Locking apparatus, connecting structure, and electric device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12515554-B2
Application number	US-202318223548-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 19, 2023
Priority date	Sep 28, 2021
Publication date	Jan 6, 2026
Grant date	Jan 6, 2026

Abstract

A locking apparatus may include: a housing including a first wall, where the first wall may be provided with a first opening; a bolt arranged inside the housing and penetrating out of the first opening; a sleeve arranged inside the housing and fitting around the bolt, where the sleeve and the bolt may be circumferentially locked and relatively movable in an axial direction; a restraint structure fixed at the housing to prevent the sleeve from departing from the housing in a direction leaving the first wall; and an elastic structure arranged inside the housing to apply an axial elastic force on the sleeve such that the sleeve and the restraint structure may be joined, where the restraint structure may be configured to circumferentially lock the sleeve when being joined with the sleeve; where two ends of the elastic structure may respectively abut against the first wall and the sleeve.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1 . A locking apparatus, comprising:
a housing, comprising a first wall provided with a first opening; a bolt, arranged inside the housing and penetrating out of the first opening; a sleeve, arranged inside the housing and fitting around the bolt, wherein the sleeve and the bolt are circumferentially locked and relatively movable in an axial direction; a restraint structure, fixed at the housing and configured to prevent the sleeve from departing from the housing in a direction leaving the first wall; and an elastic structure, arranged inside the housing and configured to apply an axial elastic force on the sleeve such that the sleeve and the restraint structure are joined, wherein the restraint structure is configured to circumferentially lock the sleeve when being joined with the sleeve; wherein two ends of the elastic structure respectively abut against the first wall and the sleeve, the housing further comprises a second wall arranged around the first wall, one end of the second wall being connected to an edge of the first wall and the other end of the second wall defining a second opening opposite the first wall, wherein the restraint structure is arranged at the second opening, and an inner surface of the second wall is provided with a step face and the locking apparatus further comprises a circlip, wherein a side of the restraint structure facing the first wall abuts against the step face and a side of the restraint structure facing away from the first wall abuts against the circlip, so as to axially lock the restraint structure.

2 . The locking apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the bolt comprises a threaded portion, a first transmission portion, and a locking portion which are arranged in sequence in the axial direction, wherein the first transmission portion and the sleeve are in transmission fit, the locking portion and the sleeve are in circumferential lock fit, and a cross-sectional area of the first transmission portion is greater than that of the locking portion.

3 . The locking apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the sleeve comprises a sleeve body and a first flange extending from one end of the sleeve body in a radial direction, wherein the sleeve body fits around the locking portion and is in circumferential lock fit with the locking portion, the first flange is provided with a second transmission portion corresponding to the first transmission portion, the second transmission portion is configured to be in transmission fit with the first transmission portion, and the elastic structure abuts against the first flange.

4 . The locking apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein the bolt further comprises a second flange, the second flange is opposite the first flange in the axial direction, the threaded portion and the locking portion are located on two sides of the second flange, and the first transmission portion is arranged at the second flange.

5 . The locking apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein one of the first transmission portion and the second transmission portion is a protrusion and the other is a depression matching the protrusion in shape.

6 . The locking apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein the first transmission portion and the second transmission portion are in spline fit.

7 . The locking apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein an outer peripheral surface of the sleeve body is a polygonal cylindrical surface.

8 . The locking apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein an inner peripheral surface of the sleeve body and an outer peripheral surface of the locking portion are both polygonal cylindrical surfaces.

9 . The locking apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the sleeve is provided with a plurality of first cogs distributed along the circumferential direction, and the restraint structure is provided with a plurality of second cogs distributed along the circumferential direction, wherein the plurality of second cogs are configured to be engaged with the plurality of first cogs to circumferentially lock the sleeve.

10 . The locking apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein an outer peripheral surface of the restraint structure is provided with a plurality of third cogs distributed along the circumferential direction, and the inner surface of the second wall is provided with a plurality of fourth cogs distributed along the circumferential direction, wherein the plurality of third cogs are engaged with the plurality of fourth cogs to circumferentially lock the restraint structure.

11 . A connecting structure, comprising:
a first substrate; a second substrate; a nut, fixed on the first substrate; and the locking apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the locking apparatus is fixed on the second substrate and the bolt of the locking apparatus is connected with the nut to lock the second substrate to the first substrate.

12 . The connecting structure according to claim 11 , wherein the second substrate is provided with an accommodating cavity, the housing of the locking apparatus is arranged inside the accommodating cavity, an inner wall of the accommodating cavity is provided with a through hole, and the housing further comprises a boss, wherein the boss is formed on an outer surface of the first wall and arranged around the first opening and the boss is inserted in the through hole and in interference fit with the through hole.

13 . The connecting structure according to claim 12 , wherein an outer peripheral surface of the boss is provided with a plurality of fifth cogs distributed along the circumferential direction.

14 . The connecting structure according to claim 12 , wherein the housing is rectangular and the accommodating cavity matches the housing in shape.

15 . An electric device, comprising:
a device body; a battery; and the connecting structure according to claim 11 , wherein the first substrate is fixed on the device body and the second substrate is fixed on the battery.

Assignees

• Contemporary Amperex Technology Hong Kong Ltd

Inventors

• You Shubing
• Zhang Wenhui

Classifications

• F16B39/28 Primary

  by special members on, or shape of, the nut or bolt (F16B39/26 takes precedence; locknuts F16B39/12) · CPC title

• F16B13/063

  by the use of an expander · CPC title

• Y02T10/70

  Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries · CPC title

• B60Y2304/07

  Facilitating assembling or mounting · CPC title

• B60Y2200/91

  Electric vehicles · CPC title