Patent Description:
Of particular interest are heavy load road vehicles such as trucks. Trucks in general are used to transport heavy loads over long distances. Particularly in case of heavy duty long haulage applications so-called tractor semi-trailer combinations are used in which the tractor vehicle pulls and partly supports the payload that is packed onto the semi-trailer. In new generations of these trucks, batteries may provide an indispensable contribution to the electrification of the drive train, since they may provide needed electrical energy to the electric motor.

A vehicle battery can comprise a first and a second battery module, each comprising a battery box configured to hold and support several, usually identical battery packs,. These battery packs are typically assembled together in a box like arrangement that can be mounted on the truck in any one or more numbers. Each module can have a weight of <NUM> or more. Typically these battery packs are fragile and suffer from vibrations, shocks, and deformation.

A truck and in particular a tractor to pull a semi-trailer is conventionally built upon a chassis formed by two elongate beams along a length of the truck. Such a chassis comprising two longitudinal members connected by cross beams, is a so called ladder frame. The chassis is the central mounting base of the truck to interconnect all components of the truck together. Over the main suspension this chassis may be supported by the axles, in general a front and a rear axle. On the chassis may be mounted or suspended a truck cabin, the motor, and many other components. The chassis may also provide a base for mounting one or more battery modules. The latter may be placed outside the ladder frame between the front axle tire and the rear axle tire, or alternatively between the chassis beams between front and rear axle or even on top of the front axle where normally in a truck with a conventional driveline the internal combustion engine is situated.

A ladder frame has a slender shape resulting in an elasticity that allows attached components to swing and vibrate, when the truck is in motion. These vibrations may be damaging to the battery packs that are attached to the frame. The slender shape of the ladder frame also allows longitudinal twisting of the truck, due to the forces and vibrations when the truck is in motion. Such a twisting may also be detrimental to the battery packs that are attached to the frame.

European patent application <CIT> discloses a road vehicle according to the preamble of claim <NUM> having a battery mounting system in which the battery box is hung by a three-point or pseudo-three-point-suspension on downwardly extending angled portions of triangularly shaped support brackets attached to the chassis. The mounting system comprises an elongated cross member connected between the triangularly shaped brackets on a respective side of the elongate beams, providing an increased stiffness for the battery module mounting system. However, in practice it appears that global twisting of the chassis still can occur, which means the battery packs may still be damaged.

Another example of a road vehicle provided with a vehicle battery comprising battery modules, and a chassis with first and second elongate chassis beams exhibiting inner and outer surfaces onto which the battery modules are mounted is disclosed in <CIT>.

It is therefore an object of the invention to provide an alternative road vehicle and another object of the invention is to provide a road vehicle with an improved battery mounting system in which the stiffness for the battery module mounting system is further increased.

According to the invention at least one of these objectives is obtained by providing a road vehicle according to claim <NUM>. By also connecting at least one elongated cross member to the inner sides of the first and the second elongate chassis beams additional stiffness is provided which results in less battery damage.

In an embodiment of a road vehicle according to the invention at least one of the elongated cross members comprises a cross beam attachment portion which is connected to a cross beam of the chassis. By in addition connecting at least one elongated cross member to a cross beam of the chassis further additional stiffness is provided which results in even less battery damage.

In a further embodiment of a road vehicle according to the invention the battery mounting system for each of the first and second battery module comprises:.

wherein the first and the second front bracket connectors and third and the fourth posterior bracket connectors are situated at a same vertical height. In this manner a so-called pseudo-three-point suspension is obtained which provides for improved torsional flexibility while on the other hand additional safety is provided by redundancy. In addition, in case a third battery module is positioned in longitudinal direction behind and adjacent the first battery module, the closely positioned front bracket connectors of the third battery module can be arranged between the widely positioned posterior bracket connectors of the first battery module, thereby providing a more compact construction.

In another embodiment of a road vehicle according to the invention each of the bracket connectors is configured for providing a connection which is dynamically stiff in the translational directions and relatively weak in a rotational direction. Such a dynamically stiff suspension means that the eigenfrequencies of the battery box on the vehicle are put above <NUM>. The lower amount of vibration energy in the vehicle in the frequency range above <NUM> reduces the battery box dynamic response and therefore acceleration load due to component resonances. In particular, component resonances in the frequency range of the axle eigenfrequencies between <NUM> and <NUM> are to be avoided, because a high amount of vibrational energy is introduced into the chassis. Further, such a dynamically stiff suspension provides an advantageous low spring travel which reduces relative movement of the battery box with regard to the chassis. This latter amongst other things reduces the durability load on hoses and electric cables for purposes of e.g. cooling, communication between an ECU and high voltage connections that are connected between the chassis and the battery box.

In a still further embodiment of a road vehicle according to the invention each of the brackets is a triangularly shaped bracket comprising a chassis beam attachment portion for connecting the triangularly shaped bracket to an outer surface of an elongate chassis beam, an angled portion extending upwardly between a lower edge of the chassis beam attachment portion and an upper horizontal portion of the triangularly shaped bracket, wherein the same vertical height at which the bracket connectors are situated is positioned at the upper horizontal portion of the respective triangularly shaped bracket. The upper horizontal portion of such a triangularly shaped bracket in a simple mechanical manner provides the possibility of providing the same vertical height at which the bracket connectors are positioned while at the same time providing sufficient stiffness due to the angled portion thereof.

The invention in another aspect provides a road vehicle provided with an electric motor configured to at least partially propel the road vehicle, a vehicle battery at least comprising a first battery module, the battery module comprising battery packs configured to at least partially power the electric motor, and a chassis comprising a first elongate chassis beam and a second elongate chassis beam, both extending along a length of the road vehicle, each first and second elongate chassis beam comprising an inner surface and an outer surface, the inner surfaces of the first and second chassis beams facing each other, the outer surfaces of the first and second chassis beams facing away from each other, and at least one cross beam connecting the first elongate chassis beam and the second elongate chassis beam, wherein the first battery module is arranged on an outer surface of the first elongate chassis beam; wherein the road vehicle further comprises a battery mounting system for mounting the vehicle battery to the chassis, the battery mounting system for the first battery module comprises:.

characterized in that the battery mounting system comprises:.

wherein the first and the second front bracket connectors and third and the fourth posterior bracket connectors are situated at a same vertical height. This aspect of the invention is based on the insight that by already only positioning the first and second front bracket connectors adjacent each other a so-called pseudo-three-point suspension can be obtained which provides for improved torsional flexibility while on the other additional safety is provided due to redundancy.

In an embodiment of the road vehicle according to the invention, each of the bracket connectors is configured for providing a connection which is dynamically stiff in the translational directions and relatively weak in a rotational direction. Preferably, each of the brackets is a triangularly shaped bracket comprising a chassis beam attachment portion for connecting the triangularly shaped bracket to an outer surface of an elongate chassis beam, an angled portion extending upwardly between a lower edge of the chassis beam attachment portion and an upper horizontal portion of the triangularly shaped bracket, wherein the same vertical height at which the bracket connectors are situated is positioned at the upper horizontal portion of the respective triangularly shaped bracket.

In a further embodiment of the road vehicle according to the invention the vehicle battery comprising the first and at least a second battery module, said second battery module comprising battery packs configured to at least partially power the electric motor, wherein the second battery module is arranged on an outer surface of the second elongate chassis beam; wherein the battery mounting system for the second battery module comprises:.

Wherein the battery mounting system further comprises an elongated cross member which is connected between the front brackets on a respective side of the first and second elongate chassis beams and an elongated cross member which is connected between the posterior brackets on a respective side of the first and second elongate chassis beams, said at least one elongated cross member comprising a first inner chassis beam attachment portion for connecting the elongated cross member to an inner side of the first elongate chassis beam and a second inner chassis beam attachment portion for connecting the elongated cross member to an inner side of the second elongate chassis beam. Preferably, at least one of the elongated cross members comprises a cross beam attachment portion which is connected to a cross beam of the chassis.

The invention will be further explained with reference to the Figures, in which non-limiting exemplary embodiments of a road vehicle according to the invention are schematically shown.

In <FIG> the relevant part of an embodiment of a road vehicle <NUM> according to the invention is schematically shown in perspective. The road vehicle <NUM> is provided with an electric motor (not shown but known in the art) configured to at least partially propel the road vehicle <NUM>. In the embodiment shown in <FIG>, the road vehicle <NUM> has a vehicle battery comprising four battery modules <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> each comprising battery packs configured to at least partially power the electric motor. It will be clear that the invention is not limited to the number of battery modules provided that at least two battery modules are present. The road vehicle <NUM> further comprises a chassis <NUM> comprising a first elongate chassis beam <NUM> and a second elongate chassis beam <NUM>, both extending along a length of the road vehicle <NUM>, and at least one cross beam <NUM> connecting the first elongate chassis beam <NUM> and the second elongate chassis beam <NUM>. A front side of the road vehicle <NUM> is shown at the left hand side of the figure, whilst a rear side of the road vehicle <NUM> is shown at the right hand side of <FIG>. The road vehicle <NUM> further comprises a battery mounting system <NUM> for mounting the vehicle battery to the chassis <NUM>. Each of the first and second elongate chassis beam <NUM>, <NUM> comprising an inner surface 6A, 7A and an outer surface 6B, 7B. the inner surfaces 6A, 7A of the first and second chassis beams <NUM>, <NUM> facing each other while the outer surfaces 6B, 7B of the first and second chassis beams <NUM>, <NUM> are facing away from each other. As e.g. can be seen in <FIG> a first battery module <NUM> and a second battery module <NUM> are arranged on a respective outer surface 6B, 7B of the first and second elongate chassis beam <NUM>, <NUM>, respectively, i.e. the battery modules <NUM> and <NUM> are positioned on the outer sides of the chassis beams <NUM>, <NUM>. Likewise a third battery module <NUM> and a fourth battery module <NUM> are arranged on a respective outer surface 6B, 7B of the first and second elongate chassis beam <NUM>, <NUM>, respectively, i.e. the battery modules <NUM> and <NUM> are positioned on the outer sides of the chassis beams <NUM>, <NUM>. For reasons of clarity it is observed that "horizontal" and "vertical" have the usual meaning referring to a normal operational mode in which the road vehicle <NUM> is supported on a horizontal road surface. Further, "front" and "rear" are defined in the manner that "front" refers to the normal driving direction of the road vehicle <NUM>, which as shown in <FIG> is to the left.

For each of the battery modules <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> and <NUM> the battery mounting system <NUM> comprises a similar construction. Below the invention will be elucidated in more detail with regard to construction for the first and second battery module <NUM>, <NUM>.

The battery mounting system comprises a battery box <NUM> configured to hold and support the battery packs of the first battery module <NUM>.

As can be seen in <FIG> and <FIG>, for the first battery module <NUM> the battery mounting system <NUM> comprises a front bracket <NUM> mounted to and projecting from the first elongate chassis beam <NUM> away from the second elongate chassis beam <NUM> and a posterior bracket <NUM> mounted to and projecting from the first elongate chassis beam <NUM> away from the second elongate chassis beam <NUM>. The posterior bracket <NUM> is spaced apart from the front bracket <NUM> for receiving the battery box <NUM> between the front bracket <NUM> and the bracket <NUM>.

For the second battery module <NUM> the battery mounting system <NUM> comprises a front bracket <NUM> mounted to and projecting from the second elongate chassis beam <NUM> away from the first elongate chassis beam <NUM> and a posterior bracket <NUM> mounted to and projecting from the second elongate chassis beam <NUM> away from the first elongate chassis beam <NUM>. The posterior bracket <NUM> is spaced apart from the front bracket <NUM> for receiving a second battery box <NUM> between the front bracket <NUM> and the posterior bracket <NUM>.

The battery mounting system <NUM> further comprises an elongated cross member which is connected between the front brackets <NUM> and <NUM> on a respective side of the first and second elongate chassis beams <NUM>, <NUM> and an elongated cross member <NUM>' which is connected between the posterior brackets <NUM> and <NUM> on a respective side of the first and second elongate chassis beams <NUM>, <NUM>.

In <FIG> the battery mounting system <NUM> construction as shown in <FIG> is shown but without the battery boxes and the battery packs to more clearly show the brackets and the elongated cross members. <FIG> shows the embodiment of <FIG> but viewed from below.

As also can be seen in <FIG>, each of the brackets (reference is made to bracket <NUM>) is a triangularly shaped bracket comprising a chassis beam attachment portion 26A for connecting the triangularly shaped bracket <NUM> to the outer surface 6B of the elongate chassis beam <NUM>, an angled portion 26B extending upwardly between the lower edge of the chassis beam attachment portion 26A and an upper horizontal portion 26C of the triangularly shaped bracket <NUM>. As can be clearly seen in the embodiment of <FIG> the elongated cross member <NUM>' comprises a second inner chassis beam attachment portion 28B' for connecting the elongated cross member <NUM>' to an inner side 7A of the second elongate chassis beam <NUM> and a first inner chassis beam attachment portion for connecting the elongated cross member <NUM>' to an inner side 6A of the first elongate chassis beam <NUM>. In another embodiment a cross member <NUM>" comprises a cross beam attachment portion 28C" which is connected to a cross beam <NUM> of the chassis <NUM>, so that the cross member <NUM>" is connected to both the inner sides 6A, 7A of the chassis beams as well as the cross beam <NUM>.

With reference to <FIG> an embodiment of the road vehicle <NUM> according to the invention is shown in which the battery mounting system <NUM> comprises bracket connectors configured for providing a connection of the battery box to the brackets. Each of the bracket connectors provides a suspension which is dynamically stiff in the translational directions and relatively weak in a rotational direction. The arrangement of the bracket connectors will be described with reference to the first battery module <NUM> and the third battery module <NUM>.

Claim 1:
A road vehicle (<NUM>) provided with an electric motor configured to at least partially propel the road vehicle, a vehicle battery at least comprising a first and a second battery modules (<NUM>,<NUM>),
each battery module comprising battery packs configured to at least partially power the electric motor, and a chassis (<NUM>) comprising a first elongate chassis beam (<NUM>) and a second elongate chassis beam (<NUM>),
both extending along a length of the road vehicle, each first and second elongate chassis beam comprising an inner surface (6A, 7A) and an outer surface (6B, 7B),
the inner surfaces of the first and second chassis beams facing each other, the outer surfaces of the first and second chassis beams facing away from each other, and at least one cross (<NUM>) connecting the first elongate chassis beam and the second elongate chassis beam, wherein the first battery module and the second battery module are arranged on an outer surface of the first and second elongate chassis beam, respectively;
wherein the road vehicle further comprises a battery mounting system (<NUM>) for mounting the vehicle battery to the chassis, the battery mounting system for each of the first and second battery module comprises:
- a battery box (<NUM>) configured to hold and support the battery packs of the battery module;
- a front bracket (<NUM>) mounted to and projecting from the outer surface of the respective elongate chassis beam; and
- a posterior bracket (<NUM>) mounted to and projecting from the outer surface of the respective elongate chassis beam such that the posterior bracket is spaced apart from the front bracket for receiving the respective battery box between the front bracket and the posterior bracket;
the battery mounting system further comprises an elongated cross member which is connected between the front brackets on a respective side of the first and second elongate chassis beams and an elongated cross member (<NUM>') which is connected between the posterior brackets on a respective side of the first and second elongate chassis beams,
characterized in that
at least one elongated cross member (<NUM>') comprises a first inner chassis beam attachment portion for connecting the elongated cross member to an inner side (6A) of the first elongate chassis beam (<NUM>) and a second inner chassis beam attachment portion (28B') for connecting the elongated cross member to an inner side (7A) of the second elongate chassis beam (<NUM>).