JP2015113012A - Ventilation structure of in-wheel motor drive device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a structure which improves the ventilation and thereby improves cooling effect of travel air on an in-wheel motor drive device.SOLUTION: A ventilation structure includes: an in-wheel motor drive device (11); a suspension member (41) extending in a vehicle fore and aft direction, the suspension member where a front end is connected with a vehicle body side member and a rear end is connected with the in-wheel motor drive device; and a ventilation flue (W) including a starting end (W1) provided at the front end side of the suspension member and a trailing end (W2) provided at the rear end (53) side of the suspension member and directed to the in-wheel motor drive device, the ventilation flue which is provided along a surface of the suspension member so as to extend from the starting end to the trailing end.

Description

  The present invention relates to a structure that uses a suspension member to send traveling wind to an in-wheel motor drive device disposed below a vehicle body.

  Since the in-wheel motor drive device is provided on the wheel of the vehicle and directly drives the wheel, the in-wheel motor drive device is advantageous in that the space of the vehicle body can be made wider than that of the engine-equipped vehicle. As a suspension device for attaching an in-wheel motor drive device to a vehicle body, a suspension device described in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2008-308033 (Patent Document 1) is conventionally known. The suspension device described in Patent Literature 1 includes a knuckle arm that extends upward from the in-wheel motor drive device, an upper arm that is coupled to the upper end of the knuckle arm, and a lower arm that is coupled to the lower end of the in-wheel motor drive device.

JP 2008-308033 A

  By the way, in the above-described conventional suspension device, some traveling wind hits the in-wheel motor drive device while the vehicle is traveling. However, since the in-wheel motor drive device is disposed inside the wheel, Sex is not always good.

  In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide a structure that improves ventilation and enhances the cooling effect of an in-wheel motor drive device by traveling wind.

  For this purpose, the in-wheel motor drive device ventilation structure according to the present invention is an in-wheel motor drive device and a member extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, the front end being connected to the vehicle body side member, and the rear end being driven by the in-wheel motor. The suspension member includes a suspension member coupled to the apparatus, a start end provided on the front end side of the suspension member, and a terminal end provided on the rear end side of the suspension member and directed to the in-wheel motor drive device, and extending from the start end to the terminal end The ventilation path provided along the surface of the.

  According to the present invention, the traveling wind flows along the ventilation path while the vehicle is traveling, and then hits the front portion of the in-wheel motor drive device 11. Therefore, the in-wheel motor drive device 11 can be cooled more efficiently than before.

  The cross-sectional shape of the ventilation path is not particularly limited. Moreover, the arrangement | positioning location of a ventilation path should just be the surface of a suspension member, and is not specifically limited.

  Various configurations are possible for the ventilation path. For example, a current plate may be provided on the suspension member. The current plate may be any one that extends in the vehicle front-rear direction, and the position, size, shape, and number of current plates are not particularly limited. Preferably, the current plate extends intermittently or continuously from the front end portion to the rear end portion of the suspension member. As one embodiment of the present invention, the ventilation path is defined by at least two rectifying plates provided on the suspension member so as to face each other. According to this embodiment, a ventilation path is divided by the baffle plate of one side and the other side. The rectifying plate erected on the surface of the trailing arm extends in the vehicle front-rear direction so as to rectify the traveling wind, and guides the traveling wind to the in-wheel motor drive device without stagnation. And, of course, the running wind is rectified as indicated by the arrow between the one side rectifying plate and the other side rectifying plate, and the running wind that flows further on one side than the one side rectifying plate, and further than the other side rectifying plate. The running wind flowing on the other side can also be rectified so as to flow to the rear of the vehicle without stagnation, effectively cooling the in-wheel motor drive device. As another embodiment, one rectifying plate may be used.

  Alternatively, as another embodiment of the present invention, the ventilation path is a groove formed on the surface of the suspension member. According to such an embodiment, the traveling wind flows along the groove while the vehicle is traveling, and then strikes the front of the in-wheel motor drive device. Therefore, the in-wheel motor drive device can be efficiently cooled. There may be only one groove or a plurality of grooves.

  As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to send more traveling wind to the in-wheel motor driving device as compared with the conventional in-wheel motor driving device simply disposed inside the wheel. Therefore, the in-wheel motor drive device can be cooled more effectively than before, which contributes to the improvement of the output of the in-wheel motor drive device.

It is a whole perspective view which shows the ventilation structure which becomes one Embodiment of this invention. It is a whole perspective view which shows the ventilation structure which becomes the embodiment. It is a side view which shows the same embodiment, and represents a mode that it saw from the vehicle width direction inner side. It is a bottom view which shows the same embodiment, and shows a mode seen from the downward direction. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows an in-wheel motor drive device.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  1 and 2 are overall perspective views showing a ventilation structure according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 shows a state seen from above, and FIG. 2 shows a state seen from below. FIG. 3 is a side view showing the embodiment, and shows a state viewed from the inner side in the vehicle width direction. FIG. 4 is a bottom view showing the embodiment, and shows a state seen from below.

  First, the in-wheel motor drive device 11 will be described with reference to the longitudinal sectional view shown in FIG. 5. The in-wheel motor drive device 11 includes a motor portion 11A, a speed reduction portion 11B, and a wheel hub portion 11C. The motor unit 11A, the speed reduction unit 11B, and the wheel hub unit 11C are sequentially arranged in series in the direction of the axis O of the in-wheel motor drive device 11, and are arranged coaxially. The wheel hub portion 11 </ b> C includes a hub wheel 33 that is a rotating member having an axis O as a rotation center, an outer ring member 34 that surrounds the outer peripheral surface of the hub wheel 33, an inner peripheral surface of the outer ring member 34, and an outer peripheral surface of the hub wheel 33. The hub wheel 33 is rotatably supported via a rolling bearing including the plurality of rolling elements 35. A wheel (not shown) is attached and fixed to the hub wheel 33 by a bolt 36. This wheel is a vehicle rear wheel and a non-steered wheel, and is driven by the in-wheel motor drive device 11 to rotate. The wheel hub portion 11C of the in-wheel motor drive device 11 is installed in an area inside the road wheel of the wheel. On the other hand, the motor unit 11A and the speed reduction unit 11B are installed outside the space area inside the road wheel of the wheel.

  11 A of motor parts incorporate the stator 13 of a rotary electric machine, the rotor 14, and the motor shaft 15 in the motor part casing 12, and drive the hub ring | wheel 33 or perform electric power regeneration using the rotation of the hub ring | wheel 33. . The motor shaft 15 extends along the axis O and is coupled to the input shaft 24 of the speed reduction unit 11B. This coupling is performed by inserting and fixing the end of the input shaft 24 into one end opening of the motor shaft 15 formed in a cylindrical shape.

  The speed reduction part 11B incorporates a speed reduction mechanism such as a cycloid speed reducer inside the speed reduction part casing 23, for example, and reduces the rotation of the motor part 11A and transmits it to the hub wheel. The speed reduction part 11B may incorporate a planetary gear type speed reduction mechanism in addition to the illustrated cycloid speed reducer, or may be a so-called direct motor type in-wheel motor drive device having no speed reduction part. The speed reduction unit casing 23 and the motor unit casing 12 may be separate parts or may be integrated.

  Here, the case where a cycloid reducer is adopted as the speed reduction part 11B will be briefly described. The speed reduction part 11B is a speed reduction part casing 23, an input shaft 24, and a disc-shaped eccentric member provided eccentric to the input shaft 24. 25, a curved plate 26 attached to the eccentric member 25 so as to be concentric, a rolling bearing 29 provided between the outer periphery of the eccentric member 25 and the inner peripheral surface of the central hole of the curved plate 26, and a deceleration A plurality of outer pins 27 attached to the part casing 23 and a motion conversion mechanism for taking out the rotation of the curved plate 26 and outputting it to the hub wheel 33. In this embodiment, two eccentric members 25 and two curved plates 26 are provided with phases different by 180 °.

  The outer peripheral edge of the curved plate 26 described above is formed in a wave shape and engages with a plurality of outer pins 27 attached to the speed reduction unit casing 23. The outer pins 27 are arranged at equal intervals in the circumferential direction around the axis O, and are one more than the number of wavy peaks formed on the outer peripheral edge of the curved plate 26. When the curved plate 26 that is a revolving member revolves around the axis O, the curved plate 26 rotates slightly.

  The motion conversion mechanism takes out the rotation of the curved plate 26 and outputs only the rotation to the hub wheel 33, and includes a plurality of through holes formed in the curved plate 26 at intervals in the circumferential direction, A plurality of inner pins 31 having an outer diameter smaller than the inner diameter of the through hole, passed through each through hole, a flange portion 32f that commonly supports one end of each inner pin 31, and a flange portion 32f are integrally formed. It has a shaft portion 32s. The flange portion 32f and the shaft portion 32s constitute the output shaft 32 of the speed reducing portion 11B. The shaft portion 32s of the output shaft 32 extends along the axis O and is coaxially coupled to the hub wheel 33 of the wheel hub portion 11C. The motor shaft 15 of the motor unit 11A, the input shaft 24 and the output shaft 32 of the speed reduction unit 11B, and the hub wheel 33 of the wheel hub unit 11C extend along the axis O, but the eccentric member 25 and the curved plate 26 extend from the axis O. It is arranged eccentrically.

  The inside of the in-wheel motor drive device 11 is lubricated by an axial lubrication system. An oil tank 22 for storing lubricating oil is provided at the lower part of the in-wheel motor drive device. The lubricating oil circulates inside the in-wheel motor drive device 11 as indicated by an arrow in FIG. Specifically, the lubricating oil is sucked from the oil tank 22 by the oil pump 28, and has a shaft oil passage formed at the center of the motor shaft 15 and a shaft oil passage formed at the center of the input shaft 24. It passes and is injected into the inside of the deceleration part 11B, and lubricates the eccentric member 25, the curved board 26, the inner pin 31, the outer pin 27, etc. which were mentioned above. Then, the lubricating oil returns to the oil tank 22 attached to the lower part of the speed reducing portion 11B.

  When a three-phase alternating current is supplied to the coil of the stator 13, the rotor 14 rotates with the motor shaft 15, and the motor unit 11A outputs rotation. The deceleration unit 11B decelerates the rotation input from the motor shaft 15 to the input shaft 24, and transmits the reduced rotation from the output shaft 32 to the wheel hub unit 11C.

  Next, the suspension device will be described with reference to FIGS. In this embodiment, the in-wheel motor drive device 11 is attached to a vehicle body (not shown) via a trailing arm suspension device. The trailing arm suspension device includes a plurality of suspension members, and allows the in-wheel motor drive device 11 to bounce upward and rebound downward. The trailing arm 41 is a suspension member that extends in the vehicle front-rear direction, and has a front end connected to a vehicle body side member (not shown) and a rear end 53 connected to a front portion of the in-wheel motor drive device 11. A pivot 42 extending in the vehicle width direction is provided at the front end of the trailing arm 41, and the trailing arm 41 can swing up and down with the pivot 42 as a fulcrum. The pivot 42 may be a shaft that is inserted into a through hole formed at the front end of the trailing arm 41, or a protrusion that is integrally formed at the front end of the trailing arm 41 and protrudes on both sides in the vehicle width direction. There may be. Both ends of the pivot 42 are attached to a vehicle body side member (not shown). In general, a bush is used for the pivot 42 in order to allow displacement during a stroke and reduce shock.

  The trailing end 53 of the trailing arm 41 may be fixed to the in-wheel motor drive device 11 by a connecting member such as a bolt, or may be integrally formed with at least one of the motor unit casing 12 and the speed reduction unit casing 23. Good. The rear end 53 of the trailing arm 41 is connected to the inner side surface 41i in the vehicle width direction at the front, is inclined to the inner side in the vehicle width direction toward the rear of the vehicle, and is connected to the outer peripheral surface of the in-wheel motor drive device 11 at the rear. It has a surface 53i. As a result, the trailing end 53 of the trailing arm 41 becomes wider toward the rear of the vehicle (FIG. 4), and the strength at the position where the trailing arm 41 is coupled to the in-wheel motor drive device 11 is secured.

  Brackets 43, 44, 45 are provided at the lower part of the in-wheel motor drive device 11. A bracket 46 is provided on the upper portion of the in-wheel motor drive device 11. The brackets 43 to 46 may also be fixed to the in-wheel motor drive device 11 by connecting members such as bolts, or may be integrally formed with the motor unit casing 12 or the speed reduction unit casing 23. The bracket 43 is positioned below the in-wheel motor drive device 11 in front of the oil tank 22 and is rotatably connected to the link member 47 via the pivot 43s. The bracket 44 is positioned below the in-wheel motor drive device 11 behind the oil tank 22 and is rotatably connected to the link member 48 via a pivot 44s. The bracket 45 is positioned below the in-wheel motor drive device 11 behind the bracket 44, and is pivotally connected to the lower end of the damper 49 via a pivot 45s. The bracket 46 is positioned substantially immediately above the axis O, and is rotatably connected to the link member 50 via a pivot 46s. The pivots 43s, 44s, 45s, 46s extend in the vehicle front-rear direction.

  The link members 47, 48, 50 are suspension members extending in the vehicle width direction, and the outer ends in the vehicle width direction of the link members are rotatably connected to the in-wheel motor drive device 11 as described above. A vehicle width direction inner end is rotatably connected to a vehicle body side member (not shown) via a pivot extending in the vehicle front-rear direction. Thereby, the in-wheel motor drive device 11 of this embodiment can be bound and rebound in the up-down direction.

  A disk-shaped seat portion 48 s is formed at the center in the longitudinal direction of the link member 48. The seat portion 48s is formed in a dish shape and supports the lower end of the coil spring 52 extending in the vertical direction. The upper end of the coil spring 52 is connected to a vehicle body side member (not shown), and the coil spring 52 alleviates the impact during bound and rebound. The damper 49 extends in the vertical direction, and the upper end of the damper 49 is connected to a vehicle body side member (not shown). The damper 49 attenuates bound and rebound.

  Next, the ventilation structure will be described with reference to FIGS. In this embodiment, the ventilation path W is provided on the surface of the inner side surface 41 i in the vehicle width direction of the trailing arm 41. The ventilation path W extends from the start end W1 to the end end W2, and is defined by a ventilation path member 55 having a U-shaped cross section. The ventilation path member 55 is attached and fixed to the central region, leaving the front end and the rear end 53 of the trailing arm 41. The start end W1 of the ventilation path W is separated from the pivot 42 and is directed to the front of the vehicle. The end W2 of the ventilation path W is separated from the in-wheel motor drive device 11 and is directed to the in-wheel motor drive device 11 at the rear of the vehicle. During traveling of the vehicle, as shown by an arrow in FIG. 3, traveling wind flows into the ventilation path W from the start end W1, flows along the ventilation path W, and flows out backward from the terminal end W2.

  The ventilation path member 55 includes two wall-shaped rectifying plates 55a and 55a that are disposed on the upper side and the lower side and extend substantially in parallel, and an intermediate wall 55b that connects the rectifying plates 55a to each other. The intermediate wall 55b is attached to the rectifying plate 55a at a right angle so as to be in surface contact with the inner side surface 41i of the trailing arm 41 in the vehicle width direction. Each rectifying plate 55a protrudes from the inner side surface 41i in the vehicle width direction. The protruding height of the rectifying plate 55a from the inner side surface 41i in the vehicle width direction is constant from the start end W1 to the end end W2. The protrusion height of the rectifying plate 55a is better as it protrudes greatly in the vehicle width direction. However, since the inclined surface 53i faces a tire of a wheel (not shown) and a clearance must be secured between the tire and the inner side surface 41i in the vehicle width direction, as shown in FIG. It is preferable that the sum of the projecting height and the thickness dimension in the vehicle width direction of the central region of the trailing arm 41 is equal to or less than the thickness dimension in the vehicle width direction of the rear end 53. The ventilation path W is a space between two rectifying plates 55a and 55a adjacent to each other. Thus, the ventilation path member 55 is attached and fixed along the trailing arm 41 and extends from the front end side to the rear end side of the trailing arm 41.

  Examples of the material of the ventilation path member 55 include aluminum, an aluminum alloy, copper, steel, and resin. If the ventilation path itself has heat dissipation, a material with high thermal conductivity and low specific heat (copper, steel, aluminum) is suitable. Light weight materials (resin, aluminum) are suitable for the main purpose of ventilation performance. An example of such a material is a case where the ventilation path member 55 and the trailing arm 41 are separated. When the trailing arm 41 and the air passage member 55 are integrally formed, the material may be selected in accordance with the design requirements of the parts such as the strength requirements of the trailing arm 41.

  The ventilation path member 55 is curved according to the shape of the trailing arm 41. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, the front end of the trailing arm 41 is on the inner side in the vehicle width direction, the rear end 53 of the trailing arm 41 is on the outer side in the vehicle width direction, and the trailing arm 41 is rearward from the front end. Extends gently curved to the end.

  In a general state in which neither rebound nor bounce occurs, the trailing arm 41 extends substantially horizontally as shown in FIG. Thereby, the ventilation path W is also extended horizontally. In addition, the general state here means that the vehicle body loading weight is within a predetermined range, and the vertical length of the coil spring 52 is included within the predetermined range.

  According to this embodiment, the start end W1 provided on the front end side of the trailing arm 41 and the end end W2 provided on the rear end 53 side of the trailing arm 41 and directed to the in-wheel motor drive device 11 are provided. A ventilation path W is provided along the surface of the trailing arm 41 so as to extend from W1 to the terminal end W2. As a result, as shown by arrows in FIGS. 1 to 4, the traveling wind flows along the ventilation path W during the traveling of the vehicle, then flows backward along the inclined surface 53 i, and then the in-wheel motor driving device 11. Hit the front. Therefore, the in-wheel motor drive device 11 can be cooled more efficiently than before.

  Moreover, according to this embodiment, the ventilation path W is divided by the two baffle plates 55a which face each other. The wall-shaped rectifying plate 55a erected on the surface of the trailing arm 41 has a rectifying action to rectify the traveling wind because it continuously extends in the vehicle front-rear direction, and the in-wheel motor drive device does not stagnate the traveling wind. Lead to 11. That is, not only the running wind is rectified between the upper rectifying plate 55a and the lower rectifying plate 55a as shown by the arrow, but also the running wind that flows further above the upper rectifying plate 55a, or indicated by the arrow in FIG. Thus, the traveling wind that flows further below the lower rectifying plate 55a can be rectified so that it flows without stagnation to the rear of the vehicle, and the in-wheel motor drive device 11 is effectively cooled.

  As a modification not shown, three or more rectifying plates may be provided on the trailing arm 41 at intervals in the vertical direction. Alternatively, as another modification, the plurality of rectifying plates may be directly attached to the inner side surface 41i in the vehicle width direction without having the intermediate wall 55b. Alternatively, a plurality of current plates may be integrally formed with the trailing arm 41. Alternatively, as another modification, the current plate may be provided only on the outer side surface in the vehicle width direction, or may be provided on both the outer side surface in the vehicle width direction and the inner side surface 41i in the vehicle width direction.

  As another modification (not shown), a groove extending in the front-rear direction may be formed on the surface of the trailing arm 41. One or a plurality of such grooves are formed. Thus, the traveling wind flows along the groove while the vehicle is traveling, and then strikes the front portion of the in-wheel motor drive device 11. Therefore, the in-wheel motor drive device 11 can be efficiently cooled.

  Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described with reference to the drawings, the present invention is not limited to the illustrated embodiments. Various modifications and variations can be made to the illustrated embodiment within the same range or equivalent range as the present invention.

  The in-wheel motor drive device according to the present invention is advantageously used in electric vehicles and hybrid vehicles.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 In-wheel motor drive device, 11A Motor part, 11B Deceleration part, 11C Wheel hub part, 12 Motor part casing, 13 Stator, 14 Rotor, 15 Motor shaft, 22 Oil tank, 23 Deceleration part casing, 33 Hub wheel, 36 bolt , 41 trailing arm, 41i vehicle width direction inner side surface, 42 pivot axis, 43, 44, 45, 46 bracket, 47, 48, 50 link member, 48s seat part, 49 damper, 52 coil spring, 53 rear end, 53i inclination Surface, 55 ventilation path member, 55a current plate, 55b intermediate wall, O axis, W ventilation path, W1 start end, W2 end.

Claims (3)

An in-wheel motor drive device;
A suspension member that extends in the vehicle front-rear direction and has a front end connected to the vehicle body side member and a rear end connected to the in-wheel motor drive device;
A surface of the suspension member includes a start end provided on a front end side of the suspension member and a terminal end provided on a rear end side of the suspension member and directed to the in-wheel motor drive device, and extends from the start end to the terminal end. The ventilation structure of an in-wheel motor drive device provided with the ventilation path provided along.   The ventilation structure of the in-wheel motor drive device according to claim 1, wherein the ventilation path is partitioned by at least two rectifying plates provided on the suspension member so as to face each other. The ventilation structure of the in-wheel motor drive device according to claim 1, wherein the ventilation path is a groove formed on a surface of the suspension member.

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