Patent Description:
A battery of an existing electric vehicle is generally installed in a fixed way or in a replaceable type. The fixed battery is usually fixed to the vehicle, and the vehicle is directly charged during charging. The replaceable battery is usually installed in a movable manner, and the battery can be removed at any time for replacement or for charging and then be installed to the vehicle body after replacement or charging.

At present, a battery may be replaced by a manual operation or an automatic operation. Either way, the battery is mounted to a chassis of the electric vehicle, and the installed battery needs to be locked to the vehicle body. Due to a relatively large weight of the battery, a structure using multiple locking positions to lock simultaneously is employed, but an existing locking structure fails to meet requirements in terms of speed and automation.

In addition, during a battery change process in the related art, a position of a battery pack cannot be easily determined in time, diminishing the battery change efficiency.

In <CIT>, a battery pack quick-changing control system for an electric automobile is disclosed. The battery pack quick-changing control system for the electric automobile includes a battery pack quick-changing device, a battery manager, a first Hall sensor, a first quick-changing effective sensor, a second quick-changing effective sensor and an automobile controller, wherein the battery pack quick-changing device includes a battery pack locking mechanism and a tray ejecting mechanism; the automobile controller is respectively connected with the first Hall sensor and the first quick-changing effective sensor so as to obtain a battery pack quick-changing signal and a battery pack locking signal; the automobile controller also communicates with the battery manager; and the automobile controller is used for generating a corresponding control instruction according to the battery pack quick-changing signal, the battery pack locking signal and state information of the electric automobile and transmitting the corresponding control instruction to the battery manager so as to control high voltage power-on or power-off of the electric automobile so that the battery pack quick-changing process is controlled.

The present invention aims to provide a battery pack and an electric vehicle, to overcome the defect in the related art that the position of the battery pack cannot be easily determined in time.

A battery pack is provided according to an embodiment. A plurality of lock shafts is mounted on an outer side of the battery pack. Each of the lock shafts includes a shaft seat and a shaft rod; the lock shaft is mounted to the outer side of the battery pack by the shaft seat; a concave positioning hole is arranged at an end of the shaft rod away from the shaft seat, and a first positioning steel magnet is mounted in the positioning hole.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the shaft seat has a circular or triangular plate-like structure.

In an embodiment of the present invention, first fixing holes are provided around a center of a circle of the shaft seat, and the shaft seat is mounted to a side edge of the battery pack by the first fixing holes.

In an embodiment of the present invention, three or four first fixing holes are symmetrically distributed.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the shaft rod is perpendicularly arranged to a surface of the shaft seat, and shaft rod is perpendicularly connected to a center of a circle of the shaft seat.

In an embodiment of the present invention, a sleeve is fitted over the shaft rod to prevent the first positioning steel magnet from coming off, the sleeve is fitted over an outer circumference of an end of the shaft rod to which the first positioning steel magnet is mounted, and the sleeve and the shaft rod are connected in a sliding manner.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the shaft rod has two ends provided with a retaining ring or retaining flange, separately, and a diameter of the retaining flange is greater than a diameter of the shaft rod, and the retaining ring is snap-fitted in a groove of the shaft rod.

In an embodiment of the present invention, a connecting end of the shaft rod with the shaft seat passes through a shaft hole in the center of the circle of the shaft seat and is exposed from the other end.

In an embodiment of the present invention, a snap ring is arranged at a passing end of the shaft rod to prevent the shaft rod from coming off, and the snap ring is snap-fitted in a groove of the shaft rod.

An electric vehicle include the above battery pack, a fixing seat configured to install the battery pack, and a locking device. The fixing seat is mounted to a vehicle body; the locking device is mounted to an inner lateral surface of the fixing seat opposite to the battery pack; and the locking device includes a lock base configured to provide a locking position, the lock base including a lock body having a surface provided with a lock groove recessed towards the inside of the lock body, and a lock shaft being inserted into the lock groove to perform locking.

In an embodiment of the present invention, a back surface of the lock body is provided with a lock shaft sensing hole in communication with the lock groove; a sensing device is mounted at a position of the fixing seat of the vehicle body corresponding to the lock shaft sensing hole; when the lock shaft enters the lock groove, the first positioning steel magnet is sensed by the sensing device when passing through the lock shaft sensing hole, such that it is determined whether the battery currently enters the lock groove; when a battery-changing mobile platform drives the shaft rod to move in the lock groove, the first positioning steel magnet at a front end of the shaft rod passes through the sensing device mounted on the fixing seat, such that the battery-changing mobile platform obtains a current installation position of the battery and makes the next action in time.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the lock body is provided with a lock tongue groove and a lock tongue movably mounted in the lock tongue groove, and the lock tongue groove is communicated with the lock groove.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the lock groove extends along a surface of the lock body, and has a first end provided with an opening leading to the outside of the lock body, and a second end away from the opening and provided with an elastic pad and an elastic pad mounting hole; the elastic pad mounting hole is arranged in a side wall of the second end of the lock groove, and the elastic pad is inserted into the elastic pad mounting hole through a pillar protruding from a surface of the elastic pad.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the locking device further includes a lock connecting rod movably connected with the lock base through a lock tongue. The lock connecting rod includes a rod member configured to drive the lock tongue to move under the action of an external force; the rod member is provided with an unlocking block on a side facing the lock base; the unlocking block is configured as an arc protrusion formed outwardly by the rod member; and the unlocking block has a top configured as an inner arc groove recessed towards the rod member.

In an embodiment of the present invention, a spring pull tab is fixed on a side of the rod member facing the unlocking block, and an exposed end of the spring pull tab is provided with a hooking hole.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the inner lateral surface of the fixing seat is located below the lock connecting rod and is further provided with an elastic component, and the elastic component has a first end fixedly connected with the fixing seat and a second end connected to the hooking hole.

The lock shaft according to the present invention is provided with the positioning steel magnet which can be sensed by an external sensing device, such that the battery-changing mobile platform can obtain the current installation position of the battery and make the next action in time, improving the battery change efficiency.

The present invention can fix the battery to the electric vehicle in such a way that a plurality of lock shafts distributed on a side edge of the battery are simultaneously inserted into a plurality of lock bases of the electric vehicle, and can simultaneously lock the plurality of lock shafts to the lock bases in an automatic manner by means of the action of the lock connecting rod, thereby improving the efficiency of assembling or disassembling the battery greatly.

By adopting the above-mentioned lock groove structure, the lock base of the present invention can provide the battery with a balanced suspension platform, and the elastic pad arranged at the end of the lock groove can reduce the collision between the battery and the fixing seat during the installation and during driving, thereby improving the service life of various locking components.

The lock shaft of the present invention can reduce the friction with the lock base, improve the locking and unlocking process, and offer clear motion state information to provide a basis for automatic unlocking and automatic locking.

The present invention utilizes a single lock connecting rod to simultaneously control the lock tongues of the plurality of lock bases, realizes a function of synchronously unlocking and locking the plurality of lock bases, so as to improve the unlocking process of the battery and accelerate the battery replacement efficiency.

As shown in <FIG>, a locking device of an embodiment of the present invention generally includes a lock base <NUM> configured to provide a locking position, a lock shaft <NUM> configured to be inserted into the lock base <NUM>, and a lock connecting rod <NUM> configured to unlock the lock shaft <NUM> after being inserted.

The lock base <NUM> includes a lock body <NUM> having a rectangular shape. A front surface of the lock body <NUM> is provided with a lock groove <NUM> recessed towards the inside of the lock body <NUM>. The lock base <NUM> further includes a lock tongue groove <NUM> and a lock tongue <NUM> mounted in the lock tongue groove <NUM>. The lock tongue groove <NUM> is communicated with the lock groove <NUM>, and the lock tongue <NUM> is movably mounted in the lock tongue groove <NUM>.

The lock shaft <NUM> includes a shaft seat <NUM> having a fixing hole, and a shaft rod <NUM> perpendicularly arranged to a surface of the shaft seat <NUM> and configured to be inserted into the lock groove <NUM> of the lock base <NUM> so as to perform locking.

The lock connecting rod <NUM> may include an elongated rod member <NUM> movably connected to the lock tongue <NUM> of the lock base <NUM>.

The locking device in the embodiment can be used to lock a power battery of an electric vehicle, in which the lock shafts <NUM> are mounted around a battery pack, and the lock bases <NUM> and the lock connecting rod <NUM> are mounted to an inner lateral surface of a vehicle body fixing seat for fixing the battery and arranged at positions corresponding to the positions of the lock shafts <NUM>. As shown in <FIG> and <FIG>, in an embodiment of the present invention, the lock groove <NUM> has a certain length in the horizontal direction, and the lock groove <NUM> has a side provided with an opening <NUM> communicated with a bottom surface of the lock body <NUM> and leading to the outside of the lock body, in which the opening <NUM> is used for the lock shaft <NUM> mounted on the battery to enter. The lock tongue groove <NUM> has an opening which leads to a top surface of the lock body, and the lock tongue passes through this opening to be movably connected with the lock connecting rod <NUM>. A side of the lock tongue adjacent to the lock groove <NUM> is provided with a stopping device 2A, and the stopping device 2A is configured to close the opening <NUM> of the lock groove <NUM>.

The lock body <NUM> has a back surface fixedly fixed to the vehicle body fixing seat, and a front surface facing the battery to be installed. The lock connecting rod <NUM> is movably mounted above the lock base <NUM> through the lock tongue. The lock shaft <NUM> is mounted on an outer side of the battery pack by the shaft seat at a position corresponding to the lock base <NUM>.

When in use, the battery enters the fixing seat from the bottom of the electric vehicle under a lifting action of a battery-changing mobile platform, and a unlocking member pushes the lock connecting rod <NUM> to move upwards and drives the lock tongue to open the opening <NUM> of the lock groove <NUM>, such that the lock shaft <NUM> around the battery is inserted into the lock groove <NUM> through the opening <NUM> of the lock groove <NUM> of the corresponding lock base <NUM> by means of the shaft rod <NUM>, and then is moved to the other side of the lock groove <NUM> under the push of the battery-changing mobile platform until the lock shaft comes into contact with the other end of the lock groove. In such a way, a suspension process of the battery is completed. During the insertion of the shaft rod <NUM>, the lock connecting rod <NUM> drives the stopping device 2A to move upwardly, under the push of the unlocking member, and when the shaft rod <NUM> enters a locking region in the lock groove <NUM> beyond the position of the stopping device 2A, the stopping device 2A falls under the gravity of the lock connecting rod <NUM> to laterally block a return path of the shaft rod <NUM>. At this time, the battery is in a state of being completely locked to the electric vehicle. When the battery needs to be replaced, an unlocking device on the battery-changing mobile platform contacts the lock connecting rod <NUM> and pushes the lock connecting rod <NUM> to rise, so that the lock tongue leaves the lock groove <NUM>, and at this time, the battery is moved to cause the shaft rod <NUM> to be withdrawn from the lock groove <NUM>, thereby completing a battery removal process.

As shown in <FIG>, in an embodiment of the present invention, an elastic pad <NUM> is mounted on the other end of the lock groove <NUM> away from the opening <NUM>, and an elastic pad mounting hole <NUM> is provided in a side wall of the other end. The elastic pad <NUM> may be installed in the elastic pad mounting hole <NUM> through a pillar <NUM> on a surface of the elastic pad. By providing the elastic pad <NUM> at the other end of the lock groove, after the lock shaft is inserted into the lock groove <NUM>, the friction between the lock shaft <NUM> and the lock groove <NUM> can be reduced to protect the lock shaft <NUM>. This structure facilitates the installation and removal of the elastic pad <NUM>. The pillar <NUM> may adopt a tensioning structure with an opening, and after being inserted into the elastic pad mounting hole <NUM>, the protrusion may be automatically clamped to prevent an unintentional escape of the elastic pad <NUM>. The elastic pad <NUM> may be specifically made of an organic material such as rubber or plastic, so as to have certain stiffness and meanwhile avoid causing hard damage to the lock shaft <NUM>.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the lock groove <NUM> may adopt an L-shaped structure, which can provide the battery with a stable suspension platform, and at the same time, the elastic pad <NUM> is arranged at the end of the lock groove <NUM>, which can reduce the collision between the battery and the fixing seat during the installation and during driving, thereby improving the service life of various locking components. In other embodiments, the lock groove <NUM> may also adopt a curved shape or other shapes capable of providing the suspension platform.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the stopping device 2A may be specifically configured as a stop block <NUM> protruding from the lock tongue <NUM> towards a side of the lock groove <NUM>, and the stop block <NUM> is used to close the opening <NUM> of the lock groove <NUM> to prevent the shaft rod <NUM> inserted into the lock groove <NUM> from sliding out of the lock groove <NUM>. The lock tongue <NUM> is connected in the lock tongue groove <NUM> through a shaft, and the lock tongue <NUM> includes a lock tongue groove shaft hole <NUM> connected to the lock tongue groove <NUM>, and a lock connecting rod shaft hole <NUM> connected to the lock connecting rod <NUM> which pushes the lock tongue <NUM> to rotate.

The lock tongue <NUM> in a normal state is simultaneously connected to the lock base <NUM> and the lock connecting rod <NUM> through shafts. Since the lock connecting rod <NUM> is in an active state, the lock tongue <NUM> can be rotated about a shaft connection point with the lock base <NUM> by the movement of the lock connecting rod <NUM>, so that the stop block <NUM> of the lock tongue <NUM> can be switched between a state of entering the lock groove <NUM> and a state of leaving the lock groove <NUM>. The lock connecting rod <NUM> is pushed to move upwards by the external unlocking device, such that the lock tongue is moved upwards, and the stop block <NUM> leaves the lock groove <NUM>. The shaft rod <NUM> of the lock shaft <NUM> enters the lock groove <NUM> from the opening <NUM>, and is translated into the locking region of the lock groove <NUM> under the push of the battery-changing mobile platform. At this time, the unlocking device is removed, the lock connecting rod <NUM> moves downwards by gravity, the lock tongue is also moved downwards, and the stop block <NUM> blocks the opening <NUM> of the lock groove <NUM>, such that the shaft rod is locked in the lock groove <NUM>, and the corresponding battery is also stably fixed in the fixing seat of the electric vehicle.

During the battery replacement, the unlocking device on the battery-changing mobile platform pushes the lock connecting rod <NUM> upwardly in an upward lifting process, and the movement of the lock connecting rod <NUM> naturally drives the stop block <NUM> of the lock tongue <NUM> to leave the lock groove <NUM>. At this time, the battery can be moved to remove the lock shaft <NUM> from the opening <NUM> of the lock groove <NUM>, thereby completing the unlocking of the battery.

In an embodiment of the present invention, a diameter of a first end of the opening <NUM> at the bottom surface may be larger than a diameter of a second end of the opening <NUM> at the lock groove <NUM>. The use of such an open structure facilitates the entry of the lock shaft <NUM> and also reduces the collision damage to the lock base <NUM>.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the bottom surface of the lock body <NUM> and the front surface of the lock body <NUM> may be connected through tangent surfaces. This structure can reduce the collision with the lock base <NUM> in a rising process of the battery.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the back surface of the lock body <NUM> is provided with a lock shaft sensing hole in communication with the lock groove <NUM>. A sensing device may be installed at a position of the fixing seat corresponding to the lock shaft sensing hole. When the lock shaft <NUM> enters the lock groove <NUM>, a first positioning steel magnet <NUM> mounted thereon is sensed by the sensing device when passing through the lock shaft sensing hole, such that it is determined whether the battery currently enters the lock groove <NUM> or not, thereby determining the next action.

As shown in <FIG>, in an embodiment of the present invention, a concave positioning hole <NUM> is provided in an end of the shaft rod <NUM> away from the shaft seat <NUM>, and the first positioning steel magnet <NUM> is mounted in the positioning hole <NUM>. A sleeve <NUM> is fitted over the shaft rod <NUM> to prevent the first positioning steel magnet <NUM> from coming off. The shaft seat <NUM> may have a circular plate-like structure, first fixing holes <NUM> are provided around a center of the circle, and the shaft seat <NUM> is fixed to a side edge of the battery. The shaft rod <NUM> is perpendicularly connected to the center of the shaft seat <NUM>, the concave positioning hole <NUM> is provided in the end away from the shaft seat <NUM>, and after the shaft seat <NUM> is fixed to the battery, the shaft rod <NUM> perpendicularly projects outwards. The first positioning steel magnet <NUM> is mounted in the positioning hole <NUM> of the shaft rod <NUM>, and configured to provide sensing information to an external sensing device, so as to indicate the current position of the battery. The sleeve <NUM> is fitted over an outer circumference of one end of the shaft rod <NUM> to which the first positioning steel magnet <NUM> is mounted, and the sleeve <NUM> and the shaft rod <NUM> may be in a sliding relationship.

In the present embodiment, a plurality of the lock shafts <NUM> may be provided, and they are fixed, through the first fixing holes <NUM> in the shaft seat <NUM>, to a side edge of the battery in contact with the fixing seat of the electric vehicle. The positions of the fixed lock shafts <NUM> correspond to the positions of the lock bases <NUM> on the fixing seat. Each of the shaft rods <NUM> protrudes perpendicularly from the side edge of the battery. When the battery is snapped into the fixing seat of the electric vehicle under the control of the battery-changing mobile platform, the shaft rods <NUM> of the lock shafts <NUM> are inserted into the lock grooves <NUM> of the corresponding lock bases <NUM>, and the friction of the shaft rod <NUM> in the moving contact with the lock groove <NUM> can be reduced by the sleeve <NUM>. When the battery-changing mobile platform drives the shaft rod <NUM> to move in the lock groove <NUM>, the first positioning steel magnet <NUM> at a front end of the shaft rod <NUM> passes through the sensing device mounted on the fixing seat, so that the battery-changing mobile platform clearly knows the current installation position of the battery and can make the next action in time.

In the present embodiment, the friction between the lock shaft <NUM> and the lock base <NUM> can be reduced, the locking and unlocking processes can be improved, and clear movement state information of the battery can be offered to provide a basis for automatic unlocking and automatic locking.

In an embodiment of the present invention, in order to define the position of the sleeve <NUM>, a retaining ring or a retaining flange may be provided at both ends of the shaft rod <NUM>. An outwardly protruding retaining flange <NUM> is provided at an end of the shaft rod close to the shaft seat <NUM>, and has a diameter larger than a diameter of the shaft rod <NUM>, so that the sleeve <NUM> can be restricted at a specified position of the shaft rod <NUM> to achieve better contact with the lock groove <NUM>. The retaining flange <NUM> may also prevent the shaft seat <NUM> from rubbing against the lock base <NUM> and hence avoid causing damage to the corresponding components. Further, a retaining ring <NUM> may be provided at an end of the shaft rod <NUM> away from the shaft seat <NUM> and be configured to prevent the sleeve <NUM> from coming off. The retaining ring <NUM> may be mounted to the shaft rod <NUM> by a structure that is snapped in a groove of the shaft rod <NUM>.

In order to facilitate the fixation of the lock shaft <NUM>, in an embodiment of the present invention, the shaft seat <NUM> of the lock shaft <NUM> may be circular or triangular, and three to four first fixing holes <NUM> are provided and symmetrically distributed around the center of the shaft seat <NUM>.

In an embodiment of the present invention, a connecting end of the shaft rod <NUM> with the shaft seat <NUM> may pass through a shaft hole in the center of the circle and may be exposed from the other end. A snap ring may be provided to the passing end of the shaft rod <NUM> to prevent the shaft rod <NUM> from coming off. The snap ring may be mounted in the same way as the aforementioned retaining ring <NUM>. Although the shaft rod <NUM> and the shaft seat <NUM> are movably mounted, the shaft rod <NUM> may be integrally formed with the shaft seat <NUM> in other embodiments.

As shown in <FIG>, in an embodiment of the present invention, the lock connecting rod <NUM> may specifically include an elongated rod-like member <NUM>, and the lock connecting rod <NUM> may be movably connected with a plurality of lock bases <NUM> to be locked through the lock tongues. The lock connecting rod has a length corresponding to the distance among the plurality of lock bases <NUM> to be locked, and a through hole <NUM> is provided at a position corresponding to each of the lock bases <NUM> and configured to be connected with the lock tongue <NUM> through a shaft. The through hole <NUM> facilitates the insertion of the lock tongue, and the number of the through holes <NUM> corresponds to the number of the lock bases. The rod member <NUM> is further provided with an unlocking block <NUM> on a side corresponding to the position of the lock base <NUM>, and the unlocking block <NUM> is used to lift the rod member <NUM> under the push of the unlocking device of the battery-changing mobile platform, so that the lock connecting rod <NUM> drives the lock tongue <NUM> to switch between an unlocking state and a locking state.

When installed, the lock connecting rod <NUM> is connected with the lock tongue <NUM> through shaft and hence is located above each lock base <NUM>, and the lock tongue <NUM> is also connected with the lock base <NUM> by a shaft, so that the rise and fall of the lock connecting rod <NUM> can drive the lock tongue <NUM> to rotate around a shaft connection point in the lock base <NUM>, to realize the switch between the state of being snapped into the lock groove <NUM> and the state of leaving the lock groove <NUM>. This embodiment employs a single lock connecting rod <NUM> to simultaneously control the lock tongues <NUM> of the plurality of lock bases <NUM>, thereby realizing a function of synchronously unlocking and locking the plurality of lock bases <NUM>, so as to improve the unlocking process of the battery and accelerate the battery replacement efficiency.

The rod member <NUM> of each lock connecting rod <NUM> may be provided with three through holes <NUM>, and a second fixing hole <NUM> may be provided in the through hole <NUM> and configured to be connected with the lock tongue by means of a shaft. Each second fixing hole <NUM> corresponds to and is connected with the lock tongue <NUM> of one lock base <NUM>. The second fixing hole <NUM> runs through the through hole <NUM> in a manner perpendicular to a lateral surface of the rod member <NUM>.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the unlocking block <NUM> may be an arc protrusion formed outwardly by the rod member <NUM>. The top of the unlocking block <NUM> is configured as an inner arc groove <NUM> recessed towards the rod member <NUM>. The use of the arc protrusion prevents the lock connecting rod <NUM> from being blocked by other components during its movement. At this time, the arc protrusion facilitates contact with the unlocking device of the battery-changing mobile platform, to enable the unlocking device to move the lock connecting rod <NUM> along the arc protrusion in a transverse direction instead of being stuck in a certain position. The structure of the inner arc groove <NUM> on the top of the unlocking block <NUM> can form an optimal unlocking position with the unlocking device, and at this position, the lock connecting rod <NUM> has been fully unlocked and the retention of the unlocking device is facilitated. The position of the unlocking block <NUM> may be specifically arranged on the rod member <NUM> between the two through holes, as long as the movement of the lock connecting rod <NUM> is not affected.

In an embodiment of the present invention, a spring pull tab <NUM> on the same side of the unlocking block <NUM> may be fixedly mounted on the rod member <NUM>, and an exposed end of the spring pull tab <NUM> is provided with a hooking hole. The spring pull tab <NUM> is used to connect a spring fixed to the fixing seat of the electric vehicle, and the spring applies a pulling force to the lock connecting rod <NUM> towards the lock base <NUM> to improve the stability of the lock connecting rod <NUM> in the locked state.

In an embodiment of the present invention, in order to determine the current position of the lock connecting rod <NUM>, a second positioning steel magnet <NUM> may be mounted on the rod member <NUM>, and the second positioning steel magnet <NUM> may generate induction with an external magnetic detecting device to determine the current position of the rod member <NUM> according to a sensing signal.

Claim 1:
A battery pack, wherein a plurality of lock shafts (<NUM>) are mounted on an outer side of the battery pack,
characterized in that each of the lock shafts (<NUM>) comprises a shaft seat (<NUM>) and a shaft rod (<NUM>); the lock shaft (<NUM>) is mounted to the outer side of the battery pack by the shaft seat (<NUM>); a concave positioning hole (<NUM>) is arranged at an end of the shaft rod (<NUM>) away from the shaft seat (<NUM>), and a first positioning steel magnet (<NUM>) is mounted in the positioning hole (<NUM>).