JP2012084448A - Vehicular battery container - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a vehicular battery container having light-weight, toughness, and strength.SOLUTION: The vehicular battery container is molded using a synthetic resin material. A wall body surrounding the vehicular battery container has a double wall structure made up of the outer wall and inner wall. In addition, each of the outer wall and the inner wall is molded by a resin having different characteristics.

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle battery container that houses a drive storage battery to be mounted on a vehicle and is attached to the outside of the vehicle body.

  An electric vehicle or a so-called hybrid vehicle in which an electric motor is combined with an internal combustion engine is equipped with a drive storage battery, and uses electric power stored in the drive storage battery for driving power or the like. On the other hand, the drive storage battery is formed by stacking a plurality of single cells called cells, and may be considerably heavy as a whole. Further, when the drive storage battery is attached to the outside of the vehicle body, it is conceivable that a stone hits the vehicle during traveling or an excessive force is applied during an accident.

  Therefore, it is considered that the storage battery for driving is housed in a battery container having a predetermined strength and mounted on the vehicle via the battery container. In a freight vehicle such as a truck, a main frame extending in the front-rear direction is provided at the center of the vehicle body. In a hybrid vehicle of such a vehicle, a battery container containing a drive storage battery is attached to the side of the main frame. ing.

  On the other hand, in particular, vehicles are required to be lighter. For example, if the battery container is made of a general metal material, the vehicle weight increases significantly. Thus, it has been considered to form the battery container with a synthetic resin material.

JP-A-8-186390

  However, when the battery container is mounted on a vehicle and used, the battery container is required to have a toughness that does not easily break along with the rigidity and does not form a hole or the like in the peripheral wall portion. As a synthetic resin material having high rigidity, a fiber reinforced plastic is known, but in terms of toughness, the fiber reinforced plastic is not sufficient.

  In addition, the drive storage battery is precisely controlled, and may generate electromagnetic waves due to current / voltage fluctuations caused by charging and discharging. The battery container is required to have a function of blocking electromagnetic waves emitted from the housed drive storage battery so that the human body and peripheral devices are not affected by the electromagnetic waves.

  If the battery case is made of metal, the problem of electromagnetic waves does not occur because the metal reflects the electromagnetic waves. However, the synthetic resin material cannot normally block electromagnetic waves, and when the battery container is formed of the synthetic resin material, there is a problem that electromagnetic waves emitted from the drive storage battery pass through the battery container and are emitted to the surroundings.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle battery container that can be reduced in weight, has sufficient rigidity and toughness, and does not cause electromagnetic waves to be released to the outside.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention has a vehicle battery container configured as follows.
The battery container for vehicles is comprised from a container main body and the cover body attached to a container main body. The container main body is a container body having a capacity for storing a predetermined amount of the storage battery for driving and having an open upper surface. The lid is formed in accordance with the upper surface opening of the container main body, and seals the inside of the container main body when assembled to the opening of the container main body.

  Both the container body and the lid are formed of a double wall structure consisting of an outer wall and an inner wall. The outer wall and the inner wall are formed approximately parallel to each other at an appropriate distance. The outer wall and the inner wall are formed from members having different properties.

  For example, the outer wall is formed from a synthetic resin material having toughness such as high-density polyethylene, and the inner wall is formed from an electromagnetic wave shielding resin material that blocks the passage of electromagnetic waves. The electromagnetic wave shielding resin material is, for example, a synthetic resin material provided with conductivity by mixing a fibrous metal piece, a carbon material, or the like inside the synthetic resin material. In addition, you may use the resin material of an outer wall and an inner wall reversely.

  The container body and the lid are formed by combining the outer wall and the inner wall and then joining their edges together by welding or the like. The outer wall and the inner wall are molded by a resin molding method using a vacuum molding method.

  Further, at least one of the outer wall and the inner wall may be formed using a high density polyethylene resin, an electromagnetic wave shielding member may be provided between the combined outer wall and the inner wall, and the edges of the outer wall and the inner wall may be joined to each other. . The electromagnetic wave shielding member may be a member that reflects or absorbs electromagnetic waves, such as a metal thin film or a conductive paint, and blocks the electromagnetic waves.

  Since the vehicle battery container has a double wall structure including an outer wall and an inner wall, the vehicle battery container has high rigidity and strength compared to the plate thickness of the outer wall and the inner wall alone. Therefore, it is possible to reliably hold the drive storage battery having a predetermined weight. Further, a fastening band or the like can be turned around the outer surface of the vehicle battery container so that it can be securely attached to the vehicle chassis frame or the like.

  Since the outer wall and the inner wall are made of resins having different properties, at least two kinds of desired properties can be imparted. If at least one of the outer wall and inner wall is formed of a resin material having toughness such as high-density polyethylene, for example, even if an accident or the like occurs and an impact is applied from the outside, the outer peripheral member of the vehicle battery container There is no breakage or opening. Therefore, it is possible to reliably prevent the conductive portion of the drive storage battery from being in contact with the outside of the vehicle battery container or the drive storage battery being exposed to the outside of the vehicle battery container.

  Since the vehicle battery container is made of synthetic resin, it can be reduced in weight, and the fuel efficiency and running performance of the vehicle can be improved. Even if electromagnetic waves are emitted from the drive storage battery, either the outer wall or the inner wall is made of an electromagnetic wave-blocking resin material, or an electromagnetic wave blocking member is interposed between the outer wall and the inner wall. Electromagnetic waves are not emitted outside the vehicle battery container. Since it can be formed by a vacuum forming method, a vehicle battery container having an accurate shape can be easily and inexpensively manufactured.

It is sectional drawing which shows a part of one Embodiment of the battery container for vehicles concerning this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows a part of the battery container for vehicles. It is an exploded view which shows the shaping | molding method of the battery container for vehicles. It is sectional drawing which shows a part of battery container for vehicles of another example. It is a perspective view which shows one Embodiment of the battery container for vehicles. It is a perspective view which shows the state which attached the battery container for vehicles to the vehicle. It is a top view which shows the frame structure of a vehicle. It is a perspective view which shows a vehicle. It is a schematic block diagram which shows the vacuum forming method of a battery container. It is a schematic block diagram which shows the vacuum forming method of a battery container. It is a schematic block diagram which shows the vacuum forming method of a battery container.

  An embodiment of a vehicle battery container according to the present invention will be described.

  FIG. 8 shows the vehicle 100. The vehicle 100 is a freight hybrid vehicle in which a vehicle battery container (hereinafter referred to as “battery container”) 10 according to the present invention is mounted on the side. The vehicle 100 includes a cabin 102 at the front, a cargo box 104 at the rear, a front wheel 12 a at the lower part of the cabin 102, and a rear wheel 12 b at the lower part of the cargo box 104. The vehicle 100 is provided with a main frame 106 extending through the front and rear of the vehicle, and the battery case 10 is attached to the side of the main frame 106.

  FIG. 7 shows a schematic configuration when the vehicle 100 is viewed from above. A main frame 106 is provided in the front-rear direction at the center in the width direction of the vehicle 100. The main frame 106 is configured by arranging a pair of left and right parallel frame members 107 having a U-shaped cross section. An engine 14, a clutch mechanism 16, an electric motor 20, and a transmission 18 are attached to the main frame 106 from the front. Further, the battery case 10 and the power control unit 26 are attached to the main frame 106 on the side.

  The engine 14 is, for example, a diesel engine. The output shaft of the engine 14 is connected to the clutch mechanism 16. The clutch mechanism 16 is provided between the engine 14 and the electric motor 20 and intermittently rotates output from the engine 14. The transmission 18 includes a transmission mechanism inside, and an output shaft (not shown) is connected to the rear wheel 12 b via the propeller shaft 30 and the differential device 31.

  The electric motor 20 is connected to a drive storage battery 36 (see FIG. 5) housed in the battery container 10 through a power control unit 26. The power control unit 26 supplies electric power to the electric motor 20 in accordance with an instruction from a control device (not shown). The electric motor 20 operates separately from the engine 14 and applies a driving force to the transmission 18. Further, the electric motor 20 generates electric power with a driving force received from the rear wheel 12b during braking. The electric power generated by the electric motor 20 is stored in the drive storage battery 36.

  As described above, the vehicle 100 is a so-called hybrid vehicle that can travel by using different powers of the power from the engine 14 that is an internal combustion engine and the power from the electric motor 20 individually or simultaneously. The engine 14 may be another power source instead of an engine of another internal combustion engine such as a gasoline engine or an internal combustion engine. The vehicle according to the present invention may be an electric vehicle that runs using only electric power as a drive source.

  Furthermore, the electric motor 20 may be installed at any position. For example, the electric motor 20 may be provided between the engine 14 and the clutch mechanism 16. Furthermore, the electric motor 20 may be connected to the front wheel 12 a so that the front wheel 12 a can be driven by the electric motor 20.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the battery container 10 includes a container main body 32 and a lid 34, and a drive storage battery 36 and a cooling mechanism 38 are accommodated therein.

  The drive storage battery 36 is a high-power battery formed by superposing a plurality of battery cells as a unit to have a predetermined voltage. The cooling mechanism 38 is provided in the upper part of the drive storage battery 36, and includes a blower 40, a temperature measuring device (not shown), various ducts 42, and the like. Based on the measurement result of the temperature measuring device, the battery container The outside air introduced from an inflow port (not shown) formed in 10 is passed through and discharged from an exhaust port (not shown) to keep the drive storage battery 36 at a predetermined temperature.

  Next, the structure of the battery container 10 will be specifically described.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the battery container 10 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape, and is entirely formed of a synthetic resin material. The container main body 32 includes a bottom plate 50 and a wall plate 52 raised around the bottom plate 50. The bottom plate 50 is generally rectangular, and a wall plate 52 is raised substantially vertically at each edge around the bottom plate 50 to form a side wall. The bottom plate 50 and the wall plate 52 form a wall body around the container body 32.

  An opening 58 for inspection and repair is formed on the right side of the wall plate 52 on the front surface (left side surface in the vehicle 100) of the container body 32. An attachment lid 66 is attached to the opening 58, and the opening 58 is normally closed by the attachment lid 66. Further, an inflow port and an exhaust port (both not shown) for adjusting the internal temperature are formed in the bottom plate 50 and the wall plate 52.

  In FIG. 1, the cross section of the upper edge of the wall board 52 is shown. As shown in FIG. 1, the wall plate 52 is formed with a double wall structure including an outer wall 54 and an inner wall 56. The outer wall 54 is located outside the container body 32, and the inner wall 56 is located inside. Further, as shown in the figure, the wall plate 52 is welded at the outer peripheral portion at the upper end to the end portions of the outer wall 54 and the inner wall 56. The joint portion 55 formed by welding the end portions of the outer wall 54 and the inner wall 56 is provided continuously over the entire outer periphery of the upper edge of the container body 32.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the outer wall 54 and the inner wall 56 have a predetermined gap and are provided substantially in parallel. It should be noted that the outer wall 54 and the inner wall 56 are not always a fixed gap, and the interval may be changed as appropriate according to the position of the container body 32. Further, the outer wall 54 and the inner wall 56 are formed in the same manner in the bottom plate 50 continuously from the wall plate 52.

  The outer wall 54 is formed of a synthetic resin material having strength and toughness such as high-density polyethylene. The inner wall 56 is formed from a conductive resin material. The conductive resin material forming the inner wall 56 is formed by mixing, for example, a synthetic resin material with fibrous metal, carbon particles, carbon fiber, or the like. The inner wall 56 has a performance that reflects or absorbs electromagnetic waves generated by the driving storage battery 36 when the driving storage battery 36 is stored in the battery container 10, and does not emit electromagnetic waves to the outside of the battery container 10. . The inner wall 56 and the outer wall 54 are formed of a resin material having good weldability.

  The wall plate 52 is integrated with the outer wall 54 and the inner wall 56 so as to have a predetermined strength and the like, that is, sufficient rigidity and strength, and toughness to constitute the container body 32 and, as a result, the battery container 10. It is formed by selecting a shape or the like.

  The lid 34 is formed so as to be adapted to the shape of the upper surface of the container body 32, and when attached to the upper open portion of the container body 32, the inside of the container body 32 is sealed. Similar to the container body 32, the lid 34 has a double wall structure including an outer wall 54 and an inner wall 56.

  The configuration of the outer wall 54 and the inner wall 56 of the lid 34 is the same as the configuration of the container body 32, whereby the lid 34 has predetermined strength, rigidity, and toughness, and has an electromagnetic wave shielding property that blocks electromagnetic waves. It has. The outer wall 54 and the inner wall 56 of the lid 34 form a wall around the lid 34. The lid 34 may be attached to the container main body 32 by a hinge or the like so as to be opened and closed separately from the container main body 32.

  Furthermore, when the lid 34 is assembled to the container main body 32, the inner walls 56 formed of the conductive resin material are in direct contact with each other at a portion where the two come into contact with each other to be in a conductive state. To prevent the battery container 10 from being released from the assembled portion.

FIG. 6 shows a state in which the battery container 10 is attached to the vehicle 100.
As shown in FIG. 6, the battery container 10 is attached to a frame member 107 on the left side of the main frame 106. An L-shaped stay 74 is attached to the frame member 107. A shelf plate 76 is attached to the projecting portion of the lower portion of the stay 74, and the battery container 10 is placed on the shelf plate 76. One end of a belt 78 is fixed to the front end of the stay 74. The belt 78 is, for example, a metal belt, is rotated along the front surface and the upper surface of the battery case 10, and the other end is detachably attached to a fixture 80 provided on the main frame 106.

  Next, the manufacturing method of the battery container 10 is demonstrated using figures.

  The container body 32 is formed of an outer member 46 and an inner member 48 as shown in FIG. The outer member 46 is located outside the container body 32 and forms the outer wall 54. The inner member 48 is located inward of the container body 32 and forms an inner wall 56.

  First, the molding of the outer member 46 will be described. FIG. 9 shows the molding apparatus 110. The molding apparatus 110 is a vacuum molding apparatus that includes a heater 112, a frame body 114, a mold 116, an air pump 118, a drive mechanism (not shown), and the like.

  A sheet material 60 is fixed to the frame body 114. The sheet material 60 is formed of a synthetic resin member that forms the outer wall 54, for example, a high-density polyethylene resin. The frame body 114 fixes the periphery of the sheet material 60, arranges the sheet material 60 in the vicinity of the heater 112, and heats the sheet material 60 to a predetermined temperature. When the sheet material 60 is heated to a predetermined temperature, the air pump 118 is operated, air is ejected from the vent hole 120 of the mold 116 toward the sheet material 60, and the sheet material 60 is extended upward.

  As shown in FIG. 10, when the sheet material 60 is stretched and curved into a predetermined shape by the ejection of air, the ejection of air from the vent hole 120 is stopped and the frame body 114 is lowered by the driving mechanism.

  As shown in FIG. 11, the frame body 114 is lowered to the lower part of the mold 116, and the sheet material 60 is pressed against the surface of the mold 116. Further, the air pump 118 is operated to the suction side, and the sheet material 60 is brought into close contact with the surface of the mold 116 through the vent hole 120. When the sheet material 60 is formed into a predetermined shape along the mold 116, the sheet material 60 is cooled and solidified. When the sheet material 60 is solidified, it is removed from the mold 116. The outer member 46 is formed by cutting and molding the outer periphery of the sheet material 60.

  Similarly, the inner member 48 is formed. The inner member 48 is formed by forming the sheet material 60 from a conductive resin material, and molding the sheet material 60 with the molding apparatus 110 by the same vacuum forming method as the outer member 46 described above. When the inner member 48 is molded, a dedicated mold for molding the inner member 48 is used.

  When the outer member 46 and the inner member 48 are respectively molded, the inner member 48 is incorporated inside the outer member 46 as shown in FIG. The outer member 46 and the inner member 48 are arranged such that the distance between them is a predetermined distance. In order to keep the mutual distance, a spacer or the like may be disposed between the two. Then, as shown in FIG. 2, the upper end edges 53 of the outer member 46 and the inner member 48 are welded to each other in the vertical direction, and both are integrally joined.

  Similarly to the container body 32, the lid 34 is also formed with two members, an outer member 46 and an inner member 48, by a vacuum forming method using the forming device 110, and after combining them, the outer periphery of the edge is welded. , Join them together. The lid body 34 has a predetermined strength, rigidity, and toughness similar to the container body 32, and brings the battery container 10 to a predetermined strength, rigidity, etc. when assembled to the container body 32. Further, when the lid 34 is assembled to the container main body 32 by cutting off part of the outer wall 54 of the container main body 32 and the lid 34, the container main body 32 and the inner wall 56 of the lid 34 are in direct contact with each other. To do.

  By molding the battery case 10 in this way, the wall body around the battery case 10 has a double wall structure and has sufficient rigidity, and high-density polyethylene forming the outer wall 54 provides sufficient toughness. Even when the vehicle 100 collides or the battery case 10 is impacted by a stepping stone or the like, the wall plate 52 is not cracked or an opening is not formed. Therefore, the conductive portion of the drive storage battery 36 is not accessible from the outside of the battery container 10, and the drive storage battery 36 is not exposed to the outside from the battery container 10.

  Further, the inner wall 56 is formed from a conductive resin material, and electromagnetic waves generated from the drive storage battery 36 are reflected or absorbed by the inner wall 56. Therefore, the electromagnetic wave is cut off from the battery case 10 and is not released to the outside, and the person and peripheral devices are not affected by the electromagnetic wave in the vicinity of the battery case 10.

  Furthermore, since the battery container 10 is molded from a synthetic resin material, an increase in the weight of the battery container 10 can be suppressed, and deterioration of the running performance and fuel consumption of the vehicle 100 can be prevented. Since the battery case 10 has moderate rigidity, strength, and toughness, it can be securely fixed to the main frame 106 of the vehicle 100 by fastening with the belt 78.

  Another example of the battery container 10 is shown in FIG. The outer member 46 and the inner member 56 are both formed of the same synthetic resin material, for example, high-density polyethylene, and an intermediate member 62 is provided between the outer member 46 and the inner member 48. The outer member 46 and the inner member 48 are selected in thickness so that predetermined rigidity and strength can be obtained as the battery container 10 in a state in which both are joined.

  The intermediate member 62 is made of aluminum and is formed so as to be adapted to the gap between the outer member 46 and the inner member 48. The intermediate member 62 is provided so as to surround the entire gap between the outer member 46 and the inner member 48. The lid 34 is formed in the same manner, and an intermediate member 62 is provided between the outer member 46 and the inner member 48 so as to surround the entire gap between the outer member 46 and the inner member 48.

  Even when the battery container 10 is formed in this way, predetermined rigidity and toughness can be obtained by the outer member 46 and the inner member 48, and further, the electromagnetic wave can be reflected by the intermediate member 62 and emitted from the internal drive storage battery 36. The electromagnetic wave generated can be blocked by the battery container 10. In this case, it is desirable to electrically connect the intermediate member 62 of the container main body 32 and the intermediate member 62 of the lid body 34 from the viewpoint of preventing leakage of electromagnetic waves.

  As yet another example, at least one of the outer member 46 and the inner member 48 is formed with a two-layer structure. For example, a two-layer sheet material 60 of a synthetic resin material having a predetermined strength and toughness and an electromagnetic wave shielding resin member is formed, and the outer member 46 or the inner member 48 of the container body 32 using the sheet material 60, Further, the outer member 46 or the inner member 48 of the lid 34 is formed. Then, the other of the outer member 46 and the inner member 48 is formed of the same or other predetermined resin material. The molded outer member 46 and inner member 48 are joined as described above.

  If the battery case 10 is formed in this way, the electromagnetic wave shielding property can be provided to the battery case 10 with predetermined rigidity and toughness and without using the intermediate member 62.

  Further, the intermediate member 62 is formed of a plate material or the like, and the intermediate member 62 is also configured to provide the battery container 10 with a predetermined strength or toughness. Then, the plate | board thickness etc. of the resin member which forms the outer member 46 and the inner member 48 can be reduced. Further, toughness is brought about by utilizing the fact that the intermediate member 62 is plastically deformed.

  The intermediate member 62 may be formed of other materials instead of aluminum, and the intermediate member 62 may be a thin paper or the like instead of a plate. Further, the outer member 46 or the inner member 48 and the intermediate member 62 may be in direct contact with each other or bonded to each other. Alternatively, they may be provided apart from each other. Further, either the outer member 46 or the inner member 48 and the intermediate member 62 may be bonded.

  The material of the outer member 46 need not be limited to the high-density polyethylene resin, and may be another material as long as it has a property that satisfies the requirements of the present invention. In addition, the inner member 48 is formed of a conductive resin. However, the inner member 48 is not limited thereto, and may be formed of a synthetic resin member having a property capable of applying a coating material that blocks electromagnetic waves to the surface. In this case, an electromagnetic wave shielding paint is applied to the inner member 48 to impart electromagnetic wave shielding properties to the battery container 10. Moreover, although the outer member 46 and the inner member 48 etc. were shape | molded with the vacuum forming method, this invention is not restricted to it, You may shape | mold the outer member 46 grade | etc., Using injection molding.

  The present invention can be used for an electric vehicle, a hybrid vehicle, or the like equipped with a drive storage battery.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Vehicle battery container 14 ... Engine 20 ... Electric motor 32 ... Container main body 34 ... Cover body 36 ... Drive battery 46 ... Outer member 48 ... Inner member 50 ... Bottom plate 52 ... Wall plate 54 ... Outer wall 55 ... Joining part 56 ... Inner wall 60 ... Sheet material 62 ... Intermediate member 100 ... Vehicle 106 ... Main frame 110 ... Molding device 112 ... Heater 114 ... Frame body 116 ... Mold 118 ... Air pump 120 ... Vent hole

Claims (6)

In the vehicle battery container that houses the drive storage battery to be mounted on the vehicle and is attached to the outside of the vehicle body,
The vehicle battery container has a double wall structure including an outer wall and an inner wall provided a predetermined distance away from the outer wall,
Furthermore, the battery container for vehicles characterized by shape | molding the said outer wall and the said inner wall from resin which has a different property.   At least one of the outer wall and the inner wall is formed from a synthetic resin material that provides the vehicle battery container with a predetermined strength and toughness, and the other is formed from an electromagnetic wave blocking member that does not allow electromagnetic waves to pass through. The vehicle battery container according to claim 1.   The vehicle battery container according to claim 2, wherein a member forming one of the outer wall and the inner wall is made of high-density polyethylene.   The vehicle battery container according to claim 2 or 3, wherein a member forming the other of the outer wall and the inner wall is a conductive resin material in which a conductive member is mixed in a synthetic resin material.   The battery container for a vehicle incorporates an inner member forming the inner wall at a predetermined interval inside an outer member forming the outer wall, and welds edges of the outer member and the inner member. The vehicle battery container according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the battery container is molded.   The vehicle battery container according to claim 5, wherein an intermediate member is provided between the outer member and the inner member.

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