FR3066327B1 - BATTERY SUPPORT HOUSING FOR A HYBRID OR ELECTRIC MOTOR VEHICLE - Google Patents

Abstract

A battery carrier housing (1) for a motor vehicle comprises at least one battery (2), at least one heat exchanger (3) arranged in contact with a face (7) of the at least one battery (2). ), as well as a compression means (4) arranged between the at least one heat exchanger (3) and a wall (5) of the housing (1) and configured to take at least one compression position to press this at least one a heat exchanger (3) against the at least one battery (2). The compression means (4) comprises at least one sealed bag (41, 42, 44) and deformable, configured to take an expanded state, when filled with an expansive foam (13), in which it takes said position of compression.

Description

BATTERY SUPPORT HOUSING FOR A HYBRID OR ELECTRIC MOTOR VEHICLE

The invention relates to the field of cooling devices for motor vehicle batteries and more particularly to cooling devices arranged in motor vehicle battery support boxes, in particular hybrid or electric vehicles.

The new electric motorizations of motor vehicles make use of more and more powerful batteries which it is necessary to thermoregulate, in particular to cool.

Conventionally these batteries are arranged in a support housing and it is known to have, between these batteries and a wall of this housing, heat exchangers in which circulates a cooling fluid. This cooling fluid makes it possible to recover the calories released by the batteries in operation and thus to ensure a transfer of heat between the battery and the heat exchangers in order to cool these batteries after or during their operation.

In order to ensure optimum cooling of these batteries, the heat exchangers must be arranged in contact with these batteries in the support housing. The dimensioning of these heat exchangers must thus allow them to be housed between the wall of the support housing and a face of the batteries to be cooled, while being arranged in contact with these batteries.

In known manner, these heat exchangers each comprise a hollow body forming one or more channels for the circulation of a refrigerant, these channels being tubes or channels formed in a plate. Each of these bodies has a first flat surface facing the bottom wall of the support housing, and a second flat surface disposed in contact with the batteries.

It is understood that it is important that the heat exchangers are disposed closer to the batteries, and advantageously in contact with them, so that the heat transfer is optimal. But the existence of games, both assembly and manufacturing, may cause the contact between the tubes of these heat exchangers and the batteries to be cooled is not assured, at least partially.

To overcome this drawback, resilient return means can be implemented to press these heat exchangers against the batteries of the support housing.

Cooling devices are thus known which comprise a heat exchanger, a spring element and an intermediate part forming, on the one hand, a support for the heat exchanger and, on the other hand, a support for the spring. This intermediate piece may include in particular a first support portion of the exchanger, which has a flat surface serving as a support for the heat exchanger, and a second portion for holding the spring. The spring can be attached against this intermediate piece or be formed by an elastic portion of this intermediate piece.

Such a design involves complex manufacture of an intermediate part and a tedious assembly of each of the components of these cooling devices. In addition, such an intermediate part requires the manufacture of support cases of substantial dimensions to integrate the device. However, these support housings are most often arranged under the vehicle frame and must therefore respect a relatively compact dimensioning, these devices are therefore not conducive to being arranged under the vehicle chassis. Furthermore, it is necessary to dimension each component accurately and to ensure the position thereof when assembling the housing so that the spring can properly wear against the heat exchanger, if necessary via

The present invention is in this context and aims to provide a cooling device for motor vehicle batteries, which is particularly simpler to produce and assemble, which also facilitates maintenance operations and is easily integrated into the system. vehicle chassis.

The object of the present invention thus relates to a battery support case for a motor vehicle comprising at least one battery, at least one heat exchanger arranged in contact with a face of this at least one battery, and a compression means. disposed between the at least one heat exchanger and a wall of the housing and configured to take at least one compression position to press this at least one heat exchanger against the at least one battery. According to the invention, this compression means comprises at least one sealed and deformable bag configured to assume a deployed state, when filled with an expansive foam, in which it takes said compression position.

This compression means is configured to be integrated into the casing in an initial retracted state and to take the compression position, in which it participates in pressing the at least one heat exchanger against the at least one battery, when it is in its unfolded state.

"Initial state" means a state in which the compression means is empty or contains only a small amount of expansive foam. The expansive foam is injected into the compression means after it has been inserted into the support housing. This expansive foam is then configured to occupy an entire available space between the at least one heat exchanger and the wall of the housing and thus exert a compressive force to press the at least one heat exchanger against the face of the less a battery. It is thus understood that the compression means performs its function of plating the at least one heat exchanger when it is in its deployed state.

According to the invention it is possible to ensure that the at least one heat exchanger is pressed against the battery with sufficient force to obtain a maximum contact surface for cooling the battery, without it being necessary to provide for There is too much space between the wall of the housing and the heat exchangers, which considerably reduces the size of the support housings and thus facilitates their integration under a vehicle chassis, where they are most often intended to be arranged.

According to a characteristic of the present invention, a wall of the housing has at least one orifice and the compression means has at least one filling hole, this orifice and this filling hole being arranged facing one another and configured to allow the filling of the compression means by the expansive foam.

The foam can thus be injected, via this filling hole and this orifice, in the form of a paste or in liquid form directly into the deformable and sealed bag forming a compression means.

According to a feature of the present invention, the housing can have a plurality of orifices in one or more walls of the housing and the compression means has a plurality of filling holes, each orifice being arranged opposite a filling hole. . It will be understood that all the orifices may be formed in the same wall of the housing, and in particular the bottom wall thereof, and that, moreover, these orifices may also be formed indifferently in several walls of the housing, each wall of the housing being able to then have a different or identical number of orifices, since an orifice corresponds to a filling hole made in the compression means.

According to an alternative embodiment of the invention, the compression means may consist of a plurality of sealed and deformable bags, each sealed and deformable bag has a filling hole arranged opposite one of the orifices. In this context, each sealed bag is disposed opposite a heat exchanger. Advantageously, this embodiment therefore makes it possible to have access to each heat exchanger, independently of the others, thus making it possible to facilitate maintenance operations, in particular when it is necessary to change one of these heat exchangers.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, the compression means consists of a single sealed and deformable bag having a plurality of pockets independent of each other, each pocket having a filling hole arranged opposite one of the orifices. According to this embodiment, each pocket of the single bag is arranged opposite a heat exchanger.

It will thus be understood that these two embodiments make it possible to adapt the pressure applied to each heat exchanger by injecting different amounts of expansive foam into each bag or into each pocket of the single bag.

According to a feature of the present invention, the expansive foam filling the compression means in its expanded state is an expansive polyurethane foam.

According to a feature of the present invention, the wall of the housing against which is disposed the compression means is a closure cover of this housing.

This characteristic makes it possible in particular to facilitate maintenance operations and replacement of heat exchangers. It suffices to remove the cover and the compression means to have access to these heat exchangers. Once the replacement of the heat exchangers has been carried out, all you have to do is dispose of a new bag and refill it with expansive foam.

The invention also relates to a method of assembling a support housing of at least one battery according to the present invention, comprising at least one step of placing the compression means, in its initial retracted state, against a wall the housing, a step of placing the at least one heat exchanger against the compression means, a step of placing the battery against the at least one heat exchanger, a closing step of the housing comprising the at least one battery, the at least one heat exchanger and the compression means by a cover arranged to come into contact with the battery, a step of injecting the expansive foam into the compression means and a drying step after which the expansive foam occupies an entire available space between the at least one heat exchanger and the wall of the housing.

The invention also relates to a method of assembling a support housing of at least one battery according to the present invention comprising at least one step of placing the at least one battery in the housing, a step of setting in place of the at least one heat exchanger and the compression means, in its initial retracted state, against this battery or against a cover arranged to close the housing, a step of closing the housing by the cover, a step of injecting the expansive foam into the compression means and a drying step after which the expansive foam occupies an entire available space between the at least one heat exchanger and the wall of the housing.

Other characteristic details and advantages will emerge more clearly on reading the detailed description given below as an indication in relation to the various embodiments illustrated in the following figures:

FIG 1 schematically illustrates a support housing of at least one battery according to a first arrangement of the present invention comprising, in addition to the battery, at least one heat exchanger, here three, and a compression means in an initial state;

FIG. 2 diagrammatically illustrates a support case for at least one battery according to a second arrangement of the present invention comprising, in addition to the battery, at least one heat exchanger, here three, and the compression means in an initial state;

FIG. 3 schematically illustrates the support case of FIG. 1 with the compression means in an expanded state;

FIGS. 4 to 5 schematically illustrate a support case with a compression means in an unfolded state similar to that of FIG. 3, the compression means being here produced according to a second and a third embodiment.

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic representation of a battery support case 1 comprising, besides the battery 2, a plurality of heat exchangers 3 and a compression means 4 disposed between a wall 5 of the casing 1 and the heat exchangers 3 According to the invention, the compression means 4 is configured to be inserted into the support casing 1 in the retracted form, as illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, and to assume an expanded state, illustrated in FIGS. Figures 3 to 5, wherein after expansive foam injection, it plates at least one heat exchanger against the battery.

Each heat exchanger 3 has a first wall 6 intended to be pressed against a face 7 of the battery 2 and a second wall 8 intended to be in contact with the compression means 4, in its deployed state. More specifically, and as will be described below, the compression means 4 is configured to exert a compression force F against the second wall 8 and directed towards the heat exchangers 3.

According to the present invention, the compression means 4 comprises at least one sealed and deformable bag configured to be filled with an expansive foam 13. This expansive foam may for example be an expansive polyurethane foam. In its initial state the compression means 4 is empty or contains a small amount of expansive foam.

The housing 1 has at least one orifice 9 formed in one of its walls 5, and more particularly in the bottom wall 51 of the housing 1. It is understood that this orifice 9 could be provided in any of the walls 5 of the 1, it being understood that this orifice 9 must be arranged facing the at least one filling hole 10 formed in the compression means 4.

The compression means 4 has in turn at least one filling hole 10 configured to allow the expansive foam to be injected into this compression means 4. When the compression means 4 are put into the casing in a state initial retracted, it should be placed in relation to the at least one orifice 9 formed in the wall 5 of the housing 1 and the at least one filling hole 10.

The compression means 4 is disposed between a bottom wall 51 of the housing 1 and at least a second wall 8 of a heat exchanger 3. More particularly, a single compression means 4, comprising one or more sealed and deformable bags like this. will be described below, is disposed against the bottom wall and each of the heat exchangers. In a practical arrangement in which the bottom wall 51 of the housing is a horizontal wall above which the battery extends, the battery 2, the heat exchangers 3, the means 4 and the bottom wall 51 of the housing 1 are stacked in a vertical direction.

As can be seen, the heat exchangers 3 are themselves arranged in series, in a direction perpendicular to the stacking direction of the components listed above.

Each heat exchanger 3 has ducts 11 for the circulation of a refrigerant defined by the first wall 6, the second wall 8 and by intermediate walls connecting the first wall 6 to the second wall 8. The refrigerant circulating in these ducts is able to capture calories emitted by the battery 2. When the heat exchangers 3 are pressed against the face 7 of the battery 2 to be cooled, the refrigerant circulating in these ducts 11 captures the calories emitted by the battery 2, thus allowing the cooling of the latter.

It is understood that the compression means 4 is inserted into the support housing 1 in the so-called "initial" state. This compression means 4 is arranged in the housing against the bottom wall 51 before the heat exchangers 3 are first introduced into the housing, directly onto the compression means 4, and then, in a second step, the battery 2. above the heat exchangers.

It could be envisaged to introduce the compression means 4 into the casing 1 while the battery and the heat exchangers are already in place, via the orifice 9 formed in the wall 5 of the casing 1, in this case in the wall bottom 51 of this housing 1.

It is possible to provide, without being shown here, means for setting the heat exchangers 3 in position in order to ensure their regular position relative to each other along the wall of the battery against which they are going. carry. These positioning means could consist of stops formed projecting from the walls of the battery case.

Once the compression means 4, the heat exchangers 3 and the battery 2 disposed in the housing 1, and once a cover 14 is attached to the housing to maintain the housing thus defined all the components, the means 4 is filled with the expansive foam, via the orifice 9 and the filling hole 10 to take its expanded state.

This deployed state is illustrated in particular in FIGS. 3 to 5, each of these figures illustrating a particular embodiment of the invention. Whatever the embodiment of the present invention, the compression means 4, in its deployed state, is configured to occupy an entire available space between the wall 5 of the housing 1 and the heat exchangers 3.

In doing so, the compression means 4 plates the heat exchangers 3 against the face 7 of the battery 2 to be cooled. More precisely, the compression means 4 exert a compression force F on the second walls 8 of the heat exchangers 3, this compression force F being directed towards the heat exchangers 3, which makes it possible to press the first walls 6 of these heat exchangers. 3 against the face 7 of the battery 2 to be cooled, the battery being also held in place in the housing inside the support case by the presence of the cover 14.

The expansive foam 13 is injected in paste form or in liquid form. At first, the expansive foam 13 fills the deformable bag which then extends to take a first defined volume and fill the available space between the heat exchangers 3 and the wall 5 of the housing 1. In a second step, in drying, the expansive foam 13 swells and the deformable bag extends to take a second volume corresponding to the expanded state of the compression means 4, plating the heat exchangers 3 against the face 7 of the battery 2, this battery being retained as previously described by the presence of the lid 14. Placing the heat exchangers against the battery ensures a good contact and a good heat exchange surface for cooling the battery, compensating for possible unevenness of the exchangers thermal and battery, and also by eliminating sets of positioning of each of these components inside the box r of support. The expansive foam 13 contained in the compression means 4 also allows mechanical protection of the heat exchangers 3 and the battery 2, the expansive foam 13 absorbing the possible shocks to the casing 1 during its use.

Advantageously, the expansive foam 13 filling the compression means 4 may be thermally insulating, which makes it possible to improve the efficiency of the heat exchangers 3 arranged in contact with the battery 2.

In an alternative embodiment illustrated in Figure 2, the cover 14 closing the housing after insertion of the exchangers and the battery can form a bottom wall of the housing and the compression means 4 is thus disposed between the lid 14 closing the housing 1 and the second walls 8 of the heat exchangers 3. In such an arrangement, the orifice 9 formed in the casing 1, to allow the injection of expansive foam into the bag participating in forming the compression means 4, is provided in the lid

14.

This embodiment variant has the advantage of facilitating assembly operations but also maintenance of the housing 1. The mounting operations can in particular be facilitated in that the bag forming the compression means 4 and optionally the heat exchangers can be pre-positioned on the lid before it is brought against the housing, which ensures the correct position of the compression means facing the heat exchangers. Moreover, maintenance operations are simplified in that it suffices to remove the cover 14 to have direct access to the compression means 4 and therefore to the heat exchangers 3. Thus, to replace these heat exchangers 3, it is sufficient to remove the cover 14 and the compression means 4. Once the heat exchangers 3 have been changed, a new compression means 4 can be put in place in its initial state before being filled with expansive foam once the cover 14 has been removed. instead of removing the battery from the case.

In the first embodiment and its variant, particularly illustrated in Figures 1 to 3, the compression means 4 consists of a single sealed and deformable bag 41 disposed between the bottom wall 51 of the housing 1 and the second walls 8 of the exchangers thermal 3. The expansive foam injection is made in the same bag and this foam spreads in this bag so that it takes in the deployed position support against each of the heat exchangers. According to this first embodiment, the compression means 4 has a single filling hole 10 and the housing 1 has a single orifice 9 for example made in the bottom wall 51.

It is understood that this orifice 9 could be formed in one of the side walls 52 of the housing 1, especially in the case where the arrangement of the components in the housing 1 is such that the heat exchangers are arranged laterally between a side wall and the battery and that the compression means is disposed between these heat exchangers and said side wall, since the filling hole 10 formed in the compression means 4 is disposed laterally opposite the orifice 9.

This first embodiment has the particular advantage of being able to simultaneously press several heat exchangers 3, in this case three heat exchangers in the illustrated case, against the battery 2 to be cooled in a single and only filling and deformation step. a single bag 41.

According to a second embodiment of the present invention illustrated in FIG. 4, the compression means 4 consists of a single sealed bag 42 comprising a plurality of pockets 43, sealed with respect to each other, so that the foam injected into one of the pockets does not extend into the next pocket. The bag 42 forming the compression means is arranged between the heat exchangers and a wall of the housing, here the bottom wall 51, so that each of the pockets 43 is arranged facing a heat exchanger 3. Each of these pockets 43 then has a filling hole 10 of its own.

It will be understood that the housing 1 consequently has a plurality of orifices 9 formed in a wall, and in particular the wall against which the deformable and leakproof bag extends, namely here the bottom wall 51 of this housing

1. The filling holes 10 are arranged facing the orifices 9, as can be seen in FIG. 4. Again, it is understood that these orifices 9 can also be formed in the lateral walls 52 of the casing 1, provided that the corresponding filling holes 10 are arranged facing these orifices 9.

This second embodiment of the present invention has the particular advantage of being able to apply different compression forces F for each heat exchanger 3 since, as mentioned above, each of the pockets 43 of the bag 42 is filled independently of the others, via a filling hole 10 of its own. We can adapt to different sets of manufacturing or positioning of a heat exchanger to another.

According to a third embodiment illustrated in FIG. 5, the compression means 4 consists of a plurality of bags 44. As illustrated, each of these bags 44 is arranged facing a heat exchanger 3 and has a hole of filling 10 of its own.

The housing 1 according to this third embodiment then has a plurality of orifices 9, for example formed in the bottom wall 51, each of the bags 44 then being arranged so that each filling hole 10 is opposite one of the orifices 9.

This third embodiment again has the advantage of being able to apply different compression forces F for each heat exchanger 3, in accordance with what may have been described in the second embodiment, but it should be noted that it presents in addition the advantage of being modular and allow maintenance operations on the heat exchangers easier. If a heat exchanger 3 is to be changed independently of the others, it can be removed and replaced by removing only one of the compression means bag.

FIGS. 4 and 5 thus illustrate two different embodiments of what has been presented in FIGS. 1 and 3. It is understood that each of these embodiments may be indifferently arranged according to the first or the second arrangement, such as illustrated in Figure 2 wherein the compression means is arranged against a cover attached to the housing, or according to another arrangement not shown here, for example in which the compression means is disposed against a side wall of the housing, without leaving context of the invention.

The present invention therefore proposes a battery support box comprising, in addition to the battery, at least one heat exchanger configured to be pressed against one side of the battery by a compression means, this compression means comprising at least one sealed and deformable bag configured to exert a compressive force on the at least one heat exchanger when in an expanded state, i.e. when filled with expansive foam.

The invention, however, can not be limited to the means and configurations described and illustrated here, and it also extends to any equivalent means or configurations and any technically operating combination of such means. In particular, the shape and arrangement of the compression means can be modified without harming the invention, inasmuch as they fulfill the functionalities described herein.

The embodiments which are described above are in no way limiting: it will be possible to imagine variants of the invention comprising only a selection of characteristics described subsequently isolated from other features mentioned in this document, if this selection of characteristics is sufficient to confer a technical advantage or to differentiate the invention from the state of the prior art.

Claims (9)

Car battery housing (1) (2) for a motor vehicle comprising at least one battery (2), at least one heat exchanger (3) arranged in contact with a face (7) of this at least one battery ( 2), and a compression means (4) disposed between the at least one heat exchanger (3) and a wall (5) of the housing (1) and configured to take at least one compression position to press this at minus one heat exchanger (3) against the at least one battery (2), characterized in that the compression means (4) comprises at least one sealed bag (41, 42, 43, 44) and deformable, configured to take an expanded state, when filled with an expansive foam (13), in which it takes said compression position, a wall (5) of the housing (1) having at least one orifice (9) and wherein the compression device (4) has at least one filling hole (10), this orifice (9) and this filling hole (10) being arranged d one of the other and configured to allow the filling of the compression means (4) by the foam expansive (13). 2. Support housing (1) according to the preceding claim, wherein the compression means (4) is configured to be integrated in the support housing (1) in an initial retracted state and to take the compression position, wherein it participates in pressing the at least one heat exchanger (3) against the at least one battery when it is in its deployed state. 3. Support housing (1) according to any one of claims 1 or 2, wherein the housing (1) has a plurality of orifices (9) formed in one or more walls (5) of the housing (1) and wherein the pressing means (4) has a plurality of filling holes (10), each opening (9) being arranged opposite a filling hole (10). 4. Support housing (1) according to the preceding claim, wherein the compression means (4) consists of a plurality of bags (44) sealed and deformable, each sealed and deformable bag having a filling hole (10) arranged in look at one of the orifices (9). 5. support case (1) according to claim 3, wherein the compression means (4) consists of a single bag (42) sealed and deformable and wherein this single bag (42) has a plurality of pockets (43) independent of each other, each pocket (43) having a filling hole (10) arranged opposite one of the orifices (9). The support housing (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the expansive foam (13) filling the compression means (4) in its expanded state is an expansive polyurethane foam. 7. housing support (1) according to any preceding claim, wherein the wall (5) of the housing (1) against which is disposed the compression means (4) is a cover (14) for closing this housing (1). 8. A method of assembling a support housing (1) of at least one battery (2) according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that it comprises at least one step of setting up of the compression means (4) against a wall (5) of the housing (1), a step of placing the at least one heat exchanger (3) against the compression means (4), a step of setting placing the battery (2) against the at least one heat exchanger (3), a step of closing the housing by a cover (14) arranged to come into contact with the battery (2), an injection step of the expansive foam (13) in the compression means (4) and a drying step after which the expansive foam (13) occupies an entire available space between the at least one heat storage unit (3) and the wall (5) of the housing (1). 9. A method of assembling a support housing (1) of at least one battery (2) according to claim 8, characterized in that it comprises at least one step of setting up the at least one battery (2) in the housing (1), a step of setting up the at least one heat exchanger (3) 5 and the compression means (4), in its retracted state, against this battery (2) or against a cover (14) arranged to close the housing (1), a step of closing the housing by the cover (14) , a step of injecting the expansive foam (13) into the compression means (4) and a drying step after which the expansive foam (13) ίο occupies a whole available space between the at least one heat exchanger (3) ) and the wall (5) of the housing (1).