IP Library › Granted Patent US 12,040,130
Granted Patent B2
US 12,040,130 · App. 17/790,146 · Granted Jul 16, 2024

Superconducting coil and manufacturing method for superconducting coil

Inventors: Kota Nomura (Tokyo, JP); Shoichi Yokoyama (Tokyo, JP); Tetsuya Matsuda (Tokyo, JP)
Assignee: CANON MEDICAL SYSTEMS CORPORATION
H01F6/06G01R33/3815H01F41/048H01F41/122
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,040,130
App. No.
17/790,146
Granted
Jul 16, 2024
Kind
B2
Abstract

In a superconducting coil used in an MRI apparatus, it is necessary to arrange a superconducting wire at a desired position to obtain a desired coil shape in order to obtain a temporally stable static electromagnetic field with high strength and high uniformity. A superconducting coil includes a winding frame, a spacer disposed on an outer periphery of winding frame and including a winding groove having a spiral shape and a communication groove provided between winding grooves, and includes a coil group having a superconducting wire wound in winding groove. It is therefore possible to obtain superconducting coil having a desired coil shape.

Claims (52)

1. A superconducting coil comprising:

a winding frame;

a first spacer disposed on an outer periphery of the winding frame and including

a first winding groove having a spiral shape and disposed in a peripheral direction of the winding frame,

a second winding groove having a spiral shape and disposed apart from the first winding groove, and

a first communication groove provided between the first winding groove and the second winding groove;

a second spacer disposed on an upper layer of the first spacer and including

a third winding groove having a spiral shape and disposed above the first winding groove,

a fourth winding groove having a spiral shape and disposed apart from the third winding groove and above the second winding groove, and

a second communication groove provided between the third winding groove and the fourth winding groove;

a first coil group including

a first layer of a superconducting wire having the superconducting wire wound in the first winding groove, and

a second layer of the superconducting wire having the superconducting wire wound in the third winding groove; and

a second coil group communicated with the first coil group by the superconducting wire on the first communication groove and the second communication groove and including

a first layer of the superconducting wire having the superconducting wire wound in the second winding groove, and

a second layer of the superconducting wire having the superconducting wire wound in the fourth winding groove.

2. The superconducting coil according to claim 1 , wherein

a plurality of spacers each including winding grooves disposed in the peripheral direction of a plurality of the winding frames and having a spiral shape and a communication groove to communicate adjacent winding grooves of the winding grooves with each other are disposed in at least one of a lower layer of the first spacer and an upper layer of the second spacer, and

each of the winding grooves is provided with a coil group in which the superconducting wire is wound.

3. The superconducting coil according to claim 1 , wherein a number of grooves of the first winding groove is different from a number of grooves of the third winding groove in sectional view.

4. The superconducting coil according to claim 1 , wherein the first winding groove includes a part having different distances between the grooves.

5. The superconducting coil according to claim 1 , wherein the first communication groove and the second communication groove intersect each other or overlap each other in an identical direction.

6. The superconducting coil according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the first winding groove and the first communication groove is sealed with an insulating resin.

7. A manufacturing method for a superconducting coil comprising:

a first spacer arrangement step of arranging, on an outer periphery of a winding frame, a first spacer including

a first winding groove having a spiral shape and disposed on the outer periphery of the winding frame,

a second winding groove having a spiral shape and disposed apart from the first winding groove, and

a first communication groove to communicate the first winding groove with the second winding groove;

a first layer formation step of forming a first layer of a first coil group by winding a superconducting wire in the first winding groove and

forming a first layer of a second coil group by winding the superconducting wire in the first communication groove and the second winding groove;

a second spacer arrangement step of arranging, on the first spacer, a second spacer including a third winding groove disposed on the first spacer and having a spiral shape, a fourth winding groove disposed apart from the third winding groove and having a spiral shape, and a second communication groove communicating the third winding groove with the fourth winding groove such that the third winding groove is disposed above the first winding groove, and the fourth winding groove is disposed above the second winding groove; and

a second layer formation step of forming a second layer of the second coil group by winding the superconducting wire in the fourth winding groove and

forming a second layer of the first coil group by winding the superconducting wire in the second communication groove and the third winding groove.

8. The manufacturing method for a superconducting coil according to claim 7 , the manufacturing method comprising:

forming a plurality of spacers having a plurality of winding grooves disposed on the outer periphery of the winding frame and having a spiral shape and a plurality of communication grooves to communicate adjacent winding grooves of the plurality of winding grooves with each other;

arranging the spacers on the outer periphery of the winding frame;

forming a single layer of a coil group being continuous and including a single layer of the first coil group and a single layer of the second coil group by winding the superconducting wire in the winding grooves and the communication grooves; and

arranging the spacers on an upper layer of the single layer of the coil group having been formed and extending the superconducting wire constituting the single layer of the coil group to the spacers disposed on the upper layer,

wherein a plurality of layers of the coil group are formed by repeating arranging of one of the spacers, forming of the single layer of the coil group being continuous, and extending of the superconducting wire constituting the single layer of the coil group to the spacers disposed in the upper layer.

9. The manufacturing method for a superconducting coil according to claim 7 , wherein

in the first spacer arrangement step, the first spacer is softened by heating and disposed on the outer periphery of the winding frame, the first spacer being formed by molding the first winding groove, the second winding groove, and the first communication groove in a prepreg sheet in which reinforcing fibers are impregnated with an epoxy resin,

in the second spacer arrangement step, the second spacer is softened by heating and disposed on the first spacer, the second spacer being formed by molding the third winding groove, the fourth winding groove, and the second communication groove in a prepreg sheet in which reinforcing fibers are impregnated with an epoxy resin, and

the manufacturing method further includes curing the first spacer and the second spacer after forming the first coil group and the second coil group.

10. The manufacturing method for a superconducting coil according to claim 7 , wherein

in the first layer formation step, positions of the first winding groove, the second winding groove, and the first communication groove are detected by a position detector,

a winding guide around which the superconducting wire is wound is moved to the positions detected by the position detector,

the winding frame is rotated to arrange the superconducting wire of the winding guide at the positions of the first winding groove, the second winding groove, and the first communication groove, and

the first layer of the first coil group and the first layer of the second coil group are formed, and

in the second layer formation step, positions of the third winding groove, the fourth winding groove, and the second communication groove are detected by the position detector,

the winding guide around which the superconducting wire is wound is moved to the positions detected by the position detector,

the winding frame is rotated to arrange the superconducting wire of the winding guide at the positions of the third winding groove, the fourth winding groove, and the second communication groove, and

the second layer of the first coil group and the second layer of the second coil group are formed.

Assignments (2)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Mar 22, 2024
From: MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC CORPORATION
To: CANON MEDICAL SYSTEMS CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 066867/0717 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Jun 30, 2022
From: NOMURA, KOTA; YOKOYAMA, SHOICHI; MATSUDA, TETSUYA
To: MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 060369/0696 →
Continuity (1)
Related Publication 20230036637A1 · Feb 2, 2023