US 11,807,095 B2
Lower structure of vehicle having planar protector at inner side surface of battery unit
Shintaro Harugaichi, Hiroshima (JP); Sho Yoshida, Hiroshima (JP); Yosuke Sawada, Hiroshima (JP); and Yasushi Ishikawa, Hiroshima (JP)
Assigned to MAZDA MOTOR CORPORATION, Hiroshima (JP)
Filed by Mazda Motor Corporation, Hiroshima (JP)
Filed on Nov. 10, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/522,931.
Claims priority of application No. 2020-197231 (JP), filed on Nov. 27, 2020.
Prior Publication US 2022/0169112 A1, Jun. 2, 2022
Int. Cl. B60K 1/04 (2019.01); B60K 17/24 (2006.01)
CPC B60K 17/24 (2013.01) [B60K 1/04 (2013.01); B60K 2001/0438 (2013.01)] 15 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A lower structure of a vehicle in which a rear wheel serves as a drive wheel, the lower structure comprising:
a gearbox disposed with at least a portion of the gearbox present in a floor tunnel, the portion of the gearbox being present on a vehicle rear side;
a propeller shaft that extends from the gearbox toward the vehicle rear side, the propeller shaft transmitting power to the rear wheel; and
left and right battery units disposed on a vehicle lower side of left and right floor panels respectively, the left and right floor panels being disposed on a vehicle left side and a vehicle right side of the floor tunnel respectively,
wherein the propeller shaft has a first shaft portion and a second shaft portion that are arranged in sequence from a vehicle front side, the first shaft portion being connected to the gear box, the second shaft portion being connected to the first shaft portion via a joint portion,
each of the left and right battery units has an inner side surface portion that extends along an inner wall portion of the floor tunnel and faces an inner side in a vehicle width direction, and
a planar protector that covers a portion of the inner side surface portion of each of the left and right battery units is mounted to each of the left and right battery units, the portion of the inner side surface portion being located on the vehicle rear side of the joint portion,
wherein the planar protector includes a plate portion that extends in a vehicle front-rear direction and a vehicle height direction,
a first mount portion that is provided in a circumferential edge portion of the plate portion and connected to a tunnel panel of the vehicle, and
a second mount portion that is provided in the circumferential edge portion of the plate portion and connected to one of the left and right battery units, and
each of lengths of the first mount portion and the second mount portion in the vehicle front-rear direction is smaller than a length of the plate portion in the vehicle front-rear direction.