EV Cowl Drain Structure for Dry Charging Cable Routing
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Solution Overview
Problem
In electric vehicles, the charging cable is often wetted by rainwater due to the design of the cowl's drain hole, which can lead to cable damage and faulty discharge of solid matter like fallen leaves.
Innovation Solution
The cowl features a drain hole in its bottom wall with a first and second bottom wall portion, where the second portion has a greater inclination angle than the first, and an opposing wall to guide solid matter towards the drain hole, preventing water from draining towards the charging cable and ensuring smooth discharge of debris.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the drain hole is defined in the side wall of the cowl, then rainwater can be drained from the cowl, but the charging cable may be wetted by the drained rainwater
Solution Approach 1:
The drain hole is repositioned from the side wall to the bottom wall of the cowl, changing the drainage direction from lateral to downward. This dimensional change ensures that rainwater drains away from the charging cable area, eliminating the wetting problem while maintaining effective water drainage from the cowl interior.
Solution Approach 2:
The bottom wall is designed with a specific inclination angle (greater than 10 degrees) in the region adjacent to the drain hole, creating a localized quality difference. This inclined surface directs water flow toward the drain hole while preventing water from reaching the charging cable, thus protecting the cable without compromising overall drainage functionality.
2Reliability
If the drain hole is defined in the bottom wall of the cowl, then charging cable can be protected from water, but solid matter such as fallen leaves may not be discharged smoothly
Solution Approach 1:
The inclination angle of the bottom wall surface adjacent to the drain hole is optimized to be greater than 10 degrees. This parameter change serves dual purposes: it directs water flow away from the charging cable area while simultaneously creating sufficient gravitational force to propel solid matter like fallen leaves toward and through the drain hole, thus resolving both protection and discharge efficiency requirements.
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
This design effectively prevents the charging cable from getting wet while improving the discharge of solid matter, reducing the risk of faulty discharge and cable damage.
Implementation Method 1
An inclination angle of a surface of the second bottom wall portion is greater than an inclination angle of a surface of the first bottom wall portion
Data Source
AI summary
An electric vehicle may include: a cowl; a charging lid disposed outward of the cowl in a vehicle width direction, and a charging cable disposed between the cowl and the charging lid. A drain hole is defined in a bottom wall of the cowl, the bottom wall of the cowl may include a first bottom wall portion and a second bottom wall portion, the first bottom wall portion is located more proximate to a central portion of the cowl than the second bottom wall portion, the second bottom wall portion is located between the first bottom wall portion and the drain hole and is adjacent to the drain hole, and an inclination angle of a surface of the second bottom wall portion is greater than an inclination angle of a surface of the first bottom wall portion.