirably to a relatively sharp apex, to form the generally V-shaped configuration.

Many prior art devices have provided fins, channels and the like for transferring heat, but these arrangements have had the shortcoming in that they will only work in their most effective manner when the fins and channels can be arranged about the heat source in a substantially vertical direction.

Obviously this limitation is a shortcoming of prior art devices inasmuch as prior art devices of this type cannot perform efficiently in cases Where the heat source is of such a spatial disposition that the fins or similar heat radiating elements cannot be arranged in a substantially vertical position.

By contrast, the present invention, however, provides effective heat radiation when the device is used on a heat source having virtually any spatial disposition and thus is not limited in its application as were many prior art devices.

FIG. 1 illustrates typical uses and applications of the present invention in combination with a furnace having a boiler for heating hot water. The furnace 10 is shown as having a hot water pipe 11a for delivering heated water through a circulating system in a home, for instance, and heating the home by what are commonly known as hot water baseboard heating units. A portion of such circulating system is shown with a heat radiating device 12 as conceived by the present invention enclosing the hot water circulating system adjacent to the furnace 10 itself. This arrangement would provide heat radiation to the basement of a home where the furnace 10 is located.

The hot water circulation system passes through a floor structure 13 to the main portion of a home where a heat radiation device 14 in a preferred embodiment of the present invention is utilized to enclose the hot water pipe 111: of the hot water circulating system. This arrangement may be concealed by a cover plate 15 so as to give the entire arrangement in the home the appearance of a somewhat enlarged baseboard positioned along one or more sides of a room.

The heat radiating device 12 which encloses the hot water pipe 11a adjacent to the furnace 10 is formed and fabricated as is shown in more detail in the cross-sectional view of FIG. 2. It will be noted that the corrugations of the heat radiating device 12 form channels and fins for effecting heat transfer which are substantially parallel to each other and also align in a substantially vertical direction since the heat source which they enclose, i.e., the hot water pipe 11a, is disposed in a vertical direction adjacent to the furnace 10. After the hot water circulating system passes through the floor structure 13, however, it makes a right angle turn so that the hot water pipe 11b is disposed in a substantially horizontal position. It will be noted that the heat radiating device 14 which encloses the horizontal portion 11b of the heat source has corrugations forming channels or fins which are substantially parallel to each other and are also skewed so that when the heat radiating device 14 of the present invention is enclosed about the heat source 11b, the corrugations form spiral-like channels andfins to provide more effective heat radiation by convection of the surrounding medium which in this case happens to be air.

FIG. 3 is an isometric view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention enclosing a pipe, flue, or similar heat source 30,, and is enlarged to clearly. illustrate the skewed corrugations 31 which form spiral-like channels and fins inducing heat transfer through convection of the surrounding medium in a direction illustrated by the arrows in FIG. 3.

The preferred embodiment of the present invention, as illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3, is employed with both horizontally disposed heat sources of FIG. 1, the flue 16b and the pipe 11b.

Effective heat radiation would be achieved from the upper portion of the heat radiating device in any event. However, the skewed spiral-like corrugated channels of the present invention provide significantly improved heat transfer through convection by reason of the fact that as the surrounding air of the lower. portions of the heat radiating device become warmer, they tend to flow up through the skewed corrugated channels, as is illustrated by the arrows in FIG. 3, passing over a considerable length of the heat radiating device before flowing freely into the upper surrounding air.

In FIG. 1, the flue 16a and 16b which is shown leading from the furnace 10 to an exhaust stack or chimney 19 is shown to have two heat radiating devices of the present invention, one of which at 17 encloses a vertical portionof the flue 16a and the other at 18 encloses a horizontal portion of the flue, 16b.

While the preferred embodiment of the present invention having skewed corrugations forming spiral-like channels or fins may be applied to a heat source of any angular disposition, the heat radiator of the present invention with the skewed corrugations is shown for illustrative purposes only as being applied to the horizontal portion of the flue to emphasize its effectiveness in that particular aPPIiCaiiOIL' As previously explained in connection with the heat radiating device 14 surrounding the horizontal portion of the hot water pipe 11b, the skewed channels of the heat radiator 18 enclosing the horizontal portion of the flue 16b acts in amanner to induce air flow by convection through the spiral-like channels and fins formed by the skewed corrugations, thus effecting more efficient heat transfer than could be realized with horizontally disposed channels or fins. Another advantage of the present invention is that it may be applied to pipes, flues and the like after such pipes and flues have been installed, whereas a number of prior art devices must be assembled with a section of pipe before it is installed into a heating system and may not be removed thereafter without dismantling that portion of the heating system.

FIG. 2 is a cross sectional view of the heat radiating device of the present invention taken through section 2-2 of FIG. 1. As may be seen from this illustration, the flue 16 is surrounded and enclosed by material of high thermal conductivity 21 formed and fabricated into a multitude of contiguous corrugations 22 which have a substantially greater depth of corrugation than pitch between adjacent corrugations. For purposes of explanation, the depth of corrugation may be defined as being that distance between the

points

23 and 24, while the pitch may be defined as the distance between adjacent corrugations, i.e., points 25 and 26 as illustrated in FIG. 2.

A relatively high ratio of depth to pitch of the corrugations has several advantages. One immediate advantage is that it provides an exposure of a greater heat radiating surface, thereby improving the efficiency of heat transfer. The corrugations shown in FIGURE 2 are generally V- shaped; that is, the corrugations have generally planar side wall portions that converge toward an apex to provide highly efficient heat convection and radiation. Desirably, these V-shaped corrugations are provided in the form of skewed corrugated sheets that are attached to heat sources disposed vertically, horizontally or in any spatial disposition.

Another desirable feature is that deeper corrugations affords expandability so that a given piece of material formed and fabricated in accordance with the present invention may be readily stretched and expanded to snugly fit a number of different sizes of heat sources in pressure contact with the heat source.

Additionally, the deep corrugations cause air flow by convection which tends to follow the skewed spiral-like channels and fins of the present invention for a greater distance, further contributing to more eflicient heat transfer.

Yet another feature of the present invention is that the deep corrugations formed in a resilient material of high thermal conductivity provide a means for readily and effectively retaining the end corrugations 27 and 28 in an overlapping relationship such as is effected by the clip 29in FIG. 2.

It should be observed that one of the advantages of the present invention is that it is adaptable to manufacture in continuous sheets of considerable size which may be easily cut to fit many different sizes of heat sources varying widely in diameter as well as length. For instance, the same sheet of material formed and fabricated in accordance with the concept of the present invention may be cut in appropriate lengths to enclose either the hot water pipe Ila-11b or the flue fizz-16b, as illustrated in FIG. 1.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that the present invention has the fundamental advantage of being inexpensively and readily fabricated from a multitude of available materials through the use of conventional, simple and efficient machinery.

Additionally, it is adapted to convenient installation on a heat source without the use of special tools, and conversely may be quickly and easily removed should the need arise to repair or alter the heat source.

Since many changes could be made in the above construction and many apparently widely different embodiments of the invention could be made without departing from the scope or spirit thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having thus described the invention, I claim:

1. In combination with a tubular conduit for a heated fluid providing a heat source, a heat radiating device comprising a sheet of flexible, high thermal conductivity material enclosing said conduit, said sheet being formed into contiguous generally V-shap-ed corrugations, having substantially greater depth than pitch and said corrugations being skewed relative to the major axis of said heat source, whereby said heat radiating device affords improved heat transfer by convection regardless of the spatial disposition of said heat source.

2. In combination with a tubular conduit for a heated fluid providing a heat source, a heat radiating device comprising a sheet of flexible, resilient, high thermal conductivity material, said sheet being entirely formed into contiguous generally V-shaped corrugations and enclosing said conduit a heat source with one or more of the end corrugations in overlapping engagement, said corrugations having substantially greater depth than pitch and being skewed relative to the major axis of said heat source, and means for retaining said end corrugations in overlapping engagement, whereby said heat radiating device affords improved heat transfer by convection regardless of the spatial disposition of said heat source.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,721,808 7/1929 Kettering 16518O 2,667,852 2/1954 Brown 29-1573 X FOREIGN PATENTS 636,910 5/ 1950 Great Britain.

FREDERICK L. MATTESON, 111., Primary Examiner.

10 ROBERT A. OLEARY, Examiner.

M. A. ANTONAKAS, Assistant Examiner.

Claims

1. IN COMBINATION WITH A TUBULAR CONDUIT FOR A HEATED FLUID PROVIDING A HEAT SOURCE, A HEAT RADIATING DEVICE COMPRISING A SHEET OF FLEXIBLE, HIGH THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY MATERIAL ENCLOSING SAID CONDUIT, SAID SHEET BEING FORMED INTO CONTIGUOUS GENERALLY V-SHAPED CORRUGATIONS, HAVING SUBSTANTIALLY GREATER DEPTH THAN PITCH AND SAID CORRUGATIONS BEING SKEWED RELATIVE TO THE MAJOR AXIS OF SAID HEAT SOURCE, WHEREBY SAID HEAT RADIATING DEVICE AFFORDS IMPROVED HEAT TRANSFER BY CONVECTION REGARDLESS OF THE SPATIAL DISPOSITION OF SAID HEAT SOURCE.