ACCUMULATOR BATTERY WITH REMOVABLE CONNECTION BOX AND ASSOCIATED ELECTRIC OR HYBRID VEHICLE

Abstract

The present invention relates to an electrical energy storage battery comprising a connection box for controlling the connection or disconnection of one or more consumers. The battery comprises a housing open to the outside and in which the connection box is capable of being inserted or extracted by following a rectilinear translational movement relative to the battery. Application: electric or hybrid vehicles

Description

1. Battery with removable connection box and associated electric or hybrid vehicle. The present invention relates to a battery with a removable connection box, particularly for electric or hybrid vehicles. In the current context of consensus surrounding climate change, reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions is a major challenge facing automakers, as emissions standards become increasingly stringent. Beyond the continuous improvement in the efficiency of conventional internal combustion engines, which is accompanied by a decrease in CO2 emissions, electric vehicles (EVs) and hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) are now considered the most promising solution for reducing CO2 emissions. Various electrical energy storage technologies have been tested in recent years to meet the needs of EVs.20 It now appears that lithium-ion batteries offer the best compromise between power density, which favors performance, particularly acceleration, and energy density, which favors range. However, using this Li-ion technology to manufacture traction batteries for EVs presents numerous challenges, especially considering the voltage levels required at the battery terminals, on the order of 400 volts. At such voltage levels, safety standards are very strict to prevent any risk of electrocution to a passenger, maintenance operator, or emergency personnel. This is the problem that the present invention aims to solve.3060208 2 It is known from prior art, particularly from document US2006 / 0030176A1, that it is preferable to integrate the electrical connection box for these batteries, commonly referred to by the Anglo-Saxon terms "connection box" or "junction box," inside the battery itself. The connection box's function, depending on the usage scenario (parking, driving, charging, etc.), is to connect and disconnect the battery from the drive system in a very secure manner, for example, using electromechanical relays controlled by a Battery Management System (BMS). This solution, according to US2006 / 0030176A1, protects the numerous fragile components contained within the box, particularly the electromechanical relays, from shocks.A major drawback of this solution is that, in the event of a failure in the connection box—and most currently detected failures originate from this box—it is necessary to open the high-voltage battery, for example, to change a relay. However, in many countries, opening the battery requires, for regulatory reasons, the intervention of an authorized technician who has undergone special training in high-voltage work. In these countries, batteries are therefore most often removed from the vehicle (without being opened) and sent to a specialized center where the technicians are certified. This results in significant additional costs for handling, logistics, and vehicle downtime. This is the problem that the present invention aims to solve. The invention aims, in particular, to overcome the aforementioned drawbacks, notably those related to the risk of electrocution and the additional costs resulting from sending devices to specialized high-voltage intervention centers. To this end, the invention relates to a battery of electrical energy storage devices comprising a connection box for controlling the connection or disconnection of one or more loads. The battery has a compartment open to the outside into which the connection box can be inserted or removed by following a rectilinear translational movement relative to the battery. Advantageously, the box and the compartment may include cooperative electrical connection means arranged such that the insertion of the box into the compartment is accompanied by the simultaneous connection of the connection means.5 Advantageously, the housing and the casing can include cooperative alignment correction means for aligning the connection means throughout the rectilinear translational movement. For example, the cooperative connection means may include connecting pins adapted to fit into connecting tubes; the cooperative alignment correction means may include electrical insulation walls with rounded edges adapted to fit into other electrical insulation walls to isolate the connection means from each other. 15 For example, the cooperative alignment correction means may further include conical ends of the connecting pins. For example, the connection housing may be adapted to be fixed to the battery by screws. 20 The present invention also relates to an electric or hybrid vehicle comprising such a battery for powering its drivetrain.25 In addition to limiting the risk of electrocution and avoiding the additional costs of sending the battery to specialized repair centers, the device according to the invention also has the main advantage of being simple and compact, facilitating the integration of the battery into the vehicle. 30 Other features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description, given with reference to the accompanying drawings 1, 2, 3a, and 3b, which illustrate perspective and cross-sectional views of the same advantageous embodiment of the invention. 35 Identical elements illustrated in these figures share the same reference numerals. However, for clarity, not all reference numerals have been included in all figures. 5 The present invention proposes a battery architecture that does not require opening the battery to access the connection box, thanks to a device that allows for the easy integration of the connection box.Figure 1 illustrates, by way of perspective view, an example of a battery 1 comprising a device according to the invention. The battery 1 is represented in a coordinate system (X,Y,Z) where the X direction will be designated hereafter as the "longitudinal direction", the Y direction as the "transverse direction", and the Z direction as the "vertical direction". The battery 1 comprises a cover 11 closing a casing 12 from above, the bottom of the casing 12 extending substantially in the horizontal plane (X,Y). The cover 11 is fixed to the casing 12 by screws 17. Mounting brackets 13 of various shapes, integral with the casing 12, are suitable for fixing the battery 1 to the chassis 20 of an electric or hybrid vehicle, not shown in the figures.Battery 1 includes conduits 16 for the inlet and outlet of a thermal conditioning fluid, as well as a connector 14 for connecting battery 1 to the drivetrain of an electric vehicle, not shown in the figures. Battery 1 includes a connection box 15 according to the invention, this box 15 being attached to the cover 11 from above, to which it is fixed by screws 18. The box 15 supports, assembled on its upper face, a connector 151 for isolating battery 1. Figure 2 illustrates, by a view with two parallel cross-sectional planes in the (X,Z) plane, the central part of battery 1, the opposite transverse parts having been omitted for clarity. This figure clearly shows how the connection box 15 can, after removal of the screws 18, be easily extracted from the battery 1 or be easily inserted into the 35 battery 1, revealing a housing 121 in the stretcher 12.In particular, the vertical arrows in the figure illustrate the relative rectilinear translational movement (along the vertical direction Z in the figure) of the connection box 15 with respect to the battery 1, allowing the box 15 to be inserted into the housing 121. The reverse relative rectilinear translational movement 5 required to remove the connection box 15 from the housing 121 is easily visualized. Figure 2 also illustrates, in a rectangular enlargement area, a male connector 152 belonging to the box 15 and a female connector 122 located in the frame 12. The connector 152 is arranged on the underside of the box 15, and the connector 122 is arranged in the housing 12 such that, when the box 15 is inserted into the housing 121, the male connector 152 simultaneously connects to the female connector 122.In Figure 2, only parallelepiped-shaped enclosures (four per connector in this embodiment) 15 illustrate the spaces available for the connection elements of connectors 152 and 122. Figures 3a and 3b give an example of an embodiment of these connection elements. Figures 3a and 3b illustrate, by way of perspective views, an embodiment of the invention in which the connection elements of the male connector 152 have a cylindrical base and a conical end, forming pins 1521, while the connection elements of the female connector 122 have a hollow cylindrical shape adapted to cooperatively accommodate these pins with friction, forming tubes 1221.Advantageously, the conical shape of the connecting pins 1521 allows them to be guided in the connecting tubes 1221 and thus to correct, at the time of insertion of the housing 15 into the housing 121, any misalignment between the connecting housing 15 and the housing 121. Figures 3a and 3b illustrate other elements for correcting alignment at the time of insertion, such as electrical insulation partitions 1222 with rounded edges of the female connector 122, which are able to slide cooperatively with friction (because they have a smaller diameter) in electrical insulation partitions 1522 and 1523 of the male connector 152. Thus, thanks to all these means of alignment correction, it is impossible to insert the housing 15 incorrectly, as these means prevent any incorrect assembly.5 The battery with removable connection box according to the invention therefore still has as its main advantage its ergonomics, since it requires very few tools, apart from a simple screw tool, to insert or extract the connection box 15 into or out of the housing 121: it is enough to push manually to insert it and it is enough to pull manually to extract it.

Claims

CLAIMS 1. Electrical energy storage battery (1) comprising a connection box (15) for controlling the connection or disconnection of one or more consumers, characterized in that it comprises a housing (121) open to the outside of the battery and in which the connection box is able to be inserted or extracted by following a rectilinear translational movement relative to the battery.

2. Battery (1) according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the case (15) and the housing (121) comprise cooperative electrical connection means (1521, 1221) arranged in such a way that the insertion of the case into the housing is accompanied by the simultaneous connection of the connection means.

3. Battery (1) according to claim 2, characterized in that the casing (15) and the housing (121) comprise cooperative alignment correction means (1522, 1523, 1222) for aligning the connection means throughout the rectilinear translation movement.

4. Battery (1) according to claim 3, characterized in that, the cooperative connection means including connection pins (1521) adapted to fit into connection tubes (1221), the cooperative alignment correction means include electrical insulation walls with rounded edges (1222) adapted to fit into other electrical insulation walls (1521, 1523) to isolate the connection means from each other.

5. Battery (1) according to claim 4, characterized in that the cooperative alignment correction means further include conical ends of the connection pins (1521).

6. Battery (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that the connection housing (15) is suitable for being fixed to the battery by screws (18). 3060208 8 7. Electric or hybrid vehicle comprising a battery (1) according to any one of the preceding claims for powering its drive system.