Battery pack

Abstract

The utility model provides a battery pack which is provided with a structure that a load acting on a vehicle body from the outside is not easily transmitted to a battery module. The utility model relates to a battery pack which is provided with one or more battery modules and a battery pack shell. The battery pack case accommodates one or more battery modules. The battery pack case includes: a frame-shaped skeleton structure forming a skeleton that disperses a load acting on the battery pack case; and a connection part fixed to the main body of the battery pack case on the outside of the skeleton structure. The main body of the battery pack case is attached to the vehicle body via a connecting part. Each of the one or more battery modules is fixed to the pack case via a bracket on the inside of the skeleton structure. The bracket is not connected to the skeleton structure.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model relates to a battery pack mounted on a vehicle. Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a vehicle equipped with a battery pack.

[0003] Patent Document 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2022-137830 Summary of the Utility Model

[0004] Regarding the battery pack mounted on a vehicle, there are the following technical problems: It is required that the battery pack has a structure in which the load acting on the vehicle body from the outside is not easily transmitted to the battery modules inside the battery pack.

[0005] The present utility model is completed to solve such technical problems, and the purpose is to provide a battery pack having a structure in which the load acting on the vehicle body from the outside is not easily transmitted to the battery modules.

[0006] The first aspect of the present utility model is a battery pack, which includes one or more battery modules and a battery pack housing that houses the one or more battery modules. The battery pack housing includes: a frame-shaped skeleton structure that forms a skeleton for dispersing the load acting on the battery pack housing; and a connecting portion that is fixed to the main body of the battery pack housing outside the skeleton structure. The main body of the battery pack housing is mounted on the vehicle body via the connecting portion. Each of the one or more battery modules is fixed to the battery pack housing via a bracket inside the skeleton structure, and the bracket is not connected to the skeleton structure.

[0007] The second aspect of the present utility model is that in the battery pack of the first aspect, the one or more battery modules include a first battery module and a second battery module; one end of the first battery module in the length direction is connected to one end of the second battery module in the length direction; the other end of the first battery module in the length direction is fixed to the battery pack housing via the bracket, and the other end of the second battery module in the length direction is fixed to the battery pack housing via the bracket.

[0008] The third aspect of the present utility model is that in the battery pack of the second aspect, the length direction is parallel to the left-right direction of the vehicle having the vehicle body. With respect to the members located at both ends in the left-right direction of the skeleton structure, the first battery module and the second battery module are arranged closer to the inside in the left-right direction.

[0009] According to the battery pack of the present utility model, a structure in which the load acting on the vehicle body from the outside is not easily transmitted to the battery modules can be realized. Brief Description of the Drawings

[0010] Figure 1 is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of the battery pack according to the embodiment.

[0011] Figure 2 is Figure 1 a sectional view taken along line A-A of

[0012] Figure 3 is a perspective view for explaining the connection structure between battery modules in the length direction D1. Detailed Embodiment

[0013] Figure 1 is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of the battery pack 1 according to the embodiment. Figure 1 In the directions shown, "FR" corresponds to the front of the vehicle on which the battery pack 1 is mounted. "RH" corresponds to the right side of the vehicle. Figure 1 represents the internal structure of the battery pack 1 when viewed from above the vehicle ( Figure 2 the "UPR" direction shown).

[0014] The battery pack 1 includes a plurality of battery modules 10 and a battery pack housing 20. The plurality of battery modules 10 each have a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape and include a plurality of battery cells stacked along the length direction D1 of the battery module 10. The battery pack housing 20 includes a lower housing 21 and an upper housing 22 (see Figure 2 ), and houses the plurality of battery modules 10. In Figure 1 the illustration of the upper housing 22 is omitted. In addition, the number of battery modules 10 housed in the battery pack 1 is basically a plurality, but may also be one.

[0015] The battery pack housing 20 is mounted on the vehicle body 100. Specifically, the battery pack housing 20 includes a frame-shaped skeleton structure 23 and a connecting portion 24. The skeleton structure 23 forms a skeleton for dispersing the load acting on the battery pack housing 20. The connecting portion 24 is fixed to the main body 25 of the battery pack housing 20 outside the frame-shaped skeleton structure 23. That is, the main body 25 is mounted on the vehicle body 100 via the connecting portion 24. As an example, the lower housing 21 is mounted on the vehicle body 100 under the vehicle floor via the connecting portion 24. In addition, the connecting portion 24 is made of, for example, an energy absorption (EA: Energy Absorption) material. The energy absorption material has a structure for absorbing the impact acting on the battery pack 1 from the outside via the vehicle body 100.

[0016] Inside the battery pack housing 20, the plurality of battery modules 10 are arranged and disposed along the arrangement direction D2. As shown in Figure 1When looking down on the battery pack 1 from above as shown, the arrangement direction D2 is a direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction D1 of each of the plurality of battery modules 10. Further, in this example, in each column of the battery modules 10, as will be described in detail later, two battery modules 10 are arranged in a state of being connected along the longitudinal direction D1. Further, in this example, the longitudinal direction D1 is parallel to the left-right direction (vehicle width direction) of the vehicle, and the arrangement direction D2 is parallel to the front-rear direction of the vehicle.

[0017] The frame structure 23 includes side reinforcements 26 and cross members 27. The side reinforcements 26 and the cross members 27 are mounted on the main body 25 of the lower housing 21 so as to surround the plurality of battery modules 10. More specifically, as Figure 1 shown, the side reinforcements 26 are respectively disposed outside the ends of the battery modules 10 in the longitudinal direction D1 and extend along the arrangement direction D2 (front-rear direction of the vehicle). Further, the cross members 27 are respectively disposed in the spaces between two adjacent battery modules 10 in the arrangement direction D2 and extend along the longitudinal direction D1. And both ends of each cross member 27 are respectively connected to the two side reinforcements 26.

[0018] The battery pack housing 20 has a frame structure 23 including the side reinforcements 26 and the cross members 27 formed in this way, and the frame structure 23 serves as a load dispersion frame for dispersing the load acting on the battery pack housing 20 from the outside. In Figure 1 , the state in which the load generated by the external input from the left-right direction of the vehicle acts on the frame structure 23 from the connection portion 24 is shown by arrows. The length of the arrow shown on each cross member 27 is proportional to the magnitude of the load acting on each cross member 27. Thus, according to the frame structure 23, the load acting on the battery pack 1 can be dispersed so that the load does not concentrate on a specific portion.

[0019] And the battery pack 1 has brackets 28 for fixing the plurality of battery modules 10 to the battery pack housing 20 respectively. Hereinafter, with reference to Figure 1 and Figure 2 , the fixing structure of the battery module 10 using the brackets 28 will be described. Figure 2 is Figure 1 the A-A sectional view of.

[0020] For example, one bracket 28 is provided for one battery module 10. As Figure 1 shown, each bracket 28 is disposed inside the frame-shaped frame structure 23 (more specifically, inside the side reinforcement 26). Each bracket 28 is fixed to the main body 25 of the lower housing 21 by a fixing method such as welding. And each battery module 10 is fixed to the battery pack housing 20 (lower housing 21) via the bracket 28 inside the frame structure 23. That is, the bracket 28 is not connected to the frame structure 23.

[0021] More specifically, as Figure 1 shown, each battery module 10 has a fixing portion 11 joined to the bracket 28 at the end in the longitudinal direction D1. The fixing portion 11 of each battery module 10 is fixed to the bracket 28 by fastening with a fastener 29 such as a bolt and a nut (refer to Figure 2 ). As Figure 2 shown, this fastening is performed using the lower surface of the bracket 28. In addition, in Figure 1 the example shown, two fixing portions 11 are provided at one end of one battery module 10. As an example, these two fixing portions 11 are formed on a fixing member 13 that is separate from the housing main body 12 of the battery module 10 and is mounted on the housing main body 12. In addition, in Figure 1 , in order to be able to illustrate the bracket 28, the fixing member 13 is only illustratively shown at one place, but the same setting is also made for other brackets 28.

[0022] Figure 3 FIG. is a perspective view for explaining the connection structure between the battery modules 10 in the longitudinal direction D1. Here, for convenience of explanation, two battery modules 10 adjacent to each other in the longitudinal direction D1 in each column in the arrangement direction D2 are referred to as the first battery module 10A and the second battery module 10B. As Figure 3 shown, one end of the first battery module 10A in the longitudinal direction D1 is connected to one end of the second battery module 10B in the longitudinal direction D1.

[0023] Specifically, in Figure 3 the example shown, the above connection is performed using a pair of connection members 30A and 30B. The connection member 30A is fixed to the above-mentioned one end of the first battery module 10A, and the connection member 30B is fixed to the above-mentioned one end of the second battery module 10B. As Figure 3 shown, the connection member 30A and the connection member 30B have mutually different shapes. In other words, the connection member 30A and the connection member 30B have the same outer shape and are fixed to the first battery module 10A and the second battery module 10B respectively with opposite up-and-down orientations. The connection member 30A and the connection member 30B are fixed using fasteners (not shown) for example. According to such a configuration, the first battery module 10A and the second battery module 10B can be connected while effectively shortening the length in the longitudinal direction D1.

[0024] The first battery module 10A and the second battery module 10B connected as described above are fixed to the battery pack housing 20 as follows. That is, as Figure 1As shown, one end of a battery module 10 (the first battery module 10A) in the longitudinal direction D1 is fixed to the battery pack housing 20 (the lower housing 21) via a bracket 28. Similarly, one end of another battery module 10 (the second battery module 10B) in the longitudinal direction D1 is fixed to the battery pack housing 20 (the lower housing 21) via a bracket 28.

[0025] Moreover, in the battery pack 1 configured as described above, the first battery module 10A and the second battery module 10B are arranged closer to the inner side in the vehicle left - right direction with respect to the members (i.e., the side reinforcements 26) located at both ends in the longitudinal direction D1 (the vehicle left - right direction) of the frame structure 23. In other words, the first battery module 10A and the second battery module 10B are arranged closer to the center of the battery pack 1 in the vehicle left - right direction.

[0026] According to the battery pack 1 according to the present embodiment, each battery module 10 is fixed to the battery pack housing 20 (for example, the main body 25 of the lower housing 21) via a bracket 28 inside the frame structure 23. Moreover, the bracket 28 is not connected to the frame structure 23 (the side reinforcements 26 and the cross - beam 27). That is, the bracket 28 is separated from the load transfer path (loading path) from the vehicle body 100. Therefore, compared with the first comparative example in which the battery module 10 is fixed to the frame structure 23 via a bracket, it is possible to make the load transmitted from the vehicle body 100 to the frame structure 23 less likely to be transmitted to each battery module 10.

[0027] In addition, according to the battery pack 1 according to the present embodiment, two battery modules 10 (the first battery module 10A and the second battery module 10B) are connected along the longitudinal direction D1. Thus, compared with the second comparative example in which a gap is provided between these two battery modules 10 and the two are respectively fixed to the battery pack housing 20, it is possible to arrange the two battery modules 10 along the longitudinal direction D1 while shortening the length in the longitudinal direction D1. As a result, it is possible to shorten the total length of the two battery modules 10 well while maintaining the number of battery cells in each battery module 10.

[0028] In addition, for a battery pack mounted on a vehicle, it is required to ensure the mounting amount of battery cells while absorbing collision energy (i.e., while suppressing the input to the battery modules in the battery pack) when a load acts on the vehicle body from the outside. More specifically, in a vehicle, the battery pack is generally mounted under the floor of the vehicle, and the battery pack 1 is also the same. And generally, like the passenger compartment space, under the floor is a place where it is easy to protect the battery pack from collisions from the front or rear but has a weak effect on side collisions. Therefore, for the battery pack, it is required to be able to absorb side collision energy and protect the battery cells. To absorb side collision energy, it is necessary to ensure a long collision stroke. However, ensuring the collision stroke itself is related to a reduction in the mounting amount of battery cells, that is, a decrease in the cruising range. Regarding this point, according to the battery pack 1 according to the present embodiment, the first battery module 10A and the second battery module 10B are connected as described above. As a result, compared with the above-described second comparative example, the first battery module 10A and the second battery module 10B can be arranged closer to the inside in the vehicle left-right direction with respect to the members (side reinforcement members 26) located at both ends in the vehicle left-right direction of the frame structure 23 while maintaining the mounting amount of battery cells. This means that the collision stroke can be ensured well while maintaining the number of battery cells in each battery module 10 (refer to Figure 2 ). Therefore, it is possible to provide a battery pack 1 having a structure capable of absorbing side collision energy and ensuring the mounting amount of battery cells well.

Claims

1. A battery pack, characterized in that: A battery pack having one or more battery modules and a battery pack case accommodating the one or more battery modules. The battery pack housing comprises: a frame-shaped skeleton structure that forms a skeleton for dispersing a load acting on the battery pack case; and a connecting portion fixed to the main body of the battery pack case on the outside of the skeleton structure, The main body of the battery pack case is mounted on the vehicle body via the connecting portion, Each of the one or more battery modules is fixed to the battery pack case via a bracket inside the frame structure. The bracket is not connected to the skeleton structure.

2. The battery pack according to claim 1, characterized in that: The one or more battery modules include a first battery module and a second battery module; One end of the first battery module in the length direction is connected to one end of the second battery module in the length direction; The other end of the first battery module in the longitudinal direction is fixed to the battery pack case via the bracket, and the other end of the second battery module in the longitudinal direction is fixed to the battery pack case via the bracket.

3. The battery pack according to claim 2, characterized in that: The longitudinal direction is parallel to the left-right direction of the vehicle having the vehicle body, The first battery module and the second battery module are arranged on the inner side in the left-right direction with respect to the members located at both ends of the skeleton structure in the left-right direction.

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