Vehicle drive device

• US 9,802,470 B2
• Filed: 05/28/2015
• Issued: 10/31/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 05/28/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Aisin AW Company Limited (Aisin Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Aisin AW Company Limited (Aisin Corp.)
• Inventors: Miyazawa, Manabu, Uechi, Tatsuyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Shriver, II, J. Allen
• Assistant Examiner(s): JOHNS, HILARY LYNN
• Application Number:
  US15/300,135
• Publication Number:
  US 20170158042A1
• Time in Patent Office: 887 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2006/4825 Electric machine connected or connectable to gearbox input shaft
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 6/40 characterised by the assembly or relative disposition of components
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 6/405 Housings
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 6/48 Parallel type
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 6/54 Transmission for changing ratio
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 1/02 to electric heating circuits
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 15/007 Physical arrangements or structures of drive train converters specially adapted for the propulsion motors of electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/525 Temperature of converter or components thereof
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/16 with provision for separate direct mechanical propulsion
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 9/18 fed from dc supply lines
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 20/00 Control systems specially adapted for hybrid vehicles hybrid vehicle design, B60K6/00; electric vehicles B60L
• CPC Class Codes: F16H 61/0006 Electronic control units for transmission control, e.g. connectors, casings or circuit boards
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/62 Hybrid vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/64 Electric machine technologies in electromobility
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/7072 Electromobility specific charging systems or methods for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors

Abstract

A vehicle drive device that includes a wheel drive rotary electric machine and a transmission device on a power transmission path connecting an input member drivingly coupled to an internal combustion engine and an output member drivingly coupled to wheels; a pump electric motor that serves as a driving force source of a hydraulic pump; a case that accommodates the wheel drive rotary electric machine, the transmission device, and the pump electric motor; and a motor controller including a first inverter that controls the wheel drive rotary electric machine, a second inverter that controls the pump electric motor, a cooler that cools the first inverter and the second inverter, and a smoothing capacitor that smooths direct-current power to be supplied to the first inverter and the second inverter.

Claims

1. A vehicle drive device comprising:

a wheel drive rotary electric machine and a transmission device on a power transmission path connecting an input member drivingly coupled to an internal combustion engine and an output member drivingly coupled to wheels;

a pump electric motor that serves as a driving force source of a hydraulic pump;

a case that accommodates the wheel drive rotary electric machine, the transmission device, and the pump electric motor;

a motor controller including a first inverter that controls the wheel drive rotary electric machine, a second inverter that controls the pump electric motor, a cooler that cools the first inverter and the second inverter, and a smoothing capacitor that smooths direct-current power to be supplied to the first inverter and the second inverter, wherein

a rotational axis of the input member and a rotational axis of the transmission device are aligned in a vehicle width direction;

in the motor controller, an inverter unit and the smoothing capacitor are arranged in a vehicle front-rear direction in an upward direction of the case, the inverter unit including the first inverter, the second inverter, and the cooler; and

one of the inverter unit and the smoothing capacitor having a smaller thickness in a vehicle up-down direction than the other is disposed in an upward direction of a highest located member, the highest located member being a member located at a highest position in a region of the case overlapping the motor controller as viewed in the vehicle up-down direction; and

a through connection terminal that is a relay connection terminal disposed on an electrical connection path electrically connecting a coil of the wheel drive rotary electric machine and the first inverter and that extends through the case, and an intermediate connection terminal that is a relay connection terminal disposed on an electrical connection path connecting the through connection terminal and the first inverter;

wherein

the through connection terminal is disposed in a downward direction of the inverter unit or the smoothing capacitor; and

the intermediate connection terminal is disposed between the first inverter and the smoothing capacitor, in a region not overlapping both of the first inverter and the smoothing capacitor, as viewed in the vehicle up-down direction.

2. The vehicle drive device according to claim 1, wherein the cooler is interposed between the first inverter and the second inverter in the vehicle up-down direction.

3. The vehicle drive device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a first bus bar group including a plurality of bus bars electrically connecting the through connection terminal and the intermediate connection terminal, and a second bus bar group including a plurality of bus bars electrically connecting the intermediate connection terminal and the first inverter;

wherein

the first bus bar group has a portion disposed in a downward direction of the smoothing capacitor; and

the second bus bar group has a portion overlapping the inverter unit as viewed in the horizontal direction.

4. The vehicle drive device according to claim 1, wherein the rotational axis of the input member, a rotational axis of the wheel drive rotary electric machine, and the rotational axis of the transmission device are coaxially aligned.

5. The vehicle drive device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a counter gear mechanism disposed between the transmission device and the output member on the power transmission path;

wherein

the rotational axis of the input member, a rotational axis of the wheel drive rotary electric machine, and the rotational axis of the transmission device are aligned with a first axis;

a rotational axis of the counter gear mechanism is aligned with a second axis parallel to the first axis and different from the first axis;

a rotational axis of the output member is aligned with a third axis parallel to the first axis and different from the first axis and the second axis;

the second axis and the third axis are disposed on one side in the vehicle front-rear direction with respect to the first axis, and the second axis is disposed in an upward direction with respect to the third axis; and

the motor controller is disposed in a position overlapping the first axis, the second axis, and the third axis, as viewed in the vehicle up-down direction.