Heatsink design with thermal insulator to reduce encoder temperature
AssigneeRockwell Automation Technologies, Inc.
InventorsSimin Jiang, Steven Herrmann, Gregory J. Gozola
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An electric motor assembly including a housing, an electric motor supported in a motor compartment of the housing, an encoder operatively coupled to the electric motor and supported in an encoder compartment of the housing, and a heat sink surrounding at least a portion of the encoder, the heat sink in thermal contact with an end cap of the housing at least partially defining the encoder compartment, whereby the heat sink is adapted to absorb heat from the encoder and conduct heat to the end cap.
Claims17
An electric motor assembly comprising:
- a housing;
- an electric motor supported in a motor compartment of the housing;
- an encoder operatively coupled to the electric motor and supported in an encoder compartment of the housing;
- a thermal insulator between the motor compartment and the encoder compartment for thermally isolating the motor compartment from the encoder compartment, and
- a heat sink supported in the encoder compartment and surrounding at least a portion of the encoder, the heat sink in thermal contact with an end cap of the housing at least partially defining the encoder compartment, whereby the heat sink is adapted to absorb heat from the encoder and conduct heat to the end cap;
- wherein the heat sink is annular and includes a cylindrical central cavity extending between axial end faces of the heat sink, the encoder at least partially received in the central cavity.
An end cap assembly for an electric motor assembly comprising:
- an end cap housing having an encoder compartment;
- a heat sink mounted to the end cap housing;
- wherein the heat sink includes a cylindrical central cavity extending between and opening to opposite axial end faces of the heat sink for receiving an encoder of the electric motor assembly, the heat sink being in thermal contact with the end cap housing whereby when the end cap assembly is attached to an electric motor, the heat sink is adapted to absorb heat from the encoder and conduct heat to the end cap housing.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.