Integrated busbar assembly and battery module

Abstract

This invention provides an integrated busbar assembly and a battery module. The integrated busbar assembly includes an integrated busbar and a cooling plate. The integrated busbar includes a busbar body and a structural support member. The busbar body and the cooling plate are disposed on a first surface of the structural support member in a first direction. One end of the busbar body in the first direction is used to connect to a battery. The cooling plate is disposed on at least one side of the busbar body in a second direction, where the first direction is perpendicular to the second direction. By placing the cooling plate on the structural support member of the integrated busbar and making the cooling plate adjacent to the busbar body at the same height, stacking of the cooling plate and the integrated busbar is avoided, reducing the thickness of the integrated busbar assembly and thus effectively reducing the height of the battery module. Furthermore, the mechanical strength of the cooling plate is effectively improved by the support member.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of battery technology, and in particular to an integrated busbar assembly and a battery module. Background Technology

[0002] The FPC (Flexible Printed Circuit) on a battery module, along with the plastic structural components and copper / aluminum busbars, were originally three separate parts. FPC, also known as a flexible circuit board, is a highly reliable and flexible printed circuit board made with polyimide or polyester film as a substrate. It mainly consists of an insulating substrate, a conductive layer, and adhesives. It is primarily used for signal transmission within the battery module, such as connecting individual battery cells, sensors, and monitoring circuits, transmitting battery status information (such as voltage, temperature, and current) to the Battery Management System (BMS). With the continuous development of the new energy industry, the integration requirements for battery modules and battery pack systems are becoming increasingly stringent, leading to the emergence of CCS (Cell Contact System) components. CCS integrates FPC with plastic structural components, copper / aluminum busbars, etc., forming a component that integrates multiple parts together. CCS components generally have a structure combining rigidity and flexibility, integrating plastic structural components, copper / aluminum busbars, etc., with the FPC to ensure a certain degree of flexibility while maintaining good structural stability. The CCS component not only has signal transmission capabilities, but also enables the series and parallel connection of battery cells, serving to connect the cells and transfer electrical energy. At the same time, it monitors key parameters of the battery pack and achieves safe management and protection of the battery pack through communication with the BMS system.

[0003] CCS components involve high voltage and high current. With the development of the industry, higher requirements have been put forward for the battery charge and discharge rate. The battery or battery module will generate more heat, and this heat needs to be dissipated in time so that the battery is always in an optimal operating temperature state. At present, simply providing liquid cooling at the bottom of the battery module inside the battery is no longer sufficient to meet the above-mentioned battery heat dissipation requirements.

[0004] Therefore, the existing battery modules use double-layer liquid cooling. The top liquid cooling in the double-layer liquid cooling corresponds to the top of the water-cooled plate busbar. This results in a large overall height of the battery module, which is not conducive to reducing the size of the battery module, and its structure is relatively unstable, posing a safety hazard. Summary of the Invention

[0005] Therefore, it is necessary to provide an integrated busbar assembly and battery module to address the aforementioned technical problems.

[0006] An integrated busbar assembly includes: an integrated busbar and a cooling plate; the integrated busbar includes a busbar body and a structural support member;

[0007] The busbar body and the cooling plate are disposed on the first surface of the structural support member in the first direction;

[0008] One end of the busbar body in the first direction is used to connect to the battery;

[0009] The cooling plate is disposed on at least one side of the busbar body in a second direction, wherein the first direction is perpendicular to the second direction.

[0010] In one embodiment, the thickness of the busbar body is less than the thickness of the cooling plate.

[0011] In one embodiment, the first side of the structural support member has an embedding groove, and the cooling plate is disposed in the embedding groove.

[0012] In one embodiment, the integrated busbar further includes a flexible circuit board electrically connected to the busbar body, the flexible circuit board being disposed on a first surface of the structural support member, and the cooling plate being at least partially attached to the flexible circuit board.

[0013] In one embodiment, the first side of the structural support member has an embedding groove, the flexible circuit board is disposed in the embedding groove and is attached to the bottom of the embedding groove, and the cooling plate is at least partially attached to the side of the flexible circuit board facing away from the bottom of the embedding groove, and the cooling plate is disposed in the embedding groove.

[0014] In one embodiment, the surface of the cooling plate is provided with an insulating coating.

[0015] In one embodiment, the cooling plate includes a first plate, a second plate, and a plurality of connecting plates. The first plate and the second plate are spaced apart from each other and connected by the connecting plates. The first plate has a first water-cooling cavity inside, the second plate has a second water-cooling cavity inside, and the connecting plates have connecting cavities inside. The first water-cooling cavity communicates with the second water-cooling cavity through the connecting cavities. The first plate has a water inlet, and the second plate has a water outlet. The busbar body includes a plurality of conductive elements, each of which is respectively disposed on the side of the first plate away from the second plate, on the side of the second plate away from the first plate, and between the first plate and the second plate.

[0016] In one embodiment, the structural support is made of plastic; the manufacturing process of the structural support includes any of the following:

[0017] The structural support component is made by vacuum forming process, and the busbar body is fixed to the first surface of the structural support component in the first direction by hot riveting process.

[0018] The structural support is manufactured using a hot pressing process. The busbar body and the cooling plate are fixed to the structural support during the hot pressing process.

[0019] In one embodiment, the cooling plate is connected to the structural support via thermally conductive gel.

[0020] A battery module includes multiple batteries and an integrated busbar assembly as described in any of the above embodiments.

[0021] The aforementioned integrated busbar assembly and battery module, by placing the cooling plate on the structural support of the integrated busbar and positioning the cooling plate adjacent to the busbar body at the same height, avoids the stacking of the cooling plate and the integrated busbar, thereby reducing the thickness of the integrated busbar assembly and effectively reducing the height of the battery module. In addition, the support of the cooling plate by the structural support effectively improves the mechanical strength of the cooling plate, making the overall structure of the integrated busbar assembly and battery module more robust. Attached Figure Description

[0022] Figure 1 This is a three-dimensional structural diagram of a battery module in one embodiment;

[0023] Figure 2 This is a three-dimensional exploded view of the battery module in one embodiment;

[0024] Figure 3 This is a three-dimensional exploded view of the integrated busbar assembly in one embodiment.

[0025] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures:

[0026] 10. Battery module; 100. Battery; 200. Integrated busbar assembly; 210. Integrated busbar; 220. Cooling plate; 230. Busbar body; 240. Structural support component; 250. Flexible circuit board; 221. First plate; 222. Second plate; 223. Connecting plate; 201. Water inlet; 202. Water outlet; 203. First clearance hole; 301. Second clearance hole; 205. Third clearance hole; 300. Mica sheet; 241. Support component body; 242. Fixing part; 206. Embedding groove. Detailed Implementation

[0027] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of this application clearer, the following detailed description is provided in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and embodiments. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are merely illustrative and not intended to limit the scope of this application.

[0028] Example 1

[0029] In this embodiment, as Figures 1 to 3 As shown, an integrated busbar assembly 200 is provided, including: an integrated busbar 210 and a cooling plate 220; the integrated busbar 210 includes a busbar body 230 and a structural support member 240; the busbar body 230 and the cooling plate 220 are disposed on a first surface of the structural support member 240 in a first direction; one end of the busbar body 230 in the first direction is used to connect to a battery 100; the cooling plate 220 is disposed on at least one side of the busbar body 230 in a second direction, wherein the first direction is perpendicular to the second direction.

[0030] In this embodiment, the busbar body 230 is used to connect with the electrodes of the battery 100, and the structural support member 240 is disposed on the top of the battery 100. For ease of description, in each embodiment, the height direction of the battery 100 is defined as the first direction, and the first direction is in Figure 1 The middle direction is the vertical direction. The direction perpendicular to the height of battery 100 is defined as the second direction. Figure 1 The middle refers to the horizontal or transverse direction. In this embodiment, the busbar body 230 and the cooling plate 220 are disposed on the side of the structural support member 240 facing away from the battery 100. Furthermore, the busbar body 230 and the cooling plate 220 are not stacked in the first direction, but are laid flat in the second direction, that is, the busbar body 230 and the cooling plate 220 are arranged adjacent to each other in the transverse direction. This avoids the increase in thickness caused by the cooling plate 220 being stacked on the busbar body 230, and can effectively reduce the height of the battery module 10. In addition, the mechanical strength of the cooling plate 220 can be effectively improved by the support of the structural support member 240.

[0031] In this embodiment, in order to achieve the electrode connection between the busbar body 230 and the battery 100, a plurality of connecting holes are provided on the first surface of the structural support. The connecting holes extend to the second surface of the structural support opposite to the first surface. Each connecting hole is aligned with an electrode of the battery 100. The width of the connecting hole is smaller than the width of the busbar body 230. The busbar body 230 is disposed on the first surface of the structural support 240 in the first direction, and is aligned with each of the connecting holes and covers the connecting holes. In this way, the electrode of the battery 100 can pass through the connecting holes and connect with the busbar body 230.

[0032] In this embodiment, the cooling plate 220 is made of metal and has good thermal conductivity. The busbar body 230 is insulated from the cooling plate 220. For example, the surface of the cooling plate 220 is provided with an insulating coating, so that the busbar body 230 and the cooling plate 220 are insulated from each other.

[0033] In this embodiment, the cooling plate 220 can not only dissipate heat and cool the battery 100 of the battery module 10, but also dissipate heat from the integrated busbar 210 since the cooling plate 220 is located on the structural support of the integrated busbar 210. The cooling plate 220 and the busbar body 230 are arranged side by side, which can effectively reduce the heat transfer path and improve the heat dissipation efficiency.

[0034] To further reduce the height of the battery module 10, in one embodiment, the thickness of the busbar body 230 is less than the thickness of the cooling plate 220.

[0035] In this embodiment, the busbar body 230 has a smaller thickness, which reduces the overall height of the integrated busbar assembly 200. The maximum height of the integrated busbar 210 is equal to the height of the cooling plate 220. This ensures that the height of the integrated busbar assembly 200 is not greater than the height of the cooling plate 220, which is beneficial for further reducing the height of the battery module 10. Furthermore, it is worth mentioning that the larger thickness of the cooling plate 220 effectively improves heat dissipation performance.

[0036] In this embodiment, the height of the busbar body 230 protruding from the structural support member 240 is less than the height of the cooling plate 220 protruding from the structural support member 240. This ensures that the overall height of the integrated busbar assembly 200 is not higher than the height of the cooling plate 220, which is beneficial for further reducing the height of the battery module 10.

[0037] To better secure the cooling plate 220, in one embodiment, such as Figure 3 As shown, the first side of the structural support member 240 has an embedding groove 206, and the cooling plate 220 is disposed in the embedding groove 206.

[0038] In this embodiment, the cooling plate 220 is embedded in the embedding groove 206. The shape of the embedding groove 206 matches the shape of the cooling plate 220, and the sidewall of the embedding groove 206 abuts against the edge of the cooling plate 220. By embedding the cooling plate 220 into the embedding groove 206, the cooling plate 220 is tightly abutted against the sidewall of the embedding groove 206. On the one hand, this allows the cooling plate 220 to be firmly fixed on the structural support member 240; on the other hand, it effectively reduces the height of the cooling plate 220 on the structural support member 240. Furthermore, by strengthening the connection between the cooling plate 220 and the structural support member 240, the overall structure of the integrated busbar assembly 200 and the battery module 10 becomes more robust.

[0039] In one embodiment, see Figure 3 The integrated busbar 210 also includes a flexible circuit board 250, which is electrically connected to the busbar body 230. The flexible circuit board 250 is disposed on the first surface of the structural support member 240, and the cooling plate 220 is at least partially attached to the flexible circuit board 250.

[0040] In this embodiment, the flexible printed circuit board (FPC) busbar body 230 is connected and used to collect and detect various electrical signals of the battery 100. The structural support member 240 supports the flexible circuit board 250, which can support the FPC, making the structure more stable and less prone to deformation. The cooling plate 220 abuts against the flexible circuit board 250, so that the flexible circuit board 250 is located between the cooling plate 220 and the structural support member 240. The cooling plate 220 and the structural support member 240 together hold and fix the flexible circuit board 250, making the structure of the flexible circuit board 250 more stable. In addition, the cooling plate 220 can also absorb the heat of the flexible circuit board 250, making the heat dissipation effect of the flexible circuit board 250 better.

[0041] In one embodiment, the flexible circuit board 250 abuts against the side of the cooling plate 220 facing the structural support 240. In this embodiment, the flexible circuit board 250 is completely covered by the cooling plate 220, thereby allowing the heat of the flexible circuit board 250 to be absorbed by the cooling plate 220 more efficiently.

[0042] In one embodiment, such as Figure 3 As shown, the first side of the structural support member 240 has an embedding groove 206, the flexible circuit board 250 is disposed in the embedding groove 206 and is attached to the bottom of the embedding groove 206, and the cooling plate 220 is at least partially attached to the side of the flexible circuit board 250 facing away from the bottom of the embedding groove 206, and the cooling plate 220 is disposed in the embedding groove 206.

[0043] In this embodiment, both the flexible circuit board 250 and the cooling plate 220 are disposed within the embedding groove 206, with the flexible circuit board 250 disposed at the bottom of the embedding groove 206 and the cooling plate 220 disposed at the top of the flexible circuit board 250. In this way, since the thickness of the flexible circuit board 250 is extremely small, it has little impact on the protrusion height of the cooling plate 220, effectively preventing the protrusion height of the cooling plate 220 from being too high. In addition, the fixing of the embedding groove 206 allows the flexible circuit board 250 and the cooling plate 220 to be more stably disposed on the structural support member 240.

[0044] In order to prevent the cooling plate 220 from conducting electricity with the integrated busbar 210 and to avoid short circuits, in one embodiment, the surface of the cooling plate 220 is provided with an insulating coating.

[0045] In this embodiment, by coating the surface of the cooling plate 220 with an insulating coating, the cooling plate 220 and the integrated busbar 210 can be effectively isolated, preventing electrical conductivity between the cooling plate 220 and the integrated busbar 210 and avoiding short circuits. To further improve the insulation characteristics of the cooling plate 220, in one embodiment, the insulating coating includes a first insulating coating and a second insulating coating. The surface of the cooling plate 220 is provided with the first insulating coating, and the second insulating coating is provided outside the first insulating coating. In this embodiment, the first insulating coating is the inherent insulating coating of the cooling plate 220, while the second insulating coating is an additional insulating coating added for integration into the integrated busbar assembly 200. By providing two layers of insulating coating, the insulation characteristics of the cooling plate 220 can be effectively improved, further enhancing the safety and reliability of the integrated busbar assembly 200.

[0046] In one embodiment, such as Figure 3 As shown, the cooling plate 220 includes a first plate 221, a second plate 222, and a plurality of connecting plates 223. The first plate 221 and the second plate 222 are spaced apart from each other and connected by the connecting plates 223. The first plate 221 has a first water-cooling cavity inside, the second plate 222 has a second water-cooling cavity inside, and the connecting plates 223 have connecting cavities inside. The first water-cooling cavity communicates with the second water-cooling cavity through the connecting cavities. The first plate 221 has a water inlet 201, and the second plate 222 has a water outlet 202. The busbar body 230 includes a plurality of conductive elements, each of which is respectively disposed on the side of the first plate 221 away from the second plate 222, on the side of the second plate 222 away from the first plate 221, and between the first plate 221 and the second plate 222.

[0047] In this embodiment, the cooling plate 220 is also called a water-cooled plate. The cooling plate 220 cools and dissipates heat through cooling water. Specifically, cold water enters the first water-cooled cavity of the first plate body 221 through the water inlet 201, and then flows from the first water-cooled cavity to the connecting cavity and the second water-cooled cavity in sequence, and flows out through the water outlet 202. When flowing through the first water-cooled cavity, the connecting cavity and the second water-cooled cavity, it absorbs the heat of the cooling plate 220, thereby playing the role of cooling. In this embodiment, multiple conductive elements of the busbar body 230 are used to connect the electrodes of the battery 100. Each conductive element is aligned with the connecting hole of the structural support. Each conductive element is located on the outer side of the first plate 221, the outer side of the second plate 222, and between the first plate 221 and the second plate 222. Furthermore, the first plate 221, the connecting plate 223, and the second plate 222 are connected to form an installation space on the inner side. The conductive element located between the first plate 221 and the second plate 222 is located within the installation space. In this way, the first plate 221, the second plate 222, and the connecting plate 223 divide each conductive element into different areas. By utilizing the different directions and positions of the first plate 221, the second plate 222, and the connecting plate 223 to approach or contact the conductive elements, the heat of the conductive elements is avoided from concentrating, heat dissipation is facilitated, and the heat of each conductive element is absorbed more efficiently, thereby effectively improving the heat dissipation efficiency.

[0048] It is worth mentioning that the cooling plate 220 can be a plate-shaped structure, a tubular structure, or a structure of other shapes. This application does not limit this. It should be understood that the specific shape of the cooling plate 220 is not limited to plate-shaped because of its name.

[0049] In one embodiment, the structural support member 240 is made of plastic; the manufacturing process of the structural support member 240 includes any of the following:

[0050] The structural support member 240 is made by vacuum forming process, and the busbar body 230 is fixed to the first surface of the structural support member 240 in the first direction by hot riveting process.

[0051] The structural support 240 is manufactured by hot pressing. The busbar body 230 and the cooling plate 220 are fixed to the structural support 240 by hot pressing during the hot pressing process.

[0052] To make the connection between the cooling plate 220 and the structural support 240 more secure, in one embodiment, the cooling plate 220 is connected to the structural support 240 by a thermally conductive gel.

[0053] In this embodiment, the structural support 240 is also called a plastic structural component. The plastic structural component has the characteristics of high hardness and high toughness, which can effectively support the cooling plate 220, the busbar body 230 and the flexible circuit board 250. In addition, the plastic structural component also has insulation properties, which can effectively prevent short circuits and effectively improve the reliability and safety of the integrated busbar assembly 200.

[0054] In this embodiment, the structural support member 240 can be manufactured using different plastic molding processes. In one embodiment, the structural support member 240 is manufactured using a vacuum forming process, and the busbar body 230 is fixed to the first surface of the structural support member 240 in a first direction using a hot riveting process. In this embodiment, the cooling plate 220 is connected to the structural support member 240 via thermally conductive gel.

[0055] In this embodiment, the structural support member 240 is manufactured using a vacuum forming process. After the structural support member 240 is manufactured, the busbar body 230 and the flexible circuit board 250 are fixed to the first surface of the structural support member 240 in a first direction using a hot riveting process. Subsequently, the cooling plate 220 is fixed to the structural support member 240 using thermally conductive gel. In this way, the busbar body 230 and the flexible circuit board 250 can be firmly fixed to the structural support member 240. In addition, the thermally conductive gel enables the cooling plate 220 to be fixedly installed on the structural support member 240 and provides good thermal conductivity for the structural support member 240 and the cooling plate 220, resulting in better heat conduction and thus higher overall heat dissipation efficiency of the integrated template assembly.

[0056] It is worth mentioning that when the cooling plate 220 is fixedly installed on the structural support 240 using thermal conductive gel, the thermal conductive gel should be avoided from being applied to the structural support 240, the cooling plate 220 and the position corresponding to the explosion-proof valve of the battery 100.

[0057] In one embodiment, the structural support 240 is manufactured using a hot pressing process. During the hot pressing process of the structural support 240, the busbar body 230, the flexible circuit board 250, and the cooling plate 220 are fixed to the structural support 240 by the hot pressing process.

[0058] In this embodiment, the structural support member 240 is formed by hot pressing. During the pressing process, the busbar body 230, flexible circuit board 250, and cooling plate 220 are conformally hot-pressed, allowing the flexible circuit board 250 and cooling plate 220 to be pressed into the recessed embedding groove 206, thus securing them firmly to the structural support member 240. By hot pressing and assembling the busbar assembly 200, assembly efficiency is effectively improved, and the busbar body 230, flexible circuit board 250, and cooling plate 220 are securely mounted on the structural support member 240. Notably, during the hot pressing process, welding positions are reserved for the busbar body 230 to facilitate welding between the busbar body 230 and the flexible circuit board 250.

[0059] To further secure the busbar body 230, in one embodiment, the first surface of the structural support member 240 is provided with a plurality of limiting grooves. The busbar body 230 includes a plurality of conductive members, each of which is embedded in a limiting groove. Each limiting groove is located on at least one side of the embedding groove 206.

[0060] In this embodiment, by embedding the conductive component of the busbar body 230 into the limiting groove, the connection between the busbar body 230 and the structural support member 240 can be made more stable. It is worth mentioning that the process of embedding the busbar body 230 into the limiting groove can be achieved using the hot riveting or hot pressing process described in the above embodiments. This will not be elaborated upon in this embodiment.

[0061] To further secure the cooling plate 220, in one embodiment, please refer again... Figure 3The structural support member 240 includes a support member body 241 and a plurality of fixing parts 242. The embedding groove 206 and the limiting groove are formed on the first surface of the support member body 241. The busbar body 230 and the cooling plate 220 are disposed on the first surface of the support member body 241, with the busbar body 230 disposed in the limiting groove and the cooling plate 220 disposed in the embedding groove 206. Both ends of each fixing part 242 are connected to the support member body 241, and the middle part of each fixing part 242 abuts against the side of the cooling plate 220 facing away from the support member body 241. In this embodiment, one end of the fixing part 242 is connected to the support member body 241, and the other end bypasses the cooling plate 220 and is connected to the support member. The middle part is pressed against the side of the cooling plate 220 facing away from the support member body 241. By pressing the cooling plate 220 with the fixing part 242, the cooling plate 220 is fixed, which can further fix the cooling plate 220. In one embodiment, the two ends of each fixing part 242 are respectively connected to the support body 241, and the middle part of each fixing part 242 abuts against the side of the connecting plate 223 facing away from the support body 241. By fixing the connecting plate 223, the first plate 221 and the second plate 222 can be fully pressed against the flexible circuit board 250, making the cooling plate 220 more firmly pressed against the support body 241 and the flexible circuit board 250.

[0062] It is worth mentioning that in this embodiment, the connection between the fixing part, the support body and the cooling plate can be achieved by the hot riveting process or the hot pressing process described in the above embodiments.

[0063] Example 2

[0064] In this embodiment, please refer to Figure 1 and Figure 2 A battery module 10 is provided, including a plurality of batteries 100 and the integrated busbar assembly 200 described in any of the above embodiments.

[0065] In this embodiment, the battery module 10 includes a plurality of batteries 100, which are arranged in a row. The integrated busbar assembly 200 is disposed on the top of the battery 100. The electrodes of the battery 100 are connected to the busbar body 230. A cover plate is disposed on the side of the integrated busbar assembly 200 that is away from the battery 100. In one embodiment, the cover plate is a mica sheet 300.

[0066] In one embodiment, please combine Figures 2 to 3The cooling plate 220 has a first clearance hole 203, and the mica sheet 300 has a second clearance hole 301 corresponding to the first clearance hole 203 of the cooling plate 220. That is, the first clearance hole 203 and the second clearance hole 301 are aligned. In this embodiment, the structural support member 240 has a third clearance hole 205, which is aligned with the first clearance hole 203 and the second clearance hole 301. The first clearance hole 203, the second clearance hole 301, and the third clearance hole 205 are aligned with the explosion-proof valve on the battery 100. The first clearance hole 203, the second clearance hole 301, and the third clearance hole 205 are interconnected to form a vertical pressure relief channel, providing a pressure relief channel for the explosion-proof valve and preventing thermal runaway and heat propagation.

[0067] In one embodiment, the cooling plate 220 includes a first plate body 221, a second plate body 222, and a plurality of connecting plates 223. The first plate body 221 and the second plate body 222 are spaced apart from each other and connected by the connecting plates 223. The first plate body 221 has a first water-cooling cavity inside, the second plate body 222 has a second water-cooling cavity inside, and the connecting plates 223 have connecting cavities inside. The first water-cooling cavity communicates with the second water-cooling cavity through the connecting cavity. The first plate body 221 is provided with a water inlet 201, and the second plate body 222 is provided with a water inlet 201. The body 222 is provided with a water outlet 202. The busbar body 230 includes a plurality of conductive components. Each conductive component is respectively disposed on the side of the first plate 221 away from the second plate 222, the side of the second plate 222 away from the first plate 221, and between the first plate 221 and the second plate 222. The first plate 221 and the second plate 222 are respectively aligned with the flexible circuit board 250 and abut against the flexible circuit board 250. In this embodiment, the connecting plate 223 is aligned with the area between the terminals of the battery 100. The connecting plate 223 avoids aligning with the explosion-proof valve area of ​​the battery 100.

[0068] In this embodiment, by placing the cooling plate 220 on the structural support member 240 of the integrated busbar 210 and making the cooling plate 220 adjacent to the busbar body 230 at the same height, the stacking of the cooling plate 220 and the integrated busbar 210 is avoided, thereby reducing the thickness of the integrated busbar assembly 200 and effectively reducing the height of the battery module 10. In addition, the support of the cooling plate 220 by the structural support member 240 effectively improves the mechanical strength of the cooling plate 220, making the overall structure of the integrated busbar assembly 200 and the battery module 10 more robust.

[0069] Example 3

[0070] It is worth mentioning that CCS components involve high voltage and high current. As the industry develops, higher requirements are put forward for the battery charge and discharge rate. The battery or battery module will generate more heat. At the same time, this heat needs to be dissipated in time so that the battery is always in an optimal operating temperature state. Currently, simply providing liquid cooling at the bottom of the battery module inside the battery is no longer sufficient to meet the above-mentioned battery heat dissipation requirements.

[0071] Even if the existing battery module adopts double-layer liquid cooling, the water cooling plate corresponding to the top liquid cooling in the double-layer liquid cooling is located above the busbar (busbar body), occupying the space in the Z direction (PS: Currently, the water cooling on CCS modules is placed on the busbar. If the thickness of the busbar is m and the thickness of the water cooling plate is n, the thickness dimension occupied by the two in the Z direction is m+n. However, this patent can achieve m≤n, and preferentially chooses m<n, so that the height dimension of the two is always less than n. Compared with the existing technology, it reduces at least one m dimension, that is, at least one busbar thickness dimension is reduced). Therefore, whether following the production route of battery-battery module-battery pack-power product / energy storage product or battery-battery pack-power product / energy storage product, the occupation of the Z direction space can be reduced in turn, and more specifically, the occupation of volume space can be reduced.

[0072] In existing technologies, as the number of batteries stacked along the length of the module increases, the length of the corresponding water-cooling plate in the top liquid cooling system also increases. The water-cooling plate is connected to the battery terminals by thermally conductive adhesive or thermally conductive structural adhesive. When subjected to strong vibration or impact, the water-cooling plate reaches its vibration or impact durability limit, and cracks will appear in the middle of the water-cooling plate. The cracks will further expand until the water-cooling plate breaks, causing a short circuit in the battery or battery module, resulting in a safety risk.

[0073] In this embodiment, the existing CCS module and water-cooling plate are integrated into a single unit using vacuum forming or hot pressing processes to form a CCS module system. If the plastic structural component is vacuum formed, the busbar and FPC are fixed to the plastic structural component using a hot riveting process. The flow channel plate in the water-cooling plate is connected to the plastic structural component using thermally conductive gel, and the area between the flat plate and the battery terminal (the area of ​​the battery outlet explosion-proof valve) in the water-cooling plate is connected using thermally conductive gel. If the plastic structural component is hot-pressed, the busbar, FPC, and water-cooling plate are conformally hot-pressed, leaving welding positions at the busbar. The overlapping positions of the flow channel plate and FPC in the water-cooling plate, and the overlapping areas between the flat plate and the battery terminal (the area of ​​the battery outlet explosion-proof valve), are not fully covered (this partial covering can fix the water-cooling plate while maintaining good thermal conductivity and heat dissipation), as shown in the figure.

[0074] The water-cooled plate can be designed in flat, tubular or other special shapes to adapt to different installation spaces and heat dissipation requirements, with flat plates being the preferred choice. The water-cooled plate has clearance holes, which, together with the battery explosion-proof valve at the bottom and the clearance holes of the mica at the top, form a vertical pressure relief channel to prevent thermal runaway and heat propagation.

[0075] The above structure can achieve the following effects:

[0076] Since CCS components involve high voltage and high current, the plastic parts in CCS components, after being integrated with the water-cooled plate, can provide a good structural support frame and have good insulation properties. At the same time, the water-cooled plate is coated with an insulating layer for secondary insulation protection. This double protection can better prevent leakage and short circuit.

[0077] The plastic parts in the CCS assembly have good impact resistance. The integration of the CCS assembly with the water-cooled plate to form the CCS assembly system can ensure that the mechanical connection between the two is firm and reliable. Therefore, the integrated design of the CCS assembly and the water-cooled plate can provide solutions for some special application scenarios, such as applications in harsh environments with strong vibration and strong impact.

[0078] There is good thermal contact between the CCS module and the water-cooling plate, for example, by filling the gap with thermally conductive silicone pads, thermally conductive adhesives, or thermally conductive gels. At the same time, the area between the water-cooling plate and the two terminals of the battery cell (excluding the explosion-proof valve) in the CCS module system maintains good thermal contact, for example, by filling it with thermally conductive adhesives or thermally conductive gels. In this way, the water-cooling plate in the CCS module system can form a double-layer liquid cooling system with the water-cooling plate at the bottom of the battery module, and can also remove some of the heat generated by the CCS module during operation, ensuring that the temperature of the CCS module is always kept within the optimal operating temperature range, thereby improving its performance and reliability.

[0079] Traditionally, CCS modules and water-cooled plates are designed independently. Integrating CCS modules with water-cooled plates reduces heat transfer paths, improves heat dissipation efficiency, and also reduces system size and weight. In the field of new energy vehicles, integrated CCS module systems can improve battery pack energy density and driving range, while also reducing overall vehicle weight and cost.

[0080] The CCS module system, integrating the CCS module and water-cooling plate, can meet smaller space constraints. In this patent, the CCS module and water-cooling plate are arranged in an overlapping manner in the Z-direction, reducing the space occupied in the Z-direction (PS: Currently, the water cooling in CCS modules is placed on the busbar. If the thickness of the busbar is m and the thickness of the water-cooling plate is n, the thickness occupied by the two in the Z-direction is m+n. However, this patent can achieve m≤n, preferably m<n, so that the height of the two is always less than n, which reduces the size by at least one m compared to the prior art, that is, at least one busbar thickness). This provides a very effective solution in situations where the height of the battery module or battery pack is strictly limited.

[0081] The integrated design of CCS components and water-cooled plates can reduce the number of parts and assembly steps, thereby lowering production costs. Furthermore, the integrated design can improve system reliability and stability, reducing maintenance and replacement costs.

[0082] In CCS modules, the plastic structural components are formed by hot pressing to partially encapsulate the water-cooled plate, or by vacuum forming the plastic structural components and bonding them to the water-cooled plate with thermally conductive gel to form the CCS module system. The plastic structural components provide a structural support framework for the water-cooled plate, improving its mechanical strength, and also provide secondary insulation for the water-cooled plate (the water-cooled plate itself has an insulating coating, which is primary insulation).

[0083] The liquid cooling plate in the CCS module system works in conjunction with the liquid cooling plate on the bottom of the battery module to form a double-layer water cooling system for the battery module, improving the heat dissipation capacity of the battery module; at the same time, it removes some of the heat generated by the CCS module, reducing the temperature shock to the CCS module under high-rate charging and discharging conditions.

[0084] Compared to the existing technology where the CCS module and water cooling plate are stacked in the Z-direction of the battery module, the CCS module and busbar in this patent's CCS module system are overlapped in the Z-direction of the battery module. This greatly reduces the height of the battery module and the space occupied by the battery module in the Z-direction. The structure is more compact, and the heat transfer path is reduced, thus improving heat dissipation efficiency.

[0085] The technical features of the above embodiments can be combined in any way. For the sake of brevity, not all possible combinations of the technical features in the above embodiments are described. However, as long as there is no contradiction in the combination of these technical features, they should be considered to be within the scope of this specification.

[0086] The embodiments described above are merely illustrative of several implementation methods of this application, and while the descriptions are relatively specific and detailed, they should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention patent. It should be noted that those skilled in the art can make various modifications and improvements without departing from the concept of this application, and these all fall within the protection scope of this application. Therefore, the protection scope of this patent application should be determined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. An integrated busbar assembly, characterized in that, include: An integrated busbar and cooling plate; the integrated busbar includes a busbar body and structural support components; The busbar body and the cooling plate are disposed on a first surface of the structural support member in a first direction; the first direction is the height direction of the battery. One end of the busbar body in the first direction is used to connect to the battery; The cooling plate is disposed on at least one side of the busbar body in a second direction, wherein the first direction is perpendicular to the second direction; the busbar body and the cooling plate are laid flat in the second direction to avoid the increase in thickness caused by stacking the cooling plate on the busbar body; The integrated busbar also includes a flexible circuit board, which is electrically connected to the busbar body. The flexible circuit board is disposed on the first surface of the structural support member, and the cooling plate is at least partially attached to the flexible circuit board. The first side of the structural support member has an embedding groove, the flexible circuit board is disposed in the embedding groove and is attached to the bottom of the embedding groove, and the cooling plate is at least partially attached to the side of the flexible circuit board facing away from the bottom of the embedding groove, and the cooling plate is disposed in the embedding groove.

2. The integrated busbar assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that, The thickness of the busbar body is less than the thickness of the cooling plate.

3. The integrated busbar assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that, The surface of the cooling plate is provided with an insulating coating.

4. The integrated busbar assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that, The cooling plate includes a first plate, a second plate, and multiple connecting plates. The first plate and the second plate are spaced apart from each other and connected by the connecting plates. The first plate has a first water-cooling cavity inside, the second plate has a second water-cooling cavity inside, and each connecting plate has a connecting cavity inside. The first water-cooling cavity communicates with the second water-cooling cavity through the connecting cavity. The first plate has a water inlet, and the second plate has a water outlet. The busbar body includes multiple conductive elements, each of which is respectively disposed on the side of the first plate away from the second plate, on the side of the second plate away from the first plate, and between the first plate and the second plate.

5. The integrated busbar assembly according to any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that, The structural support component is made of plastic; the manufacturing process of the structural support component includes any of the following: The structural support component is made by vacuum forming process, and the busbar body is fixed to the first surface of the structural support component in the first direction by hot riveting process. The structural support is manufactured using a hot pressing process. The busbar body and the cooling plate are fixed to the structural support during the hot pressing process.

6. The integrated busbar assembly according to claim 5, characterized in that, The cooling plate is connected to the structural support via thermally conductive gel.

7. A battery module comprising multiple batteries, characterized in that, It also includes the integrated busbar assembly as described in any one of claims 1-6.

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