Inverter

Abstract

The housing is composed of the following components: an upper housing; and a lower housing, which is installed on the bottom side of the upper housing, the upper housing has: a flange portion, which constitutes a mounting portion with the lower housing; and a connector connecting portion, which is connected to the connector, the connector connecting portion has an outer wall portion forming its outer wall, and at least a portion of the flange portion and the outer wall portion are arranged to overlap in a direction relative to the connector connecting portion and the structure.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an inverter. Background Art

[0002] Vehicles such as electric vehicles and hybrid vehicles are equipped with power units that control the operation of motor generators. Such power units are required to have a safety structure that prevents power wiring from being exposed even in a vehicle collision.

[0003] JP2013-126839A discloses an in-vehicle instrument mounting structure. As a safety feature in the event of a vehicle collision, a mounting bracket mounted to the inverter is mounted above the inverter tray. When a collision load is applied to the front of the vehicle, the rear end of the inverter tray abuts against a power unit bracket. Summary of the Invention

[0004] As in the conventional art, a structure in which another structure is attached to the inverter to cushion the impact during a collision has a problem in that the structure is complicated and the number of components increases, resulting in an increase in weight.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of such problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an inverter that can achieve safety during a collision.

[0006] One embodiment of the present invention is applied to an inverter disposed opposite a structure mounted on a vehicle and having a housing. The housing is characterized in that it comprises an upper housing and a lower housing attached to the bottom surface of the upper housing. The upper housing comprises a flange portion that forms a mounting portion for the lower housing and a connector connection portion that connects to a connector. The connector connection portion comprises an outer wall portion forming its outer wall, and at least a portion of the flange portion and the outer wall portion are arranged so as to overlap in the direction in which the connector connection portion and the structure face each other.

[0007] Effects of the Invention

[0008] According to the present invention, the outer wall portion of the connector connection portion and the flange portion having a relatively high structural strength are arranged to overlap in a direction relative to the structure, thereby ensuring the strength of the connector connection portion. This prevents damage to the outer shell during a collision and improves safety during a collision. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] Figure 1 This is a side view of a drive system including an inverter according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0010] Figure 2 It is a top view of the drive system.

[0011] Figure 3 It is an oblique view of the upper shell.

[0012] Figure 4 This is the front view of the upper housing.

[0013] Figure 5 This is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between the connection portion and the flange portion of the weak current connector.

[0014] Figure 6 This is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between the connection portion of the weak current connector and the structure.

[0015] Figure 7 It is an explanatory diagram showing another example of the relationship between the connection portion and the flange portion of the weak-electric connector. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0016] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings and the like.

[0017] Figure 1 and Figure 2 It is an explanatory diagram of a drive system 10 including an inverter 20 according to one embodiment of the present invention. Figure 1 shows a side view of the drive system 10, Figure 2 A top view of the drive system 10 is shown.

[0018] In addition, Figure 1 and Figure 2 , the left side of the drawing represents the front side of the vehicle, and the right side of the drawing represents the rear side of the vehicle.

[0019] like Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, the drive system 10 is housed in a motor room 100 defined at the front of the vehicle, driving drive wheels (not shown) to propel the vehicle. Motor room 100 may be located at the rear of the vehicle, rather than at the front, or near the center of the vehicle. The drive wheels may be either the front or rear wheels.

[0020] The drive system 10 includes an inverter 20, a drive motor 30, a generator 40, an engine E (see Figure 2 ).

[0021] The drive motor 30 and the generator 40 are housed in a housing 50. The inverter 20 is fixed to an upper portion of the housing 50. The inverter 20 is fixed so as to face the front side of the vehicle and to be tilted downward.

[0022] The inverter 20 supplies power from a battery (not shown) to the drive motor 30 to drive the drive motor 30. The inverter 20 also supplies power generated by the generator 40 to the drive motor 30 to drive the drive motor 30 and to charge the battery.

[0023] The drive motor 30 is driven by receiving power from the inverter 20. When the vehicle decelerates, the drive motor 30 receives driving force from the drive wheels to generate electricity (regenerate energy). The generated electricity is passed through the inverter 20 to charge the battery.

[0024] The generator 40 generates electricity by receiving a driving force from an engine E serving as a driving force source. The engine E is constituted by, for example, a gasoline engine.

[0025] The inverter 20 is configured such that functional components (power modules, capacitors, etc.) are housed and mounted inside a casing 21 .

[0026] The housing 21 is composed of an upper housing 22 and a lower housing 23. The upper housing 22 is formed into a box shape with its bottom surface open. The lower housing 23 forms the bottom surface of the upper housing 22. The lower housing 23 is fixed to the housing 50, and the upper and lower housings 22 and 23 are fixed together by bolts or the like.

[0027] The upper housing 22 and the lower housing 23 are formed by casting using an alloy such as aluminum, for example.

[0028] The housing 21 is formed with a plurality of openings for pulling signal lines and power lines and passing them. The upper housing 22 has a weak current connector connection portion 221 for fixing a weak current connector 240 for pulling weak current wiring and passing it. The upper housing 22 is also formed with strong current connector connection portions 222a, 222b, etc. for fixing a strong current connector (not shown) for pulling strong current wiring and passing it (see FIG. Figure 3 ).

[0029] The weak current connector connection portion 221 is provided on the side of the upper housing 22, and is formed obliquely downward toward the rear side of the vehicle. A passage-shaped opening 214 is formed in the weak current connector connection portion 221 to communicate the inside and outside of the housing 21, and the weak current connector 240 is mounted in the opening 214.

[0030] Next, the structure of the housing 21 of the inverter 20 according to the present embodiment will be described. Figure 3 is an oblique view of the upper housing 22, Figure 4 This is a front view of the upper housing 22 ( Figure 3 (see view with arrow A in the figure).

[0031] The upper housing 22 has a box shape with an open bottom side. A flange portion 120 is formed around the lower end side (lower housing 23 side) of the upper housing 22. The flange portion 120 extends outward further than the four sides of the housing 21 on the bottom side of the upper housing 22. The flange portion 120 has a plurality of fixing holes 120a that pass through in the vertical direction. The fixing holes 120a are formed at positions that communicate with the fixing holes similarly formed in the lower housing 23. When the upper housing 22 is mounted on the lower housing 23, bolts or the like are screwed into the above-mentioned fixing holes to fix the upper housing 22 and the lower housing 23. In this way, the bolts are screwed into the fixing holes 120a to form the mounting portion for mounting the upper housing 22 on the lower housing 23.

[0032] The weak current connector connection portion 221 is formed with an outer wall portion 215 that bulges out in an arch shape from the side surface 124 of the upper housing 22 on the rear side in the vehicle travel direction. Figure 1 ) is connected to the opening portion 214 of the weak current connector connection portion 221.

[0033] On the side surface 122 of the upper housing 22 on the lateral side in the vehicle travel direction (left side in the travel direction), strong electric connector connection portions 222a and 222b are formed to connect to a strong electric connector for circulating high voltage power in the inverter 20 .

[0034] Inside the housing 21, there are high-voltage components 300, including power modules and capacitors applied to the inverter 20. Inside the inverter 20, the high-voltage components 300 are located at a position separated from the low-voltage connector connection portion 221 (adjacent to the side surface on the vehicle front side opposite to the side surface 124). The high-voltage components 300 are connected to the high-voltage connector inside the inverter 20.

[0035] like Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, the weak-current connector connection portion 221 bulges out from the side surface 124 of the upper housing 22. Therefore, in the event of a vehicle collision, the structure 110 located near the inverter 20 within the motor room 100 may collide with the inverter 20. In this case, the weak-current connector connection portion 221 may be damaged, thereby reducing the safety of the inverter 20. To improve safety, it is preferable to increase the strength of the weak-current connector connection portion 221.

[0036] In order to improve the strength of the weak current connector connection portion 221, it is considered to make the thickness of the outer wall portion 215 of the weak current connector connection portion 221 larger. However, it is generally known that when the thickness of the casting component is increased, the cast holes will increase. The formation of cast holes may cause the waterproofness of the housing 21 to be reduced.

[0037] On the other hand, the weak current connector connecting portion 221 of the present embodiment has a cylindrical opening 214 in its inner side, so it is difficult to visually confirm the cast hole compared with the flat-plate position (such as flange portion 120, side 124, etc.), not only that, but also difficult to carry out post-processing such as grinding and cutting, so the management for preventing the influence of the cast hole becomes difficult. In order to suppress the generation of the cast hole, it is required to form the thickness of the weak current connector connecting portion 221 to be thinner. However, when the thickness is formed to be thinner, the strength of the weak current connector connecting portion 221 is reduced, and therefore the safety during collision can be reduced.

[0038] Therefore, in this embodiment, in order to improve the strength of the weak-electric connector connection portion 221 and ensure safety, it is configured as follows.

[0039] like Figure 3 and Figure 4 As shown, the weak current connector connection portion 221 is arranged adjacent to the flange portion 120. That is, at least a portion (open end 214a) of the weak current connector connection portion 221 and the flange portion 120 are arranged to overlap in the front-to-rear direction of the vehicle and in the direction in which the weak current connector connection portion 221 and the structure 110 are relative (the front-to-rear direction of the vehicle, or the horizontal direction). More specifically, as shown in FIG. Figure 5 As shown, the opening end 214 a of the weak-electric connector connection portion 221 and the flange portion 120 are integrally formed in the direction of the arrow in the figure.

[0040] In this way, the flange portion 120, which has a relatively high structural strength, is integrally formed with the weak current connector connection portion 221 in the upper housing 22, thereby improving the strength of the weak current connector connection portion 221 without adding new components to the housing 21. Furthermore, the opening portion 214 of the weak current connector connection portion 221 is cylindrical, and thus structurally strong against forces applied in the radial direction.

[0041] The front-to-back direction of the vehicle is also the direction in which the inverter 20 and the structure 110, which are arranged opposite each other, collide with each other in the event of a vehicle collision (hereinafter referred to as the "collision direction"). In contrast, the weak-current connector connection portion 221 and the structure 110 are arranged to overlap in the collision direction, thereby preventing damage to the weak-current connector connection portion 221 when the weak-current connector connection portion 221 collides with the structure 110.

[0042] The outer wall portion 215 serving as the outer wall of the weak-current connector connection portion 221 is arched and bulges outward. Ribs 230 are formed on the outer peripheral surface of the outer wall portion 215 to reinforce the outer wall portion 215 .

[0043] In this embodiment, if Figure 3 and Figure 4As shown, ribs 230 (a first rib 230 a , a second rib 230 b , and a third rib 230 c ) are formed on the outer wall portion 215 of the weak-electric connector connection portion 221 .

[0044] The first rib 230a is formed to be substantially parallel to the open end 214a of the opening portion 214 of the weak-current connector connection portion 221 and to be raised along the outer peripheral surface of the outer wall portion 215. The second rib 230b is inclined relative to the open end 214a of the weak-current connector connection portion 221 and is formed to intersect with the outer wall portion 215 near the center of the outer wall portion 215. The third rib 230c is composed of two ribs formed longitudinally on both sides of the outer wall portion 215 of the weak-current connector connection portion 221 in the same direction as the passage direction of the opening portion 214.

[0045] Thus, the outer wall portion 215 of the weak current connector connection portion 221 has the rib 230, thereby increasing the strength of the outer wall portion 215. Furthermore, the rib 230 can be formed in various shapes as long as it is a structure for reinforcing the outer wall portion 215. It is sufficient to have a protrusion formed on the outer wall portion 215 substantially parallel to the open end 214a, such as at least the first rib 230a.

[0046] In addition, the weak current connector connection portion 221 is formed at a position adjacent to the corner 128 (the corner of the upper shell 22 that becomes a rectangle when viewed from above) that intersects the side 122 and the side 124 of the upper shell 22. Like this, the weak current connector connection portion 221 is arranged adjacent to the corner 128 that is structurally stronger than the upper shell 22, thereby being able to further improve the strength of the weak current connector connection portion 221.

[0047] In addition, if Figure 1 As shown, the inverter 20 of this embodiment is fixed to face the front side of the vehicle and tilted downward. More specifically, the outer wall portion 215 of the weak current connector connection portion 221 is formed to tilt downward.

[0048] According to this structure, Figure 6 As shown, the contact angle formed by the extension line S extending from the outer wall portion 215 of the weak current connector connection portion 221 in the tangential direction and the extension line T extending from the structure 110 to the relative direction (collision direction) relative to the weak current connector connection portion 221 is θ. Preferably, the contact angle θ is an acute angle. In this way, the extension line of the outer wall portion 215 and the extension line of the side of the structure 110 are configured to have a contact angle θ, so that when the structure 110 and the shell 21 contact during a collision, the structure 110 also moves along the slope of the outer surface of the outer wall portion 215. Thus, the impact acting on the weak current connector connection portion 221 can be dispersed, and the damage of the weak current connector connection portion 221 and the shell 21 can be prevented.

[0049] In addition, sometimes the impact during a collision or the shape of the structure 110 may cause the structure 110 to abut against the end of the opening side of the weak current connector connection portion 221. In this case, as mentioned above, the strength of the weak current connector connection portion 221 is high and the structure 110 can be used to prevent the housing 21 from being damaged.

[0050] As described above, the inverter 20 according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a housing 21. The structure 110 is positioned adjacent to the inverter 20. The housing 21 is composed of an upper housing 22 and a lower housing 23 attached to the bottom surface of the upper housing 22. The upper housing 22 includes a flange portion 120 that forms a mounting portion for the lower housing 23, and a weak current connector connection portion 221 to which the weak current connector 240 is connected. The weak current connector connection portion 221 includes an outer wall portion 215 that forms its outer wall. At least a portion of the flange portion 120 and the outer wall portion 215 are positioned so as to overlap in the direction in which the weak current connector connection portion 221 and the structure 110 are opposed to each other.

[0051] By configuring in this manner, the weak-current connector connection portion 221 overlaps with the flange portion 120 having a relatively high structural strength, thereby ensuring the strength of the weak-current connector connection portion 221 and preventing damage to the housing 21 during a collision, thereby improving safety.

[0052] In addition, if Figure 7 As shown in the other examples, it can be configured as follows, that is, the open end 214a of the weak current connector connecting portion 221 and the flange portion 120 are configured to overlap in a state separated in the collision direction. In this structure, even when the flange portion 120 and the weak current connector connecting portion 221 with higher structural strength are configured to overlap in the collision direction, the strength of the weak current connector connecting portion 221 can be improved.

[0053] In the inverter 20 according to the embodiment of the present invention, the outer wall 215 is arched, and the weak current connector connection portion 221 has ribs 230 formed along the outer circumference of the outer wall 215. This further increases the strength of the outer wall 215.

[0054] In the inverter 20 according to the embodiment of the present invention, the weak current connector connection portion 221 is formed adjacent to the corner portion 128 of the upper housing 22 in a plan view. This ensures the strength of the weak current connector connection portion 221 by being adjacent to the structurally strong corner portion 128.

[0055] Furthermore, in the inverter 20 of this embodiment, the flange portion 120 has fixing holes 120a, which are through-holes for bolts to pass through, at locations adjacent to the corner portions 128, forming a mounting portion for the lower housing 23. This ensures the strength of the weak current connector connection portion 221 by locating the mounting portion, which has a relatively high structural strength, adjacent to the mounting portion.

[0056] In addition, the inverter 20 of this embodiment includes high-voltage components 300 (power modules, capacitors, etc.), which are arranged in a position within the housing 21, separated from the low-voltage connector connection portion 221. Therefore, in the event of a collision, the structure 110 first abuts the outer wall portion 215 of the low-voltage connector connection portion 221 and does not directly contact the high-voltage components, thereby improving safety during a collision.

[0057] Furthermore, in the inverter 20 of this embodiment, the extension line of the outer peripheral surface of the outer wall portion 215 and the extension line of the side surface of the structure 110 are arranged to have a predetermined contact angle θ with each other. Thus, when the structure 110 collides with the housing 21 during a collision, the structure 110 also moves along the slope of the outer surface of the outer wall portion 215 of the weak current connector connection portion 221, thereby dissipating the impact.

[0058] While the embodiments and modifications of the present invention have been described above, the embodiments and modifications merely represent a part of application examples of the present invention and are not intended to limit the technical scope of the present invention to the specific configurations of the embodiments.

[0059] In the above-mentioned embodiment, the housing 21 of the inverter 20 is described as an example, but the present invention is not limited thereto and can also be applied to housings of other functional components arranged in the motor room 100 .

[0060] In this embodiment, a hybrid electric vehicle that travels by driving the drive motor 30 is described as an example, but the present invention is not limited thereto. A parallel hybrid vehicle that travels by driving force of the drive motor 30 and the engine E may also be used.

Claims

1. An inverter arranged opposite to a structure mounted on a vehicle, wherein: The inverter has a housing. The housing is composed of the following components: an upper housing; and a lower housing mounted on the bottom surface of the upper housing. The upper housing has a flange portion constituting a mounting portion to be mounted on the lower housing; and a connector connecting portion connected to a connector. The connector connecting portion has an outer wall portion forming an outer wall thereof, The flange portion and at least a portion of the outer wall portion are arranged to overlap in the direction in which the connector connection portion and the structure are opposed to each other. The outer wall portion is arched, The connector connection portion is formed with a rib in a direction along the outer peripheral shape of the outer wall portion.

2. The inverter according to claim 1, wherein: The connector connection portion is formed adjacent to a corner portion of the upper housing in a plan view.

3. The inverter according to claim 2, wherein: The flange portion has a through-hole, which is provided at a portion adjacent to the corner portion and constitutes the mounting portion with the lower housing and through which a bolt passes.

4. The inverter according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein: The inverter has strong electrical components. The strong electric component is arranged in the housing at a position separated from the connector connection portion.

5. The inverter according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein: An extension line of the outer peripheral surface of the outer wall portion and an extension line of the side surface of the structure are arranged so as to have a predetermined contact angle therebetween.

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