DESC:TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present subject matter relates to a vehicle. More particularly, the present subject matter is a patent of addition to a subject matter disclosed in the patent application number 202141005027. The present subject matter offers improvement over the subject matter as claimed in the aforementioned patent application.

BACKGROUND
[0002] Over the last few years, with the induction of new powertrain technologies concomitantly, substantial attention has been paid to the reduction of pollutants emitted by vehicles. To this end, much attention has also been paid to the development of hybrid electric vehicles (HEV’s)/ electric vehicles (EV’s) for their optimal performance and durability. Importantly, the performance and durability are essential vehicle attribute that attracts customers to purchase the vehicle.
[0003] The above information disclosed in this background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the background of the disclosure and therefore it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known in this country to a person of ordinary skill in the art.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0004] The present invention is described with reference to an exemplary embodiment of powertrain in a three wheeled electric vehicle. The powertrain described here includes electric motor. Such a powertrain can be installed in a two or three or multi wheeled vehicle. The same numbers are used throughout the drawings to reference like features and components. Further, the inventive features of the invention are set forth in the appended claims.
[0005] Non-limiting and non-exhaustive embodiments of the invention are described with reference to the following figures, wherein like reference numerals refer to like parts throughout the various views unless otherwise specified. It should be appreciated that the following figures may not be drawn to scale.
[0006] Descriptions of certain details and implementations follow, including a description of the figures, which may depict some or all of the embodiments described below, as well as a discussion of other potential embodiments or implementations of the inventive concepts presented herein. An overview of embodiments of the invention is provided below, followed by a more detailed description with reference to the drawings.
[0007] Figure 1 illustrates a top view of a vehicle (100) where few parts are omitted from the figure, as per embodiment, in accordance with one example of the present subject matter.
[0008] Figure 2a illustrates a bottom side perspective view of the vehicle (100) where few parts are omitted from the figure, as per embodiment, in accordance with one example of the present subject matter.
[0009] Figure 2b illustrates a rear side perspective view of the vehicle (100) where few parts are omitted from the figure, as per embodiment, in accordance with one example of the present subject matter.
[00010] Figure 3a illustrates a side view of a front mounting assembly (201A) where few parts are omitted from the figure as per embodiment, and a localized rear side perspective view of a secondary member (302) in accordance with one example of the present subject matter.
[00011] Figure 3b illustrates a rear side perspective view of the front mounting assembly (201A) where few parts are omitted from the figure, in accordance with one example of the present subject matter.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[00012] In the following description specific details are set forth to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments. One skilled in the relevant art will recognize, however, that the techniques described herein can be practiced without one or more of the specific details, or with other methods, components, materials, etc. In other instances, well-known structures, materials, or operations are not shown or described in detail to avoid obscuring certain aspects.
[00013] Electric vehicles have the potential to substantially cut greenhouse gas emissions from the transport sector. Typically, a drive system of the electric vehicle includes a battery for powering an electric motor assembly and a transmission assembly. The electric motor assembly includes a controller for controlling the speed of the electric motor.
[00014] However, there are certain limitations associated with electric vehicles. Most significantly, the range of electric vehicles is limited by their batteries. To increase the range of electric vehicles, pluralities of battery packs are used.
[00015] In addition to that, current batteries are prone to failure due to reasons such as the continuous transmission of mechanical vibrations, exposure to high impact forces and, thermal runaway. This phenomenon can lead to an uncontrolled chain of exothermic reactions resulting in the release of toxic gas. This can further lead to the development of high pressure in the battery packs leading to premature failure, fire, and explosions. To address the said issue, batteries are provided with a mechanical interface. The mechanical interface protects and isolates the battery pack and at the same time maintains optimum battery cell temperature. However, this significantly increases the size, weight, and cost of the electric vehicle. Moreover, due to the plurality of battery packs less storage space is available in the vehicle.
[00016] At times, it is observed that the electric motor being prime mover tends to fail or switch off erroneously. The failure of the electric motor suddenly stops a running electric vehicle and / or suddenly starts the electric vehicle which was out of action. It is observed these failures are caused due to mud and water ingression in the electric motor and associated control devices. The ingression of mud and water in the electric motor or the associated control devices causes insulation failure leading to erroneous behavior.
[00017] To address the said issue, the electric motor can be covered with a dedicated cover member. However, the use of the cover member utilizes valuable space in the compact vehicle and sometimes reduces the ground clearance of the vehicle especially when the electric motor is disposed towards the ground. In such a layout, while crossing a bump, the dedicated cover hits the road as the suspension travels down further reducing the clearance with the ground. The reduced ground clearance can be addressed by increasing the stiffness of the suspension spring. However, the increased stiffness of the suspension spring adversely affects the riding/ driving comfort.
[00018] To address the said issue, designers tend to detachably attach the electric motor along with the casing enclosing transmission assembly as a single drive unit which is attached to the chassis frame structure through a mounting assembly. However, due to increase in the number of devices, the load on the mounting assembly also increases. The increased load damages the mounting assembly which reduces the binding force on the single drive unit. This results in the free movement of the single drive unit including rolling of the electric motor.
[00019] Therefore, in order to arrest the free movement, the strength of the mounting assembly, which includes a plurality of mounting brackets and the bolts and nuts, needs to be increased. However, when the thicknesses of the mounting brackets are increased to ensure strength thereof, the weights and cost of the mounting brackets increases. Furthermore, in order to ensure the strength of the bolts, it may be possible to increase nominal diameters of the fasteners, which however undesirably increases weights and cost.
[00020] Therefore, it is a challenge for design engineers to meet conflicting requirements, to design a mounting assembly to reliably mount the compact drive unit to the chassis frame structure in a cost-effective manner as well as with improved ground clearance. Further, it is desirable to provide a mounting assembly for the drive system which allows the drive unit to be quickly and easily removed from the chassis frame structure during servicing. Furthermore, there is a need to provide a retrofittable assembly to convert conventional vehicles into electric vehicles to give an economical option to the customers.
[00021] To this end, there is a need to provide a mounting assembly that will meet the common requirements of the vehicle including low weight, low cost, high reliability, while overcoming all the above problems & other problems of the known art. The aforementioned disadvantages of the prior arts are solved by the present invention which provides an improved mounting assembly. The mounting assembly is advantageously used striving to meet customer expectations by providing a low cost and safe electric vehicle.
[00022] According to one embodiment, it is an object of the present invention to provide a cost-effective and reliable mounting assembly, which is compact, light in weight with improved stiffness and maintains optimum ground clearance.
[00023] According to one embodiment, it is another object of the present invention to provide a mounting assembly being configured to ensure quick installation and removal of the single drive unit during servicing.
[00024] According to one embodiment, it is yet another object of the present invention to provide a mounting assembly being configured to ensure quick installation and removal of the single drive unit during servicing.
[00025] According to the present subject matter to attain the above-mentioned objectives, in one aspect of the invention a front mounting assembly for a powertrain of a vehicle is disclosed. The front mounting assembly comprising one or more primary member and one or more secondary member. The primary member and said secondary member being operatively coupled using a pair of left and right mounting members. At least one of said mounting members being attached to an outer circumferential surface of said primary member. The primary member being configured to have a substantially L shape includes one or more bends. The primary member having an upper portion extends along an upper axial line. The upper axial line forms a first angle with a first imaginary plane. A middle portion of the primary member extends along a middle axial line. The middle axial line forms a second angle with said first imaginary plane. A lower portion of the primary member extends along a lower axial line. The lower axial line forms a third angle with a second imaginary plane. The said first imaginary plane being substantially orthogonal to said second imaginary plane.
[00026] In an embodiment, the first angle ranges from 1 degree to 3 degrees.
[00027] In an embodiment, the second angle ranges from 5 degrees to 10 degrees.
[00028] In an embodiment, the third angle ranges from 10 degrees to 15 degrees.
[00029] In an embodiment, the imaginary first plane and said imaginary second plane passing through an axial axis of a lower cross member.
[00030] In an embodiment, the first imaginary plane passing vertically through said lower cross member.
[00031] In an embodiment, an upper end portion and a lower end portion of said primary member being attached to said chassis frame structure.
[00032] In an embodiment, the upper end portion of said primary member having a flat portion adapted to connect with an upper cross member.
[00033] In an embodiment, the mounting member being configured to have two or more first set of openings. The first set of openings being configured to receive attachment means.
[00034] In an embodiment, a front portion of said secondary member being configured to have a C-shaped cross section, and a rear portion of said secondary member being configured to have a cylindrical shaped cross section, said cylindrical shaped cross section being configured to receive a damper.
[00035] In an embodiment, the front portion of said secondary member being configured to have two or more second set of openings. The said second set of openings being adapted to receive attachment means.
[00036] In an embodiment, the vehicle is an electric three wheeled vehicle.
[00037] The present subject matter is further described with reference to accompanying figures. It should be noted that the description and figures merely illustrate principles of the present subject matter. Various arrangements may be devised that, although not explicitly described or shown herein, encompass the principles of the present subject matter. Moreover, all statements herein reciting principles, aspects, and examples of the present subject matter, as well as specific examples thereof, are intended to encompass equivalents thereof.
[00038] The foregoing disclosure is not intended to limit the present disclosure to the precise forms or particular fields of use disclosed. As such, it is contemplated that various alternate embodiments and/or modifications to the present disclosure, whether explicitly described or implied herein, are possible in light of the disclosure. Having thus described embodiments of the present disclosure, a person of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that changes may be made in form and detail without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Thus, the present disclosure is limited only by the claims.
[00039] In the foregoing specification, the disclosure has been described with reference to specific embodiments. However, as one skilled in the art will appreciate, various embodiments disclosed herein can be modified or otherwise implemented in various other ways without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, this description is to be considered as illustrative and is for the purpose of teaching those skilled in the art the manner of making and using various embodiments of the disclosure. It is to be understood that the forms of disclosure herein shown and described are to be taken as representative embodiments. Equivalent elements, materials, processes or steps may be substituted for those representatively illustrated and described herein. Moreover, certain features of the disclosure may be utilized independently of the use of other features, all as would be apparent to one skilled in the art after having the benefit of this description of the disclosure. Expressions such as “including”, “comprising”, “incorporating”, “consisting of”, “have”, “is” used to describe and claim the present disclosure are intended to be construed in a non-exclusive manner, namely allowing for items, components or elements not explicitly described also to be present. Reference to the singular is also to be construed to relate to the plural.
[00040] Further, various embodiments disclosed herein are to be taken in the illustrative and explanatory sense, and should in no way be construed as limiting of the present disclosure. All joinder references (e.g., attached, affixed, coupled, connected, etc.) are only used to aid the reader's understanding of the present disclosure, and may not create limitations, particularly as to the position, orientation, or use of the systems and/or methods disclosed herein. Therefore, joinder references, if any, are to be construed broadly. Moreover, such joinder references do not necessarily infer that two elements are directly connected to each other.
[00041] Additionally, all numerical terms, such as, but not limited to, “first”, “second”, “third”, “primary”, “secondary”, “main” or any other ordinary and/or numerical terms, should also be taken only as identifiers, to assist the reader's understanding of the various elements, embodiments, variations and/or modifications of the present disclosure, and may not create any limitations, particularly as to the order, or preference, of any element, embodiment, variation and/or modification relative to, or over, another element, embodiment, variation and/or modification.
[00042] It will also be appreciated that one or more of the elements depicted in the drawings/figures can also be implemented in a more separated or integrated manner, or even removed or rendered as inoperable in certain cases, as is useful in accordance with a particular application. Additionally, any signal hatches in the drawings/figures should be considered only as exemplary, and not limiting, unless otherwise specifically specified.
[00043] The embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[00044] Figure 1 illustrates a top view of a vehicle (100) where few parts are omitted from the figure, as per embodiment, in accordance with one example of the present subject matter. The invention will be described taking an electric/hybrid electric multi-wheeled vehicle (including a three-wheeled vehicle) as an example through the specification. As indicated in Figure 1, this electric/hybrid electric vehicle (100) (hereinafter “vehicle”) has, for example, a chassis frame structure (101). The chassis frame structure (101) includes one or more cross member (101B), a central longitudinal member (101C), and a pair of left and right side longitudinal members (101A). As per the illustrated embodiment, one or more cross member (101B) connect the pair of left and right side members (101A). A powertrain (102) is secured to the chassis frame structure (101). Especially, the powertrain (102) is mounted at substantially the middle of the chassis frame structure (101) between a pair of left and right side members (101A). The powertrain (102) provides the driving power to the rear wheels (104) through the right and left rear axles (103). The right and left axles (103) extended in opposite transverse directions.
[00045] Figure 2a illustrates a bottom side perspective view of the vehicle (100) where few parts are omitted from the figure, as per embodiment, in accordance with one example of the present subject matter. Figure 2b illustrates a rear side perspective view of the vehicle (100) where few parts are omitted from the figure, as per embodiment, in accordance with one example of the present subject matter. For sake of brevity, Figure 2a and Figure 2b will be discussed together. As indicated in figure 2a, the powertrain (102) is detachably attached to the chassis frame structure (101) using a mounting assembly (201A, 201B). The mounting assembly (201A, 201B) includes a front mounting assembly (201A) and a rear mounting assembly (201B). Further, as indicated in figure 2b, the powertrain (102) comprises a prime mover (102A) and a transmission assembly (102B). The prime mover (102A) includes an electric machine. The rotation of the electric machine is controlled by an electric machine controller (102C) (“hereinafter EMC”). The EMC (102C) is configured to receive inputs from a throttle position sensor (not shown). As per an embodiment, the throttle position sensor (not shown) is operatively connected to a leg operated pedal or a hand operated throttle unit (not shown). The prime mover (102A) is operatively connected to the transmission assembly (102B) through the mechanical means (202). The transmission assembly (102B) is enclosed within a housing (203). As shown in the illustrated figure 2b, the mechanical means (202) includes a drive pulley (202A) secured to a rotor of the prime mover (102A) and the driven pulley (202C) is secured to an input shaft (not shown) of the transmission assembly (102B) coupled by the belt (202B). As per the preferred embodiment, the drive pulley (202A) is positioned substantially vertically upwards to the driven pulley (202C) to enable a compact layout. As per alternative embodiment, the mechanical means can include a sprocket and chain drive.
[00046] Figure 3a illustrates a side view of a front mounting assembly (201A) where few parts are omitted from the figure as per embodiment, and a localized rear side perspective view of a secondary member (302) in accordance with one example of the present subject matter. Figure 3b illustrates a rear side perspective view of the front mounting assembly (201A) where few parts are omitted from the figure, in accordance with one example of the present subject matter. For sake of brevity, Figure 3a, and Figure 3b will be discussed together. The front mounting assembly (201A) comprising one or more primary member (301); and one or more secondary member (302). The primary member (301) and said secondary member (302) being operatively coupled using a pair of left and right mounting members (303L, 303R). The mounting members (303L, 303R) being attached to an outer circumferential surface of said primary member (301). The primary member (301) being configured to have a substantially L shape includes two bends (B1, B2). The primary member (301) having an upper portion (301A) extends along an upper axial line (L1-L1’). The upper axial line (L1-L1’) forms a first angle (?) with a first imaginary plane (A-A’). The first angle (?) ranges from 1 degree to 3 degrees. A middle portion (301B) extends along a middle axial line (L2-L2’), said middle axial line (L2-L2’) forms a second angle (a) with said first imaginary plane (A-A’), and a lower portion (301C) extends along a lower axial line (L3-L3’). The second angle (a) ranges from 5 degrees to 10 degrees. The lower axial line (L3-L3’) forms a third angle (ß) with a second imaginary plane (B-B’). The third angle (ß) ranges from 10 degrees to 15 degrees. The said first imaginary plane (A-A’) being substantially orthogonal to said second imaginary plane (B-B’). The imaginary first plane (A-A’) and said imaginary second plane (B-B’) passing through an axial axis (X-X’) of the lower cross member (101B). The first imaginary plane (A-A’) passing vertically through said lower cross member (101B). An upper end portion (301AA) and a lower end portion (301CA) of said primary member (301) being attached to said chassis frame structure (101). The upper end portion (301AA) of said primary member (301) having a flat portion adapted to connect with the upper cross member (102). The mounting member (303L, 303R) being configured to have two or more first set of openings (305). The first set of openings (305) being configured to receive attachment means (307). A front portion (302F) of said secondary member (302) being configured to have a C-shaped cross section, and a rear portion (302R) of said secondary member (302) being configured to have a cylindrical shaped cross section, said cylindrical shaped cross section being configured to receive a damper (304). The front portion (302F) of said secondary member (302) being configured to have two or more second set of openings (306). The second set of opening (306) being adapted to receive attachment means (307). A pair of reinforcement members (308) being placed between said pair of left and right mounting member (301R, 301L). The reinforcement member (308) being configured to have a cylindrical cross section. The reinforcement member (307) being configured to receive one or more attachment means (308). The reinforcement member improves the stiffness of the front mounting assembly (201A).
[00047] According to the above architecture, one of the primary efficacies of the present invention is the secure, reliable, optimally rigid, vibration resistant, and cost-effective front mounting assembly to provide a compact layout as well as optimum ground clearance. The front mounting assembly is configured to effectively suppress the rolling and / or swinging of the prime mover while still configuring adequate degrees of freedom to isolate vibration and shock loads. The front mounting assembly being configured to have less weight with improved stiffness. The powertrain is reliably mounted to a chassis frame structure using the front mounting assembly at an optimum location which eliminates the use of a dedicated cover member to cover the powertrain which further improves ground clearance.
[00048] According to the above architecture, one of the primary efficacies of the present invention is quick installation and removal of the powertrain due to a smaller number of connections between the housing enclosing transmission assembly and the chassis frame structure. This reduces the assembly time, thereby reduces the man-hour which effectively reduces the production cost of the vehicle. Further, the front mounting assembly can be used as a retrofit table unit to convert conventional three wheeled vehicles into electric three wheeled vehicles as this requires minimum changes in the existing chassis frame structure.
[00049] According to the above architecture, one of the primary efficacies of the present invention is the improved riding/ driving comfort. The powertrain is connected to the chassis frame structure by mounting assembly wherein mounting assembly being configured to have the rubber damper which is capable of preventing transmission of vibration to the chassis frame structure.
[00050] The above-described embodiments, and particularly any “preferred” embodiments, are possible examples of implementations and merely set forth for a clear understanding of the principles of the invention. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that changes in form, connection, and detail may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.
List of Reference

X-X' Axial axis
A-A' First imaginary plane
B-B' Second imaginary plane
L1-L1' Upper axial line
L2-L2' Middle axial line
L3-L3' Lower axial line
100 Vehicle
101 Chassis frame structure
101A Left and side members
101B Lower Cross member
101C Central longitudinal member
101D Upper cross member
102 Powertrain
102A Prime mover
102B Transmission assembly
102C Electric machine controller
103 Right and left rear axles
104 Rear wheels
201A Front mounting assembly
,CLAIMS:1. A front mounting assembly (201A) for a powertrain (102) of a vehicle (100), said front mounting assembly (201A) comprising
one or more primary member (301); and
one or more secondary member (302),
wherein said primary member (301) and said secondary member (302) being operatively coupled using a pair of left and right mounting members (303L, 303R),
wherein at least one of said mounting members (303L, 303R) being attached to an outer circumferential surface of said primary member (301),
wherein said primary member (301) being configured to have a substantially L shape includes one or more bends (B1, B2), said primary member (301) having
an upper portion (301A) extends along an upper axial line (L1-L1’), said upper axial line (L1-L1’) forms a first angle (?) with a first imaginary plane (A-A’),
a middle portion (301B) extends along a middle axial line (L2-L2’), said middle axial line (L2-L2’) forms a second angle (a) with said first imaginary plane (A-A’), and
a lower portion (301C) extends along a lower axial line (L3-L3’), said lower axial line (L3-L3’) forms a third angle (ß) with a second imaginary plane (B-B’),
wherein said first imaginary plane (A-A’) being substantially orthogonal to said second imaginary plane (B-B’).
2. The front mounting assembly (201A) for a powertrain (102) of a vehicle (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said first angle (?) ranges from 1 degree to 3 degrees.
3. The front mounting assembly (201A) for a powertrain (102) of a vehicle (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said second angle (a) ranges from 5 degrees to 10 degrees.
4. The front mounting assembly (201A) for a powertrain (102) of a vehicle (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said third angle (ß) ranges from 10 degrees to 15 degrees.
5. The front mounting assembly (201A) for a powertrain (102) of a vehicle (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said imaginary first plane (A-A’) and said imaginary second plane (B-B’) passing through an axial axis (X-X’) of a lower cross member (101B).
6. The front mounting assembly (201A) for a powertrain (102) of a vehicle (100) as claimed in claim 4, wherein said first imaginary plane (A-A’) passing vertically through said lower cross member (101B).
7. The front mounting assembly (201A) for a powertrain (102) of a vehicle (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein an upper end portion (301AA) and a lower end portion (301CA) of said primary member (301) being attached to said chassis frame structure (101).
8. The front mounting assembly (201A) for a powertrain (102) of a vehicle (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said upper end portion (301AA) of said primary member (301) having a flat portion adapted to connect with a upper cross member (101D).
9. The front mounting assembly (201A) for a powertrain (102) of a vehicle (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said mounting member (301L, 301R) being configured to have two or more first set of openings (305), said first set of openings (305) being configured to receive attachment means (307).
10. The front mounting assembly (201A) for a powertrain (102) of a vehicle (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein a front portion (302F) of said secondary member (302) being configured to have a C-shaped cross section, and a rear portion (302R) of said secondary member (302) being configured to have a cylindrical shaped cross section, said cylindrical shaped cross section being configured to receive a damper (304).
11. The front mounting assembly (201A) for a powertrain (102) of a vehicle (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said front portion (302F) of said secondary member (302) being configured to have two or more second set of openings (306), said second set of openings (306) being adapted to receive attachment means (307).
12. The front mounting assembly (201A) for a powertrain (102) of a vehicle (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein one or more reinforcement member (308) being placed between said pair of left and right mounting members (301L, 301R).
13. The front mounting assembly (201A) for a powertrain (102) of a vehicle (100) as claimed in claim 12, wherein one or more reinforcement member (308) being configured to receive said attachment means (307).
14. An electric three wheeled vehicle (100) comprising
a chassis frame structure (101), said chassis frame structure (101) includes
an upper cross member (101B),
a lower cross member (101D),
two or more long members (101A),
wherein said upper cross member (101B) and said lower cross member (101D) being coupled to said long member (101A) and a front mounting assembly (201A) as claimed in any of the preceding claims.