Multi-Density Battery Subassembly for Lightweight Structural Support
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current battery technologies for electric vehicles are heavy, leading to reduced driving ranges and increased greenhouse gas emissions, as they require multiple components and adhesives or fasteners for assembly, which add weight and complexity.
Innovation Solution
The use of beads with different densities, made from the same material, that fuse together without adhesives or fasteners, forming a battery subassembly with pillars for structural rigidity and walls for flexibility, reducing weight and parts while maintaining mechanical support and protection against vibration.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If multiple components and adhesives or fasteners are used for battery assembly, then structural integrity and mechanical support are improved, but weight increases and manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple discrete components (walls, pillars, battery cell holders) into a single integrated battery subassembly formed from foam material. This consolidation eliminates the need for separate adhesives and fasteners, reducing weight while maintaining structural integrity through the unified foam structure that provides both support and mechanical fastening functions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs foam material with variable density as a composite structure, using high-density regions for structural pillars and low-density regions for walls and non-structural components. This composite approach allows the single material to fulfill multiple functions (structural support, vibration damping, cell holding) while minimizing overall weight compared to traditional multi-material assemblies.
2Strength
If multiple components and adhesives or fasteners are used for battery assembly, then structural integrity is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple discrete parts (walls, pillars, battery cell holders, vibration damping elements) into a single integrated battery subassembly. This merging reduces the number of parts from dozens to one, simplifying manufacturing and assembly while maintaining all necessary structural functions through the monolithic foam structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The foam material serves multiple functions simultaneously: it provides structural support through high-density pillars, forms protective walls, creates battery cell holders, and offers vibration damping. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for separate components for each function, reducing device complexity while maintaining structural integrity.
3Strength
If high-density material is used throughout the battery subassembly, then structural rigidity is improved, but weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by varying the density of the foam material in different regions of the battery subassembly. High-density foam is used specifically for pillars that require structural rigidity and load-bearing capacity, while low-density foam is used for walls and non-structural areas where full rigidity is not needed. This localized differentiation maintains necessary structural strength while minimizing overall weight.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses a composite foam structure with two distinct density regions (high-density and low-density) within the same material system. This composite approach allows the structure to have varying mechanical properties in different locations, providing rigidity where needed and weight reduction where possible, optimizing the strength-to-weight ratio of the overall assembly.
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 solution reduces the weight of battery packs, increasing electric vehicle driving ranges and mitigating climate change by minimizing greenhouse gas emissions through reduced material usage and improved energy efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
discrete components (e.g., beads) that fuse together based on the same chemistry, which may not require the use of adhesives or fasteners to hold the discrete components together
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus may include a material with different portions having different densities. In one or more implementations, the material includes beads. Despite the different densities, the material is the same for both densities, thus the material may include the same chemistry but with different densities. Based on using a material of the same chemistry, the beads may fuse together. The apparatus may take the form of a potting structure for battery cells. Alternatively, the apparatus may take the form of a battery subassembly for various battery applications.