Embedded Battery Module Conductor for Thermal Runaway Sealing
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Solution Overview
Problem
In battery modules, thermal runaway can cause conducting members to separate from the housing, leading to oxygen influx and accelerated combustion, posing safety risks such as fire or explosion.
Innovation Solution
A conductive member is partially embedded in the housing and includes a bridge and connection portions to stabilize the connection between battery cells, with features like through-holes filled with housing material and a flange extending away from the connection direction to prevent separation during thermal runaway.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the battery module uses a sealed housing to suppress thermal runaway, then safety is improved by minimizing oxygen supply, but the conducting member may separate from the housing during thermal runaway, causing oxygen influx and accelerating combustion
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-embedding the conducting member into the housing before thermal runaway occurs. The conducting member is inserted through a through-hole in the housing and secured in place, so that when thermal runaway happens and pressure increases, the conducting member is already fixed and cannot separate to create openings for oxygen influx.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses the housing material itself as an intermediary to secure the conducting member. The conducting member is embedded in the housing through a through-hole, and the housing material acts as a mediator that holds the conducting member in place, preventing separation while maintaining the sealed structure during thermal runaway events.
2Ease of operation
If the conducting member is exposed externally for electrical connection, then ease of operation is improved for connecting to external circuits, but the conducting member becomes vulnerable to separation during thermal runaway
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the nested doll principle by having the conducting member nested within the housing structure. The conducting member is embedded into the housing through a through-hole, with part of it extending outward for electrical connection. This nesting arrangement allows the conducting member to maintain stable electrical connection while being protected by the housing, preventing separation during thermal runaway.
Solution Approach 2:
The conducting member is pre-embedded into the housing before use, establishing a secure connection path. This preliminary embedding ensures that when external electrical connections are made, the conducting member is already firmly positioned and cannot separate during thermal runaway, maintaining both ease of operation and connection stability.
3Stability of the object's composition
If the conducting member is firmly fixed in the housing, then connection stability is improved, but the device complexity increases due to embedding requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies segmentation by dividing the housing into regions around a through-hole through which the conducting member passes. The conducting member is segmented into portions inside and outside the housing, with the embedded portion providing stability and the external portion providing electrical connection. This segmentation achieves connection stability without requiring complex internal fixing mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by providing embedding only at the specific location of the through-hole where the conducting member passes, rather than complex fixation throughout the entire housing. The housing material locally secures the conducting member at the critical embedding point, achieving connection stability with minimal structural complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
A battery module includes a housing; a first battery cell and a second battery cell accommodated inside the housing; a first conductive member electrically connecting the first battery cell and the second battery cell, partially embedded in the housing to be fixed to the housing, and not exposed to the outside of the housing, and a second conductive member electrically connected to the first conductive member and partially exposed to the outside of the housing.