Electric vehicle

• US 9,868,490 B2
• Filed: 12/25/2012
• Issued: 01/16/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 12/25/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kawasaki Motors
• Original Assignee: Kawasaki Jukogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
• Inventors: Inoue, Masafumi
• Primary Examiner(s): Rocca, Joseph M
• Assistant Examiner(s): Duda, Conan D
• Application Number:
  US14/655,199
• Publication Number:
  US 20150329176A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,848 Days
• Field of Search: 180220
• 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 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 15/007 Physical arrangements or structures of drive train converters specially adapted for the propulsion motors of electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2200/12 Bikes
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2210/30 AC to DC converters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2210/40 DC to AC converters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2270/147 electro magnetic [EMI]
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/64 Constructional details of batteries specially adapted for electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/66 Arrangements of batteries
• CPC Class Codes: B60Y 2200/12 Motorcycles, Trikes; Quads; Scooters
• CPC Class Codes: B60Y 2400/61 Arrangements of controllers for electric machines, e.g. inverters
• CPC Class Codes: B62K 19/30 Frame parts shaped to receive other cycle parts or accessories axle suspensions B62K25/00
• CPC Class Codes: B62K 2204/00 Adaptations for driving cycles by electric motor for driving electrically assisted bicycles B62M6/00
• CPC Class Codes: B62M 7/04 below the frame
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/6552 Closed pipes transferring heat by thermal conductivity or phase transition, e.g. heat pipes
• 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: H01M 50/271 Lids or covers for the racks or secondary casings
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/298 characterised by the wiring of battery packs
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/10 Energy storage using batteries
• 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 10/72 : Electric energy management in electromobility

Abstract

An electric vehicle comprises an electric motor which generates driving power for driving a wheel; a battery case accommodating a battery storing DC power to be supplied to the electric motor, in a battery space in an interior of the battery case; and an inverter which converts the DC power supplied from the battery into AC power and supplies the AC power to the electric motor, wherein the inverter is placed above the battery to overlap with the battery case when viewed from above.

Claims

1. An electric vehicle comprising:

an electric motor which generates driving power for driving a wheel;

a battery case accommodating a battery storing DC power to be supplied to the electric motor, in a battery space in an interior of the battery case; and

an inverter which converts the DC power supplied from the battery into AC power and supplies the AC power to the electric motor,

wherein the inverter is placed above the battery to overlap with the battery case when viewed from above,

wherein the electric motor is provided at a lower side of the battery case, and

wherein an electric wire connecting the electric motor to the inverter vertically runs through an internal space of the battery case.

2. The electric vehicle according to claim 1, being a straddle-type vehicle.

3. The electric vehicle according to claim 1, further comprising

a handle;

and

a seat,

wherein the battery and the inverter are placed between the handle and the seat.

4. The electric vehicle according to claim 1, further comprising:

an electric component provided on an electric wire connecting the inverter to the battery,

wherein the electric component is placed above the battery and fastened to the battery case.

5. The electric vehicle according to claim 1, further comprising:

a cooling medium pipe which circulates a cooling medium to the inverter,

wherein the cooling medium pipe runs through the internal space of the battery case.

6. The electric vehicle according to claim 5,

wherein the cooling medium pipe connects a cooling component to the inverter.

7. The electric vehicle according to claim 6,

wherein the cooling component and the inverter are placed such that the battery case is interposed between the cooling component and the inverter.

8. An electric vehicle comprising:

an electric motor which generates driving power for driving a wheel;

a battery case accommodating a battery storing DC power to be supplied to the electric motor, in a battery space in an interior of the battery case;

an inverter which converts the DC power supplied from the battery into AC power and supplies the AC power to the electric motor; and

a cooling medium pipe which circulates a cooling medium to the inverter,

wherein the inverter is placed above the battery to overlap with the battery case when viewed from above,

wherein the cooling medium pipe runs through an internal space of the battery case, and

wherein the cooling medium pipe vertically runs through the internal space of the battery case and circulates the cooling medium to a cooling component provided at a lower side of the battery case and to the inverter.

9. The electric vehicle according to claim 8,

wherein the electric vehicle is a motorcycle,

wherein the electric motor and the battery case are placed between a front wheel and a rear wheel,

wherein the battery case includes an upper battery accommodating section and a lower battery accommodating section which is shorter in a forward and rearward direction than the upper battery accommodating section is, and

wherein the electric motor is placed rearward relative to the lower battery accommodating section and below the upper battery accommodating section.