Removable Circuit Breaker Unit for Battery Pack Safety
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing battery pack safety systems are complex and costly due to the need for multiple sensors and wires, and the existing circuit breakers and fuses are difficult to replace and pose safety risks during the process, especially when dealing with high-energy density battery packs.
Innovation Solution
A safety device with a removable and insertable circuit breaker unit that can be easily mounted and unmounted from a safety device case, allowing for simple electrical connection and disconnection without additional processes, using a sliding rail structure and mechanical coupling for secure attachment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a circuit breaker or fuse is used to interrupt current flow in abnormal states, then safety is improved, but the device volume increases and manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The circuit breaker unit is extracted as a separate, removable module from the main battery pack structure. This allows the safety function to be maintained while reducing the integrated volume requirement and enabling independent replacement without affecting the entire battery pack.
Solution Approach 2:
The circuit breaker unit is designed as a disposable or easily replaceable component. When the circuit breaker trips or fails, the entire unit can be quickly removed and replaced without complex repair procedures, reducing the need for expensive, high-volume permanent breakers.
2Ease of operation
If a fuse is exposed for easy replacement, then ease of operation is improved, but safety deteriorates due to short circuit risk
Solution Approach 1:
The circuit breaker unit serves as an intermediary component that provides a safe interface for current interruption. It includes built-in isolation mechanisms and protective structures that eliminate the short circuit risks associated with exposed fuses, while still allowing easy replacement through the removable unit design.
Solution Approach 2:
The hazardous fuse element is extracted and enclosed within the protected circuit breaker unit housing. This allows the replacement function to be maintained while the dangerous exposed components are eliminated, as the entire unit is replaced as a safe, self-contained package.
3Reliability
If multiple sensors and wires are added for battery management, then reliability is improved, but device complexity increases and manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The circuit breaker unit integrates multiple safety functions including current interruption, overcurrent protection, and isolation capabilities into a single consolidated component. This merging eliminates the need for separate sensors and control wires that would otherwise be required to achieve the same level of battery management and safety.
4Power
If a large-sized breaker is used for high voltage or high electric power, then power handling capability is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates and capacity is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The high-power circuit breaker is segmented into a modular unit that can be handled and replaced as a complete package. This segmentation allows the large breaker to be designed with built-in handles, carrying mechanisms, or other operational aids that make it easy to replace despite its size, while maintaining the required power handling capability.
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed herein is a safety device mounted in a battery pack including one or more battery modules, each of which includes a plurality of unit modules electrically connected to each other, to interrupt a flow of electric current in the battery pack in an abnormal state of the battery pack, the safety device including a safety device case provided with a connection terminal connected to a main cable of the battery pack and a circuit breaker unit mounted into the safety device case from an outside of the battery pack in an insertion fashion such that the circuit breaker unit is electrically connected to the connection terminal in a state in which the circuit breaker unit is mounted in the safety device case and the circuit breaker unit is electrically disconnected from the connection terminal in a state in which the circuit breaker unit is separated from the safety device case.