Power converter

JP2026139476APending Publication Date: 2026-09-01AISIN CORP
View PDF 1 Cites 0 Cited by

Patent Information

Application Number
JP2025026204
Authority / Receiving Office
JP · JP
Patent Type
Applications
Current Assignee / Owner
Filing Date
2025-02-20
Publication Date
2026-09-01

Smart Images

  • Figure 2026139476000001_ABST
    Figure 2026139476000001_ABST
Patent Text Reader

Abstract

This invention provides a power conversion device with a simple configuration that can prevent potting material from adhering to areas where adhesion is prohibited. [Solution] The power supply module 1 has a voltage conversion unit 20 and a housing 2 in which the power supply module 1 is arranged. The voltage conversion unit 20 includes an electronic component 22b fixed to the first surface 22cA of a base plate 22c. The housing 2 is arranged opposite the first surface 22cA of the base plate 22c and has a first recess 3 that opens on the Z2 side perpendicular to the base plate 22c, and a second recess 4 that is provided adjacent to the first recess 3 along the X and Y directions perpendicular to the Z direction and opens on the Z2 side. The electronic component 22b is stored in the first recess 3 and potting material is injected into it. A partition 6 separating the first recess 3 and the second recess 4 is provided with a through-hole 8 that penetrates from the first recess 3 to the second recess 4 on the Z2 side, and the first recess 3 and the second recess 4 are in communication through the through-hole 8.
Need to check novelty before this filing date? Find Prior Art

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a power converter. [Background Art]

[0002] For example, electric vehicles that travel using electric energy, such as automobiles equipped with a motor as a travel drive source (hybrid electric vehicles (HEV), plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV), battery electric vehicles (BEV), fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEV), etc.), are equipped with a battery for driving the motor. When charging this battery or using the electric power stored in the battery, a power converter that converts a direct-current voltage of a predetermined voltage value to a direct-current voltage of a desired voltage value is used. As a technology related to such a power converter, there is, for example, the one described in Patent Document 1 whose source is shown below.

[0003] Patent Document 1 describes a reactor used in a power converter. This reactor includes a core, a coil, a cooler, and a surrounding portion, and a potting material is injected into a gap space between the coil and the surrounding portion. The surrounding portion prevents the potting material injected into the gap space from leaking out of the core. [Prior Art Literature] [Patent Literature]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2017-50334 [Summary of the Invention] [Problem to be Solved by the Invention]

[0005] In the reactor described in Patent Document 1, a surrounding portion is formed around the coil to prevent the potting material from leaking out of the core. However, as the amount of potting material injected into the gap between the coil and the surrounding portion increases, variations in the shape of the housing into which the potting material is injected and the shape of the coil being potted may cause the potting material to unintentionally overflow and adhere to areas where adhesion is prohibited. In power converters, similar to the reactor described in Patent Document 1, potting material is injected into the space where electronic components are housed in order to improve the durability and reliability of the electronic components. Therefore, in power converters, it is desirable to prevent the potting material from adhering to areas where adhesion is prohibited.

[0006] Therefore, there is a need for a power conversion device that can prevent potting material from adhering to areas where adhesion is prohibited, using a simple configuration. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The characteristic configuration of the power conversion device according to the present invention is a power module having a voltage conversion unit that converts a DC voltage of a first voltage value into a DC voltage of a second voltage value, and a housing in which the power module is arranged, wherein the voltage conversion unit includes an electronic component fixed to the first surface of a base plate, and the housing has a first recess arranged opposite to the first surface of the base plate and having an opening on one side in a first direction perpendicular to the base plate, and a second recess provided adjacent to the first recess along a second direction perpendicular to the first direction and having an opening on one side in the first direction, wherein the electronic component is stored in the first recess and potting material is injected into it, and a through-hole is provided in the partition portion separating the first recess and the second recess, extending from the first recess to the second recess on one side in the first direction, and the first recess and the second recess are in communication through the through-hole.

[0008] With this configuration, the power converter can allow excess potting material injected into the first recess where the electronic components are housed to flow from the first recess to the second recess through the through-hole. In other words, potting material leaking from the first recess can be allowed to flow out to a predetermined location through the through-hole. As a result, the power converter can prevent the potting material from adhering to areas where adhesion is prohibited with a simple configuration. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0009] [Figure 1] This is a diagram showing the configuration of the circuit installed in a power converter. [Figure 2] This is a plan view of a power conversion device. [Figure 3] This is a magnified section of Figure 2. [Figure 4] This is a partially enlarged perspective view of Figure 2. [Figure 5] This is a side cross-section after the potting material has been injected. [Figure 6] This is a magnified view of the key area after the potting material has been injected. [Figure 7] This is a perspective view of the main components of a different type of power conversion device. [Figure 8] This is a perspective view of the main components of a different type of power conversion device. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0010] The power conversion device according to the present invention is constructed by assembling a power supply module into a housing. The power conversion device of this embodiment will be described below. However, the power conversion device is not limited to the following embodiment and can be modified in various ways without departing from its gist.

[0011] Figure 1 shows the circuit configuration of the power module 1. In this embodiment, the power module 1 is used to charge the traction battery B1, which stores the power used to drive the vehicle's traction motor M, and to utilize the power stored in the traction battery B1. Therefore, the power module 1 is mounted on the vehicle. The traction motor M is driven by the motor inverter MI based on the power stored in the traction battery B1.

[0012] The traction battery B1 is charged, for example, using commercial power. The use of the power stored in traction battery B1 includes, for example, generating power equivalent to that of commercial power using that power, or generating power corresponding to different voltage values ​​using that power. Specifically, generating power corresponding to different voltage values ​​refers to generating power to charge the low-voltage battery B2.

[0013] Therefore, the power module 1 charges the traction battery B1, which is mounted on the vehicle and stores power used to drive the vehicle's traction motor M using commercial power, generates power equivalent to commercial power using the power stored in the traction battery B1, and generates power to charge, for example, a low-voltage battery B2 using the power stored in the traction battery B1.

[0014] As shown in Figure 1, the power module 1 of this embodiment comprises a first filter 10, an AC / DC converter 11, a voltage converter 20, and a control unit 30. The voltage converter 20 includes a first converter 21, a transformer 22, a second converter 23, a second filter 24, a third converter 25, and a third filter 26.

[0015] The first filter 10 is installed on the inverter side and attenuates noise superimposed on the input voltage and current. The input voltage and current refer to the voltage and current from the commercial power supply supplied externally when charging the traction battery B1. On the other hand, when generating power equivalent to the commercial power supply from the power of the traction battery B1, these refer to the voltage and current from the AC / DC converter 11, which will be described later.

[0016] The AC-DC conversion unit 11 converts one of an AC voltage and a DC voltage to the other and outputs the converted voltage. Converting one of an AC voltage and a DC voltage to the other means: when charging the traveling battery B1, converting an AC voltage at the frequency (50 Hz or 60 Hz) of a commercial power supply into a DC voltage; and when generating power equivalent to that of a commercial power supply from the power of the traveling battery B1, converting a DC voltage from a voltage conversion unit 20, which will be described later, into an AC voltage having the same frequency as that of the commercial power supply. Therefore, the AC-DC conversion unit 11 converts an input AC voltage into a DC voltage, and converts an input DC voltage into an AC voltage.

[0017] The voltage conversion unit 20 converts an input DC voltage having a first voltage value into a DC voltage having a second voltage value. When charging the traveling battery B1, the voltage conversion unit 20 converts the DC voltage from the AC-DC conversion unit 11 into a DC voltage having a voltage value suitable for charging the traveling battery B1 and a low-voltage battery B2. On the other hand, when generating power equivalent to that of a commercial power supply from the power of the traveling battery B1, the voltage conversion unit 20 converts the DC voltage from the traveling battery B1 into a DC voltage having a voltage suitable for converting into an AC voltage identical to that of the commercial power supply.

[0018] The first conversion unit 21 is connected to the AC-DC conversion unit 11. When DC power is supplied from the AC-DC conversion unit 11, the first conversion unit 21 amplitudes the DC power at a predetermined cycle and outputs the processed DC power to a transformer 22. Further, when AC power is supplied from the transformer 22, the first conversion unit 21 converts the AC power into DC power and outputs the DC power to the AC-DC conversion unit 11. Here, the term "connected" in the present embodiment means electrically connected.

[0019] The second conversion unit 23 is connected to the first conversion unit 21 via the transformer 22. When AC power is supplied from the transformer 22, the second conversion unit 23 converts the AC power into DC power and outputs the DC power to a second filter 24. Further, when DC power is supplied from the traveling battery B1 via the second filter 24, the second conversion unit 23 converts the DC power into AC power and outputs the AC power to the transformer 22.

[0020] The second filter 24 attenuates noise superimposed on the input voltage and current. When the traveling battery B1 is charged, the input voltage and current correspond to the voltage and current supplied from the second converter 23. On the other hand, when generating power equivalent to that of a commercial power source from the power of the traveling battery B1, the input voltage and current correspond to the voltage and current from the traveling battery B1.

[0021] The third converter 25 is connected to the first converter 21 via a transformer 22. The third converter 25 converts the input power into a DC voltage having a third voltage value. Both when the power supply module 1 charges the traveling battery B1 and when the power of the traveling battery B1 is used, the third converter 25 converts the AC power from the transformer 22 into a DC voltage having a voltage suitable for charging the low-voltage battery B2, and outputs the converted DC voltage to the third filter 26.

[0022] The third filter 26 attenuates noise superimposed on the input voltage and current. The input voltage and current correspond to the voltage and current supplied from the third converter 25.

[0023] The control unit 30 controls the driving of the AC-DC converter 11, the voltage conversion unit 20, and the motor inverter MI. The AC-DC converter 11, the voltage conversion unit 20, and the motor inverter MI are each configured to include a plurality of switching elements, and the control unit 30 controls these switching elements by switching their on / off states.

[0024] The AC / DC converter 11 and the first converter 21 are provided on the first substrate 81. That is, the AC / DC converter 11 and the first converter 21 are provided on a single substrate. The second converter 23 and the second filter 24 are provided on a second substrate 82, which is different from the first substrate 81. That is, the second converter 23 and the second filter 24 are separate from the first substrate 81 and are provided on a single substrate. Furthermore, the third converter 25 and the third filter 26 are provided on a third substrate 83, which is different from the first substrate 81 and the second substrate 82. That is, the third converter 25 and the third filter 26 are separate from both the first substrate 81 and the second substrate 82 and are provided on a single substrate. The control unit 30 is provided on a control substrate 84. This control substrate 84 is also a separate substrate from the first substrate 81, the second substrate 82, and the third substrate 83. Figure 1 also includes symbols to indicate each circuit board for easier understanding.

[0025] Figure 2 is a plan view of the power converter 100 with the power module 1 assembled. Figure 3 is a plan view of the main part near the transformer 22 in Figure 2. As shown in Figure 2, the power converter 100 has a rectangular shape in plan view. The power converter 100 includes a housing 2 in which the power module 1 is placed. In the following, the direction in which two of the four sides constituting this rectangular shape extend will be referred to as the X direction, and the direction perpendicular to the X direction will be referred to as the Y direction (an example of a "second direction"). Furthermore, the direction perpendicular to both the X and Y directions will be referred to as the Z direction (an example of a "first direction"). In the figures, one side of the X direction will be referred to as the X1 side and the other side as the X2 side. One side of the Y direction will be referred to as the Y1 side and the other side as the Y2 side. The upper side (one side) of the Z direction will be referred to as the Z2 side and the lower side (the other side) as the Z1 side.

[0026] As shown in Figure 2, the first substrate 81, the second substrate 82, and the third substrate 83 are arranged around the transformer 22 such that they have at least non-overlapping portions when viewed in the Z direction along the thickness direction. In this embodiment, the transformer 22 is located in the central region with respect to the X and Y directions when viewed in the Z direction of the power converter 100. The state of having at least non-overlapping portions includes a state of not overlapping at all and a state of partially overlapping.

[0027] The first substrate 81 is mainly located on one side of the transformer 22 along the Y direction (Y1 side). In the example shown in Figure 2, the first substrate 81 partially overlaps with the transformer 22 along the Z direction. At this overlapping portion, the first substrate 81 is connected to terminals that extend from the transformer 22 toward the first substrate 81. The second substrate 82 is located on one side of the transformer 22 along the X direction (X1 side) and the Y direction (Y2 side), with an L-shape when viewed in the Z direction. The third substrate 83 is located on the X2 side of the transformer 22 along the X direction.

[0028] A space insulation section 90 is provided between at least one of the first substrate 81, the second substrate 82, and the third substrate 83 and the transformer 22 to suppress heat transfer between them. In this embodiment, as shown in Figure 2, a space insulation section 90 is provided between the second substrate 82 and the transformer 22, and a space insulation section 90 is provided between the third substrate 83 and the transformer 22. The space insulation section 90 is an air gap provided between the target substrate and the transformer 22 over a predetermined width. This width is preferably set so as to reduce the influence on the target substrate in relation to the heat of the transformer 22. Specifically, it is preferable to set it so that the thermal influence is below a predetermined amount.

[0029] Therefore, it is preferable to provide the space insulation section 90 between the transformer 22 and a region with a high heat generation density in at least one of the first substrate 81, the second substrate 82, and the third substrate 83. In this embodiment, as described above, the space insulation section 90 is provided between the second substrate 82 and the transformer 22, and between the third substrate 83 and the transformer 22. A high heat generation density means that the value obtained by dividing the amount of heat generated by the surface area of ​​the substrate is large. Therefore, in this embodiment, it is preferable to provide the space insulation section 90 between the transformer 22 and the transformer 22 and regions in the second substrate 82 and the third substrate 83 where the value obtained by dividing the amount of heat generated by the surface area of ​​the substrate is large. This reduces thermal stress on components provided on the second substrate 82 and the third substrate 83, even when heat is emitted from the transformer 22.

[0030] Furthermore, with the power module 1 of this embodiment, even if the output power is increased (specifically, changed from 3.3kW to 6.6kW), this can be accommodated by changing only the first circuit board 81 and the transformer 22. In this case, the size of the transformer 22 will increase, but since it can be placed using the area that was previously used as the space insulation section 90, it is possible to install the larger transformer 22.

[0031] As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the transformer 22 has a transformer body 22b (an example of electronic components) fixed to a base plate (including bracket) 22c, which is composed of terminals, a core, a bobbin, and a coil, and a cover plate 22a is placed on the upper surface of the base plate 22c. The voltage conversion unit 20 includes the transformer body 22b fixed to the first surface 22cA of the base plate 22c (the surface on the side of the first recess 3, which will be described later).

[0032] The housing 2 has a first recess 3, a second recess 4, and a third recess 5 in a position that overlaps with the spatial insulation portion 90 in a plan view. The first recess 3, the second recess 4, and the third recess 5 are provided along a second direction (X direction or Y direction) perpendicular to the Z direction, and the side perpendicular to the base plate 22c in the Z direction Z2 is open. The first recess 3 is positioned opposite the first surface 22cA of the base plate 22c, and the transformer body 22b is housed in it. The second recess 4 and the third recess 5 are provided adjacent to the first recess 3 and are set as adhesion-permitted areas where the potting material P can adhere. In this embodiment, the second recess 4 is provided on the X direction X2 side and the Y direction Y2 side relative to the first recess 3, and the third recess 5 is provided on the Y direction Y2 side relative to the first recess 3.

[0033] The first recess 3 is rectangular in plan view and is formed having four walls 3a and a bottom surface 3b. The second recess 4 is L-shaped in plan view, with the long side portion 4A positioned adjacent to the X-direction X2 side of the first recess 3 and the short side portion 4B positioned adjacent to the Y-direction Y2 side of the first recess 3. The second recess 4 has multiple walls 4a and a bottom surface 4b. The third recess 5 is shaped in plan view as two rectangular portions 5A and 5B connected at their corners. When comparing the rectangular portion 5A and the rectangular portion 5B in the third recess 5, the rectangular portion 5A is located closer to the X-direction X1 side than the rectangular portion 5B, and the rectangular portion 5B is located closer to the Y-direction Y1 side than the rectangular portion 5A. Therefore, the first rectangular portion 5A is closer to the first recess 3 than the second rectangular portion 5B. The third recess 5 has multiple walls 5a and a bottom surface 5b.

[0034] The housing 2 has a first partition 6 that separates the first recess 3 and the second recess 4, and a second partition 7 that separates the first recess 3 and the third recess 5. The first partition 6 is composed of partition 6A and partition 6B. The first partition 6, like the second recess 4, is formed in an L-shape in plan view. In the first partition 6, partition 6A is the long side portion provided between the first recess 3 and the long side portion 4A of the second recess 4, and partition 6B is the short side portion provided between the first recess 3 and the short side portion 4B of the second recess 4.

[0035] The first section 6 is provided with a through-hole 8 that penetrates from the first recess 3 to the second recess 4 in the Z2 direction, and the first recess 3 and the second recess 4 are in communication through the through-hole 8.

[0036] In this embodiment, the through-section 8 is composed of a first through-section 8A and a second through-section 8B. In the first partitioned section 6, the first through-section 8A is provided in the partitioned section 6A, and the second through-section 8B is provided in the partitioned section 6B. Both the through-sections 8A and 8B are rectangular notches with an opening on the Z2 side in the Z direction.

[0037] The transformer body 22b has a heat-generating section 22e located closer to the Z1 side in the Z direction, and the Z2 side end 22e1 of the heat-generating section 22e is located closer to the Z1 side in the Z direction than the Z1 side end 8A1 of the through-hole 8 (first through-hole 8A).

[0038] The transformer 22 has three brackets (base plates) 22c provided on the transformer body 22b. The housing 2 has mounting portions 2a that have recesses corresponding to the holes 22d formed in the three brackets (base plates) 22c. As shown in Figure 6, the transformer 22 is fixed to the housing 2 by attaching fixing members B to the brackets (base plates) 22c and the mounting portions 2a provided on the housing 2.

[0039] As shown in Figures 5 and 6, in the power converter 100, potting material P (resin) is injected into the first recess 3 of the housing 2. During the manufacturing of the power converter 100, after the transformer 22 is fixed to the housing 2 and the transformer body 22b is stored in the first recess 3, the potting material P is injected into the first recess 3. The injection of potting material P into the first recess 3 is performed using, for example, a dispenser D as shown in Figure 6.

[0040] As the injection of potting material P into the first recess 3 continues, the potting material P exceeds the position of the Z2-side end 8A1 of the heat-generating section 22e of the transformer body 22b, and further exceeds the position of the Z2-side end 8A1 of the through-hole 8 (first through-hole 8A). As a result, as shown in Figure 6, the potting material P overflowing from the first recess 3 flows into the through-hole 8 (first through-hole 8A) and is injected into the location 4C in the second recess 4 that communicates with the first through-hole 8A when viewed in the Z direction. In other words, the potting material P overflowing from the first recess 3 can be allowed to flow out through the through-hole 8 (first through-hole 8A) into the adhesion-permitted area (second recess 4) where the adhesion of potting material P is permitted. Here, in the power converter 100, specific parts of the surface of the housing 2 and the mounting part 2a are adhesion-prohibited areas where the adhesion of potting material P is undesirable. However, as described above, the power converter 100 has a second recess 4 and a through-hole 8, which ensures that the potting material P does not adhere to these adhesion-prohibited areas. Furthermore, the power converter 100 makes it easy to confirm that the correct amount of potting material P is filled into the first recess 3.

[0041] After the potting material P injected into the first recess 3 is cured, the transformer 22, the second substrate 82, and the third substrate 83 are connected using connecting members 85, as shown in Figure 2. The transformer 22 has a plurality of connecting portions 22b1 to which the ends of the connecting members 85 are connected, and the cover plate 22a has a plurality of holes 22a1 formed at positions corresponding to the plurality of connecting portions 22b1 (see Figure 3).

[0042] As shown in Figure 5, the power converter 100 is provided with a second housing 9 positioned on the Z1 side in the Z direction relative to the housing 2. The housing 2 has a plurality of recesses 2e formed on the surface facing the second housing 9 that open toward the Z1 side in the Z direction. The plurality of recesses 2e provided in the housing 2 are used as cooling channels R through which cooling fluid flows between them and the second housing 9. The cooling channels R are formed facing the bottom surface 4b on the Z1 side of the second recess 4 provided in the housing 2. As a result, the second recess 4 can be cooled by the cooling fluid, thereby increasing the spatial insulation effect in the second recess 4.

[0043] [Second Embodiment] As shown in Figure 7, in the second embodiment, in addition to the through-holes 8A and 8B provided in the first section 6, a third through-hole 8C is also provided in the second section 7. The third through-hole 8C penetrates from the first recess 3 to the third recess 5, and the first recess 3 and the third recess 5 are in communication through the through-hole 8C. The third through-hole 8C is a rectangular notch with an opening on the Z2 side in the Z direction, just like the through-holes 8A and 8B. The other configurations are the same as in the first embodiment.

[0044] [Third Embodiment] As shown in Figure 8, in the third embodiment, the through-hole 8 is composed of a through-hole 8D that penetrates the interior of the second partition 7, which separates the first recess 3 and the second recess 4. Even with such a through-hole 8D, the first recess 3 and the second recess 4 can be connected. In the example shown in Figure 8, one through-hole 8D is provided in the first partition 6. Multiple through-holes 8D may be provided in the first partition 6, or they may also be provided in the second partition 7. The other configurations are the same as in the first embodiment.

[0045] [Other embodiments]

[0046] In the first and second embodiments, the through-holes 8A, 8B, and 8C were all rectangular notches with an opening on the Z2 side in the Z direction. However, the through-holes 8A, 8B, and 8C may have rounded corners, or the entire shape may be formed as a partial circle (partial ellipse).

[0047] The through-hole 8 that connects the first recess 3 with adjacent recesses (second recess 4, third recess 5, etc.) may be one or more. If the housing 2 has multiple through-holes 8, the multiple through-holes 8 may be a mixture of through-holes with a notched shape that is open on the Z2 side in the Z direction, such as through-holes 8A, 8B, and 8C, and through-holes that penetrate the interior of the first compartment 6, such as through-hole 8D.

[0048] In the above embodiment, the transformer body 22b is described as being housed in the first recess 3 and the potting material P is injected into the first recess 3 as an example, but the embodiment is not limited to this embodiment. For example, an electronic component mounted (fixed) on a substrate as a base plate may be housed in the first recess 3 and the potting material P may be injected into the first recess 3.

[0049] [Summary of the above embodiment] The following describes the overview of the power converter 100 described above.

[0050] <1> The power converter (100) comprises a power module (1) having a voltage conversion unit (20) that converts a DC voltage of a first voltage value to a DC voltage of a second voltage value, and a housing (2) in which the power module (1) is arranged. The voltage conversion unit (20) includes an electronic component (22b) fixed to the first surface (22cA) of the base plate (including bracket) (22c), and the housing (2) is positioned opposite the first surface (22cA) of the base plate (22c) and has a first recess (3) that opens on one side in a first direction perpendicular to the base plate (22c) (Z direction Z2 side), and The device has a first recess (3) adjacent to a first recess (4) along a direction perpendicular to one direction (Z direction) and a direction (X direction, Y direction), with the first recess (4) opening on one side in the first direction (Z direction Z2 side), the first recess (3) houses an electronic component (22b) and is filled with potting material (P), and a partition (6) separating the first recess (3) and the second recess (4) is provided with a through-hole (8) that penetrates from the first recess (3) to the second recess (4) on one side in the first direction (Z direction Z2 side), and the first recess (3) and the second recess (4) are in communication through the through-hole (8).

[0051] With this configuration, the power converter (100) can allow excess potting material (P) injected into the first recess (3) where the electronic component (22b) is housed to flow from the first recess (3) to the second recess (4) via the through-hole (8). In other words, the potting material (P) leaking out of the first recess (3) can be allowed to flow out to a predetermined location via the through-hole (8). As a result, the power converter (100) can prevent the potting material (P) from adhering to areas where adhesion is prohibited with a simple configuration.

[0052] <2> <1> In the power conversion device (100) described above, the electronic component (22b) has a heating element (22e), and it is preferable that the end (22e1) of the heating element (22e) on one side in the first direction (Z direction Z2 side) is located further to the other side in the first direction (Z direction Z1 side) than the end (8A1) of the through-hole (8) on the other side in the first direction (Z direction Z1 side).

[0053] According to this configuration, when injecting the potting material (P) into the first recess (3), the potting material (P) is filled into the first recess (3) until it flows through the through-hole (8) and is injected into the second recess (4), thereby completely immersing the heating element (22e) with the potting material (P).

[0054] <3> <2> In the power conversion device (100) described above, it is preferable that the cooling channel (R) through which the cooling fluid flows is formed opposite the surface of the second recess (4) on the other side in the first direction (Z direction Z1 side).

[0055] In a power converter (100), a second recess (4) adjacent to a first recess (3) in the housing (2) where an electronic component (10) is housed may be provided to provide a spatial insulation effect. In such a case, the cooling channel (R) faces the second recess (4), so that the second recess (4) is reliably cooled by the cooling fluid flowing through the cooling channel (R). As a result, the power converter (100) can enhance the spatial insulation effect in the second recess (4).

[0056] <4> <1> from <3> In the power conversion device (100), it is preferable that potting material (P) is injected into the portion (4C) in the second recess (4) that communicates with the through portion (8) when viewed in the first direction (Z direction).

[0057] With this configuration, the presence of potting material (P) at the point (4C) in the second recess (4) that communicates with the through-hole (8) when viewed in the first direction (Z direction) confirms that the potting material (P) has been filled into the second recess (4) via the through-hole (8) by injecting the potting material (P) into the first recess (3). As a result, the power converter (100) can easily confirm that the first recess (3) in which the electronic component (10) is housed is filled with an appropriate amount of potting material (P). [Industrial applicability]

[0058] The technology described herein can be widely used in power conversion devices. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0059] 1: Power module, 2: Housing, 3: First recess, 4: Second recess, 6: First compartment, 7: Second compartment, 8: Through-hole, 8A: First through-hole, 8A1: End, 8B: Second through-hole, 8C, 8D: Through-hole, 9: Second housing, 20: Voltage conversion section, 22a: Cover plate, 22b: Transformer body (electronic components), 22c: Base plate (including bracket), 22cA: First surface, 22e: Heat-generating section, 22e1: End, 100: Power converter, P: Potting material, R: Cooling channel

Claims

1. The power supply module comprises a voltage conversion unit that converts a DC voltage of a first voltage value to a DC voltage of a second voltage value, and a housing in which the power supply module is arranged. The voltage conversion unit includes electronic components fixed to the first surface of the base plate. The aforementioned housing is A first recess is positioned opposite the first surface of the base plate, and one side of the first direction perpendicular to the base plate is open, It has a second recess provided adjacent to the first recess along a second direction perpendicular to the first direction, with one side in the first direction being open, The first recess houses the electronic component and is filled with potting material. A power conversion device in which a through portion is provided in the partition portion separating the first recess and the second recess, extending from the first recess to the second recess on one side in the first direction, and the first recess and the second recess are in communication through the through portion.

2. The aforementioned electronic component has a heating element, The power conversion device according to claim 1, wherein the end on one side in the first direction of the heating portion is located on the other side in the first direction than the end on the other side in the first direction of the through portion.

3. The power conversion device according to claim 1, wherein a cooling channel through which a cooling fluid flows is formed opposite to the surface of the second recess on the other side in the first direction.

4. The power conversion device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the potting material is injected into a portion of the second recess that communicates with the through portion in the first viewing direction.

Citation Information

Patent Citations

  • Reactor

    JP2017050334A