JP7618975B2 - Additional battery box and uninterruptible power supply equipped with same - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an additional battery box and an uninterruptible power supply device equipped with the same.

Patent Document 1 discloses an expansion battery box that can be used with multiple uninterruptible power supplies with different capacities. The expansion battery box has a switching unit that connects the batteries in the expansion battery box in series according to the number of batteries built into the uninterruptible power supply (see Patent Document 1, Figures 1 and 2).

Patent Publication 2007-215267

The rear side of the additional battery box of the uninterruptible power supply is connected to the uninterruptible power supply by a power cable.
There was room for improvement regarding the placement of the power cable on the back side of the additional battery box.

One aspect of the present invention provides an additional battery box for an uninterruptible power supply that can reduce the space required for arranging power cables.

An expansion battery box for an uninterruptible power supply according to one aspect of the present invention includes:
A back panel and
a connector provided on the rear panel to which a power cable is connected;
The rear plate has a recess recessed from the outside to the inside, and the connector is disposed on an inclined portion that forms the recess.

The above-mentioned aspect reduces the amount of protrusion of the power cable, thereby reducing the actual installation space of the additional battery box.

FIG. 2 is a front view showing an uninterruptible power supply equipped with an additional battery box. FIG. 2 is a rear view showing an uninterruptible power supply equipped with an additional battery box. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the additional battery box. 13 is a diagram showing the state in which the front panel of the expansion battery box is removed. FIG. FIG. 4 is a side view of the additional battery box. FIG. 4 is a wiring diagram inside the additional battery box.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an expansion battery box for an uninterruptible power supply has a back panel that extends perpendicularly to the installation surface and has a connector for connecting a power cable disposed on the back panel.
As a result of the inventors' investigations, it was found that there was room for improvement in terms of reducing the substantial installation space for the expansion battery box.

The uninterruptible power supply expansion battery box devised by the inventors comprises a back plate and a connector provided on the back plate to which a power cable is connected, the back plate having a recess recessed from the outside to the inside, and the connector is disposed on the inclined portion that forms the recess.

The above configuration reduces the amount of protrusion of the power cable, thereby reducing the actual installation space of the additional battery box.

The rear plate may have a circuit board holding portion, and in a cross-sectional view of the rear plate, the circuit board holding portion and the inclined portion may form an obtuse angle on the inner surface of the rear plate.

The circuit board holding portion and the inclined portion form an obtuse angle on the inner surface of the rear plate, so that a reflex angle greater than 180° and less than 270° can be formed on the outer surface of the rear plate.
With the above configuration, it is possible to reduce the amount of protrusion of the power cable while maintaining the ease of attachment and detachment of the power cable.
If a right angle or an acute angle is formed on the inner surface of the rear panel by the circuit board holding portion and the inclined portion, the ease of attaching and detaching the power cable will be reduced.

The expansion battery box may further include a circuit board, and the inclined portion may intersect with an imaginary extension line of the circuit board held by the circuit board holding portion.

With the above configuration, the circuit board can be accommodated in the circuit board holding section that protrudes outward beyond the recessed area, expanding the space in the additional battery box for accommodating batteries and wiring.

The additional battery box may further include a first plate and a second plate that are connected to one end and the other end of the rear plate, respectively, and are arranged parallel to each other, and each of the first plate and the second plate may have a notch formed therein that fits the shape of the recess.

With the above configuration, the first and second plates do not protrude from the rear panel, ensuring ease of attachment and detachment of the power cable.

The expansion battery box may further include a first battery and a second battery housed in the expansion battery box. The rear panel may have a bottom portion that, together with the inclined portion, forms the recess. The circuit board may face the first battery at a horizontal distance, and the inner surface of the bottom portion may horizontally support the second battery.

With the above configuration, the bottom of the back panel also serves the function of positioning the second battery, reducing the number of parts in the additional battery box.

The first battery and the second battery may be connected in parallel on the circuit board.

The above configuration makes it possible to reduce the number of wires extending from the circuit board to the connector, thereby making the connector smaller.

Below, we will explain an embodiment of an additional battery box and an uninterruptible power supply device equipped with the same, with reference to the drawings.

In this specification, "vertical placement" refers to a position of the expansion battery box in which the height from the installation surface to the top end is greater than when the expansion battery box is "horizontally placed". "Horizontal placement" refers to a position of the expansion battery box in which the height from the installation surface to the top end is less than when the expansion battery box is "vertically placed".
The "vertical direction" means a direction that is approximately perpendicular to the installation surface. In other words, the "vertical direction" may be a direction that is perpendicular to the installation surface of the expansion battery box, or a direction that deviates slightly from the vertical direction but is close to the vertical direction.
The "horizontal direction" means a direction that is approximately parallel to the installation surface. In other words, the "horizontal direction" may be a direction that is parallel to the installation surface of the expansion battery box, or a direction that deviates slightly from the parallel direction but is close to the parallel direction.

The uninterruptible power supply 10 (hereafter referred to as "UPS") shown in FIG. 1 has three additional battery boxes 30 stacked horizontally. A battery pack (not shown) is housed inside the UPS 10, and in the event of a commercial power outage, the battery pack discharges and supplies power to the load for a predetermined period of time (e.g., about 10 minutes). The UPS 10 may not have a built-in battery pack, but may have an external battery pack. Each additional battery box 30 has a built-in battery pack (battery) that supplies power to the UPS 10, making it possible to supply power to the load via the UPS 10 for a longer period of time in the event of a power outage compared to when the UPS 10 is alone.

The number of additional battery boxes 30 connected to the UPS 10 is not limited to three, but may be one or two, or may be four or more (for example, up to six).

The front panel 12 of the UPS 10 is provided with an operation display unit 14 including operation buttons and indicators. The front panel 32 of the additional battery box 30 is not provided with such an operation display unit.

Figure 1 shows the UPS 10 and the additional battery box 30 placed vertically. In this state, the height of the UPS 10 and the height of the additional battery box 30 are the same. It is preferable that the UPS 10 and the additional battery box 30, as well as adjacent additional battery boxes 30, are physically fixed together using connecting fittings or the like. This can prevent the UPS 10 and the additional battery box 30 from tipping over.

Although not shown, in the case of horizontal placement, the leftmost additional battery box 30 shown in FIG. 1 is placed on the bottom (in contact with the installation surface) and the UPS 10 is placed on the top.

Figure 2 is a rear view of the UPS 10 with an integrated expansion battery box 30. The rear panel 13 of the UPS 10 is provided with four sockets (outlets) 16 for connecting loads. The number of sockets 16 is not limited to four. The rear panel 13 also has a fan exhaust port 15 adjacent to the inner surface of the rear panel 13, and a UPS connector 17 (covered with a lid in Figure 2).

Each additional battery box 30 has a pair of connectors 36 on its back panel 33. Focusing on the additional battery box 30 adjacent to the UPS 10, one connector 36 is connected to the UPS connector 17 and is used to supply power to the UPS 10 and receive power from the UPS 10, and the other connector 36 is used to supply power to and receive power from the additional battery box 30 located on the opposite side of the UPS 10.

3 shows the internal structure of one expansion battery box 30. In FIG. 3, the battery pack is not shown.
The expansion battery box 30 has a first plate 41 that extends vertically when the expansion battery box is placed vertically, and a second plate 42. In this embodiment, a plate 43 and a plate 44 that extend horizontally are integrally formed with the second plate 42. The first plate 41, the second plate 42, the plate 43, and the plate 44 are metal plates.

A metal partition plate 45 is fixed by a fastener approximately in the center in the vertical direction between the first plate 41 and the second plate 42. The partition plate 45 forms two storage spaces inside the expansion battery box 30. One assembled battery is accommodated in the upper storage space in Figure 3, and the other assembled battery is accommodated in the lower storage space.
The upper storage space is partitioned by a part (upper part) of the first plate 41 , the upper part of the second plate 42 , the plate 43 , and the partition plate 45 .
The lower storage space is defined by the lower part of the first plate 41 , the lower part of the second plate 42 , a partition plate 45 , and a plate 44 .

A first support member 51 for supporting two battery packs is provided on the inner surface of the first plate 41 so as to protrude from the inner surface. In this embodiment, the first support member 51 has four metal rails 51a, 51b, 51c, and 51d.

A second support member 52 for supporting the two battery packs is provided on the inner surface of the second plate 42 so as to protrude from the inner surface. In this embodiment, the second support member 52 has two metal rails 52a and 52b.

In this embodiment, metal rails 51a, 51b, 51c, and 51d, as well as metal rails 52a and 52b, have a U-shaped cross section.

When the expansion battery box 30 is placed horizontally, the first plate 41 extends in a direction parallel to the installation surface to form the bottom wall, and the first support member 51 supports the battery pack from below. The metal rails 51a, 51b, 51c, and 51d have the rigidity to withstand the weight of the battery pack and are highly durable. In addition, the metal rails 51a, 51b, 51c, and 51d have low surface friction resistance, allowing the battery pack to be smoothly guided. This makes it easier to remove and insert the battery pack.

When the expansion battery box 30 is placed horizontally, the second plate 42 does not become the bottom wall. The second support member 52 does not need to be as rigid as the first support member 51 because it is not expected to be used to support the battery pack from below. Therefore, the second support member 52 is made up of only two metal rails 52a, 52b, reducing the weight of the expansion battery box 30.

The front plate 32 is removably attached to one end of the first plate 41, the second plate 42, the plate 43, and the plate 44, and the back plate 33 is attached to the other end. In this embodiment, the back plate 33 is a metal plate having a substantially uniform thickness. The back plate 33 is formed by bending (pressing) a metal plate.

The rear panel 33 has a circuit board holding portion 33a extending in the vertical direction, and a circuit board 35 is held there (on the inner surface) in a position extending in the vertical direction. The circuit board 35 may be screwed to a boss fixed to the inner surface of the circuit board holding portion 33a.
The back plate 33 has an inclined portion (connector holding portion) 33b with an opening formed therein, which holds a connector 36. The connector 36 is electrically connected to a circuit board 35. Since the shape of the hole of the connector 36 provided in the inclined portion 33b is difficult to see from the outside of the back plate 33, a presenting portion 34 such as a sticker that presents the shape of the hole of the connector 36 is provided on the outer surface of the circuit board holding portion 33a (see FIG. 2).
The circuit board 35 is held at a position adjacent to the circuit board holding portion 33a extending in the vertical direction. The inclined portion 33b intersects with an imaginary extension line of the circuit board 35 held by the circuit board holding portion 33a.
The rear plate 33 further has a bottom portion 33c and another inclined portion 33d. The inclined portion 33b, the bottom portion 33c, and the inclined portion 33d form a recess 33e that is recessed from the outside to the inside of the rear plate 33. Since the upper inclined portion 33b and the lower inclined portion 33d are inclined in opposite directions, the opening area of the recess 33e becomes larger as it goes outward.
The edges of the first plate 41 and the second plate 42 that are connected to the rear plate 33 are formed with notches 41 a and 42 a that fit the shape of the recess 33 e of the rear plate 33 .

One end of a power cable 55 arranged along the partition plate 45 is connected to a terminal of the battery pack located near the front plate 32 , and the other end is connected to the circuit board 35 .
The power cable 55 is arranged around the periphery of the upper accommodation space so as not to interfere with the metal rails 51a, 51b, metal rail 52a, and the battery pack in the upper accommodation space.

Guide plates 54 and clamps 37 are provided between the metal rails 51a, 51b, 51c, and 51d and the front plate 32, and between the metal rails 52a and 52b and the front plate 32.

Figure 4 shows two adjacent expansion battery boxes 30 with their front panels removed. The expansion battery box 30 on the left side in Figure 4 does not show the battery pack.

As shown in the expansion battery box 30 on the left side, guide plates 54 located on the left and right guide the insertion of the battery packs 20a, 20b until the battery packs 20a, 20b reach the metal rails 51a, 51b, 51c, 51d located at the rear side in the insertion direction of the battery packs 20a, 20b, as well as the metal rails 52a, 52b (not shown).
The guide plate 54 also functions as a bracket for attaching the pressing fittings 37 for pressing the battery pack from the front and the connecting fittings 25 for fixing adjacent expansion battery boxes 30 together.

As described above, the power cable 55 is pulled out forward along the partition plate 45 and connected to the connector 21 of the cable extending from the terminal of the battery pack 20a housed in the upper housing space.
Here, in the upper storage space, the power cable 55 is disposed in a corner formed by the upper surface of the partition plate 45 and the inner surface of the first plate 41 (between the metal rail 51b and the partition plate 45). In the lower storage space, the power cable is disposed in a corner formed by the lower surface of the partition plate 45 and the inner surface of the first plate 41 (between the metal rail 51c and the partition plate 45).

As shown in the right-side expansion battery box 30, one battery pack (first battery) 20a is accommodated in the upper storage space, and another battery pack (second battery) 20b is accommodated in the lower storage space. The vertical movement of the batteries 20a and 20b in the storage space is restricted by plates 43, partition plates 45, and 44. The distance between the bottom surface of plate 43 and the top surface of partition plate 45, and the distance between the bottom surface of partition plate 45 and the top surface of plate 44 are each approximately equal to the vertical dimension of the batteries 20a and 20b. Therefore, there is no space above or below the batteries 20a and 20b to place components.

The distance between the inner surface of the first plate 41 and the inner surface of the second plate 42 is greater than the horizontal dimension of the assembled batteries 20a, 20b. The horizontal movement of the assembled batteries 20a, 20b in the storage space is restricted by metal rails 51a, 51b, 51c, 51d, and metal rails 52a, 52b (not shown). The metal rails 51a, 51b, 51c, 51d, and metal rails 52a, 52b ensure an appropriate space for arranging components such as the power cable 55 and the guide plate 54 between the inner surfaces of the first plate 41 and the second plate 42 and the assembled batteries 20a, 20b.

Each of the assembled batteries 20a and 20b may be, for example, four valve-regulated lead-acid batteries arranged in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the paper in FIG. 4 and connected in series.

The additional battery box 30 includes a first plate 41 and a second plate 42 arranged in parallel, a third plate 43 (45) and a fourth plate 45 (44) arranged in parallel in a direction perpendicular to the first plate 41 and the second plate 42, the battery packs 20a and 20b accommodated in the accommodation space partitioned by the first plate 41, the second plate 42, the third plate 43 (45) and the fourth plate 45 (44), a front plate 32 and a rear plate 33. On the inner surface of the first plate 41, a first support member 51 (metal rails 51a, 51b, 51c, 51d) for supporting the battery packs 20a and 20b is provided protruding from the inner surface. A power cable 55, one end of which is connected to a terminal of the battery pack 20a located near the front plate 32 and the other end of which is connected to a circuit board 35 located near the rear plate 33, is arranged around the accommodation space so as not to interfere with the first support member 51 and the battery pack 20a.

Therefore, the battery pack 20a can be replaced from the front side of the expansion battery box 30 simply by removing the front panel 32. The power cable 55 extends from the circuit board 35 located near the rear panel 33 to near the front panel 32 and is connected to the terminal of the battery pack 20a. By removing the front panel 32, the connection point (connector 21) between the power cable 55 and the terminal of the battery pack 20a can be easily accessed. By disconnecting the power cable 55 from the terminal of the battery pack 20a, the battery pack 20a can be removed from the storage space. The work of inserting a new battery pack 20a into the storage space and connecting the terminal of the battery pack 20a to the power cable 55 can also be easily performed from the front side of the expansion battery box 30.

As described above, the pair of connectors 36 (see FIG. 2) are provided on the rear panel 33 of the expansion battery box 30. The connectors 36 are connected to power cables.
5, in this embodiment, the connector 36 is provided on the inclined portion 33b of the back plate 33, so that the hole (terminal) of the connector 36 is exposed facing outward and diagonally downward. The direction in which the power cable 57 is inserted into and removed from the connector 36 is perpendicular to the inclined portion 33b (diagonal direction in FIG. 5).

When the power cable 57 is attached to the connector 36, the power cable 57 extends diagonally downward. At least a portion of the power cable 57 or the connector at the end of the power cable 57 is housed in a recess 33e recessed from the outside to the inside on the back of the additional battery box 30.

As shown by the dashed line in Figure 5, when the connector provided on the circuit board 35 is exposed to the outside from the vertically extending circuit board holding portion 33a (or other vertically extending surface), the insertion and removal direction of the power cable 57 is horizontal.
When the power cable 57 is attached to such a connector, the amount by which the power cable 57 protrudes in the horizontal direction (X direction) from the back surface of the expansion battery box 30 increases. Because the power cable 57 protrudes significantly from the back surface, the actual installation space for the expansion battery box 30 is large.

In this embodiment, by attaching the power cable 57 to the connector 36 provided on the inclined portion 33b, the amount by which the power cable 57 protrudes horizontally (in the X direction) from the rear surface of the additional battery box 30 can be reduced.
For example, the power cable 57 can be directed diagonally downward from the connector 36, curved into a U-shape, and directed diagonally upward to be connected to an adjacent UPS connector 17 or a connector of another additional battery box 30.
In this way, the actual installation space for the expansion battery box 30 can be reduced.

In this embodiment, an obtuse angle is formed on the inner surface of the back plate 33 by the circuit board holding portion 33a and the inclined portion 33b, and a reflex angle greater than 180° and less than 270° is formed on the outer surface of the back plate 33. This makes it possible to suppress the amount of protrusion of the power cable 57 while maintaining the detachability of the power cable 57.
If a right angle or acute angle is formed on the inner surface of the back panel 33 by the circuit board holding portion 33a and the inclined portion (if an oblique angle of 270° or more is formed on the outer surface of the back panel), it will be difficult to see the connector 36 from the outside, and it will be difficult to see the process of connecting the power cable 57 to the connector 36, which will reduce the ease of attachment and detachment of the power cable 57.

In this embodiment, the circuit board 35 is housed in the circuit board holding portion 33a that protrudes outward adjacent (above) the portion of the back panel 33 where the recess 33e is provided. This allows for an increased space in the additional battery box 30 for housing the battery 20a and wiring.

In this embodiment, the circuit board 35 faces the battery pack 20a with a horizontal gap therebetween. The internal power cable 55 shown in FIG. 4 is routed between the battery pack 20a and the circuit board 35. Meanwhile, the bottom 33c forming the recess 33e has an inner surface that directly or indirectly abuts against the battery pack 20b to support the battery pack 20b in the horizontal direction. Since the bottom 33c also serves to position the battery pack 20b, the number of parts of the expansion battery box 30 can be reduced.
In this embodiment, there is a lower inclined portion 33d extending diagonally downward from the bottom 33c. Alternatively, the lower inclined portion 33d may not be provided, and the bottom 33c may extend vertically as is to the installation surface, and the inner surface of the bottom 33c may support the battery pack 20b.

6 is a schematic diagram of the wiring of the expansion battery box 30. Parallel connection lines (patterns) 58a, 58b are provided on the circuit board 35. The parallel connection line 58a connects the positive line of the first battery 20a in parallel with the positive line of the second battery 20b and the positive line from the adjacent battery box. The parallel connection line 58b connects the negative line of the first battery 20a in parallel with the negative line of the second battery 20b and the negative line from the adjacent battery box.
The positive line of the first battery 20a and the positive line of the second battery 20b may be provided with a fuse 59. Alternatively, the fuse 59 may be provided in the negative line, or the fuse 59 may be provided in both the positive line and the negative line.

The above configuration makes it possible to reduce the number of wires extending from the circuit board 35 to the connector 36, thereby making the connector 36 smaller.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments.
The connector 36 may be provided on the lower inclined portion 33d instead of on the upper inclined portion 33b forming the recess 33e. In this case, however, the wiring extending from the circuit board 35 to the connector 36 becomes longer.

The assembled batteries 20a, 20b may be configured by arranging a plurality of lead-acid batteries in a single row, or may be configured by arranging a plurality of lead-acid batteries in a plurality of rows.
The assembled batteries 20a and 20b are not limited to a battery having a plurality of lead-acid batteries connected in series and/or parallel, but may be a battery having a plurality of lithium-ion batteries or other storage elements connected in series and/or parallel.
Instead of the assembled batteries 20a and 20b, a single power storage element may be used as the battery.

10 Uninterruptible power supply (UPS)
30 Additional battery box 33 Rear plate 33b Inclined portion 33e Recess 36 Connector 41 First plate 42 Second plate 43 (45) Third plate 45 (44) Fourth plate 51 First support member (metal rails 51a, 51b, 51c, 51d)
52 Second support member (metal rails 52a, 52b)
55, 57 Power cable

Claims (7)

An additional battery box for an uninterruptible power supply,
A back panel and
a connector provided on the rear panel to which a power cable is connected;
the rear plate has a recess recessed from the outside to the inside, and the connector is disposed on an inclined portion forming the recess;
The expansion battery box has a rear plate having a circuit board holding portion, and in a cross-sectional view of the rear plate, the circuit board holding portion and the inclined portion form an obtuse angle on the inner surface of the rear plate. Further comprising a circuit board;
The expansion battery box according to claim 1 , wherein the inclined portion intersects with an imaginary extension line of the circuit board held by the circuit board holding portion. The back panel further includes a first plate and a second plate connected to one end and the other end of the back panel, respectively, and arranged parallel to each other,
3. The expansion battery box according to claim 1, wherein each of the first plate and the second plate is formed with a notch that fits a shape of the recess. The battery pack further includes a first battery and a second battery housed in the additional battery box,
the rear plate has a bottom portion that forms the recess together with the inclined portion,
the circuit board faces the first battery across a horizontal gap;
The expansion battery box according to claim 2 , wherein an inner surface of the bottom portion supports the second battery in a horizontal direction. The expansion battery box according to claim 4 , wherein the first battery and the second battery are connected in parallel on the circuit board. An additional battery box for an uninterruptible power supply,
A back panel and
a connector provided on the rear panel to which a power cable is connected;
the rear plate has a recess recessed from the outside to the inside, and the connector is disposed on an inclined portion forming the recess;
The back panel further includes a first plate and a second plate connected to one end and the other end of the back panel, respectively, and arranged parallel to each other,
an expansion battery box, wherein each of the first plate and the second plate has a notch formed therein that fits the shape of the recess. An uninterruptible power supply in which the expansion battery boxes according to any one of claims 1 to 6 are stacked.

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