1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a DC brush motor which includes a brush and a coil.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a DC (direct current) brush motor concerning the conventional technique, a coil is arranged in a slot of an inner rotor, and an outer stator, which has permanent magnets, is arranged outside the inner rotor while being separated by a predetermined distance from the inner rotor (see Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication Nos. 2003-169437 and 2003-230234). A commutator is provided on the surface of a shaft which serves as the central shaft of the inner rotor. The coil is electrically connected to the commutator. Brushes make contact with the surface of the commutator in order to supply the DC current to the coil from the outside.
In this case, when the DC current is allowed to flow to the commutator from the outside via the brushes, the DC current flows through the coil via the commutator. Torque is generated on the inner rotor in accordance with the action of the magnetic flux which is generated from the coil by the DC current and the magnetic flux which intersects the inner rotor from the permanent magnets. The inner rotor is rotated about the central axis of the shaft.
In the DC brush motor concerning the conventional technique, for example, when the DC brush motor is used in an environment of high temperature and high humidity, or the thrust force is to be obtained in a state in which the rotation of the shaft is stopped when the rotary driving force is transmitted to another apparatus via the shaft, then a large amount of heat is generated from the coil to heat the inner rotor as compared with an ordinary state of use. In such a situation, in the DC brush motor as described above, the heat, which is generated by the inner rotor, cannot be released outside efficiently due to the air gap existing between the inner rotor and the outer stator and the permanent magnets for the outer stator.
An object of the present invention is to provide a DC brush motor which makes it possible to efficiently release heat generated from a coil.
The above and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which a preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown by way of illustrative example.
A DC brush motor 10 shown in
The shaft 12 is composed of a conductive material. However, the shaft 12 may be composed of an unillustrated insulating material. Alternatively, the shaft 12 may be composed of an unillustrated conductive material coated with an insulating material.
As for the permanent magnets 14a, 14b, substantially circular arc-shaped magnetic members are magnetized into the N-pole and the S-pole respectively to form the permanent magnets, and they are arranged in cutout portions of the shaft 12. In this arrangement, parts of the shaft 12 may be magnetized into the N-pole and the S-pole in the radial direction respectively to form the permanent magnets 14a, 14b. Alternatively, a plurality of magnetic members, which correspond to the number of poles of the DC brush motor 10, may be magnetized into the N-pole or the S-pole respectively to construct the permanent magnets.
The outer stator 20 is constructed such that a plurality of carbon steel plates containing silicon (silicon steel plates having the shape as shown in
The first and second coils 26a, 26b are formed such that copper wires 40, each of which is coated with an insulating material and each of which has a round cross-sectional shape or a rectangular cross-sectional shape, are wound around the first and second teeth sections 38a, 38b respectively, and the entire wound copper wires 40 are molded with the resin 24 (see
As shown in
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the commutating section 28 includes commutator pieces 42 (first and second commutator pieces 42a, 42b) each of which is composed of a substantially circular arc-shaped conductive material, and slip rings 45 (first and second current-supplying rings 45a, 45b) each of which is composed of a substantially annular conductive material and which are fitted to the outer circumferential surface of the shaft 12.
In this arrangement, the first commutator piece 42a is electrically insulated from the second commutator piece 42b by two insulating sections 43. Both ends of the first and second commutator pieces 42a, 42b and the respective insulating sections 43 are arranged and fixed onto the surface of the shaft 12 by tightening rings 44, thereby constructing the commutator. The tightening rings 44, the first current-supplying ring 45a, and the second current-supplying ring 45b are electrically insulated from each other respectively by a plurality of annular insulating sections 47. Further, unillustrated two cutouts, which are separated from each other and which extend in the axial direction of the shaft 12, are formed on the inner circumferential surface of each of the rings 45a, 45b and on the inner circumferential surface of each of the insulating sections 47. Copper wires 49a, 49b (see
Accordingly, the substantially cylindrical commutating section 28 is constructed on the surface of the shaft 12.
The number of the first and second commutator pieces 42a, 42b is the same as the number of the first and second coils 26a, 26b. The first and second commutator pieces 42a, 42b are arranged at an interval of 180° with respect to the central axis of the shaft 12.
The motor housing 30 shown in
The first and second current-supplying brushes 34a, 34b and the first and second coil-connecting brushes 36a, 36b (see
The first and second coil-connecting brushes 36a, 36b are also connected to the first and second coils 26a, 26b respectively via pigtails 54. In this arrangement, the first and second coil-connecting brushes 36a, 36b are arranged at an interval of 180° with respect to the central axis of the shaft 12. The first and second coil-connecting brushes 36a, 36b make contact with the first and second commutator pieces 42a, 42b or the surface of the insulating section 43. Further, the spring 32 is a spring composed of an insulating material, or a spring coated with an insulating material.
In the DC brush motor 10, the openings at the both ends of the motor housing 30 are covered with lid members 56, 58 (see
The DC brush motor 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention may be constructed as shown in
The DC brush motor 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention is constructed as described above. Next, its operation, function, and effect will be explained.
An explanation will now be made about a situation as shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 in which the DC current is allowed to flow through the first and second coils 26a, 26b in a state in which the permanent magnet 14a is magnetized into the N-pole, and the permanent magnet 14b is magnetized into the S-pole. For the purpose of convenience, the following explanation will be made in which the permanent magnet 14a is referred to as the “N-pole magnet 14a”, and the permanent magnet 14b is referred to as the “S-pole magnet 14b”.
With reference to
The DC current, which flows to the first coil 26a, flows from the first coil 26a to the second coil 26b. The DC current flows via the second coil-connecting brush 36b to the second commutator piece 42b. Further, the DC current, which flows through the second commutator piece 42b, flows to the second current-supplying brush 34b via the copper wire 49b and the second current-supplying ring 45b. The DC current flows to the negative electrode of the DC power source 48 via the pigtail 52 and the connector 50.
The magnetic fluxes are generated from the first and second coils 26a, 26b by the DC current. The respective magnetic fluxes extend from the first and second teeth sections 38a, 38b (see
As the shaft 12 is rotated, the position of the N-pole magnet 14a is displaced to the left side of the shaft 12 shown in
In this situation, the first and second commutator pieces 42a, 42b make conduction via the first and second coil-connecting brushes 36a, 36b. Therefore, the first and second commutator pieces 42a, 42b are electrically in a state of short circuit with respect to the DC power source 48. Accordingly, the supply of the DC current from the DC power source 48 to the first and second coils 26a, 26b is stopped.
As the shaft 12 is further rotated, the position of the N-pole magnet 14a is displaced to the lower side of the shaft 12 as viewed in
In this case, the DC current, which flows from the positive electrode of the DC power source 48 via the connector 50 (see
Accordingly, the magnetic fluxes are generated from the first and second coils 26a, 26b. The magnetic fluxes extend from the first and second teeth sections 38a, 38b (see
The foregoing explanation has been made for the case in which the DC current is allowed to flow from the DC power source 48 to the commutating section 28 in the state in which the first and second coils 26a, 26b are allowed to make contact with the first and second coil-connecting brushes 36a, 36b (see
When the positions of the N-pole magnet 14a and the S-pole magnet 14b (see
The positions of contact of the first and second coil-connecting brushes 36a, 36b with the first and second commutator pieces 42a, 42b may be moved by pressurization of an unillustrated spring, pneumatic pressure, or hydraulic pressure, or gravity of the respective brushes 36a, 36b. By doing so, it is possible to avoid a short circuit state (see
Further, the DC brush motor 10 may be constructed as a motor of three or more poles by increasing the number of the coil-connecting brushes and the coils. By doing so, even when a short circuit state occurs between the two poles, the short circuit state is compensated by the DC current allowed to flow between the other two poles. Therefore, also in this case, it is possible to suppress temporal variation or fluctuation of the torque generated on the inner rotor 16.
Next, an explanation will be made with reference to FIGS. 8 to 10 about exemplary applications in which the DC brush motor 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention is incorporated into an electric clamp and electric actuators.
In this arrangement, when the ball screw 82 is rotated by the DC brush motor 10, then the rotary motion of the ball screw 82 is converted into the rectilinear motion by the ball screw bush 84, and the table blocks 86a, 86b make sliding movement in the direction of the arrow along a guide rail 88.
As described above, the DC brush motor 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention includes the first and second coils 26a, 26b which are arranged for the outer stator 20. Accordingly, the heat release area, which is available for the heat generated from the first and second coils 26a, 26b, can be increased as compared with the heat release area for the coil of any DC brush motor concerning the conventional technique. Therefore, when the DC current is allowed to flow from the DC power source 48 to the first and second coils 26a, 26b, the heat, which is generated from the first and second coils 26a, 26b, is transmitted to the resin 24 and the outer stator 20. Further, the heat can be efficiently released to the outside from the outer stator 20 via the motor housing 30.
In the case of the DC brush motor 10, when the heat, which is generated from the first and second coils 26a, 26b, is released to the outside, the heat can be released to the outside without passing through the air gap 18 and the permanent magnets 14a, 14b, because the heat release route does not include, for example, the air gap 18 and the permanent magnets 14a, 14b which inhibit the heat release. Therefore, the DC brush motor 10 does not include parts which inhibit heat release as compared with any DC brush motor concerning the conventional technique. It is therefore possible to efficiently release the heat in the present invention.
Further, the permanent magnets 14a, 14b are arranged in the inner rotor 16, and thus the inertial force of the inner rotor 16 is reduced. It is also easy to drive, for example, a cylinder, a clamp, and a gear by utilizing the rotary motion of the inner rotor 16. Therefore, the DC brush motor 10 can be used to quickly accelerate and/or decelerate the apparatus as described above.
When the inner rotor 16 performs the relative rotary motion with respect to the outer stator 20, the commutator pieces 42a, 42b of the commutating section 28 switch the first and second coil-connecting brushes 36a, 36b to which the DC current is allowed to flow, in response to the angle of rotation of the permanent magnets 14a, 14b. Therefore, even when the inner rotor 16 rotates, it is possible to suppress temporal variation or fluctuation of the torque generated on the inner rotor 16.
The outer stator 20 is composed of the stack of the carbon steel plates containing silicon. Therefore, the thermal conduction of the outer stator 20 is improved. The heat, which is generated from the first and second coils 26a, 26b, can be efficiently transmitted to the motor housing 30, and the heat can be released from the motor housing 30 to the outside.
The inertia of the shaft 12 is lowered by providing the permanent magnets 14a, 14b in the inner rotor 16. Accordingly, when the DC brush motor 10 is incorporated into the electric clamp 70 or the electric actuators 80, 81, the rotary driving force is transmitted to the moving element in the apparatus as described above via the shaft 12, while efficiently releasing the heat generated from the first and second coils 26a, 26b. Therefore, in the case of the DC brush motor 10 described above, the heat generation is suppressed inside. It is possible to obtain a desired thrust force in a state in which the rotation of the shaft 12 is stopped. Therefore, the thrust force can be used, for example, to rotate the clamp arm 78 shown in
It is a matter of course that the DC brush motor according to the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, which may be embodied in other various forms without deviating from the gist or essential characteristics of the present invention.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
2004-243235 | Aug 2004 | JP | national |