EP-4736294-A1 - AXIAL FLUX SWITCHED RELUCTANCE MOTOR AND GENERATOR, AND RELATED SYSTEMS AND METHODS

Abstract

An axial flux switched reluctance motor and/or generator, and controls are provided, it includes a stator, which includes a front surface and a rear surface, ano sidewalls that extend from the front surface to the rear surface The stator includes salient stator poses positioned on the front surface. Each one of the salient stator poses including: a bobbin protruding out from the front surface in a direction along an axis of the bobbin that is perpendicular to the front surface; the bobbin comprising a bobbin front surface that is substantially parallel to the front surface of the stator; and a coil of electrically insulated wire wound around the bobbin. A rotor includes a front rotor surface and an opposite facing rear rotor surface, and further includes a plurality of rotor poles. The rotor is affixed to a shaft and rotates about an axis of rotation that is aligned with the shaft.

Inventors

• Bartlett, Scott
• PENA, MARTIN
• PAGE, CARL

Assignees

• Anthropocene Institute LLC

Dates

Publication Date

20260506

Application Date

20231222

Claims (1)

1. Attorney Docket: 0007287.000003 What is claimed is: 1. An axial flux switched reluctance motor, comprising a stator comprising a front surface and an opposite facing rear surface, and a plurality of sidewalls that extend from the front surface to the rear surface; the stator further comprising a plurality of salient stator poles positioned on the front surface, each one of the plurality of salient stator poles comprising: a bobbin protruding out from the front surface in a direction along an axis of the bobbin that is perpendicular to the front surface; the bobbin comprising a bobbin front surface that is substantially parallel to the front surface of the stator; a coil of electrically insulated wire wound around the bobbin; a rotor comprising a front rotor surface and an opposite facing rear rotor surface, and further comprising a plurality of rotor poles; the rotor affixed to a shaft and configured to rotate about an axis of rotation that is aligned with the shaft; wherein the rear rotor surface of each of the plurality of rotor poles is spaced apart from the bobbin front surface of each of the plurality of salient stator poles, to facilitate the rear rotor surface to rotate over the bobbin front surface and for magnetic flux to flow between the bobbin front surface of each of the plurality of salient stator poles and the rear rotor surface of each of the plurality of rotor poles. 2. The axial flux switched reluctance motor of claim 1, wherein the coil defines a plane that is substantially perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the rotor. 3. The axial flux switched reluctance motor of claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the axis of the bobbin is parallel to the axis of rotation of the rotor. 4. The axial flux switched reluctance motor of any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein each of the plurality of salient stator poles comprises a stator protrusion extending radially from a center of the stator, the stator protrusion coplanar with the front surface and the rear surface of the stator, and a given sidewall adjoins each two neighboring stator protrusions. 5. The axial flux switched reluctance motor of claim 4, wherein the given sidewall is a continuously concave curve that curves towards the center of the stator between the each two neighboring stator protrusions. IM-#10241369.1 Attorney Docket: 0007287.000003 6. The axial flux switched reluctance motor of any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the stator comprises six salient stator poles and four rotor poles; the axial flux switched reluctance motor is configured to operate as a three-phase type; and each phase comprises electrically energizing a pair of diametrically positioned salient stator poles. 7. The axial flux switched reluctance motor of any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the stator comprises more than six salient stator poles and more than four rotor poles. 8. The axial flux switched reluctance motor of any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein a magnetic flux path comprises: traveling along the axis of a first bobbin of a first stator pole, which is substantially parallel to the axis of rotation of the rotor; traveling across the bobbin front surface of the first bobbin to the rear surface of a first rotor pole; traveling along the rotor to a second rotor pole that is oppositely positioned from the first rotor pole; traveling across the rear surface of the second rotor pole to the bobbin front surface of a second bobbin and along the axis of the second bobbin, which is substantially parallel to the axis of rotation of the rotor, and wherein the second bobbin is of a second stator pole that is oppositely positioned from the first stator pole; and traveling along the stator towards the first bobbin to complete a loop. 9. The axial flux switched reluctance motor of claim 8, wherein the coil around the first bobbin and the coil around the second bobbin are both simultaneously electrically energized; a first current direction is clockwise or counterclockwise and is substantially normal to the axis of rotation; and a second current direction is opposite to the first current direction and substantially normal to the axis of rotation. 10. The axial flux switched reluctance motor of any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the bobbin has an obround profile shape with a major dimension and a minor dimension, and the major dimension extends radially from the center of the stator. 11. The axial flux switched reluctance motor of any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the bobbin has an elliptical profile shape. 12. The axial flux switched reluctance motor of any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the stator and the rotor each do not include a rare earth magnet. 13. The axial flux switched reluctance motor of any one of claims 1 to 12, further comprising a second stator with the same configuration as the stator. 14. The axial flux switched reluctance motor of claim 13, wherein the rotor is positioned between the stator and the second stator, and a plurality of stator poles on the second stator face are aligned with and face towards the plurality of stator poles on the stator, and the shaft passes through a center of the second stator. IM-#10241369.1 Attorney Docket: 0007287.000003 15. The axial flux switched reluctance motor of any one of claims 1 to 12, further comprising a second stator and a second rotor, and the shaft passes through a center of the second stator and a center of the second rotor, wherein the second stator has a same configuration as the stator and the second rotor has a same configuration as the rotor.. 16. The axial flux switched reluctance motor of claim 15, wherein the rotor and the second rotor are arranged in an out-runner configuration. 17. The axial flux switched reluctance motor of claim 15, wherein a rear surface of the second stator faces the rear surface of the stator, and a front surface of the second stator faces the second rotor. 18. The axial flux switched reluctance motor of any one of claims 1 to 17, further comprising a control circuit configured to control electrically energizing one or more coils in the stator, and, for each phase of the axial flux switched reluctance motor, the control circuit comprising: two semiconductor power switches control current flow into the given phase and two freewheeling diodes to allow back-EMF to return to a power supply or a bypass capacitor, or both 19. The axial flux switched reluctance motor of any one of claims 1 to 18 configured to operate as a motor-generator to additionally generate electrical power by when the rotor shaft is attached to a prime mover. 20. A control circuit for the axial flux switched reluctance motor of any one of claims 1 to 19, comprising: a pulsed timing and trigger control circuit that comprises a plurality of transformers electrically respectively connected to the plurality of phases of the axial flux switched reluctance motor; and a plurality of electrical switches connected to the plurality of transformers to pulse electrical power to the axial flux switched reluctance motor; and a processor to control the electrical switches. 21. The control circuit of claim 20, further comprising a plurality of position sensors for respectively monitoring the plurality of phases, and the plurality of position sensors are electrically connected to the processor. 22. A control circuit for the axial flux switched reluctance motor of any one of claims 1 to 19, comprising: a pulsed timing and trigger control circuit that comprises a plurality of capacitors respectively electrically connected to the plurality of phases of the axial flux switched reluctance motor; and a plurality of electrical switches connected to the plurality of IM-#10241369.1 Attorney Docket: 0007287.000003 capacitors to pulse electrical power to the axial flux switched reluctance motor; and a processor to control the electrical switches. 23. The control circuit of claim 22, further comprising a plurality of position sensors for respectively monitoring the plurality of phases, and the plurality of position sensors are electrically connected to the processor. 24. An axial flux switched reluctance generator, comprising: a stator comprising a front surface and an opposite facing rear surface, and a plurality of sidewalls that extend from the front surface to the rear surface; the stator further comprising a plurality of salient stator poles positioned on the front surface, each one of the plurality of salient stator poles comprising: a bobbin protruding out from the front surface in a direction along an axis of the bobbin that is perpendicular to the front surface; the bobbin comprising a bobbin front surface that is substantially parallel to the front surface of the stator; a coil of electrically insulated wire wound around the bobbin; a rotor comprising a front rotor surface and an opposite facing rear rotor surface, and further comprising a plurality of rotor poles; the rotor affixed to a shaft and configured to rotate about an axis of rotation that is aligned with the shaft; wherein the rear rotor surface of each of the plurality of rotor poles is spaced apart from the bobbin front surface of each of the plurality of salient stator poles, to facilitate the rear rotor surface to rotate over the bobbin front surface. 25. The axial flux switched reluctance generator of claim 24, wherein the coil defines a plane that is substantially perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the rotor. IM-#10241369.1

Description

Attorney Docket: 0007287.000003 AXIAL FLUX SWITCHED RELUCTANCE MOTOR AND GENERATOR, AND RELATED SYSTEMS AND METHODS CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This application claims priority to United States Patent Application No. 18/395,060, filed on December 22, 2023 and titled “Axial Flux Switched Reluctance Motor And Generator, And Related Systems And Methods”, which is a continuation- in-part of United States Patent Application No.18,214,771, filed on June 27, 2023 and titled “Axial Flux Switched Reluctance And Inductance State Machine Systems, Devices, And Methods”, the entire contents both of which are incorporated herein by reference. [0002] United States Patent Application No.18,214,771, filed on June 27, 2023 and titled “Axial Flux Switched Reluctance And Inductance State Machine Systems, Devices, And Methods” claims priority to and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63/355,864, filed on June 27, 2022, and titled “Axial Flux Switched Reluctance Motor Systems and Methods,” the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. TECHNICAL FIELD [0003] The disclosed exemplary embodiments relate to axial flux switched reluctance electric motors or generators, or both. BACKGROUND [0004] Numerous types of electric motors and generators are currently available for use in many commercial applications including electric vehicles (EVs), blowers, tools, pumps, fans, mixers, food processors, and power generators, among other applications. Motors typically include a stator that is fixed and rotor that rotates in relation to the stator. The rotor is connected to a drive shaft that drives operations associated with particular applications. [0005] In direct current (DC) motors, a DC current is applied to windings of the rotor to generate an electromagnetic (EM) field. While the rotor is rotated, the current applied to the rotor is commutated via mechanical brushes or via electronic control in a brushless configuration. The stator of a DC motor typically includes magnets that provide magnetic fields that interact with the EM field generated by the rotor to affect IM-#10241369.1 Attorney Docket: 0007287.000003 rotation of the rotor. The stator magnets are typically made of rare Earth metals, such as neodymium and dysprosium that provide a high-density magnetic fields to facilitate relatively high torque for a DC motor. [0006] In alternating current (AC) motors, such as induction motors and reluctance motors, an alternating current (AC) or sinusoidal signal is applied to the stator to generate a rotating EM field that drives rotation of an adjacent rotor. A three-phase induction motor typically has a stator with three pole pairs (i.e., six stator poles), where each pole pair includes series-connected windings that carry one of the three phases of an electrical voltage and current applied to the stator of the induction motor. Each phase of the current is offset by 120 degrees while each corresponding pole pair is physically offset by 120 degrees from each other. This physical and electrical configuration provides a rotating EM field that interacts with the rotor to drive rotation of the rotor assembly. The rotor may have a squirrel-cage configuration that enables current flow along the conduits of the squirrel-cage, resulting in the generation of an EM field that interacts with the EM field generated by the stator to, thereby, facilitate rotation of the rotor. The speed of rotation of the rotor may be controlled using various techniques such as varying the frequency of the current applied to each phase winding or varying the voltage, among other techniques. [0007] A single-phase induction motor can be referred to as a reluctance motor. Rotation of a reluctance motor is based on the principle that rotor and stator poles will move to a position where the lines of an EM field have the lower or lowest reluctance (i.e., lower EM field resistance). A single-phase reluctance motor is not self-starting and therefore uses a secondary phase at startup to create a rotating EM field until a set speed of rotation is reached where a centrifugal switch removes the secondary phase windings from the circuit. A capacitor may be used in the secondary windings to affect a phase shift of the secondary windings to enable a rotating field during initial startup. Another type of reluctance motor is a three-phase switched reluctance motor (SRM). A SRM is self-starting because it includes three phases that are offset by 120 degrees electronically and three pole pairs that provide a physical 120 degrees offset from each other to facilitate rotation of a rotor assembly subject to the EM field generated by the stator assembly. A SRM uses an electronic controller that controls excitation of each of the phase windings to generate a rotating EM field. IM-#10241369.1 Attorney Docket: 0007287.000003 [0008] Existing DC motors or generators for EVs or other applications typically use rare Earth metals that can