Thin-wall cooling pipe structure, battery pack and automobile

Abstract

The utility model discloses a thin-wall cooling pipe structure, a battery pack and an automobile, and relates to the technical field of battery heat dissipation, the thin-wall cooling pipe structure is used for cooling a plurality of battery units in a battery structure, the thin-wall cooling pipe structure comprises a pipe fitting body, the pipe fitting body is in a flat pipe shape, and a cooling cavity is formed in the pipe fitting body; a plurality of supporting parts are arranged between two opposite inner walls in the thickness direction of the cooling cavity, so that a plurality of channel parts are formed in the cooling cavity in the length direction of the cooling cavity, the pipe fitting body is wound among the plurality of battery units, and contact parts are formed corresponding to the plurality of battery units; and at least partial contact is formed between the outer walls of the battery units and the corresponding contact parts. By adjusting the winding mode and the number of turns of the pipe fitting body, effective cooling of battery packs of different specifications is achieved, meanwhile, the universality of other components (such as a pump and a valve) of a cooling system is kept, and the production cost and the maintenance difficulty are greatly reduced.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the field of battery heat dissipation technology, and in particular to a thin-walled cooling pipe structure, a battery pack, and an automobile. Background Technology

[0002] With the development of electric vehicles, energy storage systems, and other fields, the performance and safety of battery packs are receiving increasing attention. Battery packs generate a significant amount of heat during operation; if this heat cannot be effectively dissipated, it will severely impact battery life and system safety. Traditional battery pack cooling systems are often designed for specific battery pack specifications, lacking versatility, leading to high production costs and inconvenient maintenance. Therefore, developing a universal cooling system that can flexibly adapt to various battery pack specifications is of great significance. Utility Model Content

[0003] The main purpose of this utility model is to propose a thin-walled cooling pipe structure, a battery pack, and an automobile, aiming to solve the problems of poor universality of traditional vehicle battery cooling structures, which leads to high production costs and inconvenient maintenance.

[0004] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention proposes a thin-walled cooling pipe structure for cooling multiple battery cells in a battery structure. The thin-walled cooling pipe structure includes:

[0005] The pipe body is configured as a flat tube and has a cooling cavity inside. Multiple support portions are provided between two opposing inner walls in the thickness direction of the cooling cavity to form multiple channel portions along its length inside the cooling cavity.

[0006] The tubular body is wound around the plurality of battery cells, and a contact portion is formed for each of the plurality of battery cells. At least partial contact is formed between the outer wall of the battery cell and the corresponding contact portion.

[0007] In one embodiment, the contact portion includes a first contact portion located at the end of the tube body, the first contact portion being connected to a battery cell at the middle position, and the tube body being sequentially wound around a portion of the outer wall of a plurality of battery cells from the first contact portion outwards.

[0008] In one embodiment, the two end planes of the tube body are flush with the end plane of the battery unit.

[0009] In one embodiment, the pipe body is made of aluminum.

[0010] In one embodiment, the cooling cavity has a connecting portion at each end of the channel portion, and the two ends of the multiple channel portions are respectively connected to two connecting portions. The pipe body has an interface portion corresponding to each of the two connecting portions.

[0011] In one embodiment, the conductive portion includes a first end and a second end in the width direction of the pipe body;

[0012] One of the interface portions is provided at the first end of one of the conductive portions, and the other interface portion is provided at the second end of the other conductive portion.

[0013] In one embodiment, the interface portion is provided with a connector, the connector including a core and an outer connector, the core is mounted on the pipe body and communicates with the conductive portion, the inner side of the core is provided with a threaded portion, and one end of the outer connector is installed in the core by threads.

[0014] In one embodiment, the cross-sectional shape of the channel portion is set as an elongated hole, and the length direction of the elongated hole corresponds to the arrangement direction of the plurality of channel portions.

[0015] This utility model also includes a battery pack, the battery pack comprising a thin-walled cooling pipe structure, the thin-walled cooling pipe structure being used to cool multiple battery cells in the battery structure, the thin-walled cooling pipe structure comprising:

[0016] The pipe body is configured as a flat tube and has a cooling cavity inside. Multiple support portions are provided between two opposing inner walls in the thickness direction of the cooling cavity to form multiple channel portions along its length inside the cooling cavity.

[0017] The tubular body is wound around the plurality of battery cells, and a contact portion is formed for each of the plurality of battery cells. At least partial contact is formed between the outer wall of the battery cell and the corresponding contact portion.

[0018] This utility model also includes an automobile, the automobile including a battery pack, the battery pack including a thin-walled cooling pipe structure, the thin-walled cooling pipe structure being used to cool multiple battery cells in the battery structure, the thin-walled cooling pipe structure including:

[0019] The pipe body is configured as a flat tube and has a cooling cavity inside. Multiple support portions are provided between two opposing inner walls in the thickness direction of the cooling cavity to form multiple channel portions along its length inside the cooling cavity.

[0020] The tubular body is wound around the plurality of battery cells, and a contact portion is formed for each of the plurality of battery cells. At least partial contact is formed between the outer wall of the battery cell and the corresponding contact portion.

[0021] In this invention, by adjusting the winding method and number of turns of the tube body, effective cooling of battery packs of different specifications can be achieved, while maintaining the versatility of other components in the cooling system (such as pumps and valves), greatly reducing production costs and maintenance difficulty. Furthermore, during use, the tight fit between the tube body and the battery cell, along with its excellent thermal conductivity, effectively improves heat exchange efficiency and ensures stable operation of the battery pack. Attached Figure Description

[0022] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this utility model or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of this utility model. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on the structures shown in these drawings without creative effort.

[0023] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of an embodiment of the combination of the thin-walled cooling pipe structure and the battery cell provided by this utility model;

[0024] Figure 2 for Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the cross-sectional structure of the thin-walled cooling pipe structure along its length is provided in the image.

[0025] Figure 3 for Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the cross-sectional structure at point AA.

[0026] Explanation of icon numbers:

[0027] 1. Pipe body; 11. Support part; 12. Channel part; 13. Conducting part; 2. Connector; 21. Core; 22. External connector.

[0028] The realization of the purpose, functional features and advantages of this utility model will be further explained in conjunction with the embodiments and with reference to the accompanying drawings. Detailed Implementation

[0029] The technical solutions of the present utility model will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings of the embodiments. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present utility model, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present utility model, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present utility model.

[0030] It should be noted that if the embodiments of this utility model involve directional indicators (such as up, down, left, right, front, back, etc.), the directional indicators are only used to explain the relative positional relationship and movement of the components in a specific posture. If the specific posture changes, the directional indicators will also change accordingly.

[0031] Furthermore, if the embodiments of this utility model involve descriptions such as "first" or "second," these descriptions are for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying their relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of technical features indicated. Therefore, a feature defined with "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include at least one of those features. Additionally, the use of "and / or" or "and / or" throughout the text includes three parallel solutions. For example, "A and / or B" includes solution A, solution B, or a solution where both A and B are satisfied simultaneously. Furthermore, the technical solutions of the various embodiments can be combined with each other, but this must be based on the ability of those skilled in the art to implement them. When the combination of technical solutions is contradictory or impossible to implement, it should be considered that such a combination of technical solutions does not exist and is not within the scope of protection claimed by this utility model.

[0032] With the development of electric vehicles, energy storage systems, and other fields, the performance and safety of battery packs are receiving increasing attention. Battery packs generate a significant amount of heat during operation; if this heat cannot be effectively dissipated, it will severely impact battery life and system safety. Traditional battery pack cooling systems are often designed for specific battery pack specifications, lacking versatility, leading to high production costs and inconvenient maintenance. Therefore, developing a universal cooling system that can flexibly adapt to various battery pack specifications is of great significance.

[0033] This invention proposes a thin-walled cooling pipe structure to solve the above problems.

[0034] Please see Figures 1 to 3In one embodiment of this utility model, the thin-walled cooling pipe structure is mainly used to cool multiple battery cells in a battery structure, and it addresses the problem that traditional cooling systems are mostly designed for a single battery module, resulting in poor versatility. The thin-walled cooling pipe structure in this embodiment mainly consists of a pipe body 1, which is a flat tube structure, preferably a square flat tube, with a relatively thin thickness, approximately four millimeters to one centimeter. The specific thickness can be set according to the actual size and specifications of the battery cells. Generally, when the battery structure has a high output power and generates significant heat, a thicker pipe body 1 can be used. This increased thickness corresponds to a larger space in the thickness direction of the internal cooling cavity; the thickness of the contact surface with the battery cells is merely an adaptive increase and does not affect the efficient heat conduction into the interior by the thin-walled structure. In this solution, the battery cells are mainly cylindrical. The tube body 1 is made entirely of aluminum and can form a contact portion with a certain curvature to accommodate the arc-shaped outer wall of the battery cell. During actual installation, the tube body 1 can be deformed according to the actual number of battery cells, allowing it to be wound sequentially, at least partially, around the arc-shaped outer walls of multiple battery cells. During this process, multiple arc-shaped contact portions contact the arc-shaped outer walls of multiple battery cells, and the tube body 1 can conduct the heat generated by the battery cells into their interior, where it is absorbed by the internal coolant. The length of the tube body 1 can be set to be relatively long. When actually winding it around the outer wall of the battery cells, the actual winding method and number of turns of the contact portion can be adaptively adjusted according to the actual number of battery cells. This allows the tube body 1 to be applicable to various battery structures of different specifications, thus solving the problem that traditional battery pack cooling systems are often designed for specific battery pack specifications, lack versatility, and result in high production costs.

[0035] However, it should be noted that, in order to ensure the heat conduction effect of the tube body 1, if the number of turns of the tube body 1 is limited, the number of turns of the tube body 1 on the battery cell must be at least 1 / 4 turn. That is, the corresponding contact part must be in contact with at least 1 / 4 of the outer wall of the battery cell to ensure that the contact conduction surface of the tube body 1 on the battery cell is not less than 1 / 4 of the arc-shaped sidewall of the battery cell, thereby ensuring the heat conduction effect of the tube body 1.

[0036] Considering that the contact surface sidewall of the tube body 1 is relatively thin, and that it needs to be bent during actual use, the application of force may cause partial concave or convex deformation of the contact surface of the tube body 1. In order to improve the sidewall support force of the tube body 1 without changing the wall thickness, in this embodiment, a plurality of support parts 11 are provided between two opposing inner walls in the thickness direction of the cooling cavity, and the plurality of support parts 11 extend along the length direction of the tube body 1, which can effectively improve the overall strength of the tube body 1 in the length direction. Even if its actual length is set to be long, there is no risk of easy breakage. When the tube body 1 is actually wrapped around the sidewall of the battery cell, the plurality of support parts 11 can support the bent sidewall of the tube body 1, so that it will not easily deform due to the applied pressure. Due to the arrangement of multiple support portions 11, the cooling chamber is divided and forms multiple channel portions 12. The multiple channel portions 12 are all arranged along the length direction of the pipe body 1, which allows the coolant inside to flow from one end of the pipe body 1 to the other end. When the pipe body 1 is connected to a liquid circulation device, it can generate a high-efficiency heat dissipation effect.

[0037] As mentioned above, during actual installation, the tube body 1 needs to be partially wrapped around the arc-shaped sidewall of the battery cell. The wrapping method disclosed in this embodiment is to wrap it from the inside out from the middle of the battery structure. Specifically, the contact portion at one end along the length of the tube body 1 is designated as the first contact portion. During actual installation, the first contact portion and the first battery cell located in the middle position are first made to have good contact. Then, the tube body 1 is wrapped around the arc-shaped outer wall of the battery cell in a "U" shape. If an external water supply structure is connected, the first contact end is set as the water inlet end. Because the first contact end is the middle area of ​​the battery structure, theoretically, the temperature at this location is higher than that of other battery cells. Placing the coolant inlet end in the middle position can effectively reduce the higher temperature value at the middle position of the entire battery structure.

[0038] To maximize the heat transfer efficiency of the entire pipe body 1, the contact area between the pipe body 1 and the battery unit should be increased as much as possible. In this embodiment, the two end planes of the pipe body 1 are flush with the end plane of the battery unit, meaning the width of the pipe body 1 corresponds to the height of the battery unit. This arrangement not only effectively ensures the contact area between the two but also ensures that the plane of the pipe body 1 does not protrude above the battery unit, thereby minimizing the impact on the external mounting components of the battery unit.

[0039] As described above, to further improve the heat dissipation effect of the entire pipe body 1, in this embodiment, a corresponding interface is provided on the pipe body 1, through which an external circulating water structure can be connected. Specifically, two conductive parts 13 connect the two ends of the plurality of channel parts 12 together, and two interface parts are specifically configured, with each interface part connecting to one of the two conductive parts 13. In order to enable the coolant in the cooling chamber to flow along the length direction of the pipe body 1, thereby improving the cooling effect of the pipe body 1, the two interface parts are respectively installed at the opposite ends of the two conductive parts 13, that is, the first end of one conductive part 13 and the second end of the other conductive part 13. The coolant flows into the conductive part 13 from the first end, and then flows into the plurality of channel parts 12 from the conductive part 13. The coolant moves along the length direction of the pipe body 1 in the channel parts 12, continuously absorbing the heat of the pipe body 1 during the movement, and then collects in the other conductive part 13 at the other end, and finally flows out through the other interface part. In practical applications, an external circulating liquid supply device can be connected to the two interface sections to form a circulation of coolant in the cooling chamber, thereby improving the cooling and heat dissipation effect of the pipe body 1.

[0040] The connector 2 is designed to be detachable and mainly includes a core 21 and an outer connector 22. The core 21 is mounted on the pipe body 1 and connected to the conductive part 13. The inner side of the core 21 is provided with a threaded part. One end of the outer connector 22 is installed in the core 21 by thread. In actual connection, the external pipe can be directly connected to one end of the outer connector 22. The outer connector 22 and the core 21 are designed to be detachable, which facilitates the maintenance of the interface part in the future.

[0041] It should be noted that the cross-sectional shape of the channel portion 12 is set as an elongated hole, and the length direction of the elongated hole corresponds to the setting direction of the multiple channel portions 12. This setting can maximize the flow of coolant in the channel portion 12, and setting the length direction of the elongated hole in the width extension direction of the pipe body 1 can minimize the force required when bending the pipe body 1, making the entire bending and installation work more convenient.

[0042] This utility model also discloses a battery pack, which includes a thin-walled cooling pipe structure. The specific structure of the thin-walled cooling pipe structure is as described in the above embodiments. Since this battery pack adopts all the technical solutions in the above embodiments, the battery pack should have all the beneficial effects of the above technical solutions, which will not be repeated here.

[0043] This utility model also discloses an automobile, which includes a battery pack. The specific structure of the battery pack is as described in the above embodiments. Since this automobile adopts all the technical solutions in the above embodiments, the automobile should have all the beneficial effects of the above technical solutions, which will not be repeated here.

[0044] The above description is merely an exemplary embodiment of the present utility model and does not limit the patent scope of the present utility model. Any equivalent structural transformations made based on the technical concept of the present utility model and the contents of the present utility model specification and drawings, or direct / indirect applications in other related technical fields, are included within the patent protection scope of the present utility model.

Claims

1. A thin-walled cooling pipe structure for cooling multiple battery cells in a battery structure, characterized in that, The thin-walled cooling pipe structure includes: The pipe body is configured as a flat tube and has a cooling cavity inside. Multiple support portions are provided between two opposing inner walls in the thickness direction of the cooling cavity to form multiple channel portions along its length inside the cooling cavity. The tubular body is wound around the plurality of battery cells, and a contact portion is formed for each of the plurality of battery cells. At least partial contact is formed between the outer wall of the battery cell and the corresponding contact portion.

2. The thin-walled cooling pipe structure as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The contact portion includes a first contact portion located at the end of the tube body, the first contact portion being connected to a battery cell at the middle position, and the tube body being sequentially wound around a portion of the outer wall of a plurality of battery cells from the first contact portion outwards.

3. The thin-walled cooling pipe structure as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The two end planes of the pipe body are flush with the end plane of the battery unit.

4. The thin-walled cooling pipe structure as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The pipe body is made of aluminum.

5. The thin-walled cooling pipe structure as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The cooling chamber has a guide section at each end of the channel section, and the two ends of the multiple channel sections are respectively connected to two guide sections. The pipe body has an interface section corresponding to each of the two guide sections.

6. The thin-walled cooling pipe structure as described in claim 5, characterized in that, The conductive section includes a first end and a second end in the width direction of the pipe body; One of the interface portions is provided at the first end of one of the conductive portions, and the other interface portion is provided at the second end of the other conductive portion.

7. The thin-walled cooling pipe structure as described in claim 6, characterized in that, The interface section is provided with a connector, which includes a core and an outer connector. The core is installed on the pipe body and communicates with the conductive part. The inner side of the core is provided with a threaded part, and one end of the outer connector is installed in the core by thread.

8. The thin-walled cooling pipe structure as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The cross-sectional shape of the channel portion is set as an elongated oval hole, and the length direction of the elongated oval hole corresponds to the setting direction of the plurality of channel portions.

9. A battery pack, characterized in that, Includes the thin-walled cooling pipe structure as described in any one of claims 1-8.

10. A car, characterized in that, Includes the battery pack as described in claim 9.

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