Wiring module

Abstract

To reduce a projection amount of a connector and a trunk line while keeping an excess length part.SOLUTION: A wiring module 20 comprises plural bus bars, plural circuit boards, plural voltage detection lines 40, a protector 50 for hosing the plural bus bars, the plural circuit boards and the plural voltage detection wires 40, and a connector 60 positioned outside the protector 50. A trunk line housing part 52 for housing a trunk line M integrally constituted by bundling the plural voltage detection wires 40, and a fixing part 58, at which the trunk line M is fixed to the protector 50, are provided inside the protector 50. The trunk line M has a straight line part M1 extending in the first direction, and an excess length part M2 obtained by shrinking one part of the straight line part M1. The trunk line housing part 52 has a straight line wiring area M1R, in which the straight line part M1 is wired, a lead-out port 56 for leading the trunk line M from inside to outside of the protector 50, and an excess wiring area M2R, which is arranged between the lead-out port 56 and the fixing part 58 and in which the excess length part M2 is wired.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

Technical Field

[0004] ,

[0002] , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

[0005] , , , , , , ,

[0003]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a wiring module.

Background Art

[0002] As a wiring module mounted on a vehicle such as an electric vehicle or a hybrid vehicle, for example, a wiring module described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2019-36471 (Patent Document 1 below) is known. This wiring module includes an insulation protector, a bus bar that connects electrodes of a pair of adjacent power storage elements, and a detection wire connected to the bus bar, and is placed on the upper surface of a power storage element group.

[0003] The insulation protector includes a terminal fitting housing portion that houses a plurality of bus bars, and a wire housing portion that houses a plurality of detection wires extending from the plurality of bus bars. The plurality of detection wires are bent backward in the wire housing portion and extend outward from a wire outlet formed in the rear wall of the wire housing portion. The plurality of detection wires extending outside the insulation protector become a trunk line configured integrally by being bundled, and a connector is provided at an extending end portion of the trunk line. The connector is configured to be fitted to a mating connector provided on an external device. A surplus length portion is set in the trunk line for performing the fitting operation of the connector and the mating connector. [[ID=,17]]

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] In the above-described wiring module, it is desirable to have an excess length extending beyond the insulating protector from the wire exit point in order to facilitate connection of the connector to the mating connector. In that case, the space required for arranging the wiring module will need to include space for the insulating protector in addition to space for the excess length. However, in recent years, there has been a demand for smaller spaces for arranging wiring modules. Therefore, it can sometimes be difficult to secure space for the excess length.

[0006] This disclosure was completed based on the circumstances described above, and aims to reduce the amount of protrusion of the connector and main cable while providing excess length. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The wiring module of the present disclosure is a wiring module to which a group of energy storage elements, each having electrode terminals, is arranged in a first direction, is attached, comprising: a plurality of busbars; a plurality of circuit boards; a plurality of voltage detection lines; a protector that holds the plurality of busbars, the plurality of circuit boards, and the plurality of voltage detection lines; and a connector located outside the protector, wherein the busbars are connected to the electrode terminals, the circuit boards are connected to the busbars, one end of the voltage detection lines is connected to the circuit boards, and the other end of the voltage detection lines is connected to the connector. The protector is provided with a main line housing section that houses a main line formed by bundling the plurality of voltage detection lines together, and a fixing section that fixes the main line to the protector. The main line has a straight section extending in the first direction and an excess length section formed by contracting a part of the straight section in the first direction. The main line housing section is a wiring module having a straight section routing area where the straight section is routed, an outlet for leading the main line from the inside of the protector to the outside, and an excess length routing area located between the outlet and the fixing section where the excess length section is routed. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to this disclosure, it is possible to reduce the amount of protrusion of the connector and main cable while providing excess length. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0009] [Figure 1] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram showing a vehicle equipped with an energy storage module according to Embodiment 1. [Figure 2] Figure 2 is a plan view of the wiring module and the group of energy storage elements. [Figure 3] Figure 3 is a plan view of the wiring module and energy storage element group with the cover removed. [Figure 4] Figure 4 is an enlarged plan view showing section A of Figure 3. [Figure 5] Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view of BB in Figure 4. [Figure 6] Figure 6 is a cross-sectional view of the CC shown in Figure 4. [Figure 7] Figure 7 is a cross-sectional view of Figure 4, taken from the DD. [Figure 8] Figure 8 is an enlarged plan view of Figure 4, excluding a portion of the main line and connectors. [Figure 9] Figure 9 is an enlarged plan view showing the connector extended to the outside by extending the excess length shown in Figure 4. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0010] [Description of Embodiments in this Disclosure] First, the embodiments of this disclosure will be listed and described. (1) The wiring module of the present disclosure is a wiring module to which a group of energy storage elements having electrode terminals is arranged in a first direction is attached, comprising: a plurality of busbars, a plurality of circuit boards, a plurality of voltage detection lines, a protector that holds the plurality of busbars, the plurality of circuit boards, and the plurality of voltage detection lines, and a connector located outside the protector, wherein the busbars are connected to the electrode terminals, the circuit boards are connected to the busbars, one end of the voltage detection line is connected to the circuit board, and the other end of the voltage detection line is connected to the connector. The protector is provided with a main line housing section that houses a main line formed by bundling the plurality of voltage detection lines together, and a fixing section that fixes the main line to the protector. The main line has a straight section extending in the first direction and an excess length section formed by contracting a part of the straight section in the first direction. The main line housing section has a straight section routing area where the straight section is routed, an outlet for leading the main line from the inside of the protector to the outside, and an excess length routing area located between the outlet and the fixing section where the excess length section is routed.

[0011] When mating the connector to the mating connector of an external device, pulling the connector in a first direction extends the excess length in that direction, allowing the main cable to be pulled out from the outlet to the outside of the protector. Since the main cable pulled out from the outlet functions as excess length, it becomes easier to mat the connector to the mating connector. Furthermore, after mating the connector to the mating connector, the excess length of the main cable can be housed in the excess length routing area by pushing the main cable in the first direction from the outside of the protector.

[0012] Because the main line is fixed to the protector by a fixing part, when the connector is pulled to draw the main line out from the outlet, the tensile stress is prevented from being transmitted to each voltage detection line. Also, if vibration is transmitted from the vehicle to the main line, the fixing part can suppress the vibration, thus preventing that vibration from being transmitted to each voltage detection line.

[0013] Since the trunk cable housing part having a slack cable laying area where the slack part of the trunk cable is laid is provided inside the protector, the connector can be arranged near the outlet on the outside of the protector. Also, when the connector is pulled to draw out the trunk cable from the outlet, the amount of protrusion of the connector and the trunk cable can be reduced. That is, the amount of protrusion of the connector and the trunk cable can be reduced while providing a slack part. Therefore, the space required for arranging the wiring module can be reduced.

[0014] (2) The protector has a bus bar housing part in which the plurality of bus bars are housed, and a board housing part which is arranged between the trunk cable housing part and the bus bar housing part and houses the circuit board. The slack part has a curved shape bulging in a direction approaching the bus bar housing part, and it is preferable that the slack cable laying area is located between the fixing part and the circuit board. The slack cable laying area can be set by effectively using the space between the fixing part and the circuit board. By doing so, the board housing part and the trunk cable housing part can be brought closer to each other, the wiring module can be miniaturized, and it is possible to respond to miniaturizing the battery pack and improving the energy density of the battery pack.

[0015] (3) The plurality of circuit boards are housed in the board housing part, and it is preferable that the slack cable laying area is located between the Nth circuit board and the (N + 1)th circuit board counted from the outlet side. Even when a plurality of circuit boards are housed in the board housing part, the slack cable laying area can be set by effectively using the space between the Nth circuit board and the (N + 1)th circuit board.

[0016] (4) The wiring module of the present disclosure further includes a temperature detection line. The plurality of circuit boards are configured to include a first circuit board connected to the bus bar and a second circuit board on which a temperature measurement element is mounted; the substrate housing portion houses a plurality of said first circuit boards and said second circuit board; one end of the temperature detection line is connected to the second circuit board, and the other end of the temperature detection line is connected to the connector; the main line is formed by bundling the plurality of voltage detection lines and the temperature detection line integrally; a wiring rib protruding in a second direction orthogonal to the first direction is provided on the bottom wall of the main line housing portion; the main line is wired away from the bottom wall of the main line housing portion in the second direction by the wiring rib, and preferably, the temperature detection line is wired between the main line and the bottom wall of the main line housing portion in the second direction.

[0017] When the main line is pulled out from the inside to the outside of the protector with both the temperature detection line and the main line housed in the main line housing portion, the temperature detection line may be dragged and pulled by the main line, which may impose a load on the connection portion between the temperature detection line and the second circuit board.

[0018] According to the above configuration, since the wiring rib is provided on the bottom wall of the main line housing portion, the main line is placed on the wiring rib and is wired at a position away from the bottom wall of the main line housing portion. On the other hand, since the temperature detection line is wired between the main line and the bottom wall of the main line housing portion in the second direction, the temperature detection line can be housed in the main line housing portion without contacting the main line. Therefore, when the main line is pulled out from the inside to the outside of the protector, it is possible to suppress the temperature detection line from being dragged and pulled by the main line, and thus it is possible to suppress imposing a load on the connection portion between the temperature detection line and the second circuit board.

[0019] [Details of Embodiments of the Present Disclosure] Embodiments of the present disclosure will be described below. The present disclosure is not limited to these examples, and is defined by the claims, and is intended to include all modifications within the meaning and scope equivalent to the claims.

[0020] [Embodiment] Embodiment 1 of this disclosure will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 9. The energy storage module 10 equipped with the wiring module 20 of this embodiment is applied to an energy storage pack 2 mounted on a vehicle 1, for example, as shown in Figure 1. The energy storage pack 2 is mounted on a vehicle 1 such as an electric vehicle or a hybrid vehicle and used as a power source for the vehicle 1. In the following description, for multiple identical components, only some components may be given reference numerals, and the reference numerals for other components may be omitted.

[0021] As shown in Figure 1, a power storage pack 2 is located near the center of vehicle 1. A Power Control Unit (PCU) 3 is located at the front of vehicle 1. The power storage pack 2 and the PCU 3 are connected by a wire harness 4. The power storage pack 2 and the wire harness 4 are connected by a connector (not shown). The power storage pack 2 has a power storage module 10 equipped with multiple power storage elements 11. In the following explanation, except for Figure 1, the direction indicated by arrow Z will be considered upward, the direction indicated by arrow X will be considered forward, and the direction indicated by arrow Y will be considered left.

[0022] As shown in Figure 2, the energy storage module 10 has a rectangular shape in plan view, which is long in the front-to-back direction (an example of a first direction) and short in the left-to-right direction (an example of a third direction), with a pair of energy storage modules 10 arranged side by side in the left-to-right direction. The energy storage module 10 comprises an energy storage element group 11G, in which energy storage elements 11 are arranged in the front-to-back direction, and a wiring module 20 attached to the upper surface of the energy storage element group 11G. The energy storage element 11 has a flat rectangular parallelepiped shape with energy storage elements housed inside. In Figures 2 and 3, the left energy storage module 10 shows the state with the busbar 30 removed. The energy storage element 11 has a pair of electrode terminals 11T located near the right end and near the left end of the upper surface. One of the pair of electrode terminals 11T is the positive electrode and the other is the negative electrode.

[0023] [Wiring Module] As shown in Figures 2 to 4, the wiring module 20 includes a busbar 30 connected to the electrode terminal 11T of the energy storage element 11, a first circuit board 21 connected to the busbar 30, a second circuit board 24 on which the temperature sensing element 26 is mounted, a voltage detection line 40 connected to the first circuit board 21, a temperature detection line 41 connected to the second circuit board 24, and a protector 50 that holds the busbar 30, the first circuit board 21, the second circuit board 24, the voltage detection line 40, and the temperature detection line 41. Note that the first circuit board 21 and the second circuit board 24 correspond to "circuit boards".

[0024] [Bus bar] The busbar 30 is made of a metal plate and has a rectangular shape when viewed from above. The busbar 30 includes a connecting busbar 30A that connects adjacent electrode terminals 11T in the stacking direction (front-to-back direction) of the multiple energy storage elements 11, and an output busbar 30B that is connected to the electrode terminals 11T of the energy storage elements 11 located at the ends in the stacking direction. The output busbar 30B connects the total positive or total negative electrodes of the multiple energy storage elements 11 to external equipment. The connection between the busbar 30 and the electrode terminals 11T is made by welding or the like. The busbar 30 is housed in the busbar housing section 51 of the protector 50, which will be described later.

[0025] [1st circuit board] In this embodiment, the first circuit board 21 is a flexible substrate, and is constructed by forming conductive paths on the surface of a flexible insulating sheet using printed wiring technology. The first circuit board 21 comprises a substrate body 22 and an extension portion 23 extending from the substrate body 22. The substrate body 22 has a roughly rectangular shape in plan view. The substrate body 22 is fixed to the mounting surface 54 of the protector 50, which will be described later. Although not described in detail, for example, the substrate body 22 is provided with through holes, and protrusions projecting from the mounting surface 54 are inserted into these through holes. The substrate body 22 is provided with a wire land 22A that is located at one end of the conductive path. The wire land 22A is connected to the voltage detection line 40 by soldering or the like.

[0026] The extension portion 23 is approximately U-shaped in plan view and is configured to be expandable and contractible. The provision of the extension portion 23 allows the end of the extension portion 23 opposite to the substrate body 22 (the tip) to be displaced by a predetermined dimension relative to the substrate body 22. The other end (not shown) of a conductive path is located at the tip of the extension portion 23. The other end of the conductive path is electrically connected to the busbar 30 via a small metal piece 15. Although not shown, a fuse or the like may be provided in the conductive path of the first circuit board 21.

[0027] [Second circuit board] In this embodiment, the second circuit board 24 is a flexible substrate, constructed by forming conductive paths on the surface of a flexible insulating sheet using printed wiring technology. The second circuit board 24 comprises a substrate body 25 and a temperature sensing element 26 mounted on a land on the substrate body 25. The substrate body 25 has a roughly T-shape in plan view. The substrate body 25 is fixed to the mounting surface 54 of the protector 50, which will be described later, similar to the substrate body 22 of the first circuit board 21. The substrate body 25 is provided with a wire land 25A, which is located at one end of the conductive path. The wire land 25A is connected to the temperature sensing wire 41 by soldering or the like. For example, a thermistor or a platinum resistance thermometer can be used as the temperature sensing element 26.

[0028] [Voltage detection wire, temperature detection wire] Since the voltage detection wire 40 connected to the first circuit board 21 and the temperature detection wire 41 connected to the second circuit board 24 have similar configurations, the voltage detection wire 40 will be used as a representative example for explanations of overlapping configurations. The voltage detection wire 40 has a well-known configuration in which a core wire made of multiple strands twisted together is covered with an insulating coating. Multiple voltage detection wires 40 and multiple temperature detection wires 41 are bundled together and wrapped in tape or housed in a corrugated tube to form a single main line M. The main line M is housed in the main line housing section 52 of the protector 50, which will be described later.

[0029] As shown in Figure 4, the main line M has a straight section M1 extending in the front-to-back direction and an excess section M2 formed by contracting a part of the straight section M1 in the front-to-back direction. The excess section M2 has a curved shape that bulges to the right (towards the busbar housing section 51).

[0030] Multiple voltage detection lines 40 are connected to a connector 60 at the end opposite to the first circuit board 21. This connector 60 is designed to mate with a mating connector provided on an external ECU (Electronic Control Unit), etc. The ECU is a well-known configuration equipped with a microcomputer, elements, etc., and has functions for detecting the voltage, current, temperature, etc. of each energy storage element 11, and for controlling the charging and discharging of each energy storage element 11.

[0031] The rear end of the protector 50 is provided with a connector housing 55 in which the connector 60 is housed. The connector housing 55 is a space formed by cutting out a part of the protector 50. The rear end of the connector housing 55 is aligned with the rear end of the protector 50. When the connector 60 is housed in the connector housing 55, the rear end of the connector 60 does not protrude behind the rear end of the protector 50.

[0032] [Protector] The protector 50 is made of an insulating synthetic resin. The protector 50 comprises a protector body 50A and a cover 50B that covers the protector body 50A from above. In this embodiment, two covers 50B (see Figure 2) are provided for one protector body 50A.

[0033] [Protector body] The protector body 50A is tray-shaped. As shown in Figure 3, the protector body 50A comprises a plurality of busbar housing sections 51 in which the busbars 30 are housed, a pair of main line housing sections 52 in which the main line M is housed, and a plurality of circuit board housing sections 53 arranged between the busbar housing sections 51 and the main line housing sections 52. The busbar housing sections 51 are provided at both ends of the protector body 50A in the left-right direction. The busbar housing sections 51 are frame-shaped and are arranged in a single row in the front-to-back direction, which are then separated into two rows in the left-to-right direction.

[0034] [Main line housing, outlet] Two main cable housing sections 52 are provided near the left and right center of the protector body 50A. The main cable housing sections 52 are groove-shaped and extend in the front-to-back direction. As shown in Figure 5, the main cable housing section 52 comprises a bottom wall 52A and a pair of side walls 52B that rise upward from both the left and right edges of the bottom wall 52A. As shown in Figure 4, a plurality of notches 52C are formed in the side wall 52B of the main cable housing section 52 on the substrate housing section 53 side. Voltage detection wires 40 and temperature detection wires 41 can be inserted between the substrate housing section 53 and the main cable housing section 52 through the notches 52C. An outlet 56 is provided at the rear end of the main cable housing section 52. The main cable M can be inserted into and removed from the main cable housing section 52 and the outside of the protector 50 through the outlet 56.

[0035] [Circuit board housing] The circuit board housing section 53 is frame-shaped and arranged in a single row in the front-to-back direction, which is then divided into two rows in the left-to-right direction. A pair of adjacent circuit board housing sections 53 are separated by a partition wall 57. One first circuit board 21 is housed in one circuit board housing section 53. The second circuit board 24 is housed only in the rearmost circuit board housing section 53, which houses both the first circuit board 21 and the second circuit board 24. The circuit board housing section 53 and the main line housing section 52 are separated by a right-side wall 52B, and a portion of this right-side wall 52B is a curved wall 52D formed to curve towards the busbar housing section 51. The curved wall 52D is formed only in the rearmost circuit board housing section 53. The voltage detection line 40 extending from the first circuit board 21 and the temperature detection line 41 extending from the second circuit board 24 travel along the curved wall 52D toward the busbar housing section 51, then toward the main line housing section 52, and are led out to the second-to-last board housing section 53 through an opening 57A formed in the partition wall 57.

[0036] The second to last board housing section 53 houses one first circuit board 21, and the voltage detection line 40 extending from this first circuit board 21 merges with the voltage detection line 40 and temperature detection line 41 led out from the last board housing section 53, then heads towards the main line housing section 52, and is led out to the main line housing section 52 via the notch 52C in the side wall 52B.

[0037] [Fixed part, straight line routing area, extra length routing area] The voltage detection wire 40 and temperature detection wire 41, which are led out from the second-to-last board housing section 53, merge with the voltage detection wire 40 led out from the third-to-last board housing section 53 and then routed towards the rear. The merged voltage detection wire 40 and temperature detection wire 41 are bundled together by tape winding or the like to form a main line M, which is then routed towards the rear as the main line M.

[0038] The main cable M is fixed to the protector 50 by a fixing part 58. The fixing part 58 is made up of, for example, a cable tie and is fixed to the protector 50 by being wrapped around the main cable M. The fixing part 58 is provided adjacent to the rear side of the notch 52C that connects the second-to-last substrate housing part 53 and the main cable housing part 52. Therefore, the front end of the main cable M is located between the notch 52C and the fixing part 58.

[0039] The main cable housing section 52 has a linear cable routing region M1R where the linear section M1 is routed, and an excess cable routing region M2R located between the outlet 56 and the fixed section 58 where the excess cable section M2 is routed. Since the main cable housing section 52 is provided inside the protector 50, the linear cable routing region M1R and the excess cable routing region M2R are also located inside the protector 50. The excess cable routing region M2R is located, for example, between the first circuit board 21, which is located between the fixed section 58 and the outlet 56, and the fixed section 58. Alternatively, the excess cable routing region M2R may be located between the Nth circuit board and the (N+1)th circuit board, counting from the outlet 56 side. Hereinafter, "N" is an integer. For example, the excess cable routing region M2R is located between the fixing portion 58 and the first first circuit board 21 counting from the outlet 56 side, and more specifically, between the first first circuit board 21 and the second first circuit board 21 counting from the outlet 56 side. In this embodiment, the excess cable routing region M2R is formed by effectively utilizing the extra space located between the partition wall 57 and the first circuit board 21 in the rearmost board housing portion 53.

[0040] The excess length portion M2 of the main cable M is located in the excess cable routing region M2R when the connector 60 is housed in the connector housing portion 55, and is routed along the curved wall 52D in a V-shape. As shown in Figure 7, the apex of the excess cable portion M2 is located closer to the busbar housing portion 51 than the left-right center of the excess cable routing region M2R. As a result, the substrate housing portion 53 is narrower in the left-right direction near the apex of the excess cable portion M2. In addition, although the main cable M is sharply bent in the excess cable routing region M2R and a reaction force is generated, the main cable M is not expected to protrude outside the protector 50 because it is surrounded from the top and bottom direction (an example of a second direction) by the protector body 50A and cover 50B.

[0041] As shown in Figure 9, when the connector 60 is pulled backward and protrudes from the connector housing 55, the excess length M2 is pulled straight, and the main wire M in the main wire housing 52 consists only of the straight section M1. As a result, the connector 60 and a part of the main wire M protrude backward from the outlet 56 of the protector 50 and can move freely, allowing mating with the mating connector to be performed. In addition, since the main wire M is fixed by the fixing part 58, when the main wire M is pulled backward, the tensile stress is not transmitted to each voltage detection line 40 and each temperature detection line 41.

[0042] In this embodiment, as shown in Figure 3, the wiring module 20 is long in the front-to-back direction, and all voltage detection lines 40 are routed toward the connector 60. Considering the dimensional tolerances and assembly tolerances of each voltage detection line 40, the excess length section M2 is an essential configuration to absorb these cumulative tolerances. Since such an excess length section M2 is provided inside the protector 50, the wiring module 20 can be miniaturized, resulting in a configuration that can accommodate miniaturization of the battery pack and, consequently, improvement of the battery pack's energy density.

[0043] [Ribbed cable] As shown in Figure 8, a cable routing rib 59 is provided on the bottom wall 52A of the main cable housing section 52. The cable routing rib 59 is located between the curved wall 52D and the second circuit board 24 in the front-rear direction. As shown in Figure 5, the cable routing rib 59 is provided projecting upward from the bottom wall 52A of the main cable housing section 52. The cable routing rib 59 is positioned with a gap between it and both side walls 52B of the main cable housing section 52. As a result, a detection wire housing groove 59A is formed between the side surface of the cable routing rib 59 and the opposing side wall 52B.

[0044] A pair of detection wire housing grooves 59A are provided on both the left and right sides of the routing rib 59. The temperature detection wires 41 are housed in the detection wire housing grooves 59A. On the other hand, the main wire M is placed on the upper surface of the routing rib 59, as shown in Figures 5 and 6. The main wire M is routed vertically away from the bottom wall 52A of the main wire housing section 52 by the routing rib 59, and the temperature detection wires 41 are routed vertically between the main wire M and the bottom wall 52A of the main wire housing section 52. In this way, contact between the main wire M and the pair of temperature detection wires 41 can be avoided. Therefore, when the connector 60 is pulled backward and the main wire M is pulled backward, the temperature detection wires 41 are dragged backward by the main wire M, and a load on the connection between the temperature detection wires 41 and the wire land 25A can be avoided.

[0045] As shown in Figure 8, the pair of temperature sensing wires 41 are housed in a pair of sensing wire housing grooves 59A, passing through a pair of notches 52C on the rear side of the wiring rib 59. After passing through the wiring rib 59, they are led out to the substrate housing section 53 through a pair of notches 52C on the front side of the wiring rib 59. Subsequently, the pair of temperature sensing wires 41 merge with the pair of voltage sensing wires 40 and proceed forward along the right side of the curved wall 52D, and are led out to the adjacent substrate housing section 53 through the opening 57A of the partition wall 57.

[0046] [Effects of the Embodiment] According to the embodiment, the following actions and effects are achieved.

[0047] The wiring module 20 according to the embodiment is a wiring module 20 attached to a group of energy storage elements 11G, which is composed of a plurality of energy storage elements 11 having electrode terminals 11T arranged in the front-to-back direction, and comprises a plurality of bus bars 30, a plurality of circuit boards, a plurality of voltage detection lines 40, a protector 50 that holds the plurality of bus bars 30, the plurality of circuit boards, and the plurality of voltage detection lines 40, and a connector 60 located outside the protector 50, wherein the bus bars 30 are connected to the electrode terminals 11T, the circuit boards are connected to the bus bars 30, one end of the voltage detection line 40 is connected to the circuit board, and the other end of the voltage detection line 40 is connected to the Connected to the connector 60, the protector 50 is provided with a main line housing section 52 that houses a main line M formed by bundling multiple voltage detection lines 40 together, and a fixing section 58 that fixes the main line M to the protector 50. The main line M has a straight section M1 that extends in the front-rear direction and an excess length section M2 that is a part of the straight section M1 that has been contracted in the front-rear direction. The main line housing section 52 has a straight routing area M1R in which the straight section M1 is routed, an outlet 56 that leads the main line M from the inside to the outside of the protector 50, and an excess length routing area M2R that is located between the outlet 56 and the fixing section 58 and in which the excess length section M2 is routed.

[0048] When the connector 60 is mated to the mating connector of an external device, the excess length M2 is extended in the front-to-back direction by pulling the connector 60 in the front-to-back direction, allowing the main wire M to be pulled out from the outlet 56 to the outside of the protector 50. The main wire M pulled out from the outlet 56 functions as excess length, making it easier to mate the connector 60 to the mating connector. Furthermore, after the connector 60 is mated to the mating connector, the excess length M2 of the main wire M can be accommodated in the excess length routing area M2R by pushing the main wire M in the front-to-back direction from the outside of the protector 50.

[0049] Since the main line M is fixed to the protector 50 by the fixing part 58, when the connector 60 is pulled to draw out the main line M from the outlet 56, the tensile stress can be prevented from being transmitted to each voltage detection line 40. Also, if vibration is transmitted from the vehicle 1 to the main line M, the fixing part 58 can suppress the vibration, thus preventing that vibration from being transmitted to each voltage detection line 40.

[0050] Since the main line housing section 52, which has an excess length routing area M2R where the excess length M2 of the main line M is routed, is provided inside the protector 50, the connector 60 can be positioned near the outlet 56 outside the protector 50. Furthermore, when the connector 60 is pulled to draw the main line M out from the outlet 56, the amount of protrusion of the connector 60 and the main line M can be reduced. In other words, the amount of protrusion of the connector 60 and the main line M can be reduced while still providing the excess length M2. Therefore, the space required for arranging the wiring module 20 can be reduced.

[0051] The protector 50 has a busbar housing section 51 that accommodates a plurality of busbars 30, and a board housing section 53 that is positioned between the main line housing section 52 and the busbar housing section 51 and accommodates a circuit board. The excess length section M2 has a curved shape that bulges in the direction approaching the busbar housing section 51, and it is preferable that the excess length routing region M2R is located between the fixing section 58 and the circuit board.

[0052] The space between the fixing part 58 and the circuit board can be effectively utilized to set the excess wiring area M2R. In this way, the board housing part 53 and the main line housing part 52 can be brought closer together, allowing for miniaturization of the wiring module 20 and enabling miniaturization of the battery pack to improve the energy density of the battery pack.

[0053] The substrate housing section 53 houses multiple circuit boards, and it is preferable that the excess length routing region M2R is located between the Nth circuit board and the (N+1)th circuit board, counting from the outlet 56 side.

[0054] Even when multiple circuit boards are housed in the board housing section 53, the space between the Nth first circuit board 21 and the (N+1)th first circuit board 21 can be effectively utilized to set the excess wiring area M2R.

[0055] The above wiring module further comprises a temperature sensing wire 41, and the plurality of circuit boards are configured to include a first circuit board 21 connected to a busbar and a second circuit board 24 on which a temperature sensing element 26 is mounted, and the plurality of first circuit boards 21 and second circuit boards 24 are housed in the board housing section 53, one end of the temperature sensing wire 41 is connected to the second circuit board 24 and the other end of the temperature sensing wire 41 is connected to a connector 60, the main line M is formed by bundling a plurality of voltage sensing wires 40 and temperature sensing wires 41 together, the bottom wall 52A of the main line housing section 52 is provided with routing ribs 59 that protrude in the vertical direction perpendicular to the front-rear direction, the main line M is routed away from the bottom wall 52A of the main line housing section 52 in the vertical direction by the routing ribs 59, and it is preferable that the temperature sensing wire 41 is routed between the main line M and the bottom wall 52A of the main line housing section 52 in the vertical direction.

[0056] If the main line M is pulled out from inside the protector 50 to the outside while both the temperature sensing line 41 and the main line M are housed in the main line housing section 52, the temperature sensing line 41 may be dragged and pulled by the main line M, potentially putting a load on the connection between the temperature sensing line 41 and the second circuit board 24.

[0057] According to the above configuration, since routing ribs 59 are provided on the bottom wall 52A of the main line housing section 52, the main line M rests on the routing ribs 59 and is routed at a position away from the bottom wall 52A of the main line housing section 52. On the other hand, since the temperature sensing wire 41 is routed between the main line M and the bottom wall 52A of the main line housing section 52 in the vertical direction, the temperature sensing wire 41 can be housed in the main line housing section 52 without coming into contact with the main line M. Therefore, when the main line M is pulled out from inside to outside the protector 50, it is possible to suppress the temperature sensing wire 41 from being dragged and pulled by the main line M, and thus it is possible to suppress the load on the connection between the temperature sensing wire 41 and the second circuit board 24.

[0058] <Other Embodiments> (1) In the above embodiment, the protector 50 comprises a protector body 50A and a cover 50B, but is not limited to this, and the protector may be composed of a single component.

[0059] (2) In the above embodiment, the first circuit board 21 and the second circuit board 24 were flexible substrates, but the invention is not limited to this, and the first circuit board and the second circuit board may be rigid substrates.

[0060] (3) In the above embodiment, an example was given in which the excess length portion M2 has a curved shape that bulges in the direction approaching the busbar housing portion 51, but the shape of the excess length portion is not limited to this. For example, the excess length portion may have any shape that is expandable and contractible in the first direction, and may be coil-shaped or wave-shaped.

[0061] (4) In the above embodiment, the example is shown in which the temperature sensing wire 41 is housed in the sensing wire housing groove 59A, but it is also possible that a part of the temperature sensing wire 41 is housed in the sensing wire housing groove 59A within a range that does not come into contact with the main line M.

[0062] (5) In the above embodiment, a wiring module 20 having only one second circuit board 24 was illustrated, but a wiring module having multiple second circuit boards 24 may also be provided. [Explanation of symbols]

[0063] 1: Vehicle 2: Energy storage pack 3: PCU 4: Wire harness 10: Energy storage module 11: Energy storage element 11G: Group of energy storage elements 11T: Electrode terminal 15: Metal piece 20: Wiring module 21: First circuit board (circuit board) 22: Main board 22A: Wire pad 23: Extension part 24: Second circuit board (circuit board) 25: Main board 25A: Wire pad 26: Temperature sensing element 30: Busbar 30A: Connection busbar 30B: Output busbar 40: Voltage detection line 41: Temperature detection line 50: Protector 50A: Protector body 50B: Cover 51: Busbar housing 52: Main line housing 52A: Bottom wall 52B: Side wall 52C: Notch 52D: Curved wall 53: Circuit board housing 54: Mounting surface 55: Connector housing 56: Outlet 57: Partition wall 57A: Opening 58: Fixing part 59: Cable routing rib 59A: Detection wire housing groove 60: Connector M: Main line M1: Straight section M2: Extra length section M1R: Straight line routing area M2R: Extra length routing area

Claims

1. A wiring module to which a group of energy storage elements, each having electrode terminals, is attached, is configured in a first direction, Multiple busbars, Multiple circuit boards, Multiple voltage detection lines, The plurality of busbars, the plurality of circuit boards, and the protector that holds the plurality of voltage detection lines, The protector comprises a connector located outside the protector, The busbar is connected to the electrode terminal, The circuit board is connected to the busbar, One end of the voltage detection line is connected to the circuit board, and the other end of the voltage detection line is connected to the connector. The protector is provided with a trunk line housing section in which the trunk line, which is formed by bundling the multiple voltage detection lines together, is housed, and a fixing section in which the trunk line is fixed to the protector. The main line has a straight section extending in the first direction and an excess length section formed by contracting a part of the straight section in the first direction. The main line housing section has a straight line routing area in which the straight section is routed, an outlet for leading the main line from the inside of the protector to the outside, and an excess length routing area located between the outlet and the fixed section in which the excess length is routed. The second direction is perpendicular to the first direction, and the third direction is perpendicular to both the first and second directions. The main line housing section comprises a bottom wall and a pair of side walls rising in the second direction from both ends of the bottom wall in the third direction, The excess length portion in the excess length wiring region is a wiring module housed within the range of the side wall of the main line housing in the second direction.

2. The protector has a busbar housing section that accommodates the plurality of busbars, and a board housing section that is positioned between the main line housing section and the busbar housing section and accommodates the circuit board, and the excess length section has a curved shape that bulges in the direction toward the busbar housing section. The wiring module according to claim 1, wherein the excess wiring region is located between the fixing portion and the circuit board.

3. The aforementioned circuit board housing section houses the plurality of circuit boards. The wiring module according to claim 2, wherein the excess wiring region is located between the Nth circuit board and the (N+1)th circuit board, counting from the outlet side.

4. A wiring module to which a group of energy storage elements, each having electrode terminals, is attached, is configured in a first direction, Multiple busbars, Multiple circuit boards, Multiple voltage detection lines, The plurality of busbars, the plurality of circuit boards, and the protector that holds the plurality of voltage detection lines, The protector comprises a connector located outside the protector, The busbar is connected to the electrode terminal, The circuit board is connected to the busbar, One end of the voltage detection line is connected to the circuit board, and the other end of the voltage detection line is connected to the connector. The protector is provided with a trunk line housing section in which the trunk line, which is formed by bundling the multiple voltage detection lines together, is housed, and a fixing section in which the trunk line is fixed to the protector. The main line has a straight section extending in the first direction and an excess length section formed by contracting a part of the straight section in the first direction. The main line housing section has a straight line routing area in which the straight section is routed, an outlet for leading the main line from the inside of the protector to the outside, and an excess length routing area located between the outlet and the fixed section in which the excess length is routed. The protector has a busbar housing section that accommodates the plurality of busbars, and a board housing section that is positioned between the main line housing section and the busbar housing section and accommodates the circuit board, and the excess length section has a curved shape that bulges in the direction toward the busbar housing section. The aforementioned excess cable routing region is located between the fixing portion and the circuit board. The aforementioned circuit board housing section houses the plurality of circuit boards. The excess cable routing region is located between the Nth circuit board and the (N+1)th circuit board, counting from the outlet side. It also has a temperature detection line, The plurality of circuit boards are configured to include a first circuit board connected to the busbar and a second circuit board on which a temperature measuring element is mounted. The substrate housing section houses a plurality of the first circuit boards and the second circuit board, One end of the temperature sensing wire is connected to the second circuit board, and the other end of the temperature sensing wire is connected to the connector. The main line is formed by bundling together the plurality of voltage detection lines and the temperature detection line, The bottom wall of the main cable housing section is provided with cable routing ribs that protrude in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction. A wiring module in which the main line is routed away from the bottom wall of the main line housing in the second direction by the routing ribs, and the temperature sensing line is routed between the main line and the bottom wall of the main line housing in the second direction.

Images