Battery cell support and battery pack

Abstract

The invention provides a battery cell bracket and a battery pack. The battery cell bracket comprises a body part and a battery cell, the plurality of first supporting parts are arranged on the body part, and each first supporting part is arranged to support a battery cell; and a plurality of sealing parts, each of the sealing parts is arranged on the corresponding first supporting part and is suitable for being arranged between the first supporting part and the battery cell, and the sealing parts have elasticity so that the sealing parts are extruded by the battery cell to seal a connection gap between the battery cell and the first supporting parts.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of batteries, and in particular to a battery cell bracket and a battery pack. Background Art

[0002] In the related art, the battery pack includes multiple battery cells, the bottoms of the multiple battery cells are fixed by a battery cell holder, and the multiple battery cells are fixed by foam glue. During the foaming process, the foam glue easily invades the gap between the battery cell and the battery cell holder, and makes it difficult for the pressure relief valve at the bottom of the battery cell to relieve pressure. Summary of the Invention

[0003] The embodiments of the present invention provide a battery cell holder and a battery pack, which can improve the technical problem that foam glue invades the gap between the battery cell and the battery cell holder and causes difficulty in pressure relief of the pressure relief valve at the bottom of the battery cell.

[0004] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a battery cell holder, comprising: a main body portion; a plurality of first support portions, arranged on the main body portion, each of the first support portions being configured to support a battery cell; and a plurality of sealing portions, each of the sealing portions being arranged on a corresponding first support portion and being suitable for being arranged between the first support portion and the battery cell, wherein the sealing portion is elastic so that the sealing portion seals the connection gap between the battery cell and the first support portion after being squeezed by the battery cell.

[0005] In one embodiment, the sealing portion is configured as an annular foam, and the annular foam is bonded to the first supporting portion.

[0006] In one embodiment, when the sealing portion is subjected to a compressive stress of not less than 4.3 KPa, the compression rate of the sealing portion is greater than or equal to 33%.

[0007] In one embodiment, the battery cell holder includes a main body portion, the first support portion includes a circular boss, and the circular boss is arranged to protrude from a side surface of the main body portion toward the battery cell; wherein the outer diameter of the circular boss is larger than the outer diameter of the battery cell.

[0008] In one embodiment, a first groove is formed on the top surface of each first supporting portion, and the sealing portion is received in the first groove; wherein the top surface of the first supporting portion and the sealing portion are suitable for supporting the battery cell.

[0009] In one embodiment, the depth of the first groove is smaller than the height of the sealing portion.

[0010] In one embodiment, a bottom surface of the first supporting portion is provided with a weak portion corresponding to the first groove, and the weak portion is configured to break when the battery cell is depressurized.

[0011] In one embodiment, the main body is further provided with a glue flow groove, and at least a portion of the glue flow groove is disposed between two adjacent first support portions.

[0012] In one embodiment, the battery cell holder further includes a plurality of second supporting portions, wherein the first supporting portion and the second supporting portion are respectively arranged on both sides of the main body portion, and the plurality of second supporting portions are suitable for abutting against the bottom plate of the battery pack.

[0013] In one embodiment, the main body is further provided with a glue flow groove, and the glue flow groove and the second support portion are respectively arranged on both sides of the main body, and the glue flow groove is corresponding to the second support portion.

[0014] In one embodiment, the battery cell holder is provided with a plurality of second grooves, and the second grooves are arranged between two adjacent second support portions. The groove walls of the plurality of second grooves and the bottom plate of the battery pack define a pressure relief chamber.

[0015] In one embodiment, the plurality of second grooves include a plurality of rows of second grooves spaced apart along the length direction of the box body, and two adjacent rows of second grooves are staggered.

[0016] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a battery pack, comprising a cell holder, wherein the cell holder is configured as the cell holder described above; and a plurality of cells, wherein the plurality of cells are disposed in the cell holder.

[0017] Beneficial effects of the embodiments of the present invention:

[0018] In an embodiment of the present invention, a sealing portion is provided on the first support portion of the battery cell holder, the sealing portion is provided between the first support portion and the battery cell, and the sealing portion is elastic, so that after the battery cell is placed on the first support portion of the battery cell holder, the battery cell can compress the sealing portion so that the sealing portion seals the connecting gap between the bottom end of the battery cell and the first support portion, thereby making it difficult for the foam glue to enter the connecting gap between the bottom end of the battery cell and the first support portion. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0019] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention, the following briefly introduces the drawings required for use in the description of the embodiments. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative work.

[0020] Figure 1 is a three-dimensional structural diagram of a battery pack provided by an embodiment of the present invention with the top plate removed;

[0021] Figure 2is a three-dimensional structural diagram of a battery pack provided by an embodiment of the present invention, in which multiple battery cells are installed on a battery bracket;

[0022] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the battery pack after glue filling provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

[0023] Figure 4 is a partial structural diagram of a battery pack provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

[0024] Figure 5 yes Figure 4 A partial enlarged view of

[0025] Figure 6 This is a three-dimensional diagram of a battery cell support provided by an embodiment of the present invention from one perspective;

[0026] Figure 7 yes Figure 6 A partial enlarged view of

[0027] Figure 8 This is a three-dimensional diagram of a battery cell support provided by an embodiment of the present invention from another perspective;

[0028] Figure 9 yes Figure 8 A partial enlarged view of

[0029] Figure Number:

[0030] 100. Battery pack;

[0031] 1. Box body; 11. Side panels; 12. Bottom panel;

[0032] 2. Battery cells;

[0033] 3. Cell support; 31. Main body; 32. First support portion; 321. First groove; 33. Sealing portion; 34. Glue flow groove; 35. Second support portion; 36. Second groove; 37. Weak portion;

[0034] 4. Foam glue; DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0035] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be described clearly and completely below in conjunction with the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention. In addition, it should be understood that the specific implementation methods described herein are only used to illustrate and explain the present invention, and are not used to limit the present invention. In the present invention, unless otherwise specified, the directional words used, such as "upper" and "lower", generally refer to the upper and lower parts of the device in actual use or working state, specifically the drawing direction in the accompanying drawings; while "inside" and "outside" refer to the outline of the device.

[0036] In the related art, the battery pack includes a plurality of battery cells, the bottoms of the plurality of battery cells are fixed by a battery cell holder, and the plurality of battery cells are fixed by foam glue. The foam glue easily flows into the gap between the battery cell and the battery cell holder during the foaming process. When the battery cell is set to bottom pressure relief, the gap between the battery cell and the battery cell holder is usually set as a pressure relief cavity. When the foam glue blocks the pressure relief cavity, it will cause difficulty in pressure relief of the pressure relief valve at the bottom of the battery cell.

[0037] In an embodiment of the present application, a battery pack 100 is provided, such as Figures 1 to 3 As shown, the battery pack includes a box 1, multiple battery cells 2, a battery cell holder 3, and a foam 4. The battery pack can be a power battery pack or an energy storage battery pack. The battery pack is provided with a single layer of battery cells or multiple layers of battery cells to increase the battery pack's capacity.

[0038] The housing 1 includes a top plate (not shown), multiple side plates 11, and a bottom plate 12. The multiple side plates 11 are connected between the top plate and the bottom plate 12. The top plate is sealed to the tops of the multiple side plates 11 via a sealing connection structure, and the bottom plate 12 is sealed to the bottoms of the multiple side plates 11 via a sealing connection structure. Multiple battery cells 2 are housed and fixed inside the housing 1.

[0039] The plurality of battery cells 2 may be cylindrical battery cells, and the plurality of battery cells 2 are arranged in a honeycomb staggered manner inside the box body 1. The plurality of battery cells 2 include a plurality of battery cell groups staggered along the width direction of the box body 1, and each battery cell group includes a plurality of battery cells 2 arranged side by side along the length direction of the box body 1, wherein the width direction of the box body 1 is as follows: Figure 1 The y direction shown, the length direction of the box 1 is as follows Figure 1 The multiple battery cells 2 are arranged in a honeycomb staggered pattern, which is beneficial for optimizing energy density while taking into account heat dissipation and structural requirements.

[0040] A plurality of battery cells 2 are fixed on the battery cell support 3 and are potted with foam glue 4, which can significantly reduce the number of supporting structures of the entire battery pack and is conducive to the lightweight design of the battery pack.

[0041] In some embodiments, as Figures 4 to 7 As shown, the cell holder 3 is made of plastic material, which is beneficial to electrical insulation and the lightweight design of the entire battery pack.

[0042] The battery cell holder 3 includes a main body portion 31, multiple first support portions 32 and multiple sealing portions 33. Each first support portion 32 is configured to support a battery cell 2. Each sealing portion 33 is arranged on the corresponding first support portion 32. The sealing portion 33 is located between the first support portion 32 and the battery cell 2 and elastically abuts against the battery cell 2, so that the battery cell 2 compresses the sealing portion 33 under the action of its own gravity, so that the sealing portion 33 can seal the connection gap between the bottom end surface of the battery cell 2 and the first support portion 32 of the battery cell holder 3, so that in the process of filling the foam glue 4, it is difficult for the foam glue 4 to pass through the gap between the battery cell holder 3 and the battery cell 2 into the gap between the first support portion 32 and the battery cell 2, and affect the pressure relief process of the battery cell 2.

[0043] In one embodiment, if Figure 6 and Figure 7 As shown, the first support portion 32 is configured as a circular boss structure. The multiple first support portions 32 include multiple first support portion groups arranged along the width direction of the box body 1. Each first support portion group includes multiple first support portions 32 arranged along the length direction of the box body 1. The first support portion groups are staggered between adjacent first support portion groups to form a honeycomb-shaped staggered arrangement of the multiple battery cells 2. In other optional embodiments, the first support portion 32 can be adaptively designed according to the shape of the battery cell 2 to provide stable support for the battery cell 2.

[0044] In some embodiments, the sealing portion 33 is configured as an annular foam, which is bonded to the first support portion 32. The sealing portion 33 is bonded to the first support portion 32 via adhesive, thereby maintaining a stable connection between the sealing portion 33 and the first support portion 32. When the battery cell 2 is configured as a cylindrical structure, the contact surface between the battery cell 2 and the battery cell holder 3 is typically configured as an annular contact surface. The sealing portion 33 is configured as an annular foam structure and bonded to the inner edge of the annular contact surface to facilitate fully sealing the connection gap between the battery cell 2 and the first support portion 32.

[0045] In some embodiments, when the sealing portion 33 is subjected to a compressive stress greater than 4.3 kPa, the compression rate of the sealing portion 33 is not less than 33%, so that the sealing portion 33 can be fully radially compressed under the weight of the battery cell 2 to seal the connection gap between the bottom end surface of the battery cell 2 and the first support portion 32 of the battery cell holder 3. It is understandable that when the compression rate of the sealing portion 33 is set to less than 33% when the sealing portion 33 is subjected to a compressive stress greater than 4.3 kPa, the radial compression performance of the sealing portion 33 will be insufficient, making it difficult to fully seal the connection gap between the battery cell 2 and the battery cell holder 3.

[0046] In some embodiments, the cell holder 3 includes a main body 31 having an upper surface and a lower surface disposed opposite each other, wherein the upper surface of the main body 31 is disposed on a side close to the cell 2, and the lower surface of the main body 31 is disposed on a side away from the cell 2. A plurality of first support portions 32 are disposed on the upper surface of the main body 31, each of the first support portions 32 being configured as circular bosses protruding from the main body 31.

[0047] The outer diameter of the circular boss is larger than the outer diameter of the battery cell 2. Specifically, the difference between the outer diameter of the circular boss and the outer diameter of the battery cell 2 is 0.5mm to 2mm. In a specific embodiment, the difference between the outer diameter of the circular boss and the outer diameter of the battery cell 2 is 0.5mm, 1.0mm, 1.2mm, 1.5mm, 1.8mm, 2.0mm, or a value between any two of the above values, or a range between any two of the above values. It is understood that when the difference between the outer diameter of the circular boss and the outer diameter of the battery cell 2 is less than 0.5mm, it is not conducive to the stable fixation of the battery cell 2 on the circular boss, and it is easy to cause the spacing between adjacent battery cells 2 to be too small, which is not conducive to insulation. When the difference between the outer diameter of the circular boss and the outer diameter of the battery cell 2 is greater than 2.0mm, the number of circular bosses that can be set on the main body 31 of the battery cell holder 3 with a corresponding area is reduced, and the number of battery cells 2 arranged accordingly is reduced, which is not conducive to the high capacity ratio design of the battery pack.

[0048] Multiple first support portions 32 are arranged in a honeycomb-shaped staggered arrangement on the upper end surface of the main body 31. The multiple first support portions 32 include multiple groups of first support portions 32. Two adjacent groups of first support portions 32 are staggered along the width direction of the box body 1. Each group of first support portions 32 includes multiple first support portions 32 arranged side by side along the length direction of the box body 1.

[0049] In some embodiments, a first groove 321 is provided on the top surface of each first support portion 32, and the sealing portion 33 is accommodated in the first groove 321. The bottom end surface of the battery cell 2 abuts against the top end surface of the first support portion 32 and the sealing portion 33, so that the first support portion 32 supports the bottom end surface of the battery cell 2, and the sealing portion 33 seals the connection gap between the battery cell 2 and the battery cell bracket 3.

[0050] In some embodiments, the depth of the first groove 321 is less than the height of the sealing portion 33, so that the sealing portion 33 is protruded relative to the top end surface where the first groove 321 is located, that is, the top end surface of the first support portion 32, so that the sealing portion 33 can abut against the bottom end surface of the battery cell 2, and the battery cell 2 can compress the sealing portion 33 under the action of its own gravity so that the sealing portion 33 fully seals the connection gap between the battery cell 2 and the battery cell bracket 3.

[0051] In a specific embodiment, the thickness of the sealing portion 33 is set to 1.0 mm to 2.0 mm, and the depth of the first groove 321 is set to no more than 0.05 mm, so that before the battery cell 2 is placed, the sealing portion 33 is protruded relative to the top surface of the first groove 321, that is, the top surface of the first support portion 32, so that the battery cell 2 can fully compress the sealing portion 33.

[0052] In some embodiments, as Figures 6 to 9 As shown, the bottom surface of the first support portion 32 is provided with a weakened portion 37 corresponding to the first groove 321. The weakened portion 37 includes a circular notch, which reduces the wall thickness where the weakened portion 37 is located. A pressure relief valve is provided on the bottom end surface of the battery cell 2, facing the first groove 321. When the pressure relief valve of the battery cell 2 is opened, the high-pressure airflow escaping from the battery cell 2 enters the first groove 321 and acts on the weakened portion 37, causing the weakened portion 37 to rupture, forming a pressure relief vent. The air then flows through the pressure relief vent into the bottom pressure relief space where the battery cell holder 3 and the bottom plate 12 of the battery pack are located.

[0053] In some embodiments, as Figure 6 and Figure 7 As shown, a glue flow groove 34 is provided on the upper surface of the main body 31 around each first support portion 32 , and the glue flow groove 34 is configured to accommodate the foam glue 4 so that the foam glue 4 can flow on the battery cell bracket 3 .

[0054] A glue flow groove 34 is provided on the upper surface of the main body 31. A part of the glue flow groove 34 is located between two adjacent first support parts 32, so that the foam glue 4 can fully fill the gap between two adjacent battery cells 2 and fix the multiple battery cells 2 through the foam glue 4. Another part of the glue flow groove 34 is arranged close to the edge of the main body 31 and partially around the first support part 32, so that the foam glue 4 can fix the periphery of the multiple battery cells 2.

[0055] In some embodiments, the glue groove 34 is located between two adjacent first support portions 32 , and the depth of the glue groove 34 is set to range from 3 mm to 9.3 mm, and the width of the glue groove 34 is set to range from 1 mm to 8.5 mm, so that the glue groove 34 has a suitable depth and width range to improve the problem of poor flowability of the foam glue between the battery cells. It is understood that if the depth of the glue groove 34 is set to less than 3 mm and the width of the glue groove 34 is set to less than 1 mm, the glue groove 34 will not have enough space to accommodate the foam glue, which will lead to poor flowability of the foam glue between the battery cells 2. If the depth of the glue groove 34 is set to greater than 9.3 mm and the width of the glue groove 34 is set to greater than 8.5 mm, the glue groove 34 will occupy a larger surface area of the battery cell holder 3 and reduce the structural strength of the battery cell holder 3.

[0056] Taking the first support portion 32 as a circular boss as an example, the diameter of the circular boss is set to A, the interval between two adjacent circular bosses is d, and the interval d between two adjacent circular bosses is set to the distance between the centers of the two adjacent circular bosses. Then, the width of the glue flow groove 34 located between the two circular bosses is equal to dA.

[0057] In some embodiments, continue to refer to Figures 6 to 9 The lower surface of the main body 31 of the cell holder 3 is also provided with a plurality of second support portions 35. The plurality of second support portions 35 and the plurality of first support portions 32 are respectively located on either side of the main body 31. The plurality of second support portions 35 abut against the bottom plate 12 of the battery pack to provide a support structure between the cell holder 3 and the bottom plate 12. By integrating the support structure between the cell holder 3 and the bottom plate 12 into the cell holder 3, the structural strength of the cell holder 3 itself is enhanced while simplifying the internal structure of the battery pack and improving assembly efficiency. The plurality of second support portions 35 are also configured to support the module structure formed by the plurality of battery cells 2.

[0058] The second support portion 35 includes a special-shaped boss protruding from the lower surface of the main body 31 . The top surface of each second support portion 35 is configured as a plane to form a stable support surface with the bottom plate 12 .

[0059] In some embodiments, the glue flow groove 34 located on one side of the main body 31 is arranged correspondingly to the second support portion 35 located on the other side of the main body 31. The second support portion 35 is arranged as a convex structure, and the glue flow groove 34 is arranged as a concave structure. The glue flow groove 34 and the second support portion 35 are arranged correspondingly, which is beneficial to enhancing the overall structural strength of the battery cell bracket 3.

[0060] In some embodiments, a plurality of second grooves 36 are further provided on the lower surface of the battery cell holder 3, and the plurality of second grooves 36 are staggered with the plurality of first grooves 321, wherein the second groove 36 is located between two adjacent second support portions 35, and the groove walls where the plurality of second grooves 36 are located and the bottom plate 12 of the battery pack define a bottom pressure relief chamber, which is beneficial to increase the volume of the bottom pressure relief chamber.

[0061] The second groove 36 is configured as an arc-shaped groove, and the bottom wall of the arc-shaped groove is configured as a raised structure located on the upper surface of the main body 31 , thereby facilitating increasing the depth of the second groove 36 to increase the volume of the bottom pressure relief chamber.

[0062] In a specific embodiment, along the length direction of the box body, multiple second support parts 35 and multiple second grooves 36 are constructed to be arranged at intervals, so that the bottom surface of the battery cell holder 3 is provided with multiple second support parts 35 and multiple second grooves extending in a wave shape, and along the width direction of the box body, two adjacent rows of second support parts 35 and two adjacent rows of second grooves 36 are constructed as a staggered arrangement structure, so that the multiple second grooves 36 are connected in the horizontal and vertical directions, so as to connect the bottom pressure relief cavity defined by the multiple second grooves 36, so as to increase the volume of the bottom pressure relief cavity, thereby improving the pressure relief capacity of the battery pack as a whole.

[0063] The embodiments of the present invention are described in detail above. Specific examples are used herein to illustrate the principles and implementation methods of the present invention. The description of the above embodiments is only used to help understand the method of the present invention and its core ideas. At the same time, for those skilled in the art, according to the ideas of the present invention, there may be changes in the specific implementation methods and application scopes. In summary, the contents of this specification should not be understood as limiting the present invention.

Claims

1. A battery cell bracket, characterized in that: include: Body part; A plurality of first support portions are provided on the main body, each of the first support portions being configured to support a battery cell; as well as a plurality of sealing portions, each of the sealing portions being disposed on a corresponding first supporting portion and being adapted to be disposed between the first supporting portion and the battery cell; The sealing portion is elastic so that the sealing portion seals the connection gap between the battery cell and the first supporting portion after being squeezed by the battery cell.

2. The battery cell support according to claim 1, characterized in that: The sealing portion is configured as an annular foam, and the annular foam is bonded to the first supporting portion.

3. The battery cell support according to claim 1, characterized in that: When the sealing portion is subjected to a compressive stress of not less than 4.3 KPa, the compression rate of the sealing portion is greater than or equal to 33%.

4. The battery cell support according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The first supporting portion includes a circular boss, which is arranged to protrude from a surface of one side of the main body toward the battery core; wherein an outer diameter of the circular boss is greater than an outer diameter of the battery core.

5. The battery cell support according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: A first groove is formed on the top surface of each first supporting portion, and the sealing portion is received in the first groove; wherein the top surface of the first supporting portion and the sealing portion are suitable for supporting the battery core.

6. The battery cell support according to claim 5, characterized in that: The depth of the first groove is smaller than the height of the sealing portion.

7. The battery cell support according to claim 5, characterized in that: A weak portion corresponding to the first groove is provided on the bottom surface of the first supporting portion, and the weak portion is configured to break when the battery core is depressurized.

8. The battery cell support according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The main body is further provided with a glue flow groove, and at least a portion of the glue flow groove is arranged between two adjacent first support parts.

9. The battery cell support according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The battery cell holder further includes a plurality of second supporting portions, wherein the first supporting portion and the second supporting portion are respectively arranged on both sides of the main body portion, and the plurality of second supporting portions are suitable for abutting against the bottom plate of the battery pack.

10. The battery cell support according to claim 9, characterized in that: The main body is further provided with a glue flow groove, and the glue flow groove and the second support portion are respectively arranged on both sides of the main body, and the glue flow groove is correspondingly arranged to the second support portion.

11. The battery cell support according to claim 9, characterized in that: The battery cell support is provided with a plurality of second grooves, wherein the second grooves are located between two adjacent second support portions, and the groove walls of the plurality of second grooves and the bottom plate of the battery pack define a pressure relief chamber.

12. The battery cell support according to claim 11, characterized in that: The plurality of second grooves include a plurality of rows of second grooves spaced apart from each other in the width direction of the box body, and two adjacent rows of second grooves are staggered.

13. A battery pack, characterized in that: The battery pack includes: A cell support, wherein the cell support is configured as the cell support according to any one of claims 1 to 12; A plurality of battery cells are arranged on the battery cell bracket.

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