Back to results
US 2023/0054487 A1Published application
Systems and methods for a segmented electric motor
AssigneeDana Automotive Systems Group, LLC
InventorsJoachim DRUANT, Steven VANHEE
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Methods and systems are provided for operating an electric motor including multiple rotor and stator sections. In one example, a system may include the multiple rotor sections configured to be mechanically coupled and decoupled from each other concurrently with multiple stator sections configured to be electrically coupled and decoupled from each other, within certain regimes of operation of the electric motor.
Claims20
A system for an electric motor comprising:
- a plurality of rotor sections configured to be mechanically decoupled from one another;
- and
- a plurality of stator sections configured to be electrically decoupled from one another.
A method for an electric motor, comprising:
- during a first condition, operating the electric motor with each rotor section of a plurality of rotor sections mechanically coupled to each other, and each stator section of a plurality of stator sections electrically coupled to each other;
- and
- during a second condition, operating the electric motor with at least one rotor section of the plurality of rotor sections mechanically decoupled, via a clutch, from remaining rotor sections of the plurality of rotor sections, and at least one stator section of the plurality of stator sections electrically decoupled, via switches, from remaining stator sections of the plurality of stator sections.
A method for an electric motor with two or more sections, comprising:
- in response to a transition of operation of the electric motor from one region of an efficiency map to another region of the efficiency map, transitioning from operating the electric motor with each section of the two or more sections active to operating the electric motor with at least one section inactive by first mechanically decoupling the at least one section from remaining sections of one or more sections and then electrically decoupling the at least one section from the remaining sections, the one region of the efficiency map calibrated as one function of speed and torque of the electric motor, and the other region of the efficiency map calibrated as another function of speed and torque of the electric motor.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.