Busbar Protrusions for Battery Cell Contact
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing busbar connection methods require strong force to deform busbars and ensure intimate contact with varying cell electrodes, leading to increased manufacturing costs and potential for spring-back loads, which affects vibration resistance and electrode strength.
Innovation Solution
A busbar design featuring a coupling plate with protrusions that absorb height and flatness variations, allowing for intimate contact without strong deformation, reducing manufacturing costs and improving vibration resistance by eliminating the need for step bending structures and high-strength materials.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Power
If the busbar thickness is increased to pass large current, then the current carrying capacity is improved, but the force required to deform the busbar for intimate contact increases, leading to increased manufacturing cost
Solution Approach 1:
The coupling plate is divided into multiple protrusions (typically 3-7 protrusions) instead of a single flat surface. Each protrusion acts as an independent contact point, allowing the busbar to accommodate variations in cell electrode height and flatness without requiring excessive deformation force. This segmentation maintains current carrying capacity while reducing the force needed for intimate contact.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the geometric parameters of the coupling plate by adding protrusions with specific heights and spacing. The protrusion height is designed to be between 0.5-5mm to accommodate cell electrode variations. This parameter change allows the busbar to maintain adequate thickness for current carrying while requiring less deformation force for contact.
2Reliability
If strong force is applied to deform the busbar for intimate contact, then the contact quality is improved, but the spring-back load remains, affecting vibration resistance and electrode strength
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the coupling plate into multiple protrusions, the contact force is distributed across multiple points rather than concentrated in one area. This reduces the spring-back effect at each individual contact point, improving vibration resistance while maintaining adequate contact quality for welding.
Solution Approach 2:
The protrusions are designed with specific height variations to dynamically adapt to the actual cell electrode surface profile. This allows the busbar to achieve intimate contact without excessive force, reducing spring-back and improving the strength and vibration resistance of the assembled battery.
3Ease of operation
If step bending structures are added to make the coupling plate easy-to-deform, then the ease of contact is improved, but the device complexity and manufacturing cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of adding complex step bending structures, the invention achieves ease of contact by changing the geometric parameters of the coupling plate - specifically by adding simple protrusions with controlled heights. This maintains structural simplicity while improving the ease of achieving intimate contact with varying cell electrodes.
Data Source
AI summary
A busbar includes a coupling plate portion provided between two cell electrodes respectively provided on adjoining two battery cells, and a total of not more than three protrusions protruded on a facing surface of the coupling plate portion so that at least one of the protrusions is in contact with each of the two cell electrodes, the facing surface of the coupling plate portion facing the cell electrodes.