Staggered Battery Cell Array with Structural Foam Support
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional battery modules for electric vehicles are large, heavy, and costly due to their design, which maximizes the number of battery cells at the outer periphery, leading to increased size and weight, and lack efficient impact resistance and thermal management.
Innovation Solution
A unified battery module design incorporating an integrated structural support system made of structural foam, adhesive, and interconnecting carrier halves, which provides impact resistance, thermal insulation, and dielectric barriers, while reducing size and weight by distributing forces across a larger structure and using dielectric bolt compression sleeves for internal mounting.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If battery cells are arranged with maximum number at outer periphery, then capacity and energy storage are improved, but size and weight increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from a conventional single-dimensional linear arrangement of battery cells to a two-dimensional staggered array configuration. This dimensional change allows cells to be arranged in offset rows and columns, maximizing the number of cells that can fit within a compact footprint while maintaining adequate spacing for thermal management and structural support, thereby increasing capacity without proportionally increasing weight.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies different functional zones within the battery module by positioning terminal edges at specific locations in the staggered array. This creates localized regions for electrical connections while maintaining dense cell packing elsewhere, optimizing both capacity and weight by placing components only where functionally necessary rather than uniformly distributing all components.
2Ease of manufacture
If conventional battery module design is used, then manufacturing simplicity is maintained, but impact resistance and thermal management are insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a hybrid structural support system combining rigid elements (aluminum extrusions, carrier halves) with flexible elements (structural foam). This composite approach provides both impact resistance through energy absorption and thermal management capabilities, while maintaining manufacturability through modular assembly of standardized components.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent incorporates structural foam and cushioning materials within the modular structural support system before final assembly. This pre-installed cushioning provides impact resistance and thermal insulation from the outset, protecting battery cells during manufacturing, shipping, and operation without requiring complex post-assembly modifications.
3Quantity of substance
If more battery cells are packed densely, then capacity increases, but thermal management becomes more difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces thermal interface materials and structural foam as intermediary substances between battery cells and the structural support framework. These intermediaries facilitate heat transfer from densely packed cells to cooling channels and heat sinks, enabling effective thermal management even with high cell density by providing dedicated thermal pathways.
Solution Approach 2:
The modular structural support system serves multiple functions simultaneously: it provides mechanical support, impact protection, thermal management pathways, and electrical isolation. This multi-functionality allows dense cell packing while maintaining reliable thermal dissipation, as the same structural elements that provide strength also facilitate heat transfer.
4Reliability
If structural support system is added for impact resistance, then reliability improves, but weight and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a composite structural support system combining lightweight aluminum extrusions with energy-absorbing structural foam. This combination provides high impact resistance relative to the weight, as the foam absorbs impact energy while the aluminum framework maintains structural integrity, achieving superior strength-to-weight ratio compared to solid metal alternatives.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent incorporates structural foam, a porous material, within the structural support system. This foam provides impact resistance through cell collapse and energy absorption mechanisms while adding minimal weight compared to solid materials, and also provides thermal insulation and electrical isolation benefits.
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 results in a lighter, more cost-effective battery module that absorbs shock and impact effectively, reducing the risk of thermal events and non-passive failures, and allows for denser packing of battery cells with improved thermal management.
Implementation Method 1
an integrated structural support system made of structural foam, adhesive, and interconnecting carrier halves, which provides impact resistance
Implementation Method 2
provides impact resistance, thermal insulation, and dielectric barriers
Implementation Method 3
an integrated structural support system made of structural foam, adhesive, and interconnecting carrier halves
Implementation Method 4
provides impact resistance, thermal insulation, and dielectric barriers
Data Source
AI summary
An energy storage device including a staggered energy storage cell internal array with two-dimensional inline terminal edges is provided. The energy storage cells in a battery module may be staggered in an internal array, such that a first row of cells in a line are spaced apart, or offset, in a first direction from an immediately adjacent second row of cells in a line, and wherein a first cell in the second row of cells is offset from a first cell in the first row of cells in a second direction orthogonal to the first direction. In some cases, at least two adjacent rows in the battery module may include energy storage cells that are offset from one another but aligned in one direction, such as, the second direction. A mechanical frame may define the arrangement of the energy storage cells relative to one another.