Drum Brake Ventilation for EV Wheel-End Dust and Motor Cooling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Drum brake assemblies in commercial vehicle wheel end electric drive motor arrangements generate substantial brake dust, which accumulates and causes heat retention issues in the electric motor, affecting performance and longevity.
Innovation Solution
A wheel end motor and brake assembly with a perforated dust shield and fan rotor that draws air through the brake drum to carry debris out, utilizing a fan impeller and slotted drum design for improved cooling and contaminant evacuation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If a standard dust shield is used in the drum brake assembly, then brake dust is contained within the assembly, but brake dust accumulates on the electric motor causing heat retention and performance degradation
Solution Approach 1:
The dust shield is designed with a porous structure containing multiple openings that allow air and brake dust particles to pass through. This porous configuration enables the shield to filter and evacuate contaminants from the motor area while maintaining protective separation between the brake assembly and motor, thus preventing dust accumulation and heat retention without compromising motor protection
Solution Approach 2:
The system utilizes pneumatic principles by incorporating a fan that generates airflow through the porous dust shield. The fan creates a controlled air stream that actively draws brake dust particles away from the motor through the shield's openings, using fluid dynamics to achieve contaminant evacuation and cooling of the electric motor
2Temperature
If brake dust is evacuated through a porous dust shield, then motor cooling is improved, but the dust shield structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The porous dust shield serves multiple functions simultaneously: it acts as a physical barrier protecting the motor from direct brake dust contact, functions as a filter to trap larger particles, and serves as a ventilation pathway for active dust evacuation. This multi-functionality consolidates several protective and cooling mechanisms into a single component, reducing overall system complexity while improving motor cooling efficiency
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
Effectively reduces brake dust accumulation, enhances cooling of the electric drive motor, and prevents heat buildup, thereby improving motor performance and longevity.
Implementation Method 1
air drawn by blades on the fan rotor through openings in a wall of the brake drum carries debris out through perforations in the dust shield
Implementation Method 2
The internal fan, the perforated dust shield, and slotted drum features of the wheel end assembly according to the invention serve to improve cooling of the electric drive motor
Data Source
AI summary
A drum brake assembly for use with a wheel end electric drive motor arrangement can generate brake dust, which may accumulate on the electric motor and cause heat retention problems that are detrimental to motor performance and longevity. These issues are addressed by providing an assembly including a support attachable to a vehicle axle element, brake shoes pivotally mountable on the support, and a wheel spindle interconnected with one end of the axle element. A wheel hub is rotatable around the spindle, and an electric motor unit is disposed between an end of the axle element and the spindle to produce rotation of the hub relative to the axle element. A brake drum is securable to the hub for rotation with the hub relative to the spindle by way of the electric motor unit. The brake drum includes a circumferential perimeter wall overlying the brake shoes, and a fan rotor is interconnected with that wall for rotation together with the drum and the wheel hub relative to the spindle. A perforated dust shield is attachable to the support on an axial side of the brake shoes opposite the fan rotor, such that, during vehicle operation, air drawn by blades on the fan rotor through openings in a wall of the brake drum carries debris out through perforations in the dust shield and away from the wheel end motor and brake assembly. A vehicle including the assembly mentioned and a process of ventilating that assembly are also discussed.