Battery device

Abstract

To drain water generated in a battery device to improve safety.SOLUTION: A battery device comprises battery pack assemblies mounted on a support member. The battery pack assemblies each include a battery pack and a tray located below the battery pack. The tray includes a frame and a bottom plate connected with the frame. The frame has a top face supporting the battery pack and a bottom face supported by the support member. The bottom plate has a drainage hole.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a battery device. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a power storage device. The power storage device includes a plurality of battery packs and a storage battery panel. The plurality of battery packs are housed in the storage battery panel. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2016 / 129385 [Patent Document 2] JP 2001-015090 A [Patent Document 3] JP 2015-002139 A [Patent Document 4] JP 2017-098374 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the power storage device described in Patent Document 1, water may be generated due to factors such as condensation on the surface of the battery pack. If the generated water accumulates inside the power storage device, it may affect the safety of the power storage device. However, Patent Document 1 does not take any measures against such water that may be generated.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and has an object to provide a battery device that is capable of draining water generated within the battery device, thereby improving safety. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The battery device according to the present disclosure includes a battery pack assembly mounted on a support member. The battery pack assembly includes a battery pack and a tray located below the battery pack. The tray includes a frame and a bottom plate connected to the frame. The frame has an upper surface that supports the battery pack and a lower surface that is supported by the support member. The bottom plate has a drainage hole. Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to the battery device of the present disclosure, the tray can receive water that has adhered to the surface of the battery pack due to condensation or other factors. The drainage holes formed in the tray allow the water on the tray to be drained from a desired location. This leads to improved safety of the battery device. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a main part of a battery device according to an embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the battery assembly (battery pack assembly) shown in FIG. [Diagram 3] 1 is a top view of the tray supported by a pair of rails. [Figure 4] FIG. 11 is a diagram for explaining the location of drainage holes according to the first modified example of the embodiment. [Diagram 5] FIG. 10 is a view for explaining the location of drainage holes according to a second modified example of the embodiment. [Figure 6] 13A and 13B are diagrams illustrating a configuration of a tray according to a third modified example of the embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] The embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In addition, elements common to the various drawings will be denoted by the same reference numerals, and duplicated descriptions will be omitted or simplified.

[0010] 1. Battery device configuration FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a configuration of a main part of a battery device 1 according to an embodiment. The battery device 1 is installed in a stationary location. The battery device 1 is also called a stationary power source. The battery device 1 is configured to store power supplied from an external source and supply the power to a predetermined power supply target. The battery device 1 can be used, for example, as a backup power source (emergency power source) during a power outage (including emergencies such as natural disasters).

[0011] The battery device 1 includes a battery pack assembly (or simply battery assembly) 10 and a support body 30. The battery assembly 10 is an assembly of a battery pack 11 and a tray 20. The number of battery assemblies 10 mounted on the battery device 1 may be one, but generally there are multiple battery assemblies 10. In the example shown in Fig. 1, six battery assemblies 10 are housed within the support body 30 and stacked in the up-down direction D1 (vertical direction) of the battery device 1.

[0012] In this embodiment, the battery pack 11 is an in-vehicle battery pack. That is, an in-vehicle battery pack is repurposed as the battery pack 11 of the battery device 1. This allows for cost reduction of the battery device 1 and effective use of resources. More specifically, the in-vehicle battery pack may be a second-hand product that has been used in a vehicle, or may be a new product.

[0013] Each battery assembly 10 is inserted into or removed from the support 30 from a predetermined direction (insertion direction D3 shown in FIG. 3). FIG 1 is a view of the support 30 housing the battery assembly 10, viewed from the direction of the insertion / removal opening 2 (see FIG. 3).

[0014] The support 30 has a skeleton structure having, for example, a rectangular parallelepiped shape. Of the multiple skeleton members included in the support 30, skeleton members 31 to 34 located on the side of the loading / unloading opening 2 are shown in Fig. 1. The skeleton members 31 and 32 extend in the left-right direction D2 (horizontal direction) at the upper and lower ends of the support 30, respectively. The skeleton members 33 and 34 extend in the up-down direction D1 at each end of the support 30 in the left-right direction D2, respectively.

[0015] The support body 30 further includes a pair of rails 35 and 36 for each battery assembly 10, which support the battery assembly 10. The pair of rails 35 and 36 extend along the depth direction of the paper surface of Fig. 1. The pair of rails 35 and 36 are fixed to, for example, skeletal members 33 and 34 as well as other skeletal members 37 and 38 and reinforcing members 39 and 40 (see Fig. 3). The rails 35 and 36 correspond to an example of a "support member" according to the present disclosure.

[0016] In addition, the battery device 1 includes "other components" (not shown) in addition to the battery assembly 10 and the support 30. The other components include, for example, a power conversion unit (including a boost converter) 50 (see FIG. 4), an electronic control unit (ECU), a high-voltage relay, and other electrical equipment. The other components also include, for example, a wire harness (including a high-voltage cable and connector), and each part of a cooling device (for example, a cooling water pipe, a pump, a radiator, a radiator fan, and a reservoir tank). As an example, in the battery device 1, the "other components" are also repurposed from parts used on a vehicle together with an on-vehicle battery pack. This makes it possible to more effectively reduce costs and utilize resources more effectively.

[0017] Next, a specific configuration of the battery assembly 10 will be described with additional reference to Fig. 2 in addition to Fig. 1. Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the battery assembly 10 shown in Fig. 1.

[0018] The battery pack 11 includes a pack body 12 and a pair of fixing parts 13 and 14. The pack body 12 houses a plurality of secondary battery cells (not shown) and a cooler 15. The cooler 15 constitutes a part of the above-mentioned cooling device. The cooler 15 exchanges heat between the cooling water flowing inside and the multiple secondary battery cells in the pack body 12. This cools the multiple secondary battery cells.

[0019] The tray 20 is located below the battery pack 11. The tray 20 includes a frame 21 and a bottom plate 22. The frame 21 is formed, for example, in a rectangular frame shape. The bottom plate 22 is connected to the frame 21. The frame 21 has a pair of frame portions 23 and 24 located on both sides in the left-right direction D2. The pair of frame portions 23 and 24 have upper surfaces 23a and 24a, respectively, that support the battery pack 11. In addition, the pair of frame portions 23 and 24 have lower surfaces 23b and 24b that are supported by rails 35 and 36, respectively.

[0020] More specifically, brackets 25 for fixing the battery pack 11 to the tray 20 are attached at multiple locations on each of the upper surfaces 23a and 24a. A pair of fixing portions 13 and 14 of the battery pack 11 are fixed to a pair of frame portions 23 and 24, respectively, via the multiple brackets 25. This fixing can be performed by fastening using fasteners such as bolts 16, for example.

[0021] In addition, each of the brackets 25 may be directly attached to the frame 23 or 24. On the other hand, as in the example shown in FIG. 2, each of the brackets 25 may be attached to the frame 23 or 24 via an insulator 26. The use of the insulator 26 is supplemented as follows. As described above, the battery pack 11 is an in-vehicle battery pack. A battery pack used in the battery device 1 may be required to have a higher withstand voltage than an in-vehicle battery pack. For this reason, by interposing the insulator 26 between the battery pack 11 and the tray 20, when an in-vehicle battery pack that does not meet the withstand voltage required for the battery device 1 is converted into the battery pack 11, it becomes possible to appropriately ensure the insulation of the battery pack 11 without the need to increase the withstand voltage of the battery pack 11 itself.

[0022] 2.Drain hole 2, the bottom plate 22 of the tray 20 has a drainage hole 27. The drainage hole 27 is formed so as to penetrate the bottom plate 22.

[0023] Broadly speaking, the bottom plate 22 does not need to be inclined with respect to the horizontal plane as long as it has the drainage holes 27. In this embodiment, the bottom plate 22 is inclined so as to be lower toward the drainage holes 27 as shown in FIG.

[0024] Also, broadly speaking, the position of the drain hole 27 on the bottom plate 22 is not particularly limited, and may be, for example, the center of the bottom plate 22. In this embodiment, the drain hole 27 is formed in a corner of the bottom plate 22 (more specifically, one of the four corners) as shown in FIG. 2. In addition, when the drain hole 27 is formed in a corner of the bottom plate 22, the drain hole 27 may be formed in any one of three corners other than the corner shown in FIG. 2. Alternatively, the drain hole 27 may be formed in each of two or more corners. And the bottom plate 22 may be inclined so as to be lower toward each of the multiple corners in which the drain holes 27 are formed.

[0025] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the position of the drain hole 27 on the bottom plate 22 is determined in consideration of the following viewpoint. FIG. 3 is a top view of the tray 20 supported by a pair of rails 35 and 36. As shown in FIG. 3, the drain hole 27 is formed at the end of the bottom plate 22 located on the side closer to the loading / unloading opening 2 of the battery assembly 10. More specifically, the drain hole 27 is formed at one of the corners on the side of the end. When the drain hole 27 is formed at the end of the bottom plate 22 located on the side closer to the loading / unloading opening 2, unlike the example shown in FIG. 3, the drain hole 27 may be formed at a position other than the corner of the end. When the drain hole 27 is formed at a position other than the corner of the end, the bottom plate 22 may be inclined so as to become lower from the end farther from the loading / unloading opening 2 toward the end closer to the loading / unloading opening 2.

[0026] In addition, although the drainage hole 27 is circular as an example, it is not limited to a circular shape and may have any shape such as an elongated hole shape (including a slit shape). The number of drainage holes 27 may be two or more. This also applies to each of the modified examples described below.

[0027] <Effects> As described above, in the battery device 1 according to the present embodiment, the battery pack 11 is combined with the tray 20 as the battery assembly 10. The tray 20 includes a bottom plate 22. Water may adhere to the surface of the battery pack 11 due to, for example, condensation. In addition, cooling water leaking from the cooling water pipe or the cooler 15 may adhere to the surface of the battery pack 11. The bottom plate 22 can prevent, for example, water adhering to the surface of the battery pack 11 from falling onto the battery pack 11 below. The bottom plate 22 is formed with a drain hole 27. This can prevent water from overflowing from the tray 20. More specifically, by selecting the position of the drain hole 27, water can be drained from a desired position, such as a position that does not overlap with the battery pack 11 in a top view. This leads to suppression of short circuit occurrence in the battery pack 11 or an electric device connected thereto, that is, improvement of the safety of the battery device 1.

[0028] Moreover, the bottom plate 22 according to this embodiment is inclined so as to become lower toward the drainage hole 27. This can improve the drainage performance of the tray 20.

[0029] Moreover, the drainage holes 27 according to this embodiment are formed in the corners of the bottom plate 22. This makes it possible to determine the position of the drainage holes 27 so that water dropping from the drainage holes 27 is less likely to splash on the battery packs 11 below.

[0030] Furthermore, the drainage hole 27 according to this embodiment is formed at an end of the bottom plate 22 located on the side closer to the opening 2 for inserting and removing the battery assembly 10. This end is a location where components of the battery device 1, such as the above-mentioned electrical devices, are not placed nearby so as not to impede the insertion and removal of the battery assembly 10 into the support 30. By forming the drainage hole 27 in such a location, it becomes possible to drain water from the tray 20 while making it easier to prevent water from getting on the components.

[0031] 3. Variations The position of the drainage hole 27 on the bottom plate 22 may be determined taking the following points into consideration. Fig. 4 is a diagram for explaining the arrangement of the drainage hole 27 according to a first modified example of the embodiment. Fig. 4 is a top view similar to Fig. 3. As a premise, in the first modified example, the above-mentioned power conversion unit 50, which is one of the electric devices connected to the battery pack 11, is provided for each battery pack 11, for example. Each power conversion unit 50 is arranged at the same height as the battery pack 11 to which it is connected, on the far side in the insertion direction D3 as shown in Fig. 4.

[0032] Moreover, the drainage hole 27 is formed in an end (for example, a corner of the end) of the bottom plate 22 located on the opposite side to where the power conversion unit 50 is disposed when viewed from above the bottom plate 22 (i.e., FIG. 4). By forming the drainage hole 27 in the end away from the power conversion unit 50 in this manner, it becomes possible to drain water from the tray 20 while making it easier to prevent water from being discharged onto the power conversion unit 50. In addition, it is also easier to prevent water from being discharged onto the wire harness connecting the power conversion unit 50 and the battery pack 11.

[0033] 5(A) and 5(B) are diagrams for explaining the location of drainage holes 62 according to a second modified example of the embodiment. Tray 60 according to the second modified example differs from tray 20 shown in FIG. 2 in that it includes bottom plate 61 instead of bottom plate 22.

[0034] As a premise, in the second modified example, four cam followers 70 are used to enable the positioning of the battery assembly 10 in the left-right direction D2 when the battery assembly 10 is inserted into the support 30. Two mounting holes 62 for mounting two of the four cam followers 70 are formed in the bottom plate 61. Two mounting holes 63 for mounting the remaining two cam followers 70 are formed in front of the two mounting holes 62 in the insertion direction D3. The four cam followers 70 are mounted in the corresponding mounting holes 62 or 63 when the battery assembly 10 is inserted. When the battery assembly 10 is inserted, the two cam followers 70 move along the inner side surface 35a of one rail 35, and the remaining two cam followers 70 move along the inner side surface 36a of the other rail 36. The battery assembly 10 is thus inserted into the support 30 while being guided by the four cam followers 70. This allows the battery assembly 10 to be positioned in the left-right direction D2.

[0035] When the insertion of the battery assembly 10 is complete, at least the two cam followers 70 that are closest to the loading / unloading opening 2 out of the four cam followers are removed from the tray 60. In the second modified example, the two mounting holes 62 remaining after the two cam followers 70 have been removed are shared as two “drainage holes” 62.

[0036] More specifically, for example, the two drainage holes 62 are provided at two corners of the bottom plate 61 located near the loading / unloading opening 2 as shown in FIG. 5(B). The bottom plate 61 does not necessarily have to be inclined with respect to the horizontal plane, but may have an inclined portion 61a and a horizontal portion 62b as shown in FIG. 5(B), for example. The two drainage holes 62 are formed in the horizontal portion 62b. The inclined portion 61a is inclined so as to become lower from the front to the rear in the insertion direction D3 (i.e., toward the drainage holes 62). In addition to the two drainage holes 62, another drainage hole 64 as represented by a dashed line may be formed in the horizontal portion 62b.

[0037] Next, Fig. 6 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a tray 80 according to a third modified example of the embodiment. The tray 80 according to the third modified example differs from the tray 20 shown in Fig. 2 in that it has a bottom plate 81 instead of the bottom plate 22. Fig. 6 shows the pack body 12A and tray 80 provided in a battery assembly 10A, which is one of the multiple battery assemblies 10, and the pack body 12B of a battery assembly 10B one level below the battery assembly 10A.

[0038] For comparison, in FIG. 6, the bottom plates 22 and 100 are also shown together with the bottom plate 81. The lines of the bottom plates 81 and 22 shown in FIG. 6 are obtained at the end positions of the bottom plates 81 and 22 on the side closer to the loading / unloading opening 2. The bottom plate 100 is horizontal without inclination and is located at the same height as the lower surfaces 23b and 24b of the frame 21. The gap G in FIG. 6 corresponds to the minimum gap required between the bottom plate of the upper battery assembly 10A and the lower pack body 12B from the viewpoint of the performance of the battery device 1. Therefore, in the example of the bottom plate 100, the pack body 12B cannot be closer to the battery assembly 10A than the position shown by the dashed line due to the constraint of the gap G. Also, as shown in FIG. 6, the height of the lowest position of the bottom plate 22 is the same as that of the bottom plate 100. Therefore, in the example of the bottom plate 22, in order to secure the gap G, the pack body 12B cannot be closer to the battery assembly 10A than the position shown by the dashed line.

[0039] 6, even at its lowest point, the bottom plate 81 is positioned above the lower surfaces 23b and 24b of the frame 21 by an offset O. This allows the pack body 12B to be brought closer to the battery assembly 10A to the position indicated by the solid line while maintaining the gap G. In other words, the distance between the battery assembly 10A and the battery assembly 10B in the vertical direction D1 can be shortened by the offset O. With this raised bottom structure, the rise in the center of gravity of the battery device 1 caused by stacking the battery packs 11 can be suppressed, improving the stability (earthquake resistance) of the battery device 1. [Explanation of symbols]

[0040] 1 battery device, 2 loading / unloading port, 10 battery pack assembly, 11 battery pack, 12 pack body, 15 cooler, 20, 60, 80 tray, 21 frame, 22, 61, 81, 100 bottom plate, 23b, 24b underside of frame, 27, 64 drainage hole, 30 support, 35, 36 rail (support member), 50 power conversion unit, 62 drainage hole (cam follower mounting hole), 70 cam follower

Claims

1. A battery device comprising a battery pack assembly mounted on a support member, The battery pack assembly includes: A battery pack; a tray located below the battery pack and including a frame and a bottom plate connected to the frame; Including, the frame has an upper surface that supports the battery pack and a lower surface that is supported by the support member, The bottom plate has a drain hole. A battery device comprising:

2. The bottom plate is inclined downward toward the drain hole.

2. The battery device according to claim 1 .

3. When viewed from above, the drain hole is formed at an end of the bottom plate located on the opposite side to a location where an electrical device connected to the battery pack is disposed.

3. The battery device according to claim 1 or 2.

4. the battery device includes an opening for inserting and removing the battery pack assembly into and from a support body including the support member; The drain hole is formed at the end of the bottom plate located closer to the access opening.

3. The battery device according to claim 1 or 2.

5. The drainage holes are formed in the corners of the bottom plate.

3. The battery device according to claim 1 or 2.

6. The drainage hole is also used as a mounting hole for a cam follower that guides the battery pack assembly by moving along a wall surface of the support member when the battery pack assembly is inserted into a support body including the support member.

3. The battery device according to claim 1 or 2.

7. The battery device is installed in a stationary location; The battery pack is an in-vehicle battery pack.

3. The battery device according to claim 1 or 2.

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