Electric Car Battery Pack U-Shape Cable Routing
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing battery packs for electric cars face challenges in size constraints and complex wiring due to the arrangement of cables, bus bars, main switches, and junction boards, which hinder efficient mounting and wiring operations, and can interfere with the vehicle body frame.
Innovation Solution
The battery pack design includes strategically placing the main switch above one battery module group and the junction board above the other, with high voltage cables and bus bars bent in U-shapes to pass under the vehicle body frame, held by cable holders, and using a manual switch and automatic contactor for power control, while positioning low voltage cables to minimize noise interference.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If cables, bus bars, main switch, and junction board are arranged in conventional battery packs, then electrical connection is achieved, but the battery pack increases in size and interferes with the vehicle body frame
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from a planar arrangement of cables and bus bars to a three-dimensional configuration where cables pass through the vehicle body frame. The second high voltage cables extend from the front to the rear of the vehicle body frame, utilizing the vertical and depth dimensions to route connections through rather than around the frame structure, thereby reducing the battery pack's horizontal footprint.
Solution Approach 2:
The battery pack is divided into two groups (first and second battery module groups) positioned on opposite sides of the vehicle body frame. This segmentation allows cables to be routed through the frame structure itself, using the frame as a conduit path. The main switch and junction board are strategically positioned to facilitate this segmented arrangement, with the main switch connected to the first group and the junction board to the second group.
2Reliability
If cables and bus bars are arranged to connect battery modules, then electrical connection is achieved, but wiring operation becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The vehicle body frame is pre-configured with designated passage paths for the second high voltage cables. These cables are routed through the frame structure during the battery pack assembly process, establishing fixed connection points at the front and rear of the frame. This preliminary routing structure guides the wiring operation, reducing complexity by providing predetermined cable paths rather than requiring complex manual routing during installation.
3Reliability
If high voltage cables are routed through the battery pack structure, then electrical connection is achieved, but the cables are subjected to increased load and vibration
Solution Approach 1:
The vehicle body frame serves as an intermediary structure that carries the second high voltage cables through its passage. The frame's rigid structure provides mechanical support and protection to the cables, isolating them from direct exposure to vibration and load forces. The frame acts as a mediator that transfers and distributes mechanical stresses away from the cable connections, protecting the electrical integrity of the high voltage pathways.
Data Source
AI summary
In a battery pack for an electric car, a plurality of battery modules are mounted to be divided between the front and rear of a middle cross member and a main switch and a junction board are disposed in the front and rear of the middle cross member respectively. A bent part of a second high voltage cable, which bends into a U-shape and pass through beneath the middle cross member, is held by a cable holder and fixed to a fixing part. Since only a bus bar disposed in the intermediate part of the first high voltage cable is bent into a U-shape and passed through beneath the middle cross member, not only is a wiring operation of the first high voltage cable easy, but it is also possible to minimize the length of the bus bar to thus enhance the reliability with respect to vibration.