JP2016100287A - Protection cover - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enable the drainage of dew condensation water.SOLUTION: A protection cover 11 includes: an insulation cover 41 covering an opening 39 of a conductor case 19 in which a conductor 17 connecting between a positive electrode and a negative electrode of a pair of batteries 13 adjacent to each other; and a dispersion block 43 which is formed in a lower part of this insulation cover 41 and disperses external force applied to the insulation cover. A drain passage 59 is formed in the dispersion block 43. The drain passage 59 has an upper end opening 61 located inside of the insulation cover 41 and is formed extended downward.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

  The present invention relates to a protective cover, and more particularly, to a protective cover that covers a conductor case of a bus bar module that connects a positive electrode and a negative electrode of adjacent batteries.

  An electric vehicle, a hybrid car, or the like is equipped with a battery assembly in which a plurality of batteries are bundled in series as a drive source for an electric motor. This battery assembly is configured by alternately arranging the positive and negative electrodes of a plurality of batteries next to each other and connecting the positive and negative electrodes of adjacent batteries in series with a conductor called a bus bar. Each conductor is housed in a resin conductor case. Each conductor case is formed by being connected in the battery arrangement direction, and is attached to the side surface of the battery assembly by protruding the electrode of the battery assembly. In the conductor case, an opening accessible to the conductor is formed, and this opening is covered with an insulating cover from the outside (see Patent Document 1).

JP 2012-164598 A

  However, the insulating cover covering the opening of the conductor case may be damaged when subjected to an impact by an external force.

  Therefore, a structure in which a strength member that abuts the battery side surface is formed in the lower part of the insulating cover and an external force that acts on the insulating cover is released to the battery side through the strength member is conceivable.

  On the other hand, in the conductor case, moisture in the air may condense as the temperature changes, and this condensed water is usually discharged downward from a drainage portion formed on the opening of the conductor case or the peripheral wall. The However, if a strength member is disposed at the lower part of the conductor case, the condensed water accumulated between the strength member and the conductor case spreads along the battery side surface, and there is a possibility that the adjacent conductor may be disturbed.

  An object of the present invention is to enable drainage of condensed water.

  The protective cover of the present invention that solves the above problems is formed on an insulating cover that covers an opening of a conductor case that accommodates a conductor connecting between the positive electrode and the negative electrode of a pair of adjacent batteries, and is formed below the insulating cover. A dispersion block that disperses an external force applied to the dispersion block. The dispersion block is formed with a drainage path, and the drainage path is formed with an upper end opening located inside the insulating cover and extending downward. It is characterized by becoming.

  With this configuration, the dew condensation water generated in the conductor case flows down from the opening of the conductor case, and flows down the drainage path of the dispersion block. Therefore, even if the dispersion block is arranged below the conductor case, Is possible.

  Moreover, when the drainage part is formed in the lower part of the conductor case, it is preferable that the position with the upper end opening part of the drainage path is shifted from each other in the battery arrangement direction. According to this, for example, since foreign matter such as a rod-shaped conductor can be prevented from entering the conductor case through the drainage path, foreign matter can be prevented from coming into contact with the high-voltage conductor or the like, Safety can be ensured.

  Specifically, the distribution block may employ a configuration in which the upper end opening of the drainage path is positioned below a connecting portion that connects a plurality of conductor cases corresponding to a plurality of adjacent pairs of batteries. it can.

  Moreover, the drainage path | route can employ | adopt the structure formed in a maze shape. If comprised in this way, since the drainage path | route can be formed in a non-linear form, it can prevent that a rod-shaped foreign material etc. penetrate | invade in a conductor case.

  In addition, the dispersion block is provided for each of the insulating covers corresponding to at least a pair of batteries, and a gap formed between adjacent dispersion blocks can be used as a drainage path. With this configuration, it is not necessary to form a water drain path inside the dispersion block, so that the structure of the dispersion block can be simplified. In addition, the dispersion block can release an external force in the vicinity of the boundary between the batteries having a relatively high strength in the battery assembly.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to drain the condensed water generated in the conductor case.

It is an external appearance perspective view which shows one Embodiment of the protective cover of this invention. It is sectional drawing which looked at FIG. 1 from the side. It is sectional drawing which looked at FIG. 1 from the front. It is the perspective view which looked at the protective cover of this invention from the inner side. It is an external appearance perspective view which shows one Embodiment of the protective cover of this invention. It is the external appearance perspective view which looked at the protective cover of FIG. 5 from the downward direction. It is sectional drawing which looked at FIG. 5 from the side. It is sectional drawing which looked at FIG. 5 from the front. It is a figure which shows other embodiment of the drainage path | route. It is a top view of the conductor case which accommodates the conductor connected to the total electrode. It is the external appearance perspective view which looked at the conductor case from the downward direction. It is a figure explaining the procedure which fixes a cable to a conductor case.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of a protective cover to which the present invention is applied will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4. As shown in FIG. 1, the protective cover 11 of this embodiment is used by being attached to a DC power source that drives an electric motor such as an electric vehicle or a hybrid car. The DC power source is formed as a battery assembly 15 by arranging a plurality of rectangular parallelepiped batteries 13 such as thin lithium batteries.

  The battery assembly 15 is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape by overlapping the batteries 13. In each battery, a positive electrode is disposed on one side surface of both side surfaces corresponding to each other, and a negative electrode is disposed on the other side surface. In FIG. 1, electrodes are disposed on the front side surface and the back side surface, respectively. The plurality of batteries 13 are arranged so that the positive and negative electrodes are alternately adjacent to each other, and the positive and negative electrodes of a pair of adjacent batteries are connected in series by a conductor 17 called a bus bar. In addition, a total positive electrode and a total negative electrode are respectively disposed in the batteries 13 positioned at both ends of the battery assembly 15.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the plurality of conductors 17 are each mounted in a resin conductor case 19 that is an insulating member to constitute a bus bar module 21. The conductor case 19 is formed by raising a rectangular peripheral wall 25 from the bottom plate 23. The plurality of conductor cases 19 are connected to adjacent conductor cases 19 via connecting portions 27 and are arranged in the arrangement direction of the batteries 13.

  The positive electrode or negative electrode of each battery is connected to a cylindrical positive electrode terminal or negative electrode terminal protruding from the battery side surface, and a screw is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the electrode terminal 29 on the outer peripheral surface on the base end side. A step 31 is formed. A pair of holes 33 are formed in the bottom wall 23 of the conductor case 19 in accordance with the positions of the positive electrode terminal and the negative electrode terminal of the adjacent battery 13, and the step portion 31 of each electrode terminal 29 abuts on the periphery of the hole 33. It is like that. Each conductor 17 has a pair of holes 35 in accordance with the positions of the positive electrode terminal and the negative electrode terminal of the adjacent battery 13, and each electrode terminal 29 is inserted into this hole 35, and a nut 37 is attached to the screw of each electrode terminal 29. It is screwed and fixed to each electrode terminal 29. Although not shown, each conductor 17 is overlaid with a voltage detection terminal for detecting the voltage of each battery 13, and an electric wire connected to the voltage detection terminal is drawn from the conductor case 19. It has become.

  Next, the structure of the protective cover 11 which is a characteristic part of this embodiment will be described. The protective cover 11 is formed of an insulating resin material and is attached to each conductor case 19 to constitute the bus bar module 21. The protective cover 11 of this embodiment includes an insulating cover 41 that covers the opening 39 of the conductor case 19 and a dispersion block 43 that is formed in a block shape.

  The insulating cover 41 is formed by raising the side wall 47 from the flat substrate 45 to the battery 13 side so as to cover the opening 39 of each conductor case 19 and extending in the arrangement direction of the batteries 13. A plurality of locking projections 49 are formed on the side wall 47, and each locking projection 49 is locked to a plurality of lock pieces 51 formed on the peripheral wall 25 of the conductor case 19 and attached to the conductor case 19.

  The distribution block 43 is formed continuously to the lower part of the insulating cover 41. The distribution block 43 is formed by a frame-like side wall 55 that protrudes toward the battery 13 from a flat substrate 53 that continues to the lower portion of the substrate 45 of the insulating cover 41. The substrate 53 is formed outside the substrate 45 of the insulating cover 41 and has a stepped shape. The distribution blocks 43 of the present embodiment are respectively provided below the insulating covers 41 corresponding to the pair of batteries 13, and are arranged in the arrangement direction of the batteries 13 along the substrate 45.

  The side wall 55 of the dispersion block 43 has a rectangular cross section and is provided so as to protrude from the side wall 47 of the insulating cover 41 toward the battery 13, so as to abut against the battery 13 and disperse the external force applied to the insulating cover 41. Yes. The inner side of the insulating cover 41 and the inner side of the dispersion block 43 are partitioned by the side wall 55 of the dispersion block 43. A plurality of ribs 57 rising from the substrate 53 are provided inside the side wall 55 of the dispersion block 43. Each rib 57 is connected to the side wall 55 to reinforce the side wall 55, and comes into contact with the side surface of the battery 13.

  In the dispersion block 43, a drainage path 59 extending from the upper end to the lower end is formed. In the present embodiment, the gap between the adjacent dispersion blocks 43, that is, the gap between the side walls 55 facing each other in the adjacent dispersion blocks 43 serves as the drainage path 59. The drainage path 59 is formed in a groove shape by communicating the upper end opening 61 located at the upper end of the dispersion block 43 and the lower end opening 63 located at the lower end. The upper end opening 61 of the present embodiment is positioned below the connecting portion 27 that connects the adjacent conductor cases 19 and is positioned inside the insulating cover 41. The inside of the insulating cover 41 means the battery 13 side with respect to the inner surface of the substrate 45 forming the insulating cover 41.

  As described above, according to this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, the dew condensation water generated in the conductor case 19 travels along the tip of the peripheral wall 25 of the conductor case 19 and becomes the upper end surface of the dispersion block 43. It flows down on the side wall 55. However, when the condensed water accumulates to some extent on the side wall 55 of the dispersion block, the condensed water flows down from the upper end opening 61 in the direction of the arrow 59 in the direction of the arrow and is drained. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the dew condensation water from spreading along the side surface of the battery 13 and the like, and the trouble between the conductors 17 can be avoided.

  In the water drainage path 59 of the present embodiment, the upper end opening 61 is positioned above the side wall 55 that is the upper end surface of the dispersion block 43, but the upper end opening 61 is the side wall that is the upper end surface. It can also be set to the same height as 55. Alternatively, the side wall 55 can be formed to be inclined toward the upper end opening 61.

  According to the present embodiment, since the dispersion block 43 can be arranged below the insulation cover 41 with a sufficient installation space, the design freedom of the dispersion block 43 is improved. Therefore, for example, when an external force is applied to the insulating cover 41, the external force can be distributed to the dispersion block 43 and released to the battery 13 side, so that the deformation of the insulating cover 41 is suppressed and the conductor case 19 is placed inside. It is possible to prevent problems from occurring.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, since the dispersion block 43 is formed at the lower part of the insulating cover 41 corresponding to the pair of batteries, the dispersion block 43 pressed against the battery 13 side by the external force is relatively strong. External force can be released near the boundary between the high batteries 13.

  By the way, when the drainage path 59 is provided in the dispersion block 43 as in this embodiment, it is necessary to prevent foreign matter from entering the conductor case 19 through the drainage path 59. For example, an IP standard (International Protection) is known as a safety standard for this type of electrical equipment. In order to satisfy the requirements of the IP standard, for example, it is required that a rod having a predetermined thickness inserted into a target gap does not come into contact with a live part (for example, the conductor 17 or the electrode terminal 29).

  In this respect, in this embodiment, since the upper end opening 61 of the drainage path 59 extending in the vertical direction is located below the connecting portion 27 of the conductor case 19, the rod inserted into the drainage path 59. The material comes into contact with the connecting portion 27 but does not enter the conductor case 19. Therefore, it is possible to reliably prevent foreign matter from entering the conductor case 19 through the drainage path 59.

  Further, in this embodiment, the example in which the dew condensation water generated in the conductor case 19 flows down along the tip of the peripheral wall 25 of the conductor case 19 has been described, but instead of this example, it penetrates the peripheral wall 25 of the conductor case 19. A drainage portion such as a hole or a notch can also be formed. Moreover, the notch part for drawing out the electric wire connected to the terminal for voltage detection can also be utilized as a drainage part. If the drainage portion is formed in the peripheral wall 25 of the conductor case 19 in this way, the dew condensation water can be efficiently drained from the conductor case 19 and corrosion of the conductor 17 can be prevented.

  Moreover, in this embodiment, since the clearance between the adjacent dispersion blocks 43 is used as the drainage path 59, the structure in the dispersion block 43 can be simplified. On the other hand, the drainage path 59 can also be formed inside the dispersion block 43, for example, by providing a gap between a pair of opposing ribs 57 and traversing in the vertical direction. In this case, in order to satisfy the IP standard, the upper end opening 61 of the drainage path 59 needs to be provided with a position shifted in the arrangement direction of the battery 13 with respect to the cutout portion of the conductor case 19, for example.

  In this embodiment, the example in which the dispersion block 43 is formed below the insulating cover 41 corresponding to the pair of electrodes 13 has been described. However, the dispersion block is respectively formed below the insulating cover 41 corresponding to the plurality of pairs of electrodes 13. 43 can also be formed. In this case, a gap between adjacent dispersion blocks 43 may be used as a drainage path, or a drainage path may be formed inside each dispersion block.

  Next, another embodiment of the protective cover to which the present invention is applied will be described with reference to FIGS. Although the protective cover 71 of this embodiment differs in the structure of the protective cover 11 of the said embodiment and a dispersion | distribution block, the function of the insulating cover 73 and the dispersion | distribution block 75 is fundamentally the same as the said embodiment. In the present embodiment, the same components as those in the above embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted.

  In the protective cover 71 of this embodiment, the insulating cover 73 and the dispersion block 75 are connected by a flat substrate 77, and the side wall 79 of the insulating cover 73 is locked to the conductor case 19. The distribution block 75 of the present embodiment is formed in a block shape by a frame-shaped side wall 81 protruding from the substrate 77 toward the battery 13, and is provided below the insulating cover 73 corresponding to the pair of batteries 13. The side wall 81 of the dispersion block 75 is reinforced with ribs, and protrudes toward the battery 13 from the side wall 79 of the insulating cover 73 so as to come into contact with the battery side surface.

  As shown in FIG. 8, a maze-like drainage path 83 is formed between the dispersion blocks 75 of the present embodiment and the adjacent dispersion blocks 75. In this drainage path 83, a rib 85 having a T-shaped cross section is raised between the side walls 81 of the adjacent dispersion blocks 75, and between the one side wall 81a and the rib 85 and between the other side wall 81b and the rib 85. It is divided into two paths between. Each drainage path 83 is formed by alternately projecting first protrusions 87 protruding from the side walls 81 toward the ribs 85 and second protrusions 89 protruding from the ribs 85 toward the side walls 81. Is formed. The upper end opening 91 of the drainage path 83 is formed on both sides of the rib 85 and is located below the connecting portion 27 of the adjacent conductor case 19. The lower end opening 93 of the drainage path 83 is formed on both sides of the second protrusion 89.

  According to the present embodiment, since the drainage path 83 is a non-linear path, the IP standard is satisfied, and foreign matter can be prevented from entering the conductor case 19. Condensed water generated in the conductor case 19 flows down onto the side wall 81 which is the upper end surface of the dispersion block 75, and flows down and drains through two paths as indicated by arrows in FIG.

  Further, the drainage path 83 can be formed as various maze-like drainage paths as shown in FIG. 9 instead of the configuration of the present embodiment. The route in FIG. 9A is a drainage route 95 that changes the direction downward in a zigzag direction and flows down, and the route in FIG. 9B is a drainage route in which two routes join together from the middle and flow down. 9 is a drainage path 99 that separates one path into two paths from the middle and flows them out in opposite directions.

  Next, other embodiments of the protective cover respectively applied to the above-described embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings. The battery 13 positioned at both ends of the battery assembly 15 is provided with a total positive electrode and a total negative electrode, respectively. The conductor connected to the electrode terminal 29 of the total electrode is accommodated in a dedicated conductor case, and the opening of the conductor case is covered with an insulating cover 41. In the present embodiment, the same components as those in the above embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the L-shaped conductor 103 (LA terminal or the like) connected to the electrode terminal 101 of the total positive electrode or the total negative electrode is accommodated in the conductor case 107 with the terminal of the cable 105 connected thereto, The cable 105 is pulled out from the through hole 109 formed in the case 107. However, in such a configuration, when the cable 105 drawn to the outside from the conductor case 107 is greatly bent, the conductor case 107 is pressed and deformed by the cable 105, and as a result, the through hole 109 and the cable 105 There may be a gap between them, and foreign matter may enter.

  In contrast, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, a first press-fitting groove 115 having a circular arc shape having a radius of curvature capable of press-fitting the cable 105 into the peripheral wall 113 rising from the bottom plate 111 of the conductor case 107. A second press-fitting groove 117 having an arc-shaped cross section having a radius of curvature capable of press-fitting the cable 105 is formed on the side wall 79 of the insulating cover 41 attached to the conductor case 107. The first press-fit groove 115 and the second press-fit groove 117 are arranged so as to overlap in the axial direction of the cable when the conductor cover 107 is covered with the insulating cover 41. In the conductor case 107 of the present embodiment, a lock piece 51 is provided on the peripheral wall 113 in the vicinity of the first press-fitting groove 115 so that the locking protrusion 49 of the insulating cover 41 is locked.

  Next, a method of fixing the cable 105 to the conductor case 107 will be described using FIG. First, as shown in FIG. 12A, the cable 105 is press-fitted into the first press-fitting groove 115 of the conductor case 107. Subsequently, as illustrated in FIG. 12B, the insulating cover 41 is covered with the conductor case 107 so that the side wall 79 of the insulating cover 41 faces the outside of the peripheral wall 113 of the conductor case 107, and the second of the insulating cover 41. The cable 105 is press-fitted into the press-fitting groove 117. In this state, the locking protrusion 49 of the insulating cover 41 is locked to the lock piece 51.

  As a result, the cable 105 is fixed in such a manner that it is sandwiched between the first press-fit groove 115 and the second press-fit groove 117 from above and below, so that even if the cable 105 drawn from the conductor case 107 is bent, There is no gap between the cable 105 and the first press-fitting groove 115 and the second press-fitting groove 117, foreign matter can be prevented from entering the conductor case 107, and the IP standard can be satisfied.

  Further, the conductor case 107 of the present embodiment is provided with ribs 119 protruding toward the battery side surface on the back surface in the vicinity of the first press-fit groove 115, that is, the surface facing the battery side surface. The rib 119 comes into contact with the battery side surface at least when the cable 105 is press-fitted into the first press-fitting groove 115 and the second press-fitting groove 117, respectively. According to this, when the cable 105 is press-fitted into the first press-fitting groove 115 and the second press-fitting groove 117, it is possible to suppress the bottom plate 111 from being bent, so that the workability of assembling the cable 105 can be improved.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 Protective cover 13 Battery 15 Battery assembly 17 Conductor 19 Conductor case 25 Peripheral wall 27 Connection part 29 Electrode terminal 39 Opening 41 Insulation cover 43 Dispersion block 47 Side wall 53 Substrate 55 Side wall 57 Rib 59,83 Drain path 61 Upper end opening part

Claims (5)

An insulating cover that covers an opening of a conductor case that accommodates a conductor that connects between the positive electrode and the negative electrode of a pair of adjacent batteries, and a dispersion block that is formed under the insulating cover and disperses an external force applied to the insulating cover. ,
The dispersion block is formed with a drainage path, and the drainage path is formed by an upper end opening located inside the insulating cover and extending downward.   2. The protective cover according to claim 1, wherein positions of a drainage portion formed at a lower portion of the conductor case and the upper end opening of the drainage path are shifted in the arrangement direction of the batteries.   The said dispersion | distribution block is provided in the lower part of the connection part which connects the said some conductor case corresponding to a said several pair of said adjacent battery mutually, and the said upper end opening part of the said drainage path | route is located. Protective cover as described in.   The protective cover according to claim 1, wherein the drainage path is formed in a maze shape. The dispersion block is provided for each of the insulating covers corresponding to at least the pair of batteries,
The protective cover according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the drainage path is a gap formed between the adjacent dispersion blocks.

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