Control unit for a motor vehicle with a shock hazard protection cover

• US 9,781,856 B2
• Filed: 02/26/2014
• Issued: 10/03/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/18/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
• Original Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
• Inventors: Teusch, Stefan
• Primary Examiner(s): Estrada, Angel R
• Application Number:
  US14/778,516
• Publication Number:
  US 20160286677A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,315 Days
• Field of Search: 174 50, 174520, 174559, 174561, 174 66, 174560, 439 761, 439 762, 439949
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 5/0247 Electrical details of casings, e.g. terminals, passages for cables or wiring
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 5/03 Covers
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 7/1432 specially adapted for power drive units or power converters
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 7/14327 having supplementary functional units, e.g. data transfer modules or displays or user interfaces

Abstract

The invention relates to a control unit for an electric vehicle or hybrid vehicle. The control unit has a housing enclosing a cavity. The housing has a housing lid and a housing opening, wherein the housing lid is designed to close the housing opening. According to the invention, the control unit has an electrically insulating shock hazard protection cover, which has at least one projection region extending transversely with respect to a surface of the shock hazard protection cover. The housing lid has at least one receptacle for the projection region, wherein the cutout is designed to retain the projection region in a force-locking manner. The shock hazard protection cover has at least one latching hook designed to latch in a positively locking manner, or additionally in a force-locking manner, with the housing or a part of the control unit in the interior of the housing which is connected to the housing.

Claims

1. A control unit (1) for an electric vehicle or hybrid vehicle, the control unit (1) comprising:

a housing (3) enclosing at least one cavity (4), wherein the housing (3) has a housing lid (5) and a housing opening (6), wherein the housing lid (5) is configured to close the housing opening (6); and

an electrically insulating shock hazard protection cover (7), which has at least one projection region (20) extending transversely with respect to a surface of the shock hazard protection cover (7),

wherein the housing lid (5) has at least one receptacle (21) for the projection region (20), which receptacle (21) is configured to securely hold the projection region (20) with a frictional fit,

wherein the shock hazard protection cover (7) has at least one latching hook (10, 11), wherein the latching hook (10, 11) is configured to latch, with a form fit or additionally with a frictional fit, with the housing (3), and

wherein a force required for releasing the at least one latching hook (10, 11) from the housing (3) is greater than a force required for separating the shock hazard protection cover (7) from the housing lid (5) so that, when the at least one receptacle (21) is holding the projection region (20) with a frictional fit and the housing lid (5) is moved away from the housing opening (6), the housing lid (5) is separated from the shock hazard protection cover (7) and the shock hazard protection cover (7) remains latched with the housing (3) via the at least one latching hook (10, 11).

2. The control unit (1) as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the shock hazard protection cover (7) has a resilient seal (9) seal formed integrally on the shock hazard protection cover (7), which seal is designed to seal at least an edge of the housing opening (6) and the housing lid (5) with respect to each other.

3. The control unit (1) as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that the housing lid has at least one aperture or a cutout for a screw arranged in such a way that the housing lid can be tightly screwed to the housing.

4. The control unit (1) as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the shock hazard protection cover (7) has at least one aperture (14, 15) for passing through a probe tip (35, 37) of an electric voltmeter (34).

5. The control unit (1) as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that a retaining element (16, 17, 18, 19) is integrally formed on the shock hazard protection cover (7), which retaining element extends transversely with respect to the surface in a direction opposite the projection region (20) and which is shaped in the manner of a hollow cylinder portion or hollow-cylindrically and is configured to engage around a head of a screw (24, 25) and to securely hold the screw (24, 25) against detachment.

6. The control unit (1) as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the shock hazard protection cover (7) is formed from fiber-reinforced plastic.

7. The control unit (1) as claimed in claim 6, characterized in that the plastic of the shock hazard protection cover (7) comprises polybutylene terephthalate.

8. The control unit (1) as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that the seal (9) comprises silicone rubber.

9. The control unit (1) as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that the housing lid has at least one aperture or a cutout for a screw, wherein the housing has a thread, and wherein the thread is arranged in such a way that the housing lid can be tightly screwed to the housing.

10. The control unit (1) as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that the housing lid has at least one aperture or a cutout for a screw, wherein the housing preferably has an inner thread for the screw, and wherein the inner thread is arranged in such a way that the housing lid can be tightly screwed to the housing.

11. The control unit (1) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the shock hazard protection cover (7) includes an actuation lever (12, 13), which extends in the direction of the housing lid (5), and a slit (33, 34), which is in the region of the latching hook (10, 11), such that the actuation lever (12, 13) can be resiliently pivoted, and wherein the shock hazard protection cover (7) is designed to pivot the latching hook (10, 11) as the actuation lever (12, 13) is pivoted.

12. The control unit (1) as claimed in claim 2, wherein the sealing edge (9) projects beyond a lid edge of the housing lid (5) such that the presence of the shock hazard protection cover (7) can be seen from the outside.

13. The control unit (1) as claimed in claim 12, wherein the sealing edge (9) has a signal color, and wherein the signal color is one of red, yellow, and orange.

14. A control unit (1) for an electric vehicle or hybrid vehicle, the control unit (1) comprising:

a housing (3) enclosing at least one cavity (4), wherein the housing (3) has a housing lid (5) and a housing opening (6), wherein the housing lid (5) is configured to close the housing opening (6); and

an electrically insulating shock hazard protection cover (7), which has at least one projection region (20) extending transversely with respect to a surface of the shock hazard protection cover (7),

wherein the housing lid (5) has at least one receptacle (21) for the projection region (20), which receptacle (21) is configured to securely hold the projection region (20) with a frictional fit,

wherein the shock hazard protection cover (7) has at least one latching hook (10, 11), wherein the latching hook (10, 11) is configured to latch, with a form fit or additionally with a frictional fit, with the housing (3), and

wherein the shock hazard protection cover (7) has a resilient seal (9) seal formed integrally on the shock hazard protection cover (7), which seal is designed to seal at least an edge of the housing opening (6) and the housing lid (5) with respect to each other.

15. The control unit (1) as claimed in claim 14, characterized in that the housing lid has at least one aperture or a cutout for a screw arranged in such a way that the housing lid can be tightly screwed to the housing.

16. The control unit (1) as claimed in claim 14, characterized in that the housing lid has at least one aperture or a cutout for a screw, wherein the housing has a thread, and wherein the thread is arranged in such a way that the housing lid can be tightly screwed to the housing.

17. The control unit (1) as claimed in claim 14, characterized in that the housing lid has at least one aperture or a cutout for a screw, wherein the housing preferably has an inner thread for the screw, and wherein the inner thread is arranged in such a way that the housing lid can be tightly screwed to the housing.

18. A method for making safe a control unit (1) having a housing (3) enclosing a cavity (4), said method comprising the steps of:

frictionally connecting a shock hazard protection cover (7) to an inner wall of a housing lid (5); and

closing a housing opening (6) of the housing (3) with the housing lid (5), wherein the shock hazard protection cover (7) latches with the housing (3) or part of the control unit (1) connected to the housing (3), such that the shock hazard protection cover (7) interlocks with the housing (3) or part of the control unit (1), and

wherein a force required for releasing the engagement of the shock hazard protection cover (7) with the housing (3) is greater than a force required for separating the shock hazard protection cover (7) from the housing lid (5).

19. The method as claimed in claim 18, in which a seal (9) formed integrally on the shock hazard protection cover (7) is trapped between an opening edge of the housing opening (6) and the housing lid (5) as the housing opening (6) is closed, such that the cavity (4) is protected against infiltrating moisture.

20. A control unit (1) for an electric vehicle or hybrid vehicle, the control unit (1) comprising:

a housing (3) enclosing at least one cavity (4), wherein the housing (3) has a housing lid (5) and a housing opening (6), wherein the housing lid (5) is configured to close the housing opening (6); and

an electrically insulating shock hazard protection cover (7), which has at least one projection region (20) extending transversely with respect to a surface of the shock hazard protection cover (7),

wherein the housing lid (5) has at least one receptacle (21) for the projection region (20), which receptacle (21) is configured to securely hold the projection region (20) with a frictional fit,

wherein the shock hazard protection cover (7) has at least one latching hook (10, 11), wherein the latching hook (10, 11) is configured to latch, with a form fit or additionally with a frictional fit, with the housing (3), and

wherein a retaining element (16, 17, 18, 19) is integrally formed on the shock hazard protection cover (7), which retaining element extends transversely with respect to the surface in a direction opposite the projection region (20) and which is shaped in the manner of a hollow cylinder portion or hollow-cylindrically and is configured to engage around a head of a screw (24, 25) and to securely hold the screw (24, 25) against detachment.