Battery Fuse Heating Assist for Reliable Cell Isolation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing fuse devices for battery cells lack effective mechanisms to ensure safe triggering in critical states, such as short-circuits or overheating, and often require expensive non-standard components, leading to inefficiencies and safety concerns.
Innovation Solution
A fuse device comprising a fuse element, a heating unit, and a control unit, where the heating unit is electrically, thermally, or mechanically connected to the fuse element to assist in triggering, and includes a carrier element, heating elements, and a control unit with a switching element to activate the heating unit in critical states, thereby improving safety and efficiency by favoring fuse element triggering and preventing short-circuits.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional fuse devices are used without a heating unit and control unit, then the device complexity is low, but the reliability of triggering the fuse element in critical states is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The heating unit is activated in advance upon detection of a critical state to preheat the fuse element, ensuring reliable triggering. This preliminary action prepares the fuse element by raising its temperature close to the melting point before the actual current interruption occurs, guaranteeing consistent performance in critical states.
Solution Approach 2:
The heating unit acts as an intermediary component between the control unit and the fuse element. It receives electrical energy from the control unit and converts it to thermal energy, which is then transferred to the fuse element to facilitate controlled melting and current interruption, enabling reliable triggering without directly modifying the fuse element's structure.
2Reliability
If expensive non-standard components are used in fuse devices, then the triggering characteristics can be optimized, but the manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The heating unit employs a resistive heating element made from standard materials that can be easily manufactured and replaced. This disposable heating element converts electrical energy to heat through Joule heating, providing optimized triggering characteristics without requiring expensive specialized components, as it can be simply replaced if needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The heating unit allows dynamic control of the heating power by adjusting electrical parameters (voltage, current, duration) supplied to the heating element. This enables optimization of triggering characteristics for different critical states and fuse element types without changing the physical structure or using expensive specialized components, achieving flexibility through parameter adjustment rather than hardware complexity.
3Reliability
If a heating unit is added to assist fuse element triggering, then the safety is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The heating unit is integrated with the existing fuse device structure, combining the heating function with the current interrupting function. The heating element is positioned in direct thermal contact with the fuse element, and the control unit shares the same housing and electrical connections, reducing overall device complexity despite adding the heating capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The control unit serves multiple functions: it monitors the battery cell for critical states, controls the heating unit activation, and manages the overall fuse device operation. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate dedicated components, maintaining device complexity at an acceptable level while achieving improved safety through reliable fuse element triggering.
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 proposed fuse device enhances safety by reliably triggering the fuse element in critical states, improves efficiency by avoiding expensive components, and simplifies design and manufacturing, ensuring effective current interruption and preventing continued electrical power supply after triggering.
Implementation Method 1
a heating unit, which is connected, in particular electrically and/or thermally and/or mechanically, to the fuse element, and is provided to assist a triggering of the fuse element
Data Source
AI summary
A fuse device for at least one battery cell includes (i) a fuse element for interrupting a current flow from the battery cell in a critical state of the battery cell, (ii) a heating unit, which is connected, in particular electrically and/or thermally and/or mechanically, to the fuse element, and is provided to assist a triggering of the fuse element, (iii) a control unit for activating the heating unit in the critical state, and (iv) at least one carrier element for receiving the fuse element and at least one heating element of the heating unit.