Detachable Energy Module Assembly for Commercial Vehicle HV Packs
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Solution Overview
Problem
The installation of high-voltage components in fully or partially electrified commercial vehicles poses significant safety risks due to improper assembly and assembly conflicts, necessitating late installation, which complicates the manufacturing process and increases safety hazards for operators and road users.
Innovation Solution
An energy module comprising high-voltage energy storage devices and a cooling system, supported by a detachable structure that can be pre-assembled and tested independently, allowing for safe and efficient integration with the vehicle frame, enabling separate commissioning and testing, and accommodating expansion and quick disassembly.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If high-voltage components are installed late on the vehicle to meet safety requirements, then occupational safety is improved, but assembly conflicts and manufacturing complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the energy-carrying components into a separate, detachable module that can be assembled independently from the rest of the vehicle. This segmentation allows the high-voltage components to be manufactured and tested separately, avoiding assembly conflicts with other vehicle components while maintaining safety through isolated handling by qualified personnel.
Solution Approach 2:
The energy module is designed to be pre-assembled and pre-tested outside the vehicle manufacturing process. All mechanical and electrical connections within the module are established beforehand in a controlled environment, allowing the module to be installed as a complete unit on the vehicle, thereby eliminating assembly conflicts that would occur if components were installed individually during vehicle assembly.
2Ease of manufacture
If high-voltage components are installed late to avoid assembly conflicts, then assembly simplicity is improved, but safety risks during manufacturing and operation increase
Solution Approach 1:
The module undergoes comprehensive testing including electrical continuity checks, insulation resistance measurements, and functional tests before leaving the manufacturing facility. This preliminary verification ensures that all safety requirements are met before the module is installed on the vehicle, eliminating safety risks while maintaining assembly simplicity.
Solution Approach 2:
The detachable energy module acts as an intermediary between the vehicle assembly line and high-voltage component installation. It allows standard assembly procedures to handle the module as a complete unit while specialized safety protocols are applied only during module manufacturing and testing, not during vehicle assembly, thus maintaining both simplicity and safety.
3Productivity
If high-voltage components are integrated into the vehicle assembly process, then manufacturing efficiency is improved, but safety qualifications and training requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
By segregating high-voltage components into a separate module, the patent allows vehicle assembly workers to handle only low-voltage components during main assembly, while module specialists handle high-voltage components in a controlled setting. This segmentation maintains overall manufacturing efficiency while concentrating qualification requirements to a specific group of workers.
Solution Approach 2:
The high-voltage energy-carrying components are extracted from the general vehicle assembly process and placed into a separately manufactured module. This extraction removes the safety-critical tasks from the main assembly line, allowing efficient vehicle production while requiring specialized qualifications only for module assembly, not for general vehicle assembly workers.
4Loss of time
If high-voltage components are pre-assembled in a detachable module, then assembly time is reduced, but mechanical and electrical connection requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines all mechanical mounting points and electrical connection terminals into integrated connection interfaces on the energy module. These interfaces are designed to accommodate both structural attachment and electrical connectivity in a single assembly operation, reducing the number of separate connection steps required while maintaining comprehensive connection requirements for safety.
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 energy module facilitates safe and efficient assembly of high-voltage components, reduces assembly time, and allows for independent testing and expansion, enhancing safety and reducing mechanical and electrical connections, while protecting components from vibrations and crashes.
Implementation Method 1
a cooling system for (e.g., actively) cooling the multiple high-voltage energy storage devices
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to an energy module (10) for a commercial vehicle, preferably a truck or a bus. The energy module (10) comprises several high-voltage energy storage devices (36) and a cooling system (38) for cooling the high-voltage energy storage devices (36). The energy module (10) has a support structure (22) designed to be attached from below to a vehicle frame (12) of the commercial vehicle, and which supports the several high-voltage energy storage devices (36) and the cooling system (38). The energy module (10) offers the advantage of the concentrated integration of electrical high-voltage energy storage devices (36) with other essential high-voltage and low-voltage components of the commercial vehicle, such as the cooling system (38). The entire energy module (10) can be mounted and functionally tested outside the commercial vehicle.