Patent ID: 8276401

Claim:
An evaporator comprising a refrigerant inlet header section and a refrigerant outlet header section juxtaposed in a front-rear direction, and a refrigerant circulation path for establishing communication between the two header sections, wherein a refrigerant inlet is formed at one end of the refrigerant inlet header section, and a refrigerant outlet is formed at one end of the refrigerant outlet header section, the one end being located on the same side as the refrigerant inlet; and refrigerant having flowed into the refrigerant inlet header section through the refrigerant inlet passes through the refrigerant circulation path, and reaches the refrigerant outlet header section, from which the refrigerant is fed out through the refrigerant outlet, wherein a refrigerant inlet-outlet member formed by stacking and joining a first plate, a second plate, and an intermediate plate located between the first plate and the second plate is joined to the refrigerant inlet header section and the refrigerant outlet header section such that the refrigerant inlet-outlet member extends over the refrigerant inlet header section and the refrigerant outlet header section; the refrigerant inlet-outlet member has an inflow channel and an outflow channel provided such that the inflow channel and the outflow channel cross each other as viewed from a side, one end of the inflow channel communicating with the refrigerant inlet of the refrigerant inlet header section, the other end of the inflow channel being opened to a rear edge of the refrigerant inlet-outlet member, one end of the outflow channel communicating with the refrigerant outlet of the refrigerant outlet header section, and the other end of the outflow channel being opened to the rear edge of the refrigerant inlet-outlet member; and at least one of the first and second plates has an inflow-channel-forming outward swelled portion, and the other of the first and second plates has an outflow-channel-forming outward swelled portion.