Battery terminal cover

A battery terminal cover (1) is mounted on a battery (2) to be installed in a vehicle and includes a body (10) to be fixed to the battery (2), a movable portion (20) coupled to the body (10) via hinges (50) and rotatably displaceable to a shielding position to cover a screw member bolt (6) mounted on the battery (2) and an open position to be overlapped on the body portion (10), and a tool restricting portion (30) provided on the movable portion (20) and configured to restrict the rotation of a tool (T) by interfering with the tool before the tool rotated about the screw member (6) contacts the vehicle with the movable portion (20) set at the open position.

BACKGROUND

Field of the Invention

This specification relates to a battery terminal cover.

Related Art

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2010-108785 discloses a cover for protecting a terminal projecting from a battery. The battery connection terminal protection cover includes a fuse unit protecting portion disposed along a side surface of the battery and a terminal protecting portion coupled to the fuse unit protecting portion via a hinge. A battery post projects up from the upper surface of the battery and an electrical connection part is wound and fastened by a bolt on the outer periphery of the battery post. The terminal protecting portion can cover the battery post and the bolt with a clearance formed between the terminal protecting portion and the battery post. The bolt can be rotated up about the vicinity of the hinge to be opened for an operation such as battery exchange.

In this configuration, the terminal protecting portion is opened for battery exchange or the like, and the bolt is loosened using a tool. However, the rotated tool may hit a vehicle body and damage the vehicle body.

SUMMARY

This specification relates to a battery terminal cover to be mounted on a battery to be installed in a vehicle. The battery terminal cover includes a body to be fixed to the battery. A movable portion is coupled to the body via a hinge. The movable portion is rotatably displaceable to a shielding position to cover a screw mounted on the battery and an open position to overlap the body. A tool restricting portion is provided on the movable portion and restricts rotation of a tool by interfering with the tool before the tool rotated about the screw contacts the vehicle when the movable portion is open. According to this configuration, the tool rotated about the screw contacts the tool restricting portion to restrict any further rotation. Thus, the tool comes will not contact and damage the vehicle.

The body includes a fixed ceiling plate coupled to the hinge, and the movable portion includes a movable ceiling plate coupled to the hinge. The tool restricting portion may project farther in an axial direction of the hinge than the movable portion, and at least one of the movable ceiling plate and the fixed ceiling plate portion may include a lateral displacement restricting portion that is lockable to the other when the movable portion is at the open position. pressing force from the tool may be transferred from the tool restricting portion to the movable portion. This force could displace the movable portion rotationally about the hinge and the movable portion may be displaced from the body. However, according to this configuration, the lateral displacement restricting portion is provided on at least one of the movable ceiling plate and the fixed ceiling plate and locks the other. Thus, a lateral displacement of the movable portion is restricted. In this way, rotation of the tool is restricted reliably by preventing displacement of the tool restricting portion.

The movable portion may include a movable side plate projecting in a direction separating from the body at the open position, and the tool restricting portion may be on the movable side plate. According to this configuration, the tool restricting portion is at a position separated from the body according to a projecting height of the movable side plate when the movable portion is at the open position. Thus, the tool restricting portion can be arranged at a desired position in a height direction from the body.

The battery terminal cover may further include an angle setting portion configured to support the movable portion at an acute angle to the body to separate the movable portion from the body when the movable portion is at the open position. The tool restricting portion is arranged according to an angle at which the movable portion is supported and can be arranged at a desired position.

The angle setting portion may project up from the body, and the lateral displacement restricting portion may be on an upper part of the angle setting portion. Accordingly, the angle setting portion can double as the lateral displacement restricting portion, and the number of parts can be reduced.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A first embodiment is described with reference toFIGS. 1 to 16. A battery terminal cover1of this embodiment is mounted on an upper surface side of a battery2for a vehicle, as shown inFIG. 1, to cover and protect a positive electrode2A and its periphery shown inFIG. 2. In the following description, an upper side in a state shown inFIG. 2is referred to as an upper side and a side near a negative electrode2B is referred to as a front in the battery terminal cover1.

As shown inFIG. 2, a battery terminal5, a bolt6(screw member) for fixing the battery terminal5to the positive electrode2A and an L-shaped terminal7are mounted around the positive electrode2A. The L-shaped terminal7extends from the upper surface to a side surface of the battery terminal2to have an L shape. The battery terminal5is a long and narrow strip that is wound on the positive electrode2A. Screw holes are arranged in front of the positive electrode2A and penetrate near both ends of the battery terminal5on the side of the positive electrode2A. The bolt6is screwed into screw holes and an axis thereof is oriented in a lateral direction. A lower part of the L-shaped terminal7is caulked and crimped to an unillustrated wire. The L-shaped terminal7is positioned with respect to the battery2by being fit into a rotation stopping resin component3.

The battery terminal cover1is divided into two parts across hinges50at a substantially half position in a front-rear direction, as shown inFIGS. 3 to 5. In the following description, the part behind the hinges50is referred to as a body10and the part before the hinges50is referred to as a movable portion20. Further, a part of the body10that covers the L-shaped terminal7and its periphery from above is referred to as a fixed ceiling plate11and parts laterally covering the L-shaped terminal7and its periphery are referred to as fixed side plates12. A part of the movable portion20covering the bolt6and its periphery from above is referred to as a movable ceiling plate21and parts laterally covering the bolt6are referred to as movable side plates22.

The fixed ceiling plate11and the movable ceiling plate21are coupled by left and right hinges50having axes oriented in a lateral direction and a spring60is provided between the hinges50, as shown inFIGS. 3, 5 and 6. The spring60has a bent shape to project down. The spring60is a reaction force spring and transitions into an extended state and a bent state to leap by biasing an external force due to a resilient force thereof.

As shown inFIGS. 5 and 6, each fixed side plate12of the body10is substantially L-shaped when viewed laterally. A mounting claw13extends down on each fixed side plate12. As shown inFIG. 1, each fixed side plate12is arranged to contact the upper surface and the side surface of the rotation stopping resin component3and each mounting claw13is fit into a mount receiving portion3A (seeFIG. 2) provided in the rotation stopping resin component3so that the body10is locked to the rotation stopping resin component3.

The movable portion20can be arranged at a shielding position where the bolt6is covered, as shown inFIG. 1, and at an open position where the bolt6can be exposed to the outside, as shown inFIG. 10, by a biasing force of the spring60. With the movable portion20set at the open position, the movable ceiling plate21is in surface contact with the fixed ceiling plate11, as shown inFIG. 16, and the movable side plates22project in a direction separating from the fixed ceiling plate11. At the time of maintenance, such as an exchange for the battery2, the movable portion20is at the open position to expose the bolt6and the bolt6can be screwed or unscrewed using a tool T.

A relatively large torque is necessary to screw the bolt6. Thus, the tool T has a long handle in many cases. However, if a handle of such a tool T is rotated about the bolt6in a vehicle C, the tip of the tool T may contact the vehicle C and damage the vehicle C.

Accordingly, the battery terminal cover1has a tool restricting portion30projecting into a rotation locus extending until the tool T contacts the vehicle C and is configured to restrict the rotation of the tool T by interfering with the tool T before the tool T contacts the vehicle C.

The tool restricting portion30extends toward an outer surface side of one of the movable side plates22, as shown inFIGS. 3 and 4, and has a box shape open down, as shown inFIG. 7. A rear wall31of the tool restricting portion30is flush with a back plate23provided on the rear end of the movable portion20, as shown inFIGS. 3 and 7. A lower end31A of the rear wall31is flush with the lower end (upper end in a state ofFIG. 10) of the movable side plate22, as shown inFIGS. 4 and 10. A ceiling wall32of the tool restricting portion30extends obliquely down at an angle of about 45° with respect to the movable side plate22, as shown inFIG. 9. A lower end part of the rear wall31of the tool restricting portion30is referred to below as a rotation restricting end31A.

In the state shown inFIG. 1where the movable portion20is at the shielding position, the tool restricting portion30is accommodated with the rotation restricting end31A fit between the battery terminal5and the rotation stopping resin component3.

With the movable portion20set at the open position, the rotation restricting end31A is above the front end of the fixed ceiling plate11, as shown inFIG. 13. If the tool T is rotated about the bolt6in this state, the rotation restricting end31A interferes with the handle of the tool T to restrict further rotation. A pressing force received by the rotation restricting end31A from the tool T is transferred to the movable ceiling plate21mainly via the movable side plate22and the back plate23and is transferred to the body10via the movable ceiling plate21.

Note that left and right auxiliary ribs24are provided in parallel to the back plate23on inner sides of the movable side plates22, as shown inFIGS. 10 and 11. As shown inFIG. 10, one end of the auxiliary rib24is coupled to the movable side plate22and the lower end thereof is coupled to the movable ceiling plate21. In this way, the auxiliary rib24supports the movable side plate22from the inner side to prevent deflection and deformation of the movable side plate22.

An operation of rotating the bolt6is performed in the vehicle with a limited space, and a tool T bent from a head to a handle (so-called offset type) as shown inFIG. 14may be used. Assuming this in this embodiment, the tool restricting portion30is provided at a laterally outer side of the movable side plate22(i.e. at a position projected farther in an axial direction of the hinges50than the movable portion20) as described above.

In this configuration, the tool T contacts and presses the rotation restricting end31A at the laterally outer side of the movable side plate22, as shown inFIGS. 14 and 15(A). Thus, a pressing force acts to displace laterally the movable ceiling plate21. Further, the hinges50are strips of synthetic resin and may be deformed by an external force. Accordingly, the movable ceiling plate21may laterally displace to rotate about the hinges50by the pressing force from the tool T, and the tool restricting portion30may deviate from a desired position to allow the tool T to contact the vehicle C.

To prevent such contact, the battery terminal cover1has a lateral displacement restricting portion40for restricting a lateral displacement of the movable ceiling plate21, as shown inFIGS. 15(A) and 15(B). The lateral displacement restricting portion40has left and right lateral displacement restricting ribs41on the fixed ceiling plate11and left and right lateral displacement restricting recesses42provided in the movable ceiling plate21.

The lateral displacement restricting ribs41project up on both lateral ends of the fixed ceiling plate11, as shown inFIG. 4, and extend in the front-rear direction from the rear end position of each mounting claw13to the rear end of the fixed ceiling plate11, as shown inFIG. 5.

As shown inFIG. 4, the lateral displacement restricting recesses42are formed by recessing areas of the movable ceiling plate21near both lateral ends and extending down from a position before the tool restricting portion30to the front end. The movable ceiling plate21has a reinforcing wall25coupling the left and right movable side plates22, as shown inFIG. 11, and the reinforcing wall25intersects the both lateral displacement restricting recesses42when viewed from below through the lower surface, as shown inFIG. 7.

As shown inFIG. 15(B), a width (lateral dimension) of the lateral displacement restricting rib41is set to fit into the lateral displacement restricting recess42. A projecting height of the lateral displacement restricting rib41from the fixed ceiling plate11is equal to or shorter than a depth of the lateral displacement restricting recess42. In this way, at the open position of the movable portion20, the lateral displacement restricting ribs41are fit into the lateral displacement restricting recesses42and lock to the lateral displacement restricting recesses42, as shown inFIG. 15(B), and the movable ceiling plate21is in surface contact with the fixed ceiling plate11, as shown inFIG. 16.

If the movable portion20is going to be laterally displaced with respect to the body portion10by a pressing force transferred from the tool T to the tool restricting portion30, the lateral displacement restricting recesses42are locked to the lateral displacement restricting ribs41to restrict lateral displacement of the movable portion20.

As described above, the battery terminal cover1is mounted on the battery2to be installed in the vehicle and includes the body10to be fixed to the battery2, the movable portion20coupled to the body10via the hinges50and rotationally displaceable to the shielding position to cover the screw member (bolt6) mounted on the battery2and the open position to be overlapped on the body10, and the tool restricting portion30provided on the movable portion20and configured to restrict the rotation of the tool T by interfering with the tool T before the tool T rotated about the screw member6contacts the vehicle C with the movable portion20set at the open position. According to this configuration, the tool T rotated about the screw member6contacts the tool restricting portion30to restrict any further rotation. Thus, the tool T cannot contact and damage the vehicle C.

The body10includes the fixed ceiling plate11coupled to the hinges50, the movable portion20includes the movable ceiling plate21coupled to the hinges50, the tool restricting portion30projected farther in the axial direction of the hinges50than the movable portion20, and at least one of the movable ceiling plate21and the fixed ceiling plate11includes the lateral displacement restricting portion40lockable to the other when the movable portion20is at the open position.

Since the tool restricting portion30projects farther in the axial direction of the hinges50than the movable portion20in this configuration, a pressing force from the tool T may be transferred from the tool restricting portion30to the movable portion20and may act in the direction to rotationally displace the movable portion20about the hinges50and the movable portion20may be displaced from the body10. However, according to this configuration, the lateral displacement restricting portion40on at least one of the movable ceiling plate21and the fixed ceiling plate11is locked to the other. Thus, a lateral displacement of the movable portion20is restricted. In this way, the rotation of the tool T can be reliably restricted by preventing a displacement of the tool restricting portion30.

Further, the movable portion20includes the movable side plates22projecting in the direction separating from the body10at the open position, and the tool restricting portion30is provided on the movable side plate22. According to this configuration, the tool restricting portion30is separated from the body10according to the projecting height of the movable side plate22when the movable portion20is at the open position, the tool restricting portion30can be arranged at a desired position in a height direction from the body10.

A second embodiment is described with reference toFIGS. 17 to 23. A battery terminal cover101of the second embodiment differs from that of the first embodiment in that angle setting portions170are provided at the same positions as the lateral displacement restricting ribs41of the first embodiment to support a movable ceiling plate21at an acute angle to a fixed ceiling plate11and projecting end parts of the angle setting portions170double as lateral displacement restricting ribs141. Components corresponding to those of the first embodiment are denoted by the reference signs of the first embodiment plus 100. The same configuration, functions and effects as those of the first embodiment are not described and the same components as those of the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference sings.

The angle setting portion170is shaped to project farther up than the lateral displacement restricting rib41of the first embodiment, as shown inFIG. 19, and the upper surface thereof is tapered with a front side higher than a rear side, as shown inFIG. 19.

With a movable portion20set at an open position, the upper surfaces of the angle setting portions170are in surface contact with bottom surfaces of lateral displacement restricting recesses142, as shown inFIG. 21. In this way, the movable ceiling plate portion21is separated from the fixed ceiling plate11and supported at a predetermined angle θ to the fixed ceiling plate11with hinges50as a center, and inclined somewhat forward.

At this time, as shown inFIG. 22, a rotation restricting end portion31A is arranged above and before a position P, which is above the front end of the upper surface of the fixed ceiling plate11by a height of a back plate23. This causes a tool T to interfere with the rotation restricting end portion31A at a position separated more from a vehicle C than in the first embodiment to restrict any further rotation.

Further, in this state, upper parts of the angle setting portions170are fit as the lateral displacement restricting ribs141into the lateral displacement restricting recesses142and can be locked to the lateral displacement restricting recesses142, as shown inFIG. 23. In this way, a displacement of the tool restricting portion30is restricted as in the first embodiment.

As described above, the battery terminal cover101includes the angle setting portions170for supporting the movable portion20at an acute angle to the body10to separate the movable portion20from the body10when the movable portion20is open. According to this configuration, the tool restricting portion30is arranged according to a height position where the movable portion20is supported, the tool restricting portion30can be arranged at a desired position.

Further, the angle setting portions170project up from the body10and the lateral displacement restricting ribs141are on the upper end parts of the angle setting portions170. According to this configuration, the angle setting portions170can double as the lateral displacement restricting portion140. Thus, the angle setting portions170and the lateral displacement restricting portion140need not be provided separately.

The invention is not limited to the above described and illustrated embodiments and can be, for example, carried out as follows.

Although the tool restricting portion30projects up and the tool T comes into contact with the upper end part of the tool restricting portion30with the movable portion20set at the open position in the first and second embodiments, the shape of the tool restricting portion30is not limited to this. For example, if a spanner with a head part and a shaft having a flat shape (so-called straight type) is used as a tool, the tool restricting portion may project from one side plate toward the other side plate of the movable portion (e.g. shaped like the rear wall31of the movable portion20in the first and second embodiments). In short, the tool restricting portion only has to project into the rotation locus extending until the tool contacts the vehicle with the movable portion set at the open position.

Although the rotation restricting end31A is disposed flush with the lower end of the movable side plate portion22, the rotation restricting end31A may be shaped to extend laterally at the same height as the movable ceiling plate, for example, if the rotation restricting end portion can be arranged at a desired position only by the angle setting portions.

Although the lateral displacement restricting portion40,140is composed of the lateral displacement restricting ribs41,141on the fixed ceiling plate11and the lateral displacement restricting recesses42,142provided in the movable ceiling plate21in the first and second embodiments, the configuration of the lateral displacement restricting portion is not limited to this. For example, lateral displacement restricting ribs may be provided to project upward from both side edges of the movable ceiling plate and be locked laterally to both side edges of the fixed ceiling plate of the body.

LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS