Battery pack and method for manufacturing a battery pack

Abstract

To provide a battery pack that enables a reduction in the number of components, and a method of manufacturing the battery pack.SOLUTION: A battery pack comprises a battery cell, and a case that has a bottom plate joined to the battery cell by an adhesive. The bottom plate has a deformable part provided in a part except an adhesive application area.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a battery pack and a method for manufacturing a battery pack.

Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a battery pack including at least one elastic element disposed at the bottom of a housing so as to apply a heat exchanger to a battery.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In the configuration disclosed in Patent Document 1, since it is necessary to separately provide an elastic element, the number of parts increases.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made in view of the above, and an object thereof is to provide a battery pack and a method for manufacturing a battery pack that can reduce the number of parts.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The battery pack according to the present disclosure includes a battery cell and a case having a bottom plate to which the battery cell is joined by an adhesive, and the bottom plate has a deformable portion in a portion other than the adhesive application region.

[0007] A method for manufacturing a battery pack according to this disclosure includes the steps of: applying adhesive to a bottom plate having a deformable portion in a part other than a predetermined adhesive application area; placing battery cells on the bottom plate to which the adhesive has been applied; and joining the battery cells and the bottom plate by pressing a jig from below the bottom plate while spreading the adhesive between the battery cells and the bottom plate. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the battery pack described herein, since the base plate itself is provided with a deformable portion, there is no need to separately provide an elastic element, and the number of parts can be reduced. Furthermore, according to the manufacturing method of the battery pack described herein, the adhesive between the battery cell and the base plate can be uniformly spread and applied in a thin layer, thereby reducing costs and improving cooling efficiency. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0009] [Figure 1] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the configuration of a battery pack according to the embodiment. [Figure 2] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a battery cell bonding step in a battery pack manufacturing method according to the embodiment. [Figure 3] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a battery cell bonding step in a battery pack manufacturing method according to the embodiment. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0010] A battery pack and a method for manufacturing the battery pack according to the embodiments of this disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the components in the following embodiments include those that are easily substituted or substantially identical to those that are easily substituted by a person skilled in the art.

[0011] (Battery pack) The configuration of the battery pack according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Figure 1. The battery pack according to this embodiment is an in-vehicle battery pack installed in, for example, a hybrid electric vehicle (HEV), a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV), or a battery electric vehicle (BEV).

[0012] The battery pack 1 according to this embodiment comprises a battery cell 2, a case 5, and a cooler 6.

[0013] The battery cell 2 is a rechargeable secondary battery. This battery cell 2 has two terminals 3 and 4. One of terminals 3 and 4 is the positive terminal, and the other is the negative terminal. The battery pack 1 may also include battery modules in which the battery cells 2 are connected in series or parallel, instead of the battery cell 2.

[0014] Case 5 comprises a bottom plate (lower case) 51, an upper plate (upper cover) 52, and side members 53. The bottom plate 51 is made of a thin metal plate. The battery cell 2 is bonded to the upper surface of the bottom plate 51 with adhesive 7. The cooler 6 is bonded to the lower surface of the bottom plate 51 with adhesive 8. These adhesives 7 and 8 are thermally conductive adhesives. By using thermally conductive adhesives as adhesives 7 and 8 in this way, the heat dissipation effect can be improved.

[0015] The base plate 51 has a deformable portion 511 in the area other than the predetermined adhesive application area 7,8 (hereinafter referred to as the "adhesive application area"). The cross-section of this deformable portion 511 is formed in a wavy shape.

[0016] Thus, by providing the deformable portion 511 on the bottom plate 51, the rigidity of the bottom plate 51 made of a thin plate with low rigidity is further reduced. As a result, in the battery cell bonding step of the battery pack manufacturing method described below, when the adhesive 7 is spread by the battery cell 2, the bottom plate 51 is more likely to deform, and the upper surface of the bottom plate 51 is more likely to stick to the lower surface of the battery cell 2. As a result, the thickness of the adhesive 7 can be made uniform, and the adhesive 7 can be thinly applied.

[0017] The upper plate 52 is made of a thin metal plate. Inside the side member 53, a fastening member 54 for fixing the side member 53 to the bottom plate 51 is provided.

[0018] The cooler 6 is a member for radiating heat generated from the battery cell 2 to the outside. This cooler 6 is formed in a plate shape and is joined to the lower surface of the bottom plate 51 via an adhesive 8.

[0019] (Manufacturing Method of Battery Pack) The manufacturing method of the battery pack according to the embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. The manufacturing method of the battery pack according to the embodiment includes an adhesive application step, a battery cell placement step, a battery cell bonding step, and a cooler bonding step.

[0020] (Adhesive Application Step) In the adhesive application step, as shown in FIG. 2, the adhesive 7 is applied onto the bottom plate 51. This bottom plate 51 has a wavy deformable portion 511 in a portion other than a predetermined adhesive application region as described above.

[0021] (Battery Cell Placement Step) In the battery cell placement step, the battery cell 2 is placed on the bottom plate 51 onto which the adhesive 7 has been applied in the adhesive application step.

[0022] (Battery Cell Bonding Step) In the battery cell joining step, as shown in Figures 2 and 3, the crushing jig 9 is pressed from below the bottom plate 51, thereby joining the battery cell 2 and the bottom plate 51 while spreading (crushing) the adhesive 7 between the battery cell 2 and the bottom plate 51.

[0023] In this case, the bottom plate of the battery pack case is typically made of thin sheet metal and has low rigidity, making it difficult to ensure flatness of the bottom plate. Therefore, when bonding battery cells to a flat bottom plate, the thickness of the adhesive on the bonding surface between the battery cells and the bottom plate may be uneven or too thick, which may reduce cooling performance.

[0024] On the other hand, the base plate 51 according to the embodiment is provided with a deformable portion 511 in the area other than the adhesive application area. Therefore, in the battery cell bonding step, when the adhesive 7 is spread by the battery cell 2, the base plate 51 becomes more easily deformable, and the upper surface of the base plate 51 becomes more easily attached to the lower surface of the battery cell 2. As a result, the thickness of the adhesive 7 can be made uniform, and the adhesive 7 can be applied in a thin layer.

[0025] (Cooler joining step) In the cooler joining step, the cooler 6, to which adhesive 8 has been applied, is joined to the bottom plate 51.

[0026] According to the battery pack of the embodiment described above, since the deformable portion 511 is provided on the bottom plate 51 itself, there is no need to separately provide an elastic element, and the number of parts can be reduced. Furthermore, according to the manufacturing method of the battery pack of the embodiment, the adhesive 7 between the battery cell 2 and the bottom plate 51 can be uniformly spread and thinly applied, thereby reducing costs and improving the cooling effect. Moreover, according to the battery pack and the manufacturing method of the battery pack of the embodiment, the heat dissipation effect can be improved by using a thermally conductive adhesive as the adhesive 7,8.

[0027] Furthermore, in the battery pack and battery pack manufacturing method according to the embodiment, the rigidity of the thin plate bottom plate 51 is further reduced by providing a deformable portion 511 in the bottom plate 51. This makes it possible to uniformly crush the adhesive 7 in contact with the flat surface (adhesive application area) of the bottom plate 51 by applying a load from below the bottom plate 51 using the crushing jig 9 during the manufacturing (assembly) of the battery pack 1. As a result, a thin application of adhesive 7 can be performed as described above, reducing cost and mass while increasing cooling performance due to the reduced thermal resistance.

[0028] Furthermore, in the battery pack and battery pack manufacturing method according to the embodiment, the distortion generated during the manufacturing (assembly) of the battery pack 1 can be absorbed by the wavy deformable portion 511, thereby improving the flatness of the bottom plate 51. A thin layer of adhesive 7 can be applied, reducing cost and mass while increasing cooling performance due to the reduced thermal resistance.

[0029] Further effects and modifications can be readily derived by those skilled in the art. Therefore, broader aspects of the present invention are not limited to the specific details and representative embodiments expressed and described above. Accordingly, various modifications are possible without departing from the spirit or scope of the overall concept of the invention as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents. [Explanation of symbols]

[0030] 1 Battery pack 2 battery cells Terminals 3 and 4 5 cases 51 Bottom plate (lower case) 511 Deformable part 52. Upper plate (upper cover) 53 Side members 54 Fastening members 6 Cooler 7,8 Adhesive 9. Crushing jig

Claims

1. Battery cell and A case having a bottom plate to which the battery cells are joined with adhesive, Equipped with, The base plate has a deformable portion made of the base plate itself in areas other than the adhesive application area. Battery pack.

2. The battery pack according to claim 1, wherein the adhesive is a thermally conductive adhesive.

3. The steps include applying adhesive to a base plate having a deformable portion made up of the base plate itself in areas other than a predetermined adhesive application area, The steps include: placing the battery cell on the bottom plate to which the adhesive has been applied; The steps include: pressing a jig from below the bottom plate to spread the adhesive between the battery cell and the bottom plate, thereby joining the battery cell and the bottom plate; A method for manufacturing a battery pack that includes [the specified component].

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