Battery Pack Venting Layout to Block Cell-to-Cell Flame Spread
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional battery devices are prone to secondary ignition or explosion due to the transfer of heat or flames from one cell stack to adjacent stacks, posing a significant safety risk.
Innovation Solution
The battery device incorporates a housing design with first and second venting passages, partition wall members, and a gas discharge member to manage and discharge explosive by-products, minimizing the spread of flames and heat through separate venting paths and directional gas flow control.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If cell stacks are closely arranged in a battery device, then space utilization is improved, but heat and flames can easily transfer between adjacent cell stacks causing secondary ignition or explosion
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the battery housing into multiple independent compartments using partition walls. Each compartment contains one or more cell stacks and has its own independent venting passages. This segmentation prevents heat and flames from transferring between adjacent cell stacks, addressing the harmful effect while maintaining space utilization through efficient compartment design.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces partition walls as intermediary structures between adjacent cell stacks. These partition walls act as physical barriers that block the direct transfer of heat and flames. Additionally, independent venting passages serve as controlled intermediaries for pressure relief, allowing gas discharge without compromising the isolation between compartments.
2Device complexity
If conventional single venting path is used, then device complexity is reduced, but it cannot effectively prevent flame spread to adjacent cell stacks
Solution Approach 1:
The venting system is segmented into multiple independent venting passages, each serving specific compartments. This segmentation allows controlled pressure relief in each compartment independently, preventing flame spread while maintaining manageable device complexity through modular design.
Solution Approach 2:
Different venting passages are configured with different characteristics based on their specific locations and functions. For example, some passages are positioned to discharge in specific directions away from adjacent compartments, and partition walls are strategically placed to optimize local pressure and heat management, enhancing overall reliability.
3Manufacturing precision
If cell assemblies are positioned close to housing walls, then manufacturing precision is improved, but explosive by-products cannot be effectively discharged and may cause secondary ignition
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the pressure relief function from the cell assembly positioning by introducing independent venting passages in the housing. These passages provide dedicated pathways for explosive by-products to escape, separating the positioning precision requirement from the pressure discharge requirement and allowing both to be optimized independently.
Solution Approach 2:
The venting passages serve as intermediary channels between the cell assemblies and the external environment. They provide a controlled pathway for pressure relief without requiring increased spacing between cell assemblies and housing walls, thus maintaining manufacturing precision while effectively managing explosive by-products.
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
Prevents secondary ignition and explosion by effectively managing and discharging high-temperature gases and flames, reducing the impact on adjacent cell assemblies and enhancing safety.
Implementation Method 1
a first venting passage is formed in the housing facing the upper surfaces of the plurality of cell assemblies, and a second venting passage is formed in a space between first side surfaces of the plurality of cell assemblies and the housing
Data Source
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AI summary
A battery device is disclosed, the battery device may include a plurality of cell assemblies including a plurality of battery cells; and a housing accommodating the plurality of cell assemblies therein, wherein upper surfaces of the plurality of cell assemblies may be spaced apart from the housing by a certain distance, a first venting passage may be formed in the housing facing the upper surfaces of the plurality of cell assemblies, and a second venting passage may be formed in a space between first side surfaces of the plurality of cell assemblies and the housing.