Motor with inverter and bus bar arrangement

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12101003-B2
Application number	US-202017602370-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 9, 2020
Priority date	Apr 11, 2019
Publication date	Sep 24, 2024
Grant date	Sep 24, 2024

Abstract

A motor assembly includes a motor with a rotor rotatable about a motor shaft and a stator located radially outside the rotor, an inverter to supply power to the motor, a housing provided with a motor housing space that houses the motor and an inverter housing space that houses the inverter, and a first bus bar that electrically connects the motor and the inverter. The housing includes a partition wall portion that partitions the motor housing space and the inverter housing space and is provided with a through hole penetrating in the axial direction. The first bus bar is connected to a coil wire extending from the stator at an end on one side in the axial direction of the stator in the motor housing space, and extends to the inverter housing space through the through hole.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A motor assembly comprising:
a motor that includes a rotor rotatable about a motor shaft and a stator radially outside the rotor;
an inverter to supply power to the motor;
a housing that is provided with a motor housing space to house the motor and an inverter housing space to house the inverter;
a first bus bar that electrically connects the motor and the inverter; and
second bus bars that electrically connect the first bus bar and the inverter; wherein
the housing includes a partition wall portion that partitions the motor housing space and the inverter housing space and is provided with a through hole penetrating in an axial direction;
the first bus bar is connected to a coil wire extending from the stator at an end on one side in an axial direction of the stator in the motor housing space, and extends to the inverter housing space through the through hole;
each of the second bus bars includes:
a motor-side terminal connection portion that is connected to the first bus bar; and
an inverter-side terminal connection portion that is connected to the inverter;

the second bus bars further include:
body portions extending in a direction which at least partially passes through or along a circumferential direction of the motor assembly to be connected to the inverter-side terminal connection portions; and
extension portions which extend in an axial direction of the motor assembly from a lower end portion of the body portions to an axial position of the motor-side terminal connection portions;

the body portions are arranged side by side along the axial direction; and
the extension portions are arranged side by side along the direction which at least partially passes through or along the circumferential direction.

2. The motor assembly according to claim 1 , comprising:
a first bus bar holder that holds the first bus bar; and
a seal; wherein
oil to cool the motor is stored in the motor housing space;
the first bus bar holder closes an opening of the through hole; and
the seal seals between the partition wall portion and the first bus bar holder around the opening of the through hole.

3. The motor assembly according to claim 1 , wherein
the housing includes:
a housing body that houses the motor; and
an inverter housing to which the inverter is fixed;

the housing body and the inverter housing oppose each other;
the inverter housing space is surrounded by the housing body and the inverter housing; and
the partition wall portion is a portion of the housing body.

4. The motor assembly according to claim 3 , wherein
the second bus bars extend along at least one of a first inner side surface opposing the inverter housing space in the housing body and a second inner side surface opposing the inverter housing space in the inverter housing.

5. The motor assembly according to claim 4 , wherein the inverter housing includes a window portion immediately above a connection portion that electrically connects the inverter and the second bus bars.

6. The motor assembly according to claim 5 , further comprising:
a second bus bar holder that holds the second bus bars; wherein
the first inner side surface extends along an outer circumferential surface of the motor; and
the second bus bar holder is fixed with a gap provided in at least one of the first inner side surface and the second inner side surface.

7. The motor assembly according to claim 4 , further comprising:
a second bus bar holder that holds the second bus bars; wherein
a plurality of the motor-side terminal connection portions are arranged side by side; and

the second bus bar holder includes a partition wall portion located between the plurality of motor-side terminal connection portions.

8. The motor assembly according to claim 7 , wherein
a plurality of the inverter-side terminal connection portions are arranged side by side; and
the plurality of inverter-side terminal connection portions are spaced apart from each other as compared to the plurality of motor-side terminal connection portions.

9. The motor assembly according to claim 1 , wherein
the inverter includes a switch, a capacitor, and a power substrate; and
the switch has a rectangular shape when viewed from one direction, and is arranged with the axial direction of the motor assembly corresponding to a longitudinal direction of the rectangular shape of the switch.

Assignees

• Nidec Corp

Inventors

• Fujimoto Shohei
• Nakamatsu Shuhei
• Nakamura Keigo
• Fukunaga Keisuke

Classifications

• H02K9/19

  for machines with closed casing and closed-circuit cooling using a liquid cooling medium, e.g. oil · CPC title

• H02K5/225

  Terminal boxes or connection arrangements (specially adapted for submersible motors H02K5/132) · CPC title

• F16H57/027

  characterised by means for venting gearboxes, e.g. air breathers · CPC title

• H02K5/22

  Auxiliary parts of casings not covered by groups H02K5/06-H02K5/20, e.g. shaped to form connection boxes or terminal boxes · CPC title

• H02K5/203

  specially adapted for liquids, e.g. cooling jackets · CPC title