Electric machine for vehicle

• US 10,135,319 B2
• Filed: 03/17/2016
• Issued: 11/20/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 03/17/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Inventors: Hanumalagutti, Prasad Dev, Degner, Michael W., Leonardi, Franco, Jih, Edward Chan-Jiun
• Primary Examiner(s): Le, Dang
• Application Number:
  US15/072,703
• Publication Number:
  US 20170271955A1
• Time in Patent Office: 978 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 1/00 Arrangement or mounting of electrical propulsion units B60K7/00 takes precedence; arrangement or mounting of plural diverse prime-movers for mutual or common propulsion B60K6/00; electric transmission arrangements B60K17/12; electric equipment or propulsion of electrically-propelled vehicles per se B60L; current-collectors for power supply lines of electrically-propelled vehicles B60L5/00
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2001/006 the electric motors
• CPC Class Codes: H02K 1/20 with channels or ducts for flow of cooling medium
• CPC Class Codes: H02K 1/22 Rotating parts of the magnetic circuit
• CPC Class Codes: H02K 3/24 with channels or ducts for cooling medium between the conductors
• CPC Class Codes: H02K 5/203 specially adapted for liquids, e.g. cooling jackets
• CPC Class Codes: H02K 9/19 for machines with closed casing and closed-circuit cooling using a liquid cooling medium, e.g. oil

Abstract

A vehicle electric machine includes a stator having an end face and a yoke region defining a channel. End windings are adjacent to the end face. An annular cover has inner and outer walls defining an annular cavity configured to receive the end windings. The channel opens into the cavity, and a radial distance between the inner and outer walls is less than or equal to a radial length of the end face.

Claims

1. A vehicle electric machine comprising:

a stator including an end face, a yoke region defining a fluid channel, and slots located radially inboard of the fluid channel;

windings extending through the slots and including end windings adjacent the end face; and

an annular cover including inner and outer walls defining an annular cavity that receives the end windings, wherein the fluid channel opens into the cavity and wherein a largest radial distance between the inner and outer walls is less than or equal to a radial length of the end face.

2. The vehicle electric machine of claim 1 wherein the stator includes a core having a plurality of stacked laminations each defining an aperture, and wherein the laminations are arranged such that the apertures align and cooperate to define the channel.

3. The vehicle electric machine of claim 1 wherein the yoke region defines a plurality of channels that each open into the cavity.

4. The vehicle electric machine of claim 1 wherein the annular cover further includes an inlet port and an outlet port, and wherein the angle between the ports is less than 160 degrees.

5. The vehicle electric machine of claim 1 wherein the cover further includes an end wall extending between the inner and outer walls, and wherein the end wall defines a port opening into the cavity.

6. The vehicle electric machine of claim 1 wherein the inner and outer walls of the cover are substantially parallel.

7. The vehicle electric machine of claim 1 wherein the stator further includes a second end face having a second end winding adjacent thereto, further comprising a second annular cover including inner and outer walls defining a second annular cavity configured to receive the second end winding, wherein the channel opens into the second cavity, and a radial distance between the inner and outer walls is less than or equal to a radial length of the second end face.

8. A vehicle electric machine comprising:

a stator core including an inner surface defining slots, an outer surface, opposing first and second end faces, and a yoke region defining a channel extending between the first and second end faces and including a first port defined by the first end face and a second port defined by the second end face;

windings configured to extend through the slots and including end windings adjacent the end faces;

a rotor disposed within a cavity defined by the inner surface; and

first and second annular covers each including an outer circumferential wall and an inner circumferential wall cooperating to define an annular cooling cavity configured to receive one of the end windings, wherein a radial distance between the inner and outer walls is less than or equal to a radial distance between the inner and outer surfaces, and wherein the first port opens into the cavity of the first cover and the second port opens into the cavity of the second cover to fluidly connect the annular cooling cavities.

9. The vehicle electric of claim 8 wherein the channel is a plurality of channels each extending through the yoke region and including a first port defined by the first end face and a second port defined by the second end face, and the channels are located radially outboard of the slots.

10. The vehicle electric machine of claim 9 wherein the first cover defines an inlet port and the second cover defines an outlet port, and wherein the ports, covers and channels cooperate to define a parallel cooling circuit configured to convey oil from the inlet port through the channels and out the outlet port.

11. The vehicle electric machine of claim 10 wherein the first and second annular covers each further includes first and second radially extending walls connecting between the inner and outer walls and axially spaced from each other so that the end windings are disposed between the first and second radially extending walls, the second wall being disposed against a corresponding one of the first and second end faces and defining winding slots that receive the windings and an opening aligned with the channel so that fluid may pass between the cavity and the channel.

12. The vehicle electric machine of claim 8 wherein the first cover further defines an inlet port and an outlet port.

13. The vehicle electric machine of claim 12 wherein the second cover further defines an inlet port and an outlet port.

14. The vehicle electric machine of claim 8 wherein the radial distance is a largest radial distance between the inner and outer walls.

15. A vehicle electric machine comprising:

a stator including inner and outer surfaces and an end face extending therebetween, and windings extending through slots; and

an annular cover including inner and outer circumferential walls and first and second radial walls connected between the circumferential walls to define a cavity configured to receive a portion of the windings, wherein the second wall is disposed against the end face and defines stator slots that receive the windings.

16. The vehicle electric machine of claim 15 wherein the stator defines channels each disposed between the slots and the outer surface, and including a port defined by the end face.

17. The vehicle electric machine of claim 15 wherein the stator further includes a second end face opposite the end face and extending between the inner and outer surfaces, further comprising a second annular cover disposed against the second end face and including inner and outer circumferential walls defining a cavity configured to receive a portion of the windings, wherein a radial distance between the inner and outer walls is less than or equal to a radial length of the second end face.

18. The vehicle electric machine of claim 15 wherein an end surface of each of the inner and outer circumferential walls is disposed against the end face.

19. A drivetrain comprising:

an electric machine disposed within a transmission housing and including

a stator including an end face, a yoke region defining a fluid channel, and slots located radially inboard of the fluid channel, and

an annular cover including inner and outer walls defining an annular cavity that receives the end windings, wherein the fluid channel opens into the cavity and wherein a largest radial distance between the inner and outer walls is less than or equal to a radial length of the end face.

20. The drivetrain of claim 19 wherein the annular cover further has an inlet port that is in fluid communication with a passageway at least partially defined by the transmission housing.