Specification
FORM 2
THE PATENTS ACT, 1970
(39 of 1970)
&
THE PATENTS RULES, 2003
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION
[See section 10, Rule 13]
ELECTRIC MOTOR, AIR CONDITIONER, AND CONTROL BOARD;
MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC CORPORATION, A CORPORATION
ORGANISED AND EXISTING UNDER THE LAWS OF JAPAN, WHOSE
ADDRESS IS 7-3, MARUNOUCHI 2-CHOME, CHIYODA-KU, TOKYO
1008310, JAPAN
THE FOLLOWING SPECIFICATION PARTICULARLY DESCRIBES THE
INVENTION AND THE MANNER IN WHICH IT IS TO BE PERFORMED
2
DESCRIPTION
Field
[0001] The present disclosure relates to an electric
motor including an inverter, an air conditioner, and a
5 control board.
Background
[0002] Control of a conventional brushless directcurrent (DC) motor is a control that can be achieved by a
10 simple circuit configuration (including only a
combinational circuit), such as 120-degree conduction
control. Therefore, noise is hardly generated by a power
supply circuit. In brushless DC motor control of recent
years, complicated control such as 150-degree conduction
15 control, sine-wave conduction control, phase control, or
sensorless control is performed. As a result, the
complexity of a circuit configuration of a control unit
increases, and clock frequency also increases. This leads
to generation of a large amount of noise.
20 [0003] In the electric motor described in Patent
Literature 1, noise is removed by an inductor connected to
a power-supply line between a power-supply receiving unit
of a microcomputer and a reference-voltage power-supply
circuit that outputs a high voltage.
25
Citation List
Patent Literature
[0004] Patent Literature 1: Japanese Patent Application
Laid-open No. 2005-219625
30
Summary of Invention
Problem to be solved by the Invention
3
[0005] However, the technique of Patent Literature 1
described above has a problem in that noise reduction
measures are taken only for the reference-voltage powersupply circuit that outputs a high voltage, resulting in
5 insufficient noise reduction.
[0006] The present disclosure has been made in view of
the above, and an object of the present disclosure is to
obtain an electric motor capable of sufficiently reducing
noise.
10
Means to Solve the Problem
[0007] In order to solve the above-described problem and
achieve the object, an electric motor of the present
disclosure includes: a stator; a rotor; and a control board
15 that supplies current to the stator. The control board
includes: a high-voltage circuit connected to a highvoltage power supply; and a low-voltage circuit connected
to a low-voltage power supply. The high-voltage circuit
includes an inverter that converts an input direct-current
20 voltage into an alternating-current voltage and supplies
the alternating-current voltage to the stator, the lowvoltage circuit includes a control unit that controls the
inverter, and a first inductor is disposed on a low-voltage
power-supply line that is a line connecting the low-voltage
25 power supply and the low-voltage circuit.
Effects of the Invention
[0008] The electric motor according to the present
disclosure has an effect of enabling noise to be
30 sufficiently reduced.
Brief Description of Drawings
[0009] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration
4
example of an electric motor according to a first
embodiment.
FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a circuit
configuration of a built-in board included in the electric
5 motor according to the first embodiment.
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a first example of
disposing an inductor on the built-in board according to
the first embodiment.
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a second example of
10 disposing inductors on the built-in board according to the
first embodiment.
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a third example of
disposing inductors on the built-in board according to the
first embodiment.
15 FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a fourth example of
disposing inductors on the built-in board according to the
first embodiment.
FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a circuit
configuration of a built-in board of a comparative example.
20 FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a first example of a
configuration of an upper surface of the built-in board
according to the first embodiment.
FIG. 9 is a diagram for describing a relationship
between temperature and inductance values.
25 FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a second example of the
configuration of the upper surface of the built-in board
according to the first embodiment.
FIG. 11 is a diagram schematically illustrating the
inside of the electric motor according to the first
30 embodiment.
FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating inductance frequency
characteristics of inductors included in the electric motor
according to the first embodiment.
5
FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a configuration example
of an air conditioner according to a second embodiment.
FIG. 14 is a diagram for describing a low-voltage
power-supply generation circuit included in an electric
5 motor of the air conditioner according to the second
embodiment.
FIG. 15 is a diagram showing a configuration example
of processing circuitry to be used in a case where a
control unit included in the electric motor according to
10 each of the first and second embodiments is implemented by
a processor and a memory.
FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of processing
circuitry to be used in a case where the control unit
included in the electric motor according to each of the
15 first and second embodiments is implemented by dedicated
hardware.
Description of Embodiments
[0010] Hereinafter, an electric motor, an air
20 conditioner, and a control board according to embodiments
of the present disclosure will be described in detail with
reference to the drawings.
[0011] First Embodiment.
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration example of
25 an electric motor according to a first embodiment. An
electric motor 1 is a brushless DC motor. In FIG. 1, the
electric motor 1 is partially illustrated in cross section
for describing the configuration of the electric motor 1.
Note that although FIG. 1 illustrates a radial-gap
30 brushless DC motor, the electric motor 1 of the first
embodiment is not limited to the radial-gap brushless DC
motor.
[0012] The electric motor 1 includes a rotor 30, a
6
stator 20, a built-in board 11, and a molding resin 12.
The built-in board 11 is a control board. A rotating shaft
31 is inserted in the rotor 30. The stator 20 is provided
on an outer periphery of the rotor 30. The built-in board
5 11 includes a plated circuit that is a circuit that
controls the driving of the rotor 30.
[0013] The stator 20, the built-in board 11, and the
molding resin 12 are fixed by a molded stator 10. The
stator 20 and the built-in board 11 are integrally molded
10 by the molded stator 10. That is, the stator 20 and the
built-in board 11 are fixed by the molded stator 10 so that
the stator 20 and the built-in board 11 are integrated with
each other. A recess is provided in the molded stator 10.
The recess is formed such that the rotor 30 can be
15 accommodated in the recess.
[0014] The built-in board 11 is integrated with the
stator 20 by the molding resin 12 (resin having a relative
permittivity of, for example, 3 to 4) having a permittivity
higher than the permittivity of air. Therefore, capacitive
20 coupling (parasitic capacitance) between board patterns
formed on the built-in board 11 increases, so that noise
easily propagates between the board patterns. In the first
embodiment, even when noise easily propagates as described
above, noise is reduced by an inductor to be described
25 below.
[0015] The stator 20 includes a plurality of stator
cores 21, an insulator 23, and a winding 22. The insulator
23 is integrally molded with the stator cores 21. The
stator cores 21 each include magnetic steel sheets
30 laminated together. The insulator 23 insulates the stator
cores 21 from the winding 22.
[0016] In the electric motor 1, the winding 22 is wound
around the stator cores 21, which is integrally molded with
7
the insulator 23, through each slot of the stator cores 21
to form the stator 20. The winding 22 is made of copper,
aluminum, or the like.
[0017] An output-side bearing 33 that rotatably supports
5 the rotating shaft 31 is provided on one end of the
rotating shaft 31. A counter-output-side bearing 34 that
rotatably supports the rotating shaft 31 is provided on
another end of the rotating shaft 31.
[0018] The counter-output-side bearing 34 is covered
10 with a bracket 60 that is electrically conductive. The
bracket 60 is configured such that a press-fitted portion
61 of the bracket 60 is fitted into an inner peripheral
portion of the molded stator 10 in such a way as to cover
an opening of the recess provided in the molded stator 10.
15 In addition, an outer ring of the counter-output-side
bearing 34 is fitted into the bracket 60.
[0019] The built-in board 11 includes a circuit
including a power integrated circuit (IC) (power IC 80 to
be described below), a control unit 70 to be described
20 below, and a magnetic sensor 50. The power IC 80 supplies
power to the winding 22. The magnetic sensor 50 detects
the position of the rotor 30.
[0020] The built-in board 11 is disposed perpendicular
to a direction of an axis of the rotating shaft 31, between
25 the output-side bearing 33 and the stator 20, and is fixed
to the insulator 23. Furthermore, the plated circuit of
the built-in board 11 and the winding 22 are connected via
a winding terminal. A lead exit portion 14 is disposed on
the built-in board 11. A lead wire 13 connecting to a host
30 system is drawn from the lead exit portion 14. The host
system is a system including the electric motor 1. For
example, the lead wire 13 is connected to a board (such as
an indoor-unit board 211 to be described below) on a unit
8
side of an air conditioner. In addition, passive elements
such as an operational amplifier, a comparator, a regulator,
a diode, a resistor, a capacitor, and a fuse are disposed
on the built-in board 11.
5 [0021] The built-in board 11 has a disk shape, and has a
through hole formed in the center. The rotating shaft 31
is passed through the through hole provided in the built-in
board 11. The built-in board 11 is disposed inside the
electric motor 1 such that an upper surface and a bottom
10 surface are perpendicular to the direction of the axis of
the rotating shaft 31.
[0022] A rotor insulating portion 32 which is an annular
member is disposed on an outer peripheral portion of the
rotating shaft 31. The rotor 30 includes a magnet 40
15 disposed inside the molded stator 10. The magnet 40 is
located in such a way as to face the stator cores 21, on an
outer peripheral side of the rotating shaft 31 and the
rotor insulating portion 32. The magnet 40 includes a
cylindrical permanent magnet. The magnet 40 is fixed to
20 the rotating shaft 31.
[0023] The magnet 40 is produced by injection molding of
a ferrite magnet or a bonded magnet formed by a mixture of
a rare-earth magnet (a samarium-iron-nitrogen, a neodymium,
or the like) with a thermoplastic resin material. A magnet
25 is built into a metal mold for injection molding of the
magnet 40, and the magnet 40 is molded while being oriented.
[0024] The magnet 40 includes a sensor-magnet portion
and a main-magnet portion in the direction of the axis of
the rotating shaft 31. The sensor-magnet portion is part
30 of the magnet 40 closer to the magnetic sensor 50. The
rest of the magnet 40 serves as the main-magnet portion.
The sensor-magnet portion causes the magnetic sensor 50 to
detect the position of the rotor 30. The main-magnet
9
portion causes the rotor 30 to generate a turning force
according to magnetic flux generated by the winding 22.
[0025] The magnet 40 is smaller in outer diameter on a
side closer to the magnetic sensor 50 of the built-in board
5 11. That is, in the magnet 40, the outer diameter of the
sensor-magnet portion is smaller than the outer shape of
the main-magnet portion. This shape of the magnet 40
allows magnetic flux to easily flow into the magnetic
sensor 50 mounted on the built-in board 11. In order to
10 minimize the effect of the magnetic flux generated by the
winding 22 of the stator 20, the magnetic sensor 50 is
located away from the winding 22, that is, located closer
to the rotating shaft 31.
[0026] Note that although FIG. 1 illustrates a case
15 where the main-magnet portion and the sensor-magnet portion
are included in the single magnet 40, the main-magnet
portion and the sensor-magnet portion may be provided as
separate magnets.
[0027] A Hall IC that outputs digital signals may be
20 used as the magnetic sensor 50. Alternatively, a Hall
element that outputs analog signals may be used as the
magnetic sensor 50. That is, the magnetic sensor 50 may
detect the position of the rotor 30 by using a Hall IC, or
may detect the position of the rotor 30 by using a Hall
25 element.
[0028] In addition, the Hall IC may be a Hall IC (Hall
IC of a first method) that detects the position of the
rotor 30 by the first method, or may be a Hall IC (Hall IC
of a second method) that detects the position of the rotor
30 30 by the second method.
[0029] In the Hall IC of the first method, a sensor
portion and an amplification portion are formed of separate
semiconductor chips. In the Hall IC of the first method,
10
the sensor portion is made of a semiconductor other than
silicon, and the amplification portion is made of silicon.
Hereinafter, the Hall IC of the first method is referred to
as a non-silicon Hall IC. In the Hall IC of the second
5 method, a sensor portion and an amplification portion are
included in a single silicon semiconductor chip.
[0030] Two chips are built into the non-silicon Hall IC.
Therefore, the sensor portion is disposed such that the
center of the sensor portion does not coincide with the
10 center of an IC body. A non-silicon semiconductor such as
indium antimonide (InSb) is used for the sensor portion of
the non-silicon Hall IC. Non-silicon semiconductors are
advantageous in that non-silicon semiconductors have better
sensitivity than silicon semiconductors, and that offset
15 due to stress strain in non-silicon semiconductors is
smaller than in silicon semiconductors.
[0031] Next, a circuit configuration of the built-in
board 11 illustrated in FIG. 1 will be described. FIG. 2
is a diagram illustrating a circuit configuration of the
20 built-in board included in the electric motor according to
the first embodiment. FIG. 2 illustrates the built-in
board 11, the winding 22, and the magnetic sensors 50.
[0032] The built-in board 11 includes an inductor 73A
disposed on a low-voltage power-supply line as a
25 countermeasure against noise. Details of the inductor 73A
provided as a countermeasure against noise will be
described below.
[0033] The built-in board 11 includes an inverter IC and
an overcurrent detection resistor 75. The inverter IC
30 controls the driving of the electric motor 1 including the
winding 22. Specifically, the built-in board 11 includes
the power IC 80, the control unit 70, and the overcurrent
detection resistor 75. The power IC 80 includes an
11
inverter 81, a gate drive circuit 82, and a protection
circuit 83.
[0034] The control unit 70 is connected to the host
system, the gate drive circuit 82, a ground 79A, and the
5 magnetic sensors 50. Furthermore, the control unit 70 is
connected to a low-voltage power supply 78 via a connection
point 48. The inductor 73A is disposed between the
connection point 48 and the low-voltage power supply 78.
That is, the control unit 70 is connected to the low10 voltage power supply 78 via the connection point 48 and the
inductor 73A. In addition, the control unit 70 is
connected to a ground 79C via a connection point 41, a
connection point 42, and the overcurrent detection resistor
75.
15 [0035] The gate drive circuit 82 is connected to the
low-voltage power supply 78 via the connection point 48 and
the inductor 73A, and is connected to a high-voltage power
supply 77 via a connection point 47. The low-voltage power
supply 78 outputs a voltage lower than a voltage of the
20 high-voltage power supply 77. The high-voltage power
supply 77 is a bus power supply.
[0036] Furthermore, the gate drive circuit 82 is
connected to the inverter 81. In addition, the gate drive
circuit 82 is connected to the protection circuit 83 and a
25 ground 79B via a connection point 43.
[0037] The protection circuit 83 is connected to the
connection point 41 and the connection point 43. That is,
the protection circuit 83 is connected to the ground 79C
via the connection point 41, the connection point 42, and
30 the overcurrent detection resistor 75. In addition, the
protection circuit 83 is connected to the ground 79B via
the connection point 43.
[0038] The inverter 81 is connected to the electric
12
motor 1 including the winding 22. In addition, the
inverter 81 is connected to the ground 79C via the
connection point 42 and the overcurrent detection resistor
75. The grounds 79A to 79C are common grounds having the
5 same potential. In the following description, the grounds
79A to 79C are collectively referred to as a ground 79.
[0039] The power IC 80 is also referred to as an
intelligent power module (IPM). The inverter 81 includes
six power transistors 81A to 81F.
10 [0040] In the power IC 80, the six power transistors 81A
to 81F may be separately provided, or may be provided as a
single IC. In a case where the six power transistors 81A
to 81F are separately provided, the gate drive circuit 82
may be provided as a single IC, or may include three ICs
15 provided separately for three phases. In addition, the
gate drive circuit 82 and the control unit 70 may be
provided as a single IC. Furthermore, the control unit 70
may include a single dedicated IC (control IC), or may
include a microcomputer (hereinafter, referred to as a
20 microcomputer) or the like.
[0041] The power transistors 81A to 81F each include a
super-junction metal oxide semiconductor field effect
transistor (MOSFET), a planar MOSFET, an insulated gate
bipolar transistor (IGBT), or the like.
25 [0042] In the first embodiment, a description will be
given of a case where the magnetic sensor 50 detects
positions of magnetic poles of the rotor 30 corresponding
to a position of magnetic flux, and the built-in board 11
controls the electric motor 1 based on the positions of the
30 magnetic poles. Note that the built-in board 11 may
perform sensorless control of the electric motor 1 while
estimating the positions of the magnetic poles from a
current flowing through the winding 22 and voltages applied
13
to and generated by the winding 22. Furthermore, in order
to detect a current, the built-in board 11 may amplify a
current signal obtained by use of a shunt resistor and a
current sensor, with an operational amplifier or the like.
5 In addition, the built-in board 11 may use a comparator to
generate, from the current signal, a signal for overcurrent
protection to be provided to the control unit 70.
[0043] On the built-in board 11, a voltage (for example,
15 V) for driving the gates of the power transistors 81A to
10 81F may be different from a microcomputer power-supply
voltage (for example, 5 V) that is a voltage for driving
the control unit 70 such as a microcomputer. In this case,
the electric motor 1 uses a regulator to generate another
power supply from one power supply provided from the
15 outside. For example, a power supply of 15 V is provided
to the built-in board 11 from the outside, and the
regulator generates a power supply of 5 V and provides the
power supply to the built-in board 11. The regulator may
be built into the gate drive circuit 82 or the power IC 80.
20 [0044] The inverter 81 converts an input direct-current
voltage into an alternating-current voltage for three
phases including a U phase, a V phase, and a W phase, and
supplies the alternating-current voltage to the winding 22
of the stator 20. The power transistor 81A is a U-phase
25 upper-arm power transistor. The power transistor 81B is a
V-phase upper-arm power transistor. The power transistor
81C is a W-phase upper-arm power transistor. The power
transistor 81D is a U-phase lower-arm power transistor.
The power transistor 81E is a V-phase lower-arm power
30 transistor. The power transistor 81F is a W-phase lowerarm power transistor.
[0045] The electric motor 1 includes, as the winding 22,
a U-phase winding 22U, a V-phase winding 22V, and a W-phase
14
winding 22W. The U-phase winding 22U is connected to the
power transistors 81A and 81D. The V-phase winding 22V is
connected to the power transistors 81B and 81E. The Wphase winding 22W is connected to the power transistors 81C
5 and 81F.
[0046] The gate drive circuit 82 controls the turning-on
and turning-off of the power transistors 81A to 81F
according to switching signals received from the control
unit 70.
10 [0047] Three magnetic sensors 50 are disposed around the
winding 22. Each of the three magnetic sensors 50 outputs,
to the control unit 70, a magnetic-pole position signal
corresponding to the position of the rotor 30.
[0048] The protection circuit 83 protects the inverter
15 81 and the gate drive circuit 82. For example, the
protection circuit 83 prevents a high current from flowing
back to the gate drive circuit 82 from the ground 79. In
addition, when at least one of the inverter 81 and the gate
drive circuit 82 has a high temperature, the protection
20 circuit 83 turns off all the power transistors 81A to 81F
of the inverter 81 to prevent element destruction due to
high temperature.
[0049] The overcurrent detection resistor 75 is
connected to lower-arm switches included in the power
25 transistors 81D to 81F. In addition, the built-in board 11
includes an overcurrent detection unit (not illustrated)
that detects an overcurrent. The overcurrent detection
unit prevents an overcurrent from flowing through the
winding 22 and achieves overcurrent protection by
30 monitoring the voltage of the overcurrent detection
resistor 75 so as to turn off the power transistors 81A to
81F when the voltage of the overcurrent detection resistor
75 reaches or exceeds a specific voltage value. The fact
15
that a voltage across the overcurrent detection resistor 75
reaches or exceeds the specific voltage value corresponds
to an overcurrent detection signal to be input from the
overcurrent detection resistor 75 to the control unit 70.
5 The overcurrent detection unit achieves overcurrent
protection based on the overcurrent detection signal. Note
that the overcurrent detection unit may be built into the
control unit 70, or may be built into the gate drive
circuit 82.
10 [0050] Note that a temperature-sensitive element (not
illustrated) may be provided on the built-in board 11 or
the like. In this case, when receiving a signal indicating
an anomalous temperature from the temperature-sensitive
element, the control unit 70 forcibly turns off the power
15 transistors 81A to 81F.
[0051] The control unit 70 generates switching signals
for controlling the turning-on and turning-off of the power
transistors 81A to 81F at a specific frequency (hereinafter,
referred to as a carrier frequency) according to a speed
20 command signal received from the host system.
[0052] The control unit 70 performs pulse width
modulation (PWM) control on the power transistors 81A to
81F by outputting the switching signals to the gate drive
circuit 82. The control unit 70 estimates positions of the
25 magnetic poles of the rotor 30 based on the magnetic-pole
position signal input from the magnetic sensor 50, and
calculates a rotational speed of the rotor 30 from the
estimated positions of the magnetic poles. The control
unit 70 outputs a rotational speed signal indicating the
30 calculated rotational speed to the host system.
[0053] Note that the control unit 70 may be a dedicated
IC such as an application specific integrated circuit
(ASIC). Furthermore, the control unit 70 may include a
16
memory that stores a program and a central processing unit
(CPU) that executes processing according to the program. A
hardware configuration of the control unit 70 will be
described below.
5 [0054] In the case of three phases, the electric motor 1,
which is a brushless DC motor, obtains rotational power by
switching the six power transistors 81A to 81F at
appropriate timings according to the positions of the
magnetic poles of the magnet 40 of the rotor 30. Switching
10 signals to be used for the switching are generated by the
control unit 70. The operation principle of the electric
motor 1 will be described.
[0055] In the electric motor 1, the control unit 70
estimates the positions of the magnetic poles of the rotor
15 30 based on the magnetic-pole position signal from the
magnetic sensor 50 or a value of current flowing through
the winding 22. The control unit 70 generates switching
signals for switching the power transistors 81A to 81F
according to the positions of the magnetic poles of the
20 rotor 30 and the speed command signal output from the host
system. The gate drive circuit 82 performs switching
between the turning-on and turning-off of the power
transistors 81A to 81F according to the switching signals
generated by the control unit 70.
25 [0056] For example, in the 120-degree conduction control,
timings for the switching between the turning-on and
turning-off of the six power transistors 81A to 81F
coincide with the rising edge and falling edge of each of
detection signals regarding detection by three Hall ICs.
30 Therefore, in the 120-degree conduction control, the
control unit 70 can be implemented by a combinational
circuit requiring no clock.
[0057] Meanwhile, in the case of control requiring
17
estimation of positions of magnetic poles, such as 150-
degree conduction control, sine-wave conduction control,
phase control, or sensorless control, the control unit 70
includes a complicated digital circuit including a clock.
5 For example, timing between the rising edge and falling
edge of each of the detection signals regarding detection
by the three Hall ICs is finely estimated in estimation of
positions of magnetic poles.
[0058] Sensorless control is control that does not use
10 the magnetic sensor 50. In the sensorless control,
positions of magnetic poles are estimated from a value of
current detected by a current detection resistor, a current
detection transformer, or the like, to perform control.
That is, in the case of the sensorless control, the control
15 unit 70 estimates positions of magnetic poles based on a
current flowing through the winding 22 and a voltage
applied to the winding 22, and thus, complicated processing
and calculation are required. Therefore, in the case of
the sensorless control, the complexity of the circuit of
20 the control unit 70 further increases, and it is necessary
to increase clock frequency in the control unit 70.
[0059] For example, in order to achieve noise reduction,
higher efficiency, and stable control, the clock frequency
of the control unit 70 is 100 times or more a carrier
25 frequency that is a frequency at which the power
transistors 81A to 81F are switched.
[0060] Next, the inductor 73A disposed on the built-in
board 11 as a countermeasure against noise will be
described. In the first embodiment, the inductor 73A is
30 disposed on the low-voltage power-supply line of the builtin board 11 as a countermeasure against noise. Noise in
the first embodiment refers to noise (electromagnetic
interference (EMI)) generated by the electric motor 1 and a
18
product equipped with the electric motor 1. This noise
includes noise of a noise terminal voltage, noise of noise
power, radiation noise, and the like.
[0061] The low-voltage power-supply line is a line
5 connecting the low-voltage power supply 78 and a circuit
(low-voltage circuit) that operates at a low voltage on the
built-in board 11. In addition, an inductor may be
disposed on a high-voltage power-supply line of the builtin board 11. The high-voltage power-supply line is a line
10 connecting the high-voltage power supply 77 and a circuit
(high-voltage circuit) that operates at a high voltage on
the built-in board 11.
[0062] Furthermore, an inductor may be disposed on a
ground (GND) line of the built-in board 11. The ground
15 line is a line connecting the ground 79 and a circuit on
the built-in board 11. Note that a ground line for a lowvoltage circuit and a ground line for a high-voltage
circuit may be separately disposed as ground lines on the
built-in board 11.
20 [0063] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a first example of
disposing an inductor on the built-in board according to
the first embodiment. On the built-in board 11, a lowvoltage circuit 72 is connected to the low-voltage power
supply 78, and a high-voltage circuit 71 is connected to
25 the high-voltage power supply 77. In addition, the lowvoltage circuit 72 and the high-voltage circuit 71 are
connected to a connection point 45, and the connection
point 45 is connected to the ground 79. The low-voltage
circuit 72 includes, for example, a digital circuit
30 including a sequential circuit.
[0064] The low-voltage circuit 72 includes a first
circuit, the control unit 70, and the protection circuit 83.
The first circuit is part of the gate drive circuit 82.
19
The high-voltage circuit 71 includes a second circuit and
the inverter 81. The second circuit is part of the gate
drive circuit 82. In the gate drive circuit 82, the first
circuit included in the low-voltage circuit 72 and the
5 second circuit included in the high-voltage circuit 71 are
different circuits.
[0065] In the first example of disposing an inductor on
the built-in board 11, a single inductor, that is, the
inductor 73A is disposed. The inductor 73A, which is a
10 first inductor, is disposed on a low-voltage power-supply
line connecting the low-voltage circuit 72 and the lowvoltage power supply 78. With this configuration, the
built-in board 11 can reduce noise generated on the builtin board 11 by means of the inductor 73A.
15 [0066] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a second example of
disposing inductors on the built-in board according to the
first embodiment. In the second example of disposing
inductors on the built-in board 11, two inductors 73A and
73B are disposed. The inductor 73B, which is a second
20 inductor, is disposed on a high-voltage power-supply line
connecting the high-voltage circuit 71 and the high-voltage
power supply 77. With this configuration, the built-in
board 11 can reduce noise generated on the built-in board
11 by means of the inductors 73A and 73B.
25 [0067] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a third example of
disposing inductors on the built-in board according to the
first embodiment. In the third example of disposing
inductors on the built-in board 11, three inductors 73A to
73C are disposed. The inductor 73C is disposed on a ground
30 line connecting the connection point 45 and the ground 79.
With this configuration, the built-in board 11 can reduce
noise generated on the built-in board 11 by means of the
inductors 73A to 73C.
20
[0068] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a fourth example of
disposing inductors on the built-in board according to the
first embodiment. In the fourth example of disposing
inductors on the built-in board 11, four inductors 73A, 73B,
5 73D, and 73E are disposed. The inductor 73D is disposed on
a ground line connecting the low-voltage circuit 72 and the
connection point 45. The inductor 73E is disposed on a
ground line connecting the high-voltage circuit 71 and the
connection point 45. With this configuration, the built-in
10 board 11 can reduce noise generated on the built-in board
11 by means of the inductors 73A, 73B, 73D, and 73E.
[0069] FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a circuit
configuration of a built-in board of a comparative example.
The built-in board of the comparative example includes a
15 low-voltage circuit 72X and a high-voltage circuit 71X.
The low-voltage circuit 72X is a circuit similar to the
low-voltage circuit 72, and the high-voltage circuit 71X is
a circuit similar to the high-voltage circuit 71.
[0070] The low-voltage circuit 72X is connected to a
20 low-voltage power supply 78X that is a power supply similar
to the low-voltage power supply 78. The high-voltage
circuit 71X is connected to a high-voltage power supply 77X
that is a power supply similar to the high-voltage power
supply 77. Furthermore, the low-voltage circuit 72X and
25 the high-voltage circuit 71X are connected to a connection
point 45X that is a connection point similar to the
connection point 45, and the connection point 45X is
connected to a ground 79X.
[0071] On the built-in board of the comparative example,
30 no inductor is disposed on a low-voltage power-supply line
connecting the low-voltage circuit 72X and the low-voltage
power supply 78X. In addition, no inductor is disposed on
a high-voltage power-supply line connecting the high-
21
voltage circuit 71X and the high-voltage power supply 77X.
Furthermore, no inductor is disposed on a ground line from
the low-voltage circuit 72X to the ground 79X, and no
inductor is disposed on a ground line from the high-voltage
5 circuit 71X to the ground 79X. Therefore, the built-in
board of the comparative example cannot reduce noise
generated on the built-in board of the comparative example.
[0072] FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a first example of a
configuration of an upper surface of the built-in board
10 according to the first embodiment. The configuration of
the upper surface of the built-in board 11 illustrated in
FIG. 5 will be described with reference to FIG. 8. As
illustrated in FIG. 8, the built-in board 11 has a disk
shape, and has a through hole 35 formed in the center. The
15 rotating shaft 31 is passed through the through hole 35.
[0073] The power IC 80, which supplies power to the
winding 22, the inductors 73A to 73C, and the control unit
70 are disposed on the upper surface of the built-in board
11. Note that although not illustrated, the overcurrent
20 detection resistor 75 and the like are disposed on the
upper surface or bottom surface of the built-in board 11.
[0074] The inductors 73A to 73C are disposed closer to
the lead exit portion 14 than to the power IC 80 including
the power transistors 81A to 81F. That is, the inductors
25 73A to 73C are located such that distances to the lead exit
portion 14 are shorter than distances to the power IC 80.
[0075] As a result, the inductors 73A to 73C are less
likely to be affected by heat radiated by the power
transistors 81A to 81F, so that temperature-induced changes
30 in inductance values of the inductors 73A to 73C decrease.
When an inductance value fluctuates, noise reduction effect
decreases due to unmatched impedance or the like.
Meanwhile, noise reduction effect increases in the first
22
embodiment because a change in the inductance value is
small. That is, the inductors 73A to 73C are less likely
to be affected by heat radiated by the power transistors
81A to 81F. Therefore, the built-in board 11 can prevent
5 noise removal performance from being changed by a change in
an inductance value due to temperature characteristics of
the inductors 73A to 73C.
[0076] In addition, since the inductors 73A to 73C are
disposed closer to the lead exit portion 14 than to the
10 power IC 80, wiring on the built-in board 11 is facilitated.
As a result, the built-in board 11 can be reduced in size,
and the manufacturing cost of the electric motor 1 can be
reduced by the reduction in the size of the built-in board
11. In addition, since the length of wiring of the built15 in board 11 is shortened by the reduction in the size of
the built-in board 11, noise can be reduced.
[0077] Furthermore, in the case of an inductor having
inductance negatively correlated with temperature,
impedance generally decreases due to an increase in
20 temperature, and thus noise reduction effect may be greatly
deteriorated. Note that the case where inductance is
negatively correlated with temperature is not limited to a
case where inductance is negatively correlated with an
entire temperature range, but also includes a case where
25 inductance is negatively correlated with a temperature that
falls within part of the temperature range (negatively
correlated with a temperature of, for example, 60°C or
higher).
[0078] FIG. 9 is a diagram for describing a relationship
30 between temperature and inductance values. In a graph
illustrated in FIG. 9, the horizontal axis represents
temperature, and the vertical axis represents the value of
inductance. FIG. 9 illustrates an inductance temperature
23
characteristic for each current magnitude.
[0079] An inductance temperature characteristic 74A is
an inductance temperature characteristic to be obtained
when a current having a first current value flows through
5 an inductor. An inductance temperature characteristic 74B
is an inductance temperature characteristic to be obtained
when a current having a second current value flows through
the inductor. An inductance temperature characteristic 74C
is an inductance temperature characteristic to be obtained
10 when a current having a third current value flows through
the inductor. The following holds: first current
value
Documents
Application Documents
| # |
Name |
Date |
| 1 |
202327084432-TRANSLATIOIN OF PRIOIRTY DOCUMENTS ETC. [11-12-2023(online)].pdf |
2023-12-11 |
| 2 |
202327084432-STATEMENT OF UNDERTAKING (FORM 3) [11-12-2023(online)].pdf |
2023-12-11 |
| 3 |
202327084432-REQUEST FOR EXAMINATION (FORM-18) [11-12-2023(online)].pdf |
2023-12-11 |
| 4 |
202327084432-PROOF OF RIGHT [11-12-2023(online)].pdf |
2023-12-11 |
| 5 |
202327084432-POWER OF AUTHORITY [11-12-2023(online)].pdf |
2023-12-11 |
| 6 |
202327084432-FORM 18 [11-12-2023(online)].pdf |
2023-12-11 |
| 7 |
202327084432-FORM 1 [11-12-2023(online)].pdf |
2023-12-11 |
| 8 |
202327084432-FIGURE OF ABSTRACT [11-12-2023(online)].pdf |
2023-12-11 |
| 9 |
202327084432-DRAWINGS [11-12-2023(online)].pdf |
2023-12-11 |
| 10 |
202327084432-DECLARATION OF INVENTORSHIP (FORM 5) [11-12-2023(online)].pdf |
2023-12-11 |
| 11 |
202327084432-COMPLETE SPECIFICATION [11-12-2023(online)].pdf |
2023-12-11 |
| 12 |
202327084432-RELEVANT DOCUMENTS [02-01-2024(online)].pdf |
2024-01-02 |
| 13 |
202327084432-MARKED COPIES OF AMENDEMENTS [02-01-2024(online)].pdf |
2024-01-02 |
| 14 |
202327084432-FORM 13 [02-01-2024(online)].pdf |
2024-01-02 |
| 15 |
202327084432-AMMENDED DOCUMENTS [02-01-2024(online)].pdf |
2024-01-02 |
| 16 |
Abstract1.jpg |
2024-03-30 |
| 17 |
202327084432-FORM 3 [15-05-2024(online)].pdf |
2024-05-15 |