High-load unmanned aerial vehicle battery thermal management device

Abstract

The invention discloses a high-load unmanned aerial vehicle battery thermal management device, belongs to the technical field of battery thermal management devices, and timely transfers heat generated during high-rate discharge of an unmanned aerial vehicle battery to fins by means of ultrahigh thermal conductivity of a phase change thermal control device. Cooling air generated by rotor wing rotation or fuselage movement of the unmanned aerial vehicle flows through the fins to take away heat, and therefore efficient passive heat dissipation is achieved. The installation position of the U-shaped shell, the structure of the air duct and the arrangement mode of the phase change thermal control device can be customized according to different unmanned aerial vehicle structures, and the U-shaped shell is installed in a side hanging mode and does not occupy the internal space of a vehicle body; meanwhile, the U-shaped shell and the phase change thermal control device are highly sealed through welding, so that the battery module is prevented from being invaded by rainwater and particulate matters, and the battery module is suitable for various severe flight working conditions.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a battery thermal management device, in particular to a battery thermal management device for a high-load unmanned aerial vehicle, and belongs to the technical field of battery thermal management devices. Background Art

[0002] When the drone is taking off, climbing, accelerating or in a high-load state, the internal lithium-ion battery will usually discharge at a high rate to meet flight requirements. In particular, the higher the discharge rate that the drone battery can withstand, the greater its load-bearing capacity. However, high-rate discharge will generate a lot of heat, which often causes the battery temperature to be too high and unable to work normally, and even affects the battery's cycle life. Therefore, achieving efficient heat dissipation of drone batteries is an effective means to improve the performance of drones under extreme working conditions such as high load and high wind speed. For this purpose, a high-load drone battery thermal management device is designed to solve the above technical problems. Summary of the invention

[0003] The main purpose of the present invention is to provide a battery thermal management device for a high-load UAV.

[0004] The purpose of the present invention can be achieved by adopting the following technical solutions:

[0005] A high-load UAV battery thermal management device comprises a U-shaped shell, wherein a battery cell and a phase change thermal control device are fixedly installed inside the U-shaped shell;

[0006] The battery cells and the phase-change thermal control device are arranged at intervals, and the contact surface between the battery cells and the phase-change thermal control device is covered with a thermal interface material;

[0007] The phase change thermal control device extends outwardly from the U-shaped shell;

[0008] A fin is fixed on one side of the phase change thermal control device located outside the U-shaped shell.

[0009] Preferably, a fixing groove is provided on the wall surface in the opening direction of the U-shaped shell, and a shell interface fixed to the drone is provided on the side wall surface of the U-shaped shell;

[0010] The U-shaped shell has an extension channel on the outer wall;

[0011] The wall surface of the sealing cover in the opening direction is provided with a fixing buckle and a sealing rubber.

[0012] Preferably, the U-shaped housing and the sealing cover are fixedly connected by corresponding assembly of the fixing buckle and the fixing groove.

[0013] Preferably, the U-shaped shell is fixed to the drone body through a shell interface and is electrically connected.

[0014] Preferably, the phase change thermal control device includes but is not limited to a heat sink, a heat pipe, a flat plate heat pipe and a loop heat pipe;

[0015] The shapes of the phase change thermal control device include but are not limited to I-type, L-type and Z-type.

[0016] Preferably, the thermal interface material uniformly covers the contact surface between the battery core and the phase change thermal control device;

[0017] Thermal interface materials include but are not limited to thermal grease, thermal gel, thermal pads and liquid metal.

[0018] Preferably, the fins are arranged to form a first air duct and a second air duct;

[0019] The cross-sectional shapes of the fins include, but are not limited to, rectangles, parallelograms, triangles, circles, and various irregular polygons;

[0020] The materials of the fins include but are not limited to aluminum, stainless steel, and carbon steel.

[0021] Preferably, the phase change thermal control device and the U-shaped shell are fixed and sealed by welding at the position of the extension channel.

[0022] Preferably, the extended bent end of the phase change thermal control device is fixed to the fin by welding, and the welding methods include but are not limited to brazing, cold pressure welding, diffusion welding and resistance welding.

[0023] Preferably, the battery cells include but are not limited to soft pack batteries, square shell batteries and cylindrical batteries;

[0024] The constituent materials of the phase change thermal control device include but are not limited to copper, aluminum and its alloys, PI, stainless steel, ceramics and high molecular polymers;

[0025] The phase change working fluid inside the phase change thermal control device includes but is not limited to deionized water, acetone, freon, and anhydrous ethanol;

[0026] The morphological structures of the first air duct and the second air duct include but are not limited to a straight-line type, an S-type, and a Y-type.

[0027] Beneficial technical effects of the present invention:

[0028] The present invention provides a high-load UAV battery thermal management device, which, by virtue of the ultra-high thermal conductivity of the phase change thermal control device, can promptly transfer the heat generated by the high-rate discharge of the UAV battery to the fins. The cooling air generated by the rotation of the UAV rotor or the movement of the fuselage flows through the fins to remove the heat, thereby achieving efficient passive heat dissipation.

[0029] The installation position of the U-shaped shell, the structure of the air duct and the arrangement of the phase-change thermal control device can all be customized according to the structure of different UAVs. The U-shaped shell is installed side-mounted and does not occupy the internal space of the fuselage. At the same time, the U-shaped shell and the phase-change thermal control device are highly sealed through welding, which protects the battery module from the invasion of rain and particulate matter and is suitable for a variety of harsh flight conditions. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0030] Figure 1 It is a front cross-sectional view of Example 1 of a preferred embodiment of a high-load UAV battery thermal management device according to the present invention;

[0031] Figure 2 This is an external structural diagram of Embodiment 1 of a preferred embodiment of a battery thermal management device for a high-load UAV according to the present invention;

[0032] Figure 3 It is a front cross-sectional view of Example 2 of a preferred embodiment of a high-load UAV battery thermal management device according to the present invention;

[0033] Figure 4 This is an external structure diagram of Example 2 of a preferred embodiment of a high-load UAV battery thermal management device according to the present invention.

[0034] In the figure:

[0035] 11-U-shaped housing, 12-sealing cover, 111-fixing groove, 112-housing interface, 113-extension channel, 121-fixing buckle, 122-sealing rubber;

[0036] 2-battery cell, 21-battery cell tab;

[0037] 3-Phase change thermal control device;

[0038] 4- fin, 41- first air duct, 42- second air duct;

[0039] 5- Thermal interface material. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0040] In order to make the technical solution of the present invention more clear and specific to those skilled in the art, the present invention is further described in detail below in conjunction with embodiments and drawings, but the implementation manner of the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0041] like Figure 1 As shown, it includes a U-shaped shell 11, four soft-packed battery cells 2 and three bent phase-change thermal control devices 3. An extension channel is opened on the left wall of the U-shaped shell 11, which is used to allow the phase-change thermal control device 3 to extend to the outside of the U-shaped shell 11 through a specific bending design, and its extension end is welded to the fin 4 to facilitate air cooling and heat dissipation;

[0042] In this embodiment, the soft-pack battery cells 2 are arranged in a vertical arrangement, that is, the battery tabs 21 of the battery cells 2 face the opening direction of the U-shaped shell 11, which is convenient for realizing the series connection and wiring between the battery cells 2; the thermal conductive silicone grease is evenly applied between the soft-pack battery cells 2 and the phase change thermal control device 3, which is conducive to reducing the interface thermal resistance;

[0043] In this embodiment, the sealing cover 12 is in direct contact with the phase change thermal control device 3 at the extension channel of the U-shaped housing 11 through the sealing rubber 122 to achieve sealing;

[0044] In this embodiment, the three bent phase-change thermal control devices 3 are bent twice and are divided into three sections, namely, the heat source section in contact with the battery core 2, the middle section connecting the inside and outside of the U-shaped shell 11, and the epitaxial cooling section connected to the fin 4. The heat source section of each phase-change thermal control device 3 is inserted between the two soft-pack battery cores 2 and in close contact with them; the middle section of each phase-change thermal control device 3 is connected and fixed to each other and to the U-shaped shell 11 by welding at the extension channel, thereby achieving a sealing effect;

[0045] The height of the epitaxial section of each phase change thermal control device 3 increases from left to right in a gradient manner, and fins 4 are welded in different positions of the epitaxial section in sequence to maximize the heat dissipation area;

[0046] In this embodiment, the extension section of the phase change thermal control device 3 is parallel to the wall surface of the U-shaped shell 11 and extends toward the top of the U-shaped shell 11, and the fin 4 is installed on the top side of the U-shaped shell 11;

[0047] The shell interface 112 is located on the right wall of the U-shaped shell 11 and is fixedly connected to the corresponding interface on the side of the drone fuselage, so as to realize the side-mounted assembly of the U-shaped shell 11 and the drone;

[0048] In this embodiment, if Figure 2 As shown, by designing the size and arrangement of the fins 4, a first air duct 41 and a second air duct 42 are formed in the vertical direction and the horizontal direction respectively; the first air duct 41 mainly receives the lateral airflow generated by the rotation of the UAV rotor, and the second air duct 42 mainly receives the airflow generated by the movement of the UAV fuselage;

[0049] In this embodiment, the cooling wind generated by the rotor of the UAV is mainly used for heat dissipation, so the number of first air ducts 41 is larger and the arrangement is denser, thereby increasing the heat dissipation area in contact with the air; the number and arrangement of second air ducts 42 are relatively sparse, while reducing the conflict between horizontal and vertical airflows, and minimizing the wind resistance of the UAV during forward flight.

[0050] Embodiment 2:

[0051] like Figure 3-Figure 4 As shown, it includes a U-shaped housing 11, six square-shell battery cells 2 and five phase-change thermal control devices 3;

[0052] The phase change thermal control device 3 includes an I-type phase change thermal control device 3 and four bent phase change thermal control devices 3; considering that the side wall height of some UAV fuselages is relatively small, there is not enough space above the U-shaped shell 11 to arrange the fins 4, so the extension section of the phase change thermal control device 3 in the second embodiment is perpendicular to the wall surface of the U-shaped shell 11, extends toward the side of the U-shaped shell 11, and the fins 4 are arranged on the side of the U-shaped shell 11;

[0053] In this embodiment, by controlling the heights of the fins 4 on different phase change thermal control devices 3, the second air duct 42 presents a gradient height difference, which is beneficial to reducing the additional resistance introduced by the U-shaped shell 11 during the forward flight of the drone.

[0054] The above is only an embodiment of the present invention in this embodiment, but the protection scope of the present invention is not limited thereto. Any technician familiar with the technical field can make equivalent replacements or changes according to the technical solution and concept of the present invention within the scope disclosed by the present invention, which belongs to the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A high-load UAV battery thermal management device, characterized by: It comprises a U-shaped shell (11), wherein a battery core (2) and a phase change thermal control device (3) are fixedly mounted inside the U-shaped shell (11); The battery core (2) and the phase-change thermal control device (3) are arranged at intervals, and the contact surface between the battery core (2) and the phase-change thermal control device (3) is covered with a thermal interface material (5); The phase change thermal control device (3) extends outwardly from the outside of the U-shaped housing (11); A fin (4) is fixed on one side of the phase change thermal control device (3) located outside the U-shaped housing (11).

2. A high-load UAV battery thermal management device according to claim 1, characterized in that: A fixing groove (111) is provided on the wall surface in the opening direction of the U-shaped shell (11), and a shell interface (112) fixed to the drone is provided on the side wall surface of the U-shaped shell (11); The U-shaped shell (11) is provided with an extension channel (113) on the outer wall surface; A fixing buckle (121) and a sealing rubber (122) are provided on the wall surface of the sealing cover (12) in the opening direction.

3. A high-load UAV battery thermal management device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The fixed connection between the U-shaped housing (11) and the sealing cover (12) is achieved by corresponding assembly of the fixing buckle (121) and the fixing groove (111).

4. A high-load UAV battery thermal management device according to claim 3, characterized in that: The U-shaped housing (11) is fixed to the drone fuselage via a housing interface (112) and is electrically connected thereto.

5. A high-load UAV battery thermal management device according to claim 4, characterized in that: Phase change thermal control devices (3) include but are not limited to heat sinks, heat pipes, flat plate heat pipes and loop heat pipes; The shapes of the phase change thermal control device (3) include but are not limited to I-type, L-type and Z-type.

6. A high-load UAV battery thermal management device according to claim 5, characterized in that: The thermal interface material (5) evenly covers the contact surface between the battery core (2) and the phase change thermal control device (3); The thermal interface material (5) includes but is not limited to thermal grease, thermal gel, thermal pad and liquid metal.

7. A high-load UAV battery thermal management device according to claim 6, characterized in that: The fins (4) are arranged to form a first air duct (41) and a second air duct (42); The cross-sectional shape of the fin (4) includes but is not limited to a rectangle, a parallelogram, a triangle, a circle and various irregular polygons; The material of the fin (4) includes but is not limited to aluminum, stainless steel, and carbon steel.

8. The high-load UAV battery thermal management device according to claim 7, characterized in that: The phase-change thermal control device (3) and the U-shaped housing (11) are fixed and sealed at the position of the extension channel (113) by welding.

9. A high-load UAV battery thermal management device according to claim 8, characterized in that: The extended bent end of the phase change thermal control device (3) is fixed to the fin (4) by welding, and the welding method includes but is not limited to brazing, cold pressure welding, diffusion welding and resistance welding.

10. A high-load UAV battery thermal management device according to claim 9, characterized in that: Battery cells (2) include but are not limited to soft pack batteries, square shell batteries and cylindrical batteries; The constituent materials of the phase change thermal control device (3) include but are not limited to copper, aluminum and its alloys, PI, stainless steel, ceramics and high molecular polymers; The phase change working fluid inside the phase change thermal control device (3) includes but is not limited to deionized water, acetone, freon, and anhydrous ethanol; The morphological structures of the first air duct (41) and the second air duct (42) include but are not limited to a straight-line type, an S-type, and a Y-type.

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