JP7845271B2 - vehicle - Google Patents

Description

The technologies disclosed herein relate to vehicles.

Patent Document 1 discloses a vehicle capable of protecting the connector portion of a harness during a collision. Specifically, a boss portion is added near the connector's exit point. The boss portion protrudes further towards the rear of the vehicle than the exit point. During a vehicle collision, the boss portion makes contact with the connector's exit point before it does, thereby protecting the exit point.

Japanese Patent Publication No. 2018-202889

Adding protective components to bosses and other areas may result in increased weight and reduced ease of installation.

According to the structure described in claim 1, the boss portion for attaching the mount for fixing the electric drive unit to the suspension member can function as a protective member for the high-voltage connector. Since there is no need to add a protective member, it is possible to protect the high-voltage connector without increasing weight or worsening mounting capacity.

This is a left side view of the rear motor module 10. This is a top view of the rear motor module 10. This is a top view of the rear motor module 10 during a rear-end collision.

(Structure of rear motor module 10)
The rear motor module 10 will be described with reference to Figures 1 and 2. Figure 1 is a left side view of the rear motor module 10. Figure 2 is a top view of the rear motor module 10. In the following, the positive X-axis in the coordinates shown in the figures will be referred to as the "rear" of the vehicle, and the opposite side as the "front" of the vehicle. The positive Z-axis will be referred to as the "top" of the vehicle, and the opposite side as the "bottom" of the vehicle. Furthermore, the positive Y-axis will be referred to as the "right" of the vehicle, and the opposite side as the "left" of the vehicle.

The rear motor module 10 is a device located behind the rear seats of the vehicle. The rear motor module 10 is fixed to the floor panel from below the vehicle. The rear motor module 10 drives the rear wheels (not shown) using power supplied from a battery (not shown). As shown in Figure 2, the rear motor module 10 has a substantially symmetrical shape in the left-right direction of the vehicle. The rear motor module 10 mainly comprises an electric drive unit 12, a rear suspension member 14, a high-voltage connector 15, and a high-voltage wire harness 16.

The rear suspension member 14 comprises two side members 14s, a front cross member 14f, and a rear cross member 14r. Each of the two side members 14s is connected to the front cross member 14f and the rear cross member 14r. The two side members 14s are positioned in the left-right direction of the vehicle relative to the electric drive unit 12. The two side members 14s extend along the front-rear direction of the vehicle. One side member 14s is paired with the other side member 14s, and they are symmetrical in the left-right direction of the vehicle. Therefore, in the following, the pair of side members 14s may simply be referred to as "side members 14s."

The side member 14s includes a front suspension mount 14m and a rear suspension mount 14n. Both the front suspension mount 14m and the rear suspension mount 14n have threaded sections in their respective centers. This allows the rear suspension member 14 to be fixed to the underside of the floor panel.

As shown in Figure 1, the side member 14s extends further forward from below the front suspension mount 14m, and at its front end, it extends downward and connects to the front cross member 14f. As shown in Figure 2, the side member 14s extends in the vehicle's longitudinal direction from the vehicle's lateral direction of the electric drive unit 12, and at its rear end, it inclins to widen towards the rear of the vehicle in the lateral direction. The rear cross member 14r is connected to the bent portion of the side member 14s. The side member 14s extends further rearward than the rear cross member 14r, and a rear suspension mount 14n is provided at its rear end. The side member 14s bends in the vehicle's lateral direction at its front end, and a front suspension mount 14m is provided at that end.

The electric drive unit 12 is a device that houses a motor for driving the vehicle and a power conversion device that converts the power supplied to the motor in a single housing. The electric drive unit 12 is sometimes called an e-accelerator. The electric drive unit 12 has a seat surface 12s that extends in the left-right direction of the vehicle. The seat surface 12s is positioned on the upper surface of the front end of the side member 14s. The seat surface 12s is fixed to the side member 14s by a front motor mount 12f. Furthermore, a rear motor mount 12r is provided in the center of the rear cross member 14r. The rear motor mount 12r is fastened to the rear surface of the electric drive unit 12. In other words, the electric drive unit 12 and the rear suspension member 14 are fixed at three points by two front motor mounts 12f and one rear motor mount 12r.

The electric drive unit 12 has a pair of opposing surfaces 12o facing the side member 14s. Each of the opposing surfaces 12o has a pair of boss portions 12b formed on it. The boss portions 12b protrude from the opposing surfaces 12o toward the side member 14s. The boss portions 12b are configured to allow the attachment of a motor mount (not shown) interposed between the electric drive unit 12 and the side member 14s. The structure and type of the motor mount are not particularly limited; for example, it may be a rubber mount.

The structure and formation method of the boss portion 12b may vary. In this embodiment, the boss portion 12b has a structure in which three cylindrical bosses are connected by wall-shaped ribs. Furthermore, the boss portion 12b is integrally formed with the case of the electric drive unit 12 by casting.

Note that a motor mount is not necessarily required to be attached to the boss portion 12b. The electric drive unit 12 is a unit shared across various vehicle models. Therefore, the presence or absence of a motor mount on the boss portion 12b varies depending on the vehicle model. In this embodiment, the case where a motor mount is not attached to the boss portion 12b is described.

A high-voltage connector 15 is connected to the opposing surface 12o on the left side of the vehicle. A high-voltage wire harness 16 is drawn out from the high-voltage connector 15. The high-voltage wire harness 16 is connected to a battery (not shown). This allows power to be supplied to the electric drive unit 12 via the high-voltage connector 15.

As shown in Figure 2, the protrusion height of the boss portion 12b relative to the electric drive unit 12 is defined as boss height H1. The protrusion height of the high-voltage connector 15 relative to the electric drive unit 12 is defined as connector height H2. Boss height H1 is higher than connector height H2. In other words, the boss portion 12b protrudes outward in the vehicle width direction beyond the high-voltage connector 15. Furthermore, a gap exists between the tip of the boss portion 12b and the side member 14s.

As shown in Figure 1, the boss portion 12b is positioned close to the high-voltage connector 15. Furthermore, when viewed from the left side of the vehicle, the high-voltage connector 15 and the boss portion 12b overlap with the side member 14s. In other words, the high-voltage connector 15 and the boss portion 12b are positioned in a location where they may interfere with the side member 14s during a vehicle collision.

(Behavior during collision)
Referring to Figure 3, the behavior of the rear suspension member 14 and the electric drive unit 12 in the event of a rear-end collision to the left rear of the vehicle will be explained. Figure 3 is a top view of the rear motor module 10, similar to Figure 2. In Figure 3, for ease of understanding, the side member 14s before the collision is shown with a dotted line, and the side member 14s after the collision is shown with a solid line.

As mentioned above, the rear end of the side member 14s is located further rearward than the rear cross member 14r. Therefore, if a vehicle collides with the vehicle from the left rear, the rear vehicle will interfere with the rear suspension mount 14n located at the rear end of the side member 14s. An impact load f1 is applied to the side member 14s by the rear vehicle (see Figure 3, arrow f1). As a result, the rear suspension mount 14n is displaced forward, as shown by arrow Y1.

As mentioned above, the side member 14s is inclined to widen in the lateral direction of the vehicle towards the rear. Therefore, when the rear suspension mount 14n is displaced forward, deformation occurs, causing rotation around the connection point between the side member 14s and the rear cross member 14r. As a result, as shown by arrow Y2, the side member 14s located near the high-voltage connector 15 deforms to move to the right side of the vehicle.

As mentioned above, the boss portion 12b protrudes outward in the vehicle width direction compared to the high-voltage connector 15. Therefore, the side member 14s, when moved to the right side of the vehicle, contacts the boss portion 12b before the high-voltage connector 15. This prevents the side member 14s from contacting the high-voltage connector 15 (see region R1). Since damage to the high-voltage connector 15 due to interference by the side member 14s can be prevented, the occurrence of electrical leakage and other problems can be suppressed.

(effect)
A protective member for protecting the high-voltage connector 15 during a collision needs to contact the interfering member before the high-voltage connector 15. Therefore, the shape of the protective member is larger than that of the high-voltage connector 15. However, adding a dedicated protective member could lead to increased weight and deterioration of mountability. In the technology described herein, the boss portion 12b for attaching the motor mount can also function as a protective member for the high-voltage connector 15. In other words, the boss portion 12b can integrate the mount fixing function and the connector protection function. Since there is no need to add a dedicated protective member, it is possible to protect the high-voltage connector 15 without increasing weight or worsening mountability.

(Variant)
The vehicle mounting position of the electric drive unit 12 is not limited to the rear. The technology described herein can be applied regardless of where the electric drive unit 12 is mounted on the vehicle.

The shape of the boss portion 12b is not limited to a cylindrical shape and may vary. Furthermore, the boss portion 12b may be a separate component from the electric drive unit 12.

10: Rear motor module 12: Electric drive unit 12b: Boss section 12o: Opposing surface 14: Rear suspension member 15: High-voltage connector H1: Boss height H2: Connector height

Claims (1)

An electric drive unit, a suspension member, and a high-voltage connector for power supply connected to the electric drive unit,
A vehicle equipped with,
The high-voltage connector is located on the opposing surface of the electric drive unit that faces the suspension member,
The opposing surface of the electric drive unit has a boss portion that protrudes toward the suspension member, and is configured to allow the attachment of a mount interposed between the electric drive unit and the suspension member.
The protrusion height of the boss portion relative to the electric drive unit is higher than the protrusion height of the high-voltage connector relative to the electric drive unit.
vehicle.