Patent Description:
As a hybrid vehicle, for example, Patent Document <NUM> discloses a vehicle equipped with a driving motor and an engine at the front of a vehicle body, and an IPU (electrical equipment for electric motors) made up of a driving battery, an inverter or the like in an IPU storage section formed under the floor at the rear of the vehicle body.

The driving motor and the IPU are connected via three-phase power lines under the floor. However, since a tank storage section is formed in the center under the floor where a fuel tank for the engine is disposed, the power lines are routed so as to avoid the fuel tank. More specifically, the power line from the driving motor is extended backward in the center of a vehicle width direction, pulled into the tank storage section and fixed with a bracket or the like as appropriate while being extended along an inside wall of the tank storage section so as to bypass the fuel tank. Furthermore, the power line is pulled out from the tank storage section, extended backward in the center of the vehicle width direction again and connected to the IPU.

Patent document <NUM> discloses an electric vehicle includes a battery disposed below a floor panel and at the rear side of a vehicle body relative to front wheels; an inverter disposed below the floor panel and at the rear side of the vehicle body relative to the battery; a motor disposed below the floor panel and between the battery and the inverter; and a cross member which extends in a lateral direction of the vehicle body at an area located below the floor panel and between the battery and the motor.

The technology described in Patent Document <NUM> is a routing structure of power lines that connect the inverter included in the IPU and the driving motor, but aside from this, there are also hybrid vehicles adopting a routing structure of power lines that connect a driving battery and an inverter integrated with a driving motor.

In such hybrid vehicles, for example, a battery storage section is formed on a front side of cross members connecting left and right side members under the floor of the vehicle body to dispose the driving battery, a tank storage section is formed on a rear side of the cross members to dispose the fuel tank, and further a junction box is disposed on a rear side of the fuel tank to relay power from the driving battery to be supplied to the inverter. As a result, since the fuel tank is located between the driving battery and the junction box, a power line connecting a terminal block of the driving battery and a terminal block of the junction box needs to be routed so as to avoid the fuel tank as in the case of the technology in Patent Document <NUM>.

Thus, the power line from the terminal block provided on the rear side of the driving battery is pulled into the tank storage section, extended, for example, leftward along a side wall of the cross members in the tank storage section, further extended backward along the side wall of the side member on the left side, and fixed with a bracket or the like as appropriate. In this way, the power line is routed in the tank storage section so as to bypass the fuel tank, and moreover, the power line is pulled out of the tank storage section and connected to the terminal block of the junction box.

However, with such a power line routing structure, there has been room for improvement in terms of power line protection in the event of a side collision by another vehicle.

For example, when the power line is fixed to the left side member as described above, if another vehicle collides from the left at a front or back position that matches the driving battery, the terminal block is also displaced to the right together with the driving battery, which has been crushed by impact. By contrast, since the power lines are fixed to the side walls of the cross members and the side members and their position displacements are regulated, large tension is generated in the power line along with position displacement of the terminal block, causing damage such as wire breakage. Even if the bracket or the like is damaged and a restraint to the power line is released, the fuel tank that escapes from impact and is hardly displaced may interfere with the behavior of the power line following the terminal block, and so damage to the power line due to excessive tension is inevitable after all.

An object of the present invention, which has been made to solve such problems, is to provide a power line routing structure in a hybrid vehicle capable of reliably protecting power lines in the event of a side collision by another vehicle with respect to the power line routing structure in which a driving battery and a driving motor are connected via power lines routed so as to bypass a fuel tank in a tank storage section.

In order to achieve the above object, an aspect of the present invention is directed to a hybrid vehicle including a fuel tank disposed in a tank storage section formed between left and right side members on a lower side of a floor of a vehicle body, a driving battery disposed in a battery storage section aligned with the tank storage section in a front-rear direction across a cross member connecting between the left and right side members, a driving motor disposed on an opposite side of the battery storage section in the front-rear direction of the vehicle with respect to the tank storage section and a power line that supplies power from the driving battery to the driving motor, in which part of the tank storage section includes the left and right side members and the cross members, the power line is extended along a side wall of either one of the left and right side members from a side wall of the cross member so as to bypass the fuel tank via either one of the left and right sides of the fuel tank from a terminal block of the driving battery and an extra length area with slack being formed in an area of the power line along the side wall of the cross member (claim <NUM>).

According to the hybrid vehicle configured as described above, for example, when another vehicle collides from either one of the left and right sides (on the side on which the power line bypasses the fuel tank) at the position in a front-rear direction that corresponds to the driving battery, the driving battery is crushed in the left and right directions by the impact, and the terminal block is thereby displaced to the other of the left and right sides. With position displacement, the extra length area of the power line is stretched, and the increase in tension generated in the power line is suppressed.

As another aspect, the power line is preferably extended in a mountainous way protruding upward along the side wall of the cross member to provide slack in the extra length area (claim <NUM>).

According to the hybrid vehicle configured as described above, the power line is extended in a mountainous way, and so an extra length area with slack being formed.

As a further aspect, the terminal block of the driving battery is preferably disposed on a lower side of the cross member (claim <NUM>).

According to the hybrid vehicle configured as described above, since the terminal block is disposed under the cross member, the power line is directly guided from the terminal block to the side wall of the cross member.

As a still further aspect, a battery-side connector on the driving battery side to which a power-line-side connector on the power line side is connected is preferably formed on the fuel tank side on the terminal block of the driving battery, and while the power-line-side connector is connected to the battery-side connector, the power-line-side connector preferably protrudes from the cross member to the fuel tank side and the power line is preferably extended upward from a position at which the power-line-side connector protrudes toward the fuel tank side (claim <NUM>).

According to the hybrid vehicle configured as described above, the power line is pulled out upward from the terminal block and routed upward on the side wall of the cross member without significantly changing the extension direction.

As a still further aspect, the hybrid vehicle further includes a cooling pipe that circulates cooling water in the driving motor to cool the driving motor, in which the cooling pipe is preferably pulled into the tank storage section from the driving motor, extended along the side wall of the cross member so as to bypass the fuel tank via the other of the left and right sides of the fuel tank, and further extended passing through a point of intersection with the power line at a point of the side wall of the cross member, and at the point of intersection, the cooling pipe is preferably disposed on the cross member side and the power line is disposed on the fuel tank side (claim <NUM>).

According to the hybrid vehicle configured as described above, the behavior of the power line following position displacement of the terminal block of the driving battery is possible without being blocked by the cooling pipe in the event of a side collision of another vehicle.

As a still further aspect, at the point of intersection, a first protector member is preferably fitted to the cooling pipe and a second protector member is preferably fitted to the power line (claim <NUM>).

According to the hybrid vehicle configured as described above, since heat of the cooling pipe is blocked by the first and second protector members, heat damage to the battery-side power cable is prevented.

As a still further aspect, the second protector member is preferably extended from the point of intersection to an area along either one of the left and right side members (claim <NUM>).

According to the hybrid vehicle configured as described above, in the event of a side collision by another vehicle from either one of the left and right sides, the power line may be sandwiched between the side member deformed by impact and the fuel tank, but the power line is protected by the second protector member.

As a still further aspect, in the area along either one of the left and right side members, the second protector member is preferably fixed to the floor panel of the vehicle body with a bolt, and in the extra length area, the power line is preferably fixed to the side wall of the cross member with a clip that comes off due to a predetermined load (claim <NUM>).

According to the hybrid vehicle configured as described above, periodic shaking of the extra length area due to vibration during vehicle running may cause deterioration of the battery-side power cable, but such a case is prevented by fixing with the clip.

As a still further aspect, a third protector member with flexibility is preferably fitted to the power line in the extra length area (claim <NUM>).

According to the hybrid vehicle configured as described above, since the third protector member fitted to the power line is flexible, the behavior of the power line following position displacement of the terminal block of the driving battery is possible.

According to present invention, the power line routing structure in which the driving battery and the driving motor are connected via the power line routed so as to bypass the fuel tank in the tank storage section can reliably protect the power line in the event of a side collision by another vehicle.

Hereinafter, an embodiment that embodies the present invention will be described.

<FIG> is a bottom view illustrating a rear part of a hybrid vehicle of the embodiment and <FIG> is a cross-sectional view illustrating a positional relationship between a drive unit and a power supply unit with respect to a floor when the rear part of the hybrid vehicle is likewise viewed from the rear. In the following description, front-rear, left-right and up-down directions will be expressed with the driver in the vehicle as a main subject.

As shown in <FIG> and <FIG>, a pair of left and right side members <NUM> and 3r are provided on an undersurface of a floor <NUM> that constitutes a vehicle body of a hybrid vehicle <NUM> and each side member <NUM> or 3r forms a closed cross section with the floor <NUM>, and is extended in a front-rear direction.

As shown by two-dot dashed lines in <FIG>, rear suspension cross members <NUM> are disposed on an underside of the floor <NUM> and both the left and right sides thereof are suspended and supported from the respective side members <NUM> and 3r. More specifically, fixed points 5fl, 5fr, 5rl and 5rr are provided as support mounts at front positions and rear positions of the left and right side members <NUM> and 3r, and front left and right, and rear left and right parts of the rear suspension cross member <NUM> are suspended and supported from the respective fixed points 5fl, 5fr, 5rl and 5rr. Both left and right sides of the rear suspension cross member <NUM> are extended forward from the fixed points 5fl and 5fr at the front positions and fastened to the left and right side members <NUM> and 3r by a pair of bolts <NUM> and 6r respectively.

Left and right rear wheels <NUM> (only the right side is shown in <FIG>) are supported to the left side and the right side of the rear suspension cross member <NUM> via double-wishbone based suspension (not shown). Since the configuration of the suspension is well known, detailed description will be omitted, but the suspension is constructed of an upper arm, a lower arm, a toe control link, a spring and an absorber or the like. A driving motor <NUM>, an inverter <NUM> provided integrally with the driving motor <NUM> and a transaxle <NUM> that functions as a reduction gear, as a drive unit <NUM>, are attached to the rear suspension cross member <NUM> under the floor <NUM> via a support mount (not shown) and the left and right rear wheels <NUM> are connected to the transaxle <NUM> via a pair of left and right drive shafts <NUM>.

The driving motor <NUM> is driven and controlled by the inverter <NUM>. For example, during power drive control, DC power from a driving battery <NUM>, which will be described later, is converted to three-phase AC power by the inverter <NUM>, supplied to the driving motor <NUM>, and with rotation of the driving motor <NUM> reduced in the transaxle <NUM>, the left and right rear wheels <NUM> are driven via the drive shafts <NUM>. On the other hand, during regenerative control, the rotation of the left and right rear wheels <NUM> is transmitted to the driving motor <NUM> via the drive shafts <NUM> and the transaxle <NUM>, three-phase AC power generated by the driving motor <NUM> is converted to DC power by the inverter <NUM> and charged to the driving battery <NUM>.

As shown in <FIG>, a junction box <NUM>, a charger <NUM> and a DC-AC inverter <NUM> are installed as a power supply unit <NUM> on the floor <NUM> in order from the left side. As is generally known, the junction box <NUM> is an apparatus that connects the driving battery <NUM> and various electric loads such as the driving motor <NUM>, the charger <NUM> is an apparatus that charges power from an external power supply at a charging station or the like to the driving battery <NUM>, and the DC-AC inverter <NUM> is an apparatus that converts DC power of the driving battery <NUM> to AC power of <NUM> V for allowing home appliances to be used. Note that the power supply unit <NUM> is covered with a cover <NUM> from above and a third row seat (not shown) is located directly above the power supply unit <NUM>.

Although not shown, the junction box <NUM> is connected to the charger <NUM> and the DC-AC inverter <NUM> via a power cable. As shown in <FIG> and <FIG>, a terminal block 21a is provided on an undersurface of the junction box <NUM>, fitted into a through hole 2a formed in the floor <NUM> and protrudes downward. One end of a motor side power cable <NUM> is connected to a rear surface of the terminal block 21a and the other end is connected to a left side surface of a terminal block 10a of the inverter <NUM>.

Although details will be described later, a front part of the terminal block 21a of the junction box <NUM> is connected to the driving battery <NUM> via a battery-side power cable <NUM> (power line). Power is exchanged between the driving battery <NUM> and the charger <NUM> and between the DC-AC inverter <NUM> and the inverter <NUM> of the driving motor <NUM> by relaying the junction box <NUM>. For example, DC power from the driving battery <NUM> is supplied to the DC-AC inverter <NUM> via the junction box <NUM>, converted to AC power of <NUM> V and used to operate home appliances. At a charging station or the like, AC power supplied from an external power supply is converted to DC power by the charger <NUM> and charged to the driving battery <NUM> via the junction box <NUM>. The above-described power drive control or regenerative control of the driving motor <NUM> is also performed via the junction box <NUM>.

<FIG> is a perspective view illustrating a power line routing state in the tank storage section when the rear bottom surface of the vehicle body of the hybrid vehicle <NUM> is viewed diagonally from the rear.

As shown in <FIG> and <FIG>, front, middle and rear floor cross members <NUM> to <NUM> are provided between the left and right side members <NUM> and 3r under the floor <NUM>, each cross member <NUM> to <NUM> is extended in a left-right direction while forming a closed cross section with the undersurface of the floor <NUM>, both ends of which are connected to the left and right side members <NUM> and 3r. The respective fixed points 5fl, 5fr, 5rl and 5rr that suspend and support the above-described rear suspension cross member <NUM> are provided at positions of both ends of the middle and rear floor cross members <NUM> and <NUM>.

The front floor cross member <NUM> is disposed in front of the middle floor cross member <NUM>, a tank storage section <NUM> opening downward is formed between the front and middle floor cross members <NUM> and <NUM> under the floor <NUM> and a battery storage section <NUM> opening downward is formed in front of the front floor cross member <NUM>. As a result, the tank storage section <NUM> and the battery storage section <NUM> are juxtaposed in the front-rear direction. A fuel tank <NUM> is disposed in the tank storage section <NUM>, fixed with a pair of brackets <NUM> and contains fuel to be supplied to the engine (not shown) mounted on the front of the vehicle body. The driving battery <NUM> is disposed in the battery storage section <NUM> and the circumference of the driving battery <NUM> is fixed with bolts (not shown).

<FIG> is a schematic view showing, on the same plane, an arrow view A of <FIG> when the side wall of the front floor cross member <NUM> is viewed from the rear and an arrow view B when the side wall of the left side member <NUM> is viewed from the right.

As shown in <FIG> and <FIG>, in the tank storage section <NUM>, a side wall 27a of the front floor cross member <NUM> and a side wall 3la of the left side member <NUM> are connected via a curved corner <NUM>. A terminal block 34a is provided on the rear side of the driving battery <NUM>, the terminal block 34a is located below the front floor cross member <NUM>, a distal end of the terminal block 34a protrudes slightly rearward (fuel tank side) from the side wall 27a of the front floor cross member <NUM> facing into the tank storage section <NUM>. Although not shown, the terminal built in the terminal block 34a is extended rearward from the driving battery <NUM> and has an L-shape bent upward. Thus, a connector opening upward (battery-side connector on the driving battery side) is formed at a protruding point at the distal end of the terminal block 34a, allowing a connector (not shown) provided at one end of the battery-side power cable <NUM> (power-line-side connector on the power line side) to be connected from above.

Thus, the terminal block 34a is located below the front floor cross member <NUM> and the connector of the terminal block 34a opens upward. For this reason, the connector of the battery-side power cable <NUM> connected to the connector of the terminal block 34a protrudes to the fuel tank <NUM> side, the battery-side power cable <NUM> is pulled out upward from this protruding point, directly guided by the side wall 27a of the front floor cross member <NUM>, and further routed upward on the side wall 27a without significantly changing the extending direction. Although details will be described later, such an upward pull-out state of the cable is intended for routing of the battery-side power cable <NUM> with slack.

Note that the connector structure is not limited to the aforementioned one as long as it can realize this pull-out state. For example, a connector opening rearward is formed behind the terminal block 34a using an I-shaped terminal instead of the L-shaped terminal and a connector opening orthogonal to the cable longitudinal direction is provided at an end of the battery-side power cable <NUM>. The connector is connected to the connector of the terminal block 34a from behind in a posture with the battery-side power cable <NUM> extended upward. The battery-side power cable <NUM> is pulled out upward from the terminal block 34a also in this case.

Similarly, for routing the battery-side power cable <NUM> with slack, the terminal block 34a is separated rightward from the corner <NUM> by a distance L shown in <FIG>, and the battery-side power cable <NUM> is routed with slack, as will be described hereinafter using an area on the side wall 27a of the front floor cross member <NUM> corresponding to this distance L. In the following description, the point of the battery-side power cable <NUM> with slack is called an "extra length area 26a" and an area on the side wall 27a corresponding to the distance L whereby the extra length area 26a is routed is called an "extra length routing area <NUM>.

Since the routing of the battery-side power cable <NUM> is associated with a cooling pipe <NUM> routed likewise in the tank storage section <NUM>, a routing state of the cooling pipe <NUM> will be described first. The cooling pipe <NUM> is provided as a pair of pipe lines to circulate cooling water between the driving motor <NUM> and a heat sink (not shown) disposed on the front of the vehicle body and cooling action of the driving motor <NUM> is exerted by circulating the cooling water.

As shown in <FIG>, <FIG> and <FIG>, one end of each cooling pipe <NUM> is connected to the driving motor <NUM>, extended forward, pulled into the tank storage section <NUM>, extended forward so as to bypass the fuel tank <NUM> via the right side of the fuel tank <NUM> (the other of the left and right sides), and further extended leftward along the side wall 27a of the front floor cross member <NUM>. In the corner <NUM> between the side wall 27a of the front floor cross member <NUM> and the side wall 3la of the left side member <NUM>, each cooling pipe <NUM> is bent downward, and pulled out from the tank storage section <NUM>. A pipe-shaped heat insulating material <NUM> made of synthetic resin material with thermal insulation and elasticity (first protector member) is fitted to each cooling pipe <NUM>. Furthermore, each cooling pipe <NUM> is bent forward, extended forward beyond the undersurface of the front floor cross member <NUM> and connected to the heat sink (not shown).

In order to avoid heat damage from the cooling pipe <NUM> in which hot cooling water circulates, the battery-side power cable <NUM> is routed on the opposite side of the cooling pipe <NUM> in the tank storage section <NUM>. That is, one end of the battery-side power cable <NUM> is connected to the front side of the terminal block 21a of the junction box <NUM>, the battery-side power cable <NUM> is pulled into the tank storage section <NUM> and extended forward along the side wall 3la of the left side member <NUM> so as to bypass the fuel tank <NUM> via the left side of the fuel tank <NUM> (either one of the left and right sides).

A pipe-shaped first covering material <NUM> made of synthetic resin material with high strength is fitted at a point where the battery-side power cable <NUM> is pulled into the tank storage section <NUM>, and a bracket (not shown) formed integrally with the first covering material <NUM> is fixed to a bottom wall 30a or the like of the tank storage section <NUM> with bolts. Similarly, a pipe-shaped second covering material <NUM> made of synthetic resin material with high strength (second protector member) is fitted at a point along the side wall 3la of the side member <NUM> of the battery-side power cable <NUM> and a pair of brackets 41a and 41b formed integrally with the second covering material <NUM> are fixed to a bottom wall 30a of the tank storage section <NUM> and a side wall 3la of the side member <NUM> with bolts <NUM>, respectively.

With the fitting of the first and second covering materials <NUM> and <NUM>, the battery-side power cable <NUM> is kept to a predetermined shape following the bottom wall 30a of the tank storage section <NUM> and the side wall 3la of the side member <NUM>, and position displacement due to vibration or the like during vehicle running is prevented. In the event of a side collision from the left by another vehicle, the battery-side power cable <NUM> may be sandwiched between the side member <NUM> and the fuel tank <NUM> deformed to the right by impact, but the strong first and second covering materials <NUM> and <NUM> protect the battery-side power cable <NUM>, preventing damage such as wire breakage.

Note that characteristics of the first and second covering materials <NUM> and <NUM> are not limited to the above-described characteristics, but as in the case of a third covering material <NUM>, which will be described later, urethane material or the like may be used to provide high impact absorption to protect the battery-side power cable <NUM>.

The second covering material <NUM> extends forward along the side wall 3la of the side member <NUM>, is bent rightward in the corner <NUM> reaching the side wall 27a of the front floor cross member <NUM>. Since the curvature of the second covering material <NUM> is larger at the curved point than at the corner <NUM>, a gap is formed between the curved point and the corner <NUM>, and the heat insulating material <NUM> fitted to each cooling pipe <NUM> is located in the gap. As a result, in the corner <NUM>, the battery-side power cable <NUM> and the cooling pipe <NUM> intersect each other (point of intersection), the second covering material <NUM> and the heat insulating material <NUM> fitted to the battery-side power cable <NUM> and the cooling pipe <NUM> respectively, are lightly in contact with or slightly separated from each other.

Although the cooling pipe <NUM> is hot, its heat is blocked by the heat insulating material <NUM> and the second covering material <NUM>, and so heat damage to the battery-side power cable <NUM> is prevented. Due to vibration during vehicle running, the second covering material <NUM> and the heat insulating material <NUM> may rub each other, but direct contact between the battery-side power cable <NUM> and the cooling pipe <NUM> is prevented, and this prevents trouble such as damage to the battery-side power cable <NUM> from occurring.

In the state of intersection between the above-described battery-side power cable <NUM> and cooling pipe <NUM>, the cooling pipe <NUM> is located on the front side (side wall 27a side of the front floor cross member <NUM>) and the battery-side power cable <NUM> is located on the rear side (fuel tank <NUM> side). Thus, in the event of a side collision by another vehicle, which will be described later, the behavior of the battery-side power cable <NUM> following position displacement of the terminal block 34a of the driving battery <NUM> is possible without being blocked by the cooling pipe <NUM> fixed to the side wall 27a of the front floor cross member <NUM>.

As shown in <FIG>, the battery-side power cable <NUM> is further extended rightward over the extra length routing area <NUM> along the side wall 27a of the front floor cross member <NUM> from an end of the second covering material <NUM> (end of the corner <NUM>). In this extra length routing area <NUM>, the battery-side power cable <NUM> is routed with slack as the extra length area 26a and the third covering material <NUM> (third protector member) is fitted thereto, and a connector provided at an end of the extra length area 26a is connected to the connector of the terminal block 34a of the driving battery <NUM>.

A routing state of the extra length area 26a of the battery-side power cable <NUM> will be described by assuming the terminal block 34a side as a starting point based on <FIG>. First, the battery-side power cable <NUM> is pulled out upward from the terminal block 34a, extended upward along the side wall 27a of the front floor cross member <NUM> in the extra length routing area <NUM> of the side wall 27a, extended downward toward the side member <NUM>, and further continued to the side wall 3la of the side member <NUM> after passing through the area of the corner <NUM>. In this way, the battery-side power cable <NUM> is extended in a mountainous way, and the extra length area 26a is formed to provide slack.

As described above, since the terminal block 34a is located below the front floor cross member <NUM> and the connector of the terminal block 34a is open upward, the extra length area 26a can be formed over the extra length routing area <NUM> of the side wall 27a without forcibly bending the battery-side power cable <NUM>.

<FIG> is a V-V line cross-sectional view of <FIG> illustrating a state in which the battery-side power cable <NUM> is fixed by a clip.

As shown in <FIG> and <FIG>, the region of the battery-side power cable <NUM> corresponding to a vertex of the extra length area 26a is fixed to the side wall 27a of the front floor cross member <NUM> by a clip <NUM>.

The clip <NUM> is integrally molded with a synthetic resin material and constructed of a ring-shaped holding part 45a and a locking part 45b provided on one side of the holding part 45a. The third covering material <NUM> is externally fitted to the holding part 45a and the locking part 45b is elastically inserted/hooked into a clip hole <NUM> perforated in the side wall 27a of the front floor cross member <NUM>. Thus, the extra length area 26a of the battery-side power cable <NUM> is fixed on the extra length routing area <NUM> of the side wall 27a via the clip <NUM> and the third covering material <NUM>. Periodic shaking of the extra length area 26a due to vibration or the like during vehicle running may cause the battery-side power cable <NUM> to deteriorate, but fixing the clip <NUM> can prevent such a situation.

In order to externally fit the holding part 45a of the clip <NUM> to the third covering material <NUM>, which has been fitted to the battery-side power cable <NUM>, the holding part 45a together with the locking part 45b is divided into upper and lower parts, for example, using a dividing line <NUM> shown in <FIG> as a boundary. A procedure for fixing the battery-side power cable <NUM> in this case is separating the locking part 45b first and inserting the battery-side power cable <NUM> to which the third covering material <NUM> is fitted in advance from one side into the holding part 45a after passing through the locking part 45b. Next, when the locking part 45b is connected, the third covering material <NUM> is held in the holding part 45a with no gaps, and the locking part 45b is inserted into the clip hole <NUM> of the side wall 27a in this state. The locking part 45b expands by its own elasticity and is hooked in the clip hole <NUM>, and this completes the fixing work.

Locking of the synthetic resin clip <NUM> by the locking part 45b is weaker than fastening by the metal bolts <NUM> that fix, for example, the second covering material <NUM>. For this reason, although locking is maintained with the force normally received by the clip <NUM> such as vibration during vehicle running, locking is released when a larger predetermined load (more specifically, tension generated on the battery-side power cable <NUM> along with position displacement of the terminal block 34a, which will be described below) acts, and the clip <NUM> comes off the side wall 27a. As a result, in the event of a side collision by another vehicle, the behavior of the battery-side power cable <NUM> following position displacement of the terminal block 34a of the driving battery <NUM> is possible without being hindered by restraints of the clip <NUM>.

On the other hand, the third covering material <NUM> has characteristics different from those of the first and second covering materials <NUM>. That is, the third covering material <NUM> is made of a urethane member or the like and is provided with high impact absorption and flexibility. Therefore, unlike the first and second covering materials <NUM> that protects the battery-side power cable <NUM> with high strength in the event of a side collision by another vehicle, the third covering material <NUM> absorbs impact and thereby protects the battery-side power cable <NUM> inside. For example, in the event of a side collision by another vehicle, a damaged peripheral member may contact the battery-side power cable <NUM>, but the third covering material <NUM> protects the battery-side power cable <NUM> from damage.

At the same time, since the third covering material <NUM> is highly flexible, in the event of a side collision by another vehicle, the behavior of the battery-side power cable <NUM> following position displacement of the terminal block 34a of the driving battery <NUM> is possible without being blocked by the third covering material <NUM>.

Next, protective action in the event of a side collision by another vehicle, provided by the routing structure for the battery-side power cable <NUM> configured as described above will be described.

For example, when another vehicle collides from the left at a position in a front-rear direction that corresponds to the driving battery <NUM>, the driving battery <NUM> is crushed in the left-right direction by impact, and the terminal block 34a is thereby displaced to the right as shown by two-dot dashed lines in <FIG>. With position displacement, tension is generated in the battery-side power cable <NUM> and this tension acts as a downward force on the clip <NUM> that fixes the battery-side power cable <NUM>. With rightward position displacement of the terminal block 34a, the tension of the battery-side power cable <NUM> increases, but locking by the locking part 45b of the clip <NUM> is released before damage such as wire breakage occurs in the battery-side power cable <NUM>.

As a result, the battery-side power cable <NUM> will no longer be restrained by the clip <NUM> and the tension decreases rapidly. The terminal block 34a is further displaced to the right, but the semicircular extra length area 26a is stretched rightward, and the increase in the tension of the battery-side power cable <NUM> is suppressed, thus preventing damage such as wire breakage caused by tension.

Such tension restraining action is exerted by the extra length area 26a, which is action that can be surely obtained regardless of restrained states of other areas of the battery-side power cable <NUM>.

That is, depending on a situation of side collision, the brackets 41a and 41b that fix the battery-side power cable <NUM> to the side wall 3la of the side member <NUM> may not be damaged or the fuel tank <NUM> may escape from impact and may hardly be deformed. As the prior art described in "Problems to be Solved by the Invention," if it is assumed that no extra length area 26a is provided for the battery-side power cable <NUM> of the present embodiment, in the former case, the brackets 41a and 41b keep the side member <NUM> fixed to the side wall 3la, and tension is generated in the battery-side power cable <NUM>, whereas in the latter case, the behavior of the battery-side power cable <NUM> following the terminal block 34a is blocked by the fuel tank <NUM>, which may generate tension and cause damage such as wire breakage in either case.

Since the extra length area 26a is provided in the present embodiment, tension generated in the battery-side power cable <NUM> can be suppressed in any side-collision situation without falling into such a situation. As a result, the battery-side power cable <NUM> can be reliably protected in the event of a side collision by another vehicle.

Although this completes the description of the embodiment, the aspects of the present invention are not limited to the above-described embodiment. According to the above-described embodiment, for example, the driving battery <NUM>, the fuel tank <NUM> and the driving motor <NUM> are disposed in order from the front side of the vehicle body to drive the rear wheels <NUM>, but the order may be reversed such that the driving battery <NUM>, the fuel tank <NUM> and the driving motor <NUM> are disposed in order from the rear side of the vehicle body so as to drive the front wheels.

According to the above-described embodiment, although the driving battery <NUM> and the junction box <NUM> are connected via the battery-side power cable <NUM>, the junction box <NUM> may be omitted and the driving battery <NUM> may be directly connected to the inverter <NUM> of the driving motor <NUM> via the battery-side power cable <NUM>.

According to the above-described embodiment, although the semicircular extra length area 26a is formed, the shape of the extra length area 26a is not limited to the semicircular shape, but can be arbitrarily changed. For example, an upward convex semicircle and a downward convex semicircle may be combined to form a substantially S-shaped extra length area.

Claim 1:
A hybrid vehicle (<NUM>), comprising:
a fuel tank (<NUM>) disposed in a tank storage section (<NUM>) formed between left and right side members on a lower side of a floor (<NUM>) of a vehicle body;
a driving battery (<NUM>) disposed in a battery storage section (<NUM>) aligned with the tank storage section (<NUM>) in a front-rear direction across a cross member (<NUM>) connecting between the left and right side members;
a driving motor (<NUM>) disposed on an opposite side of the battery storage section in the front-rear direction of the vehicle with respect to the tank storage section; and
a power line (<NUM>) that supplies power from the driving battery (<NUM>) to the driving motor (<NUM>), wherein
part of the tank storage section includes the left and right side members and the cross members, characterized in that:
the power line is extended along a side wall (27a) of either one of the left and right side members from a side wall of the cross member (<NUM>) so as to bypass the fuel tank (<NUM>) via either one of the left and right sides of the fuel tank (<NUM>) from a terminal block (34a) of the driving battery (<NUM>) and an extra length area (26a) with slack being formed in an area of the power line along the side wall of the cross member.