Pressure-Controlled EV Charging Cable for Cooling and Flexibility
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Solution Overview
Problem
High charging currents in electric vehicle charging cables generate excessive heat, leading to heavy and inflexible cables that are difficult to handle and maneuver, despite the use of liquid cooling systems which require additional subsystems for coolant management.
Innovation Solution
An electric charging cable with a flexible sheathing and integrated coolant channels, where the coolant pressure is individually controllable to adjust the cable's mechanical behavior, allowing for thinner, lighter, and more flexible designs, and incorporating sensors for adaptive responses to user interactions and environmental conditions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If high charging currents are used for fast charging, then charging speed is improved, but heat generation increases and cable weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces coolant channels with pressurized coolant flow through the cable structure. The hydraulic system cools the cable internally, allowing high charging currents to be sustained without excessive heat buildup, thereby enabling fast charging with lighter gauge wires that would otherwise be unsafe at high temperatures.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the thermal parameters of the cable by introducing active cooling through coolant channels. This parameter change (temperature control) allows the cable to handle higher currents without the weight penalty of oversized conductors, as the cooling system prevents thermal runaway that would normally require heavier, more robust wiring.
2Ease of operation
If cable cooling is implemented to dissipate heat, then charging cable flexibility is improved, but device complexity increases due to additional coolant management subsystems
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the cooling function directly into the cable structure by integrating coolant channels within the cable itself. This combination eliminates the need for separate external coolant management subsystems, as the cable becomes its own cooling system, reducing overall device complexity while maintaining flexibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The cable structure serves multiple functions simultaneously: it conducts electricity, provides structural support, and acts as a self-contained cooling system through integrated coolant channels. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate dedicated cooling subsystems, thereby reducing device complexity.
3Power
If thicker gauge wires are used to handle high charging currents, then current carrying capacity is improved, but cable flexibility and ease of handling deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The pressurized coolant flow through integrated channels removes heat from the cable during high-power charging operations. This active thermal management allows the use of thinner, more flexible wires that can handle high currents only when cooled, thereby maintaining current carrying capacity while dramatically improving cable flexibility and ease of handling.
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 solution enhances the ease of use and flexibility of the charging cable, reduces the gauge of electrical wires, and improves handling by controlling the cable's shape and stiffness through pressure management, while also providing adaptive responses to user interactions and environmental conditions.
Implementation Method 1
cooling the charging cable is advantageous to dissipate the heat... To cool the charging cable, it is known to use a pressurized coolant
Implementation Method 2
a pressure of a coolant inside the at least one coolant channel is individually controllable to set a mechanical behavior of the charging cable
Data Source
Figure 1~3
Figure 4~5
AI summary
An electric charging cable (1) comprises a flexible sheathing (4) and inside the sheathing (4) several flexible electric wires (5) running along the sheathing (4) and at least one flexible coolant channel (6A-6D) running along the sheathing (4), the electric wires (5) and the at least one coolant channel (6A-6D) ending in a charging connector (2), wherein a pressure (PA-PD) of a coolant (L) inside the at least one coolant channel (6A-6D) is individually controllable to set a mechanical behavior of the charging cable (1). A charging station (S) for electric vehicles (EV) comprises an electric charging cable (1) and further comprising at least one coolant pressure device (8) connected to at least one coolant channel (6A-6D) of the electric charging cable (1), the coolant pressure device (8) being adapted to set a pressure (PA-PD) of a coolant (L) inside the at least one coolant channel connected to it.