Battery clamp and battery safety test system

Abstract

The battery clamp provided by the utility model comprises the first clamping plate and the second clamping plate, the first clamping plate and the second clamping plate are oppositely arranged, the accommodating space is defined between the first clamping plate and the second clamping plate, and the strain sensor is arranged in the accommodating space; and the strain sensor can collect stress data of each point location of the stress part of the battery. Thus, when the battery is clamped and fixed, the clamping force of the clamp can be adjusted according to the stress data collected by the strain sensor, and it is ensured that the battery is in a stress balance state when the battery is clamped and fixed. Besides, in the safety test process, the strain sensor can continuously collect stress data, so that the expansion force value corresponding to each point position of the battery can be calculated through the stress data, collected in the test, of each point position of the battery, and data reference is provided for battery and module design.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of batteries, in particular to a battery clamp and a battery safety test system. BACKGROUND

[0002] Before being shipped, batteries need to be tested for safety, such as electrical safety testing, thermal safety testing, etc. A battery clamp is a tool for fixing a battery. Before testing, the battery is fixed by the battery clamp, so as to facilitate the testing of the battery.

[0003] The existing battery clamp has the problem of unbalanced stress on the battery when clamping the battery. In addition, the battery may swell during testing, generating a large swelling force that exacerbates the unbalanced problem, easily causing the battery to tear, and in severe cases, even causing a fire or explosion, resulting in testing failure and a large safety hazard. CONTENT OF THE UTILITY MODEL

[0004] To solve the problem of unbalanced stress on the battery when clamped, the present application provides a battery clamp and a battery safety test system.

[0005] The first aspect of the present application provides a battery clamp, comprising:

[0006] a first clamping plate;

[0007] a second clamping plate, oppositely arranged with the first clamping plate, the first clamping plate and the second clamping plate defining a receiving space therebetween;

[0008] a fixing assembly connecting the first clamping plate and the second clamping plate;

[0009] a strain sensor arranged in the receiving space, the strain sensor collecting stress data of each point of the stress position of the battery when the strain sensor and the battery are clamped together in the receiving space.

[0010] Optionally, the strain sensor comprises an insulating protective layer and a sensing material layer, the insulating protective layer being arranged outside the sensing material layer.

[0011] Optionally, the insulating protective layer comprises a first protective layer and a second protective layer, and the sensing material layer comprises a first sensing layer and a second sensing layer, the first protective layer, the first sensing layer, the second sensing layer and the second protective layer being arranged in sequence.

[0012] Optionally, the strain sensor further comprises an elastic member, the first protective layer has a first edge region not bonded with the first sensing layer, the second protective layer has a second edge region not bonded with the second sensing layer, the elastic member is connected between the first edge region and the second edge region, and the elastic member is in a stretched state.

[0013] Optionally, the elastic member is arranged at each of the four corners of the first protective layer and the second protective layer.

[0014] Optionally, the sensing material layer comprises an anisotropic metal nano-composite material.

[0015] Optionally, the battery clamp further comprises an insulating contact plate arranged between the strain sensor and the battery.

[0016] Optionally, the fixing assembly comprises a bolt and a screw hole, the first clamping plate and the second clamping plate are both provided with the screw hole, and the first clamping plate and the second clamping plate are connected by the bolt threaded in the screw hole.

[0017] Optionally, the battery clamp is used for clamping a square battery, the square battery has two plate surfaces perpendicular to the thickness direction of the square battery, and the plate surfaces are the force receiving parts of the battery when the battery is clamped in the accommodation space.

[0018] The second aspect of the application provides a battery safety test system, comprising:

[0019] The battery clamp of the first aspect;

[0020] A host computer is in communication connection with the strain sensor in the battery clamp to obtain the force data of each point of the force receiving part of the battery collected by the strain sensor.

[0021] The application has the following advantages and beneficial effects:

[0022] The battery clamp provided by the application comprises a first clamping plate and a second clamping plate, the first clamping plate and the second clamping plate are oppositely arranged, a receiving space is defined between the first clamping plate and the second clamping plate, and a strain sensor is arranged in the receiving space, and when the strain sensor and a battery are clamped together in the receiving space, the strain sensor can collect stress data of each point of a stress part of the battery. In this way, when the battery is clamped and fixed, the clamping force of the clamp can be adjusted according to the stress data collected by the strain sensor, so that the battery can be ensured to be in a stress balance state when clamped and fixed, thereby avoiding test failure caused by unbalanced stress of the battery and reducing safety hazards in the test process. In addition, the strain sensor can continuously collect stress data during the safety test, so that the expansion force values corresponding to each point of the battery can be calculated through the stress data of each point of the battery collected during the test, thereby providing data reference for battery and module design. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0023] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical scheme of the embodiments of the present application, the drawings needed in the embodiments will be briefly introduced as follows. It should be understood that the following drawings only show some embodiments of the present application, and therefore should not be regarded as a limitation on the scope. For those skilled in the art, other related drawings can also be obtained without creative labor on the basis of these drawings.

[0024] Figure 1 The structural schematic diagram of the battery clamp provided by an embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0025] Figure 2 The structural schematic diagram of the battery clamp provided by another embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0026] Figure 3 The structural schematic diagram of the strain sensor provided by an embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0027] Figure 4 The structural block diagram of the battery safety test system provided by an embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0028] Legend: first clamping plate 110, second clamping plate 120, strain sensor 130, first protective layer 131, first sensing layer 132, second sensing layer 133, second protective layer 134, elastic member 135, insulating contact plate 140, bolt 150, screw hole 160, upper computer 200, battery 300. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0029] In order to make the purpose, technical scheme and advantages of the embodiments of the present application clearer, the technical scheme of the embodiments of the present application will be described clearly and completely below in conjunction with the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are some but not all of the embodiments of the present application. The components of the embodiments of the present application described and shown in the drawings herein can be arranged and designed in various different configurations.

[0030] Therefore, the following detailed description of the embodiments of the present application provided in the drawings is not intended to limit the scope of the claimed present application, but only represents selected embodiments of the present application. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative labor fall within the scope of protection of the present application.

[0031] It should be noted that: similar reference numbers and letters represent similar items in the following drawings, therefore, once an item is defined in one drawing, it does not need to be further defined and explained in subsequent drawings.

[0032] In the description of the present application, it should be noted that the orientations or positional relationships indicated by the terms "center", "upper", "lower", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal" and the like are based on the orientations or positional relationships shown in the drawings, or the orientations or positional relationships in which the product of the present application is usually placed during use, and are only for the convenience of describing the present application and simplifying the description, and therefore cannot be understood as indicating or implying that the indicated device or element must have a particular orientation, be constructed and operated in a particular orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as limiting the present application. In addition, the terms "first", "second", "third" and the like are only used for differentiation in description, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance.

[0033] In the description of the present application, it should also be noted that, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "provided", "connected" should be understood broadly, for example, can be fixedly connected, can be detachably connected, or integrally connected; can be mechanically connected, can be electrically connected; can be directly connected, can be indirectly connected through an intermediate medium, can be connected inside two elements. For those of ordinary skill in the art, the specific meaning of the above terms in the present application can be understood according to the specific circumstances.

[0034] Traditional battery clamps use two hard steel plates and two side bolts to clamp and fix the battery. However, as mentioned above, this battery clamp is very rough in clamping the battery, and the clamping force on the battery can only be adjusted by the experience of the operator, which can easily cause the battery to be unbalanced. Moreover, during the test process, the battery is prone to swelling, and the swelling force will further exacerbate the imbalance problem, which can easily cause the battery to tear, and even cause fire and explosion, causing great safety hazards and invalidating the test. Especially for square batteries, the two plate surfaces perpendicular to the thickness direction of the square battery have a large area, and when clamped and fixed, the two plate surfaces are in contact with the two hard steel plates and are squeezed by the two hard steel plates. At this time, the center and edge of the two plate surfaces will have more obvious force imbalance problems.

[0035] To this end, the present application provides a battery clamp to solve the problem of force imbalance of the battery 300 when clamped and fixed.

[0036] For this purpose, Figure 1 , Figure 1 The structural diagram of the battery clamp provided by an embodiment of the present application is shown. In this embodiment, the battery clamp can include a first clamping plate 110 and a second clamping plate 120. The first clamping plate 110 and the second clamping plate 120 can be completely identical plate members, for example, hard steel plates with the same material, shape, and size. Of course, in other embodiments, the first clamping plate 110 and the second clamping plate 120 can not be completely identical. The first clamping plate 110 and the second clamping plate 120 are oppositely arranged, and when clamping the battery 300, the first clamping plate 110 and the second clamping plate 120 can be parallel to each other. The first clamping plate 110 and the second clamping plate 120 define a receiving space therebetween, which can at least receive the battery 300.

[0037] The battery clamp comprises a fixing assembly which can connect the first clamp plate 110 and the second clamp plate 120. The fixing assembly can have various embodiments. In an embodiment, the fixing assembly can comprise bolts 150 and screw holes 160. Specifically, screw holes 160 can be formed on the first clamp plate 110 and the second clamp plate 120, and the first clamp plate 110 and the second clamp plate 120 can be connected by inserting bolts 150 into the screw holes 160 of the first clamp plate 110 and the second clamp plate 120. For example, four screw holes 160 can be arranged at the four corners of the first clamp plate 110, and four screw holes 160 can also be arranged at the four corners of the second clamp plate 120. The screw holes 160 on the first clamp plate 110 correspond to the screw holes 160 on the second clamp plate 120. In this way, when clamping, four bolts 150 can be inserted into the corresponding screw holes 160 of the first clamp plate 110 and the second clamp plate 120, respectively, so that the first clamp plate 110 and the second clamp plate 120 can be locked and fixed by the bolts 150. The first clamp plate 110 and the second clamp plate 120 can provide clamping force to the battery 300 in the accommodation space, thereby achieving clamping and fixing of the battery 300. Of course, in other examples, six bolts 150 and a corresponding number of screw holes 160 can be arranged to fix the first clamp plate 110 and the second clamp plate 120, so as to adapt to the size of the clamp plate and facilitate adjustment of the clamping force. Similarly, eight bolts 150 and a corresponding number of screw holes 160 can also be arranged, and the present application does not limit this.

[0038] In an embodiment, the fixing assembly can comprise a base, two opposite support plates arranged on the base, a sliding assembly arranged on the support plates, and a buckling assembly for connecting the first clamp plate 110 and the second clamp plate 120. The first clamp plate 110 can be fixed on the base, and the two sides of the second clamp plate 120 are connected with the sliding assemblies of the two support plates, so that the second clamp plate 120 can slide up and down through the sliding assemblies. In this embodiment, when clamping and fixing the battery 300, the battery 300 can be placed on the first clamp plate 110, and then the second clamp plate 120 is adjusted so that the second clamp plate 120 slides downward to a position capable of abutting the battery 300, and then the first clamp plate 110 and the second clamp plate 120 are buckled and fixed by the buckling assembly. There are other embodiments of the fixing assembly, which will not be listed one by one.

[0039] The battery clamp also includes a strain sensor 130, which is a sensor that measures the strain generated by the deformation of an object under force. The strain sensor 130 can be disposed in the receiving space between the first clamping plate 110 and the second clamping plate 120. When clamping and fixing the battery 300, the strain sensor 130 and the battery 300 can be disposed together in the receiving space. In this way, the strain sensor 130 and the battery 300 will be clamped together by the first clamping plate 110 and the second clamping plate 120, so that the strain sensor 130 can collect the force data at various points of the force-bearing parts of the battery 300.

[0040] The battery clamp provided in this embodiment includes a first clamping plate 110 and a second clamping plate 120, which are arranged opposite to each other, defining a receiving space. A strain gauge sensor 130 is disposed in this receiving space. When the strain gauge sensor 130 and the battery 300 are clamped together in this receiving space, the strain gauge sensor 130 can collect force data at various points on the force-bearing parts of the battery 300. Thus, when clamping and fixing the battery 300, the clamping force of the clamp can be adjusted according to the force data collected by the strain gauge sensor 130, ensuring that the battery 300 is in a state of force balance when clamped and fixed, thereby avoiding test failure due to force imbalance of the battery 300 and reducing safety hazards during the testing process. In addition, during the safety test, the strain sensor 130 can continuously collect force data, thereby calculating the expansion force value corresponding to each point of the battery 300 through the force data collected at each point of the battery 300 during the test, providing data reference for the design of the battery 300 and the module.

[0041] See also Figure 2 , Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of a battery clamp according to another embodiment of this application. In this embodiment, to prevent damage to the strain gauge sensor 130, which is in direct contact with the battery 300, due to a malfunction in the battery 300 during testing, the battery clamp may include an insulating contact plate 140. The insulating contact plate 140 may be made of insulating material and may be disposed between the strain gauge sensor 130 and the battery 300, so that the strain gauge sensor 130 and the battery 300 do not directly contact each other. In the event of a short circuit or other malfunction in the battery 300, the strain gauge sensor 130 will not be damaged, thus providing protection for the strain gauge sensor 130.

[0042] In an embodiment, the strain sensor 130 can include an insulating protective layer and a sensing material layer. The insulating protective layer can be arranged outside the sensing material layer, for example, can substantially cover the sensing material layer, thereby providing protection for the sensing material layer. The sensing material layer is a core component for realizing the function of the strain sensor 130, and the sensing material can have multiple choices. For example, in an embodiment, the sensing material layer can use an anisotropic metal nano-composite material.

[0043] Reference can be made to Figure 3 , Figure 3 A structural schematic diagram of the strain sensor 130 provided in an embodiment of the present application is shown in FIG. 1. In an embodiment, the insulating protective layer can include a first protective layer 131 and a second protective layer 134, and the sensing material layer can include a first sensing layer 132 and a second sensing layer 133. The first protective layer 131, the first sensing layer 132, the second sensing layer 133, and the second protective layer 134 are sequentially stacked, so that the first sensing layer 132 and the second sensing layer 133 are protected in the interlayer between the first protective layer 131 and the second protective layer 134. In a specific implementation, the first sensing layer 132 can be attached to the first protective layer 131, and the second sensing layer 133 can be attached to the second protective layer 134. Then, the side of the first sensing layer 132 away from the first protective layer 131 and the side of the second sensing layer 133 away from the second protective layer 134 are attached, thereby forming the four-layer stacked structure as described above. It can be understood that, in an example, the first protective layer 131 and the second protective layer 134 can be plate-shaped structures with the same size, thickness, and material, and the first sensing layer 132 and the second sensing layer 133 can also be plate-shaped structures with the same size, thickness, and material.

[0044] In an embodiment, the elastic member 135 can be arranged between the first protective layer 131 and the second protective layer 134. Specifically, the area of the first protective layer 131 is larger than the area of the first sensing layer 132, and the area of the second protective layer 134 is also larger than the area of the second sensing layer 133. The first protective layer 131, the first sensing layer 132, the second sensing layer 133, and the second protective layer 134 are arranged in a stack with opposite centers, i.e., the centers of the four layers are located on the same straight line. Since the area of the first protective layer 131 is larger than the area of the first sensing layer 132, a part of the first protective layer 131 is not attached to the first sensing layer 132, and this part forms a first edge region of the first protective layer 131. Correspondingly, since the area of the second protective layer 134 is larger than the area of the second sensing layer 133, a part of the second protective layer 134 is not attached to the second sensing layer 133, and this part forms a second edge region of the second protective layer 134. The first edge region is opposite to the second edge region, and the elastic member 135 is arranged between the first edge region and the second edge region, and the elastic member 135 is in a stretched state. In this embodiment, by arranging the elastic member 135 in a stretched state between the first protective layer 131 and the second protective layer 134, the first protective layer 131 and the second protective layer 134 can be pulled closer to each other under the tension provided by the elastic member 135, and the first sensing layer 132 and the second sensing layer 133 in the middle are clamped, so that the first sensing layer 132 and the second sensing layer 133 can be in good contact, achieving the effect of good contact of the components inside the sensor, and improving the reliability of the sensor.

[0045] It can be understood that, in order to make the components inside the sensor contact more evenly, in an embodiment, the number of elastic members 135 can be set to multiple, for example, elastic members 135 can be arranged at the four corners of the first protective layer 131 and the second protective layer 134, and the four elastic members 135 jointly pull the first protective layer 131 and the second protective layer 134 closer, so that the first sensing layer 132 and the second sensing layer 133 clamped in the middle are better attached, ensuring reliable collection of force data.

[0046] The battery 300 has a square battery 300, a soft package battery 300, and a cylindrical battery 300. In an embodiment, the battery clamp can be used to clamp the square battery 300, and the square battery 300 has two plate surfaces perpendicular to the thickness direction of the square battery 300, which are the large surfaces of the battery 300. When the battery 300 is clamped in the accommodation space, the plate surface of the battery 300 is in direct or indirect contact with the first clamp plate 110 or the second clamp plate 120, and the force receiving part of the battery 300 is the plate surface. The strain sensor 130 clamped in the accommodation space together with the battery 300 can collect force data of each point of the plate surface of the battery 300.

[0047] The battery clamp provided by the embodiment comprises a first clamping plate 110 and a second clamping plate 120, the first clamping plate 110 and the second clamping plate 120 are oppositely arranged, a receiving space is defined between the first clamping plate 110 and the second clamping plate 120, and a strain sensor 130 is arranged in the receiving space. When the strain sensor 130 and the battery 300 are clamped in the receiving space together, the strain sensor 130 can collect stress data of each point of the stress part of the battery 300. In this way, when the battery 300 is clamped and fixed, the clamping force of the clamp can be adjusted according to the stress data collected by the strain sensor 130, so that the battery 300 can be ensured to be in a stress balance state when clamped and fixed, thereby avoiding test failure caused by unbalanced stress of the battery 300, and reducing the safety hidden danger in the test process. In addition, during the safety test process, the strain sensor 130 can also continuously collect stress data, so that the expansion force values corresponding to each point of the battery 300 can be calculated through the stress data of each point of the battery 300 collected in the test, thereby providing data reference for the design of the battery 300 and the module.

[0048] The application also provides a battery safety test system. For more details, please refer to Figure 4 , Figure 4 is a structural block diagram of a battery safety test system provided by an embodiment of the application. The battery safety test system comprises a battery clamp and a host computer 200. The battery clamp is the battery clamp described in the foregoing embodiments, and will not be described here. The host computer 200 can be specifically an intelligent terminal, an intelligent host, a computer, a notebook, a server or the like, which is in communication connection with the strain sensor 130 in the battery clamp, so as to obtain the stress data of each point of the stress part of the battery 300 collected by the strain sensor 130. Here, for example, the host computer 200 and the strain sensor 130 can be connected through a data transmission line, so that the host computer 200 can communicate with the strain sensor 130. Of course, in other examples, the host computer 200 and the strain sensor 130 can also adopt a wireless communication mode.

[0049] In an embodiment, the actual use of the battery clamp is as follows: before the battery 300 safety test, the strain sensor 130, the insulating contact plate 140 and the battery 300 to be tested are placed in the accommodation space between the first clamp plate 110 and the second clamp plate 120, wherein the insulating contact plate 140 is arranged between the strain sensor 130 and the battery 300 to provide protection for the strain sensor 130. Adjust the fixing assembly, that is, adjust the plurality of bolts 150 penetrating the first clamp plate 110 and the second clamp plate 120, so that the first clamp plate 110 and the second clamp plate 120 provide clamping force to the components in the accommodation space. During the adjustment, the operator can observe the force data of each point on the battery 300 panel collected by the strain sensor 130 through the display device of the upper computer 200, and adjust the clamping force until the force of each point on the battery 300 panel reaches the required value and is basically consistent. In this way, the fixing of the battery 300 is completed, there is no problem of unbalanced force, and the battery 300 safety test can be performed. During the test, the operator can still obtain the force data of each point of the battery 300 collected by the strain, and can calculate the specific expansion force values of different orientations generated by different positions on the battery 300 panel according to the change trend of the force data, thereby providing a maximum expansion force value reference for the battery 300 module design.

[0050] The technical features provided in the above embodiments can be combined by those skilled in the art according to actual conditions without conflict or contradiction, thereby forming various different embodiments. However, due to the limited length of the present application, various different embodiments are not described, but it can be understood that various different embodiments also belong to the scope of the embodiments disclosed in the present application.

[0051] The above embodiments only express several embodiments of the present application, and the description is more specific and detailed, but it should not be understood as a limitation on the scope of the patent application. It should be pointed out that for ordinary skilled in the art, without departing from the concept of the present application, a number of modifications and improvements can be made, which all belong to the protection scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the patent of the present application should be subject to the appended claims.

Claims

1. A battery clamp, characterized in that, include: First clamping plate; The second clamping plate is disposed opposite to the first clamping plate, and the first clamping plate and the second clamping plate define a receiving space; A fixing component connects the first clamping plate and the second clamping plate; A strain gauge sensor is disposed in the receiving space. When the strain gauge sensor and the battery are clamped together in the receiving space, the strain gauge sensor collects force data at various points of the force-bearing parts of the battery.

2. The battery clamp according to claim 1, characterized in that, The strain gauge sensor includes an insulating protective layer and a sensing material layer, with the insulating protective layer disposed outside the sensing material layer.

3. The battery clamp according to claim 2, characterized in that, The insulating protective layer includes a first protective layer and a second protective layer, and the sensing material layer includes a first sensing layer and a second sensing layer. The first protective layer, the first sensing layer, the second sensing layer and the second protective layer are stacked sequentially.

4. The battery clamp according to claim 3, characterized in that, The strain sensor further includes an elastic element. The first protective layer has a first edge region that is not attached to the first sensing layer, and the second protective layer has a second edge region that is not attached to the second sensing layer. The elastic element is connected between the first edge region and the second edge region and is in a stretched state.

5. The battery clamp according to claim 4, characterized in that, The elastic element is provided at each of the four corners of the first protective layer and the second protective layer.

6. The battery clamp according to claim 2, characterized in that, The sensing material layer comprises anisotropic metal nanocomposite materials.

7. The battery clamp according to claim 1, characterized in that, The battery clamp also includes an insulating contact plate disposed between the strain sensor and the battery.

8. The battery clamp according to claim 1, characterized in that, The fixing component includes bolts and screw holes. Both the first clamping plate and the second clamping plate are provided with the screw holes. The first clamping plate and the second clamping plate are connected by bolts passing through the screw holes.

9. The battery clamp according to any one of claims 1-8, characterized in that, The battery clamp is used to hold a square battery, which has two plates perpendicular to the thickness direction of the square battery. When the battery is clamped in the receiving space, the force-bearing part of the battery is the plate.

10. A battery safety testing system, characterized in that, include: The battery clamp as described in any one of claims 1-9; The host computer communicates with the strain gauge sensor in the battery clamp to obtain the force data of each point of the battery under stress collected by the strain gauge sensor.

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