Door assembly for charging port of electric vehicle

• US 9,662,990 B2
• Filed: 12/15/2014
• Issued: 05/30/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 06/25/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CAMS Co., Ltd., Hyundai Motor Company (Hyundai Motor Group), Kia Motors Corporation (Kia Corp.)
• Original Assignee: CAMS Co., Ltd., Hyundai Motor Company (Hyundai Motor Group), Kia Motors Corporation (Kia Corp.)
• Inventors: Shin, Yong Suk, Jeong, Yong Won, Cho, Young Ik, Jeong, Hwan
• Primary Examiner(s): Pape, Joseph D
• Assistant Examiner(s): IVEY, DANA DESHAWN
• Application Number:
  US14/570,863
• Publication Number:
  US 20150375630A1
• Time in Patent Office: 897 Days
• Field of Search: 296 9722, 2922515
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 1/00 Arrangement or mounting of electrical propulsion units B60K7/00 takes precedence; arrangement or mounting of plural diverse prime-movers for mutual or common propulsion B60K6/00; electric transmission arrangements B60K17/12; electric equipment or propulsion of electrically-propelled vehicles per se B60L; current-collectors for power supply lines of electrically-propelled vehicles B60L5/00
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 15/05 Inlet covers
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2015/0523 with sliding connection to the vehicle body
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2015/053 with hinged connection to the vehicle body
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/16 Connectors, e.g. plugs or sockets, specially adapted for charging electric vehicles
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/14 Plug-in electric vehicles

Abstract

A door assembly for a charging port for an electric vehicle may include a link assembly mounted to a back of a charging port door to perform a swing operation, in which the door is mounted in a structure capable of being kept at a minimum distance between the door and a vehicle body when the door is open according to the swing operation.

Claims

1. A door assembly for a charging port for an electric vehicle including:

a link assembly mounted to a back of a charging port door, wherein the charging port door is open according to a swing operation of the charging port door,

wherein a separate rail plate is fixedly mounted to the back of the charging port door, and the link assembly is both pivotally and slidably mounted to the separate rail plate to perform the swing operation of the charging port door with respect to the link assembly and to perform a sliding operation of the charging port door along the separate rail plate, and

wherein the link assembly includes;

a first link and a second link which are pivotally mounted to the separate rail plate through hinge pins; and

a third link, an outer end of which is hinged to the second link, and an inner end of which is engaged within a rail mounted on an end portion of an inner surface of the charging port door.

2. The assembly of claim 1, wherein

the first link includes an outer end of which is mounted to a first end portion of the inner surface of the charging port door to be swingable through a first hinge pin of the hinge ins, and an inner end of which is hinged to a vehicle body;

and

the second link includes an outer end of which is mounted to an intermediate portion of the inner surface of the charging port door to be swingable through a second hinge pin of the hinge pins, and an inner end of which is hinged to the vehicle body,

wherein the link assembly further includes an elastic member attached between the first link and the charging port door to exert an elastic restoring force toward an opening direction of the charging port door.

3. The assembly of claim 2, wherein, at the outer end of the first link, an angle limitation end adapted to be supported in close contact with a back of the rail plate during opening of the charging port door to limit a door opening angle is formed to be bent.

4. The assembly of claim 2, wherein, at a position apart from the outer end toward the inner end of the second link at a predetermined distance, a third hinge pin of the hinge pins, to which the third link is hinged, is mounted.

5. The assembly of claim 2, wherein the elastic member is adopted as a coil spring, a first end of which is fixed to the first link, and a second end of which is inserted and fastened to the first hinge pin, while being fixed to the rail plate.

6. The assembly of claim 2, wherein the separate rail plate is fixedly mounted to the back of the charging port door, and the link assembly is mounted to the rail plate to perform the swing operation and the sliding operation.

7. The assembly of claim 1, wherein an outer end of the first link of the link assembly is mounted to a first end portion of the separate rail plate via a first hinge pin of the hinge pins so as to perform the swing operation,

an outer end of the second link of the link assembly is mounted to an intermediate portion of the separate rail plate via a second hinge pin of the hinge pins so as to perform the swing operation,

the inner end of the third link of the link assembly is fastened to a second end portion of the rail plate so as to perform the slide operation within a rail of the separate rail plate, and

an elastic member adapted to apply an elastic restoring force toward an opening direction side of the charging port door is attached between the first link and the rail plate.

8. A door assembly for a charging port for an electric vehicle including:

a link assembly mounted to a back of a charging port door, wherein the charging port door is open according to a swing operation of the charging port door,

wherein a separate rail plate is fixedly mounted to the back of the charging port door, and the link assembly is both pivotally and slidably mounted to the separate rail plate to perform the swing operation of the charging port door with respect to the link assembly and to perform a sliding operation of the charging port door along the separate rail plate, and

wherein the link assembly includes;

a sliding plate slidably fastened to the separate rail plate; and

a first link and a second link which are hinged to the sliding plate to be swingable.

9. The assembly of claim 8, wherein at an outer end of the second link, an angle limitation end adapted to be supported in close contact with a back of the sliding plate during opening of the charging port door to limit a door opening angle is formed to be bent.

10. The assembly of claim 8, wherein the rail plate is integrally formed with a rail guide to protrude therefrom, and the sliding plate is formed with a rail groove into which the rail guide is slidably inserted.

11. The assembly of claim 8, wherein an elastic member is a roll spring, a first end portion of the elastic member being fixed to the rail plate, and a second end portion thereof being fixed to the sliding plate.

12. The assembly of claim 8,

wherein the first link includes an outer end of which is hinged to a first end portion of the sliding plate to be swingable, and an inner end of which is hinged to a vehicle body;

wherein the second link includes an outer end of which is hinged to an intermediate portion of the sliding plate to be swingable, and an inner end of which is hinged to the vehicle body; and

wherein the link assembly further includes an elastic member attached between the separate rail plate and the sliding plate to exert an elastic restoring force toward an opening direction of the charging port door.

13. A door assembly for a charging port for an electric vehicle including a link assembly mounted to a back of a charging port door,

wherein the charging port door is open according to a swing operation of the charging port door,

wherein a separate rail plate is fixedly mounted to the back of the charging port door, and the link assembly is both pivotally and slidably mounted to the separate rail plate to perform the swing operation of the charging port door with respect to the link assembly and to perform a sliding operation of the charging port door along the separate rail plate, and

wherein the link assembly includes:

a first link, an outer end of which is mounted to a first end portion of an inner surface of the charging port door to be swingable through a first hinge pin, and an inner end of which is hinged to a vehicle body;

a second link, an outer end of which is mounted to an intermediate portion of the inner surface of the charging port door to be swingable through a second hinge pin, and an inner end of which is hinged to the vehicle body;

a third link, an outer end of which is hinged to the second link, and an inner end of which is engaged within a rail mounted on a second end portion of the inner surface of the charging port door; and

an elastic member that is attached between the first link and the charging port door to exert an elastic restoring force toward an opening direction of the charging port door.