Battery Pack Fixing Bar and Side Cover Venting for Coolant Retention
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing battery packs face issues with stress concentration on the tray's bottom surface acting as a coolant channel, leading to potential coolant loss and increased risk of secondary explosions or thermal runaway propagation among adjacent modules.
Innovation Solution
A battery pack design featuring a tray with gas exhaust portions at both widthwise sides and a center, along with side covers that accommodate cooling pipes and include gas exhaust structures to prevent stress concentration and facilitate safe discharge of high-temperature gases, while protecting the cooling system from impacts.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If battery modules are directly fixed to the tray bottom surface, then fixing strength is improved, but stress concentration occurs on the coolant channel causing potential coolant loss
Solution Approach 1:
A fixing plate is introduced as an intermediary component between the battery modules and the tray bottom surface. The fixing plate distributes the fixing stress over a larger area and avoids direct contact with the coolant channel, thereby maintaining both fixing strength and coolant channel integrity. The fixing plate acts as a mediator that transfers the fixing force without concentrating it on the vulnerable coolant channel area.
2Reliability
If gas exhaust portions are added to the tray and side covers, then thermal runaway propagation is prevented, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The gas exhaust portions are integrated into the existing tray and side cover structures rather than being added as separate components. The side covers serve dual purposes: protecting the battery modules and providing gas exhaust pathways. The tray structure is modified to include gas exhaust portions that utilize the existing side covers, thereby preventing thermal runaway propagation without significantly increasing device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The side covers are designed to perform multiple functions: mechanical protection of battery modules, structural support, and gas exhaust pathways. By making the side covers multi-functional, the patent avoids adding separate exhaust components, thus preventing thermal runaway propagation while minimizing increases in device complexity.
3Reliability
If cooling pipes are protected from impacts, then coolant loss is prevented, but ease of manufacture decreases
Solution Approach 1:
A protective layer or covering is applied to the cooling pipes to shield them from external impacts. This protective layer acts as a flexible shell that absorbs impact forces while allowing the cooling pipes to maintain their original configuration, thereby preventing coolant loss without significantly complicating the manufacturing process.
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 design effectively prevents coolant loss and thermal runaway propagation, enhances safety by discharging high-temperature gases without raising adjacent module temperatures, and increases mechanical rigidity to protect against external impacts.
Implementation Method 1
the pair of side covers includes a gas exhaust portion and the gas exhaust portion has a shape extending in the front and rear direction
Implementation Method 2
a module fixing bar positioned at a widthwise center of the tray and shaped to extend across an upper surface of the tray along a longitudinal direction of the tray, the module fixing bar having a second fastening hole formed at a location corresponding to the coupling hole formed in the fixing portion
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3~4
AI summary
Disclosed is a battery pack, which includes a plurality of battery modules respectively having a pair of fixing portions provided at both longitudinal sides thereof; a tray on which the plurality of battery modules are placed; a pair of side covers configured to cover both widthwise sides of the tray and having a first fastening hole formed at a location corresponding to a coupling hole formed in the fixing portion; and a module fixing bar positioned at a widthwise center of the tray and shaped to extend across an upper surface of the tray along a longitudinal direction of the tray, the module fixing bar having a second fastening hole formed at a location corresponding to the coupling hole formed in the fixing portion.