Battery device

Abstract

To prevent rising of the center of gravity caused by lamination of battery packs to improve stability.SOLUTION: A battery device comprises a plurality of battery pack assemblies laminated in a vertical direction and stored in a support. The plurality of battery pack assemblies each include a battery pack and a tray. The tray is located below the battery pack and 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. The bottom plate is arranged above the bottom face of the frame.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 battery panel. The battery packs are housed in the battery panel. The battery packs are stacked vertically in the 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, if the center of gravity of the power storage device becomes higher due to stacking of the battery packs, there is a risk that the stability of the power storage device will decrease.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a battery device that can improve stability by suppressing the rise in the center of gravity caused by stacking battery packs. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The battery device according to the present disclosure includes a plurality of battery pack assemblies housed in a vertically stacked manner within a support. Each of the plurality of battery pack assemblies includes a battery pack and a tray. The tray is located below the battery pack and 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. The bottom plate is located above the lower surface of the frame. Effect of the Invention

[0007] In the battery device according to the present disclosure, the tray supporting the battery pack includes a bottom plate disposed above the lower surface of the frame. This allows the distance between adjacent battery pack assemblies in the vertical direction to be shortened while still ensuring the required gap between them. This prevents the center of gravity of the battery device from rising due to stacking of battery packs, improving the stability 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] 11A and 11B are diagrams for explaining a raised bottom structure of a tray according to an embodiment. [Figure 4] 13A and 13B are diagrams for explaining a configuration of a tray according to a modified example of the embodiment. [Diagram 5] 5 is a diagram for explaining a raised bottom structure of the tray shown in FIG. 4. FIG. 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. 4). 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. 4).

[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. 4). 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. Raised bottom structure Fig. 3 is a diagram for explaining the raised bottom structure of the tray 20 according to the embodiment. Fig. 3 shows the pack body 12A and tray 20 of a battery assembly 10A, which is one of the multiple battery assemblies 10, and the pack body 12B of a battery assembly 10B, which is one level below the battery assembly 10A.

[0023] 3, for the purpose of comparison, a bottom plate 100 (comparative example) is shown together with the bottom plate 22. The bottom plate 100 is located at the same height as the lower surfaces 23b and 24b of the frame 21. In other words, the bottom plate 100 is not provided in a raised shape with respect to the lower surfaces 23b and 24b.

[0024] 3 corresponds to the minimum gap required between the bottom plate of the upper battery assembly 10A and the lower pack body 12B from the perspective of the performance of the battery device 1. For this reason, in the example of the bottom plate 100, due to the constraints of the gap G, the pack body 12B cannot be brought closer to the battery assembly 10A than the position indicated by the dashed line.

[0025] In contrast, the bottom plate 22 according to this embodiment is disposed 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. Such a raised bottom structure can suppress the rise of the center of gravity of the battery device 1 caused by stacking the battery packs 11, improving the stability (earthquake resistance) of the battery device 1.

[0026] 3. Variations Fig. 4 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a tray 60 according to a modified example of the embodiment. Fig. 4 is a top view of the tray 60 in a state in which it is supported by a pair of rails 35 and 36. The tray 60 according to this modified example differs from the tray 20 shown in Fig. 2 in that it includes a bottom plate 61 instead of the bottom plate 22.

[0027] As shown in Fig. 4, the bottom plate 61 of the tray 60 has a drainage hole 62. The drainage hole 62 is formed so as to penetrate the bottom plate 22. The bottom plate 61 is inclined so as to become lower toward the drainage hole 62 as shown in Fig. 4.

[0028] The bottom plate 61 configured as described above provides the following effects. That is, water may adhere to the surface of the battery pack 11 due to, for example, condensation. Also, 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 61 can prevent, for example, water adhering to the surface of the battery pack 11 from dropping onto the battery pack 11 below (this also applies to the above-mentioned bottom plate 22). In addition, the bottom plate 61 is formed with a drainage hole 62. This can prevent water from overflowing from the tray 60. More specifically, by selecting the position of the drainage hole 62, 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. The bottom plate 61 is inclined so as to be lower toward the drainage hole 62. This can improve the drainage performance of the tray 60.

[0029] Fig. 5 is a diagram for explaining the raised bottom structure of the tray 60 shown in Fig. 4. The line of the bottom plate 61 shown in Fig. 5 is obtained at the position of the end of the bottom plate 61 on the side closer to the loading / unloading opening 2. For comparison, Fig. 5 also shows the bottom plates 22 and 100 together with the bottom plate 61.

[0030] As can be seen from Fig. 5, like the bottom plate 22, the bottom plate 61 also has a raised bottom structure. More specifically, even at its lowest point, the bottom plate 61 has the same height as the bottom plate 22. Therefore, like the case where the bottom plate 22 is used, the bottom plate 61 can also lower the center of gravity of the battery device 1. In this way, by using the bottom plate 61 and appropriately setting the magnitude of the offset O, it is possible to improve the drainage performance of the tray 60 while improving the stability (earthquake resistance) of the battery device 1.

[0031] In addition, broadly speaking, the position of the drain hole 62 on the bottom plate 61 is not particularly limited, and may be, for example, the center of the bottom plate 61. In addition, in this embodiment, the drain hole 62 is formed in a corner (more specifically, one of the four corners) of the bottom plate 61 as shown in FIG. 4. This makes it possible to determine the position of the drain hole 62 so that water dropping from the drain hole 62 is less likely to splash on the battery pack 11 in the lower stage. In addition, when the drain hole 62 is formed in a corner of the bottom plate 61, the drain hole 62 may be formed in any one of three corners other than the corner shown in FIG. 4. Alternatively, the drain hole 62 may be formed in each of two or more corners. The bottom plate 61 may be inclined so as to be lower toward each of the multiple corners in which the drain hole 62 is formed.

[0032] Furthermore, in the modified example shown in FIG. 4, the position of the drain hole 62 on the bottom plate 61 is determined in consideration of the following viewpoint. As shown in FIG. 3, the drain hole 62 is formed in 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 62 is formed in one of the corners on the side of the end. When the drain hole 62 is formed in the end of the bottom plate 61 located on the side closer to the loading / unloading opening 2, unlike the example shown in FIG. 4, the drain hole 62 may be formed in a portion other than the corner of the end. When the drain hole 62 is formed in a portion other than the corner of the end, the bottom plate 61 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.

[0033] The end close to the loading / unloading opening 2 is a portion where components of the battery device 1, such as the above-mentioned electric devices, are not placed nearby so as not to impede loading / unloading of the battery assembly 10 into the support 30. By forming the drainage hole 62 in such a portion, water can be drained from the tray 60 while making it easier to prevent water from getting on the components.

[0034] More specifically, in the modification shown in FIG. 4, the above-mentioned power conversion unit 50, which is an example of an electric device connected to the battery pack 11, is disposed at the rear side in the insertion direction D3 as shown in FIG. 4 at the same height as the battery pack 11 to be connected. In relation to the power conversion unit 50, the drain hole 62 can be said to be formed at an end (for example, a corner of the end) of the bottom plate 61 located opposite to the arrangement location of the power conversion unit 50 in a top view of the bottom plate 61 (i.e., FIG. 4). By forming the drain hole 62 at the end away from the electric device (power conversion unit 50) in this way, it becomes possible to drain water from the tray 60 while easily preventing the power conversion unit 50 from being drained. In addition, it is also possible to easily prevent the wire harness connecting the power conversion unit 50 and the battery pack 11 from being drained.

[0035] In addition, the drainage holes 62 are circular as an example, but are not limited to circular, and may have any shape such as an elongated hole shape (including a slit shape). The number of drainage holes 62 may be two or more. [Explanation of symbols]

[0036] 1 battery device, 2 loading / unloading opening, 10 battery pack assembly, 11 battery pack, 12 pack body, 15 cooler, 20, 60 tray, 21 frame, 22, 61, 100 bottom plate, 23b, 24b lower surface of frame, 26 insulator, 30 support, 35, 36 rail (support member), 62 drain hole

Claims

1. A battery device including a plurality of battery pack assemblies housed in a vertically stacked manner within a support, Each of the plurality of battery pack assemblies comprises: 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 body, The bottom plate is disposed above the lower surface of the frame. A battery device comprising:

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

2. The battery device according to claim 1 .

3. The battery pack is supported by the frame via an insulator.

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

4. 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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