Assembly for providing electric power to a marine propulsion system

Abstract

An assembly for a marine vessel includes a housing forming a watertight enclosure. A battery pack is sealed within the watertight enclosure. An onboard charger is sealed within the watertight enclosure and is electrically connected to the battery pack. A power converter is sealed within the watertight enclosure and is electrically connected to the battery pack. The housing is configured to be installed on the marine vessel. The battery pack is configured to provide power to an electric motor powering a marine propulsion device of the marine vessel.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . An assembly for a marine vessel comprising:
 a housing forming a watertight enclosure;   a battery pack sealed within the watertight enclosure;   an onboard charger sealed within the watertight enclosure and electrically connected to the battery pack; and   a power converter sealed within the watertight enclosure and electrically connected to the battery pack;   wherein the housing is configured to be installed on the marine vessel; and   wherein the battery pack is configured to provide power to an electric motor powering a marine propulsion device of the marine vessel.   
     
     
         2 . Then assembly of  claim 1 , further comprising at least one of the following:
 a watertight communication interface configured to provide signal communication between a user interface system of the marine vessel and at least one of the battery pack, the onboard charger, and the power converter;   a cooling module configured to provide cooling fluid to cooling passageways located within the watertight enclosure so as to cool at least one of the battery pack, the onboard charger, and the power converter; and   a shield configured to protect at least one of the battery pack, the onboard charger, and the power converter from electromagnetic fields generated by devices external to the housing.   
     
     
         3 . The assembly of  claim 2 , wherein the assembly comprises the communication interface and the communication interface is a wireless communication interface. 
     
     
         4 . The assembly of  claim 2 , wherein the assembly comprises the cooling module and the cooling module is sealed within the watertight enclosure. 
     
     
         5 . The assembly of  claim 2 , wherein the assembly comprises the cooling module and the cooling module comprises:
 a water pump configured to draw raw water from a body of water in which the marine vessel is operating into the cooling module;   a coolant pump configured to pump the cooling fluid into the cooling passageways in the watertight enclosure and thereafter return the cooling fluid to the cooling module; and   a heat exchanger configured to transfer heat from the returned cooling fluid to the raw water.   
     
     
         6 . The assembly of  claim 2 , wherein the assembly comprises the cooling module and the cooling passageways in the watertight enclosure are fluidically connected to further fluid passageways configured to cool the electric motor. 
     
     
         7 . The assembly of  claim 2 , wherein the assembly comprises the shield and the shield is a Faraday cage. 
     
     
         8 . The assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the battery pack comprises a battery management system. 
     
     
         9 . The assembly of  claim 8 , further comprising at least one of a water sensor, a pressure sensor, and a temperature sensor located within the watertight enclosure and in communication with the battery management system. 
     
     
         10 . The assembly of  claim 1 , further comprising the electric motor of the marine propulsion device, wherein the electric motor is sealed within the watertight enclosure. 
     
     
         11 . The assembly of  claim 1 , further comprising a steering actuator configured to steer a propulsor of the marine propulsion device, wherein the steering actuator is sealed within the watertight enclosure. 
     
     
         12 . The assembly of  claim 1 , further comprising a stow/deploy actuator configured to stow and deploy a propulsor of the marine propulsion device, wherein the stow/deploy actuator is sealed within the watertight enclosure. 
     
     
         13 . The assembly of  claim 1 , wherein a portion of the watertight enclosure is watertight with respect to a remainder of the watertight enclosure, and the assembly further comprises a panel or door covering an opening in an exterior of the housing, the opening configured to provide access to the remainder of the watertight enclosure. 
     
     
         14 . The assembly of  claim 1 , further comprising a quick disconnect provided on the housing, wherein the quick disconnect is configured to connect one or more electrical cables in the watertight enclosure to one or more electrical cables on the marine vessel. 
     
     
         15 . The assembly of  claim 1 , further comprising a quick disconnect provided on the housing, wherein the quick disconnect is configured to connect one or more fluid passageways in the watertight enclosure to one or more fluid passageways external to the housing. 
     
     
         16 . The assembly of  claim 1 , further comprising vibration isolation mounts configured to couple the housing to the marine vessel. 
     
     
         17 . The assembly of  claim 1 , further comprising a watertight communication interface configured to provide signal communication between a user interface system of the marine vessel and at least one of the battery pack, the onboard charger, and the power converter. 
     
     
         18 . The assembly of  claim 1 , further comprising a cooling module configured to provide cooling fluid to cooling passageways located within the watertight enclosure so as to cool at least one of the battery pack, the onboard charger, and the power converter. 
     
     
         19 . The assembly of  claim 1 , further comprising a shield configured to protect at least one of the battery pack, the onboard charger, and the power converter from electromagnetic fields generated by devices external to the housing. 
     
     
         20 . The assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the power converter comprises at least one of a power inverter and a DC-DC converter.