阅读说明：本技术 电动车辆 (Electric vehicle ) 是由 梶原咏介 井上昭二 市川广基 广濑雄大 于 2019-11-12 设计创作，主要内容包括：电动车辆(10)具有电机收装部(98c),该电机收装部(98c)被设置于摆臂(18),用于收装电机(20)。在该情况下,电机(20)具有定子(90)、转子(92)和电机壳体(94),该电机壳体(94)一方面将定子(90)以固定状态收装在内部,另一方面将转子(92)以可自如旋转的方式收装在内部。电机壳体(94)具有把持部(95a、95b),该把持部(95a、95b)向电机(20)的径向外侧延伸。(The electric vehicle (10) has a motor housing section (98c), and the motor housing section (98c) is provided to the swing arm (18) and houses the motor (20). In this case, the motor (20) has a stator (90), a rotor (92), and a motor housing (94), and the motor housing (94) houses the stator (90) in a fixed state and houses the rotor (92) in a rotatable manner. The motor housing (94) has gripping portions (95a, 95b), and the gripping portions (95a, 95b) extend radially outward of the motor (20).)

1. An electric vehicle (10) having:

a vehicle body frame (22);

a pivot shaft (54) provided to the vehicle body frame (22);

a swing arm (18) having one end pivotally supported by the pivot shaft (54) and the other end supporting the rear wheel (16); and

a motor (20) arranged to the swing arm (18) for driving the rear wheel (16),

the electric vehicle (10) is characterized in that,

a motor housing part (98c), the motor housing part (98c) is arranged on the swing arm (18) and is used for housing the motor (20),

the motor (20) has a stator (90), a rotor (92), and a motor housing (94), wherein the motor housing (94) houses the stator (90) in a fixed state and houses the rotor (92) in a freely rotatable manner,

the motor housing (94) has gripping portions (95a, 95b), and the gripping portions (95a, 95b) extend radially outward of the motor (20).

2. The electric vehicle (10) of claim 1,

a gap (127) is formed between the gripping portions (95a, 95b) and the motor housing portion (98c) in the axial direction of the motor shaft (96).

3. Electric vehicle (10) according to claim 1 or 2,

the motor housing (94) has rotor support portions (94L, 94R) and a stator support portion (94a), wherein the rotor support portions (94L, 94R) rotatably support the rotor (92); the stator support portion (94a) supports a side surface of the stator (90) in a radial direction of the motor (20),

the gripping portions (95a, 95b) are integrally formed with the rotor support portion (94L).

4. The electric vehicle (10) of claim 3,

the rotor support sections (94L, 94R) are provided with a plurality of boss sections (125), the boss sections (125) projecting radially outward of the motor (20),

through holes (124) are formed in the plurality of boss portions (125), bolts (126, 128) are inserted into the through holes (124),

the holding portions (95a, 95b) are connected to at least 1 of the boss portions (125).

5. The electric vehicle (10) of claim 4,

the holding portions (95a, 95b) are formed to connect 2 of the boss portions (125) together.

6. The electric vehicle (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 5,

at least 2 gripping parts (95a, 95b) are provided on the motor housing (94),

the 2 gripping portions (95a, 95b) are arranged symmetrically with respect to a motor shaft (96).

7. The electric vehicle (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 6,

the outer portions of the gripping portions (95a, 95b) are arc-shaped in side view.

8. The electric vehicle (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 7,

the outer side portions of the gripping portions (95a, 95b) are chamfered.

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an electric vehicle in which a motor is disposed in a swing arm that is pivotally (rotatably) supported.

Background

Japanese patent laid-open publication No. 2012-171548 discloses an electric vehicle having: a vehicle body frame; a pivot shaft provided to the vehicle body frame; a swing arm having one end portion pivotally supported (rotatably supported); a rear wheel supported at the other end of the swing arm; and a motor, which is disposed inside the swing arm, for driving the rear wheel. In this case, the swing arm includes a swing arm body that pivotally supports the rear wheel, and a swing arm cover that covers the swing arm body from the outside in the vehicle width direction. The motor is housed in the inner space between the swing arm main body and the swing arm cover.

Disclosure of Invention

The motor (motor) is relatively heavy and has a cylindrical shape. Therefore, when the motor is inserted into the swing arm (swing arm), it takes a lot of labor for the operator to pick up the motor, and thus the work load increases. Accordingly, the assembly work for aligning the position of the motor with the swing arm with high accuracy takes time.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an electric vehicle capable of achieving a reduction in assembly time by improving motor mounting workability in mounting a motor to a swing arm.

An aspect of the present invention is an electric vehicle including: a vehicle body frame; a pivot shaft provided to the vehicle body frame; a swing arm having one end supported by the pivot shaft and the other end supporting a rear wheel; and a motor disposed in the swing arm for driving the rear wheel, the electric vehicle further including a motor housing portion provided in the swing arm for housing the motor, the motor including a stator, a rotor, and a motor housing that houses the stator in a fixed state and the rotor in a rotatable manner, the motor housing including a grip portion extending radially outward of the motor.

According to the present invention, the motor housing is provided with the grip portion as a handle, so that an operator can easily pick up the motor when inserting the motor into the swing arm. As a result, the motor mounting workability of mounting the motor to the swing arm is improved. Accordingly, the assembly time can be shortened.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a left side view of the electric vehicle according to the present embodiment.

Fig. 2 is a left side view of the swing arm cover of fig. 1 in a state of being detached.

Fig. 3 is a left side view of the left rotor support portion of fig. 2 in a state where it is removed.

Fig. 4 is a partial rear view illustrating a state in which the motor housing is housed in the motor housing portion.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken along V-V of fig. 2.

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken along VI-VI of fig. 2.

Detailed Description

A preferred embodiment of an electric vehicle according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

[1 ] schematic configuration of electric vehicle 10 according to the present embodiment ]

Fig. 1 is a left side view of an electric vehicle 10 according to the present embodiment. In the following description, the front-rear, left-right, and up-down directions are described in terms of directions viewed by an occupant seated on the seat 12 of the electric vehicle 10. In the electric vehicle 10, the components arranged in a pair on the left and right sides are sometimes described with the letter "L" for the left-side component and the letter "R" for the right-side component.

The electric vehicle 10 is an electric scooter having a lower floor portion 14, and travels by rotating a rear wheel 16 by a driving force of a motor 20, wherein the motor 20 is built in a swing arm 18 that pivotally supports (rotatably supports) the rear wheel 16. The electric vehicle 10 according to the present embodiment is not limited to the electric scooter of fig. 1, and can be applied to various electric straddle-type vehicles driven by the motor 20. In the following description, the scooter-type electric vehicle 10 will be described.

The electric vehicle 10 includes a vehicle body frame 22 and a vehicle body cover 24 made of synthetic resin covering the vehicle body frame 22. The vehicle body frame 22 includes: a head pipe 26 at the front end; a down tube 28 extending obliquely rearward and downward from the head tube 26; a pair of left and right undercarriage portions 30L, 30R extending rearward from the rear end of the down tube 28; and side frame portions 32L, 32R extending diagonally upward and rearward from rear ends of the chassis portions 30L, 30R. The side frame portions 32L, 32R are constituted by rising portions 34L, 34R and rear frames 36L, 36R, wherein the rising portions 34L, 34R extend obliquely rearward and upward from the pair of left and right base portions 30L, 30R; the rear frames 36L, 36R extend rearward from the pair of left and right rising portions 34L, 34R. The rear ends of the pair of left and right rear frames 36L, 36R are connected by a tailpipe portion 38.

Front forks 40L and 40R are mounted to the head pipe 26 so as to be steerable. A handle 44 is attached to an upper portion of the front forks 40L and 40R via a steering column 42. Front wheels 46 are attached to lower ends of the front forks 40L and 40R. A front fender 48 that covers the front wheel 46 from above is attached to the front forks 40L, 40R.

A connection support portion 50 including a pivot frame 50a is provided between the bottom frame portions 30L, 30R and the side frame portions 32L, 32R. The connection support portion 50 supports a pivot shaft 54 extending in the left-right direction (vehicle width direction) of the electric vehicle 10. The swing arm 18 has a front end (one end) pivotally supported (rotatably supported) by a pivot shaft 54. The swing arm 18 extends from the pivot 54 in the front-rear direction of the electric vehicle 10 toward the left side of the rear wheel 16. The rear end (the other end) of the swing arm 18 supports the rear wheel 16.

The swing arm 18 incorporates a motor 20 such that the motor 20 is disposed on the left side of the rear wheel 16. Therefore, the swing arm 18 is configured as a swing type power unit. A rear cushion 56 is connected between the rear end portion of the swing arm 18 and the left rear frame 36L. Further, a rear fender 58 that covers the rear wheel 16 from above is attached to the rear frames 36L, 36R. Further, another fender 60 is attached to the swing arm 18, and the fender 60 is directly provided between the rear fender 58 and the rear wheel 16 so as to cover the rear wheel 16 from above and is swingable together with the swing arm 18.

The rear frames 36L, 36R support the seat 12 on which the occupant sits from below. Between the seat 12 and the pivot shaft 54, a battery 62 of the electric vehicle 10 is disposed in a space between the pair of right and left rising portions 34L, 34R. The battery 62 is supported by the pair of right and left rising portions 34L, 34R, the rear frames 36L, 36R, and the pipe 64, wherein the pipe 64 connects the rising portions 34L, 34R at the front.

A PCU (power control unit) 66, which is an electronic component supported by the left and right rising portions 34L, 34R, is supported at a position diagonally behind and below the battery 62 in front of the rear wheel 16. The PCU66 is configured to include an inverter and the like, and converts dc power supplied from the battery 62 into ac power, for example, and supplies the converted ac power to the motor 20. When the motor 20 regenerates, the PCU66 converts ac power generated by the motor 20 into dc power to charge the battery 62. The positions of the battery 62 and the PCU66 shown in fig. 1 are examples, and may be arranged at other positions in the electric vehicle 10. For example, battery 62 may be disposed in a space between the pair of left and right chassis portions 30L, 30R.

The vehicle body cover 24 is a cover that covers the vehicle body frame 22 and the like, and includes a front cover 68, a handlebar cover 70, a leg shield 72, floor side covers 74L, 74R, a seat under cover 76, rear side covers 78L, 78R, and the like. The front cover 68 covers the front end portion of the vehicle body frame 22 such as the head pipe 26 from the front. The handlebar cover 70 covers the right and left center portions of the handlebar 44 above the front cover 68. The leg shield 72 is connected to the front cover 68 and covers the head pipe 26 and the down pipe 28 from behind. The under seat cover 76 covers the space under the seat 12 from the front.

The pair of left and right floor side covers 74L, 74R are connected to the leg shield 72 and the seat lower cover 76, and cover the pair of left and right undercarriage portions 30L, 30R from both left and right sides. The rear side covers 78L and 78R are connected to the rear edge portion of the seat lower cover 76, and cover the PCU66 and the like from both the left and right sides.

A main stand 80 is disposed on a side of the swing arm 18. In this case, a shaft 82 of the main stand 80 is provided below the swing arm 18, and the main stand 80 is disposed so that a part of the main stand 80 is received in a recess 84, wherein the recess 84 is formed by recessing the left side portion of the swing arm 18. In addition, a side bracket 86 is disposed near the left standing portion 34L.

[2. characteristic Structure of the present embodiment ]

Next, a characteristic structure of the electric vehicle 10 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to fig. 1 to 6.

In the electric vehicle 10, the motor 20 is configured as an assembly (unit) in which the stator 90 and the rotor 92, which are driving parts of the motor 20, are assembled in the motor housing 94, and the motor 20 is housed in the swing arm 18 to configure a swing-type power unit. That is, the work of attaching the motor 20 to the swing arm 18 is completed only by housing the finished motor 20, in which the stator 90 and the rotor 92 are housed and the motor shaft 96 is exposed from the motor housing 94, in the swing arm 18.

The characteristic structure of the electric vehicle 10 is that, by providing the gripping portions 95a and 95b as handles to be gripped by the operator on the motor housing 94, it is easy to attach the motor 20 to the swing arm 18 or detach the motor 20 from the swing arm 18 even with the motor 20 having a relatively large weight.

Here, the structure of the swing arm 18 housing the motor 20 will be described in more detail.

Swing arm 18 has a swing arm body 98. The swing arm main body 98 is a hollow member having: one end portion 98a extending in the vehicle width direction in a space near the pivot shaft 54 in front of the rear wheel 16; a connecting portion 98b extending rearward from the left side of the one end portion 98 a; a motor housing portion 98c provided in connection with the connecting portion 98b and disposed on the left side of the rear wheel 16; and the other end portion 98d disposed rearward of the motor housing portion 98 c.

One end 98a of the swing arm main body 98 constitutes a front end of the swing arm 18, and is pivotally supported (rotatably supported) by the pivot shaft 54. As described above, the pivot shaft 54 is supported by the vehicle body frame 22 via the connection support portion 50. The connection support portion 50 has a plurality of pivot brackets 50a, and the pivot brackets 50a extend rearward from the pair of left and right standing portions 34L, 34R and support the pivot shaft 54.

In the side views of fig. 1 to 3, the connecting portion 98b of the swing arm main body 98 is gradually expanded from the front to the rear. The motor housing portion 98c and the other end portion 98d of the swing arm main body 98 constitute a rear end portion of the swing arm 18. The motor housing portion 98c is formed in a substantially circular shape in the side view of fig. 2 and 3, and is formed recessed inward in the vehicle width direction in the cross-sectional view of fig. 5 and 6. The rear cushion 56 is connected to the other end 98d of the swing arm main body 98.

In the swing arm main body 98, a rear portion of the connecting portion 98b and the motor housing portion 98c are opened in the left side direction. The opening is sized to accommodate the motor 20 and is covered by the swing arm cover 102 from the left side. A swing arm cover 102 is mounted to the swing arm body 98 by a plurality of bolts 104. Fig. 2 to 6 illustrate a state in which the swing arm cover 102 is detached from the swing arm main body 98.

The motor 20 housed in the motor housing portion 98c is, for example, a three-phase ac motor, and includes a stator 90, a rotor 92, and a motor housing 94, and the motor housing 94 houses the stator 90 and the rotor 92 therein. The motor housing 94 is an outer case of the motor housing 94, and has a stator support portion 94a and left and right rotor support portions 94L, 94R, wherein the stator support portion 94a is a cylindrical housing extending in the vehicle width direction; the left and right rotor support portions 94L, 94R are rotor covers that close 2 openings at both ends of the stator support portion 94a in the vehicle width direction.

The stator 90 has a cylindrical stator core 90a formed of laminated steel plates. The stator core 90a has a plurality of slots 90b formed at predetermined angular intervals in the circumferential direction of the motor 20. The coils 90c are wound in the plurality of slots 90 b. The stator support portion 94a is a stator holder that fixedly supports the outer peripheral surface of the stator core 90a, i.e., the outer surface of the stator 90 in the radial direction of the motor 20. Accordingly, the mechanical strength of the stator core 90a formed of laminated steel sheets is enhanced. The stator core 90a is fixed to the stator support portion 94a by shrink fitting (shrink fit), for example.

A rotor 92 is disposed radially inward of the stator 90. The rotor 92 has a cylindrical rotor core 92a formed of laminated steel plates. The rotor core 92a has a plurality of slots 92b formed therein at predetermined angular intervals in the circumferential direction of the motor 20. Magnets 92c are disposed in the plurality of slots 92 b. The motor shaft 96 penetrates the center of the rotor core 92a in the vehicle width direction. Motor shaft 96 extends in the vehicle width direction through an opening formed in the center of each of 2 rotor support portions 94L and 94R. Motor shaft 96 is axially supported (rotatably supported) by 2 rotor support portions 94L, 94R via bearings 106L, 106R provided at 2 openings. That is, rotor 92 is rotatably supported by 2 rotor support portions 94L and 94R via motor shaft 96 and 2 bearings 106L and 106R.

A left end portion 96L of the motor shaft 96 protrudes outward (leftward) in the vehicle width direction from the left rotor support portion 94L. In the left rotor support portion 94L, a portion where the left end portion 96L of the motor shaft 96 protrudes is formed as a recess 108 recessed inward in the vehicle width direction. The recess 108 is covered from the left by a cover member 110. Therefore, even if the swing arm cover 102 is detached from the swing arm main body 98, the left end portion 96L of the motor shaft 96 is not exposed (see fig. 3 to 6).

A rotation angle detecting portion 112 is disposed in an internal space formed by the recess 108 and the cover member 110, and the rotation angle detecting portion 112 detects the rotation angle of the rotor 92 and the motor shaft 96. The rotation angle detection unit 112 is a resolver, and includes: a resolver rotor 112a mounted on the left end portion 96L of the motor shaft 96; and a resolver stator 112b disposed on the left rotor support portion 94L so as to face the resolver rotor 112 a. Since the resolver is well known, a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

On the other hand, a right end portion 96R of the motor shaft 96 projects inward (right side) in the vehicle width direction from the right rotor support portion 94R so as to be directed toward the motor housing portion 98c of the swing arm main body 98. Therefore, the right portions of the right rotor support portion 94R and the right stator support portion 94a face the motor housing portion 98 c. A reducer housing 116 housing a reducer 114 is provided on the right side of the motor housing 98c of the swing arm main body 98.

The right end portion 96R of the motor shaft 96 is inserted into the reducer housing 116, and is axially supported (rotatably supported) by a bearing 118, and the bearing 118 is provided in the reducer housing 116. The right end portion 96R side of the motor shaft 96 is splined. Further, a motor-side gear 120 for rotating the axle 16a of the rear wheel 16 is inserted into the spline-processed portion. A spacer 122 is interposed between the motor-side gear 120 and the bearing 118, and the spacer 122 prevents the motor-side gear 120 from coming off. In order to replace the motor 20 with the motor housing 98c, the spacer 122 is preferably a spacer pressed into the motor shaft 96 by a low pressure. Since the spacer 122 is pressed in by low pressure, the assembly is easy.

Further, the reduction gear housing 116 is filled with a lubricating oil that lubricates the motor-side gear 120 and the like constituting the reduction gear 114. Therefore, an oil seal 121 is provided between the right rotor support portion 94R and the motor shaft 96, and this oil seal 121 prevents leakage of the lubricating oil from the reduction gear housing 116 to the motor housing 94. Further, an O-ring 123 is provided between the right rotor support portion 94R and the motor housing portion 98c on the side of the rotor support portion 94R, and the O-ring 123 prevents the lubricant oil from leaking from the reduction gear housing portion 116.

Further, motor housing 94, more specifically, 2 rotor support portions 94L and 94R and stator support portion 94a are provided with a plurality of boss portions 125 that protrude outward in the radial direction of motor 20. The plurality of boss portions 125 are formed at predetermined angular intervals in the circumferential direction of the motor 20 so as to extend in the vehicle width direction. As shown in fig. 2 to 4, in the present embodiment, the boss portion 125 is formed at 8 locations.

The boss portions 125 are formed with screw holes 124 (through holes) extending in the vehicle width direction. That is, 9 screw holes 124 are formed in the motor housing 94. Bolts 126, 128 are screwed into the threaded holes 124.

In which a bolt 126 of a short length is screwed into the 3-point screw hole 124. Short bolts 126 are used to fix the rotor support portions 94L, 94R and the stator support portion 94 a. As shown in fig. 5, short bolts 126 are inserted into the screw holes 124 from the left side, and thereby the rotor support portion 94L and the stator support portion 94a are fastened and fixed to the rotor support portion 94R.

On the other hand, a long bolt 128 is screwed into the threaded hole 124 at the other 6. A long bolt 128 is used to fix the motor housing 94 including the 2 rotor support portions 94L, 94R and the stator support portion 94a to the motor housing portion 98 c. That is, long bolts 128 are inserted into the screw holes 124 from the left side and screwed into bolt holes 130 provided in the motor housing portion 98c, whereby the rotor support portion 94L, the stator support portion 94a, and the rotor support portion 94R are fastened and fixed to the motor housing portion 98 c.

The number and formation position of the screw holes 124, and the type and number of the bolts 126 and 128 screwed into the screw holes 124 are arbitrary, and it is needless to say that the design may be changed in accordance with the specifications of the swing arm 18 and the motor 20.

As shown in fig. 2, 4, and 6, in motor housing 94, 2 grip portions 95a and 95b extend radially outward of motor 20 from left rotor support portion 94L. That is, 2 grip portions 95a and 95b are integrally formed with the rotor support portion 94L. Further, the 2 grip portions 95a and 95b are arranged substantially symmetrically with respect to the motor shaft 96. The outer portions of the 2 grip portions 95a and 95b are formed in an arc shape in the side view of fig. 2. In the rear view of fig. 4 and the cross-sectional view of fig. 6, the outer portions of the 2 grip portions 95a and 95b are chamfered.

As shown in fig. 4 to 6, when the motor housing 94 is housed in the motor housing portion 98c, the left rotor support portion 94L is disposed so as to protrude to the left (outward in the vehicle width direction) from the left end portion of the motor housing portion 98 c. That is, the left rotor support portion 94L and the left end portion of the motor housing portion 98c are located at different positions in the vehicle width direction. As a result, a gap 127 having a width H is formed between the 2 grip portions 95a and 95b and the left end portion of the motor housing portion 98c in the axial direction (vehicle width direction) of the motor shaft 96.

The width H of the gap 127 is set to a degree that a finger of an operator can enter. Since the gap 127 is formed, the left end of the motor housing portion 98c can be set to a position inward of the gripping portions 95a and 95b in the vehicle width direction.

In this case, the one grip portion 95a extends radially outward of the motor 20 at an upper portion of the left rotor support portion 94L so as to connect 2 boss portions 125 together. As described above, the outer portion of one of the gripping portions 95a is formed in a substantially circular arc shape between the 2 boss portions 125.

The other grip 95b extends radially outward of the motor 20 at a lower portion of the left rotor support portion 94L so as to connect 2 boss portions 125 together. Therefore, as described above, the other gripping portion 95b is also formed in a substantially arc shape between the 2 boss portions 125. A front portion of the other grip 95b is formed with a notch so as to avoid a mounting portion of a bolt 104 in the swing arm main body 98.

In the present embodiment, motor housing 94 may be configured such that an operator can grip portions 95a and 95b with both hands. Therefore, in the present embodiment, at least 2 grip portions 95a and 95b may be provided in the motor housing 94. In the present embodiment, a gap 127 having a width H of a degree that a finger of a user can enter may be formed between the grip portions 95a and 95b and the left end portion of the motor housing portion 98 c. If such a gap 127 can be secured, the gripping portions 95a and 95b can be formed on the outer peripheral surface of the stator support portion 94 a. Further, at least 1 boss portion 125 may be connected to 2 holding portions 95a and 95 b.

When manufacturing the electric vehicle 10, the motor 20 is attached to the motor housing portion 98c of the swing arm main body 98. The motor 20 is used in a manufacturing process of the electric vehicle 10 in a state of an assembly (unit) in which the stator 90 and the rotor 92 are housed in the motor housing 94 and the right end portion 96R of the motor shaft 96 protrudes from the right rotor support portion 94R. At this time, the short bolts 126 fix the rotor support portions 94L, 94R and the stator support portion 94a in a fully fixed state, while the long bolts 128 may be in a pre-fixed state.

In this case, first, the operator inserts right end portion 96R of motor shaft 96 into reducer housing 116 while holding 2 grip portions 95a and 95b with both hands. Accordingly, right end portion 96R of motor shaft 96 is axially supported (rotatably supported) by bearing 118. At this time, the right end portion 96R of the motor 20 may be axially supported by the bearing 118 in a state where the motor-side gear 120 and the spacer 122 are fitted over the splined portion of the right end portion 96R side of the motor shaft 96. Next, after the 6-position screw hole 124 to which the long bolt 128 is preliminarily fixed and the 6-position bolt hole 130 on the motor housing portion 98c side are positioned, the long bolt 128 is screwed into the screw hole 124 and the bolt hole 130, whereby the motor housing 94 is fixed to the motor housing portion 98 c. Accordingly, the motor 20 is housed in the motor housing portion 98c, and the operation of attaching the motor 20 to the swing arm 18 is completed.

On the other hand, when detaching the motor 20 from the swing arm 18, first, the operator detaches the swing arm cover 102 from the swing arm main body 98 to expose the motor 20. Next, the operator takes out the long bolt 128 from the bolt hole 130. Next, the operator inserts both hands into gap 127, and pulls motor housing 94 toward the front side of the operator, i.e., toward the left side (the outside in the vehicle width direction) while holding 2 grip portions 95a and 95b with both hands. Accordingly, the motor shaft 96 can be pulled out from the reduction gear housing 116, and the motor 20 can be taken out from the motor housing 98 c.

[3. other structures of the electric vehicle 10 ]

Next, a structure of the electric vehicle 10 other than the above-described components will be briefly described with reference to fig. 1 to 6.

As described above, the motor 20 is a three-phase ac motor. The motor 20 is driven to rotate by supplying ac power from the PCU66 to the coil 90c via the power supply line 134 as a three-phase line. The power supply line 134 is a three-phase wire harness having high rigidity, and is routed inside the swing arm 18 along the internal shape of the swing arm 18. That is, the power supply line 134 extends forward from the motor 20 inside the swing arm 18, and is drawn forward from the one end 98a of the swing arm main body 98. The drawn power supply line 134 is routed upward of the pivot shaft 54 and connected to the PCU66 disposed diagonally rearward and downward of the battery 62. Therefore, PCU66 and motor 20 supply and receive ac power via power supply line 134.

On the other hand, a communication line 136 is drawn from the rotation angle detecting unit 112. The communication line 136 is a wire harness having lower rigidity than the power feeding line 134. The communication line 136 extends forward from the rotation angle detection unit 112 in the swing arm 18 along the power feeding line 134, and is drawn forward from the one end 98a of the swing arm main body 98. The communication line 136 drawn out is routed upward of the pivot shaft 54 and connected to the PCU 66. Therefore, PCU66 and rotation angle detecting unit 112 can transmit and receive the result of detection of the rotation angle of rotor 92 and motor shaft 96 via communication line 136.

As described above, the vehicle-width-direction inner side of the swing arm main body 98 is provided with the speed reducer housing portion 116 housing the speed reducer 114. Further, a brake mechanism 150 is provided on the vehicle width direction inner side of the speed reducer housing portion 116 and on the inner side of the rim 16b of the rear wheel 16. Therefore, the motor 20, the reducer 114, and the brake mechanism 150 are arranged in this order from the left side to the right side in the vehicle width direction around the rear wheel 16.

Further, a gear housing cover 154 is fixed to the right side of the motor housing portion 98c of the swing arm main body 98 by a bolt 152. The inner space formed by the motor housing portion 98c and the gear housing cover 154 constitutes a reducer housing portion 116.

The speed reducer 114 has: a motor-side gear 120 attached to the motor shaft 96; an intermediate shaft 156 disposed rearward of motor shaft 96 and extending in the vehicle width direction; an intermediate gear 158, which is a reduction gear attached to the intermediate shaft 156 and meshes with the motor-side gear 120; and an output gear 162 that is attached to an axle 16a of the rear wheel 16 disposed rearward of the intermediate shaft 156 and meshes with a gear portion 160 formed on the left side of the intermediate shaft 156 in the vehicle width direction.

The right end portion of the intermediate shaft 156 is pivotally supported (rotatably supported) by a bearing 164R disposed on the gear housing cover 154. The left end portion of the intermediate shaft 156 is axially supported by a bearing 164L disposed on the right side of the motor housing portion 98 c. The left end portion of the axle 16a is pivotally supported by a bearing 166L disposed on the right side of the motor accommodating portion 98 c. The right end of the axle 16a is exposed to the outside through the gear housing cover 154 and is connected to the rim 16b of the rear wheel 16. The right end side of the axle 16a is supported by a bearing 166R disposed on the gear housing cover 154.

Therefore, when motor 20 is driven to rotate motor shaft 96, the driving force of motor 20 is transmitted to axle 16a via motor-side gear 120, intermediate gear 158, intermediate shaft 156, gear portion 160, and output gear 162, thereby enabling rotation of rear wheel 16 connected to axle 16 a. In this case, the speed reducer 114 reduces the rotation speed of the motor shaft 96 by the intermediate gear 158, and rotates the drive axle 16a and the rear wheel 16.

The brake mechanism 150 is a drum brake, and includes: a brake drum 150a disposed inside the rim 16 b; 2 brake shoes 150b arranged on both sides with the axle 16a interposed therebetween; and a lining 150c disposed on the brake drum 150a side of the brake shoe 150 b. In this case, when the 2 brake shoes 150b are separated from each other against the tensile force of the spring member (not shown) interposed between the 2 brake shoes 150b, the linings 150c of the 2 brake shoes 150b press the brake drums 150a, respectively, and therefore, the rotation of the rim 16b (rear wheel 16) to which the brake drums 150a are attached can be braked. Further, since drum brakes are well known, detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[4. effect of the present embodiment ]

The effects of the electrically powered vehicle 10 according to the present embodiment described above will be described.

The electric vehicle 10 according to the present embodiment includes: a vehicle body frame 22; a pivot shaft 54 provided to the vehicle body frame 22; a swing arm 18 having a front end (one end) pivotally supported (rotatably supported) by a pivot shaft 54 and a rear end (the other end) supporting the rear wheel 16; and a motor 20, which is disposed to the swing arm 18, for driving the rear wheel 16.

The electric vehicle 10 further includes a motor housing portion 98c, and the motor housing portion 98c is provided in the swing arm 18 and houses the motor 20. The motor 20 includes a stator 90, a rotor 92, and a motor housing 94, and the motor housing 94 accommodates the stator 90 in a fixed state and accommodates the rotor 92 in a rotatable manner. Motor housing 94 has grip portions 95a and 95b, and grip portions 95a and 95b extend radially outward of motor 20.

By providing the motor housing 94 with the grip portions 95a and 95b as handles in this way, the operator can easily pick up the motor 20 when inserting the motor 20 into the swing arm 18. As a result, the motor mounting workability of mounting the motor 20 to the swing arm 18 is improved. Accordingly, the assembly time can be shortened.

Further, a gap 127 is formed between the grips 95a and 95b and the motor housing 98c along the axial direction (left-right direction, vehicle width direction) of the motor shaft 96. Since the gap 127 is provided in the axial direction, a space (width H) can be secured to an extent that a finger of an operator can enter when assembling the motor 20. In addition, the dimension in the radial direction of the motor housing portion 98c can be reduced as compared with the case where the gap is secured in the radial direction of the motor 20.

Motor housing 94 has rotor support portions 94L and 94R and a stator support portion 94a, wherein rotor support portions 94L and 94R rotatably support rotor 92; the stator support portion 94a supports the side surface of the motor 20 in the stator 90 in the radial direction. In this case, the grips 95a and 95b are integrally formed with the left rotor support portion 94L. Accordingly, the number of components of the electric vehicle 10 including the motor 20 can be reduced.

The rotor support portions 94L and 94R are provided with a plurality of boss portions 125, and the boss portions 125 protrude outward in the radial direction of the motor 20. Screw holes 124 are formed in the plurality of boss portions 125, and bolts 126 and 128 are inserted into the screw holes 124. The gripping portions 95a, 95b are connected to at least 1 boss portion 125. This ensures the mechanical strength of the gripping portions 95a and 95 b.

In this case, when the grip portions 95a and 95b are formed so as to connect 2 boss portions 125 together, the mechanical strength of the grip portions 95a and 95b can be further ensured.

Further, motor housing 94 is provided with at least 2 gripping portions 95a and 95b, and 2 gripping portions 95a and 95b are arranged substantially symmetrically with respect to motor shaft 96. Accordingly, the operator can easily grip the gripping portions 95a and 95b with both hands. As a result, the work of attaching the motor 20 to the motor housing portion 98c and the work of detaching the motor 20 from the motor housing portion 98c can be performed more easily and efficiently.

Further, if the outer portions of the gripping portions 95a and 95b are formed in an arc shape in a side view, the width (dimension) of the gripping portions 95a and 95b as the handle in the radial direction can be maximized.

Further, if the outer portions of the gripping portions 95a and 95b are chamfered, no corner portion exists, and therefore, the operator can easily grip the gripping portions 95a and 95 b.

The present invention has been described above with reference to preferred embodiments, but the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the description of the above embodiments. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made to the above embodiments. It is obvious from the description of the technical solutions that the modifications and improvements can be added to the present invention and also included in the technical scope of the present invention. In addition, the parenthesized reference numerals described in the claims are added to the reference numerals in the drawings in order to facilitate understanding of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to the components explained as the reference numerals.