WO2018030371A1

WO2018030371A1 - Motor unit

Info

Publication number: WO2018030371A1
Application number: PCT/JP2017/028689
Authority: WO
Inventors: 勇樹石川; 山口　康夫; 貴之右田
Original assignee: 日本電産株式会社
Priority date: 2016-08-09
Filing date: 2017-08-08
Publication date: 2018-02-15

Abstract

A motor unit that comprises: a motor that has a rotor that rotates around a motor axis that extends in the horizontal direction; a differential device that is connected to the motor; a housing that has provided therein a housing space that houses the motor and the differential device; oil that accumulates in a vertical-direction lower region of the housing space; and an oil passage that supplies oil from the vertical-direction lower region of the housing space to the motor. A pump that is fixed to an outer peripheral surface of the housing is provided on the oil passage. Seen from the axial direction of the motor axis, the pump is positioned on the opposite side of the motor axis from the differential device.

Description

Motor unit

The present invention relates to a motor unit.

Patent Document 1 discloses a structure in which a coolant is supplied to a motor by a pump provided outside the motor (rotary electric machine) to cool the motor.

Japanese Patent No. 5911033

According to the conventional structure, the refrigerant flows out of the housing and is circulated by a pump. Therefore, piping is required between the pump and the motor, resulting in a problem that the size increases.

In view of the above problems, one aspect of the present invention is to provide a motor unit that cools a motor using a pump and has a reduced overall size.

One aspect of the motor unit of the present invention includes a motor having a rotor that rotates about a motor shaft extending in a horizontal direction, a differential device connected to the motor, and a housing that houses the motor and the differential device. A housing provided with a space; oil that accumulates in a vertically lower region of the housing space; and an oil passage that supplies the oil to the motor from a vertically lower region of the housing space, A pump fixed to the outer peripheral surface of the housing is provided in the path of the oil passage, and when viewed from the axial direction of the motor shaft, the pump is located on the opposite side of the differential device across the motor shaft. To position.

According to one aspect of the present invention, a motor unit is provided in which the motor is cooled using a pump and the overall dimensions are reduced.

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram of a motor unit according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a motor unit according to an embodiment. FIG. 3 is a side view of the motor unit according to the embodiment. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the motor unit taken along line IV-IV in FIG. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of a rotor according to an embodiment. FIG. 6 is a plan view of the end plate. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the end plate taken along line VII-VII in FIG. FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of the end plate of the first modification. FIG. 9 is a plan view of an end plate of a second modification. FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of a motor unit according to an embodiment, and is a view showing a second oil passage. FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a motor unit according to an embodiment in which a part of the housing is omitted. FIG. 12 is a plan view of a second reservoir of one embodiment. FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a modified second reservoir. FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view of a motor unit according to an embodiment, and is a diagram illustrating an outline of a secondary reservoir. FIG. 15 is a front view of a partition wall opening according to an embodiment. FIG. 16 is a graph showing the relationship between the height of the oil level accumulated below the motor chamber and the area of the first region in the motor unit of the embodiment. FIG. 17 is a front view of a partition wall opening according to a modification. FIG. 18 is a graph showing the relationship between the height of the oil level accumulated below the motor chamber and the area of the first region in the motor unit provided with the partition wall opening according to the modified example. FIG. 19 is a side view showing an arrangement of each gear located inside the gear chamber in the motor unit of the embodiment. FIG. 20 is a plan view of a parking mechanism that can be employed in the motor unit of the embodiment. FIG. 21 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a motor unit separating mechanism according to the first modification. FIG. 22 is a conceptual diagram showing a state in which the motor and the speed reducer are connected by the separation mechanism. FIG. 23 is a conceptual diagram showing a state in which the motor and the speed reducer are separated by the separation mechanism.

Hereinafter, a motor according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The scope of the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments, and can be arbitrarily changed within the scope of the technical idea of the present invention. Moreover, in the following drawings, in order to make each structure easy to understand, the actual structure may be different from the scale, number, or the like in each structure.

In the following description, the direction of gravity will be defined and described based on the positional relationship when the motor unit 1 is mounted on a vehicle located on a horizontal road surface. In the drawings, an XYZ coordinate system is appropriately shown as a three-dimensional orthogonal coordinate system. In the XYZ coordinate system, the Z-axis direction indicates the vertical direction (that is, the vertical direction), the + Z direction is the upper side (opposite to the gravity direction), and the −Z direction is the lower side (gravity direction). The X-axis direction is a direction orthogonal to the Z-axis direction and indicates the front-rear direction of the vehicle on which the motor unit 1 is mounted. The + X direction is the front of the vehicle, and the −X direction is the rear of the vehicle. However, the + X direction may be the rear of the vehicle, and the −X direction may be the front of the vehicle. The Y-axis direction is a direction orthogonal to both the X-axis direction and the Z-axis direction and is the vehicle width direction (left-right direction).

In the following description, unless otherwise specified, the direction parallel to the motor shaft J2 of the motor 2 (Z-axis direction) is simply referred to as “axial direction”, and the radial direction around the motor shaft J2 is simply referred to as “radial direction”. The circumferential direction around the motor shaft J2, that is, the circumference of the motor shaft J2, is simply referred to as “circumferential direction”. Furthermore, in the following description, “plan view” means a state viewed from the axial direction. However, the above “parallel direction” includes a substantially parallel direction. In addition, the “orthogonal direction” includes a substantially orthogonal direction.

Hereinafter, a motor unit (electric drive device) 1 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram of a motor unit 1 according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the motor unit 1. FIG. 3 is a side view of the motor unit 1. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the motor unit 1 taken along line IV-IV in FIG. In FIG. 4, a part of the internal structure of the differential device 5 is omitted.

The motor unit 1 is mounted on a vehicle using a motor as a power source, such as a hybrid vehicle (HEV), a plug-in hybrid vehicle (PHV), or an electric vehicle (EV), and is used as the power source.

As shown in FIG. 1, the motor unit 1 includes a motor (main motor) 2, a reduction gear 4, a differential device 5, a housing 6, oil O, and an oil passage 90 that supplies the oil O to the motor 2. And comprising. Further, the motor unit 1 may have a parking mechanism 7 as indicated by a virtual line in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 1, the motor 2 includes a rotor 20 that rotates about a motor shaft J 2 that extends in the horizontal direction, and a stator 30 that is positioned radially outward of the rotor 20. The reduction gear 4 is connected to the rotor 20 of the motor 2. The differential device 5 is connected to the motor 2 via the speed reducer 4. A housing space 80 for housing the motor 2, the speed reducer 4, and the differential device 5 is provided inside the housing 6. The oil O is used for lubricating the speed reduction device 4 and the differential device 5 and also used for cooling the motor 2. The oil O accumulates in a region below the accommodation space 80 in the vertical direction. Since the oil O functions as a lubricating oil and a cooling oil, it is preferable to use an oil equivalent to a low-viscosity automatic transmission lubricating oil (ATF). The oil path 90 is a path of the oil O that supplies the oil O to the motor 2 from the lower region of the accommodation space 80. The oil passage 90 has a first oil passage 91 and a second oil passage 92.

In the present specification, the “oil path” means a path of the oil O that circulates in the accommodation space 80. Therefore, the “oil path” is not only a “flow path” that forms a steady oil flow in one direction in a steady manner, but also a path (for example, a reservoir) for temporarily retaining oil and the oil dripping. It is a concept that includes routes.

<Housing>
The accommodation space 80 provided in the housing 6 accommodates the motor 2, the reduction gear 4, and the differential device 5. The housing 6 holds the motor 2, the speed reduction device 4, and the differential device 5 in the accommodation space 80. The housing 6 has a partition wall 61c. The housing space 80 of the housing 6 is partitioned into a motor chamber 81 and a gear chamber 82 by a partition wall 61c. The motor 2 is accommodated in the motor chamber 81. The gear chamber 82 accommodates the reduction gear 4 and the differential 5.

In the lower region of the accommodation space 80, an oil reservoir P in which oil O is accumulated is provided. In the present embodiment, the bottom 81 a of the motor chamber 81 is located above the bottom 82 a of the gear chamber 82. A partition opening 68 is provided in a lower region of the partition 61 c that partitions the motor chamber 81 and the gear chamber 82. The partition opening 68 allows the motor chamber 81 and the gear chamber 82 to communicate with each other. The partition opening 68 moves the oil O accumulated in the lower region of the motor chamber 81 to the gear chamber 82. Therefore, in this embodiment, the oil reservoir P is provided in the lower region of the gear chamber 82.

A part of the differential 5 is immersed in the oil reservoir P. The oil O accumulated in the oil reservoir P is pumped up by the operation of the differential device 5, a part is supplied to the first oil passage 91, and a part is diffused in the gear chamber 82. The oil O diffused in the gear chamber 82 is supplied to the gears of the reduction gear 4 and the differential device 5 in the gear chamber 82, and spreads the oil O on the gear teeth. The oil O used in the speed reduction device 4 and the differential device 5 is dropped and collected in an oil sump P located below the gear chamber 82. The capacity of the oil reservoir P in the accommodation space 80 is set such that a part of the bearing of the differential device 5 is immersed in the oil O when the motor unit 1 is stopped.

The housing 6 is made of, for example, aluminum die casting. The housing 6 constitutes an outer frame of the motor unit 1. The housing 6 includes a motor housing portion 61, a gear housing portion 62, and a closing portion 63. The gear housing part 62 is located on the left side of the motor housing part 61. The closing part 63 is located on the right side of the motor housing part 61.

The motor housing portion 61 includes a cylindrical peripheral wall portion 61a that surrounds the motor 2 from the radially outer side, and a side plate portion 61b that is located on one axial side of the peripheral wall portion 61a. A space inside the peripheral wall portion 61 a constitutes the motor chamber 81. The side plate portion 61b has a partition wall 61c and a protruding plate portion 61d. The partition wall 61c covers the opening on one side in the axial direction of the peripheral wall portion 61a. The partition wall 61c is provided with an insertion hole 61f through which the shaft 21 of the motor 2 is inserted in addition to the partition wall opening 68 described above. The side plate portion 61b includes a partition wall 61c and a protruding plate portion 61d that protrudes radially outward with respect to the peripheral wall portion 61a. The protruding plate portion 61d is provided with a first axle passage hole 61e through which a drive shaft (not shown) that supports the wheels passes.

The closing part 63 is fixed to the motor housing part 61. The closing part 63 closes the opening on the opposite side in the axial direction of the peripheral wall part 61a. That is, the closing part 63 closes the opening of the cylindrical motor housing part 61. The blocking part 63 includes a blocking part main body 63a and a lid member 63b. The closing portion main body 63 a has a cylindrical protruding portion 63 d that protrudes into the storage space 80 located inside the motor storage portion 61. The protruding portion 63d extends along the inner peripheral surface of the peripheral wall portion 61a. Further, the closing portion main body 63a is provided with a window portion 63c penetrating in the axial direction. The lid member 63b closes the window portion 63c from the outside of the accommodation space 80.

The gear housing part 62 is fixed to the side plate part 61 b of the motor housing part 61. The gear accommodating part 62 has a concave shape opened to the side plate part 61b side. The opening of the gear housing portion 62 is covered with the side plate portion 61b. A space between the gear housing portion 62 and the side plate portion 61 b constitutes a gear chamber 82 that houses the speed reduction device 4 and the differential device 5. The gear housing portion 62 is provided with a second axle passage hole 62e. The second axle passage hole 62e overlaps the first axle passage hole 61e when viewed from the axial direction.

As shown in FIG. 3, the gear housing portion 62 includes a first reservoir (reservoir) 93 and a shaft supply channel 94. The first reservoir 93 is located on the surface of the gear housing portion 62 facing the gear chamber 82 side in the axial direction and extends along the axial direction. The first reservoir 93 receives oil O pumped up by the differential 5. The shaft supply channel 94 extends from the bottom of the first reservoir 93 toward the shaft 21 of the motor 2. The shaft supply flow path 94 is a flow path for supplying the oil O received by the first reservoir 93 to the inside of the hollow portion 22 of the shaft 21.

<Decelerator>
As shown in FIG. 4, the reduction gear 4 has a function of decreasing the rotational speed of the motor 2 and increasing the torque output from the motor 2 in accordance with the reduction ratio. The reduction gear 4 transmits the torque output from the motor 2 to the differential device 5.

The reduction gear 4 includes a first gear (intermediate drive gear) 41, a second gear (intermediate gear) 42, a third gear (file null drive gear) 43, and an intermediate shaft 45. Torque output from the motor 2 is transmitted to the ring gear (gear) 51 of the differential device 5 via the shaft 21, the first gear 41, the second gear 42, the intermediate shaft 45 and the third gear 43 of the motor 2. Communicated. The gear ratio of each gear, the number of gears, and the like can be variously changed according to the required reduction ratio. The reduction gear 4 is a parallel shaft gear type reduction gear in which the shaft cores of the respective gears are arranged in parallel.

The first gear 41 is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the shaft 21 of the motor 2. The first gear 41 rotates with the shaft 21 around the motor shaft J2.

The intermediate shaft 45 extends along an intermediate axis J4 parallel to the motor axis J2. The intermediate shaft 45 has a cylindrical shape centered on the intermediate axis J4. The intermediate shaft 45 rotates around the intermediate axis J4. The intermediate shaft 45 is rotatably supported by a pair of intermediate shaft holding bearings 87. One of the pair of intermediate shaft holding bearings 87 is held on the surface of the partition wall 61c facing the gear chamber 82 side. The other of the pair of intermediate shaft holding bearings 87 is held by the gear housing portion 62.

The second gear 42 and the third gear 43 are provided on the outer peripheral surface of the intermediate shaft 45. The second gear 42 and the third gear 43 are connected via an intermediate shaft 45. The second gear 42 and the third gear 43 rotate around the intermediate shaft J4. The second gear 42 meshes with the first gear 41. The third gear 43 meshes with the ring gear 51 of the differential device 5. The third gear 43 is located on the partition wall 61c side with respect to the second gear 42. In the present embodiment, the intermediate shaft 45 and the third gear 43 are a single member.

<Differential device>
The differential device 5 is a device for transmitting torque output from the motor 2 to the wheels of the vehicle. The differential device 5 has a function of transmitting the same torque to the axles 55 of the left and right wheels while absorbing the speed difference between the left and right wheels when the vehicle is turning. The differential device 5 includes a ring gear 51, a gear housing 57, a pair of pinion gears (not shown), a pinion shaft (not shown), and a pair of side gears (not shown).

The ring gear 51 rotates around a differential axis J5 parallel to the motor axis J2. Torque output from the motor 2 is transmitted to the ring gear 51 via the reduction gear 4. That is, the ring gear 51 is connected to the motor 2 via another gear. The ring gear 51 is fixed to the outer periphery of the gear housing 57.

The gear housing 57 accommodates a pair of pinion gears and a pair of side gears. When torque is transmitted to the ring gear 51, the gear housing 57 rotates around the differential axis J5 together with the ring gear 51.
The pair of pinion gears are bevel gears facing each other. The pair of pinion gears are supported by the pinion shaft.
The pair of side gears are bevel gears that mesh at right angles with the pair of pinion gears. Each of the pair of side gears has a fitting portion. Each axle is fitted to the fitting portion. A pair of axles fitted in different fitting parts rotate around the differential axis J5 with the same torque.

<Motor>
As shown in FIG. 4, the motor 2 is an inner rotor type motor that includes a stator 30 and a rotor 20 that is rotatably disposed inside the stator 30. The rotor 20 rotates when electric power is supplied from a battery (not shown) to the stator 30. The torque of the motor 2 is transmitted to the differential device 5 through the speed reducer 4.

(Stator)
The stator 30 includes a stator core 32, a coil 31, and an insulator (not shown) interposed between the stator core 32 and the coil 31. The stator 30 is held by the housing 6.

The stator core 32 has a plurality of magnetic pole teeth (not shown) radially inward from the inner peripheral surface of the annular yoke. The stator core 32 of the present embodiment has 48 slots formed between the magnetic pole teeth. A coil 31 is formed by winding a coil wire between the magnetic pole teeth.

The coil 31 has a coil end 31 a protruding from the axial end surface of the stator core 32. That is, the stator 30 has a coil end 31a. The coil end 31 a protrudes in the axial direction from the end of the rotor core 24 of the rotor 20. The coil end 31 a protrudes on both sides in the axial direction with respect to the rotor core 24.

(Rotor)
The rotor 20 includes a shaft (motor shaft) 21, a rotor core 24, a rotor magnet (permanent magnet) 25, a pair of plate-like end plates 26, nuts 29, and washers (lid portions) 28.

(shaft)
The shaft 21 extends around a motor shaft J2 extending in the horizontal direction and in the vehicle width direction (a direction orthogonal to the vehicle traveling direction). The shaft 21 has a first shaft portion 21A and a second shaft portion 21B that are coaxially connected to each other.

The shaft 21 is a hollow shaft provided with a hollow portion 22 having an inner peripheral surface extending along the motor axis J2. The hollow portion 22 includes a first hollow portion 22A located inside the first shaft portion 21A and a second hollow portion 22B located inside the second shaft portion 21B. The first hollow portion 22A and the second hollow portion 22B are arranged along the axial direction and communicate with each other.

The first shaft portion 21 A is disposed in the motor chamber 81 of the accommodation space 80. 21 A of 1st shaft parts are located in the radial inside of the stator 30, and penetrate the rotor core 24 along the motor shaft J2. 21 A of 1st shaft parts have the 1st end part 21e located in the output side (namely, reduction gear 4 side), and the 2nd end part 21f located in the other side.

The first shaft portion 21A is rotatably supported by a pair of first bearings 89. The pair of first bearings 89 support the first end 21e and the second end 21f of the first shaft portion 21A. One of the pair of first bearings 89 is held by the closing portion 63. The other of the pair of first bearings 89 is held on the surface of the partition wall 61c facing the motor chamber 81 side.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the rotor 20. In FIG. 5, the second shaft portion 21 B is illustrated by an imaginary line.
A pair of communication holes 23 is provided in the first shaft portion 21A. The communication hole 23 extends in the radial direction and communicates the outside of the shaft 21 with the hollow portion 22. That is, the shaft 21 is provided with a pair of communication holes 23. The pair of communication holes 23 are arranged along the axial direction. In this specification, a hole that passes from the outer peripheral surface of the shaft 21 through the hollow portion to the outer peripheral surface is defined as one communication hole 23.

A flange portion (lid portion) 21c and a screw portion 21d arranged in the axial direction are provided on the outer peripheral surface of the first shaft portion 21A. That is, the flange portion 21 c and the screw portion 21 d are provided on the outer peripheral surface of the shaft 21. The rotor core 24 is located between the flange portion 21c and the screw portion 21d in the axial direction. A nut 29 is fastened to the screw portion 21d.

As shown in FIG. 4, the second shaft portion 21B is positioned coaxially with the first shaft portion 21A. The second shaft portion 21b has a third end portion 21g located on the first shaft portion 21A side and a fourth end portion 21h located on the opposite side. The second shaft portion 21B is connected to the first end portion 21e of the first shaft portion 21A at the third end portion 21g.

The second shaft portion 21 B is disposed in the gear chamber 82 of the accommodation space 80. The third end portion 21g of the second shaft portion 21B protrudes toward the motor chamber 81 through an insertion hole 61f provided in the partition wall 61c and is connected to the first shaft portion 21A. A first gear 41 is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the second shaft portion 21B. The first gear 41 is a part of the reduction gear 4. The first gear 41 meshes with the second gear 42 and transmits the output of the shaft 21 to the second gear.

The second shaft portion 21B is rotatably supported by a pair of second bearings 88. One of the pair of second bearings 88 is held on the surface of the partition wall 61c facing the gear chamber 82 side. The other of the pair of second bearings 88 is held in the gear housing portion 62.

The hollow portion 22 opens in the axial direction at the second end portion 21f of the first shaft portion 21A and the fourth end portion 21h of the second shaft portion 21B. Oil O is supplied to the hollow portion 22 from the opening of the fourth end portion 21h. The oil O supplied to the hollow portion 22 flows from the fourth end portion 21h side toward the second end portion 21f side. The oil O supplied to the hollow portion 22 flows out of the shaft 21 through the communication hole 23.
In the following description, the fourth end portion 21h side may be referred to as the upstream side in the flow direction of the hollow portion 22, and the second end portion 21f side may be referred to as the downstream side in the flow direction of the hollow portion 22.

As shown in FIG. 5, the first hollow portion 22A includes a first region 22p having a different inner peripheral diameter, a second region (small-diameter hollow portion) 22q, a third region (large-diameter hollow portion) 22r, Have In the first region 22p, the second region 22q, and the third region 22r, the diameter of the inner peripheral surface increases in this order. That is, the second region 22q has a larger inner diameter than the first region 22p, and the third region 22r has a larger inner diameter than the first region 22p and the third region 22r. The first region 22p, the second region 22q, and the third region 22r are arranged in this order from the downstream side in the flow direction to the upstream side. The first region 22p is located on the second end 21f side. The second region 22q is located between the first region 22p and the third region 22r in the axial direction. The third region 22r is located on the first end 21e side. That is, the third region 22r is located closer to the second shaft portion 21B than the second region 22q.

In the third region 22r, one communication hole 23 on the upstream side in the flow direction of the pair of communication holes 23 opens. Further, the other communication hole 23 on the downstream side in the flow direction of the pair of communication holes 23 opens in the second region 22q.

The inner peripheral surface of the first hollow portion 22A is located between the first step surface 22s located between the first region 22p and the second region 22q, and between the second region 22q and the third region 22r. And a second step surface (step surface) 22t. The first step surface 22s and the second step surface 22t face the second shaft portion 21B side. Further, the first step surface 22s and the second step surface 22t are inclined toward the upstream side in the flow direction as going outward in the radial direction.

The third end portion 21g of the second shaft portion 21B is inserted into the third region 22r of the first shaft portion 21A. A female spline 22e is provided in the third region 22r. On the other hand, a male spline 22g is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the third end portion 21g of the second shaft portion 21B. The female spline 22e and the male spline 22g are fitted to each other. Thereby, 21 A of 1st shaft parts and the 2nd shaft part 21B are connected.

A gap is provided between the end surface of the second shaft portion 21B facing the first shaft portion 21A (that is, the end surface of the third end portion 21g) and the second step surface 22t. The gap between the end surface of the third end portion 21 g and the second step surface 22 t forms a concave groove 22 u on the inner peripheral surface of the hollow portion 22. That is, a concave groove 22u extending in the circumferential direction is provided on the inner peripheral surface of the hollow portion 22, and the concave groove 22u is formed between the end surface of the third end portion 21g of the second shaft portion 21B and the third region. 22r is comprised from the inner peripheral surface and the 2nd level | step difference surface 22t.

Among the pair of communication holes 23, one communication hole 23 located upstream in the flow direction of the oil O opens into the hollow portion 22 in the concave groove 22u. Centrifugal force is applied to the oil O supplied into the hollow portion 22 as the shaft 21 rotates. Since the concave groove 22u is provided on the inner peripheral surface of the hollow portion 22, the oil O accumulates in the concave groove 22u with centrifugal force. According to the present embodiment, since the communication hole 23 opens into the concave groove 22 u, the oil O accumulated in the concave groove 22 u can be efficiently guided to the communication hole 23.

According to the present embodiment, the oil O can be accumulated using the gap at the connection portion between the first shaft portion 21A and the second shaft portion 21B as the concave groove 22u. Therefore, it is not necessary to perform special processing to provide the concave groove 22u for storing the oil O.

When a plurality of communication holes 23 arranged in the axial direction are provided, the oil O easily flows into the communication holes 23 located on the downstream side in the flow direction of the oil O and flows into the communication holes 23 on the upstream side in the flow direction of the oil O. Oil O may be insufficient. According to this embodiment, since the communication hole 23 located on the upstream side in the flow direction opens in the concave groove 22u, the oil O can sufficiently flow into the communication hole 23 located on the upstream side in the flow direction.

According to the present embodiment, the diameter of the hollow portion 22 gradually decreases from the upstream side toward the downstream side in the flow direction. Thereby, the oil O is easy to spread from the upstream side of the hollow portion 22 to the downstream side. Further, one of the pair of communication holes 23 on the upstream side opens to the third region 22r, and the other on the downstream side opens to the second region 22q. That is, the opening of the downstream communication hole 23 is provided in a region where the diameter of the hollow portion 22 is smaller than the opening of the upstream communication hole 23. Therefore, the oil O can sufficiently flow into the communication hole 23 located on the downstream side.

A part of the female spline 22e is located in the gap between the end surface of the third end portion 21g and the second step surface 22t. Therefore, the inner peripheral surface of the hollow portion 22 is provided with a convex portion and a concave portion that are derived from the female spline 22e and are arranged along the circumferential direction. When the cross-sectional shape of the hollow portion is a circle centered on the motor shaft, even if the shaft rotates, the oil O in the hollow portion may idle with respect to the shaft, and centrifugal force may not be applied to the oil O. . On the other hand, by providing convex portions and concave portions arranged along the circumferential direction in the hollow portion 22, the oil O can be rotated with the rotation of the shaft 21, and centrifugal force is applied to the oil O in the hollow portion 22. be able to. Thereby, the oil O can be smoothly guided to the communication hole 23.

According to the present embodiment, splines (male spline 22g and female spline 22e) that are spline-fitted with each other are provided on the outer peripheral surface of the second shaft portion 21B and the inner peripheral surface of the third region 22r. Further, a part of the spline (female spline 22e) in the third region 22r is located in the concave groove 22u. Therefore, centrifugal force can be applied to the oil O in the hollow portion 22 by using the female spline 22e used for fitting. That is, in order to apply centrifugal force to the oil O, it is not necessary to process the inner peripheral surface of the hollow portion 22 to provide an uneven shape.

(Rotor core)
The rotor core 24 is configured by laminating silicon steel plates. The rotor core 24 is a cylindrical body extending along the axial direction. The rotor core 24 has a pair of axial end faces 24a facing the opposite sides in the axial direction, and an outer peripheral face 24b facing the radially outer side.

The rotor core 24 is sandwiched between the nut 29 and the flange portion 21c together with the pair of end plates 26. A washer 28 is interposed between the nut 29 and the end plate 26.

The rotor core 24 is provided with one fitting hole 24c, a plurality of magnet holding holes 24d, and a plurality of core through holes 24e that are located in the center when viewed from the axial direction and penetrate along the axial direction. The fitting hole 24c, the magnet holding hole 24d, and the core through hole 24e open in the pair of axial end surfaces 24a.

The fitting hole 24c is circular with the motor shaft J2 as the center. The shaft 21 is inserted and fitted into the fitting hole 24c. Therefore, the rotor core 24 surrounds the shaft 21 from the radially outer side. The fitting between the shaft 21 and the fitting hole 24c is a clearance fit. Therefore, deformation of the rotor core 24 due to the fitting of the shaft 21 is suppressed. A protrusion (not shown) protruding radially inward is provided on the inner peripheral surface of the fitting hole 24c. This protrusion fits into a key groove (not shown) provided on the outer peripheral surface of the shaft 21. Thereby, the relative rotation of the rotor core 24 and the shaft 21 is suppressed.

The plurality of core through holes 24e are arranged side by side along the circumferential direction. The core through hole 24e is located radially inward from the magnet holding hole 24d. The core through hole 24e plays a role of causing the oil O to flow between the pair of axial end surfaces 24a.

The plurality of magnet holding holes 24d are arranged side by side along the circumferential direction. A rotor magnet 25 is inserted into the magnet holding hole 24d. The magnet holding hole 24d holds the rotor magnet 25. That is, the rotor 20 of the present embodiment is an embedded type (IPM (interior / permanent / magnet)) in which the rotor magnet 25 is embedded in the rotor core 24.

The rotor magnet 25 is a permanent magnet. The plurality of rotor magnets 25 are respectively inserted into the plurality of magnet holding holes 24 d arranged in the circumferential direction and fixed to the rotor core 24. The plurality of rotor magnets 25 are arranged along the circumferential direction.

(end plate)
FIG. 6 is a plan view of the end plate 26. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the end plate 26 taken along line VII-VII in FIG. 6 and 7, other members of the motor unit 1 are indicated by imaginary lines.

As shown in FIG. 6, the end plate 26 is circular in plan view. The end plate 26 is a metal plate. The end plate 26 is provided with a circular central hole 26i penetrating along the axial direction. A key portion 26q is provided on the inner peripheral surface of the central hole 26i. The key portion 26q fits in a key groove 21k provided on the shaft 21. The end plate 26 and the shaft 21 are prevented from rotating relative to each other by the fitting of the key portion 26q and the key groove 21k.

As shown in FIG. 5, the end plate 26 has a first surface 26a and a second surface 26b. The first surface 26 a faces the axial end surface 24 a of the rotor core 24. The second surface 26b faces away from the first surface 26a.

The pair of end plates 26 are respectively located on both sides of the rotor core 24 in the axial direction. The pair of end plates 26 are in contact with the pair of axial end faces 24 a of the rotor core 24. One of the pair of end plates 26 (first end plate 26A) is located between one axial end surface 24a of the rotor core 24 and the flange portion 21c. The other of the pair of end plates 26 (second end plate 26 B) is located between the other axial end surface 24 a of the rotor core 24 and the washer 28. The end plate 26 contacts the axial end surface 24a on the first surface 26a. Further, the end plate 26 contacts the flange portion 21c or the washer 28 on the second surface 26b.

According to the present embodiment, the rotor core 24 and the pair of end plates 26 are sandwiched between the flange portion 21 c and the nut 29. As a result, the pair of end plates 26 are pressed against the axial end surface 24a of the rotor core 24 from both axial sides. A frictional force is generated at a contact portion between the first surface 26 a of the end plate 26 and the axial end surface 24 a of the rotor core 24, thereby suppressing relative rotation between the rotor core 24 and the shaft 21.
When the rotor core and the shaft are fixed by press fitting, the rotor core is deformed, the magnetic path passing through the rotor core is changed, and the iron loss is increased. In particular, in the motor for driving the vehicle as in the present embodiment, since the driving force is large, it is necessary to secure a large press-fit allowance, and the iron loss of the rotor core tends to increase. According to the present embodiment, the rotor core 24 is fixed to the shaft 21 via the end plate 26. For this reason, the fitting between the fitting hole 24c of the rotor core 24 and the shaft 21 can be a clearance fit, the deformation of the rotor core 24 can be suppressed, and the highly efficient motor 2 can be provided.

As shown in FIG. 7, the first surface 26a is provided with a recess 26f and an inclined surface 26e surrounding the recess 26f from the outside in the radial direction. The recess 26f has a circular shape centered on the motor shaft J2 in plan view. The recess 26f has a recess bottom surface 26g and a recess inner peripheral surface 26h. The recess bottom surface 26g is a plane orthogonal to the motor shaft J2. The concave inner peripheral surface 26h is located between the concave bottom surface 26g and the inclined surface 26e. The concave inner peripheral surface 26h is inclined in a direction to make the concave portion 26f shallower from the radially inner side toward the radially outer side. A gap is provided between the recess 26 f and the axial end surface 24 a of the rotor core 24. Oil O accumulates in the gap and cools the axial end surface 24a of the rotor core 24.

The inclined surface 26e is provided in a region located on the outermost radial direction in the first surface 26a and extends along the circumferential direction. The inclined surface 26e is inclined at an inclination angle θ toward the rotor core 24 as it goes radially outward. Here, the inclination angle θ is an angle formed between a plane orthogonal to the motor shaft J2 and the inclined surface 26e.

The end plate 26 is in contact with the axial end surface 24a of the rotor core 24 at the inclined surface 26e of the first surface 26a. Since the inclined surface 26e is inclined toward the rotor core 24 as it goes outward in the radial direction, the inclined surface 26e is in contact with the axial end surface 24a in the most radially outer region. Thereby, the frictional force generated by the contact between the inclined surface 26e and the axial end surface 24a can be generated on the radially outer side as much as possible. Further, the vertical stress between the inclined surface 26e and the axial end surface 24a can be increased toward the outer side in the radial direction. Thereby, the limit value of a static friction force can be enlarged as it goes to a radial direction outer side. The holding torque that suppresses the relative rotation between the end plate 26 and the rotor core 24 is proportional to the distance from the rotating shaft and the frictional force. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to increase the holding torque that suppresses the relative rotation between the end plate 26 and the rotor core 24, and to firmly hold the rotor core 24 against the end plate 26. In order to achieve such an effect, the inclination angle θ of the inclined surface 26e is preferably 0.1 ° or more and 5 ° or less.

Further, the end plate 26 of the present embodiment is in contact with the axial end surface 24a of the rotor core 24 at the inclined surface 26e. For this reason, the contact position of the end plate 26 and the rotor core 24 can be stabilized. Therefore, variation in transmission torque between the end plate 26 and the rotor core 24 can be suppressed, and the rotor core 24 can be reliably fixed to the shaft 21.

Further, according to the present embodiment, since the end plate 26 is provided with the inclined surface 26e, even if the flatness of the contact portion between the end plate 26 and the axial end surface 24a of the rotor core 24 varies, the end plate 26 is reliably brought into contact. be able to. As will be described later, an oil passage 26t (see FIG. 5) is provided on the radially inner side of the inclined surface 26e. In general, when oil enters between the rotor core and the stator, the rotational efficiency of the rotor core decreases. The inclined surface 26e comes into contact with the axial end surface 24a of the rotor core 24, so that the oil O in the oil passage 26t enters the gap between the outer peripheral surface 24b of the rotor core 24 and the stator 30 from between the end plate 26 and the rotor core 24. This can be suppressed.
The inclined surface 26e may be configured such that the inclination angle changes as it goes radially outward. The inclined surface 26e may be a curved surface whose inclination angle changes as it goes radially outward.

As shown in FIG. 5, the inclined surface 26 e closes the opening of the magnet holding hole 24 d of the rotor core 24. Thereby, the rotor magnet 25 held inside the magnet holding hole 24d is prevented from jumping out of the opening of the magnet holding hole 24d. Thereby, it is suppressed that a part of rotor magnet 25 penetrate | invades into the drive part in an accommodation recessed part.

As shown in FIG. 7, the second surface 26b is provided with a flat surface portion 26c and a chamfered portion 26d located on the outer edge of the flat surface portion 26c. The flat portion 26c is orthogonal to the motor shaft J2. The chamfered portion 26d is inclined toward the first surface 26a as it goes radially outward.

As shown in FIG. 5, the end plate 26 has two sets of plate through holes 26p, first concave grooves (first concave portions) 26j, and second concave grooves (second concave portions) 26k. Provided. Hereinafter, one set of the two sets of plate through holes 26p, the first concave groove 26j, and the second concave groove 26k will be described, but the other set has the same configuration.

The plate through hole 26p extends along the axial direction. The first concave groove 26j is located on the first surface 26a. The first concave groove 26j extends radially inward from the opening of the plate through hole 26p. The first concave groove 26j opens radially inward on the inner peripheral surface of the central hole 26i. The second concave groove 26k is located on the second surface 26b. The second concave groove 26k extends radially outward from the opening of the plate through hole 26p. The second concave groove 26k opens radially outward in the chamfered portion 26d.

The opening facing the axial direction of the first concave groove 26j of the end plate 26 is covered with the axial end surface 24a of the rotor core 24. Further, the radial opening of the first concave groove 26 j is connected to the communication hole 23 of the shaft 21.

The oil O supplied into the hollow portion 22 of the shaft 21 flows radially outward through the communication hole 23. Further, the oil O flows into the first concave groove 26j from the opening on the radially outer side of the communication hole 23. Further, the oil O passes through the plate through hole 26p, flows to the first surface 26a and the second surface 26b side, and is discharged to the outside of the rotor 20 through the second concave groove 26k. As shown in FIG. 4, a coil end 31 a of the stator 30 is provided outside the end plate 26 in the radial direction. The oil O discharged to the outside of the rotor 20 is supplied to the coil end 31a and cools the coil end 31a.

The first concave groove 26j, the plate through hole 26p, and the second concave groove 26k of the end plate 26 function as an oil flow path 26t. That is, the oil flow path 26t includes a first concave groove 26j, a plate through hole 26p, and a second concave groove 26k. Each of the pair of end plates 26 is provided with an oil flow path 26t that communicates with the communication hole 23 and extends and opens in the radial direction.

According to the end plate 26 of the present embodiment, the plate through hole 26p, the first concave groove 26j, and the second concave groove 26k constitute the oil flow path 26t. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, the oil flow path 26t can be configured by inexpensive parts (end plate 26) manufactured by mold molding.

The core through hole 24e communicates with the first concave groove 26j of the pair of end plates 26. That is, the core through hole 24e connects the first concave grooves 26j of the pair of end plates 26 to each other. In other words, the core through hole 24e connects the oil flow paths 26t of the pair of end plates 26 to each other. Further, at least a part of the opening of the core through hole is located on the radially outer side from the plate through hole 26p.

According to the present embodiment, since the core through hole 24e connects the first concave grooves 26j of the pair of end plates 26, a part of the oil O that passes through the first concave groove 26j is used as the core through hole 24e. It can flow. Thereby, the rotor core 24 can be cooled from the inside by the oil O of the core through-hole 24e. Further, the rotor magnet 25 held by the rotor core 24 can be cooled via the rotor core 24.

According to the present embodiment, the opening of the core through hole 24e is located on the outer side in the radial direction from the plate through hole 26p of the pair of end plates 26. Thereby, the oil O can be accumulated inside the core through hole 24e by the centrifugal force of the rotor 20, and the oil O can be supplied from the core through hole 24e to the first concave grooves 26j of the end plates 26 on both sides. Further, when the oil O is insufficient in the first concave groove 26j on one side of the pair of end plates 26, the oil O can be supplied from the other side through the core through hole 24e. Therefore, substantially the same amount of oil O can be discharged from each end plate 26 to the coil end 31a, and the coil 31 can be stably cooled.

As shown in FIG. 5, one of the pair of end plates 26 sandwiched between the flange portion 21 c and the rotor core 24 is a first end plate 26 A, and is sandwiched between the nut 29 and the rotor core 24. The other is the second end plate 26B.

In the first end plate 26A, a part of the inner side in the radial direction of the plate through hole 26p is covered with the flange portion 21c. Further, in the first end plate 26A, the opening of the second concave groove 26k facing the axial direction entirely faces the outside in the axial direction. In other words, in the first end plate 26A, the opening facing the axial direction of the second concave groove 26k is entirely exposed as viewed from the axial direction. That is, the second concave groove 26k of the first end plate 26A communicates with the outside through the opening facing in the axial direction. In the first end plate 26A, the second concave groove 26k functions as a first opening portion 26s in which a part of the plate through hole 26p and the entire opening facing the axial direction are released from the washer 28. In the first end plate 26A, the oil O that has passed through the plate through hole 26p is discharged from the first opening 26s.

A washer 28 is interposed between the second end plate 26B and the nut 29. In the second end plate 26B, a part on the radially inner side of the opening in the axial direction of the plate through hole 26p and the second concave groove 26k is covered by a washer 28. Of the opening facing the axial direction of the second concave groove 26k, a portion covered by the washer 28 is called a covering portion, and a portion not covered by the washer 28 is called an opening portion. That is, in the second end plate 26B, the opening facing the axial direction of the second concave groove 26k has a covering portion covered by the washer 28 and a second opening portion 26r not covered by the washer. The second groove 26k of the second end plate 26B faces the outside in the axial direction at the second opening 26r located at the radially outer end of the second groove 26k. In other words, the second concave groove 26k of the second end plate 26B is exposed at the second opening 26r when viewed from the axial direction. That is, the second groove 26k of the second end plate 26B communicates with the outside at the second opening 26r. The second opening portion 26r is located at the radially outer end of the second concave groove 26k. In the second end plate 26B, the oil O that has passed through the plate through hole 26p is discharged from the second opening portion 26r.

According to the first end plate 26A and the second end plate 26B of the present embodiment, the second surface 26b is provided with the second concave groove 26k, so that the second surface via the plate through hole 26p. The oil O flowing to the 26b side can be moved radially outward along the second concave groove 26k. Therefore, the oil O can be flowed stably to the second open portion 26r, and the oil O can be stably supplied to the coil end 31a of the stator 30.

According to the present embodiment, the flange portion 21c or the washer 28 functions as a lid portion that covers the opening in the axial direction with respect to the second concave groove 26k of the first end plate 26A and the second end plate 26B. To do. That is, the rotor 20 has a pair of lid portions (the flange portion 21 c and the washer 28) located at the end portion in the axial direction of the rotor core 24 via the end plate 26. The lid portion (the flange portion 21c and the washer 28) covers the opening facing the axial direction of the plate through-hole 26p from the outside, so that the oil O flowing out from the plate through-hole 26p to the second surface 26b side is second recessed. It is guided to flow along the groove 26k. According to the present embodiment, the behavior of the oil O can be controlled by the lid (the flange portion 21c and the washer 28), and the oil O can be prevented from entering between the rotor core 24 and the stator 30.

According to the second end plate 26B of the present embodiment, the opening in the axial direction of the second concave groove 26k is partially covered by the washer 28 and faces the outside in the axial direction at the second opening 26r. That is, in the region reaching the second opening 26r of the second concave groove 26k, the oil O does not overflow in the axial direction, and the oil O can be reliably moved to the second opening 26r. Thereby, the oil O can be stably discharged from the second opening portion 26r, and the oil O can be stably supplied to the coil end 31a.

According to the present embodiment, the second concave groove 26k faces the axially outer side in the axial direction at the second opening 26r located at the radial end. Therefore, the oil O that has passed through the second concave groove 26k can be scattered in the axial direction from the second opening 26r. Thereby, the oil O can be scattered toward the coil end 31a protruding in the axial direction from the end of the rotor core 24, and the coil 31 of the coil end 31a can be effectively cooled.

In the first end plate 26A of the present embodiment, a first opening 26s is provided over a part of the plate through hole 26p and the entire opening in the axial direction. However, as indicated by a virtual line in FIG. 5, the flange portion 21c may cover a part of the opening of the second concave groove 26k facing the axial direction. In this case, the first opening portion 26s of the first end plate 26A is located at the radially outer end, similarly to the second opening portion 26r of the second end plate 26B. The same effect as the opening part 26r can be produced.

In the present embodiment, the end plate 26 is provided with a groove-shaped first groove 26j and a second groove 26k. However, the above-described certain effects can be achieved even with a recess that is not groove-shaped. The oil O can be smoothly guided along the radial direction by providing the first concave groove 26j and the second concave groove 26k extending along the radial direction.

(First variation of end plate)
FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of a first modified end plate 126 that can be employed in the present embodiment. In addition, about the component of the same aspect as the above-mentioned embodiment, it demonstrates using the same code | symbol.
The end plate 126 of the first modified example has a first surface 126a that faces the rotor core 24 and a second surface 126b that faces away from the first surface 126a, as in the above-described embodiment. . The end plate 126 is provided with a pair of plate through holes 126p, a pair of first concave grooves 126j, and a pair of second concave grooves 126k. The plate through hole 126p extends in the axial direction. The first concave groove 126j is located on the first surface 126a. The first concave groove 126j extends radially inward from the plate through hole 126p. The second concave groove 126k is located on the second surface 126b. The second concave groove 126k extends radially outward from the plate through hole 126p. The opening of the second concave groove 126k facing the axial direction is partially covered by the lid portion 128 and faces the outside in the axial direction at the opening portion 126r. In addition, the cover part 128 is the washer 28 or the collar part 21c here (refer FIG. 5).

In this modification, the bottom surface of the second groove 126k is provided with an inclined surface 126u in which the depth of the second groove 126k decreases toward the outside in the radial direction. The inclined surface 126u overlaps with the opening 126r when viewed from the axial direction. According to this modification, an axial component can be imparted to the flow of the oil O by providing the inclined surface 126u in the second concave groove 126k. The oil O can be scattered in the axial direction, and the oil O can be effectively scattered toward the coil end 31 a that protrudes in the axial direction from the end of the rotor core 24.

(Second modification of the end plate)
FIG. 9 is a plan view of an end plate 226 of a second modification that can be employed in the present embodiment. In addition, about the component of the same aspect as the above-mentioned embodiment, it demonstrates using the same code | symbol.
The end plate 226 of the second modification example has a first surface 226a and a second surface 226b facing away from the first surface 226a, as in the above-described embodiment. The end plate 226 has a pair of plate through holes 226p, a pair of first concave grooves 226j, and a pair of second concave grooves 226k. The plate through hole 226p extends in the axial direction. The first concave groove 226j is located on the first surface 226a. The first concave groove 226j extends radially inward from the plate through hole 226p. The second groove 226k is located on the second surface 226b. The second concave groove 226k extends radially outward from the plate through hole 226p. The opening of the second groove 226k facing the axial direction is partially covered by the lid 228 and faces the outside in the axial direction at the opening 226r. In addition, the cover part 228 is the washer 28 or the collar part 21c here (refer FIG. 5).

The second concave groove 226k is a groove extending along the radial direction. Further, when viewed from the axial direction, the extending direction of the second groove 226k is inclined with respect to the radial direction. The second concave groove 226k is curved so as to increase the inclination angle with respect to the radial direction as it goes outward in the radial direction. According to this modification, since the second concave groove 226k is inclined with respect to the radial direction, centrifugal force is applied from the wall surface of the inclined second concave groove 226k to the oil O passing through the second concave groove 226k. Can be granted. Thereby, the speed of the oil O scattered from the open part 226r can be increased, and even when the distance to the coil end 31a is long, the oil O can be reliably applied to the coil end 31a.

The pair of second concave grooves 226k of the present modification are different from each other in shape viewed from the axial direction. One second concave groove 226kA of the pair of second concave grooves 226k is slightly curved as viewed from the axial direction with respect to the other second concave groove 226kB, and has a small inclination angle with respect to the radial direction. That is, according to the present embodiment, the extending direction of each of the plurality of second concave grooves 226kA and 226kB when viewed from the axial direction is different in angle with respect to the radial direction. Therefore, the magnitude of the centrifugal force applied to the oil O by the pair of second concave grooves 226kA and 226kB is different from each other. The oil O scattered from the other second concave groove 226kB is higher in speed than the oil O scattered from the second concave groove 226kA, and is scattered in a farther range. That is, according to this modification, in the plurality of second concave grooves 226kA and 226kB, the oil O can be scattered in different regions, and the oil O can be applied to a wide range of the coil end 31a.

<Oil channel>
As shown in FIG. 1, the oil passage 90 is located inside the housing 6, that is, in the accommodation space 80. The oil passage 90 is configured to straddle the motor chamber 81 and the gear chamber 82 of the accommodation space 80. The oil path 90 is a path of the oil O that guides the oil O from the oil reservoir P (that is, the region below the accommodation space 80) to the oil reservoir P through the motor 2 again. The oil passage 90 includes a first oil passage (oil passage) 91 that passes through the inside of the motor 2 and a second oil passage (oil passage) 92 that passes through the outside of the motor 2. The oil O cools the motor 2 from inside and outside in the first oil passage 91 and the second oil passage 92. The oil passage 90 constitutes an oil cooling mechanism.

Both the first oil path 91 and the second oil path 92 are paths for supplying the oil O from the oil reservoir P to the motor 2 and collecting it in the oil reservoir P again. In the first oil passage 91 and the second oil passage 92, the oil O drops from the motor 2 and accumulates in the lower region of the motor chamber. The oil O accumulated in the lower region of the motor chamber 81 moves to the lower region of the gear chamber 82 (that is, the oil reservoir P) through the partition opening 68.

In the first oil passage 91, a cooler 97 for cooling the oil O is provided. The oil O that has passed through the first oil passage 91 and has been cooled by the cooler 97 joins the oil O that has passed through the second oil passage 92 in the oil reservoir P. In the oil reservoir P, the oil O that has passed through the first oil passage 91 and the second oil passage 92 is mixed with each other and heat exchange is performed. For this reason, the cooling effect of the cooler 97 that is disposed in the path of the first oil path 91 can also be exerted on the oil O that passes through the second oil path 92. According to this embodiment, using one cooler 97 provided in one of the first oil passage 91 and the second oil passage 92, the oil O in both oil passages is cooled. .

Generally, a cooler is arrange | positioned in the flow path through which a liquid steadily flows. In order to cool two oil paths, the structure which arrange | positions a cooler in the flow path contained in two oil paths can be considered, respectively. In this case, it is necessary to use two coolers, which increases the cost. Moreover, in order to cool two oil paths, the structure which provides a flow path in the area | region which joined two oil paths, and installs a cooler in this flow path can be considered. In this case, since it is necessary to provide a flow path in the area | region which exchanged, it is necessary to make the structure of the flow path in an oil path complicated, and it results in high cost as a result.
According to the present embodiment, the cooler is provided only in the first oil passage 91, and the oil O passing through the first oil passage 91 and the second oil passage 92 is mixed in the oil reservoir P, whereby the second The oil passage 92 can be indirectly cooled. Accordingly, the oil O in the first oil passage 91 and the second oil passage 92 can be cooled by one cooler 97 without complicating the configuration of the flow passage in the oil passage 90.
In addition, such an effect has the cooler 97 which cools the oil O in any one of the 1st oil path 91 and the 2nd oil path 92, and the 1st oil path 91 and the 2nd oil path This is an effect that can be achieved when the oil O flowing through the path 92 merges in the oil reservoir P.

The heat of the oil O is radiated mainly through the cooler 97. Part of the heat of the oil O is also radiated through the housing 6 because the oil O contacts the inner surface of the housing 6. In addition, as shown in FIG. 1, the uneven | corrugated heat sink part 6b may be provided in the outer surface of the housing 6. As shown in FIG. The heat sink portion 6 b promotes cooling of the motor 2 through the housing 6.

(First oil passage)
In the first oil passage 91, the oil O is drawn up from the oil reservoir P by the differential device 5 and guided into the rotor 20. The centrifugal force accompanying rotation of the rotor 20 is given to the oil O inside the rotor 20. As a result, the oil O is evenly diffused toward the stator 30 surrounding the rotor 20 from the radially outer side, and cools the stator 30.

The first oil passage 91 includes a lifting path 91a, a shaft supply path (oil passage) 91b, an in-shaft path 91c, and an in-rotor path 91d. A first reservoir 93 is provided in the first oil passage 91. The first reservoir 93 is provided in the accommodation space 80 (particularly the gear chamber 82).

The scraping path 91a is a path for scooping up the oil O from the oil reservoir P by the rotation of the ring gear 51 of the differential 5 and receiving the oil O by the first reservoir 93 (see FIG. 3).

As shown in FIG. 3, the first reservoir 93 is located above the motor shaft J2, the intermediate shaft J4, and the differential shaft J5 in the vertical direction. The first reservoir 93 is located between the intermediate shaft J4 and the differential shaft J5 in the vehicle front-rear direction (horizontal direction, X-axis direction). The first reservoir 93 is located between the motor shaft J2 and the differential shaft J5 in the vehicle front-rear direction (horizontal direction, X-axis direction). The first reservoir 93 is disposed on the side portion of the first gear 41. The first reservoir 93 opens upward.

In this specification, the “reservoir” means a structure having a function of storing oil in a state where there is no steady liquid flow in one direction. The “reservoir” differs from the “flow path” in that there is no steady liquid flow. In the accommodation space 80 of the motor unit 1 of the present embodiment, a first reservoir 93, a second reservoir 98, and a sub-reservoir 95 are provided.

In the present embodiment, the differential shaft J5 that is the rotation center of the ring gear 51 is disposed on the vehicle rear side with respect to the reduction gear 4. The differential device 5 rotates upward in a region opposite to the speed reduction device 4 when the vehicle moves forward. The oil O pumped up by the ring gear 51 of the differential device 5 travels on the opposite side to the speed reduction device 4 and falls on the upper side of the first reservoir 93 and accumulates in the first reservoir 93. That is, the first reservoir 93 receives the oil O lifted up by the ring gear 51. Further, when the liquid level of the oil reservoir P is high, such as immediately after the motor 2 is driven, the second gear 42 and the third gear 43 come into contact with the oil O of the oil reservoir P and scoop up the oil O. In such a case, the first reservoir 93 also receives the oil O that has been scooped up by the second gear 42 and the third gear 43 in addition to the ring gear 51.

The housing 6 has a gear chamber ceiling (ceiling) 64 that constitutes the upper wall of the gear chamber 82. The gear chamber ceiling portion 64 is located above the speed reduction device 4 and the differential device 5. Here, an imaginary line (third line segment to be described later) L3 that virtually connects the motor axis J2 and the differential axis J5 as viewed from the axial direction of the motor axis J2 is defined. The gear chamber ceiling portion 64 is substantially parallel to the virtual line L3. By making the gear chamber ceiling portion 64 substantially parallel to the imaginary line L3, it is possible to sufficiently secure a region through which the oil O that is lifted up by the ring gear 51 and scatters in the extending direction of the imaginary line L3 passes, It can be efficiently applied to the first gear 41 that rotates about the motor shaft J. Moreover, it can suppress that the housing 6 enlarges to a perpendicular direction by making the gear chamber ceiling part 64 substantially parallel with the virtual line L3.
Here, the gear chamber ceiling 64 and the imaginary line L3 are “substantially parallel” when the angle between the gear chamber ceiling 64 and the imaginary line L3 is within 10 °. When the gear chamber ceiling portion 64 is curved, the angle formed between the tangent line at all points of the curved line and the virtual line L3 is within 10 °.
Moreover, if it is the range within 10 degrees, it is preferable that the gear chamber ceiling part 64 approaches the virtual line L3 as it goes to the differential axis J5 side or the motor axis J2 side. Thereby, the housing 6 can be reduced in size.

Further, the gear chamber ceiling portion 64 is a curved surface that is slightly curved in a direction approaching the imaginary line L3 side from the differential axis J5 side toward the motor axis J2 side. The curved shape of the gear chamber ceiling portion 64 is substantially the same as the parabola drawn by the oil O that is lifted up by the ring gear 51, or is a curved surface that is slightly separated from the ring gear 51. Part of the oil O pumped up by the ring gear 51 reaches the first reservoir 93 directly. Further, the other part of the oil O that has been lifted up by the ring gear 51 reaches the first reservoir 93 through the gear chamber ceiling 64 of the housing 6. That is, the gear chamber ceiling part 64 plays a role of guiding the oil O to the first reservoir 93.

The gear chamber ceiling portion 64 has a convex portion 65 protruding downward. The convex portion 65 is located above the first reservoir 93. The oil O transmitted through the gear chamber ceiling portion 64 becomes a large droplet at the lower end of the convex portion 65, falls downward, and accumulates in the first reservoir 93. That is, the convex portion 65 guides the oil O transmitted through the gear chamber ceiling portion 64 to the first reservoir 93.
In the present embodiment, the motor housing portion 61 and the gear housing portion 62 are fixed to each other by a bolt 67. The convex portion 65 is provided in the gear chamber ceiling portion 64 using a thick portion around the screw hole into which the bolt 67 is inserted. In FIG. 3, other bolts for fixing the motor housing 61 and the gear housing 62 and other thick portions around the screw holes are not shown.

The gear chamber ceiling part 64 has a plate-shaped flange part 66 extending along the axial direction. The collar portion 66 protrudes downward. The lower end of the collar portion 66 is located above the first reservoir 93. A part of the oil O that is scooped up and scattered by the ring gear 51 hits the flange 66 and travels along the surface of the flange 66. Similarly, the oil O that is scooped up and scattered by the second gear 42 and the third gear is received by the flange 66 and propagates through the surface of the flange 66. The oil O becomes a large droplet at the lower end of the flange 66 and falls downward and accumulates in the first reservoir 93. That is, the flange 66 guides the oil O that has been pumped up to the first reservoir 93.
The flange portion 66 is inclined from the differential shaft J5 side toward the motor shaft J2 side as it goes from the upper side to the lower side. Since the ring gear 51 has a larger diameter than the second gear 42 and the third gear 43, the scattering angle of the scattered oil O is almost horizontal. By disposing the flange 66 in the above-described direction, the oil O scattered from the ring gear 51 can be smoothly adhered to the surface of the flange 66 and dropped downward.

The first reservoir 93 is located immediately above the ring gear 51, the second gear 42, and the third gear 43. The opening of the first reservoir 93 overlaps with the ring gear 51, the second gear 42, and the third gear 43 as viewed from the vertical direction. Most of the oil pumped up by the gears is scattered directly above the gears being pumped up. By disposing the first reservoir 93 directly above the ring gear 51, the second gear 42, and the third gear 43, the oil O pumped up by each gear can be efficiently received.

The first reservoir 93 has a bottom portion 93a, a first side wall portion 93b, and a second side wall portion 93c. The bottom portion 93a, the first side wall portion 93b, and the second side wall portion 93c extend along the axial direction between the wall surfaces of the gear housing portion 62 and the protruding plate portion 61d of the motor housing portion. The first side wall portion 93b and the second side wall portion 93c extend upward from the bottom portion 93a. The first side wall portion 93 b constitutes a wall surface of the first reservoir 93 on the differential device 5 side. The second side wall portion 93 c constitutes the wall surface of the first reservoir 93 on the speed reduction device 4 side. That is, the first side wall 93b extends upward from the end of the bottom 93a on the differential axis J5 side, and the second side wall 93c extends upward from the end of the bottom 93a on the motor shaft J2 side. The first reservoir 93 is in a region surrounded by the bottom 93a, the first side wall 93b, the second side wall 93c, and the wall surfaces of the gear housing 62 and the protruding plate 61d of the motor housing. The oil O is temporarily stored.

The height of the upper end portion of the first side wall portion 93b is located below the upper end portion of the second side wall portion 93c. The oil O is lifted up by the differential device 5 and scattered from the opposite side of the speed reducer 4 toward the first reservoir 93. The oil O pumped up by the differential 5 can be efficiently stored in the first reservoir 93 by lowering the height of the upper end portion of the first side wall portion 93b. Further, the oil O that has been scooped up and scattered by the ring gear 51 and that exceeds the first side wall portion 93 b can be directed to the first reservoir 93 by hitting the second side wall portion 93 c.

The second side wall portion 93 c extends obliquely upward along the circumferential direction of the first gear 41. That is, the second side wall portion 93c is inclined toward the motor shaft J2 as it goes upward. Accordingly, the second side wall portion 93c can receive the oil O that has been scooped up by the differential device 5 in a wide range. In addition, the second side wall portion 93 c can receive the droplets of the oil O that travels along the ceiling of the accommodation space 80 in a wide range.

A shaft supply flow path 94 opens toward the inside of the first reservoir 93 at the boundary between the bottom 93a and the second side wall 93c. The bottom portion 93a is slightly inclined downward toward the motor shaft J2 side in plan view. That is, the bottom portion 93a is slightly inclined so as to be the lower end on the second side wall portion 93c side. Accordingly, the oil O in the first reservoir 93 can be efficiently supplied to the shaft supply flow path 94 by providing the opening of the shaft supply flow path 94 between the bottom portion 93a and the second side wall portion 93c.

The shaft supply path 91b guides the oil O from the first reservoir 93 to the motor 2. The shaft supply path 91b includes a shaft supply flow path 94. The shaft supply channel 94 extends from the first reservoir 93 toward the end of the shaft 21. The shaft supply channel 94 extends linearly. The shaft supply channel 94 is inclined downward as it goes from the first reservoir 93 toward the end of the shaft 21. The shaft supply flow path 94 is formed by processing a hole penetrating the gear housing portion 62 in and out of the housing space 80. The opening outside the processed hole is closed by a cap (not shown). The shaft supply flow path 94 guides the oil O accumulated in the first reservoir 93 from the end portion of the shaft 21 to the hollow portion 22.

As shown in FIG. 1, the in-shaft path 91 c is a path through which the oil O passes through the hollow portion 22 of the shaft 21. The in-rotor path 91d is a path that passes from the communication hole 23 of the shaft 21 through the inside of the end plate 26 located on the axial end surface 24a of the rotor core 24 and scatters to the stator 30 (see FIG. 5). That is, the first oil passage 91 has a path that passes through the rotor core 24 from the inside of the shaft 21.

In the in-shaft path 91c, centrifugal force is applied to the oil O inside the rotor 20 as the rotor 20 rotates. As a result, the oil O is continuously scattered radially outward from the end plate 26. As the oil O scatters, the pressure inside the rotor 20 becomes negative, and the oil O accumulated in the first reservoir 93 is sucked into the rotor 20 and the oil O fills the path inside the rotor 20. . The movement of the oil O into the rotor 20 is also promoted by the capillary force in the first oil passage 91. The oil O that has reached the stator 30 removes heat from the stator 30.

(Second oil passage)
As shown in FIG. 1, the oil O in the second oil passage 92 is pulled up from the oil reservoir P to the upper side of the motor 2 and supplied to the motor 2. The oil O supplied to the motor 2 removes heat from the stator 30 and cools the motor 2 while traveling along the outer peripheral surface of the stator 30. The oil O transmitted along the outer peripheral surface of the stator 30 drops downward and accumulates in the lower region of the motor chamber 81. The oil O in the second oil passage 92 merges with the oil O in the first oil passage 91 in the lower region of the motor chamber 81. The oil O accumulated in the lower region of the motor chamber 81 moves to the lower region of the gear chamber 82 (that is, the oil reservoir P) through the partition opening 68.

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of the motor unit 1. 10 is shifted in the axial direction in each region.
The second oil path 92 includes a first flow path 92a, a second flow path 92b, and a third flow path 92c. A pump 96, a cooler 97, and a second reservoir 98 are provided in the second oil passage 92. In the second oil passage 92, the oil O passes through the respective parts in the order of the first flow path 92a, the pump 96, the second flow path 92b, the cooler 97, the third flow path 92c, and the second reservoir 98. Then, it is supplied to the motor 2.

The pump 96 is an electric pump that is driven by electricity. The pump 96 is attached to a pump attachment recess 6 c provided on the outer surface of the housing 6. The pump 96 has a suction port 96a and a discharge port 96b. The suction port 96 a and the discharge port 96 b are connected via an internal flow path of the pump 96. The suction port 96a is connected to the first flow path 92a. The discharge port 96b is connected to the second flow path 92b. The discharge port 96b is located above the suction port 96a. The pump 96 sucks up the oil O from the oil reservoir P through the first flow path 92 a, and the motor 2 through the second flow path 92 b, the cooler 97, the third flow path 92 c, and the second reservoir 98. To supply.

The amount of oil O supplied to the motor 2 by the pump 96 is appropriately controlled according to the driving state of the motor 2. Accordingly, when the temperature of the motor 2 is increased, for example, when driving for a long time or a high output is required, the drive output of the pump 96 is increased and the amount of oil O supplied to the motor 2 is increased.

The cooler 97 has an inflow port 97a and an outflow port 97b. The inflow port 97 a and the outflow port 97 b are connected via an internal flow path of the cooler 97. Further, the inflow port 97a is connected to the second flow path 92b. The outflow port 97b is connected to the third flow path 92c. The inflow port 97a is located closer to the pump 96 (that is, the lower side) than the outflow port 97b. Further, inside the cooler 97, a cooling water pipe (not shown) through which the cooling water supplied from the radiator passes is provided. The oil O passing through the inside of the cooler 97 is cooled by heat exchange with the cooling water.

The pump 96 and the cooler 97 are fixed to the outer peripheral surface of the motor housing portion 61 of the housing 6. When viewed from the axial direction of the motor shaft J2, the pump 96 and the cooler 97 are located on the opposite side of the differential device 5 in the horizontal direction across the motor shaft J2. The pump 96 and the cooler 97 are arranged in the vertical direction. The cooler 97 is located above the pump 96. The cooler 97 overlaps with the pump 96 when viewed from the vertical direction.

According to the present embodiment, since the pump 96 and the cooler 97 are located on the opposite sides with the differential device 5 and the motor shaft J2 interposed therebetween, the space around the motor 2 can be used effectively. Thereby, the dimension along the horizontal direction of the entire motor unit 1 can be reduced, and the motor unit 1 can be downsized.

According to the present embodiment, the pump 96 and the cooler 97 are fixed to the outer peripheral surface of the housing 6. For this reason, compared with the case where the pump 96 and the cooler 97 are provided in the exterior of the housing 6, it can contribute to size reduction of the motor unit 1. FIG. In addition, the pump 96 and the cooler 97 are fixed to the outer peripheral surface of the housing 6, whereby the first flow path 92 a, the second flow path 92 b, and the third flow path that pass through the inside of the wall portion 6 a of the housing 6. By the flow path 92c, a flow path connecting the accommodation space 80, the pump 96, and the cooler 97 can be configured.

According to this embodiment, since the cooler 97 is fixed to the outer peripheral surface of the housing 6, the distance between the accommodation space 80 and the cooler 97 can be reduced. Thereby, the 3rd flow path 97c which connects the cooler 97 and the accommodation space 80 can be shortened, and the cooled oil O can be supplied to the accommodation space 80 in a state with low temperature.

The first flow path 92 a, the second flow path 92 b, and the third flow path 92 c pass through the inside of the wall portion 6 a of the housing 6 that surrounds the accommodation space 80. The 1st flow path 92a can form the 1st flow path 92a, the 2nd flow path 92b, and the 3rd flow path 92c as a hole formed in the wall part 6a. Therefore, it is not necessary to prepare a separate pipe material, which can contribute to a reduction in the number of parts.
In addition, the 1st flow path 92a passes through the inside of the part located in the lower side of the motor 2 among the wall parts 6a. The second flow path 92b passes through a portion of the wall portion 6a that is located on the side of the motor 2 in the horizontal direction. The third flow path 92c passes through the inside of the portion of the wall portion 6a located on the upper side of the motor 2.

The first flow path 92 a connects the oil reservoir P and the pump 96. The first flow path 92a has a first end 92aa and a second end 92ab.
The first end portion 92aa is located on the upstream side of the second oil passage 92 as compared to the second end portion 92ab. The first end 92 aa opens into the accommodation space 80 on the lower side of the differential device 5. The first end portion 92aa overlaps the motor 2 when viewed from the vertical direction.
The second end 92ab opens into the pump mounting recess 6c and is connected to the suction port 96a of the pump 96.

As described above, the differential 5 and the pump 96 are positioned on opposite sides in the horizontal direction across the motor shaft J2. The first flow path 92a extends so as to span the opposite side in the horizontal direction across the motor 2. Further, the first flow path 92 a passes below the motor 2.

According to the present embodiment, since the first flow path 92a passes below the motor 2, the size of the motor unit 1 can be reduced by effectively using the lower area of the motor 2. Thereby, size reduction of the motor unit 1 can be achieved.

At least a part of the first flow path 92 a overlaps with the second gear 42 and the ring gear 51 when viewed from the axial direction. Thereby, the dimension of the motor unit 1 when it sees from an axial direction can be made small, and size reduction of the motor unit 1 can be achieved.
In the present embodiment, among the plurality of gears (the first gear 41, the second gear 42, the third gear 43, and the ring gear 51) connected between the motor 2 and the differential device 5, The case where the second gear 42 and the ring gear 51 overlap the first flow path 92a when viewed from the axial direction has been described. However, if at least one of the plurality of gears connected between the motor 2 and the differential device 5 overlaps the first flow path 92a when viewed from the axial direction, the above-described effects can be achieved. .

The first flow path 92a extends from the lower side of the differential 5 to the suction port 96a of the pump 96. The first flow path 92a is inclined upward and extends linearly from the first end 92aa toward the second end 92ab. The suction port 96a of the pump 96 is located above the lower end of the differential device 5 and below the motor shaft J2.

The pump 96 is preferably arranged at a position away from the road surface in order to avoid a stepping stone from the road surface colliding with the motor unit 1 mounted on the vehicle. On the other hand, by arranging the suction port 96a of the pump 96 below the oil level of the oil reservoir P, it becomes possible to suppress the entrainment of air.

In the present embodiment, the suction port 96a is located below the motor shaft J2. Thereby, the suction port 96a can be easily disposed below the oil level of the oil reservoir P. Further, the suction port 96 a of this embodiment is located above the lower end of the differential device 5. Thereby, the structure which isolate | separates the pump 96 from a road surface is realizable. Further, by arranging the suction port 96a below the motor shaft J2, the first flow path 92a can be easily formed in a straight line. Therefore, when the structure that allows the first flow path 92a to pass through the inside of the wall portion 6a of the housing 6 is adopted, the processability of the first flow path 92a can be enhanced.

The suction port 96a of the present embodiment is located below the liquid level of the oil reservoir P in the accommodation space 80. The liquid level of the oil reservoir P varies as the oil O is supplied from the oil reservoir P to the first oil passage 91 and the second oil passage 92. The suction port 96a is located below the liquid level even when the liquid level of the oil reservoir P is the lowest.
In FIG. 1, the suction port 96 a is depicted as being located above the liquid level of the oil reservoir P. However, FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram to the last, and the actual suction port 96a is located below the liquid level of the oil reservoir P.

The second flow path 92b connects the pump 96 and the cooler 97. The second flow path 92b has a first end 92ba and a second end 92bb. The first end 92ba opens into the pump mounting recess 6c and is connected to the discharge port 96b of the pump 96. The first end portion 92ba is located on the upstream side of the second oil passage 92 as compared with the second end portion 92bb. The second end portion 92bb is connected to the inlet 97a of the cooler 97. The second end portion 92bb is located above the first end portion 92ba.

The second flow path 92b has a first path 92bd and a second path 92be. The first path 92bd extends upward from the pump mounting recess 6c. The second path 92be extends in the horizontal direction from the upper end of the first path 92bd. The first path 92bd and the second path 92be are formed by processing holes that extend from different directions and intersect each other in the wall 6a of the housing 6, respectively.

The third flow path 92c connects the cooler 97 and the accommodation space 80. The third flow path 92c extends linearly along the horizontal direction. The third flow path 92c has a first end 92ca and a second end 92cb. The first end portion 92ca is located on the upstream side of the second oil passage 92 as compared to the second end portion 92cb. The first end 92ca is connected to the outlet 97b of the cooler 97. The second end portion 92 cb opens into the accommodation space 80 on the upper side of the motor 2. That is, the third flow path 92 c opens on the upper side of the motor 2 in the accommodation space 80. The second end 92 cb of the third flow path 92 c functions as a supply unit 99 that supplies oil O to the second reservoir 98 located in the accommodation space 80. That is, the second oil passage 92 supplies the oil O to the second reservoir 98 in the supply unit 99.

The outlet 97b of the cooler 97 overlaps the motor 2 in the axial direction of the motor shaft J2. That is, the outlet 97b of the cooler 97 is disposed so as to overlap the motor 2 when viewed from the radial direction. In other words, the outlet 97b of the cooler 97 is located between both end portions of the stator 30 in the axial direction. For this reason, the 3rd flow path 92c which connects the outflow port 97b of the cooler 97 and the accommodation space 80 can be shortened, and the cooled oil O can be supplied to the accommodation space 80 in a state with low temperature. Moreover, the axial dimension of the motor unit 1 can be reduced by arranging the third flow path 97c so as to overlap the motor 2 in the radial direction, and the motor unit 1 can be downsized.

(Second reservoir)
FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the motor unit 1. FIG. 12 is a plan view of the second reservoir 98. In addition, in FIG. 11, illustration of the motor accommodating part 61 and the obstruction | occlusion part 63 of the housing 6 is abbreviate | omitted.

As shown in FIG. 11, the second reservoir (main reservoir) 98 is located in the motor chamber 81 of the accommodation space 80. The second reservoir 98 is located on the upper side of the motor. The second reservoir 98 includes a bottom portion (first bottom portion 98c and second bottom portion 98g) and side wall portions (first side wall portion 98d, second side wall portion 98e, and third side wall portion) extending upward from the bottom portion. 98f, a fourth side wall 98h, a fifth side wall 98i, a sixth side wall 98j and a seventh side wall 98n). The second reservoir 98 stores the oil O supplied to the motor chamber 81 via the supply part 99 of the third flow path 92c in a space surrounded by the bottom part and the side wall part. The second reservoir 98 includes a plurality of outlets (a first outlet 98r, a second outlet 98o, a third outlet 98x, a fourth outlet 98t, a fifth outlet 98u, and a sixth outlet An outlet 98v). Each outflow port supplies the oil 2 accumulated in the second reservoir 98 to the motor 2. That is, the second reservoir 98 supplies the oil O stored through the outlet to each part of the motor 2 from the upper side.

According to this embodiment, the second reservoir 98 is located on the upper side of the motor 2 and supplies the stored oil O to the upper side of the motor 2 from a plurality of outlets. Since the oil O flows from the upper side to the lower side along the outer peripheral surface of the motor 2 and takes heat of the motor 2, the entire motor 2 can be cooled.

As shown in FIG. 12, the second reservoir 98 has a first end 98p located on the gear chamber 82 side in the axial direction and a second end 98p located on the opposite side of the first end 98p in the axial direction. And an end portion 98q. The second reservoir 98 includes a bowl-shaped first reservoir 98A extending along the axial direction, and a second reservoir located on the second end 98q side with respect to the first reservoir 98A. 98B.

The first reservoir 98A includes a first bottom 98c, a first side wall 98d, a second side wall 98e, and a third side wall 98f. The first reservoir 98A is provided with a first outlet 98r, a second outlet 98o, and a third outlet 98x.

The first bottom portion 98c has a rectangular shape whose longitudinal direction is the axial direction. Both end portions in the axial direction of the first bottom portion 98 c are positioned above the coil ends 31 a provided at both end portions of the stator 30. A first outlet 98r is provided in the first bottom portion 98c. The first outlet 98r is located in a region on the first end 98p side of the first bottom 98c.

The first side wall part 98d and the second side wall part 98e extend along the axial direction. Further, the first and second side wall portions 98e face each other in the circumferential direction of the motor shaft J2.
The first side wall 98d is provided with an inflow port 98s. The inflow port 98s is a U-shaped notch that opens upward. A supply unit 99 is connected to the inflow port 98s. The inflow port 98s is located in the middle in the axial direction of the first side wall portion 98d. Thereby, the inflow port 98s can flow the oil O toward the first end portion 98p and the second end portion 98q in the second reservoir 98, respectively.

The second side wall part 98e is provided with a convex part 98w that protrudes toward the first side wall part 98d. The convex part 98w is located in front of the inflow port 98s. The convex portion 98w has an inclined surface that lowers the protruding height from the center toward the first end portion 98p side and the second end portion 98q side. The convex portion 98w smoothly diverts the oil O that has flowed from the inflow port 98s into the second reservoir 98 to the first end portion 98p side and the second end portion 98q side.

The second side wall 98e is provided with a second outlet 98o. The 2nd outflow port 98o is located in the area | region by the side of the 1st edge part 98p of the 2nd side wall part 98e. The second outlet 98o is located in the vicinity of the first outlet 98r.

As shown in FIG. 11, the third side wall 98 f is located on the first end 98 p side of the second reservoir 98. The third side wall portion 98 f is located above one coil end 31 a of the stator 30. The height of the upper end part of the third side wall part 98f is lower than the heights of the upper end parts of the first side wall part 98d and the second side wall part 98e. Further, the height of the upper end portion of the third side wall portion 98f is substantially equal to the height of the lower end of the opening of the second outlet port 98o. The space above the second side wall 98e functions as a third outlet 98x through which the oil O flows out when the level of the oil O accumulated in the second reservoir 98 becomes high.

The second storage portion 98B extends along the circumferential direction of the stator 30. The second reservoir 98B includes a second bottom 98g, a fourth sidewall 98h, a fifth sidewall 98i, a sixth sidewall 98j, a seventh sidewall 98n, and a step 98k. Have.
The second reservoir 98B is provided with a fourth outlet 98t, a fifth outlet 98u, a sixth outlet 98v, and an overflow portion 98y.

The second bottom 98g is located on the second end 98q side with respect to the first bottom 98c. The second bottom portion 98g is positioned below the first bottom portion 98c. A stepped portion 98k is provided at the boundary between the first bottom portion 98c and the second bottom portion 98g. The second reservoir 98B is located below the first reservoir 98A. The oil O that has flowed toward the second end 98q in the first reservoir 98A is accumulated in the second reservoir 98B.

The second bottom portion 98g is located above the one coil end 31a of the stator 30. The second bottom portion 98 g is curved along the outer peripheral surface of the motor 2. As a result, the capacity of the oil O stored in the second reservoir 98 can be increased without increasing the size of the motor unit 1. The second bottom portion 98g is inclined downwardly from the portion overlapping the motor shaft J2 as viewed in the vertical direction toward the both sides in the circumferential direction. The second reservoir 98B is connected to the first reservoir 98A on one side across the motor shaft J2 as viewed from the top-bottom direction.

As shown in FIG. 12, the second reservoir 98B is an area on one side of the motor shaft J2 as viewed from the top and bottom, and is connected to the first reservoir 98A as the first area 98gA. The other side of the motor shaft J2 is divided into a second region 98gB. In the boundary line between the first region 98gA and the second region 98gB, the second bottom portion 98g is the highest. The oil O flowing into the second reservoir 98B from the first reservoir 98A first accumulates in the first region 98gA, and when the liquid level accumulated in the first region 98gA reaches the height of the boundary line, the oil O Flows into the second region 98gB. Thus, the boundary line functions as a weir 98gC provided at the second bottom portion 98g. That is, the second bottom portion 98g is provided with a weir 98gC that protrudes upward and divides the second reservoir 98B of the second reservoir 98 into the first region 98gA and the second region 98gB. The oil O flows into one region (first region 98gA) and the liquid level exceeds the weir 98gC, and then flows into the other region (second region 98gB).

As will be described later, a fourth outlet 98t, a fifth outlet 98u, and a sixth outlet 98v arranged in the circumferential direction are provided in the sixth side wall 98j extending in the circumferential direction. The fifth side wall 98i is provided with an overflow portion 98y. The fourth outflow port 98t and the fifth outflow port 98u open to the first region 98gA, and the sixth outflow port 98v and the overflow portion 98y open to the second region 98gB. That is, the second reservoir 98 is provided with outlets in a plurality of regions (first region 98gA and second region 98gB) partitioned by the weir 98gC. Therefore, the oil O flows out only from the fourth outlet port 98t and the fifth outlet port 98u until the liquid level in the first region 98gA exceeds the weir 98gC. The oil O flows out from the fourth outlet 98t, the fifth outlet 98u, the sixth outlet 98v, and the overflow portion 98y after the liquid level in the first region 98gA exceeds the weir 98gC. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, the second reservoir 98 can increase the number of outlets that flow out when the amount of stored oil O increases. In particular, when the load on the motor 2 increases and the motor 2 becomes hot, the amount of oil O supplied to the second reservoir 98 by the pump 96 increases. Therefore, according to this embodiment, when the motor 2 becomes high temperature, the supply point of the oil O to the motor 2 is increased to widen the cooling range, and the supply amount of the oil O supplied by the motor 2 is increased. be able to.

4th side wall part 98h and 5th side wall part 98i are located in the both ends of the circumferential direction of 2nd storage part 98B. The fourth side wall part 98h and the fifth side wall part 98i oppose each other in the circumferential direction. The fourth sidewall portion 98h and the fifth sidewall portion 98i extend along the axial direction. The fourth side wall portion 98h continues to the first side wall portion 98d and extends toward the second end portion 98q.

An overflow portion 98y is provided in the fifth side wall portion 98i. The overflow portion 98y is a portion that is provided at the upper end of the fifth side wall portion 98i and has a locally low height. The overflow portion 98y is located above the lower ends of the openings of the fourth outlet port 98t, the fifth outlet port 98u, and the sixth outlet port 98v of the second reservoir 98B. Therefore, the oil O overflows from the overflow portion 98y after the liquid level in the second storage portion 98B becomes higher than the fourth outlet port 98t, the fifth outlet port 98u, and the sixth outlet port 98v. A sub-reservoir 95 described later is provided below the overflow portion. The oil O overflowing from the overflow portion 98y is stored in the auxiliary reservoir 95.
In this specification, “overflow” means that when the liquid in the reservoir reaches a certain liquid level, it flows out of the reservoir. Therefore, when the liquid flows out from the bottom of the reservoir, it does not hit “overflow”.

The sixth side wall portion 98j is located on the second end portion 98q side of the second reservoir 98. The sixth side wall portion 96j extends along the circumferential direction. The sixth side wall portion 98j is located above the one coil end 31a of the stator 30. The sixth side wall portion 98j is provided with a fourth outlet port 98t, a fifth outlet port 98u, and a sixth outlet port 98v. The fourth outflow port 98t, the fifth outflow port 98u, and the sixth outflow port 98v are holes provided in the sixth side wall portion 98j and penetrating the inside and the outside of the second reservoir 98. The fourth outlet 98t, the fifth outlet 98u, and the sixth outlet 98v are aligned along the circumferential direction. As shown in FIG. 11, the fourth outlet 98t, the fifth outlet 98u, and the sixth outlet 98v have different heights. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, the number of outlets through which the oil O flows out can be increased according to the level of the oil O in the second reservoir 98. Thereby, the supply point of the oil O supplied to the motor 2 can be increased by increasing the supply point of the oil O to the motor 2 to widen the cooling range.
Such an effect is an effect that can be achieved if at least two of the plurality of outlets provided in the second reservoir 98 have different heights.

The seventh side wall 98n extends along the circumferential direction. The seventh side wall portion 98n is opposed to the sixth side wall portion 98j in the axial direction. The seventh side wall portion 98n continues to the stepped portion 98k along the circumferential direction. The seventh side wall portion 97n is provided with a housing portion 98na for housing the fixing screw of the stator core 32.

According to the present embodiment, the second oil passage 92 supplies the oil O stored in the second reservoir 98 to the motor 2 from a plurality of outlets. Since the respective outlets supply oil O to the motor 2 at a constant flow rate, the cooling efficiency of the motor 2 by the oil O can be increased.

According to this embodiment, the second reservoir 98 has a plurality of outlets (first outlet 98r, second outlet 98o, third outlet 98x, fourth outlet 98t, fifth outlet, An outlet 98u and a sixth outlet 98v). Therefore, the second reservoir 98 can supply the oil O to the motor 2 from a plurality of locations at the same time, and can cool each part of the motor 2 at the same time.

According to this embodiment, the second reservoir 98 extends along the axial direction. The second reservoir 98 is provided with outlets at both ends in the axial direction. Moreover, the outflow port located in the axial direction both ends of the 2nd reservoir | reserver 98 is located above the coil end 31a. Thereby, the coil 31 can be directly cooled by applying the oil O to the coil ends 31 a located at both axial ends of the stator 30. More specifically, the oil O applied to the coil 31 penetrates from the gap between the conducting wires constituting the coil 31. The oil O soaked in the coil 31 removes heat from the coil while penetrating the entire coil 31 by the capillary force and gravity acting on the conductor tube. Further, the oil O accumulates at the lowermost part of the inner peripheral surface of the stator core 32 and drops from the axial ends of the coil 31.
The effect of directly cooling the oil O by supplying the oil O directly to the coil end 31 a is that at least two outflow ports out of the plurality of outflow ports are in the axial direction of the second reservoir 98. This is an effect that can be achieved by being positioned at both ends.

According to the present embodiment, the supply parts 99 that supply the oil O to the second reservoir 98 are located between the outlets located at both ends of the second reservoir 98 in the axial direction. For this reason, the oil O supplied from the supply part 99 can each flow out the oil O from the outflow port respectively located in both ends.

(Modification of second reservoir)
FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a modified second reservoir 198 that can be employed in the present embodiment. In addition, about the component of the same aspect as the above-mentioned embodiment, it demonstrates using the same code | symbol.
The second reservoir 198 of the modified example is a rectangular shallow box shape whose upper side is open. The second reservoir 198 includes a central oil storage unit 198a and four oil supply units 198b located around the central oil storage unit 198a. The central oil storage unit 198a and the four oil supply units 198b are partitioned from each other.

The central oil storage unit 198a stores oil O flowing from the supply unit 99. The central oil storage unit 198a is partitioned from the oil supply unit 198b by a circular bottom surface 198ab and a cylindrical wall 198aa extending upward from the bottom surface 198ab.

The four oil supply units 198b are disposed so as to surround the central oil storage unit 198a. The oil supply unit 198b has a substantially rectangular shape. In the vicinity of the corner of the two outer walls 198ba extending in different directions of the oil supply part 198b, an outlet 198c communicating with the inside and outside of the oil supply part 198b is provided. One of the two outlets 198c opens in the axial direction of the motor 2, and the other opens in the circumferential direction. Since each of the four oil supply units 198b has two outlets 198c, the second reservoir 198 has a total of eight outlets 198c.

The second reservoir 198 is installed on the upper side of the stator 30 so that the bottom surface is horizontal. The oil O supplied from the supply unit 99 overflows from the cylindrical wall 198aa when it fills the central oil storage unit 198a and flows into the four oil supply units 198b. Since the second reservoir 198 is installed horizontally and the cylindrical wall 198aa has the same height along the entire circumference, the oil O flows equally into the four oil supply portions 198b. The oil O accumulates in the four oil supply units 198b and flows out from the outlet 198c.

The length of the second reservoir 198 along the axial direction is longer than the length of the stator core 32 along the axial direction. The oil O is supplied from one oil supply unit 198b to the motor 2 through two outlets 198c facing in the axial direction and the circumferential direction. According to this modification, the second reservoir 198 can supply the oil O to the motor 2 from a plurality of outlets in a plurality of directions.

(Sub reservoir)
FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view of the motor unit 1 showing an outline of the auxiliary reservoir 95. In addition, in FIG. 14, the protrusion part 63d provided in the obstruction | occlusion part 63 of the housing 6 is shown with a virtual line. Further, in FIG. 14, the oil O stored in the auxiliary reservoir 95 is highlighted with a dot pattern.
The secondary reservoir 95 receives the oil O overflowing from the second reservoir 98 in the second oil passage 92. That is, a sub reservoir 95 that stores the oil O is provided in the second oil passage 92. The second reservoir 98 functions as a main reservoir with respect to the auxiliary reservoir 95. The second reservoir 98 is located upstream of the second oil passage 92 with respect to the auxiliary reservoir 95.

The auxiliary reservoir 95 is located immediately below the overflow portion 98y. That is, the auxiliary reservoir 95 and the overflow portion 98y overlap each other when viewed from the vertical direction. As a result, the oil O overflowing from the second reservoir 98 can be received by the auxiliary reservoir 95.

The sub-reservoir 95 has a first portion 95A located on one side in the circumferential direction with respect to the second reservoir 98, and a second portion 95B located on the other side in the circumferential direction. The first portion 95A and the second portion 95B are connected to each other. The secondary reservoir 95 has a total of four outlets 61k, two at each of the first portion 95A and the second portion 95B. The four outlets 61k are arranged along the circumferential direction of the motor 2. The plurality of outlets 61k have different heights.

The sub-reservoir 95 includes an inner side surface 61g of the motor accommodating portion 61 and an inner wall surface of the protruding portion 63d of the closing portion 63. The inner side surface 61g of the motor housing portion 61 has an inner peripheral surface 61i facing the radially inner side and a facing surface 61h facing the closing portion 63 side in the axial direction. The facing surface 61h is in contact with the surface of the protruding portion 63d facing the axial direction. Oil O does not flow out from the contact portion between the protruding portion 63d and the facing surface 61h. According to the present embodiment, since the auxiliary reservoir 95 is configured as a gap between other members, it is not necessary to use other members, and an increase in the number of parts can be suppressed.

The opposing surface 61h is provided with a recess 61j that is aligned along the circumferential direction and recessed in the axial direction. The recessed portion 61j is recessed in the direction of increasing the gap between the inner side surface 61g of the motor accommodating portion 61 and the inner wall surface of the protruding portion 63d. The oil O flows out downward from the recess 61j. That is, the recessed part 61j comprises the outflow port 61k. The outlet 61k is positioned above the coil end 31a of the stator 30. Therefore, the oil O flowing out from the outlet 61k cools the coil 31 of the coil end 31a.
In the present embodiment, the case where the inner surface 61g is provided with the recess 61j in the contact portion between the inner surface 61g of the motor housing 61 and the inner wall surface of the protruding portion 63d is illustrated. However, a recess may be provided on the inner wall surface of the protrusion 63d.

According to the present embodiment, the secondary reservoir 95 is provided in addition to the second reservoir 98, so that the oil O flows out from the outlet 61k of the secondary reservoir 95 in addition to the outlet of the second reservoir 98. The wide range of the motor 2 can be cooled. In addition, the plurality of outlets 61k of the auxiliary reservoir 95 are arranged side by side along the circumferential direction. Thereby, the coil end 31a of the stator 30 can be cooled in a wide range. Furthermore, since the plurality of outflow ports 61k are different in height from each other, the flow-out timing can be varied according to the liquid level of the oil O accumulated in the sub-reservoir 95.

According to this embodiment, the oil O overflowing from the second reservoir 98 is stored in the auxiliary reservoir 95. The pump 96 increases the supply amount of oil O supplied to the second reservoir 98 when the motor 2 becomes a heavy load and the temperature rises. Therefore, when the motor 2 becomes highly loaded, the oil O overflows from the second reservoir 98, and the oil O can be supplied to the motor 2 also at the outlet 61 k of the sub reservoir 95. According to the present embodiment, when the motor 2 has a high load, the oil O can cool a wide range of the motor 2. That is, by providing the auxiliary reservoir 95, the supply range of the oil O supplied to the motor 2 can be automatically expanded when the operation of the motor 2 changes from the steady state to the high load state.

Further, the lower end of the auxiliary reservoir 95 of the present embodiment is located above the motor shaft J2. Therefore, the outlet 61k of the auxiliary reservoir 95 is located above the motor shaft J2. The motor 2 has a substantially cylindrical shape. By setting the lower end of the sub-reservoir 95 above the motor shaft J2, the oil O that has flowed out from the outlet 61k can be transmitted through the surface of the motor 2 to cool the motor 2. Moreover, the motor 2 becomes the widest in the horizontal cross section which passes the motor shaft J2. Since the lower end of the sub-reservoir 95 is positioned above the motor shaft J2, the oil O transmitted through the surface of the motor 2 passes through the region where the horizontal dimension of the motor is widest. Thereby, the motor 2 can be cooled efficiently.

(Common part of the first oil passage and the second oil passage)
As shown in FIG. 1, in the driving state of the motor 2, the oil O is supplied to the motor 2 via the first oil passage 91 and the second oil passage 92. The oil O supplied to the motor 2 is dripped downward while cooling the motor 2 and accumulates in the lower region of the motor chamber 81. The oil O collected in the lower region of the motor chamber 81 moves to the gear chamber 82 through the partition opening 68 provided in the partition wall 61c.

FIG. 15 is a front view of the partition wall 61c of the housing 6 as viewed from the motor chamber 81 side.
The partition wall opening 68 is located below the insertion hole 61 f through which the shaft 21 is inserted. The partition wall opening 68 includes a first opening 68a and a second opening 68b located above the first opening 68a. The first opening 68a and the second opening 68b allow the motor chamber 81 and the gear chamber 82 to communicate with each other.

As shown in FIG. 19, the lower end of the partition opening 68 (that is, the lower end of the first opening 68a) is located above the lower limit height Lmin of the liquid level of the oil O in the gear chamber 82 when the motor 2 is stationary. To do. Therefore, the partition opening 68 can move as much oil O as possible to the oil reservoir P in a stopped state in which the driving of the motor 2 is stopped.

As shown in FIG. 15, the first opening 68a is circular in plan view. The lower end of the first opening 68 a is located below the lower end of the stator 30. The first opening 68 a is located in the vicinity of the bottom 81 a of the motor chamber 81. Accordingly, the first opening 68a moves the oil O into the gear chamber 82 until the oil O accumulated in the lower region of the motor chamber 81 is almost exhausted.

The first opening 68a overlaps the motor shaft J2 when viewed from the up-down direction. The first opening 68a is located in a recess 61q provided on the inner peripheral surface of the peripheral wall 61a. Here, the peripheral wall part 61a and the recessed part 61q are demonstrated. The motor accommodating portion 61 of the housing 6 has a peripheral wall portion 61 a having a cylindrical shape along the outer peripheral surface of the stator 30. The inner peripheral surface of the peripheral wall portion 61a is provided with a concave portion 61q that is recessed outward in the radial direction. The recess 61q extends along the axial direction. The recess 61q is located immediately below the motor shaft J2. That is, the recess 61q overlaps the motor shaft J2 when viewed from the up-down direction. Since the peripheral wall 61a has a cylindrical shape, the oil O in the motor chamber 81 gathers inside the recess 61q along the inner peripheral surface of the peripheral wall 61a. Since the first opening 68a is located in the recess 61q, the oil O in the motor chamber 81 collected in the recess 61q can be efficiently moved to the gear chamber 82.

The second opening 68b is located above the first opening 68a. The second opening 68b is a rectangle whose longitudinal direction is the horizontal direction in plan view. The second opening 68b has a larger opening area than the first opening 68a. The second opening 68b has a larger width along the horizontal direction than the first opening 68a. The second opening 68b has a lower end 68c extending along the horizontal direction.

When the motor 2 is driven, the supply amount of oil O supplied from the oil passage 90 (that is, the first oil passage 91 and the second oil passage 92) to the motor 2 per unit time increases. As a result, the level of the oil O accumulated in the lower region of the motor chamber 81 increases. In the partition opening 68, a region located below the liquid level of the oil O accumulated in the region below the motor chamber 81 is referred to as a first region S, and a region located above the liquid level is a second region R. Call it. The partition opening 68 moves the oil O to the gear chamber 82 in the first region S. When the level of the oil O accumulated in the lower region of the gear chamber 82 rises, the area of the first region S increases and the area of the second region R decreases. When the area of the first region S increases, the amount of movement of the oil O from the motor chamber 81 to the gear chamber 82 through the partition opening 68 increases.

The partition opening 68 of the present embodiment is arranged so that the amount of movement of the oil O from the motor chamber 81 to the gear chamber 82 through the partition opening 68 increases when the level of the oil O in the motor chamber 81 becomes high. Is done. For this reason, it is suppressed that the liquid level of the oil O in the motor chamber 81 becomes too high. That is, it is possible to prevent the rotor 20 in the motor chamber 81 from being immersed in the oil O or excessively lifting the oil O. Therefore, it can suppress that the rotational efficiency of the motor 2 falls by the flow resistance of the oil O. FIG.
In addition, according to this embodiment, the oil in the motor unit 1 is moved to the gear chamber 82 side by moving the oil O in the motor chamber 81 to the gear chamber 82 side according to the height of the liquid level of the oil O in the motor chamber 81. O can be used effectively. Thereby, the usage-amount of the oil O can be suppressed, the motor unit 1 can be reduced in weight, and the energy efficiency required for cooling the oil O can be increased.

As shown in FIG. 19, the lower end of the second opening 68b is the height of the oil level in the gear chamber 82 (upper limit height Lmin and lower limit height Lmin) regardless of whether the motor 2 is stationary or driven. Located on the upper side. Therefore, the second opening 68b is not submerged on the gear chamber 82 side. The second opening 68 b can move the oil O to the gear chamber 82 regardless of the liquid level of the gear chamber 82, and can prevent the rotor 20 from being immersed in the oil O.

The change in the amount of movement of the oil O that moves through the partition opening 68 as the liquid level of the oil O that accumulates below the motor chamber 81 rises will be described more specifically. Here, the liquid level of the oil O accumulated below the motor chamber 81 and reaching the lower end 68c of the second opening 68b is defined as a first liquid level OL. That is, the lower end of the second opening 68b is located at the first liquid level OL. The first liquid level OL is located above the lower end of the stator 30 and below the lower end of the rotor 20.

FIG. 16 is a graph showing the relationship between the height of the liquid level of the oil O accumulated under the motor chamber 81 and the area of the first region S. The area of the first region S has a correlation (substantially proportional relationship) with the flow rate of the oil O flowing out from the partition opening 68.

Oil O is supplied to the motor 2 as the motor 2 is driven, and begins to accumulate in the lower region of the motor chamber 81. The oil O accumulated in the lower region of the motor chamber 81 moves from the motor chamber 81 to the gear chamber 82 through the first opening 68a. When the supply amount of the oil O per unit time supplied to the motor 2 exceeds the flow rate of the oil O moving from the motor chamber 81 to the gear chamber 82 via the first opening 68a, the lower side of the motor chamber 81 The level of the oil O accumulated in the region increases. When the liquid level reaches the first liquid level OL, the oil O flows out from the second opening 68b in addition to the first opening 68a. Since the second opening 68b is wider in the horizontal direction than the first opening 68a, the area of the first region S rapidly increases before and after the liquid level reaches the first liquid level OL. To do. Along with this, the flow rate of the oil O flowing from the motor chamber 81 into the gear chamber 82 via the partition opening 68 increases rapidly. As described above, the first liquid level OL is set below the lower end of the rotor 20. Therefore, according to this embodiment, it can suppress that the rotational efficiency of the rotor 20 in the motor chamber 81 falls by the flow resistance of the oil O. FIG.

The horizontal width of the second opening 68b is such that the flow rate of the oil O flowing out from the partition opening 68 when the liquid level reaches the upper side of the first liquid level OL is supplied to the motor 2 in the oil passage 90. It is preferable that the width be larger than the oil O. Thereby, it can suppress that the liquid level of the oil O which accumulates in the area | region below the motor chamber 81 significantly exceeds the 1st liquid level OL, and can suppress that the rotor 20 is immersed in the oil O. FIG.

As shown in FIG. 1, the first oil passage 91 includes a scooping path 91a and an in-rotor path 91d. The scooping path 91 a moves the oil O from the gear chamber 82 to the motor chamber 81 by scooping up the oil by the differential device 5. The amount of oil O pumped up by the differential device 5 depends on the rotational speed of the differential device 5. For this reason, the lifting path 91a increases or decreases the amount of movement of the oil O to the motor chamber 81 depending on the vehicle speed. Further, the in-rotor path 91 d sucks the oil O from the gear chamber 82 side to the motor chamber 81 side by the centrifugal force of the rotor 20. The centrifugal force depends on the rotational speed of the rotor 20. Therefore, the in-rotor path 91d increases or decreases the amount of movement of the oil O to the motor chamber 81 depending on the vehicle speed. That is, in the first oil passage 91, the amount of movement of the oil O to the motor chamber 81 increases or decreases depending on the vehicle speed.

On the other hand, the second oil passage 92 moves the oil O from the gear chamber 82 to the motor chamber 81 by a pump (electric pump) 96. The amount of oil O supplied to the pump 96 is controlled based on the temperature measurement result of the motor 2, for example. Therefore, in the second oil passage 92, the amount of movement of the oil O to the motor chamber 81 increases or decreases without depending on the vehicle speed.

The second oil passage 92 stops the supply of oil O to the motor 2 when the motor 2 is stationary. Further, the second oil passage 92 starts the movement of the oil O to the motor chamber 81 when the motor 2 is started. For this reason, at the time of a stop, the liquid level of the oil sump P of the gear chamber 82 can be raised. As a result, the second gear 42, the third gear 43, and the ring gear 51 can be rotated in the oil sump P by the rotation of the motor 2 immediately after startup, and the oil O can be spread over the tooth surface.

According to the present embodiment, the second oil passage 92 pulls up the oil O from the oil sump P regardless of the speed of the vehicle. For this reason, the second oil passage 92 can lower the oil level of the oil sump P even when the vehicle travels at a low speed. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the rotation efficiency of the gear in the gear chamber 82 from being lowered by the oil O in the oil reservoir P during low speed traveling.

(Modification of partition opening)
FIG. 17 is a front view of a partition wall opening 168 of a modified example that can be employed in the present embodiment. In addition, about the component of the same aspect as the above-mentioned embodiment, it demonstrates using the same code | symbol.
The partition wall opening 168 of the modified example includes a long hole portion 168a extending along the vertical direction and a wide extension portion 168b connected to the long hole portion 168a on the upper side of the long hole portion 168a. The lower end of the long hole portion 168 a is located in the vicinity of the bottom portion 81 a of the motor chamber 81. The long hole portion 168a overlaps with the motor shaft J2 when viewed from the vertical direction. The extended portion 168b is wider along the horizontal direction with respect to the long hole portion 168a. The extended portion 168b is a rectangle having a horizontal direction as a longitudinal direction in plan view. The extended portion 168b has a lower end 168c extending along the horizontal direction. The lower end 168c is located at the first liquid level OL described above.
In the partition opening 168, a region located below the liquid level of the oil O is referred to as a first region S and a region located above the liquid level is referred to as a second region R.

FIG. 18 is a graph showing the relationship between the height of the liquid level of the oil O accumulated below the motor chamber 81 and the area of the first region S in this modification.
In the present modification, when the liquid level reaches the first liquid level OL, the oil O flows out of the extended portion 168b in addition to the long hole portion 168a, and the area of the first region S increases rapidly. Along with this, the flow rate of the oil O flowing from the motor chamber 81 into the gear chamber 82 through the partition opening 168 increases rapidly. Since the first liquid level OL is set below the lower end of the rotor 20, the rotation efficiency of the rotor 20 can be suppressed from decreasing due to the flow resistance of the oil O.

(Liquid level of oil reservoir)
As shown in FIG. 1, the first oil passage 91 supplies the oil O from the oil reservoir P to the motor 2 when the pump 96 is driven in the driving state of the motor 2. Further, the first oil passage 91 supplies the oil O to the inside of the motor 2 by moving the oil O from the oil reservoir P to the first reservoir 93 when the differential device 5 is driven up in the driving state of the motor 2. To do. That is, both the first oil passage 91 and the second oil passage 92 supply oil O from the oil reservoir P to the motor 2 when the motor 2 is driven. Accordingly, in the driving state of the motor 2, the liquid level of the oil sump P located in the lower region of the gear chamber 82 is lowered. In addition, since the oil O supplied to the motor 2 is accumulated in the lower space of the motor chamber 81, the level of the oil O accumulated in the lower region of the motor chamber 81 rises when the motor 2 is driven. .

On the other hand, when the motor 2 is stopped, the first oil passage 91 and the second oil passage 92 stop supplying the oil O to the motor 2. As a result, the oil O dripped below the motor 2 temporarily accumulates in the lower region of the motor chamber 81 and moves to the oil reservoir P in the lower region of the gear chamber 82 through the partition opening 68. Accordingly, when the motor 2 is stopped, the level of the oil O accumulated in the lower region of the motor chamber is lowered, and the level of the oil reservoir P located in the lower region of the gear chamber 82 is raised.

FIG. 19 is a side view showing the arrangement of each gear located inside the gear chamber 82. In FIG. 19, the gear housing portion 62 of the housing 6 and the bearing that supports each shaft are omitted.
As shown in FIG. 19, according to the present embodiment, the height of the liquid level of the oil O accumulated in the oil reservoir P is such that the oil O is the oil passage 90 (the first oil passage 91 and the second oil passage 92). To the upper limit height Lmax and the lower limit height Lmin. As shown in FIG. 1, the first oil passage 91 is provided with a first reservoir 93. The second oil passage 92 is provided with a second reservoir 98 and a secondary reservoir 95 (omitted in FIG. 1, refer to FIG. 14). Further, oil O accumulates in the lower region of the motor chamber 81 where the first oil passage 91 and the second oil passage 92 merge. As described above, in the first oil passage 91 and the second oil passage 92, several places where the oil O is accumulated are provided. As a result, the oil O accumulated in the oil reservoir P by supplying the oil O to the motor 2 moves to the reservoir or the like in the above-described path, and the liquid level of the oil reservoir P is lowered. As a result, the gear in the gear chamber 82 is exposed from the oil O in the oil reservoir P, and the rotation efficiency of the gear can be increased.

As shown in FIG. 19, the lower end of the second gear 42 that has a large diameter and is connected to the motor 2 out of a pair of gears (the second gear 42 and the third gear 43) that rotate about the intermediate shaft J 4. Is located below the upper limit height Lmax of the liquid level. The lower end of the second gear 42 is located above the lower limit height Lmin of the liquid level.
Similarly, the lower end of the third gear 43 having a small diameter out of the pair of gears (the second gear 42 and the third gear 43) rotating around the intermediate shaft J4 is connected to the differential device 5. It is located below the upper limit height Lmax of the surface. The lower end of the third gear 43 is located above the lower limit height Lmin of the liquid level.

The liquid level of the oil reservoir P reaches the upper limit height Lmax when the motor 2 is stopped and the supply of oil O from the oil reservoir P to the motor 2 is stopped. According to the present embodiment, the second gear 42 and a part of the third gear 43 can be immersed in the oil O of the oil reservoir P when the motor 2 is stopped. Thereby, when the motor 2 is driven, the oil O can be immediately distributed to the tooth surfaces of the second gear 42 and the third gear 43, and the transmission efficiency between the gears can be increased.

The liquid level of the oil reservoir P reaches the lower limit height Lmin when the motor 2 is driven at a high load and the supply of oil O from the oil reservoir P to the motor 2 is most promoted. According to the present embodiment, since the second gear 42 and the third gear 43 are positioned above the liquid level of the oil reservoir P in the driving state of the motor 2, the second gear 42 is caused by the flow resistance of the oil O. The reduction in rotational efficiency of the gear 42 and the third gear 43 can be suppressed. Thereby, the drive efficiency of the motor unit 1 can be improved.

The ring gear 51 that is provided in the differential device 5 and is connected to the speed reducer 4 and rotates about the differential axis J5 has a lower end positioned below the liquid level at the upper limit height Lmax and the lower limit height Lmin of the liquid level. .
According to the present embodiment, regardless of the fluctuation of the liquid level of the oil reservoir P, at least a part of the ring gear 51 is located below the liquid level of the oil O in the oil reservoir P. Therefore, even when the motor 2 is driven and the liquid level of the oil sump P becomes low, the ring gear 51 can scoop up the oil O from the oil sump P, and the oil O is removed from each gear in the gear chamber 82. The oil O can be supplied to the tooth surfaces of the gears to increase the torque transmission efficiency between the gears.

(Overview of oil passage)
With reference to FIG. 1, the flow of the oil O in the oil passage 90 accompanying the drive of the motor unit 1 is demonstrated.
When the motor unit 1 is mounted on a hybrid vehicle or a plug-in hybrid vehicle, the motor unit 1 is any one of an engine mode driven only by the engine, a motor mode driven only by the motor 2, and a hybrid mode driven by both the engine and the motor. Drive in one mode.

In the engine mode, the motor 2 is stopped, but the differential 5 is driven by the engine, so that the oil O is pumped up from the oil reservoir P. The oil O that has been pumped up is accumulated in the first reservoir 93 but is not scattered toward the stator 30 because the rotor 20 does not rotate. In the engine mode, the pump 96 is not driven and the oil O is not supplied to the second oil passage 92.

In the motor mode and the hybrid mode, when the vehicle climbs a hill, the output of the motor 2 increases and the amount of heat generated by the motor 2 increases. In such a case, cooling is accelerated by increasing the discharge amount of the pump 96 and supplying more oil O to the stator 30. On the other hand, when the vehicle goes down a slope (that is, when the motor 2 is not loaded), or when the motor 2 has not reached a high temperature, such as when the vehicle is started or used in a cold region, the pump The discharge amount of 96 is reduced.

The second oil passage 92 can adjust the supply amount to the motor 2 by the pump 96 according to the temperature of the motor 2, the driving mode of the vehicle, and the like. According to this embodiment, the energy required for cooling the motor 2 can be made efficient. Such an effect can be exhibited when the pump 96 is an electrically driven pump.
The discharge amount of the pump 96 can be managed based on temperature data detected by a temperature sensor provided in the motor 2. In addition, a change in the temperature of the motor 2 can be predicted by using data such as the vehicle operation history, the driving state, the vehicle posture, the outside air temperature, the weight of the passenger and the luggage. You may manage so that the motor 2 may not become a high temperature state based on the predicted value of this temperature change.

According to this embodiment, since the oil passage 90 supplies the oil O to the stator 30 from a plurality of locations, the entire stator 30 can be efficiently cooled. Moreover, according to this embodiment, the oil O functions as cooling oil and lubricating oil. Therefore, there is no need to separately provide a path as a cooling oil and a path as a lubricating oil, and the cost can be reduced.

(Measures against contamination in oil passages)
Oil O used for cooling the motor unit 1 is used for lubricating the differential device 5 and the speed reducer 4. Therefore, the oil O may be contaminated with contaminants such as metal powder generated by mechanical contact. Contamination may deteriorate the fluidity of the oil O in the first oil passage 91 and the second oil passage 92. Contamination is removed by periodic replacement of the oil O. Further, a means for capturing contamination may be provided in one or both of the first oil passage 91 and the second oil passage 92. As an example, as shown in FIG. 9, a permanent magnet 98m may be installed in the second reservoir 98 to capture the contamination magnetically and suppress the diffusion of the contamination. In this case, deterioration of the fluidity of the oil O can be suppressed.

(Arrangement of each axis)
The motor shaft J2, the intermediate shaft J4, and the differential shaft J5 extend in parallel to each other along the horizontal direction. The intermediate shaft J4 and the differential shaft J5 are located on the lower side with respect to the motor shaft J2. Therefore, the speed reduction device 4 and the differential device 5 are located below the motor 2.

As viewed from the axial direction of the motor shaft J2, a line segment that virtually connects the motor shaft J2 and the intermediate shaft J4 is defined as a first line segment L1, and a line segment that virtually connects the intermediate shaft J4 and the differential axis J5. Is a second line segment L2, and a line segment that virtually connects the motor shaft J2 and the differential shaft J5 is a third line segment L3.

According to this embodiment, the second line segment L2 extends along the substantially horizontal direction. That is, the intermediate shaft J4 and the differential shaft J5 are arranged in a substantially horizontal direction. Therefore, the speed reduction device 4 and the differential device 5 can be arranged along the horizontal direction, and the vertical dimension of the motor unit 1 can be reduced. Further, the oil O pumped up by the differential device 5 can be efficiently applied to the reduction gear 4. Thereby, the oil O can be supplied to the tooth surface of the gear constituting the reduction gear 4, and the transmission efficiency of the gear can be increased. The diameters of the gears (second gear 42 and third gear 43) that rotate about the intermediate shaft J4 are smaller than the diameter of the ring gear 51 that rotates about the differential shaft J5. According to this embodiment, since the second line segment L2 extends along the substantially horizontal direction, the intermediate axis J4 and the differential axis J5 are arranged along the substantially horizontal direction. Therefore, depending on the height of the liquid level of the oil reservoir P, only the ring gear 51 is immersed in the oil reservoir P, and the second gear 42 and the third gear 43 are not immersed in the oil reservoir P. Accordingly, it is possible to suppress a decrease in the rotational efficiency of the second gear 42 and the third gear 43 while the ring gear 51 lifts up the oil O of the oil reservoir P.
In the present embodiment, the second line segment L2 is substantially in the horizontal direction within ± 10 ° with respect to the horizontal direction.

According to the present embodiment, the angle α formed by the second line segment L2 and the third line segment L3 is 30 ° ± 5 °. Thereby, the transmission efficiency of the oil O pumped up by the differential device 5 between the first gear 41 and the second gear 42 can be increased, and a desired gear ratio can be realized.
When the angle α exceeds 35 °, it becomes difficult to supply the oil pumped up by the differential device to the gear (first gear) that rotates about the motor shaft. Thereby, there exists a possibility that the transmission efficiency between a 1st gear and a 2nd gear may fall. On the other hand, if the angle α is less than 25 °, the output-side gear in the transmission process cannot be made sufficiently large, and a desired gear ratio is achieved in the three axes (motor shaft, intermediate shaft, and differential shaft). It becomes difficult.

According to the present embodiment, the first line segment L1 extends along a substantially vertical direction. That is, the motor shaft J2 and the intermediate shaft J4 are arranged along a substantially vertical direction. Therefore, the motor 2 and the speed reducer 4 can be arranged along the vertical direction, and the horizontal dimension of the motor unit 1 can be reduced. Further, by setting the first line segment L1 in the substantially vertical direction, the motor shaft J2 can be disposed close to the differential shaft J5, and the first gear 41 that rotates about the motor shaft J2 Oil O pumped up by the differential 5 can be supplied. Thereby, the transmission efficiency of the 1st gear 41 and the 2nd gear 42 can be improved.
In the present embodiment, the first line segment L1 has a substantially vertical direction within ± 10 ° with respect to the vertical direction.

The length L1 of the first line segment, the length L2 of the second line segment, and the length L3 of the third line segment satisfy the following relationship.
L1: L2: L3 = 1: 1.4 to 1.7: 1.8 to 2.0
Further, the reduction ratio in the reduction mechanism from the motor 2 to the differential device 5 is 8 or more and 11 or less.
According to the present embodiment, a desired gear ratio (8 or more and 11 or less) can be realized while maintaining the positional relationship among the motor shaft J2, the intermediate shaft J4, and the differential shaft J5 as described above.

<Parking mechanism>
FIG. 20 is a diagram showing a parking mechanism 7 that can be employed in the motor unit 1 of the present embodiment.
The parking mechanism 7 is effective when the motor unit 1 is used for an electric vehicle (EV).
In a manual transmission vehicle driven by an engine, in addition to operating the side brake, by setting the transmission to a position other than neutral, it is possible to apply a load to the engine and bring about a braking action. In an automatic transmission vehicle, in addition to operating the side brake, the transmission can be locked by setting the shift lever to the parking position.
On the other hand, in the electric vehicle, there is no braking mechanism for braking the vehicle other than the side brake, so the motor unit 1 needs the parking mechanism 7.

The parking mechanism 7 includes a ring-shaped parking gear 71, a parking pole 72, a parking rod 73, and a parking lever 74. The parking gear 71 is arranged coaxially with the second gear (intermediate gear) 42, the third gear 43 and the intermediate gear. The parking gear 71 is fixed to the intermediate shaft 45. The parking pole 72 has a protrusion 72 a that is engaged with the groove of the parking gear 71 and prevents the parking gear 71 from rotating. The parking rod 73 is connected to the parking pole 72 and moves the protrusion 72a along the radial direction of the parking gear. The parking lever 74 is connected to the parking rod 73 and drives the parking rod 73.

When the motor 2 is operating, the parking pole 72 is retracted from the parking gear 71. On the other hand, when the shift lever is in the parking position, the parking pole 72 is engaged with the parking gear 71 and prevents the parking gear 71 from rotating.

The parking pole 72 is controlled by a parking motor (not shown) connected to the parking lever. When the parking motor is used, the parking mechanism 7 can be electrically driven, so that the structural members for driving the parking mechanism 7 can be simplified. Further, when a parking motor is used, the parking pole 72 can be driven by a push button, a paddle lever, or the like, so that the operability for the driver is improved. Such a mechanism is called a shift-by-wire system.
The parking mechanism 7 may be a manual type instead of the electric type using a shift-by-wire system. That is, the driver may drive the parking pole by mechanically pulling the wire connected to the parking lever.

According to this embodiment, the parking mechanism 7 is provided on the intermediate shaft 45. Thereby, in the torque transmission process from the motor 2 to the axle 55, the braking torque for preventing the rotation of the parking gear 71 can be reduced as compared with the case where the parking mechanism 7 is provided in the gear subsequent to the intermediate shaft. Thereby, the structure of the parking mechanism can be reduced in size and weight. When the parking mechanism 7 is electrically operated, a small parking motor can be employed. Furthermore, when the parking mechanism is a manual type, the burden on the driver's operation can be reduced.

Further, according to the present embodiment, the parking mechanism 7 is located below the speed reduction device 4. Accordingly, the parking pole 72 is immersed in the oil O of the oil reservoir P, and the oil O is interposed between the parking gear 71 and the protruding portion 72a of the parking pole 72 so that the protruding portion 72a can be attached and detached smoothly. be able to.
In addition, the parking mechanism 7 of this embodiment is an example and may employ | adopt other conventionally well-known structures. Further, the parking mechanism 7 may be arranged to apply a braking force to the shaft 21 or the ring gear 51 connected to the motor 2.

<Modification 1>
<Separation mechanism>
FIG. 21 is a partial cross-sectional view illustrating the separation mechanism 107 of the motor unit 101 according to the first modification.
As a first modification, a motor unit 101 according to a modification in which a separation mechanism 107 is provided in a torque transmission path from the motor 2 to the axle 55 will be described. The motor unit 101 of this modification is mainly different in that a separation mechanism 107 is provided on the shaft 121 of the motor 2. In addition, about the component of the same aspect as the above-mentioned embodiment, it demonstrates using the same code | symbol.

The separation mechanism 107 is provided when the motor unit 101 is mounted on a hybrid vehicle (HEV) and a plug-in hybrid vehicle (PHV). In a hybrid vehicle and a plug-in hybrid vehicle, the vehicle travels in any one of an engine mode driven only by the engine, a motor mode driven only by the motor 2, and a hybrid mode driven by both the engine and the motor. The separation mechanism 107 is used to drive the power transmission mechanism (the rotor 20 of the motor 2, the speed reduction device 4, and the differential device 5) of the motor unit 101 so that the stopped motor 2 does not become a load in an automobile traveling in the engine mode. Disconnect from 55.

As shown in FIG. 21, in this modification, the shaft 121 includes a first shaft portion 121A, a connection shaft portion 121C, a second shaft portion 121B, and a connection shaft portion 121C and a second shaft portion 121B that are aligned on the same axis. A separating mechanism 107 located between them. The first shaft portion 121A, the connection shaft portion 121C, and the second shaft portion 121B are arranged in this order along the axial direction. That is, the connection shaft portion 121C is located between the first shaft portion 121A and the second shaft portion 121B.

The shaft 121 is a hollow shaft provided with a hollow portion 122 having an inner peripheral surface extending along the motor axis J2. The hollow portion 122 includes a first hollow portion 122A located inside the first shaft portion 121A, a second hollow portion 122B located inside the second shaft portion 121B, and a third located inside the connecting shaft portion 121C. And a hollow portion 122C. The first hollow portion 122A, the second hollow portion 122B, and the third hollow portion 122C are arranged along the axial direction and communicate with each other.

The first shaft portion 121 A is disposed in the motor chamber 81 of the accommodation space 80. The first shaft portion 121A is located on the radially inner side of the stator 30 and penetrates the rotor core 24 along the motor shaft J2.
121 A of 1st shaft parts have the 1st end part 121e located in the output side (namely, reduction gear 4 side).

The first end 121e passes through the insertion hole 61f provided in the partition wall 61c from the motor chamber 81 side. A first hollow portion (second concave portion) 122A opens on the surface of the first end portion 121e facing the axial direction. The first end 121e is rotatably supported by a first bearing 89 held in contact with the surface of the partition wall 61c facing the motor chamber 81 side.
By holding the first bearing 89 in contact with the surface of the partition wall 61c facing the motor chamber 81 side, the first shaft portion 121A can be aligned at the portion of the housing 6 on the motor chamber 81 side. Thereby, the axial alignment of the first shaft portion 121A with respect to the stator 30 can be performed with high accuracy.

The connecting shaft portion 121C is disposed inside the insertion hole 61f. The connecting shaft portion 121C is rotatably supported by a second bearing 188A that is held in contact with the surface of the partition wall 61c facing the gear chamber 82 side. The second bearing 188A is a ball bearing. The connecting shaft portion 121C is provided with a step surface 121q facing the partition wall 61c. The step surface 121q is in contact with the inner ring of the second bearing 188A.

According to this modification, the second bearing 188A is held on the surface of the partition wall 61c facing the gear chamber 82 side. For this reason, the connection shaft portion 121C can be assembled to the first shaft portion 121A after the first shaft portion 121A is aligned. Therefore, the assembly process of the connection shaft portion 121C can be simplified.

The outer diameter of the second bearing 188A is larger than the outer diameter of the first bearing 89. During the operation of the separation mechanism 107, a great load is applied to the second bearing 188A in the axial direction and the circumferential direction. According to the second bearing 188 A of this modification, sufficient strength can be ensured with respect to the load during operation of the separation mechanism 107 by making the diameter larger than that of the first bearing 89. .

The connecting shaft portion 121C has a second end portion 121f, a third end portion 121g, and a connecting flange portion 121h.

The second end 121f protrudes toward the motor chamber 81. The second end 121f is located on the first shaft 121A side and is connected to the first end 121e of the first shaft 121A. The second end 121f is accommodated in the first hollow portion 122A that opens to the first end 121e. The outer peripheral surface of the second end 121f is fitted to the inner peripheral surface of the first hollow portion 122A. By fitting the second end 121f into the first hollow portion 122A, the connecting portion between the first end 121e and the second end 121f can be downsized in the radial direction. Thereby, the space which arrange | positions the 1st bearing 89 on the radial direction outer side of the 1st edge part 121e is securable.

The third end 121g protrudes toward the gear chamber 82 side. The third end 121g is located on the side opposite to the second end 121f and on the second shaft 121B side. A first recess 121p is provided at the end of the third end 121g facing the axial direction.
The connection flange portion 121h extends outward in the radial direction of the third end portion 121g. The diameter of the connection flange portion 121h is larger than the smallest diameter portion of the insertion hole 61f.

According to this modification, the connecting shaft portion 121C is a separate member from the first shaft portion 121A. Therefore, by assembling the connection shaft portion 121C to the first shaft portion 121A after the assembly process of the motor 2, the assembly can be performed in the same order as the assembly order without the separation mechanism 107. Accordingly, the shape of the parts other than the shaft 121 can be made the same as when the separation mechanism 107 is not provided. That is, according to the present modification, it is possible to share parts between the motor unit 101 including the separation mechanism 107 and the motor unit 1 not including the separation mechanism 107. Moreover, since the assembly order can be made the same regardless of the presence or absence of the separation mechanism 107, the complexity of the component shape and the increase in the number of components can be suppressed. Therefore, according to this modification, the motor unit 101 with high versatility and low cost can be provided.

The second shaft portion 121 B is disposed in the gear chamber 82 of the accommodation space 80.
The second shaft portion 121B has a fourth end 121i and a fifth end 121j.

The fourth end 121i is located on the third end 121g side of the connecting shaft 121C. Transmission of power is selectively disconnected by the disconnection mechanism 107 from the fourth end portion 121i and the connection flange portion 121h of the connection shaft portion 121C.

The fourth end 121i is accommodated in the first recess 121p provided in the third end 121g. A needle bearing (bearing) 121n is provided in the radial gap between the third end 121g and the fourth end 121i. That is, according to the present modification, the second shaft portion 121B is rotatably supported by the connection shaft portion 121C at the fourth end 121i. Therefore, according to the present modification, when the second shaft portion 121B and the connection shaft portion 121C are separated by the separation mechanism 107, stable holding can be realized without hindering relative rotation. In addition, such an effect is an effect which can be show | played when the 1st recessed part which accommodates the other via the needle bearing 121n is provided in any one among the 3rd end part 121g and the 4th end part 121i. is there.

In the present modification, the needle bearing 121n includes a plurality of cylindrical members arranged in a ring shape, but may be another bearing mechanism such as a ball bearing instead of the needle bearing 121n. However, by adopting the needle bearing, it is possible to reduce the size of the motor unit 101 by reducing the radial dimension of the third end 121g and the fourth end 121i.

As described above, the first shaft portion 121A, the connection shaft portion 121C, and the second shaft portion 121B are provided with the hollow portions 122 that extend in the axial direction and communicate with each other. Similar to the above-described embodiment, the hollow portion 122 is supplied with oil O that cools the inside of the motor from the second shaft portion 121B side toward the first shaft portion 121A side.
According to this modification, the connecting shaft portion 121C and the second shaft portion 121B are connected via the needle bearing 121n. Therefore, the third hollow portion 122C of the connection shaft portion 121C and the second hollow portion 122B of the second shaft portion 121B can be connected to each other. Thereby, the oil O can be supplied to the hollow part 122 and used as an oil flow path.

The fifth end 121j is located on the opposite side of the fourth end 121i. The fifth end is rotatably supported by a third bearing 188B held by the housing. That is, the second shaft portion 121B is supported by the third bearing 188B at the fifth end portion 121j.
According to this modification, the second shaft portion 121B is supported by two bearings (needle bearing 121n and third bearing 188B) arranged in the axial direction. Similarly, the connecting shaft portion 121C is supported by two bearings (second bearing 188A and needle bearing 121n) arranged in the axial direction. The second shaft portion 121B and the connection shaft portion 121C can be stably rotated without causing shaft shake by being rotatably supported at two points aligned in the axial direction.

The first gear 41 is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the second shaft portion 121B. The first gear 41 is located between the fourth end 121i and the fifth end 121j. The first gear 41 transmits power to the second gear 42 of the reduction gear 4. According to this modification, the first gear 41 is located between the second bearing 188A and the third bearing 188B. Therefore, the first gear 41 can stably rotate with respect to the motor shaft J2, and the torque generated by the motor 2 can be stably transmitted to the second gear 42.

The disconnecting mechanism 107 surrounds the connection flange portion 121h of the connection shaft portion 121C and the fourth end portion 121i of the second shaft portion 121B from the radially outer side. The separation mechanism 107 switches between a state in which the connection flange portion 121h and the fourth end portion 121i are not mechanically coupled and a state in which the connection flange portion 121h and the fourth end portion 121i are coupled using the driving unit 175.

The separation mechanism 107 is located between the axial end surface of the motor 2 and the first gear 41 in the axial direction. The motor unit 101 has a three-axis structure including a motor shaft J2, an intermediate shaft J4, and a differential shaft J5. In the axial direction, a third gear 43 is located between the axial end surface of the motor 2 and the first gear 41. The second gear 42 rotates in synchronization with the second gear 42 connected to the first gear 41. A gap larger than the thickness of the third gear 43 is provided between the axial end surface of the motor 2 and the first gear 41. According to this modification, the separation mechanism 107 is disposed between the axial end surface of the motor 2 and the first gear 41. That is, the third gear 43 and the separation mechanism 107 are disposed at positions that overlap in the axial direction. Thereby, the internal space of the gear chamber 82 can be effectively used and the motor unit 101 can be downsized.

According to this modification, the separation mechanism is provided on the shaft 121 of the motor 2. That is, in the power transmission path from the motor 2 to the axle 55, the separation mechanism 107 is provided at the portion with the smallest torque. According to this modification, since the torque transmitted through the separation mechanism 107 is small, the separation mechanism can be reduced in size.

The separation mechanism 107 of this modification is referred to as a rotation synchronization device or a synchromesh mechanism. In this modification, the separation mechanism 107 is an example. As the separation mechanism, for example, a dog clutch mechanism or a multi-stage clutch mechanism may be adopted.

The separation mechanism 107 includes a sleeve 171, a clutch hub 172, a synchronizer ring 173, a key 174, and a drive unit (not shown).

The clutch hub 172 is fixed to the outer peripheral surface of the second shaft portion 121B. The clutch hub 172 rotates around the motor shaft J2 together with the second shaft portion 121B. An external spline is provided on the outer periphery of the clutch hub 172.

The sleeve 171 is movable along the axial direction. The sleeve 171 meshes with an external spline of the clutch hub 172 and rotates integrally with the sleeve 171. A spline is provided on the inner peripheral surface of the sleeve 171. The spline of the sleeve 171 fits into the spline provided on the outer peripheral surface of the connection flange portion 121h after the clutch hub 172 and the connection flange portion 121h rotate synchronously. Thereby, the 2nd shaft part 121B and the connection shaft part 121C are connected.

The key 174 is held by the sleeve 171. The key 174 moves in the axial direction together with the sleeve 171. The key 174 matches the phases of the splines provided on the sleeve 171 and the connection flange portion 121h, respectively.

The synchronizer ring 173 moves in the axial direction together with the sleeve 171. The synchronizer ring 173 has a tapered surface that increases its inner diameter as it approaches the connection flange portion 121h side. On the other hand, the connection flange portion 121h is provided with a boss portion that protrudes toward the synchronizer ring 173 along the axial direction. The boss portion is provided with a tapered surface facing the synchronizer ring 173. The synchronizer ring 173 and the connection flange portion 121h rotate synchronously by bringing the tapered surfaces into contact with each other.

A drive unit (not shown) is connected to the sleeve 171. The drive unit moves the sleeve 171 in the axial direction.

FIG. 22 is a conceptual diagram showing a state in which the motor 2 and the speed reduction device 4 are connected by the separation mechanism 107, and FIG. 23 is a concept showing a state in which the motor 2 and the speed reduction device 4 are separated by the separation mechanism 107. FIG.
As described above, the motor unit 101 including the separation mechanism 107 is mounted on a hybrid vehicle or a plug-in hybrid vehicle. In such a vehicle, when the mode is switched between the mode that travels using only the power of the engine and the mode that travels using the power of the motor 2, the drive unit 175 operates to connect the connecting shaft portion 121C and the second shaft portion 121B. Connection and disconnection to and from are switched.

The control related to the separation mechanism 107 will be described. When the separation mechanism 107 switches from the disconnected state to the connected state, first, the rotational speed of the second shaft portion 121B is calculated from the rotational speed of the axle 55. Next, the rotation speed of the motor 2 is increased to the calculated rotation speed of the second shaft portion 121B. While the rotational speed of the motor 2 is increasing, the sleeve is moved by the drive unit 175, and the connection between the second shaft portion 121B and the connection shaft portion 121C is realized. Thereafter, the position at which the connection between the second shaft portion 121B and the connection shaft portion 121C is completed is calculated from the cumulative number of rotations of the drive portion 175. Finally, it is detected that the rotational speed of the motor 2 and the rotational speed of the second shaft portion 121B calculated from the rotational speed of the axle 55 are the same, and it is finally determined that the joined state is completed. Is done.

<Control>
Each element such as the motor 2 of the motor unit 1, the pump 96, the drive unit 175 of the separation mechanism 107 and the parking motor of the parking mechanism 7 is centrally controlled by a micro control unit (MCU). The micro control unit may be provided integrally with the motor unit 1 or provided outside.

<Mountability on vehicles>
The motor unit 1 can be applied to any of a hybrid vehicle (HEV), a plug-in hybrid vehicle (PHV), and an electric vehicle (EV). The motor unit 1 can be applied not only to passenger cars but also to lorry vehicles (trucks). The motor unit 1 may be mounted on either the front side or the rear side of the vehicle, but is preferably mounted on the rear side. Since the motor unit 1 of this embodiment has a small vertical dimension, the motor unit 1 can be installed compactly even on the rear side where the installation space is limited due to the restriction between the luggage compartment and the minimum ground clearance.

Although the embodiments and modifications of the present invention have been described above, the configurations and combinations thereof in the embodiments are examples, and the addition, omission, replacement, and configuration of the configurations are within the scope that does not depart from the spirit of the present invention. Other changes are possible. Further, the present invention is not limited by the embodiment.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1,101 ... Motor unit (electric drive device), 2 ... Motor, 4 ... Deceleration device, 5 ... Differential device, 6 ... Housing, 6a ... Wall part, 20 ... Rotor, 21, 121 ... Shaft, 21A, 121A ... 1st shaft part, 21B, 121B ... 2nd shaft part, 21c ... collar part, 21c ... collar part (lid part), 21d ... screw part, 21e, 121e ... first end part, 21f, 121f ... second end part 21g, 121g ... 3rd end, 21h, 121i ... 4th end, 22, 122 ... hollow part, 22A, 122A ... 1st hollow part, 22q ... 2nd area | region (small diameter hollow part), 22r ... 3rd Area (large-diameter hollow portion), 22t ... second step surface (step surface), 22u ... concave groove, 23 ... communication hole, 24 ... rotor core, 24a ... axial end surface, 24b ... outer peripheral surface, 24d ... magnet holding hole, 24e ... core through hole, 25 ... b 26, 126, 226 ... end plate, 26a, 126a, 226a ... first surface, 26b, 126b, 226b ... second surface, 26e, 126u ... inclined surface, 26f, 61j, 61q ... concave portion, 26j , 126j, 226j ... first groove (first recess), 26k, 126k, 226k, 226kA, 226kB ... second groove (second recess), 26p, 126p, 226p ... plate through hole, 26r ... 2nd opening part (opening part), 26s ... 1st opening part (opening part), 26t ... Oil flow path, 28 ... Washer (lid part), 29 ... Nut, 30 ... Stator, 31 ... Coil, 31a ... Coil end, 32 ... Stator core, 41 ... First gear, 42 ... Second gear (intermediate gear), 43 ... Third gear, 51 ... Ring gear, 61 ... Motor housing, 61c Partition wall, 61f ... insertion hole, 61k, 97b, 98r, 98o, 98x, 98t, 98u, 98v, 198c ... outlet, 63 ... closed part, 63d ... projecting part, 64 ... ceiling part (ceiling part) of gear chamber, 65 ... convex part, 66 ... collar part, 68, 168 ... partition opening, 68a ... first opening part, 68b ... second opening part, 80 ... housing space, 81 ... motor chamber, 82 ... gear chamber, 88, 188A 2nd bearing, 89 ... 1st bearing, 90 ... oil path, 91 ... 1st oil path (oil path), 91a ... Scooping path, 91b ... Shaft supply path (oil path), 92 ... 1st 2 oil paths (oil paths), 92a ... first flow path, 92b ... second flow path, 92c, 92aa, 92ba, 92ca ... first end, 92ab, 92bb, 92cb ... second end 97c ... third flow path, 93 ... first reservoir (reservoir) B), 95 ... Sub-reservoir, 96 ... Pump (electric pump), 96a ... Suction port, 97 ... Cooler, 98,198 ... Second reservoir (main reservoir), 98y ... Overflow part, 99 ... Supply part, 107 ... Detaching mechanism, 121C... Connecting shaft portion, 121h... Connecting flange portion, 121j... Fifth end portion, 121n... Needle bearing (bearing), 121p ... first recessed portion, 121q ... step surface, 126r, 226r. 228 ... Lid portion, 168a ... Long hole portion, 168b ... Expansion portion, 98gC ... Weir, J2 ... Motor shaft, J4 ... Intermediate shaft, J5 ... Differential shaft, L1 ... First line segment, L2 ... Second wire Minute, L3 ... third line segment (virtual line), Lmax ... upper limit height, Lmin ... lower limit height, O ... oil, OL ... first liquid level, P ... oil reservoir, S ... first region

Claims

A motor having a rotor that rotates about a motor shaft extending in a horizontal direction;
A differential connected to the motor;
A housing provided with a housing space for housing the motor and the differential device;
Oil that accumulates in a region on the lower side in the vertical direction of the housing space;
An oil passage for supplying the oil to the motor from a region below the vertical direction of the housing space,
In the path of the oil path, a pump fixed to the outer peripheral surface of the housing is provided,
When viewed from the axial direction of the motor shaft, the pump is located on the opposite side of the differential device across the motor shaft.
Motor unit.
The oil passage has a first passage that passes under the motor,
The first flow path has a first end that opens into the accommodation space on the lower side of the differential device, and a second end connected to the suction port of the pump.
The motor unit according to claim 1.
A plurality of gears are connected between the motor and the differential device,
When viewed from the axial direction of the motor shaft, at least a part of the first flow path overlaps at least one of the plurality of gears,
The motor unit according to claim 2.
The differential is located below the motor;
An inlet of the pump is located above the lower end of the differential and located below the motor shaft;
The motor unit according to claim 2 or 3.
The suction port is located below the liquid level of the oil that accumulates in a vertically lower region of the accommodation space;
The motor unit according to any one of claims 2 to 4.
The motor according to any one of claims 2 to 5, wherein the first flow path is inclined upward and linearly extends from the first end toward the second end. unit.
The housing has a wall portion surrounding the accommodation space,
The first flow path passes through the interior of the wall;
The motor unit according to any one of claims 2 to 6.
In the path of the oil path, a cooler for cooling the oil passing therethrough is provided,
The oil passage has a second flow path that connects the pump and the cooler, and a third flow path that connects the cooler and the accommodation space,
The cooler is fixed to the outer peripheral surface of the housing;
The motor unit according to any one of claims 1 to 7.
The third flow path opens above the motor in the accommodation space.
The motor unit according to claim 8.
The motor has a stator located on the radially outer side of the rotor,
The outlet of the cooler is located between both end portions of the stator in the axial direction.
The motor unit according to claim 8 or 9.
The cooler overlaps the pump as seen in the vertical direction;
The motor unit according to any one of claims 8 to 10.
The housing has a wall portion surrounding the accommodation space,
The second flow path and the third flow path pass through the inside of the wall portion,
The motor unit according to any one of claims 8 to 11.