Multi-phase inductor, circuit board, and vehicle

Abstract

The present disclosure provides a multi-phase inductor, a circuit board, and a vehicle, the multi-phase inductor comprising: a magnetic core made of a soft magnet and a plurality of conductive windings made of a conductive material, the magnetic core including a common magnetic core portion and a winding magnetic core portion, the winding magnetic core portion including a plurality of winding central columns and two magnetic bridges, each winding central column being wound by one conductive winding and positioned, together with the common magnetic core portion, between the two magnetic bridges, such that the common magnetic core portion, together with each winding central column and each magnetic bridge, defines for each conductive winding a closed magnetic path through which a magnetic flux generated by the conductive winding flows; and a plurality of hard magnets combined to the winding magnetic core portion, such that at least one hard magnet is disposed on the closed magnetic path of each conductive winding, and a magnetization direction of the at least one hard magnet is opposite to a flowing direction of the magnetic flux generated by the conductive winding.

Description

[0001] Specification

[0002] Multi-phase Inductor, Circuit Board, and Vehicle

[0003] Technical Field

[0004] The present disclosure relates to the technical field of electronic components and parts, and more particularly relates to a multi-phase inductor, a circuit board, and a vehicle.

[0005] Background Art

[0006] A multi-phase inductor generally includes a plurality of conductive windings and can be used in power supply management circuits on power management applications and circuit boards to supply power to electronic devices. Each conductive winding in the multi-phase inductor is designed to induce a magnetic field by a current flowing through the conductive winding, to store energy by generating the magnetic field in a magnetic core associated with the conductive winding, and to return the stored energy into an associated circuit by inducing the current passing through the conductive winding. As a result, each conductive winding can be used for one-phase power management, while a multi-phase inductor including a plurality of conductive windings can be used for multi-phase power management. As a result, the multiphase inductor eliminates the need for separately setting one inductor for each-phase power management, thereby helping save valuable space on the circuit boards and reduce the size of the electronic devices. However, existing multi-phase inductors have problems in some aspects. First, a magnetic core has a higher saturation risk due to the integration of a plurality of conductive windings, for example, a plurality of magnetic fields generated by the plurality of conductive windings may be superimposed in the magnetic core, thereby resulting in the saturation of the magnetic core; and for another example, even though the plurality of magnetic fields generated by the plurality of conductive windings cannot be superimposed in the magnetic core, in applications of high-power boost circuits, a single conductive winding may also generate a magnetic field sufficient to cause saturation of the magnetic core due to passage of a large phase current. Second, the magnetic core cannot be reduced in size due to the higher saturation risk, thereby resulting in no further reduction in size of the circuit board and the electronic devices. Third, the plurality of magnetic fields generated by the plurality of conductive windings are not reliably decoupled, and coupled magnetic fields may cause the multi-phase inductor to be unable to operate in a single-phase mode; or in the single-phase mode, due to coupling of the magnetic fields, a magnetic flux generated by one phase of inductor of a working circuit will be linked to a magnetic path of another phase of non-working inductor, thereby generating an inductive voltage on the non-working inductor and thus generating additional losses; or even in a critical case, false triggering of a non-working phase power device will be caused.

[0007] As a result, in the art, there is a great need for a multi-phase inductor that is capable of reliably reducing the saturation risk of the magnetic core, thereby reducing the size, and that can ensure reliable decoupling between magnetic fields of the multi-phase inductor, thereby working accurately.

[0008] Summary of Utility Model

[0009] In order to address the problems in the prior art described above, the present disclosure provides an improved multi-phase inductor, comprising: a magnetic core made of a soft magnet and a plurality of conductive windings made of a conductive material, the magnetic core including a common magnetic core portion and a winding magnetic core portion, the winding magnetic core portion including a plurality of winding central columns and two magnetic bridges, each winding central column being wound by one conductive winding and positioned, together with the common magnetic core portion, between the two magnetic bridges, such that the common magnetic core portion, together with each winding central column and each magnetic bridge, defines for each conductive winding a closed magnetic path through which a magnetic flux generated by the conductive winding flows; and a plurality of hard magnets combined to the winding magnetic core portion, such that at least one hard magnet is disposed on the closed magnetic path of each conductive winding, and a magnetization direction of the at least one hard magnet is opposite to a flowing direction of the magnetic flux generated by the conductive winding.

[0010] According to one optional implementation of the present disclosure, a magnetic flux generated by at least one conductive winding and magnetic fluxes generated by other conductive windings flow through the common magnetic core portion along different directions.

[0011] According to one optional implementation of the present disclosure, each hard magnet is embedded in one winding central column.

[0012] According to one optional implementation of the present disclosure, each hard magnet is connected between one winding central column and one magnetic bridge.

[0013] According to one optional implementation of the present disclosure, each hard magnet is embedded in one magnetic bridge.

[0014] According to one optional implementation of the present disclosure, the winding magnetic core portion includes two pairs of winding central columns positioned on both sides of the common magnetic core portion, each pair of winding central columns being positioned between the common magnetic core portion and one magnetic bridge and wound by one conductive winding.

[0015] According to one optional implementation of the present disclosure, a part of the common magnetic core portion has an initial magnetic conductivity higher than that of the winding magnetic core portion.

[0016] According to one optional implementation of the present disclosure, the plurality of winding central columns are spaced apart from the common magnetic core portion and arranged around the common magnetic core portion, each winding central column being wound by one conductive winding.

[0017] According to one optional implementation of the present disclosure, the plurality of winding central columns are evenly distributed around the common magnetic core portion.

[0018] According to one optional implementation of the present disclosure, a whole of the common magnetic core portion has an initial magnetic conductivity higher than that of the winding magnetic core portion.

[0019] Also to address the problems in the prior art described above, the present disclosure also provides an improved circuit board, including a substrate, a multi-phase circuit disposed on the substrate, and the multi-phase inductor as described in the disclosure, each conductive winding in the plurality of conductive windings of the multi-phase inductor being electrically connected with a one-phase circuit in the multi-phase circuit.

[0020] Also to address the problems in the prior art described above, the present disclosure also provides an improved vehicle, including a power supply and the circuit board as described in the present disclosure, the multi-phase circuit of the circuit board being electrically connected with the power supply.

[0021] The present disclosure may be embodied as a schematic example in the accompanying drawings. However, it should be noted that the accompanying drawings are merely schematic and that any change contemplated under the teachings of the present disclosure shall be considered to be included within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0022] Description of Accompanying Drawings

[0023] The accompanying drawings illustrate exemplary examples of the present disclosure. These accompanying drawings should not be construed as necessarily limiting the scope of the present disclosure, wherein:

[0024] FIG. 1 is a schematic stereoscopic view of a multi-phase inductor according to one implementation of the present disclosure;

[0025] FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the multi-phase inductor shown in FIG. 1 ;

[0026] FIG. 3 is a schematic stereoscopic view of a multi-phase inductor according to another implementation of the present disclosure;

[0027] FIG. 4 is an adaptive exploded view of the multi-phase inductor shown in FIG. 3;

[0028] FIG. 5 is an adaptive exploded view of the multi-phase inductor shown in FIG. 3;

[0029] FIG. 6 is an adaptive exploded view of the multi-phase inductor shown in FIG. 3; FIG. 7 is a schematic exploded view of a multi-phase inductor according to yet another implementation of the present disclosure; and

[0030] FIG. 8 is a schematic exploded view of a multi-phase inductor according to still another implementation of the present disclosure.

[0031] Specific Embodiments

[0032] Further features and advantages of the present disclosure will become more apparent from the following description, which is made with reference to the accompanying drawings. Exemplary examples of the present disclosure are shown in the accompanying drawings, and the various accompanying drawings are not necessarily drawn in actual proportions. However, the present disclosure may be implemented in many different forms and should not be construed as necessarily limiting to the exemplary examples disclosed herein. Rather, these exemplary examples are merely provided for illustrative purposes of the present disclosure and for delivering the spirit and substance of the present disclosure to those skilled in the art.

[0033] The present disclosure aims to provide a multi-phase inductor having a novel magnetically-integrated topological structure. In the novel magnetically-integrated topological structure, a plurality of windings are integrated into one common core structure, wherein the plurality of windings can be connected to a multi-phase circuit on a circuit board, such that each winding can be used for adjusting one-phase power in the multi-phase power. That is, by integrating the plurality of windings in the same magnetic core structure, the multi-phase inductor according to the present disclosure can be used for adjusting multi-phase power, thereby enabling a multi-phase power system to not need to separately set one inductor for each phase of power adjustment. As a result, the multi-phase inductor according to the present disclosure can save valuable space on the circuit board and help reduce the size of electronic devices. In addition, the magnetically-integrated topological structure of the multi-phase inductor according to the present disclosure is also capable of reliably reducing the magnetic core saturation risk due to the integration of the plurality of windings in a single magnetic core; and due to the reduction of the saturation risk, the size of the magnetic core can be reduced, which makes it possible for the multi-phase inductor according to the present disclosure as a whole to have smaller size, which contributes to further saving space on the circuit board and reducing the size of the electronic devices.

[0034] An implementation of the multi-phase inductor according to the present disclosure is described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0035] As shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 8, the multi-phase inductor 10 includes a magnetic core 100 made of a soft magnet material (e.g., ferrosilicon alloy, power ferrite, etc.) and a plurality of conductive windings 200 made of a conductive material (e.g., copper, copper alloy, aluminum conductor, etc.), wherein each conductive winding 200 is combined to the magnetic core 100, thereby enabling the multi-phase inductor 10 to have a multi-winding integrated structure. During the installation of the multi-phase inductor 10, each conductive winding 200 may be electrically connected with a one-phase circuit in the multi-phase circuit on a circuit board, such that each conductive winding 200 may be used for adjusting one-phase power, while the multi-phase inductor 10 may be used for adjusting multi-phase power.

[0036] As shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 8, the magnetic core 100 includes a common magnetic core portion 110 and a winding magnetic core portion 120 connected with the common magnetic core portion 110, the winding magnetic core portion 120 including a plurality of winding central columns 121 and two magnetic bridges 122 spaced apart from one another, wherein each winding central column 121 is wound by one conductive winding 200 in the plurality of conductive windings 200, each winding central column 121 , together with the common magnetic core portion 110, being positioned between the two magnetic bridges 122, such that a magnetic flux generated by each conductive winding 200 after being powered on will flow along a closed path (i.e., magnetic path) defined by the respective winding central column 121 , the magnetic bridges 122, and the common magnetic core portion 110 together. That is, each winding central column 121 , each magnetic bridge 122 and the common magnetic core portion 110 together define for each conductive winding a closed magnetic path through which a magnetic flux generated by the conductive winding flows, and the plurality of winding central columns 121 , the two magnetic bridges 122 and the common magnetic core portion 110 together define for the conductive windings a plurality of closed magnetic paths through which magnetic fluxes generated by the plurality of conductive windings 200 flow, wherein the magnetic flux generated by each conductive winding 200 will flow along the respective closed magnetic path, and since each closed magnetic path extends through the common magnetic core portion 110 (since each closed magnetic path has a part defined by the common magnetic core portion 110), the magnetic flux generated by each conductive winding 200 will therefore flow through the common magnetic core portion 110, whereby decoupling between the plurality of magnetic fluxes generated by the plurality of conductive windings 200 is achieved by the common magnetic core portion 110, thereby suppressing superposition of the plurality of magnetic fluxes in the winding magnetic core portion 120 and reducing the saturation risk of the winding magnetic core portion 120. In particular, a part or a whole of the common magnetic core portion 110 may be made of a material (e.g., power ferrite, amorphous material, nanocrystal material, etc.) having an initial magnetic conductivity higher than that of the winding magnetic core portion 120 (of course, the saturation magnetic flux density may be lower than that of the winding magnetic core portion 120), thereby increasing the magnetic ability of the common magnetic core portion 110 and thus improving its ability to decouple the plurality of magnetic fluxes. It is worth noting that the connectors (i.e., a positive connection terminal and a negative connection terminal) of the multi-phase inductor 10 are fixed, so in case that the multi-phase inductor 10 is properly wired on the circuit board, a flowing direction (i.e., a direction of the magnetic field) of the magnetic fluxes generated by each conductive winding 200 is determined only in particular by a winding mode. As such, to further avoid the saturation of the common magnetic core portion 110 due to the passage of a plurality of magnetic fluxes, the winding mode of the plurality of conductive windings 200 on the respective winding central columns 121 enables the direction of the magnetic flux generated by the at least one conductive winding 200 flowing through the common magnetic core portion 110 is different from the direction of magnetic fluxes generated by other conductive windings 200 flowing through the common magnetic core portion 110, thereby being capable of reducing the saturation risk of the common magnetic core portion 110 by mutually offsetting the magnetic flux of the at least one conductive winding 200 and the magnetic fluxes of the other conductive windings 200. As a result, the saturation risk of the common magnetic core portion 110 and the winding magnetic core portion 120 may be reduced by the manner described above, while the reduction in the saturation risk allows for a reduction in the size of the common magnetic core portion 110 and the winding magnetic core portion 120, thereby contributing to a reduction in the overall size of the multi-phase inductor 10.

[0037] It is worth noting that while the common magnetic core portion 110 inhibits the superposition of the magnetic fluxes of the plurality of conductive windings 200 in the winding magnetic core portion 120 and thus reduces the saturation risk of the winding magnetic core portion 120, in applications of high-power boost circuits, the magnetic flux generated by phase currents passing through the single conductive winding 200 may also result in the saturation of the winding magnetic core portion 120. To this end, as shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 8, the multiphase inductor 10 also includes a plurality of hard magnets 300 embedded in the winding magnetic core portion 120 of the magnetic core 100, wherein one hard magnet 300 is disposed on the respective closed magnetic path of each conductive winding 200, and the magnetization direction of the hard magnet 300 is opposite to the flowing direction of the magnetic flux generated by the conductive winding 200. In this configuration, since the flowing direction of the magnetic flux generated by each conductive winding 200 is opposite to the magnetization direction of the respective hard magnet 300, the hard magnet 300 may reduce the density of the magnetic flux generated by the conductive winding 200 in the winding magnetic core portion 120, thereby reducing the saturation risk of the winding magnetic core portion 120. As a result, under the teachings of the present disclosure, the saturation risk of both the common magnetic core portion 110 and the winding magnetic core portion 120 (i.e., the magnetic core 100) is reduced by setting the common magnetic core portion 110, setting the winding manner of the various conductive windings 200, and adding the hard magnets 300, while the reduction in saturation risk allows for a reduction in the size of the magnetic core 100, thereby enabling the multi-phase inductor 10 to not only have the ability of adjusting multi-phase power, but also save the space on the circuit board and reduce the size of the electronic devices.

[0038] Various optional but non-limiting implementations of the multi-phase inductor according to the present disclosure are described in further detail below with reference to various accompanying drawings.

[0039] Refer to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, in which a schematic stereoscopic view and a schematic cross-sectional view of the multi-phase inductor according to one implementation of the present disclosure are shown, respectively. As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the winding magnetic core portion 120 includes two pairs of winding central columns 121 positioned on both sides (e.g. symmetrically arranged about the common magnetic core portion 110) of the common magnetic core portion 110 (in particular, in a plate-like shape) and two magnetic bridges 122, wherein each magnetic bridge 122 is connected to the common magnetic core portion 110 by a pair of winding central columns 121 , and the multi-phase inductor 10 includes two conductive windings 200, such that the multi-phase inductor 10 can be used for adjusting the two-phase power, wherein each conductive winding 200 is wound (e.g., wound in an 8 shape) on a pair of winding central columns 121 such that each magnetic bridge 122, together with the common magnetic core portion 110 and the pair of winding central columns 121 therebetween, defines for each conductive winding 200 a closed magnetic path through which the magnetic flux generated by the conductive winding flows. Additionally, the multi-phase inductor 10 includes two hard magnets 300, wherein each hard magnet 300 is embedded in one magnetic bridge 122.

[0040] As shown in the dashed line in FIG. 2, the common magnetic core portion 110, together with a pair of winding central columns 121 positioned on the upper side thereof and the magnetic bridges 122, defines an upper magnetic path ML1 , and together with the pair of winding central columns 121 positioned on the lower side thereof, and the magnetic bridges 122, defines a lower magnetic path ML2, and the upper magnetic path ML1 and the lower magnetic path ML2 both extend through the common magnetic core portion 110. Further, as shown by the arrow in FIG. 2, the magnetic flux generated by the conductive windings 200 on the upper side and the magnetic flux generated by the conductive windings 200 on the lower side flow through the common magnetic core portion 110 along different directions, thereby helping reduce the saturation risk of the common magnetic core portion 110. In addition, the magnetization direction of the hard magnets 300 embedded in the magnetic bridge 122 on the upper side is opposite to the flowing direction of the magnetic flux generated by the conductive winding 200 on the upper side, thereby helping reduce the saturation risk of the winding magnetic core portion 120 on the upper side; and the magnetization direction of the hard magnets 300 embedded in the magnetic bridge 122 on the lower side is opposite to the flowing direction of the magnetic flux generated by the conductive winding 200 on the lower side, thereby helping reduce the saturation risk of the winding magnetic core portion 120 on the lower side. In particular, the common magnetic core portion 110 may include a magnetic conducting portion 111 at its central location, the magnetic conducting portion 111 has an initial magnetic conductivity higher than those of the other portions of the common magnetic core portion 110 and the winding magnetic core portion 120, but the saturation flux density may be lower than those of the other portions of the common magnetic core portion 110 and the winding magnetic core portion 120. Therefore, the magnetic conducting portion 111 may improve the ability of the common magnetic core portion 110 to decouple the magnetic fluxes generated by the two conductive windings 200, thereby helping avoid the superposition of these magnetic fluxes in the winding magnetic core portion 120 and further reduce the saturation risk of the winding magnetic core portion 120.

[0041] While in the implementations shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the two hard magnets 300 are respectively embedded in two magnetic bridges 122, in the implementations not shown, different configurations may be taken. For example, the multi-phase inductor 10 may include four hard magnets, 300 wherein each hard magnet 300 is embedded in a winding central column 121 , or every two hard magnets 300 may be embedded in one magnetic bridge 122 in a mode of being spaced apart from each other. As a result, any number of hard magnets 300 as well as any arrangement that are capable of achieving the teachings of the present disclosure fall within the scope of protection of the present disclosure.

[0042] In addition, the magnetic core 100 and the windings 200 may take implementations different from those shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2. In another implementation of the magnetic core 100 and the windings 200, as shown in FIG. 3 to FIG. 6, the winding magnetic core portion 120 includes two winding central columns 121 and two magnetic bridges 122, wherein the common magnetic core portion 110 (in particular, in a column shape) and the two winding central columns 121 are positioned between the two magnetic bridges and connected to the two magnetic bridges 122, that is, the two magnetic bridges 122 are connected together by the common magnetic core portion 110 and the two winding central columns 121 positioned therebetween, and wherein the two winding central columns 121 are spaced apart from the common magnetic core portion and arranged around the common magnetic core portion 110, in particular may be arranged symmetrically about the common magnetic core portion 110. The multi-phase inductor 10 includes two conductive windings 200, such that the multi-phase inductor 10 can be used for adjusting two-phase power, wherein each conductive winding 200 is wound on one winding central column 121 , such that each winding central column 121 , together with the common magnetic core portion 110 and the magnetic bridges 122 (more specifically, the portions of the two magnetic bridges 122 between each winding central column 121 and the common magnetic core portion 110), defines for each conductive winding 200 a closed magnetic path through which the magnetic flux generated by each conductive winding flows. Additionally, as shown in FIG. 5, the multi-phase inductor 10 includes two hard magnets 300, wherein each hard magnet 300 is embedded in one winding central column 121.

[0043] As shown in the dashed line in FIG. 3, the winding central column 121 on the left side, together with the common magnetic core portion 110 and the magnetic bridges 122, defines a left side magnetic path ML1 , and the winding central column 121 on the right side, together with the common magnetic core portion 110 and the magnetic bridge 122, defines a right side magnetic path ML2, wherein the left side magnetic path ML1 and the right side magnetic path ML2 both extend through the common magnetic core portion 110. Further, as shown by the arrow in FIG. 3, the magnetic flux generated by the conductive winding 200 on the left side and the magnetic flux generated by the conductive windings 200 on the right side flow through the common magnetic core portion 110 along different directions, thereby helping reduce the saturation risk of the common magnetic core portion 110. In addition, the magnetization direction of the hard magnet 300 embedded in the winding central column 121 on the left side is opposite to the flowing direction of the magnetic flux generated by the conductive winding 200 on the left side, thereby helping reduce the saturation risk of the winding magnetic core portion 120 on the left side; and the magnetization direction of the hard magnet 300 embedded in the winding central column 121 on the right side is opposite to the flowing direction of the magnetic flux generated by the conductive winding 200 on the right side, thereby helping reduce the saturation risk of the winding magnetic core portion 120 on the right side. In particular, the common magnetic core portion 110 may be made of a material having an initial magnetic conductivity higher than that of the winding magnetic core portion 120 (although the saturation magnetic flux density may be lower than that of the winding magnetic core portion 120), thereby being capable of enhancing the ability of the common magnetic core portion 110 to decouple the magnetic fluxes generated by the two conductive windings 200 to avoid the superposition of those magnetic fluxes in the winding magnetic core portion 120, thereby further reducing the saturation risk of the winding magnetic core portion 120.

[0044] While in the implementation shown in FIG. 5, the two hard magnets 300 are respectively embedded in two winding central columns 121 , other configurations may also be adopted, for example, in the implementation shown in FIG. 6, the multi-phase inductor 10 may include two hard magnets 300, wherein each hard magnet 300 may be disposed between one winding central column 121 and one magnetic bridge 122, such that each winding central column 121 is connected to the magnetic bridge 122is connected at a respective end to the magnetic bridge 122 by the hard magnets 300. Of course, in the implementations not shown, other configurations may be taken, for example, the hard magnets 300 may be embedded in the magnetic bridges 122, or the two ends of each winding central column 121 may be each provided with one hard magnet 300, or the like. As a result, any number of hard magnets 300 as well as any arrangement that are capable of achieving the teachings of the present disclosure fall within the scope of protection of the present disclosure.

[0045] In yet another implementation of the magnetic core 100 and the windings 200, as shown in FIG. 7, the winding magnetic core portion 120 includes three winding central columns 121a, 121b, 121c and two magnetic bridges 122 (only one is shown in FIG. 7), wherein the common magnetic core portion 110 and the three winding central columns 121a-c are all positioned between the two magnetic bridges 122 and connected with the two magnetic bridges 122, that is, the two magnetic bridges 122 are connected together by the common magnetic core portion 110 and the three winding central columns 121a-c positioned therebetween, and wherein the three winding central columns 121 a-c are all spaced apart from the common magnetic core portion 110 and arranged around the common magnetic core portion 110. The multi-phase inductor 10 includes three conductive windings 210, 220, 230, such that the multi-phase inductor 10 can be used for adjusting three-phase power, wherein each conductive winding 210-230 is wound on one winding central column 121 a-c, such that each winding central column 121 a-c, together with the common magnetic core portion 110 and the magnetic bridges 122 (more specifically, the portions of the two magnetic bridges 122 between each winding central column 121a-c and the common magnetic core portion 110), defines for each conductive winding 210-230 a closed magnetic path through which the magnetic flux generated by each conductive winding flows. In addition, the multi-phase inductor 10 may include three hard magnets 300, wherein each hard magnet 300 may be combined with one winding central column 121a-c, i.e., embedded in one winding central column 121a-c or disposed between one winding central column 121a-c and the magnetic bridge 122 as illustrated in the implementation of FIG. 3 to FIG. 6.

[0046] As shown in the dashed line in FIG. 7, the first winding central column 121a, together with the common magnetic core portion 110 and the magnetic bridges 122, defines a first magnetic path ML1 , the second winding central column 121b, together with the common magnetic core portion 110 and the magnetic bridge 122, defines a second magnetic path ML2, and the third winding central column 121c, together with the common magnetic core portion 110 and the magnetic bridge 122, defines a third magnetic path ML3, wherein the first magnetic path ML1 , the second magnetic path ML2, and the third magnetic path ML3 all extend through the common magnetic core portion 110. Further, as shown by the arrow in FIG. 7, the magnetic flux generated by the first conductive winding 210 and the magnetic fluxes generated by the second conductive winding 220 and the third conductive winding 230 flow through the common magnetic core portion 110 along different directions, thereby helping reduce the saturation risk of the common magnetic core portion 110. In addition, the magnetization direction of the hard magnet 300 combined with the first winding central column 121a is opposite to the flowing direction of the magnetic flux generated by the first conductive winding 210, the magnetization direction of the hard magnet 300 combined with the second winding central column 121 b is opposite to the flowing direction of the magnetic flux generated by the second conductive winding 220, and the magnetization direction of the hard magnet 300 combined with the third winding central column 121c is opposite to the flowing direction of the magnetic flux generated by the third conductive winding 230, thereby helping reduce the saturation risk of the winding magnetic core portion 120.

[0047] In still another implementation of the magnetic core 100 and the windings 200, as shown in FIG. 8, the winding magnetic core portion 120 includes four winding central columns 121a, 121b, 121c, 121 d and two magnetic bridges 122 (only one is shown in FIG. 8), wherein the common magnetic core portion 110 and the four winding central columns 121a-d are all positioned between the two magnetic bridges 122 and connected with the two magnetic bridges 122, that is, the two magnetic bridges 122 are connected together by the common magnetic core portion 110 and the four winding central columns 121a-d positioned therebetween, and wherein the four winding central columns 121 a-d are all spaced apart from the common magnetic core portion 110 and arranged around the common magnetic core portion 110. The multi-phase inductor 10 includes four conductive windings 210, 220, 230, 240, such that the multi-phase inductor 10 can be used for adjusting four-phase power, wherein each conductive winding

[0048] 210-240 is wound on one winding central column 121 a-d, such that each winding central column 121 a-d, together with the common magnetic core portion 110 and the magnetic bridges 122 (more specifically, the portions of the two magnetic bridges 122 positioned between each winding central column 121a-d and the common magnetic core portion 110), defines for each conductive winding 210-240 a closed magnetic path through which the magnetic flux generated by the conductive winding flows. In addition, the multi-phase inductor 10 may include four hard magnets 300, wherein each hard magnet 300 may be combined with one winding central column 121a-d, i.e. , embedded in one winding central column 121a-d or disposed between one winding central column 121 a-d and the magnetic bridge 122 as illustrated in the implementation of FIG. 3 to FIG. 6.

[0049] As shown in the dashed line in FIG. 8, the first winding central column 121a, together with the common magnetic core portion 110 and the magnetic bridges 122, defines a first magnetic path ML1 , the second winding central column 121b, together with the common magnetic core portion 110 and the magnetic bridge 122, defines a second magnetic path ML2, the third winding central column 121c, together with the common magnetic core portion 110 and the magnetic bridge 122, defines a third magnetic path ML3, and the fourth winding central column 121c, together with the common magnetic core portion 110 and the magnetic bridge 122, defines a fourth magnetic path ML4, wherein the first magnetic path ML1 , the second magnetic path ML2, the third magnetic path ML3 and the fourth magnetic path ML4 all extend through the common magnetic core portion 110. Further, as indicated by the arrows in FIG. 8, the magnetic flux generated by the first conductive winding 210 and the magnetic flux generated by the third conductive winding 230 flow through the common magnetic core portion 110 along the same first direction, the magnetic flux generated by the second conductive winding 220 and the magnetic flux generated by the fourth conductive winding 240 flow through the common magnetic core portion 110 along the same second direction, and the first direction is opposite to the second direction, thereby helping reduce the saturation risk of the common magnetic core portion 110. In addition, the magnetization direction of the hard magnet 300 combined with the first winding central column 121a is opposite to the flowing direction of the magnetic flux generated by the first conductive winding 210, the magnetization direction of the hard magnet 300 combined with the second winding central column 121b is opposite to the flowing direction of the magnetic flux generated by the second conductive winding 220, the magnetization direction of the hard magnet 300 combined with the third winding central column 121c is opposite to the flowing direction of the magnetic flux generated by the third conductive winding 230, and the magnetization direction of the hard magnet 300 combined with the fourth winding central column 121 d is opposite to the flowing direction of the magnetic flux generated by the fourth conductive winding 240, thereby helping reduce the saturation risk of the winding magnetic core portion 120.

[0050] As can be seen from the above description of the implementations shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 8, the specific number and arrangement of the winding central columns 121 , the magnetic bridges 122, and the conductive windings 200 do not constitute a limitation to the scope of protection of the present disclosure, any particular implementation in which individual magnetic fluxes are decoupled by the common magnetic core portion 110 and various magnetic fluxes are suppressed by the individual hard magnets 300 to avoid saturation of the magnetic core 100 under the teachings of the present disclosure falls within the scope of protection of the present disclosure.

[0051] In particular, the present disclosure also provides a circuit board including a substrate, a multi-phase circuit disposed on the substrate, and the multi-phase inductor 10 as previously described, wherein each conductive windings 200 in the plurality of conductive windings 200 of the multi-phase inductor 10 is electrically connected with a one-phase circuit in the multiphase circuit in order to adjust the power transmitted through the phase circuit.

[0052] In particular, the present disclosure also provides a vehicle, including a power supply and the circuit board as previously described, a multi-phase circuit of the circuit board being electrically connected with the power supply in order to adjust multi-phase power provided by the power supply through the multi-phase inductor 10.

[0053] The above optional but non-limiting examples of the multi-phase inductor, the circuit board, and the vehicle according to the present disclosure are described in detail above with reference to the accompanying drawings. For those of ordinary skill in the art, without departing from the spirit and substance of the present disclosure, modifications and additions to techniques and structures and recombination of features in various examples shall clearly be considered to be included within the scope of the present disclosure. As a result, these modifications and supplements that may be conceived under the guidance of the present disclosure shall be considered as a part of the present disclosure. The scope of the present disclosure includes known equivalent technologies and equivalent technologies not yet foreseen as of the filing date of this disclosure.

Claims

Claims1. A multi-phase inductor, wherein the multi-phase inductor comprises: a magnetic core (100) made of a soft magnet and a plurality of conductive windings (200) made of a conductive material, the magnetic core (100) including a common magnetic core portion (110) and a winding magnetic core portion (120), the winding magnetic core portion (120) including a plurality of winding central columns (121) and two magnetic bridges (122), each winding central column (121) being wound by one conductive winding (200) and positioned, together with the common magnetic core portion (110), between the two magnetic bridges (122), such that the common magnetic core portion (110), together with each winding central column (121) and each magnetic bridge (122), defines for each conductive winding (200) a closed magnetic path through which a magnetic flux generated by the conductive winding flows; and a plurality of hard magnets (300) combined to the winding magnetic core portion (120), such that at least one hard magnet (300) is disposed on the closed magnetic path of each conductive winding (200), and a magnetization direction of the at least one hard magnet is opposite to a flowing direction of the magnetic flux generated by the conductive winding (200).

2. The multi-phase inductor according to Claim 1 , wherein a magnetic flux generated by at least one conductive winding (200) and magnetic fluxes generated by other conductive windings (200) flow through the common magnetic core portion (110) along different directions3. The multi-phase inductor according to Claim 1 , wherein each hard magnet (300) is embedded in one winding central column (121).

4. The multi-phase inductor according to Claim 1 , wherein each hard magnet (300) is connected between one winding central column (121) and one magnetic bridge (122).

5. The multi-phase inductor according to Claim 1 , wherein each hard magnet (300) is embedded in one magnetic bridge (122).

6. The multi-phase inductor according to any of Claims 1-5, wherein the winding magnetic core portion (120) comprises two pairs of winding central columns (121) positioned on both sides of the common magnetic core portion (110), each pair of winding central columns (121) being positioned between the common magnetic core portion (110) and one magnetic bridge (122) and wound by one conductive winding (200).

7. The multi-phase inductor according to Claim 6, wherein a part of the common magnetic core portion (110) has an initial magnetic conductivity that is higher than that of the winding magnetic core portion (120).

8. The multi-phase inductor according to any of Claims 1-5, wherein the plurality of winding central columns (121) are spaced apart from the common magnetic core portion (110) and arranged around the common magnetic core portion (110), each winding central column (121) being wound by one conductive winding (200).

9. The multi-phase inductor according to Claim 8, wherein the plurality of winding central columns (121) are evenly distributed around the common magnetic core portion (110).

10. The multi-phase inductor according to Claim 8, wherein a whole of the common magnetic core portion (110) has an initial magnetic conductivity higher than that of the winding magnetic core portion (120).

11. A circuit board, wherein the circuit board comprises a substrate, a multi-phase circuit disposed on the substrate, and the multi-phase inductor according to any one of Claims 1-10, each conductive winding (200) in a plurality of conductive windings (200) of the multiphase inductor being electrically connected with a one-phase circuit in the multi-phase circuit.

12. A vehicle, wherein the vehicle comprises a power supply and the circuit board according to Claim 11 , a multi-phase circuit of the circuit board being electrically connected with the power supply.

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