While many engine systems are now electronically controlled, the engine cooling system has changed very little since the birth of the
automobile.  It is comprised of an engine-speed related water pump, a wax thermostat, and a radiator sized to meet a rarely used peak demand.

Dana designers and engineers believe temperature control or “intelligence” is an underestimated opportunity for progress in engine performance, fuel economy, and driver/passenger comfort.

Dana’s Intelligent Cooling™ system enables the engine to operate at higher temperatures with more uniformity and greater control accuracy.  This is facilitated by an “intelligent” cooling sub-system that incorporates:

• High-performance electric water pump

• Multi-port, proportional flow control valve to replace the thermostat

• Speed controllable cooling fan

• Cylinder head gasket with embedded temperature sensors

• System control unit

The electric water pump is available in a range of sizes that deliver flows of 1 to 250 liters per minute (2.6 to 66.0 gallons per minute) with either brushed or brushless DC motors.  By varying coolant flow rate, independent of engine speed, the electric pump reduces engine parasitic loss and enhances performance in low-speed, high-load operating conditions, such as up-hill trailer towing or off-road driving.  It can also provide heat soak protection and supplementary cooling after key-off.

The traditional wax thermostat has major disadvantages in that
 it limits dynamic control and significantly restricts coolant flow 
even when fully open, thus increasing water pump power consumption.  To address these issues, Dana is developing a number of intelligent valve solutions utilizing low-power motor and actuation mechanisms.  These products are available as stand-alone units, or they can be packaged into existing engine cooling circuits.  Dana’s solutions include dual port systems to replace the thermostat and multi-port devices to control coolant flow to the heater core or other secondary cooling circuits.

System control of the pump, valve, and a speed-controlled fan can be packaged into the components themselves, into a single remote unit that controls all three, or into the pump-mounted control unit.  Alternatively, if space is available, this function can be packaged into the vehicle ECU.  To provide the signal input to the control unit, Dana has developed a cylinder head gasket with embedded temperature sensors to provide real-time thermal data.  This test-proven technology exhibits excellent correlation and speed of response to temperature changes in the hottest areas of the engine.

The Intelligent Cooling system is undergoing extensive worldwide vehicle and laboratory testing.