Battery case

Abstract

To improve drainage of a battery case.SOLUTION: A battery case to be mounted on a vehicle includes an upper member disposed vertically upward in a mounted state in which the battery case is mounted on the vehicle. The upper member has at least one inclined surface that slopes vertically downward toward the periphery of the upper member. A portion of the at least one inclined surface that is recessed vertically downward relative to the periphery has at least one groove that extends toward the periphery.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a battery case. [Background technology]

[0002] Vehicles such as automobiles are equipped with battery cases that store batteries and the like. Water droplets may adhere to the surface of the battery case due to condensation in a humid environment or splashes caused when the tires of the vehicle pass through a puddle. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technology for draining water droplets that have adhered to the battery case, in which the upper surface of the battery storage section is provided with an outer surface that slopes downward toward both the left and right sides of the vehicle width. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2021-012785 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the technology disclosed in Patent Document 1, there was a problem in that in order to further improve the drainage performance on the upper surface of the battery storage section, a separate process of performing surface treatment such as applying a corrosion-resistant film or a water-repellent film, or the installation of separate parts such as a vibrator, was required.

[0005] One aspect of the present disclosure is to improve the drainage performance of a battery case. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] One aspect of the present disclosure is a battery case mounted on a vehicle, the battery case including an upper member disposed vertically upward when mounted on the vehicle. The upper member has at least one inclined surface that slopes vertically downward toward a periphery of the upper member. The at least one inclined surface is a portion that is recessed vertically downward with respect to the periphery and has at least one groove that extends toward the periphery.

[0007] With this configuration, water droplets that adhere to the grooves gather at the bottom of the grooves, grow larger, and are more likely to flow down the inclined surface, thereby improving the drainage performance of the battery case.

[0008] In one aspect of the present disclosure, at least one groove may extend linearly. With this configuration, the drainage performance of the battery case can be further improved. In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the upper member may be a press-molded product made of a plate-shaped member.

[0009] According to this configuration, the upper member can be molded without performing surface treatment and without assembling a separate part. In one embodiment of the present disclosure, in the mounted state, the upper member may have a top portion located vertically above the periphery, and the at least one inclined surface may have a plurality of inclined surfaces extending in a plurality of directions from the top portion.

[0010] With this configuration, the direction of drainage can be dispersed in a plurality of directions. In one aspect of the present disclosure, each of the plurality of inclined surfaces may have at least one groove. With this configuration, the drainage performance can be improved on each of the multiple inclined surfaces. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] FIG. [Diagram 2]FIG. [Diagram 3] 3 is a cross-sectional view of the battery case taken along line III-III of FIG. 2. [Figure 4] 4 is a cross-sectional view of the battery case taken along line IV-IV of FIG. 2. [Diagram 5] Fig. 5A is a diagram illustrating a battery case according to another embodiment in which the top is spaced apart from the center of the upper member, and Fig. 5B is a diagram illustrating a battery case according to another embodiment in which the top forms a ridge line. [Figure 6] 6A and 6B are top views of a battery case according to another embodiment; DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0012] Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. [1. First embodiment] [1-1. Configuration] [1-1-1. Overall composition] The battery case 1 shown in FIG. 1 is a case that houses a plurality of battery cells 4 therein. An example of the battery cells 4 is a lithium-ion battery cell. A battery pack including the battery case 1 is mounted on the lower part of a vehicle such as an automobile. Hereinafter, "upper" and "lower" in this disclosure mean upper and lower in the vertical direction with respect to the battery case 1 in a state in which the battery case 1 is mounted on the vehicle. The vertical direction may be read as the vertical direction. For example, the battery pack may supply power to a motor for driving the vehicle, or may supply power to components other than the motor. In this embodiment, as an example, the battery pack is disposed under the body of the vehicle.

[0013] The battery case 1 in this embodiment has an outer shape of a substantially rectangular parallelepiped. The battery case 1 includes an upper member 2 and a lower member 3. The upper member 2 and the lower member 3 are box-shaped members that form an internal space 5 for accommodating multiple battery cells 4. The lower side of the upper member 2 and the upper side of the lower member 3 are both open. The upper member 2 is disposed above the lower member 3 so as to cover the opening of the lower member 3, defining the internal space 5 between the upper member 2 and the lower member 3. The multiple battery cells 4 are disposed in the internal space 5.

[0014] The upper member 2 is made of a metal, for example, stainless steel. There is no particular limitation on the material of the lower member 3. Examples of the material of the lower member 3 include metal and resin. In this embodiment, the material of the lower member 3 is stainless steel.

[0015] The upper member 2 includes an upper plate-shaped portion 21, an upper wall portion 22, and an upper flange 23. The lower member 3 includes a lower plate-shaped portion 31 , a lower wall portion 32 , and a lower flange 33 . The upper plate-like portion 21 and the lower plate-like portion 31 are both substantially rectangular plate-like portions. The upper plate-like portion 21 and the lower plate-like portion 31 are arranged side by side in the up-down direction so as to face each other. An internal space 5 is formed between the upper plate-like portion 21 and the lower plate-like portion 31.

[0016] The upper wall portion 22 is a wall-shaped portion that protrudes downward from the outer periphery of the upper plate-shaped portion 21 and extends along the outer periphery of the upper plate-shaped portion 21. The lower peripheral portion of the upper wall portion 22 forms an opening in the upper member 2.

[0017] Similarly, the lower wall portion 32 is a wall-shaped portion that protrudes upward from the outer periphery of the lower plate-shaped portion 31 and extends along the outer periphery of the lower plate-shaped portion 31. The upper peripheral portion of the lower wall portion 32 forms an opening in the lower member 3.

[0018] The upper flange 23 is a brim-shaped portion that protrudes from the lower end of the upper wall portion 22 toward the opposite side to the internal space 5 in a direction perpendicular to the up-down direction and extends along the outer periphery of the upper wall portion 22.

[0019] Similarly, the lower flange 33 is a brim-shaped portion that protrudes from the upper end of the lower wall portion 32 toward the opposite side to the internal space 5 in a direction perpendicular to the vertical direction and extends along the outer circumferential edge of the lower wall portion 32.

[0020] The upper flange 23 is disposed so as to cover the upper surface of the lower flange 33. The upper flange 23 is joined to the lower flange 33 by welding, adhesive, or the like. By this joining, the internal space 5 is sealed.

[0021] [1-1-2. Configuration of the upper plate-shaped part] The upper plate-shaped portion 21 shown in Figs. 1 and 2 is a quadrangular pyramid-shaped member having a height in the vertical direction. The plate thickness of the upper plate-shaped portion 21 is, for example, 3.0 millimeters or less. The upper plate-shaped portion 21 can be formed, for example, by press molding. In this embodiment, the upper plate-shaped portion 21 is a press-formed product. The upper plate-shaped portion 21 has a top portion 24, at least one inclined surface 25, and a peripheral portion 26. The upper plate-shaped portion 21 illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2 has a plurality of inclined surfaces 25 as the at least one inclined surface 25.

[0022] The peripheral portion 26 is a portion of the outer periphery of the upper plate-shaped portion 21. The peripheral portion 26 has a plurality of side portions 261. In this embodiment, the peripheral portion 26 is substantially rectangular and has four side portions 261a, 261b, 261c, and 261d as the plurality of side portions 261. The side portions 261a and 261c are portions of the peripheral portion 26 that extend in a first direction perpendicular to the up-down direction. The side portions 261b and 261d are portions of the peripheral portion 26 that extend in a second direction perpendicular to both the up-down direction and the first direction.

[0023] The apex 24 is a portion located above the peripheral portion 26. In other words, the apex 24 corresponds to the apex of the quadrangular pyramid-shaped upper plate-shaped portion 21. As an example, the position of the apex 24 in the first and second directions is on the intersection of two diagonals of the peripheral portion 26 (in other words, the center of the upper plate-shaped portion 21).

[0024] The multiple inclined surfaces 25 extend in multiple directions from the top 24. The upper plate-shaped portion 21 has four inclined surfaces 25a, 25b, 25c, and 25d as the multiple inclined surfaces 25. The inclined surface 25a is a portion that spreads in a triangular shape from the top 24 toward the side portion 261a. The inclined surface 25b is a portion that spreads in a triangular shape from the top 24 toward the side portion 261b. The inclined surface 25c is a portion that spreads in a triangular shape from the top 24 toward the side portion 261c. The inclined surface 25d is a portion that spreads in a triangular shape from the top 24 toward the side portion 261d. In other words, the inclined surfaces 25a, 25b, 25c, and 25d correspond to the four side surfaces of the quadrangular pyramid-shaped upper plate-shaped portion 21. That is, the upper plate-like portion 21 has inclined surfaces 25b and 25d extending from the top 24 in a first direction, and inclined surfaces 25a and 25c extending from the top 24 in a second direction.

[0025] 3, each of the multiple inclined surfaces 25 inclines downward from the top 24 toward one of the multiple side portions 261. In other words, the inclined surface 25a inclines downward from the top 24 toward the side portion 261a. The inclined surface 25b inclines downward from the top 24 toward the side portion 261b. The inclined surface 25c inclines downward from the top 24 toward the side portion 261c. The inclined surface 25d inclines downward from the top 24 toward the side portion 261d.

[0026] At least one groove 27 extending toward the peripheral edge 26 is formed in each of the multiple inclined surfaces 25. In this embodiment, four grooves 27a, 27b, 27c, and 27d are formed as at least one groove 27 corresponding to the four inclined surfaces 25a, 25b, 25c, and 25d, respectively. That is, the groove 27a is formed in the inclined surface 25a and extends in the second direction from the top 24 to the side 261a. The groove 27b is formed in the inclined surface 25b and extends in the first direction from the top 24 to the side 261b. The groove 27c is formed in the inclined surface 25c and extends in the second direction from the top 24 to the side 261c. The groove 27d is formed in the inclined surface 25d and extends in the first direction from the top 24 to the side 261d.

[0027] Thus, the upper plate-shaped portion 21 has grooves 27b, 27d extending from the top 24 in the first direction, and grooves 27a, 27c extending from the top 24 in the second direction. The groove 27 formed in each of the multiple inclined surfaces 25 extends from the top 24 to a corresponding one of the multiple side portions 261. The corresponding one side portion 261 here is the side portion 261 that corresponds to the inclined surface 25 in which the groove 27 is provided.

[0028] Groove 27 has a portion that extends linearly from top 24 to a corresponding one of side portions 261, and a portion that branches off midway from the extending portion and extends linearly to the corresponding one of side portions 261.

[0029] 4, groove 27 is a portion of inclined surface 25 that is recessed downward relative to a portion surrounding groove 27. Groove 27 has a width and depth of, for example, 10 mm or less. Groove 27 has a cross-sectional shape that is, for example, concave, V-shaped, U-shaped, arc-shaped, or the like.

[0030] [1-2. Actions and Effects] According to the embodiment described above in detail, the following actions and effects can be obtained. (1a) Each of the multiple inclined surfaces 25 in the upper plate-like portion 21 inclines downward from the top 24 toward one of the multiple side portions 261. At least one groove 27 extending toward the peripheral portion 26 is formed in each of the multiple inclined surfaces 25. The groove 27 is a portion of the inclined surface 25 that is recessed downward with respect to a portion corresponding to the periphery of the groove 27.

[0031] According to this configuration, water droplets adhering to the grooves 27 are collected at the bottom below the grooves 27 and become large, making it easier for them to flow down the inclined surface 25. Therefore, the drainage performance of the battery case 1 can be improved without performing surface treatment or assembling additional parts.

[0032] Furthermore, since the grooves 27 extend linearly, the drainage performance can be improved compared to when the grooves 27 are serpentine. (1b) The multiple inclined surfaces 25 extend in multiple directions from the top portion 24. At least one groove 27 extending toward the peripheral edge portion 26 is formed in each of the multiple inclined surfaces 25.

[0033] According to this configuration, the direction of drainage can be dispersed in a plurality of directions, which can disperse the portions of the drainage destination areas such as upper wall portion 22 and upper flange 23 that are corroded by the water droplets drained from upper plate-shaped portion 21.

[0034] Furthermore, in addition to a portion that extends linearly from the apex 24 to the corresponding one of the sides 261, the groove 27 has a portion that branches off from the extending portion and extends linearly to the corresponding one of the sides 261. This makes it possible to further diversify the direction of drainage.

[0035] (1c) Groove 27 is a portion of inclined surface 25 that is recessed downward relative to the surrounding area. Upper plate-shaped portion 21 has grooves 27b and 27d extending from top portion 24 in a first direction, and grooves 27a and 27c extending in a second direction.

[0036] With this configuration, the rigidity of the upper plate-like portion 21 in the up-down direction, the first direction, and the second direction can be improved. Furthermore, groove 27 has a portion that extends linearly from apex 24 to a corresponding one of side portions 261, and also has a portion that branches off from the extending portion and extends linearly to the corresponding one of side portions 261. This makes it possible to further improve the rigidity of upper plate-like portion 21 in the up-down direction and in the first and second directions.

[0037] (1d) The width and depth of groove 27 are each 10 millimeters or less. According to such a configuration, the amount of reduction in the volume of the internal space 5 caused by the formation of the grooves 27 can be suppressed.

[0038] (1e) Since the upper plate-shaped portion 21 is a press-molded product, it is possible to mold the upper plate-shaped portion 21 from a single plate-shaped member without performing surface treatment or assembling a separate part. [1-3. Correspondence between terms] In the above embodiment, the up-down direction corresponds to an example of the vertical direction, and the peripheral portion 26 corresponds to an example of the peripheral edge of the upper member.

[0039] 2. Other embodiments Although the embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above, it goes without saying that the present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments and can take various forms.

[0040] (2a) In the above embodiment, the position of the apex 24 in the first and second directions was the center of the upper plate-shaped portion 21. However, the position of the apex 24 in the first and second directions is not particularly limited as long as it is located inside the peripheral edge portion 26. For example, as shown in FIG. 5A, the apex 24 may be located away from the center of the upper plate-shaped portion 21. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 5B, the apex 24 may be formed in a line.

[0041] As an example, when the battery case 1 is mounted on a vehicle, taking into consideration the positional relationship with other vehicle components, the top 24 may be positioned as high as possible so that the inclination angle of the inclined surface 25 becomes larger. With this configuration, the drainage performance can be further improved.

[0042] (2b) In the above embodiment, groove 27 has a portion that extends linearly from top 24 to a corresponding one of side portions 261, and a portion that branches off from the extending portion and extends linearly to the corresponding one of side portions 261. However, the portion to which groove 27 extends is not limited to the above, and it is sufficient that groove 27 extends toward peripheral portion 26. Groove 27 does not have to extend from top 24.

[0043] For example, as shown in Fig. 6A, the groove 27 may extend from a position between the apex 24 and a corner 262 of the peripheral portion 26 to join other grooves 27 at the peripheral portion 26. Alternatively, as shown in Fig. 6B, the groove 27 may extend from a position between the apex 24 and a corner 262 of the peripheral portion 26 toward the peripheral portion 26 to be parallel or perpendicular to the other grooves 27.

[0044] (2c) In the above embodiment, the upper plate-shaped portion 21 is a quadrangular pyramid-shaped member and has four inclined surfaces 25a, 25b, 25c, and 25d. Four grooves 27a, 27b, 27c, and 27d are formed as at least one groove 27 formed on each of the multiple inclined surfaces 25, corresponding to the four inclined surfaces 25a, 25b, 25c, and 25d, respectively. However, the number of inclined surfaces 25 and the number of grooves 27 that the upper plate-shaped portion 21 has are not limited to the above, and it is sufficient that at least one inclined surface 25 and at least one groove 27 are formed in the upper plate-shaped portion 21. It is sufficient that the groove 27 is formed on at least one inclined surface 25, and there may be an inclined surface 25 on which no groove 27 is formed. The number of grooves 27 formed on one inclined surface 25 may be one, or two or more.

[0045] For example, the upper plate-shaped portion 21 may be a cone-shaped member having one inclined surface 25 with at least one groove 27 formed in the inclined surface 25 . Alternatively, the upper plate-like portion 21 may be a polygonal pyramid-shaped member having a plurality of inclined surfaces 25, with at least one groove 27 formed in any one of the inclined surfaces 25. At least one groove 27 may be formed in two or more of the plurality of inclined surfaces 25. At least one groove 27 may be formed in all of the plurality of inclined surfaces 25.

[0046] (2d) In the above embodiment, the peripheral portion 26, which is the outer periphery of the upper plate-shaped portion 21, has a generally rectangular shape. However, the shape of the peripheral portion 26 is not limited to a generally rectangular shape and may be, for example, a polygonal shape. Alternatively, the shape of the peripheral portion 26 may be a shape having a circular arc.

[0047] (2e) Multiple functions possessed by one component in the above embodiments may be realized by multiple components, or one function possessed by one component may be realized by multiple components. Also, multiple functions possessed by multiple components may be realized by one component, or one function realized by multiple components may be realized by one component. Also, part of the configuration of the above embodiments may be omitted. Also, at least part of the configuration of the above embodiments may be added to or substituted for the configuration of another of the above embodiments.

[0048] [Technical idea disclosed in this specification] [Item 1] A battery case mounted on a vehicle, an upper member that is disposed vertically above the vehicle in a mounted state, the upper member has at least one inclined surface that slopes downward in the vertical direction toward a periphery of the upper member; The at least one inclined surface is a portion recessed downward in the vertical direction relative to the periphery and has at least one groove extending toward the periphery. Battery case.

[0049] [Item 2] The battery case according to item 1, The at least one groove extends linearly. Battery case.

[0050] [Item 3] The battery case according to item 1 or 2, The upper member is a press-molded product composed of a plate-shaped member. Battery case.

[0051] [Item 4] A battery case according to any one of items 1 to 3, In the mounted state, the upper member has a top portion located above the periphery in the vertical direction, The at least one inclined surface has a plurality of inclined surfaces extending in a plurality of directions from the top portion. Battery case.

[0052] [Item 5] Item 4. The battery case according to claim 1, Each of the plurality of inclined surfaces has the at least one groove. Battery case. [Explanation of symbols]

[0053] 1... Battery case, 2... Upper member, 25, 25a, 25b, 25c, 25d... Inclined surface, 26... Periphery, 27, 27a, 27b, 27c, 27d... Groove.

Claims

1. A battery case mounted on a vehicle, an upper member that is disposed vertically above the vehicle in a mounted state, the upper member has at least one inclined surface that slopes downward in the vertical direction toward a periphery of the upper member, The at least one inclined surface is a portion recessed downward in the vertical direction relative to the periphery and has at least one groove extending toward the periphery. Battery case.

2. 2. The battery case according to claim 1, The at least one groove extends linearly. Battery case.

3. 2. The battery case according to claim 1, The upper member is a press-molded product composed of a plate-shaped member. Battery case.

4. The battery case according to any one of claims 1 to 3, In the mounted state, the upper member has a top portion located above the periphery in the vertical direction, The at least one inclined surface has a plurality of inclined surfaces extending in a plurality of directions from the top portion. Battery case.

5. The battery case according to claim 4, Each of the plurality of inclined surfaces has the at least one groove. Battery case.

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