Avoiding structural redundancies between the vehicle body and the battery housing based on a functional integration approach

In this paper, the approach for a functionally integrated battery housing is presented, to avoid structural redundancies towards the vehicle body. The goal is to reduce the overall structural weight while simultaneously increasing the package space for battery modules. The typically existing boundary conditions for the battery system are taken into account. Especially, the detachability of the battery as a closed unit is in focus, to ensure the leak tightness of this system and to enable replacement. Based on the available space in a research vehicle, such a functionally integrated concept is developed. In particular, the vehicle floor and the vehicle rocker are identified as suitable components for integration. The verification of the concept with regard to the crash performance is carried out on component and on full vehicle level. On both levels, the side pole impact is used as load case and the deformation behavior is investigated.