Current Sensors

Abstract

A current sensor capable of suppressing short circuits between bus bars comprises: a plurality of plate-shaped bus bars; a magnetic detection unit for detecting a magnetic field formed when current flows through each bus bar; and a housing for integrally holding the plurality of bus bars, wherein the plurality of bus bars are arranged along a first direction, and at least a portion of the bus bars comprises: a first conductor portion extending in the first direction; a second conductor portion connected to one end of the first conductor portion and extending in a second direction intersecting the first direction; and a third conductor portion connected to the other end of the first conductor portion and extending in a third direction, wherein the plurality of bus bars at least include a first bus bar and a second bus bar whose width of the first conductor portion is greater than its thickness and which are adjacent in the first direction, and wherein the first conductor portion of the first bus bar and the first conductor portion of the second bus bar are spaced a certain distance apart in the second direction when viewed from the third direction.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a current sensor for detecting currents flowing through a plurality of bus bars of an inverter. Background Art

[0002] As one of the main components of the driving part of electric vehicles, the inverter is used to control the main motor of the vehicle to provide power for the vehicle. In order to extend the driving range of electric vehicles today, it is hoped that more electrical energy can be stored in a limited space and weight. Therefore, there is an urgent need to increase the energy density of batteries and inverters, and further achieve miniaturization and lightweight.

[0003] In addition, the current design uses multiple busbars to connect the inverter and the motor. Since there is a need to detect the output of the inverter, a current sensor is provided to detect the current flowing in each busbar. Such a current sensor includes multiple busbars and a detection unit to detect the current flowing in each busbar.

[0004] In order to pursue the miniaturization and weight reduction of the drive part of electric vehicles, there is a trend to integrate the inverter and the motor. Therefore, the size of the current sensor used to connect the inverter and the motor needs to be designed to be smaller.

[0005] The busbar is usually composed of a long metal plate. When multiple busbars are arranged in a direction in the current sensor, both ends of each busbar are exposed to the outside of the current sensor, and the connecting part at the central end of each busbar is located inside the current sensor, and the surfaces of the metal plates of the connecting part are parallel to each other and arranged in the same direction in the current sensor.

[0006] In order to miniaturize the current sensor, it is considered to reduce the pitch between the parallel connection parts as much as possible. However, when the number of arranged bus bars increases, the length of the connection parts will become longer. During insert molding, the longer connection parts may be bent by the filling pressure of the liquid resin, so there is a risk that the connection parts of the bus bars will contact each other and short-circuit.

[0007] As a method to prevent the bus bars from short-circuiting due to contact with each other, it is possible to consider staggering the above-mentioned connecting parts in sequence in a direction orthogonal to the arrangement direction of the multiple bus bars so that at least a part does not overlap, and to provide positioning pins in the insert molding mold to press the above-mentioned connecting parts of each bus bar during the molding process. However, this will not only cause the size of the current sensor in the direction orthogonal to the arrangement direction to become larger, but also the insert molding mold will become complicated and the mold processing difficulty will increase. Summary of the invention

[0008] The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and provides a current sensor capable of suppressing the occurrence of a short circuit between bus bars.

[0009] The current sensor of the present invention comprises: a plurality of plate-shaped bus bars; a magnetic detection unit, which is arranged corresponding to each of the bus bars and detects a magnetic field formed when a current flows in each of the bus bars; and a housing, which holds the plurality of bus bars integrally with the plurality of bus bars. The current sensor is characterized in that the plurality of bus bars are arranged in a first direction, and at least a part of the plurality of bus bars has: a first conductor portion, which extends in the first direction; a second conductor portion, which is connected to one end of the first conductor portion and extends in a second direction intersecting the first direction; and a third conductor portion, which is connected to the other end of the first conductor portion and extends in a second direction intersecting the first direction. The busbars are extended in a third direction intersecting the first direction and the second direction, the dimension of the first conductor portion extending along the first direction is set to the length of the first conductor portion, the dimension of the first conductor portion in the second direction is set to the width of the first conductor portion, and the dimension of the first conductor portion in the third direction is set to the thickness of the first conductor portion. The at least part of the busbars include a first busbar and a second busbar whose width is greater than the thickness of the first conductor portion and are adjacent to each other in the first direction. When observed from the third direction, the first conductor portion of the first busbar and the first conductor portion of the second busbar are spaced a certain distance apart in the second direction.

[0010] When insert molding the busbar in the housing, since the second conductor portion and the third conductor portion are respectively close to both sides of the third direction, they can be easily held by a mold (not shown) during insert molding, so they are unlikely to bend even if they are filled with pressure from the flowing resin. However, the first conductor portion located in the center in the third direction is usually not held by the mold, or only a part of the first conductor portion can be held by the mold. In this state, for a busbar in which the width of the first conductor portion is larger than the thickness, the surface areas of the two surfaces of the first conductor portion facing the third direction are large, and these two surfaces are easily bent in the third direction due to the filling pressure of the resin.

[0011] According to such a current sensor, by configuring the two adjacent first conductor parts in the bus bar not to overlap in the second direction and to be spaced a certain distance apart, the insulation distance between the two adjacent first conductor parts in the third direction becomes sufficiently large, and even if one of the first conductor parts is bent in the third direction, the first conductor part can be prevented from swinging in the third direction and causing a short circuit. Furthermore, since the sufficient insulation distance is ensured by the above structure, the number of positioning pins provided in the insert molding mold can be reduced, and the difficulty of mold processing can be reduced.

[0012] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned current sensor, the first direction is the length direction of the current sensor, the second direction is the width direction of the current sensor orthogonal to the length direction, and the third direction is the height direction of the current sensor orthogonal to both the length direction and the width direction.

[0013] According to such a current sensor, since the first direction is the length direction of the current sensor, the first conductor portion of the busbar extending along the first direction may have a longer span, which is more likely to bend. The structure of the present invention can ensure that even if the first conductor portion with a longer span bends, the occurrence of a short circuit can be suppressed.

[0014] In addition, in the above-mentioned current sensor, when any one of the multiple bus bars in which the width of the first conductor portion is greater than the thickness is used as a reference bus bar, and the bus bars arranged on both sides of the first direction relative to the reference bus bar are used as comparison bus bars, the first conductor portions of the two comparison bus bars are arranged on the same side in the second direction relative to the first conductor portion of the reference bus bar.

[0015] According to such a current sensor, if the first conductor portions of the comparison busbars are respectively arranged on different sides in the second direction, the size of the current sensor in the second direction will become larger as the number of busbars increases. According to the current sensor of this embodiment, the size of the current sensor in the second direction can be significantly reduced compared to the case where the first conductor portions of the comparison busbars are respectively arranged on different sides in the second direction.

[0016] Furthermore, in the above current sensor, in the second direction, the distances between the first conductor portions of the two comparison bus bars and the first conductor portion of the reference bus bar are the same.

[0017] According to such a current sensor, the size of the current sensor in the second direction can be further reduced when the distances between the first conductor portions of the two comparison bus bars and the first conductor portion of the reference bus bar are the same, compared with the case where the distances between the first conductor portions of the two comparison bus bars and the first conductor portion of the reference bus bar are different.

[0018] Furthermore, in the above current sensor, when viewed from the second direction, the first conductor portion of the first bus bar and the first conductor portion of the second bus bar are spaced apart from each other by a certain distance in the third direction.

[0019] According to such a current sensor, for any two bus bars adjacent to each other in the first direction, the two first conductors are spaced a certain distance apart in the third direction, thereby further preventing short circuits caused by deflection of the first conductors in the second direction.

[0020] In addition, in the above-mentioned current sensor, the plurality of busbars further include a fourth conductor portion connected to the second conductor portion and a first connection terminal portion connected to the fourth conductor portion, the first connection terminal portion can be connected to a first external component, and the third conductor portion includes a second connection terminal portion that can be connected to a second external component. The first external component is, for example, an inverter in an electric vehicle. The second external component is, for example, a motor of the electric vehicle. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0021] Figure 1 It is a perspective view of the current sensor according to the first embodiment.

[0022] Figure 2 It is an exploded perspective view of the current sensor according to the first embodiment.

[0023] Figure 3 This is an exploded perspective view of the housing and busbars in the current sensor.

[0024] Figure 4 This is a front view of the bus bar in the current sensor.

[0025] Figure 5 This is a bottom view of the bus bar in the current sensor.

[0026] Figure 6 is along Figure 4 A cross-sectional view of the A1-A2 line in FIG.

[0027] Figure 7 This is a front view of a bus bar in the current sensor according to Modification 1.

[0028] Caption of the attached figure:

[0029] 100 Current Sensor

[0030] 101 Housing

[0031] 102~112 Busbars

[0032] 102a to 112a first conductor portion

[0033] 102b~112b Second conductor part

[0034] 102c~112c Third conductor part

[0035] 102d~112d fourth conductor part

[0036] 102e to 112e first connection terminal portion

[0037] 102f to 112f Second connection terminal portion

[0038] 113 Current detection component

[0039] 114 Cover

[0040] 115 Output Component

[0041] 120 Circuit board body

[0042] 121 Detection element

[0043] 122 Output terminals

[0044] 123 Screw

[0045] 124 Metal Holes

[0046] X1-X2 direction: the length direction of the current sensor 100 (first direction)

[0047] Y1-Y2 direction: width direction of the current sensor 100 (second direction)

[0048] Z1-Z2 Direction: Height direction of the current sensor 100 (third direction) DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0049] (First Embodiment)

[0050] Next, as a first embodiment of the current sensor of the present invention, referring to Figure 1 to Figure 3 The overall structure of the current sensor 100 will be described.

[0051] In the drawings, the configuration and structure of each part are described using mutually orthogonal X-axis, Y-axis and Z-axis. The X1-X2 direction is described as the length direction of the current sensor, the Y1-Y2 direction is described as the width direction of the current sensor, and the Z1-Z2 direction is described as the height direction of the current sensor.

[0052] Figure 1 It is a perspective view of the current sensor 100 according to the first embodiment. Figure 2 It is an exploded perspective view of the current sensor 100 according to the first embodiment. Figure 3 It is an exploded perspective view of the case 101 and the bus bars 102 to 112 in the current sensor 100 .

[0053] like Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, the current sensor 100 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape and includes a housing 101 , a plurality of bus bars 102 to 112 , a current detection member 113 , a cover 114 , and two output members 115 .

[0054] like Figure 2As shown, the housing 101 and the plurality of bus bars 102 to 112 are integrally formed by insert molding, and the plurality of bus bars 102 to 112 are held. The housing 101 is made of synthetic resin, and the plurality of bus bars 102 to 112 are made of long strips of metal plates. In addition, the plurality of bus bars 102 to 112 are independent of each other (see Figure 3 ), and are arranged in sequence along the length direction (X1-X2 direction) of the current sensor 101. The specific structure of each bus bar 102-112 will be described later.

[0055] like Figure 2 As shown, the current detection component 113 includes a circuit board body 120 and a detection element 121. The circuit board body 120 is composed of a printed circuit board (PCB). A plurality of detection elements 121 are arranged on the circuit board body 120 at a certain distance along the X1-X2 direction. The plurality of detection elements 121 as magnetic detection parts are arranged corresponding to the bus bars 102-112, and the magnetic field formed when the current flows in each bus bar 102-112 is detected, thereby detecting the magnitude of the current.

[0056] Among them, according to the different characteristics of the current flowing in each bus bar, such as Figure 2 As shown, there is one detection element 121 corresponding to each of the bus bars 102 to 110 , and there are two detection elements 121 corresponding to each of the bus bars 111 and 112 .

[0057] Although not shown, magnetic shielding members are built into the housing 101 and the cover 114 at positions corresponding to the detection element 121, and each magnetic shielding member is formed into a square thin plate made of a magnetic shielding material such as silicon steel.

[0058] Furthermore, each output member 115 has ten metal output terminals 122 , and the output terminals 122 are used to output the current values ​​detected by the respective detection elements 121 to an inverter (not shown).

[0059] exist Figure 1 In the state shown, the housing 101, the current detection member 113 and the cover 111 are connected by a plurality of screws 123 (see Figure 2 ) are assembled together. At this time, the output terminal 115 is assembled in the housing 101, and the plurality of output terminals 122 are respectively inserted into the plurality of metal holes 124 on the circuit board body 120. The plurality of metal holes 124 are respectively electrically connected to the plurality of detection elements 121 via wiring not shown.

[0060] Below, refer to Figures 3 to 6 , the structure of the bus bars 102 to 112 in the current sensor 100 will be described in detail.

[0061] First, Figure 3 The general structure of the bus bars 102 to 112 will be described by taking the bus bar 112 located at the X1 end in FIG. 1 as an example.

[0062] The busbar 112 has at least: a first conductor portion 112a extending in the X1-X2 direction; a second conductor portion 112b connected to one end of the first conductor portion 112a (an end located on the X1 side) and extending in the Y1-Y2 direction; and a third conductor portion 112c connected to the other end of the first conductor portion 112a (an end located on the X2 side) and extending in the Z1-Z2 direction.

[0063] In addition, the bus bar 112 further includes a fourth conductor portion 112 d extending in the Z1 - Z2 direction and connected to the second conductor portion 112 b , and a first connection terminal portion 112 e extending in the Y1 - Y2 direction and connected to the fourth conductor portion 112 d .

[0064] The first connection terminal 112e is used to connect to an inverter (first external component) of an electric vehicle (not shown). The first connection terminal 112e and the inverter can be electrically connected by bolt connection, for example.

[0065] In addition, the third conductor portion 112c has a second connection terminal portion 112f connected to a motor (second external component) of the electric vehicle. The second connection terminal portion 112f is electrically connected to the motor by, for example, welding.

[0066] In addition, if Figure 3 As shown, each bus bar 102 to 112 is plate-shaped. For the sake of convenience, the dimension of the first conductor portion 102a to 112a of the bus bar 102 to 112 extending along the X1-X2 direction is referred to as the length of the first conductor portion 102a to 112a, the dimension of the first conductor portion 102a to 112a in the Y1-Y2 direction is referred to as the width of the first conductor portion 102a to 112a, and the dimension of the first conductor portion 102a to 112a in the Z1-Z2 direction is referred to as the thickness of the first conductor portion 102a to 112a.

[0067] Figure 4 It is a front view of the bus bars 102 to 112 in the current sensor 100 . Figure 5 It is a bottom view of the bus bars 102 to 112 in the current sensor 100 . Figure 6 is along Figure 4 A1-A2 line cross-sectional view in Fig. Figure 6 The first connection terminal portions 102e to 112e of the bus bars 102 to 112 are not shown. Figure 5 In comparison, the shapes of the first conductor portions 102 a - 112 a can be more clearly seen.

[0068] The bus bars 102 to 112 have different shapes. Figure 4 and Figure 6 As shown, the width w of the first conductor portions 102a to 105a and 109a to 112a of the bus bars 102 to 105 and 109 to 112 (see Figure 6 ) is greater than the thickness T (refer to Figure 4 ), the width w of the first conductor portions 106a and 107a of the busbars 106 and 107 is smaller than the thickness T. That is, the plurality of busbars 102 to 112 include at least the busbars 102 to 105 whose width w is larger than the thickness T and adjacent to each other in the X1-X2 direction, and the busbars 109 to 112 whose width W is larger than the thickness T and adjacent to each other in the X1-X2 direction.

[0069] Furthermore, when two adjacent bus bars in the X1-X2 direction among the bus bars 102-105 and 109-112 are divided into the first bus bar and the second bus bar, when viewed from the Z1-Z2 direction, Figure 6 As shown, the first conductor portion of the first bus bar and the first conductor portion of the second bus bar are spaced a certain distance apart in the Y1 - Y2 direction.

[0070] Specifically, the first conductor portion 102a of the busbar 102 and the first conductor portion 103a of the busbar 103 are spaced a certain distance apart in the Y1-Y2 direction, the first conductor portion 103a of the busbar 103 and the first conductor portion 104a of the busbar 104 are spaced a certain distance apart in the Y1-Y2 direction, the first conductor portion 104a of the busbar 104 and the first conductor portion 105a of the busbar 105 are spaced a certain distance apart in the Y1-Y2 direction, the first conductor portion 109a of the busbar 109 and the first conductor portion 110a of the busbar 110 are spaced a certain distance apart in the Y1-Y2 direction, the first conductor portion 110a of the busbar 110 and the first conductor portion 111a of the busbar 111 are spaced a certain distance apart in the Y1-Y2 direction, and the first conductor portion 111a of the busbar 111 and the first conductor portion 112a of the busbar 112 are spaced a certain distance apart in the Y1-Y2 direction.

[0071] In addition, when any one of the bus bars 102 to 105 and 109 to 112 whose first conductor portion has a width W greater than the thickness T is used as a reference bus bar and the bus bars arranged on both sides of the reference bus bar in the X1-X2 direction are used as comparison bus bars, the first conductor portions of the two comparison bus bars are arranged on the same side in the Y1-Y2 direction relative to the first conductor portion of the reference bus bar.

[0072] For example, in Figure 6In the example, when the bus bar 103 is used as the reference bus bar and the bus bars 102 and 104 are used as the comparison bus bars, the first conductor portion 102a of the bus bar 102 and the first conductor portion 104a of the bus bar 104 are both arranged on the same side in the Y1-Y2 direction with respect to the first conductor portion 103a of the bus bar 103. That is, the first conductor portion 102a and the first conductor portion 104a are both arranged on the Y2 direction side of the first conductor portion 103a.

[0073] In other words, although the first conductor portion 102a of the busbar 102 and the first conductor portion 104a of the busbar 104 are respectively arranged on both sides of the first conductor portion 103a of the busbar 103 (the X2 direction side and the X1 direction side) in the X1-X2 direction, the first conductor portion 102a of the busbar 102 and the first conductor portion 104a of the busbar 104 are not respectively arranged on both sides of the first conductor portion 103a of the busbar 103 (the Y1 direction side and the Y2 direction side) in the Y1-Y2 direction, but are arranged on the same side (the Y2 direction side).

[0074] In addition, in the present embodiment, the distances between the first conductor portions of the two comparison bus bars and the first conductor portion of the reference bus bar in the Y1-Y2 direction are set to be the same. Figure 6 As shown, in the Y1-Y2 direction, the distance between the first conductor portion 102a of the busbar 102 and the first conductor portion 103a of the busbar 103 is the spacing S1. Moreover, in the Y1-Y2 direction, the distances between the busbars 102, 104, 110, 112 and the busbars 103, 105, 109, 111 are all spacing S1.

[0075] Furthermore, when two adjacent bus bars in the X1-X2 direction among the bus bars 102 to 105 and 109 to 112 are divided into the first bus bar and the second bus bar as described above, Figure 4 As shown, when viewed from the Y1-Y2 direction, the first conductor portion of the first busbar and the first conductor portion of the second busbar are spaced a certain distance apart in the Z1-Z2 direction. In this embodiment, for any two busbars 102-105, 109-112 adjacent to each other in the X1-X2 direction, the distance between the two first conductor portions in the Z1-Z2 direction is the spacing S2.

[0076] In addition, if Figure 6 As shown, when viewed from the Z1-Z2 direction, although the first conductor portion of a portion of the bus bar (for example, the first conductor portion 102a) overlaps with the second conductor portion of the adjacent bus bar (for example, the second conductor portion 103b), since the extension length (span) of the second conductor portion in the Y1-Y2 direction is small, it is not easy to bend due to the filling pressure of the resin during insert molding.

[0077] Furthermore, since the busbars 106 , 107 , and 108 are located in the center in the X1 - X2 direction, the shapes of the first conductor portions 106 a to 108 a and the second conductor portions 106 b to 108 b are different from those of the other busbars.

[0078] The first conductor portion 106a of the bus bar 106 is formed to have a dimension in the thickness direction (Z1-Z2 direction) (see Figure 4 ) is larger than the dimension in the width direction (Y1-Y2 direction) (refer to Figure 6 ). Moreover, if Figure 4 and Figure 6 As shown, one end of the first conductor portion 106a of the bus bar 106 is connected to the fourth conductor portion 106d, the other end of the first conductor portion 106a is connected to the second conductor portion 106b, and the second conductor portion 106b is further connected to the third conductor portion 106c.

[0079] In addition, the first conductor portion 107a of the bus bar 107 and the first conductor portion 108a of the bus bar 108 are formed to have a width dimension (see Figure 6 ) is larger than the dimension in the thickness direction (refer to Figure 4 ), but the distance extending in the X1-X2 direction is relatively short. Busbars such as busbar 106, busbar 107, and busbar 108 are not easily deflected by the filling pressure of the resin during insert molding.

[0080] Next, the technical effects of the first embodiment will be described.

[0081] When the busbars 102 to 112 are insert-molded in the housing 101, since the second conductor portions 102b to 112b and the third conductor portions 102b to 112b are respectively close to one side in the Z1 direction and one side in the Z2 direction, they can be easily held by a mold (not shown) during insert molding, so they are unlikely to bend even when subjected to filling pressure from the flowing resin. However, the first conductor portions 102a to 112a located in the center in the Z1-Z2 direction are usually not held by the mold, or only a portion of the first conductor portions 102a to 112a can be held by the mold. In this state, for the busbars 102 to 105 and 109 to 112 in which the width W of the first conductor portion is larger than the thickness T, the two surfaces of the first conductor portions 102a to 105a and 109a to 112a facing the Z1 direction and the Z2 direction, respectively (i.e., Figure 6 The surface area of ​​the two surfaces parallel to the paper surface is larger, and these two surfaces are easily deflected in the Z1-Z2 direction based on the filling pressure of the resin.

[0082] According to the current sensor 100 of this embodiment, by configuring the adjacent two first conductor parts of the busbars 102 to 105, 109 to 112 to not overlap in the Y1-Y2 direction and to be spaced a certain distance apart, the insulation distance between the adjacent two first conductor parts in the Z1-Z2 direction becomes sufficiently large, and even if a first conductor part is bent in the Z1-Z2 direction, the first conductor parts 102a to 105a, 109a to 112a can be prevented from swinging in the Z1-Z2 direction and causing a short circuit. Moreover, since a sufficient insulation distance is ensured by the above structure, the number of positioning pins set in the insert molding mold can be reduced, and the difficulty of mold processing can be reduced. In this embodiment, when the reference insulation distance is set to 2 mm, the insulation distance between the adjacent two first conductor parts in the Z1-Z2 direction is about 5 mm.

[0083] In addition, according to the current sensor 100 of the present embodiment, since the first direction is the length direction of the current sensor (i.e., the X1-X2 direction), the first conductor portions 102a-105a, 109a-112a of the bus bars 102-105, 109-112 extending along the first direction may have a longer span (e.g., the first conductor portions 102a-104a, 109a-112a of the present embodiment), which are more likely to bend. The structure of the present invention can ensure that even if the first conductor portion with a longer span (e.g., the first conductor portions 102a-104a, 109a-112a of the present embodiment) is bent, the occurrence of a short circuit can be suppressed.

[0084] In addition, if the first conductor portions of the comparison busbars are respectively arranged on different sides in the second direction, the size of the current sensor 100 in the Y1-Y2 direction will become larger as the number of busbars increases. According to the current sensor 100 of this embodiment, the size of the current sensor 100 in the Y1-Y2 direction can be greatly reduced compared to the case where the first conductor portions of the comparison busbars are respectively arranged on different sides in the Y1-Y2 direction.

[0085] Furthermore, according to the current sensor 100 of the present embodiment, compared with a case where the distances between the first conductor portions of the two comparison bus bars and the first conductor portion of the reference bus bar are different, Figure 6 As shown, when the distances between the first conductor portions of the two comparison bus bars and the first conductor portion of the reference bus bar are the same (spacing S1), the size of the current sensor 100 in the Y1 - Y2 direction can be further reduced.

[0086] In addition, according to the current sensor 100 of this embodiment, for any two bus bars 102 to 105 and 109 to 112 that are adjacent in the X1-X2 direction, if Figure 4As shown, the two first conductors are spaced apart by a certain distance (spacing S2) in the Z1-Z2 direction, which can further prevent short circuits caused by bending of the first conductors 102a-105a, 109a-112a in the Y1-Y2 direction.

[0087] (Variant 1)

[0088] In the first embodiment described above, the first conductor portion of the first bus bar and the first conductor portion of the second bus bar of two adjacent bus bars in the X1-X2 direction are spaced a certain distance apart when viewed from the Y1-Y2 direction, but the present invention is not limited thereto. In Modification 1, the first conductor portion of the first bus bar and the first conductor portion of the second bus bar of two adjacent bus bars are partially overlapped. In the following, only the contents different from the first embodiment are described.

[0089] Figure 7 This is a front view of a plurality of bus bars in the current sensor 100 according to Modification 1. The bus bars 111 ′ and 112 ′ in Modification 1 are different from those in the first embodiment in terms of their arrangement positions in the Z1 - Z2 direction.

[0090] exist Figure 4 In the embodiment, the first conductor portion 110a of the bus bar 110 and the first conductor portion 111a of the bus bar 111 adjacent to each other in the X1-X2 direction are spaced a certain distance apart, and Figure 7 In the embodiment, the first conductor portion 110 a of the bus bar 110 and the first conductor portion 111 a ′ of the bus bar 111 ′ adjacent to each other in the X1 - X2 direction partially overlap.

[0091] Specifically, a portion of the first conductor portion 110 a of the bus bar 110 that is close to the second conductor portion 110 b overlaps with a portion of the first conductor portion 111 a ′ of the bus bar 111 ′ that is close to the third conductor portion 111 c ′.

[0092] The first conductor portion 110a and the first conductor portion 111a' in the modification example 1 are both formed into a plate shape with a width W greater than a thickness T, so the bending degree of the first conductor portion 110a and the first conductor portion 111a' in the Y1-Y2 direction is smaller than the bending degree in the Z1-Z2 direction, and it is difficult for a short circuit to occur even if there is a partial overlap between the busbar 110 and the busbar 111' when viewed from the Y1-Y2 direction. Based on such a partially overlapping structure, the size of the current sensor 100 in the Z1-Z2 direction can be further miniaturized. In other words, the overall size of each busbar in the modification example 1 in the Z1-Z2 direction can be designed to be smaller than the overall size of each busbar in the first embodiment in the Z1-Z2 direction to a certain extent.

[0093] In addition, the portion where the first conductor portion 110a of the busbar 110 and the first conductor portion 111a' of the busbar 111' partially overlap is preferably a portion of each first conductor portion close to the second conductor portion or a portion close to the third conductor portion. Because the portion of the first conductor portion close to the second conductor portion or the third conductor portion is less deflected in the Y1-Y2 direction and the Z1-Z2 direction than the portion close to the center of each first conductor portion, a short circuit is less likely to occur at such a portion.

[0094] Based on the shape of each first conductor portion, the deflection of the first conductor portion in the Z1-Z2 direction is greater as it approaches the center side in the X1-X2 direction, and is smaller as it approaches the ends in the X1-X2 direction. Figure 7 As shown, although the first conductor portion 110a of the bus bar 110 is close to the second conductor portion 110b (refer to Figure 6 ) on one side is opposed to a portion of the first conductor portion 112a' of the bus bar 112' on the side close to the third conductor portion 112c' in the Z1-Z2 direction, but since the mutually opposed portions are portions with a small degree of deflection in the respective first conductor portions, a short circuit is unlikely to occur between the bus bar 110 and the bus bar 112'.

[0095] (Other Modifications)

[0096] The first embodiment described above is only a preferred example, and the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, for the first embodiment described above, those skilled in the art can appropriately add, delete, and design changes to the constituent elements, and appropriately combine the features of each embodiment, and as long as they possess the technical ideas of the present invention, they are all included in the scope of the present invention.

[0097] The shapes of the bus bars 102 to 112 in the first embodiment are merely examples, and may be appropriately changed according to the installation positions and functions of the bus bars.

[0098] In addition, in the above-mentioned first embodiment, the distance (spacing S1) between the first conductor portions of the two comparison bus bars and the first conductor portion of the reference bus bar in the Y1-Y2 direction is the same, but the distance between the first conductor portions of the two comparison bus bars and the first conductor portion of the reference bus bar in the Y1-Y2 direction may also be different.

Claims

1. A current sensor comprising: a plurality of plate-shaped bus bars; a magnetic detection unit arranged corresponding to each of the bus bars and detecting a magnetic field formed when a current flows through each of the bus bars; and a housing integrally holding the plurality of bus bars, wherein the current sensor is characterized in that: The plurality of bus bars are arranged along a first direction, At least a portion of the plurality of bus bars comprises: a first conductor portion extending in the first direction; a second conductor portion connected to one end of the first conductor portion and extending in a second direction intersecting the first direction; and a third conductor portion connected to the other end of the first conductor portion and extending in a third direction intersecting the first direction and the second direction. The dimension of the first conductor portion extending along the first direction is defined as the length of the first conductor portion, the dimension of the first conductor portion in the second direction is defined as the width of the first conductor portion, and the dimension of the first conductor portion in the third direction is defined as the thickness of the first conductor portion. The at least a portion of the bus bars includes a first bus bar and a second bus bar, the width of the first conductor portion being greater than the thickness and being adjacent to each other in the first direction, wherein the first conductor portion of the first bus bar and the first conductor portion of the second bus bar are spaced a certain distance apart in the second direction when viewed from the third direction, and wherein the first conductor portion of the first bus bar and the first conductor portion of the second bus bar are spaced a certain distance apart in the third direction when viewed from the second direction.

2. The current sensor according to claim 1, characterized in that The first direction is the length direction of the current sensor, The second direction is a width direction of the current sensor that is orthogonal to the length direction. The third direction is a height direction of the current sensor that is orthogonal to both the length direction and the width direction.

3. The current sensor according to claim 1, characterized in that When any one of the plurality of bus bars whose width is greater than the thickness of the first conductor portion is used as a reference bus bar, and bus bars arranged on both sides of the reference bus bar in the first direction are used as comparison bus bars, The first conductor portions of the two comparison bus bars are arranged on the same side in the second direction with respect to the first conductor portion of the reference bus bar.

4. The current sensor according to claim 3, characterized in that In the second direction, the distances between the first conductor portions of the two comparison bus bars and the first conductor portion of the reference bus bar are the same.

5. The current sensor according to claim 1, wherein: The plurality of bus bars further include a fourth conductor portion connected to the second conductor portion and a first connection terminal portion connected to the fourth conductor portion, wherein the first connection terminal portion is connectable to a first external component. The third conductor portion has a second connection terminal portion that can be connected to a second external member.

6. A current sensor comprising: a plurality of plate-shaped bus bars; a magnetic detection unit arranged corresponding to each of the bus bars and detecting a magnetic field formed when a current flows through each of the bus bars; and a housing integrally holding the plurality of bus bars, wherein the current sensor is characterized in that: The plurality of bus bars are arranged along a first direction, At least a portion of the plurality of bus bars comprises: a first conductor portion extending in the first direction; a second conductor portion connected to one end of the first conductor portion and extending in a second direction intersecting the first direction; and a third conductor portion connected to the other end of the first conductor portion and extending in a third direction intersecting the first direction and the second direction. The dimension of the first conductor portion extending along the first direction is defined as the length of the first conductor portion, the dimension of the first conductor portion in the second direction is defined as the width of the first conductor portion, and the dimension of the first conductor portion in the third direction is defined as the thickness of the first conductor portion. The at least a portion of the bus bars include a first bus bar and a second bus bar, the width of the first conductor portion being greater than the thickness and being adjacent to each other in the first direction; when viewed from the third direction, the first conductor portion of the first bus bar and the first conductor portion of the second bus bar are spaced a certain distance apart in the second direction; and when viewed from the second direction, the first conductor portion of the first bus bar and the first conductor portion of the second bus bar partially overlap.

7. The current sensor according to claim 6, characterized in that The portion where the first conductor portion of the first bus bar and the first conductor portion of the second bus bar partially overlap is a portion of each of the first conductor portions close to the second conductor portion or a portion close to the third conductor portion.

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