Battery Compartment Hatch Layout for Narrow-Space Ventilation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional industrial trucks with vertical axis hinged doors for battery compartments require significant space to open, limiting their use in narrow spaces and ventilation during battery charging.
Innovation Solution
A hatch with a width smaller than 50% of the compartment height, mounted on a door with a vertical hinge, allows independent movement between opening and closing positions, facilitating ventilation without needing extensive space.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a conventional side door with vertical hinge is used to close the battery compartment, then the compartment can be properly closed and secured, but a large amount of free space is required on the side of the industrial truck to open the door
Solution Approach 1:
The side door is segmented into two functional parts: a fixed outer door that remains closed, and a movable inner hatch that can be opened independently. This segmentation allows the inner hatch to provide access and ventilation without requiring the entire door assembly to swing open, thereby eliminating the need for large free space while maintaining compartment closure integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The ventilation and access function is extracted from the main side door structure and implemented through a separate, smaller inner hatch. This extracted component performs the ventilation function independently, allowing the main door to remain closed and secured while the inner hatch provides the necessary opening for air circulation and battery access.
2Duration of action of moving object
If the battery compartment door is made large to accommodate adequate battery size for high autonomy, then battery capacity is improved, but the door becomes cumbersome and cannot be opened for ventilation in narrow spaces
Solution Approach 1:
The door system is divided into a fixed outer door and a movable inner hatch. The outer door maintains the large size needed for battery capacity and compartment structure, while the inner hatch is a smaller, more maneuverable component that can be easily operated in narrow spaces to provide ventilation and access.
Solution Approach 2:
The system transitions from a static, all-or-nothing door configuration to a dynamic, multi-level access system. The inner hatch can be opened independently of the outer door, allowing ventilation and battery access without requiring the entire large door assembly to be moved, thus improving operability in constrained environments while maintaining battery autonomy.
3Reliability
If the battery compartment door is kept closed to secure the battery, then battery security is improved, but ventilation and heat evacuation during charging are insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The closure system is segmented into a secure outer door that remains closed for battery security and a ventilation hatch that can be opened for air circulation. This allows the outer door to maintain battery security while the inner hatch provides the necessary opening for ventilation and heat evacuation during battery charging.
Solution Approach 2:
The ventilation function is extracted from the main door closure system and implemented through a separate hatch mechanism. This extracted ventilation path allows air circulation and heat evacuation to occur independently while the main door remains closed and secure, resolving the contradiction between security and thermal management.
Data Source
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AI summary
An industrial truck (10) comprises a compartment (30) designed to receive an electric battery system (12) and a hatch (11) movable between a closing position for closing the compartment and an opening position in which an internal volume of the compartment is placed in communication with the outside of the industrial truck, the hatch having a length, a width, and a thickness, wherein the width is smaller than 50% of the height of the compartment.