Battery Housing Electrical Feedthroughs with Ceramic Insulators
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing electrical feedthroughs for battery housings, particularly in thin-walled bodies, face challenges in providing reliable and lightweight solutions for accessing internal battery components while maintaining hermetic seals and accommodating thermal expansion differences.
Innovation Solution
The use of ceramic insulators with braze alloys for sealing and a terminal within the insulator, along with spacers and glass seals for electrical insulation, to create hermetic and thermally stable electrical feedthroughs that include connectors and terminals made from materials like stainless steel, aluminum, and titanium, ensuring efficient electrical conductivity and low weight.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Weight of moving object
If thin-walled bodies are used to house batteries, then weight is reduced, but reliability of hermetic seals deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The feedthrough assembly is segmented into distinct functional components: a connector portion for hermetic sealing to the housing, an insulator portion providing electrical isolation, and a terminal portion for electrical connection. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized for its specific function while maintaining overall reliability in thin-walled applications
Solution Approach 2:
The feedthrough employs composite construction combining dissimilar materials: conductive materials (metal connector and terminal) joined to an insulating material (ceramic or polymer insulator). This composite structure enables simultaneous achievement of hermetic sealing, electrical insulation, and mechanical strength in lightweight battery housings
2Ease of operation
If electrical feedthroughs are incorporated into thin-walled bodies, then access to internal battery components is enabled, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple functions are merged into a single integrated feedthrough component: hermetic sealing, electrical insulation, and electrical connection are combined in one assembly that passes through the housing wall. This eliminates the need for separate sealing elements, insulators, and terminals, thereby reducing overall device complexity while maintaining accessibility
3Strength
If connectors and terminals are made from materials like stainless steel and titanium, then strength and hermetic sealing are improved, but weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
Different portions of the feedthrough assembly have different material properties optimized for their specific functions: the connector and terminal portions use high-strength materials (stainless steel, titanium) where mechanical strength and hermetic sealing are critical, while the insulator portion uses lighter materials (ceramic or polymer) where electrical insulation is the primary requirement. This local differentiation of material quality achieves necessary strength without unnecessary weight
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 described electrical feedthroughs provide reliable, lightweight, and thermally stable solutions for battery housings, ensuring efficient electrical conductivity while maintaining hermetic seals and accommodating thermal expansion, thus addressing the limitations of existing technologies.
Implementation Method 1
A first seal couples the ceramic insulator to the connector and is formed from a first braze alloy capable of bonding the ceramic insulator and the connector
Implementation Method 2
A seal glass couples the connector to the terminal pin, thereby forming the glass seal. The seal glass includes a boroaluminate glass
Data Source
AI summary
Electrical feedthroughs for battery housings are presented. The electrical feedthroughs include a connector, a ceramic insulator, and a terminal. A first seal couples the connector to the ceramic insulator via a first braze alloy. A second seal couples the ceramic insulator to the terminal via a second braze alloy. The electrical feedthroughs can also include a spacer. A first seal couples the connector to the ceramic insulator; a second seal couples the ceramic insulator to the spacer; and the third seal couples the spacer to the terminal. The first seal, the second seal, and the third seal include, respectively, a first braze alloy, a second braze alloy, and a third braze alloy.