JP2014236604A - Power conversion device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a power conversion device that is compact in size.SOLUTION: A power conversion device 1 includes: a semiconductor unit 4 having semiconductor modules 41 and a cooler 6 for cooling the semiconductor modules 41; a case 2 of a conductive material storing the semiconductor unit 4; and electrode busbars 42 connected to main electrode terminals 412 of the semiconductor modules 41. The case 2 has a case wall part 21 arranged around the semiconductor unit 4, and the case wall part 21 has a through hole 212 formed therethrough such that external busbars 7 connected to an external apparatus can be passed. A terminal block 3 for carrying and connecting the electrode busbars 42 and the external busbars 7 is integrally joined in a position of the case wall part 21 adjacent to the through hole 212. The terminal block 3 comprises an insulating member which electrically insulates the electrode busbars 42 and external busbars 7 and the case 2 from each other.

Description

  The present invention relates to a power conversion device.

  In an electric vehicle, a hybrid vehicle, and the like, a power conversion device including a semiconductor unit having a semiconductor module incorporating a switching element and a cooler that cools the semiconductor module is used. As such a power converter, there exists a thing shown by patent document 1, for example.

The power conversion device of Patent Document 1 includes a semiconductor unit in which a plurality of semiconductor modules and a cooler are stacked, a terminal block for connecting the semiconductor unit and an external load, and a case for housing the semiconductor unit and the terminal block. Have.
On the terminal block, a bus bar connected to the main electrode terminal in the semiconductor module and an external wiring connected to an external load are arranged, and both are connected and fixed.

JP 2011-167056 A

However, the power converter of Patent Document 1 has the following problems.
In the power conversion device of Patent Literature 1, the terminal block and the case are generally fixed by a fixing member such as a bolt. Therefore, the terminal block needs a fixing portion for arranging the fixing member. For this reason, the size of the fixing portion is added to the size necessary for connecting the bus bar and the external wiring, and the size of the terminal block is increased. Therefore, the size of the case that accommodates the terminal block is increased, and the size of the power conversion device itself is increased.

  The present invention has been made in view of such a background, and an object of the present invention is to provide a power converter that can be miniaturized.

One aspect of the present invention is a semiconductor unit having a semiconductor module and a cooler for cooling the semiconductor module;
A case made of a conductive material for housing the semiconductor unit;
It has an electrode bus bar connected to the main electrode terminal of the semiconductor module,
The case has a case wall portion arranged around the semiconductor unit,
In the case wall portion, a through hole formed so as to be able to pass through an external bus bar connected to an external device is formed,
A terminal block for mounting and connecting the electrode bus bar and the external bus bar is integrally joined at a position adjacent to the through hole of the case wall, and the terminal block is connected to the electrode bus bar and the electrode bus bar. The power converter is constituted by an insulating member that electrically insulates between the external bus bar and the case.

  In the power converter, the terminal block is integrally joined to a position adjacent to the through hole of the case wall. That is, the case and the terminal block are joined together by bringing them into contact with each other without using a fixing member such as a bolt. Therefore, the site | part by which the fixing member conventionally required for the terminal block is distribute | arranged can be abbreviate | omitted. Thereby, the size of the terminal block can be reduced.

Moreover, the clearance gap between both can be abbreviate | omitted by joining the said case wall part and the said terminal block directly, without passing through a fixing member. Further, by directly joining the case wall portion and the terminal block, positioning between the two can be performed more accurately. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the displacement of the electrode bus bar and the external bus bar due to variations in the assembly of the terminal block. Thereby, the space required for arranging the terminal block in the case can be reduced, and the case can be reduced in size.
Thus, the said power converter device can be reduced in size by reducing the said case in size.

  As described above, according to the power converter, the size can be reduced.

Sectional drawing of the power converter device in Example 1. FIG. The elements on larger scale of a terminal block periphery in FIG. III-III arrow sectional drawing in FIG. IV-IV arrow sectional drawing in FIG. The partial expanded sectional view of the power converter device in Example 2. FIG.

  In the power conversion device, it is preferable that a mounting portion having a support surface for supporting the terminal block is formed at a position adjacent to the through hole inside the case. In this case, the terminal block can be supported reliably and stably by the mounting portion while simplifying the shape of the terminal block.

  In addition, a pair of side inner wall portions are formed on both ends of the support surface in a direction intersecting with the through direction of the through hole so as to stand on the terminal block side, and the terminal The base may have a side insulating portion that is disposed on the surface of the pair of side inner wall portions and electrically insulates the electrode bus bar and the external bus bar from the side inner wall portion. . In this case, contact of the electrode bus bar and the external bus bar with the side inner wall portion can be prevented by the side insulating portion. Thereby, the electrical insulation between the said electrode bus bar and the said external bus bar, and the said side inner wall part is securable.

Example 1
The Example concerning the said power converter device is described with reference to FIGS.
As shown in FIG. 1, the power conversion apparatus 1 includes a semiconductor unit 41 having a semiconductor module 41, a cooler 6 that cools the semiconductor module 41, a case 2 made of a conductive material that houses the semiconductor unit 4, and a semiconductor It has an electrode bus bar 42 connected to the main electrode terminal 412 of the module 41. The case 2 has a case wall portion 21 arranged around the semiconductor unit 4, and the case wall portion 21 has a through hole formed so as to be able to pass through an external bus bar 7 connected to an external device. 212 is formed. A terminal block 3 for mounting and connecting the electrode bus bar 42 and the external bus bar 7 is integrally joined at a position adjacent to the through hole 212 of the case wall portion 21. The terminal block 3 is constituted by an insulating member that electrically insulates the electrode bus bar 42 and the external bus bar 7 from the case 2.

This will be described in more detail below.
In this example, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the direction in which the semiconductor module 41 and the cooling tube 61 of the cooler 66 are stacked is the stacking direction X, the longitudinal direction of the cooling tube 61 is the horizontal direction Y, and the stacking The direction orthogonal to both the direction X and the lateral direction Y will be described below as the height direction Z.
In the stacking direction X, the front end side of the refrigerant introduction pipe 621 and the refrigerant discharge pipe 622 protruding from the case 2 is defined as the front side, and the opposite side is defined as the rear side. Further, in the height direction Z, a side on which a lid 24 described later is disposed is an upper side, and the opposite side is a lower side.

The electric power converter 1 of this example converts electric power supplied from a DC power source into three-phase AC and outputs it in an electric vehicle.
As shown in FIG. 1, in this example, the semiconductor unit 4 constituting the power conversion device 1 includes a plurality of semiconductor modules 41 and a cooler 6 that cools the semiconductor modules 41.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the cooler 6 includes a cooling tube 61 disposed on both surfaces of the semiconductor module 41, and a refrigerant introduction pipe 621 and a refrigerant discharge pipe 622 for circulating a cooling medium to the cooling tube 61. Yes. The cooling tube 61 is made of a metal such as aluminum and has a refrigerant flow path 611 through which a refrigerant flows. The plurality of cooling tubes 61 are arranged so as to sandwich the semiconductor module 41 from both sides, and the adjacent cooling tubes 61 are connected to each other by connecting pipes (not shown) in the vicinity of both ends in the lateral direction Y. . The cooling tube 61 and the semiconductor module 41 are alternately stacked to form a stacked portion.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the refrigerant introduction pipe 621 and the refrigerant discharge pipe 622 are provided so as to protrude forward from the front surface of the cooling tube 61 disposed at the front end. The cooling medium introduced from the refrigerant introduction pipe 621 appropriately passes through the connecting pipe connecting the cooling tubes 61, is distributed to each cooling tube 61, and circulates in the longitudinal direction (lateral direction Y). The cooling medium exchanges heat with the semiconductor module 41 while flowing through each cooling tube 61. The cooling medium whose temperature has increased due to heat exchange passes through the downstream connecting pipe, is led to the refrigerant discharge pipe 622, and is discharged. Examples of the cooling medium include natural refrigerants such as water and ammonia, water mixed with ethylene glycol-based antifreeze, fluorocarbon refrigerants such as fluorinate, chlorofluorocarbon refrigerants such as HCFC123 and HFC134a, and alcohol-based alcohols such as methanol and alcohol. A refrigerant such as a refrigerant or a ketone-based refrigerant such as acetone can be used.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the semiconductor module 41 includes a main body 411 having a switching element, a plurality of control terminals 413 extending upward from the main body 411, and a plurality of main electrode terminals extending downward from the main body 411. 412.

As shown in FIG. 1, the semiconductor module 41 constituting the semiconductor unit 4 includes a switching element such as an IGBT (Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor) or a MOSFET (MOS field effect transistor). The main body 411 in the semiconductor module 41 of this example has a flat plate shape, and is formed by resin-molding two switching elements.
A control terminal 413 formed so as to extend upward from the main body 411 is connected to the control circuit board 81, and receives a control current for controlling the switching element.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the main electrode terminal 412 formed so as to extend downward from the main body portion 411 is composed of a positive electrode terminal, a negative electrode terminal, and an output terminal. An electrode bus bar 42 is connected to each main electrode terminal 412, and one end of the pair of electrode bus bars 42 connected to the positive electrode terminal and the negative electrode terminal is arranged on the terminal block 3 for connection to a DC power source. In addition, one end of an output bus bar (not shown) connected to the U phase, V phase, and W phase at the output terminal is connected to a three-phase AC rotating electricity, so that it is arranged on an output terminal base (not shown). In this example, the electrode bus bar 42 and the output bus bar are arranged on different terminal blocks, but each bus bar and the external bus bar 7 may be connected on one terminal block.

  As shown in FIG. 1, an electronic component 82 that constitutes a power conversion circuit together with the semiconductor unit 4 is disposed below the semiconductor unit 4. Examples of the electronic component 82 include a reactor and a capacitor.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the case 2 that houses the semiconductor unit 4 includes a substantially rectangular plate-like case bottom 25, a case wall 21 erected upward from the entire outer periphery of the case bottom 25, and A case lid 24 is provided on the upper portion of the case wall 21.

As shown in FIG. 1, in the present example, the case bottom 25 is formed of an insulating resin and is joined to the inner periphery of the lower end of the case wall 21.
The case lid 24 has a substantially flat plate shape and covers the opening at the upper end of the case wall 21.

As shown in FIG. 1, the case wall portion 21 has a rectangular cylindrical shape whose axial direction is the vertical direction, and the refrigerant introduction pipe 621 and the refrigerant discharge pipe 622 of the cooler 6 are provided in one case wall portion 21 a. A pair of piping through-holes 213 each having a substantially U shape are provided.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the case wall portion 21b formed opposite to the case wall portion 21a formed with the piping through-hole 213 includes a mounting portion 22 to which the terminal block 3 is joined, and a mounting portion. And a shield member 23 disposed on the portion 22.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the mounting portion 22 is formed at a position outside the case 2 from the inside of the substantially rectangular recess 211 formed in the vicinity of the upper end portion of the case wall portion 21 b. The mounting portion 22 has a bearing surface 221 that supports the terminal block 3.
The support surface 221 is formed horizontally from the lower end of the recess 211 formed so as to be recessed downward from the upper end portion of the case wall portion 21 b toward the outside of the case 2. In this example, the mounting portion 22 is partially protruded to the outside of the case 2. Therefore, the enlargement of the power converter 1 can be minimized while effectively utilizing the space in the case 2.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, a shield member 23 is disposed on the terminal block 3. The shield member 23 is made of an aluminum alloy, and includes an upper shield part 231 disposed above the terminal block 3, a front shield part 232 extending downward from the front end part of the upper shield part 231, and a rear side from the lower end of the front shield part 232. And a pair of side inner wall portions 234 extending rearward from both ends in the lateral direction Y of the front shield portion 232.

As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the upper shield portion 231 is formed so as to connect a part of the upper end portions of the pair of side inner wall portions 234.
The front shield part 232 is formed with an oval through-hole 212 formed so that the longitudinal direction thereof is the lateral direction Y, and the external bus bar 7 can be inserted and arranged. Note that the through direction of the through hole 212 is parallel to the stacking direction X.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 to 3, the pair of side inner wall portions 234 has a flat plate shape and is formed so as to extend from both ends in the lateral direction Y of the front shield portion 232 to both ends in the lateral direction Y of the support surface 221. ing. In addition, the side inner wall part 234 of this example is formed as a part of the shield member 23 formed as a separate member, and is formed in the case wall part 23b by joining the case 2 and the shield member 23 together. .

  As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the terminal block 3 disposed on the mounting portion 22 extends upward from both ends of the terminal block main body 31 that forms a substantially rectangular parallelepiped and the lateral direction Y on the upper surface of the terminal block main body 31. And a pair of side insulating portions 32.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the terminal block main body 31 is formed of an insulating resin, and is joined to the support surface 221 so that the longitudinal direction is the horizontal direction Y. Further, the width in the stacking direction X of the terminal block main body 31 is larger than the outer diameter dimension of the connection fitting 33 for connecting the external bus bar 7 and the electrode bus bar 42, and the nut 331 of the connection fitting 33 is incorporated. Yes. In this example, the connection metal fitting 33 includes a pair of bolts 332 and a pair of nuts 331, and the pair of nuts 331 are arranged in the terminal block 3 side by side in the lateral direction Y. On each connection fitting 33, the electrode bus bar 42 and the external bus bar 7 are arranged so as to overlap with each other, the bolt 332 is passed through the bolt insertion hole 71 of the electrode bus bar 42 and the external bus bar 7, and the bolt 332 and the nut 331 are screwed together. By doing so, the electrode bus bar 42 and the external bus bar 7 are fixedly connected.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the pair of side insulating portions 32 extending upward from both ends in the lateral direction Y on the upper surface of the terminal block main body portion 31 includes an inner wall covering portion 321 that covers the side inner wall portion 234 and a case. A case covering portion 323 covering a part of the inner peripheral surface of the wall portion 21b. The inner wall covering portion 321 and the case covering portion 323 are formed continuously. Further, the case covering portion 323 is formed so as to cover the periphery of the recess 211 in a certain range. In this example, the case covering portion 323 is also formed on the inner peripheral surface of the case wall portion 21 b below the recess 211.

  The case 2, the shield member 23, and the terminal block 3 form an adhesive composite 100 that is integrally bonded with an adhesive. In this example, first, the shield member 23 and the terminal block 3 were joined with an adhesive, and then joined to the mounting portion 22 of the case 2 using an adhesive. As a method of forming such an adhesive composite 100, for example, there is a method disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2009-64648.

  More specifically, a fine uneven surface is formed on the surface of the case 2 and the shield member 23, and a metal oxide layer or a metal phosphate layer is formed on the surface of the fine uneven surface. The adhesive composite 100 is formed by adhesively bonding the case 2, the shield member 23, and the terminal block 3 with an adhesive layer that is a cured product of a one-component thermosetting resin adhesive.

Next, the function and effect of this example will be described.
In the power conversion device 1, the terminal block 3 is integrally joined to a position adjacent to the through hole 212 of the case wall portion 21. That is, the case 2 and the terminal block 3 are joined together by bringing them into contact with each other without using a fixing member such as a bolt 332. Therefore, the site | part by which the fixing member conventionally required for the terminal block 3 is arrange | positioned can be abbreviate | omitted. Thereby, the magnitude | size of the terminal block 3 can be reduced in size.

Moreover, a clearance gap can be abbreviate | omitted between both by directly joining the case wall part 21 and the terminal block 3 without interposing a fixing member. Further, by directly joining the case wall portion 21 and the terminal block 3, the positioning between the two can be performed more accurately. For this reason, it is possible to suppress displacement of the electrode bus bar 42 and the external bus bar 7 due to variations in the assembly of the terminal block 3. Thereby, a space required for arranging the terminal block 3 in the case 2 can be reduced, and the case 2 can be prevented from being downsized.
Thus, the power converter 1 can be reduced in size by reducing the case 2 in size.

  A mounting portion 22 having a support surface 221 for supporting the terminal block 3 is formed at a position adjacent to the through hole 212 inside the case 2. Therefore, the terminal block 3 can be supported reliably and stably by the mounting portion 22 while simplifying the shape of the terminal block 3.

  In addition, a pair of side inner walls are provided so as to stand upright on the terminal block 3 side at both ends of the support surface 221 arranged in the direction (lateral direction Y) intersecting the penetration direction (stacking direction X) of the through holes 212. The terminal block 3 is disposed on the surface of the pair of side inner wall portions 234, and electrically insulates the electrode bus bar 42 and the external bus bar 7 from the side inner wall portion 234. A side insulating portion 32 is provided. Therefore, the side insulating portion 32 can prevent contact between the electrode bus bar 42 and the external bus bar 7 and the side inner wall portion 234. Thereby, the insulation between the electrode bus bar 42 and the external bus bar 7 and the side inner wall portion 234 can be secured.

  Further, the side insulating portion 32 is continuously formed between the surface of the side inner wall portion 234 and at least a part of the inner peripheral surface of the case wall portion 21. Therefore, a wider range can be covered by the side insulating portion 32. Thereby, electricity supply with the electrode bus-bar 42 and the external bus-bar 7, and the side inner wall part 234 can be prevented more reliably.

  A pair of side inner wall portions 234 is provided with a metal shield member 23 formed at an end portion opposite to the terminal block 3 so as to connect at least a part of the end portions. Therefore, the direction orthogonal to the penetration direction in the terminal block 3 can be surrounded by the shield member 23 and the case wall portion 21. Thereby, the shield member 23 and the case wall 21 serve as an electric shield, and electric noise can be prevented from propagating around the terminal block 3.

  The length dimension in the penetration direction of the terminal block 3 is set to be larger than the outer shape of the connection fitting 33 used to connect the electrode bus bar 42 and the external bus bar 7. Therefore, the connection fitting 33 can be built in the terminal block 3. Thereby, the score of the component of the power converter device 1 can be proposed.

  The case 2 and the terminal block 3 form an adhesive composite 100 that is integrally bonded with an adhesive. Therefore, the case 2 and the terminal block 3 can be joined easily and reliably.

  As mentioned above, according to the power converter device 1 of this example, the size can be reduced.

  In addition, in this example, although the mounting part 22 was comprised by the case wall part 21b and the shield member 23, it is not restricted to this. For example, it may be formed integrally with the case wall portion 21b, or the range constituted by the shield member 23 may be enlarged.

(Example 2)
This example is an example in which the shape of the power conversion device in the first embodiment is changed.
As shown in FIG. 5, in the power conversion device 1 of the present example, the mounting portion 22 protrudes from the case wall portion 21 b toward the inside of the case.
Of the reference numerals used in this example or the drawings relating to this example, the same reference numerals as those used in the first embodiment represent the same components as in the first embodiment unless otherwise specified.

In the power conversion device 1 of this example, the mounting portion 22 does not protrude outside the case 2, so that the size of the power conversion device 1 is not affected. Therefore, the power converter 1 can be further downsized.
In addition, the same effects as those of the first embodiment can be obtained.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Power converter 100 Adhesive complex 2 Case 21 Case wall part 212 Through-hole 3 Terminal block 4 Semiconductor unit 41 Semiconductor module 412 Main electrode terminal 42 Electrode bus bar 6 Cooler 7 External bus bar

Claims (7)

A semiconductor unit (4) having a semiconductor module (41) and a cooler (6) for cooling the semiconductor module (41);
A case (2) made of a conductive material for housing the semiconductor unit (4);
An electrode bus bar (42) connected to the main electrode terminal (412) of the semiconductor module (41);
The case (2) has case wall portions (21, 21a, 21b) arranged around the semiconductor unit (4).
The case wall (21, 21a, 21b) is formed with a through hole (212) formed so as to be able to pass through an external bus bar (7) connected to an external device.
A terminal block for placing and connecting the electrode bus bar (42) and the external bus bar (7) at a position adjacent to the through hole (212) of the case wall (21, 21a, 21b). 3) are integrally joined, and the terminal block (3) is constituted by an insulating member that electrically insulates the electrode bus bar (42) and the external bus bar (7) from the case (2). The power converter device (1) characterized by the above-mentioned.   A mounting portion (22) having a bearing surface (221) for supporting the terminal block (3) is formed at a position adjacent to the through hole (212) inside the case (2). The power converter (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that it is characterized in that   A pair of side inner wall portions (234) are provided on both ends of the bearing surface (221) in a direction intersecting with the through direction of the through hole (212) so as to stand on the terminal block (3) side. ), And the terminal block (3) is disposed on the surface of the pair of side inner walls (234), and the electrode bus bar (42), the external bus bar (7), and the side The power conversion device (1) according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a side insulating portion (32) for electrically insulating the inner wall portion (234).   The side insulating portion (32) is continuously formed between the surface of the side inner wall portion (234) and at least a part of the inner peripheral surface of the case wall portion (21, 21a, 21b). The power converter device (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the power converter device (1) is provided.   A metal shield member (23) formed so as to connect at least a part of the end portions to the end portion on the side opposite to the terminal block (3) in the pair of side inner wall portions (234). The power converter device (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the power converter device (1) is provided.   The length dimension in the penetration direction of the terminal block (3) is larger than the outer shape of the connection fitting (33) used to connect the electrode bus bar (42) and the external bus bar (7). The power converter device (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized by the above.   The said case (2) and the said terminal block (3) form the adhesion composite body (100) integrally joined by the adhesive agent, It is any one of Claims 1-6 characterized by the above-mentioned. The power converter (1) described.

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