Energy storage device

Abstract

To provide an energy storage device that prevents foreign matter such as dust from entering a portion between a rack bus bar and a terminal portion, thereby preventing an increase in contact resistance and improving stability.SOLUTION: An energy storage device includes a cell assembly in which a plurality of battery cells are stacked, a rack case in which the cell assembly is housed, a terminal portion provided in the rack case and electrically connected to the battery cells, with an insertion portion formed on a portion of the outer surface, and a rack bus bar fastened to the terminal portion and with a protrusion formed on a side surface that is inserted into the insertion portion.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an energy storage device that prevents foreign matter such as dust from entering between a rack bus bar and a terminal portion. [Background technology]

[0002] An ESS (Energy Storage System) is a system that can store surplus electricity and electricity produced using renewable energy. By using an ESS, it is possible to smoothly control the supply and demand of electricity by storing idle electricity during times of low demand and supplying electricity during times of high demand.

[0003] Spaces or facilities where ESSs are installed and operated are required to be equipped with equipment to suppress battery fires caused by electric shock, short circuits, external surges, etc. A typical fire extinguishing system consists of fire detection sensors, sprinklers and fire extinguishing agent sprayers installed around the battery racks or on the ceiling.

[0004] Such an ESS includes a cell assembly in which a plurality of battery cells are stacked inside a rack case, and the plurality of cell assemblies are electrically connected to each other by a rack bus bar and terminal portions.

[0005] Meanwhile, dust generated by vibrations during land / sea testing of ESS mobile UPS often finds its way between the rack bus bar and the terminal, increasing contact resistance (IR) and reducing stability. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] An embodiment of the present invention provides an energy storage device that prevents foreign matter such as dust from entering a portion between a rack bus bar and a terminal portion, thereby preventing an increase in contact resistance and improving stability. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] One embodiment of the present invention includes a cell assembly in which a plurality of battery cells are stacked; a rack case in which the cell assembly is housed; a terminal portion provided in the rack case and electrically connected to the battery cell, the terminal portion having an insertion portion formed on a portion of an outer surface; and a rack bus bar fastened to the terminal portion and having a protrusion formed on a side surface thereof that is inserted into the insertion portion.

[0008] The terminal portion may include a terminal plate electrically connected to the battery cell inside the rack case, and a terminal block connected to the terminal plate, protruding to the outside of the rack case, and having an insertion portion into which the protrusion is inserted.

[0009] The insertion portion may include a first insertion groove of a first length formed in a first direction from the outer surface of the terminal block, and a second insertion groove of a second length formed in a second direction from the outer surface of the terminal block.

[0010] The first direction may be a width direction of the terminal block.

[0011] The first insertion groove may have a triangular cross-sectional shape formed inside the terminal block.

[0012] The second direction may be a longitudinal direction of the terminal block.

[0013] The second insertion grooves may be formed on opposite side edges of the terminal block.

[0014] The second insertion grooves may be tapered on opposite side edges of the terminal block.

[0015] The rack bus bar may include a bus bar plate that is in surface contact with the surface of the terminal block and fixed by a fastening member, and a protrusion that protrudes from the periphery of the bus bar plate and is inserted into the insertion portion.

[0016] The protrusions may include a first protrusion that protrudes from one edge of the bus bar plate and is inserted into the first insertion groove, and a second protrusion that protrudes from opposite edges of the bus bar plate and is inserted into the second insertion groove.

[0017] The first protrusion and the second protrusion may have a triangular cross-sectional shape.

[0018] The first protrusion and the second protrusion can be connected to each other at the periphery of the busbar plate. [Effects of the Invention]

[0019] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the protrusions formed on the rack bus bar are inserted into the insertion grooves formed in the terminal portions, thereby preventing a space from being formed between the rack bus bar and the terminal portions, thereby preventing the inflow of foreign matter such as dust.

[0020] According to one embodiment of the present invention, dust generated by vibrations during onshore or offshore evaluation of an uninterruptible power supply (USS) or other energy storage device is prevented from flowing between the rack bus bar and the terminal, thereby preventing an increase in contact resistance due to dust and improving durability. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0021] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view schematically illustrating an energy storage device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a perspective view schematically illustrating a main part of the energy storage device of FIG. [Figure 3] 1 is a perspective view of a main part of an energy storage device according to an embodiment of the present invention, schematically illustrating a state in which a rack bus bar is separated from a terminal portion. FIG. [Figure 4] 4 is a cross-sectional view of a main part, schematically illustrating a state in which the rack bus bar of FIG. 3 is joined to a terminal portion by a fastening member. [Figure 5] 1 is a perspective view of a main part, schematically illustrating a state in which a terminal portion according to an embodiment of the present invention is provided; [Figure 6]6 is a cross-sectional view of a main part, schematically showing a state in which the terminal portion of FIG. 5 is provided. FIG. [Figure 7] FIG. 1 is a perspective view schematically illustrating a rack bus bar according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a perspective view schematically illustrating a main part of the rack bus bar of FIG. 7. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0022] Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail so that those skilled in the art can easily carry out the present invention. However, the present invention can be realized in various different forms and is not limited to the embodiments described herein. In the drawings, parts unnecessary for the purpose of clearly explaining the present invention are omitted, and the same reference numerals are used throughout the specification to refer to the same or similar components.

[0023] FIG. 1 is a perspective view schematically showing an energy storage device according to one embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a perspective view schematically showing a main part of the energy storage device of FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a perspective view schematically showing a main part of the energy storage device according to one embodiment of the present invention in a state where a rack bus bar is separated from a terminal portion.

[0024] As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, an energy storage device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a cell assembly 10 in which a plurality of battery cells are stacked, a rack case 20 in which the cell assembly 10 is housed, a terminal unit 30 provided in the rack case 20 and electrically connected to the cell assembly 10, the terminal unit 30 having an insertion portion 35 formed on a portion of its outer surface, and a rack bus bar 40 fastened to the terminal unit 30 and having a protrusion 43 formed on a side surface thereof to be inserted into the insertion portion 35.

[0025] The cell assembly 10 may be formed by stacking a plurality of battery cells in a state where the cells are electrically connected to each other.

[0026] The battery cell may be a pouch-type secondary battery, a prismatic secondary battery, or a cylindrical secondary battery. In the following, the present embodiment will be described assuming that the battery cell is a pouch-type secondary battery.

[0027] The battery cell may be at least one or more than one, but in the following description of this embodiment, the battery cell is limited to a case where a plurality of battery cells are provided.

[0028] The rack case 20 can accommodate at least one or more battery cells, and for this purpose, the rack case 20 may be provided with an accommodation space for accommodating the plurality of battery cells.

[0029] Meanwhile, the rack case 20 may be provided with terminal portions 30 electrically connected to the battery cells.

[0030] The terminal portion 30 is electrically connected to a plurality of battery cells, protrudes to the outside of the rack case 20, and can be connected to the rack bus bar 40.

[0031] Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view of a main part that schematically shows the state in which the rack bus bar of Figure 3 is connected to the terminal part by a fastening member, Figure 5 is a perspective view of a main part that schematically shows the state in which the terminal part according to one embodiment of the present invention is provided, and Figure 6 is a cross-sectional view of a main part that schematically shows the state in which the terminal part of Figure 5 is provided.

[0032] Explaining more specifically with reference to Figures 4 to 6, the terminal portion 30 may include a terminal plate 31 electrically connected to the battery cell inside the rack case 20, and a terminal block 33 connected to the terminal plate 31, protruding to the outside of the rack case 20, and having an insertion portion 35 formed on its outer surface into which the protrusion 43 is inserted.

[0033] The terminal plate 31 is inserted into the rack case 20 and is formed to have a thickness smaller than that of the terminal block 33 for stable electrical connection to the battery cells, and can be connected to the battery cells inside the rack case 20.

[0034] The terminal block 33 may be connected to the terminal plate 31 , and the other side may protrude to the outside of the rack case 20 and be connected to the rack bus bar 40 .

[0035] The terminal block 33 can be electrically connected in a state where it protrudes outside the rack case 20 and where a portion of its outer surface is in surface contact with the surface of the rack bus bar 40 .

[0036] The terminal block 33 and the rack bus bar 40 can be fixed to each other by fastening members 32. To this end, the terminal block 33 may be formed with first fastening holes 34 for fastening the fastening members 32, and the rack bus bar 40 may be formed with second fastening holes 44 for fastening the fastening members 32. The fastening members 32 may be referred to as bolt members hereinafter.

[0037] That is, the first coupling hole 34 and the second coupling hole 44 may be formed so that the terminal block 33 and the rack bus bar 40 communicate with each other in a state of surface contact with each other.

[0038] The first and second connecting holes 44 are formed in the terminal block 33 and the rack bus bar 40, respectively, in the shape of screw holes with the same or similar diameters, and can be electrically connected to each other by the fastening member 32.

[0039] An insertion portion 35 may be formed on the surface of the terminal block 33 .

[0040] The insertion portion 35 is formed on the terminal block 33 so that the protrusion 43 formed on the rack bus bar 40 described later can be inserted therein, thereby preventing foreign matter such as dust from entering the interior of the rack case 20.

[0041] More specifically, the insertion portion 35 may include a first insertion groove 35a of a first length formed in a first direction from the outer surface of the terminal block 33, and a second insertion groove 35b of a second length formed in a second direction from the outer surface of the terminal block 33.

[0042] The first insertion groove 35a may be formed with a first length in a first direction on the outer surface of the terminal block 33. Hereinafter, the first length is a length corresponding to the length of the terminal block 33 in the width direction, and the first direction may be the width direction of the terminal block 33.

[0043] The first insertion groove 35a is formed in a polygonal shape inside the terminal block 33, and in this embodiment may be formed in a triangular cross-sectional shape. Therefore, the first protrusion 43a, which will be described later, can be stably inserted into the first insertion groove 35a by surface contact.

[0044] In this embodiment, the first insertion groove 35a is described as having a triangular cross-sectional shape, but this is not necessarily limited to this and can also be changed to a polygonal shape such as a rectangular or square cross-sectional shape.

[0045] The second insertion groove 35b may be formed to a second length in a second direction from the outer surface of the terminal block 33. The second length may be the same as or similar to the first length. The second direction may be perpendicular to the first direction.

[0046] The second insertion grooves 35b may be formed on both opposing side edges of the terminal block 33. The second insertion grooves 35b may be formed as a pair on both opposing side edges of the terminal block 33, and may be formed to have the same length.

[0047] The second insertion groove 35b may be formed in a tapered shape on the periphery of the terminal block 33.

[0048] Therefore, when the terminal plate 31 is coupled to the terminal block 33, the second protrusion 43b can be positioned in a surface contact state.

[0049] FIG. 7 is a perspective view schematically showing a rack bus bar according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 8 is a perspective view schematically showing a main part of the rack bus bar of FIG.

[0050] As shown in Figures 7 and 8, the rack busbar 40 can include a busbar plate 41 that is fixed by fastening members 32 with its side surface in surface contact with the terminal block 33, and a protrusion 43 that protrudes from the periphery of the busbar plate 41 and is inserted into the insertion groove.

[0051] The busbar plate 41 is electrically connected by the fastening member 32 while being in surface contact with the surface of the terminal block 33, and may be in the shape of a rectangular plate with a flat surface formed on the surface that contacts the terminal block 33.

[0052] The bus bar plate 41 may have second coupling holes 44 formed therein for coupling the fastening members 32 thereto.

[0053] The second coupling holes 44 may be formed through the bus bar plate 41 so as to communicate with the first coupling holes 34 formed in the terminal block 33 .

[0054] The fastening member 32 passes through the second coupling hole 44 and is fastened to the first coupling hole 34 of the terminal block 33, thereby enabling a stable electrical connection between the terminal block 33 and the rack bus bar 40.

[0055] The bus bar plate 41 has a protruding portion 43 protruding from the periphery thereof.

[0056] The protrusion 43 may protrude from the edge of one side of the bus bar plate and be inserted into the insertion portion 35 .

[0057] More specifically, the protrusion 43 may include a first protrusion 43a that protrudes from one edge of the bus bar plate 41 and is inserted into the first insertion groove 35a, and a second protrusion 43b that protrudes from opposite edges of the bus bar plate 41 and is inserted into the second insertion groove 35b.

[0058] The first protrusion 43a protrudes from the upper edge of the bus bar plate 41 and may be inserted into the first insertion groove 35a during the process of connecting the rack bus bar 40 to the terminal portion 30.

[0059] The first protrusion 43a is formed to a first length corresponding to the length of the bus bar plate 41 in the width direction, and may be a single protrusion on one edge of the bus bar plate 41. Of course, the first protrusion 43a may protrude in at least two or more in accordance with the change in the number of first insertion grooves 35a.

[0060] The first protrusion 43a will be described as protruding from one edge of the busbar plate 41 with a triangular cross-sectional shape as an example, but it can also be changed to a polygonal shape such as a hexahedron in response to a change in the shape of the first insertion groove 35a.

[0061] The first protrusion 43a is tightly fitted into the inner wall surface of the first insertion groove 35a, thereby preventing foreign matter from being inserted between the bus bar plate 41 and the terminal block 33. The first protrusion 43a can also be inserted and fixed in a press-fit state into the first insertion groove 35a.

[0062] On the other hand, the second protrusions 43b may protrude from the edges of the bus bar plate 41 on both opposing sides and be inserted into the second insertion grooves 35b.

[0063] The second protrusion 43b protrudes a second length along the periphery of the bus bar plate 41 and may be inserted into the second insertion groove 35b during the process of connecting the rack bus bar 40 to the terminal portion 30.

[0064] The second length of the second protrusion 43b may be longer than the first length of the first protrusion 43a. Since the second protrusion 43b is formed to be longer than the first protrusion 43a, foreign matter can be effectively prevented from flowing from the side surface of the bus bar plate 41 toward the terminal portion 30.

[0065] The second protrusions 43b can protrude from opposite edges of the bus bar plate 41 with one side connected to the first protrusion 43a. Therefore, the second protrusions 43b can be formed to protrude from opposite edges of the bus bar plate 41, with the first protrusion 43a sandwiched between them.

[0066] The second protrusions 43b are formed to have a second length corresponding to the length of the second insertion grooves 35b, and can protrude from the edges of both sides of the bus bar plate 41 with a triangular cross section.

[0067] The second protrusion 43b will be described as being formed in a shape identical to or similar to the triangular cross-sectional shape of the first protrusion 43a, but it can also be changed to a polygonal shape such as a hexahedron in response to a change in the shape of the second insertion groove 35b.

[0068] As described above, the first protrusion 43a is inserted into the first insertion groove 35a formed in the width direction of the terminal portion 30, thereby preventing dust from flowing between the rack bus bar 40 and the terminal portion 30 from the upper direction of the bus bar plate 41.

[0069] The second protrusion 43b is inserted into the second insertion groove 35b formed on the side of the terminal portion 30, thereby preventing dust from flowing between the rack busbar 40 and the terminal portion 30 from the side direction of the busbar plate 41.

[0070] In this way, in the energy storage device 100 of this embodiment, the protrusion 43 is inserted into the insertion portion 35 during the process of electrically connecting the rack bus bar 40 to the terminal portion 30, so that no space is formed between the rack bus bar 40 and the terminal portion 30.

[0071] Therefore, dust generated by vibrations during land / sea evaluation of the energy storage device 100, such as an uninterruptible power supply (USS), can be prevented from flowing between the rack bus bar 40 and the terminal unit 30. This prevents an increase in contact resistance due to the inflow of dust between the conventional rack bus bar 40 and the terminal unit 30, thereby improving the durability of the energy storage device 100.

[0072] Although the preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited thereto, and various modifications can be made within the scope of the claims, the detailed description of the invention, and the accompanying drawings, and it is to be understood that these modifications also fall within the scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0073] 10 Cell Assembly 20 rack cases 30 Terminal section 31 Terminal plate 32 Fastening members 33 Terminal Block 34 First Connection Hole 35 Insertion section 35a First insertion groove 35b Second insertion groove 40 rack busbar 41 Busbar plate 43 Protrusion 43a First protrusion 43b Second protrusion 44 Second Connection Hall 100 Energy Storage Device

Claims

1. a cell assembly in which a plurality of battery cells are stacked; a rack case in which the cell assembly is housed; a terminal portion provided in the rack case, electrically connected to the battery cell, and having an insertion portion formed on a part of an outer surface thereof; a rack bus bar fastened to the terminal portion and having a protrusion formed on a side surface thereof to be inserted into the insertion portion; 1. An energy storage device comprising:

2. The terminal portion is a terminal plate electrically connected to the battery cell inside the rack case; a terminal block connected to the terminal plate, protruding outward from the rack case and having an insertion portion into which the protrusion is inserted; 10. The energy storage device of claim 1, comprising:

3. The insertion portion is a first insertion groove having a first length and formed in a first direction from an outer surface of the terminal block; a second insertion groove having a second length formed in a second direction from the outer surface of the terminal block; 3. The energy storage device of claim 2, comprising:

4. The energy storage device of claim 3 , wherein the first direction is a width direction of the terminal block.

5. The energy storage device according to claim 4 , wherein the first insertion groove has a triangular cross-sectional shape formed inside the terminal block.

6. The energy storage device of claim 5 , wherein the second direction is a longitudinal direction of the terminal block.

7. The energy storage device according to claim 6 , wherein the second insertion grooves are formed on opposite edges of the terminal block.

8. The energy storage device according to claim 7 , wherein the second insertion grooves are formed in tapered shapes on opposite edges of the terminal block.

9. The rack bus bar is a bus bar plate that is in surface contact with a surface of the terminal block and is fixed by a fastening member; a protrusion protruding from a periphery of the bus bar plate and inserted into the insertion portion; 9. The energy storage device of claim 8, comprising:

10. The protrusion is a first protrusion protruding from an edge of one side of the bus bar plate and inserted into the first insertion groove; second protrusions protruding from opposite edges of the bus bar plate and inserted into the second insertion grooves; 10. The energy storage device of claim 9, comprising:

11. The energy storage device of claim 10 , wherein the first protrusion and the second protrusion have a triangular cross-sectional shape.

12. The energy storage device of claim 11 , wherein the first protrusion and the second protrusion are coupled to each other at a periphery of the bus bar plate.

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