Harness attachment structure

Abstract

This harness attachment structure for a vehicle comprises: a drive unit that drives the vehicle; and a battery unit that supplies electric power to the drive unit through a harness. The drive unit comprises a drive motor that is disposed closer to the vehicle rear side as compared to the battery unit and that drives drive wheels, and an inverter unit that converts the electric power of the battery unit and supplies the converted electric power to the drive motor. One end of the harness is configured as a first connection part connected to the battery unit toward the vehicle front side at the rear part of the battery unit, and the other end is configured as a second connection part connected to the inverter unit in the vehicle width direction at a lateral portion of the inverter unit. The harness is arranged so as to bend at least in the vehicle width direction between the first connection part and the second connection part.

Description

Harness mounting structure

[0001] The present invention relates to a harness mounting structure.

[0002] An electric vehicle travels by converting electric power supplied from a battery by an inverter unit into electric power suitable for driving a drive motor, and driving the drive motor.

[0003] JP2016-159816A discloses a configuration in which an inverter unit attached to a suspension member and a battery pack attached to a side member are electrically connected via a high-voltage harness, in which the high-voltage harness connected to the inverter-side connector is extended in the vehicle width direction, which intersects with the vehicle's fore-and-aft direction.

[0004] When a vehicle is traveling, the inverter unit attached to the suspension member swings, causing the high-voltage harness to swing. In the above-mentioned patent document, the high-voltage harness is disposed between the battery pack and the inverter unit, but because there is little space between the battery pack and the inverter unit, it is not easy to provide the high-voltage harness with sufficient slack. This makes it difficult to take measures to prevent the high-voltage harness from swinging.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and has as its object to provide a harness mounting structure that allows for a slack in the length of the harness.

[0006] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the present invention is applied to a harness mounting structure for a vehicle including a drive unit that drives the vehicle and a battery unit that supplies power to the drive unit via a harness. The drive unit is disposed rearward of the battery unit and includes a drive motor that drives drive wheels and an inverter unit that converts power from the battery unit and supplies it to the drive motor. One end of the harness is configured as a first connection portion that is connected to the battery unit at the rear of the battery unit and faces forward of the vehicle, and the other end is configured as a second connection portion that is connected to the inverter unit at a side of the inverter unit and faces in the vehicle width direction. The harness is routed so as to curve at least in the vehicle width direction between the first connection portion and the second connection portion.

[0007] Fig. 1 is an explanatory diagram of an electric vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 2 is an explanatory diagram of a rear drive unit. Fig. 3 is an explanatory diagram of a rear drive unit. Fig. 4 is an explanatory diagram of a first bracket. Fig. 5 is an explanatory diagram of a second bracket. Fig. 6 is a top view of the rear drive unit. Fig. 7 is a top view of the vehicle interior.

[0008] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0009] FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of the entire drive system of an electric vehicle 1 equipped with a rear drive unit 20 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0010] The electric vehicle 1 (hereinafter referred to as the vehicle 1) is configured to include a rear drive unit 20, a battery unit 30, and a front drive unit 40.

[0011] The rear drive unit 20 is disposed rearward of the vehicle relative to the battery unit 30. A harness 35 is connected to the rear drive unit 20 to supply DC power from the battery unit 30.

[0012] The rear drive unit 20 is configured as an electric power train that integrally includes an inverter unit 21, a drive motor 22, and a reduction gear 23. The rear drive unit 20 drives the drive motor 22 based on power supplied from the battery unit 30, thereby rotating the drive wheels 15 (see FIG. 3 ) and driving the vehicle 1.

[0013] The inverter unit 21 converts the power supplied from the battery unit 30 into power suitable for driving the drive motor 22 and supplies the power to the drive motor 22 .

[0014] The drive motor 22 is configured by a rotating electric machine such as a permanent magnet embedded synchronous motor or a field winding synchronous motor.

[0015] The reducer 23 is configured with a plurality of gears that reduce the rotation speed of the drive motor 22 and transmit the reduced rotation speed to the axle. The reducer 23 may be configured as a transmission that can switch between a plurality of gear positions stepwise or continuously.

[0016] The battery unit 30 is disposed on the floor between the front and rear wheels of the vehicle 1. The battery unit 30 is configured to have a plurality of battery modules therein. A harness 35 is connected to the rear of the battery unit 30. In addition, a charging port 56 and a charging cable 55 for charging the battery are provided on the rear right side of the battery unit 30.

[0017] The harness 35 is composed of a pair of positive and negative conductors each made of a conductor such as copper or aluminum with an insulating coating, and is connected to the inverter unit 21 and the battery unit 30, respectively.

[0018] A front drive unit 40 that drives the front wheels is provided at the front side (motor compartment) of vehicle 1. Similar to rear drive unit 20, front drive unit 40 includes a drive motor and an inverter unit that supplies power to the drive motor. A front harness 45 for supplying power is connected between front drive unit 40 and battery unit 30.

[0019] Next, the harness 35 disposed between the rear drive unit 20 and the battery unit 30 will be described.

[0020] When vehicle 1 is traveling, vibrations input from the road surface via the suspension, etc., and vibrations of rear drive unit 20 itself, etc., cause rear drive unit 20 to swing relative to battery unit 30 fixed to the vehicle body. To prevent deformation or damage caused by stress due to this swing, harness 35 connected to rear drive unit 20 desirably has a sufficient length to allow for swing.

[0021] Meanwhile, the rear drive unit 20 is located in front of the battery unit 30, with a floor panel 100 located directly above it (see FIG. 3 ). Thus, the rear drive unit 20 and the battery unit 30 are located close to each other in the vehicle's fore-and-aft direction at the rear of the vehicle 1, and due to layout constraints, there is insufficient space between the rear drive unit 20 and the battery unit 30. Furthermore, a cross member 85 is also located between the rear drive unit 20 and the battery unit 30, running across the vehicle width (see FIG. 3 ). Therefore, some ingenuity is required to position the harness 35 so that it has sufficient slack. Furthermore, the harness 35 is a relatively thick conductor that allows the voltage (e.g., 400 V DC) of the battery unit 30 to flow, making it less flexible and requiring a large slack length to allow for swinging.

[0022] In this embodiment, a slack length is provided for the swinging of the harness 35 by using a configuration as will be described below.

[0023] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the rear of the vehicle, focusing on the rear drive unit 20 of this embodiment.

[0024] A pair of suspension members 80 extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle are disposed on the left and right sides of the rear drive unit 20. The suspension members 80 support the inverter unit 21, drive motor 22, and reducer 23, which are integrally constructed.

[0025] One end of the harness 35 is configured as a first connection portion 351 that is connected to the battery-side connector 31 of the battery unit 30. The battery unit 30 has an upright portion 32 formed on the upper surface of its rear portion, which is positioned to the left in the vehicle width direction. The battery-side connector 31 is disposed on the rear end surface of the upright portion 32. The first connection portion 351 of the harness 35 is connected to the battery-side connector 31 toward the front of the vehicle.

[0026] The other end of the harness 35 is configured as a second connection portion 355 that is connected to the inverter-side connector 26 of the inverter unit 21. The inverter-side connector 26 is disposed on the left side of the inverter unit 21. The second connection portion 355 of the harness 35 is connected to the inverter-side connector 26 toward the right in the vehicle width direction. Note that the battery-side connector 31 is configured to be located further to the left in the vehicle width direction than the inverter-side connector 26.

[0027] In this way, the harness 35 is connected to the battery side connector 31 located on the left side of the battery unit 30 and the inverter side connector 26 located on the left side of the rear drive unit 20 .

[0028] The harness 35 is configured to curve left and right between the first connection portion 351 and the second connection portion 355, i.e., in the space behind the battery unit 30 and to the side of the rear drive unit 20 in the vehicle width direction.

[0029] Specifically, as shown in Figures 1 and 2, the harness 35 is composed of a first extension portion 352 that curves to the right from the first connection portion 351 and extends in the vehicle width direction, a second extension portion 353 that curves rearward from the first extension portion 352 and extends rearward while passing above the suspension member 80, and a third extension portion 354 that curves in a U-shape from the second extension portion 353 and faces forward, and then turns to the right and communicates with the second connection portion 355.

[0030] In this way, the harness 35 is routed while curving in the vehicle width direction between the first connection portion 351 and the second connection portion 355, so that the harness 35 can have a sufficient length to accommodate swinging.

[0031] 2, the first extension 352 of the harness 35 is fixed to the upper surface of the battery unit 30 via the first bracket 41. The second extension 353 of the harness 35 is fixed to the upper surface of the suspension member 80 via the second bracket 42. By fixing the harness 35 midway by the first bracket 41 and the second bracket 42, the position of the harness 35 is defined between the battery unit 30 and the rear drive unit 20, and excessive swinging of the harness 35 is suppressed.

[0032] Next, the vertical position of the harness 35 between the battery unit 30 and the rear drive unit 20 will be described.

[0033] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the rear drive unit 20 and its vicinity.

[0034] 3, a cross member 85 is disposed above and between the battery unit 30 and the rear drive unit 20. The cross member 85 is formed integrally with a floor panel 100.

[0035] The harness 35 is arranged in the second extension portion 353 so as to pass under the cross member 85 from the front to the rear of the vehicle. Here, the position (ground clearance) of the inverter-side connector 26 of the rear drive unit 20 is configured to be higher than the position (ground clearance) of the battery-side connector 31 of the battery unit 30.

[0036] In this way, when the positions of the inverter-side connector 26 and the battery-side connector 31 differ, the positions in the up-down direction of the first connection portion 351 of the harness 35 connected to the battery-side connector 31 and the second connection portion 355 of the harness 35 connected to the inverter-side connector 26 also differ. With this configuration, the harness 35 can be bent not only in the vehicle width direction but also in the up-down direction.

[0037] In addition, the position in the vehicle width direction where the harness 35 passes through the cross member 85 (indicated by S in Figure 6) is positioned further outward in the vehicle width direction than the position in the vehicle width direction of the inverter side connector 26 where the harness 35 is connected to the inverter unit 21 (indicated by T in Figure 6).

[0038] With this configuration, even if a large load is input to the vehicle 1 during a collision or the like, causing the battery unit 30 and rear drive unit 20 to come close to each other, the harness 35 is prevented from being pinched by the cross member 85 or these structures, thereby suppressing damage to the harness 35. Furthermore, because the harness 35 is not located above the cross member 85, the passenger compartment space above the cross member 85 is not sacrificed.

[0039] Next, the configurations of the first bracket 41 and the second bracket 42 will be described.

[0040] FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of the vicinity of the first extension portion 352 to which the first bracket 41 of this embodiment is fixed, and FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of the vicinity of the second extension portion 353 to which the second bracket 42 is fixed.

[0041] 4 , the first bracket 41 is composed of a support portion 41a that supports the first extension portion 352 of the harness 35, and a fixing portion 41b that is a plate-like member extending from the support portion 41a and fixed to the battery unit 30. The support portion 41a is an annular member made of resin or the like. The support portion 41a supports the first extension portion 352 by being fitted onto the outside of the first extension portion 352. The fixing portion 41b is an elongated plate-like member made of metal or resin. One end of the fixing portion 41b is fixed to the upper surface of the battery unit 30, and the other end of the fixing portion 41b is fixed to the support portion 41a.

[0042] 5, the second bracket 42 is made up of a support portion 42a that supports the second extension portion 353 of the harness 35, and a fixed portion 42b that is a plate-like member extending from the support portion 42a and fixed to the suspension member 80. The support portion 42a is an annular member made of resin or the like. The support portion 42a supports the second extension portion 353 by being fitted onto the outside of the second extension portion 353. The fixed portion 42b is a long plate-like member made of metal or resin. One end of the fixed portion 42b is fixed to the upper surface of the suspension member 80, and the other end of the fixed portion 42b is fixed to the support portion 42a.

[0043] In this way, the harness 35 is fixed to the first bracket 41 and the second bracket 42 at the first extension portion 352 and the second extension portion 353, respectively, thereby ensuring a swinging margin for the harness 35 while preventing the harness 35 from swinging more than necessary.

[0044] Furthermore, since the harness 35 is supported by the first bracket 41 and the second bracket 42 via the fixed portions 41b and 42b, which are long plate-shaped members, these can elastically deform and cushion the swinging of the harness 35.

[0045] Furthermore, because the first bracket 41 and the second bracket 42 are fixed to the upper surface of the battery unit 30 and the upper surface of the suspension member 80, respectively, at least one of the support portion 42a and the fixing portion 42b of the second bracket 42 is configured to be higher than at least one of the support portion 41a and the fixing portion 41b of the first bracket 41. With this configuration, the harness 35 can be bent not only in the vehicle width direction but also in the up-down direction between the first bracket 41 and the second bracket 42 to which the harness 35 is fixed. Note that the position of the first bracket 41 in the vehicle width direction is located to the right of the position of the second bracket 42 in the vehicle width direction.

[0046] Next, the configuration of the battery-side connector 31 of the battery unit 30 will be described.

[0047] FIG. 6 is a top view of the rear drive unit 20 and its vicinity in this embodiment, and FIG. 7 is a top view of the rear seat B and its vicinity in the vehicle interior.

[0048] The battery-side connector 31 of the battery unit 30 is disposed on an upright portion 32 that stands on the upper surface of the rear portion of the battery unit 30. As described above, the space between the battery unit 30 and the rear drive unit 20 is not large, which poses a problem in that the workability of removing the harness 35 is low when performing maintenance on the battery unit 30 or the rear drive unit 20.

[0049] Therefore, in this embodiment, a service hole 110 that can communicate with the battery unit 30 from the inside of the vehicle compartment is provided in the floor panel 100 located directly above the battery unit 30.

[0050] The service hole 110 is configured as an opening that is connected from the top of the floor panel 100 to the standing portion 32 of the battery unit 30, directly above the standing portion 32 on which the battery-side connector 31 is provided. A cover 111 is fixed to the service hole 110 by bolting.

[0051] 7, the service hole 110 is positioned in the vehicle interior so as to be located below the rear seat B. With this configuration, in order to access the battery-side connector 31 of the standing portion 32, it is necessary to remove the rear seat B and remove the bolts of the cover 111, and this prevents passengers of the vehicle 1 from accidentally touching the harness 35 and the battery-side connector 31, which are high-voltage parts.

[0052] As described above, the vehicle 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention includes the rear drive unit 20 that drives the vehicle 1 and the battery unit 30 that supplies power to the rear drive unit 20 via the harness 35. The rear drive unit 20 is disposed rearward of the battery unit 30 and includes the drive motor 22 that drives the drive wheels 15 and the inverter unit 21 that converts the power of the battery unit 30 and supplies it to the drive motor 22. One end of the harness 35 is configured as a first connection portion 351 that is connected to the battery unit 30 at the rear of the battery unit 30 toward the front of the vehicle, and the other end is configured as a second connection portion 355 that is connected to the inverter unit 21 at a side of the inverter unit 21 toward the vehicle width direction. The harness 35 is routed so as to curve at least in the vehicle width direction between the first connection portion 351 and the second connection portion 355.

[0053] In this configuration, the harness 35 is connected toward the front of the vehicle at the rear of the battery unit 30, and is also connected toward the width of the vehicle at the side of the rear drive unit 20. As a result, the harness 35 is routed so as to curve in the width direction of the vehicle, using the space behind the battery unit 30 and the space to the side of the rear drive unit 20 in the width direction of the vehicle. As a result, the harness length of the harness 35 can be made to have some slack in the width direction of the vehicle between the battery unit 30 and the rear drive unit 20, so that stress on the harness 35 can be alleviated even if the rear drive unit 20 swings.

[0054] In addition, in this embodiment, the harness 35 has a first extension portion 352 that curves from the first connection portion 351 and extends in the vehicle width direction, a second extension portion 353 that curves from the first extension portion 352 and extends toward the rear of the vehicle, and a third extension portion 354 that curves from the second extension portion 353 and extends in the vehicle width direction before reaching the second connection portion 355, and the first extension portion 352 is fixed to the battery unit 30, and the second extension portion 353 is fixed to the rear drive unit 20.

[0055] In this configuration, the harness 35 is routed while being curved between the first connecting portion 351 and the second connecting portion 355, so that the curved portion of the harness 35 can have a swinging margin.

[0056] In addition, in this embodiment, the first extension portion 352 is fixed to the battery unit 30 via the first bracket 41, and the second extension portion 353 is fixed to the rear drive unit 20 via the second bracket 42, and the fixed position of the first bracket 41 to the battery unit 30 and the fixed position of the second bracket 42 to the rear drive unit 20 are different in the vehicle width direction and the vehicle up-down direction.

[0057] In this configuration, the harness 35 is routed between the first bracket 41 and the second bracket 42, bending not only in the vehicle width direction but also in the vertical direction, allowing the harness 35 to have some room to swing.

[0058] In addition, in this embodiment, the battery unit 30 has a floor panel 100 of the vehicle 1 arranged directly above a standing portion 32 having a battery side connector 31 to which the first connection portion 351 of the harness 35 is connected, and a rear seat B is fixed above the floor panel 100, and the floor panel 100 has a service hole 110 below the rear seat B that opens from the top of the floor panel 100 to be able to communicate with the standing portion 32.

[0059] In this configuration, a service hole 110 for maintenance of the battery unit 30 and the rear drive unit 20 is provided below the rear seat B, thereby preventing passengers of the vehicle 1 from accidentally touching the harness 35 and the battery side connector 31, which are high-voltage parts.

[0060] In addition, in this embodiment, the vehicle 1 has a cross member 85 that crosses the vehicle width direction between the battery unit 30 and the rear drive unit 20, and the harness 35 is arranged so as to pass under the cross member 85 between the battery unit 30 and the rear drive unit 20, and the position where the harness 35 passes under the cross member 85 is arranged outside the second connection part 355 in the vehicle width direction.

[0061] With this configuration, even if a large load is input to the vehicle 1 during a collision, etc., and the battery unit 30 and the rear drive unit 20 come into close proximity, the harness 35 is prevented from being pinched between the battery unit 30 and the rear drive unit 20, and damage to the harness 35 is suppressed.

[0062] The above describes embodiments of the present invention and their modifications. However, the above embodiments and modifications merely illustrate some of the application examples of the present invention, and are not intended to limit the technical scope of the present invention to the specific configurations of the above embodiments.

[0063] 1, the present embodiment shows a configuration including a front drive unit 40 and a rear drive unit 20, but is not limited to this. The present invention can also be applied to a vehicle that does not include a front drive unit 40 and runs on only the rear drive unit 20. Furthermore, in a vehicle that does not include a rear drive unit 20 and only has a front drive unit 40, the front harness 45 that connects the front drive unit 40 and the battery unit 30 may be configured to be curved and routed like the harness 35 described above.

Claims

1. A harness mounting structure for a vehicle comprising a drive unit for driving the vehicle and a battery unit that supplies power to the drive unit via a harness, The drive unit is positioned behind the battery unit and includes a drive motor that drives the drive wheels, and an inverter unit that converts the power from the battery unit and supplies it to the drive motor. The battery unit has a vertical portion formed on its upper rear surface, and a battery-side connector provided on the rear end surface of the vertical portion. The aforementioned drive unit is equipped with an inverter-side connector on its side, The aforementioned harness is, One end of it is configured as a first connection part that is connected to the battery-side connector facing the front of the vehicle. The other end is configured as a second connection part that is connected to the inverter-side connector in the vehicle width direction. Between the first connecting portion and the second connecting portion, the cable is arranged so as to curve at least in the vehicle width direction. Wiring harness mounting structure.

2. A harness mounting structure according to claim 1, The aforementioned harness is, A first extension portion that curves from the first connecting portion and extends in the vehicle width direction, A second extension portion curves from the first extension portion and extends toward the rear of the vehicle, It has a third extension that curves from the second extension and extends in the vehicle width direction, and then reaches the second connecting portion, The first extension is fixed to the battery unit, The second extension portion is fixed to the drive unit. Wiring harness mounting structure.

3. A harness mounting structure according to claim 2, The first extension is fixed to the battery unit via the first bracket. The second extension is fixed to the drive unit via the second bracket. The fixing position of the first bracket to the battery unit and the fixing position of the second bracket to the drive unit are different in the vehicle width direction and in the vehicle vertical direction. Wiring harness mounting structure.

4. A harness mounting structure according to claim 1, The battery unit is positioned so that the vehicle's floor panel is located directly above the upright portion. A seat is fixed above the aforementioned floor panel. The floor panel has a service hole located below the seat, which opens from the top of the floor panel to communicate with the upright portion. Wiring harness mounting structure.

5. A harness mounting structure according to claim 1, The vehicle has a cross member that spans the vehicle width direction between the battery unit and the drive unit. The aforementioned harness is, Between the battery unit and the drive unit, it is arranged to pass below the cross member, The position where the harness passes below the cross member is located outside the vehicle width direction compared to the second connection portion. Wiring harness mounting structure.