Bus Bar Carrier Guide Extensions for Battery Terminal Alignment

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Solution Overview

Problem

Traditional battery modules face challenges in accurately aligning and coupling electrochemical cells with bus bars due to manufacturing inconsistencies, leading to inefficiencies in assembly and alignment of terminals.

Innovation Solution

A bus bar carrier with guide extensions is used to physically contact the outer electrochemical cells, guiding the terminals of the cells to align with corresponding bus bars, ensuring proper electrical coupling and alignment.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Manufacturing precision

If traditional battery modules are assembled without guide extensions, then the assembly process is simpler, but the alignment precision of terminals with bus bars deteriorates due to manufacturing inconsistencies

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvealignment precision of terminals with bus barsVSAvoidstructural complexity of bus bar carrier

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

Guide extensions act as intermediary elements between the bus bar carrier and electrochemical cells, providing a mechanical interface that ensures precise alignment and coupling of terminals with bus bars while accommodating manufacturing tolerances

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Measurement precision

If guide extensions are added to the bus bar carrier, then the alignment accuracy of terminals improves, but the manufacturing complexity of the bus bar carrier increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvealignment accuracy of terminalsVSAvoidease of manufacturing bus bar carrier

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSEase of manufacture

Solution Approach 1:

Guide extensions are pre-formed as integral parts of the bus bar carrier structure, establishing predetermined alignment paths that guide electrochemical cells into correct positions during assembly, thereby ensuring terminal alignment accuracy without requiring complex post-assembly adjustments

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Data Source

PatentEP3243234B1Battery module bus bar carrier having guide extensions system and method

Publication Date: 2026.03.04 CPS TECHNOLOGY HOLDINGS LLC

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AI summary

The present disclosure includes a battery module having a stack of electrochemical cells that includes terminals, a housing that receives the stack of electrochemical cells, and a bus bar carrier disposed over the stack of electrochemical cells such that bus bars disposed on the bus bar carrier interface with the terminals of the stack of electrochemical cells. The bus bar carrier includes opposing first and second guide extensions, the stack of electrochemical cells is disposed between the opposing first and second guide extensions, and the opposing first and second guide extensions physically contact a first outer electrochemical cell and a second outer electrochemical cell, respectively, of the stack of electrochemical cells to guide the terminals of the stack of electrochemical cells toward corresponding ones of the bus bars disposed on the bus bar carrier.