Split Cell Carrier Structure for Immersion-Cooled Cylindrical Cells
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing cell carriers for electrical cells are mechanically complex, expensive, difficult to disassemble without damage, restrict temperature control, and lack burst protection and thermal insulation during thermal runaway.
Innovation Solution
A cell carrier divided into two sub-carriers that can be separated and joined without tools, featuring blind holes with recesses for easy cell insertion and removal, allowing longitudinal temperature control medium flow for efficient cooling and burst protection.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If the cell carrier is designed as a single integrated structure, then mechanical strength and structural stability are improved, but device complexity and manufacturing cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The cell carrier is divided into a first sub-carrier and a second sub-carrier that can be separated and joined together. Each sub-carrier contains blind holes for cell receptacles, allowing the carrier to be manufactured separately and assembled easily while maintaining structural integrity during operation.
2Temperature
If the cell carrier uses complex sealing structures, then temperature control effectiveness is improved, but ease of manufacture deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The sealing function is merged with the blind hole structure itself. The blind holes extend through both sub-carriers and provide both cell containment and sealing against the temperature control medium, eliminating the need for separate complex sealing components.
3Ease of operation
If the cell carrier uses through-holes for cell insertion, then ease of operation is improved, but burst protection and thermal insulation deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The hole structure is segmented into blind holes that do not completely traverse the carrier. The blind holes terminate before forming a continuous through-path, creating natural barriers that provide burst protection and thermal insulation while still allowing cell insertion and removal through the open ends.
4Manufacturing precision
If the cell carrier is designed as a single piece, then manufacturing precision is improved, but ease of repair and cell removal deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The cell carrier transitions from a static single-piece structure to a dynamic multi-component structure. The first and second sub-carriers can be separated to provide access to cells for removal or replacement, then reassembled to restore the precise structural configuration, combining manufacturing precision with operational flexibility.
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 solution provides a simple, cost-effective design that allows easy cell handling, efficient temperature control, and effective burst protection, preventing thermal runaway spread to neighboring cells.
Implementation Method 1
the cell carrier and the cell housing are in direct contact with a temperature control medium. A temperature control medium is a medium for cooling or heating a cell. It therefore serves to transport heat.
Data Source
Figure 1a
Figure 1b
Figure 1c
AI summary
Shown and described is a cell carrier (2) for at least one electrical cell (3). The at least one cell (3) has a cylindrical cell housing (4) with a longitudinal cell axis (5), a cell casing (6), a first cell cap (7), and a second cell cap (8). The first cell cap (7) closes off a first end of the cell casing (6), and a first electrical cell contact (9) is located in the first cell cap (7), and the second cell cap (8) closes off a second end of the cell casing (6), and a second electrical cell contact (10) is located in the second cell cap (8). The cell carrier (2) for the at least one cell (3) has a cell receptacle (11) with a receptacle longitudinal axis (12) for receiving the cell (3). When the cell (3) is arranged in the cell receptacle (11), the receptacle longitudinal axis (12) and the cell longitudinal axis (5) coincide. The invention solves the problem of providing a cell carrier (2) for immersion cooling,which mitigates or overcomes at least one of the disadvantages of mechanical complexity and complex manufacturing. The object is achieved in that the cell carrier (2) is divided into a first sub-carrier (14) and a second sub-carrier (15) in a carrier plane (13) perpendicular to the longitudinal axis (12) of the holder, and the first sub-carrier (14) and the second sub-carrier (15) are components of the cell carrier (2), that the first sub-carrier (14) and the second sub-carrier (15) can be separated and brought together, that the cell holder (11) is formed by a blind hole (16) with a blind hole wall (17) and a blind hole base (18), on the one hand in the first sub-carrier (14) and on the other hand in the second sub-carrier (15), that each of the blind hole bases (18) has a blind hole opening (19) and each of the blind hole walls (17) has at least one blind hole recess (20),that the cell (3) can be pushed into and pulled out of the blind hole (16) of the first sub-carrier (14) and into the blind hole (16) of the second sub-carrier (15) without damage,that when the first sub-carrier (14) and the second sub-carrier (15) are brought together, the blind hole recess (20) in the first sub-carrier (14) and the blind hole recess (20) in the second sub-carrier (15) together form a blind hole channel (21) and the blind hole channel (21) connects the blind hole opening (19) of the first sub-carrier (14) and the blind hole opening (19) of the second sub-carrier (15) to one another and that when the cell (3) is pushed into the blind hole (16) of the first sub-carrier (14) and into the blind hole (16) of the second sub-carrier (15) and when the first sub-carrier (14) and the second sub-carrier (15) are brought together, a temperature control medium can flow through the blind hole opening (19) of the first sub-carrier (14) via the blind hole channel (21) to the blind hole opening (19) of the second sub-carrier (15) and the temperature control medium is in direct contact with the first cell cap (7), the cell jacket (6) and the second cell cap (8).