Direct-Cooled Battery Pack Housing for Uniform Cell Temperature
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional battery packs with indirect cooling methods experience high temperature deviations between battery cells, leading to safety issues such as thermal runaway and explosion, especially under rapid charging conditions, and lack efficient cooling efficiency.
Innovation Solution
A battery pack design with a direct cooling structure using a pack housing that includes a bottom plate, outer and partition frames with hollow metal square pipes forming flow paths, allowing cooling fluid to directly contact battery cells through distribution and recovery holes, eliminating the need for a separate heat sink.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If indirect cooling method with heat sink is used, then cooling function is provided, but thermal resistance is high and cooling efficiency is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the heat sink component from the cooling system and replaces it with direct cooling channels formed within the pack housing structure. This extraction eliminates the thermal resistance interface between the heat sink and battery cells, allowing cooling fluid to directly contact the battery cell surfaces for efficient heat removal.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent integrates the cooling function directly into the pack housing structure by forming cooling channels within the housing walls. This merging combines the structural support function of the housing with the thermal management function, eliminating separate heat sink components and reducing overall system complexity while improving thermal contact.
2Temperature
If indirect cooling method with separate heat sink is used, then cooling is provided, but volume ratio and weight ratio are not efficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the pack housing structure with the cooling channels, integrating thermal management functionality into the existing structural components. This eliminates the need for separate heat sink assemblies, reducing both volume and weight while maintaining effective cooling coverage across all battery cells.
Solution Approach 2:
The pack housing serves dual functions: providing structural support and containment while simultaneously acting as the cooling system through integrated channels. This multi-functionality eliminates redundant components and optimizes space utilization, improving energy density by removing dedicated heat sink volume and mass.
3Temperature
If indirect cooling method is used, then cooling is provided, but manufacturing complexity increases due to aluminum plate brazing
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the heat sink component that requires complex aluminum plate brazing processes. Instead, cooling channels are formed directly within the pack housing using simpler manufacturing methods such as injection molding or integrated extrusion, eliminating the need for specialized brazing operations and associated quality control requirements.
4Temperature
If cooling components are increased, then cooling efficiency may improve, but weight and volume increase reducing energy density
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the cooling system with the pack housing structure, using the housing walls themselves as the cooling channels. This integration eliminates the need for separate heat sink components, manifolds, and mounting hardware, significantly reducing weight and volume while maintaining effective cooling through direct fluid-to-cell contact.
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 direct cooling method ensures uniform cooling of battery cells, reduces temperature deviations, enhances safety by minimizing thermal runaway risks, and improves energy density and cooling efficiency while maintaining airtightness.
Implementation Method 1
a cooling fluid for cooling the battery cells is directly applied to the battery cells
Data Source
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AI summary
Provided is a battery pack that does not cause temperature deviations between battery cells depending on the location of the battery cells in the battery pack while directly cooling the battery cells by improving a conventional heat sink cooling method. A battery pack of the present disclosure includes a pack housing including a bottom plate, an outer frame, and a partition frame; and a plurality of battery cell assemblies accommodated in the pack housing, wherein inside the outer frame and the partition frame, a flow path where a cooling fluid is able to flow, and a distribution hole and a recovery hole communicating with the flow path are provided, and thus the cooling fluid is introduced toward the battery cell assembly to directly cool battery cells in the battery cell assembly.