Battery Casing Temperature Sensing for Swelling Detection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for monitoring and detecting battery swelling, such as pressure sensors, face challenges due to distance and cost issues, and require modifications to the battery monitoring unit, whereas temperature-based solutions offer a cost-effective and non-invasive approach by utilizing resistance temperature devices to detect abnormal temperature variations on the battery surface.
Innovation Solution
A system employing a resistance temperature device, like a thermocouple or thermistor, attached to the battery casing to measure and compare surface temperature changes during charging and discharging, using the Steinhart-Hart equation to determine if swelling has occurred by comparing against baseline temperature variations, without needing modifications to the battery monitoring unit or actuation mechanisms.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If pressure sensors are used to detect battery swelling, then detection capability is improved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces mechanical pressure sensors with a thermal field-based detection system. Instead of using mechanical elements to directly measure swelling pressure, the system uses temperature sensors to detect thermal patterns that indicate swelling, substituting a mechanical measurement approach with a thermal field approach.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces thermal energy as an intermediary to detect swelling. Rather than directly measuring mechanical swelling with pressure sensors, the system uses temperature changes as an intermediate indicator that correlates with swelling conditions, allowing indirect detection through thermal patterns.
2Measurement precision
If pressure sensors are used to detect battery swelling, then detection capability is improved, but cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs inexpensive temperature sensors instead of costly pressure sensors. The system uses readily available, low-cost thermal sensing elements that can be easily manufactured and deployed, sacrificing the precision of expensive mechanical sensors for the benefit of significantly reduced system cost.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces expensive mechanical pressure sensing systems with affordable thermal sensing technology. This substitution eliminates the need for complex mechanical components while using inexpensive electronic temperature sensors that are widely available and cost-effective.
3Measurement precision
If pressure sensors are used to detect battery swelling, then detection capability is improved, but actuation difficulty increases due to distance and gap
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses thermal energy as an intermediary that can penetrate and transfer through the battery structure and gaps. Thermal fields can diffuse through materials and spaces that mechanical contact sensors cannot access, allowing detection without direct physical contact or complex actuation mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces mechanical contact-based sensing that requires physical actuation and direct contact with the battery surface with non-contact thermal sensing. This eliminates the need for mechanical actuation mechanisms and allows passive detection of thermal patterns indicating swelling.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Effectively detects battery swelling by identifying deviations in surface temperature changes, allowing for timely intervention and alerting when abnormal swelling is detected, thus ensuring safety and reliability without the need for expensive electronic components or pressure sensing system actuation.
Implementation Method 1
A resistance temperature device, like a thermocouple or thermistor, attached to the battery casing to measure and compare surface temperature changes
Implementation Method 2
The surface temperature that is indirectly measured on the surface of the casing 140 of the battery is due in part to the internal temperature of the battery migrating to the surface
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus includes a battery having a battery monitoring unit (BMU) and an outer casing, and a resistance measuring device coupled to the outer casing. The battery monitoring unit and the resistance measuring device monitoring a change in surface temperature on the casing of the battery during a charging or discharging of the battery, compare the change in surface temperature with an expected change in surface temperature during the charging or discharging of the battery, and determine that a swelling of the battery has occurred when the change in surface temperature is less than the expected change in the surface temperature.