Vehicle battery separation system and separation method

Abstract

The invention relates to a vehicle battery separation system and method. The system comprises a separation device and an integrated control unit. The separating device is arranged in a mounting area below a chassis of the electric vehicle; the separating device comprises a plurality of battery module fixing-separating mechanisms, and each fixing-separating mechanism carries a group of battery modules; the integrated control unit is in electric connection and / or communication connection with the separation device, and is used for independently controlling the release or locking of each battery module fixing-separation mechanism according to the detection signal and / or the action triggering instruction; and the battery module fixing-separating mechanism is used for fixing the battery module, so that the corresponding group of battery modules are separated from the battery module fixing-separating mechanism to an area outside the vertical projection range of the vehicle body and the traction of the battery modules is kept, or the battery module fixing-separating mechanism is reset to a locking state. The vehicle battery separation system provided by the invention can cooperate with the separation device to act through judgment and control of the integrated control unit when the battery module has a thermal runaway risk, so that the battery module is safely separated from the vehicle body.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of new energy vehicle battery safety management system technology, and in particular to a vehicle battery separation system and separation method. Background Technology

[0002] Lithium-ion batteries, as a type of power battery, often pose a safety hazard when used in electric vehicles, leading to thermal runaway and subsequent explosions. Especially in the pursuit of higher energy density, high-specific-capacity lithium-ion batteries are accompanied by greater risks. Although scholars and engineers have proposed various solutions to address the intrinsic safety of batteries, it remains difficult to completely resolve the contradiction between high specific capacity and high risk.

[0003] In current electric vehicles, when a serious accident leads to battery thermal runaway, the entire vehicle is easily destroyed by fire due to the explosive properties of lithium batteries, and the occupants also face personal safety risks. Even in non-accident situations, when lithium batteries experience aging due to cycling or malfunction due to misuse, they may also cause battery thermal runaway, leading to vehicle destruction or even more serious consequences.

[0004] Therefore, there is an urgent need to research and design a safety protection system that can effectively isolate the battery from the vehicle when the battery experiences thermal runaway, in order to avoid irreversible damage to the vehicle and occupants caused by battery explosion. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The purpose of this invention is to address the shortcomings of existing technologies by providing a vehicle battery separation system and method. When the battery module is at risk of thermal runaway, the integrated control unit makes judgments and controls, and coordinates the action of the separation device to achieve the safe detachment of the battery module from the vehicle body. This not only improves the safety of the vehicle itself, but also ensures the safety of other vehicles and pedestrians on the road.

[0006] To achieve the above objectives, in a first aspect, the present invention provides a vehicle battery separation system, comprising: a separation device and an integrated control unit;

[0007] The separation device is installed in the mounting area below the chassis of the electric vehicle;

[0008] The separation device includes multiple battery module fixing-separation mechanisms, each of which is used to mount a group of battery modules;

[0009] The integrated control unit is electrically and / or communicatively connected to the separation device, and is used to independently control the release or locking of each battery module fixing-separation mechanism according to the detection signal and / or action trigger command, so that the corresponding group of battery modules is separated from the battery module fixing-separation mechanism to an area outside the vertical projection range of the vehicle body or the battery module fixing-separation mechanism is reset to the locked state.

[0010] Preferably, the battery module fixing-separation mechanism includes: a battery fixing component, a guide component, and a telescopic extension component;

[0011] The battery fixing assembly includes a fixed connecting part and an openable and closable locking part; the locking part is hinged to the fixed connecting part via a connecting shaft; the battery fixing assembly controls the locking part to be in a locked position or a released position according to the control command sent by the integrated control unit;

[0012] The guide assembly includes a first slide rail, a second slide rail, and two sliders disposed in each slide rail; the first slide rail is horizontally disposed on the fixed connection portion, and the second slide rail is horizontally disposed on the battery module;

[0013] The telescopic extension assembly includes a scissor-type telescopic link and an elastic energy storage component; the scissor-type telescopic link is formed by multiple X-shaped movable rods that are sequentially hinged to each other at their ends, the two ends of the first X-shaped movable rod are fixedly connected to two sliders in the first slide rail, and the two ends of the last X-shaped movable rod are fixedly connected to two sliders in the second slide rail; the two ends of the elastic energy storage component are respectively connected between the two hinged ends of the two connected X-shaped movable rods.

[0014] When the battery module is in the battery fixing assembly, the elastic energy storage component is in a compressed energy storage state; after the battery module is released from the battery fixing assembly, the scissor-type telescopic linkage mechanism extends along the direction of the vertical slide rail under the elastic release of the elastic energy storage component and the guiding action of the slider and the slide rail, thereby pushing the battery module out of the area outside the vertical projection range of the vehicle body, and maintaining the traction of the battery module through the telescopic push-out component.

[0015] Preferably, the vehicle battery disconnection system further includes: a rolling support assembly;

[0016] The rolling support assembly is located below the battery module, so that the battery module can move by rolling friction with the ground after being released from the battery module fixing-separation mechanism.

[0017] The rolling support assembly is disposed at the bottom of the battery module or on a support member for supporting the battery module.

[0018] Preferably, the positive and negative terminals of the battery module are detachably connected to the vehicle's electrical system via plug-in electrical connectors, so as to automatically disconnect the electrical connection when the battery module is detached.

[0019] Preferably, the separation device further includes a rotating mechanism;

[0020] The battery module fixing-separation mechanism is disposed in the installation area via the rotating mechanism;

[0021] The rotating mechanism is used to drive the battery module fixing-separation mechanism to rotate in the horizontal plane around the vertical rotation axis, so as to adjust the separation direction of the battery module.

[0022] Preferably, the step of independently controlling the release of the fixing-separation mechanism of each battery module based on the detection signal specifically includes:

[0023] The integrated control unit acquires the status parameter information of the battery module and determines whether the battery module has reached the thermal runaway risk threshold based on the status parameter information.

[0024] When the thermal runaway risk threshold is reached, the integrated control unit sends an alarm message and a battery module separation request command to the vehicle main control system.

[0025] The vehicle main control system acquires information about the vehicle's surrounding environment and determines whether the preset safety separation conditions are met.

[0026] When the vehicle main control system determines that the safety separation condition is met, the vehicle main control system sends a separation permission command to the integrated control unit;

[0027] The integrated control unit generates a control command based on the separation permission command, and controls the battery module fixing-separation mechanism corresponding to the battery module to release the battery module.

[0028] Specifically, after the integrated control unit sends an alarm message to the vehicle's main control system, the vehicle's main control system activates an emergency handling mode; activating the emergency handling mode specifically includes:

[0029] Switching to safe automatic driving or safe assisted driving mode, controlling the vehicle's drive system to decelerate, and controlling the activation of the hazard warning system to send warning signals to the outside of the vehicle; and / or,

[0030] The vehicle communication module sends risk warning commands to the in-vehicle human-machine interface system and sends abnormal vehicle status information to external service platforms; and / or,

[0031] The vehicle's environmental perception system is activated to collect information about the vehicle's surrounding environment. The vehicle's main control system identifies and avoids obstacles based on this information, and generates a safe separation driving path for the battery module by combining the vehicle's navigation map data and real-time road traffic information. The system then controls the vehicle's drive system, braking system, and steering system to make the vehicle travel along the safe separation driving path.

[0032] Preferably, the vehicle battery separation system further includes a detection unit;

[0033] The detection unit is used to detect the operating status of each group of battery modules in real time or at regular intervals, and to feed back the detected status parameter information to the integrated control unit.

[0034] Specifically, the detection unit detects the operating status of the battery module as follows:

[0035] The detection unit performs one or more of the following detections on the battery module: remaining capacity detection, voltage detection, current detection, temperature detection, appearance deformation detection, damage status detection, mass change detection, ambient gas composition detection, smoke concentration detection, or thermal imaging detection.

[0036] Preferably, the vehicle battery separation system further includes a fire suppression component for suppressing fire on the battery module after it has been separated.

[0037] The fire suppression components include: a fire sprinkler system and / or a fire blanket launching system;

[0038] The fire suppression component is electrically and / or communicatively connected to the integrated control unit. When the integrated control unit determines that the battery module fixing-separation mechanism has been released, it sends a fire suppression action command to the fire suppression component, causing the fire suppression component to activate the fire extinguishing sprinkler to extinguish the fire on the battery module and / or launch a fire blanket to cover and suppress the fire on the battery module.

[0039] Preferably, the step of independently controlling the release or locking of each battery module fixing-separation mechanism according to the action trigger command specifically includes:

[0040] The integrated control unit is also used to control the battery module fixing-separation mechanism to unlock and push out the battery modules to be replaced in sequence when a battery replacement command is received, so that a corresponding group of battery modules are separated from the battery module fixing-separation mechanism to an area outside the vertical projection range of the vehicle body for battery module replacement.

[0041] The integrated control unit is also used to reset to the locked state when a lock reset command is received, so as to fix the replaced battery module in the battery module fixing-separation mechanism.

[0042] Secondly, embodiments of the present invention also provide a vehicle battery separation method based on the vehicle battery separation system described in the first aspect above, characterized in that the vehicle battery separation method includes:

[0043] Obtain the status parameter information of each battery module in the vehicle;

[0044] Based on the state parameter information, determine whether each group of battery modules has reached the thermal runaway risk threshold;

[0045] When a group of battery modules is determined to have reached the thermal runaway risk threshold, an alarm message and a battery module separation request instruction are sent to the vehicle's main control system.

[0046] The vehicle main control system acquires information about the vehicle's surrounding environment and determines whether the preset safety separation conditions are met.

[0047] When the safety separation conditions are met, the vehicle main control system sends a separation permission command to the integrated control unit;

[0048] The integrated control unit generates control commands based on the separation permission command, controls the separation device corresponding to the group of battery modules to release the battery modules, so that the battery modules are separated from the separation device to an area outside the vertical projection range of the vehicle body, and maintains traction on the battery modules;

[0049] After the battery module is separated, the integrated control unit activates the fire suppression component to suppress fire on the battery module.

[0050] The vehicle battery separation system provided in this invention, from the perspective of the overall battery pack safety system, breaks away from the traditional design concept of integrating the battery pack with the vehicle, and proposes a new safety design and protection strategy.

[0051] This invention employs multiple battery module fixing-separation mechanisms located in the vehicle chassis mounting area, with each separation mechanism independently controlled by an integrated control unit. This allows each independent battery module to quickly detach from the vehicle's vertical projection range in the event of thermal runaway, effectively blocking the heat propagation path and reducing the harm to the vehicle structure and occupants caused by thermal runaway. Simultaneously, other battery modules can continue to maintain the vehicle's power output. The system utilizes a scissor-type telescopic ejection assembly in conjunction with a sliding rail guide structure, enabling the battery modules to achieve stable linear ejection under the elastic energy release effect. This avoids jamming, collisions, and secondary damage during the separation process, improving the controllability and reliability of the separation process.

[0052] Meanwhile, this invention also utilizes the vehicle's main control system to perceive and assess the surrounding environment and execute emergency driving control. This ensures that the vehicle completes path planning and position adjustment only after meeting safety conditions before performing battery separation, guaranteeing that battery separation occurs only when the surrounding environment is safe, thus improving safety in public road traffic scenarios. During driving, the thermally runaway battery module separates rearward. After separation, the vehicle body maintains traction over the battery instead of discarding it directly, thereby ensuring the driving safety of other vehicles on the road. Furthermore, this invention uses plug-in electrical connectors to achieve automatic electrical disconnection and reconnection, improving electrical connection reliability and maintenance convenience. Combined with fire suppression components, it applies fire-extinguishing sprays or fire blankets to the separated battery module to suppress fire, further enhancing the system's fire safety capabilities.

[0053] The vehicle battery separation system of this invention is also applicable to battery swapping scenarios. When there is a need for battery replacement, the system can quickly replace the battery module. The integrated control unit of this invention can unlock and eject the battery module sequentially according to the battery swapping command, and perform a reset lock after the battery replacement is completed, thereby improving the efficiency of battery maintenance and replacement.

[0054] This invention monitors battery status in real time through multiple detection methods, enabling integrated operation of safety management, intelligent decision-making, and automatic execution. It has comprehensive technical advantages, including strong thermal runaway safety protection, reliable action execution, high environmental adaptability, and excellent maintenance efficiency. Attached Figure Description

[0055] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the battery module fixing-separation mechanism provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0056] Figure 2 This is a top view of the battery module fixing-separation mechanism provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0057] Figure 3 A bottom view of the battery module fixing-separation mechanism provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0058] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the battery fixing assembly provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0059] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the slide rail provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0060] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the slider provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0061] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the telescopic ejection assembly in a compressed energy storage state, provided in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0062] Figure 8This is a schematic diagram of the telescopic extension component in the unfolding process provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0063] Figure 9 A schematic diagram of the telescopic extension component in a fully deployed state, as provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0064] Figure 10 A top view of the telescopic extension assembly in its fully extended state, as provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0065] Figure 11 This is a schematic diagram showing the setting position of the rolling support component provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0066] Figure 12 This is a schematic diagram showing the positional relationship of the battery module when the telescopic extension component is in a fully extended state, as provided in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0067] Figure 13 A schematic diagram of a vehicle battery separation system equipped with dual battery modules;

[0068] Figure 14 A bottom-view schematic diagram of a vehicle battery separation system equipped with dual battery modules;

[0069] Figure 15 This is a schematic diagram showing the battery detached at the rear of the vehicle.

[0070] Figure 16 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the vehicle's status while it is in motion.

[0071] Figure 17 This is a schematic diagram showing the state of the battery after thermal runaway of the battery module and subsequent separation by the vehicle's battery separation system. Detailed Implementation

[0072] The technical solution of the present invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments.

[0073] This invention provides a vehicle battery separation system, including a separation device and an integrated control unit.

[0074] The separation device is located in the mounting area under the chassis of the electric vehicle; the separation device includes multiple battery module fixing-separation mechanisms, each of which is used to mount a group of battery modules.

[0075] The integrated control unit is electrically and / or communicatively connected to the separation device, and is used to independently control the release or locking of each battery module fixing-separation mechanism according to the detection signal and / or action trigger command, so that the corresponding group of battery modules is separated from the battery module fixing-separation mechanism to an area outside the vertical projection range of the vehicle body or the battery module fixing-separation mechanism is reset to the locked state.

[0076] In a specific implementation scheme, the battery module fixing-separation mechanism is as follows: Figure 1 As shown, it includes: a battery fixing assembly 1, a guide assembly 2, and a telescopic ejection assembly 3. Each battery module fixing-separation mechanism is equipped with a set of battery modules 10.

[0077] Figure 2 Top view of the battery module fixing-separation mechanism. Figure 3 A bottom view of the battery module fixing-separation mechanism. Figure 4 This is a structural diagram of the battery mounting assembly. (Combined with...) Figures 1-4 As shown, the battery fixing assembly 1 includes a fixed connecting part 11 and an openable and closable locking part 12; the locking part 12 is hinged to the fixed connecting part 11 via a connecting shaft 13. According to control commands sent by the integrated control unit, the battery fixing assembly 1 controls the locking part 12 to be in a locked position (as shown, the angle between the locking part 12 and the fixed connecting part 11 is 90°) or a released position (the angle between the locking part 12 and the fixed connecting part 11 is 180°).

[0078] In this example Figure 4 The battery fixing assembly 1 shown consists of two parts for fixing the two ends of the battery. One part (the upper right part in the figure) can be fixed to the bottom of the vehicle through the fixing connection part 11 of the back plate structure, and the other part (the lower left part in the figure) can be fixedly connected to the housing containing the battery separation system through its fixing connection part 11. The above structure is only one possible specific method in this invention. The installation method of the battery fixing assembly 1 on the vehicle body is not limited to fixing it to the bottom of the vehicle through the fixing connection part 11 of the back plate structure or fixing it to the housing through the fixing connection part 11. Any structure and connection method that can achieve stable installation, locking and controllable release of the battery module should be considered to fall within the protection scope of this invention.

[0079] The guide assembly 2 includes a first slide rail, a second slide rail, and two sliders disposed in each slide rail. The structure of the slide rail 21 is as follows: Figure 5 As shown, the structure of slider 22 is as follows: Figure 6 As shown. Combined with Figure 1-6 As shown, the first slide rail is horizontally mounted on the fixed connection part 11, and the second slide rail is horizontally mounted on the battery module 10.

[0080] Telescopic ejection component 3, such as Figure 7As shown, it includes a scissor-type telescopic link 31 and an elastic energy storage component 32. The scissor-type telescopic link 31 is formed by multiple X-shaped movable rods that are sequentially hinged to each other at their ends. The two ends 311 and 312 of the first X-shaped movable rod are fixedly connected to two sliders in the first slide rail, and the two ends 313 and 314 of the last X-shaped movable rod are fixedly connected to two sliders in the second slide rail. The two ends of the elastic energy storage component 32 are respectively connected between the two hinged ends of the two connected X-shaped movable rods.

[0081] Combination Figures 1-7 When the battery module 10 is in the battery fixing assembly 1, the elastic energy storage component 32 is in a compressed energy storage state (e.g., Figure 7 (As shown). After the battery module 10 is released from the battery fixing assembly 1, the scissor-type telescopic linkage mechanism 31 extends along the direction perpendicular to the slide rail 21 under the elastic release of the elastic energy storage component 32 and the guiding action of the slider 22 and the slide rail 21. The elastic energy storage component 32 extends from... Figure 7 The compressed energy storage state shown extends to Figure 8 The state shown and eventually reached Figure 9 The fully unfolded state is shown in the top view diagram. Figure 10 As shown in the accompanying drawings, in the example of this invention, the elastic energy storage component 32 is implemented using a spring. When reaching... Figure 9 When the spring retracts to its shortest state and the scissor-type telescopic linkage 31 reaches its longest state, the battery module is pushed out to an area outside the vertical projection range of the vehicle body.

[0082] It is understood that the elastic energy storage component 32 of the present invention is not limited to only springs. Other elastic components, such as elastic leaf springs, shape memory alloy elastic components, gas or liquid energy storage units, which can store elastic potential energy when compressed or deformed and provide external thrust when released, can all be applied to the elastic energy storage component 32 of the present invention.

[0083] For example Figure 1-3 As shown, the vehicle battery separation system of the present invention further includes: a rolling support assembly 4.

[0084] The rolling support assembly 4 is disposed below the battery module 10 to allow the battery module 10 to move by rolling friction with the ground after it is released from the battery module fixing-separation mechanism. Specifically, the rolling support assembly 4 can be as follows: Figure 11 The component is directly disposed at the bottom of the battery module 10, or disposed on a support member (not shown) for supporting the battery module 10. The components in the rolling support assembly used to achieve rolling friction can specifically include, but are not limited to, wheel-type structures, ball-type structures, roller-type structures, or track-type structures, preferably wheel-type structures. After the battery module 10 is fully released, its state is as follows: Figure 12 As shown, through the coordinated action of the guide component 2, the telescopic ejection component 3 and the rolling support component 4, after the battery module 10 is separated from the bottom of the vehicle, it can be guided to outside the vertical projection range of the vehicle body and carried by the rolling support component 4, so that the battery module 10 moves with the vehicle in a towed manner. This allows the battery module 10 to be safely towed and maintain a safe distance from the vehicle body while the vehicle continues to travel at low speed, thus preventing thermal runaway from spreading to the main structure of the vehicle.

[0085] Optionally, the separation device of the present invention may further include a rotating mechanism (not shown in the figure); the battery module fixing-separation mechanism is disposed in the installation area via the rotating mechanism; the rotating mechanism is used to drive the battery module fixing-separation mechanism to rotate in the horizontal plane around a vertical rotation axis, thereby adjusting the separation direction of the battery module. Therefore, by setting a rotating mechanism, the battery ejection direction can be adjusted by rotation before performing battery separation according to the vehicle environment, current vehicle status, and decisions of the intelligent driving system, thereby improving the environmental adaptability and safety of thermal runaway battery separation.

[0086] In one example embodiment, the rotating mechanism may include a rotating base, a rotating drive, and a rotating limiter. The rotating base is fixed to the mounting area at the bottom of the vehicle, and the battery module fixing-separation mechanism is mounted on the rotating base. The rotating drive is used to drive the rotating base to rotate in its plane. The rotating limiter is used to limit the rotation stroke to avoid structural interference or affecting the safe arrangement of other components of the vehicle chassis during the rotation process. The rotating drive may be one or more of a motor drive mechanism, a hydraulic drive mechanism, a pneumatic drive mechanism, or a torsion assembly formed by a combination of an elastic preload and a locking device.

[0087] In this invention, the positive and negative terminals of the battery module 10 are preferably connected by a plug-in electrical connection. The plug-in electrical connector can be detached from the vehicle circuit so that the electrical connection can be automatically disconnected when the battery module 10 is separated.

[0088] The vehicle battery disconnection system may also include a detection unit (not shown in the figure). The detection unit is used to detect the operating status of each battery module in real time or at regular intervals, and feeds back the detected status parameter information to the integrated control unit for data analysis and anomaly detection.

[0089] The integrated control unit acquires the status parameter information of the battery module and determines whether the battery module has reached the thermal runaway risk threshold based on the status parameter information. When the thermal runaway risk threshold is reached, the integrated control unit sends an alarm message and a battery module separation request command to the vehicle main control system. The vehicle main control system acquires the surrounding environment information of the vehicle and determines whether it meets the preset safety separation conditions. When the vehicle main control system determines that the safety separation conditions are met, the vehicle main control system sends a separation permission command to the integrated control unit. The integrated control unit generates a control command based on the separation permission command and controls the battery module fixing-separation mechanism corresponding to the battery module to release the battery module.

[0090] The detection unit of the present invention can perform one or more of the following detections on the battery module: remaining capacity detection, voltage detection, current detection, temperature detection, appearance deformation detection, damage state detection, mass change detection, ambient gas composition detection, smoke concentration detection, or thermal imaging detection.

[0091] In specific implementations, the detection unit can consist of multiple sensing and monitoring components, including but not limited to: voltage sensors for measuring battery module voltage, Hall current sensors for measuring charging and discharging current, thermocouples or negative temperature coefficient thermistors (NTC) temperature sensors for detecting the temperature of the battery module and its surroundings, strain gauges or displacement sensors for identifying external deformation, pressure sensors or mechanical switches for monitoring casing damage, gas sensors (such as CO, HF, and H2 sensors) for detecting characteristic gases from battery venting or electrolyte evaporation, photoelectric or ionizing smoke sensors for identifying smoke, and infrared thermal imaging modules for identifying early hot spots in thermal runaway.

[0092] The aforementioned detection units can be distributed and installed in and around the battery module: for example, voltage and current sensors can be placed at the electrical connection ports of the battery module; temperature sensors can be attached to the outer wall of the cell, the inner wall of the module housing, or the support bracket; strain gauges or displacement sensors can be placed at key stress points of the module's fixing frame; gas and smoke sensors can be arranged in the local ventilation area of ​​the battery compartment or the gas collection area around the module; and thermal imaging modules can be installed on the inner side of the chassis or battery cavity for field-of-view thermal monitoring of the surface of each battery module. Through the fusion of the above multi-dimensional monitoring data, the integrated control unit can comprehensively acquire information such as the health status of the battery module, the risk of thermal runaway, or structural failure, thereby enabling early identification and warning, and issuing separation commands when necessary.

[0093] In this invention, the battery module fixing-separation mechanism consists of multiple sets. Figure 13 A schematic diagram of a vehicle battery separation system equipped with dual battery modules is shown, with the structure viewed from below. Figure 14As shown. By using independent battery module fixing-separation mechanisms to support and lock multiple battery modules, combined with corresponding detection units and control logic, the operating status of each battery module group can be independently monitored and judged. When a battery module is determined to have a risk of thermal runaway or triggers a separation command, the system only releases that battery module, and the corresponding separation structure guides it outside the vertical projection range of the vehicle body for safe towing or parking, such as... Figure 15 As shown.

[0094] During the aforementioned process, the remaining battery modules that did not malfunction remained locked and continued to provide power to the vehicle, ensuring its continued low-speed mobility and enabling it to leave densely populated areas or move to a pre-designated safe zone. Furthermore, the continued power supply from the remaining battery modules also supported the vehicle's main control system and integrated control unit in performing necessary subsequent safety operations, including maintaining the operation of the onboard sensing system, continuously sending alarms and reporting information, and performing vehicle attitude adjustments and driver assistance controls, thereby ensuring the reliable completion of the vehicle's safe separation process.

[0095] The vehicle battery separation system of the present invention can also be combined with a fireproof vehicle body shell design to further block the spread of heat and flame in the event of battery thermal runaway, thereby achieving higher safety protection performance for the entire vehicle.

[0096] The vehicle battery separation system of this invention can be applied to battery separation when the battery module malfunctions while the vehicle is in motion, when the battery module malfunctions while the vehicle is parked (including when the vehicle is stationary or the battery is charging), and during battery replacement. The hardware structure and functions of each component of the vehicle battery separation system of this invention have been described above. The operation flow and battery separation process of the vehicle battery separation system in the above three scenarios will be illustrated below with examples.

[0097] Example 1: Automatic separation of battery thermal runaway during vehicle operation.

[0098] In this embodiment, the vehicle is traveling at approximately 80 km / h on a highway (e.g., Figure 16As shown, the system performs real-time health status monitoring on each battery module at a frequency of 10Hz. Each battery module is equipped with a voltage sensor for measuring the module terminal voltage, a Hall current sensor for collecting charging and discharging current, a negative temperature coefficient thermistor (NTC) temperature sensor for monitoring the module casing temperature, a strain gauge for identifying casing mechanical deformation, a pressure sensor for detecting internal pressure anomalies or casing rupture trends, a gas sensor for monitoring electrolyte decomposition or venting characteristic gases, and a photoelectric smoke sensor for identifying particulate smoke. Each sensor is bound to the corresponding battery module according to its installation location, and its output signal contains a unique identifier field (Module-ID) for the corresponding battery module and a sampling timestamp.

[0099] During vehicle operation, the battery module (Module-ID: M03) experienced abnormal self-heating due to an internal fault. The NTC temperature sensor detected that its casing temperature rapidly increased from 48°C to 82°C within approximately 4 seconds, with a temperature rise rate of approximately 8.5°C / s, exceeding the system's preset temperature rise rate threshold of 5°C / s. Its instantaneous surface temperature continuously crossed both the first-level warning threshold (set to 70°C) and the second-level safety threshold (set to 80°C). A photoelectric smoke sensor detected smoke near the battery module, and the smoke particle concentration increased from a background concentration of 0.02 mg / m³. 3 It rose sharply to 0.35 mg / m³ 3 The risk level exceeded the preset risk threshold of 0.25 mg / m³. 3 The aforementioned multi-source signals are all independently transmitted by each sensor to the integrated control unit via the vehicle's CAN bus. The data frames transmitted by the NTC temperature sensor carry fields such as Module-ID, sampling timestamp, temperature value, and temperature rise rate, while the data frames transmitted by the photoelectric smoke sensor carry fields such as Module-ID, sampling timestamp, and smoke concentration.

[0100] The integrated control unit processes the received detection signal, confirms that the abnormal signal has been detected for three consecutive sampling cycles (approximately 0.3s), and meets the three-parameter linkage condition of temperature exceeding the limit, abnormal temperature rise rate, and abnormal smoke concentration. It then determines that the battery module has entered the critical state of thermal runaway and generates a thermal runaway determination signal.

[0101] After the thermal runaway determination signal is generated, the integrated control unit generates a safety event message containing the unique identifier of the faulty battery module (Module-ID: M03), temperature curve parameters, smoke concentration value and risk warning fields, sends the battery module safety event alarm information to the vehicle main control system, and reports it to the cloud platform through the wireless communication link.

[0102] After receiving a battery module safety event alarm, the vehicle's main control system will prompt the occupants through the vehicle information system via the central control screen and voice system that "the battery module temperature is abnormal and the vehicle is performing safety procedures."

[0103] Simultaneously, the vehicle's main control system activates the hazard warning lights (double flashers) and automatically enters the safe autonomous driving mode. The main control system acquires the vehicle's current location, speed, road environment information, and surrounding traffic perception data, and calls the real-time path planning module to calculate the path to the safe separation area. The path planning module combines high-precision maps, passable road areas, emergency lane length, obstacle recognition information, and traffic flow conditions to generate the optimal trajectory from the vehicle's current location to the target safe location, including path coordinate sequences, speed constraints, curvature limits, and vehicle offset strategies. During the planning process, the path planning module also considers the requirement to maintain a safe distance from following vehicles after the battery module is released, ensuring that the battery module can move safely with the vehicle after separation.

[0104] In the safe autonomous driving mode, the vehicle's main control system, based on the planned driving path, first executes a linear deceleration strategy, smoothly reducing the vehicle speed from 80 km / h to below 40 km / h within approximately 10 seconds, while maintaining lane centering throughout the process. Simultaneously, by jointly determining, using a forward-facing camera, millimeter-wave radar, and lateral ultrasonic radar, that there are no high-speed approaching vehicles within 50 meters behind the vehicle and to the right of the lane, and confirming the availability of the right-hand emergency lane using the lateral lane keeping function, the vehicle then automatically shifts to the right approximately 3.2 meters according to the planned trajectory, entering the emergency lane, and continues to decelerate to a low cruising speed of approximately 8 km / h.

[0105] Upon reaching the stable area of ​​the emergency lane, the vehicle's main control system issues a separation permission command to the integrated control unit. The integrated control unit then disconnects the high-voltage bus contactor and low-voltage power supply branch of the battery module, and releases the locking part of the corresponding battery module's fixing-separation mechanism. This allows the scissor-type telescopic ejection assembly to extend under the release action of the elastic energy storage component, sliding the thermally runaway battery module from the chassis to approximately 0.6 meters beyond the vehicle's vertical projection range and towing it behind the vehicle. Figure 17 As shown. The vehicle then slowly came to a stop, and after about 5 seconds, the chassis sprinkler fire suppression system was automatically triggered. The system sprayed ammonium phosphate (Class ABC) dry powder fire extinguishing agent onto the battery module located at the rear of the vehicle through a dry powder spraying device installed on the vehicle chassis (which is connected to the compressed gas energy storage unit through a pipeline) to quickly suppress the fire on the battery module.

[0106] Through the above process, the vehicle can achieve early identification, safety control, separation and emergency fire suppression of abnormal battery modules while in motion, ensuring the safety of the vehicle body and occupants, and reducing the risk of thermal runaway spreading to the entire vehicle structure.

[0107] Example 2: Automatic separation of battery thermal runaway during charging and fire blanket extinguishing.

[0108] In this embodiment, the vehicle is in a stationary charging state in a parking space, with a charging power of approximately 50kW, and connects to a public charging station via the vehicle's charging interface. The vehicle's battery separation system performs real-time health status monitoring on each battery module at a frequency of 20Hz. Each battery module is equipped with: a voltage sensor for acquiring the module terminal voltage, a Hall current sensor for monitoring the charging and discharging current, an NTC temperature sensor for monitoring the module casing temperature, a pressure sensor for detecting abnormal internal pressure or casing rupture trends, a gas sensor for monitoring characteristic gases of venting, and a camera for visually identifying hot spots and abnormal venting. The output signals of each sensor include a unique identifier field (Module-ID) for the corresponding battery module and a sampling timestamp.

[0109] During vehicle charging, the battery module (Module-ID: M12) experienced abnormal self-heating due to an internal fault, accompanied by hydrogen release. The NTC temperature sensor detected that its casing temperature rapidly increased from 35°C to 78°C within 3 seconds, with a temperature rise rate of approximately 14°C / s; the H2 gas sensor detected that the hydrogen concentration rose sharply from a background level below 0.01%vol to 0.12%vol, exceeding the preset risk threshold of 0.08%vol; simultaneously, the onboard camera captured localized smoke and slight hot spot changes on the module's surface. These multi-source signals were independently transmitted to the integrated control unit via the onboard CAN-FD bus. The integrated control unit fused and analyzed the temperature, gas concentration, and visual signal data using the Module-ID and timestamp. After three consecutive sampling cycles (approximately 0.15s) meeting the thermal runaway linkage judgment conditions, a thermal runaway judgment signal was generated.

[0110] Subsequently, the integrated control unit generates a safety event message containing the faulty battery module's Module-ID, temperature, gas concentration, visual recognition results, and risk level, and sends it to the vehicle's main control system. Simultaneously, it reports an emergency alarm to the cloud platform and the user's app via a wireless communication link. Upon receiving the alarm, the vehicle's main control system sends a disconnect command to the Battery Charging Management Unit (BCMU). The BCMU, through its internal High-Voltage Electronic Contactor (HVEC) and relay array, disconnects the vehicle's charging circuit, maintaining the physical connection between the terminals and the charging interface while isolating the vehicle from the external charging source internally. The HVEC employs a combination of fast-response semiconductor or mechanical contacts, with a response time of less than 50ms, ensuring immediate circuit disconnection after thermal runaway is detected. Simultaneously, the BCMU generates a feedback signal, which is transmitted to the vehicle's main control system via the CAN bus to confirm the disconnection status.

[0111] The vehicle's main control system uses onboard high-precision 3D LiDAR, multi-view stereo cameras, and millimeter-wave radar to acquire environmental information about the charging location and identify surrounding obstacles. It confirms the presence of a limit bar at the rear of the vehicle and that the space on the right side is vacant and can be used to release the battery module. Subsequently, the main control system sends a battery separation command to the integrated control unit. The integrated control unit then sends a command to drive the module rotation mechanism to rotate 90°, releasing the battery fixing components and allowing the faulty battery module to be released to a safe area on the right side of the vehicle via a telescopic guide rail.

[0112] The vehicle chassis is equipped with a fire blanket launcher, mounted on a sliding rail mechanism at the rear of the chassis, and can rotate ±180° horizontally via a stepper motor. An integrated control unit controls the stepper motor to rotate the launcher to a target angle (approximately 90° to the right) aligned with the battery module's release direction, subsequently activating the fire blanket propulsion mechanism. This mechanism, via a pneumatic energy storage unit, pushes the fire blanket along the sliding rail. Simultaneously, the fire blanket automatically unfolds using its folding structure, achieving complete coverage of the separated battery module (Module-ID: M12), thus providing localized isolation and fire suppression while preventing smoke and heat from spreading to the vehicle structure.

[0113] Through the above process, the vehicle can achieve early identification of abnormal battery modules, disconnection of charging, safe separation and fire extinguishing with fire blanket while charging, ensuring the safety of the vehicle body, charging equipment and personnel.

[0114] Example 3: Battery module ejection in a battery swapping scenario.

[0115] In this embodiment, the vehicle is parked at the battery swapping station, and the main control system receives the battery swapping task instruction. The vehicle's main control system first acquires information on obstacles around the vehicle and site environment data, confirming that there are no obstacles within approximately 2 meters behind the vehicle and that the battery swapping channel is empty, thus allowing the battery module ejection operation.

[0116] The main control system sends a battery swap execution command to the integrated control unit, including the Module-ID of the battery module to be replaced. The integrated control unit parses the battery swap execution command, sends a command to unlock the corresponding battery module based on the Module-ID, and drives the scissor lift mechanism to extend the module. The battery module is smoothly slid out from the chassis to approximately 0.5m beyond the safe projection range at the rear of the vehicle.

[0117] After the battery module is fully ejected, the battery swapping robotic arm safely removes, replaces, and installs the new battery module. The new battery module is pushed back to the vehicle chassis mounting area by the robotic arm. During the push-back process, the robotic arm detects the contact status between the battery module and the battery fixing assembly through a force feedback sensing module. When the new battery module is correctly positioned and its posture meets the installation accuracy requirements, the robotic arm sends a completion signal to the vehicle's main control system. The main control system sends a locking command to the integrated control unit. Upon receiving the locking command, the integrated control unit controls the locking part of the battery fixing assembly to reset to the locked position, firmly fixing the new battery module in the battery module fixing-disconnecting mechanism. This process can be confirmed by the built-in position sensor of the locking part, ensuring the stability and safety of the battery module during driving and charging / discharging.

[0118] Throughout the battery swapping process, the vehicle's main control system provides users with information on the current operating status through onboard displays and voice prompts, and uploads the battery swapping status information to the cloud management platform via wireless communication links, thus achieving a safe and controllable automatic battery swapping process.

[0119] The vehicle battery separation system provided in this invention, from the perspective of the overall battery pack safety system, breaks away from the traditional design concept of integrating the battery pack with the vehicle, and proposes a new safety design and protection strategy.

[0120] This invention employs multiple battery module fixing-separation mechanisms located in the vehicle chassis mounting area, with each separation mechanism independently controlled by an integrated control unit. This allows each independent battery module to quickly detach from the vehicle's vertical projection range in the event of thermal runaway, effectively blocking the heat propagation path and reducing the harm to the vehicle structure and occupants caused by thermal runaway. Simultaneously, other battery modules can continue to maintain the vehicle's power output. The system utilizes a scissor-type telescopic ejection assembly in conjunction with a sliding rail guide structure, enabling the battery modules to achieve stable linear ejection under the elastic energy release effect. This avoids jamming, collisions, and secondary damage during the separation process, improving the controllability and reliability of the separation process.

[0121] Simultaneously, this invention utilizes the vehicle's main control system to perceive and assess the surrounding environment and execute emergency driving control. This ensures that the vehicle completes path planning and position adjustment only after meeting safety conditions before battery separation, guaranteeing that battery separation occurs only when the surrounding environment is safe, thus improving safety in public road traffic scenarios. Furthermore, this invention achieves automatic electrical disconnection and reconnection through plug-in electrical connectors, improving electrical connection reliability and maintenance convenience. Combined with fire suppression components, it applies fire-extinguishing sprays or fire blankets to the separated battery modules to suppress fire, further enhancing the system's fire safety capabilities.

[0122] In battery swapping scenarios, the integrated control unit of the present invention can unlock and push out the battery module sequentially according to the battery swapping command, and perform a reset lock after the battery replacement is completed, thereby improving the efficiency of battery maintenance and replacement.

[0123] This invention monitors battery status in real time through multiple detection methods, enabling integrated operation of safety management, intelligent decision-making, and automatic execution. It has comprehensive technical advantages, including strong thermal runaway safety protection, reliable action execution, high environmental adaptability, and excellent maintenance efficiency.

[0124] Those skilled in the art will further recognize that the units and algorithm steps of the various examples described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented in electronic hardware, computer software, or a combination of both. To clearly illustrate the interchangeability of hardware and software, the components and steps of the various examples have been generally described in terms of functionality in the foregoing description. Whether these functions are implemented in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementations should not be considered beyond the scope of this invention.

[0125] The steps of the methods or algorithms described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented in hardware, a software module executed by a processor, or a combination of both. The software module can be located in random access memory (RAM), main memory, read-only memory (ROM), electrically programmable ROM, electrically erasable programmable ROM, registers, hard disk, removable disk, CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art.

[0126] The specific embodiments described above further illustrate the purpose, technical solution, and beneficial effects of the present invention. It should be understood that the above description is only a specific embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the scope of protection of the present invention. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A vehicle battery disconnection system, characterized in that, The vehicle battery separation system includes: a separation device and an integrated control unit; The separation device is installed in the mounting area below the chassis of the electric vehicle; The separation device includes multiple battery module fixing-separation mechanisms, each of which is used to mount a group of battery modules; The integrated control unit is electrically and / or communicatively connected to the separation device, and is used to independently control the release or locking of each battery module fixing-separation mechanism according to the detection signal and / or action trigger command, so that the corresponding group of battery modules is separated from the battery module fixing-separation mechanism to an area outside the vertical projection range of the vehicle body or the battery module fixing-separation mechanism is reset to the locked state.

2. The vehicle battery separation system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The battery module fixing-separation mechanism includes: a battery fixing component, a guide component, and a telescopic ejection component; The battery fixing assembly includes a fixed connecting part and an openable and closable locking part; the locking part is hinged to the fixed connecting part via a connecting shaft; the battery fixing assembly controls the locking part to be in a locked position or a released position according to the control command sent by the integrated control unit; The guide assembly includes a first slide rail, a second slide rail, and two sliders disposed in each slide rail; the first slide rail is horizontally disposed on the fixed connection portion, and the second slide rail is horizontally disposed on the battery module; The telescopic extension assembly includes a scissor-type telescopic link and an elastic energy storage component; the scissor-type telescopic link is formed by multiple X-shaped movable rods that are sequentially hinged to each other at their ends, the two ends of the first X-shaped movable rod are fixedly connected to two sliders in the first slide rail, and the two ends of the last X-shaped movable rod are fixedly connected to two sliders in the second slide rail; the two ends of the elastic energy storage component are respectively connected between the two hinged ends of the two connected X-shaped movable rods. When the battery module is in the battery fixing assembly, the elastic energy storage component is in a compressed energy storage state; after the battery module is released from the battery fixing assembly, the scissor-type telescopic linkage mechanism extends along the direction of the vertical slide rail under the elastic release of the elastic energy storage component and the guiding action of the slider and the slide rail, thereby pushing the battery module out of the area outside the vertical projection range of the vehicle body, and maintaining the traction of the battery module through the telescopic push-out component.

3. The vehicle battery separation system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The vehicle battery disconnection system also includes: a rolling support assembly; The rolling support assembly is located below the battery module, so that the battery module can move by rolling friction with the ground after being released from the battery module fixing-separation mechanism. The rolling support assembly is disposed at the bottom of the battery module or on a support member for supporting the battery module.

4. The vehicle battery separation system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The positive and negative terminals of the battery module are detachably connected to the vehicle's electrical system via plug-in electrical connectors, which automatically disconnect the electrical connection when the battery module is disconnected.

5. The vehicle battery separation system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The separation device also includes a rotating mechanism; The battery module fixing-separation mechanism is disposed in the installation area via the rotating mechanism; The rotating mechanism is used to drive the battery module fixing-separation mechanism to rotate in the horizontal plane around the vertical rotation axis, so as to adjust the separation direction of the battery module.

6. The vehicle battery separation system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The step of independently controlling the release of the fixing-separation mechanism of each battery module based on the detection signal specifically includes: The integrated control unit acquires the status parameter information of the battery module and determines whether the battery module has reached the thermal runaway risk threshold based on the status parameter information. When the thermal runaway risk threshold is reached, the integrated control unit sends an alarm message and a battery module separation request command to the vehicle main control system. The vehicle main control system acquires information about the vehicle's surrounding environment and determines whether the preset safety separation conditions are met. When the vehicle main control system determines that the safety separation condition is met, the vehicle main control system sends a separation permission command to the integrated control unit; The integrated control unit generates a control command based on the separation permission command, and controls the battery module fixing-separation mechanism corresponding to the battery module to release the battery module. Specifically, after the integrated control unit sends an alarm message to the vehicle's main control system, the vehicle's main control system activates an emergency handling mode; activating the emergency handling mode specifically includes: Switching to safe automatic driving or safe assisted driving mode, controlling the vehicle's drive system to decelerate, and controlling the activation of the hazard warning system to send warning signals to the outside of the vehicle; and / or, The vehicle communication module sends risk warning commands to the in-vehicle human-machine interface system and sends abnormal vehicle status information to external service platforms; and / or, The vehicle's environmental perception system is activated to collect information about the vehicle's surrounding environment. The vehicle's main control system identifies and avoids obstacles based on this information, and generates a safe separation driving path for the battery module by combining the vehicle's navigation map data and real-time road traffic information. The system then controls the vehicle's drive system, braking system, and steering system to make the vehicle travel along the safe separation driving path.

7. The vehicle battery disconnection system according to claim 1 or 6, characterized in that, The vehicle battery separation system also includes a detection unit; The detection unit is used to detect the operating status of each group of battery modules in real time or at regular intervals, and to feed back the detected status parameter information to the integrated control unit. Specifically, the detection unit detects the operating status of the battery module as follows: The detection unit performs one or more of the following detections on the battery module: remaining capacity detection, voltage detection, current detection, temperature detection, appearance deformation detection, damage status detection, mass change detection, ambient gas composition detection, smoke concentration detection, or thermal imaging detection.

8. The vehicle battery separation system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The vehicle battery separation system also includes a fire suppression component for suppressing fire in the battery module after it has been separated. The fire suppression components include: a fire sprinkler system and / or a fire blanket launching system; The fire suppression component is electrically and / or communicatively connected to the integrated control unit. When the integrated control unit determines that the battery module fixing-separation mechanism has been released, it sends a fire suppression action command to the fire suppression component, causing the fire suppression component to activate the fire extinguishing sprinkler to extinguish the fire on the battery module and / or launch a fire blanket to cover and suppress the fire on the battery module.

9. The vehicle battery separation system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The independent control of the release or locking of the fixing-separation mechanism of each battery module according to the action trigger command specifically includes: The integrated control unit is also used to control the battery module fixing-separation mechanism to unlock and push out the battery modules to be replaced in sequence when a battery replacement command is received, so that a corresponding group of battery modules are separated from the battery module fixing-separation mechanism to an area outside the vertical projection range of the vehicle body for battery module replacement. The integrated control unit is also used to reset to the locked state when a lock reset command is received, so as to fix the replaced battery module in the battery module fixing-separation mechanism.

10. A vehicle battery separation method based on the vehicle battery separation system according to any one of claims 1-9, characterized in that, The vehicle battery separation method includes: Obtain the status parameter information of each battery module in the vehicle; Based on the state parameter information, determine whether each group of battery modules has reached the thermal runaway risk threshold; When a group of battery modules is determined to have reached the thermal runaway risk threshold, an alarm message and a battery module separation request instruction are sent to the vehicle's main control system. The vehicle main control system acquires information about the vehicle's surrounding environment and determines whether the preset safety separation conditions are met. When the safety separation conditions are met, the vehicle main control system sends a separation permission command to the integrated control unit; The integrated control unit generates control commands based on the separation permission command, controls the separation device corresponding to the group of battery modules to release the battery modules, so that the battery modules are separated from the separation device to an area outside the vertical projection range of the vehicle body, and maintains traction on the battery modules; After the battery module is separated, the integrated control unit activates the fire suppression component to suppress fire on the battery module.

Images