Abstract: A wheel assembly for an electric vehicle includes a wheel rim that is concentrically disposed about a central axis. A propulsion-braking module is disposed within an interior region of the wheel rim. The propulsion-braking module rotatably supports the wheel rim for rotation about the central axis. The propulsion-braking module includes a liquid cooled electric motor having a rotor rotatable about the central axis, and a stator disposed radially inside the rotor relative to the central axis. A motor-wheel interface hub is fixedly attached to the wheel rim, and is directly attached to the rotor for rotation with the rotor. The motor-wheel interface hub directly transmits torque from the electric motor to the wheel rim at a 1:1 ratio. The propulsion-braking module includes a drum brake system having an electric motor that rotates a cam device, which actuates the brake shoes.
Type:
Application
Filed:
October 23, 2013
Publication date:
April 23, 2015
Applicants:
The U.S.A. As Represented by the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, GM GLOBAL TECHNOLOGY OPERATIONS LLC
Inventors:
Joshua M. Figuered, Eduardo Herrera, Thomas M. Waligora, William J. Bluethmann, Logan Christopher Farrell, Chunhao J. Lee, Robert L. Vitale, Ross Briant Winn, Raymond Edward Eggleston, IV, Raymond Guo, Steven J. Weber, Lucien Q. Junkin, James Jonathan Rogers
Abstract: A part (e.g., a rim) of a wheel of a motor vehicle is provided that has closable ventilation openings which may have flow through them in the open state in the axial direction to the wheel axle, an actuator being provided which is implemented to open and close the ventilation openings.