JP7297524B2 - Automotive battery case - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an in-vehicle battery case attached to a vehicle body.

Patent Literature 1 listed below describes a battery case made of a metal plate. A battery case made of sheet metal has the advantage of being easy to manufacture. However, the battery case made of sheet metal is likely to be restricted when providing various structures such as a mounting structure for mounting the battery to the battery case and a mounting structure for mounting the battery case to the vehicle body.

JP 2018-81797 A

An object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle-mounted battery case that can be easily provided with various structures such as a mounting structure.

A vehicle-mounted battery case according to the present invention includes a plurality of cast case bodies that house a battery and have a vehicle body mounting portion for mounting to a vehicle body, and the plurality of case bodies are joined to each other.

According to this configuration, since the case main body is made by casting, the vehicle body mounting portion for mounting to the vehicle body can be integrally formed at the time of casting. Moreover, since a plurality of case bodies are joined together, a large battery case can be easily obtained. Since the case body itself is smaller than the size of the entire battery case, the casting facility can be downsized and the battery can be manufactured at low cost.

In particular, the case body has joints on the side walls for joining the case bodies together, the plurality of case bodies are joined together at the joints, and the case bodies have joints for cooling the battery. It is preferable that the openings of the cooling passages in the adjacent case bodies face each other so that the cooling passages in the adjacent case bodies communicate with each other. According to this configuration, the cooling passages of the case body can be easily communicated with each other.

In addition, the case body has a rectangular shape in a plan view, and the side wall portions of the case body include the first wall portion and the second wall portion facing each other, the first wall portion and the second wall portion perpendicular to each other, and facing each other. At least one of the first wall portion and the second wall portion is provided with a joint portion, and the third wall portion and the fourth wall portion are provided with a vehicle body mounting portion. It is preferable that With this configuration, the case bodies can be easily joined together, and the battery case can be easily attached to the vehicle body.

As described above, the case body is made by casting, and multiple case bodies are joined together, so various structures can be easily provided, the size can be easily increased, and the required battery capacity can be easily accommodated. can.

The perspective view which looked at the battery case from the plane side in one Embodiment of this invention. The perspective view which looked at the same battery case from the bottom face side. The top view of the same battery case. The side view of the same battery case. The side view of the same battery case. The bottom view of the same battery case. AA sectional view of FIG. FIG. 8 is an enlarged view of a main portion of FIG. 7; FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the battery case seen from the bottom side, showing a state before the undercover is attached. The bottom view which shows the state before attaching an undercover in the same battery case. FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view corresponding to FIG. 7 showing a state before the undercover is attached to the battery case; FIG. 12 is an enlarged view of a main portion of FIG. 11; The perspective view seen from the plane side which shows the state where the battery was accommodated in the same battery case. The perspective view seen from the plane side which shows the state where the battery was accommodated in the same battery case. The perspective view seen from the plane side showing the state before joining the case body used in the same battery case. The perspective view which looked at the plane side which shows the 1st case main body used for the same battery case. FIG. 17 is an enlarged view of a main portion of FIG. 16; The perspective view seen from the plane side which shows the same 1st case main body. The perspective view seen from the plane side which shows the 2nd case main body used for the same battery case. The perspective view seen from the plane side which shows the same second case main body. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a third case main body used in the same battery case as viewed from the plane side; The perspective view seen from the plane side which shows the third case main body.

A battery case 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 22. FIG. 1 to 8 show a battery case 1 according to this embodiment. The battery case 1 is for housing a plurality of batteries 2, as shown in FIGS. The upper surface of the battery case 1 is open, and the battery 2 is put into the battery case 1 through the opening of the upper surface. The battery case 1 includes a plurality of case bodies 3, 4, 5 and a plurality of undercovers 6. - 特許庁The case bodies 3, 4, 5 are made by casting, specifically by die casting, and the undercover 6 is preferably made of a metal plate. A plurality of case bodies 3, 4 and 5 are joined together and integrated. One under cover 6 is attached to each case body 3, 4, 5. - 特許庁The number of case bodies 3, 4 and 5 is arbitrary. In this embodiment, three case bodies 3, 4 and 5 are joined together. Therefore, the number of undercovers 6 is three in total.

<Case body 3, 4, 5>
In this embodiment, the battery case 1 includes a first case body 3 , a second case body 4 and a third case body 5 . FIG. 15 shows the state before the first case body 3, the second case body 4 and the third case body 5 are joined. 16 to 22 show the first case main body 3, the second case main body 4, and the third case main body 5 in a single state. The first case main body 3 , the second case main body 4 and the third case main body 5 have a housing space for housing the battery 2 . The housing spaces of the first case body 3, the second case body 4, and the third case body 5 are all the same, and can house the same number of batteries 2. As shown in FIG. Specifically, the first case main body 3, the second case main body 4, and the third case main body 5 each have four battery accommodating portions 10, and one battery 2 is accommodated in each battery accommodating portion 10. can. Therefore, the first case body 3, the second case body 4, and the third case body 5 can accommodate four batteries 2, respectively. The first case main body 3, the second case main body 4, and the third case main body 5 are simply collectively referred to as case main bodies 3, 4, and 5 when they are not particularly distinguished.

<First case body 3>
16 to 18 show the first case main body 3. FIG. The first case main body 3 has a rectangular shape in plan view, and more specifically, has a rectangular shape in plan view. However, the shape of the first case main body 3 may be various. The first case main body 3 is tray-shaped. The first case main body 3 has a dimension in the height direction smaller than the dimensions in the long side direction and the short side direction. The first case main body 3 has an asymmetrical shape in the long side direction and a symmetrical shape in the short side direction. The first case main body 3 includes a bottom portion 11 having a rectangular shape in plan view, and side wall portions 12 rising from the periphery of the bottom portion 11 . The side wall portion 12 has a first long wall portion 13 and a second long wall portion 14 and a first short wall portion 15 and a second short wall portion 16 . The first long wall portion 13 and the second long wall portion 14 are the first wall portion and the second wall portion, respectively, and the first short wall portion 15 and the second short wall portion 16 are the third wall portion and the fourth wall portion, respectively. be. The first long wall portion 13 and the second long wall portion 14 extend along the long side direction, and the first short wall portion 15 and the second short wall portion 16 extend along the short side direction. The first long wall portion 13 and the second long wall portion 14 and the first short wall portion 15 and the second short wall portion 16 are orthogonal to each other. The first long wall portion 13 and the second long wall portion 14 face each other in the short side direction, and the first short wall portion 15 and the second short wall portion 16 face each other in the long side direction.

The bottom portion 11 is located slightly above the lower end portion of the side wall portion 12 . Therefore, the side wall portion 12 has an upward projecting portion 12a projecting upward from the bottom surface portion 11 and a downward projecting portion 12b projecting downward from the bottom surface portion 11, as shown in FIG. A space formed by the upward projecting portion 12 a of the side wall portion 12 and the upper surface of the bottom portion 11 is an accommodation space for accommodating the battery 2 . A space formed by the downward projecting portion 12b of the side wall portion 12 and the lower surface of the bottom portion 11 is a cooling space in which a coolant flows.

A partition wall 17 protrudes upward from the central portion of the upper surface of the bottom surface portion 11 in the long side direction. The partition wall 17 extends along the short side direction. The partition wall 17 connects the pair of the first long wall portion 13 and the second long wall portion 14 in the short side direction. A positioning protrusion 18 protrudes upward from the center of the upper surface of the bottom surface portion 11 in the short side direction. The upper surface of the bottom surface portion 11 is divided into four areas by the partition walls 17 and the ridges 18 . A battery 2 is placed in each of the four partitioned areas. The storage space of the first case main body 3 is partitioned into four battery storage portions 10 by the partition walls 17 and the ridges 18 . Thus, in this embodiment, four batteries 2 can be accommodated in the first case main body 3 . The same applies to the second case main body 4 and the third case main body 5 .

Battery attachment portions 20 for attaching the batteries 2 to the first case main body 3 are provided near both end portions in the long side direction of the bottom portion 11 . The battery mounting portion 20 is positioned near the first short wall portion 15 and the second short wall portion 16 . A pair of battery mounting portions 20 are provided at both ends of the bottom portion 11 in the long side direction. Therefore, the first case body 3 has a total of four battery mounting portions 20. As shown in FIG. The two battery mounting portions 20 at one end in the long side direction of the bottom portion 11 are aligned in the short side direction, and the two battery mounting portions 20 at the other end are similarly aligned in the short side direction. . The two battery mounting portions 20 at one end in the long side direction of the bottom surface portion 11 and the two battery mounting portions 20 at the other end face each other in the long side direction.

The configuration of the battery mounting portion 20 is arbitrary. In this embodiment, the battery 2 is screwed to the battery mounting portion 20 from above. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 17 , the battery mounting portion 20 includes a base portion 21 protruding from the upper surface of the bottom surface portion 11 in a pedestal shape, and a pair of screw boss portions 22 protruding from the upper surface of the base portion 21 . have. The base portion 21 is configured integrally with the inner surfaces of the first short wall portion 15 and the second short wall portion 16 . The pair of screw boss portions 22 are arranged in the short side direction. A screw hole is formed in the screw boss portion 22 .

As shown in FIGS. 9 to 12, cooling grooves 25 are formed in the lower surface of the bottom surface portion 11. As shown in FIGS. The cooling groove 25 opens downward. As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, by attaching the above-described undercover 6 to the first case body 3, the lower opening of the cooling groove 25 is closed. A cooling passage 32 is formed by the cooling groove 25 and the undercover 6 . Coolant for cooling battery 2 flows through cooling passage 32 . The configuration of the cooling grooves 25 is also arbitrary, but as an example, the cooling grooves 25 extend along the long side direction. A partition wall 26 for forming a cooling groove 25 protrudes downward from the lower surface of the bottom surface portion 11 . A cooling groove 25 is formed between the partition wall 26 and the downward projecting portion 12b of the side wall portion 12, and a cooling groove 25 is also formed between adjacent partition walls 26. As shown in FIG. The partition wall 26 extends in the long side direction. Both the start point and the end point of the cooling groove 25 are located on the first short wall portion 15 side. The cooling groove 25 starts from the first short wall portion 15 side, makes two reciprocations along the long side direction, and returns to the first short wall portion 15 side. A rib 27 protrudes downward from the lower surface of the bottom surface portion 11 . The rib 27 extends along the long side direction and parallel to the partition wall 26 . The ribs 27 are located between the adjacent partition walls 26 and between the downward protrusion 12 b of the side wall portion 12 and the partition wall 26 . The protrusion amount of the rib 27 is smaller than the protrusion amount of the partition wall 26 .

An opening of the cooling passage 32 is formed in the lower surface of the bottom surface portion 11 . An opening of the cooling passage 32 formed on the lower surface of the bottom surface portion 11 is referred to as a lower cooling opening 28 . A pair of lower cooling openings 28 are provided. The lower cooling openings 28 are provided near the start point and the end point of the cooling groove 25 . The lower cooling openings 28 are positioned near the first long wall portion 13 and the second long wall portion 14 . The pair of lower cooling openings 28 are arranged symmetrically in the short side direction. A bulging portion 29 is formed on the upper surface of the bottom portion 11 at a position corresponding to the lower cooling opening portion 28 . A pair of bulging portions 29 are provided. The bulging portion 29 bulges upward from the upper surface of the bottom portion 11 . The bulging portion 29 is connected to the inner surfaces of the first long wall portion 13 and the second long wall portion 14 . A communicating hole 30 is formed inside the bulging portion 29 . The communication hole 30 forms part of the cooling passage 32 . The communication holes 30 are open to the lower surface of the bottom surface portion 11 and the outer surfaces of the first long wall portion 13 and the second long wall portion 14, respectively. The lower cooling opening 28 is the opening of the communication hole 30 that opens to the lower surface of the bottom surface portion 11 . The openings of the communication holes 30 that open to the outer surfaces of the first long wall portion 13 and the second long wall portion 14 are referred to as lateral cooling openings 31 . The communication hole 30 is bent in the middle and is composed of a vertical hole portion 30a along the vertical direction and a horizontal hole portion 30b along the horizontal direction. One communicating hole 30 is for the inlet of the refrigerant, and the other communicating hole 30 is for the outlet of the refrigerant.

Both horizontal end portions of the first long wall portion 13 and the second long wall portion 14 protrude outward from the outer surfaces of the first short wall portion 15 and the second short wall portion 16, respectively. That is, both ends of the first long wall portion 13 and the second long wall portion 14 in the horizontal direction are sleeve wall portions 40 projecting outward from the first short wall portion 15 and the second short wall portion 16, respectively.

The outer surface of the first long wall portion 13 is provided with a joint surface 41 as a joint portion for joining the first case body 3 to the second case body 4 . The outer surface of the second long wall portion 14 is provided with a joint surface 41 as a joint portion for joining the first case body 3 to the third case body 5 . The joint surface 41 of the first long wall portion 13 is formed over the entire outer surface of the first long wall portion 13 , and the joint surface 41 of the second long wall portion 14 is formed over the entire outer surface of the second long wall portion 14 . Both the joint surface 41 of the first long wall portion 13 and the joint surface 41 of the second long wall portion 14 are flat surfaces. The outer surface of the first long wall portion 13 and the outer surface of the second long wall portion 14 are not formed with protrusions such as ribs.

An upper flange 42 protrudes outward from the upper ends of the first short wall portion 15 and the second short wall portion 16 . A lower flange 43 protrudes outward from the lower ends of the first short wall portion 15 and the second short wall portion 16 . The amount of protrusion of the upper flange 42 and the amount of protrusion of the lower flange 43 are substantially equal to each other, for example. However, the amount of protrusion of the upper flange 42 and the amount of protrusion of the lower flange 43 may differ from each other. The upper flange 42 and the lower flange 43 are formed over the entire length of the first short wall portion 15 and the second short wall portion 16 . The upper flange 42 and the lower flange 43 are connected to the sleeve wall portions 40 of the first long wall portion 13 and the second long wall portion 14, respectively. The amount of protrusion of the upper flange 42 and the amount of protrusion of the lower flange 43 are substantially equal to the amount of protrusion of the sleeve wall portion 40 . The upper flange 42 is formed with screw holes 44 for screwing an upper cover (not shown) to the battery case 1 . The first long wall portion 13 and the second long wall portion 14 are not provided with an upper flange or a lower flange.

A plurality of vertical ribs 45 are formed on the outer surfaces of the first short wall portion 15 and the second short wall portion 16 . The vertical rib 45 extends vertically. Some of the longitudinal ribs 45 are connected to the upper flange 42 and the lower flange 43 . Brackets 46 are formed on the outer surfaces of the first short wall portion 15 and the second short wall portion 16 . The bracket 46 is a vehicle body mounting portion for mounting the battery case 1 to the vehicle body. The battery case 1 is screwed to the vehicle body from below via a bracket 46 . The bracket 46 protrudes outward from the outer surfaces of the first short wall portion 15 and the second short wall portion 16 . The amount of protrusion of the bracket 46 is greater than the amount of protrusion of the upper flange 42 , the amount of protrusion of the lower flange 43 , and the amount of protrusion of the sleeve wall portion 40 . The bracket 46 protrudes outside the upper flange 42 , the lower flange 43 and the sleeve wall portion 40 . The battery case 1 is attached to the vehicle body at a position outside the upper flange 42 , the lower flange 43 , and the sleeve wall portion 40 . A pair of brackets 46 are formed with an interval in the short side direction. Some of the vertical ribs 45 are connected to the bracket 46 and the upper flange 42 .

<Second case body 4>
The second case main body 4 and the third case main body 5 are different from the first case main body 3 only in the configuration of the side wall portion 12, and are otherwise common. A detailed description of the configuration common to the first case main body 3 will be omitted. 19 and 20 show the second case main body 4. FIG. The second case main body 4 has an asymmetrical shape in the short side direction. Specifically, the outer surface of the first long wall portion 13 and the outer surface of the second long wall portion 14 of the second case main body 4 are different and asymmetrical. An upper flange 50 and a plurality of vertical ribs 51 project outward from the outer surface of the first long wall portion 13 of the second case body 4 . The upper flange 50 of the first long wall portion 13 is connected to the upper flanges 42 of the first short wall portion 15 and the second short wall portion 16 . The second case main body 4 has upper flanges 42 and 50 formed on three sides of the four upper end portions of the side wall portion 12 except for one side. The upper flange 50 of the first long wall portion 13 is also formed with the above-described screw holes 44 . No lower flange is formed on the outer surface of the first long wall portion 13 of the second case main body 4 . The outer surface of the second long wall portion 14 of the second case body 4 is provided with a joint surface 41 as a joint portion for joining the second case body 4 to the first case body 3 . The joint surface 41 of the second long wall portion 14 of the second case main body 4 is the same as the joint surface 41 of the first long wall portion 13 of the first case main body 3 and the joint surface 41 of the second long wall portion 14 . No protrusions such as ribs are formed on the outer surface of the second long wall portion 14 . Thus, the second case body 4 differs from the first case body 3 only in the configuration of the outer surface of the first long wall portion 13 .

<Third case body 5>
21 and 22 show the second case main body 4. FIG. The third case body 5 has a symmetrical shape with the second case body 4 . The third case main body 5 has an asymmetrical shape in the short side direction. The outer surface of the first long wall portion 13 and the outer surface of the second long wall portion 14 of the third case main body 5 are different and asymmetrical. The outer surface of the first long wall portion 13 of the third case body 5 is provided with a joint surface 41 as a joint portion for joining the third case body 5 to the first case body 3 . The joint surface 41 of the first long wall portion 13 of the third case body 5 is the same as the joint surface 41 of the first long wall portion 13 and the joint surface 41 of the second long wall portion 13 of the first case body 3 . No protrusions such as ribs are formed on the outer surface of the first long wall portion 13 . An upper flange 50 and a plurality of vertical ribs 51 project outward from the outer surface of the second long wall portion 14 of the third case main body 5 . The upper flange 50 and vertical ribs 51 on the second long wall portion 14 of the third case body 5 have the same configuration as the upper flange 50 and vertical ribs 51 on the first long wall portion 13 of the second case body 4 . The upper flange 50 of the second long wall portion 14 is also formed with the above-described screw holes 44 . Thus, the third case body 5 differs from the first case body 3 only in the configuration of the outer surface of the second long wall portion 14 . The first case main body 3, the second case main body 4, and the third case main body 5 differ in the specifications of the outer surface of the first long wall portion 13 or the outer surface of the second long wall portion 14, but are common in other parts.

<Production of case bodies 3, 4, 5>
The first case main body 3, the second case main body 4, and the third case main body 5 are all made by casting, and are made by die casting. The first case body 3, the second case body 4 and the third case body 5 can be manufactured by one common die casting mold (not shown). By using one common die-casting mold and replacing a part of this mold, it is possible to manufacture three types of parts: the first case body 3, the second case body 4 and the third case body 5. can. The mold opening direction of the main mold in the die casting mold is, for example, the horizontal direction. The main mold consists of a fixed mold and a movable mold. The fixed mold and the movable mold are arranged, for example, facing each other in the horizontal direction. The first case main body 3, the second case main body 4, and the third case main body 5 may be cast using dedicated die casting dies. That is, the first case main body 3, the second case main body 4 and the third case main body 5 may be cast by three dedicated die casting molds.

The casting of the first case body 3 will be further described. The outer surface shape of the short wall portion 16 is formed by a total of four slide cores, each of which reciprocates vertically or reciprocates horizontally in a direction orthogonal to the mold opening direction of the main mold. For example, the outer surface of the first long wall portion 13 is formed by the first slide core, the outer surface of the second long wall portion 14 is formed by the second slide core, and the outer surface of the first short wall portion 15 is formed by the third slide core. , the outer surface of the second short wall portion 16 is formed by the fourth slide core. By changing the first slide core to that for the second case main body 4, the second case main body 4 can be cast by the same die casting apparatus. Similarly, by changing the second slide core to that for the third case body 5, the third case body 5 can be cast by the same die casting apparatus. Thus, three types of case bodies 3, 4 and 5 can be cast by partially changing the slide core without changing the main mold. Therefore, it can be cast at low cost. It is the same even if the case bodies 3, 4 and 5 are of two types or four types or more.

<Undercover 6>
The three undercovers 6 have the same shape. Therefore, only one type of undercover 6 is sufficient. The undercover 6 has a thin plate shape. The undercover 6 is attached to each case body 3, 4, 5 from below. The undercover 6 is welded to the case bodies 3, 4, 5. As shown in FIG. 7, the undercover 6 contacts the lower end surface of the partition wall 26. As shown in FIG. A gap exists between the undercover 6 and the rib 27 . The undercover 6 is welded to each case body 3, 4, 5 before the case bodies 3, 4, 5 are joined together, or is attached to each case after the case bodies 3, 4, 5 are joined together. It is welded to the body 3,4,5.

<Joining>
The first long wall portion 13 of the first case body 3 and the second long wall portion 14 of the second case body 4 are joined by welding. Since the outer surface of the first long wall portion 13 of the first case body 3 and the outer surface of the second long wall portion 14 of the second case body 4 are both provided with planar joint surfaces 41, the first case body 3 The first long wall portion 13 and the second long wall portion 14 of the second case main body 4 can be reliably joined. In addition, the outer surface of the first long wall portion 13 of the first case body 3 and the outer surface of the second long wall portion 14 of the second case body 4 can be brought into close contact. There are two welding points, upper and lower. That is, the upper and lower ends of the first long wall portion 13 of the first case main body 3 and the upper and lower end portions of the second long wall portion 14 of the second case main body 4 . The upper end portion of the first long wall portion 13 of the first case main body 3 and the upper end portion of the second long wall portion 14 of the second case main body 4 are welded over the entire length along the horizontal direction. The lower end portion of the first long wall portion 13 of the first case body 3 and the lower end portion of the second long wall portion 14 of the second case body 4 are welded over the entire length along the horizontal direction. Both sleeve wall portions 40 of the first long wall portion 13 of the first case body 3 and both sleeve wall portions 40 of the second long wall portion 14 of the second case body 4 are welded along the vertical direction over the entire length. may

When the first case body 3 and the second case body 4 are joined together, the lateral cooling openings 31 of the first case body 3 and the lateral cooling openings 31 of the second case body 4 face each other as shown in FIG. . The cooling passages 32 of the first case body 3 and the cooling passages 32 of the second case body 4 communicate with each other through the lateral cooling openings 31 of the first case body 3 and the lateral cooling openings 31 of the second case body 4. do. Since the outer surface of the first long wall portion 13 of the first case body 3 and the outer surface of the second long wall portion 14 of the second case body 4 are in close contact with each other, refrigerant leakage is prevented. A sealing member may be interposed between the lateral cooling opening 31 of the first case body 3 and the lateral cooling opening 31 of the second case body 4 . For example, a connection pipe may be attached to the communication hole 30 of the first case body 3, particularly the horizontal hole portion 30b, or the communication hole 30 of the second case body 4, particularly the horizontal hole portion 30b.

The same applies to joining the first case body 3 and the third case body 5 together. The second long wall portion 14 of the first case body 3 and the first long wall portion 13 of the third case body 5 are joined by welding. Since the outer surface of the second long wall portion 14 of the first case body 3 and the outer surface of the first long wall portion 13 of the third case body 5 are provided with a planar joint surface 41, the second The long wall portion 14 and the first long wall portion 13 of the third case main body 5 can be reliably joined. Further, the outer surface of the second long wall portion 14 of the first case body 3 and the outer surface of the first long wall portion 13 of the third case body 5 can be brought into close contact with each other. There are two welding points, upper and lower, as described above. That is, the upper and lower ends of the second long wall portion 14 of the first case main body 3 and the upper and lower end portions of the first long wall portion 13 of the third case main body 5 . The upper end portion of the second long wall portion 14 of the first case main body 3 and the upper end portion of the first long wall portion 13 of the third case main body 5 are welded over the entire length along the horizontal direction. The lower end portion of the second long wall portion 14 of the first case body 3 and the lower end portion of the first long wall portion 13 of the third case body 5 are welded over the entire length along the horizontal direction. Both sleeve wall portions 40 of the second long wall portion 14 of the first case body 3 and both sleeve wall portions 40 of the first long wall portion 13 of the third case body 5 are welded along the vertical direction over the entire length. may

When the first case main body 3 and the third case main body 5 are joined, the horizontal cooling opening 31 of the first case main body 3 and the third case are formed in the same manner as the first case main body 3 and the second case main body 4 are joined. The lateral cooling openings 31 of the main body 5 are opposed to each other. The cooling passages 32 of the first case body 3 and the cooling passages 32 of the third case body 5 communicate with each other through the lateral cooling openings 31 of the first case body 3 and the lateral cooling openings 31 of the third case body 5. do. Since the outer surface of the second long wall portion 14 of the first case body 3 and the outer surface of the first long wall portion 13 of the third case body 5 are in close contact with each other, refrigerant leakage is prevented. A sealing member may be interposed between the lateral cooling opening 31 of the first case body 3 and the lateral cooling opening 31 of the third case body 5 . For example, a connection pipe may be attached to the communication hole 30 of the first case body 3, particularly the horizontal hole portion 30b, or the communication hole 30 of the third case body 5, particularly the horizontal hole portion 30b.

In this embodiment, the entire outer surface of the first long wall portion 13 of the first case body 3, the entire outer surface of the second long wall portion 14 of the second case body 4, and the outer surface of the first long wall portion 13 of the third case body 5 Although the whole was the joint surface 41, you may provide the planar joint surface 41 partially in those outer surfaces. For example, the periphery of the outer surface of the first long wall portion 13 and the second long wall portion 14 of the first case body 3, the periphery of the outer surface of the second long wall portion 14 of the second case body 4, and the first wall portion of the third case body 5 Only the peripheral edge portion of the outer surface of the long wall portion 13 may be formed into a flat joint surface 41, or in addition to the peripheral edge portion, the opening edge portion of the horizontal cooling opening portion 31 may be made flat, and the opening edge portion and the peripheral edge portion may be formed into a joint surface 41. You can also Thus, the joint surface 41 may be partially provided and the other portion may be a recess.

<Battery accommodation state>
As described above, the first case main body 3, the second case main body 4, and the third case main body 5 are joined in a row in the short side direction. A plurality of batteries 2 are housed in the battery case 1 formed by bonding as shown in FIG. Four batteries 2 are housed in each of the first case body 3, the second case body 4, and the third case body 5, respectively. Therefore, the battery case 1 can accommodate a total of 12 batteries 2 . Although not shown, the battery 2 is formed by stacking and integrating a plurality of cells. As shown in FIG. 14 , the battery 2 can be attached to each of the case bodies 3 , 4 , 5 by pressing the battery 2 from above with a battery retainer 60 . The battery retainer 60 is made of sheet metal, for example. The battery retainer 60 can collectively attach two batteries 2 aligned in the long side direction to the case main bodies 3, 4, and 5. - 特許庁Two battery retainers 60 are attached to each of the case bodies 3, 4, and 5. As shown in FIG. The battery retainer 60 has screwing portions 61 at both ends thereof. The screwing part 61 is located above the battery mounting part 20 of the case main bodies 3, 4, 5 so as to face it. A bolt 62 is screwed into the screw hole of the screw boss portion 22 of the battery mounting portion 20 from above the screwing portion 61 .

The case bodies 3, 4 and 5 of the battery case 1 configured as described above are made by casting. Therefore, the bracket 46, the battery mounting portion 20, the cooling groove 25, and the like can be integrally formed during casting. Since the three case bodies 3, 4, and 5 are joined together, a large battery case 1 can be easily obtained, and the number of batteries 2 to be accommodated can be easily increased. Since the case bodies 3, 4, and 5 are smaller than the size of the battery case 1 as a whole, the casting equipment can be downsized, and the production cost can be reduced.

Further, the first long wall portion 13 and the second long wall portion 14 of the first case body 3, the second long wall portion 14 of the second case body 4, and the first long wall portion 13 of the third case body 5 are provided with the case body 3 and the second long wall portion 14, respectively. Since the joint surface 41 for joining 4 and 5 is provided, the case main bodies 3, 4 and 5 can be joined easily. Since the joint surfaces 41 are provided on the first long wall portion 13 and the second long wall portion 14 instead of the first short wall portion 15 and the second short wall portion 16, the joint strength can be easily increased. Moreover, since the brackets 46 are provided on the first short wall portion 15 and the second short wall portion 16, the battery case 1 can be easily attached to the vehicle body.

In the joined state, the lateral cooling openings 31 in the first long wall portion 13 of the first case body 3 and the lateral cooling openings 31 in the second long wall portion 14 of the second case body 4 face each other, and the first case body 3 and the cooling passage 32 of the second case main body 4 communicate with each other through the joint surface 41 . The lateral cooling opening 31 in the second long wall portion 14 of the first case main body 3 and the lateral cooling opening 31 in the first long wall portion 13 of the third case main body 5 face each other to form the cooling passage 32 of the first case main body 3. and the cooling passage 32 of the third case main body 5 communicate with each other through the joint surface 41 . That is, the cooling passage 32 of the first case main body 3, the cooling passage 32 of the second case main body 4, and the cooling passage 32 of the third case main body 5 communicate with each other to form one continuous cooling passage 32. Therefore, for example, the lateral cooling opening 31 of the second long wall portion 14 of the third case main body 5 is used as the inlet of the coolant in the battery case 1, and the lateral cooling opening 31 of the first long wall portion 13 of the second case main body 4 is used for the battery. As a refrigerant outlet in the case 1, refrigerant pipes (not shown) can be connected to the inlet and outlet, respectively. Only one pipe is connected to the inlet and one pipe is connected to the outlet.

In this embodiment, the long walls 13, 14 of the case bodies 3, 4, 5 are joined together, but the short walls 15, 16 of the case bodies 3, 4, 5 may be joined together. Further, although the case bodies 3, 4 and 5 are rectangular in plan view, the case bodies 3, 4 and 5 may be square in plan view. The configuration of the joint can also be changed in various ways. The joining method is also arbitrary, and other joining structures may be employed instead of welding, or may be used in combination with welding.

1 battery case 2 battery 3 first case main body 4 second case main body 5 third case main body 6 under cover 10 battery housing portion 11 bottom portion 12 side wall portion 12a upward projection portion 12b downward projection portion 13 first long wall portion (first wall part)
14 second long wall (second wall)
15 first short wall (third wall)
16 second short wall (fourth wall)
17 partition wall 18 ridge 20 battery attachment portion 21 base portion 22 screw boss portion 25 cooling groove 26 partition wall 27 rib 28 lower cooling opening portion 29 swelling portion 30 communication hole 30a vertical hole portion 30b horizontal hole portion 31 horizontal cooling opening portion 32 cooling Passage 40 Sleeve wall portion 41 Joint surface (joint portion)
42 Upper flange 43 Lower flange 44 Screw hole 45 Vertical rib 46 Bracket (car body mounting portion)
50 upper flange 51 vertical rib 60 battery retainer 61 screwing portion 62 bolt

Claims (3)

Equipped with a plurality of cast case bodies having a rectangular shape in a plan view and having a vehicle body mounting portion for mounting the battery to the vehicle body,
The side wall portion of the case body has a first wall portion and a second wall portion facing each other, and a third wall portion and a fourth wall portion perpendicular to the first wall portion and the second wall portion and facing each other. death,
At least one of the first wall portion and the second wall portion is provided with a joint portion for joining the case bodies together, and the plurality of case bodies are joined and integrated with each other at the joint portion,
A continuous cooling groove is formed on the lower surface of the bottom surface of the case body by reciprocating in the side direction of the side wall, and an undercover is attached to the case body. one cooling passage is formed for cooling the
the first wall is provided with an opening for the inlet of the cooling passage and the second wall is provided with an opening for the outlet of the cooling passage;
A vehicle-mounted battery case in which an outlet opening and an inlet opening in adjacent case bodies are opposed to each other so that the adjacent cooling passages communicate with each other to form one continuous cooling passage. On the upper surface of the bottom surface of the case body, there is a bulging portion that bulges upward and has a communication hole inside that communicates the cooling groove with the inlet opening and the outlet opening. 2. The battery case according to claim 1 , wherein a pair of openings for the part and the outlet are provided correspondingly . 3. The vehicle-mounted battery case according to claim 1 , wherein the vehicle body mounting portion is provided on the third wall portion and the fourth wall portion.

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