Adjustable Battery Cell Spacer for Thermal Management
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing battery cell spacers in electrified vehicle systems lack adjustability and flexibility to effectively manage the spacing and cooling of battery cells, leading to inefficiencies in energy storage and thermal management.
Innovation Solution
A unitary battery cell spacer with adjustable dimensions, featuring a pocket between dividing walls that can change size through compression, and flaps to seal the pocket, allowing for customizable fit and enhanced isolation between cells.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If fixed-dimension battery cell spacers are used, then manufacturing is simple, but adaptability to different cell configurations is poor
Solution Approach 1:
The battery cell spacer employs collapsible walls that can transition between expanded and collapsed states, enabling the spacer to adapt its dimensions to different battery cell configurations. The collapsible nature allows the same spacer to accommodate various cell sizes and shapes without requiring multiple fixed-dimension spacers, thus improving adaptability while maintaining a relatively simple base structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The spacer's dimensional parameters are made variable through the collapsible wall mechanism. By changing the state of the walls (collapsed or expanded), the spacer can adjust its internal volume and external dimensions to match different battery cell requirements, resolving the contradiction between fixed manufacturing and variable adaptability.
2Adaptability or versatility
If collapsible walls are added to enable adjustment, then adaptability improves, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The spacer wall is divided into collapsible sections that can independently transition between states. This segmentation allows the complex adjustment function to be achieved through modular components rather than a monolithic complex structure, potentially simplifying manufacturing by allowing standardized collapsible sections to be reused.
Solution Approach 2:
The dynamic collapsible wall design enables the spacer to achieve multiple dimensional configurations from a single manufactured component. The collapsible mechanism is integrated into the wall structure itself, allowing adjustment functionality to be built-in rather than added through complex external mechanisms, thus balancing adaptability with manufacturability.
3Ease of operation
If spacers are compressed to collapse, then cell spacing is optimized, but structural strength may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The collapsible wall mechanism is designed to provide structural strength in the expanded state for optimal cell spacing, while the collapsed state provides a compact configuration. The dynamic structure allows the spacer to maintain strength when needed (expanded) and reduce volume when needed (collapsed), resolving the contradiction between operational optimization and structural integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The collapsible walls are designed as flexible yet strength-providing structures that can transition between states. These flexible walls maintain sufficient structural strength to support the battery cells in the expanded configuration while allowing controlled collapse when compression is applied, balancing strength requirements with operational flexibility.
Data Source
AI summary
Electrified vehicles such as hybrid electric vehicles (HEV's), plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV's), battery electric vehicles (BEV's), or fuel cell vehicles differ from conventional motor vehicles in that they are powered by one or more electric machines (i.e., electric motors and/or generators) instead of or in addition to an internal combustion engine. High voltage current for powering these types of electric machines is typically supplied by a high voltage traction battery system having one or more battery cells that store energy.