# US 2023/0054487 A1 · Systems and methods for a segmented electric motor > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2023/0054487 A1 - Document ID: US20230054487A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 17/445,585 - Filed: 2021-08-20 - Published: 2023-02-23 - Earliest claimed: 2021-08-20 - Assignees: Dana Automotive Systems Group, LLC - Applicants: Dana Automotive Systems Group, LLC - Inventors: Joachim DRUANT; Steven VANHEE - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20230054487A1 ## CPC - H02K 1/148: {Sectional cores (H02K1/141 takes precedence)} - H02K 16/00: Machines with more than one rotor or stator {(machines for transmitting mechanical power from a driving shaft to a driven shaft and comprising structurally interrelated motor and generator parts H02K51/00; permanent magnet machines with multiple rotors or stators relatively rotated for vectorially combining the excitation fields or the armature voltages H02K21/029)} - H02K 21/12: with stationary armatures and rotating magnets - H02P 25/188: {wherein the motor windings are switched from series to parallel or vice versa to control speed or torque} - Y02T 10/64: Electric machine technologies in electromobility - H02K: DYNAMO-ELECTRIC MACHINES (dynamo-electric relays H01H53/00; conversion of DC or AC input power into surge output power {H03K3/53}) - H02P: CONTROL OR REGULATION OF ELECTRIC MOTORS, ELECTRIC GENERATORS OR DYNAMO-ELECTRIC CONVERTERS; CONTROLLING TRANSFORMERS, REACTORS OR CHOKE COILS - Y02T: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES RELATED TO TRANSPORTATION ## 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. ## Claims ### Claim 1 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. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein a number of rotor sections of the plurality of rotor sections is equal to a number of stator sections of the plurality of stator sections; wherein each rotor section of the plurality of rotor sections is arranged concentrically within each of a stator section of the plurality of stator sections, each concentric rotor section and stator section pair forming a plurality of motor sections; and wherein a length of each of a motor section of the plurality of motor sections is different. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of rotor sections includes two or more of a first rotor section, a second rotor section, and a third rotor section, the plurality of rotor sections being arranged coaxially with an output shaft. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The system of claim 3, further comprising a first clutch positioned between the first rotor section and the second rotor section configured to mechanically decouple the first rotor section from the second rotor section, and a second clutch positioned between the second rotor section and the third rotor section configured to mechanically decouple the second rotor section from the third rotor section. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The system of claim 4, wherein the plurality of stator sections include two or more of a first stator section including three sets of windings electromagnetically interacting with the first rotor section, with each set of windings of the first stator section carrying a single phase of current, a second stator section including three sets of windings electromagnetically interacting with the second rotor section, with each set of windings of the second stator section carrying a single phase of current, and a third stator section including three sets of windings electromagnetically interacting with the third rotor section, with each set of windings of the third stator section carrying a single phase of current, the plurality of rotor sections and the plurality of stator sections enclosed within a common housing. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The system of claim 5, further comprising, a first set of switches positioned between the first stator section and the second stator section configured to electrically decouple the first stator section from the second stator section, a second set of switches positioned between the second stator section and the third stator section, and a third set of switches configured to form terminal connections for the third stator section. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The system of claim 6, wherein the first set of switches include a first switch coupling a first set of windings of the first stator section to a second set of windings of the first stator section and a second switch coupling the second set of windings of the first stator section to a third set of windings of the first stator section, wherein the second set of switches include a third switch coupling a first set of windings of the second stator section to a second set of windings of the second stator section and a fourth switch coupling the second set of windings of the second stator section to a third set of windings of the second stator section, and wherein the third set of switches include a fifth switch coupling a first set of windings of the third stator section to a second set of windings of the third stator section, and a sixth switch coupling the second set of windings of the third stator section to a third set of windings of the third stator section. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The system of claim 7, wherein each of the first set of windings of the first stator section, the first set of windings of the second stator section, and the first set of windings of the third stator section correspond to a first phase of current; wherein each of the second set of windings of the first stator section, the second set of windings of the second stator section, and the second set of windings of the third stator section correspond to a second phase of current; and wherein each of the third set of windings of the first stator section, the third set of windings of the second stator section, and the third set of windings of the third stator section correspond to a third phase of current. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The system of claim 8, further comprising, a controller including instructions that when executed, cause the controller to: during operation of the electric motor being within a first region of an efficiency map, operate the electric motor with the third rotor section mechanically coupled to each of the first rotor section and the second rotor section by maintaining each of the first clutch and the second clutch coupled, and with the third stator section electrically coupled to each of the first stator section and the second stator section by maintaining each of the fifth switch and the sixth switch closed and all other switches open, the first region of the efficiency map calibrated as a first function of torque and speed of the electric motor. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The system of claim 9, wherein the controller includes further instructions to: during operation of the electric motor being within a second region of the efficiency map, mechanically decouple the third rotor section from each of the first rotor section and the second rotor section by decoupling the second clutch, and electrically decouple the third stator section from each of the first stator section and the second stator section by closing each of the third switch and the fourth switch and opening all other switches, the second region of the efficiency map of calibrated as a second function of torque and speed of the electric motor. ### Claim 11 (depends on 9) The system of claim 9, wherein the controller includes further instructions to: during operation of the electric motor being within a third region of the efficiency map, mechanically decouple each of the third rotor section and the second rotor section from the first rotor section by decoupling the first clutch, and electrically decouple each of the third stator section and the second stator section from the first stator section by closing each of the first switch and the second switch and opening all other switches, the third region of the efficiency map calibrated as a third function of torque and speed of the electric motor. ### Claim 12 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. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, wherein the first condition is operation of the electric motor being within a first region of an efficiency map, and wherein the second condition is operation of the electric motor within a second region of the efficiency map, the first region of the efficiency map calibrated as a first function of torque and speed of the electric motor, and the second region of the efficiency map calibrated as a second function of torque and speed of the electric motor. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The method of claim 13, wherein operating the electric motor with at least one rotor section of the plurality of rotor sections mechanically decoupled via the clutch includes opening a second clutch to disconnect a third rotor section of the plurality of rotor sections from a second rotor section of the plurality of rotor sections while maintaining a first clutch joining the second rotor section to a first rotor section of the plurality of rotor sections engaged. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The method of claim 14, wherein operating the electric motor with 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 includes opening a third set of switches to decouple a plurality of windings of a third stator section of the plurality of stator sections while closing a second set of switches coupling a plurality of windings of a second stator section of the plurality of stator sections. ### Claim 16 (depends on 15) The method of claim 15, further comprising, in response to operation of the electric motor within a third region of the efficiency map, mechanically decoupling each of the second rotor section and the third rotor section from the first rotor section by opening the first clutch, and electrically decoupling each of the second stator section and the third stator section from a first stator section of the plurality of stator sections by opening the second set of switches and closing a first set of switches coupling a plurality of windings of the first stator section, the third region of the efficiency map calibrated as a third function of torque and speed of the electric motor. ### Claim 17 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. ### Claim 18 (depends on 17) The method of claim 17, wherein operating the electric motor with each section of the two or more sections active includes maintaining each of a first rotor section, a second rotor section, and a third rotor section mechanically coupled to each other via a first clutch and a second clutch, and maintaining each of a first stator section, a second stator section, and a third stator section electrically coupled to each other via electrical connections. ### Claim 19 (depends on 18) The method of claim 18, wherein operating the electric motor with the at least one section inactive includes decoupling the second clutch while maintaining the first clutch engaged to mechanically decouple the third rotor section from each of the first rotor section and the second rotor section, and opening each of a third set of switches and a first set of switches while closing a second set of switches to electrically decouple the third stator section from each of the first stator section and the second stator section. ### Claim 20 (depends on 19) The method of claim 19, wherein the first stator section and the first rotor section are coaxial with an output shaft, the first stator section enclosing the first rotor section; wherein the second stator section and the second rotor section are coaxial with the output shaft, the second stator section enclosing the second rotor section; and wherein the third stator section and the third rotor section are coaxial with the output shaft, the third stator section enclosing the third rotor section, each of the first rotor section, the second rotor section, the third rotor section, the first stator section, the second stator section, and the third stator section enclosed within a shared housing.