Hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) have both an internal combustion engine and an electric motor which can alternately or in combination be used to propel the vehicle. A variety of different drive trains are used in hybrid vehicles. The present application relates to a parallel configuration in which the engine is connected to the motor by a disconnect clutch with the motor driving the torque converter input of an automatic hydraulic transmission. The hydraulic transmission has an output which is connected to a differential coupled to the two driven wheels of the vehicle. This parallel hybrid electric vehicle drive chain power flow arrangement is known in the art.
A problem facing HEV designers is how to cool the disconnect clutch and the rotor and stator portions of the electric motor. Various air and liquid based cooling systems have been proposed; however, most systems are costly and pose packaging problems when trying to convert a non-hybrid vehicle to a hybrid operation. A need exists to package the disconnect clutch, motor, torque converter and automatic transmission in a compact manner so that a conventional vehicle can be reconfigured as a hybrid at a relatively low cost and with little or no vehicle body modifications.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds