US-12617261-B2 - Electric vehicle

Abstract

An electric vehicle includes: a side member; and a mechanical-electrical integrated unit attached to the side member through a fastener. The mechanical-electrical integrated unit is constituted by a drive apparatus and an electric-power control apparatus that are housed in a same casing. The casing has an upper space and a lower space that are vertically separated within the casing. The electric-power control apparatus is housed in the upper space while the drive apparatus is housed in the lower space. The fastener is attached to a fastened portion which is provided in a side wall of the casing and which is thicker than a surrounding portion surrounding the fastened portion. The side member includes a fragile portion that is located in a position overlapping the fastened portion as viewed in a width direction of the vehicle.

Inventors

• Takeshi Kuwahara
• Shinichiro Suenaga
• Shigeki Yamazaki

Assignees

• TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA

Dates

Publication Date

20260505

Application Date

20240213

Priority Date

20230213

Claims (4)

1. 1 . An electric vehicle, the electric vehicle comprising: a side member; a casing, wherein the casing has an upper space and a lower space that are vertically separated within the casing; and a mechanical-electrical integrated unit attached to the side member through a fastener, wherein the mechanical-electrical integrated unit is constituted by a drive apparatus and an electric-power control apparatus that are housed in the casing, wherein the drive apparatus includes an electric motor functioning as a power source, wherein the electric-power control apparatus is configured to control an electric power transmitted and received by the electric motor, wherein the electric-power control apparatus is housed in the upper space of the casing and the drive apparatus is housed in the lower space of the casing, wherein the fastener is attached to a fastened portion which is provided in a side wall of the casing, wherein the fastened portion is thicker than a surrounding portion of the sidewall of the casing which surrounds the fastened portion, and wherein the side member includes a fragile portion that is located on the side member at a position overlapping the fastened portion of the side wall of the casing as viewed in a width direction of the electric vehicle.
2. 2 . The electric vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein the side member includes a fastening portion to which the fastener is attached, and wherein the fragile portion is located in a position outside the fastening portion in a longitudinal direction of the electric vehicle.
3. 3 . The electric vehicle according to claim 2 , wherein the side member has a strength that is gradually reduced away from an outer side toward an inner side until the fragile portion in the longitudinal direction of the electric vehicle.
4. 4 . The electric vehicle according to claim 3 , wherein the fastened portion of the side wall of the casing is located in a position closer to an outer end of the electric vehicle, than a position of the fastening portion of the side member, in the longitudinal direction of the electric vehicle.

Description

This application claims priority from Japanese Patent Application No. 2023-020345 filed on Feb. 13, 2023, the disclosure of which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety. FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an electric vehicle provided with a mechanical-electrical integrated unit that is constituted by a drive apparatus and an electric-power control apparatus that are housed in a same casing, wherein the drive apparatus includes an electric motor functioning as a power source, while the electric-power control apparatus is configured to control an electric power transmitted and received by the electric motor. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION There is known a vehicle that includes a drive unit in which a drive apparatus including an electric motor functioning as a power source and an electric-power control apparatus including an inverter for controlling an electric power transmitted and received by the electric motor are accommodated in separate casings, respectively, and the separate casings are connected to each other through bolts or the like. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses such a vehicle. In the vehicle disclosed in Patent Document 1, the drive unit is attached to a side member through a fastener. The casing that houses the electric-power control apparatus is disposed in a position higher than the side member as viewed in a width direction of the vehicle. PRIOR ART DOCUMENT Patent Document [Patent Document 1] WO 2021/176602 SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Where a height of the drive unit described in Patent Document 1 is reduced, the casing that houses the electric-power control apparatus may be located in a position that overlaps a fragile portion of the side member as viewed in the width direction. In this case, when the side member is bent or broken at the fragile portion due to a collision of the vehicle, there is a risk that the bent or broken side member may press the casing housing the electric-power control apparatus in the width direction. In the vehicle disclosed in Patent Document 1, a connection portion in which the separate casings are connected through the bolts or the like is broken or bent, so that energy of the bent or broken side member pressing the casing housing the electric-power control apparatus is absorbed. Thus, it is possible to suppress damage of the casing that houses the electric-power control apparatus, and to avoid exposure of the electric-power control apparatus applied with a high voltage to outside of the casing. By the way, in order to simplify a shape of the drive unit, it might be possible to adopt an arrangement in which the drive apparatus and the electric-power control apparatus are housed in the same casing, for example, such that the electric-power control apparatus may be housed in an upper space in the same casing while the drive apparatus may be housed in a lower space in the same casing. In this arrangement, there is no portion for absorbing energy of the bent or broken side member pressing the casing in the upper space, and the casing may be damaged in the upper space. If the casing is damaged in the upper space, the electric-power control apparatus applied with a high voltage may be exposed to outside of the casing thereby causing risk of an electric leakage. The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide an electric vehicle capable of preventing an electric-power control apparatus from being exposed to outside of a casing. The present invention provides an electric vehicle including: a side member; and a mechanical-electrical integrated unit attached to the side member through a fastener. The mechanical-electrical integrated unit is constituted by a drive apparatus and an electric-power control apparatus that are housed in a same casing. The drive apparatus includes an electric motor functioning as a power source. The electric-power control apparatus is configured to control an electric power transmitted and received by the electric motor. The casing has an upper space and a lower space that are vertically separated within the casing. The electric-power control apparatus is housed in the upper space while the drive apparatus is housed in the lower space. The fastener is attached to a fastened portion which is provided in a side wall of the casing and which is thicker than a surrounding portion surrounding the fastened portion. The side member includes a fragile portion that is located in a position overlapping the fastened portion as viewed in a width direction of the electric vehicle. In the electric vehicle of the present invention, (a) the casing has the upper space and the lower space that are vertically separated within the casing, (b) the electric-power control apparatus is housed in the upper space while the drive apparatus is housed in the lower space, (c) the fastener is attached to the fastened portion which is provided in the side wall of t