Battery Current Collector Tear Detection via Mechanical Excitation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for diagnosing damage or tears in current collector foils of battery cells require opening the cells, rendering them inoperable and are prone to false positives due to high internal resistance and aging considerations.
Innovation Solution
A method involving mechanical excitation of the current collector to induce vibration, measuring voltage amplitude, and using high-pass filtering to detect tears or separations in the collector foils without damaging the cell, thereby improving diagnostic accuracy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If current methods are used to diagnose damage or tears in current collector foils, then diagnosis can be performed, but the cells must be opened rendering them inoperable and false positives occur due to high internal resistance and aging
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies mechanical vibration to the current collector foil by generating vibrations through the battery cell structure (using the cell housing as a resonator). The vibration causes the foil to oscillate, and tears or separations in the foil create characteristic vibration patterns that can be detected by accelerometers. This non-invasive method allows diagnosis without opening the cell, maintaining cell operability while achieving accurate detection of foil damage.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the traditional mechanical inspection method (opening the cell and visually examining the foil) with a vibration-based diagnostic system. By using mechanical vibrations and acceleration measurements, the system can detect foil tears and separations remotely without physical access to the foil, thereby maintaining cell integrity and operability.
2Measurement precision
If traditional diagnosis methods are used, then tears can be detected, but false positives occur due to high internal resistance and aging considerations
Solution Approach 1:
The vibration-based method produces characteristic vibration signatures that are specific to physical tears or separations in the foil. These vibration patterns differ fundamentally from electrical resistance changes caused by aging, thereby eliminating false positives. The accelerometers detect mechanical oscillations that only occur when the foil structure is physically compromised.
Solution Approach 2:
By replacing electrical resistance-based detection with mechanical vibration detection, the system distinguishes between structural damage (tears and separations) and electrical degradation (aging and resistance changes). The mechanical vibration method is insensitive to electrical properties, thereby eliminating false positives caused by high internal resistance and aging.
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
Enables non-invasive diagnosis of current collector damage with reduced equipment needs and fewer false positives by detecting voltage spikes indicative of tears or separations.
Implementation Method 1
generating a mechanical excitation to the current collector... The mechanical excitation causes a displacement of the foil of the current collector, and wherein the displacement of the foil causes the tear or the separation to close and to open
Implementation Method 2
determining an amplitude of a voltage across the battery cell based on the mechanical excitation... determining a presence of a tear or a separation of a foil of the current collector based on the amplitude of the voltage across the battery cell
Data Source
AI summary
Techniques are provided for current collector diagnosis. In one embodiment, the techniques involve determining that a current is flowing through a current collector of the battery cell, generating a mechanical excitation to the current collector, determining an amplitude of the voltage across the battery cell based on the mechanical excitation, and determining a presence of a tear or a separation of a foil of the current collector based on the amplitude of the voltage across the battery cell.