Modular Capacitor Housing with Integrated Cooling Ducts
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Solution Overview
Problem
The complexity and space consumption of electromechanical power transmission chains in mobile working machines due to numerous components, cabling, and cooling arrangements, particularly with capacitive energy-storage systems, pose challenges in implementation, cabling, and cooling.
Innovation Solution
A modular capacitive energy-storage system with integrated capacitor modules that include a capacitor element, cooling duct system, inductor coils, and a housing with lead-throughs for wiring and piping, along with a controller for data measurement and control, allowing for efficient cooling and reduced component complexity by encapsulating the system within a single unit.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a modular capacitor module design is used, then device complexity and cabling requirements are reduced, but manufacturing precision requirements increase due to integrated cooling ducts and wiring lead-throughs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the capacitor element, cooling duct system, wiring lead-throughs, and inductor coils into a single integrated housing structure. This consolidation reduces the number of separate components and cabling requirements while maintaining functional independence of each subsystem within the modular unit.
Solution Approach 2:
The housing structure serves multiple functions simultaneously: it provides mechanical protection for the capacitor element, integrates the cooling duct system for thermal management, incorporates wiring lead-throughs for electrical connections, and houses inductor coils for current smoothing. This multi-functionality reduces overall system complexity.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple separate components are used for capacitive energy-storage, then adaptability and modularity are improved, but cooling arrangements become more complicated and space-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling duct system is integrated directly into the housing structure of the capacitor module, eliminating the need for separate external cooling arrangements. The cooling ducts are positioned to efficiently remove heat from the capacitor element while maintaining the modular design that allows for scalable energy-storage systems.
3Device complexity
If inductor coils are integrated inside the housing, then device complexity is reduced, but cooling requirements for the housing increase
Solution Approach 1:
The inductor coils are positioned inside the housing structure where they share the thermal management infrastructure with the capacitor element. The integrated cooling duct system cools both components simultaneously, reducing overall system complexity while managing the combined thermal load of both heat-generating components.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This modular design simplifies the integration of capacitive energy-storage systems, reduces component count, and enhances cooling efficiency, enabling the construction of modular energy-storages of varying sizes without separate encapsulation and simplifying the implementation of electronic power converters.
Implementation Method 1
a cooling duct system for cooling the capacitor element
Implementation Method 2
one or more inductor coils inside the housing and for smoothing current of the capacitor module
Data Source
Figure 1
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AI summary
A capacitor module comprises a capacitor element (101), a first voltage terminal (102) connected to a first pole of the capacitor element, and a second voltage terminal (103) connected to a second pole of the capacitor element. The capacitor module further comprises a cooling duct system (104) for cooling the capacitor element, and a housing (105) encapsulating the capacitor element and the cooling duct system. The housing comprises wiring lead-throughs (106) for the first and second voltage terminals and piping lead-throughs (107) for the cooling duct system. As the capacitive module is encapsulated and comprises the cooling ducts and the wiring and piping lead-throughs, modular capacitive energy-storages of different sizes can be built by interconnecting capacitor modules of the kind described above, and there is no need to build separately an encapsulation provided with cooling ducts.