High-voltage barrier kit assembly for a vehicle

Abstract

A high-voltage battery pack assembly for a vehicle, comprising: a first battery pack (20) and a second battery pack (30) installed separately in a center console (10); a battery case (50) attached to a floor panel (40) and configured to cover the first and second battery packs (20, 30); a cooling device (60) installed in the center console (10) and having a cooling air flow path configured to supply cooled air to the rear of the center console (10) after the first and second battery packs (20, 30) have been cooled with cooling air drawn in from the front of the center console (10);andan upper spacer (70) connecting an upper surface of the center console (10) to an upper surface of the battery case (50) to prevent cooled air supplied to the rear of the first and second battery packs (20, 30) from flowing to the front in the center console (10) after the first and second battery packs (20, 30) have been cooled, and a lower spacer (80) connecting the floor panel (40) to the bottom of the battery case (50);

Description

BACKGROUND(a) Technical FieldThe present invention relates to a high voltage battery pack assembly for a vehicle. More particularly, the present invention relates to a high voltage battery pack assembly for a vehicle in which a battery is installed in a center console.(b) Background ArtIn general, hybrid electric vehicles, fuel cell vehicles, and electric vehicles are driven by being driven at certain times by an electric motor and a high voltage battery that supplies driving voltage to the electric motor and that is installed in each vehicle. Conventionally, as shown in FIG. 1 as a prior art, high voltage battery pack assemblies mainly have a structure in which a battery pack 1 is accommodated and which is installed in a dedicated space in the trunk room portion 2 of the vehicle. As a result, the usable space in the trunk of these vehicles is significantly reduced due to the size of the structure accommodating the battery pack, thereby adversely affecting the marketability of the vehicles and the load rating.Alternatively, this structure may be attached to a vehicle body member of an underbody panel on the outside of the vehicle, but water-sealing treatments would have to be additionally performed in this embodiment to ensure safety. In particular, an additional safety device that resists external shock load should be provided. The result is significantly higher manufacturing costs when the battery pack is mounted to the exterior of the vehicle.In the prior art, embodiments are described as possible solutions to the stated problem, but these should not be understood to correspond to the embodiments of the related art already known to the person skilled in the art.Generically known from US 2008 / 0 047 767 A1 is a high voltage battery pack assembly for a vehicle, comprising a first battery pack and a second battery pack installed in a center console separately from each other, a battery case fixed to a floor panel and configured to cover the first and second battery packs; and a cooling device installed in the center console and having a cooling air flow path.US 2008 / 0 164 081 A1 further discloses a high voltage battery pack assembly for a vehicle, comprising a cooling device installed in the center console with a cooling air flow path configured to supply cooled air to the rear of the center console after the first and second battery packs are cooled with cooling air drawn in at the front of the center console.Moreover, it is known from JP 2002-313 440 A for improving cooling efficiency in battery cases to contract an air flow through a contracted vein part immediately in front of a cooling fan in a battery cell chamber on the upstream side of the battery case to reduce the decrease in the flow speed of the cooling fan, so that stagnation of the cooling fan is prevented. Immediately after the cooling fan, a passage area in a static pressure chamber is rapidly enlarged, and a velocity component of the cooling air is converted into static pressure, so that the amount of cooling air and the air velocity in a downstream battery cell chamber are equalized. As a result, all battery cells in the battery housing can be cooled uniformly.Further, US 2010 / 0 089 675 A1 describes a vehicle-mounted battery cooling structure including a battery, a cooling fan for cooling the battery, a coolant passage connecting the battery and the cooling fan, and mounting portions located at a front seat side and a rear seat side, respectively, in a vehicle compartment. The battery is disposed in one of the mounting portions, and the cooling fan is disposed in the other of the mounting portions.Finally, JP 2008-254 607 A discloses a vehicle including a driver seat and a passenger seat arranged parallel to each other in a lateral direction of a body, a console arranged between the driver seat and the passenger seat, and a battery pack arranged between the driver seat and the passenger seat. A cold air duct is provided to supply cold air to a rear side of the driver seat and the passenger seat. The battery is disposed inside the console housing. The cold air duct has an opening portion for discharging a portion of the cold air into the console housing.The above statements of this Background section are only for enhancement of understanding of the background of the invention and therefore may contain information that does not form part of the prior art already known to those of ordinary skill in the art in this country.SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSUREThe present invention has been made in an effort to provide a high-voltage battery pack assembly for a vehicle in which the trunk of the vehicle can be used more efficiently by installing a high-voltage battery pack in a center console located inside the vehicle to improve marketability. In particular, a cooling device of the battery pack is made compact to contribute greatly to weight reduction and cost saving. The first and second battery packs may be vertically stacked and correspondingly secured to the battery housing.In one aspect, a high voltage battery pack assembly for a vehicle includes: a first battery pack and a second battery pack that are mounted in a center console separately from each other. A battery case is fixed to a floor panel and configured to cover the first and second battery packs. In addition, a cooling device is installed in the center console to provide a cooling air flow path configured to supply cooled air to the rear of the center console after the first and second battery packs are cooled with cooling air drawn in at the front of the center console. Further, the high voltage battery pack assembly for a vehicle includes an upper spacer connecting an upper surface of the center console to an upper surface of the battery case to prevent cooled air supplied to the rear of the first and second battery packs from flowing to the front in the center console after the first and second battery packs are cooled, and a lower spacer connecting the floor panel to the lower surface of the battery case.In addition, the high voltage battery pack assembly for a vehicle may include a membrane member installed between the lower surface of the center console and the rear sides of the first and second battery packs to divide the interior space of the center console into a first chamber in which the first and second battery packs are installed and a second chamber for supplying the cooled air, and upper and lower grills connecting the first and second chambers may be formed at the upper and lower ends of the membrane member, respectively.In some embodiments, upper and lower passages for guiding the flow of cooling air may be provided in a space between an upper surface of the first battery pack and an upper surface of the center console, and in a space between the lower surface of the second battery pack and the floor panel, respectively, such that cooling air for cooling the first and second battery packs freely flows to the rear of the center console.Further, a cooling air discharge opening may be provided between the lower rear side of the center console and the floor panel to supply the cooling air for cooling the first and second battery packs to the lower side of the rear side of the center console.The cooling device may include: a cooling fan housing fixedly positioned forward of the first and second batteries. The cooling fan housing may include a cooling fan rotatably disposed therein. An intake duct may be connected to the front of the cooling fan case to intake cooling air from outside. Further, a distribution duct may be configured to connect to the cooling fan housing and direct airflow to the first and second battery packs. Specifically, one end of the distribution duct is connected to the cooling fan case and the other end is disposed in a space between the first and second battery packs to distribute and deliver the cooling air to the first and second battery packs.The intake duct described above may include: a front duct configured to guide the flow of cooling air from the front of the cooling fan housing to the front of the center console. That is, one end is connected to the front side of the cooling fan case and the other end is disposed in the front side of the center console. Additionally, a pair of side ducts may be configured to guide the flow of cooling air between the front duct and both side portions of the center console. Specifically, ends of the side passages are connected to the front passage, and the other ends penetrate both side portions of the center console to suck cooling air from the vehicle interior.In some embodiments, a plurality of manifold openings for distributing and supplying cooling air to the first and second battery packs are provided in the manifold duct, which are to be opened perpendicularly. Preferably, a distance between the manifold openings may be formed to provide the same distance from a battery cell constituting the first and second battery packs. Further, the front duct may be connected to a duct connected to an air conditioner in the vehicle.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGSThe above and other features of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to specific embodiments thereof illustrated in the accompanying drawings, which are by way of example only and thus are not limitative of the present invention, and wherein: FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the state of installation of a high voltage battery pack assembly for a vehicle according to a prior art construction; FIGS. 2 to 4 are a perspective view, a side view and a plan view of a high voltage battery pack assembly for a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line I--I in FIG. 4; FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the state in which the center console of FIG. 2 has been removed; FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a cooling device in a high voltage battery pack assembly for a vehicle according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention; and FIG. 8 is a bottom view showing the cooling air discharge port in a high voltage battery pack assembly for a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention.It should be understood that the appended drawings are not necessarily to scale, presenting a somewhat simplified representation of various preferred features illustrative of the basic principles of the invention. The specific design features of the present invention as disclosed herein, including, for example, specific dimensions, orientations, locations, and shapes will be determined in part by the particular intended application and use environment.In the figures, identical reference numerals designate the same or equivalent parts of the present invention throughout the figures of the drawing.DETAILED DESCRIPTIONVarious embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described below. Although the invention will be described with reference to embodiments, it is to be understood that the present description is not intended to limit these embodiments. On the contrary, the invention is intended to cover not only the embodiments, but also various alternatives, modifications, equivalents and other embodiments, which may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.It should be understood that the term "vehicle" or "vehicular" or other similar term as used herein is broadly intended to refer to motor vehicles such as passenger automobiles including sport utility vehicle (SUV), buses, trucks, various commercial vehicles, watercraft including various boats and ships, aircraft, and the like, and includes hybrid vehicles, electric vehicles, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (rechargeable at the outlet), hydrogen-powered vehicles and other alternative fuel vehicles (e.g. fuels derived from resources other than petroleum). As used herein, a hybrid vehicle is a vehicle having two or more sources of power, e.g., both gasoline and electric powered vehicles.Hereinafter, a high voltage battery pack assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. The high voltage battery pack assembly according to the embodiment of the present invention is a structure installed in the center console inside the vehicle.As shown in FIGS. 2 to 8, the high voltage battery pack assembly includes a first battery pack 20 and a second battery pack 30 installed in a center console 10 and arranged to be spaced apart from each other by a prescribed distance (thereby forming a clearance). A battery case 50 is fixed to a floor panel 40 and is configured to cover the first and second battery packs 20 and 30. A cooling device 60 is installed in the center console 10 such that the cooling air flow path guides cooling air to the rear of the center console 10 after cooling the first and second battery packs 20 and 30, using cooled air sucked at the front of the center console 10.The assembly also includes an upper spacer 70 that connects an upper surface of the center console 10 to an upper surface of the battery case 50 to prevent cool air exiting from the rear of the first and second battery packs 20 and 30 from reaching the front of the center console 10 after cooling the first and second battery packs 20 and 30. A lower spacer 80 connects the floor panel 40 to a lower surface of the battery case 50, and a diaphragm member 90 is installed between a rear surface of the center console 10 and the rear surfaces of the first and second battery packs to divide an inner space of the center console 10 into a first chamber 11 in which the first and second battery packs 20 and 30 are installed and a second chamber 12 for supplying the cool air. An upper grill 91 and a lower grill 92 connecting the first and second chambers 11 and 12 are formed at the upper and lower ends of the diaphragm member 90.An upper duct 13 and a lower duct that control / guide the flow of cooling air are provided in a space between an upper surface of the first battery pack 20 and a surface of the center console 10 and in a space between a lower surface of the second battery pack 30 and the floor panel 40, respectively, so that cooling air for cooling the first and second battery packs 20 and 30 freely flows to the rear of the center console 10.That is, the upper spacer 70 is installed in the upper channel 13 and the lower spacer 80 is installed in the lower channel. A cooled air discharge port 93 is provided between the rear portion of a lower surface of the center console 10 and the floor panel 40 to supply the cooled air for cooling the first and second battery packs 20 and 30 to the lower side of the rear surface of the center console 10.Therefore, in the assembly according to the embodiment of the present invention, the first and second battery packs 20 and 30 are cooled, the cooling air sucked by the cooling device 60 is distributed to the first and second battery packs 20 and 30, and the air flowing through the first and second battery packs 20 and 30 flows to the rear side of the center console 10 and thereafter through the rear duct 15 between the first and second battery packs 20 and 30, the diaphragm member 90, and the second chamber 12 between the rear surface of the center console 10 and the diaphragm member 90, and finally exits through the cooling air exit port 93 between the rear portion of the lower surface of the console 10 and the floor panel 40.At this time, the upper grill 91 formed in the membrane member 90 connects the upper duct 13 and the second chamber 12, and the lower grill 92 formed in the membrane member 90 connects the lower duct and the second chamber 12.The cooling device 60 also includes a cooling fan housing 62 mounted forward of the first and second battery packs 20 and 30. The cooling fan case includes a cooling fan 61 rotatably disposed therein, a suction duct 63 connected to the front of the cooling fan case 62 to suck cooled air from outside, and a distribution duct 64 configured to control the direction of the cooling air between the surface of the cooling fan case and the space between the first and second battery packs 20 and 30. That is, one end of the distribution duct 64 is connected to the cooling fan case 62, and the other end is installed to be disposed in a space between the first and second battery packs 20 and 30 to distribute and supply the cooling air to the first and second battery packs 20 and 30. As the illustrated example shows, the cooling fan case 62 is fixed to and connected to the battery case 50 via a case bracket 62 a.The suction duct 63 has a front duct 63a connected to guide the flow of cooling air from the vehicle interior to the front of the blower case. That is, one end is connected to the front side of the cooling fan case 62, and the other end is disposed in the front side of the center console 10. The suction duct 63 also includes a pair of side ducts 63b which guide the flow of cooling air sucked from the side of the bracket 10 to the front of the fan casing. That is, one end intersects the front duct 63a and the other ends are installed so as to penetrate both side portions to suck air inside the vehicle from the sides of the console 10.A duct grill 16 is integrally disposed on each of the two side portions of the center console 10. Therefore, each end of the side channel 63 bis connected to the channel grill 16, and the channel grill 16 prevents contaminants from entering the side channel 63 b. The front duct 63a is preferably connected to an auxiliary duct of an air conditioner of the vehicle. That is, cool air inside the vehicle is drawn in through the side passages 63 b. However, depending on the vehicle interior environmental conditions, this cooling air may not be sufficient to cool the first and second battery packs 20 and 30. Accordingly, cool air supplied from the air conditioner of the vehicle is sucked through the front duct 63 aas required to more efficiently cool the first and second battery packs 20 and 30.In addition, a plurality of distribution ports 64a for distributing and supplying cooling air to the first and second battery packs 20 and 30 are provided in the distribution duct 64 to be opened perpendicularly. Each of the manifold openings 64a is opened to the first and second battery packs 20 and 30, and a clearance is preferably formed between the manifold openings 64a to maintain a uniform clearance from a battery cell forming the first and second battery packs 20 and 30.That is, each of the battery packs 20 and 30 is configured by combining a plurality of battery cells in a predetermined pattern. Therefore, when the distance between the manifold openings 64 ais equal to the distance between the battery cells, one manifold opening 64 afaces each of the battery cells constituting the first and second battery packs 20 and 30. Therefore, the cooling air supplied through the manifold opening 64 acan directly cool each of the battery cells constituting the first and second battery packs 20 and 30, so that the first and second battery packs 20 and 30 are cooled more efficiently, thereby improving the cooling performance.When the cooling device 60 starts to operate, the cooled air is sucked into the suction duct 63 by the suction force generated by the rotation of the cooling fan 61. The cool air drawn by the blower 61 passes through the cooling fan case 62 and then flows to the plenum 64, and the cool air flowing through the plenum 64 exits through the plenum opening 64 aover the first and second battery packs 20 and 30. At this time, the cooled air supplied through the manifold opening 64 acools the first and second battery packs 20 and 30, directly flowing through the battery cells constituting the first and second battery packs 20 and 30.In addition, the cooled air flowing through the first and second battery packs 20 and 30 thereafter flows through the upper duct 13 and the lower duct to the rear of the center console 10.As described above, the high voltage battery pack assembly for the vehicle according to the embodiment of the present invention, which has a structure in which the cooling device 60 includes the first and second battery packs 20 and 30, is installed in the center console 10, not in the trunk room of the vehicle or on an underbody panel on the outside of the vehicle. As a result, the trunk room of the vehicle can be used more efficiently, and further, an additional waterproofing treatment and a shock protection device can be omitted, thereby achieving weight reduction and cost saving.Further, since the cooling device 60 is installed in the center console, the high-voltage battery pack assembly can be configured compactly. Since the first and second battery packs 20 and 30 can be uniformly cooled via the distribution duct 64, more efficient cooling can be achieved and further cooling performance can be significantly improved.In addition, the number of cooling fans 61 can be suppressed to a minimum by the configuration in which the first and second battery packs 20 and 30 can be simultaneously cooled by one cooling fan 61, and in particular, since an exhaust passage for supplying the cooled air is not required, weight reduction and cost savings can be achieved.In a high voltage battery pack assembly according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the trunk room of a vehicle can be used more efficiently by installing a cooling device having first and second battery packs in the center console, and more efficient cooling can be achieved as well as cooling performance can be improved by cooling the first and second battery packs via a distribution duct. In particular, the number of cooling fans can be minimized by a configuration in which the first and second battery packs are simultaneously cooled by a cooling fan. Furthermore, weight and cost savings can be achieved by a configuration without an outlet duct for supplying the cooled air.The invention has been described in detail with reference to preferred embodiments. However, those skilled in the art will appreciate that changes may be made in these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined in the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

A high voltage battery pack assembly for a vehicle, comprising: a first battery pack (20) and a second battery pack (30) installed in a center console (10) separately from each other; a battery case (50) fixed to a floor panel (40) and configured to cover the first and second battery packs (20, 30); a cooling device (60) installed in the center console (10) and having a cooling air flow path configured to supply cooled air to the rear of the center console (10) after cooling the first and second battery packs (20, 30) with cooling air sucked to the front of the center console (10); and an upper spacer (70) connecting an upper surface of the center console (10) to an upper surface of the battery case (50) to prevent cooled air supplied to the rear of the first and second battery packs (20, 30) from flowing to the front in the center console (10) after the first and second battery packs (20, 30) are cooled, and a lower spacer (80) connecting the floor panel (40) to the lower surface of the battery case (50).The high voltage battery pack assembly for a vehicle according to claim 1, further comprising a diaphragm member (90) installed between the lower surface of the center console (10) and the rear sides of the first and second battery packs (20, 30) to divide the interior of the center console (10) into a first chamber (11) in which the first and second battery packs (20, 30) are installed and a second chamber (12) for supplying the cooled air, wherein upper and lower grills (91, 92) connecting the first and second chambers (11, 12) are formed at the upper and lower ends of the diaphragm member (90), respectively.The high voltage battery pack assembly for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein an upper (13) and a lower duct for guiding the flow of cooling air are provided in a space between an upper surface of the first battery pack (20) and an upper surface of the center console (10) and a space between a lower surface of the second battery pack (30) and the floor panel (40), respectively, so that cooling air for cooling the first and second battery packs (20, 30) freely flows to the rear of the center console (10).The high voltage battery pack assembly for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein a cooling air discharge opening (93) is provided between a rear portion of a lower surface of the center console (10) and the floor panel (40) to supply the cooling air to the lower side of the rear side of the center console (10).The high voltage battery pack assembly for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the first and second battery packs (20, 30) are vertically stacked and fixed to the battery case (50).The high voltage battery pack assembly for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the cooling device (60) includes: a cooling fan case (62) fixedly positioned in front of the first and second battery packs (20, 30) and including a cooling fan (61) rotatably disposed therein; an intake duct (63) connected to the front of the cooling fan case (62) to intake cooling air from outside; and a distribution duct (64) configured to guide the flow of air from the cooling fan case (62) to a space between the first and second battery packs (20, 30), one end being connected to the cooling fan case (62) and the other end being disposed in a space between the first and second battery packs (20, 30) to distribute and supply the cooling air to the first and second battery packs (20, 30).The high voltage battery pack assembly for a vehicle according to claim 6, wherein the suction duct (63) includes: a front duct (63a) configured to guide cooling air from the front of the center console (10) to the front of the fan (61), one end connected to the front of the cooling fan case (62), and the other end disposed in the front of the center console (10); and a pair of side ducts (63b) configured to guide the cooling air from the sides of the center console (10) to an intersection point in the front duct (63a), one end of the pair of side ducts (63b) intersecting the front duct (63a), and the other ends installed to penetrate both side portions to suck cooling air from the vehicle interior.The high voltage battery pack assembly for a vehicle according to claim 6, wherein a plurality of distribution ports (64a) in the distribution duct (64) are configured to distribute and supply cooling air to the first and second battery packs (20, 30) to be opened perpendicularly.The high voltage battery pack assembly for a vehicle according to claim 7, wherein the front duct (63a) is connected to an auxiliary duct of an air conditioner installed in the vehicle.The high voltage battery pack assembly for a vehicle according to claim 8, wherein a distance between the manifold openings (64a) is formed to ensure the same distance from a battery cell constituting the first and second battery packs (20, 30).

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