FR2757704A1 - ELECTRIC GENERATOR ASSEMBLY MOUNTED ON AN AXLE - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to an electric generator mounted on the end of a vehicle axle. It has a rotor (60) attached to the end of the axle, in place of the conventional end cap bearing. A stator (80) is attached to the vehicle and has first and second spaced, magnetically permeable members (83, 85) having first and second pole ends (83a, 85a) adjacent to the peripheral surface of the rotor. A permanent magnet (84) connects the elements (83, 85) together, the electric stator windings (86, 87) surround the elements so that when the axle rotates the rotor (60), an electric current flows through it. the stator windings (86, 87). Scope of application: electric axle generator for railway vehicles, etc.

Description

The invention relates to an electric energy device comprising a

  Inductance type electric generator for mounting on the end of an axle of a moving vehicle, such as a railway vehicle. The electric generator comprises a rotor attached to the end of the axle and arranged to rotate with it. A stator is attached to the vehicle and includes first and second magnetically permeable spaced members having first and second pole ends, respectively, closely adjacent to the peripheral surface of the rotor. A first stator electrical winding is associated with one of the first and second magnetically permeable members so that, when the axle rotates the rotor, a current

  electrical circulates in the stator winding.

  Figure 1 of the accompanying drawings and described above.

  after represents an assembly 10 placed under the chassis of a railway vehicle, which comprises a rotating axle 12. A wheel 14 of the railway vehicle is rigidly mounted on the axle 12, and the axle 12 is received so as to ability to rotate in a bearing adapter block 16. The block

  bearing adapter 16 includes a hook 17 for

  which is used when mounting the bearing adapter block on the axle 12, and the adapter block comprises a conventional end cap 18 for

  retain a bearing assembly 30 in place on the axle 12.

  The end cap 18 includes an outer peripheral section 18a, and a bolting face 19 which receives bolts 20 therethrough. The end cap 18 is a conventional extreme cap in the sense that it has bolt holes for the sole purpose of the axle 12 receives bolts 20 for the rigid mounting of the end cap 18 on the axle 12. The bearing adapter block supports a rocker 22 so that the axle 12 turns freely with respect to this rocker 22. The rocker 22 supports suspension springs 24 which, themselves, support a frame 26. The frame 26 constitutes an integral part of a railway vehicle, for example a

  covered wagon or flat car (not shown).

  As best shown in Figure 2, the axle 12 includes an end portion 13 of reduced diameter on which a rolling assembly is attached. The rolling assembly comprises a set of rollers 34 which are arranged to roll between axle rings 36 and a bearing ring 37. The rolling assembly 30 also includes a bearing housing 32 and a seal housing 33 rigidly connected to the end section 13 of the axle to prevent the introduction of foreign matter into the rolling assembly 30. The bushings 36 of the axle are rigidly connected to the end section 13 of the axle in order to rotate with it, and the rings 36 are fixed axially between outer and inner axial locking elements, including rings 38 , 39, respectively. A gap 40 exists between the outer peripheral section 18a of the end cap 18, the ring

  38 axial blocking and the housing 33 of the seal.

  However, the previous rolling assembly is

  selected for illustrative purposes and is not

  sensational of all possible designs of rolling assemblies. For example, the axial locking ring may be integrally formed with the end bearing cap, as described in EP-449538, which document is described more fully below. In all cases, the integrity of the rolling assembly must be preserved to prevent failure and thus avoid derailment of the car due to bearing failure. An electric power device used in combination with a rotating axle, such as the axle 12, can be of several types. For example, electric power devices of the inductance or reluctance motor types convert electrical energy into mechanical energy in the form of a torque applied to rotate the axle. Conversely, electric generators of the inductance or reluctance type use a rotating axle to generate electrical energy in the form of an electric current. In the context of railway vehicles, electric generators are used to provide power for anti-skid systems, anti-skid control devices, for wheel speed control, or to send signals from

  data to "black box" type recorders. Usual-

  such a generator is mounted on the end of an axle of the railway vehicle, such as axle 12, at

  vicinity of the bearing adapter block. Such a genera-

  Trice is described in EP-449538, in which a rotor is rigidly connected to an end bearing cap by bolts which are screwed into tapped holes in the axle. The extreme riding cap is specialized in the sense that an additional set of bolts pass through it, which game has a purpose other than simply attaching the extreme hat to the axle, namely that this game consists of

  bolts securing the generator.

  The use of such an inductance type generator has several disadvantages. For example, the mounting bolts and mounting holes of the generator require an extreme bearing cap forming a specialized part that is expensive to manufacture. In addition, the rotor requires permanent magnets, which increases the weight and output of the generator. In addition, the rotor substantially extends the extreme cap, outside the railway vehicle, which increases the risk of a collision thereof with objects adjacent to the vehicle. The present invention eliminates these disadvantages by proposing an electric generator mounted on the end of a vehicle axle comprising a rotor fixed to the end of the axle and designed to rotate with it. A stator is attached to the vehicle and includes magnetically permeable first and second spaced members having first and second pole ends, respectively, closely adjacent to the peripheral surface of the rotor. The stator includes a first associated stator electrical winding

  to one of the first and second magnetically

  so that when the rotor is rotated by the axle, an electric current flows in the first stator winding. A permanent magnet interconnects the first and second magnetically permeable elements. The rotor has an outer peripheral surface that is not

  not in matter for permanent magnet.

  The invention will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings by way of non-limitative examples and in which: FIG. 1 shows a partial isometric view of a chassis assembly of a railway vehicle on an axle of which an electric energy device according to the invention is mounted; Fig. 2 shows a cross-sectional view of a portion of a conventional axle and a conventional rolling box as shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is an exploded isometric view of an extreme rolling cap assembly for use with an electrical power device according to the invention; Fig. 4 shows a sectional elevational view of an electric power device assembly having an electrical power take-off assembly mounted in close proximity to the end cap of Fig. 3 according to the present invention; Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the electric power device assembly of Fig. 4 taken along line 5-5 of Fig. 4; Fig. 6 is an exploded isometric view of a second embodiment of the present invention having a reluctance plate for retrofitting older equipment; and Fig. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the reluctance plate of Fig. 6 used in conjunction with the energy-taking assembly of Figs. 4 and 5,

  according to the present invention.

  The relevant numerals used in FIGS. 1 and 2 are again used in FIGS. 3 and 7 to illustrate how an electric power device according to the present invention is used in the context of a railway vehicle. These reference numerals refer to the same elements in FIGS. 3 to 7 as those to which they refer in FIGS. 1 and 2, and it is therefore unnecessary to describe these elements again. With reference to FIG. 1, an electrical energy device assembly 40 according to the present invention is connected to an axle 12 and includes an end cap 60 and a power take-off assembly 80. As the axle 12 rotates, the electric power device 40 operates to generate an electric current to be used by electrical circuits of a power vehicle.

railway.

  As shown in Fig. 3, the end cap has a molded or machined, robust part, and includes a mounting structure having bolt holes 61 for bolt 20 to pass therethrough. An axle journal 12 protrudes from the adapter block 16 and has tapped holes 21. In addition, the

  end cap 60 has a cylindrical section comprising

  The radially outer portion of the ring 62 has outwardly extending reluctance poles 64, between which individual gaps 66 are formed. The interstices 66 are advantageously filled with a dielectric material, such as For example, a plastic material which is bonded to the end cap 60 by an adhesive or other conventional bonding technique. It is not necessary to mount permanent magnets on the end cap 60. A face 67, facing the axle, of the end cap 60 (Figure 5) is arranged to be applied against the axle 12 and the axle. The end cap 60 thus advantageously needs only holes 61 for the bolts, thereby avoiding the need for holes for the rotor attachment bolts as in the caps.

previous extremes.

  As best shown in Fig. 4, the power take-off assembly 80 includes stator assemblies 82 and a housing 90. Each stator assembly 82 includes magnetically permeable elements 83, 85 preferably having laminated ferrous sheets. classics. Each permeable element has a respective end end 83a, 85a. Respective stator windings 86,87 are conventionally wound around permeable members 83,85. A conventional permanent magnet 84 is mounted between the permeable elements 83 and 85 with the aid of a fastener 88. The housing 90 encloses the two stator assemblies and is advantageously formed of a non-ferrous material, for example aluminum or a rigid plastic material. Through holes are provided for receiving respective mounting bolts 94 therethrough, for example as shown in FIG. 5. A power cable is connected to the upper surface of the housing 90 by a mounting bolt 93, as shown in FIG. FIG. 4, which is screwed into a hole in a middle portion

  of the housing 90. Electrical terminals connect the

  bearings 86, 87 to a power cable 92. A non-conductive coating compound 96 advantageously fills the

  housing 90 and covers the stator assemblies 82.

  With reference to the above, will now be described the mounting of the device 40 to electrical energy on the axle of a vehicle. First, a conventional extreme end cap 18 is removed from the axle 12. Next, an end cap 60 is mounted on the axle by means of bolts 20 which are screwed into the respective holes 21. The bolts 20 are tightened until that the face 67 of the extreme cap 60, turned towards the axle, are against

  the end of the axle spindle 12 and against the ring 3810 of the bearing assembly 30, thus maintaining advantageous

  the bearing assembly 30 in place on the axle 12.

  Then, tapped holes 16a (Figure 5) are formed in the adapter block 16 rolling. Then the power take-off assembly 80 is mounted on the bearing adapter block by introducing respective mounting bolts 94 through respective mounting holes 91 and threading them into the threaded holes 16a. In the choice of the location of the threaded holes 16a, care must be taken to provide a suitable air gap between the terminal ends 83a, 85a of the permeable elements 83, 85 and the poles 64 of the end cap 60. The width of the air gap is kept to a minimum so that a maximum amount of magnetic flux flows between the permeable elements 83, 85 and the poles 64, as shown by the flow of a magnetic flux from North (N) to South (S) illustrated on Figure 4. Finally, a cable 92 is mounted on the housing 90 with a mounting bolt 93. With reference to the above, we will describe the

  operation of the device 40 with electrical energy.

  The permanent magnet 84 induces a magnetic flux in the element

  permeate 83, then this flow exits the end 83a of this element 83 and enters a given pole 64. The magnetic flux circuit continues outside the next 64 pole nearest, as measured in the direction inverse of that of the clockwise from the first pole 64 as seen in Figure 4. The magnetic flux also passes through the stator windings 86,87. When the axle 12 rotates, rotating the end cap 60, the dielectric material sections 66 are aligned with the ends 83a, 85a, and the magnetic flux field.

  is thus broken. When this happens, the electrical energy

  that induced in the stator windings 86,87 flows in the windings and generates a pulse of electric current. As the axle 12 continues to turn, a

  alternating current flows continuously in the windings.

  This current is transmitted by the cable 92 to electrical circuits of the railway vehicle. In addition, while the wheel and the axle 12 rotate and the vehicle is moving, the end cap 60 has a small footprint, which avoids collisions with adjacent objects

to the railway vehicle.

  When it is undesirable to disassemble an existing end cap 18, it is possible to adapt for leveling an assembly 200 to electrical energy device comprising a reluctance plate 100 on the axle 12 without intervening on the extreme cap existing roll. With reference to FIGS. 6 and 7, the reluctance plate 100 is a stamped metal plate from which the reluctance poles protrude with interstices 104 between them. No dielectric material other than air is needed in the interstices 104. Mounting holes 106 are sized to receive mounting bolts 120 therethrough. Mounting the reluctance plate

  on the extreme 18 bearing cap requires removal

  bolts 20, one at a time, and replace them with bolts 20 'which have threaded center holes, or drill and tap central holes in each of the bolts 20, in place, for form bolts 20 '. In any case, it is not necessary to move the end cap 18 rolling. Bolts 120 are then inserted into the holes 106 and are screwed into the respective threaded holes of the bolts 20 '. The housing 90 is then mounted on the bearing adapter block, as in the previous embodiment, paying attention to an appropriate width of the air gap between the ends.

  terminals 83a, 85a and the reluctance poles 102. The function

  of the electrical power device 200 is substantially the same as in the previous embodiment, i.e. an alternating current is produced.

while the axle 12 rotates.

  An important point is that the electric power device of the present invention can be easily mounted on the axle of a vehicle. The device is compact, which minimizes the risk of collision with objects adjacent to the axle, and its mounting structure is robust enough for use with a railway vehicle. The rotor does not require the use of permanent magnets, which makes the assembly simpler and less expensive. The electric power device is also effective for maintaining a joint portion

  Rolling sealing in place on an axle.

  It goes without saying that many modifications can be made to the assembly described and represented without

depart from the scope of the invention.

Claims (10)

  1. Set with electric generator (40) mounted   on the end (13) of an axle (12) of a vehicle,   a rotor (60, 100) attached to the end of the axle and arranged to rotate with it; a stator (80) connected to the vehicle and having magnetically permeable first and second spaced members (83, 85) having first and second pole ends (83a, 85a), respectively, closely adjacent to the peripheral surface of the rotor (60, 100), and a first electric stator winding (86, 87) associated with one of the first and second magnetically permeable members (83, 85) so that, when the axle rotates the rotor, an electric current circulates in the first stator winding, the assembly being characterized by a permanent magnet (84) interconnecting the first and second magnetically permeable members (83, 85), said rotor (60, 100) having an outer peripheral surface   (62, 64) which is not made of permanent magnet material.   An assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that the outer circumferential surface (62, 64) of the rotor comprises a series of equally spaced reluctance poles (64) separated by a dielectric material (66) and arranged whereby, when the rotor rotates, pairs of adjacent reluctance poles are alternately brought in close proximity to first and second ends   respective poles (83a, 85a) of said stator (80) and   from this close proximity.   3. An assembly according to claim 2, characterized   in that the dielectric material (66) is air.   4. The assembly of claim 2, characterized in that the dielectric material (66) is a material plastic bonded to the rotor (60).   5. An assembly according to claim 4, characterized in that the stator (80) comprises a second electric stator winding (86, 87) associated with the other of the first and second magnetically permeable elements (83, 85) so that, when the axle (12) rotates the rotor (100), a current   electric circulates in the second stator winding.   An assembly according to claim 5, characterized in that the stator (80) has third and fourth spaced apart magnetically permeable members (83, 85) having third and fourth pole ends (83a, 85a), respectively, closely adjacent to each other. said peripheral surface (64) of the rotor (60, 100) and spaced apart from the first and second pole ends; a permanent magnet (84) interconnecting the third and fourth magnetically permeable members (83, 85); and third and fourth stator electrical windings (86, 87) associated with the third and fourth magnetically permeable members (83, 85) so that when the axle (12) rotates the rotor, an electric current flows through them. third and fourth stator windings (86, 87).   7. An assembly according to claim 6, characterized in that it comprises an electric cable (92) connected to the stator (80) and electrically interconnected with one of the first, second, third and fourth stator windings (86, 87). . 8. An assembly according to claim 7, characterized in that the vehicle is a railway vehicle and the stator (80) is mounted on the bearing block (16) in the immediate vicinity of an end (13) of a axle (12) of the railway vehicle.   9. An assembly according to claim 8, characterized in that the rotor (60) is an extreme bearing cap bolted to the end (13) of the axle (12) and arranged to hold in place a bearing (30) between the axle (12) and the bearing block (16).   10. An assembly according to claim 8, characterized   characterized in that the rotor (100) is secured to bolts (20 ') securing an end cap (18) to the end (13) of the axle by means of screws (120) in threaded engagement   with tapped holes in the bolts (20 ').