External Power Connector for Battery Management System
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current battery management systems (BMS) face difficulties in forming and adjusting power connections due to inconveniently positioned conductors, which often require disassembly and are prone to damage from heat and electromagnetic interference (EMI).
Innovation Solution
A power connector with a connector body having terminals and current shunts configured to attach outside the BMS housing, allowing easy connection or disconnection without disassembling the BMS, along with a fuse and bus bars to reduce inductance and promote efficient heat flow.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If conductors are positioned within the BMS housing, then the power connection is integrated, but the connection becomes difficult to form and adjust requiring disassembly
Solution Approach 1:
The power connector is separated from the BMS housing into an independent component. The connector includes separate terminal portions that can be independently positioned and connected to conductors, allowing the power connection to be made or adjusted without disassembling the BMS housing itself.
Solution Approach 2:
The power connector acts as an intermediary component between the BMS housing and the external power connection. It provides a standardized interface with terminal portions that facilitate easy connection to conductors while remaining externally accessible, eliminating the need to open the housing for power connections.
2Reliability
If the PCBA is positioned near the BMS, then control functionality is integrated, but the PCBA is exposed to excessive heat and EMI causing damage
Solution Approach 1:
The power connector and its terminals are extracted from the internal BMS housing environment and positioned externally. This separation removes the power connection components from the harmful thermal and electromagnetic environment inside the housing, protecting sensitive PCBA components while maintaining integrated control functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The design acknowledges the harmful thermal and EMI environment inside the BMS housing and converts this into a benefit by positioning the power connector externally where it can withstand these conditions, while the sensitive PCBA remains protected inside the housing. The external positioning of terminals transforms the harmful internal environment into a protective barrier.
3Ease of operation
If terminals are positioned on the BMS housing, then direct access is available, but the housing structure becomes complex
Solution Approach 1:
The terminal portions are segmented as separate, independently positionable elements of the power connector rather than being integrated into the housing structure. This allows terminals to be accessible on the housing exterior without requiring complex housing modifications, as the terminals are part of the separate connector component.
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3
Figure 4~5
AI summary
Example aspects of the present disclosure are directed to an improved energy storage system. The energy storage system includes a power connector and a battery management system (BMS). The power connector may include a connector body having a first face and an oppositely-disposed second face. A first terminal and second terminal can be disposed on the first face. The first and second terminals can be configured to electrically couple the battery management system to positive and negative conductors to form a power connection. Moreover, a first current shunt can be disposed on the second face and electrically coupled to the first terminal, while a second current shunt can be disposed on the second face and electrically coupled to the second terminal.