JP2005094882A - Power module - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To eliminate such a nonconformity that the surge voltage on the other side becomes large, to a PN terminal for high-voltage input connection being external connection provided at the end on one side of a PN bar by passing this PN bar as an internal power line between circuit parts, in a power module of such a constitution that power is supplied in parallel to a plurality of power module circuit parts, which output power to different power apparatuses, from one battery. <P>SOLUTION: At least one of the circuit parts 11a and 11b that a power module 10 has is provided with a snubber circuit 29 in parallel with a switching element arranged in a position farthest away from a power input part. That is, a terminal 25 for power input is provided at the end on one side of the PN bus bar 24 as an internal power line, and a terminal 26 for connection with the snubber circuit is provided at the end on the other side, and as the snubber circuit 29, it has a snubber capacitor 17 which is installed internally within the package 30 of the power module 10. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a structure of a power module.

  Conventionally, a plurality of power modules integrated as one power module in one case (hereinafter referred to as an integrated power module) has been proposed in order to reduce weight, size and cost. For example, in the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1, a DC-AC inverter module for driving a traveling motor for an electric vehicle as a first circuit and a DC-DC for charging an auxiliary battery for an electric vehicle as a second circuit. There has been proposed a converter module configured as one integrated power module.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a conventional integrated power module.
In the integrated power module 10A, the power module 11 composed of the first circuit and the power module 12 composed of the second circuit are integrated.
In this integrated power module 10A, the PN bus bar 24 as an internal power supply line for supplying high voltage power to the first circuit and the second circuit is shared. The PN bus bar 24 is disposed between the power modules 11 and 12 including the first circuit and the second circuit (in the center of the integrated power module 10A), and integrates the PN input terminal 26 for externally connected high voltage power input. One place is set at the end of the power module 10A. Thereby, size reduction of the integrated power module 10A and effective use of the upper space are achieved.

On the other hand, in general, a power semiconductor switching element such as an insulated gate bipolar transistor (hereinafter referred to as “IGBT”) absorbs a surge voltage generated when the switching element is turned on / off. In addition, a snubber circuit is provided.
Further, in the technique described in Patent Document 2, a snubber circuit provided for the purpose as described above is stored inside the package of the power module, and the environment resistance and the response of the snubber circuit are improved. It is planned.

JP-A-11-121690 JP 2002-95238 A

  However, in the integrated power module as described above, electricity is supplied to the first circuit and the second circuit through a common PN bus bar, but the PN terminal for connecting the high voltage input of the PN bus bar is connected. A large surge voltage is generated in the phase far from the PN terminal for high-voltage input connection as compared with the phase on the side where the current is applied. Therefore, it is necessary to suppress the output current in consideration of the surge voltage. As a result, the performance of the integrated power module is restricted, and there is a problem that vehicle fuel consumption is reduced due to loss. And the influence by this malfunction is increasing with the high voltage and high output of a power module.

In addition, the PN bus bar provided as the internal power line of the integrated power module has a structure in which the inductance is suppressed by running in parallel with each other in the state shown in FIG. It is necessary to separate each bus bar of the side bus bar and the N side bus bar by a certain distance. For this reason, the influence of the inductance of the PN bus bar is larger in the phase far from the high voltage input connection PN terminal than in the phase on the side where the high voltage input connection PN terminal is connected.
As the power module increases in voltage and output, a larger insulation distance between the P-side bus bar and the N-side bus bar is required, and the inductance increases accordingly, so that the influence of loss increases.

  The problems to be solved by the present invention are as described above. Next, means for solving the problems will be described.

  That is, according to the first aspect of the present invention, a plurality of circuit units that are fed in parallel from a battery and output to different power devices are provided, and power is supplied to these circuit units from one internal power supply line. And a snubber circuit connected in parallel with each other, wherein the snubber circuit is arranged at a position farthest from the power input unit in at least one of the plurality of circuit units.

  In claim 2, a power input connection terminal from the battery is provided on one side of the internal power line, a snubber circuit connection terminal is provided on the other side, and a snubber circuit is connected to the snubber circuit connection terminal. is there.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, the snubber circuit includes a snubber capacitor, and the snubber capacitor is disposed in a package of the power module.

  As effects of the present invention, the following effects can be obtained.

  According to the first aspect, the surge voltage caused by the inductance of the internal power supply line can be absorbed and suppressed, and the performance of the element can be effectively utilized.

  According to the second aspect, the surge voltage caused by the inductance of the internal power supply line can be absorbed and suppressed, and the performance of the element can be effectively utilized.

  In claim 3, by integrating the snubber capacitor with the member constituting the package, the cost can be reduced and the size can be reduced, and the snubber capacitor can be operated as a single unit with the integrated power module assembly so that the maximum output operation can be performed. Restrictions can be removed.

Next, embodiments of the invention will be described.
FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram of an integrated power module according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a schematic configuration of the integrated power module, and FIG. 3 is a side view showing a schematic configuration of the integrated power module. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of the integrated power module. FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the schematic configuration of the integrated power module, and FIG. 6 is a side view showing another embodiment of the schematic configuration of the integrated power module.

First, the configuration of the integrated power module according to the present invention will be described.
Here, “integrated power module” means that a plurality of power modules are integrated as one package.
In this embodiment, the integrated power module includes two sets of power modules, that is, a power module composed of a first circuit and a power module composed of a second circuit. However, the integrated power module of the present invention is not limited to the present embodiment, and three or more sets of power modules can be configured.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the integrated power module 10 according to this embodiment includes a first power module 11 including a first circuit 11a and a second power module 12 including a second circuit 12a. ing.

In an electric vehicle, a hybrid system vehicle, and the like, power is supplied from a high-voltage battery, the battery output is converted into AC power by an inverter circuit or the like, and power is supplied to a driving motor.
In the present embodiment, the integrated power module 10 is a two-motor power circuit used in, for example, an electric vehicle or a hybrid system vehicle, and the first power module 11 and the second power module 12 run respectively. It is a DC-AC inverter module for driving a motor, and the first power module 11 and the second power module 12 have substantially the same configuration.

  In the present embodiment, the configurations of the first circuit 11a and the second circuit 12a are substantially the same, so the configuration of the first circuit 11a will be described and the description of the structure of the second circuit 12a will be omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the battery 15 supplies power to the first power module 11 and the second power module 12, respectively. The first power module 11 supplies power to the first motor 13, and the second power module 12 is connected to the second power module 12. Power is supplied to the motor 14. Both the first motor 13 and the second motor 14 are three-phase AC motors.

The first circuit 11a constituting the first power module 11 is an inverter circuit, and the output of the high voltage battery 15 is input to the first power module 11 from the P terminal 22 and the N terminal 23, and the first power module 11 A three-phase alternating current composed of a U-phase, a V-phase, and a W-phase is output to the first motor 13 from the output terminals of the U terminal 18, the V terminal 18, and the W terminal 18. The torque and rotation speed of the first motor 13 are controlled by the inverter circuit that is the first circuit 11a.
Note that the inverter circuit includes a capacitor module 16 and functions as a temporary battery that suppresses transient voltage fluctuations in the operation of the inverter module that is the first power module 11. In the present embodiment, the capacitor module 16 is shared by the first circuit 11a and the second circuit 12a.

  The first circuit 11a is a three-phase bridge type circuit, and an output circuit for supplying current to the output terminals 18, 18 and 18 of the U terminal 18, V terminal 18 and W terminal 18 is provided for each phase. Yes. The output circuit of each phase includes an insulated gate type bipolar transistor (hereinafter referred to as “IGBT19”) which is a power semiconductor switching element, a device withstand voltage protection from a flyback voltage applied to the IGBT19, and a regenerative operation. Two diode elements 20 arranged in parallel for current path generation are arranged in series.

  In the inverter module, by switching the IGBT 19, the single-phase currents of the U-phase, V-phase, and W-phase are output from the U terminal 18, V terminal 18, and W terminal 18 with a phase difference and converted into a three-phase AC current. Is done. The timing of the switching operation of the IGBT 19 is calculated and calculated by an external control unit (ECU) (not shown), and is input / instructed as a gate input signal of the IGBT 19 from the gate terminal 21.

The first circuit 11a including the first power module 11 configured as described above and the second circuit 12a including the second power module 12 are connected in parallel. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the first power module 11 and the second power module 12 are arranged side by side in the package 30 of the integrated power module 10, and a PN bus bar 24 serving as an internal power supply line is disposed between them. Is arranged. The PN bus bar 24 is a structure in which a P-side bus bar and an N-side bus bar are run side by side in a vertically overlapping state, and has a structure that suppresses inductance.
The PN bus bar 24 is provided with PN input terminals 26 and 26 to which power is input from the high voltage battery 15 at one end, and the PN bus bar 24 includes a first circuit 11a and a second circuit 12a, respectively. It is connected. That is, power is supplied from the high voltage battery 15 to both the first power module 11 and the second power module 12 via the PN bus bar 24.
Metal bus bars 35 and 35 are connected to the PN input terminals 26 and 26, and a bus bar 37 for inputting high-voltage power from the battery 15 is connected to the bus bars 35 and 35. Electric power is input to the PN input terminal 26 via 37 and the bus bar 35.

Then, in at least one of the first circuit 11a and the second circuit 12a, the snubber circuit 29 is connected to the phase output circuit disposed at the farthest position from the input terminals of the P terminal 22 and the N terminal 23. Are connected in parallel. That is, the snubber circuit 29 connected in parallel between the main terminals of the power semiconductor switching element is disposed at a position farthest from the P terminal 22 and the N terminal 23 serving as a power input unit.
In this embodiment, the snubber circuit 29 is connected to both the first circuit 11a and the second circuit 12a. The power module 11 and the power module 12 are parallel circuits, and the PN bus bar 24 is shared by the power module 11 and the power module 12. For this reason, the snubber circuit 29 is connected to both of these power modules 11 and 12, and the effect of one snubber capacitor 17 provided in one snubber circuit 29 in both power modules 11 and 12 is obtained. Can do.
The snubber circuit 29 can also be provided in both the first power module 11 and the second power module 12.

The snubber circuit 29 is provided with a snubber capacitor 17. However, the snubber circuit 29 may be a circuit composed of a combination of a snubber capacitor and a diode.
By charging and discharging the snubber capacitor 17, the surge voltage generated when the IGBT 19, which is a power semiconductor switching element, is turned on / off due to the wiring inductance of the PN bus bar 24 can be absorbed and suppressed.
As a result, the surge voltage of the integrated power module 10 is absorbed, and the performance of the power element included in the integrated power module 10 is maximized to improve the acceleration of the vehicle and improve the fuel efficiency of the vehicle by reducing the loss. Can be achieved.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the integrated power module 10 is configured in a package 30, and the outer shape of the package 30 is formed by a case 31 that forms the bottom and a cover 32 that forms the top. A PN bus bar 24 is inserted into the case 31, and a control board 33 on which circuit elements and the like are mounted is disposed in a space formed by the case 31 and the cover 32.
A PN input terminal 26 is provided at one end of the PN bus bar 24, and a snubber capacitor connection terminal 27 is provided at the other end. A snubber capacitor 17 is connected to the snubber capacitor connection terminal 27.
As described above, the snubber capacitor 17 is arranged at a position farthest from the PN input terminal 26 constituting the power input unit.
In order to connect the snubber capacitor connection terminal 27 and the snubber capacitor 17, metal bus bars 36 and 36 may be used as shown in FIG. 4 according to the shape of the package 30 and the arrangement of the snubber capacitor 17. As shown, lead wires can be used.

The snubber capacitor 17 is integrally provided inside the cover 32, that is, the snubber capacitor 17 is built in the package 30.
By integrating the snubber capacitor 17 into the cover 32, the cost can be reduced and the size can be reduced, and by making the snubber capacitor 17 an integrated power module assembly, the integrated power module 10 alone can perform maximum output operation.
Further, since the addition of the snubber capacitor 17 does not affect the structure in the package 30 of the integrated power module 10, it can be handled without changing the size of the integrated power module 10.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the composite module 34 in which the snubber capacitor 17 and the capacitor module 16 are integrally formed can be connected to the PN input terminal 26 and the snubber capacitor connection terminal 27.

  The type of power module provided in the integrated power module 10 is not limited to the present embodiment. For example, the first power module 11 is a DC-DC converter module and supplies a medium voltage power supply to an auxiliary battery, and the second power module 12 is an AC-AC inverter module and supplies a three-phase AC motor. It can also be. As described above, the types and configurations of the power modules included in the integrated power module 10 are not limited to the present embodiment, and various power modules can be employed depending on the application.

The circuit diagram of the integrated power module which concerns on the Example of this invention. The top view which shows schematic structure of an integrated power module. The side view which shows schematic structure of an integrated power module. The perspective view which shows schematic structure of an integrated power module. The perspective view which shows another form of schematic structure of an integrated power module. The side view which shows another form of schematic structure of an integrated power module. The figure which shows schematic structure of the conventional integrated power module.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Integrated power module 11 1st power module 11a 1st circuit 12 2nd power module 12a 2nd circuit 15 Battery 17 Snubber capacitor 24 PN bus bar 29 Snubber circuit 30 Package

Claims (3)

A snubber circuit comprising a plurality of circuit units that are fed in parallel from a battery and output to different power devices, supplying power from one internal power supply line to these circuit units, and connected in parallel to the switching elements of the circuit unit A power module comprising:
In at least one of the plurality of circuit units,
A power module, wherein a snubber circuit is arranged at a position farthest from the power input unit.   2. The power according to claim 1, wherein a connection terminal for inputting power from a battery is provided on one side of the internal power supply line, a connection terminal for snubber circuit is provided on the other side, and a snubber circuit is connected to the connection terminal for snubber circuit. module. The power module according to claim 1, wherein the snubber circuit includes a snubber capacitor, and the snubber capacitor is disposed in a package of the power module.

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