ELECTRICAL MACHINE, FAN, VENTILATOR

Technical field

This invention relates to an electrical machine, in particular a rotary electric motor, an axial fan and an electric ventilator of the type comprising the electric motor and the axial fan driven by the electric motor.

The reference technical sector is that of electric ventilators for automotive applications, intended for carrying heat away from radiant masses and the like.

Background art

In general, a reference prior art type of electric motor comprises a casing having inside a stator of the wound type, rigidly constrained to the casing, and a rotor, for example with permanent magnets, rotatably constrained to the casing.

An electronic module or control electronics, connected to the stator, is inserted in the casing for supplying power to the stator.

A cap closes the casing to form a closed container from which connection terminals protrude for the power supply of the control electronics.

The electrical machines used as a reference for this invention are in particular of the brushless enclosed type also known as the sealed type, that is, sealed electrical machines.

It is known that the windings of an electrical machine, whether they are stator or rotor windings, are made using a plurality of coils of conducting material, usually copper, made of a conducting wire wound around two or more pole shoes of the stator and/or the rotor of the electrical machine. The winding, through which electricity flows, is isolated from the pole shoes, which are made of ferromagnetic material. For that purpose, a layer of electrically insulating material is interposed between the winding and the corresponding pole shoe on which it is wound.

An electric current which may even have a high nominal value passes through the winding and that causes heating phenomena due to the Joule effect which extend over the entire dimensions of the winding and in the zones of the electrical machine adjacent to it.

In particular, it has been found that said heating phenomenon causes a deterioration of the conductivity properties of the conducting wire, which consequently produces a greater resistance to the passage of electric current, causing a high and often unacceptable level of energy dissipation. Moreover, the heating of the winding may cause a rapid deterioration of the insulating characteristics of the above-mentioned layer of electrically insulating material interposed between the winding and the corresponding pole shoe, as well as excessive heating of the electronic module.

That situation is particularly bad in closed type rotary electrical machines, in which the windings are immersed in the container, formed by a casing and cap, which does not have air recirculation.

A solution intended to overcome said difficulty is described in the document WO2009019562 in the name of the same Applicant.

In that solution, the inside of the casing is provided with a plurality of stop portions, in the form of protrusions of a base wall of the casing, against which the stator windings abut, suitably insulated, for more effective heat exchange with the cap.

In the case of high powered motors, at around one kW, the prior art solutions are still not completely satisfactory in terms of dispersing the heat produced in the windings.

Disclosure of the invention

In this context, the main aim of this invention is to overcome the above- mentioned disadvantages. One aim of this invention is to provide an electrical machine in which the cooling of the stator winding is further improved compared with the prior art solutions.

A further aim is to provide an axis fan which contributes to dispersal of the heat produced by the stator windings and transferred to the casing of the electrical machine which drives the self-same fan.

Another aim of this invention is to provide a ventilator which is particularly effective for dispersing the heat produced by operation of the motor.

The technical purpose indicated and the aims specified are substantially achieved by an electrical machine according to claim 1 , by a fan according to claim 9 and by an electric ventilator according to claim 18.

Brief description of drawings

Further features and advantages of this invention are more apparent in the detailed description below, with reference to a preferred, non-restricting, embodiment of a ventilator as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a schematic perspective view of an electric ventilator in accordance with this invention;

- Figure 2 is a top plan view of a portion of the ventilator of Figure 1 ;

Figure 3 is a schematic cross-section according to line III - III of the portion of the ventilator of Figure 2;

Figure 3a shows an enlarged detail of the cross-section of Figure 3;

Figure 4 is a schematic perspective view of the motor of the electric ventilator of Figure 1 ;

Figure 5 is a schematic perspective view of the casing of the motor of Figure 4;

Figure 6 is a schematic perspective view of the hub of the fan which is part of the ventilator of Figure 1 ;

- Figure 7 is a schematic perspective bottom view of the hub of

Figure 6. Detailed description of preferred embodiments of the invention

With reference in particular to Figure 1 , the numeral 1 denotes an electric ventilator according to this invention.

As illustrated, the electric ventilator 1 is of the axial type and has an axis R of rotation.

The electric ventilator 1 comprises an electrical machine 100, that is to say, an electric motor, and a fan 200 driven by the motor 100.

The motor 100 and the fan 200 are described in more detail below only in terms of the technical features necessary for understanding this invention. With particular reference to Figures 3, 4 and 5, it should be noticed that the electric motor 100, having an axis R of rotation, comprises a casing 101 and a cap 102 which closes the casing 101 .

The casing 101 comprises a base wall 103 transversal to the axis R of rotation and a lateral wall 104 which is preferably cylindrical, projecting from the base wall 103.

The casing 101 and the cap 102 are coupled to each other according to a line parallel with the axis R of rotation and, in use, they form a closed container 105 which is preferably of the sealed type.

The motor 100 comprises a stator 106, fixed to the casing 101 , and a rotor 107, for example of the type with permanent magnets, rotatably constrained to the container 105.

The rotor 107 comprises a shaft 108 one end 108a of which protrudes from the container 105 and to which the fan 200 is fixed.

In the example illustrated, the shaft 108 protrudes from the base wall 103 of the casing 101.

In that way the base wall 103 abuts and faces an inner face of a base wall of the hub of the axial fan 200 as explained below.

For the sake of a simple description, reference is made to the preferred embodiment in which the base wall 103 facing the inner face of the hub of the fan 200 is a base wall of the casing 103.

In alternative embodiments not illustrated but equivalent, the base wall 103 is a base wall of the cap 102.

The stator 106 comprises a plurality of pole shoes 109 and phase wires 1 10 which are wound on the pole shoes 109.

The wires 1 10 which are wound on the pole shoes 109 form a plurality of coils 1 1 1 which, in the example illustrated, constitute the stator winding 1 12.

With reference to Figure 3, it can be seen how each coil 1 1 1 has two end portions 1 1 1 a which are aligned with each other according to a line parallel with the axis R.

The base wall 103 comprises a projection 1 13 projecting towards the inside of the casing 101 according to a line parallel with the axis R of rotation.

In other words, the projection 1 13 extends away from the lying plane of the base wall 103 towards an inner space of the electric motor 100, in particular of the casing 101 .

In the preferred embodiment illustrated, the projection 1 13 is substantially annular and extends about the axis R of rotation.

The projection 1 13 is concentric with the lateral wall 104 of the casing 101 and delimits, with the lateral wall 104 of the casing 101 , an annular channel 1 14.

As illustrated, the projection 1 13 delimits, on the inside, a space 1 15 which is substantially circular and outside the above-mentioned inner channel 1 14 inside the casing 101 .

The projection 1 13 is preferably part of the casing 101 and in use is formed on an inner face 103a of the base wall 103 facing towards the inside of the container 105.

The coils 1 1 1 engage with the projection 1 13 for heat exchange with the casing 101 by means of the projection 1 13.

More precisely, the stator 106 is inserted in the casing 101 in such a way that the coils 1 1 1 abut against the projection 1 13.

As illustrated, all of the end portions 1 1 1 a facing towards the base wall 103 of the casing 101 engage with the projection 1 13.

In particular, all of the end portions 1 1 1 a facing towards the base wall 103 of the casing 101 abut against the projection 1 13.

To guarantee suitable electrical insulation between the stator winding 1 12 and the casing 101 , the motor 100 comprises electrical insulating means interposed between the winding 1 12 and the projection 1 13.

Advantageously, the electrical insulating means can conduct heat in such a way as to optimise the heat exchange between the winding 1 12 and the casing 101 .

Preferably, the insulating means comprise a sheet or a piece 1 16 of a sheet of silpad® which guarantees suitable mechanical strength, thermal conductivity and electrical insulation.

With particular reference to Figures 3, 3a and 4, it can be seen how the motor 100, in particular the base wall 103 of the casing 101 , comprises, on an outer face 103b of it which is facing towards the outside of the casing 101 , a channel 1 17 for discharging the heat produced in the container 105, in particular by the stator 106.

The channel 1 17 is preferably annular and is coaxial with the axis R of rotation.

In particular with reference to Figures 3 and 3a, it can be seen how the channel 1 17 is preferably positioned, in the base wall 103, substantially at the projection 1 13, inside the casing 101 .

The projection 1 13 and the channel 1 17 are provided in the base wall 103 on opposite sides of the base wall, that is to say, respectively, on the inner face 103a and on the outer face 103b, substantially at the same location as each other.

In that way, most of the heat produced by the stator 106 is transferred to the base wall 103 by means of the projection 1 13 and from the base wall to the outside of the container 105, in particular into the channel 1 17, from where it dissipates.

The channel 1 17 comprises a base wall 1 18 and is laterally delimited by two lateral walls 1 19, 120 which are facing one another and preferably connected to the wall 1 18.

The base wall 1 18 preferably lies in a plane perpendicular to the axis R of rotation of the motor 100.

In the preferred embodiment illustrated, the wall 1 19 has a curvilinear profile.

The wall 120 has a straight profile and, in use, has a frustoconical extension.

Looking in more detail at the fan 200, it can be seen how it is preferably of the type made of plastic material and obtained by moulding.

The fan 200 is an axial fan provided for rotating preferably in the direction V of rotation so as to generate a main flow F1 which is directed towards the motor 100.

The fan 200 comprises a central hub 201 comprising a base wall 202 having an inner face 202a and an outer face 202b.

The hub 201 comprises a lateral wall 203 which is preferably cylindrical, extending from the base wall 202.

The base wall 202 and the lateral wall 203 are made as a single body and form a cup-shaped structure.

As indicated, the fan 200 is connected to the end 108a of the shaft, in a substantially known way, by means of the base wall 202, preferably in such a that the motor 100 is at least partly inserted in the hub 201 .

The fan 200 comprises a plurality of blades 204, each fixed to the hub 201 , preferably made in a single body with the hub.

Each blade 204 extends between a first end 204a proximal to the hub 201 and a second end 204b, opposite the first, distal from the hub 201 .

Each blade 204 comprises a first lateral profile 205 preferably forming a leading edge of the blade 204, and a second lateral profile 206 preferably forming a respective trailing edge of the blade 204.

The fan 200 comprises fluid conveying means which are associated with the base wall 202 for conveying air from the inside of the cup-shaped structure, that is to say, from the inside of the hub 201 , to the outside of the cup-shaped structure, that is to say, to the outside of the hub 201 , through the base wall 202.

In use, as is described in more detail below, the conveying means are shaped to take air from the inside of the cup-shaped structure and push it out of said structure.

The conveying means are positioned and shaped, as described below, at the channel 1 17 outside the base wall 103 for removing, in particular, the heat transferred into the channel 1 17 from the stator 106 by means of the projection 1 13.

In the preferred embodiment illustrated, the conveying means comprise a plurality of fluid, in particular air, extractors 207 which are associated with the base wall 202 of the hub 201 .

More precisely, the base wall 202 comprises a main portion 208 which is substantially flat and perpendicular to the axis R of rotation of the fan 200. The extractors 207 are made in a single body with the main portion 208 so that, overall, they form the base wall 202.

The extractors 207 are spaced at equal angles about the axis R and preferably distributed in such a way as to maximise their number in the base wall 202.

Each extractor 207 projects from the main portion 208 of the base wall 202 of the hub 201 towards the inside of the cup-shaped structure of the hub 201 .

Each extractor 207 comprises an end edge 209 fixed to the main portion 208 of the base wall 202 and an end profile 210 distanced from the main portion 208 of the base wall 202 of the hub 201 towards the inside of the cup-shaped structure.

Each extractor 207 is advantageously connected to the main portion 208 of the base wall 202 in particular by means of the edge 209.

Each extractor 207 comprises a concavity facing towards the outside of the cup-shaped structure formed by the hub 201 . In other words, the outer face 202b of the base wall 202 comprises the concavities of the extractors 207.

Each extractor 207 is formed by a curvilinear surface extending from the profile 210 to the corresponding edge 209.

The end profile 210 forms, for each extractor 207, a leading edge of it and is distanced from the main portion 208 of the base wall 202.

At each extractor 207 a corresponding opening 21 1 is formed between the extractor 207 itself and the main portion 208 of the base wall 202.

In use, the conveying means comprise the openings 21 1 for putting in fluid communication the inside of the cup-shaped structure and the outside of the hub 201 .

The openings 21 1 are delimited by the profile 210 of the corresponding extractor 207 and by a corresponding edge 212 of the main portion 208 of the base wall 202.

In use, the main portion 208 of the base wall 202 comprises the edges 212 of the openings 21 1.

The profiles 210 of the aerodynamic appendages 207 are angled, considering the direction V of rotation of the fan 200, like the leading edges 205 of the blades 204.

Advantageously, each profile 210 substantially overlaps, according to a line parallel with the axis R of rotation, the corresponding edge 212.

An infinitesimal deviation of the profile 210 relative to the edge 212 is allowed due to the fact that the fan 200 is moulded.

As illustrated in particular in Figures 3, 3a the profiles 210 of the extractors 207 are advantageously inserted, at least partly, in the channel 1 17.

Preferably, the outline of each profile 210 matches the outline of a corresponding flat section of the channel 1 17.

Each profile 210 comprises a first section 218 facing the base wall 1 18 of the channel 1 17, a second section 219 facing the lateral wall 1 19 of the channel 1 17 and a third section 220 facing the lateral wall 120 of the channel 1 17. In the preferred embodiment illustrated, the section 219 has a curvilinear profile, whilst the section 220 has a straight profile.

Preferably, the sections 218, 219, 220 of the profile 210 are connected to each other and are equidistant from the corresponding wall 1 18, 1 19, 120 of the channel 1 17.

As illustrated in particular in Figure 7, the fan 200 comprises a plurality of radial vanes 213 located inside the hub 201 .

Preferably, each vane 213 is positioned substantially at the profile 210 of a respective extractor 207.

Each vane extends radially from the lateral wall 203 of the hub 201 towards the axis R of rotation and is sized to rotate about the portion of casing inserted inside the hub 201 .

In use, during rotation of the fan 100 in the direction V each extractor 207 "gathers" with its own leading edge 210, the air present in the channel 1 17 and conveys it out of the cup-shaped structure through the corresponding opening 21 1 from which the air comes out.

In use, the extractors 207 produce a secondary flow F2 of warm air which combines with the main flow F1 produced by the fan 100.

In that way motor 100 cooling is optimised.

The projection 1 13 against which the stator winding 1 12 abuts absorbs heat from the stator 106 and transfers it to the casing 101 , in particular into the channel 1 17.

The fan 200, by means of the extractors 207, extracts heat from inside the hub 201 , in particular from the channel 1 17, and transfers it out of the cup- shaped structure.