JP2000072072A - Electric bicycle - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To fit a removable battery case firmly and stably by juxtaposedly providing the fitting tool of the battery storage case in the vehicle width direction astride two members serving as part of a vehicle body frame. SOLUTION: A support bracket 8 serving as a rear fitting tool is fitted astride main pipes 12, 13 connected to a vertical pipe 10 near the rear end sections of both pipes 12, 13. Both end edges in the width direction of the bracket 8 are welded to the insides of the main pipes 12, 13, and the bracket 8 is provided with a flat metal fitting astride both pipes 12, 13 nearly perpendicularly to their extending direction. The peripheral edge of a laterally long rectangular fitting hole 8a at its center is bent backward, and edges on both sides are extended backward and welded to the front face of the vertical pipe 10 to secure strength. A support bracket 7 serving as a front fixture is provided near the front edge section of the main pipes 12, 13 connected to a head pipe 11. Feeder terminals 72, 72 are protruded on the lower plate 7b of the support bracket 7 and connected to feeder cords.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electric bicycle provided with an electric motor for assisting manual driving by pedaling force, and more particularly, to a structure for mounting a battery case containing a battery for supplying power to the electric motor. About.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In an electric bicycle, an electric motor is attached to a drive system of a rear wheel, which is a traveling wheel, and the rotational force of the electric motor is transmitted to a rear wheel hub via an appropriate transmission such as a belt or gear. In addition, the original running of the bicycle performed by the pedaling force is assisted by the rotational force of the electric motor, and when starting, reducing the human load on the user when traveling uphill, etc. In recent years, it has been in the limelight as a possibility.

In this type of electric bicycle, a rechargeable battery for supplying power to the electric motor is mounted. Since this battery becomes a bulky heavy object,
In order to maintain the balance of the vehicle body without hindering the driving operation, it is housed in a long case made of synthetic resin or the like and attached to a part of the vehicle body frame. Further, in many electric bicycles, the battery case is made detachable so that the battery stored in the battery case can be charged and removed from the vehicle body frame to improve the usability.

[0004] In the electric bicycle disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-59244 (B62J 11/00, B62M 23/02) by the present applicant, an upright pipe at the center of the vehicle body for supporting a saddle,
A battery case is mounted on a main pipe connecting a head pipe at a front part of a vehicle body supporting a front wheel. The mounting is performed by using a flat battery stand fixed on the main pipe over substantially the entire length thereof as a mounting tool.
A battery case is placed on the battery base, and the front and rear of the battery case are engaged with respective different engaging portions provided at corresponding positions of the battery base.

[0005] The front engaging portion of the battery stand is configured to be disengaged from the battery case, and the battery case is removed by pulling up the disengaged front portion of the battery case. The battery case is attached by engaging the front part of the battery case placed on the battery stand with the engaging part on the same side while engaging the rear part.

[0006]

However, in the conventional structure as described above, since a flat battery stand used as a fixture is fixed to a main pipe made of a pipe material having a circular cross-section, there is no sufficient space. There is a problem that it is difficult to obtain the fixing strength and it is difficult to stably support the battery case on the battery stand. Further, the fixing portion of the battery stand is easily damaged by the action of various external forces applied via the battery case, and there is a possibility that the supporting strength of the battery case may be further reduced, and maintenance work such as repair of the fixing portion increases. There was a problem.

Further, since the battery stand is a bulky member extending over the entire length of the main pipe as a frame member, the battery case is removed and the external appearance of the battery stand when exposed is poor. There was also.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an electric bicycle in which a detachable battery case can be firmly and stably attached, and which has a good appearance when the battery case is removed. The purpose is to provide.

[0009]

An electric bicycle according to the present invention has a structure in which a battery case containing a battery is mounted on a vehicle body frame via a fixture, and an electric motor is driven by power supply from the battery case. The electric bicycle is characterized in that the attachments are provided between two frame members which are arranged side by side in the vehicle width direction and form a part of the body frame.

According to the present invention, the frame member of the vehicle body frame, which is the mounting portion of the battery case, is moved in the vehicle width direction by two.
The battery case attachment is laid between these frame members to increase the fixing strength of the attachment, prevent the strength from being reduced by the action of external force, and make the battery case firm and stable. To support. This fixture also acts as a stiffener for the two frame members.

[0011] In addition, the mounting member is disposed at two places spaced apart in the axial direction of the frame member, and the both ends of the battery case placed on the frame member in the longitudinal direction are separately provided. It is characterized in that it is supported.

In the present invention, the mounting member laid between the two frame members is opposed to each other at two positions spaced apart in the axial direction to support both ends of the battery case in the longitudinal direction. The battery case is restrained from moving in the vehicle width direction by the frame members. A small fitting is provided near the end of the frame member to improve the appearance when the battery case is removed.

One of the two attachments includes two parallel plates along the frame member and a connecting plate connecting one side edge thereof, and has a U-shaped cross section. It is characterized by being integrally formed.

In the present invention, a fixture having a U-shaped cross section formed by connecting the edges of two parallel plates by a connecting plate is used to increase the strength of the fixture itself and to stably support the battery case. To achieve. In addition, this mounting fixture is integrated, and the number of parts is reduced.

[0015] Further, a display unit and / or an operation unit is provided on one of the parallel plates, and an output terminal of the battery case is provided on the other of the parallel plates.

According to the present invention, a display unit for displaying a remaining battery level and the like, an operation unit for attaching and detaching a battery case, and the like, utilizing two parallel plates of a fixture having a U-shaped cross section, and Output terminals for power supply from a battery case are arranged in a hierarchy, and one of the mounting tools that requires these components is made compact.

Further, an output cord of the battery case is attached along one of the two frame members, and operation wires of a brake and a transmission are attached along the other.

According to the present invention, the output cord from the battery case is disposed apart from the operation wire for mechanically operating the brake and the transmission by utilizing the two frame members supporting the battery case, The output cord is prevented from being damaged due to the contact with the operation wire.

[0019]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings showing the embodiments. FIG. 1 is a side view showing the entire configuration of the electric bicycle according to the present invention. This electric bicycle includes a vehicle body frame 1 supported front and rear by front wheels 2 and rear wheels 3. The body frame 1 supports a seating saddle 4 at an upper part thereof, and a standing pipe 10 provided with human-powered pedals 5 and 5 at a lower part thereof, and a head pipe 11 supporting the front wheels 2. The main pipes are connected by two main pipes 12 and 13 (only one side is shown) arranged side by side in the direction.

The front wheel 2 is attached to a lower end of a support fork 40 inserted and supported by the head pipe 11 so as to be rotatable about an axis. A bar-like steering handle 41 is fixed to the upper end of the support fork 40 extending above the head pipe 11 so as to be substantially perpendicular to the support fork 40.
The operation of 41 changes the direction of the support fork 40 to steer the front wheel 2.

The rear wheel 3 protrudes from the rear side of the upright pipe 10 and is supported from both sides in the vehicle width direction by a back fork 14 and a chain stay 15 framed in a triangular shape together with the upright pipe 10. . A hub plate 30 is fixed to the rear ends of the back fork 14 and the chain stay 15 coaxially with the rear wheel 3, and an electric motor M for driving assistance is mounted on the hub plate 30. It is connected to the hub shaft of the rear wheel 3 via transmission means (not shown) such as a belt and a gear built in the plate 30.

A rear gear (not shown) is attached to an end of the hub axle of the rear wheel 3 protruding from the side shown in FIG.
On the other hand, a front gear 50 that is paired with the rear gear is rotatably supported at the lower end of the standing pipe 10, and a chain C is stretched between the front gear 50 and the rear gear. . Front gear 50 protruding on both sides in the vehicle width direction
The pedals 5, 5 are attached to both ends of the rotary shaft through separate cranks having a phase difference of 180 °.

With the above configuration, the front gear 50 is
The user is seated on the saddle 4 and is rotated by the pedaling force of the pedals 5, 5, and this rotation is transmitted to the rear wheel 3 via the chain C and the rear gear, and the rear wheel 3 is rotated to perform manual driving. The electric motor M is driven by the same driving force as human power, and this rotational force is transmitted to the rear wheel 3 via a transmission mechanism built in the hub plate 30 to assist the manual driving performed as described above. Is done.

The rotational torque applied to the rear wheel 3 by the depression force of the pedals 5, 5 is detected by a torque sensor (not shown) built in the hub plate 30, and the rotational torque is equal to the torque detected by the torque sensor, ie, the user. The electric motor M is driven so as to obtain a rotational torque equal to the pedaling force of the pedals 5, 5 due to the above. As a result, the electric motor M is driven in a traveling state in which a large pedaling force is applied to the pedals 5 and 5, such as when traveling uphill or starting, as well as during normal traveling, so that traveling by human power is assisted and light traveling is performed. It becomes possible.

The feature of the electric bicycle according to the present invention lies in the mounting structure of the battery case 6 containing a battery for supplying power to the electric motor M driven as described above. As shown in FIG. 1, the battery case 6 is a long box detachably mounted on a pair of left and right main pipes (frame members) 12, 13 provided between a standing pipe 10 and a head pipe 11. A handle that is attached to the upper part of the front end of the body
The handle 6a can be removed by pulling it up, grasping it and pulling it upward, and conversely, by grasping the handle 6a and pushing it down, it can be attached as described later.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line II-II of FIG. 1 and shows a state in which the battery case 6 is supported. As shown in this figure, the battery case 6 is a resin hollow formed by arranging a plurality of cylindrical batteries B, B,... A container for accommodating the batteries B, B ... is held between the main pipes 12 and 13 to restrict the movement to the left and right, and support flanges 61, 67 are provided on the outer side of the upper part of the accommodation so as to protrude left and right. The main pipes 12 and 13 are brought into contact with the support flanges 61 and supported by the support flanges 61 and 61 to restrict downward movement.

The main pipes 12 and 13 are made of pipes having an oval cross section whose vertical dimension is longer than that in the horizontal direction, and have increased strength against vertical force. B, B... Can firmly support the heavy battery case 6.
FIG. 2 shows the handle 6a used when the battery case 6 is attached and detached.
And pivoted about the support pins 6b, 6b so as to be caused on the upper lid 60.

As described above, a power supply cord 16 for guiding power supply from the battery case 6 to the electric motor M is attached to a lower portion of the main pipe 12 on one side supporting the battery case 6, and a power supply cord 16 on the other side. At the bottom of the main pipe 13,
There is attached a brake wire W ₁ for operating the brake 17, which is attached to the rear wheel 3 (see FIG. 1), a shift wire W ₂ for operating the transmission (not shown) attached to the rear wheel 3 . As shown in FIG. 1, the power supply cord 16 extends rearward along a main pipe 12 and a back fork 14 on the same side as the main pipe 12 and a hub plate attached to the rear wheel 3.
It is guided inside 30 and connected to an electric motor M for driving assistance via a drive circuit (not shown).

On the other hand, the brake wire W ₁ is guided upward along the head pipe 11 at the front of the main pipe 13, and is connected to a brake lever (not shown) attached to the steering handle 41. In the vicinity of the rear part, the brake 17 is connected to a brake 17 attached to the rear wheel 3, and is configured to mechanically transmit the operation of the brake lever to the brake 17 and cause the brake 17 to perform a braking operation. The speed change wire W ₂ extends rearward along the main pipe 13 and a back fork 14 on the same side as the speed change wire W ₂ , and is connected to a transmission arranged near the rear gear. Is connected to a shift lever (not shown), and the operation of the shift lever is mechanically transmitted to a transmission to perform a shift operation.

With the above arrangement, the output cord 16 of the battery case 6 is located away from the brake wire W ₁ and the shift wire W ₂ for mechanical push-pull operation without being close to each other. _1, W ₂ and damage of the output code 16 by mechanical contact can be prevented.

As described above, the support brackets 7, 8 as attachments are laid on the main pipes 12, 13 for supporting the battery case 6 on the rack.
The battery case B is restrained by the support brackets 7 and 8 from moving vertically and in the front-rear direction.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional view of the vicinity of the mounting position of the battery case 6, and FIG. 4 is a plan view of the main pipes 12 and 13 in a state where the battery case 6 is removed.
As shown, a main pipe 12, which is connected to a vertical pipe 10,
In the vicinity of the rear end of the support 13, a support bracket 8 as a rear attachment is mounted so as to straddle between the pipes 12 and 13.

As shown in the figure, the support bracket 8 is formed by welding both side edges in the width direction to the inner surfaces of the main pipes 12 and 13.
It is a flat metal fitting straddled between the two pipes 12 and 13 in a manner substantially orthogonal to the extending direction, and a fitting hole 8a having a rectangular shape elongated in the lateral direction is provided at the center thereof. Is formed. The periphery of the fitting hole 8a is bent rearward as shown in the figure, and the bent edges on both sides are extended rearward and welded to the front surface of the standing pipe 10 to secure sufficient strength.

As shown in FIG. 3, a projection 62 having a shape corresponding to the fitting hole 8a is provided on the rear surface of the battery case 6 facing the support bracket 8 at the time of mounting.
The battery case 6 restrains the rearward vertical movement by fitting the protrusion 62 into a fitting hole 8a formed in the support bracket 8, and as described above, the two main pipes 12 and 13 It is supported on a shelf.

On the other hand, in the vicinity of the front ends of the main pipes 12 and 13 connected to the head pipe 11, a support bracket 7 as a front mounting tool is mounted so as to extend between the pipes 12 and 13. . The support bracket 7 has its rear part restrained by the support bracket 8 and faces the front part of the battery case 6 placed and supported on the main pipes 12 and 13, and the outside thereof is covered with a resin outer cover 18. .

FIG. 5 is an enlarged side sectional view showing the vicinity of the support bracket 7, and FIG. 6 is a view taken along the line VI-VI in FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, the support bracket 7 comprises an upper plate 7a and a lower plate 7b substantially parallel to each other along the upper and lower edges of the main pipes 12, 13, and a connecting plate 7c for connecting these front edges. It is a metal fitting having a U-shaped side sectional shape and integrally formed.

A key cylinder 70, which is rotated by a key K inserted into the upper part of the upper plate 7a, is mounted with its rotation axis directed vertically. A lock plate 71 that rotates around the axis of the key cylinder 70 in response to the rotation operation of the key K is attached to the lower end of the key cylinder 70 that projects below the upper plate 7a. The lower plate 7b of the support bracket 7 is extended rearward from the upper plate 7a in a plan view so that it can be seen from above, and the extended portion has a pair of rods that are substantially perpendicular to the upper surface thereof. The power supply terminals 72, 72 protrude, and are connected to the power supply cord 16 below the lower plate 7b.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, an upper part of the key cylinder 70 is provided with an outer cover so that a key K for operation can be inserted.
The key K, which is exposed on the upper side of 18 and is inserted into this exposed portion, has three keys of "removable", "on", and "off" shown in FIG.
The rotation operation between the two switching positions is enabled. On one side of the operation unit, there are provided LEDs 19, 19, 19 as display units for the remaining battery level, which are attached to the upper plate 7a of the support bracket 7 inside the outer case 18.

The lock plate 71 attached to the lower portion of the key cylinder 70 is a flat plate having a fan-shaped flat shape as shown in FIG. 3, and is turned in response to the operation of the key K.
When the switch is operated to the "on" or "off" switching position, as shown in FIG.
Through 8a, it projects toward the front of the battery case 6 by the attachment described above, and comes into contact with the contact portion 63 projecting from the front surface of the battery case 6 from above. As a result, the front portion of the battery case 6 is pressed from above,
The removal by the above-mentioned pulling is restrained to be impossible.

On the other hand, when the key K is operated to the "removable" switching position, the lock plate 71 attached to the key cylinder 70 is operated.
Retreats to the inside of the outer case 18, and the restraint of the contact portion 63 is released. In this state, the battery case 6 can be removed by grasping the handle 6a and pulling up the front part. The battery case 6 is also mounted in this state. The front part of the battery case 6, whose rear part is restrained by the support bracket 8, is pushed down while being inserted between the main pipes 12 and 13, and is mounted on these pipes 12 and 13. After that, the key K is operated to the "ON" or "OFF" switching position to cause the lock plate 71 to protrude, and the front portion of the battery case 6 is restrained from being pulled up, thus completing the operation.

As described above, the battery case 6 is mounted so as to support the front and rear by the support brackets 7 and 8, and the support brackets 7 and 8 are provided between the two main pipes 12 and 13 arranged in the vehicle width direction. Since the battery case 6 is straddled and has high strength, the heavy battery case 6 can be firmly and stably supported. The support brackets 7, 8 are
Since the main pipes 12 and 13 do not function as reinforcing members, the strength of the vehicle body frame 1 can be increased.

The support brackets 7, 8 are located apart from the front and rear ends of the main pipes 12, 13, and have a good appearance with the battery case 6 removed as shown in FIG. Note that the support bracket 7 is covered by the outer case 18 and is not exposed over the entire surface as shown in FIG.

An output terminal (not shown) is provided inside the vicinity of the front portion of the battery case 6 which is detachably attached as described above, and is configured to have elasticity by a leaf spring or the like. When the battery case 6 is attached as described above, the battery case 6 is elastically contacted with the power supply terminals 72, 72 that enter the inside from the lower surface of the battery case 6, and is connected to be conductive. As a result, the battery case 6 is connected to the electric motor M for driving assistance by the power supply terminals 72, 72 and the power supply cord 16, and the electric motor M is supplied with electric power from the batteries B, B,. Driven by

The "on" and "off" switching positions realized by operating the key K are provided to interrupt the power supply to the electric motor M, and are operated to the "on" position. In this case, the electric power is supplied to the electric motor M and the electric traveling becomes effective. On the other hand, when the electric motor M is operated to the “off” position, the electric power to the electric motor M is cut off and the electric motor M is assisted. There is no manpower alone. In this connection, as shown in FIG. 5, the reed switch on the switch board 74 disposed below the lock plate 71 is turned on and off by a magnet 73 attached to a part of the lock plate 71, as shown in FIG. Has been realized.

As described above, the support bracket 7 includes the upper plate 7a,
It has a U-shaped cross section including a lower plate 7b and a connecting plate 7c, and an operation unit and a display unit are provided on the upper plate 7a, and power supply terminals 72, 72 for connection with the battery case 6 are provided on the lower plate 7b. Are provided, respectively, so that they can be efficiently arranged hierarchically. Further, the support bracket 7 having a U-shaped cross section has a high strength of itself and can support the battery case 6 more firmly.

[0046]

As described above in detail, in the electric bicycle according to the present invention, two frame members forming a part of the body frame are arranged side by side in the vehicle width direction, and the battery case mounting member is provided between these frame members. Since the mounting member is straddled, the strength of the mounting member is high, and the battery case, which is a heavy object, can be firmly and stably supported, and a reduction in the supporting strength due to the action of external force can be prevented. Further, the attachment also functions as a reinforcing member for the two frame members, and is effective in increasing the strength of the body frame.

In addition, since the mounting members are arranged at two places separated in the axial direction of the frame member to support both ends of the battery case separately, the battery case can be supported more stably. Also, the appearance in a state where the battery case is removed is improved.

Further, since one of the mounting members is formed as a unitary member having a U-shaped cross section, the strength of the mounting device itself is increased, and the battery case can be supported more stably. The points can be reduced.

Further, one of the two parallel plates of the fixture having a U-shaped cross section is provided with a display unit and an operation unit, and the other is provided with an output terminal of a battery case. Thus, the mounting fixture can be made compact.

Further, since two frame members for mounting the battery case were used, the output cord of the battery case was mounted on one side, and the operating wires of the brake and the transmission were mounted on the other side. It is arranged apart from the operation wires for transmission, and there is no danger that the output cord will be damaged by contact with these operation wires, and occurrence of inconvenience such as power supply failure can be prevented.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view showing the entire configuration of an electric bicycle according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line II-II of FIG.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view near a mounting position of a battery case.

FIG. 4 is a plan view of a main pipe showing a state where a battery case is removed.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged side sectional view showing the vicinity of a support bracket supporting a front portion of a battery case.

FIG. 6 is a view taken along the line VI-VI in FIG. 5;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Body frame 2 Front wheel 3 Rear wheel 4 Saddle 5 Pedal 6 Battery case 7 Support bracket 8 Support bracket 10 Vertical pipe 11 Head pipe 12 Main pipe 13 Main pipe 64 Output terminal 71 Lock plate 72 Power supply terminal B Battery K key M Electric motor

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. An electric bicycle in which a battery case in which a battery is stored is attached to a vehicle body frame via an attachment, and an electric motor is driven by power supply from the battery case. An electric bicycle is provided between two frame members which are arranged side by side and form a part of the vehicle body frame. 2. The mounting device is provided at two positions spaced apart in the axial direction of the frame member, and separately supports longitudinal end portions of the battery case mounted on the frame member. The electric bicycle according to claim 1, wherein the electric bicycle is configured to perform the following operations. 3. One of the two attachments includes two parallel plates along the frame member, and a connecting plate connecting one side edge thereof, and has a U-shaped cross section. The electric bicycle according to claim 2, wherein the electric bicycle is integrally formed. 4. The electric bicycle according to claim 3, wherein a display unit and / or an operation unit is provided on one of the parallel plates. 5. The electric bicycle according to claim 4, wherein an output terminal of the battery case is provided on the other of the parallel plates. 6. The battery cord according to claim 1, wherein an output cord of the battery case is attached along one of the two frame members, and operation wires of a brake and a transmission are attached along the other. The electric bicycle according to any of the above.