High current inductor and method for making same
AssigneeGeneral Electric Company
InventorsMichael Joseph Schutten, Robert Louis Steigerwald, William George Earls
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A high current inductor is constructed using two single-sided or double-sided printed circuit boards having patterned copper traces thereon, a magnetic toroidal core, and multiple interconnecting wires extending between the boards. Multiple turns for the inductor are created by suitably configuring the copper traces on the printed circuit boards. Vias are employed on each circuit board for electrically interconnecting the boards to each other. Multiple thick, solid-gauge wires are situated in the vias in order to provide a very large copper area, thus providing high current carrying capability.
Claims8
A high current inductor (10), comprising:
- upper and lower printed circuit boards (12 and 14), each of said circuit boards comprising:
- a generally planar substrate having an array of vias formed therethrough;
- an annular array of generally wedge-shaped conductive metal traces patterned on said substrate, said traces being separated by generally radially extending spaces, said traces having an array of vias formed therethrough corresponding to said vias of said substrate;
- and
- an external connector portion (16 and 18) disposed thereon for making external electrical connections;
- a toroidal magnetic core (30) situated between the upper and lower circuit boards;
- and
- an annular array of wires (22, 34) extending between the circuit boards and surrounding the toroidal magnetic core, wherein opposite ends of said wires are received in said vias in said upper and lower printed circuit boards.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.