INDUCTION HEATING SYSTEM FOR A MOTOR-DRIVEN VEHICLE

• US 20090236329A1
• Filed: 03/17/2009
• Published: 09/24/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/18/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Mazda Motor Corporation
• Original Assignee: Mazda Motor Corporation
• Inventors: SATO, Takayuki
• Granted Patent: US 8,357,883 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 219/660
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/00392 for electric vehicles having only electric drive means
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/00428 electric
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/2215 the heat being derived from electric heaters
• CPC Class Codes: F01N 3/2013 using electric or magnetic heating means
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 6/02 Induction heating
• CPC Class Codes: Y02A 50/20 Air quality improvement or preservation, e.g. vehicle emission control or emission reduction by using catalytic converters
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/88 Optimized components or subsystems, e.g. lighting, actively controlled glasses

Abstract

Disclosed is an induction heating system for a motor-driven vehicle (VC), which comprises a polyphase-type AC motor (1) adapted to drive the vehicle (VC), an electrical storage device (10) which stores an electric power to be supplied to the AC motor (1), a DC-AC converter (11) adapted to convert a direct current from the electrical storage device (10) into an alternating current and supply the alternating current to the AC motor (1), and an induction heating coil (C or C1 to C3) adapted to receive a supply of the alternating current from the DC-AC converter (11), to inductively heat a target component mounted to the vehicle (VC). The induction heating system of the present invention can efficiently inductively heat the target component without providing an additional converter exclusively for induction heating.

Claims

1. An induction heating system for inductively heating a target component mounted to a motor-driven vehicle, comprising:

a polyphase-type alternating current motor adapted to drive the vehicle;

an electrical storage device which stores an electric power to be supplied to the alternating current motor;

a DC-AC converter adapted to convert a direct current from the electrical storage device into an alternating current, and supply the alternating current to the alternating current motor; and

an induction heating coil adapted to receive a supply of the alternating current from the DC-AC converter, to inductively heat the target component.

2. The induction heating system as defined in claim 1, wherein the induction heating coil is inserted in a line extending from a neutral point of the alternating current motor.

3. The induction heating system as defined in claim 1, wherein:

the DC-AC converter includes a plurality of switching elements; and

the induction heating coil includes a plurality of induction heating coils inserted in respective ones of a plurality of first lines each connecting at least two of the plurality of switching elements, the at least two switching elements having a relationship which causes no supply of alternating current from the DC-AC converter to the alternating current motor even if the at least two switching elements are simultaneously turned on.

4. The induction heating system as defined in claim 3, wherein each of the induction heating coils is electrically connected to a respective one of a plurality of second lines where an alternating current flows during rotational driving of the alternating current motor.

5. The induction heating system as defined in claim 4, which is configured to simultaneously energize at least two of the induction heating coils through corresponding pairs of the first lines and the second lines when it is required to further increase a temperature of the target component.

6. The induction heating system as defined in claim 1, which is configured to inductively heat the target component during stopping of the vehicle, under a condition that the induction heating coil is energized while setting the alternating current motor in a servo lock state.

7. The induction heating system as defined in claim 1, further comprising a switch operable to selectively cut off energization to the induction heating coil.

8. The induction heating system as defined in claim 1, wherein the target component is a heater core for air-conditioning.

9. The induction heating system as defined in claim 1, wherein the vehicle is equipped with an internal combustion engine adapted to be driven as one driving source of the vehicle, in at least a part of operation states of the vehicle, wherein the target component is an exhaust gas purifying catalyst provided in an exhaust passage of the internal combustion engine.