Patent ID: 8896168

Claim:
An electric machine comprising: an outer casing; a stator having a plurality of polar expansions and a plurality of windings, each winding having an annular shape and fitted around one of the polar expansions; a rotor; wherein the casing has a plurality of separate butting portions, each paired with one of the windings to engage and support a portion of the winding to enable heat exchange between the winding and the butting portion, the winding being electrically insulated from the butting portion when engaged with the butting portion; wherein the casing comprises a bottom wall lying substantially perpendicular to an axis of rotation of the rotor, each butting portion being formed by an integral and solid protrusion of the bottom wall facing a space inside the electric machine and extending away from an interior facing side of the bottom wall and into the space inside the electric machine along a line parallel to an axis of rotation of the rotor; each butting portion having a center radial plane generally aligned with a central radial plane of the winding with which it is paired; a radially extending passage positioned between two adjacent butting portions for allowing cooling air to flow between the two adjacent butting portions.