JP6393579B2 - Power converter - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a power conversion device, and more particularly to a power conversion device that can be suitably applied to a hybrid vehicle.

  In recent years, in vehicles such as four-wheeled vehicles, hybrid vehicles that use an engine that is an internal combustion engine and an electric motor in cooperation with a drive system have become widespread. In a hybrid vehicle, a power control device that operates an engine and an electric motor in cooperation with each other incorporates a power conversion device. The power conversion device includes a plurality of power semiconductor elements that perform a switching operation. When the power semiconductor element is accommodated in the case, a bonding terminal provided in the case and a control terminal of the power semiconductor element are connected by wire bonding (for example, see Patent Document 1).

  When performing wire bonding, a recess is formed in the case in order to detect the position of a terminal provided in the case. The position of the terminal can be specified by imaging the concave portion with a camera and recognizing the position of the concave portion while irradiating the case with light. In order to increase the contrast between the inside and the outside of the recess, the bottom surface of the recess is formed into a curved surface having a predetermined radius of curvature, or a large number of protrusions are provided on the bottom surface.

JP 2002-134552 A

  Even when the bottom surface of the concave portion is formed into a curved surface or a large number of protrusions are provided on the bottom surface, the concave portion may not be recognized by image analysis. This is because it is sometimes difficult to obtain sufficient contrast because the bottom surface of the recess and the surface of the case are formed of the same resin material. The objective of this invention is providing the power converter device which can recognize easily the recognition mark for position detection provided in the case.

A power conversion device according to a first aspect of the present invention provides:
A power module that drives the motor;
A circuit board on which a control circuit for performing switching control of the power module is mounted;
A metal cooling member that is thermally coupled to the power module on the mounting surface and cools the power module;
A resin frame fixed to the mounting surface of the cooling member and provided with terminals of conductive connection members that electrically connect the power module and the circuit board ;
The frame, possess a through hole penetrating toward said mounting surface,
The mounting surface of the cooling member is exposed in the through hole .

In the power converter according to the second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the configuration of the power converter according to the first aspect,
The terminals are arranged in rows;
The through-holes are arranged at both ends of the terminal row.

In the power converter according to the third aspect of the present invention, in addition to the configuration of the power converter according to the first or second aspect,
The frame has a resin surface having the same height as the surface of the terminal with the mounting surface as a reference of height,
The through hole penetrates the frame from the resin surface toward the mounting surface.

In the power converter according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, in addition to the configuration of any one of the power converters according to the first to third aspects,
A cross-sectional shape of the through hole parallel to the mounting surface is circular.

In the power conversion device according to the fifth aspect of the present invention, in addition to the configuration of any one of the power conversion devices according to the first to fourth aspects,
The through-hole includes a small cross-sectional portion having a relatively small cross section and a large cross-sectional portion having a relatively large cross section, and the large cross-sectional portion is positioned closer to the mounting surface than the small cross-sectional portion.

  In the power conversion device according to the first aspect, since the metal cooling member is disposed under the through hole, high contrast can be secured between the inside and the outside of the through hole. For this reason, it becomes easy to recognize the position of a through-hole by image analysis, and the position of the terminal provided in the flame | frame can be calculated | required.

  In the power converters according to the second to fifth aspects, the accuracy of obtaining the terminal position from the position of the through hole can be increased.

  Furthermore, in the power converters according to the fourth and fifth aspects, when the frame is resin-molded, the frame can be easily taken out from the mold.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a power control device incorporating a power conversion device according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the power converter according to the embodiment. FIG. 3 is a plan view of the frame and the water jacket. 4A is a plan view of the terminal board and its periphery, FIG. 4B is a cross-sectional view taken along one-dot chain line 4B-4B in FIG. 4A, and FIG. 4C is a cross-sectional view taken along one-dot chain line 4C-4C in FIG. It is a schematic diagram of an apparatus.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a power control device incorporating a power conversion device according to an embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, an xyz orthogonal coordinate system in which the z-axis direction corresponds to the vertical direction is defined.

  The power control device 1 includes a lower case 10, a middle case 20, an upper case 110, and a cover 120. The middle case 20 is disposed on the lower case 10, and the upper case 110 is disposed on the middle case 20. The cover 120 closes an opening facing the upper case 110. The lower case 10, the middle case 20, the upper case 110, and the cover 120 are typically a metal casting such as aluminum or a molded product by pressing, and are fastened by a fastener 130 such as a bolt, Fixed to. The power control apparatus 1 is mounted on a vehicle such as a hybrid car.

  The power control device 1 controls the power supplied from the secondary battery to the vehicle driving electric motor and the power supplied from the power regeneration mechanism (generator) to the secondary battery. Note that the power control apparatus 1 may control only one of the two powers as necessary.

  The lower case 10 includes a lower peripheral wall 12 that circulates a virtual axis extending in the z direction along a virtual plane parallel to the xy plane, and a bottom wall 14 that closes the bottom. A smoothing capacitor or the like is accommodated in the lower case 10. An input-side three-phase AC connector 18 and an output-side three-phase AC connector that protrude downward from the bottom wall 14 are attached to the lower case 10. The output-side three-phase AC connector does not appear in FIG. A fixing portion 16 is provided in the lower case 10. The power control device 1 is fixed to the vehicle via the fixing unit 16.

  The middle case 20 includes a middle peripheral wall 22 that circulates a virtual axis extending in the z direction along a virtual plane parallel to the xy plane, and a support plate parallel to the xy plane. A flat water jacket (cooling member) and a reactor parallel to the xy plane are fixed to the support plate of the middle case 20. The power semiconductor element constituting the inverter and the power semiconductor element constituting the step-up / step-down DC-DC converter are fixed to the water jacket. The reactor fixed to the support plate is for a step-up / step-down DC-DC converter. The support plate, water jacket, power semiconductor element, and reactor do not appear in FIG.

  The coolant is supplied from the coolant introduction pipe 24 to the water jacket. The coolant in the water jacket is discharged from the coolant discharge pipe 26. A DC connector 28 is attached to an overhanging portion that protrudes laterally from the middle peripheral wall 22. The DC connector 28 is connected to a secondary battery.

  The upper case 110 includes an upper peripheral wall 112 that circulates a virtual axis extending in the z direction along a virtual plane parallel to the xy plane. An input / output signal connector 114 is attached to the upper peripheral wall 112. An electric control electronic control unit (ECU) is accommodated in the upper case 110. The ECU does not appear in FIG.

  The cover 120 is fixed to the upper peripheral wall 112 of the upper case 110 at the peripheral edge thereof. The bottom wall 14 of the lower case 10, the lower peripheral wall 12, the middle peripheral wall 22 of the middle case 20, the upper peripheral wall 112 of the upper case 110, and the cover 120 form an accommodation space inside them.

  The perspective view of the power converter device 2 by an Example is shown in FIG. The power conversion device 2 is accommodated in the middle case 20 (FIG. 1) and fixed to the middle case 20. The power conversion device 2 includes a water jacket (cooling member) 40, a frame 50, and a circuit board 100.

  The water jacket 40 includes a coolant introduction port 42 and a coolant discharge port 44. A coolant channel is formed between the coolant introduction port 42 and the coolant discharge port 44. The coolant inlet 42 is connected to the coolant inlet pipe 24 (FIG. 1), and the coolant outlet 44 is connected to the coolant outlet pipe 26 (FIG. 1). The water jacket 40 is provided with a support portion 48 that protrudes outward. The water jacket 40 is fixed to the middle case 20 (FIG. 1) at the support portion 48.

  The frame 50 is typically a molded product made of an insulating resin, and includes a peripheral wall 52 that circulates along a virtual plane extending in the z direction along a virtual plane parallel to the xy plane. The peripheral wall 52 has a substantially rectangular planar shape with the x direction as the longitudinal direction and the y direction as the width direction. The mounting portion 58 protrudes outward from the peripheral wall 52. The mounting portion 58 is provided corresponding to the support portion 48 of the water jacket 40 and is fastened to the middle case 20 (FIG. 1) together with the support portion 48.

  An input side three-phase AC terminal 86 and an output side three-phase AC terminal 88 are attached to one portion of the peripheral wall 52 parallel to the x direction. Input-side three-phase AC terminal 86 includes a U-phase terminal 86U, a V-phase terminal 86V, and a W-phase terminal 86W. The output-side three-phase AC terminal 88 includes a U-phase terminal 88U, a V-phase terminal 88V, and a W-phase terminal 88W. The input side three-phase AC terminal 86 is electrically connected to the input side three-phase AC connector 18 (FIG. 1) attached to the lower case 10. The output side three-phase AC terminal 88 is electrically connected to an output side three-phase AC connector attached to the lower case 10. Further, the input-side three-phase AC terminal 86 and the output-side three-phase AC terminal 88 are connected to corresponding terminals of the power module housed in the frame 50 via a bus bar.

  An N-pole terminal 61 and a P-pole terminal 71 are attached to one portion (the negative side of the x axis) parallel to the y direction of the peripheral wall 52. An N-pole terminal 62 and a P-pole terminal 72 are attached to the other side (positive side of the x-axis) of the peripheral wall 52 that is parallel to the y direction. One N-pole terminal 61 and the other N-pole terminal 62 are connected to each other by an N-pole bus bar 60 extending in the x direction in the frame 50. One P-pole terminal 71 and the other P-pole terminal 72 are connected to each other by a P-pole bus bar 70 extending in the x direction in the frame 50. The N pole terminals 61 and 62 and the P pole terminals 71 and 72 are connected to a smoothing capacitor accommodated in the lower case 10 (FIG. 1).

  The circuit board 100 closes the opening having the upper end of the peripheral wall 52 of the frame 50 as the outer periphery. For the circuit board 100, for example, a printed board is used. A control circuit that performs switching control of the power module accommodated in the frame 50 is mounted on the circuit board 100.

  FIG. 3 is a plan view of the frame 50 and the water jacket 40. The frame 50 includes a peripheral wall 52, a main beam 53, and a plurality of sub beams 54. The peripheral wall 52 includes a pair of x-direction portions 52x that are long in the x-direction and a y-direction portion 52y that connects the ends of the x-direction portions 52x. The main beam 53 connects the center points of the y-direction portion 52y in the x direction. Each of the sub beams 54 connects the main beam 53 and the x-direction portions 52x on both sides in the y direction. The upper surfaces of the main beam 53 and the sub beam 54 are lower than the upper surface of the peripheral wall 52.

  A plurality of openings 68 arranged in a matrix of 2 rows and 7 columns are formed by the peripheral wall 52, the main beam 53, and the plurality of sub beams 54. The upper surface (mounting surface) of the metal water jacket 40 appears in the opening 68.

  The input side three-phase AC terminal 86 and the output side three-phase AC terminal 88 are attached to the outer surface of one (the negative side of the y-axis) x-direction portion 52x. A DC terminal 89 is attached to the outer surface of the other x-direction portion 52x (the positive side of the y-axis). The N pole terminal 61 and the P pole terminal 71 are attached to the outer surface of one (the negative side of the x axis) y-direction portion 52y. An N-pole terminal 62 and a P-pole terminal 72 are attached to the outer surface of the other y-direction portion 52y (the positive side of the x-axis).

  One N-pole terminal 61 and the other N-pole terminal 62 are connected to each other by an N-pole bus bar 60 embedded in the main beam 53. One P-pole terminal 71 and the other P-pole terminal 72 are connected to each other by a P-pole bus bar 70 embedded in the main beam 53.

  The power modules 65 are respectively fixed to the mounting surface of the water jacket 40 that appears in the plurality of openings 68. The power module 65 is thermally coupled to the water jacket 40. As an example, the power module 65 includes a ceramic substrate, a copper circuit board, and a power semiconductor element. The copper circuit board is bonded to the ceramic substrate by a DCB (Direct Copper Bond) method. The current terminals of the power semiconductor elements are joined to corresponding locations on the copper circuit board. A signal line connecting pad 66 is formed on the ceramic substrate.

  In FIG. 3, the power module 65 disposed in the two openings 68 in the first row when viewed from the negative side of the x-axis constitutes a step-up / step-down DC-DC converter. The power modules 65 arranged in the six openings 68 in the second, third, and fourth rows as viewed from the negative side of the x-axis constitute an inverter that drives the generator. The power modules 65 arranged in the six openings 68 in the fifth, sixth, and seventh rows when viewed from the negative side of the x-axis constitute an inverter that drives the electric motor.

  The terminals on the DC side of these inverters are connected to the N pole bus bar 60 and the P pole bus bar 70. The terminal on the AC side of the inverter that controls the generator is connected to the input-side three-phase AC terminal 86 via a bus bar embedded in the frame 50. The AC side terminal of the inverter that controls the electric motor is connected to the output side three-phase AC terminal 88 via a bus bar embedded in the frame 50. The N pole bus bar 60 and the P pole bus bar 70 are connected to a power module 65 for a step-up / step-down DC-DC converter. Further, the power module 65 for the step-up / step-down DC-DC converter is connected to the DC terminal 89 via a bus bar embedded in the frame 50. The DC terminal 89 is connected to the secondary battery via the reactor housed in the middle case 20 (FIG. 1) and the DC connector 28 (FIG. 1).

  A terminal plate 57 protrudes from each of the x-direction portions 52 x toward the inside of each opening 68. The terminal plate 57 is integrally formed with the peripheral wall 52, the main beam 53, and the sub beam 54. The resin surface facing upward of the terminal plate 57 is lower than the upper surfaces of the main beam 53 and the sub beam 54. A plurality of terminals 55 are embedded in each of the terminal boards 57. With the mounting surface of the water jacket 40 as a reference, the height of the resin surface of the terminal plate 57 and the height of the surface of the terminal 55 are equal. The plurality of terminals 55 attached to each of the terminal plates 57 are arranged at equal intervals in the x direction.

  The pads 66 of the power module 65 are connected to the corresponding terminals 55 by bonding wires 59. The terminal 55 is connected to the control circuit of the circuit board 100 (FIG. 2) via a conductive connection member or the like embedded in the peripheral wall 52.

  The terminal plate 57 is provided with a through hole 56 that penetrates from the resin surface toward the mounting surface of the water jacket 40. The through holes 56 are arranged at both ends of a terminal row composed of a plurality of terminals 55. The flat cross section of the through hole 56 (a cross section parallel to the mounting surface of the water jacket 40) is circular. The through hole 56 is used as a recognition mark for detecting the position of the terminal 55.

  FIG. 4A shows a plan view of the terminal board 57 and its surroundings. A sub beam 54 extends from the x-direction portion 52x of the peripheral wall 52 (FIG. 3) toward the main beam 53 (FIG. 3). A terminal plate 57 protrudes from the x-direction portion 52x of the peripheral wall 52 (FIG. 3) toward the inside of the opening 68. A power module 65 is disposed in the opening 68.

  A plurality of terminals 55 are arranged on the upper surface of the terminal plate 57. The plurality of terminals 55 are arranged in the x direction. Through holes 56 are arranged at both ends of a terminal row composed of a plurality of terminals 55. In FIG. 4A, only the through hole 56 arranged at one end appears. A plurality of connection pins 67 project upward from the upper surface of the x-direction portion 52x. Each of the plurality of connection pins 67 is connected to the corresponding terminal 55 via a conductive connection member embedded in the x-direction portion 52x. The connection pins 67 are connected to a control circuit mounted on the circuit board 100 (FIG. 2). The pads 66 of the power module 65 and the terminals 55 are connected to each other by bonding wires 59.

  FIG. 4B is a cross-sectional view taken along one-dot chain line 4B-4B in FIG. 4A. The bottom surface of the x-direction portion 52 x of the frame 50 and the bottom surface of the terminal plate 57 are in contact with the mounting surface of the water jacket 40. A power module 65 is fixed to the mounting surface of the water jacket 40 exposed in the opening 68. The power module 65 is cooled by the coolant flowing in the water jacket 40.

  The through hole 56 includes a large cross-sectional portion 56A having a relatively large cross-sectional area and a small cross-sectional portion 56B having a relatively small cross-sectional area. The large cross section 56A is located closer to the water jacket 40 than the small cross section 56B. The large cross section 56A and the small cross section 56B are connected to each other in the vertical direction. In plan view, the large cross-sectional portion 56A includes the small cross-sectional portion 56B, and both are arranged concentrically. The mounting surface of the water jacket 40 is exposed in the through hole 56. The mounting surface of the water jacket 40 can be observed from above the through hole 56 through the through hole 56.

  4C shows a cross-sectional view taken along one-dot chain line 4C-4C in FIG. 4A and an imaging device 90 of the wire bonding apparatus. A plurality of terminals 55 are embedded in the terminal plate 57. The upper surface of the terminal board 57 is exposed. Using the mounting surface of the water jacket 40 as a reference, the upper surface (resin surface) of the terminal plate 57 and the upper surface (front surface) of the terminal 55 are equal. That is, the resin surface of the terminal plate 57 and the surface of the terminal 55 are located on the same plane. An imaging device 90 is disposed above the through hole 56. By the coaxial illumination method, the resin surface of the terminal board 57 and the mounting surface of the water jacket 40 inside the through hole 56 are illuminated. The imaging surface of the terminal board 57 and the mounting surface of the water jacket 40 in the through hole 56 are imaged.

  Next, the excellent effect obtained by the said Example is demonstrated. The mounting surface of the metal water jacket 40 has a metallic luster. For this reason, the reflectance of the mounting surface is sufficiently larger than the reflectance of the resin surface of the terminal board 57. Due to the difference in reflectance, a bright-field image with high contrast can be obtained. Since a high contrast is obtained, the recognition rate of the through hole 56 at the time of image analysis can be increased. Furthermore, the improvement in contrast makes it less susceptible to disturbance caused by burrs and the like. For this reason, it is possible to prevent the recognition rate from being lowered due to disturbance.

  The mounting surface of the water jacket 40 is not necessarily a mirror surface as long as it has a sufficiently high reflectance with respect to the resin surface of the terminal plate 57. For example, minute unevenness that scatters light may be provided on the mounting surface.

  The relative positional relationship between the through hole 56 and the terminal 55 is determined at the time of design. In the wire boarding step, the position of the terminal 55 can be calculated based on the relative positional relationship between the through hole 56 and the terminal 55 and the position of the through hole 56 obtained by image analysis. In order to increase the calculation accuracy of the position of the terminal 55, it is preferable to arrange the through hole 56 in the vicinity of the terminal 55. When the through hole 56 is disposed in the vicinity of the terminal 55, the influence of deformation due to thermal expansion and contraction of the frame 50 is reduced.

  In the embodiment, a plurality of terminals 55 are arranged in the x direction, and through holes 56 are respectively arranged at both ends of the row of terminals 55. For this reason, the expansion / contraction amount of the frame 50 in the arrangement direction of the terminals 55 can be easily obtained based on the interval between the two through holes 56. By reflecting the amount of expansion / contraction of the frame 50 when calculating the position of the terminal 55, the calculation accuracy of the position of the terminal 55 can be increased.

  In the embodiment, the cross-sectional shape of the through hole 56 is circular. For this reason, it is easy to take out the frame 50 (FIG. 3) from the mold at the time of resin molding as compared with the case where the cross-sectional shape is a polygon. Furthermore, since the through-hole 56 does not have a corner | angular part, a moldability can be improved. Furthermore, by making the cross-sectional shape of the through hole 56 circular, the detection accuracy of the position of the image of the through hole 56 by image analysis can be increased.

  In the embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4B, the resin surface of the terminal plate 57 and the surface of the terminal 55 are located on the same plane. Thereby, the fall of the position calculation precision based on the difference in height can be avoided.

  In the embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 4B and 4C, the through-hole 56 includes a large cross-sectional portion 56A and a small cross-sectional portion 56B. The dimension in the height direction of the small cross-section portion 56 </ b> B is smaller than the dimension in the height direction of the terminal board 57. For this reason, compared with the case where only the small cross-sectional part 56B is arrange | positioned from the upper surface to the bottom face of the terminal board 57, resin molding can be performed easily.

  The image analysis for determining the position of the through hole 56 is performed based on the image of the small cross-sectional portion 56B. The shape of the large cross-sectional portion 56A does not affect the image analysis. For this reason, even if burrs or the like remain on the side surface of the large cross-sectional portion 56A, it is possible to perform image analysis with high accuracy.

  Although the present invention has been described with reference to the embodiments, the present invention is not limited thereto. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications, improvements, combinations, and the like can be made.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Power controller 2 Power converter 10 Lower case 12 Lower peripheral wall 14 Bottom wall 16 Fixed part 18 Input side three-phase AC connector 20 Middle case 22 Middle peripheral wall 24 Coolant introduction pipe 26 Coolant discharge pipe 28 DC connector 40 Water jacket 42 Coolant introduction port 44 Coolant discharge port 48 Support portion 50 Frame 52 Peripheral wall 52x X direction portion 52y Y direction portion 53 Main beam 54 Sub beam 55 Terminal 56 Through hole 56A Large cross section portion 56B Small cross section portion 57 Terminal plate 58 Mounting portion 59 Bonding wire 60 N pole Bus bar 61, 62 N pole terminal 65 Power module 66 Pad 67 Connection pin 68 Opening 70 P pole bus bar 71, 72 P pole terminal 86 Input side Three-phase AC terminal 86U U phase terminal 86V V phase terminal 86W W phase terminal 88 Output side Three-phase AC terminal 88U U-phase terminal 88V V-phase terminal 88W W-phase terminal 89 DC terminal 90 Imaging device 100 Circuit board 110 Upper case 112 Upper peripheral wall 114 Input / output signal connector 120 Cover 130 Fastener

Claims (8)

A power module that drives the motor;
A circuit board on which a control circuit for performing switching control of the power module is mounted;
A metal cooling member that is thermally coupled to the power module on the mounting surface and cools the power module;
A resin frame fixed to the mounting surface of the cooling member and provided with terminals of conductive connection members that electrically connect the power module and the circuit board ;
The frame, possess a through hole penetrating toward said mounting surface,
The power conversion device in which the mounting surface of the cooling member is exposed in the through hole . The terminals are arranged in rows;
The power converter according to claim 1, wherein the through holes are arranged at both ends of the row of the terminals. A plurality of terminal rows in which a plurality of the terminals are arranged in a row are provided,
The power converter according to claim 2, wherein the through hole is disposed at both ends of each of the terminal rows so as to sandwich the terminal row in a direction in which the plurality of terminals are arranged. The frame has a resin surface having the same height as the surface of the terminal, with the mounting surface as a reference for height,
The through hole, the power conversion device according to any one of claims 1 to 3 through the frame toward the mounting surface from the resin surface. The power converter according to any one of claims 1 to 4 , wherein a cross-sectional shape of the through hole parallel to the mounting surface is a circle. The through-hole includes a small cross-sectional portion having a relatively small cross section and a large cross-sectional portion having a relatively large cross section, and the large cross-sectional portion is located closer to the mounting surface than the small cross-sectional portion. The power converter according to any one of 5 . The power converter according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the terminal is connected to the power module with a bonding wire. The power converter according to claim 1, wherein the through hole is a recognition mark for detecting the position of the terminal.

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