The present disclosure relates to a battery module, and a battery pack and a vehicle including the same.
Secondary batteries, which have electrical characteristics such as high energy density, are commonly applied not only to product groups such as portable devices but also to electric vehicles (EVs), hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), or the like driven by electric power sources. Since such secondary batteries have not only a primary advantage of dramatically reducing the use of fossil fuels, but also an advantage of generating no by-products from the use of energy, they are attracting attention as a new energy source to improve eco-friendliness and energy efficiency.
Secondary batteries widely used at present include lithium-ion batteries, lithium polymer batteries, nickel cadmium batteries, nickel hydrogen batteries, nickel zinc batteries, and the like. An operating voltage of a unit secondary battery cell is about 2.5 V to 4.5 V. Therefore, if a higher output voltage is required, a plurality of battery cells may be connected in series to produce a battery pack. In addition, depending on the charge/discharge capacity required for the battery pack, a plurality of battery cells may be connected in parallel to produce the battery pack. Thus, the number of battery cells included in the battery pack may be variously set according to the required output voltage or the demanded charge/discharge capacity.
Conventional battery packs include a plurality of battery cells, and there is commonly a liquid heat dissipation resin applied to cool irregular shapes of the plurality of battery cells. However, in such cases, there is a problem in that the liquid resin is difficult to handle and it takes a long time to harden.
In other conventional battery packs, a solid heat dissipation material may be used to cool simple shaped portions. However, the solid heat dissipation material has a problem in that cooling efficiency is lowered because it is difficult to fill the gaps of irregularly shaped cooling portions.
Therefore, in cooling a battery pack, there is a need to seek a heat dissipation pad that cool an irregular shape, has a short working time, and is easy to handle.
The present disclosure is designed to solve the problems of the related art, and therefore the present disclosure is directed to smoothly cooling a battery module including irregular shapes of a plurality of battery cells accommodated inside the battery module.
In another aspect, the present disclosure is directed to shortening the working time for applying a heat dissipation material in the manufacturing step of a battery module.
In still another aspect, the present disclosure is directed to facilitating handling when manufacturing a battery module.
However, technical problems to be solved by the present disclosure are not limited to the above-described problems, and other problems not mentioned herein may be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description of the present disclosure.
A battery module according to an embodiment of the present disclosure for solving the above-described problems includes a plurality of battery cells; a module housing accommodating the plurality of battery cells; and a heat dissipation pad accommodated in the module housing, located on at least one side of the plurality of battery cells, provided with at least one concave portion, and having a form in which a liquid resin is injected into the concave portion.
Preferably, the heat dissipation pad may have an elasticity.
Preferably, the Shore 00 hardness of the heat dissipation pad may be in the range of 50 to 90 HS.
According to one aspect of the present disclosure, the heat dissipation pad may be deformed by pressure due to steps formed on one side of the plurality of battery cells to form a space between the plurality of battery cells and the heat dissipation pad.
Here, the battery module may include a liquid resin layer formed by allowing the liquid resin located in the concave portion to flow out into the space formed between the plurality of battery cells and the heat dissipation pad, wherein the liquid resin has a predetermined thickness.
According to another aspect of the present disclosure, the concave portion may have a perforated hole shape.
According to still another aspect of the present disclosure, the concave portion may have a groove shape extending in a straight line.
According to another aspect of the present disclosure, the heat dissipation pad may include a first pad in direct contact with the plurality of battery cells; and a second pad located on the opposite side of the plurality of battery cells based on the first pad and in contact with the first pad.
Here, the elasticity of the first pad may be greater than that of the second pad.
According to another aspect of the present disclosure, the concave portion may be provided only on the first pad.
According to still another aspect of the present disclosure, the liquid resin may be a curable liquid resin that hardens over time.
According to another aspect of the present disclosure, the battery module may further include a heat sink included inside the module housing and dissipating heat generated in the battery cell to the outside.
Preferably, the heat dissipation pad may be interposed between the plurality of battery cells and the heat sink.
Meanwhile, the present disclosure provides a battery pack including at least one battery cell according to the above-described embodiment as a battery pack.
In addition, the present disclosure provides a vehicle including at least one battery pack according to the above-described embodiment as a vehicle.
According to the present disclosure, in cooling a battery module, the battery module may be smoothly cooled despite irregular shapes of a plurality of battery cells accommodated inside the battery module.
In another aspect, according to the present disclosure, the working time for applying a heat dissipation material in the manufacturing step of a battery module may be shortened.
In still another aspect, according to the present disclosure, handling may be facilitated when manufacturing a battery module.
However, advantageous effects to be obtained by the present disclosure are not limited to the above-described effects, and other effects not mentioned herein may be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description of the present disclosure.
The accompanying drawings illustrate preferred embodiments of the present disclosure and, together with the accompanying disclosure, serve to provide further understanding of the technical features of the present disclosure. Thus, the present disclosure is not to be construed as being limited to the drawings.
Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Prior to the description, it should be understood that the terms used in the specification and the appended claims should not be construed as limited to general and dictionary meanings, but rather should be interpreted based on the meanings and concepts corresponding to technical aspects of the present disclosure, on the basis of the principle that the inventor is allowed to define terms appropriately for the best explanation.
Therefore, the description proposed herein is just a preferable example for the purpose of illustration only, not intended to limit the scope of the disclosure. Therefore, it should be understood that other equivalents and modifications could be made thereto without departing from the scope of the disclosure.
Also, in order to help understand the present disclosure, the accompanying drawings are not illustrated to scale, but instead the dimensions of some components may be exaggerated.
Referring to
The battery cell 100, which is a secondary battery, may be provided as a pouch-type secondary battery, a prismatic secondary battery, or a cylindrical secondary battery. Hereinafter, in this embodiment, it will be the plurality of battery cells 100 will be described and illustrated as pouch-type secondary batteries. However, the present disclosure is not limited to the above embodiment only, and it is anticipated that a cylindrical secondary battery or a prismatic secondary battery may equally be applied to the present disclosure. Meanwhile, as shown in
The module housing 200 may accommodate a plurality of battery cells 100. The module housing 200 may accommodate the heat dissipation pad 300.
The heat dissipation pad 300 may be accommodated in the module housing 200 and positioned on at least one side of the plurality of battery cells 100. Referring to
The heat dissipation pad 300 may be in a solid form. Therefore, since the overall shape of the heat dissipation pad 300 is maintained, heat conduction between heat sinks 500 (to be described later) may be minimized.
The heat dissipation pad 300 may transfer heat generated in the battery cell 100 to the outside. For example, the heat dissipation pad 300 may include a thermal interface material (TIM). The thermal interface material may be, for example, at least one of a heat dissipation grease, a thermally conductive adhesive, and a phase change material. The heat dissipation pad 300 may increase a contact area with the module housing 200 or a heat sink 500 to be described later. Accordingly, thermal conductivity may be improved.
Meanwhile, the liquid resin R may be a thermally conductive liquid resin R. That is, the liquid resin R may transfer heat generated in the battery cell 100 to the outside. The liquid resin R may be interposed between the battery cell 100 and the module housing 200 to fix the battery cell 100 in place.
According to such a structure, since the liquid resin R is injected only in a partial region of the heat dissipation pad 300, the curing time of the liquid resin R may be shortened. For example, if the amount of the liquid resin R is large, it takes a long time to harden, and thus work efficiency may be degraded. However, according to the present disclosure, since the liquid resin R is injected only into at least one concave portion C provided in the heat dissipation pad 300, the amount of the liquid resin R applied in the present disclosure may be maintained relatively small. As a result, the time required for curing is significantly reduced, and thus work efficiency may be improved. Furthermore, handling during the manufacturing operation of the battery module 10 may be facilitated.
Furthermore, according to the above structure, the entire surface of the battery cell 100 may be covered by the liquid resin R in a liquid form. Therefore, a contact area between the battery cell 100 and the liquid resin R or between the battery cell 100 and the heat dissipation pad 300 may be maximized. Accordingly, cooling efficiency may also be maximized. That is, according to the present disclosure, in cooling the battery module 10, it is possible to smoothly cool the battery module 10 despite the irregular shapes of the plurality of battery cells 100 accommodated inside the battery module 10.
Referring to
According to the configuration in which the heat dissipation pad 300 has an elasticity force within the hardness range as described above, even if there are irregularities or steps in components of a portion in contact with the heat dissipation pad 300, the heat dissipation pad 300 may be deformed into a shape corresponding to the irregularities or steps. That is, in the present disclosure, the heat dissipation pad 300 may be deformed into a shape corresponding to the stepped shape of the battery cell 100 stack in contact with the heat dissipation pad 300. Accordingly, a contact area between the battery cell 100 and the heat dissipation pad 300 may be maximized. Cooling efficiency may also be maximized. That is, according to the present disclosure, in cooling the battery module 10, the battery module 10 may be smoothly cooled despite the irregular shapes of the plurality of battery cells 100 accommodated inside the battery module 10.
Referring to
Referring to
For example, a plurality of pouch-type battery cells 100 like that shown in
Referring to
In another aspect of the present disclosure, since the liquid resin layer 400 is injected into the concave portion C of the heat dissipation pad 300, its volume may be relatively smaller than that of the heat dissipation pad 300. Therefore, since the amount of the liquid resin R is small, the curing time of the liquid resin layer 400 may be shortened. As a result, the time required for curing is significantly reduced, and thus work efficiency may be improved. Furthermore, handling during the manufacturing operation of the battery module 10 may be facilitated.
Referring to
As shown in
In an embodiment in which the concave portion C does not entirely penetrate the heat dissipation pad 300, as shown in
In another embodiment, in which the shape of the concave portion C penetrates the heat dissipation pad 300, as shown in
Referring to
In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the concave portion C may be provided only on the first pad 310. For example, referring to
In another aspect of the present disclosure, the elasticity of the first pad 310 may be greater than that of the second pad 320. That is, the hardness of the first pad 310 may be lower than that of the second pad 320. In such an embodiment, since the first pad 310 in direct contact with the battery cell 100 has a greater elasticity and a lower hardness, the first pad 310 may be easily deformed corresponding to the step of the battery cell 100 stack. At the same time, since the second pad 320 has a smaller elasticity and a higher hardness, the second pad 320 may firmly support the battery cell 100.
In another embodiment of the present disclosure, the first pad 310 and the second pad 320 may be made of the same material. Therefore, in such case, the first pad 310 and the second pad 320 may have the same elasticity and/or hardness.
Referring to
Referring to
In one aspect of the present disclosure, the liquid resin R may be a curable liquid resin R that hardens over time. For example, referring to
Since the curable liquid resin R is in a liquid state before curing, it may harden in a state in which the contact area between the battery cell 100 and the liquid resin R is maximized. Since the liquid resin R has a heat dissipation function, cooling efficiency may be maximized according to such a structure. That is, according to the present disclosure, in cooling the battery module 10, the battery module 10 may be efficiently cooled despite the irregular shapes of the plurality of battery cells 100 accommodated inside the battery module 10.
The liquid resin R may include, for example, a urethane-based and/or silicon-based material. When including such a material, the liquid resin R may efficiently transfer heat generated from the battery cell 100 to the outside. At the same time, the liquid resin R may effectively fix the battery cell 100 in place in the module housing 200.
In another aspect of the present disclosure, the liquid resin R may be provided not only in the concave portion C of the heat dissipation pad 300, but also in another region inside the module housing 200. For example, the liquid resin R may fill an empty space in the module housing 200. In such an embodiment, the position of the battery cell 100 in the module housing 200 is fixed more definitely, so that the stability of the battery module 10 may be improved.
In another aspect of the present disclosure, the heat dissipation pad 300 into which the liquid resin R is injected may be provided not only on the bottom of the battery cell 100 but also on the top and/or side. For example, when the heat dissipation pad 300 is provided on the top of the battery cell 100, the plurality of battery cells 100 may first be fixed on top of the heat dissipation pad 300 to harden the liquid resin R, and then the fixed battery cell 100 and the heat dissipation pad 300 may be turned upside down so that the heat dissipation pad 300 may be finally positioned on the top of the battery cell 100. The reason for this is that, if the heat dissipation pad 300 were directly mounted on the top of the battery cell 100, the liquid resin R may flow down toward the battery cell 100 by gravity before the liquid resin R hardens.
Referring to
For example, the module housing 200 may include a lower frame 210 disposed under the plurality of battery cells; a side frame 230 disposed on a side of the plurality of battery cells; and an upper frame 250 covering upper portions of the plurality of battery cells. Here, the heat sink 500 may be provided on the lower frame 210 of the module housing 200.
For example, referring to
Referring to
Referring to
According to various embodiments as described above, in cooling the battery module 10, the battery module 10 may be smoothly and efficiently cooled despite the irregular shapes of the plurality of battery cells 100 accommodated inside the battery module 10. In addition, since the amount of the liquid resin R applied according to the present disclosure may be maintained relatively small, the time required for curing may be significantly shortened, and thus work efficiency may be improved. Furthermore, handling during the manufacturing operation of the battery module 10 may be facilitated.
Therefore, according to the various embodiments as described above, there may be provided a battery module 10 having improved cooling and fixation performance, as well as a battery pack 1 and a vehicle V including the same.
Terms indicating directions as used herein, such as up and down, are used for convenience of description only, and it would be understood to those skilled in the art that the term may change depending on the position of the stated element or an observer.
While the present disclosure has been hereinabove described with regard to a limited number of embodiments and drawings, the present disclosure is not limited thereto, and it is to be understood to those skilled in the art that a variety of modifications and changes may be made thereto within the technical aspects of the present disclosure and the equivalent scope of the appended claims.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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10-2021-0187838 | Dec 2021 | KR | national |
The present application is a national phase entry under 35 U.S.C. § 371 of International Application No. PCT/KR2022/021003 filed on Dec. 21, 2022, which claims priority to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2021-0187838 filed on Dec. 24, 2021, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/KR2022/021003 | 12/21/2022 | WO |