Method of making a dynamoelectric machine
A stator core extends along a longitudinal axis and includes a yoke, and a plurality of radially-inwardly projecting teeth separated by intervening slots. A radially innermost portion of each tooth initially includes a pair of legs separated by a recess disposed therebetween. The conventional tooth tips are unformed in the first stage, thereby defining an increased-size slot opening for allowing the insertion of an enlarged stator winding, which has a width (e.g., diameter for a round conductor) substantially equal to the width of the slot itself. In a second processing stage, after the core itself has been manufactured and wound with stator windings, the legs are cold-formed in order to form tooth tips, which define a reduced-size slot opening to provide an improved magnetic flux path and provide a wire retention function. A high slot fill stator design is provided, which allows and enables higher generator efficiencies and output for a given package size.
1 . (canceled)
2 . A method of making a dynamoelectric machine comprising the steps of:
(A) providing a stator core having a main axis including a yoke and a plurality of radially inwardly-projecting teeth separated by intervening slots wherein each slot includes a pair of sides that are generally parallel over the radial extent of adjacent teeth and further wherein a radially innermost portion of said teeth each includes a pair of legs that are symmetrical with each other and that include a recess disposed therebetween that defines a corresponding plurality of slot openings having a first width;
(B) winding the stator core with stator windings defined by a continuous magnet wire by radially inserting stator windings radially through the slot openings into the slots using a winding machine wherein the windings have a second width substantially equal to a slot width of the slots; and
(C) deforming the radially innermost portion of said teeth so as to reduce the slot openings to a third width that is less than the first width.
3 . The method of claim 2 further including the step of:
selecting a geometry for the stator windings from the group comprising a round shape, a square shape, and a rectangular shape.
4 . The method of claim 2 wherein said deforming step includes the substep of:
cold working the radially innermost portion of said teeth so as to deform the legs laterally toward adjacent slots.
5 . The method of claim 2 further comprising the step of:
inserting a slot liner in each slot wherein a combined width of the stator core winding and the slot liner is substantially equal to the slot width.
6 . The method of claim 2 wherein said providing step includes the substep of:
providing a stator core wherein each of said plurality of teeth circumscribe a predetermined angle taken relative to a center point of said stator core.
7 . The method of claim 6 wherein said providing step includes the substep of:
providing a stator core having 72 teeth and 72 slots wherein said predetermined angle is five degrees.
8 . The method of claim 6 wherein said providing step includes the substep of:
providing a stator core having 36 teeth and 36 slots wherein said predetermined angle is greater than five degrees.
9 . The method of claim 2 wherein said providing step includes the substep of:
providing a stator core wherein the inner sides of each of said legs form a predetermined angle relative to each other, thereby defining said recess.
10 . The method of claim 9 wherein said providing step includes the substep of:
providing a stator core wherein said predetermined angle is 66 degrees.
11 . The method of claim 2 further including the step of:
determining a desired slot width opening and deforming said radially innermost portion of said teeth so as to create a lateral extent of said tooth tip corresponding to said desired slot width.