Battery module and battery pack and vehicle including same

Abstract

A battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises a plurality of battery cells and a cooling tube provided between the plurality of battery cells and having a cell attachment surface to be attached to the plurality of battery cells, in which a cooling medium for cooling the plurality of battery cells flows inside the cooling tube, and a cooling channel having a width of 1.7 mm to 1.8 mm is formed in the stacking direction of the battery cells.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a battery module, a battery pack and a vehicle including the same, and more particularly, to a battery module having improved cooling efficiency, a battery pack and a vehicle including the same.

[0002] This application claims priority to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2022-0178315 filed on December 19, 2022, Korean Patent Application No. 10-2023-0117975 filed on September 5, 2023, and Korean Patent Application No. 10-2023-0174953 filed on December 5, 2023, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. Background Art

[0003] Secondary batteries have high applicability depending on product groups and electrical characteristics such as high energy density, and are therefore generally applied not only to portable devices but also to electric vehicles (EVs) or hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) driven by power supplies. Such secondary batteries are gaining attention as a new energy source to improve eco-friendliness and energy efficiency because they have not only the main advantage of significantly reducing the use of fossil fuels, but also no byproducts generated by the use of energy.

[0004] Currently widely used secondary batteries include lithium-ion batteries, lithium polymer batteries, nickel-cadmium batteries, nickel-metal hydride batteries, nickel-zinc batteries, etc. The operating voltage of a unit secondary battery cell (i.e., a unit battery cell) is about 2.5V to 4.5V. Therefore, if a higher output voltage is required, a plurality of battery cells can be connected in series to configure a battery pack. In addition, depending on the required charge / discharge capacity of the battery pack, a plurality of battery cells can be connected in parallel to configure a battery pack. Therefore, the number of battery cells included in the battery pack can be set differently according to the required output voltage or the required charge / discharge capacity.

[0005] Meanwhile, when a battery pack is configured by connecting a plurality of battery cells in series / parallel, a battery module including at least one battery cell is generally configured first, and the battery pack is configured by adding other components using the at least one battery module.

[0006] In the case of a conventional battery module, cooling pipes are provided between the battery cells to cool the battery cells. For these cooling pipes, it is important to ensure heat transfer performance and minimize pressure loss to improve cooling efficiency.

[0007] Therefore, there is a need to find a method of providing a battery module having a cooling pipe that can ensure heat transfer performance and minimize pressure loss. Summary of the invention

[0008] Technical issues

[0009] The present disclosure is intended to solve the problems of the related art, and thus the present disclosure is intended to provide a battery module having a cooling pipe capable of ensuring heat transfer performance and minimizing pressure loss, and a battery pack and a vehicle including the battery module.

[0010] However, the technical problems to be solved by the present disclosure are not limited to the above problems, and those skilled in the art can clearly understand other problems not mentioned herein through the following description of the present disclosure.

[0011] Technical Solution

[0012] In order to solve the above-mentioned purpose, the present disclosure provides a battery module, which includes: a plurality of battery cells; and a cooling tube, which is arranged between the plurality of battery cells and has a cell attachment surface attached to the plurality of battery cells, wherein a cooling channel is formed inside the cooling tube, a cooling medium for cooling the plurality of battery cells flows through the cooling channel, and the cooling channel has a width of 1.7 mm to 1.8 mm in the stacking direction of the battery cells.

[0013] Furthermore, preferably, the cell attachment surface may be provided as a flat surface and may be in close contact with the outer surfaces of the plurality of battery cells.

[0014] Furthermore, preferably, the cooling channel may have a width of 1.76 mm in the stacking direction of the battery cells.

[0015] Furthermore, preferably, the cooling pipe may be formed by pressurizing during manufacturing of the cooling pipe so that convex portions and concave portions are alternately arranged, and the number of the cooling channels may be set to a preset plurality of numbers at which the flat surface is not deformed during the pressurizing.

[0016] In addition, preferably, the cooling channel may include: an inlet channel, which guides the cooling medium supplied from an external cooling device; and an outlet channel, which is connected to the inlet channel and guides the cooling medium flowing in the inlet channel to the external cooling device, wherein the outlet channel can be arranged above the inlet channel in the height direction of the cooling pipe.

[0017] In addition, preferably, the cooling channels may be provided with 10 channels, and may be provided to be spaced apart from each other at a predetermined distance in a height direction of the cooling pipe.

[0018] Furthermore, preferably, the inlet channel and the outlet channel may each be provided with 5 channels, and each inlet channel and each outlet channel may be provided to be spaced apart at predetermined intervals in a height direction of the cooling pipe.

[0019] Furthermore, preferably, the predetermined interval in the height direction of the cooling pipe may be 0.3 mm to 0.9 mm.

[0020] In addition, preferably, the predetermined interval in the height direction of the cooling pipe may be 0.34 mm.

[0021] Furthermore, preferably, the cooling channel may have a rounded end in a height direction of the cooling pipe.

[0022] Also, the present disclosure provides a battery pack including at least one battery module according to the above-mentioned embodiment; and a battery pack case accommodating the at least one battery module.

[0023] Furthermore, the present disclosure provides a vehicle including at least one battery pack according to the above-described embodiment.

[0024] Beneficial Effects

[0025] According to the various embodiments described above, a battery module having a cooling pipe that can ensure heat transfer performance and minimize pressure loss, and a battery pack and a vehicle including the battery module may be provided.

[0026] In addition, according to various embodiments of the present disclosure, various other additional effects can be achieved. These various effects of the present disclosure will be described in detail in each embodiment, or descriptions of effects that are easily understood by those skilled in the art will be omitted. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0027] The accompanying drawings illustrate preferred embodiments of the present disclosure and, together with the foregoing disclosure, are used to provide a further understanding of the technical features of the present disclosure, and thus the present disclosure is not to be construed as being limited to the accompanying drawings.

[0028] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram for explaining a battery module according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0029] Figure 2 is a view for explaining a cooling pipe according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0030] Figure 3 is a front view of a cooling pipe according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0031] Figure 4 is a side cross-sectional view of a cooling pipe according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0032] Figure 5 is a view for explaining a manufacturing process through a pressing process of a cooling pipe according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0033] Figure 6is a view for explaining a cross-sectional shape of a cooling channel after a pressing process according to the number of cooling channels of a cooling pipe according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0034] Figure 7 and Figure 8 1 is a view for explaining a pressure difference per unit length of the number of cooling channels of a cooling pipe according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0035] Fig. 9 and Fig.10 is a view for explaining an expected pressure difference according to a battery module configuration according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0036] Fig.11 2 is a schematic diagram for explaining a cooling passage of a cooling pipe according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0037] Fig.12 It is used to illustrate Fig.11 A view of the number of cooling channel channels and the shape information of the cooling channels.

[0038] Fig.13 2 is a view for explaining simulation results according to the number of channels and the shape of cooling channels according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0039] Fig.14 It is used to illustrate the Fig.13 A view of the simulation results for impact analysis.

[0040] Fig.15 is a schematic plan view of a battery module according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, for explaining arrangement of cooling pipes of the battery module.

[0041] Fig.16 yes Fig.15 An enlarged view of part E of FIG.

[0042] Fig.17 is a schematic side cross-sectional view of a battery module according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, for explaining arrangement of cooling pipes in a height direction of the battery module.

[0043] Fig.18 yes Fig.17 An enlarged view of part F.

[0044] Fig.19 and Fig. 20 is a view for explaining a contact state between a cooling pipe and a battery cell when a cooling channel of the cooling pipe is deformed according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0045] Fig.21 2 is a view for explaining a battery pack according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0046] Fig. 22 It is a view for explaining a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0047] The preferred embodiments of the present disclosure are described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Before the description, it should be understood that the terms used in the specification and the appended claims should not be interpreted as limited to the general and dictionary meanings, but are interpreted based on the principle that the inventor is allowed to appropriately define the terms for the best interpretation, based on the meanings and concepts corresponding to the technical aspects of the present disclosure.

[0048] Therefore, the descriptions presented herein are merely preferred examples for illustrative purposes, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure, and it should be appreciated that other equivalents and modifications may be made thereto without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

[0049] Meanwhile, the terms indicating directions such as up, down, left, right, front, and rear used herein are used only for convenience of description, and it is obvious to those skilled in the art that the terms may change according to the position of the element or observer.

[0050] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram for explaining a battery module according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0051] refer to Figure 1 , the battery module 10 may include a battery cell 100 and a cooling tube 200 .

[0052] The battery cell 100 may be provided in plurality. The plurality of battery cells 100 are secondary batteries and may be provided as cylindrical secondary batteries, pouch-type secondary batteries, or prismatic secondary batteries. Hereinafter, in an embodiment of the present disclosure, the description will be limited to a case where the plurality of battery cells 100 are cylindrical secondary batteries.

[0053] The cooling pipe 200 is disposed between the plurality of battery cells 100 and may be attached to the plurality of battery cells 100 to improve cooling performance. Therefore, the cooling pipe 200 may have a cell attachment surface attached to the plurality of battery cells 100 on an outer surface thereof.

[0054] In the cooling pipe 200, a cooling channel 250 (see FIG. Figure 4 ) for the flow of cooling medium. In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the cooling medium is liquid and can be provided as water. Not limited thereto, the cooling medium may include not only water but also one or more fluids capable of exchanging heat with the surrounding environment. The cell attachment surface of the cooling channel 250 (see Figure 4 ) can be set to a flat surface to maximize the contact area with the battery cell 100.

[0055] The cooling tube 200 may be arranged to have a curvature in the longitudinal direction (Y-axis direction) to increase the cooling performance of the battery cell 100 provided as a cylindrical secondary battery. This is to improve the cooling performance by further ensuring the contact area between the outer surface 105 of the battery cell 100 arranged in a cylindrical shape and the cooling tube 200. However, in the cooling channel 250 arranged in the cooling tube 200, deformations such as curved shapes may occur on the cell attachment surface of the cooling tube 200 due to the pressing process to be described later. When deformations such as bending occur on the cell attachment surface in contact with the outer surface of the battery cell 100, the flatness of the cell attachment surface is reduced, and the adhesion between the outer surface of the cooling tube 200 and the battery cell 100 is reduced, thereby reducing the contact area. Therefore, the heat transfer area can be reduced, and therefore the heat transfer performance of the cooling tube 200 can be reduced.

[0056] This bent shape due to deformation of the cooling channel 250 may occur during a press process for forming a curvature of the cooling pipe 200 which will be described later.

[0057] In the embodiment of the present disclosure, even after the pressing process of the cooling tube 200, the cell attachment surface can be ensured to be a flat surface, thereby reducing the risk of deformation of the cell attachment surface of the cooling tube 200, and significantly reducing the risk of heat transfer deviation inside the cooling channel 250 near the cell attachment surface. Therefore, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, the heat transfer area can be ensured to the greatest extent, while improving the adhesion of the battery cell 100 of the cooling tube 200, so that the heat transfer performance of the cooling tube 200 can be prevented from being deteriorated.

[0058] Hereinafter, the cooling pipe 200 in relation to the shape of the cooling channel 250 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in more detail.

[0059] Figure 2 is a view for explaining a cooling pipe according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, Figure 3 is a front view of a cooling tube according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, Figure 4 is a side cross-sectional view of a cooling pipe according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, and Figure 5 is a view for explaining a manufacturing process through a pressing process of a cooling pipe according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0060] Reference Figures 2 to 5 The cooling pipe 200 may be made of a material having high thermal conductivity. For example, the cooling pipe 200 may be made of aluminum.

[0061] The cooling tube 200 is formed to have a predetermined length and may have a curvature shape in the longitudinal direction (Y-axis direction). The curvature shape may be a shape provided by the alternating arrangement of convex portions and concave portions in the longitudinal direction (Y-axis direction). The alternating arrangement of convex portions and concave portions may mean that one concave portion is arranged between two convex portions, and one convex portion is arranged between two concave portions. A plurality of battery cells 100 may be arranged in two rows in the longitudinal direction with the cooling tube 200 sandwiched therebetween, and may be arranged to be attached to the convex portions and the concave portions.

[0062] The cooling pipe 200 may have such a curvature shape by pressurizing the pressing device P during the manufacturing of the cooling pipe 200. That is, it may be manufactured so that the convex portions and the concave portions are alternately provided by pressurization of the pressing device P.

[0063] The cooling channels 250 may be provided in a preset number, wherein deformation of the cooling channels 250 does not occur during pressurization. The number of cooling channels 250 is an important design factor related to deformation of the cooling channels 250 during pressurization. In the cooling pipe 200, as the number of cooling channels 250 increases, deformation of the cooling channels 250 during pressurization is reduced. However, as the number of cooling channels 250 increases, there is a problem that the pressure loss of the cooling pipe 200 also increases. When the pressure loss of the cooling pipe 200 is large, the output of the pump used to circulate the cooling medium toward the cooling channel 250 should be increased, which increases power consumption, thereby causing the problem of reduced overall efficiency of the battery module 10.

[0064] Therefore, it is important that the number of cooling channels 250 in the cooling pipe 200 is set to a preset number that reduces pressure loss and does not cause deformation of the cooling channels 250 during the pressing process. In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the cooling channels 250 are provided with 10 channels and can be arranged to be spaced apart from each other at a predetermined distance in the height direction of the cooling pipe 200.

[0065] The cooling passage 250 may include an inlet passage 252 and an outlet passage 256 .

[0066] The inlet channel 252 may guide the cooling medium supplied from the external cooling device toward the cooling pipe 200. The inlet channel 252 may be disposed at a lower portion of the cooling pipe 200 based on a central axis of the cooling pipe 200 in a height direction (Z-axis direction) of the cooling pipe 200. The inlet channel 252 is formed to be long in a longitudinal direction (Y-axis direction) of the cooling pipe 200, and may allow the cooling medium to flow in the longitudinal direction (Y-axis direction) at a lower portion of the cooling pipe 200.

[0067] The inlet channel 252 may be provided in a preset number. In the present embodiment, the inlet channel 252 may be multiple, specifically, the inlet channel 252 may be 5. The number of the inlet channel 252 may be a number that considers reducing pressure loss as described above and does not cause deformation during the pressing process. The multiple inlet channels 252 may be provided to be spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance along the height direction (Z-axis direction) of the cooling pipe 200.

[0068] The outlet channel 256 is in communication with the inlet channel 252, and can guide the cooling medium flowing in the inlet channel 252 to an external cooling device. The outlet channel 256 can be arranged at the upper portion of the cooling pipe 200 based on the central axis of the cooling pipe 200 in the height direction (Z-axis direction) of the cooling pipe 200. Specifically, the outlet channel 256 can be arranged above the inlet channel 252 in the height direction (Z-axis direction) of the cooling pipe 200. The outlet channel 256 is formed to be longer in the longitudinal direction (Y-axis direction) of the cooling pipe 200, and can allow the cooling medium to flow in the longitudinal direction (Y-axis direction) at the upper portion of the cooling pipe 200.

[0069] The outlet channel 256 can be arranged in a preset number. In the present embodiment, the outlet channel 256 can be multiple, specifically, the outlet channel 256 can be 5. The number of the outlet channel 256 can be the number that reduces the pressure loss as mentioned above and does not cause deformation during the pressing process. A plurality of outlet channels 256 can be arranged to be spaced apart from each other at a predetermined distance along the height direction (Z-axis direction) of the cooling pipe 200. Finally, each inlet channel 252 and each outlet channel 256 can be arranged to be spaced apart at a predetermined interval in the height direction (Z-axis direction) of the cooling pipe 200.

[0070] Meanwhile, the cooling medium may enter the inlet channel 252 through a port connected to an external cooling device of the cooling pipe 200, flow along the longitudinal direction of the inlet channel 252, move toward the outlet channel 256 on the opposite side of the port, flow along the longitudinal direction of the outlet channel 256, and then move back toward the external cooling device through the port. The flow path of the cooling medium may be generally U-shaped.

[0071] Hereinafter, test results related to deformation of the cooling channels 250 during the pressing process in association with the number of cooling channels 250 of the cooling pipe 200 will be examined.

[0072] Figure 6 is a view for explaining a cross-sectional shape of a cooling channel after a pressing process according to the number of cooling channels of a cooling pipe according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0073] refer to Figure 6 and the previous Figures 1 to 5, it can be seen that the maximum deformation amount of the cooling channel 250 decreases from Case 1 to Case 4, in other words, decreases as the number of cooling channels 250 in the cooling pipe 200 increases. Specifically, it can be seen that when the total number of cooling channels 250 is 8 (specifically, each is provided with 4 inlet channels and 4 outlet channels), as in Cases 1 and 2, the maximum deformation amount of the cooling channel 250 is greater than the maximum deformation amount in Cases 3 and 4, which are provided with more cooling channels 250 than in Cases 1 and 2. On the other hand, when comparing Cases 1 and 2, it can be seen that even if the number of cooling channels 250 is the same, a difference in the maximum deformation amount occurs depending on the intervals between the respective cooling channels 250.

[0074] Furthermore, it can be seen from the comparison between Case 3 and Case 4 that the maximum deformation amount of the cooling channel 250 in Case 3 (a configuration of 12 cooling channels with 6 inlet channels and 6 outlet channels, respectively) and Case 4 (a configuration of 16 cooling channels with 8 inlet channels and 8 outlet channels, respectively) is the same. In this case, it may be preferable to configure the cooling channels as in Case 3 rather than Case 4 to reduce pressure loss. In this way, the number of cooling channels 250 can be set to a preset number that reduces pressure loss without causing deformation.

[0075] In the case of the cooling channels 250 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, taking this into account, a total of 10 channels may be provided as previously seen, including 5 inlet channels 252 and 5 outlet channels 256 .

[0076] Meanwhile, in terms of deformation of the cooling channel, even if the pressing speed during the pressing process is different, the pressing speed has no significant effect. That is, in terms of the flatness of the cell attachment surface of the cooling channel, the pressing speed during the pressing process has little effect on the flatness.

[0077] Figure 7 and Figure 8 2 is a view for explaining a pressure difference per unit length according to the number of cooling channels of a cooling pipe according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0078] Reference Figure 7 and 8 , shows the results of the pressure difference per unit length of the cooling pipe according to the number of channels of the cooling pipe. It can be seen that the pressure difference per unit length increases with the increase of flow rate, and the pressure difference increases with the increase of the number of cooling channels. The test results show that when the cooling channel consists of 8 channels, the pressure loss increases by about 45% compared with when the cooling channel consists of 5 channels.

[0079] On the other hand, the number of channels of 5 channels, 6 channels, and 8 channels in the test may represent the number of each inlet channel and outlet channel, rather than the total number of cooling channels. That is, in the case of 5 channels, it may mean that the cooling pipe consists of 5 inlet channels and 5 outlet channels, for a total of 10 cooling channels. Similarly, in the case of 8 channels, it may mean that a total of 16 cooling channels are configured. Ultimately, the test results show that reducing the number of cooling channels in the cooling pipe can reduce pressure loss.

[0080] Fig. 9 and Fig.10 is a view for explaining an expected pressure difference of a battery module configuration according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0081] refer to Fig. 9 and Fig.10 , shows the results of the expected pressure difference according to the battery module configuration. It can be seen that the pressure difference increases with the increase of flow rate, and the pressure difference increases with the increase of the number of battery cells. Fig. 9 and Fig.10 In the figure, only the flow path length of the cooling channel in the cooling pipe is reflected, and the port and the end plate part connected to the external cooling device are not reflected. Therefore, for example, in the case of a 24S10P module, the flow path length may be about 2520.4mm (=2*1260.2mm), and in the case of a 35S14P module, the flow path length may be about 3663.3mm (=2*1831.7mm).

[0082] The test results show that the pressure difference of the 8-channel configuration of the 24S10P module and the 5-channel configuration of the 35S14P module is almost the same. That is, when the cooling channel configuration in the cooling tube has 5 channels (5 channels each for the inlet channel and the outlet channel, a total of 10 channels), more battery cells can be attached to the cooling tube. In other words, the cooling tube can be made longer, about 45% longer.

[0083] Thus, when the number of cooling channels in the cooling tube is configured to have 5 channels each for the inlet channel and the outlet channel, the cooling tube can be designed so that more battery cells can be attached to the cooling tube while facilitating relatively free configuration of the battery module.

[0084] Fig.11 is a schematic diagram for explaining a cooling channel of a cooling pipe according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, Fig.12 It is used to illustrate Fig.11 A view of the number of cooling channel channels and the shape of the cooling channel information, Fig.13 is a view for explaining simulation results according to the number of channels and the shape of the cooling channel according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, and Fig.14It is used to illustrate the Fig.13 A view of the simulation results for impact analysis.

[0085] Reference Figures 11 to 14 As described above, it is important that the cell attachment surface 207 of the cooling channel 250 of the cooling tube 200 is not deformed during the above-mentioned pressing process of the cooling tube 200. The deformation of the cell attachment surface 207 of the cooling tube 200 reduces the heat transfer area by reducing the contact area of ​​the cell attachment surface 207 with the battery cell 100, thereby reducing the overall cooling performance, so it is important to prevent this. Therefore, it is important to design the cell attachment surface 207 of the cooling tube 200 as a flat surface that is not deformed even in the pressing process.

[0086] During the pressing process (see Figure 5 ), the cell attachment surface 207 may be concavely pressed and relatively compressed, resulting in less deformation, and the non-cell attachment surface 209 may be convexly pressed and relatively stretched compared to the cell attachment surface 207 during the pressing process, resulting in further deformation. According to these concave and convex shapes, during the pressing process, deformation of the cooling channel 250 provided in a hollow shape within the cooling tube 200 between the cell attachment surface 207 and the non-cell attachment surface 209 is likely to occur. Since the cooling tube 200 is provided with the cooling channel 250 in a hollow shape for the internal flow path, the cooling channel 250 in a hollow shape is likely to be deformed during the pressing process.

[0087] When the cooling channel 250 is deformed, the outer surfaces 207, 209 of the cooling tube 200 outside the cooling channel 250 may also be deformed. For example, when the cooling channel 250 is deformed, such as recessed to a predetermined depth, the outer surfaces 207, 209 of the cooling tube 200 (i.e., the cell attachment surface 207 and the non-cell attachment surface 209 of the cooling tube 200) may also be recessed to a predetermined depth by the amount of deformation of the cooling channel 250. Therefore, the inner surfaces 257, 259 of the cooling tube 200 may be deformed by the deformation of the cell attachment surface 207 and the non-cell attachment surface 209 during the pressing process.

[0088] Here, in particular, deformation of the cell attachment surface 207 may reduce the contact area with the battery cell 100 , thereby reducing heat transfer performance, which may serve as a factor of cooling performance degradation.

[0089] On the other hand, since the opposing surface 209 of the cell attachment surface 207 of the cooling tube 200 in the cooling channel 250 has no relation to heat transfer performance, it is relatively unimportant whether the opposing surface 209 of the cell attachment surface 207 of the cooling tube 200 is deformed.

[0090] Therefore, it is necessary to design a cooling channel 250 that can minimize deformation of the battery cell attachment surface 207 in the cooling tube 200 and also reduce pressure loss.

[0091] First, as mentioned above, the cooling channel 250 may be provided with 5 inlet channels 252 and 5 outlet channels 256, for a total of 10 cooling channels. Also, in one embodiment of the present disclosure, the thickness b of the cooling tube 200 may be 2.5 mm. Also, in the height direction of the cooling tube 200, the interval C between the inlet tube 252 and the outlet tube 256 that are closest to each other may be 4 mm. In the above simulation, the thickness b of the cooling tube 200 and the interval C between the inlet tube 252 and the outlet tube 256 that are closest to each other may be fixed sizes. At the same time, the compression distance in the pressing process may be 6.44 mm (initially 2.50 mm), and the preset pressure difference tolerance may be approximately 6.25 kPa.

[0092] The dimension item t may mean a predetermined interval between the cooling channels 250 in the height direction of the cooling pipe 200. Specifically, the dimension item t may represent a predetermined interval between the inlet channels 252 and a predetermined interval between the outlet channels 256 in the height direction of the cooling pipe 200. The dimension item w may represent the length in the height direction of the cooling pipe 200. Specifically, it may be the length w of each inlet channel 252 and each outlet channel 256 in the height direction of the cooling pipe 200. The dimension item h may represent the width of the cooling channel 250 in the thickness b direction of the cooling pipe 200. Specifically, it may be the length of the outlet channel 256 in the height direction of the battery cell 100 (see Figure 1 ) in the stacking direction (X-axis direction).

[0093] Reference Fig.13, it can be seen that as the dimension item h (the width of the cooling channel 250 in the thickness b direction of the cooling pipe 200) decreases, the deformation amount decreases. For example, as shown in No.1 to No.3, it can be seen that as the dimension item h decreases to 1.8mm, 1.78mm and 1.76mm, the deformation amount also decreases in the order of 0.409, 0.391 and 0.374. In addition, as shown in No.4 to No.6, it can be seen that as the dimension item h decreases to 1.8mm, 1.78mm and 1.76mm, the deformation amount also decreases in the order of 0.422, 0.405 and 0.388. And, it can be seen that as the dimension item t (the predetermined interval spaced apart from each other between each inlet channel 252 and each outlet channel 256 in the height direction of the cooling pipe 200) increases, the deformation amount increases. In addition, it can be seen that as the dimension item w (the length of each inlet channel 252 and each outlet channel 256 in the height direction of the cooling pipe 200) decreases, the deformation amount increases. In summary, it can be seen that, based on the simulation results according to No. 3, the result having the smallest deformation amount within the pressure difference tolerance (6.25 kPa) is Case 3.

[0094] refer to Fig.14 , the influence of these dimension items can be analyzed as follows. First, it means that the closer to 1 in the table, the higher the degree of influence between the two factors. It can be seen that the absolute value of the positive / negative difference between the dimension item t (the predetermined interval of the cooling channel 250 in the height direction of the cooling pipe 200) and the dimension item w (the length of each inlet channel 252 and each outlet channel 256 in the height direction of the cooling pipe 200) are the same under certain conditions. This may mean that the absolute value of the influence is the same. As shown in the table, it can be seen that the factors that mainly have a greater influence on the difference in deformation amount are the dimension item t (the predetermined interval between the cooling channels 250 in the height direction of the cooling pipe 200) and the dimension item h, and the dimension item h has a relatively higher influence than the dimension item t.

[0095] Thus, the cooling channel 250 may preferably have a length w of 5.6 mm to 6.1 mm in the height direction of the cooling pipe 200. Specifically, the length of each cooling channel 250 may be 6.08 mm in the height direction of the cooling pipe 200. More specifically, the length w of each inlet channel 252 and each outlet channel 256 may be 6.08 mm in the height direction of the cooling pipe 200.

[0096] In addition, the predetermined interval t of the cooling channel 250 in the height direction of the cooling pipe 200 may be 0.3 mm to 0.9 mm. Specifically, the predetermined interval t may be 0.34 mm in the height direction of the cooling pipe 200. More specifically, in the height direction of the cooling pipe 200, the predetermined interval t between the inlet channels 252 and the predetermined interval t between the outlet channels 256 may be 0.34 mm.

[0097] Furthermore, the width h of the cooling channel 250 in the thickness b direction of the cooling tube 200 may be 1.7 mm to 1.8 mm. Figure 1 ), the width h of the cooling channel 250 may be 1.7 mm to 1.8 mm in the stacking direction (X-axis direction) of the battery cells 100. More specifically, the width h of the cooling channel 250 in the stacking direction of the battery cells 100 may be 1.76 mm.

[0098] In addition, the cooling channel 250 may have a rounded end in the height direction of the cooling pipe 200 .

[0099] In this way, Fig.12 As shown, the cooling channel 250 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure can be formed to have a circular end in the height direction of the cooling pipe 200, a spacing t of 0.34 mm between the cooling channels 250 in the height direction of the cooling pipe 200, a length w of 6.08 mm in the height direction of the cooling pipe 200, and a thickness h of 1.76 mm in the thickness b direction.

[0100] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, a cooling pipe 200 may be provided by providing cooling channels 250 in such a shape, size, and number that the cooling pipe 200 may minimize deformation of the cell attachment surface and the cooling channels near the cell attachment surface while also significantly reducing pressure loss.

[0101] Therefore, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, the cooling pipe 200 capable of ensuring heat transfer performance while minimizing pressure loss may reduce the amount of energy consumed to cool the battery cell 100 , which may result in promoting more efficient operation of the entire system.

[0102] Reference again Figure 1 , the battery module 10 may include a side structure unit 300 .

[0103] The side structure unit 300 supports the battery cell 100 and may ensure the rigidity of the battery cell 100. The side structure unit 300 is formed to have a predetermined length along the longitudinal direction of the battery module 10 and may be provided in one or more parts and assembled with each other to accommodate and support the battery cell 100.

[0104] The battery module 10 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure may form a cell array structure through the battery cell 100, the cooling pipe 200, and the side structure unit 300. The side structure unit 300 constituting the battery cell array structure may guide the battery module 10 to be configured with a separate cover structure such as a conventional module frame omitted, and thus a so-called frameless module structure may be realized, thereby making the battery module 10 thinner and improving its energy density.

[0105] Fig.15 is a schematic plan view of a battery module for explaining the arrangement of cooling pipes of the battery module according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, and Fig.16 yes Fig.15 An enlarged view of part E of FIG.

[0106] Reference Fig.15 and Fig.16 In the battery module 10, the cooling pipe 200 may be provided between the battery cells 100 respectively arranged in two rows. Each cooling pipe 200 may include a cell attachment surface 207 attached to the outer surface 105 of the battery cell 100 and formed concavely and a non-cell attachment surface 209 not attached to the outer surface of the battery cell 100 and formed convexly.

[0107] The cell attachment surface 207 and the non-cell attachment surface 209 may be formed alternately along the longitudinal direction (Y-axis direction) of the cooling tube 200 based on one surface (+X-axis direction) or the other surface (-X-axis direction) of the cooling tube 200, and may be formed in a zigzag position along the longitudinal direction (Y-axis direction) of the cooling tube 200 based on both surfaces (X-axis direction) of the cooling tube 200. That is, if any one surface (+X-axis direction) in the thickness direction (X-axis direction) of the cooling tube 200 is the cell attachment surface 207, the other surface (-X-axis direction) opposite to the one surface (+X-axis direction) may be the non-cell attachment surface 209.

[0108] The contact angle θ between the battery cell 100 and the cooling tube 200 can be set at or near about 60 degrees. The reason for setting the contact angle θ of about 60 degrees is that if the contact angle θ is greater than 60 degrees, the cooling performance can be improved, but there is a problem that the size of the entire battery pack 1 should be increased as the interval between the battery cells 100 increases. In addition, as the contact angle increases, the curvature of the cooling tube 200 also inevitably increases. If the contact angle θ is much greater than 60 degrees, it will cause the hydraulic pressure to increase and the cooling flow may be quite unstable. In addition, if the contact angle θ is less than 60 degrees, there is a problem that the cooling efficiency decreases as the cooling area of ​​the battery cell 100 in contact with the cooling tube 200 decreases.

[0109] Therefore, considering this point, the contact angle θ is preferably arranged within a range of approximately + / - 1.5 degrees based on 60 degrees. For example, the contact angle θ may be set within a range between 58.5 degrees and 61.5 degrees.

[0110] Fig.17 is a schematic side cross-sectional view of a battery module according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, for illustrating the arrangement of cooling pipes in the height direction of the battery module, and Fig.18 yes Fig.17 An enlarged view of part F.

[0111] refer to Fig.17 and Fig.18 and the previous Fig.15 and Fig.16 In the battery module 10, the cooling tube 200 can ensure that the battery cell attachment surface 207 is a flat surface according to the design of the above-mentioned cooling channel 250, so that the adhesion between the battery cell attachment surface 207 and the outer surface 105 of the battery cell 100 can be increased, and the shape of the internal flow path near the battery cell attachment surface 207 inside the cooling channel 250 can also be formed without bending, thereby ensuring the heat transfer performance to the greatest extent.

[0112] At the same time, the outer surface 105 of the battery cell 100 and the cell attachment surface 207 of the cooling tube 200 can be tightly fixed to each other by an adhesive. The adhesive can be, for example, a resin adhesive. In addition, a heat transfer pad having high adhesion between the outer surface 105 of the battery cell 100 and the cell attachment surface 207 of the cooling tube 200 can be provided. In addition, adhesion can be formed by filling a filling member made of a resin material between the outer surface 105 of the battery cell 100 and the cell attachment surface 207 of the cooling tube 200.

[0113] Fig.19 and Fig. 20 is a view for explaining a contact state between a cooling pipe and a battery cell when a cooling channel of the cooling pipe is deformed according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0114] refer to Fig.19 When the cooling pipe 400 is deformed due to deformation of the cooling channel 450 of the cooling pipe 400, a predetermined space S is generated between the cell attachment surface 407 of the cooling pipe 400 and the outer surface 105 of the battery cell 100. The predetermined space S may mean a non-contact space between the cooling pipe 400 and the battery cell 100.

[0115] When the predetermined space S is generated, the heat transfer performance of the cooling tube 400 is inevitably reduced due to the reduced contact area. As described above, the predetermined space S may be caused by deformation of the cooling channel 450 during the pressing process of the cooling tube 400, especially deformation of the cooling channel 450 disposed near the battery cell attachment surface 407 of the cooling tube 400. In this way, the deformation of the cooling channel 450 disposed near the battery cell attachment surface 407 and the deformation of the battery cell attachment surface 407 of the cooling tube 400 caused by the deformation may cause the cooling performance of the cooling tube 400 to deteriorate.

[0116] Reference Fig. 20 , the cooling tube 500 according to this embodiment may be formed to ensure a flat surface only on the cell attachment surface 507 and the inner surface 557 side close to the cell attachment surface 507, and to have a predetermined relative curvature on the non-cell attachment surface 509 and the inner surface 559 side relatively far from the cell attachment surface 507. In other words, in this embodiment, the cell attachment surface 507 and the inner surface 557 of the cooling channel 550 close thereto may have a flat surface, and the non-cell attachment surface 509 and the inner surface 559 of the cooling channel 550 close thereto may have a non-flat surface. That is, the non-cell attachment surface 509, which is provided on the opposite side of the cell attachment surface 507 of the cooling tube 500 and does not contact the outer surface 105 of the battery cell 100, may be provided as a non-flat surface having a greater deformation than the flat surface of the cell attachment surface 507.

[0117] As seen previously, the cell attachment surface 507 may be concavely pressed during the pressing process (see Figure 5 ) and is relatively compressed, resulting in less deformation, and the non-cell attachment surface 509 can be convexly pressed during the pressing process (see Figure 5 ) and is relatively stretched compared to the cell attachment surface 507, thereby causing further deformation. In this embodiment, the cell attachment surface 507 in contact with the outer surface 105 of the battery cell 100 may be formed as a flat surface, and the non-cell attachment surface 509 not in contact with the outer surface 105 of the battery cell 100 may be formed as a non-flat surface having greater deformation than the cell attachment surface 507 as a flat surface.

[0118] The cell attachment surface 507 having a flat surface and the non-cell attachment surface 509 having a non-flat surface may be arranged along the longitudinal direction (Y-axis direction, see FIG. 1 ) of the cooling tube 500 based on one surface (+X-axis direction) or the other surface (−X-axis direction) of the cooling tube 500. Fig.15 ) are alternately formed, and can be based on the two surfaces of the cooling pipe 500 (X-axis direction) along the longitudinal direction of the cooling pipe 500 (Y-axis direction, see Fig.15) is formed in a zigzag position. That is, in this embodiment, the flat surface and the non-flat surface can be based on one surface (+X axis direction) or the other surface (-X axis direction) of the cooling pipe 500 along the longitudinal direction (Y axis direction, see Fig.15 ) are alternately formed, and can be based on the two surfaces of the cooling pipe 500 (X-axis direction) along the longitudinal direction of the cooling pipe 500 (Y-axis direction, see Fig.15 ) is formed in a zigzag position.

[0119] In the case where the non-cell attachment surface 509 is set as a non-flat surface, since it does not contact the battery cell 100, unlike the cell attachment surface 507, its flatness is relatively unimportant, and therefore, as in this embodiment, the cooling channel 550 can be designed by only considering the prevention of deformation of the cell attachment surface 507 and the cooling channel 550 near the cell attachment surface 507 to ensure the flatness near the cell attachment surface 507. In this way, in this embodiment, even if the non-cell attachment surface 509 that does not contact the battery cell 100 is formed as a non-flat surface, the cell attachment surface 507 that contacts the outer surface 105 of the battery cell 100 is formed as a flat surface, and thus the contact performance between the battery cell 100 and the cooling tube 500 can be ensured. Therefore, in this embodiment, the cooling tube 500 can be designed by only considering the flatness of the attachment surface with the battery cell 100 during the pressing process of the cooling tube 500, thereby ensuring a relatively greater degree of freedom in design of the cooling tube 500.

[0120] Fig.21 is a view for explaining a battery pack according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, and Fig. 22 It is a view for explaining a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0121] Reference Fig.21 and Fig. 22 , a battery pack 1 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure may include at least one battery module 10 according to the aforementioned embodiments and a battery pack case 50 accommodating the battery module 10 .

[0122] Such a battery pack 1 may further include electric components such as a BMS controlling the battery module 10 or a cooling unit such as a radiator for cooling the battery module 10 .

[0123] The battery pack 1 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure may further include various other components of the battery pack 1 known at the time of filing the present disclosure. For example, the battery pack 1 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure may further include components such as a current sensor, a fuse, and a service plug.

[0124] In addition, the vehicle V according to the embodiment of the present disclosure may include one or more battery packs 1 according to the present disclosure. And, in addition to the battery pack 1, the vehicle V according to the embodiment of the present disclosure may also include various other components included in the vehicle. For example, in addition to the battery pack 1 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure, the vehicle V according to the embodiment of the present disclosure may also include a body, a motor, and a control device, such as an electronic control unit (ECU).

[0125] Furthermore, of course, the battery pack 1 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure may be provided in other devices, instruments, and facilities other than the vehicle V, such as an energy storage system using a secondary battery.

[0126] According to the various embodiments described above, it is possible to provide a battery module 10 having a cooling pipe 200 that can ensure heat transfer performance and minimize pressure loss, and to provide a battery pack 1 and a vehicle V including the battery module.

[0127] The present disclosure has been described above with respect to a limited number of embodiments and drawings, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto, and it is apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and changes may be made thereto within the technical aspects of the present disclosure and the equivalent scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. A battery module, comprising: Multiple battery cells; as well as a cooling tube disposed between the plurality of battery cells and having a cell attachment surface attached to the plurality of battery cells, A cooling channel is formed inside the cooling tube, a cooling medium for cooling the plurality of battery cells flows through the cooling channel, and the cooling channel has a width of 1.7 mm to 1.8 mm in a stacking direction of the battery cells.

2. The battery module according to claim 1, in, The cell attachment surface is provided as a flat surface and is in close contact with outer surfaces of the plurality of battery cells.

3. The battery module according to claim 1, in, The cooling channel has a width of 1.76 mm in the stacking direction of the battery cells.

4. The battery module according to claim 1, in, The cooling pipe is formed by pressurizing during the manufacture of the cooling pipe so that convex portions and concave portions are alternately arranged, and The number of the cooling channels is set to a preset plurality of numbers at which the flat surface is not deformed during the pressurizing.

5. The battery module according to claim 1, in, The cooling channel comprises: an inlet passage that guides the cooling medium supplied from an external cooling device; and an outlet channel communicating with the inlet channel and guiding the cooling medium flowing in the inlet channel to the external cooling device, Wherein, the outlet channel is arranged above the inlet channel in the height direction of the cooling pipe.

6. The battery module according to claim 1, in, The cooling channels are provided with 10 channels and are arranged to be spaced apart from each other at a predetermined distance in a height direction of the cooling pipe.

7. The battery module according to claim 5, in, The inlet channel and the outlet channel are each provided with 5 channels, and Each inlet channel and each outlet channel are provided to be spaced apart at predetermined intervals in a height direction of the cooling pipe.

8. The battery module according to claim 7, in, The predetermined interval in the height direction of the cooling pipe is 0.3 mm to 0.9 mm.

9. The battery module according to claim 8, in, The predetermined interval in the height direction of the cooling pipe is 0.34 mm.

10. The battery module according to claim 1, in, The cooling channel has a rounded end in the height direction of the cooling pipe.

11. A battery pack, comprising: at least one battery module, the at least one battery module being a battery module according to any one of claims 1 to 10; as well as A battery pack housing accommodates the at least one battery module.

12. A vehicle comprising at least one battery pack according to claim 11.

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