Motor vehicles – Power – Electric
Patent
1997-05-15
1999-08-03
Mai, Lanna
Motor vehicles
Power
Electric
318139, 361 79, B60K 104
Patent
active
059312459
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to a safety mechanism used for an electric vehicle, more particularly a safety mechanism of an electric power unit to supply electricity to a drive motor of the electric vehicle and to a group of control circuits mounted on the vehicle; and specifically relates to a safety mechanism for the electric power unit itself, a safety mechanism for control units such as a running-prohibiting unit and a regenerative brake related to the power supply from the electric power unit, a safety mechanism for remedying disadvantages resulting from the mounting of a relatively heavy electric power unit, e.g., a safety mechanism for a main stand unit for easy operation of a center stand of a two-wheeled vehicle, a safety mechanism for a rear wheel driving mechanism by which an unsprung weight can be decreased, and a safety mechanism by which heat from circuits can be used effectively and a battery can be changed safely and easily.
BACKGROUND ART
SUMMARY OF THE BACKGROUND ART
As a next-generation alternative vehicle for internal combustion engine vehicles such as gasoline automobiles, an electric vehicle using a propelling electric motor is attracting attention. It is said that the electric vehicle which uses a clean electric energy can completely remedy the environmental problems such as harmful noises and exhaust gases, which are about 70% of the causes for the environmental pollution, derived from the internal combustion engine vehicles, and can extend by two times or more the resource life of fossil fuel such as petroleum.
The electric vehicle has propelling wheels which are suspended by shock absorbers from the vehicle body in the same way as a conventional gasoline automobile and is propelled by a power transmission device with an electric motor as the drive source. And, the electric motor has power supplied by an electric power unit.
Thus, the electric vehicle is quite different from conventional automobiles on the point that it has relatively heavy batteries. And, new issues are arising because of these batteries.
In other words, this electric power unit for supplying electricity to the electric motor has a plurality of storage batteries to form a battery power supply unit, and consists of a stability circuit for stably supplying output from the battery power supply unit, an electric motor for propelling, a motor drive circuit for directly controlling the motor revolution, and a control circuit for outputting a speed command or a torque command to the motor drive circuit. And, the motor-driven power from the motor is transmitted to the propelling wheels via a power transmission in the same way as a conventional vehicle.
As described above, the electric vehicle gets the motor-driven power from a plurality of batteries, and the performance of low-powered batteries becomes predominant, an expected traveling distance cannot be obtained, e.g., the electric vehicle cannot restart after temporarily stopping to wait at traffic lights, thus an unexpected stop is caused, possibly resulting in quite a danger. Therefore, a safety mechanism for the electric vehicle has been demanded to uniformly discharge the respective batteries while they are being used and to promote an efficient use of the electric power unit, thereby increasing a distance that the vehicle can travel.
On the other hand, it is advantageous to increase the battery capacity as much as possible in view of increasing mileage. But, when the electric power unit is compact and mounted close to the driver of the electric vehicle, especially an electric two-wheeled vehicle, insulation between the electric power unit and the driver is demanded as a safety mechanism for the electric vehicle.
And, the respective batteries of the electric power unit are recharged from an external power supply through a charging cord. It is quite dangerous if the electric vehicle moves while it is being recharged or moves without housing the charging cord even after finishing recharging. In view of the necessity of recharging the electric
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patent: 5534364 (1996-07-01), Watanabe et al.
patent: 5619417 (1997-04-01), Kendall
patent: 5656915 (1997-08-01), Eaves
patent: 5703464 (1997-12-01), Karunasiri et al.
Fukazawa Tamotsu
Okayama Shinji
Seto Takeshi
Takagi Kunihiko
Torizuka Haruki
Cuff Michael
Mai Lanna
Seiko Epson Corporation
Tokyo R & D Co., Ltd.
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