JP2024012126A - Electrical sail drive and vessel - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an electric sail drive capable of driving an electric motor at an output which is stable over an extended period of time by providing cooling of the electric motor in a simple configuration and a vessel provided with the electric sail drive.

SOLUTION: An electric sail drive includes an electric motor, a drive unit driven by the electric motor and a pump for circulating the lubricant inside the drive unit through the electric motor.

SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

COPYRIGHT: (C)2024,JPO&INPIT

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to electric saildrives and marine vessels.

A sailing ship that sails by utilizing wind power received by its sails uses an engine to drive a propulsion device (sail drive) when entering or leaving a port. A sail drive driven by an engine is disclosed in, for example, Patent Document 1.

JP2008-223811A

In recent years, due to environmental considerations, attempts have been made to drive sail drives using electric motors instead of engines. Like an engine, an electric motor also generates heat as it is driven. Therefore, in order to drive the electric motor with stable output for a long time, it is necessary to devise a cooling mechanism for the electric motor. At this time, if a heat exchanger, for example, is used as a cooling mechanism for the electric motor, the cost will be high. Therefore, in terms of cost, it is desirable to cool the electric motor with a simple configuration.

The present invention has been made in order to solve the above problems, and its purpose is to realize cooling of an electric motor with a simple configuration and drive the electric motor with stable output for a long time. An object of the present invention is to provide an electric sail drive and a ship equipped with the electric sail drive.

An electric sail drive according to one aspect of the present invention includes an electric motor, a drive unit driven by the electric motor, and a pump that circulates lubricating oil inside the drive unit via the electric motor.

A ship according to another aspect of the present invention includes the electric saildrive described above.

Cooling of the electric motor can be realized with a simple configuration, and the electric motor can be driven with stable output for a long time.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a schematic configuration of a ship according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of an electric saildrive attached to the vessel. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the electric saildrive with the lid removed. It is a typical sectional view of the above-mentioned electric sail drive. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a motor control section included in the electric sail drive. It is a perspective view which shows the structure of the lower part of the said electric sail drive exploded in the up-down direction. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the adapter included in the electric saildrive, viewed from one direction. It is a perspective view when the said adapter is seen from another direction. It is a perspective view which expands and shows the structure of the upper part of the said electric sail drive. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram schematically showing a motor cooling oil passage for an electric motor included in the electric sail drive. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram schematically showing a heat radiation oil passage of a heat radiation plate included in the motor control section. It is a perspective view of the upper part of the electric sail drive of a modification when seen from the right front. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the upper part of the electric saildrive when viewed from the left front. It is an exploded perspective view of the upper part of the above-mentioned electric sail drive. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the upper part of the electric saildrive as viewed from the left front, with the lid not shown; FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the detailed structure of the upper part of the electric saildrive.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below based on the drawings. Note that for convenience of explanation, a direction is defined as follows in this specification. First, the bow side of the ship is referred to as the "front", and the stern side is referred to as the "rear". The horizontal direction perpendicular to the front-rear direction is defined as the left-right direction. At this time, when the helmsman on board the vessel faces forward, the left side is defined as "left," and the right side is defined as "right." Further, the upstream side in the gravity direction perpendicular to the front-rear direction and the left-right direction is defined as "upper", and the downstream side is defined as "lower". In the drawings, the front direction is appropriately indicated by F, the rear direction by B, the left direction by L, the right direction by R, the upward direction by U, and the downward direction by D.

[1. Ship〕
FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a schematic configuration of a ship 1 according to the present embodiment. The ship 1 is composed of, for example, a sailing ship. The sailing ship sails using the wind force that the sails 2 receive. On the other hand, when entering a port, leaving a port, or in an emergency, the sailboat maneuvers by driving the electric sail drive 3 mounted on the sailboat and rotating the propeller 3a. That is, the ship 1 includes the electric sail drive 3. The electric saildrive 3 is attached to the bottom 1a of the ship 1. Hereinafter, details of the electric sail drive 3 of this embodiment will be explained.

[2. Electric sail drive]
FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of the electric sail drive 3. As shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the electric sail drive 3 of FIG. 2 with the lid 4 removed. FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the electric saildrive 3. In addition, in the drawings after FIG. 2, illustration of the propeller 3a of FIG. 1 is omitted for convenience.

As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the electric saildrive 3 includes an electric motor 11, a drive unit 12, a pump 13, a motor control section 14, an adapter 15, and a flange 16. The electric motor 11, the pump 13, and the motor control section 14 are mounted on the adapter 15. The lid body 4 (see FIG. 2) is attached to the adapter 15 and covers the electric motor 11, the pump 13, and the motor control unit 14 from above.

The electric motor 11 is driven by electric power supplied from a battery unit (not shown) mounted on the ship 1 (see FIG. 1) via an inverter 141b (see FIG. 5) of the motor control unit 14. Electric motor 11 is located above drive unit 12 . A rotating shaft 11a (see FIG. 4) of the electric motor 11 is located along the vertical direction.

The drive unit 12 is a propulsion device that is driven by the electric motor 11 and rotates a propeller 3a (see FIG. 1) to generate propulsive force. As shown in FIG. 4, the drive unit 12 includes a drive shaft 121 and a propeller shaft 122. The drive shaft 121 and propeller shaft 122 are rotatably supported by a bearing 12B within a housing 123 that extends in the vertical direction.

The drive shaft 121 extends vertically. The upper end of the drive shaft 121 is positioned to protrude upward from the housing 123. The upper end of the drive shaft 121 is connected to the rotating shaft 11a of the electric motor 11. A first gear 121a is attached to the lower end of the drive shaft 121. The first gear 121a is composed of, for example, a bevel gear.

The propeller shaft 122 extends in the front-rear direction. A second gear 122a is attached near the center of the propeller shaft 122 in the longitudinal direction. The second gear 122a is composed of, for example, a bevel gear, and meshes with the first gear 121a. A rear end of the propeller shaft 122 is positioned to protrude rearward from the housing 123. A propeller 3a (see FIG. 1) is attached to the rear end of the propeller shaft 122.

When the electric motor 11 is driven by the motor control unit 14, the rotational driving force of the electric motor 11 is transmitted to the propeller shaft 122 via the rotating shaft 11a, the drive shaft 121, the first gear 121a, and the second gear 122a. , the propeller shaft 122 rotates. As a result, the propeller 3a rotates to generate propulsive force, and the ship 1 travels. At this time, by controlling the rotation direction (forward rotation/reverse rotation) of the rotating shaft 11a of the electric motor 11 by the motor control unit 14, forward movement and reverse movement of the ship 1 can be switched.

As shown in FIG. 4, the drive unit 12 has an oil chamber 12R within the housing 123. The oil chamber 12R accommodates lubricating oil L. The lubricating oil L is used for the purpose of reducing wear and friction at the contact portion of two members that move relatively, and smoothing out the relative motion thereof. As the two members, for example, the first gear 121a and the second gear 122a can be considered. Further, in the bearing 12B, it is possible to consider an inner ring and balls, and an outer ring and balls. That is, the first gear 121a, the second gear 122a, and the bearing 12B are located in the oil chamber 12R and immersed in the lubricating oil L. As the lubricating oil L, for example, oil such as gear oil can be used.

The drive unit 12 has a water channel 12W separated from an oil chamber 12R within the housing 123. More specifically, the water channel 12W is located in an annular shape on the outside of the drive shaft 121 in the radial direction with respect to the oil chamber 12R via the partition wall 12T. The water channel 12W is connected to a water inlet 123a provided at the front of the bottom of the housing 123. Further, the water channel 12W is connected to a communication hole 123b provided at the rear side wall of the housing 123. As a result, seawater outside the drive unit 12 is taken into the water channel 12W via one of the water inlet 123a and the communication hole 123b. Further, seawater in the waterway 12W is discharged to the outside of the drive unit 12 through the other of the water inlet 123a and the communication hole 123b. In other words, the seawater inlet to the waterway 12W may be the water inlet 123a or may be the communication hole 123b. Although FIG. 2 and the like illustrate a configuration in which three communicating holes 123b are provided in the housing 123, the number of communicating holes 123b is not limited to the above three, and may be one. , may be two or four or more.

The pump 13 shown in FIG. 3 sucks the lubricating oil L inside the drive unit 12 (particularly the oil chamber 12R) and circulates it through the electric motor 11. Such a pump 13 is constituted by a hydraulic pump such as a gear pump. Note that the pump 13 may be configured with a hydraulic pump other than a gear pump.

The motor control unit 14 controls the electric motor 11. FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing a schematic configuration of the motor control section 14. As shown in FIG. The motor control unit 14 includes a housing 141 and a heat sink 142.

Inside the housing 141, a controller 141a and an inverter 141b are arranged. That is, the motor control unit 14 includes a controller 141a and an inverter 141b. The controller 141a is composed of an electronic control unit that controls the inverter 141b. Such an electronic control unit is also called an ECU (Electronic Control Unit).

Inverter 141b supplies electric power to electric motor 11. More specifically, the inverter 141b converts a DC voltage supplied from an onboard battery (not shown) into a three-phase (U-phase, V-phase, W-phase) AC voltage, and converts the rotation output from the controller 141a. Based on the command, AC voltage is supplied to the electric motor 11. This causes the electric motor 11 to rotate.

The heat sink 142 is made of a metal plate with high heat dissipation properties (for example, aluminum) or an alloy thereof. The housing 141 described above is placed on the heat sink 142 . Since the controller 141a and the inverter 141b are arranged inside the housing 141, it can be said that the controller 141a and the inverter 141b are arranged on the heat sink 142.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the structure of the lower part of the electric sail drive 3 exploded in the vertical direction. Adapter 15 and flange 16 are made of metal, for example. The adapter 15 has a support portion 151 and a recess 152. The support section 151 supports the electric motor 11, pump 13, motor control section 14, and lid 4 described above. The recessed portion 152 is located at the center of the support portion 151 and has a shape that is depressed downward. The recess 152 is inserted from above into the opening 16a located at the center of the flange 16, and is attached to the upper part of the drive unit 12 by, for example, bolting. That is, the electric sail drive 3 includes an adapter 15 that is attached to the drive unit 12.

The adapter 15 is supported by the flange 16 via a vibration isolating member 17. The vibration isolating member 17 includes vibration isolating rubber and is located around the opening 16a of the flange 16. Although three vibration isolation members 17 are illustrated in FIG. 6, the number of vibration isolation members 17 is not particularly limited. In this way, the adapter 15 is supported with vibration isolation on the flange 16.

The flange 16 is attached to the bottom 1a of the ship 1 (see FIG. 1) with an annular diaphragm 18 interposed therebetween as a sealing material. As shown in FIG. 4, a hole 1b is formed in the bottom 1a, and the housing 123 of the drive unit 12 fits into the hole 1b. The outer circumferential portion 18a of the diaphragm 18 enters and is held in a groove portion 16b provided on the lower surface of the flange 16. The inner peripheral portion 18b of the diaphragm 18 is vertically sandwiched between the housing 123 and the adapter 15 (the lower part of the recess 152). Thereby, when the flange 16 is attached to the ship bottom 1a, sealing performance between the flange 16 and the ship bottom 1a is ensured, and the risk of seawater entering the ship through the hole 1b is reduced.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the adapter 15 viewed from one direction. FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the adapter 15 viewed from the other direction. FIG. 9 is an enlarged perspective view showing the structure of the upper part of the electric sail drive 3. As shown in FIG. In addition, in the drawings after FIG. 7, the flow of lubricating oil L, which will be described later, is indicated by thick arrows for convenience. The adapter 15 has a first connection port 153 , a connection pipe 154 , a second connection port 155 , and a lubricant storage portion 156 .

The first connection port 153 is a connection port connected to the pump 13 via the first pipe P1. The first connection port 153 is located on the right side of the support portion 151 of the adapter 15. The connecting pipe 154 is a pipe that connects the first connecting port 153 and the oil chamber 12R (see FIG. 4) of the drive unit 12. The connecting pipe 154 extends leftward from the first connecting port 153, then bends downward and extends to the oil chamber 12R. The second connection port 155 is a connection port connected to the electric motor 11 via the second pipe P2. The second connection port 155 is located on the right side of the support portion 151 of the adapter 15, in line with the first connection port 153 in the front-rear direction. The lubricating oil storage portion 156 is formed on the inner surface of the recessed portion 152 of the adapter 15 and communicates with the oil chamber 12R of the drive unit 12. A discharge pipe 157 (see FIG. 8) connected to the second connection port 155 is located within the lubricating oil storage portion 156.

A supplementary explanation will be given regarding the electric motor 11 and motor control section 14 described above. As shown in FIG. 9, the electric motor 11 includes a first motor connection part 111 and a second motor connection part 112. The first motor connection part 111 is a connection port to which the third pipe P3 is connected, and is located so as to protrude upward from the top surface of the electric motor 11. The second motor connection part 112 is a connection port to which the second pipe P2 is connected, and is located so as to protrude upward from the top surface of the electric motor 11, and is located in line with the first motor connection part 111.

As shown in FIG. 10, a motor cooling oil passage 113 through which lubricating oil L passes is formed inside the electric motor 11. Inside the electric motor 11, one end of the motor cooling oil passage 113 is connected to the first motor connection part 111, and the other end is connected to the second motor connection part 112. The motor cooling oil passage 113 is formed by extending in the circumferential direction from the first motor connection part 111 toward the second motor connection part 112 while turning the inside of the electric motor 11 in the vertical direction. Note that the shape of the motor cooling oil passage 113 inside the electric motor 11 is not limited to the example shown in FIG. 10 .

Moreover, as shown in FIG. 9, the heat sink 142 of the motor control unit 14 has a first heat radiation connection part 142a and a second heat radiation connection part 142b. The first heat radiation connection part 142a is a connection port to which the fourth pipe P4 is connected, and is provided on the right side of the heat radiation plate 142. Note that the fourth pipe P4 is also connected to the pump 13. The second heat radiation connection part 142b is a connection port to which the third pipe P3 described above is connected, and is provided on the right side of the heat radiation plate 142 in line with the first heat radiation connection part 142a.

As shown in FIG. 11, a heat radiation oil passage 143 through which lubricating oil L passes is formed inside the heat radiation plate 142. As shown in FIG. Inside the heat dissipation plate 142, one end of the heat dissipation oil passage 143 is connected to the first heat dissipation connection part 142a, and the other end is connected to the second heat dissipation connection part 142b. The heat radiation oil passage 143 is formed to extend in a U-shape inside the heat radiation plate 142 from the first heat radiation connection part 142a toward the second heat radiation connection part 142b. Note that the shape of the heat radiation oil passage 143 inside the heat radiation plate 142 is not limited to the example shown in FIG. 11 .

In the above configuration, when the pump 13 is driven, the lubricating oil L in the oil chamber 12R of the drive unit 12 flows along the paths indicated by the arrows shown in FIGS. 7 to 11. That is, when the pump 13 is driven, the lubricating oil L in the oil chamber 12R is sucked up through the connecting pipe 154 of the adapter 15 shown in FIGS. The water passes through the pump 13 in order. Then, the lubricating oil L is discharged from the pump 13 to the fourth pipe P4, and then enters the heat radiation oil path 143 from the first heat radiation connection part 142a of the heat radiation plate 142 of the motor control unit 14, and enters the heat radiation oil path 143. It flows through 143. The lubricating oil L that has flowed through the heat radiation oil path 143 is discharged from the second heat radiation connection portion 142b to the third pipe P3.

The lubricating oil L discharged into the third pipe P3 enters the motor cooling oil passage 113 from the first motor connection part 111 of the electric motor 11, flows through the motor cooling oil passage 113, and then flows through the second motor connection part. 112 and is discharged to the second pipe P2. The lubricating oil L discharged into the second pipe P2 flows from the second connection port 155 of the adapter 15 to the discharge pipe 157 in the lubricating oil storage part 156, and the lubricating oil L stored in the lubricating oil storage part 156 is The oil is discharged above the oil level S (see FIG. 4). Since the lubricating oil storage portion 156 of the adapter 15 and the oil chamber 12R of the drive unit 12 are in communication, the lubricating oil L in the oil chamber 12R is sucked up through the connecting pipe 154 of the adapter 15 when the pump 13 is driven. At the same time, the lubricating oil L discharged from the discharge pipe 157 into the lubricating oil storage section 156 enters the oil chamber 12R of the drive unit 12. From then on, such a flow of the lubricating oil L is repeated. That is, the lubricating oil L inside the drive unit 12 circulates and flows via the pump 13, the motor control section 14, and the electric motor 11.

The lubricating oil L inside the drive unit 12 is cooled by low-temperature seawater taken into the water channel 12W inside the drive unit 12. Therefore, the electric motor 11 can be cooled by circulating the lubricating oil L inside the drive unit 12 via the electric motor 11 using the pump 13 . Thereby, the electric motor 11 can be driven with stable output for a long time. Moreover, since the fluid (lubricating oil L) used for the purpose of lubrication inside the drive unit 12 is used as a cooling medium for the electric motor 11, a dedicated cooling medium and a cooling mechanism (for example, a heat exchanger) are used to cool the electric motor 11. ) is not necessary to prepare separately. As a result, cooling of the electric motor 11 can be realized with a simple configuration. That is, according to the above configuration, cooling of the electric motor 11 can be realized with a simple configuration, and the electric motor 11 can be driven with a stable output for a long time.

In particular, from the viewpoint of reliably cooling the electric motor 11 with the lubricant L, it is desirable that the electric motor 11 has a motor cooling oil passage 113 through which the lubricant L (supplied from the drive unit 12) flows.

From the viewpoint of effectively using the lubricating oil L inside the drive unit 12 as a cooling medium for the motor control section 14, the pump 13 uses the lubricating oil L through the motor control section 14 as shown in FIG. It is desirable to circulate.

By the way, since the motor control unit 14 includes the controller 141a, the allowable temperature (heat resistance temperature) is lower than that of the electric motor 11. For this reason, it is desirable to supply the lubricating oil L to the motor control section 14 while the lubricating oil L is at a low temperature (before the temperature rises) to efficiently (prioritize) cooling of the motor control section 14. In this respect, for example, if the lubricating oil L is supplied to the electric motor 11 before the motor control unit 14 to cool the electric motor 11, the lubricating oil L after absorbing the heat of the electric motor 11 (the temperature has increased) is Since the water is supplied to the motor control section 14, it becomes difficult to efficiently cool the motor control section 14.

From the viewpoint of efficiently cooling the motor control unit 14, which has a low allowable temperature, with low-temperature lubricating oil, the lubricating oil L flows from the drive unit 12 toward the electric motor 11 through oil passages (first pipe P1, fourth pipe P4, 3 piping P3), the positional relationship between the pump 13, the motor control section 14, and the electric motor 11 is set as in this embodiment, and the low-temperature lubricating oil L is supplied to the motor control section before the electric motor 11. 14 is desirable. That is, as shown in FIG. 9, in the oil passage, the pump 13 is located upstream of the electric motor 11 in the flow direction of the lubricating oil L, and the motor control section 14 controls the pump 13 and the electric motor 11. It is desirable to be located between.

The controller 141a and the inverter 141b generate heat and reach high temperatures when the electric motor 11 is driven. In the configuration in which the motor control unit 14 includes the controller 141a and the inverter 141b as in this embodiment, the controller 141a and the inverter 141b can be cooled by supplying the lubricating oil L to the motor control unit 14. Therefore, the configuration of this embodiment in which the lubricating oil L is circulated by the pump 13 via the motor control unit 14 and the electric motor 11 is very effective in a configuration where the motor control unit 14 includes the controller 141a and the like.

Further, in order to reliably cool the controller 141a and the inverter 141b, it is very effective to cool the heat sink 142 on which the controller 141a and the inverter 141b are arranged with the lubricating oil L. From this point of view, it is desirable that the heat sink 142 has a heat radiation oil path 143 through which the lubricating oil L flows, as in the present embodiment.

From the viewpoint of being able to handle the electric sail drive 3 as one unit, as in this embodiment, the electric motor 11, the motor control section 14, and the pump 13 are collectively mounted on the adapter 15, and the entire adapter is integrated into the drive unit. 12 is desirable.

The lubricating oil L used for cooling the electric motor 11 is returned to the inside of the drive unit 12 and cooled (by seawater), and the cooled lubricating oil L is taken out by the pump 13 and used again for cooling the electric motor 11 etc. In the adapter 15 mounted with the electric motor 11 and the like and attached to the drive unit 12, it is desirable to secure an oil passage through which the lubricating oil L passes. From the viewpoint of securing the oil passage, the adapter 15 preferably has a configuration including the first connection port 153, the connection pipe 154, the second connection port 155, and the lubricant storage portion 156 described above.

By the way, for example, if the lubricant oil L is filled in the lubricant oil storage part 156 (if there is no space in the lubricant oil storage part 156), when the lubricant oil L expands due to the heat of the electric motor 11, the drive unit 12 It is necessary to separately provide a structure having a space for absorbing the thermal expansion of the lubricating oil L in the external oil passage.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, in the adapter 15, the lubricating oil L is accommodated in a part of the lubricating oil storage section 156. That is, the lubricating oil L does not fill the entire lubricating oil storage portion 156. With this configuration, the remaining portion of the lubricant storage portion 156 where the lubricant L is not present (the space above the oil level S) can be used as a space for absorbing the thermal expansion of the lubricant L, thereby providing lubrication. Volume fluctuations due to thermal expansion of the oil L can be easily accommodated. Therefore, for example, there is no need to separately provide the above-mentioned structure dedicated to absorbing the thermal expansion of the lubricating oil in the oil passage outside the drive unit 12.

In order to reliably cool the lubricating oil L inside the drive unit 12 with seawater, low-temperature seawater is introduced into the drive unit 12 through the intake port, and the low-temperature seawater is used to lubricate the oil chamber 12R. It is desirable to cool the oil L. From this point of view, as shown in FIG. 4, it is desirable that the drive unit 12 has a waterway 12W separated from the oil chamber 12R (via a partition wall 12T), and the waterway 12W is connected to the seawater intake port. Note that, as described above, the intake port may be configured with the water inlet 123a or the communication hole 123b.

Note that the drive unit 12 may have a configuration that does not include the water channel 12W inside. In other words, the only chamber filled with fluid within the drive unit 12 may be the oil chamber 12R. In this case, the housing 123 of the drive unit 12 constitutes a side wall (outer wall) of the oil chamber 12R. In this configuration, the lubricating oil L inside the oil chamber 12R is cooled by surrounding seawater separated by the metal housing 123. Therefore, even if the drive unit 12 does not have the water channel 12W inside, the lubricating oil L inside the drive unit 12 is circulated by the pump 13 via the electric motor 11 etc., thereby cooling the electric motor 11 etc. be able to.

As shown in FIGS. 7 to 9, the adapter 15 further includes a fuel filler port 158. The oil supply port 158 communicates with the lubricating oil storage portion 156 (see FIG. 7). As shown in FIG. 9, a lid 158a is attached to the fuel filler port 158, but illustration of the lid 158a is omitted in FIGS. 7 and 8.

In this configuration, for example, at an appropriate timing such as when the electric sail drive 3 is shipped from the factory, delivered to an agent or customer, or during maintenance, the lid 158a of the adapter 15 is removed and the lubricating oil storage section 156 is opened from the oil filler port 158. The inside of the drive unit 12 can be filled or replenished with the lubricating oil L by pouring the lubricating oil L into the drive unit 12 . In this way, in the configuration in which the adapter 15 has the oil filler port 158, it is possible to fill the lubricating oil L through the oil filler port 158 at an appropriate timing, thereby improving convenience.

Note that a dedicated pipe for taking out the lubricating oil L inside the drive unit 12 may be provided downstream of the pump 13 by branching from the fourth pipe P4 (see FIG. 9). By driving the pump 13 during maintenance and taking out the lubricating oil L inside the drive unit 12 through the pipe, it is also possible to periodically replace the lubricating oil L.

[3. Modified example]
Next, a modification of the electric sail drive 3 of this embodiment will be described. In the modified electric sail drive 3, the basic configuration for cooling the electric motor 11, including the oil path through which the lubricating oil L flows, the order in which the lubricating oil L flows, etc., is shown in FIGS. 2 to 11. It is the same as electric saildrive 3. However, in the electric sail drive 3 of the modified example, the structure of the lid body 4 is different from the electric sail drive 3 shown in FIG. 2 and the like. The structure of the lid body 4 in the modified electric sail drive 3 will be described below.

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of the upper part of the modified electric saildrive 3 when viewed from the right front. FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the upper part of the electric sail drive 3 viewed from the left front. FIG. 14 is an exploded perspective view of the upper part of the electric sail drive 3. As shown in FIG. FIG. 15 is a perspective view of the upper part of the electric sail drive 3 viewed from the front left, with the lid 4 omitted.

The lid body 4 of the electric sail drive 3 may be composed of a single cover as shown in FIG. 2, but may also be composed of a plurality of covers as shown in FIGS. 12 to 14. . In the example shown in FIG. 12, the lid body 4 includes a first cover 41 and a second cover 42. Note that the lid body 4 may include three or more covers.

(3-1. 1st cover)
The first cover 41 is made of, for example, a metal plate, and is provided to reinforce the lid 4. The metal constituting the metal plate is, for example, aluminum. Thereby, the first cover 41 can be easily manufactured by aluminum casting. Note that the first cover 41 may be made of other metals such as stainless steel. As shown in FIG. 14, the first cover 41 has an insertion hole 41a into which the first bolt B1 is inserted. Although four insertion holes 41a are provided in the first cover 41, the number of insertion holes 41a is not particularly limited. The first cover 41 is located above the electric motor 11 .

A groove portion 41b is formed in the center portion of the first cover 41 in the left-right direction. The groove portion 41b is formed to extend in the front-rear direction. Due to the presence of the groove portion 41b, a step is formed on the surface of the first cover 41. This increases the rigidity (especially bending rigidity) of the first cover 41. A resin plate 43 is fitted into the groove portion 41b, so that the surface (upper surface) of the first cover 41 is formed to be visually flush. Note that it is not always necessary to provide the resin plate 43.

The first cover 41 is fixed to a mounting stay 44 extending in the left-right direction by a first bolt B1. Two attachment stays 44 are provided at intervals in the front-rear direction. Each attachment stay 44 is bolted to the upper portions of left and right side walls 45R and 45L attached to the adapter 15, and is spanned in the left-right direction. Therefore, the first cover 41 is supported by the adapter 15 via each attachment stay 44 and the left and right side walls 45R and 45L.

In this way, the first cover 41 is located above the electric motor 11 and is supported by the adapter 15 via the mounting stays 44 and the like, so it protects the electric motor 11 from external forces. be able to. For example, even if a passenger who has boarded the vessel 1 (see Figure 1) accidentally steps on the electric sail drive 3 when attempting to access the electric sail drive 3 for maintenance purposes, the first cover 41 receives the pressing force when stepped on. This reduces the possibility that the electric motor 11 will be damaged.

Furthermore, an encoder EN for detecting the rotational speed of the output shaft of the electric motor 11 is provided on the upper part of the electric motor 11 . Then, a wiring (not shown) for guiding the output signal of the encoder EN to the controller 141a (see FIG. 5) is drawn out from the encoder EN. In addition, the above-described first motor connection part 111 and second motor connection part 112 of the electric motor 11 are also located at the upper part of the electric motor 11 (see FIG. 15). Even if the passenger accidentally steps on the electric saildrive 3 from above, the first cover 41 absorbs the pressing force, reducing the possibility that the wiring will come off the encoder EN. Furthermore, the possibility that the first motor connection part 111 and the second motor connection part 112 will be damaged is also reduced.

The rear part of the electric motor 11 is not covered by the first cover 41 and other members and is exposed to the outside (see FIGS. 14 and 15). This improves the heat dissipation of the electric motor 11.

(3-2. Second cover)
The second cover 42 is made of resin such as polycarbonate, but may be made of other resin such as acrylic. Further, the second cover 42 may be made of metal similarly to the first cover 41. That is, at least a portion of the lid 4 may be a metal cover. Whether the second cover 42 is made of resin or metal may be appropriately selected depending on cost, for example. The second cover 42 is located in front of the first cover 41 and covers the motor control section 14 (see FIG. 3, etc.).

As shown in FIG. 14, the second cover 42 includes an upper cover 42a and a front cover 42b. The upper cover 42a is located above the motor control section 14. The front cover 42b extends in the left-right direction from the front of the motor control unit 14, and both end portions in the left-right direction extend further rearward. The front cover 42b is connected to a portion of the periphery of the upper cover 42a.

In the rear part of the upper cover 42a, first through-holes 42a1 that penetrate in the vertical direction are formed side by side in the left-right direction. In the front cover 42b, second through holes 42b1 that penetrate in the front-rear direction are formed side by side in the left-right direction. The second bolt B2 is inserted into the first through hole 42a1, and further inserted into the attachment hole 41c formed in the front part of the first cover 41, and fastened to the nut N1 on the back side. Further, the third bolt B3 is inserted into the second through hole 42b1 and screwed into the opening 159a of the mounting cover 159 attached to the adapter 15. Thereby, the second cover 42 is attached to both the first cover 41 and the adapter 15. Although various harnesses are routed on the upper surface of the mounting cover 159, the harnesses are not shown in the drawings for convenience.

A recess 42p is formed in the center of the upper cover 42a of the second cover 42 in the left-right direction. The recess 42p is formed to extend in the front-rear direction, and is formed at a position where the groove 41b of the first cover 41 is extended forward. Due to the presence of the recess 42p, a step is formed on the surface of the second cover 42, thereby increasing the rigidity (especially bending rigidity) of the second cover 42. Although a member corresponding to the resin plate 43 of the first cover 41 is not fitted into the recess 42p, the above member may be fitted therein.

(3-3. Details of power supply section)
FIG. 16 is a perspective view showing the detailed structure of the upper part of the electric sail drive 3 of the modified example. In addition, in FIG. 16, illustration of the above-mentioned lid body 4 and its support part (including the attachment stay 44, side wall parts 45R and 45L, and attachment cover 159) is abbreviate|omitted for convenience.

The modified electric saildrive 3 includes a power supply section 19. The power supply section 19 supplies electric power supplied from a battery (not shown) to the electric motor 11 via the motor control section 14 . Note that the power supply unit 19 shown in the electric sail drive 3 of the modified example is of course applicable to the electric sail drive 3 shown earlier based on FIG. 2 and the like.

Power supply unit 19 includes a first connector 191 , a second connector 192 , a first conduction plate 193 , a relay 194 , a second conduction plate 195 , a third conduction plate 196 , and a bus bar 197 .

The first connector 191 and the second connector 192 are located on the right front and left front of the motor control unit 14, respectively, and are attached to the adapter 15 via a bracket 198. The first connector 191 is supplied with a DC voltage (for example, +48V) from the battery. The DC voltage is input to the relay 194 via a first conductive plate 193 made of copper. Inside the relay 194, conduction is switched on and off as necessary. When conduction is on, the DC voltage is input to the inverter 141b (see FIG. 4) of the motor control unit 14 via the second conduction plate 195 made of copper.

The second connector 192 is supplied with a DC voltage (for example, -48V) from the battery. The DC voltage is input to the inverter 141b of the motor control unit 14 via the third conductive plate 196 made of copper.

In the inverter 141b, the DC voltage input via the second conduction plate 195 and the third conduction plate 196 is controlled in three phases (U phase, V phase, W phase) based on the control signal from the controller 141a (see FIG. 4). phase) is converted into AC voltage. The AC voltage is supplied from the inverter 141b to the electric motor 11 via each bus bar 197 provided corresponding to the U phase, V phase, and W phase. As a result, the electric motor 11 is driven.

[4. supplement〕
The controller 141a may control the driving and stopping of the pump 13 while monitoring the temperature of the electric motor 11 and the motor control unit 14 that are to be cooled. For example, the controller 141a drives the pump 13 only when one or both of the electric motor 11 and the motor control unit 14 reach a high temperature (e.g., higher than the determination threshold value and lower than the limit temperature); When the temperature is low (for example, below a determination threshold), the pump 13 may be stopped. By controlling the pump 13 in this manner, it is possible to prevent unnecessary consumption of power by driving the pump 13 when the electric motor 11 and the motor control unit 14 do not need to be cooled. Further, especially when the pump 13 is driven when the electric motor 11 is stopped or rotating at low speed, the sound of the pump 13 tends to be louder than the sound of the electric motor 11. By stopping the pump 13 when the electric motor 11 is in a stopped state and the temperature of the electric motor 11 is low, the noise of the pump 13 can be reduced.

In this embodiment, the pump 13, the motor control section 14, and the electric motor 11 are arranged in series in the oil path through which the lubricating oil L flows, and the motor control section 14 and the electric motor 11 are cooled in this order. . In such a configuration, if some problem occurs in the circulation of the lubricating oil L and either the electric motor 11 or the motor control unit 14 reaches a high temperature that exceeds the determination threshold, the controller 141a will cause the electric motor 11 to The following control may be performed, that is, secondary control may be performed in which the drive of the electric motor 11 is restricted to a limited operation mode in order to prevent further temperature rise of the electric motor 11 and the like.

Further, in the oil passage through which the lubricating oil L flows, the motor control section 14 and the electric motor 11 may be arranged in parallel. In this case, a sensor may be provided in each of the oil passages of the motor control unit 14 and the electric motor 11 to detect an abnormality in the circulation of the lubricating oil L in each oil passage. In addition, in the case of the above-mentioned series arrangement, if the above-mentioned sensor is installed somewhere in the oil passage through which the lubricating oil L flows, it becomes possible to detect an abnormality in the circulation of the lubricating oil L, and the number of sensors installed can be reduced. It requires less than the parallel case.

The piping (first piping P1 to fourth piping P4) located in the oil passage through which the lubricating oil L flows may be a metal piping or a resin piping (rubber piping). For example, since the pump 13 vibrates when driven, the first pipe P1 and the fourth pipe P4 connected to the pump 13 are made of resin pipes that can absorb the vibrations, rather than metal pipes that can become fatigued due to vibrations. It is desirable that there be.

[5. Additional notes]
The electric saildrive and ship described in this embodiment can be expressed as in the following additional notes.

The electric saildrive in appendix (1) is
electric motor and
a drive unit driven by the electric motor (driven by the electric motor to generate propulsive force);
A pump that circulates lubricating oil inside the drive unit via the electric motor is provided.

The electric saildrive described in appendix (2) is the electric saildrive described in appendix (1),
The electric motor has a motor cooling oil passage through which the lubricating oil flows.

The electric saildrive described in appendix (3) is the electric saildrive described in appendix (1) or (2),
It further includes a motor control section that controls the electric motor,
The pump circulates the lubricating oil through the motor control section.

The electric saildrive described in appendix (4) is the electric saildrive described in appendix (3),
an oil path through which the lubricating oil flows from the drive unit toward the electric motor;
The pump is located upstream of the electric motor in the flow direction of the lubricating oil,
The motor control section is located between the pump and the electric motor.

The electric saildrive described in appendix (5) is the electric saildrive described in appendix (3) or (4),
The motor control section includes:
an inverter that supplies power to the electric motor;
A controller that controls the inverter.

The electric saildrive described in appendix (6) is the electric saildrive described in appendix (5),
The motor control unit further includes a heat sink on which the inverter and the controller are arranged,
The heat radiation plate has a heat radiation oil path through which the lubricating oil flows.

The electric saildrive in appendix (7) is the electric saildrive according to any one of appendixes (3) to (6),
further comprising an adapter attached to the drive unit,
The electric motor, the motor control unit, and the pump are mounted on the adapter.

The electric saildrive described in appendix (8) is the electric saildrive described in appendix (7),
The drive unit has an oil chamber containing the lubricating oil,
The adapter is
a first connection port connected to the pump via a first pipe;
a connecting pipe connecting the first connection port and the oil chamber;
a second connection port connected to the electric motor via a second pipe;
It has a lubricating oil storage part that communicates with the second connection port and communicates with the oil chamber.

The electric saildrive in appendix (9) is the electric saildrive described in appendix (8),
In the adapter, the lubricating oil is accommodated in a part of the lubricating oil accommodating portion.

The electric saildrive according to appendix (10) is the electric saildrive according to appendix (8) or (9),
The drive unit further includes a water channel separated from the oil chamber,
The waterway is connected to a seawater intake.

The electric sail drive according to appendix (11) is the electric sail drive according to any one of appendices (8) to (10),
The adapter has an oil supply port that communicates with the lubricating oil storage section.

The vessel according to appendix (12) is equipped with the electric saildrive according to any one of appendices (1) to (11).

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto, and can be expanded or modified without departing from the gist of the invention.

The electric saildrive of the present invention can be used, for example, in a ship such as a sailing ship.

1 Ship 3 Electric sail drive 11 Electric motor 12 Drive unit 12R Oil chamber 12W Waterway 13 Pump 14 Motor control section 15 Adapter 113 Motor cooling oil path 123a Water inlet (intake)
123b Communication hole (intake port)
141a Controller 141b Inverter 142 Heat radiation plate 143 Heat radiation oil path 153 First connection port 154 Connection pipe 155 Second connection port 156 Lubricating oil storage portion 158 Oil supply port L Lubricating oil

Claims (12)

electric motor and
a drive unit driven by the electric motor;
An electric saildrive comprising: a pump that circulates lubricating oil inside the drive unit via the electric motor. The electric sail drive according to claim 1, wherein the electric motor has a motor cooling oil passage through which the lubricating oil flows. It further includes a motor control section that controls the electric motor,
The electric saildrive of claim 1, wherein the pump circulates the lubricating oil through the motor control. an oil path through which the lubricating oil flows from the drive unit toward the electric motor;
The pump is located upstream of the electric motor in the flow direction of the lubricating oil,
The electric saildrive according to claim 3, wherein the motor control section is located between the pump and the electric motor. The motor control section includes:
an inverter that supplies power to the electric motor;
The electric saildrive according to claim 3, comprising a controller that controls the inverter. The motor control unit further includes a heat sink on which the inverter and the controller are arranged,
The electric sail drive according to claim 5, wherein the heat sink has a heat radiation oil passage through which the lubricating oil flows. further comprising an adapter attached to the drive unit,
The electric saildrive according to claim 3, wherein the electric motor, the motor control unit, and the pump are mounted on the adapter. The drive unit has an oil chamber containing the lubricating oil,
The adapter is
a first connection port connected to the pump via a first pipe;
a connecting pipe connecting the first connection port and the oil chamber;
a second connection port connected to the electric motor via a second pipe;
The electric sail drive according to claim 7, further comprising a lubricating oil storage portion communicating with the second connection port and communicating with the oil chamber. The electric sail drive according to claim 8, wherein in the adapter, the lubricating oil is accommodated in a part of the lubricating oil storage section. The drive unit further includes a water channel separated from the oil chamber,
9. The electric saildrive of claim 8, wherein the waterway is connected to a seawater intake. The electric saildrive according to claim 8, wherein the adapter has an oil filler port that communicates with the lubricating oil storage section. A ship comprising the electric saildrive according to any one of claims 1 to 11.