Spaceflight soft package battery module with equalization function

Abstract

The utility model provides a soft pack battery module with equalization function for spaceflight belongs to soft pack battery technical field, and compared with prior art lithium ion battery module for spaceflight, the utility model provides lithium ion battery module for spaceflight tentatively selects soft pack lithium ion battery, can realize higher power energy density, has independent equalization function, and easy to realize better battery monomer voltage consistency. And through the design of the metal sheet and nut plate on the printed board, the thread type connection is carried out to the lug and printed board assembly electric interface, the quality risk caused by adopting welding electric connection is avoided, and the utility model has good mechanical properties, and is suitable for the safety requirement of power supply in the field of spaceflight.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to a soft-pack battery module for aerospace applications with equalization function, and belongs to the field of soft-pack battery technology. Background Technology

[0002] Lithium-ion batteries have completely replaced nickel-hydrogen and nickel-cadmium batteries and are widely used in the space industry, serving as energy storage devices for spacecraft, stratospheric airships, probes, and low-Earth orbit satellites to provide long-term, stable energy supply. The space environment places high reliability requirements on the mechanical properties of the lithium-ion battery modules used in their construction. Therefore, square aluminum-cased and cylindrical batteries are currently the primary choices. To further improve the energy density of battery modules, the application of higher energy density pouch batteries in the space industry is essential.

[0003] Conventional aerospace-grade square aluminum-cased lithium-ion battery packs use a screw-connected series-parallel configuration. Electrical connections between individual battery terminals are achieved through wire binding, terminal fixing, and connecting strip installation, linking the battery to an electrical connector for user use. The terminals and connecting strips are secured to the individual battery terminals with nuts and flat washers to ensure a good conductive network between the cells. However, pouch batteries lack threaded terminals, making conventional assembly methods unsuitable.

[0004] In automotive batteries, pouch cells achieve electrical connections through laser welding between tabs (in series) and between tabs and connecting strips (in parallel). Laser welding involves irradiating the workpiece with a high-energy laser beam, causing a rapid increase in temperature, melting the workpiece, and reconnecting it to form a permanent bond. This requires tight contact between the welded substrates, which is difficult to achieve on thin tab substrates because the tabs are prone to bending and misalignment, especially when the tabs are embedded in large battery modules or components. Compared to screw connections, laser welding of tabs has the advantage of lower internal resistance in the battery pack, but it also introduces many risks, such as porosity, thermal cracking, and explosions. Furthermore, during the charging and discharging of lithium-ion batteries, the welded area of ​​the tabs experiences heat generation due to the current heating effect and traction forces generated by the expansion and contraction of the battery. Therefore, to ensure high-quality and high-reliability electrical connections in the battery pack, other measures are needed to achieve reliable screw-in connections for the tabs. Utility Model Content

[0005] The technical problem solved by this utility model is to overcome the shortcomings of the prior art and provide a soft-pack battery module for aerospace with equalization function, thereby solving the problem of unreliability of traditional tab-welded electrical connections in the aerospace field.

[0006] The technical solution of this utility model is: a soft-pack battery module for aerospace applications with balancing function, comprising:

[0007] The pouch battery is an energy-containing component and is equipped with tabs;

[0008] The equalization printed circuit board assembly includes a printed circuit board circuit and several conductive nut plates, as well as an equalizer that enables the pouch battery to achieve autonomous balancing. Each nut plate is connected to the printed circuit board circuit at one end and electrically connected to the corresponding electrode at the other end, thereby connecting the pouch battery to the printed circuit board circuit.

[0009] Furthermore, the equalization printed circuit board assembly also includes a printed circuit board substrate, a fixing frame, and fasteners; the printed circuit board substrate is provided with printed circuit board circuits; the equalizer is soldered onto the printed circuit board substrate, and the nut plate and the fixing frame are fixed onto the printed circuit board substrate by fasteners.

[0010] Furthermore, the nut plate is a conductive metal structure with several through holes and several blind holes. The through holes are used to fix the nut plate to the corresponding position on the printed circuit board, realizing the electrical connection between the printed circuit board circuit and the nut plate. The blind holes are used to fix the tabs, realizing the electrical connection between the soft-pack battery and the nut plate, and to prevent excess metal from falling off during the screw tightening process.

[0011] Furthermore, the printed circuit board substrate is a copper-clad epoxy glass cloth laminate, which has mounting holes for all equalizers and nut plates, and has printed circuit board circuits connecting two corresponding equalizer and nut plate positions.

[0012] Furthermore, the mounting hole of the nut plate on the printed circuit board substrate is a copper metal layer, the size of which is the same as that of the nut plate, and there is a corresponding blind hole structure through hole in the middle of the nut plate.

[0013] Furthermore, the soft-pack battery also includes an aluminum-plastic film, a positive electrode sheet, a negative electrode sheet, and a separator; the separator is located between the positive electrode sheet and the negative electrode sheet, and the positive electrode sheet, the negative electrode sheet, and the separator are tightly stacked to form a battery cell, which is sealed in the aluminum-plastic film.

[0014] Furthermore, the negative electrode tab of the pouch battery is made of nickel.

[0015] Furthermore, the positive electrode tab of the pouch battery is made of aluminum or aluminum-to-nickel alloy.

[0016] Furthermore, the pouch battery is a lithium-ion battery, a lithium metal battery, or a solid-state battery.

[0017] Furthermore, the electrode tab has a thickness sufficient to ensure strength after drilling, and a length that allows for bending allowance and meets stress release requirements after installation.

[0018] The advantages of this utility model compared with the prior art are as follows:

[0019] The battery module of this invention has an autonomous balancing function, which can effectively improve the voltage consistency of individual battery cells, easily achieve high discharge capacity and specific energy, thereby improving working efficiency. At the same time, it has good mechanical properties, which can meet the stringent power requirements of aerospace scenarios and provide a guarantee for the safety of the mission. Attached Figure Description

[0020] Various other advantages and benefits will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading the following detailed description of preferred embodiments. The accompanying drawings are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. Furthermore, the same reference numerals denote the same parts throughout the drawings. In the drawings:

[0021] Figure 1 This is a three-dimensional view of a soft-pack lithium-ion battery module for aerospace applications with balancing function according to this utility model.

[0022] Figure 2 These are three views of the printed circuit board assembly of this utility model;

[0023] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the printed circuit board of this utility model;

[0024] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the nut plate of this utility model;

[0025] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram showing the installation of the nut plate, battery tabs, and equalization printed circuit board of this utility model. Detailed Implementation

[0026] To better understand the above technical solutions, the technical solutions of this utility model will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments. It should be understood that the embodiments of this utility model and the specific features in the embodiments are detailed descriptions of the technical solutions of this utility model, rather than limitations on the technical solutions of this utility model. In the absence of conflict, the embodiments of this utility model and the technical features in the embodiments can be combined with each other.

[0027] The following description, in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, provides a more detailed account of a space-grade pouch battery module with balancing function, as provided in the embodiments of this utility model. Figure 1 Specific implementation methods may include:

[0028] The pouch battery is an energy-containing component and is equipped with tabs;

[0029] The equalization printed circuit board assembly includes a printed circuit board circuit and several conductive nut plates, as well as an equalizer that enables the pouch battery to achieve autonomous balancing. Each nut plate is connected to the printed circuit board circuit at one end and electrically connected to the corresponding electrode at the other end, thereby connecting the pouch battery to the printed circuit board circuit.

[0030] In one possible implementation, the equalizer printed circuit board assembly further includes a printed circuit board substrate, a mounting bracket, and fasteners; the printed circuit board substrate has printed circuit board circuitry; the equalizer is soldered onto the printed circuit board substrate, and the nut plate and the mounting bracket are fixed to the printed circuit board substrate by fasteners.

[0031] Furthermore, the nut plate is a conductive metal structure with several through holes and several blind holes. The through holes are used to fix the nut plate to the corresponding position on the printed circuit board, realizing the electrical connection between the printed circuit board circuit and the nut plate. The blind holes are used to fix the tabs, realizing the electrical connection between the soft-pack battery and the nut plate, and to prevent excess metal from falling off during the screw tightening process.

[0032] In the solutions provided by the embodiments of this utility model, such as Figure 1 As shown, the pouch battery module includes a pouch battery and a balanced printed circuit board assembly.

[0033] Soft-pack batteries consist of an aluminum-plastic film, positive and negative electrode sheets, a separator, and tabs, and include, but are not limited to, lithium-ion batteries, lithium metal batteries, and solid-state batteries. The negative tab is made of nickel, and the positive tab is made of aluminum or aluminum-to-nickel alloy. The tabs have a certain thickness to ensure strength after perforation.

[0034] The pouch battery is a nickel-cobalt-manganese cathode-graphite anode lithium-ion battery, such as... Figure 2 As shown, it consists of an aluminum-plastic film, positive and negative electrode sheets, a separator, and tabs. The negative tab is made of nickel, and the positive tab is made of aluminum-to-nickel. The tabs have a certain thickness to ensure the strength after the tabs are drilled, and they also have a suitable length so that they have a certain bending allowance after installation to meet the stress release requirements.

[0035] The equalization printed circuit board assembly, such as Figure 2 As shown, it includes a current equalizer and a printed circuit board (PCB). Figure 3 ), nut plate ( Figure 4 The circuit board includes a mounting bracket and fasteners. The printed circuit board substrate is a copper-clad epoxy glass cloth laminate with mounting holes for all equalizers and nut plates. It also has internal circuitry to connect two corresponding equalizer and nut plate positions. The mounting holes for the nut plates are made of conductive copper, and the aluminum layer is the same size as the nut plate, with corresponding blind hole structures for the nut plate in the middle.

[0036] The connection method between the balanced printed circuit board assembly and the tab is as follows: Figure 5 As shown, the nut plate is a metal structure with good conductivity and four threaded holes. The through holes at both ends are used to precisely fix the nut plate to the corresponding position on the printed circuit board, realizing the electrical connection between the printed circuit board circuit and the nut plate. The two blind holes in the middle are used to fix the tabs, realizing the electrical connection between the battery and the nut plate. Finally, the series-parallel connection and autonomous balancing of the entire battery module are realized.

[0037] In summary, compared with existing aerospace lithium-ion battery modules, the aerospace lithium-ion battery module provided by this utility model experimentally selects pouch lithium-ion batteries, which can achieve higher power energy density, has an autonomous balancing function, and easily achieves better consistency in battery cell voltage. Furthermore, through the design of the metal sheet and nut plate on the printed circuit board, the tabs and the electrical interface of the printed circuit board assembly are connected by threads, avoiding the quality risks that may be caused by welding electrical connections, while also possessing better mechanical properties, suitable for the power safety requirements of the aerospace field.

[0038] Obviously, those skilled in the art can make various modifications and variations to this utility model without departing from its spirit and scope. Therefore, if these modifications and variations fall within the scope of the claims of this utility model and their equivalents, this utility model also intends to include these modifications and variations.

[0039] The contents not described in detail in this utility model specification are common knowledge to those skilled in the art.

Claims

1. A soft-pack battery module for aerospace applications with balancing function, characterized in that, include: The pouch battery is an energy-containing component and is equipped with tabs; The equalization printed circuit board assembly includes a printed circuit board circuit and several conductive nut plates, as well as an equalizer that enables the pouch battery to achieve autonomous balancing. Each nut plate is connected to the printed circuit board circuit at one end and electrically connected to the corresponding electrode at the other end, thereby connecting the pouch battery to the printed circuit board circuit.

2. The aerospace soft-pack battery module with balancing function according to claim 1, characterized in that, The equalizer printed circuit board assembly also includes a printed circuit board substrate, a fixing frame, and fasteners; the printed circuit board substrate is provided with printed circuit board circuits; the equalizer is soldered onto the printed circuit board substrate, and the nut plate and the fixing frame are fixed onto the printed circuit board substrate by fasteners.

3. A space-grade soft-pack battery module with balancing function according to claim 2, characterized in that, The nut plate is a conductive metal structure with several through holes and several blind holes. The through holes are used to fix the nut plate to the corresponding position on the printed circuit board, realizing the electrical connection between the printed circuit board circuit and the nut plate. The blind holes are used to fix the tabs, realizing the electrical connection between the soft-pack battery and the nut plate, and to prevent excess metal from falling off during the screw tightening process.

4. A space-grade soft-pack battery module with balancing function according to claim 2, characterized in that, The printed circuit board substrate is a copper-clad epoxy glass cloth laminate, which has mounting holes for all equalizers and nut plates, and a printed circuit board circuit connecting two corresponding equalizer and nut plate positions.

5. A space-grade soft-pack battery module with balancing function according to claim 2, characterized in that, The mounting hole of the nut plate on the printed circuit board substrate is a copper metal layer with the same size as the nut plate, and there is a corresponding blind hole structure through hole in the middle of the nut plate.

6. A space-grade soft-pack battery module with balancing function according to claim 1, characterized in that, The soft-pack battery also includes an aluminum-plastic film, a positive electrode sheet, a negative electrode sheet, and a separator; the separator is located between the positive electrode sheet and the negative electrode sheet, and the positive electrode sheet, the negative electrode sheet, and the separator are tightly stacked to form a battery cell, which is sealed in the aluminum-plastic film.

7. A space-grade soft-pack battery module with balancing function according to claim 1, characterized in that, The negative electrode tab of the pouch battery is made of nickel.

8. A space-grade pouch battery module with balancing function according to claim 1, characterized in that, The positive electrode tab of the pouch battery is made of aluminum or aluminum-to-nickel alloy.

9. A space-grade pouch battery module with balancing function according to claim 1, characterized in that, The pouch battery is a lithium-ion battery, a lithium metal battery, or a solid-state battery.

10. A space-grade pouch battery module with balancing function according to claim 1, characterized in that, The electrode lug has a thickness that ensures the strength after the electrode lug is drilled, and a length that allows for a certain bending allowance after installation and meets the stress release requirements.

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