Battery Cooling Plate Port Geometry for Strong Brazed Joints

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional heat transfer plates for battery cooling in electric vehicles face challenges in assembly, manufacturing, and ensuring a secure connection while maintaining thermal efficiency, leading to increased thermal loads and potential overheating issues.

Innovation Solution

A heat transfer plate design featuring a plate body formed from two record elements with a connecting socket that includes a connection section with elliptical or elliptical-shaped outer contours, optimized for soldering and integration, ensuring a high-strength, gap-friendly connection between the record elements and the connecting socket, which is aligned parallel to the plate elements, facilitating efficient cooling fluid flow and assembly.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of operation

If conventional connecting pieces are formed or machined and connected to the plate body, then quick installation of cooling fluid lines is enabled, but assembly complexity and manufacturing cost increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvequick installation of cooling fluid linesVSAvoidassembly complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The connecting piece is integrally formed with the plate body as a single component during the stamping process, eliminating separate assembly steps for attaching connecting pieces to the plate body while maintaining quick installation capability for cooling fluid lines

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

2Reliability

If connecting pieces are joined to the plate body using conventional methods, then connection is achieved, but manufacturing precision and connection reliability are compromised

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveconnection reliabilityVSAvoidconnection precision
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The connecting piece is pre-formed with precise geometric features (recesses, protrusions, and guiding surfaces) during the stamping process that ensure accurate alignment and positioning before the final joining operation, thereby achieving both high manufacturing precision and connection reliability

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

3Ease of manufacture

If plate elements are joined with large gap tolerance, then manufacturing is easier, but thermal resistance increases and heat transfer efficiency decreases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvemanufacturing easeVSAvoidthermal resistance
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of manufactureVSLoss of energy

Solution Approach 1:

The invention changes the gap parameter from a large tolerance range to a controlled narrow range (0.05-0.5mm) by implementing precise guiding surfaces and positioning features in the connecting piece, achieving both ease of manufacture through standardized stamping processes and low thermal resistance through controlled gap dimensions

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

4Strength

If connecting pieces are designed with complex geometry for secure connection, then connection strength is improved, but manufacturing cost and scrap rate increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveconnection strengthVSAvoidmanufacturing cost
Core Design Contradiction:
StrengthVSEase of manufacture

Solution Approach 1:

The connecting piece is segmented into distinct functional zones (guiding surfaces, positioning protrusions, recesses for plate element integration) that can be independently optimized during stamping, achieving strong connections through distributed contact areas while maintaining manufacturing efficiency and low scrap rates

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

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

The solution provides a robust, efficient, and process-stable connection that reduces thermal resistance, enhances heat transfer, and minimizes scrap rates by optimizing the connection geometry and soldering process, ensuring reliable cooling performance.

Implementation Method 1

The plate elements are brazed together, integrating the connecting section of the connecting piece into the receiving section of the plate body

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectBrazing: Brazing

Implementation Method 2

A heat exchanger plate is used for a wide variety of applications. A heat exchanger plate of the type in question here is, in particular, a cooling plate for cooling motor vehicle batteries

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectHeat transfer: Conduction (thermal)

Data Source

PatentEP4421437B1Heat exchanger plate and method for producing a heat exchanger plate
Publication Date: 2025.01.29 BENTELER AUTOMOBILTECHNIK GMBH
  • EP4421437B1 patent drawingFigure 1~2
  • EP4421437B1 patent drawingFigure 3~4
  • EP4421437B1 patent drawingFigure 5~6

AI summary

A cooling plate for battery cooling comprises a plate body (2) formed from two plate elements (3, 4) and a connection port (6) for a cooling fluid. The connection port (6) has a connection section (7) which is inserted into a receiving section (8) of the plate body (2) formed between the plate elements (3, 4). The connection section (7) has two arcuate wall sections (16, 17) in cross-section and two opposing, outwardly directed longitudinal ribs (9). The receiving section (8) has longitudinal grooves (10) extending in the region of the joining plane (FE) between the plate elements (3, 4). The longitudinal ribs (9) run within the longitudinal grooves (10).