Battery Pack Resistor Extraction for Thermal Runaway Containment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing battery packs face challenges in preventing the propagation of thermal runaway, which can lead to secondary fires or explosions due to heat or flames spreading from one battery cell to adjacent cells, and current cooling methods may cause damage or hinder effective thermal management.
Innovation Solution
A battery pack design that includes an energy consumer to discharge electrical energy during thermal runaway, a storage unit to contain and discharge this energy externally, and a cooling unit to quickly cool the discharged energy, along with a switch controlled by a sensor to manage this process, all while using a simple configuration to reduce manufacturing costs and malfunction risks.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If an energy consumer (resistor) is used to discharge electrical energy during thermal runaway, then thermal runaway propagation is prevented, but resistance heat may cause damage to internal components or increase battery temperature
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the energy consumer (resistor) from the battery pack's internal structure and places it in an external storage unit. When thermal runaway occurs, the resistor discharges electrical energy externally, preventing thermal propagation while isolating the heat-generating component from the battery's internal components. This resolves the contradiction by maintaining the protective function while removing the harmful heat effect from the battery system.
Solution Approach 2:
The storage unit acts as an intermediary between the battery pack and the energy consumer. It provides a controlled environment for the resistor to operate, allowing energy discharge while protecting the battery from direct exposure to resistance heat. The storage unit mediates between the need for thermal runaway prevention and the need to protect internal components from heat damage.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If a storage unit is designed to contain and discharge the energy consumer externally, then internal component damage is reduced, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The storage unit is designed to perform multiple functions: it stores the energy consumer (resistor), provides a discharge path for electrical energy, and acts as a thermal barrier. By combining these functions into a single integrated component, the patent reduces overall system complexity while achieving internal component protection.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the storage function and the protective function into a single storage unit structure. Rather than having separate components for storing the resistor and for protecting against heat, the design combines these functions, simplifying the overall device architecture while maintaining the required protection level.
3Temperature
If a cooling unit is added to quickly cool the discharged energy consumer, then temperature control is improved, but manufacturing cost and device complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The storage unit is designed to provide passive cooling through natural convection and radiation. The structure allows heat to dissipate from the energy consumer without requiring an active cooling system. This self-service approach maintains temperature control while avoiding the complexity and cost of additional cooling components.
Solution Approach 2:
The storage unit incorporates phase change materials or designs that utilize phase transitions (such as melting or evaporation) to absorb excess heat from the energy consumer. This passive thermal management approach provides effective cooling without requiring complex active cooling systems, thereby reducing device complexity and manufacturing costs.
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 design effectively prevents thermal runaway propagation by quickly discharging and cooling the energy consumer, reducing temperature rises and external damage, while minimizing manufacturing costs and malfunction likelihood.
Implementation Method 1
an energy consumer configured to discharge the at least one cell assembly when thermal runaway occurs in at least one of the plurality of battery cells
Implementation Method 2
in the process of discharging the electrical energy stored in the battery pack, resistance heat of a resistor that consumes the electrical energy
Implementation Method 3
a cooler including a refrigerant to cool the energy consumer discharged to the outside
Data Source
AI summary
A battery pack includes at least one cell assembly including a plurality of battery cells, an energy consumer configured to discharge the at least one cell assembly when thermal runaway occurs in at least one of the plurality of battery cells, and a storage unit in which the energy consumer is received inside, and configured to discharge at least part of the energy consumer to outside when the energy consumer discharges the cell assembly.