IP Library Granted Patent US 12,695,408
Granted Patent B2
US 12,695,408 · App. 18/685,394 · Granted Jul 28, 2026

Motor control device and electric power steering device

Inventors: Takashi Goto (Tokyo, JP); Eiji Iwami (Tokyo, JP)
Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
H02P29/68B62D5/0496
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,695,408
App. No.
18/685,394
Granted
Jul 28, 2026
Kind
B2
Abstract

A motor control device includes an assistive torque current calculation unit that obtains a current that needs to be supplied to a motor, and an overheat protection limit calculation unit that obtains an overheat protection coefficient when current obtained from the assistive torque calculation unit flows through using an overheat protection feature, and obtains a current actually supplied to the motor using the obtained overheat protection coefficient, wherein the overheat protection feature: shows a relationship between how large the current is, and the overheat protection coefficient, where the current is regulated by taking into account an effect that heat generated by a part out of a plurality of parts disposed on a pathway which the current that is supplied to the motor flows through has on an ambient temperature, and an effect that heat generated by other parts out of the plurality of parts has on the ambient temperature.

Claims (33)

1 . A motor control device comprising:

a first calculation unit that obtains a current that needs to be supplied to a motor, and

a second calculation unit that

obtains an overheat protection coefficient when current obtained from the first calculation unit flows through using an overheat protection feature, and

obtains a current that is actually supplied to the motor using the obtained overheat protection coefficient, wherein

the overheat protection feature:

shows a relationship between how large the current is, and the overheat protection coefficient, where the current is regulated by taking into account an effect that heat generated by a part out of a plurality of parts disposed on a pathway which the current that is supplied to the motor flows through has on an ambient temperature, and an effect that heat generated by other parts out of the plurality of parts has on the ambient temperature, and

the second calculation unit

retains:

a first overheat protection feature that is the overheat protection feature in a case where the motor is stopped, and

a second overheat protection feature different from the first overheat protection feature, that is the overheat protection feature in a case where the motor is rotating, and

obtains the overheat protection coefficient when a current obtained from the first calculation unit flows through, whether the motor is rotating or is stopped, using the first overheat protection feature or the second overheat protection feature.

2 . The motor control device according to claim 1 , wherein:

the second calculation unit:

retains the overheat protection feature for each of the plurality of parts,

obtains the overheat protection coefficient for each of the parts when the current obtained from the first calculation unit flows through, and

obtains a current that is actually supplied to the motor by using a largest value out of the obtained overheat protection coefficient.

3 . The motor control device according to claim 1 , wherein:

at least one of the plurality of parts is attached to a heatsink, and

the ambient temperature is a temperature of the heatsink.

4 . The motor control device according to claim 1 , wherein:

the plurality of parts are housed inside of a housing, and

the ambient temperature is a temperature of the housing.

5 . The motor control device according to claim 1 , wherein:

the plurality of parts are mounted on a substrate, and

the ambient temperature is a temperature of the substrate.

6 . The motor control device according to claim 1 , further comprising:

a drive unit that supplies the current obtained from the second calculation unit to the motor, wherein

one of the plurality of parts is a drive element provided in the drive unit.

7 . An electric power steering device comprising:

a torque sensor that detects a steering torque of steering,

the motor which generates steering assist torque with respect to the steering, and

the motor control device according to claim 1 that controls a drive of the motor according to steering torque detected by the torque sensor.