Battery Support Structure with Slip Planes for Impact Protection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vehicle battery support structures fail to effectively absorb and distribute impact forces while maintaining precise dimensional specifications for battery containment, leading to potential damage and disruption during lateral impacts.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle battery support structure with side reinforcement members and slip planes that absorb impact forces and provide adjustable dimensions, forming a sealed compartment with load paths to transfer lateral forces, ensuring precise containment and protection of battery modules.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If rigid fixed attachment is used for battery support structure components, then structural strength is improved, but manufacturing precision deteriorates due to inability to adjust dimensional specifications
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates slip planes during the assembly process before final welding, allowing components to be positioned and adjusted to precise dimensional specifications prior to permanent fixation. This preliminary adjustment capability ensures manufacturing precision is achieved before the rigid fixed attachment provides structural strength.
2Reliability
If heavy duty support structure is used to protect batteries from impact, then protection capability is improved, but vehicle weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent utilizes high strength-to-weight ratio materials and optimized structural parameters in the support structure components, enabling adequate impact protection while minimizing weight increase. The slip plane design also allows for precise dimensional control that optimizes material usage.
3Manufacturing precision
If complex adjustment mechanisms are added to achieve precise dimensional specifications, then manufacturing precision is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the adjustment function into a simple slip plane interface between components, eliminating the need for complex adjustment mechanisms. The slip plane allows straightforward sliding adjustment during assembly before final welding, achieving precise dimensional specifications through a simple geometric feature rather than a complex mechanism.
Data Source
AI summary
A battery support structure for a vehicle includes a first peripheral member configured to be supported by a longitudinal section of a vehicle frame. A second peripheral member has an end surface that selectively attaches at an inside surface of the first peripheral member to enclose a corner section of a battery containment area. Prior to fixed attachment of the first and second peripheral members, a slip plane is defined between the end surface and the inside surface to adjust the second peripheral member along the first peripheral member to a predefined dimension of the battery containment area.