Battery Cell Terminal Configuration for Flexible Orientation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current battery pack designs are constrained by terminal configurations that limit orientation options and require costly mechanical connections, consuming significant space and increasing production costs, while reducing the volume of active material within the pack.
Innovation Solution
A battery cell with a 'three side-and-one side' terminal configuration, where three terminals are oriented around the periphery and one on the opposite side, allowing for flexible orientation and connection of cells without additional mechanical structures, using the terminals themselves for current carrying and sensing functions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If traditional terminal configurations are used, then mechanical connections can be established, but the battery pack volume consumed by connection components increases and active material volume decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The terminal is merged with the cell housing structure, where the terminal forms an integral part of the housing rather than being a separate component. This integration eliminates the need for separate mechanical connection components and reduces the volume occupied by connection hardware, thereby increasing the volume available for active material.
Solution Approach 2:
The terminal serves multiple functions: it provides electrical connection, structural support, and acts as a mounting surface for connection components. This multi-functionality reduces the need for additional dedicated components, thereby reducing overall connection component volume and increasing active material space.
2Adaptability or versatility
If traditional terminal configurations are used, then electrical connections can be made, but the number of orientation options for cells in the pack is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The terminal configuration uses asymmetric placement with three terminals on one end and one terminal on the opposite end, breaking the traditional symmetric two-terminal configuration. This asymmetric arrangement provides multiple valid orientation options for cell assembly, allowing cells to be oriented in different directions while maintaining proper electrical connections.
Solution Approach 2:
The terminal arrangement extends connectivity into the spatial dimension by distributing terminals across different ends of the cell, enabling three-dimensional packing arrangements and multiple orientation possibilities that were not available with traditional two-terminal configurations.
3Ease of manufacture
If mechanical connection components and processes are used, then reliable electrical connections can be established, but manufacturing and assembly costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts and eliminates unnecessary intermediate mechanical connection components from the assembly process. By providing integrated terminal structures with built-in connection features, it removes the need for separate fasteners, connectors, and mounting hardware, thereby reducing manufacturing complexity and cost while maintaining connection reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The terminal structure is designed to be self-containing and self-sufficient, with all necessary connection features integrated directly into the terminal itself. This self-service design eliminates the need for additional components and simplifies the assembly process, reducing both manufacturing cost and assembly time while ensuring reliable electrical connections.
Data Source
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AI summary
A battery pack includes a two-dimensional or three-dimensional array of battery cells, each cell having a polygonal (i.e, rectangular) shape and a "three side-and-one side" terminal configuration. In some embodiments, tThe terminal configuration allows the cells to be electrically connected in any configuration, series, parallel, or series parallel simply by changing the orientation of the cell relative to adjacent cells and applying pressure to maintain contact. For a rectangular cell shape, this is achieved by providing three like charged terminals (such as positive) on three respective sides of the cell and one oppositely charged terminal (such as negative) on a fourth side of the cell while maintaining a neutral charge on both of the end surfaces of the cell.