Patent 7255158 was granted and assigned to Denso on August, 2007 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
A protruding portion protruding toward the outside a tank is formed on a core plate in a range corresponding to a straight portion of a flat tube inserted and joined to the core plate. Due to this structure, a joining portion of the tube to the core plate is three-dimensionally formed and a joining portion length is extended. Therefore, thermal stress generated in the tube can be diffused from the joining portion of the tube to the core plate.