Battery pack

Abstract

To prevent dew condensation from being caused due to cooling of a space area in a battery pack.SOLUTION: The disclosure relates to a battery pack mounted on a vehicle. The battery pack includes battery modules, a lower case on which the battery modules are placed side by side; and a cooler attached to a lower surface of the lower case. The upper surface of the lower case includes a space area in which the battery modules are not disposed. At the space area on the upper surface of the lower case, a heat insulation material and a bracket which presses the heat insulation material from above to fix it are disposed.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a battery pack, and more particularly to a battery pack mounted on a vehicle.

Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a battery pack housed in a vehicle body. The battery pack has a plurality of rechargeable battery modules. Also, in order to suppress the temperature rise of the battery, the battery pack has a coolant layer for circulating coolant.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] A cooler for cooling the battery module may be attached to the battery pack. The cooler is attached to the lower surface of the lower case, for example, to cool the battery module disposed on the upper surface of the lower case of the battery pack. However, there may be an empty area on the upper surface of the lower case where no battery module is disposed. In this case, it is necessary to prevent the occurrence of condensation due to the cooling of the empty area.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0005] The present disclosure relates to a battery pack mounted on a vehicle. The battery pack includes a battery module, a lower case on which the battery modules are placed side by side on the upper surface, a cooler attached to the lower surface of the lower case, and includes The upper surface of the lower case includes an empty area where no battery module is disposed. In the empty space on the top surface of the lower case, Insulation material, A bracket that holds and secures the insulation material from above, They are placed.

[0006] In the battery pack of this disclosure, the insulating material placed in the empty area may be a foamed material. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] The battery pack of this disclosure has an insulating material placed in the empty area on the upper surface of the lower case. By placing the insulating material in the empty area, it is possible to prevent condensation from occurring inside the battery pack due to the empty area being cooled by the cooler. In addition, since a bracket is placed in the empty area, the rigidity of the bracket can be increased to enhance the strength of the battery pack. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] This is a plan view showing an example of a battery pack configuration. [Figure 2] This is a perspective view showing the available space in the battery pack. [Figure 3] This is a perspective view showing an example of foam material and brackets to be placed in the empty space. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] Embodiments of this disclosure will be described with reference to the attached drawings.

[0010] Figure 1 is a plan view showing an example of the configuration of a battery pack 1 mounted on a vehicle. Figure 1 shows the internal structure of the battery pack 1 as viewed from above the vehicle. The bottom of Figure 1 corresponds to the direction of travel of the vehicle, i.e., the front. In this specification, when directions such as up and down, left and right, and front and back are expressed, the direction is expressed based on the orientation of the vehicle body.

[0011] The battery pack 1 is mounted on the underside of the vehicle frame 2, positioned in the lateral center of the vehicle body. The battery pack 1 is used as a power source for electric vehicles, including, for example, BEVs, PHEVs, and HEVs.

[0012] The battery pack 1 contains multiple battery modules 11. Each battery module 11 consists of, for example, a battery stack made up of many battery cells stacked on top of each other, a metal case housing the battery stack, and various electrical components arranged on top of the battery stack. The battery cells are rechargeable secondary batteries, such as lithium-ion secondary batteries. The metal case is made of a light metal, such as aluminum.

[0013] The outer casing of the battery pack 1 consists of a lower case 12 and an upper case (not shown). The lower case 12 and the upper case are made of, for example, light metal, resin, or steel plate.

[0014] The battery modules 11 are arranged in a row on the top surface of the lower case 12. To increase the strength of the battery pack 1, cross members may be placed between adjacent battery modules 11 in the front and rear directions. The cross members are positioned to extend laterally between the battery modules 11. A portion of the load acting on the battery pack 1 is input to the cross members, and the load is shared by the cross members, thereby increasing the strength of the battery pack 1.

[0015] A cooler 20 is attached to the underside of the lower case 12. The cooler 20 is a plate-shaped device with multiple flow channels formed inside. The coolant flowing through the flow channels of the cooler 20 cools the lower case 12 from below. Then, the heat conduction of the lower case 12 cools the battery modules 11 arranged on the upper surface of the lower case 12 from below.

[0016] Here, there may be an empty area in the lower case 12 where the battery module 11 is not arranged. In the example of FIG. 1, twelve battery modules 11 are arranged side by side in pairs on the front side of the lower case 12, and one battery module 11 is arranged near the rear end of the lower case 12. And there are two empty areas 13 on the left and right of the one battery module 11 arranged near the rear end.

[0017] Even in the area of the empty area 13, the upper surface of the lower case 12 is cooled by the heat conduction of the lower case 12 cooled by the cooler 20. Therefore, if nothing is arranged in the empty area 13 and a space remains above the empty area 13, the air existing in the space above the empty area 13 will be cooled. When the air is cooled to a temperature below a predetermined value, condensation will occur, which may reduce the insulation in the battery pack 1. Since the battery modules 11 are arranged around the empty area 13, the condensation generated in the empty area 13 can cause liquid bridging. Therefore, it is necessary to appropriately prevent the occurrence of condensation in the empty area 13.

[0018] FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 are perspective views of the enlarged empty area 13. There is a triangular empty area 13 adjacent to the battery module 11a and the battery module 11b arranged on the upper surface of the lower case 12. In the battery pack 1 according to the present embodiment, a heat insulating material 14 and a bracket 15 are arranged in this empty area 13.

[0019] The heat insulating material 14 has a shape close to a triangular prism according to the shape of the empty area 13. The heat insulating material 14 is, for example, a foamed material such as foamed polystyrene.

[0020] The bracket 15 holds and secures the insulation material 14 from above so that it fits into the empty area 13. To allow the bracket 15 to hold down the insulation material 14 from above, the bracket 15 is a flat, rigid member that is similar in shape to the insulation material 14 but slightly larger than the insulation material 14. The bracket 15 is made of, for example, light metal, resin, or steel plate. The bracket 15 is secured, for example, by fastening its three corners to the cross member with screws.

[0021] Furthermore, if the insulation material 14 is made of a flexible material, it does not need to have the exact same shape as the empty area 13; it may be a component with a bottom surface that is slightly larger than the empty area 13. In this case, the insulation material 14 will be deformed by being pressed from above by the bracket 15, and will conform to the shape of the empty area 13.

[0022] According to the battery pack 1 of this embodiment, the placement of the heat insulating material 14 in the empty area 13 prevents condensation from occurring in the empty area 13. Furthermore, the placement of the bracket 15 increases the strength of the battery pack 1 due to the rigidity of the bracket 15.

[0023] The above is an example of the configuration of the battery pack 1 according to this embodiment. In the above explanation, the case in which 13 battery modules 11 are arranged inside the battery pack 1 was used as an example, but the number of battery modules 11 housed in the battery pack 1 is arbitrary. Furthermore, there are no limitations on the location of the empty area 13; for example, the configuration according to this embodiment can be applied even if the empty area 13 is located in the center of the battery pack 1.

[0024] However, a particularly significant effect can be obtained when the empty area 13 is located in contact with the side surface of the battery pack 1, as shown in Figure 1. In other words, a portion of the load acting on the side surface of the battery pack 1 is input to the bracket 15. In this way, the bracket 15 distributes the load acting on the side surface of the battery pack 1, thereby increasing the strength of the battery pack 1 against lateral impact loads.

[0025] Furthermore, this is even more effective when the empty area 13 is located at a corner of the battery pack 1. For example, if the empty area 13 is located at the rear corner of the battery pack 1, the bracket 15 will share the load applied to the battery pack 1 from the rear end in addition to the load applied to the battery pack 1 from the side, further increasing its durability against collision loads. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0026] 1 Battery pack 11 Battery Modules 12 Lower Case 14. Insulation 15 brackets

Claims

[Claim 1] A battery pack installed in a vehicle, Battery module and A lower case on which the aforementioned battery modules are mounted in a row on the top surface, A cooler attached to the lower surface of the lower case, Equipped with, The upper surface of the lower case includes an empty area where the battery module is not placed. In the aforementioned free area, Insulation material, A bracket that holds and secures the aforementioned insulation material from above, It was placed, The empty area is located at the corner of the battery pack and in contact with the side surface of the battery pack. Battery pack.

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