Electric power conversion apparatus

1. An electric power conversion apparatus, comprising:

a channel case in which a cooling water channel is formed;

a double side cooling semiconductor module that comprises an upper and lower arms series circuit of an inverter circuit;

a capacitor module;

a direct current connector; and

an alternate current connector, wherein:

the semiconductor module comprises a first and a second heat dissipation metals whose outer surfaces are heat dissipation surfaces, the upper and lower arms series circuit is disposed between the first heat dissipation metal and the second heat dissipation metal, and the semiconductor module further comprises a direct current positive terminal, a direct current negative terminal, and an alternate current terminal which protrude to outside;

the channel case is provided with the cooling water channel which extends from a cooling water inlet to a cooling water outlet, and a first opening which opens into the cooling water channel through which the semiconductor module is inserted into the cooling water channel;

the channel case is further provided with a second opening through which the capacitor module is placed;

the first opening for the semiconductor module is disposed on both sides of the second opening for the capacitor module; and

the semiconductor module and a plurality of other semiconductor modules are arranged through the first opening provided on the both sides so that a long side of the first heat dissipation metal and the second heat dissipation metal of each of the semiconductor modules is set along a direction along which cooling water flows.

2. An electric power conversion apparatus, comprising:

a channel case in which a cooling water channel is formed;

a double side cooling semiconductor module that comprises an upper and lower arms series circuit of an inverter circuit;

a capacitor module;

a direct current connector; and

an alternate current connector, wherein:

the semiconductor module comprises a first and a second heat dissipation metals whose outer surfaces are heat dissipation surfaces, the upper and lower arms series circuit is disposed between the first heat dissipation metal and the second heat dissipation metal, and the semiconductor modulefurther comprises a direct current positive terminal, a direct current negative terminal, and an alternate current terminal which protrude to outside;

the channel case is provided with the cooling water channel which extends from a cooling water inlet to a cooling water outlet, and a first opening which opens into the cooling water channel through which the semiconductor module is inserted into the cooling water channel;

the channel case is further provided with a second opening through which the capacitor module is placed;

the first opening for the semiconductor module is disposed on both sides of the second opening for the capacitor module; and

a driver board, on which a drive element for driving the inverter circuit constituted with the upper and lower arms series circuit is mounted, is provided on an upper surface of the capacitor module and a control board, on which a control element for controlling the inverter circuit is mounted, is provided on the driver board.

3. An electric power conversion apparatus, comprising:

a channel case in which a cooling water channel is formed;

a double side cooling semiconductor module that comprises an upper and lower arms series circuit of an inverter circuit;

a capacitor module;

a direct current connector; and

an alternate current connector, wherein:

the semiconductor module comprises a first and a second heat dissipation metals whose outer surfaces are heat dissipation surfaces, the upper and lower arms series circuit is disposed between the first heat dissipation metal and the second heat dissipation metal, and the semiconductor module further comprises a direct current positive terminal, a direct current negative terminal, and an alternate current terminal which protrude to outside;

the channel case is provided with the cooling water channel which extends from a cooling water inlet to a cooling water outlet, and a first opening which opens into the cooling water channel through which the semiconductor module is inserted into the cooling water channel;

the channel case is further provided with a second opening through which the capacitor module is placed;

the first opening for the semiconductor module is disposed on both sides of the second opening for the capacitor module; and

each of the first heat dissipation metal and the second heat dissipation metal of the semiconductor module comprises, in its outer surface, a fin-shaped part with recesses through which the cooling water flows, and the semiconductor module is inserted through the first opening.

4. An electric power conversion apparatus, comprising:

a channel case in which a cooling water channel is formed;

a double side cooling semiconductor module that comprises an upper and lower arms series circuit of an inverter circuit;

a capacitor module;

a direct current connector; and

an alternate current connector, wherein:

the semiconductor module comprises a first and a second heat dissipation metals whose outer surfaces are heat dissipation surfaces, the upper and lower arms series circuit is disposed between the first heat dissipation metal and the second heat dissipation metal, and the semiconductor module further comprises a direct current positive terminal, a direct current negative terminal, and an alternate current terminal which protrude to outside;

the channel case is provided with the cooling water channel which extends from a cooling water inlet to a cooling water outlet, and a first opening which opens into the cooling water channel through which the semiconductor module is inserted into the cooling water channel;

the channel case is further provided with a second opening through which the capacitor module is placed;

the first opening for the semiconductor module is disposed on both sides of the second opening for the capacitor module; and

a positive terminal and a negative terminal of the capacitor module are connected to the direct current positive terminal and the direct current negative terminal of the semiconductor module, respectively, through a connecting member of the capacitor module.

5. A power conversion device according to claim 4 , wherein:

the capacitor module houses a plurality of capacitor blocks; and

a positive terminal and a negative terminal of each of the capacitor blocks are connected to the direct current positive terminal and the direct current negative terminal of each of the semiconductor module, respectively, through connecting members identical to one another in shape and in length.

6. An electric power conversion apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein:

in addition to the first opening provided on the both sides of the second opening for the capacitor module, a return opening is provided to link the first opening on one side and the first opening on another side with each other, and the cooling water channel is configured so that the cooling water makes U-turns at three locations throughout the cooling water channel.

7. An electric power conversion apparatus according to claim 6 , wherein:

the cooling water inlet and the cooling water outlet are provided on a front side surface of the channel case, with one of the cooling water inlet and the cooling water outlet disposed on either right or left side of the front side surface, and the return opening is provided on a front side of the channel case;

the semiconductor module comprises a first semiconductor module disposed on the one side of the second opening for the capacitor module, and a second semiconductor module disposed on the another side of the second opening for the capacitor module, with the second heat dissipation metal of each of the first and second semiconductor modules facing toward the capacitor module; and

the cooling water channel is configured so that the cooling water flows in order from the cooling water inlet, a first heat dissipation metal of the first semiconductor module, a second heat dissipation metal of the first semiconductor module, a path formed by the return opening on the front side, a second heat dissipation metal of the second semiconductor module, a first heat dissipation metal of the second semiconductor module, to a cooling water outlet section.

8. An electric power conversion apparatus according to claim 6 , wherein:

the cooling water inlet and the cooling water outlet are provided on a front side surface of the channel case on one of a right side and a left side of the front side surface, and the return opening is provided on a side opposite from the front side surface of the channel case;

the semiconductor module comprises a first semiconductor module disposed on the one side of the second opening for the capacitor module, and a second semiconductor module disposed on the another side of the second opening for the capacitor module, with the second heat dissipation metal of each of the first and second semiconductor modules facing toward the capacitor module; and

the cooling water channel is configured so that the cooling water flows in order from the cooling water inlet, a first heat dissipation metal of the first semiconductor module, a path formed by the return opening on the opposite side, a first heat dissipation metal of the second semiconductor module, a second heat dissipation metal of the second semiconductor module, the path formed by the return opening on the opposite side, a second heat dissipation metal of the first semiconductor module, to the cooling water outlet.

9. An electric power conversion apparatus according to claim 8 , wherein:

the semiconductor module further comprises a third semiconductor module disposed in the path formed by the return opening on the opposite side, in addition to the first semiconductor module disposed in a path on the one side and the second semiconductor module disposed in a path on the another side; and

the first semiconductor module, the second semiconductor module and the third semiconductor module each correspond to one of three phases.

10. An electric power conversion apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein:

a first semiconductor module group comprising a first inverter circuit constituted with first upper and lower arms series circuits for U-phase, V-phase, and W-phase is arranged through the first opening provided on one of the both sides of the second opening for the capacitor module; and

a second semiconductor module group comprising a second inverter circuit constituted with second upper and lower arms series circuits for U-phase, V-phase, and W-phase is arranged through the first opening provided on the other of the both sides of the second opening for the capacitor module.

11. An electric power conversion apparatus according to claim 10 , further comprising:

a driver board, disposed on an upper surface of the capacitor module, that drives an inverter circuit of each semiconductor module, and that bridges between the first semiconductor module group and the second semiconductor module group to be used for both the first semiconductor module group and the second semiconductor module group.

12. An electric power conversion apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein:

the channel case is formed at least with a lower case and an upper case;

a direct current connection member that connects terminals of the capacitor module and the semiconductor module with each other, an alternate current connection member that connects an alternate current terminal of the semiconductor module and the alternate current connector, the driver board, and the control board are provided in this order on the upper surface of the capacitor module which is placed through the second opening provided in the lower case; and

the upper case is fitted on the lower case so as to house the direct current connection member, the alternate current connection member, the driver board, and the control board.

13. An electric power conversion apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein:

the semiconductor module comprises an upper arm IGBT chip, an upper arm diode chip, a lower arm IGBT chip, and a lower diode chip; and

the upper arm IGBT chip and the lower arm IGBT chip are arranged on a same level surface along a direction of the cooling water flowing through the first and second heat dissipation metals.

14. An electric power conversion apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein:

the second opening comprises an accommodating portion to house the capacitor module; and

a thermal conduction resin is filled between an inner wall of the accommodating portion and an outer wall of the capacitor module.

15. An electric power conversion apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein:

the second opening comprises an accommodating portion to house the capacitor module; and

a thermal conduction grease is applied to an inner wall of the accommodating portion and an outer wall of the capacitor module.