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Electric compressor

Electric compressor description/claims

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an electric compressor, and more particularly, to an inverter for driving an electric motor.

2. Description of the Related Art

Electric compressors having a compression mechanism portion equipped with an electric motor for driving the compression mechanism portion, and also with an inverter for controlling and driving the electric motor are known. In this kind of electric compressor, the inverter is accommodated and fixed in an inverter accommodation chamber. In some cases, this kind of electric compressor is constructed so that respective members of the inverter are irremovably fixed in position. For example, JP 2004-197688 A discloses such an electric compressor.

However, in the inverter of such a conventional electric compressor as disclosed in JP 2004-197688 A, there is a problem in that efficiency of cooling electronic components included in the inverter, especially the switching elements is relatively low.

Therefore, temperature protection is required and hence constructional complication is caused when, for example, switching elements with low heatresisting temperatures are used. Alternatively, high cost and constructional enlargement are caused when switching elements with high heatresisting temperatures are used.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problem, and it is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an electric compressor that can enhance the efficiency of cooling electronic components of an inverter assembly.

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, according to the present invention, there is provided an electric compressor including: a compression mechanism portion for sucking in fluid from a suction pressure region; an electric motor for driving the compression mechanism portion; a motor chamber provided in the suction pressure region, for accommodating the electric motor; an inverter assembly for converting a direct current into a polyphase alternating current to supply the converted current to the electric motor and for controlling rotational frequency of the electric motor; and an inverter accommodation chamber for accommodating the inverter assembly, wherein the inverter assembly is provided with a substrate having an electric circuit, electronic components connected to the substrate, and a base for supporting the substrate, the inverter assembly removably fixed in the inverter accommodation chamber, the motor chamber and the inverter accommodation chamber are adjacent to each other with a housing therebetween, the housing having formed therethrough a through-hole extending from the motor chamber toward the inverter accommodation chamber, the through-hole being in contact at one end thereof with the base, with the motor chamber and the inverter accommodation chamber being sealed from each other around the through-hole.

With this electric compressor, a cooling medium in the motor chamber located in the suction pressure region, namely on a low-temperature side, flows into the through-hole, passes through the housing, and comes into contact with the base. Thus, the base is directly cooled around the through-hole. The base functions as a heat transfer plate, and further cools the electronic components.

The electronic components include a switching element, and the through-hole may be provided in the vicinity of the switching element.

By adopting this construction, the switching element can be cooled more efficiently. The switching element tends to reach a higher temperature than the other elements constituting the electronic components. Therefore, when the switching element can thus be cooled in a pinpoint manner, the electronic components can be cooled as a whole more efficiently.

The inverter assembly may further be equipped with the base for supporting the substrate, and the base may be in contact with one end of the through-hole.

By adopting this construction, the base serving as the heat transfer plate can also be utilized as a constructional element for sealing the motor chamber and the inverter accommodation chamber from each other. As a result, constructional simplification is achieved.

According to the present invention, the cooling medium in the suction pressure region flows through a cooling hole and comes into contact with the heat transfer plate of the inverter assembly, thereby cooling the heat transfer plate directly. Therefore, the efficiency of cooling the electronic components of the inverter assembly can be enhanced.

In the accompanying drawings:

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a construction of an electric compressor according to a first embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a construction of an inverter assembly included in the electric compressor of FIG. 1 and the periphery thereof.

• Provisional Patent
• Utility Patent

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