Electric vehicle and power generation method for electric vehicle

Abstract

To provide an electric vehicle and a power generation method for an electric vehicle that can relatively easily secure power even when a disaster or the like occurs.SOLUTION: An electric vehicle 1 comprises: a motor 20 that includes a rotor 21 and a stator 22 disposed inside a wheel 11 of a vehicle wheel 10, and outputs driving force to the vehicle wheel 10; fixing members 30 that fixes the rotor 21 and a bracket 12 of the wheel 10 together; and an engagement part 40 that is disposed on the rotor 21, exposed outward in a vehicle width direction from an opening 11a of the wheel 11, and configured to be engageable with a tool 50 for rotating the rotor 21 with respect to the vehicle wheel 10 in a state that the fixing by the fixing members 30 is released.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an electric vehicle and a power generation method for an electric vehicle. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a vehicle equipped with an in-wheel motor as an electric vehicle. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2020-083282 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, in an electric vehicle equipped with a motor as a drive source as in the above-mentioned conventional technology, for example, in the event of a disaster, it may not be possible to refuel the vehicle or charge the battery, and there may be a risk that the power required for traveling and for using electrical equipment may not be secured.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an electric vehicle and a power generation method for an electric vehicle that can relatively easily secure electric power even during the occurrence of a disaster or the like. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems and achieve the object, the electric vehicle of the present invention comprises a motor having a rotor and a stator arranged inside a wheel of a vehicle and outputting a driving force to the wheel, a fixing member that fixes the rotor to the wheel, and an engagement portion provided on the rotor, exposed outward in the vehicle width direction from an opening in the wheel, and configured to be able to engage with a device that rotates the rotor relative to the wheel when the fixation by the fixing member is released.

[0007] In addition, the electric vehicle of the present invention comprises a motor having a rotor and a stator arranged inside a wheel of a vehicle and outputting a driving force to the wheel, a fixing member that fixes the stator to the vehicle body, and an engagement portion provided on the stator, exposed outward in the vehicle width direction from an opening in the wheel, and configured to be able to engage with a tool that rotates the stator relative to the wheel when the fixation by the fixing member is released.

[0008] In addition, the power generating method for an electric vehicle according to the present invention is a power generating method for an electric vehicle having a rotor and stator arranged inside a wheel of a vehicle and equipped with a motor that outputs driving force to the wheel, and includes a first step of releasing a fixing member that fixes the rotor to the wheel, or a fixing member that fixes the stator to the vehicle body, and a second step of engaging an instrument with an engaging portion provided on the rotor or the stator and exposed outward in the vehicle width direction from an opening in the wheel, and rotating the rotor or the stator relative to the wheel. Effect of the Invention

[0009] According to the present invention, when an electric vehicle is stopped, the rotor or stator of the motor can be rotated relative to the wheel from outside the wheel with the wheel remaining on the ground without jacking up the wheel, etc. This makes it possible to provide an electric vehicle that can generate power relatively easily even in the event of a disaster, etc. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is an exemplary schematic cross-sectional view of a wheel of an electric vehicle according to an embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is an exemplary schematic front view of a wheel of the electric vehicle according to the embodiment. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is an exemplary schematic cross-sectional view of a wheel of an electric vehicle according to a first modified example. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is an illustrative schematic front view of a wheel of an electric vehicle according to a first modified example. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] Exemplary embodiments and modifications of the present invention are disclosed below. The configurations of the embodiments and modifications shown below, and the actions and effects brought about by the configurations, are merely examples. The present invention can be realized by configurations other than those disclosed in the following embodiments and modifications. Furthermore, according to the present invention, it is possible to obtain at least one of the various effects (including derivative effects) obtained by the configurations.

[0012] In addition, the embodiments and modifications disclosed below include similar components. Therefore, in the following, the similar components are given the same reference numerals, and duplicated explanations are omitted. Note that in this specification, ordinal numbers are used only to distinguish parts, members, parts, positions, directions, etc., and do not indicate order or priority.

[0013] [Embodiment] Fig. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a wheel 10 of an electric vehicle 1 according to an embodiment. As shown in Fig. 1, the electric vehicle 1 includes, for example, the wheel 10, a bracket 12, a motor 20, a plurality of fixing members 30, 31, and an engagement portion 40. The right side in Fig. 1 corresponds to the outer side in the vehicle width direction.

[0014] The wheel 10 has a cylindrical wheel 11, and a motor 20 is disposed inside the wheel 11. The motor 20 is, for example, a direct type outer rotor in-wheel motor. The motor 20 is connected to a battery, which is an electricity storage device, via an inverter or the like.

[0015] The wheels 10 are suspended from the body of the electric vehicle 1 via independent suspensions. A motor 20 is provided, for example, on each wheel 10, and generates a driving force or a braking force for each wheel 10 independently of the others. Note that the motor 20 may be provided only on two of the four wheels 10 that are driving wheels.

[0016] The motor 20 has, for example, a rotor 21 as a rotor, a shaft 23, an outer ring member 24, and a bearing 25, and a stator 22 as a stationary part. A magnet is provided on an inner peripheral surface 21a of the rotor 21 so as to face the stator 22. In this embodiment, the central axis of the shaft 23 and the central axis of the wheel 11 are substantially aligned.

[0017] The stator 22 is positioned radially inward of the rotor 21 and disposed in the space between the rotor 21 and the shaft 23. The stator 22 has a stator core, a coil wound around the stator core, etc. The stator 22 generates a magnetic field when electricity is applied to the coil, and rotates the rotor 21 around the central axis of the shaft 23 by interaction with the magnetic field.

[0018] The outer race member 24 is positioned radially outward of the rotor 21, and is disposed in the space between the rotor 21 and the rim portion 11d of the wheel 11. The outer race member 24 is configured in a cylindrical shape centered on the central axis of the shaft 23, and is rotatably supported by the rotor 21 via bearings 25.

[0019] In this embodiment, the outer race member 24 is configured to be rotatable integrally with the rotor 21 during normal driving of the electric vehicle 1, and is also configured to be rotatable relative to the rotor 21 during power generation of the electric vehicle 1, which will be described later. The outer race member 24 is fixed to a bracket 12 for mounting the motor 20 to the wheel 11.

[0020] The bracket 12 has, for example, a plate portion 12a and a flange portion 12b. The plate portion 12a is configured in a disk shape that spreads along the radial direction of the wheel 11. The plate portion 12a is provided with a plurality of openings 12c through which a fixing member 31 that fixes the wheel 11 and the bracket 12, a fixing member 30 that fixes the bracket 12 and the rotor 21, an engagement portion 40, etc. penetrate.

[0021] The flange portion 12b protrudes inward in the vehicle width direction from the outer peripheral edge portion of the plate portion 12a along the rim portion 11d of the wheel 11. The flange portion 12b is configured in a cylindrical shape along the rim portion 11d of the wheel 11, and is fixed to the outer ring member 24. The bracket 12 has a substantially U-shaped cross section that is opened inward in the vehicle width direction by the plate portion 12a and the flange portion 12b.

[0022] Fig. 2 is a schematic front view of the wheel 10 of the electric vehicle 1. As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the fixing member 31 is, for example, a fastener such as a bolt, and fixes (fastens) the wheel 11 and the bracket 12. In this embodiment, for example, a plurality of (four) fixing members 31 are provided at a hub portion (center portion) of the wheel 11 at intervals from one another in the circumferential direction of the wheel 11.

[0023] The fixing member 30 is positioned radially outward of the fixing member 31. The fixing member 30 is, for example, a fastener such as a bolt, and fixes (fastens) the bracket 12 and the rotor 21. In this embodiment, for example, a plurality of (four) fixing members 30 are provided at intervals from each other in the circumferential direction of the wheel 11. Note that the number of fixing members 30, 31 is not limited to four, and may be two, three, or five or more.

[0024] In this embodiment, the head of the fixing member 30 is exposed outward in the vehicle width direction from an opening 11b provided in a spoke portion (a portion extending in the radial direction) of the wheel 11. The fixing member 30 is configured so that the fixation (fastening) between the bracket 12 and the rotor 21 can be released from the outside of the wheel 11 by a tool 60 such as a hexagonal wrench as shown in FIG.

[0025] In this embodiment, in a state in which the fixing of the bracket 12 and the rotor 21 by the fixing member 30 is released, the rotor 21 is rotatable relative to the bracket 12. In this case, since the bracket 12 is fixed to the wheel 11 and the outer race member 24, the rotor 21 is rotatable inside the bearing 25 relative to the outer race member 24, the bracket 12, and the wheel 11 (wheel 10).

[0026] On the other hand, in a state in which the bracket 12 and the rotor 21 are fixed by the fixing member 30, the rotor 21 can rotate integrally with the bracket 12. In this case, since the bracket 12 is fixed to the wheel 11 and the outer race member 24, the rotor 21 can rotate integrally with the bearing 25, the outer race member 24, the bracket 12, and the wheel 11 (wheel 10).

[0027] In this embodiment, the rotor 21 is provided with an engagement portion 40. The engagement portion 40 protrudes outward in the vehicle width direction from the rotor 21 along the central axis of the wheel 11, and penetrates the opening 12c of the bracket 12 and the opening 11a at the center of the wheel 11. The engagement portion 40 is configured in a polygonal (hexagonal) rod shape when viewed from the front of the wheel 11 (as viewed from the front in FIG. 2).

[0028] The engaging portion 40 can be engaged with a tool 50 such as a torque wrench as shown in Fig. 1. The tool 50 can manually rotate the rotor 21 relative to the wheel 10 in a state in which the fixing of the bracket 12 and the rotor 21 by the fixing member 30 described above is released by the engagement with the engaging portion 40.

[0029] Next, an example of a power generation method for the electric vehicle 1 will be described. First, as shown in Fig. 1, a tool 60 such as a hexagonal wrench is engaged with the head of the fixing member 30 exposed outward in the vehicle width direction from the opening 11b of the wheel 11. Then, the fixing member 30 is manually rotated with the tool 60 to release the fixation (fastening) between the rotor 21 and the bracket 12 (step S1). Step S1 is an example of a first step.

[0030] Next, a tool 50 such as a torque wrench is engaged with the engagement portion 40 exposed outward in the vehicle width direction from the opening 11a of the wheel 11, and the rotor 21 is manually rotated relative to the wheel 10 using the tool 50 (step S2). This causes the motor 20 to generate electricity. Step S2 is an example of the second step.

[0031] Thus, according to this embodiment, the rotor 21 can be manually rotated relative to the wheel 10 to generate electricity using a relatively simple configuration based on the engagement between the engagement portion 40 and the tool 50. The generated electricity may be charged into a battery for driving the electric vehicle 1, or may be consumed by a load such as the use of electrical equipment.

[0032] As described above, in this embodiment, the electric vehicle 1 has a motor 20 having a rotor 21 and a stator 22 arranged inside the wheel 11 of the wheel 10, and outputs driving force to the wheel 10, a fixing member 30 that fixes the rotor 21 to the bracket 12 of the wheel 10, and an engagement portion 40 that is provided on the rotor 21, exposed outward in the vehicle width direction from the opening 11a of the wheel 11, and configured to be able to engage with a device 50 that rotates the rotor 21 relative to the wheel 10 when the fixation by the fixing member 30 is released.

[0033] According to this configuration, when the electric vehicle 1 is stopped, the rotor 21 can be rotated relative to the wheel 10 from outside the wheel 11 with the wheel 10 left on the ground without jacking up the wheel 10, thereby generating electricity. This makes it possible to provide an electric vehicle 1 that can relatively easily secure electric power even in the event of a disaster or the like.

[0034] [Variations] Fig. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the wheel 10 of an electric vehicle 1A of a modified example, and Fig. 4 is a schematic front view of the wheel 10 of the electric vehicle 1A. The electric vehicle 1A has a similar configuration to the electric vehicle 1 of the above embodiment. Therefore, the electric vehicle 1A can obtain the same actions and effects as the above embodiment based on the similar configuration.

[0035] However, this modification differs from the above embodiment in that the stator 22 is rotated relative to the wheel 10 to generate electricity as shown in Figures 3 and 4. In this modification, the motor 20A is, for example, a direct type inner rotor in-wheel motor. The motor 20A is connected to a battery, which is an electricity storage device, via an inverter or the like.

[0036] The motor 20A has, for example, a rotor 21 as a rotor, a shaft 23, and a stator 22 as a stationary part. A magnet is provided on an outer peripheral surface 21b of the rotor 21 so as to face the stator 22. The rotor 21 is fixed to the wheel 11 via a bracket 12.

[0037] The stator 22 is positioned radially outward of the rotor 21 and disposed in the space between the rotor 21 and the rim portion 11d of the wheel 11. The stator 22 generates a magnetic field by energizing a coil, and rotates the rotor 21 about the central axis of the shaft 23 by interaction with the magnetic field. The stator 22 is fixed to the vehicle body side bracket 13 via a bracket 15.

[0038] The bracket 15 has, for example, a disk-shaped plate portion 15a and a cylindrical flange portion 15b. The plate portion 15a is provided with a fixing member 30 that fixes the bracket 15 to the vehicle body side bracket 13 and a plurality of openings through which the shaft 23 and the like pass. The flange portion 15b protrudes outward in the vehicle width direction from the outer circumferential edge portion of the plate portion 15a along the rim portion 11d of the wheel 11 and is fixed to the stator 22.

[0039] The fixing member 30 is, for example, a fastener such as a bolt, and fixes (fastens) the vehicle body side bracket 13 and the bracket 15. In this modified example, the fixing member 30 is configured to be movable, for example, by an electric actuator or the like between a fixed position shown in FIG. 1 and a release position where the fixation between the vehicle body side bracket 13 and the bracket 15 is released.

[0040] In this modification, when the fixing member 30 is released from the vehicle body side bracket 13 and the bracket 15, the stator 22 is rotatable relative to the vehicle body side bracket 13. In this case, the stator 22 is not fixed to the wheel 11 via the bracket 12, unlike the rotor 21, and therefore the stator 22 is also rotatable relative to the wheel 11 (wheel 10).

[0041] In this modification, the stator 22 is provided with an engagement portion 40A. The engagement portion 40A is, for example, an engagement hole that opens outward in the vehicle width direction, and is exposed outward in the vehicle width direction through an opening 11c of the wheel 11. That is, the engagement portion 40A is aligned with the opening 11c of the wheel 11 in the vehicle width direction. The opening 11c is, for example, configured as a round hole (see FIG. 4) that is one size larger than the engagement portion 40A.

[0042] Furthermore, the engaging portion 40A can be engaged with, for example, a rod-shaped tool 50 as shown in Fig. 3. The tool 50 can manually rotate the stator 22 with respect to the wheel 10 in a state in which the fixing between the vehicle body side bracket 13 and the bracket 15 by the fixing member 30 described above is released by the engagement with the engaging portion 40A.

[0043] In this modification, the wheel 11 is provided with a rotating member 14. As shown in Fig. 4, the rotating member 14 is configured, for example, in an annular (ring-shaped) shape centered on the central axis of the wheel 11, and is rotatably supported by the wheel 11 via a bearing 80. The rotating member 14 is provided with an opening 11c through which the above-mentioned instrument 50 passes.

[0044] Furthermore, the rotating member 14 is fixed to the wheel 11 via, for example, a bearing lock 70. The bearing lock 70 is a member that restricts the rotation of the rotating member 14 relative to the wheel 11 during normal running of the electric vehicle 1A. The bearing lock 70 is fitted into small holes provided in the wheel 11 and the rotating member 14, for example.

[0045] Next, an example of a power generation method for the electric vehicle 1A will be described. First, the fixing between the vehicle body side bracket 13 and the bracket 15 by the fixing member 30 is released by an electric actuator or the like. Next, as shown in Fig. 3, the bearing lock 70 is removed from the wheel 11, and the fixing between the wheel 11 and the rotating member 14 is released.

[0046] Next, the tool 50 is inserted from the opening 11c of the wheel 11 along the vehicle width direction, and the tip of the tool 50 is engaged with the engagement portion 40A. Then, the stator 22 and the rotating member 14 are rotated together with respect to the wheel 10 manually by the tool 50. This causes the motor 20A to generate electricity.

[0047] Thus, according to this modification, the stator 22 can be manually rotated relative to the wheel 10 to generate electricity using a relatively simple configuration based on the engagement between the engagement portion 40A and the tool 50. That is, according to this modification, when the electric vehicle 1A is stopped, the stator 22 can be rotated relative to the wheel 10 from outside the wheel 11 with the wheel 10 left on the ground without being jacked up or the like, to generate electricity. This makes it possible to provide an electric vehicle 1A that can relatively easily secure electric power even in the event of a disaster or the like.

[0048] Although the embodiment and the modified examples of the present invention have been illustrated above, the above-mentioned embodiment and the modified examples are merely examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. The above-mentioned embodiment and the modified examples can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, combinations, and modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the invention. In addition, the specifications of each configuration, shape, and the like (structure, type, direction, type, size, length, width, thickness, height, number, arrangement, position, material, etc.) can be appropriately changed and implemented. [Explanation of symbols]

[0049] 1,1A…Electric vehicle 10...Wheel 11…Wheels 11a,11c...opening 12...Bracket (wheel) 13...Vehicle side bracket (vehicle body) 20…Motor 21...Rotor 22…Stator 30…Fixing member 40, 40A…Engagement part 50…Equipment S1...First step S2: Second step

Claims

1. A motor having a rotor and a stator disposed inside a wheel of a vehicle and outputting a driving force to the wheel; a fixing member that fixes the rotor and the wheel; an engagement portion provided on the rotor, exposed outward in a vehicle width direction from an opening in the wheel, and configured to be engageable with a tool that rotates the rotor relative to the wheel in a state where the rotor is released from the fixing member; An electric vehicle equipped with

2. A motor having a rotor and a stator disposed inside a wheel of a vehicle and outputting a driving force to the wheel; a fixing member that fixes the stator to a vehicle body; an engagement portion provided on the stator, exposed outward in a vehicle width direction from an opening in the wheel, and configured to be engageable with a tool that rotates the stator relative to the wheel in a state where the stator is released from the fixing member; An electric vehicle equipped with

3. A power generation method for an electric vehicle including a motor having a rotor and a stator disposed inside a wheel of a vehicle wheel and outputting a driving force to the wheel, comprising the steps of: a first step of releasing a fixing member that fixes the rotor and the wheel or a fixing member that fixes the stator and a vehicle body; a second step of engaging an engagement portion of the rotor that is exposed outward in the vehicle width direction from an opening in the wheel with a tool when the fixing of a fixing member that fixes the rotor and the wheel is released in the first step, and rotating the rotor relative to the wheel, and engaging an engagement portion of the stator that is exposed outward in the vehicle width direction from an opening in the wheel with a tool when the fixing of a fixing member that fixes the stator and the vehicle body is released in the first step, and rotating the stator relative to the wheel; A power generation method for an electric vehicle comprising:

Images