External Battery Sensing for Early Swelling and Thermal Runaway Warning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vehicle energy storage systems, such as batteries, are prone to physical deterioration and catastrophic failure due to thermal runaway and swelling, which can lead to hazardous gas release and damage, as existing monitoring systems fail to detect early signs of deformation and swelling effectively.
Innovation Solution
External sensing techniques using capacitive and inductive sensors positioned near the energy storage device to monitor physical deformations and changes in capacitance or inductance, providing early warnings and enabling intervention before failure occurs, without relying on self-diagnosis or internal monitoring circuits.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If external sensing techniques are used to monitor physical deformations, then detection reliability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The sensor circuit is designed to perform multiple functions: it monitors both capacitance and inductance changes using the same hardware platform, and can detect various types of deformations (swelling, bulging, distortion) across different locations of the energy storage device. This multi-functionality approach improves detection reliability while controlling complexity by avoiding redundant specialized sensors.
Solution Approach 2:
The monitoring system divides the energy storage device into multiple monitored regions by placing sensor pads at different locations on the exterior surface. Each sensor pad independently monitors its local area for deformations, allowing the system to detect swelling or bulging at specific locations while maintaining overall system reliability through distributed monitoring.
2Measurement precision
If multiple sensor pads are used to monitor different locations, then measurement precision is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
A single sensor circuit performs multiple measurement functions by sequentially or simultaneously measuring capacitance and inductance values from multiple sensor pads. This universal sensor circuit design achieves precise multi-location monitoring without requiring separate dedicated circuits for each sensor, thereby improving measurement precision while controlling complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The sensor circuit combines multiple sensing functions (capacitance sensing, inductance sensing, multi-location monitoring) into a single integrated circuit platform. By merging these functions, the system achieves high measurement precision across multiple locations while avoiding the complexity of having separate independent circuits for each function.
3Loss of time
If external sensors are positioned near the energy storage device, then early detection capability is improved, but safety risks increase
Solution Approach 1:
The sensor pads are positioned on the exterior surface of the energy storage device, which acts as an intermediary barrier between the sensors and the internal cells. This arrangement allows early detection of swelling and deformation through capacitance and inductance changes while maintaining physical separation that reduces the risk of thermal runaway affecting the sensors directly.
Solution Approach 2:
The external sensing system performs preliminary detection of potential failures by monitoring capacitance and inductance changes before thermal runaway or catastrophic failure occurs. By detecting early signs of swelling and deformation, the system provides advance warning that allows intervention before dangerous conditions develop, thus reducing safety risks.
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
This approach provides a highly reliable and accurate detection of unsafe conditions, allowing for timely intervention to prevent catastrophic failures and enhance safety by monitoring for swelling and other dangers to the energy storage system.
Implementation Method 1
External measurements (e.g., capacitive, inductance, temperature) are used to identify potential physical deformations or other signs of physical failure of an ESD
Implementation Method 2
External measurements (e.g., capacitive, inductance, temperature) are used to identify potential physical deformations or other signs of physical failure of an ESD
Implementation Method 3
External measurements (e.g., capacitive, inductance, temperature) are used to identify potential physical deformations or other signs of physical failure of an ESD
Data Source
AI summary
This document describes external sensing for passively monitoring health of vehicle electric energy storage. Techniques for relying on measurements reported from sensors arranged external to an energy storage device (ESD) are described. Overall health of the ESD is inferred without relying on charging circuits or self-diagnosing on the ESD. External measurements (e.g., capacitive, inductance, temperature) are used to identify potential physical deformations or other signs of physical failure of an ESD. These measurements provide early warnings of impending ESD failure. Other ESD monitors may fail to detect these conditions and/or be too slow to prevent damage from thermal runaways or other catastrophic failures when they occur. A described unintrusive ESD health monitoring is described to enhance ESD safety; dangerous surface temperatures, physical swelling, or other unsafe conditions are detected early to intervene and cease operations before it is too late.