Battery Pack Housing Assembly With Rack-and-Gear Latch Guidance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing battery packs face challenges in providing a stable electrical connection while being easily removable from compatible devices, especially in compact installation spaces, and often suffer from uneven force distribution leading to shaking and sticking during actuation.
Innovation Solution
A housing assembly with a latch mechanism featuring gears and racks that guide the actuator's movement uniformly, ensuring balanced force distribution and smooth operation, and an enclosed design to protect components from dust and humidity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a latch mechanism is used to lock the battery pack, then the electrical connection stability is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The latch mechanism is divided into separate functional components: an actuator for user operation, gears for motion conversion, and racks for guided movement. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function efficiently while maintaining overall simplicity of the locking system.
Solution Approach 2:
Gears and racks are introduced as intermediary elements between the actuator and the locking mechanism. These intermediaries convert the linear motion of the actuator into controlled rotational and linear movements, ensuring stable electrical connection without requiring a complex direct locking mechanism.
2Ease of operation
If the actuator is designed to move freely, then the ease of operation is improved, but the shaking and sticking during actuation increases
Solution Approach 1:
Gears and racks serve as intermediary elements that guide the actuator's movement. The gear-rack engagement provides a mechanical guidance system that ensures the actuator moves smoothly along a defined path, reducing shaking and sticking while maintaining ease of operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The gear-rack mechanism creates a mechanically balanced system where forces are evenly distributed during actuator movement. This equipotential design ensures that the actuator experiences uniform resistance throughout its travel, preventing sticking and shaking.
3Volume of moving object
If the installation space is made compact, then the volume is reduced, but the latch mechanism space requirement increases
Solution Approach 1:
The gears and racks are arranged in a nested configuration where the gear rotates within the space defined by the rack's linear path. This nesting allows the latch mechanism to occupy minimal space while maintaining full functionality, fitting compactly within the battery pack housing.
Solution Approach 2:
The latch mechanism utilizes three-dimensional space efficiently by combining rotational motion (gears) with linear motion (racks) in perpendicular dimensions. This dimensional arrangement allows the mechanism to achieve its locking function within a compact volume by exploiting multiple spatial dimensions.
Data Source
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AI summary
The present invention provides a housing assembly and a battery pack, and the battery pack can be plugged into a compatible device. The housing assembly comprises a housing for accommodating batteries and a latch mechanism fitted to one end of the housing, which comprises a lug, a bias and an actuator. The lug retractably protrudes along a first direction perpendicular to the plugging direction and can, in the protruding state, cooperate with the locking mechanism of a compatible device to lock the battery pack. The bias can apply a biasing force to keep the lug extended. The actuator is movably arranged in a first direction, and the lug can be retracted and unlocked from the locking structure in response to the operation of the actuator. According to the present invention, the latch mechanism can lock the battery pack relative to the compatible device when it is plugged into the compatible device, thereby forming a stable electrical connection between the battery pack and the compatible device. To remove the battery pack, it is only necessary to operate the actuator in the first direction to complete the unlocking, and the operation method is simple, making it especially suitable for application scenarios with a small installation space.