Patents by Inventor Ake Ewald

Ake Ewald has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 11968810
    Abstract: A power module for operating an electric vehicle drive may include one or more of the following: a plurality of semiconductor components; an intermediate circuit capacitor connected in parallel to the semiconductor components; a heatsink for the removal of heat generated by the semiconductor components, where the heatsink is located between the semiconductor components and the intermediate circuit capacitor; and an intermediate circuit line that electrically connects the intermediate circuit capacitor to the semiconductor components. The intermediate circuit line may extend perpendicular to a direction of flow for the coolant in the heatsink on a side of the semiconductor components facing away from the heatsink.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 16, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: ZF FRIEDRICHSHAFEN AG
    Inventors: Ake Ewald, Michael Sperber, Stefan Hain
  • Publication number: 20240072708
    Abstract: An inverter includes at least one phase and two driver boards situated opposite each other, and at least one half-bridge, arranged between the driver boards and contacted electrically and/or by signals, with, in each case, a semiconductor package formed as a high-side switch and a semiconductor package arranged parallel thereto and formed as a low-side switch. A heat sink in the region of the half-bridges and connected to a cooling attachment under each semiconductor package, wherein the heat sink has a split design so that a first cooling branch is arranged in the high-side branch and a second cooling branch is arranged in the low-side branch, wherein the cooling branches are arranged at a distance from each other, and the cooling branches are fluidically interconnected in parallel or in series in a region outside the arrangement of the semiconductor packages.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 25, 2023
    Publication date: February 29, 2024
    Applicant: ZF Friedrichshafen AG
    Inventor: Ake Ewald
  • Publication number: 20240049417
    Abstract: An inverter includes a heat sink having a cooling plate, and at least one phase, wherein each phase includes a half-bridge arranged on an upper side of the cooling plate and DC and AC busbars stacked on the half-bridge and electrically insulated from one another, wherein taps of the DC and AC busbars are provided on mutually opposite sides of the power electronics module. A first conduction element including a thermally conductive material is arranged on the side of the DC busbars and between the DC busbars and the cooling plate and is conductively connected to the DC busbar closer to the cooling plate, and/or a second conduction element comprising a thermally conductive material arranged on the side of the AC busbar and between the AC busbar and the cooling plate and is conductively connected to the AC busbar and the cooling plate.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 4, 2023
    Publication date: February 8, 2024
    Applicant: ZF Friedrichshafen AG
    Inventor: Ake Ewald
  • Publication number: 20240047320
    Abstract: A power electronics module, having a DBC PCB having power semiconductors arranged thereon, and a multilayered leadframe including at least two separate subframes. No power or control routing takes place on the PCB. A region of the load source subregion is arranged between the PCB and the gate source and kelvin source subregion and is in electrical contact with the power semiconductors, and an adjoining region is located outside the PCB. A region of the drain source subregion is in electrical contact with a drain terminal on the PCB, and an adjoining region is located outside the PCB. The gate source subregion and the kelvin source subregion have a region above the load source subregion at which said subregions are in electrical contact with the power semiconductors and have an adjoining region outside the PCB which is opposite the drain source subregion and has pins bent above the PCB.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 1, 2023
    Publication date: February 8, 2024
    Applicant: ZF Friedrichshafen AG
    Inventors: Ake Ewald, Stefan Hain, Fabian Hohmann
  • Publication number: 20240038638
    Abstract: A power electronics module, having a PCB having power semiconductors arranged on connecting regions of an uppermost layer of said PCB, wherein the PCB has a preset dimension to arrange a preset maximum number of power semiconductors thereon. A lead frame arranged above the power semiconductors provides three-dimensional power and control routing, and includes a drain-source connection to connect to a drain-source contact of the PCB, and a load-source connection opposite the drain-source connection via the power semiconductors that is formed from a plurality of subregions, each of which can be brought into electrical contact with the power semiconductors, and a gate- and kelvin-source terminal, which are arranged above the load-source connection and have been brought into electrical contact with the power semiconductors. At least one dummy chip consisting of an electrically nonconductive material is arranged on each of the connecting regions that are not populated by power semiconductors.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 1, 2023
    Publication date: February 1, 2024
    Applicant: ZF Friedrichshafen AG
    Inventors: Ake Ewald, Stefan Hain
  • Publication number: 20240038639
    Abstract: A power electronics module, having a continuous DBC PCB having power semiconductors arranged on connecting regions of an uppermost layer of said DBC PCB and a lead frame arranged above the power semiconductors for three-dimensional power and control routing, wherein the lead frame has a drain-source connection, which can be brought into electrical contact with a drain-source contact of the PCB, and a load-source connection which is opposite the drain-source connection via the power semiconductors and which is formed from a plurality of subregions, each of which can be brought into electrical contact with one of the power semiconductors, and at least one gate-source terminal and at least one kelvin-source terminal, and a carrier element including an electrically insulating material on which conductor tracks are provided, wherein the carrier element is routed between the power semiconductors in a region between the load-source connection and the drain-source connection.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 1, 2023
    Publication date: February 1, 2024
    Applicant: ZF Friedrichshafen AG
    Inventor: Ake Ewald
  • Publication number: 20240032187
    Abstract: A high-current element for high-current printed circuit boards is formed from at least two metal sheets which are connected to form a sheet-metal stack and which have a plurality of pins at least at an end region thereof, and wherein the sheet-metal stack has a terminal region, a pin region, and a connection region, and wherein the metal sheets are connected to one another in the connection region, and the pins are arranged in the pin region and formed for contacting with the high-current printed circuit board, and the terminal region is set up to be used as a terminal region for connecting the high-current element to external power terminals.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 18, 2023
    Publication date: January 25, 2024
    Applicant: ZF Friedrichshafen AG
    Inventors: Michael Sperber, Ake Ewald, Chandra Gupta Hazarika
  • Publication number: 20240022036
    Abstract: A method for manufacturing a terminal apparatus for connecting at least one electrical or electronica component for an electrical or electronic module includes bending a pre-machined sheet metal element, having a first electric terminal device for connecting to a first electrical potential, a control terminal having at least one control contact, and a second electric terminal device arranged between the first electric terminal device and the control terminal for connecting to a second electrical potential, wherein the second electric terminal device has a path section including a first path for contact-connection with a terminal for the second electrical potential of the electrical or electronic component, and at least one second path arranged in parallel with the first path, and wherein a first bending section of the first path is bent into a lower plane than a second bending section of the second path in order to form the terminal apparatus.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 14, 2023
    Publication date: January 18, 2024
    Applicant: ZF Friedrichshafen AG
    Inventors: Ake Ewald, Fabian Hohmann, Stefan Hain
  • Publication number: 20240021436
    Abstract: A method for manufacturing a terminal apparatus for connecting a component for an electrical module includes bending a pre-machined sheet metal element, having a first electric terminal device for connecting to a first potential, a control terminal having a control contact, and a second electric terminal device arranged between the first electric terminal device and the control terminal and separated from the first electric terminal device by a gap, and for connecting to a second electrical potential, further having a path section including a first path for contact-connection with a terminal for the second electrical potential of the component, and a second path arranged in parallel with the first, and wherein an edge region of the sheet metal is bent such that the first electric terminal device and the path section are brought together such that the first electric terminal device and the path section overlap.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 17, 2023
    Publication date: January 18, 2024
    Applicant: ZF Friedrichshafen AG
    Inventors: Ake Ewald, Fabian Hohmann, Stefan Hain
  • Publication number: 20240022180
    Abstract: A power module for a current converter for an electric drive of a motor vehicle comprises a termination substrate having electrical contact portions that are electrically isolated from one another, a plurality of power semiconductor elements arranged on the termination substrate, each having a first terminal, a second terminal, and a control terminal, the first terminals of all the power semiconductor elements being electrically connected to a first contact portion of the termination substrate.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 18, 2023
    Publication date: January 18, 2024
    Applicant: ZF Friedrichshafen AG
    Inventors: Ake Ewald, Stefan Hain, Fabian Hohmann, Chandra Gupta Hazarika
  • Publication number: 20230301008
    Abstract: A switch module for an inverter includes a high-side switch and a low-side switch, each of which has at least one semiconductor switch, wherein the semiconductor switches are attached to a flat substrate; a DC input connection with a positive DC input contact and a negative DC input contact; an AC output connection for outputting an AC phase current of a multi-phase AC output, which is generated by activating the high-side switch and low-side switch on the basis of the DC input; a micro-heat sink that has a coolant intake, a coolant outlet, and a connecting cooling channel structure between the coolant intake and the coolant outlet; wherein the micro-heat sink is designed such that numerous micro-heat sinks, each of which are dedicated to one of numerous switch modules in the inverter, can be releasably connected to one another for fluid exchange at their respective coolant intake and/or coolant outlet.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 8, 2023
    Publication date: September 21, 2023
    Applicant: ZF Friedrichshafen AG
    Inventors: Stefan HAIN, Ake EWALD
  • Publication number: 20230110879
    Abstract: An inverter has at least one current phase along a first axis and an input-side current connection for each phase, for receiving a DC input current. The phase(s) output AC output current generated from the DC input current, which is generated by a semiconductor bridge circuit. An intermediate circuit connected in parallel to the bridge circuit has at least one capacitor and heat sink between the intermediate circuit and the bridge circuit. The bridge circuit lies on the heat sink. The bridge circuit has at least one half bridge for each phase, formed by a high side switch and an opposing low side switch, connected in parallel, and each of the phases is located between the associated high and low side switches and on the heat sink, and each high and low side switch is electrically connected directly to the respective phase via a first electrical contact connection.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 3, 2022
    Publication date: April 13, 2023
    Applicant: ZF Friedrichshafen AG
    Inventors: Ake EWALD, Stefan HAIN
  • Publication number: 20220254655
    Abstract: A power module for operating an electric vehicle drive may include one or more of the following: a plurality of semiconductor switching elements; a substrate; and a set of drive electronics. A cooling structure with a plurality of cooling channels may be included to cool certain portions of the device. Each semiconductor switching element of the plurality of semiconductor switching elements may be potted with a potting compound, where the cooling structure is attached to the potting compound via a structure formed with additive manufacturing. A method for forming the power module utilizing such additive manufacturing is also contemplated.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 10, 2022
    Publication date: August 11, 2022
    Applicant: ZF Friedrichshafen AG
    Inventors: Ake Ewald, Stefan Hain
  • Publication number: 20220201903
    Abstract: A power module for operating an electric vehicle drive may include one or more of the following: a plurality of semiconductor components; an intermediate circuit capacitor connected in parallel to the semiconductor components; a heatsink for the removal of heat generated by the semiconductor components, where the heatsink is located between the semiconductor components and the intermediate circuit capacitor; and an intermediate circuit line that electrically connects the intermediate circuit capacitor to the semiconductor components. The intermediate circuit line may extend perpendicular to a direction of flow for the coolant in the heatsink on a side of the semiconductor components facing away from the heatsink.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 16, 2021
    Publication date: June 23, 2022
    Applicant: ZF Friedrichshafen AG
    Inventors: Ake Ewald, Michael Sperber, Stefan Hain
  • Publication number: 20210407880
    Abstract: A power module for operating an electric vehicle drive, comprising: numerous semiconductor components; a heatsink for discharging heat generated by the semiconductor components; a DC link capacitor connected in parallel to the semiconductor components; a DC link line electrically connecting the DC link capacitor to the semiconductor components; wherein the DC link line is at least partially located in a hole formed in the heatsink.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 29, 2021
    Publication date: December 30, 2021
    Applicant: ZF Friedrichshafen AG
    Inventor: Ake Ewald