CN112562989A

CN112562989A - Component for forming at least one inductor for an electrical circuit

Info

Publication number: CN112562989A
Application number: CN202010945239.1A
Authority: CN
Inventors: N.阿拉利; P.斯马尔; B.莱弗尔; J.罗利内特古奥
Original assignee: Valeo Systemes de Controle Moteur SAS
Current assignee: Valeo Systemes de Controle Moteur SAS
Priority date: 2019-09-10
Filing date: 2020-09-10
Publication date: 2021-03-26
Also published as: EP3792941A1; FR3100653B1; FR3100653A1; EP3792941B1

Abstract

A component (1) forming at least one inductor, the component comprising: at least one structure (4) made of magnetically conductive material; -a printed circuit board portion (2) assembled with said structure (4) and comprising at least one electrically conductive track (3); and at least one bus bar (6) fixed on said printed circuit board portion (2), said bus bar (6) and the conductive tracks (3) of said printed circuit board portion (2) being placed with respect to each other and directly connected to form a conductive element cooperating with a structure (4) made of magnetically conductive material so as to form said inductor; the bus bar is formed from at least two sections (30; 30a, 30b) which are used successively by the current flowing in the bus bar (6).

Description

Component for forming at least one inductor for an electrical circuit

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a component forming at least one inductor for an electrical circuit. The inductor is, for example, all or part of a coil or transformer.

Background

The circuit is, for example, an on-board network of a motor vehicle, for example a 12V network, a 48V network, or an on-board network with different voltages, for example a 12V voltage part and a 48V voltage part. The circuit may also have a higher voltage, in particular a voltage having a value of more than 300V, for example when it is used in a purely electric vehicle.

It is known to create a smooth coil by mating one or more conductive tracks of a printed circuit board with a structure made of magnetically permeable material. These conductive tracks are designed to avoid high frequency losses, but are also prone to losses in continuous mode.

It is also known to place bus bars made of copper in a structure made of an electrically conductive material to form a smooth coil. The presence of this type of bus bar tends to cause high frequency losses, but is designed to avoid losses in continuous mode.

Transformers are also known from applications DE 102016219790 and JP 2004-303857, the primary of which is formed by the conductive tracks of the printed circuit and the secondary of which is formed by the bus-bars, these conductive tracks and the bus-bars not being electrically connected to each other.

There is a need for: the inductor is produced in a simple and robust and easy to manufacture manner by cooperating an electrically conductive element with a structure made of magnetically conductive material to have reduced losses at both continuous mode and high frequencies.

Disclosure of Invention

The object of the present invention is to meet this need, which is achieved according to one aspect thereof by a component forming at least one inductor, the component comprising:

-at least one structure made of magnetically permeable material;

-a printed circuit board portion assembled with the structure and comprising at least one conductive track; and

-at least one bus bar fixed on the printed circuit board portion, the bus bar and the conductive tracks of the printed circuit board portion being placed with respect to each other and directly connected to form a conductive element cooperating with a structure made of magnetically conductive material so as to form an inductor;

the bus bar is formed from at least two sections which are used successively by the current flowing in the bus bar.

The conductive tracks and the bus bars of the printed circuit board portion may be electrically connected to each other, for example via one or more attachments, in particular attachments formed by soldering. These attachments form electrical contacts. The electrical connection can therefore be classified as direct, in particular without involving an intermediate magnetic circuit.

These attachments may also circulate the current flowing in one section of the bus bar in a subsequent section. In other words, the passage of current between two successive sections of the bus bar requires the use of:

-the attachment of a bus bar between the sections to a conductive track of the printed circuit board portion; and/or

-conductive tracks of the printed circuit board portion between said sections.

The combination of the bus bar and the conductive tracks of the printed circuit board portion makes it possible to benefit from a conductive element having the advantages offered by the bus bar in terms of reducing losses in the continuous mode, and by the conductive tracks of the printed circuit board portion in terms of reducing high-frequency losses.

In addition, the presence of the bus bar, in particular its attachment to the conductive tracks of the printed circuit board part, may improve the thermal conductivity in the conductive tracks, so that excessive temperatures in the printed circuit board part may be avoided. This therefore improves the robustness and efficiency of the printed circuit board portion.

Finally, by forming the bus bar in a plurality of sections, a good levelness of the attachment, in particular soldering, of the bus bar on the printed circuit board portion can be ensured. The levelness of each section may be better than 0.1 mm. The segmentation of the bus bar is particularly suitable for bus bars in flat form, for example in the form of a bar, characterized in that its length is important with respect to its width, which is itself greater than its thickness.

The bus bar and the conductive track may be placed in parallel. This type of parallel mounting may reduce the current density in the conductive track(s) of the printed circuit board portion.

The bus bar and the conductive track may be superimposed in a direction perpendicular to the plane of extension of the printed circuit board portion. In other words, the conductive tracks and the bus bars may be superimposed on each other, in particular having the same form.

The bus bar is for example fixed, in particular soldered, on a conductive track of the printed circuit board part. In the case of multiple attachments per braze, the current flow between two consecutive segments may occur via the braze paste interposed between the segments and/or via the areas of electrically conductive tracks interposed between the two segments.

The printed circuit board portion comprises a plurality of conductive tracks, for example superimposed in a direction perpendicular to the plane of extension of the printed circuit board portion, and the bus bar is superimposed with these conductive tracks in said direction.

The printed circuit board portion includes, for example:

-a first electrically conductive track defining a portion of a first outer surface of the printed circuit board portion;

-a second electrically conductive track defining a portion of a second outer surface of the printed circuit board portion, the first and second surfaces being opposite; and

-at least one third electrically conductive track placed inside the printed circuit board portion.

The bus bar is fixed, for example, on the second surface of the printed circuit board section and has in particular a plurality of attachments which make electrical contact with the second electrically conductive track. The bus bar can thus be fitted parallel to all the conductive tracks of the printed circuit board part, there being an additional electrical connection between the second conductive track and the bus bar due to the above-mentioned electrical contact points.

There may be a plurality of third electrically conductive tracks, for example two, three, four or more.

In a specific example, the printed circuit board portion comprises six stacked electrically conductive tracks, namely a first track, a second track and four third tracks.

The structure made of the conductive material may include: a base, a cover and a connecting wall between the base and the cover, the base being placed on a first side of the printed circuit board section and the cover being placed on a second side of the printed circuit board section. The structure made of magnetically conductive material forms, for example, a housing. Openings may be formed in the printed circuit board portion to allow passage of elements of the connecting wall of the structure made of magnetically permeable material. The base and the cover may belong to different parts.

The first side of the printed circuit board portion is defined by a first surface thereof and the second side of the printed circuit board portion is defined by a second surface thereof.

A plurality of inductors is formed, for example, by cooperation between the conductive elements and the structure made of magnetically conductive material. These different inductors are created, for example, according to the teachings of patent application No. 1854988, filed in france by the applicant on 6, 8, 2018. The content of this french patent application is incorporated by reference into the present application, in particular because it teaches to circulate the magnetic flux associated with each inductor in a first leg of a structure made of magnetically permeable material, which is free of air gaps, and in a second leg of the structure, which is dedicated to the inductor and involves passing through an air gap.

The component may comprise a single structure made of magnetically permeable material with which the conductive elements cooperate to form one or more inductors.

As a variant, the component may comprise a plurality of structures made of mutually different magnetically permeable materials, each of these structures cooperating with an electrically conductive element, for example forming one or more inductors for each cooperation. Each of these structures made of magnetically conductive material is supported, for example, by a printed circuit board portion.

If applicable, the component may comprise one or more capacitors, which are in particular supported by the printed circuit board portion. Capacitors are associated with the inductors, for example, to form an LC filter for electromagnetic interference.

In all the foregoing, the bus bar and the conductive track may each define a plurality of consecutive turns about an axis perpendicular to the plane of extension of the printed circuit board portion.

When the structure made of magnetically permeable material comprises a connecting wall between the base and the cover, the base being placed on a first side of the printed circuit board portion and the cover being placed on a second side of the printed circuit board portion, the connecting wall may comprise at least one leg extending uninterruptedly between the base and the cover, and the bus bar and the electrically conductive tracks may each define a plurality of successive turns around the leg. This thus forms, for example, one or more current smoothing coils.

In this case, the connecting wall may also comprise at least one further leg or two further legs extending between the base and the cover to define at least one air gap. When the cooperation between the structure made of electrically conductive material and the electrically conductive element defines two inductors, two further legs may be created and the leg extending uninterruptedly placed between the two further legs.

Also in this case:

a first magnetic flux associated with a first inductor defined by the component can circulate between the base and the cover of the structure, through the uninterrupted leg and through one of the other legs dedicated to the first inductor; and

a second magnetic flux associated with a second inductor defined by the component can circulate between the base and the cover of the structure, through the uninterrupted leg and through one of the other legs dedicated to the second inductor.

Whether the connecting wall comprises one or more legs, it is possible to form the leg or legs in one piece with the base and then to provide the lid with a plate-like shape without legs.

In all of the foregoing, the bus bar may have the form of a bar. The bus bar is for example flat, i.e. on the plane of extension of the printed circuit, its width is much greater than the dimension of the bus bar perpendicular to the plane of extension, also called "thickness", having a width of for example at least three or four times the thickness. The bus bar has, for example, a length of more than 5cm, a thickness of about 1mm and a width of about 10 mm.

The bus bar may have a length to width ratio of between 5 and 10 and a width to thickness ratio of between 5 and 10.

The inductor may form a smoothing coil, an EMC filter coil or a differential filter coil, or a coupled inductor coil, or may also be all or part of a transformer.

According to one example, some of the conductive tracks and busbars of a printed circuit board portion form, respectively, the secondary and primary of the transformer, while other conductive tracks of the same printed circuit board portion, stacked with the aforementioned tracks, form, respectively, the primary and secondary of the transformer.

As a variant, the conductive tracks and the busbars of the printed circuit board portion form only a part of the transformer, for example only the primary or the secondary of the transformer.

In all the foregoing, one end of the bus bar may be connected to the corresponding end of the conductive track, these ends being connected to each other and then to a current measuring shunt, which is supported in particular by a printed circuit board portion. The shunt may form an electrical connection to another component of the circuit, for example a controllable electronic switch such as a field effect or a bipolar transistor. The or these other components may or may not be supported by the printed circuit board, but need not be supported by the portion thereof.

When the printed circuit board portion comprises a plurality of conductive tracks, the shunt forming the connection may straddle the conductive track of the printed circuit board portion, the straddled conductive track being for example a first conductive track or a second conductive track.

The shunt may be mounted on a first surface of the printed circuit board portion while the bus bar and any capacitor(s) are mounted, for example, on a second surface of the printed circuit board portion.

A plurality of bus bars may be secured to the printed circuit board portion such that a conductive element according to the present invention may be formed from the plurality of conductive tracks and the plurality of bus bars of the printed circuit board portion.

In all of the foregoing, the component may include only a single portion of the printed circuit board, and not include multiple portions of the printed circuit board, e.g., offset with respect to one another.

The component comprises, for example in sequence in a direction perpendicular to the plane of extension of the printed circuit board portion: a base portion of the structure made of magnetically permeable material, a printed circuit board portion, a bus bar, and a cover of the structure made of magnetically permeable material. The component is for example free of a bus bar and/or another part of the printed circuit board.

In all the foregoing, the bus bar may be made up of a number of sections greater than 2, for example between 2 and 1000, in particular between 2 and 100, for example between 10 and 100.

Each section of the bus bar may have the same form. The use of a single form can simplify the production process of the bus bar.

As a variant, in all the foregoing, the sections of the bus bar may have different forms. The use of different forms makes it possible to envisage more complex geometries for the bus-bar, for example in the form of an "S".

Each segment of the busbar may extend between a first face and a second face, the first face of one segment may be located facing the second face of the other segment and the second face of the one segment may be located facing the first face of the further segment so as to ensure passage of current from one segment to the other, one and/or the other of the first and second faces may be perpendicular to the direction of propagation of current in the segment. Thus, each end face of the segment, i.e. the first and second faces of the segment defining an input face or an output face of the current in the segment for the segment in the direction of the current flow, may be perpendicular to the direction of propagation of the current flow. Each section may have a rectangular form, seen from above. The bus bar having a rectangular cross section, in particular the same shape, can be simply manufactured.

As a variant, each segment of the busbar can extend between a first face and a second face, the first face of one segment being positionable facing the second face of the other segment and the second face of the segment being positionable facing the first face of the further segment, so as to ensure the passage of the current from one segment to the other, one and/or the other of the first and second faces not necessarily being perpendicular to the direction of propagation of the current in said segment. Each end face of the segment, i.e. the first and second faces of the segment defining a respective input or output face of the current in the segment for the segment in the direction of the current flow, may extend obliquely in a manner not perpendicular to the direction of propagation of the current flow. Each segment may have the form of a parallelogram, as viewed from above. The end faces of the segments which are not perpendicular to the direction of propagation of the current make it possible to reduce the current density at the interconnections between the segments, thereby avoiding the occurrence of hot spots.

In all of the foregoing, the respective first and second faces may be flat, whether or not the first and/or second faces are perpendicular to the direction of current propagation in cross section. When the two faces are flat, the first face of each segment may be parallel to its second face.

As a variant, the respective first and second faces need not be flat, whether or not they are perpendicular to the direction of current propagation in cross section. The face may for example be curved, in particular cylindrical, or it may be a face formed by a plurality of intersecting planes, for example formed by the joining of two intersecting planes.

In all of the foregoing, each segment may have a second face that has the same form or a different form than its first face.

In all the foregoing, each first face of one segment may be placed facing a second face of another segment having the same form, thereby facilitating the transfer of current from one segment to another.

In all of the foregoing, each section may have a polygonal or non-polygonal form.

In all of the foregoing, the segments may be arranged such that the bus bar extends straight along its entire length. In the case of a bus bar extending straight along its entire length, all sections preferably have the same form.

As a variant, in all the foregoing, the segments may be arranged such that the bus bar does not extend straight along its entire length. This type of bus bar may be more suitable in a space-constrained environment. Different versions of these sections are then preferably provided. An angle in the range of 0 to 90 ° may be defined between successive sections of the bus bar.

The segments of the bus bar can be placed one after the other without joints. Such an arrangement without joints can be obtained whether or not the sections have the same form.

As a variant, the section of the busbar can be placed so as to define at least one joint. One of the segments then has a first face and a plurality of second faces, in particular two or three second faces, to define the joint. If applicable, the sections defining the joint may have a different form than the sections not defining the joint. The second faces of the segments defining the joint may have the same form and the same form may be different from the form of its first face or may also be the same as the form of the first face. As a variant, all the segments may have the same form, despite the presence of the joint. In the latter case, the section defining the joint has only a second face.

The junction may define two branches, three branches or more.

Whether the bus bar comprises only sections having the same form or the bus bar comprises sections having different forms, all sections having the same form may be placed in the same manner along the length of the bus bar.

As a variant, whether the bus bar comprises only sections having the same form or bus bars comprises sections having different forms, the sections having the same form may be placed differently, in particular upside down, along the length of the bus bar.

According to another aspect of the invention, the invention also relates to a DC/DC converter, in particular a 12V/48V DC/DC converter, comprising the components as defined above.

More generally, the invention can be applied to any static converter, and therefore includes a dc/ac converter, also referred to as an "inverter/rectifier".

The invention may also be applied to an inductor of an electric circuit that utilizes hybrid or pure electric propulsion to charge an electrical energy storage unit of a vehicle. The electrical energy storage unit has a nominal voltage of, for example, 48V or higher, for example, a nominal voltage having a value higher than 300V.

According to another aspect of the invention, the invention also relates to a method for creating at least one inductor, the method comprising the steps of:

-assembling a structure made of electrically conductive material with a printed circuit board portion comprising at least one electrically conductive track;

-fixing at least one bus bar on the printed circuit board portion after positioning the bus bar with respect to the conductive tracks, so as to form a conductive element cooperating with a structure made of magnetically conductive material, so as to form an inductor, the bus bar being formed by at least two sections which are continuously used by the current flowing in the bus bar.

All or part of the aforementioned features also apply to the method just described.

The aforementioned assembly and attachment steps may be performed sequentially or simultaneously. By "simultaneously" is meant that the end of assembly is performed simultaneously with the attachment step.

The attachment of the bus bars on the printed circuit board part is for example performed by soldering, for example in a reflow furnace. Each section of the bus bar is soldered, for example, to a conductive track of the printed circuit board part. When the printed circuit board portion comprises a plurality of electrically conductive tracks, the bus bar is for example soldered on one of the electrically conductive tracks present on the end face of the printed circuit board portion, i.e. the above-mentioned first electrically conductive track or second electrically conductive track.

During the method, it is possible to:

-placing a first portion of a structure made of magnetically permeable material on a first surface of a printed circuit board portion, glue being for example interposed between the first surface and the first portion of the structure;

-if applicable, placing other components, such as shunts, on the first surface and then interposing solder paste between the first surface and the component or components;

-placing the obtained assembly in a polymerization furnace without solder paste or in a reflow furnace in which solder paste is also present;

then turning over the printed circuit board portion and placing a second portion of the structure made of magnetically permeable material on a second surface of the printed circuit board portion, for example, interposing glue between the second surface and the second portion of the structure;

-placing a bus bar on a second surface of the printed circuit board part, on which one or more other components, if applicable, can be placed, with solder paste interposed between the second surface and the bus bar, the solder paste being present in particular between successive sections of the bus bar; and

-placing the obtained assembly in a remelting furnace.

In the above, the solder paste is deposited, for example, by a screen printing process.

Drawings

The invention will be better understood by reading the following description of non-limiting embodiments thereof and by consulting the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is an exploded view of a first component to which the present invention may be applied;

FIG. 2 shows the first component of FIG. 1 in an assembled state;

FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 2 of a second component to which the present invention may be applied;

fig. 4 shows an example of a bus bar according to the present invention;

fig. 5 shows a second example of a bus bar according to the present invention;

fig. 6 shows a third example of a bus bar according to the present invention;

fig. 7 shows a fourth example of a bus bar according to the present invention;

fig. 8 shows a fifth example of a bus bar according to the present invention;

fig. 9 shows a sixth example of a bus bar according to the present invention; and

fig. 10 shows a seventh example of a bus bar according to the present invention;

Detailed Description

Fig. 1 is an exploded view of a first component 1 to which the invention can be applied. In this case, the first component 1 forms a single inductor for the electric circuit of the motor vehicle. The circuit is for example an on-board network of the vehicle.

In the example to be described, the circuit has firstly a 12V part and secondly a 48V part, and a 12V/48V DC/DC converter to connect the two circuit parts. The obtained inductor may be a current smoothing coil, an EMC filter coil, a differential filter coil, or also all or part of a transformer, as will be seen hereinafter.

As can be seen in fig. 1, the first component 1 comprises a printed circuit board portion 2, in this case the printed circuit board portion 2 comprising a plurality of electrically conductive tracks 3. Each of these rails 3 is made of copper in this case. In the example considered, the conductive tracks 3 are stacked together according to the thickness of the printed circuit board portion 2.

The first conductive track 3 defines a portion of a first outer surface 2a of the printed circuit board portion 2 and the second conductive track 3 defines a portion of a second outer surface 2b of the printed circuit board portion 2, the first and second surfaces being opposite to each other. A plurality of third electrically conductive tracks 3 is placed inside the printed circuit board portion 2.

The first component 1 further comprises a structure 4 made of magnetically permeable material and a bus bar 6.

Fig. 1 shows that the structure 4 made of magnetically conductive material comprises: a base 7, a cover 8 and a connecting wall 10 between the base 7 and the cover 8. As can be seen in fig. 1, the base 7 is placed on a first side of the printed circuit board portion 2 and the cover 8 is placed on a second side of the printed circuit board portion 2. The connecting wall 10 extends through an opening 9 provided in the printed circuit board section 2.

In this case, the connecting wall 10 comprises three legs: an inner leg 11 with an air gap and two outer legs 12 without an air gap, which frame the inner leg 11. It can be seen that each conductive track 3 is wound around the inner leg 11, forming almost two turns around this inner leg 11 between two extended ends, referenced 13 and 14 respectively. The winding is formed around an axis perpendicular to the plane of extension of the printed circuit board section 2.

In this case, the structure 4 is cut in two parts, so that the following are observed before assembly:

a first part of the structure comprising a base 7 and placed on a first side of the printed circuit board part; and

a second part of the structure, which comprises the cover 8 and is placed on a second side of the printed circuit board part.

In the example considered, the bus bar 6 is made of copper and is formed by a plurality of sections 30, as will be seen hereinafter. The bus bar 6 also defines two turns around the inner leg 11 around the same axis as the conductive track. The bus bar 6 extends between two ends, shown respectively at 16 and 17. The bus bar may have one or more retaining lugs 18, the presence of these retaining lugs 18 being purely optional.

Fig. 1 shows that the shunt 30 is supported by the printed circuit board portion 2, the shunt 30 being mounted on the first surface 2a of the printed circuit board portion 2, and the bus bar 6 being mounted on the second surface 2b of the printed circuit board portion 2. The ends 17 of the bus bars 6 and each end 14 of the conductive tracks 3 are connected to each other and the common end is connected to a shunt 30 to allow electrical connection to other components supported by the printed circuit board. For example, the shunt 30 crosses a first conductive track 3 of the printed circuit board portion.

Fig. 1 shows that the conductive tracks 3 and the bus bars 6 are superimposed, having the same form. The ends 16 of the bus bar are electrically connected to each end 13 of the conductive tracks 3 and the ends 17 of the bus bar are electrically connected to each end 14 of the conductive tracks. In the example considered, these conductive tracks 3 and busbars 6 are therefore assembled in parallel. As will be seen hereinafter, this is particularly the case between the bus bar 6 and the second electrically conductive track 3, the bus bar 6 and the second electrically conductive track 3 having between their ends a further plurality of intermediate electrical connections between each other.

The bus bar 6 is positioned relative to the conductive track 3 such that the conductive track 3 and the bus bar 6 together define a conductive element, in this case an inductor in cooperation with the structure 4.

In the example considered, the bus bar 6 is fixed on the second surface 2b of the printed circuit board portion 2 by soldering, as will now be described. The bus bar 6 therefore has a plurality of electrical contact points, also called "attachments", with the second electrically conductive track 3 positioned facing it, defining additional electrical connections with the track. In the example considered, these attachments are placed between successive sections of the bus bar 6.

To create the component 1, the process is for example as follows:

placing a first portion of the structure 4 made of magnetically permeable material on the first surface 2a of the printed circuit board portion, with the glue 21 present in the form of a strip in this case interposed between the first surface 2a and the first portion of the structure 4;

-placing a shunt 30 on the first surface 2a, and then placing solder paste between the first surface 2a and the shunt 30;

-placing the obtained assembly in a remelting furnace;

after firing, the printed circuit board portion 2 is turned over and a second portion of the structure 4 made of magnetically permeable material is placed on the second surface 2b of the printed circuit board portion 2, the glue strip 21 being interposed between this second surface and this second portion of the structure;

placing a bus bar on the second surface 2b of the circuit board part 2 and then placing solder paste in the form of columns 20 between this second surface 2b and the bus bar 6; and

-placing the obtained assembly in a remelting furnace.

The solder paste may be deposited by a screen printing process. The glue may be polymerized in a furnace or during previous processing.

Thereby a first component 1 according to fig. 2 is obtained. The first part 1 forms, for example, a current smoothing coil, which can be used in the above-mentioned circuit.

With reference to fig. 3, another example of the applicability of the present invention will now be described. According to this further example, the second component 1 comprises two structures 4 made of magnetically permeable material. Each of these structures 4 is assembled on the printed circuit board part 2, each of these structures being able or unable to extend on both sides of the printed circuit board part 2.

Similarly to what has been described with reference to fig. 1 and 2, the bus bar 6 is fixed to the printed circuit board portion 2 and is placed (not visible in fig. 3) relative to the conductive tracks of this board portion to form a conductive element. The conductive element cooperates with each structure 4, for example forming an inductor for each cooperation, which inductor is in this case an EMC filter coil. In the example of fig. 3, the two EMC filter coils are mounted in series and the printed circuit board part 2 supports two capacitors 25. Each of these capacitors 25 is associated with one of the filter coils so as to form, together with this coil, an LC filter.

Different examples of the bus bar 6 according to the present invention will now be described with reference to fig. 4 to 10. In this case, the bus bar has, for example, a length of more than 5cm, a thickness of about 1cm and a width of about 1 mm.

Each segment 30 extends between a first face 31 and a second face 32, the first face 31 being designed to face another segment 30 of the bus bar and the second face 32 being designed to face another segment of the bus bar.

According to the first and second examples, which will be described with reference to fig. 4 and 5, each of the sections 30 constituting the bus bar has the same form. Each segment thus has the form of a parallelogram, seen from above.

In the example of fig. 4, each segment 30 has the form of a rectangle, and each of the first face 31 and the second face 32 is perpendicular to the propagation direction D of the current in that segment 30. In the example of fig. 4, the bus bar 6 extends straight along its entire length.

In the example of fig. 5, each segment has the form of a parallelogram, and in this segment 30, each of the first face 31 and the second face 32 is not perpendicular to the direction of propagation D of the current in this segment 30. Fig. 5 shows that in this case the first face 31 and the second face 32 are parallel and extend obliquely with respect to the direction D. In the example of fig. 5, the different sections 30 are arranged such that the bus bars do not extend straight. Thus, the bus bar 6 may define a plurality of curved portions.

The example in fig. 6 differs from the preceding examples in that the bus bar includes sections having different forms. Some sections 30 still have the form of a quadrilateral, such as a parallelogram, while other sections have another form, such as a triangle or a polygon other than a triangle or quadrilateral, such as a pentagon. The overall geometry of the bus bar 6 can thus become more complex.

In the example described with reference to fig. 7, the segments 30 all have the same form, but they have different geometries between their first and second faces 31, 32. It can be seen that none of the faces are flat. Instead, the faces are cylindrical. In this case, the first face 31 of the segment 30 defines a convex surface, while the second face 32 of the segment defines a concave surface. In this case, the shape of the first face 31 is the same as the form of the second face 32. These forms may define the type of pivotal connection between two consecutive sections 30, thus enabling a greater choice of the angle of inclination between these two sections.

The example in fig. 8 provides another example of the bus bar 6 extending in a non-straight manner. In this example, there are sections 30 having different forms, some sections 30a having the same form as the example in fig. 7, and other sections 30b having different forms. It can be seen, for example, that the section 30b has a first face 31 and a second face 32 which are cylindrical, and that the sections 30a which are directly adjacent to this section 30b are positioned in an inverted manner with respect to one another. In practice, the segment 30a, which is downstream of the segment 30b in the direction of propagation S of the current, has a first face 31 defining a convex surface and a second face 32 defining a concave surface, while the segment 30a, which is downstream of the segment 30b in the direction of propagation S of the current, has a first face defining a concave surface and a second face 32 defining a convex surface.

In all the examples just described, the segments 30 are placed one after the other, for example without defining joints.

However, the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, in the example of fig. 8, a cylindrical surface of the segment 30b, which appears free, may be associated with the segment 30a so as to define another current branch.

The examples in fig. 9 and 10 show a bus bar 6 having sections placed to define a joint.

In the example of fig. 9, all the segments 30 have the same form, with curved first and second faces. Each first face 31 defines a concave surface and each second face 32 defines a convex surface. It can be seen that the two segments 30 are inclined relative to the immediately preceding segment 30 such that the convex surface defined by the second face 32 of the immediately preceding segment cooperates with the first faces 31 of the two different segments. In this case, the joint portion can be created without having a specific sectional form.

In the example of fig. 10, a joint having three branches in the bus bar is created by using a section having a different form. The bus bar 6 comprises a section 30a of identical form having a first face 31 and a second face 32 of identical form, in this case in the form of dashed lines. In this case, the section 30b has a different form with a first face 31 in the form of a dashed line and three second faces 32 all in the form of dashed lines. As can be seen in fig. 10, in the bus bar 6 in the direction of propagation S of the current, the segment 30a upstream of the segment 30b is positioned upside down with respect to the segment 30a downstream of the segment 30 b. In fact, while the second face 32 and the first face of the segment 30a downstream of the segment 30b define a convex surface and a concave surface, respectively, the second face 32 and the first face 31 of the segment 30a upstream of the segment 30b define a concave surface and a convex surface, respectively.

The invention is not limited to the examples just described.

For example, the invention may be used to create all or a portion of a transformer. For example, by means of a combination of a bus bar and one or more conductive tracks of a printed circuit board part according to the invention, a secondary winding of a transformer with a high current is produced, whereas a primary winding of the transformer with a weaker current is produced by other conductive tracks, which belong or do not belong to the same printed circuit board part, and which are produced without the addition of a bus bar.

According to a variant that is not described, it is possible to fix a plurality of bus bars 6 on the printed circuit board portion 2, these bus bars 6 being stacked on top of one another with an electrical insulator interposed in each case. The conductive element is then formed by: conductive tracks of the printed circuit board portion 2 and stacked bus bars 6.

Claims

1. A component (1) forming at least one inductor, the component comprising:

-at least one structure (4) made of magnetically conductive material;

-a printed circuit board portion (2) assembled with said structure (4) and comprising at least one electrically conductive track (3); and

-at least one bus bar (6) fixed on said printed circuit board portion (2), said bus bar (6) and the conductive tracks (3) of said printed circuit board portion (2) being placed with respect to each other and directly connected to form a conductive element cooperating with a structure (4) made of magnetically conductive material so as to form said inductor;

the bus bar is formed from at least two sections (30; 30a, 30b) which are used successively by the current flowing in the bus bar (6).

2. The component of claim 1 wherein the component is selected from the group consisting of,

each section (30) of the bus bar may have the same form.

3. The component of claim 1 wherein the component is selected from the group consisting of,

the sections (30a, 30b) of the bus bar have different forms.

4. The component of any one of the preceding claims,

each segment (30; 30a, 30b) of the busbar (6) extends between a first face (31) and a second face (32), the first face (31) of one segment being positionable facing the second face (32) of the other segment and the second face (32) of the one segment being positionable facing the first face (31) of the other segment so as to ensure the passage of current from one segment to the other, one and/or the other of the first face (31) and the second face (32) being perpendicular to the direction of propagation (D) of the current in said segment (30; 30a, 30 b).

5. The component of any one of the preceding claims,

each segment (30; 30a, 30b) of the busbar (6) extends between a first face (31) and a second face (32), the first face (31) of one segment being positionable facing the second face (32) of the other segment and the second face (32) of the one segment being positionable facing the first face (31) of the other segment so as to ensure the passage of an electric current from one segment to the other, one and/or the other of the first and second faces being non-perpendicular to the direction of propagation (D) of the electric current in said segment (30; 30a, 30 b).

6. The component of claim 5 wherein the component is selected from the group consisting of,

the first (31) and/or the second (32) face of the section (30; 30a, 30b) is flat.

7. The component of claim 5 wherein the component is selected from the group consisting of,

the first (31) and/or the second (32) face of the section (30; 30a, 30b) is not flat, in particular curved, for example cylindrical, or is formed by intersecting planes.

8. The component of any one of the preceding claims,

the sections (30; 30a, 30b) are arranged such that the bus bar (6) extends straight along its entire length.

9. The component of any one of claims 1 to 7,

the sections (30; 30a, 30b) are arranged such that the bus bar (6) does not extend straight along its entire length.

10. The component of any one of the preceding claims,

the segments (30; 30a, 30b) are placed one after the other without defining joints.

11. The component of any one of the preceding claims,

the sections (30; 30a, 30b) are placed to define at least one junction, in particular with two or three branches.

12. The component of any one of the preceding claims,

the bus bar (6) and the conductive track (3) of the printed circuit board portion (2) are electrically connected to each other via one or more attachments, allowing an electric current circulating in one section (30) of the bus bar (6) to circulate in a subsequent section (30).

13. A voltage converter, in particular a DC/DC converter,

in particular a 12V/48V DC/DC converter, comprising a component according to any of the preceding claims.