The present application relates to the technical field of locking, and more particularly relates to a quick-change lock assembly for a battery and a locking device using the same.
In recent years, with the rapid development of new energy vehicles, the global sales of new energy vehicles have continued to grow. However, the charging time of the power battery of the new energy vehicle is long, and such problem is generally solved by adopting a method for quickly changing the power battery. According to such battery change mode, the purpose of supplementing electric energy of the new energy vehicle is achieved by directly changing the battery pack of the new energy vehicle, rapid electric energy supplement can be achieved, and meanwhile, battery maintenance and prolonging of the service life are facilitated.
However, a current locking device for locking the battery pack to the vehicle body requires a large amount of space. Therefore, it is desirable to provide a locking device which requires less space, can achieve high fastening performance, and has an anti-loosening structure with high reliability.
The present application provides a quick-change lock assembly and a locking device using the same.
In a first aspect, provided is a quick-change lock assembly, comprising: a shell with a hollow cavity formed therein; a quick-change bolt arranged in the cavity, wherein the quick-change bolt comprises a guide section, a threaded fixing section, a flange portion and a tool matching section, a through hole is formed in the quick-change bolt along the axial direction, first anti-loosening teeth are formed on the guide section, and the first anti-loosening teeth can be locked to limit the rotation of the quick-change bolt; an unlocking mandrel configured to be inserted and retained in the through hole, wherein the length of the unlocking mandrel is greater than the length of the through hole, and when an external tool is inserted into the tool matching section, the external tool can push the unlocking mandrel to move along the through hole and protrude from the guide section to remove the locking of the first anti-loosening teeth; and a bolt fixing ring fixed to the shell and configured to stop the flange portion. According to the configuration of the quick-change lock assembly of the present application, the installation space needed by the locking device can be greatly reduced, and meanwhile, high fastening performance as well as anti-loosening and anti-rotation performance with high reliability can be achieved. In some embodiments, the guide section is frustum-shaped, and the first anti-loosening teeth are arranged on the conical surface of the guide section. By means of such configuration, installation of the quick-change bolt can be better guided. In some embodiments, a boss is formed at the top of the shell, and the outer ring of the boss has a toothed structure. By means of interference fit of the toothed structure, the shell of the quick-change lock assembly is pressed into a battery pack beam, such that quick installation of the quick-change lock assembly and the battery pack beam can be achieved.
In some embodiments, a step portion is formed on the inner side of the bolt fixing ring, and the step portion stops the flange portion. By means of such configuration, it is possible to prevent the quick-change bolt from coming out of the shell. In some embodiments, the unlocking mandrel is provided with a head portion and a thin neck portion, wherein a protruding portion is formed on the inner wall of the through hole, the head portion is configured to be matched with the protruding portion to retain the unlocking mandrel in the through hole, and the thin neck portion is configured to move freely through the protruding portion. By means of such configuration, the unlocking mandrel can slide within a predetermined range in the through hole without coming out of the through hole.
In a second aspect, provided is a nut assembly, comprising: a quick-change nut comprising a nut body, a through threaded hole being formed in the nut body; a locking mechanism or locker, a locking concave portion being provided on the side, opposite to the threaded hole, of the locking mechanism, and second anti-loosening teeth being formed on the inner surface of the locking concave portion; and an elastic member or structure matched with the locking mechanism to make the locking mechanism approach the quick-change nut. According to the configuration of the nut assembly of the present application, the installation space needed by the locking device can be greatly reduced, and meanwhile, high fastening performance as well as anti-loosening and anti-rotation performance with high reliability can be achieved.
In some embodiments, the nut assembly further comprises: a cover plate; and a base, the cover plate being fixedly connected to the base, and an accommodating space being formed between the cover plate and the base; wherein the quick-change nut further comprises a cap portion connected to the nut body, the cap portion is arranged in the accommodating space, an opening from which the nut body protrudes is formed in the base, and the accommodating space is configured to allow the quick-change nut to move within a predetermined range. By means of such configuration, when the axis of the quick-change bolt and the axis of the quick-change nut are not in a straight line, the quick-change bolt and the quick-change nut can be better aligned.
In some embodiments, a guide portion is formed on the side, opposite to the cover plate, of the locking mechanism, and a guide hole matched with the guide portion is formed in the cover plate, the elastic member sleeves the guide portion, and both ends of the elastic member respectively abut against the cover plate and the locking mechanism. By means of such configuration, movement of the locking mechanism can be guided, and the elastic member can be positioned.
In some embodiments, a flanging is provided on the base and/or the cover, and the flanging is configured to limit the rotation of the quick-change nut relative to the base and/or the cover plate. Through arrangement of the flanging, when the quick-change bolt and the quick-change nut are tightened, the quick-change nut can be prevented from rotating relative to the base and/or the cover plate.
In some embodiments, protrusions are formed on the cap portion, and snap grooves snapped with the protrusions are formed on the locking mechanism. By means of such configuration, the locking mechanism can be positioned to prevent the locking mechanism from rotating relative to the quick-change nut.
In a third aspect, provided is a locking device comprising: the quick-change lock assembly as described above; and the nut assembly as described above, wherein the quick-change bolt is configured such that, when the quick-change bolt is tightened with the quick-change nut, the guide section passes through the threaded hole of the quick-change nut and abuts against the inner surface of the locking concave portion, and wherein the second anti-loosening teeth are adapted to be engaged with the first anti-loosening teeth for locking or disengaged from the same for unlocking. By using the quick-change lock assembly and the nut assembly of the present application, the installation space needed by the locking device can be greatly reduced, and meanwhile, high fastening performance as well as anti-loosening and anti-rotation performance with high reliability can be achieved.
In some embodiments, the first anti-loosening teeth and the second anti-loosening teeth are inclined toothed structures. The quick-change bolt can be better prevented from loosening by using the anti-loosening teeth with the inclined toothed structures.
In some embodiments, the angle of inclination of the first anti-loosening teeth and the second anti-loosening teeth is 30°-60°. By setting the angle of inclination of the anti-loosening teeth to be 30°-60°, the anti-loosening and anti-rotation effects can be optimally achieved.
In a fourth aspect, provided is a vehicle, comprising: a battery pack beam with a hole formed therein; a vehicle body beam with a groove formed therein; and the locking device as described above, wherein the nut assembly is fixed into the groove of the vehicle body beam, the quick-change lock assembly is fixed into the hole of the battery pack beam. By means of such configuration, the installation space needed by the locking device can be further reduced.
According to the locking device of the present application, particularly the quick-change lock assembly according to the present application, the problem about the installation space needed by a quick-change lock can be reduced, convenient assembly and replacement can be achieved, assembly alignment is simple, and assembly efficiency is high.
The drawings described herein are intended to provide a further understanding of the present application, which constitute a part of the present application. The illustrative embodiments of the present application and the description thereof are for explaining the present application and do not constitute an undue limitation of the present application. In the drawings:
In order to make the objects, technical solutions and advantages of embodiments of the present application clearer, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly described below with reference to the drawings for the embodiments of the present application. Apparently, the described embodiments are some of, rather than all of, the embodiments of the present application. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative effort fall within the protection scope of the present application.
Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used in the present application have the same meanings as those commonly understood by those skilled in the art to which the present application belongs. The terms used in the specification of the present application are merely for the purpose of describing specific embodiments, but are not intended to limit the present application. The terms “comprising” and “having” and any variations thereof in the specification and the claims of the present application as well as the foregoing description of the drawings are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusions. The terms “first”, “second” and the like in the specification and the claims of the present application as well as the above drawings are used to distinguish different objects, rather than to describe a specific order or primary-secondary relationship.
In the present application, reference to “embodiment” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment may be included in at least one embodiment of the present application. The appearance of this phrase in various places in the specification does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment, nor is a separate or alternative embodiment that is mutually exclusive of other embodiments. It is understood explicitly and implicitly by those skilled in the art that the embodiments described in the present application can be combined with other embodiments.
In the description of the present application, it should be noted that the terms “mounting”, “connecting”, “connection” and “attachment” should be understood in a broad sense, unless otherwise explicitly specified or defined. For example, it may be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integrated connection; and it may be a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium, or may be a communication between the interior of two elements. For those of ordinary skill in the art, the specific meanings of the above terms in the present application can be understood according to specific situations.
In the present application, the term “and/or” is only an association relationship for describing associated objects, indicating that three relationships may exist. For example, A and/or B may represent three situations: A exists alone, both A and B exist, and B exists alone. In addition, the character “/” in the present application generally means that the associated objects before and after it are in an “or” relationship.
In the present application, “a plurality of” means two or more (comprising two), similarly, “a plurality of groups” means two or more groups (comprising two groups), and “a plurality of sheets” means two or more sheets (comprising two sheets).
The battery mentioned in embodiments of the present application refers to a single physical module comprising a plurality of battery cells to provide higher voltage and capacity. For example, the battery mentioned in the present application may comprise a battery module, a battery pack, or the like.
The present application provides a quick-change lock assembly which requires less space, can achieve high fastening performance, and meanwhile has an anti-loosening structure with high reliability, as well as a locking device using the quick-change lock assembly.
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present application will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
A locking device 300 of the present application comprises a quick-change lock assembly 100 and a nut assembly 200.
First, the configuration of the quick-change lock assembly 100 of the locking device 300 of the present application will be described with reference to
As shown in
The quick-change bolt 103 is arranged in the cavity and is configured to be able to move axially to protrude from or be accommodated in the cavity via the opening 109. In other words, a clearance fit is formed between the quick-change bolt 103 and the shell 101.
The quick-change bolt 103 comprises a guide section 113, a threaded fixing section 115, a flange portion 117 and a tool matching section 119. The guide section 113 is located at the front end of the threaded fixing section 115. First anti-loosening teeth 121 are formed on the guide section 113. In some embodiments, the guide section 113 may be frustum-shaped. In this case, the first anti-loosening teeth 121 may be provided on the conical surface of the guide segment 113. A thread is provided on the threaded fixing section 115 for matching with the quick-change nut 207 to be described below, thereby realizing locking.
The tool matching section 119 is configured to be matched with a tool, and when a battery is locked or disassembled, the tool drives the tool matching section 119 to rotate, thereby realizing the tightening or disassembly of the quick-change bolt 103. Although not explicitly shown in the figures, as would be understood by those skilled in the art, for example, the tool matching section 119 may be internally provided with a polygonal through hole, and the front end of the tool may be a polygonal prism to match therewith, whereby the tool is able to drive the tool matching section 119 to rotate.
A through hole 301 is formed in the quick-change bolt 103 along the axial direction. Specifically, as shown in
In some embodiments, as shown in
The length of the unlocking mandrel 105 is set to be greater than the length of the through hole 301. That is, when the quick-change bolt 103 is to be assembled or disassembled, and the tool is inserted into the tool matching section 119 to prop against the bottom of the locking mandrel 105, the head portion 123 of the unlocking mandrel 105 will protrude from the front end of the quick-change bolt 103 by a predetermined length.
The bolt fixing ring 107 is fixed to the shell 101. In some embodiments, the bolt fixing ring 107 can be locked with the shell 101 via threaded connection. The bolt fixing ring 107 is configured to stop the flange portion 117 of the quick-change bolt 105 to prevent the quick-change bolt 105 from coming out of the shell 101 of the quick-change lock assembly 100. In some embodiments, a step portion 127 may be formed on the inner side of the bolt fixing ring 107, and the diameter of a space surrounded by the step portion 127 may be less than the diameter of a disk formed by the flange portion 117. Thus, before the quick-change bolt 103 is assembled or after the quick-change bolt 103 is disassembled, the step portion 127 can support the flange portion 117 such that the quick-change bolt 103 does not come out of the shell 101.
Next, the configuration of the nut assembly 200 of the locking device of the present application will be described with reference to
The nut assembly 200 comprises a cover plate 201, an elastic member 203, a locking mechanism 205, a quick-change nut 207 and a base 209. The quick-change nut 207 is provided with a nut body 211 and a cap portion 213 connected to the nut body 211. The nut body 211 is provided with a through threaded hole which is matched with the quick-change bolt 103.
The locking mechanism 205 is arranged on the quick-change nut 207. A locking concave portion 305 is provided on the side, opposite to the threaded hole, of the locking mechanism 205, and second anti-loosening teeth 307 are formed on the inner surface of the locking concave portion 305. The second anti-loosening teeth 307 are adapted to be engaged with the first anti-loosening teeth 121 provided on the guide section 113 of the quick-change bolt 103 for locking or disengaged from the same for unlocking. In other words, the quick-change bolt 103 is configured such that, when tightened with the quick-change nut 207, the guide section 113 passes through the threaded hole of the quick-change nut 207 and abuts against the inner surface of the locking concave portion 305, thereby enabling the first anti-loosening teeth 121 to be engaged with the second anti-loosening teeth 307. In some embodiments, the first anti-loosening teeth 121 and the second anti-loosening teeth 307 are inclined toothed structures. In these embodiments, the angle of inclination of the first anti-loosening teeth 121 and the second anti-loosening teeth 307 is preferably 30°-60°.
In some embodiments, protrusions 215 are formed on the cap portion 213 of the quick-change nut 207. Correspondingly, a snap groove 217 is formed in the locking mechanism 205. The protrusions 215 are snapped with the snap grooves 217 to position the locking mechanism 205, for example, to prevent the locking mechanism 205 from rotating relative to the quick-change nut 207.
The elastic member 203 is arranged on the locking mechanism 205 to match with the locking mechanism 205 to make the locking mechanism 205 approach the quick-change nut 207. That is, the elastic member 203 exerts a force to push the locking mechanism 205 towards the quick-change nut 207. In some embodiments, the elastic member 203 may be a spring.
An accommodating space is formed between the cover plate 201 and the base 209. In some embodiments, the cover plate 201 may be formed as a substantially rectangular plate shape protruding in the middle, and the base 209 may be formed as a substantially rectangular plate shape.
Thus, the accommodating space may be formed between the cover plate 201 and the base 209. In some embodiments, threaded holes 219 may be formed at four corners of the cover plate 201, and through holes 221 may be formed at the positions, corresponding to the threaded holes 219, of the base 209. Thus, the cover plate can be fixedly connected to a vehicle body beam 402 of the new energy vehicle, for example, by bolts 406 as shown in
The cap portion 213 of the quick-change nut 207, the locking mechanism 205 and the elastic member 203 are all arranged in the accommodating space. The accommodating space is configured to allow the quick-change nut 207 to move within a predetermined range, thereby ensuring that the quick-change nut 207 is aligned with the quick-change lock assembly 100. The base 209 is provided with an opening 223 from which the nut body 211 protrudes. The diameter of the opening 223 is greater than the diameter of the outer ring of the nut body 211, thereby allowing the quick change nut 207 to move within the predetermined range as described above.
Both ends of the elastic member 203 respectively abut against the cover plate 201 and the locking mechanism 205. That is, when the cover plate 201 and the base 209 are locked by the nut 406, the elastic member 203 is in a compressed state. Thus, the locking mechanism 205 is pushed in the direction away from the cover plate 201 to make the locking mechanism 205 approach the quick-change nut 207.
In some embodiments, a guide portion 227 is formed on the side, opposite to the cover plate 201, of the locking mechanism 205. Correspondingly, a guide hole 229 which is in guide fit with the guide portion 227 is formed in the cover plate 201. The guide portion 227 may protrude from the guide hole 229. Here again, the diameter of the guide hole 229 is greater than the diameter of the guide portion 227, thereby allowing the quick-change nut 207 to move within the predetermined range, as described above. In these embodiments, the elastic member 203 can be sleeved on the guide portion 227.
In some embodiments, a flanging 225 is provided on the base 209 to limit the rotation of the quick-change nut 207 relative to the base 209. Alternatively, in some other embodiments, the flanging 225 may also be provided on one side of the cover plate 201. Alternatively, flangings 225 may be provided on both the base 209 and the cover plate 201.
Next, with reference to
As shown in
On the other hand, a substantially rectangular groove 408 corresponding to the appearance of the nut assembly 200 is formed in the vehicle body beam 402 of the new energy vehicle. The nut assembly 200 is arranged in the groove 408 and supported by the groove 408. Through holes 410 are formed in the positions, corresponding to the threaded holes 211 of the nut assembly 200, of the groove 408. The bolts 406 are inserted into the through holes 410 and matched with the threaded holes 211 to fix the nut assembly 200 into the groove 408 of the vehicle body beam 402. An opening 412 is formed in the position, corresponding to the nut body 207 of the nut assembly 200, of the groove 408, and the nut body 207 passes through the opening 412 to match with the quick-change bolt 103 of the quick-change lock assembly 100 to achieve locking.
During installation, a tool is inserted into the tool matching section 119 of the quick-change bolt 103 to drive the quick-change bolt 103 to rotate, achieving the connection of the quick-change bolt 103 and the quick-change nut 207. Note that, at this time, as described above, since the tool props against the bottom of the unlocking mandrel 105, the head portion 123 of the unlocking mandrel 105 protrudes from the top of the through hole 301 of the quick-change bolt 103 by a predetermined length. As a result, when the quick-change bolt 103 is tightened to approach the end, the unlocking mandrel 105 will prop against the locking mechanism 205 until the quick-change bolt 103 and the quick-change nut 207 are fully tightened. Later, the tool is removed to release the force of the locking mandrel 105, and the locking mechanism 205 is reset by the elastic member 203. As previously described, the elastic member 203 pushes the locking mechanism 205 towards the quick-change bolt 103, such that the second anti-loosening teeth 307 of the locking mechanism 205 can be engaged with the first anti-loosening teeth 121 of the guide section 113 of the quick-change bolt 103, thereby preventing the quick-change bolt 103 from loosening.
It should be understood that although the locking device is described above in connection with the power battery of the new energy vehicle, the locking device is not limited to being only applied to the power battery, but may also be applied to other locking scenarios.
Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are merely used for illustrating rather than limiting the technical solutions of the present application. Although the present application has been described in detail with reference to the above various embodiments, those of ordinary skill in the art should understand that the technical solutions recorded in the above various embodiments can still be modified, or some of the technical features therein can be equivalently substituted. However, such modifications or substitutions do not make the essence of the corresponding technical solutions depart from the spirit and scope of the technical solutions of the various embodiments of the present application.
The present application is a continuation of International Application No. PCT/CN2021/121106, filed Sep. 27, 2021, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | PCT/CN2021/121106 | Sep 2021 | WO |
Child | 18605936 | US |