Battery pack

Abstract

To provide a battery pack which can improve the efficiency of cooling battery cells.SOLUTION: A battery pack includes: a plurality of battery cells; a heat insulation material arranged among the battery cells; and a cooling flow passage for cooling the battery cells. The heat insulation material includes: an ultrasonic wave generation device provided in the inside; and fixation means for fixing the ultrasonic wave generation device to the heat insulation material.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

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

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a configuration in which a throttle portion is provided in an intake passage in order to equalize the temperature of battery cells in a battery pack. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2021-099937 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Within a battery cell, for example, the temperature distribution differs between the upper and lower sides, and therefore the configuration disclosed in Patent Document 1 leaves room for improvement in terms of cooling efficiency.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made in consideration of the above, and has an object to provide a battery pack capable of improving the cooling efficiency of battery cells. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The battery pack of the present disclosure comprises a plurality of battery cells, an insulating material arranged between each battery cell, and a cooling flow path for cooling the battery cells, the insulating material comprising an ultrasonic generator provided therein, and a fixing means for fixing the ultrasonic generator to the insulating material. Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to the present disclosure, by fixing an ultrasonic generator to an insulating material with a fixing member while stirring the electrolyte inside the battery cell with ultrasonic waves, the electrolyte is more easily cooled evenly, thereby improving the cooling efficiency of the battery cell. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a side view showing a schematic configuration of a battery pack according to an embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the configuration of a heat insulating material of the battery pack according to the embodiment. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the configuration of a heat insulating material of the battery pack according to the embodiment, and is a cross-sectional view taken along line XX in FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] A battery pack according to an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that components in the following embodiments include those that are replaceable and easy for a person skilled in the art, or those that are substantially the same.

[0010] A battery pack according to an embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 3. The battery pack according to the embodiment is used as a battery for, for example, a hybrid electric vehicle (HEV), a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV), an electric vehicle (BEV), or the like.

[0011] Fig. 1 is a side view showing a schematic configuration of a battery pack according to an embodiment. The battery pack 1 includes a plurality of battery cells 11, a plurality of heat insulating materials 12, and a cooling flow path 13. Note that in the figure, the battery cells 11, the heat insulating materials 12, and the cooling flow path 13 are shown separated from each other, but in reality, they are arranged in close contact with each other. Also, in the figure, only the configuration of the characteristic parts of the present invention is extracted from the configuration of the battery pack 1 and is shown, and other configurations are not shown.

[0012] The battery cells 11 are stacked in a predetermined direction inside the battery pack 1. Each battery cell includes, for example, a case filled with an electrolyte, an electrode assembly, a positive electrode, a negative electrode, and a separator.

[0013] The heat insulating material 12 is for insulating the spaces between the battery cells 11. The heat insulating material 12 is disposed between each of the battery cells. The specific configuration of the heat insulating material 12 will be described below.

[0014] Fig. 2 is a plan view showing a specific configuration of the heat insulating material 12, and Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XX in Fig. 2. The heat insulating material 12 includes a main body 121, an outer frame 122, an ultrasonic generator 123, and a fixing means 124.

[0015] The main body 121 is made of a material having heat insulating properties and insulation properties. The outer frame 122 is for supporting the main body 121, and is disposed around the main body 121. The ultrasonic generator 123 is provided inside the heat insulating material 12. The ultrasonic generator 123 is fixed to the outer frame 122 of the heat insulating material 12 by fixing means (ribs) 124.

[0016] In the battery pack according to the embodiment, an ultrasonic generator 123 is attached to the space inside the thermal insulation material 12, and as described below, an agitation function for the electrolyte inside the battery cell 11 is added to the effect of the thermal insulation material 12. This allows the electrolyte to circulate, reducing the temperature distribution.

[0017] The cooling flow passage 13 is for cooling the battery cell 11. This cooling flow passage 13 is disposed, for example, at the bottom of the battery cell 11. Furthermore, the specific configuration of the cooling flow passage 13 is not limited, and may be, for example, a water-cooling type cooling means using a water pump or the like, or a refrigerant type cooling means using a cooling fan or the like.

[0018] In conventional battery cells, the internal temperature distribution is highly biased, making it impossible to efficiently cool the hot parts. In addition, when temperature distribution occurs inside a battery cell, the internal resistance increases in accordance with the temperature distribution, making it necessary to implement controls to limit the charging current, etc. This problem occurs because there is no flow of the electrolyte, which is mainly responsible for heat transfer inside the battery cell, so the temperature distribution cannot be eliminated (or it takes time to eliminate it).

[0019] Therefore, in the battery pack according to the embodiment, an ultrasonic generator 123 is provided inside the thermal insulation material 12, and as shown in FIG. 1, the electrolyte is stirred by ultrasonic waves when the battery pack 1 is in operation. By stirring the electrolyte inside the battery cell 11 in this way, warm electrolyte is always supplied to the bottom of the battery cell 11 where heat exchange takes place through the cooling flow path 13. This ensures a temperature difference with the refrigerant in the cooling flow path 13, and improves cooling performance. Furthermore, by stirring the electrolyte by ultrasonic waves, it is possible to instantly uniform the temperature distribution inside the battery cell 11.

[0020] Incidentally, conventional battery cell insulation materials lack rigidity, so even if an ultrasonic generator is attached, the insulation material vibrates and ultrasonic waves cannot be transmitted to the battery cell effectively. On the other hand, in the battery pack according to the embodiment, fixing means (ribs) 124 are provided around the ultrasonic generator 123, so that the ultrasonic generator 123 can be fixed securely and ultrasonic waves can be transmitted to the battery cell 11 efficiently.

[0021] According to the battery pack according to the embodiment described above, the electrolyte is more easily cooled evenly by agitating the electrolyte inside the battery cells 11 with ultrasonic waves while the ultrasonic generator 123 is fixed to the insulating material 12 by the fixing means 124. This makes it possible to improve the cooling efficiency of the battery cells 11.

[0022] Further advantages and modifications may readily occur to those skilled in the art. Thus, the invention in its broader aspects is not limited to the specific details and representative embodiments shown and described above. Accordingly, various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the general inventive concept as defined by the appended claims and equivalents thereof. [Explanation of symbols]

[0023] 1 Battery pack 11 Battery Cell 12. Insulation 121 Main body 122 Outer Frame 123 Ultrasonic Generator 124 Fixing means (ribs) 13 Cooling Channel

Claims

[Claim 1] A plurality of battery cells; a heat insulating material disposed between each battery cell; A cooling flow path that cools the battery cell; Equipped with The heat insulating material is An ultrasonic generator provided therein; A fixing means for fixing the ultrasonic generator to the insulating material; A battery pack comprising:

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