METHOD AND DEVICE FOR DYNAMICALLY BALANCING A ROTATIONAL BODY OR A MOTOR HOUSING

Abstract

A method dynamically balances a rotational body. First, the rotational body is set into rotation and then an imbalance of the rotational body is determined. According to the determined imbalance, material of the rotational body is removed and/or additional material is applied to the rotational body. The removal and/or the application is carried out by a laser beam of a laser.

Claims

1. A method for dynamically balancing a rotational body, which comprises the steps of: setting the rotational body in rotation; determining an imbalance of the rotational body; removing material from the rotational body and/or applying additional material to the rotational body in dependence on a determined imbalance; and carrying out a material removal and/or a material application by means of a laser beam of a laser.

2. The method according to claim 1, which further comprises carrying out the material removal and/or the material application out during a rotation of the rotational body.

3. The method according to claim 1, which further comprises applying the additional material in a form of lines.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein during the material removal and/or the material application, moving the laser beam over an outer circumference of the rotational body by means of a deflecting element.

5. The method according to claim 1, which further comprises fastening a balancing mass on which the material removal and/or the material application take place on an outer circumference of the rotational body.

6. The method according to claim 5, which further comprises fastening the balancing mass on the outer circumference in a material-bonding manner by means of welding.

7. The method according to claim 5, wherein said balancing mass has an inner radius that is smaller than an outer radius of the outer circumference of the rotational body.

8. A device for dynamically balancing a rotational body, the device comprising: an imbalance measuring device for determining an imbalance of the rotational body; a laser for generating a laser beam, by means of said laser material of the rotational body can be removed and/or additional material can be applied to the rotational body; a controller programmed to: set the rotational body in rotation; determine the imbalance of the rotational body via said imbalance measuring device; remove the material from the rotational body and/or apply the additional material to the rotational body in dependence on a determined imbalance; and carry out a material removal and/or a material application by means of the laser beam of the laser.

9. An electric motor for a motor vehicle, comprising: a rotational body being dynamically balanced by the method according to claim 1.

10. A method for dynamically balancing a motor housing with a magnet element fitted therein, which comprises the steps of: setting the motor housing in rotation; determining an imbalance of the motor housing; removing material from the motor housing and/or applying additional material to the motor housing in dependence on a determined imbalance; and carrying out a material removal and/or application by means of a laser beam of a laser.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

[0040] FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic, partial sectional view of a device for dynamically balancing a motor housing as a rotational body;

[0041] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the motor housing with a shaft;

[0042] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the motor housing with a balancing mass; and

[0043] FIG. 4 is a partial sectional view of the motor housing with the balancing mass along the line IV-IV shown in FIG. 3.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0044] Mutually corresponding parts and variables are always provided with the same reference signs throughout the figures.

[0045] Referring now to the figures of the drawings in detail and first, particularly to FIG. 1 thereof, there is shown a device 2 for dynamically balancing a rotational body 4 is shown in a schematic and simplified representation. The device 2 has here an imbalance measuring device 6 for determining an imbalance of the rotational body 4. The device 2 also has a laser 8 for generating a laser beam 10, by means of which, in dependence on the determined imbalance, material of the rotational body 4 is removed and/or additional material is applied to the rotational body 4. The imbalance measuring device 6 and the laser 8 are coupled in signaling terms to a controller 12, that is to say a control unit.

[0046] Preferably, the rotational body 4 is mounted on both sides, at each of its end faces, in a bearing 14 of the imbalance measuring device 6 rotatably along its longitudinal axis, with only one bearing 14 being shown in FIG. 1 by way of example.

[0047] The imbalance measuring device 6 has at least one imbalance sensor 16, which detects the imbalance of the rotating rotational body 4 occurring, for example by force and/or displacement measurement. In FIG. 1, two imbalance sensors 16 are shown by way of example.

[0048] The at least one imbalance sensor 16 sends the recorded data as imbalance signals 18 to the controller 12, which as a consequence determines or calculates the imbalance of the rotating rotational body 4 as well as the necessary imbalance compensation or the necessary imbalance correction. The controller 12 determines here in particular the position of the unsymmetrical mass distribution. Subsequently, the laser 8 or the laser beam 10 is radiated in a continuous or pulsed manner onto the rotating rotational body 4 by means of a laser signal 20, in order to realize or implement the imbalance compensation. Here, depending on the necessary imbalance compensation, either material of the rotational body 4 is removed by means of subtractive laser removal or additional material 22 is applied or added by means of laser application or laser metal deposition (LMD) in order to reduce the unsymmetrical mass distribution of the rotational body 4.

[0049] During the removal and/or application, the laser beam 10 is moved over the outer circumference of the rotational body 4 by means of a deflecting element 24 coupled to the controller 12. The deflecting element 24 is suitably formed as a laser diverter or a mirror. By means of the deflecting element 24, the laser beam 10 is moved along an axial direction of the rotational body 4, while, as a result of the rotation of the rotational body 4, at the same time the laser beam 10 is effectively moved along its tangential or circumferential direction. This means that the application and/or removal takes/take place in particular in the radial and/or axial direction of the rotational body 4.

[0050] “Axial” or an “axial direction” is understood here and hereinafter as meaning in particular a direction parallel (coaxial) to the axis of rotation D of the rotational body 4. Correspondingly, “radial” or a “radial direction”, is understood here and hereinafter as meaning in particular a direction oriented perpendicularly (transversely) to the axis of rotation D along the rotational body 4. “Tangential” or a “tangential direction” is understood here and hereinafter as meaning in particular a direction along the circumference of the rotational body 4 (circumferential direction, azimuthal direction), that is to say a direction perpendicular to the axial direction and to the radial direction.

[0051] The laser 8 is configured for example as a continuously operating fiber laser with a laser output of 12 kW and with a wavelength of approximately 1060 nm. In the course of the application or removal, the laser beam 10 is in particular radiated here onto the rotational body 4 in a pulsed manner, that is to say in the form of pulses. Provided here for example are pulse lengths or pulse durations between 0.1 and 10 ms (milliseconds). The application and/or removal by means of the laser beam 10 takes/take place here in particular in the form of lines along the circumferential or tangential direction of the rotational body 4. Here, the laser 8 is synchronized in particular with the rotation of the rotational body 4 controlled rotation by the imbalance measuring device 6.

[0052] The removal and/or the application is/are therefore carried out by means of the device 2 during the rotation of the rotational body 4. In particular, the removal and/or the application is/are carried out here during the determination of the imbalance. The dynamic balancing of the rotational body 4 therefore takes place for example at the same time as the measuring or determining of the imbalance. The imbalance compensation or the imbalance correction therefore consequently takes place “on-the-fly”.

[0053] In the exemplary embodiments shown of FIGS. 1 to 4, the rotational body 4 is formed in particular as a rotationally symmetrical component of an electric motor, not shown any more specifically, of a motor vehicle. The rotational body 4 is configured in particular as a motor housing 26, in particular as a pole pot, with a magnet element 28 fitted therein, in particular a (motor) ring magnet, and with a motor shaft 30. The rotational body 4 is consequently formed in particular as a rotor of an electric motor configured as an external rotor.

[0054] The bell-shaped or pot-shaped motor housing 26 represented in FIGS. 2 to 4 has a stamped metal part in the form of a bearing shield 32 as a housing base, and a metal, in particular hollow-cylindrical or tubular, annular wall 34 as a housing casing or housing wall. The motor shaft 30 has here for example a diameter of between 2 and 10 mm (millimeters), and is made of a burnished steel. The bearing shield 32 and the annular wall 34 as well as the motor shaft 30 are joined to one another by means of material-bonding connections 36. The annular or hollow-cylindrical or tubular magnet element 28 is arranged on the inner circumference of the annular wall 34.

[0055] The application and/or removal for imbalance correction preferably takes/take place here in two imbalance or compensation regions 38 and 40 on an outer circumference 42 of the motor housing 26. The approximately ring-shaped or band-shaped imbalance regions 38 and 40 are arranged axially spaced apart from one another on the annular wall 34, the imbalance region 38 being arranged at the end remote from the bearing shield 32, and the imbalance region 40 being arranged at the end toward the bearing shield 32 of the annular wall 34.

[0056] The magnet element 28 has for example a maximum permissible temperature of approximately 120° C. In order to avoid this temperature of the magnet being undesirably exceeded, in particular in the course of a radial application of additional material 22, it is provided in the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 that an additional or balancing mass 44, on which the application takes place, is arranged on the outer circumference 42. As a result, the input of energy and heat to the annular wall 34, and consequently to the magnet element 28, is reduced.

[0057] The balancing mass 44 is suitably arranged here in one of the imbalance regions 38, 40, the balancing mass 44 in the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 being arranged in particular in the region 38. With suitable dimensioning, the balancing mass 44 has for example a mass of between 5 to 20 mg (milligrams) and 100 to 300 mg.

[0058] As can be seen in particular in the schematic part sectional view of FIG. 4, the balancing mass 44 is in particular joined to the outer circumference 42 of the motor housing 26 in a material-bonding manner by means of two welded points 46. The balancing mass 44 has here an inner radius which is made smaller than an outer radius of the outer circumference 42. The difference in radius between the inner radius of the balancing mass 44 and the outer radius of the outer circumference 42 is for example less than or equal to 1 mm.

[0059] The difference in radius has the effect that the balancing mass 44 has an approximately arc-shaped or convex cross-sectional form, the welded points 46 being arranged in the region of the free ends of the arms of the arc. Consequently, a radial clearance 48, that is to say a clear distance along the radial direction, is formed or left in the region of an apex point of the balancing mass 44 between the annular wall 34 and the balancing mass 44. This clearance 48 acts as thermal insulation between the balancing mass 44 and the annular wall 34 or the magnet element 28. As a result, thermal decoupling between the balancing mass 28 and the rotational body 4 is realized, whereby the input of energy and heat in the course of the removal and/or application to the rotational body 4 is reduced.

[0060] The annular wall 34 and the bearing shield 32 as well as the balancing mass 28 are for example made of steel, in particular high-grade steel or carbon steel.

[0061] The claimed invention is not restricted to the exemplary embodiments described above. Rather, other variants of the invention can also be deduced by a person skilled in the art therefrom within the scope of the disclosed claims without departing from the subject matter of the claimed invention. In particular, furthermore, all of the individual features described in connection with the various exemplary embodiments can also be combined with one another in some other way within the scope of the disclosed claims without departing from the subject matter of the claimed invention.

[0062] The following is a summary list of reference numerals and the corresponding structure used in the above description of the invention: [0063] 2 Device [0064] 4 Rotational body [0065] 6 Imbalance measuring device [0066] 8 Laser [0067] 10 Laser beam [0068] 12 Controller [0069] 14 Bearing [0070] 16 Imbalance sensor [0071] 18 Force signal [0072] 20 Laser signal [0073] 22 Additional material [0074] 24 Deflecting element [0075] 26 Motor housing [0076] 28 Magnet element [0077] 30 Motor shaft [0078] 32 Bearing shield [0079] 34 Annular wall [0080] 36 Connection [0081] 38 Imbalance region [0082] 40 Imbalance region [0083] 42 Outer circumference [0084] 44 Balancing mass [0085] 46 Welded point [0086] 48 Clearance [0087] D Axis of rotation