Battery module and battery pack including same

Abstract

A battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a battery cell stack including one or more battery cells; a bus bar frame covering an upper surface of the battery cell stack and a side surface from which the leads of the battery cells protrude; a module frame accommodating the combination of the battery cell stack and the bus bar frame; and a pair of end plates coupled to opposite ends of the module frame on surfaces where the leads of the battery cells are disposed, and the battery module includes a plurality of gas guide holes formed in at least one of an upper frame of the bus bar frame, an upper surface of the module frame, and the end plate.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a battery module and a battery pack including the same, and more particularly to a battery module capable of inducing and observing gas flow inside the battery module, and a battery pack including the same. [Background technology]

[0002] In modern society, as the use of portable devices such as mobile phones, laptops, camcorders, and digital cameras has become commonplace, there has been active development of technologies related to these mobile devices. Furthermore, rechargeable secondary batteries are a solution to address air pollution caused by existing gasoline-powered vehicles that use fossil fuels, and are used as the power source for electric vehicles (EVs), hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (P-HEVs), creating a growing need for development of secondary batteries.

[0003] Currently commercially available secondary batteries include nickel-cadmium batteries, nickel-metal hydride batteries, nickel-zinc batteries, and lithium secondary batteries. Of these, lithium secondary batteries are attracting attention due to their advantages of being free to charge and discharge as they have almost no memory effect compared to nickel-based secondary batteries, a very low self-discharge rate, and high energy density.

[0004] Such lithium secondary batteries mainly use lithium-based oxides and carbon materials as positive and negative electrode active materials, respectively. The lithium secondary battery includes an electrode assembly in which a positive electrode plate and a negative electrode plate, each coated with the positive and negative electrode active materials, are arranged with a separator sandwiched therebetween, and an exterior material, i.e., a battery case, that hermetically houses the electrode assembly together with an electrolyte.

[0005] Generally, lithium secondary batteries can be classified into can-type secondary batteries, in which an electrode assembly is housed in a metal can, and pouch-type secondary batteries, in which an electrode assembly is housed in a pouch made of an aluminum laminate sheet, depending on the shape of the exterior material.

[0006] Secondary batteries used in small devices typically have two or three battery cells, while secondary batteries used in medium- to large-sized devices such as automobiles typically use a battery module in which multiple battery cells are electrically connected. Such battery modules improve capacity and output by connecting multiple battery cells in series or parallel to form a stack of battery cells. Furthermore, one or more battery modules may be mounted with various control and protection systems, such as a Battery Management System (BMS) and a cooling system, to form a battery pack.

[0007] Meanwhile, the battery module may include a module frame with open front and rear surfaces that houses the battery cell stack in an internal space to protect the battery cell stack from external impact, heat, or vibration, and end plates that cover the front and rear surfaces of the module frame.

[0008] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a conventional battery module.

[0009] As shown in Fig. 1, a conventional battery module 10 is configured so that a battery cell stack is housed within a space surrounded by a module frame 20 and an end plate 30. In this case, since there is no means to externally monitor the battery cell stack with the naked eye, even if a fire occurs inside the battery module 10, it is difficult to detect this until the flames spread to the outside or an explosion occurs. Furthermore, since it is not possible to directly observe the internal heat transfer process, it is difficult to investigate this and propose an appropriate solution when a fire occurs. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0010] The present invention has been proposed to solve the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a battery module that can guide gas flow in a specific direction inside the battery module and simultaneously observe the gas flow.

[0011] However, the problems to be solved by the embodiments of the present invention are not limited to the above problems, and can be variously expanded within the scope of the technical ideas included in the present invention. [Means for solving the problem]

[0012] A battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a battery cell stack including one or more battery cells; a bus bar frame covering an upper surface of the battery cell stack and a side surface from which the leads of the battery cells protrude; a module frame accommodating the combination of the battery cell stack and the bus bar frame; and a pair of end plates coupled to opposite ends of the module frame on surfaces where the leads of the battery cells are disposed, and the battery module includes a plurality of gas guide holes formed in at least one of an upper frame of the bus bar frame, an upper surface of the module frame, and the end plate.

[0013] The gas guide holes may be formed on the upper surface of the module frame.

[0014] The gas guide holes may be arranged in a plurality of rows along the length of the upper surface of the battery cell stack.

[0015] At least one of the plurality of rows may be disposed adjacent an edge of the top surface of the module frame.

[0016] The gas guide holes may be formed in an upper frame of the bus bar frame.

[0017] The gas guide holes may be arranged in a plurality of rows along the length of the upper surface of the battery cell stack.

[0018] At least one of the plurality of rows may be disposed adjacent to an edge of an upper frame of the bus bar frame.

[0019] The gas guide holes may be formed in the end plates.

[0020] The gas guide holes may be formed in only one of the pair of end plates.

[0021] The gas guide holes may include at least three holes arranged in a row at the center of the end plate in the height direction.

[0022] A battery pack according to another embodiment of the present invention may include one or more of the battery modules described above. [Effects of the Invention]

[0023] According to an embodiment of the present invention, a suitable solution for delaying ignition inside a battery module can be provided by guiding the gas flow generated in the event of ignition inside the battery module in a specific direction through the gas guide holes and simultaneously observing this gas flow through the gas guide holes. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0024] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a conventional battery module. [Figure 2] 1 is an exploded perspective view of a battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 3] FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a battery module according to another embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a top view of the battery module of FIG. 3. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a battery module according to another embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0025] The present invention may, however, be embodied in various different forms and is not limited to the embodiments set forth herein.

[0026] In order to clearly explain the present invention, parts that are not necessary for the explanation will be omitted, and the same reference numerals will be used throughout the specification to refer to the same or similar components.

[0027] In addition, the size and thickness of each component shown in the drawings are arbitrarily shown for the convenience of explanation, and the present invention is not necessarily limited to those shown in the drawings. In the drawings, thicknesses are exaggerated to clearly show various layers and regions. In the drawings, thicknesses of some layers and regions are exaggerated for the convenience of explanation.

[0028] Furthermore, when a layer, film, region, plate, or other part is said to be "on" or "above" another part, this includes not only the case where it is "directly on" another part, but also the case where there is another part in between. Conversely, when a part is said to be "directly on" another part, it means that there is no other part in between. Furthermore, being "on" or "above" a reference part means being located above or below the reference part, and does not necessarily mean being located "on" or "above" in the direction opposite to gravity.

[0029] Also, throughout the specification, when a part is said to "comprise" a certain element, this means that it may further include other elements, not excluding other elements, unless specifically stated to the contrary.

[0030] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of a battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0031] Referring to FIG. 2, a battery module 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a battery cell stack 400 including one or more battery cells, a module frame 200 that houses the battery cell stack 400, and a thermally conductive resin layer 700 positioned between the lower part of the battery cell stack 400 and the module frame 200.

[0032] The module frame 200 has an open front and rear surface and may include end plates 300 that cover the front and rear surfaces. That is, in Fig. 2, both ends in the X-axis direction are open, and the ends are covered by end plates 300. Although Fig. 2 shows that the module frame 200 has an integrated shape having a rectangular tube shape, the shape is not limited thereto, and the module frame 200 may have a shape in which an upper plate is coupled to a U-shaped frame having a lower surface and side walls, or a shape in which a lower plate is coupled to an inverted U-shaped frame having an upper surface and side walls.

[0033] In addition, a bus bar frame 500 may be provided that is housed in the module frame 200 together with the battery cell stack 400. The bus bar frame 500 may include an upper frame 510 located on top of the battery cell stack 400, a front frame 520 located in front of the battery cell stack 400, and a rear frame 530 located in the rear of the battery cell stack 400, and bus bars 540 connected to electrode leads of the battery cells that make up the battery cell stack 400 may be mounted on the front frame 520 and the rear frame 530. In this embodiment, a plurality of gas guide holes 511 are formed in the upper frame 510.

[0034] The gas guide holes 511 may be arranged in a plurality of rows along the length of the battery cell stack 400, i.e., along the X-axis direction in FIG. 2. At least one of the rows may be arranged adjacent to one edge of the upper frame 510, i.e., adjacent to both edges in the Y-axis direction in FIG. 2.

[0035] By forming these gas guide holes 511 in the upper frame 510 of the bus bar frame 500, when a fire occurs inside the module, i.e., in the battery cell stack 400, the gas flow generated along with the fire can be guided upward, preventing the fire from spreading to other modules adjacent to the module where the fire occurred. In addition, the gas flow guided to the upper part of the bus bar frame 500 can be observed with the naked eye, thereby providing a solution for inducing a fire delay within the module. In particular, by arranging the gas guide holes 511 in a row along the length of the battery cell stack 400, it is possible to guide gas generated from the battery cells across the entire length.

[0036] The gas guide holes 511 can be formed by applying a punching process to the upper frame 510, and the punching method is not particularly limited, and methods such as drilling, punching, and pressing can be applied.

[0037] Meanwhile, the thermally conductive resin layer 700 is formed by injecting a thermally conductive resin and may include a thermally conductive adhesive material. Specifically, the thermally conductive resin is injected with fluidity and then solidified while in contact with the battery cell stack 400. That is, the thermally conductive resin layer 700 serves to transfer heat generated from the battery cell stack 400 to the bottom of the battery module 100 and to fix the battery cell stack 400 within the battery module 100. In addition, a heat sink 800 is provided on the side of the battery cell stack 400 and is housed together with the module frame 200.

[0038] As described above, according to one embodiment of the present invention, the plurality of gas guide holes 511 provided in the upper frame 510 of the bus bar frame 500 guides the gas flow to the upper surface in the event of a fire in a battery cell inside the module, preventing the gas flow from spreading to other adjacent modules, and also providing an appropriate solution for fire delay, etc., by monitoring the gas flow.

[0039] Hereinafter, a battery module according to another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0040] Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a battery module according to another embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 4 is a view of the battery module of Fig. 3 as seen from above.

[0041] 3 and 4, a battery module 101 according to another embodiment of the present invention includes a plurality of gas guide holes 201 on the upper surface of a module frame 200. The other configurations are the same as those of the previously described embodiment, and therefore will not be described.

[0042] The gas guide holes 201 may be arranged in a plurality of rows along the length of the battery cell stack 400, i.e., along the X-axis direction in Figures 3 and 4. At least one of the rows may be arranged adjacent to one edge of the upper surface of the module frame 200, i.e., adjacent to both edges in the Y-axis direction in Figure 4.

[0043] By forming these gas guide holes 201 on the top surface of the module frame 200, when a fire occurs inside the module, i.e., in the battery cell stack 400, the gas flow generated along with the fire can be guided upward, preventing the fire from spreading to other modules adjacent to the module where the fire occurred. In addition, the gas flow guided to the top of the module frame 200 can be observed with the naked eye, thereby providing a solution for inducing a fire delay within the module. In particular, by arranging the gas guide holes 201 in a row along the length of the battery cell stack 400, it is possible to guide gas generated from the battery cells across the entire length.

[0044] In addition, although the present embodiment has been described as including a plurality of gas guide holes 201 on the upper surface of the module frame 200, this is not limited to this, and it is also possible to combine this with the above-described embodiment to form gas guide holes 201, 511 on all of the upper frame 510 of the bus bar frame 500 and the upper surface of the module frame 200.

[0045] The gas guide holes 201 can be formed on the upper surface of the module frame 200 by applying a punching process. The punching method is not particularly limited, and methods such as drilling, punching, and pressing can be applied.

[0046] As described above, according to another embodiment of the present invention, the plurality of gas guide holes 201 provided on the upper surface of the module frame 200 can guide the gas flow upward in the event of a fire in a battery cell inside the module, thereby preventing the gas flow from spreading to other adjacent modules, and can also provide an appropriate solution for fire delay, etc., by monitoring the gas flow.

[0047] Hereinafter, a battery module according to another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

[0048] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a battery module according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

[0049] 5, a battery module 102 according to another embodiment of the present invention includes a plurality of gas guide holes 301 in an end plate 300. The other configurations are the same as those of the previously described embodiment, and therefore will not be described.

[0050] The gas guide holes 301 may be formed in one of the pair of end plates 300. For example, they may be formed in the end plate 300 on the rear side of the battery module 102. Here, the rear side refers to a side that is not adjacent to other battery modules 102 when multiple battery modules 102 are assembled to form a battery pack, but is not limited thereto. In this case, the gas guide holes 301 may include at least three holes arranged in a row in the center of the height direction (i.e., the Z-axis direction in FIG. 5) of the end plate 300, as shown in FIG. 5. However, the gas guide holes 301 are not limited thereto, and may be arranged to be appropriately distributed throughout the entire area of ​​the end plate 300, as shown in FIG. 5.

[0051] By forming such gas guide holes 301 in the end plate 300, when a fire occurs inside the module, i.e., in the battery cell stack 400, the gas flow that is generated along with the fire can be guided to the end plate 300 where the gas guide holes 301 are formed, preventing the fire from spreading to other modules adjacent to the module where the fire occurred. In addition, the gas flow guided to the end plate 300 can be observed with the naked eye, which can provide a solution for inducing a fire delay within the module.

[0052] In addition, although the present embodiment has been described as including a plurality of gas guide holes 301 in the end plate 300, the present invention is not limited to this, and in combination with the above embodiment, it is also possible to form gas guide holes 201, 511 in all of the upper frame 510 of the bus bar frame 500 and the upper surface of the module frame 200, and additionally form a gas guide hole 301 in the end plate 300. It is also possible to form a gas guide hole in only one of the upper frame 510 of the bus bar frame 500 and the upper surface of the module frame 200, and apply the gas guide hole 301 of the end plate 300 to this gas guide hole.

[0053] The gas guide holes 301 can be formed by applying a punching process to the end plate 300. The punching method is not particularly limited, and methods such as drilling, punching, and pressing can be applied.

[0054] As described above, according to another embodiment of the present invention, the plurality of gas guide holes 301 provided in the end plate 300 can guide the gas flow to one side end in the event of a fire in a battery cell inside the module, thereby preventing the gas flow from spreading to other adjacent modules, and can also provide an appropriate solution for fire delay, etc., by monitoring the gas flow.

[0055] One or more battery modules according to the above-described embodiments may be mounted together with various control and protection systems, such as a BMS (Battery Management System) and a cooling system, to form a battery pack.

[0056] The battery module or battery pack can be applied to various devices, including, but not limited to, transportation means such as electric bicycles, electric cars, and hybrid vehicles, and can be applied to various devices that can use secondary batteries.

[0057] Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto, and various modifications and improvements made by those skilled in the art using the basic concept of the present invention defined in the following claims also fall within the scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0058] 100, 101, 102: Battery modules 200:Module frame 201, 511, 301: Gas induction holes 300: End plate 400: Battery cell stack 500: Busbar frame 510: Upper frame 700: Thermally conductive resin layer 800: Heat sink

Claims

1. a battery cell stack including one or more battery cells; a bus bar frame that covers the top surface of the battery cell stack and the side surfaces from which the leads of the battery cells protrude; a module frame that houses the battery cell stack and the bus bar frame combination; and A battery module including a pair of end plates coupled to surfaces of the module frame on which leads of the battery cells are arranged, at both ends of the module frame, A battery module including a plurality of gas guide holes formed on the end plates and upper surfaces of the module frame, the gas guide holes formed on the upper surface of the module frame are arranged in a plurality of rows along a length direction of the upper surface of the battery cell stack; When the battery cell catches fire, the gas guide holes guide a gas flow inside the battery module, and at the same time, the gas flow can be observed.

2. The battery module of claim 1 , wherein the gas guide holes are formed in only one of the pair of end plates.

3. The battery module of claim 2 , wherein the gas guide holes include at least three holes arranged in a row at a center portion in a height direction of the end plate.

4. The battery module according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the plurality of rows is disposed adjacent to an edge of the upper surface of the module frame.

5. The battery module according to claim 1 , wherein a plurality of the gas guide holes are formed in an upper frame of the bus bar frame.

6. The battery module according to claim 5 , wherein the gas guide holes are arranged in a plurality of rows along the length of the upper surface of the battery cell stack.

7. The battery module according to claim 6 , wherein at least one of the plurality of rows is disposed adjacent to an edge of an upper frame of the bus bar frame.

8. A battery pack comprising one or more battery modules according to any one of claims 1 to 7.

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