Unified pump and generator arrangement

Abstract

A combined pump and generator arrangement for use in a vehicle having an engine as the prime mover is disclosed and includes a pump housing with an axially extending actuating shaft and a rotatable member to be driven by the engine to rotate about that actuating shaft with the rotatable member including a fan and a pulley as well as a magnetic arrangement for providing a rotating magnetic field when the rotatable member is driven by the engine. An annular stator assembly is fastened to a face of the pump housing and has windings for providing a voltage in response to the rotating magnetic field. The actuating shaft and annular stator assembly are concentrically disposed with the stator assembly lying intermediate the actuating shaft and the magnetic arrangement of the rotor. The pulley, stator and magnetic arrangement and the fan are supported progressively more remote from the pump housing face. In one preferred form the pump is a vehicle engine coolant pump with the pulley comprising a rim portion of a hub member which is concave in the direction toward the pump with a portion of the pump extending beyond the rim and into the hub concavity so that the forces exerted on the pump bearing by the belt driving the pulley lie generally in a plane including the pulley drive belt with pump bearings extending to either side of that plane. This allows the pump bearings to also function as the generator bearings without unduly shortening bearing life. In assembly, the pump is affixed to the engine and the alternator stator affixed to the pump face and thereafter the pump drive pulley is passed through the stator and attached to the pump actuating shaft. The generator rotor is supported for rotation with the pulley so that a portion of the rotor spans the stator, and the pulley lies intermediate the stator and the pump.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.