Battery management device

Abstract

A battery management device according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises a main substrate and a wireless communication module arranged on the main substrate, wherein the wireless communication module has an independent module including: a module substrate; a wireless communication unit arranged at the module substrate; and an antenna radiating wireless signals, the antenna being patterned on the module substrate and being arranged inside a battery pack so as to perform wireless communication with another battery management device.

Description

Battery management device

[0001] The present invention relates to a battery management device, and more specifically, to a battery management device including a wireless communication module composed of independent modules.

[0002] Electric vehicles are equipped with large-capacity battery packs and run on electricity stored in the batteries. A battery management system (BMS) is installed to manage the status of the multiple battery cells within the pack. The BMS detects battery voltage, current, and temperature, and controls battery charging and discharging.

[0003] When a battery pack contains multiple battery cells, a battery management module is placed for each battery cell, and these modules communicate with each other. At this time, the wiring harnesses connecting each module must be placed within the battery pack. This increases the weight of the battery pack, making it difficult to reduce its weight when installed in a vehicle. Furthermore, the complexity increases due to the need for wiring, harnesses, assembly space during manufacturing, and after-sales service space. Furthermore, there is a risk of operational and performance degradation due to problems with the wires themselves, corrosion, and vehicle vibration.

[0004] The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a battery management device and a battery management system including a wireless communication module composed of independent modules.

[0005] In order to solve the above technical problem, a battery management device according to one embodiment of the present invention includes a main substrate; and a wireless communication module disposed on the main substrate, wherein the wireless communication module constitutes an independent module including a module substrate, a wireless communication unit disposed on the module substrate, and an antenna radiating the wireless signal, and the antenna is patterned and formed on the module substrate and disposed inside a battery pack to perform wireless communication with another battery management device.

[0006] Additionally, the antenna may be spaced apart from the upper portion of the main substrate.

[0007] In addition, the module substrate includes a plurality of layers, and at least one of the layers located inside the plurality of layers can form a ground layer.

[0008] Additionally, the wireless communication module may place a wireless communication transmission line in a layer located above the ground layer.

[0009] Additionally, it may include a control unit that monitors the battery inside the battery pack using a wireless communication signal received from another battery management device.

[0010] In addition, it includes a first connector electrically connected to the outside of the battery pack, and the wireless communication module can transmit a wireless signal received to the outside through the first connector.

[0011] Additionally, it may include a second connector electrically connected to the battery cell.

[0012] In order to solve the above technical problem, a battery management system according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a plurality of slave modules electrically connected to battery cells; and a master module that receives data from the plurality of slave modules and monitors a battery inside a battery pack, wherein the plurality of slave modules and the master module transmit and receive data inside the battery pack using a wireless communication module mounted on each main substrate, and the wireless communication module constitutes an independent module including a module substrate, a wireless communication unit disposed on the module substrate, and an antenna that radiates the wireless signal, and the antenna is patterned and formed on the module substrate.

[0013] Additionally, the antenna of the wireless communication module may be spaced apart from the upper portion of the main board of the master module on which the wireless communication module is mounted.

[0014] In addition, the module substrate includes a plurality of layers, and at least one of the layers located inside the plurality of layers can form a ground layer.

[0015] According to embodiments of the present invention, by performing communication between battery management devices using wireless communication, problems such as poor contact or disconnection that may occur during wired connection can be solved, and the size of the battery pack can be reduced. In addition, miniaturization is possible by using an RF module in which an antenna patterned on a module substrate is configured as an independent module, and since the patterned antenna is patterned on the module substrate and separated from the main substrate, radiation efficiency is increased, and noise shielding is possible by including a GND in the middle layer of the module substrate. In addition, the same RF module can be applied to multiple BMSs, which is efficient, and manufacturing costs are optimized due to separation of production lines, and RF characteristic verification can be performed at the RF module level, simplifying EOL testing.

[0016] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a battery management device according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0017] Figures 2 to 4 are block diagrams of a battery management device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0018] Figure 5 is a block diagram of a wireless communication module according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0019] FIGS. 6 to 18 are drawings for explaining a battery management device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0020] Figure 19 is a block diagram of a battery management system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0021] Figure 20 is a block diagram of a battery pack according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0022] Fig. 21 illustrates a battery pack housing according to a comparative example of the present invention.

[0023] Figure 22 is a diagram for explaining the near-field and long-field of a wireless communication signal.

[0024] FIGS. 23 to 26 illustrate a battery pack housing including a reflection reduction unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0025] FIG. 27 illustrates signal characteristics in a battery pack housing according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0026] Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings.

[0027] However, the technical idea of ​​the present invention is not limited to some of the embodiments described, but can be implemented in various different forms, and within the scope of the technical idea of ​​the present invention, one or more of the components between the embodiments can be selectively combined or substituted for use.

[0028] In addition, terms (including technical and scientific terms) used in the embodiments of the present invention may be interpreted as having a meaning that can be generally understood by a person of ordinary skill in the technical field to which the present invention belongs, unless explicitly and specifically defined and described, and terms that are commonly used, such as terms defined in a dictionary, may be interpreted in consideration of the contextual meaning of the relevant technology.

[0029] Additionally, the terms used in the embodiments of the present invention are intended to describe the embodiments and are not intended to limit the present invention.

[0030] In this specification, the singular may also include the plural unless specifically stated otherwise in the phrase, and when it is described as “A and / or at least one (or more) of B, C”, it may include one or more of all combinations that can be combined with A, B, C.

[0031] Additionally, in describing components of embodiments of the present invention, terms such as first, second, A, B, (a), (b), etc. may be used. These terms are only intended to distinguish the components from other components, and are not intended to limit the nature, order, or sequence of the components.

[0032] And, when a component is described as being 'connected', 'coupled', or 'connected' to another component, it may include not only cases where the component is 'connected', 'coupled', or 'connected' directly to the other component, but also cases where the component is 'connected', 'coupled', or 'connected' by another component between the component and the other component.

[0033] Additionally, when described as being formed or arranged "above" or "below" each component, "above" or "below" includes not only cases where the two components are in direct contact with each other, but also cases where one or more other components are formed or arranged between the two components. Furthermore, when expressed as "above" or "below," the meaning may include not only the upward direction but also the downward direction based on one component.

[0034] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a battery management device according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0035] A battery management device (100) according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a main substrate (110) and a wireless communication module (120) disposed on the main substrate (110).

[0036] A battery management device (100) according to an embodiment of the present invention performs wireless communication through a main board (110) and a wireless communication module (120) disposed on the main board. The battery management device (100) according to an embodiment of the present invention may be a battery management system (BMS) and may be a wireless BMS (wBMS) that performs wireless communication. It may be a vehicle wBMS applied to a vehicle. The battery management device (100) according to an embodiment of the present invention may be disposed inside a battery pack in which battery cells are disposed inside, and may perform wireless communication with another battery management device (210). Another battery management device (210) may be disposed inside the same battery pack. Here, a battery pack is an energy storage device in which a plurality of battery cells are disposed inside a single housing and formed in a pack shape, and may be a vehicle battery pack. In addition, it goes without saying that the battery management device (100) may be applied to other devices requiring a battery.

[0037] The main substrate (110) may be a printed circuit board (PCB). Or, it may be a dielectric substrate. The main substrate (110) may be a flat substrate and may include multiple layers. Multiple layers may be laminated to form a single substrate.

[0038] The wireless communication module (120) is placed on the main board (110) and can perform wireless communication with another battery management device (210). In addition to another battery management device (210), it can perform wireless communication with an external device (230), such as an upper controller or a vehicle MCU.

[0039] The wireless communication module (120) can modularize the wireless communication elements required for the battery management device (100). By modularizing the wireless communication elements, a single module can be applied to various types of battery management devices, and the degree of freedom in design can be increased without having to place many elements on a substrate to perform wireless communication.

[0040] When a battery management device is implemented using the COB method, where a wireless communication chip is placed on a substrate, the RF circuitry requires at least four PCB layers. Even gateway modules, which can be implemented on a two-layer substrate, must use a four-layer substrate. Furthermore, while CMUs typically use four layers, this can often lead to performance degradation due to crossover between signal wires due to inevitably shortfalls. Using the BMS substrate itself as an Any-layer design increases costs. Furthermore, the miniaturization effect achieved through the use of an Any-layer substrate is limited due to the large size of BMS components and the need for spacing between wires to ensure withstand voltage. Furthermore, the design and optimization of RF components, such as transmission line antennas, for each BMS requires significant resources. Furthermore, the limited availability of small RF components necessitates the application of high-performance manufacturing equipment, resulting in lower productivity. Furthermore, the technology's tactic time (T / T) is lengthened, and the need to reconfigure equipment for EOL measurement is problematic.

[0041] The wireless communication module (120) may include a wireless communication unit (121) that outputs a wireless signal and an antenna (122) that radiates the wireless signal. The wireless communication module (120) may be configured as a single independent module, but may include a wireless communication unit (121) arranged on a module substrate and an antenna (122) patterned on the module substrate in order to perform wireless communication with the module itself.

[0042] The wireless communication unit (121) can convert information such as the status of a battery cell into a wireless signal and output the wireless signal, or can receive the wireless signal and convert it into a wired signal. At this time, the wireless communication unit (121) can use an RF (Radio Frequency) signal, which is a radio frequency signal. That is, the wireless communication module (120) can be an RF module. In addition to the RF signal, various wireless signals can be used. The wireless communication unit (121) can be formed in a chip form.

[0043] The antenna (122) can radiate a wireless signal output from the wireless communication unit (121) or receive a wireless signal and output it to the wireless communication unit (121). At this time, the wireless communication module (120) includes a module substrate (123), and the antenna (122) can be formed by patterning on the module substrate (123). The antenna (122) can be formed by patterning after fill-cutting an area on the module substrate (123) where the wireless communication unit (121) is not disposed.

[0044] The wireless communication module according to an embodiment of the present invention is configured as an independent module, and the shape of the pattern for patterning the antenna (122) can be patterned in an optimized form considering the position and influence of fixed components of the wireless communication module. By optimizing the shape of the patterned antenna, the radiation performance of the antenna can be increased, and the area of ​​fill-cutting for patterning the antenna can be minimized.

[0045] The antenna (122) may include a feeding portion and a radiating portion, and may be formed in a form that forms one or more resonant points.

[0046] The antenna (122) may be formed in a shape having a predetermined height on the upper portion of the module substrate (123). The antenna (122) may also be formed by patterning on a cover covering the wireless communication unit (121). The antenna (122) may be formed in various shapes that radiate wireless signals.

[0047] The antenna (122) is patterned on the upper portion of the module substrate (123), and may have a height equal to the height of the module substrate, compared to the case where it is patterned on the main substrate (110). The antenna (122) patterned on the module substrate (123) operates as a 2D antenna in the module itself, but is spaced apart from the main substrate (110), and thus may operate as a 3D antenna, similar to a 2D patterned antenna. Through this, the antenna radiation performance may be improved.

[0048] The module substrate (123) may include a plurality of layers. The module substrate (123) may include a plurality of layers formed in an any-layer manner. By applying an any-layer substrate, miniaturization is possible and line insertion loss can be reduced. In addition, the module substrate (123) may form a ground layer in at least one of the layers located inside the plurality of layers. Lines or elements that may influence each other may be placed on the upper and lower layers based on the ground layer placed in the middle layer of the module substrate (123). By placing the ground layer (GND) in the middle, it is possible to prevent noise from affecting wireless signals, thereby enabling noise shielding of wireless signals. As shown in Fig. 15, the module substrate (123) may include a plurality of layers (124 to 127) and include a ground layer (126) in the middle layer. An RF transmission line (CPWG, CPW, MS), which is a wireless communication transmission line, may be formed on the upper layer (127) of the ground layer (126). The lower layer of the ground layer (126) may include a layer (125) in which power wiring is formed and a layer (124) in which contact pads or digital wiring, etc. connected to the main board (110) are formed. A wireless communication transmission line may be placed on the upper layer of the ground layer (126) to shield noise that may be generated by wiring, etc. formed on the lower layer of the ground layer (126).

[0049] The wireless communication module (120) can be placed on the main board (110) as a SMD (surface-mount devices) type. The wireless communication module (120) can be mounted in various ways, such as BGA or LGA.

[0050] Components such as a wireless communication module (120) and a controller for operating a battery management device may be mounted on the main board (110). The wireless communication module (120) is mounted on the main board (110) as an independent module, thereby minimizing the area or fill-cut area of ​​the main board (110) required for mounting the wireless communication configuration.

[0051] A battery management device (100) according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a control unit (130) that monitors a battery inside a battery pack using a wireless communication signal received from another battery management device. As shown in FIG. 2, the device may include a control unit (130) that transmits and receives data with a wireless communication module (120). The control unit (130) may include one or more processors and one or more memories. The control unit (130) may be an MCU. The battery management device (100) including the control unit (130) may be a master module of the battery management device. The master module may receive information on battery cells to which each slave module is electrically connected from slave modules, and may monitor the batteries inside the battery pack. One master module may communicate with a plurality of slave modules. The master module may not be electrically connected to the battery cells, but may serve to monitor the battery pack through communication with the slave modules. Alternatively, the master module may also be electrically connected to the battery cells, but may receive information about each battery cell from other slave modules to monitor the entire battery pack.

[0052] In addition, the control unit (130) may include a battery management chip (Battery Monitoring Integrated Circuit, BMIC), and at this time, the battery management device (100) including the control unit (130) may be a slave module of the battery management device. The battery management chip may be connected to the battery cell (220), receive information of the battery cell (220), and transmit the information to the master module through the wireless communication module (120). The battery management chip may include a sensor or a measuring circuit capable of sensing information of the battery cell, and the information of the battery cell received by the slave module may include information such as voltage, current, temperature, pressure, and hydrogen of the battery cell.

[0053] The wireless communication module (120) can transmit and receive data with the outside (230) through the first connector (140) that is electrically connected to the outside of the battery pack (230). As shown in FIG. 3, the wireless communication module (120) can perform wireless communication with another battery management device (210), and transmit a wireless signal received by the wireless communication module (120) from the other battery management device (210) to the outside (230) through the first connector (140). Here, the battery management device (100) may be a gateway module that performs wireless communication with a plurality of slave modules, and transmits a signal received from the slave modules to a master module located outside the battery pack through the first connector (140). At this time, the gateway module may be connected to the master module by wire. Alternatively, it may be a battery management device (100) which is a master module, and performs wireless communication with a wireless communication module (120), but may perform wired communication such as CAN communication with an externally located upper controller, etc. through a first connector (140).

[0054] The battery management device (100) may include a second connector (150) electrically connected to the battery cell (220). As shown in FIG. 4, the battery management device (100) may be connected to the battery cell through the second connector (150), receive information about the battery cell, and transmit the information about the battery cell to another battery management device via the wireless communication module (120). Here, the battery management device (100) electrically connected to the battery cell (220) may be a CMU (Cell Monitoring Unit) or a slave module. Here, the wireless communication module (120) may transmit information about the battery cell (220) to the master module or another slave module.

[0055] A battery management device according to an embodiment of the present invention may be implemented as shown in FIG. 6. A wireless communication module (120) may be mounted on a main board (110) in an SMD type. Additionally, an MCU or a connector (141), etc., may be placed on the main board (110) depending on whether it is a master module or a slave module. By placing the wireless communication module (120) on the main board (110), it can perform wireless communication with another battery management device (210) to transmit and receive battery cell information. The connector (141) may be electrically connected to the battery cell (220). That is, FIG. 6 may be a CMU module, and the CMU module may be formed in various forms depending on the environment in which it is connected to the battery cell. Since a modularized wireless communication module can be applied to various types of CMU modules without changing the design of the wireless communication module, development time and resource efficiency can be reduced. Even if the CMU model is changed, the RF module can be implemented without changing, or with only a few changes to the antenna matching elements.

[0056] Additionally, the production line for RF modules is separated, enabling minimization of manufacturing costs through standard operation time (ST) and equipment optimization, and reducing tack time through separation of EOL (End Of Life) inspection for RF modules.

[0057] As shown in Fig. 7, a wireless communication module (120) may have a wireless communication unit (121) and a patterned antenna (122) arranged on a module substrate (123). The wireless communication unit (121) includes an RF chip that generates a wireless signal, and the generated wireless signal may be radiated through an antenna (122) patterned on the module substrate (123).

[0058] The wireless communication module (120) can be miniaturized by configuring the wireless communication unit (121) and the patterned antenna (122) as independent modules on the module substrate (123) as shown in FIG. 8. The overall size of the wireless communication module (120) may be D1 x D2 x D3, the height of the module substrate may be D4, and the fill-cut area size of the patterned antenna may be D5 x D6. For example, D1 to D6 may be 23.9, 15.5, 3.2, 1, 15.5, and 5.35 (mm), respectively.

[0059] The antenna (122) is patterned on the upper portion of the module substrate (123), and as shown in FIG. 9, it may have a height equal to the height (D4) of the module substrate, compared to the case where it is patterned on the main substrate (110). The antenna (122) patterned on the module substrate (123) operates as a 2D antenna in the module itself, but since it is spaced apart from the main substrate (110), it may be like operating a 2D patterned antenna as a 3D antenna. Through this, the antenna radiation performance can be improved.

[0060] Fig. 10 is a comparative example of a wireless communication module according to an embodiment of the present invention, showing a battery management device in which a chip (21) is directly mounted on a main substrate (11) and an antenna (22) is mounted on the main substrate (11). In the case where the chip antenna is mounted directly on the main substrate rather than as a separate module, the overall size of the chip antenna may be 70 mm x 50 mm, and the fill-cut area may be 18.88 mm x 11.75 mm, which may be larger in size than the wireless communication module according to an embodiment of the present invention that constitutes an independent module of Fig. 8.

[0061] The performance of the wireless communication module according to the embodiment of the present invention constituting the independent modules of FIGS. 8 and 9 and the chip antenna mounted on the main substrate of FIG. 10 are as shown in FIGS. 11 to 13. FIG. 11 shows return loss, FIG. 12 shows radiation efficiency, and FIG. 13 shows overall efficiency. It can be confirmed that the radiation efficiency of the wireless communication module according to the embodiment of the present invention constituting the independent modules of FIGS. 8 and 9 is higher than that of the chip antenna mounted on the main substrate of FIG. 10.

[0062] The wireless communication module (120) is mounted on the main board (110), and the battery management device can be placed in the housing as a single module and mounted on the battery pack, as shown in FIG. 14. The size of the battery management device is D6 x D7 x D9, and the patterned antenna can be positioned D10 and D11 apart from the inner wall of the housing. For example, D6 to D11 can be 160.8, 21.8, 12.5, 3.466, and 4.5 (mm), respectively.

[0063] A battery management device according to an embodiment of the present invention may configure a gateway module as shown in FIG. 16. In order to receive wireless signals from multiple slaves, it may include multiple antennas (221, 222), and may transmit data received from the slave modules to the master module through a connector (230) connected to a master module located externally or at another location.

[0064] When a master module and multiple slave modules are placed within a single battery pack and perform wired communication, connectors and isolation elements must be connected to each module, as shown in FIG. 17, and wire harnesses connecting each module must be placed within the battery pack. This increases the weight of the battery pack, making it difficult to reduce the weight when installed in a vehicle, etc. In addition, complexity increases due to securing space for wiring, harnesses, assembly during manufacturing, and A / S, and there is a risk of operation and performance degradation due to problems with the wires themselves, corrosion, and vehicle vibration. In addition, as the battery capacity increases, the number of modules increases, and so does the number of wires. In addition, the wire arrangement is greatly affected by the location and spacing of the modules, which limits the design.

[0065] In contrast, when a master module and multiple slave modules placed within a single battery pack perform wireless communication, as shown in FIG. 18, there is no need to connect wires connecting each module. This means that the vehicle can be made lighter, which improves the driving range when installed in a vehicle, and free space can be secured because there is no space for wires. In addition, by performing wireless communication between each module, the module positions can be freely adjusted, which increases design freedom and facilitates module installation and A / S.

[0066] A battery management system according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a plurality of slave modules (320, 340) and a master module (310), and the plurality of slave modules (320, 340) and the master module (310) transmit and receive data within the battery pack using a wireless communication module (311, 321, 341). A detailed description of each component of the battery management system according to an embodiment of the present invention corresponds to the detailed description of the battery management device of FIGS. 1 to 18, and thus, any redundant description will be omitted below.

[0067] The slave modules (320, 340) and the master module (310) can transmit and receive data within the battery pack using the wireless communication modules (311, 321, 341) as shown in FIG. 19. The plurality of slave modules (320, 340) are each electrically connected to the battery cells (320, 350). The master module (310) receives data from the plurality of slave modules and monitors the batteries within the battery pack. The wireless communication modules (311, 321, 341) include a wireless communication unit that outputs a modularized wireless signal and an antenna that radiates the wireless signal.

[0068] A wireless communication module (311, 321, 341) can constitute an independent module including a module substrate, a wireless communication unit disposed on the module substrate, and an antenna radiating the wireless signal, and the antenna can be formed by being patterned on the module substrate.

[0069] The above module substrate includes a plurality of layers, and at least one of the layers located inside the plurality of layers can form a ground layer.

[0070] A battery pack according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a first housing, a battery cell and a battery management module arranged inside the first housing, and a second housing covering the first housing, wherein the battery management module includes a wireless communication antenna, and the first housing or the second housing includes a reflection reduction unit at a position corresponding to a position of the wireless communication antenna.

[0071] A battery pack (400) according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a battery cell (410), a battery management module (420), and a reflection reduction unit (430), as shown in FIG. 20, and is arranged in an internal space formed by a first housing (440) and a second housing (450). A detailed description of each component of the battery pack (400) according to an embodiment of the present invention corresponds to the detailed description of the battery management device or battery management system of FIGS. 1 to 19, and thus, any redundant description will be omitted below.

[0072] A battery pack housing according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises a first housing (440) and a second housing (450). The first housing (440) forms an internal space in which a battery cell and a battery management module are arranged, and the second housing (450) may be a cover covering the first housing.

[0073] The battery management module (420) disposed inside the first housing (440) includes a wireless communication antenna, and the reflection reduction unit (430) can be disposed at a position in the second housing (450) corresponding to the position of the wireless communication antenna.

[0074] A battery pack including a wireless battery management module has multiple wireless communication antennas arranged inside for wireless communication, which communicate with each other internally. Because the battery pack has a narrow space due to the arrangement of battery cells, conductive structures are positioned close to the wireless communication antennas, for example, within 5 mm. As shown in Fig. 21, the battery management module (42) arranged in the battery cell (41) is arranged close to the second housing (45).

[0075] In order for the antenna (42) to perform stably in a communication environment, it must operate under Far Field conditions as shown in Fig. 22. However, since the conductive structure (45) is in contact with the Near Field region, electromagnetic waves (46) that are reflected after radiation from the antenna may be generated, which may result in a degradation of wireless communication performance. When designing a battery pack with a distance between the antenna and the Far Field, an optimal design is possible without reflected electromagnetic waves, but this results in the side effect of the battery pack becoming too large or the battery cell capacity being reduced.

[0076] To solve this problem, a reflection reduction unit (430) is included to reduce electromagnetic waves reflected inside the battery pack housing.

[0077] The reflection reduction unit (430) may include a diffraction pattern unit (431) formed on the inner surface of the second housing (450). The diffraction pattern unit (431) may diffract a wireless signal so that it is not reflected to the wireless communication antenna. As shown in FIG. 23, the diffraction pattern unit (431) may be formed on the inner surface of the second housing (450) located close to the wireless communication antenna of the battery management module (420). The diffraction pattern unit (431) may include a plurality of protrusions that protrude from the inner surface of the second housing (450) into the battery pack (400). The diffraction pattern unit (431) may include a plurality of protrusions that form a protrusion shape rather than a surface shape, thereby preventing a wireless signal from being reflected to the wireless communication antenna by causing diffuse reflection instead of regular reflection. Each of the plurality of protrusions may form a V-shaped groove with an adjacent protrusion. The signal radiated from the wireless communication antenna diffracts when it hits the surface of the V-groove, thereby preventing the reflected electromagnetic wave path from heading toward the wireless communication antenna. This allows for improvement of radiation by changing the mechanism inside the housing without changing the design of the wireless communication antenna. This improves the communication environment between the wireless battery management modules inside the battery pack (400).

[0078] The reflection reduction unit (430) may include an absorbing unit (432) having a predetermined thickness on the inner surface of the second housing (450). As shown in FIG. 24, the absorbing unit (432) may be formed on the inner surface of the second housing (450) located close to the wireless communication antenna of the battery management module (420). The absorbing unit (432) may include an absorbing material. The absorbing unit (432) may include a ferrite sheet. Ferrite or alpha iron is a ferromagnetic material composed of iron in a body-centered cubic lattice, and absorbs electromagnetic waves. By forming the absorbing unit (432) in an area where radiation from the wireless communication antenna is reflected on the inner surface of the housing, the electromagnetic waves reflected by the wireless communication antenna can be minimized.

[0079] The thickness of the absorbing portion may be set according to the magnitude or frequency of the signal emitted from the wireless communication antenna. Since the degree of reflection varies depending on the magnitude or frequency of the signal emitted from the wireless communication antenna, the thickness of the absorbing portion may vary accordingly. The thickness of the absorbing portion may be set based on simulation results or by the user.

[0080] The area of ​​the reflection reduction unit (430) may be formed to be a predetermined size larger than the area of ​​the wireless communication antenna. The reflection reduction unit (430) is not formed throughout the entire interior of the housing, but is formed in an area that reflects electromagnetic waves to the wireless communication antenna, as shown in FIGS. 25 and 26, and is formed to be a predetermined size larger than the area of ​​the wireless communication antenna, thereby optimizing the efficiency of the reflection reduction unit (430).

[0081] The reflection reduction unit (430) may be formed within a predetermined distance (D12) from the wireless communication antenna. Reflected electromagnetic waves are reflected back to the wireless communication antenna within a predetermined distance from the wireless communication antenna and exert influence, and thus may be formed within the distance that exerts influence due to reflection. The distance from the wireless communication antenna where the reflection reduction unit (430) is formed may be set by the user or based on simulation results.

[0082] The reflection reduction unit (430) may be formed in an area including the near field range of the signal radiated from the wireless communication antenna. As shown in FIG. 22, the reflected electromagnetic wave is reflected within the near field range of the signal radiated from the wireless communication antenna, and thus the reflection reduction unit (430) may be formed in an area including the near field range of the signal radiated from the wireless communication antenna.

[0083] By forming a reflection reduction unit (430) inside the housing, it can be confirmed that the return loss characteristic of the wireless communication antenna is improved from -1.82 dB to -7.62 dB at 2.44 GHz, as shown in Fig. 27. Through the reflection reduction unit (430), the wireless communication environment between battery management modules can be improved without changing the size of the battery pack or the capacity of the battery cells.

[0084]

[0085] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the present invention can be implemented in modified forms without departing from the essential characteristics of the above-described description. Therefore, the disclosed methods should be considered illustrative rather than restrictive. The scope of the present invention is set forth in the claims, not the foregoing description, and all differences within the scope equivalent thereto should be construed as being encompassed by the present invention.

Claims

1. Main board; and Includes a wireless communication module arranged on the main board, The above wireless communication module constitutes an independent module including a module substrate, a wireless communication unit disposed on the module substrate, and an antenna radiating the wireless signal. The above antenna is formed by patterning on the module substrate, A battery management device placed inside a battery pack and performing wireless communication with other battery management devices.

2. In paragraph 1, The above antenna is a battery management device spaced apart from the upper part of the main board.

3. In paragraph 1, The above module substrate comprises a plurality of layers, A battery management device in which at least one of the layers located inside the plurality of layers forms a ground layer.

4. In paragraph 3, The above wireless communication module, A battery management device that places a wireless communication transmission line on a layer located above the above ground layer.

5. In paragraph 1, A battery management device including a control unit that monitors a battery inside a battery pack using a wireless communication signal received from another battery management device.

6. In paragraph 1, Includes a first connector electrically connected to the outside of the battery pack, A battery management device that transmits a wireless signal received by the wireless communication module to the outside through the first connector.

7. In paragraph 1, A battery management device comprising a second connector electrically connected to the battery cell.

8. A plurality of slave modules electrically connected to the battery cells; and Includes a master module that receives data from the plurality of slave modules and monitors the battery inside the battery pack, The above plurality of slave modules and the master module transmit and receive data within the battery pack using a wireless communication module mounted on each main board, The above wireless communication module constitutes an independent module including a module substrate, a wireless communication unit disposed on the module substrate, and an antenna radiating the wireless signal. A battery management system in which the above antenna is formed by being patterned on the module substrate.

9. In paragraph 8, The antenna of the above wireless communication module, A battery management system spaced apart from the upper portion of the main board of the master module on which the wireless communication module is mounted.

10. In paragraph 8, The above module substrate comprises a plurality of layers, A battery management system in which at least one of the layers located inside the plurality of layers forms a ground layer.

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