Sliding protective battery support tray

• US 10,272,949 B2
• Filed: 10/05/2016
• Issued: 04/30/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 07/30/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Inventors: Faruque, Mohammed Omar, Farooq, Iskander, Jaradi, Dean M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Frick, Emma K
• Application Number:
  US15/286,189
• Publication Number:
  US 20170029034A1
• Time in Patent Office: 937 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 1/04 of the electric storage means for propulsion exchanging batteries for electric propulsion of vehicles B60L53/80; for auxiliary purposes only B60R16/04; supplying batteries to, or removing batteries from, vehicles B60S5/06
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2001/0438 Arrangement under the floor
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/64 Constructional details of batteries specially adapted for electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 16/04 Arrangement of batteries
• CPC Class Codes: B60Y 2306/01 Reducing damages in case of crash, e.g. by improving battery protection
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 21/157 for side impacts
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 2220/20 Batteries in motive systems, e.g. vehicle, ship, plane
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/249 specially adapted for aircraft or vehicles, e.g. cars or trains constructional details of batteries specially adapted for electric vehicles B60L50/64
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/10 Energy storage using batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries

Abstract

A battery assembly is attached to a tray below a floor pan of a vehicle on a front channel and a rear channel that extend transversely relative to the vehicle. Edge reinforcements of the tray are secured by shear pins or other deformable connectors that retain the tray in a centered location on the channels until a side impact with a vehicle shears the shear pins and permits the tray to move laterally away from the location of impact.

Claims

1. A battery assembly for a vehicle comprising:

a battery;

a tray receiving the battery;

a plurality of frangible connectors attaching the tray to the vehicle;

a front channel and a rear channel attached to the vehicle that guides the tray as the tray slides away from an impact location; and

a pair of edge reinforcements each connected to the front channel at a first end and the rear channel on a second end, each edge reinforcement having an intermediate portion defining a space relative to one of the lateral sides of the tray, wherein an impact force applied to one of the edge reinforcements reduces the space between the intermediate portion and the lateral side of the tray, wherein the first and second ends thereof directly apply the impact force to the frangible connectors to break the frangible connectors enabling the tray to slide across the front channel and the rear channel.

2. A battery assembly for a vehicle comprising:

a battery;

a tray receiving the battery;

front and rear channels supporting the tray that extend between a pair of rocker assemblies;

plural shear pins each including a lever arm, the shear pins secure the tray to the front and rear channels; and

an edge reinforcement spaced from the tray between opposite ends thereof that engage and rotate the lever arms to break the shear pins.

3. The battery assembly of claim 2 wherein one shear pin is provided at each corner of the tray.

4. The battery assembly of claim 2 wherein in a side impact collision an impact force applied to the edge reinforcement to break the shear pins and slide the tray and battery away from a location of an impact.

5. A battery support assembly between a front cross member and a rear cross member of a vehicle, the assembly comprising:

a battery;

a tray supporting the battery;

a pair of transversely extending guide rails each attached to one of the cross members;

a pair of edge reinforcements each attached to a lateral side of the tray;

at least one shear pin connecting one edge reinforcement to one of the transversely extending guide rails, wherein the pair of edge reinforcements are attached to the tray adjacent a first one of the guide rails and a second one of the guide rails, wherein the edge reinforcements have has an intermediate portion defining a space with the lateral sides of the tray, wherein a force applied to one of the edge reinforcements collapses one of the edge reinforcements towards the tray reducing the space and breaking the at least one shear pin to enable the tray to slide across the first guide rail and the second guide rail; and

a lever arm connecting the shear pin to one of the edge reinforcements, wherein the edge reinforcement applies torque to break the shear pin.

6. The battery support assembly of claim 5 wherein the shear pin further comprises a plurality of shear pins, wherein one shear pin is provided at each corner of the tray.

7. The battery support assembly of claim 5 wherein in a side impact collision an impact force applied to one of the edge reinforcements breaks the shear pin and slides the tray and battery away from an impact location.

8. A vehicle including a passenger compartment having a floor pan supported on a front cross member and a rear cross member, the vehicle having a traction battery disposed below the passenger compartment, the vehicle comprising:

a battery support tray retaining the traction battery and having a right reinforcement and a left reinforcement on longitudinally extending sides of the tray;

a front guide rail supports a front edge of the tray;

a rear guide rail supports a rear edge of the tray;

a shear pin operatively connected between the battery support tray and the front guide rail and the rear guide rail holds the tray in a centered location until a collision force of a predetermined magnitude is applied to a lateral side of the vehicle, wherein the right reinforcement and left reinforcement are attached to the sides of the tray adjacent the front guide rail and the rear guide rail, and has an intermediate portion spaced from the right and left longitudinally extending sides of the tray, wherein a force applied to one of the reinforcements moves the intermediate portion towards the tray and reduces the spacing from the sides of the tray and wherein the one reinforcement breaks the shear pin to enable the tray to slide along the front guide rail and the rear guide rail; and

a lever arm provided on a shear pin, wherein and the reinforcement applies torque to the shear pin when the collision force is applied to the lateral side of the vehicle.

9. The vehicle of claim 8 wherein the right reinforcement and left reinforcement each define a trapezoidal space with the longitudinally extending sides of the tray.

10. The vehicle of claim 8 wherein the right reinforcement and left reinforcement each define an arcuate space with the longitudinally extending sides of the tray.

11. The vehicle of claim 8 wherein the shear connector further comprises a plurality of shear pins, wherein one shear pin is provided at each corner of the tray.

12. The vehicle of claim 8 wherein the collision applied to the lateral side of the vehicle and, in turn, an impact force applied to the reinforcement breaks the shear connector and slides the tray and battery away from the location of the impact.