JACK SUPPORT RELOCATION DEVICE ON A MOTOR VEHICLE

Abstract

The invention relates to a device for offsetting the support area of ​​lifting pads (P) for a motor vehicle, said pads being movable in three dimensions and intended to support the vehicle body (C) via its lateral structural elements (L) which, on either side of the body, are wedged into a central groove (R) formed on the upper face of each pad, characterized in that it comprises a wedge body (1) carrying, at its upper part, at least one fastening member (2) for attaching to one of the lateral structural elements and, at its lower part, a locking rib (11) intended to fit into said central groove of the pad, said fastening member (2) being offset on the body (1) relative to said rib (11) so as to be able to offset the pad (P) transversely relative to said lateral structural element (L). Figure 5

Description

Title of the invention: DEVICE FOR OFFSETTING THE JACK SUPPORT ON A MOTOR VEHICLE

[0001] The invention relates, in general, to the structure of motor vehicles and is concerned, in particular, with a device for offsetting the so-called "jack support" interface located under the body and intended for positioning the lifting means of these vehicles with a view, in particular, to working on the traction batteries.

[0002] Traditionally, the modules containing the traction batteries of motor vehicles with electric or hybrid engines are mounted, under the body, between two profiles forming lateral structural elements such as side members. These profiles are provided with recessed areas ("jack supports") allowing the positioning and support of pads carried by pivoting arms. These arms are mounted on the bridges used for lifting vehicles during maintenance operations and are movable in three dimensions. The pads are provided, on their upper face, with a central locking groove engaging with the lateral structural elements to stabilize the vehicle.

[0003] However, these recessed areas restrict the space available under the vehicle for installing the batteries and thus lead to minimizing their volume and, consequently, reducing the available electrical energy. Thus, the possibilities of extending the autonomy of electric vehicles are then limited.

[0004] Furthermore, due to these discontinuities made on the side profiles, the structure of the vehicle is weakened. Thus, local ruptures have already occurred during so-called pole impact tests.

[0005] Furthermore, when the vehicle is suspended, the pads which support the body hinder the operators who have to maneuver the battery mounting components in order to remove them.

[0006] Finally, these areas of withdrawal or discontinuity hinder, or even prohibit, the passage of hydraulic pipes or cable bundles in the profiles of the lateral structural elements, which leads the manufacturer to clutter other areas of the vehicle while the search for compactness has become a permanent objective.

[0007] These problems are all the more critical when it comes to installing open, unconventional batteries which, being always mounted under the body, are covered directly by the floor of the vehicle, doing away with the traditional cover.

[0008] Patent US9550511B2 describes a multi-element wedge system ensuring that the vehicle is raised, in particular for the use of a jack. However, this system is neither suitable nor intended to allow access under the body to the battery mounting devices while ensuring stable positioning of the vehicle lifting means for carrying out maintenance operations.

[0009] In this context, a technical solution was therefore sought to resolve the problems posed by the current or known means of accessing and removing batteries and aims to propose a device for moving the support area of ​​the lifting means and thus freeing up access to the batteries, without compromising either the strength of the vehicle structure or the safety of maintenance operators.

[0010] This object is achieved, according to the invention, by means of a device for offsetting the support zone of the lifting pads for a motor vehicle, said pads being movable in three dimensions and intended to support the body of the vehicle via its lateral structural elements which, on either side of the body, are wedged into a central groove provided on the upper face of each of the pads, characterized in that it comprises a wedge body carrying, at its upper part, at least one fixing member on one of the lateral structural elements and, at its lower part, a rib intended to be housed in said central groove of the pad, said fixing member being offset on the body relative to said rib so as to be able to offset the pad transversely relative to said lateral structural element.

[0011] According to an advantageous characteristic of the device of the invention, the fixing member consists of at least one bolt whose threaded end is intended to be screwed into a nut secured to the lateral structural element.

[0012] According to another characteristic of the device of the invention, the fixing member carries a spacer arranged between the wedge body and the lateral structural element.

[0013] According to a preferred embodiment of the device of the invention, the wedge body carries two juxtaposed fixing members.

[0014] According to a specific variant embodiment of the device of the invention, the wedge body is formed of a flat base intended to rest on the upper face of the pad and extending upwards by an inclined upper wall on which the fixing member projects and, on the outer side, by a side wall carrying the locking rib.

[0015] According to another characteristic of the device of the invention, the body comprises at least one through cavity in which the fixing member is housed.

[0016] According to yet another characteristic of the device of the invention, the dimensions of the wedge body are determined such that the offset of the pad is at least 50 mm.

[0017] Another object of the invention is a method for dismantling the traction batteries of an electric or hybrid vehicle mounted under the body of the vehicle between at least two lateral structural elements by means, on the one hand, of lifting pads supporting said body being arranged under the lateral structural elements and, on the other hand, a device for offsetting the pads as defined above, characterized in that the wedge body is fixed to each lateral structural element then, at the end of the pad's lifting stroke, its rib is engaged in the central groove of the pads before accessing the batteries.

[0018] Yet another object of the invention is a body of a motor vehicle with electric or hybrid motorization comprising a lower compartment for housing traction batteries delimited by two lateral structural elements, characterized in that said lateral structural elements comprise side members provided with reinforcements extending from the outer side of the body and on which nuts are welded for receiving the fixing members of an offset device as defined above.

[0019] A final object of the invention is a motor vehicle with electric or hybrid motorization formed from a body as defined above.

[0020] In its most general aspect, the invention thus consists of laterally offsetting the support zone (called jack support) of the lifting pads supporting the rear part of the vehicle body, thus freeing up access to the battery compartment. This operation is intended to be carried out only in the context of after-sales maintenance of traction batteries and only in garages accredited for the management of these batteries.

[0021] Thanks to the combination between a specific structural element of the vehicle body and the wedge body ensuring the offset of the lifting pad, the device of the invention ensures, on either side of the body, easy access to the battery compartment and allows rapid removal and replacement of these batteries, if necessary.

[0022] As a result, it becomes possible to install larger batteries and increase the autonomy of vehicles with electric or hybrid engines, without increasing the width of the vehicle, and thus optimizing the energy capacity / vehicle size ratio.

[0023] In addition, the body of these vehicles is reinforced due to the elimination of the withdrawal and / or discontinuity zones which previously weakened the side members of the lateral structural elements.

[0024] The configuration of the modified body according to the invention allows the passage of hydraulic pipes and / or cable harnesses in the interior volume of the lateral structural elements and thus frees up space in the other parts of the vehicle.

[0025] Finally, the invention makes it possible to install square-shaped batteries and modules of the same dimensions, which considerably reduces costs by reducing the diversity of assembly operations and allows the balancing of voltages between the different complex modules.

[0026] Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will emerge on reading the description which follows, with reference to the appended figures, for which:

[0027] [Fig-1] is a bottom view of a traditional body of an electric vehicle with its battery compartment and the two rear jack support areas.

[0028] [Fig.2] is a detailed and bottom view of the body of [Fig. 1].

[0029] [Fig.3] is a detailed sectional view along a vertical plane of the body of [Fig.l]

[0030] [Fig.4] is a partial perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the wedge body of the offset device of the invention.

[0031] [Fig.5] is a partial sectional view along a vertical plane of the offset device of the invention.

[0032] [Fig.6] is a perspective view of the offset device of [Fig.5].

[0033] For clarity, identical or similar elements are identified by identical reference signs in the description and in the figures.

[0034] Naturally, the embodiment of the offset device and the method of the invention illustrated schematically by the figures presented above and described below, is given only as a non-limiting example. It is explicitly provided within the scope of the invention that different modes can be proposed and combined with each other to propose others.

[0035] The invention concerns the structure of motor vehicles with electric and hybrid engines and aims to resolve, in particular, the problems relating to the maintenance of their traction batteries. These batteries are generally housed in a compartment located under the body C of the vehicle which is delimited laterally by structural elements comprising, in particular, the side members L and their reinforcements, as illustrated in Figures 1 and 3.

[0036] The various garages that are requested to work on these batteries are required to lift the vehicles using lifting bridges in order to access the compartment and remove the batteries. These bridges are equipped with four pivoting arms whose position and orientation are adjustable in three dimensions. The ends of these arms are provided with pads P made of elastomer material (rubber, etc.) which come to bear upwards against the body C and which support the vehicle during the intervention of the maintenance operators. Each pad P is provided with a central groove R arranged on its upper face and intended to receive the structural element opposite on the body C to stabilize the vehicle in suspension.

[0037] The support zones A of these pads (called “jack supports”) are located in a predetermined manner under the body C according to the characteristics (dimensional and inertial) of the vehicle in order to ensure its suspension balance. At the rear of the vehicle, these support zones A are in the form of recessed notches or cutouts made in the profiles of the side members L, as illustrated in [Fig.2]. The current position of the support zones A of the pads P therefore has the consequence of locally reducing the volume of the compartment and that of the batteries and of imposing an undue limitation on the storage capacity of electrical energy.

[0038] In this context, the invention aims to modify the position of these support zones to move them outward by a distance preserving the integrity of the lateral structural elements and allowing easy access to the batteries when lifting the vehicle.

[0039] For this purpose, the invention consists of a device for offsetting the support zone A of the lifting pads P comprising, as illustrated in [Fig. 4], a wedge body 1 carrying, at its upper part, at least one member 2 ensuring the fixing on one of the lateral structural elements L and, at its lower part, a rib 11 intended to be housed in the central groove R of the pad P. The fixing member(s) 2 are offset on the body 1 inwards relative to the rib 11 so as to be able to offset the pad P transversely relative to the lateral structural element opposite and free access to the batteries, as illustrated by the arrow in [Fig. 5]. The body 1 can be made in different shapes depending on the type of vehicle to be managed and in different materials such as, for example, aluminum, composites, plastic, steel, folded and / or machined sheet metal, etc.

[0040] In the embodiment shown in Figures 4, 5 and 6, the fixing member 2 is here made up of two juxtaposed bolts 21 whose threaded ends are intended to be screwed into nuts 3 secured to the lateral structural element, preferably by welding or gluing. These fixing members 21 each carry a spacer 22 arranged between the wedge body 1 and the facing structural element L.

[0041] The invention specifically provides that the structural element on which the wedge body 1 is fixed is made up of the side member reinforcement in order to optimize the length of the offset and to transfer the stresses to the most mechanically resistant element. This reinforcement is a structural element sandwiched between the rear side member and the interior wall delimiting the passenger compartment which is always present in the underframes,

[0042] The body 1 has the function of transmitting the forces resulting from the load of the vehicle onto the pads P. The spacers 22 make it possible to transfer the forces between the body 1 and the structural element on which it is fixed and, preferably, onto the side member reinforcement. However, if necessary, the side member L can also come to bear on the pad P in the part of its upper face remaining available after mounting the body 1.The rib 11 allows the maintenance operator to be guided to correctly position the pad relative to the wedge body 1 in order to have sufficient clearance to proceed with the dismantling of the battery. This rib also has a locking function by preventing the body C from sliding on the pads P.

[0043] The body 1 comprises at least one through cavity and here two parallel cylindrical cavities 10 in which the bolts 21 are housed. In the specific variant embodiment of the device of the invention illustrated here by [Fig.4], the wedge body 1 is formed of a flat base 1a intended to rest on the upper face of the pad P and extending, upwards, by an inclined upper wall 1b on which the fixing members 2 project and, on the outer side, by a side wall 1a carrying the locking rib 11.

[0044] According to a specific characteristic of the device of the invention, the dimensions of the wedge body 1 are determined such that the offset of the pad P is at least 50 mm, this difference being sufficient to intervene on the batteries equipping known vehicles with electric or hybrid motorization.

[0045] Another aspect of the invention consists in proposing an improved and ergonomic method for dismantling the traction batteries of an electric or hybrid vehicle when they are mounted under the body of the vehicle between at least two lateral structural elements.

[0046] This method can be implemented by means of four lifting pads P as described above and illustrated by the figures. These pads are intended to support the body C of the vehicle in suspension. Two of these pads P will be arranged under the lateral structural elements L located at the rear of the vehicle which frame the traction battery compartment. Each of these two pads will be provided with the offset device of the invention which has been described above and illustrated by [Fig.4] in the manner described below.

[0047] First of all, a wedge body 1 is mounted, on the right and left, on the lateral structural elements (here the side member reinforcements) by screwing the fixing members 2 into the nuts 3. Then the arms are raised with the pads P to lift the vehicle, ensuring, at the end of the stroke, when the rear pads P and the wedge bodies 1 come into contact, that the ribs 11 are correctly engaged in the central grooves R. Following these operations, the maintenance operators can then access the battery compartment. Once their intervention is complete, the arms are lowered and the wedge bodies are dismantled.

Claims

Demands

1. Device for offsetting the support area (A) of the lifting pads (P) for a motor vehicle, said pads being movable in three dimensions and intended to support the body (C) of the vehicle via its lateral structural elements (L) which, on either side of the body, wedge into a central groove (R) formed on the upper face of each of the pads, characterized in that it comprises a wedge body (1) carrying, at its upper part, at least one fastening member (2) on one of the lateral structural elements and, at its lower part, a locking rib (11) intended to fit into said central groove of the pad, said fastening member (2) being offset on the body (1) relative to said rib (11) so as to be able to offset the pad (P) transversely relative to said lateral structural element (L),said wedge body (1) being formed of a flat base (la) intended to rest on the upper face of the pad (P) and extending upwards by an inclined upper wall (1b) on which the fastening member (2) projects and, on the outer side, by a lateral wall (le) carrying the locking rib (11).

2. Device according to claim 1, characterized in that said fastening member (2) consists of at least one bolt whose threaded end is intended to screw into a nut integral with said lateral structural element.

3. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said fastening member (2) carries a spacer (22) disposed between the body (1) of wedge and said lateral structural element.

4. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the body (1) of the wedge carries two juxtaposed fastening members (2).

5. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said body (1) comprises at least one through cavity (10) in which said fastening member (2) is housed.

6. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the dimensions of the body (1) of the wedge are determined in such a way that the offset of the pad (P) is at least 50mm.

7. A method for dismantling the traction batteries of an electric or hybrid vehicle mounted under the vehicle body (C) between two lateral structural elements (L) by means, on the one hand, of lifting pads (P) supporting said crate by being arranged under the lateral structural elements and, on the other hand, a device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the body (1) of the wedge is fixed on each lateral structural element and then, at the end of the lifting stroke of the pads, its rib (11) is engaged in the central groove (R) of the pads before accessing the batteries.

8. Body of an electric or hybrid motor vehicle comprising a lower compartment for housing traction batteries delimited by two lateral structural elements (L), characterized in that said lateral structural elements comprise longitudinal members provided with reinforcements extending from the outer side of the body and on which are welded nuts (3) for receiving the fastening members (2) of a device according to any one of claims 1 to 6

9. 1 d. U. Motor vehicle with electric or hybrid motorization consisting of a body according to the preceding claim.

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