Battery Case Drainage Structure for Sealing and Easy Replacement
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Battery cases are required to be protected from water and foreign matter intrusion while allowing easy battery replacement, a balance that existing designs often fail to achieve effectively.
Innovation Solution
A battery case design featuring an outer case with a side wall and inner case, an upper case with a shelf and trough for water drainage, and a peripheral cover that guides water to the outside, combined with a top cover and elastomeric seal for sealing, and a flap door for easy battery access without user intervention.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the battery case is sealed to prevent water and foreign matter intrusion, then protection reliability is improved, but battery replacement becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The battery case is divided into multiple segments: an outer case, an inner case that can be removed, and a top cover. This segmentation allows the inner case to be extracted for battery replacement while the outer case maintains water protection, resolving the contradiction between sealed protection and easy access.
Solution Approach 2:
The top cover is designed to be openable, transforming the sealed structure into a dynamic one. When closed, it provides water protection; when opened, it allows battery replacement. This dynamic design resolves the contradiction between maintaining protection and enabling access.
2Ease of operation
If the battery case structure is simplified for easy battery replacement, then ease of operation is improved, but protection from water and foreign matter deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the case into outer and inner parts with a removable inner case, the design achieves both simplicity for battery replacement and multi-layer protection against water and foreign matter intrusion.
Solution Approach 2:
The inner case acts as an intermediary element between the outer case and the batteries. It provides a simple access path for battery replacement while the outer case and sealing structures maintain environmental protection, resolving the contradiction between simplicity and protection.
3Reliability
If water drainage paths are added to the battery case, then water protection is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The water drainage function is merged with the existing inner case structure. The inner case serves both as a container for batteries and as a water drainage channel, guiding water to drainage holes. This integration adds water protection functionality without significantly increasing overall structural complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The inner case is designed to perform multiple functions: it contains the batteries, provides structural support, and serves as a water drainage pathway. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate drainage components, thereby limiting the increase in device complexity while improving water protection.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The design effectively prevents water and foreign matter intrusion while allowing effortless battery replacement, maintaining a dry and secure environment for the batteries.
Implementation Method 1
The peripheral cover is configured such that water deposited on an upper surface thereof is guided to an upper surface of the shelf portion, and the upper case is provided with a cutout configured to let water collected in the trough to drop into
Implementation Method 2
an elastomeric seal member received in the groove, and the peripheral cover is provided with an upright wall extending along an outer periphery of the peripheral cover which resiliently abuts against the seal member
Data Source
AI summary
A battery case, comprises an outer case, an inner case, an upper case having an opening, a shelf portion surrounding the upper opening and extending substantially horizontally, and a trough formed in the shelf portion so as to be recessed downward, the upper opening defining a battery receiving portion jointly with an interior of the inner case, and a peripheral cover having an annular shape in top view and covering a space defined between the side walls of the outer case and the inner case from above. The peripheral cover is configured such that water deposited on an upper surface thereof is guided to an upper surface of the shelf portion, and the upper case is provided with a cutout configured to let water collected in the trough to drop into a selected part of a bottom end of the outer case.