A motor driver with a temperature sensor for a vehicle, a method for operating a vehicle, and corresponding vehicle

Abstract

A motor driver 10 for a vehicle for providing electrical energy from or to a traction battery and / or from or to an electric motor. The motor driver comprising at least one alternating current (AC) bus

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of vehicles, in particular automobiles. More specifically, the present invention relates to a motor driver with a temperature sensor for a vehicle for providing electrical energy from or to a traction battery and / or from or to an electric motor of the vehicle. Furthermore, the present invention relates to a method for operating a vehicle and a corresponding vehicle as well. BACKGROUND INFORMATION

[0002] In a power system, such as an electric drivetrain of the vehicle, rising temperature caused for example by overload operation or loading heavy current is one of the main factors of malfunction in high-voltage electrical equipment. High performance HEV / EV motor drivers are built with a very high power density due to reduced volume and weight. High-performance electric vehicles may have a racing mode that requires frequent overload operation, causing temperature stress on the electrical equipment.

[0003] To prevent thermal damage to the hardware, in particular the motor driver, and to limit thermal stress for power connectors, cables, power switches, power bus bars and / or power connectors in such a vehicle, a temperature sensor may be utilized to monitor the thermal impacts. However, temperature sensors need a very high level of insulation due to the temperatures from the high voltage. Therefore, the implementation of thermal monitoring may be costly. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0004] It is an object of the present invention to provide a motor driver, a method for operating a vehicle, and a vehicle providing a possibility for measurement of the temperature of an alternating current (AC) bus bar, a direct current (DC) bus bar, and / or a power connector without the need for high-level insulation and / or with the capability to build the motor driver with a very low weight.

[0005] This object is solved by a motor driver, a method for operating a vehicle, and a corresponding vehicle according to the present invention. Advantageous embodiments are presented in the dependent claims, the description, and the drawing.

[0006] A first aspect of the present invention relates to a motor driver with a temperature sensor for a vehicle. The motor driver according to the present invention is built for providing electrical energy from or to a traction battery and / or from or to an electric motor of said vehicle. The motor driver comprises at least one bus bar, in particular a power bus bar, and / or a power connector, for example for connecting external power electronics. The at least one alternating current (AC) bus bar, one direct current (DC) bus bar and / or a power connector are arranged in or on a housing, and a temperature sensor device is provided, which is designed to measure a temperature of the at least one AC bus bar, one DC bus bar, and / or the power connector in a contactless manner.

[0007] The vehicle is for example a battery electrical vehicle and in particular high-performance electric vehicle. The vehicle is furthermore built as a car, van, or truck. The motor driver is an electronic device for converting electrical energy provided by the traction battery so that it can be used by the electric motor or vice versa. The motor driver could also be used for converting electrical energy supplied by an external charging device for recharging the traction battery. The traction battery is in particular a high electronic voltage battery. Therefore the at least one AC bus bar and one DC bus bar is in particular a power bus bar comprising copper or at least an alloy containing copper. The power connector may be used to connect the vehicle power circuit with the external charging device.

[0008] In other words, a motor driver with a temperature sensor is provided for measurement of a AC bus bar, a DC bus bar, and / or power connection temperature in a contactless way, for example via infrared measurement, so that the temperature sensor device may contain at least one infrared sensor integrated circuit (IC).

[0009] An advantage of the present invention is that the costs for implementation can be very low. Furthermore, it is not necessary to provide very high or good insulation for the temperature sensor device. Another advantage is that in the contactless manner the temperature could be measured via an air gap, which may be used for cooling. Another advantage is that wiring a sensor of the temperature sensor device to the at least one AC bus bar, one DC bus bar, and / or the power connector is not needed. And because of the fact that no high-voltage insulation is needed, the measured temperature could be measured very precisely.

[0010] In an embodiment of the present invention, the temperature sensor device comprises an infrared sensor IC and / or a pyroelectric infrared sensor.

[0011] In another embodiment of the present invention the temperature sensor device comprises a bolometer and / or a thermopile.

[0012] In still another embodiment of the present invention the temperature sensor device comprises a photodiode and / or an image sensor, in particular a temperature sensor but also with the possibility for measuring linear expansion for determining the temperature.

[0013] In yet another embodiment of the present invention a cooling element, which may comprise a fan, is present, through which a fluid is introducible into a gap, in particular an air gap, between the at least one AC bus bar and the temperature sensor device, the at least one DC bus bar and the temperature sensor device, and / or the power connector and the temperature sensor device.

[0014] In an embodiment of the present invention the power connector is a DC power connector.

[0015] In yet another embodiment of the present invention the temperature sensor device is formed at least partially as part of the housing of the motor driver.

[0016] A second aspect of the present invention relates to a method for operating a vehicle which comprises a motor driver for providing electrical energy from or to a traction battery and / or from or to a motor, the motor driver having at least one AC bus bar, one DC bus bar, and / or a power connector, which is arranged in or on a housing, and a temperature of the at least one AC bus bar, one DC bus bar, and / or the power connector being measured in a contactless manner by a temperature sensor device.

[0017] Advantageous embodiments of the first aspect of the present invention are to be regarded as advantageous embodiments of the second aspect of the present invention and vice versa.

[0018] In one embodiment of the present invention the temperature measurement is carried out while the vehicle is being driven in an overload mode and / or a racing mode.

[0019] A third aspect of the present invention relates to a vehicle comprising a motor driver according to the first aspect of the present invention and / or configured to perform a method according to the second aspect of the present invention.

[0020] Advantageous embodiments of the first and second aspect of the present invention are to be regarded as advantageous embodiments of the third aspect of the present invention and vice versa.

[0021] Further advantages, features, and details of the invention derive from the following description of preferred embodiment as well as from the drawing. The features and feature combinations previously mentioned in the description as well as the features and feature combinations mentioned in the following description of the figure and / or shown in the figure alone can be employed not only in the respectively indicated combination but also in any other combination or taken alone without leaving the scope of the invention. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

[0022] The novel features and characteristic of the disclosure are set forth in the appended claims. The accompanying drawing, which is incorporated in and constitutes a part of this disclosure, illustrates an exemplary embodiment and together with the description, serves to explain the disclosed principles. The same numbers are used throughout the figures to reference like features and components. Some embodiments of system and / or methods in accordance with embodiments of the present subject matter are now described below, by way of example only, and with reference to the accompanying figures.

[0023] The drawing shows in:

[0024] Fig. 1 a schematic perspective view of a motor driver for a vehicle with an opened housing. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0025] In the present document, the word "exemplary" is used herein to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration". Any embodiment or implementation of the present subject matter described herein as "exemplary" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments.

[0026] While the disclosure is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawing and will be described in detail below. It should be understood, however, that it is not intended to limit the disclosure to the particular forms disclosed, but on the contrary, the disclosure is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the scope of the disclosure.

[0027] The terms “comprises”, “comprising”, or any other variations thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion so that a setup, device or method that comprises a list of components or steps does not include only those components or steps but may include other components or steps not expressly listed or inherent to such setup or device or method. In other words, one or more elements in a system or apparatus preceded by “comprises” or “comprise” does not or do not, without more constraints, preclude the existence of other elements or additional elements in the system or method.

[0028] In the following detailed description of the embodiment of the disclosure, reference is made to the accompanying drawing that forms part hereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration a specific embodiment in which the disclosure may be practiced. This embodiment is described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the disclosure, and it is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and that changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The following description is, therefore, not to be taken in a limiting sense.

[0029] Fig. 1 shows in a schematic perspective view a motor driver 10 for a vehicle for providing electrical energy from or to a traction battery and / or from or to an electric motor, the motor driver 10 comprising at least one alternative current (AC) bus bar 12, one direct current (DC) bus bar 24 and / or one power connector 14, which are arranged in or on a housing 16, a temperature sensor device 18 being provided which is designed to measure the temperature of at least one AC bus bar 12, one DC bus bar 24, and / or of the power connector 14 in a contactless manner.

[0030] The housing 16 is shown with its top removed so that inner components of the motor driver 10 such as the at least one AC bus bar 12 and one DC bus bar 24 are visible. The motor driver 10 comprises power electronics 20, which may provide electrical energy from the traction battery to the electric motor or vice versa or for providing electrical energy from an external charging device via the power connector 14 to the traction battery.

[0031] A vehicle comprising the motor driver 10 is also introduced, which is in particular a battery electric vehicle, with the traction battery providing power to an electric drivetrain. The vehicle is in particular a car, van, or truck. A method is also provided for operating the vehicle. The vehicle comprising the shown motor driver 10 may perform a method, wherein during operation of the vehicle the temperature of the at least one AC bus bar 12, one DC bus bar 24, and / or the power connector 14 is measured in a contactless manner.

[0032] The temperature measurement is in particular carried out while the vehicle is being driven in an overload mode and / or a racing mode.

[0033] As shown in Fig. 1, the at least one AC bus bar 12 is shown with the three AC bus bars on the right side of Fig. 1, or the at least one DC bus bar 24 is shown with the two DC bus bars 24 on the left side of Fig. 1.

[0034] The power connector 14 is in particular a DC power connector.

[0035] A temperature sensor device 18 could be in particular built or formed at least partially as a part of the housing 16. In Fig. 1, the temperature sensor device 18 is in particular formed in the housing 16 or at the top of the housing 16 (not shown in Fig. 1). The temperature sensor device 18 may be mounted vertically to the AC bus bar 12 or the DC bus bar 24. The temperature sensor device 18 may be mounted underneath or above the AC bus bar 12, the DC bus bar 24, or the power connector 14. For example, the temperature sensor device 18 may mounted to the bottom of the AC bus bar 12.

[0036] The temperature sensor device 18 comprises an infrared sensor IC. Alternatively or in addition, the temperature sensor device 18 may comprise a pyroelectric infrared sensor, a bolometer, a thermopile, or photodiode and / or an image sensor.

[0037] A cooling element 22 may also be provided, through which a fluid, in particular air, may be introduced into a gap between the at least one AC bus bar 12 and the temperature sensor device 18, the at least one DC bus bar 24 and the temperature sensor device 18, and / or the power connector 14 and the temperature sensor device 18.

[0038] With the shown motor driver 10, the corresponding method and a corresponding vehicle comprising the shown motor driver 10 an advanced temperature measurement is possible. Furthermore the motor driver 10 and / or the vehicle may be built with a reduced number of components, because in comparison to a temperature sensor, which measures temperature in contact, an insulation for the temperature sensor device 18 is not needed. Reference signs 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 motor driver AC bus bar power connector housing temperature sensor device power electronics cooling element DC bus bar

Claims

1. A motor driver (10) for a vehicle for providing electrical energy from or to a traction battery and / or from or to an electric motor, the motor driver (10) comprising at least one alternating current (AC) bus bar (12), one direct current (DC) bus bar (24), and / or a power connector (14), which are arranged in or on a housing (16), and a temperature sensor device (18) being provided, which is designed to measure a temperature of the at least one AC bus bar (12), one DC bus bar (24), and / or of the power connector (14) in a contactless manner.

2. The motor driver (10) according to claim 1, characterized in thatthe temperature sensor device (18) comprises an infrared sensor integrated circuit and / or pyroelectric infrared sensor.

3. The motor driver (10) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in thatthe temperature sensor device (18) comprises a bolometer and / or a thermopile.

4. The motor driver (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in thatthe temperature sensor device (18) comprises a photodiode and / or an image sensor.

5. The motor driver (10) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in thata cooling element (22) is present, through which a fluid is introduced into a gap between the at least one AC bus bar 12 and the temperature sensor device (18), the at least one DC bus bar 24 and the temperature sensor device (18), and / or the power connector and the temperature sensor (18) device.

6. The motor driver (10) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in thatthe at least one power connector is a DC power connector.

7. The motor driver (10) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in thatthe temperature sensor device (18) is formed at least partially as part of the housing (16).

8. Method for operating a vehicle which has a motor driver (10) for providing electrical energy from or to a traction battery and / or from or to a motor, the motor driver (10) having at least one alternating current (AC) bus bar, one direct current (DC) bus bar (24), (12) and / or a power connector (14) which is arranged in or on a housing (16), and a temperature of the at least one AC bus bar (12), one DC bus bar (24), and / or the power connector (14) being measured in a contactless manner by a temperature sensor device (18).

9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in thatthe temperature measurement is carried out while the vehicle is being driven in an overload mode and / or racing mode.

10. A vehicle comprising a motor driver (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 7 and / or configured to perform a method according to one of claims 8 or 9.

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