An electrical vehicle including a vehicle body, a passenger compartment, a chassis supporting the passenger compartment, a plurality of wheels and at least one electrical motor for driving the wheels. A battery compartment of the vehicle is configured to removably mount therein a plurality of more than two rechargeable batteries which are movable into position in the battery compartment by a battery conveyor system which has a battery access opening through which batteries are installed or removed, one by one, to and from the battery compartment. In the battery compartment, a connection mechanism effects the needed mechanical and electrical connections. An overall control system controls the conveyor system and the connection mechanism to enable rapid replacement of the removable batteries, whereby an electrical vehicle can be instantly driven, even after its batteries have been discharged by a replacement of the discharged batteries and the installation of freshly charged batteries.

In an embodiment, a battery module fixation arrangement includes gaps arranged between fixation recesses and fixation pins. Upon insertion of a battery module into a battery module compartment, each gap is at least partially filled with a curing material that cures after the insertion. In a further embodiment, the fixation recesses may include cartridges that comprise a foam material along with multiple components that mix to form the curing material after the insertion.

In an embodiment, an expansion component (e.g., expanding foam element, inflatable pad, a pneumatic or hydraulic mechanism, etc.) is arranged inside of a battery module compartment (e.g., on a bottom interior surface of the battery module compartment). A battery module is inserted into the battery module component and is fixated, or secured, within the battery module compartment at least in part based upon the expanding component which starts to expand or continues to expand after the insertion. In a further embodiment, the battery module may be removed from the battery module compartment after a contraction function (e.g., collapse of the foam element, deflation of the inflatable pad, etc.) of the expansion component is initiated.

A vehicle has a body forming a passenger compartment. The vehicle also has a chassis supporting the body. The chassis includes a frame structure having a pair of side rails running longitudinally along the body, a plurality of rigid cross rails extending perpendicular to the side rails and attached at opposing ends to the side rails, and at least one bay defined between the plurality of cross rails. The vehicle also has a battery system including a battery pack. The battery pack has a plurality of electrical storage devices. The battery pack is secured to the side rails and removably positioned in the at least one bay.

A visual positioning method and system for a battery replacement device. The method comprises: controlling a battery replacement device to move below a battery accommodating portion at the bottom of an electric vehicle; photographing, by means of a photographing apparatus, a first target photographing region at a first focal length so as to obtain a positioning determination photograph; controlling the photographing apparatus to adjust the first focal length to a second focal length; and photographing, by means of the photographing apparatus, a second target photographing region at the second focal length so as to obtain a lock-state determination photograph. By means of the photographed photographs at different focal lengths, automatic adjustment of positioning, locking and unlocking is realized, not only achieving efficient and accurate determination of positioning, locking and unlocking of the battery replacement device, but also enabling the battery replacement device to achieve integral and efficient adjustment.

A terminal program for requesting a service to dispatch a service staff or a service vehicle to a location in which a user vehicle is parked and supply an energy source to the user vehicle causes a computer to execute operations, the operations including acquiring, before the user vehicle is parked in a parking location, first information regarding the parking location and transmitting request data including the acquired first information, and acquiring, after transmitting the request data, second information including information, not included in the first information, regarding the parking location and transmitting notification data including the acquired second information.

Disclosed is a battery swapping control system and a control method therefor. The battery swapping system comprises a control unit and a battery swapping device, wherein the control unit is used for determining a battery model applicable to an electric vehicle, and selecting a first battery placing rack and a second battery placing rack from at least one battery placing rack; and the battery swapping device serves to move to a preset battery swapping position, removes a battery with a power shortage from the electric vehicle, transports the battery with the power shortage to the second placing rack and places it in an unoccupied battery placing compartment, then moves to the first battery placing rack and removes a battery of that battery model, and transports the battery of that battery model to the preset battery swapping position and installs the battery in the electric vehicle.

Systems and apparatus for a robotic charging station for charging a battery of an electric vehicle. A semi-autonomous portable robot is programmed to interchange depleted rechargeable batteries disposed in an electric or hybrid vehicle. Portable battery pod dispenses batteries to semi-autonomous portable robot for swap. Semi-autonomous portable robot uses navigational sensors to transport battery to predetermined position at the battery interchange location. Battery disposition and configuration data are wirelessly communicated by battery pod to semi-autonomous portable robot. Battery pod is also in electrical communication with vehicle for timely latching and unlatching of battery modules.

The invention relates to a battery swap connector and an electric vehicle comprising the same. The battery swap connector comprises: a plug at power battery end, on which a plug terminal is disposed; a socket at vehicle body end of electric vehicle, on which a socket terminal is disposed, with which the plug terminal is adapted to be insertedly connected; and an electronic lock device which comprises a mechanical lock-up mechanism which fixes a relative position of the plug and the socket after the inserted connection, and a lock-up state feeding mechanism which feeds a lock-up state of the mechanical lock-up mechanism to an entire vehicle controller of the electric vehicle.

A foreign-matter-removing device for a coil device includes a liquid-jetting unit that washes away a foreign matter, which is present in an area through which a magnetic field generated in wireless supply of power using magnetic coupling of a receiving-side pad and a transmitting-side pad passes, by a jet of liquid.