JP2019175672A - Vehicular storage battery connection coupler - Google Patents

Abstract

To safely and easily complete battery exchange work while securing high connection accuracy between a removable type storage battery and a vehicle side in an electrically driven vehicle.SOLUTION: In a vehicular storage battery connection coupler 1 consisting of a pair of a lower coupler 2 and an upper coupler 3, the lower coupler 2 includes multiple contact pieces 22a, 22b, ..., on a surface of a slide body 21 which is disposed slidable within a predetermined range in longitudinal and lateral directions inside of a coupler body 20. The lower coupler is functioned to correct a position error in a horizontal direction by energizing the slide body 21 with alignment means consisting of guide shafts 25a and 25b and guide receivers 35a and 35b before connecting upper and lower contact pieces with each other, and also functioned to correct a position error in a vertical direction between a vehicle side and a storage battery side after connecting the lower coupler 2 and the upper coupler 3 while being mounted at a mount position movably in a vertical direction and energized toward the opposite upper coupler 3 by means of springs 27a and 27b.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to a pair of couplers for electrically connecting a storage battery and a vehicle. In particular, in an electrically driven vehicle, battery replacement work can be performed safely and easily while ensuring high connection accuracy with the storage battery. The present invention relates to a vehicle storage battery connection coupler that can be completed.

  2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, electrically driven vehicles are rapidly spreading with the realization of secondary batteries with higher capacity and lower cost. In particular, in so-called electric vehicles, the increase in capacity of storage batteries for increasing the travel distance per charge is remarkable. However, increasing the capacity of the storage battery leads to a longer charging time, so shortening the charging time is a major issue for vehicles with a high operating rate such as commercial vehicles.

  Therefore, a system for operating a vehicle without waiting for a charging time has been developed so that the storage battery for the vehicle can be exchanged on a daily basis. In the case of such a system, the storage battery, which is a power source for driving the vehicle, is relatively large and heavy, and in addition to the danger that the replacement storage battery will generate a large current, There is a need for a method that automatically performs most of the replacement work.

  However, in such a system that automatically performs electrical connection and disconnection work between the storage battery and the vehicle, the connection terminals are not accurately aligned between the storage battery side coupler and the vehicle side turntable. It becomes difficult to ensure a good connection state. In this case, it is conceivable to correct the mounting position of the storage battery with a mechanical guide provided on the vehicle side, but the positional relationship between the vehicle and the battery replacement facility is likely to vary depending on the stop position of the vehicle, and therefore its allowable range. This leads to an increase in the size of the vehicle side guide.

  Alternatively, in order to correct the above-described variation, it is conceivable to provide a highly accurate position adjustment function on the battery replacement equipment side. This leads to increased time and equipment costs. On the other hand, in the case of a method that allows a certain degree of variation, it is necessary to enlarge the contact pieces for electrical connection to some extent. Since there is also a line, this results in an increase in the size of the entire coupler.

  For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-27832 discloses a structure in which a pair of connectors is connected to a fixed external connector, and a fitting member or a relay terminal in the connector can be slid in the vertical and horizontal directions. As an example, there has been proposed an electrical junction box that corrects a positional shift caused by the intersection of the mounting positions, and it is conceivable to apply this technique to a coupler that electrically connects a storage battery and a vehicle.

  However, the vehicle storage battery is suspended from the transport means on the battery replacement equipment side, and the coupler provided downward on the lower surface side of the storage battery is compared with the coupler provided upward at the mounting position of the vehicle from above. It is common to connect while lowering, as mentioned above, because the storage battery is large and heavy, and because the entire weight cannot be supported only by the coupler part, the other part of the storage battery is structured by the vehicle side. It becomes the structure to support.

  Therefore, it is difficult to achieve a high-precision connection without correcting not only the horizontal positional deviation between the couplers but also the positional deviation caused by the vertical error occurring in the support structure between the vehicle side and the storage battery side. It will be a thing. Furthermore, in the method of attaching / detaching the replaceable storage battery to the vehicle from above, the coupler on the vehicle side is exposed upward with the storage battery removed, so the contact piece connection function is affected by the effects of rain and falling objects. There is also a problem that the connection with high accuracy is lost.

JP 11-27832 A

  The present invention is intended to solve the above-described problems. In an electrically driven vehicle, the battery replacement operation can be performed safely while ensuring high connection accuracy between the detachable storage battery and the vehicle side. The task is to make it easy to complete.

  Therefore, the present invention includes a plurality of contact pieces for electrically connecting an electrically driven vehicle and a detachable storage battery, respectively, and a pair of batteries connected to the battery mounting position of the vehicle by mounting them from above. One of the pair is a lower coupler provided upward on the vehicle side, and the other is an upper coupler provided downward on the bottom surface of the storage battery. In addition, the upper and lower couplers are connected by connecting the opposing contact pieces in the horizontal direction by the alignment means interlocked with the mounting operation and then connected in the vertical direction, and at least one of the pair is: The plurality of contact pieces are provided on the surface of a slide body that is slidable in a horizontal direction within a predetermined range of front, rear, left, and right inside the coupler body, and the contact pieces are in contact with each other. The slide body is biased by the positioning means before the connection with pressure and has a function of correcting a horizontal position error between the vehicle side and the storage battery side, and the pair of At least one of them is mounted in a state of being movable in the vertical direction at the mounting position on the vehicle side or the storage battery side, and is biased toward the opposing coupler by a predetermined biasing member. It has the function of correcting the vertical position error between the vehicle side and the storage battery side after being connected.

  As described above, in a vehicle storage battery connection coupler including a pair of upper and lower couplers that connect and disconnect the storage battery so that the storage battery can be attached and detached in the vertical direction with respect to the electrically driven vehicle, the horizontal position error between the storage battery and the vehicle side In addition to the function for correcting the vertical position error, the vertical position error correction function is provided after the upper and lower couplers are connected. The battery replacement operation can be completed safely and easily while ensuring high connection accuracy without requiring manual labor.

  Further, in this case, the coupler biased by the biasing member has a stopper for restricting and stopping the movement due to the biasing at a predetermined position where the coupler is biased toward the opposing coupler. It is a method of correcting the position error in the vertical direction by pressing the coupler with the opposite coupler by the mounting operation of the storage battery and pushing it back from the stop position away from the stopper, and The stress at the time of regulation of the coupler by the biasing member is larger than the total stress between the upper and lower couplers when all the contact pieces are connected with a predetermined contact pressure, and the upper and lower stresses by the biasing member are The stress at the completion of coupler coupling is set to be smaller than the load stress due to the weight of the storage battery. Since the coupler urged by is fixed in the vertical and horizontal directions by the action of the stopper until the connection between the contact pieces is completed, the horizontal position error correction function by the slide body is surely exhibited. Therefore, it is easy to ensure a highly accurate connection state in the contact piece, and the stress of the biasing member is smaller than the load stress of the vehicle storage battery at the time of completion of coupling of the upper and lower couplers. Therefore, it is easier to secure a stable connection state.

  In this case, the stress caused by the biasing member at the time when the coupling between the upper and lower couplers is completed is set to one half or less of the load stress due to the weight of the storage battery. Even when vibration occurs, disconnection of the connection state between the couplers and dropping of the storage battery are unlikely to occur.

  Furthermore, in the above-described vehicle storage battery connection coupler, a lid member that covers the opening from which the contact piece is exposed is provided on the lower coupler so as to be openable and closable. From the state where the opening is covered, the link mechanism with a part in contact with the lower end of the storage battery or the upper coupler is activated and opened in conjunction with the lowering operation of the storage battery by the mounting work, and in conjunction with the rising operation by the separation work of the storage battery In addition to ensuring that the contact piece of the lower coupler is not exposed to the outside even when the storage battery is removed, the lid member is linked to the mounting / separation operation of the storage battery. Therefore, it is easy to maintain the high connection function without increasing labor in the battery attachment / detachment work.

  According to the present invention, in addition to the function of eliminating the horizontal position error between the vehicle side and the storage battery side in the vehicle storage battery connecting coupler, the function of eliminating the vertical position error is provided. The battery replacement operation can be completed safely and easily while ensuring high connection accuracy between the detachable storage battery and the vehicle.

It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the state before a pair of upper and lower pair couplers which are embodiment in this invention. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the state which the slide body moved to the horizontal direction by the downward movement of the upper coupler from the state of FIG. 1, and the upper and lower contact pieces were aligned. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the state which the connection of contact pieces was completed from the state of FIG. FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a state in which coupling between couplers is completed from the state of FIG. 3 and vertical alignment is performed. (A), (B), and (C) are side views showing a state in which a lid member covering a connecting portion of the lower coupler is opened in the connecting operation of the vehicle storage battery connecting coupler of FIG. . FIGS. 4A and 4B are side views showing the state from the state of FIG. 4C until the opened lid member is brought into close contact with the side surface of the lower coupler.

  Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a state before connection of a vehicle storage battery connection coupler 1 composed of a pair of upper and lower parts of a lower coupler 2 and an upper coupler 3 according to the present embodiment. For example, in an electrically driven work vehicle, the vehicle storage battery connection coupler 1 electrically connects a storage battery side and a vehicle side circuit when a rechargeable storage battery serving as a driving power source is detachably mounted at a predetermined position on the loading platform side. In this embodiment, the storage battery mounting portion and the storage battery of the vehicle are not shown in the figure, but the upper coupler 3 faces downward on the bottom surface side of the storage battery and the lower coupler 2 connects to the vehicle. It is mounted upward at the storage battery mounting position.

  In the present embodiment, in order to electrically connect the detachable storage battery to the vehicle side, the lower coupler 2 includes a plurality of contact pieces 22a, 22b, 23a, 23b, 23c,. The number of contact pieces 32a, 32b, 33a, 33b, 33c,... Corresponding to each contact piece is provided, and in order to ensure a predetermined contact pressure between the contact pieces on one of the upper and lower pairs. An urging means or an urging structure is provided. The lower coupler 2 and the upper coupler 3 are integrally connected by the operation of mounting the storage battery while lowering it from above at the battery mounting position of the vehicle.

  The lower coupler 2 and the upper coupler 3 are connected and connected in the vertical direction after the contact pieces facing each other are aligned in the horizontal direction by the positioning means interlocking with the mounting operation of the storage battery. The alignment means is a guide shaft that protrudes upward from a predetermined position on the upper surface of the slide body 21 having contact pieces 22a, 22b, 23a,. 25a, 25b, and guide receiver 35a, which is an insertion hole having an inner diameter capable of being inserted downward at the corresponding position of the guide shafts 25a, 25b in the upper coupler 3 and having these holes inserted therein and chamfered. 35b.

  The slide body 21 is disposed on the bottom surface side while elastically supporting four front, rear, left and right side surfaces with six springs 28a, 28b,..., 28e, 28f inside the coupler body 20 in the lower coupler 2. On the slide plates 211, 212, a predetermined range of front, rear, left and right is arranged so as to be slidable in the horizontal direction. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 2, the guide shafts 25a and 25b are inserted into the guide receivers 35a and 35b before the connection between the upper and lower contact pieces with a predetermined contact pressure is completed. A function of correcting the horizontal position error between the vehicle side and the storage battery side by sliding the inclined surface and the inclined surface of the opening so that the slide body 21 is urged to be guided to the correct connection position. Demonstrate.

  The diameters of the openings of the guide receivers 35a and 35b are equal to the amount of variation in the horizontal direction of the guide shafts 25a and 25b that may occur during storage battery replacement work, and the hemispherical portion provided at the apex of the guide shafts 25a and 25b. Even when the storage battery mounting position by the transport means of the battery exchange facility is the maximum variation amount, the distal ends of the guide shafts 25a and 25b are located inside the openings of the guide receivers 35a and 35b. The stopping accuracy by the storage battery exchange facility is set higher than the positional accuracy required for coupler connection.

  On the other hand, springs 27a and 27b, which are members urging toward the upper coupler 3 facing each other, are interposed between the legs of the coupler main body 20 attached to the vehicle-side attachment position in the lower coupler 2 and the vehicle side. The bolts 29a and 29b inserted through the center lines of the springs 27a and 27b are fixed to the vehicle side via the mounting seats (which are fixed via the mounting seats in the present embodiment). Thus, the lower coupler 2 is attached to the vehicle side in a state where it can move within a predetermined range in the vertical direction.

  The heads of the bolts 29a and 29b function as stoppers that stop the springs 27a and 27b from pushing up the coupler main body 20 while urging the coupler body 20 upward. Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the stress at the time of regulation by the stopper of the coupler body 20 by the springs 27a and 27b is the total stress between the upper and lower couplers when the connection between all the contact pieces is completed with a predetermined contact pressure ( It is also characterized in that it is set larger than the sum of all the stresses caused by the urging of each contact piece and the contact stress of the gasket 210.

  Therefore, in the mounting operation of the storage battery to the vehicle, the coupler main body 20 having the springs 27a and 27b interposed between the attachment positions on the vehicle side until the connection between the contact pieces shown in FIG. Since it is fixed in the vertical direction and the horizontal direction by the action of the stopper described above, the horizontal position error correction function by the slide body 21 is surely exhibited, so that it is possible to ensure a highly accurate connection state in each contact piece. It will exhibit its unique functions.

  Each contact piece completes contact and the gasket 210 comes into close contact, and the lower coupler 2 and the upper coupler 3 are mechanically contacted to complete the coupling between the couplers, so that the contact pressure between the contact pieces is constant. However, since this contact pressure is set to be larger than the stress applied to the contact piece by the assumed vibration or impact, the contact piece may be separated by the vibration or impact applied to the vehicle. It is possible to prevent.

  In addition, in the present embodiment, the stress at the time of completion of connection of the lower coupler 2 and the upper coupler 3 by the springs 27a and 27b urging the lower coupler 2 upward is smaller than the load stress due to the weight of the storage battery. Is set. That is, after the lower coupler 2 and the upper coupler 3 are mechanically contacted to complete the connection, the other part of the storage battery and the other part of the mounting position on the vehicle side are mechanically contacted to perform the mounting operation of the storage battery. As shown in FIG. 4, in addition to the function of eliminating the horizontal position error between the vehicle side and the storage battery side described above, the urging force by the springs 27a and 27b is applied to the lower coupler 2 and the upper part. After the main body portion of the coupler 3 comes into contact and the connection is completed, the coupler 3 is set to operate so as to eliminate the vertical position error.

  Therefore, after the heads of the bolts 29a and 29b function as stoppers for restricting and stopping the movement due to the biasing at a predetermined position where the lower coupler 2 is biased toward the opposing upper coupler 3, The lower coupler 2 is pushed downward by the upper coupler 3 by the mounting operation in which the storage battery is lowered, and the position error in the vertical direction is automatically absorbed by being pushed back from the stop position away from the stopper. is there. Therefore, even in the case of a vehicular storage battery that is heavy and emits a large current, the battery replacement operation can be completed safely and easily while ensuring high connection accuracy with almost no manual operation in the battery replacement facility.

  In addition, since the stress at the time of completion of coupling of the upper and lower couplers is set to be smaller than the load stress due to the weight of the storage battery, the entire weight of the storage battery mounted on the vehicle does not concentrate on the coupler portion. Since it becomes a structure, it shall be easy to ensure the stable connection state. In this case, the stress at the time when the upper and lower couplers are connected by the springs 27a and 27b is preferably less than or equal to one half of the load stress due to the weight of the battery from the viewpoint of maintaining a good connection state.

  In the present embodiment, the coupler main body 20 of the lower coupler 2 is attached to the vehicle side at two places on the left and right by bolts 29a and 29b. However, the coupler main body 20 can be swung to tilt left and right. When installed with some allowance, it can absorb the error in the left and right tilt directions, and the coupler body has a margin in the tilt direction with bolts at the four corners of the front, rear, left and right. If the four corners are biased upward by springs, it is possible to absorb errors in the front, rear, left and right tilt directions. In the present embodiment, the slide body 21 that eliminates the horizontal error and the springs 27a and 27b that eliminate the vertical error are provided on the lower coupler 2 side. Needless to say, it may be provided on the side.

  5 and 6 show the state in which the lid 26 covering the connecting portion of the lower coupler 2 is opened in the connecting operation of the vehicle storage battery connecting coupler 1 of FIG. Along with a side view.

  Referring to FIG. 5, in the lower coupler 2, a lid member 26 that covers the opening from which all the contact pieces are exposed from above is attached in a state where the leg portion is pivotally attached to the side surface of the coupler body 20 by the pivot 260. It is provided so that it can be opened and closed, and as shown in FIG. 1 (A), from the state of covering the opening at the time of starting the storage battery mounting operation, the lower end side is attached to the side surface of the coupler main body 20 by the pivot 40 and is T-shaped. (B), (B), while the link member 4 of FIG. 4 is pushed downward while rotating with the left end roller 41 in contact with the lower surface side of the upper coupler 3 in accordance with the lowering operation in the mounting operation of the storage battery. As shown in C), the lid member 26 inserted through the roller 261 is urged to rotate in the opening direction in the groove 42 on the right end side so that the opening having the contact piece is completely exposed.

  Then, as shown in FIGS. 6 (A) and 6 (B), the lid member 26 is completely opened by the further downward movement of the storage battery. Although not shown, the lid member 26 automatically rotates in the reverse direction and closes in conjunction with the lifting operation in the separation operation of the storage battery by the biasing force of the spring member (not shown).

  As described above, the lid member 26 is disposed in an openable / closable state, so that even when the storage battery is removed, it is possible to ensure that the contact piece of the lower coupler 2 is not exposed to the outside. By adopting a configuration in which the lid member 26 automatically opens and closes in conjunction with the battery, the connection function between the storage battery and the vehicle can be applied to rainwater and falling objects without increasing the effort to open and close the lid member 26 in the work of installing the storage battery. It is hard to be damaged by.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the vertical biasing stress is optimally set according to each stage of the battery mounting operation, so that first, the horizontal position adjustment is performed before the contact pieces contact each other. Once the upper and lower couplers are connected via the connection of the contact pieces, the lower coupler can be urged in the vertical direction to fix the relative positional relationship between the couplers, and then the storage battery is further lowered As a result, the vertical position of the coupler is adjusted with a load that exceeds the vertical urging force.Therefore, the horizontal and vertical position adjustments are completely independent and do not have to be interrelated. Therefore, each adjustment mechanism can be simplified.

  As described above, according to the present invention, battery replacement work can be completed safely and easily while ensuring high connection accuracy between the detachable storage battery and the vehicle side in an electrically driven vehicle. .

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Vehicle storage battery connection coupler, 2 Lower coupler, 3 Upper coupler, 4 Link member, 20 Coupler main body, 21 Slide body, 22a, 22b, 23a, 23b, 23c, 32a, 32b, 33a, 33b, 33c Contact piece, 25a , 25b Guide shaft, 26 Lid member, 27a, 27b, 28a, 28b, 28e, 28f Spring, 29a, 29b Bolt, 35a, 35b Guide receiver, 40, 260 Axis, 41, 261 Roller, 42 Guide groove

Claims (4)

  It comprises a plurality of contact pieces for electrically connecting an electrically driven vehicle and a detachable storage battery, respectively, and is composed of a pair of couplers that are connected by attaching the storage battery from above to the battery mounting position of the vehicle. In the vehicle storage battery connection coupler, one of the pair is a lower coupler provided upward on the vehicle side, and the other is an upper coupler provided downward on the bottom surface of the storage battery. The couplers are coupled to each other by connecting the contact pieces facing each other by the alignment means interlocked with the mounting operation in the horizontal direction and then connected in the vertical direction, and at least one of the pair is a coupler body The plurality of contact pieces are provided on the surface of a slide body that is slidable in a horizontal direction within a predetermined range of front, rear, left, and right inside the contact pieces, and the contact pieces have a predetermined contact pressure. The slide body is biased by the positioning means at a stage before connection, and has a function of correcting a horizontal position error between the vehicle side and the storage battery side, and the pair of pairs At least one of them is mounted in a vertically movable state at the mounting position on the vehicle side or the storage battery side, and is biased toward the opposing coupler by a predetermined biasing member. A vehicle storage battery connection coupler having a function of correcting a vertical position error between the vehicle side and the storage battery side after the coupler is connected.   The coupler urged by the urging member is provided with a stopper for restricting and stopping the movement due to the urging at a predetermined position where the coupler is being urged toward the opposing coupler. The biased coupler by the operation of mounting the storage battery is pushed by an opposing coupler and is pushed back from the stopped position away from the stopper, thereby correcting the vertical position error. The stress at the time of regulation of the biased coupler is larger than the total stress between the upper and lower couplers when all the contact pieces are connected with a predetermined contact pressure. 2. The vehicle storage battery according to claim 1, wherein the stress at the time of completion of coupling of the upper and lower couplers by the biasing member is set to be smaller than a load stress due to a weight of the storage battery. Connect coupler.   3. The vehicle storage battery according to claim 2, wherein the stress due to the biasing member at the time when the coupling between the upper and lower couplers is completed is set to ½ or less of the load stress due to the weight of the storage battery. 4. Connecting coupler.   The lower coupler is provided with a lid member that can open and close the opening from which the contact piece is exposed from above, and the lid member covers the opening before the storage battery is mounted. A link mechanism that partially contacts the lower end of the storage battery or the upper coupler is actuated and opened in accordance with the lowering operation of the storage battery by the mounting work, and is closed in conjunction with the raising operation by the separation work of the storage battery. The vehicular storage battery connection coupler according to claim 1, 2, or 3.

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