Battery Pack Cooling Structure for Replaceable Cell Assemblies
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional Cell To Pack (CTP) structures face difficulties in replacing or separating faulty battery cells due to direct contact with the housing, and they struggle to effectively buffer expansion pressure, leading to reduced battery lifespan and cooling inefficiencies.
Innovation Solution
A battery pack design featuring a cooling member with a base plate and side plates that allow coolant flow, coupled to a pack housing via flange portions, enabling easy cell replacement and shock absorption, while providing efficient cooling through individual cooling paths for each cell assembly.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If battery cells are directly contacted with and adhesively fixed to the pack housing in conventional CTP structure, then structural stability is improved, but ease of cell replacement deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The pack housing is divided into a rigid housing portion and a separate buffer portion that can be independently deformed. This segmentation allows the buffer portion to be replaced or adjusted without replacing the entire housing, facilitating cell replacement while maintaining overall structural stability.
Solution Approach 2:
The buffer portion acts as an intermediary between the rigid pack housing and the battery cells. It provides a compliant interface that allows cells to be removed and replaced while the rigid housing maintains structural integrity.
2Stability of the object's composition
If battery cells are directly contacted with the rigid pack housing, then structural stability is improved, but ability to buffer expansion pressure deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
Different portions of the pack housing have different mechanical properties: the rigid housing portion provides overall structural stability, while the local buffer portion provides compliance to accommodate cell expansion. This local quality differentiation resolves the contradiction between stability and expansion buffering.
Solution Approach 2:
The buffer portion functions as a flexible element within the housing structure, allowing it to deform and absorb expansion pressure from battery cells while the rigid housing maintains structural stability.
3Device complexity
If conventional CTP structure is used with direct cell-to-housing contact, then device complexity is reduced, but cooling effectiveness deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The buffer portion serves multiple functions: it buffers expansion pressure, provides thermal management by facilitating coolant flow between cells and housing, and maintains structural integrity. This multi-functionality improves cooling effectiveness without significantly increasing device complexity.
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
Facilitates easy cell replacement, enhances structural stability, absorbs expansion pressure, and improves cooling efficiency by minimizing cooling deviations among cell assemblies.
Implementation Method 1
a flow path portion provided across the base plate and the one or more side plates and configured to allow a coolant to flow inside
Data Source
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AI summary
Provided is a battery pack comprising: a plurality of cell assemblies each of which includes a cell stack comprising a plurality of battery cells stacked together and a cooling member covering at least one surface of the cell stack; and a pack housing in which the plurality of cell assemblies are accommodated, wherein the cooling member includes: a base plate arranged to be opposite to the bottom surface of the cell stack; at least one side plate arranged to be opposite to the cell stack in the stacking direction of the plurality of battery cells and coupled to the pack housing; and a flow path part provided across the base plate and the at least one side plate and configured to allow a coolant to flow therethrough.