Body construction of electric car

• US 6,837,325 B2
• Filed: 08/08/2002
• Issued: 01/04/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 06/11/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Japan Science And Technology Corpration (Japan Science And Technology Agency)
• Original Assignee: Japan Science And Technology Corpration (Japan Science And Technology Agency)
• Inventors: Shimizu, Hiroshi
• Primary Examiner(s): FISCHMANN, BRYAN R
• Application Number:
  US10/250,333
• Publication Number:
  US 20040134699A1
• Time in Patent Office: 880 Days
• Field of Search: 180/65.1, 180/65.5, 180/68.5, 280/782, 429 96-100
• US Class Current: 180/68.5
• 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: B60L 2220/44 Wheel Hub motors, i.e. integrated in the wheel hub
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/66 Arrangements of batteries
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/80 Exchanging energy storage elements, e.g. removable batteries
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 21/10 in which the main member is plate-like
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 25/20 Floors or bottom sub-units sub-frames for mounting engine or suspensions B62D21/11; drip trays F16N31/006
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/64 Electric machine technologies in electromobility
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/7072 Electromobility specific charging systems or methods for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors

Abstract

The present invention provides a body construction for an electric car having a flat floor and allowing batteries to be easily mounted therein and removed therefrom and to be accommodated under the floor in a space-effective manner, in which power lines are rationally wired. The batteries feed power to a plurality of in-wheel motors. A front wheel frame supporting the front wheels and a rear wheel frame supporting the rear wheels are coupled by a backbone member having an approximately rectangular hollow cross-section, and pluralities of battery-accommodating hollow frames connect perpendicular to the right and left side surfaces of the backbone member, so as to lie parallel to each other.

Claims

1. An electric car body in which batteries for feeding a power to a plurality of wheel motors are accommodated in a floor portion of a car body, comprising:

a front wheel frame supporting front wheels and a rear wheel frame supporting rear wheels;

a backbone member having an approximately rectangular hollow cross-section and connecting the front wheel frame with the rear wheel frame; and

pluralities of battery-accommodating hollow frames for accommodating the batteries, said hollow frames extending perpendicularly from opposite side surfaces of the backbone member so as to lie parallel to each other.

2. The electric car body according to claim 1, wherein inverters for the wheel motors are arranged adjacent the corresponding in-wheel motors either in the front wheel frame or in the rear wheel frame and power lines from the batteries to the inverters extend through the hollow of the backbone member.

3. The electric car body according to claim 2, wherein the front wheel frame and the rear wheel frame form a frame structure having substantially the same height the battery-accommodating hollow frames and the inverters are arranged in the frame structure.

4. The electric car body according to claim 1, wherein the wheel motors and the batteries are divided into two systems, the batteries of one system being accommodated in the hollow frames disposed to one side of the backbone member and the batteries of the other system being accommodated in the hollow frames disposed to the other side of the backbone member.