Cantilever stator
AssigneeTesla, Inc.
InventorsEdwin M. Pearce, Jr., Jim Robbins, Scott Heines, David F. Nelson, Gary A. Pinkley, Michael Balsamo, Augusto E. Barton
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An electric motor includes: a housing having a first rotor bearing and a stator support surface; a cantilever stator that includes a lamination stack, a first side of the lamination stack abutting the stator support surface and a second side of the lamination stack abutting a stator endbell that has a second rotor bearing, wherein the cantilever stator is held by way of tie rods attaching the stator endbell to the housing; and a rotor in the cantilever stator, the rotor held by the first and second rotor bearings.
Claims20
An electric motor for a vehicle comprising:
- a housing having a first rotor bearing and a stator support surface;
- a cantilever stator that includes a lamination stack, a first side of the lamination stack abutting the stator support surface and a second side of the lamination stack abutting a stator endbell that has a second rotor bearing;
- a rotor disposed in the cantilever stator, the rotor held in position by the first and second rotor bearings;
- a bucket cover that covers the cantilever stator and the stator endbell, the bucket cover including
- a plurality of first attachments for securing a first end of the bucket cover to the housing;
- a plurality of second attachments on a second end of the bucket cover for securing the second end of the bucket cover to the vehicle;
- a plurality of reinforcement struts extending from the plurality of second attachments to a first end of the bucket cover;
- and
- a cooling system connected to the housing, wherein the cooling system is configured to circulate coolant around an outer surface of the cantilever stator and within the bucket cover such that the coolant is in direct contact with the cantilever stator.
A method of assembling an electric motor, the method comprising:
- positioning a cantilever stator and a housing relative each other so that a first side of a lamination stack of the cantilever stator abuts a stator support surface on the housing;
- placing a rotor within the cantilever stator so that the rotor is held by at least a first rotor bearing in the housing;
- placing a stator endbell against a second side of the lamination stack, the rotor being held by at least a second rotor bearing on the stator endbell;
- attaching the stator endbell to the housing using tie rods, thereby holding the cantilever stator;
- placing a bucket cover over the cantilever stator and stator endbell;
- attaching a first end of the bucket cover to the housing using a plurality of first attachments of the bucket cover,
- attaching a second end of the bucket cover to a vehicle using a plurality of second attachments of the bucket cover,
- wherein the bucket cover includes a plurality of reinforcement struts extending from the plurality of second attachments to the first end of the bucket cover;
- and
- circulating coolant around an outer surface of the cantilever stator and within a cover enclosing the stator such that the coolant is in direct contact with the cantilever stator.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.