Electric automobile
By setting indicators near the charging port of the electric vehicle, the problem of difficulty for users to judge the locking status of the charging port cover is solved, and the convenience of users to quickly judge and operate is achieved.
Patent Information
- Application Number
- CN202411355193.2
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Applications(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Priority Date
- 2023-10-31
- Filing Date
- 2024-09-27
- Publication Date
- 2025-05-02
AI Technical Summary
It is difficult to judge the locking status of the charging port cover at a glance before charging, which affects the convenience of users.
Set an indicator near the charging port of the electric car. The indicator is turned off when the cover is locked and lit when unlocked. The user can judge the status of the cover through the indicator and open the cover by pressing the lit indicator or window.
Through the lighting status of the indicator, the user can quickly judge the unlocking status of the charging port cover, improving the convenience and security of the user's operation.
Smart Images
Figure CN119911198A_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] The technology disclosed in this specification relates to electric vehicles. Background Art
[0002] An electric vehicle includes: an electric motor that drives wheels; and a battery that supplies power to the electric motor. An electric vehicle that can charge the battery using a power source outside the vehicle includes a charging port for connecting a charging plug to the power source. The electric vehicle disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-87607 includes an indicator near the charging port. When the battery is fully charged, the color of the indicator changes. The indicator is arranged above the cover of the charging port. Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-87607 also discloses a form in which the indicator is hidden when the cover of the charging port is closed.
[0003] The charging port is arranged in a recess provided in the vehicle body, and the opening of the recess is closed by a cover. The cover is usually locked. Before charging, the cover is unlocked. Hereinafter, the unlocking of the cover is sometimes referred to as unlocking. It is convenient to know at a glance whether the cover is in a locked state or an unlocked state. Summary of the invention
[0004] The form of the present disclosure is an electric vehicle. The electric vehicle includes: a recess, the recess is provided in the vehicle body; a charging port, the charging port is arranged in the recess and is configured as a plug connection for charging a battery; a cover, the cover opens and closes the opening of the recess; and an indicator, the indicator is provided in the recess and on the outer surface of the cover. The indicator is configured to go out when the cover is locked, and is configured to light up when the cover is unlocked. The user can judge whether the cover is in a locked state or an unlocked state by just glancing at the indicator.
[0005] In the case where the indicator is provided in the recess, a window may be provided on the cover so that the indicator can be seen from the outside. In addition, the cover may be opened by pressing the window when the indicator is lit. In the case where the indicator is provided on the outer surface of the cover, the cover may be opened by pressing the indicator when the indicator is lit. In any configuration, the lit indicator shows the user the position to be pressed in order to open the cover.
[0006] The details and further improvements of the technology disclosed in this specification are described in the following “Detailed Description of the Invention”. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0007] Features, advantages, and technical and industrial significance of exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals represent like parts, and in which:
[0008] Figure 1 It is a perspective view of the electric vehicle according to the first embodiment.
[0009] Figure 2 It is a perspective view of an electric vehicle according to a second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION First embodiment
[0010] Figure 1 A perspective view of an electric vehicle 10 according to a first embodiment is shown. The electric vehicle 10 includes an electric motor 11 that drives wheels, a battery 12 that supplies power to the electric motor 11, and a controller 19. The battery 12 can be charged using a power source outside the vehicle. The electric vehicle 10 includes a charging port 14 to which a charging plug can be connected to a power source. The charging port 14 is disposed in a recess 13 provided on the side of the vehicle body of the electric vehicle 10. The opening of the recess 13 is usually blocked by a cover 15. Figure 1 A1, A2, and A3 are enlarged views of a portion A including the cover 15. A and A1 show a state where the cover 15 is closed. A2 shows a state where the user presses the cover 15. A3 shows a state where the cover 15 is opened.
[0011] The cover 15 is usually locked and cannot be opened by the user. When the user operates a switch provided at the driver's seat, the lock of the cover 15 is released and the user can open the cover 15. The cover 15 is provided with a window 17. A transparent plate is embedded in the window 17, and the interior of the recess 13 can be seen through the window 17.
[0012] When the window 17 or its periphery is pressed, the cover 15 opens. An example of the structure of the cover 15 that opens when pressed is as follows. When the window 17 or its periphery is pressed, the cover 15 sinks slightly, and the hook (not shown) that holds the cover 15 is disengaged from the inner side. The hinge 18 that supports the cover 15 is provided with a compression spring (not shown), and when the hook is disengaged, the hinge 18 is pushed out by the restoring force of the compression spring, and the cover 15 opens. When the user closes the opened cover 15, the hook is locked, and the cover 15 is kept in the closed state. Since the structure of the cover that opens when pressed is well known, detailed description and illustration are omitted.
[0013] "The cover 15 is locked" means that the user cannot open the cover 15. An example of a structure for locking the cover 15 is described below. When the cover 15 is locked, a locking pin (not shown) abuts against the inner side of the cover 15, and the cover 15 does not sink even if the user presses it. The hook described above does not disengage, and the user cannot open the cover 15. When the lock is released, the user can open the cover 15. Sometimes, this state in which the lock is released is called unlocking. Since the structure for locking the cover is also well known, detailed description and illustration are omitted.
[0014] When the lid 15 is opened and a charging plug of an external power source is inserted into the charging port 14 to activate the power source, charging starts.
[0015] In addition to the charging port 14, an indicator 16 is also arranged inside the recess 13. The indicator 16 is a lamp, and is off when the cover 15 is locked. When the cover 15 is unlocked, the indicator 16 lights up. As described above, the cover 15 is provided with a window 17 in which a transparent plate is embedded, and the indicator 16 can be seen from outside the vehicle through the window 17. That is, the user can confirm whether the indicator 16 is lit through the window 17. In addition, Figure 1 In the example, the indicator 16 is shown lit by the hatching ( Figure 1 A2, A3). Figure 1 A1 shows a state where the cover 15 is locked and the indicator 16 is off.
[0016] The electric vehicle 10 having the cover 15 and the indicator 16 has the following features and advantages. The indicator 16 is arranged in the recess 13. The cover 15 is provided with a window 17 in which a transparent plate is embedded, and the indicator 16 can be visually confirmed from outside the vehicle through the window. When the cover 15 is locked, the indicator 16 is off, and when the cover 15 is unlocked, the indicator 16 is lit. With these features, the user can know the state of the cover 15 (locked or unlocked) from outside the vehicle.
[0017] When the indicator 16 is lit, if the user presses the window 17 (or the vicinity of the window 17), the lid 15 opens. This feature allows the user to easily know the position to press in order to open the lid 15. In other words, the lit indicator 16 and the window 17 show the user the position to press in order to open the lid 15.
[0018] The indicator 16 and the locking / unlocking of the lid 15 are controlled by the controller 19. When a predetermined switch provided at the driver's seat is turned on, the controller 19 unlocks the lid 15 and lights up the indicator 16. The user opens the lid 15 and inserts the charging plug into the charging port 14 to charge the battery 12. When the battery 12 is fully charged, the controller 19 changes the color of the indicator 16. Since the indicator 16 is provided in the recess 13, the user can visually confirm the indicator 16 even when the lid 15 is open. When the user closes the lid 15, the controller 19 locks the lid 15 and turns off the indicator 16.
[0019] When the storage battery 12 is fully charged, the color of the indicator 16 changes. For example, the indicator 16 is lit green during charging and is lit blue when fully charged. The color of the indicator 16 is also controlled by the controller 19. Second embodiment
[0020] exist Figure 2 FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of an electric vehicle 20 according to a second embodiment. Figure 1 and Figure 2 In the electric vehicle 20 of the second embodiment, the configuration of the cover 25 and the position of the indicator 26 are different from those of the electric vehicle 10 of the first embodiment.
[0021] A recess 13 is provided on the side surface of the vehicle body of the electric vehicle 20, and the charging port 14 is disposed in the recess 13. The cover 25 opens and closes the opening of the recess 13. Figure 2 B1, B2, and B3 are enlarged views of a portion B including the cover 25. The cover 25 is normally locked.
[0022] An indicator 26 is provided on the outer surface of the cover 25. The indicator 26 turns off when the cover 25 is locked (B1). The indicator 26 turns on when the cover 25 is unlocked. Figure 2 In FIG. 1 , the indicator 26 is shown to be lit by hatching ( B2 , B3 ).
[0023] When the indicator 26 is lit, if the user presses the indicator 26 (or its periphery), the cover 25 opens (B2). The cover 25 slides upward in parallel and opens (B3). An example of the structure of the cover 25 that opens when pressed is as follows. When the indicator 26 or its periphery is pressed, the cover 25 sinks slightly, and the hook (not shown) that the cover 25 is locked is disengaged from the inner side. The hinge 28 that supports the cover 25 is provided with a compression spring (not shown), and when the hook is disengaged, the hinge 28 is pushed out in parallel obliquely upward by the restoring force of the compression spring. The cover 25 slides obliquely upward together with the hinge 28. That is, the cover 25 opens. When the user closes the opened cover 25, the hook is locked and the cover 25 is kept in a closed state. Since the structure of opening when pressed is well known, detailed description and illustration are omitted. In addition, when the cover 25 is locked, the user cannot press the cover 25 in and cannot open the cover 25.
[0024] Since the cover 25 is slid open, the user can visually check the indicator 26 even after opening. The indicator 26 is lit green during charging of the battery 12, and changes to blue when the battery 12 is fully charged. When the user removes the charging plug from the charging port 14 and closes the cover 25, the indicator 26 goes out. The indicator 26 is controlled by the controller 19.
[0025] The electric vehicle 20 of the second embodiment also has the same advantages as the electric vehicle 10 of the first embodiment.
[0026] The “electric vehicle” in this specification includes an electric motor 11 that drives wheels and a battery 12 that supplies power to the electric motor 11. The “electric vehicle” in this specification may include a plug-in hybrid vehicle that includes both an electric motor and an internal combustion engine.
[0027] The specific examples of the present invention are described in detail above, but these are only examples and do not limit the claims. The technology described in the claims includes solutions obtained by various deformations and changes to the specific examples illustrated above. The technical elements described in this specification or the drawings can exert technical usefulness alone or in various combinations, and are not limited to the combinations recorded in the claims at the time of application. In addition, the technology illustrated in this specification or the drawings can achieve multiple purposes at the same time, and achieving one of the purposes itself has technical usefulness.
Claims
1. An electric vehicle, characterized in that: The electric vehicle comprises: A recessed portion, the recessed portion being disposed on the vehicle body; a charging port disposed in the recess and configured as a plug connection for charging the battery; a cover that opens and closes the opening of the recess; and an indicator disposed in one of the recess and the outer surface of the cover, wherein The indicator is configured to be turned off when the cover is locked, and is configured to be turned on when the cover is unlocked.
2. The electric vehicle according to claim 1, characterized in that: The indicator is disposed in the recess, A window is provided on the cover so that the indicator can be seen from the outside.
3. The electric vehicle according to claim 2, characterized in that: The electric vehicle is configured such that the lid opens when the window is pressed while the indicator is lit.
4. The electric vehicle according to claim 1, characterized in that: The indicator is disposed on the outer surface of the cover, The electric vehicle is configured such that the lid opens when the indicator is pressed while the indicator is lit.