Housing for electronic control unit

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016174404-A1
Application number	US-201514965240-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Dec 10, 2015
Priority date	Dec 10, 2014
Publication date	Jun 16, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

A housing for an electronic control unit is disclosed. The housing contains a main body having a base and a wall rising from the base, a cover supported on the wall opposite to the base and fixed to the housing for defining an inner volume, and a seat on the wall for a sealant interposed between the main body and the cover contributing to isolate the inner volume from an outer volume. The seat contains a portion adjoining the inner volume or the outer volume, the portion having an edge on the wall inclined with respect to the cover.

First claim

1 . A housing for an electronic control unit, the housing comprising:
a main body having a base and a wall rising from said base; a cover supported on said wall opposite to said base and fixed to the housing for defining an inner volume of the housing; a sealant; and a seat disposed on said wall for said sealant and interposed between said main body and said cover contributing to isolate said inner volume from an outer volume outside the housing, said seat having at least a portion adjoining said inner volume or the outer volume, said portion having an inclined edge on said wall inclined with respect to said cover.

2 . The housing according to claim 1 , wherein said portion adjoins the inner volume and said cover and said inclined edge shape a gap between said main body and said cover having a width which increases in a lateral inward direction towards the inner volume, said gap being bridged by said sealant.

3 . The housing according to claim 2 , wherein said seat contains at least a further portion on a side remote from the inner volume which said portion adjoins.

4 . The housing according to claim 3 , wherein said cover bears on said wall in a region which follows said portion and said further portion in the lateral outward direction.

5 . The housing according to claim 3 , wherein an inclination and a width of said gap in a region of said portion are adapted to one another in such fashion that in every position along said inclined edge a change of the width of said gap due to a maximum deformation of said cover expected during operation of the control unit is smaller than a predetermined strain of said sealant.

6 . The housing according to the claim 5 , wherein the predetermined strain is a maximum allowable strain of said sealant.

7 . The housing according to claim 5 , wherein said cover is deformable from an undeformed configuration to a deformed configuration due to pressure differences between the inner volume and the outer volume, said inclined edge, in a cross-sectional view of said gap, extending from a first lateral end position distanced from the inner volume or from the outer volume to a second lateral end position in contact with the inner volume or with the outer volume, widths of said gap at said first and second lateral end positions in the undeformed configuration of the cover being:
h 1= x 1/ε and
h 2= x 2/ε,

where x 1 , x 2 are displacements of said cover in a direction of the width of said gap at said first and second lateral end positions from the undeformed configuration to the deformed configuration and c is the predetermined strain of said sealant.

8 . The housing according to claim 3 , wherein said further portion has a trapezoidal cross-sectional shape.

9 . The housing according to claim 3 , wherein said portion and said further portion shape a further gap between said main body and said cover having a width which tapers from a first width at an interface of said portion with the inner volume in lateral outward direction towards the outer volume along said inclined edge and subsequently increases to a second width within said further portion, the second width being larger than the first width, said gap being filled with said sealant in a region of said further portion.

10 . A housing for an electronic control unit, the housing comprising:
a main body having a base and a wall rising from said base; a cover supported on said wall opposite to said base and fixed to the housing for defining an inner volume of the housing; a sealant; a seat disposed on said wall holding said sealant and interposed between said main body and said cover contributing to isolate the inner volume from an outer volume outside the housing, said seat having at least a portion adjoining the inner volume or the outer volume, said portion having an inclined edge on said wall inclined with respect to said cover, said portion adjoining the inner volume, and said cover and said inclined edge shape a gap between said main body and said cover having a width which increases in a lateral inward direction towards the inner volume, said gap being bridged by said sealant; said seat having at least a further portion on a side remote from the inner volume which said portion adjoins; said cover bearing on said wall in a region following said portion and said further portion in the lateral outward direction; and an inclination and the width of said gap in a region of said portion are adapted to one another in such fashion that in every position along said inclined edge a change of the width of said gap due to a maximum deformation of said cover expected during operation of the control unit is smaller than a predetermined strain of said sealant.

11 . The housing according to claim 10 , wherein the predetermined strain is a maximum allowable strain of said sealant.

12 . The housing according to claim 10 , wherein said further portion has a trapezoidal cross-sectional shape.

13 . The housing according to claim 10 , wherein said portion and said further portion shape a further gap between said main body and said cover having a further width which tapers from a first width at an interface of said portion with the inner volume in the lateral outward direction towards the outer volume along said inclined edge and subsequently increases to a second width within said further portion, the second width being larger than the first width, said further gap being filled with said sealant in a region of said further portion.

Assignees

• Continental Automotive Gmbh

Inventors

• Kang Alan
• Riepl Thomas
• Tarnovetchi Marius

Classifications

• H05K5/03

  Covers · CPC title

• H05K5/069

  Other details of the casing, e.g. wall structure, passage for a connector, a cable, a shaft · CPC title

• H05K5/061 Primary

  sealed by a gasket held between a removable cover and a body, e.g. O-ring, packing · CPC title

• H05K5/068

  having a pressure compensation device, e.g. membrane (venting means H05K5/0213) · CPC title

• H05K5/064 Primary

  sealed by potting, e.g. waterproof resin poured in a rigid casing · CPC title