Frame assembly for battery pack and battery pack

Abstract

The utility model provides a frame assembly for a battery pack, which comprises a frame main body provided with a plurality of openings arranged at intervals along a first direction; and a plurality of bus bars disposed on the frame body in the first direction and adjacent to the plurality of openings, respectively. The utility model further discloses a battery pack using the frame assembly. According to the technical scheme, the integration level of the battery BBM assembly can be improved, so that the overall performance of the battery pack is further improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the field of vehicles, specifically to a frame assembly for a battery pack and a battery pack. Background Technology

[0002] Electrified vehicles typically include battery packs, and users have increasingly higher requirements for vehicle performance and driving range, which in turn places higher demands on the energy density, range, and durability of battery packs.

[0003] With the rapid development of battery technology, BBM (Busbar Module) components have become particularly necessary to achieve series and parallel conduction of batteries. A typical battery BBM component is usually attached to the battery module, electrically connected by a wiring harness, and supported by side plates.

[0004] The inventors of this disclosure recognized the importance of further improving the integration of battery BBM components to enhance customer satisfaction.

[0005] Therefore, there is still room for improvement in the existing technology. Utility Model Content

[0006] This disclosure summarizes various aspects of the embodiments and should not be construed as limiting the claims. Other implementations are contemplated based on the techniques described herein, as will be apparent to those skilled in the art upon studying the following drawings and detailed descriptions, and these implementations are intended to be included within the scope of this application.

[0007] The inventors of this disclosure recognize the need for a frame assembly for a battery pack that can improve the integration of the battery BBM assembly, thereby further improving the overall performance of the battery pack.

[0008] According to one aspect of the present invention, a frame assembly for a battery pack is provided, comprising:

[0009] The frame body has a plurality of openings spaced apart along a first direction;

[0010] as well as,

[0011] Busbars, multiple busbars are arranged along a first direction on the frame body and are respectively adjacent to multiple openings.

[0012] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the busbar is integrated into the frame body; and the frame body also includes a plurality of ventilation holes spaced apart along a first direction.

[0013] According to one embodiment of the present invention, it further includes a heat insulation plate having a plate body and a weakening portion, the heat insulation plate covering a first side of the frame body along a first direction.

[0014] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the weakening part is sheet-shaped and connected to the main body of the plate through a weakening connecting arm. The weakening part is disposed opposite to the ventilation hole to block at least one ventilation hole.

[0015] According to one embodiment of the present invention, a plurality of weakened portions are arranged at intervals along a first direction and correspond to a plurality of ventilation holes respectively.

[0016] According to one embodiment of the present invention, a plurality of openings are separated by a plurality of spacers, at least one of the plurality of spacers has one or more protrusions, and a heat insulation plate has one or more holes, the positions of the holes corresponding to the protrusions, and the heat insulation plate is connected to the spacers by means of the holes and the protrusions being adapted to each other in shape and / or by means of the holes and the protrusions being thermally welded together.

[0017] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the frame body is injection molded, and it further includes a reinforcing member embedded in the frame body along a first direction. The cross-sectional shape of the reinforcing member is one or more of the following: U-shaped, C-shaped, X-shaped, Y-shaped, I-shaped, and I-shaped.

[0018] According to one embodiment of the present invention, a sampling port is also included, which is disposed adjacent to a ventilation hole.

[0019] According to another aspect of the present invention, a frame assembly for a battery pack is provided, comprising:

[0020] The main framework, which has:

[0021] A first crossbeam and a second crossbeam extending along a first direction;

[0022] Multiple longitudinal beams extending between the first and second crossbeams;

[0023] as well as,

[0024] Multiple openings separated by multiple longitudinal beams;

[0025] Busbars, multiple busbars are arranged along a first direction on the frame body and are respectively adjacent to multiple openings.

[0026] According to one embodiment of the present invention, it further includes a plurality of ventilation holes, which are spaced apart along a first direction and adjacent to the first crossbeam and / or the second crossbeam.

[0027] According to another aspect of the present invention, a battery pack is also provided, the battery pack having a frame assembly extending along the side of the battery array of the battery pack;

[0028] The framework components include:

[0029] The frame body has a plurality of openings spaced apart along a first direction;

[0030] Busbars, multiple busbars are arranged along a first direction on the frame body and are respectively adjacent to multiple openings;

[0031] The insulation board has a main body and a weakened portion, and the insulation board covers a first side of the main body of the frame along a first direction; and

[0032] Each cell in the battery array is electrically connected to the busbar from the second side of the frame body via a tab located on the side. Attached Figure Description

[0033] To better understand this invention, reference can be made to the embodiments shown in the following figures. Components in the figures are not necessarily drawn to scale, and related elements may be omitted, or in some cases the scale may have been enlarged to emphasize and clearly illustrate the novel features described herein. Additionally, as is known in the art, system components may be arranged differently. Furthermore, in the figures, the same reference numerals denote corresponding parts throughout several views.

[0034] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0035] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of a battery pack according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0036] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of a battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0037] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of a frame assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0038] Figure 5 A partially enlarged schematic diagram of the frame body of an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0039] Figure 6 A partially enlarged schematic diagram of the heat insulation plate of the frame assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown.

[0040] Figure 7 This invention illustrates the following aspects: Figure 5 A cross-sectional view of the frame body taken by line AA in an embodiment. Detailed Implementation

[0041] The following describes embodiments of the present disclosure. However, it should be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely examples, and other embodiments may take various alternative forms. The drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale; certain functions may be exaggerated or minimized to show details of particular components. Therefore, the specific structural and functional details disclosed herein should not be construed as limiting, but merely as a representative basis for teaching those skilled in the art to use the present invention in various ways. As will be understood by those skilled in the art, various features shown and described with reference to any of the drawings may be combined with features shown in one or more other drawings to produce embodiments not explicitly shown or described. The combinations of features shown provide representative embodiments for typical applications. However, various combinations and modifications of features consistent with the teachings of this disclosure may be desired for certain particular applications or implementations.

[0042] In this application, when an element or part is referred to as "on," "joined to," "connected to," or "coupled to" another element or part, that element or part may be directly joined, connected to, or coupled to the other element or part, or there may be an element or part intervening therebetween. Conversely, when an element is referred to as "directly on," "directly joined to," "directly connected to," or "directly coupled to" another element or part, there may be no element or part intervening therebetween. Other terms used to describe the relationship between elements should be interpreted in a similar manner.

[0043] As mentioned in the background section above, the inventors of this application recognized that in the prior art, battery packs are mounted on battery trays using an array design. Therefore, in some designs, multiple independent battery modules are required. These modules are typically mounted on the tray via beam structures after encapsulation and are interconnected through numerous busbars and cables. However, placing more beam structures to fix the battery modules introduces complexity and results in low space utilization. Based on the problems in the prior art, the inventors of this disclosure provide a battery holder and a battery pack using the battery holder in one or more embodiments to solve one or more of the problems in the prior art.

[0044] Figure 1A schematic diagram of a vehicle 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown. Vehicle 1 can refer to any means of transportation that includes a battery pack, such as, but not limited to, fossil fuel vehicles, electric vehicles (such as plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), full hybrid electric vehicles (FHEVs), mild hybrid electric vehicles (MHEVs), or battery electric vehicles (BEVs), and can even include ships, aircraft, etc. Vehicle 1 may include mobility-related components such as engines, electric motors, transmissions, suspensions, drive shafts, and / or wheels. Vehicle 1 can be non-autonomous, semi-autonomous (e.g., some conventional motion functions are autonomously controlled by the vehicle), or autonomous (e.g., motion functions are autonomously controlled by the vehicle without direct user input).

[0045] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of a battery pack 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown. Figure 3 A schematic diagram of a battery module 12 in a battery pack 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown. Figure 2 as well as Figure 3 In the illustrative embodiment shown, the battery pack 10 includes a battery housing assembly 100 and a battery module 12 housed within the battery housing assembly 100. The battery housing assembly 100 may include a housing 110 and various possible functional attachments. The housing 110 may include a tray 111 for receiving the battery module 12 and a top cover 113 for covering the battery module 12, the tray 111 and the top cover 113 together defining a receiving cavity for housing the battery module 12. The tray 111 may be a box-shaped structure with a top opening, including a bottom wall and one or more side walls extending upward from the periphery of the bottom wall. The top cover 113 covers the top opening of the tray 111, and the top cover 113 may be a box-shaped structure with a bottom opening, including a top wall and one or more side walls extending downward from the periphery of the top wall. The top opening of the tray 111 and the bottom opening of the top cover 113 abut together, such that the housing 110 encloses a generally sealed receiving cavity. Flanges may be provided at the top opening of the tray 111 and the bottom opening of the top cover 113, and connecting structures that cooperate with each other are provided on the flanges to connect the tray 111 and the top cover 113.

[0046] Those skilled in the art will understand that the top cover and tray can also have different designs. For example, the tray may only have a bottom, while the top cover may have sidewalls extending toward and connecting to the tray, as long as both can form a space to accommodate the battery cells. The housing 110 defines a length direction L, a width direction W, and a height direction H. The battery module 12 may include a plurality of battery cells 11 arranged in an array. The plurality of battery cells 11 may be arranged in multiple rows, with each row of battery cells 11 arranged along the width direction W of the housing 110, and the multiple rows of battery cells arranged along the length direction L of the housing 110. The battery module 12 may also include a battery management unit for controlling the charging and discharging of the plurality of battery cells 11. In one or more other embodiments, the battery cells 11 may also be arranged along the length direction L.

[0047] The battery pack 10 can be used in various applications. In an embodiment of this invention, the battery pack 10 is applied to a vehicle. The length direction L, width direction W, and height direction H of the housing 110 can correspond to the longitudinal direction (front-to-back direction), lateral direction, and height direction of the vehicle, respectively.

[0048] Those skilled in the art will understand that although the battery housing assembly 100 is shown in the above exemplary embodiments for housing the battery module 12, thereby serving as a housing assembly constituting a complex battery pack 10, in alternative embodiments, the battery housing assembly 100 may also be used to housing battery cells, thereby serving only as a housing assembly constituting a simple battery cell.

[0049] refer to Figure 3 The battery module 12 shown is in Figure 3 In the illustrative embodiment shown, the battery module 12 has a plurality of battery cells arranged along a first direction W, and the battery module 12 is housed as a whole within... Figure 2 The battery pack 10 shown is housed within a receiving cavity formed by its tray and top cover. A frame assembly 120 is disposed on the side of the battery module 12, and is integrated with it. Figure 4 The schematic diagram of the frame assembly 120 in the illustrative embodiment shown has a frame body 121 and a heat insulation plate 131, both of which extend along a first direction W.

[0050] Combination Figure 5The enlarged view of the frame body 121 shown shows that the frame body 121 has multiple openings 122 spaced apart along a first direction W, and multiple busbars 123 are disposed on the frame body 121. Each opening 122 is partially covered by two spaced busbars 123. In other embodiments of this disclosure, the multiple busbars may be disposed adjacent to the multiple openings. In the specification of this disclosure, "adjacent" refers to the degree of physical proximity between two or more components. They may be in direct contact or have a certain distance between them. For example, in various embodiments of this disclosure, the busbars may be disposed at different positions such as above, below, left, and right of the openings, and may be partially exposed from the openings or blocked by the openings. The multiple openings 122 are separated by multiple spacers 125, and each spacer 125 has multiple protrusions 1251. Figure 5 In the embodiment shown, there are 3 protrusions 1251. It can be understood that the number of protrusions 1251 can be increased or decreased according to actual needs.

[0051] In one or more embodiments of this utility model, multiple busbars 123 can be integrated into the frame body 121. For example, they can be integrally formed with the frame body 121 by molding, or integrated with the frame body 121 by bonding, welding, or fastener connection. It is understood that in other embodiments of this disclosure, the busbars 123 can be connected to the frame body 121 by various connection methods such as bonding, welding, and fastener connection. (Continue to refer to...) Figure 5 In the illustrative embodiment shown, a plurality of ventilation holes 124 are spaced apart along the first direction W on the frame body 121, and a plurality of sampling ports 129 are arranged adjacent to the plurality of ventilation holes 124, so that the Battery Management System (BMS) can acquire sampling information including but not limited to battery voltage, charging current, discharging current, single cell voltage, and battery temperature in real time through the sampling ports 129. This data is the basis for the precise control and management of the battery management system. In one or more embodiments of this disclosure, such as Figure 7 As shown, Figure 7 For along Figure 5 The image shows a cross-sectional view of the frame body 121 taken along the AA direction. The frame body 121 is injection molded, and the material of the frame body 121 can be metal materials such as steel and aluminum, or other high-strength non-metallic materials—such as glass fiber or carbon fiber reinforced plastics. During the injection molding process, reinforcing members 128 extending along the first direction W are embedded in both the upper beam 126 and the lower beam 127 of the frame body 121. Figure 7In the illustrated embodiment, the reinforcing member 128 has a C-shaped cross-section. It is understood that in other embodiments, the reinforcing member may have different cross-sectional shapes, including but not limited to U-shaped, X-shaped, Y-shaped, I-shaped, and I-shaped. It is understood that reinforcing members with C-shaped, U-shaped, X-shaped, Y-shaped, and I-shaped cross-sections have better structural strength than those with I-shaped cross-sections. In one or more embodiments of this disclosure, the reinforcing member 128 disposed in the frame body 121 can be made of metallic materials, such as steel, aluminum, or other high-strength materials. The reinforcing member 128 molded in the frame body 121 can effectively increase the overall structural strength of the frame body 121, while using C-shaped, U-shaped, X-shaped, Y-shaped, and I-shaped cross-sections can effectively increase strength while still maintaining the lightweight characteristics of the frame body 121.

[0052] Next, refer to Figure 4 ,exist Figure 4 In the illustrative embodiment of the frame assembly 120 shown, the insulation panel 131 has a panel body 132 and a weakening portion 133. (Combined with...) Figure 6 The diagram shows a partially enlarged view of the heat insulation plate 131. The weakened portion 133 is connected to the plate body 132 via a weakened connecting arm 134. In one or more embodiments of this disclosure, the weakened connecting arm 134 may be formed by removing a portion of the heat insulation plate 131 between the plate body 132 and the weakened portion 133 to create a weakened connection between them. Continuing as... Figure 6 As shown, the plurality of weakened portions 133 of the heat insulation plate 131 can correspond one-to-one with the ventilation holes 124 on the frame body 121. It is understood that in other embodiments of this disclosure, the number of weakened portions can be set as needed, and each weakened portion can cover one or more ventilation holes 124. For example, in one embodiment, the heat insulation plate 131 may have only one weakened portion, and all ventilation holes 124 may be covered by only one weakened portion. (Continue referring to...) Figure 6In the illustrated embodiment, the heat insulation plate 131 has a plurality of holes 135, the positions of which correspond to the positions of a plurality of protrusions 1251 on the spacers 125 of the frame body 121. When connecting the heat insulation plate 131 to the frame body 121, this can be done by thermal welding. For example, the protrusions 1251 are heated to a molten state, and then the heat insulation plate 131 is pressed against the frame body 121 from the side with the protrusions 1251, thereby fusing the protrusions 1251 and the holes 135 together to achieve the connection between the heat insulation plate 131 and the frame body 121. In other embodiments of this disclosure, the heat insulation plate 131 and the frame body 121 can also be connected by an interference fit between the protrusions 1251 and the holes 135 without thermal welding. It is understandable that a spare protrusion can be provided on the spacer 125 as a redundancy design. When the frame body 121 is connected to the heat insulation plate 131 by thermal welding, only the protrusions other than the spare protrusion are heated to a molten state before connection. The spare protrusion can be used to strengthen the connection between the heat insulation plate 131 and the frame body 121 when it is necessary.

[0053] Continue to refer to Figure 3 In the illustrative embodiment shown, the battery module 12 has a frame assembly 120 extending from and attached to the side of the battery module 12 along a first direction W. In this illustrative embodiment, the battery cells in the battery module 12 are stacked along the first direction W, with the tabs of each battery cell facing the side, thereby electrically connecting the battery cells to a plurality of busbars 123 of the frame assembly 120 via the tabs located on the side. By attaching the frame assembly 120 to the side of the battery module 12, the frame assembly 120 uses the busbars 123 molded therein to achieve electrical connection of the battery cells in the battery module 12, and when the battery module 12 generates heat, a certain degree of thermal insulation can be achieved by the heat insulation plate 131 to avoid affecting other battery modules and electronic devices in the battery pack 10. Furthermore, when the gas pressure generated by the battery module 12 reaches a preset threshold gas pressure, the weakened connecting arm 134 between the weakened part 133 of the heat insulation plate 131 and the plate body 132 breaks under the action of gas pressure, thereby causing the weakened part 133 to separate from the plate body 132, so that the multiple ventilation holes 124 on the frame body 121 open, allowing the gas to be quickly discharged through the ventilation holes 124.

[0054] It should be understood that, provided it is technically feasible, the technical features listed above for different embodiments can be combined with each other to form other embodiments within the scope of this utility model.

[0055] In this application, the use of antonymous conjunctions is intended to include the conjunction itself. The use of definite or indefinite articles is not intended to indicate cardinality. Specifically, references to “the” object or to “a” and “one” objects are intended to indicate one of a plurality of such objects. Furthermore, the conjunction “or” may be used to convey simultaneous features rather than mutually exclusive schemes. In other words, the conjunction “or” should be understood as including “and / or”. The term “including” is inclusive and has the same scope as “contains”.

[0056] The above embodiments are possible examples of implementation of this utility model, and are provided only to enable those skilled in the art to clearly understand the principles of this utility model. Those skilled in the art should understand that the above discussion of any embodiment is merely exemplary and is not intended to imply that the scope of the disclosed embodiments of this utility model (including the claims) is limited to these examples; under the overall concept of this utility model, the technical features of the above embodiments or different embodiments can also be combined with each other, resulting in many other variations of different aspects of the embodiments of this utility model as described above, which are not provided in the specific embodiments for the sake of brevity. Therefore, any omissions, modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of the embodiments of this utility model should be included within the protection scope claimed by this utility model.

Claims

1. A frame assembly for a battery pack, characterized by, comprising: a frame body having a plurality of openings spaced along a first direction; and, busbars, a plurality of the busbars being disposed on the frame body along the first direction and adjacent to the plurality of openings, respectively.

2. The frame assembly of claim 1, wherein, the busbars are integrated to the frame body; and the frame body further comprises a plurality of ventilation holes spaced along the first direction.

3. The frame assembly of claim 2, wherein, further comprising: a thermal insulation plate having a plate body and a weakened portion, the thermal insulation plate covering a first side of the frame body along the first direction.

4. The frame assembly of claim 3, wherein, the weakened portion is sheet-shaped and connected to the plate body by a weakened connecting arm, the weakened portion being disposed opposite to the ventilation holes to shield at least one of the ventilation holes.

5. The frame assembly of claim 4, wherein, a plurality of the weakened portions are disposed along the first direction and spaced from each other, each corresponding to a plurality of the ventilation holes.

6. The frame assembly of claim 3, wherein, the plurality of openings are separated by a plurality of spacer portions, at least one of the plurality of spacer portions having one or more protrusions, and the thermal insulation plate having one or more holes corresponding to the protrusions, the thermal insulation plate being connected to the spacer portions by a shape adaptation of the holes to the protrusions and / or by a thermal welding of the holes and the protrusions.

7. The frame assembly of claim 1, wherein, the frame body is injection molded, further comprising, a reinforcement embedded into the frame body along the first direction, the reinforcement having a cross-sectional shape of one or more of U-shaped, C-shaped, X-shaped, Y-shaped, I-shaped, and H-shaped.

8. The frame assembly of claim 2, wherein, further comprising a sampling port disposed adjacent to the ventilation holes.

9. A frame assembly for a battery pack, characterized by, comprising: a frame body having: a first cross beam and a second cross beam extending along a first direction; a plurality of longitudinal beams extending between the first cross beam and the second cross beam; and, a plurality of openings separated by the plurality of longitudinal beams; busbars, a plurality of the busbars being disposed on the frame body along the first direction and adjacent to the plurality of openings, respectively.

10. A battery pack, characterized by, the battery pack has a frame assembly extending along a side of a battery array of the battery pack; the frame assembly comprising: a frame body having a plurality of openings spaced along a first direction; busbars, a plurality of the busbars being disposed on the frame body along the first direction and adjacent to the plurality of openings, respectively; a thermal insulation plate having a plate body and a weakened portion, the thermal insulation plate covering a first side of the frame body along the first direction; and each battery cell of the battery array is electrically connected to the busbars from a second side of the frame body by tabs disposed on the side.

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