Cooling of discoidal dynamoelectric machines

Abstract

An axial gap, disc type, dynamoelectric machine has a stator housing, field pole structures located inside the housing at angularly spaced intervals, and a discoidal rotor. The field pole structures alternate with interpolar spaces. Fluid directing means are provided for inducing vortical fluid flow enhances heat transfer from the rotor to the housing. This invention relates to means for improving the cooling of axial gap, disc-type dynamoelectric machines, and in particular to means for inducing vortical flow of the cooling fluid in the interpolar spaces. Dynamoelectric machines of the general character suitable for embodiment of this invention are of the axial gap, disc-type such as, for example, the machine described in the applicant's United States application Ser. No. 534,058 filed Dec. 26, 1974, Eric Whiteley. This particular machine has a stator housing, a plurality of field pole structures located inside the housing at angularly spaced intervals so as to define an interpolar space between every adjacent pair of pole structures, and a rotor consisting essentially of a winding laid out in a flat pattern and having its conductors bonded together by means of a resinous material. The resin bonded winding is a unitary structure in the configuration of an annular disc located between an inner and an outer ring. The disc is a flat and relative thin member which contains the sides of the coils and is located between the pole faces of the pole structures spaced axially therefrom; the rings are usually somewhat thicker because they contain the coil end-heads and connections. The object of the invention is to improve the cooling of this type of machine through the flow of the cooling fluid in the machine. An axial gap, disc-type, dynamoelectric machine has a stator housing, a plurality of field pole structures located inside the housing at angularly spaced intervals so as to define interpolar spaces, and a discoidal rotor supported for rotation in axialy spaced relation to the pole faces of the pole structures. According to the invention fluid directing means are provided for inducing vortical flow of the cooling fluid in the interpolar spaces. Vortical fluid flow enhances the transfer of heat from the rotor to the housing.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.