Patent Application
20110163141
1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to electrically powered automotive vehicles equipped with high voltage batteries that may be recharged from an off-board power source.
2. Background Art
Some types of electrically powered vehicles such as plug-in hybrids and battery electric vehicles use a charging cord to connect the vehicle to an off-board power supply when it is necessary to charge/re-charge the on-board batteries. It may be desirable to carry the charging cord on board the vehicle and, if this is the case, it is desirable to ensure that the vehicle operator has secure storage and easy access to the cord when needed. If the charging cord is stored loose in the trunk or other cargo compartment of the vehicle, there is a risk that it may become a hazard during a collision. Also, it may be difficult to find when needed, particularly if there are other objects in the trunk or cargo compartment that may be hiding or blocking access to the cord. If the charging cord is stored in a compartment within the vehicle cargo compartment, access to the storage compartment may be blocked by other objects and so require removal of those other objects in order to reach the charging cord.
In a first disclosed embodiment, apparatus for storing an electric charging cord aboard an automotive vehicle comprises a cord storage unit comprising a cord retaining portion and at least one mounting feature, and a bracket disposed on an interior of a movable body closure and engaging the mounting feature to removably attach the storage unit to the panel throughout movement of the body closure between and including open and closed positions.
In a further disclosed embodiment, apparatus for storing a electrical cord aboard an automotive vehicle comprises a vehicle body closure movable between a lowered/closed position and an open/raised position, a cord storage unit comprising a cord retaining portion and at least one mounting feature, and a bracket mounted to an interior of the body closure and matingly engaging the mounting feature to removably attach the cord storage unit to the body closure.
In a further disclosed embodiment, apparatus for storing an electrical cord aboard an automotive vehicle having an upwardly-opening tailgate comprises a cord storage unit comprising a cord retaining portion and at least one mounting feature, and a bracket securable to an interior of the tailgate and engaging the mounting feature to removably attach the cord storage unit to the tailgate throughout a range of motion of the tailgate including and between a lowered/closed position and a raised/open position.
Embodiments of the present invention will now be described by way of example only with reference to accompanying drawings in which:
As required, detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosed herein; however, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention that may be embodied in various and alternative forms. The figures are not necessarily to scale; some features may be exaggerated or minimized to show details of particular components. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the present invention.
Referring to
A charging cord mounting and storage bracket 14 is mounted to an interior surface of the closure 12. The interior surface of the closure 12 may be the primary metal structure of the closure and/or trim panels formed of plastic or other appropriate materials. Bracket 14 may be mounted to the interior surface by any appropriate means, such as bolts, self tapping screws, welding or Christmas tree fasteners.
Bracket 14 comprises one or more retaining arms 16 and a latch mechanism 18 comprising upper and lower latch fingers 20 and a release tab 22.
A cord storage unit 24, as best seen in
As indicated in
Latch fingers 20 are spring loaded to the latch condition and hold storage unit 24 securely in the stowed position closely adjacent to the body closure 12 throughout the full range of motion of the closure between the lowered/closed position and the raised/open position. When the operator 40 requires access to the charging cord he/she moves the closure 12 to the open/raised condition and actuates the release tab 22 thereby releasing the latch fingers 20 from engagement with mounting plate 26 of storage unit 24. This allows the entire storage unit 24 to drop downwardly, under the force of gravity, and slide along arms 16 to the access position shown in
Operator 12 then may lift and/or rotate the storage unit 24 to disengage the mounting features 26a from arm 16 thereby completely freeing storage unit 24 from bracket 14. Power cord 32 is then uncoiled from storage unit 24 and the ends of the power cord connected with the vehicle 10 and an appropriate power source to recharge the vehicle batteries.
When charging is complete, power cord 32 is wrapped around spool 28, the coupler 34 placed in engagement with coupler retainer 30, and the mounting ears 26a engaged with arms 16 so that storage unit 24 is once again hanging from bracket 14 with closure 12 in the open/raised position. Operator 40 then moves/rotates/slides storage unit 24 upwardly to place mounting plate 26 between latch fingers 20 and urges the storage unit upward so that latch fingers 20 snap into engagement with the mounting plate. Closure 12 may then be returned and latched in the lower/closed position.
It is also possible for the operator 40 to lower closure 12 to its closed position immediately after hanging storage unit 24 from bracket arms 16, without first moving the storage unit into engagement with latch fingers 20. When closure 12 is moved to its closed position, storage unit 24 will swing into contact with bracket 14 and inertia will cause mounting plate 26 to snap into engagement with latch fingers 20.
Cord storage unit 24 is held securely in the stowed position with no danger of moving during a collision or of being lost or buried underneath or behind other objects carried in the vehicle cargo compartment.
While exemplary embodiments are described above, it is not intended that these embodiments describe all possible forms of the invention. Rather, the words used in the specification are words of description rather than limitation, and it is understood that various changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Additionally, the features of various implementing embodiments may be combined to form further embodiments of the invention.
