Vascular cooling system for electrical conductors

An electric-drive vehicle, comprising:

• a vehicle body with a plurality of road wheels attached to the vehicle body;
• a traction motor mounted to the vehicle body and configured to drive one or more of the road wheels to thereby propel the vehicle;
• a traction battery pack mounted to the vehicle body and configured to exchange an electric current with the traction motor;
• and
• an electrical conductor assembly mounted to the vehicle body and connecting the traction battery pack to the traction motor, the electrical conductor assembly including:
• an outer sheath having an elongated tubular sheath body formed from an electrically insulating material and defining therethrough a conductor duct;
• an electrical conductor having an elongated solid cable body located within the conductor duct and extending across the length of the tubular sheath body;
• and
• a coolant channel extending through the tubular sheath body axially parallel with and thermally connected to the solid cable body, the coolant channel passing therethrough a coolant fluid and thereby cooling the electrical conductor, traction battery pack and/or traction motor.

A method of manufacturing an electrical conductor assembly, the method comprising:

• receiving an outer sheath having a tubular sheath body formed with a first electrically insulating material and defining therethrough a conductor duct, the first electrically insulating material including a first polymer with a first thermal conductivity and a first melting point;
• locating, within the conductor duct, an electrical conductor having a solid cable body extending across a longitudinal length of the tubular sheath body;
• encasing the electrical conductor within a cable jacket, the cable jacket formed with a second electrically insulating material including a second polymer with a second thermal conductivity and a second melting point higher than the first thermal conductivity and the first melting point, respectively;
• and
• forming, in the outer sheath, a coolant channel extending through the sheath body and thermally connected to the solid cable body, the coolant channel being configured to pass therethrough a coolant fluid and thereby cool the electrical conductor.