CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application claims priority to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2020-0047553, filed Apr. 20, 2020, the entire contents of which is incorporated herein for all purposes by this reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a variable body vehicle having a body capable of being suitably configured and used according to a purpose by selectively combining drive modules and body modules with each other and including a drive battery and a body battery configured to be charged with electric power of each other based on states of charge of the batteries.

Description of Related Art

Since the first internal combustion vehicle emerged in the 1800's, vehicles have been continuously developed. The development has been conducted as to durability and stability, and power sources have also been changed from fossil fuels through electric batteries to fuel cells. With an improvement in autonomous driving technology, it is expected that new-concept vehicles different from current ones will emerge in the future.

However, a vehicle purchaser is still limited to purchasing and using a finished vehicle produced by a finished vehicle manufacturing company. The purchaser needs to purchase a finished vehicle according to a purpose, and thus, the purchaser has to purchase a vehicle according to each purpose of use. For example, a person possessing a passenger vehicle for transportation also has to purchase a freight vehicle for carrying freight. A vehicle could be purchased within the limit of finished vehicles provided by the manufacturing company, and a vehicle having a body which may be actively configured according to a purpose of use and a preference has not yet been developed.

The finished vehicle manufacturing company, which manufactures and sells finished vehicles only, has dead stock of finished vehicles. Accordingly, conventional vehicles have a problem in that manufacturing costs are increased and processing costs for the dead stock of finished vehicles are incurred.

The information included in this Background of the Invention section is only for enhancement of understanding of the general background of the invention and may not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art already known to a person skilled in the art.

BRIEF SUMMARY

Various aspects of the present invention are directed to providing a variable body vehicle having a body configured for being configured and used according to a purpose by selectively combining and connecting drive modules and body modules forming the body to each other by a user and mounting batteries according to a need.

According to various exemplary embodiments of the present invention, a variable body vehicle includes: a drive module having drive the vehicle wheels provided at a lower portion of the drive module; a body module coupled to an external side of the drive module and forming an internal space of the vehicle; and a battery-mounting portion formed in the drive module or the body module to mount a battery therein, providing electric power to the battery when the battery is mounted, and determining a driving mode of the vehicle by allowing the battery to be selectively mounted in the drive module, wherein a body of the vehicle is variable by a combination between the drive module and the body module according to a purpose of use.

The drive module may include a first drive module mounted on a front side of the vehicle and a second drive module mounted on a rear side of the vehicle, and the body module may be connected between the first drive module and the second drive module to configure the body.

The battery may be mounted in both the respective battery-mounting portions of the first drive module and the second drive module such that the vehicle is four-wheel or two-wheel driven.

The battery may be mounted in the battery-mounting portion of the first drive module, without being mounted in the battery-mounting portion of the second drive module such that the vehicle is front-wheel driven.

The battery may be mounted in the battery-mounting portion of the second drive module, without being mounted in the battery-mounting portion of the first drive module such that the vehicle is rear-wheel driven.

The drive module may include a first drive module mounted on a front side of the vehicle and a second drive module mounted on a rear side of the vehicle, and the body module may include a first body module connected to the first drive module and a second body module connected to the second drive module.

The battery may be mounted in both the respective battery-mounting portions of the first drive module and the second drive module such that the vehicle is four-wheel or two-wheel driven.

The battery may be mounted in the battery-mounting portion of the first drive module, without being mounted in the battery-mounting portion of the second drive module such that the vehicle is front-wheel driven.

The battery may be mounted in the battery-mounting portion of the second drive module, without being mounted in the battery-mounting portion of the first drive module such that the vehicle is rear-wheel driven.

The numbers of drive modules and body modules may be three or more, and the three or more drive modules and body modules may be connected to each other such that the vehicle is multiple-wheel driven.

A body battery may be mounted in the battery-mounting portion of the body module and a drive battery may be mounted in the battery-mounting portion of the drive module, the body battery providing electric power to the internal space of the vehicle and the drive battery providing electric power to the drive wheels.

The body battery and the drive battery may be connected to each other, and when a state of charge (SOC) value of any one of the body battery and the drive battery is equal to or greater than a predetermined level, the any one may charge the other one.

The body battery and the drive battery may be connected to each other, and when a state of charge (SOC) value of the drive battery is equal to or greater than a predetermined level, the drive battery may be driven while charging the body battery in a travelling state of the vehicle.

The body battery and the drive battery may be connected to each other, and when a state of charge (SOC) value of the drive battery is lower than a predetermined level, if a state of charge (SOC) value of the body battery is equal to or greater than the predetermined level, the body battery may charge the drive battery.

When both states of charge of the body battery and the drive battery are lower than a predetermined level, a save mode may be activated.

The methods and apparatuses of the present invention have other features and advantages which will be apparent from or are set forth in more detail in the accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein, and the following Detailed Description, which together serve to explain certain principles of the present invention.

