CA3224777A1 - A swappable battery and a battery swapping system for ev's and other applications - Google Patents
A swappable battery and a battery swapping system for ev's and other applicationsInfo
- Publication number
- CA3224777A1 CA3224777A1 CA3224777A CA3224777A CA3224777A1 CA 3224777 A1 CA3224777 A1 CA 3224777A1 CA 3224777 A CA3224777 A CA 3224777A CA 3224777 A CA3224777 A CA 3224777A CA 3224777 A1 CA3224777 A1 CA 3224777A1
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- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- battery
- compartment housing
- batteries
- recited
- battery compartment
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Pending
Links
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- 238000004146 energy storage Methods 0.000 claims abstract description 7
- 210000004027 cell Anatomy 0.000 claims description 69
- 239000000463 material Substances 0.000 claims description 15
- 238000012546 transfer Methods 0.000 claims description 12
- 238000006243 chemical reaction Methods 0.000 claims description 11
- 238000004891 communication Methods 0.000 claims description 11
- 239000004020 conductor Substances 0.000 claims description 11
- 238000001816 cooling Methods 0.000 claims description 11
- 238000005273 aeration Methods 0.000 claims description 7
- 239000007799 cork Substances 0.000 claims description 7
- 229910000831 Steel Inorganic materials 0.000 claims description 6
- 230000035939 shock Effects 0.000 claims description 6
- 239000010959 steel Substances 0.000 claims description 6
- 239000007788 liquid Substances 0.000 claims description 4
- 229910000838 Al alloy Inorganic materials 0.000 claims description 3
- 239000003063 flame retardant Substances 0.000 claims description 3
- 230000014759 maintenance of location Effects 0.000 claims description 3
- 230000002745 absorbent Effects 0.000 claims description 2
- 239000002250 absorbent Substances 0.000 claims description 2
- 238000007599 discharging Methods 0.000 claims description 2
- 230000013011 mating Effects 0.000 claims description 2
- 210000000352 storage cell Anatomy 0.000 claims description 2
- 230000002457 bidirectional effect Effects 0.000 claims 2
- RNFJDJUURJAICM-UHFFFAOYSA-N 2,2,4,4,6,6-hexaphenoxy-1,3,5-triaza-2$l^{5},4$l^{5},6$l^{5}-triphosphacyclohexa-1,3,5-triene Chemical compound N=1P(OC=2C=CC=CC=2)(OC=2C=CC=CC=2)=NP(OC=2C=CC=CC=2)(OC=2C=CC=CC=2)=NP=1(OC=1C=CC=CC=1)OC1=CC=CC=C1 RNFJDJUURJAICM-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 claims 1
- 230000017525 heat dissipation Effects 0.000 claims 1
- 238000013461 design Methods 0.000 abstract description 9
- 238000004519 manufacturing process Methods 0.000 description 9
- 229910001416 lithium ion Inorganic materials 0.000 description 5
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- 238000005516 engineering process Methods 0.000 description 3
- 238000012423 maintenance Methods 0.000 description 3
- 230000009970 fire resistant effect Effects 0.000 description 2
- 229910001317 nickel manganese cobalt oxide (NMC) Inorganic materials 0.000 description 2
- 238000000926 separation method Methods 0.000 description 2
- 239000000126 substance Substances 0.000 description 2
- 241000287437 Catharus Species 0.000 description 1
- RYGMFSIKBFXOCR-UHFFFAOYSA-N Copper Chemical compound [Cu] RYGMFSIKBFXOCR-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 241000234435 Lilium Species 0.000 description 1
- YQOXCVSNNFQMLM-UHFFFAOYSA-N [Mn].[Ni]=O.[Co] Chemical compound [Mn].[Ni]=O.[Co] YQOXCVSNNFQMLM-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 238000010521 absorption reaction Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000007792 addition Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000004075 alteration Effects 0.000 description 1
- XAGFODPZIPBFFR-UHFFFAOYSA-N aluminium Chemical compound [Al] XAGFODPZIPBFFR-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 229910052782 aluminium Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- ACKHWUITNXEGEP-UHFFFAOYSA-N aluminum cobalt(2+) nickel(2+) oxygen(2-) Chemical compound [O-2].[Al+3].[Co+2].[Ni+2] ACKHWUITNXEGEP-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 230000005540 biological transmission Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000003990 capacitor Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000015556 catabolic process Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000002485 combustion reaction Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000010276 construction Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000010949 copper Substances 0.000 description 1
- 229910052802 copper Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 238000005520 cutting process Methods 0.000 description 1
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- 239000000446 fuel Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000005338 heat storage Methods 0.000 description 1
- GELKBWJHTRAYNV-UHFFFAOYSA-K lithium iron phosphate Chemical compound [Li+].[Fe+2].[O-]P([O-])([O-])=O GELKBWJHTRAYNV-UHFFFAOYSA-K 0.000 description 1
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Classifications
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01M—PROCESSES OR MEANS, e.g. BATTERIES, FOR THE DIRECT CONVERSION OF CHEMICAL ENERGY INTO ELECTRICAL ENERGY
- H01M50/00—Constructional details or processes of manufacture of the non-active parts of electrochemical cells other than fuel cells, e.g. hybrid cells
- H01M50/20—Mountings; Secondary casings or frames; Racks, modules or packs; Suspension devices; Shock absorbers; Transport or carrying devices; Holders
- H01M50/204—Racks, modules or packs for multiple batteries or multiple cells
- H01M50/207—Racks, modules or packs for multiple batteries or multiple cells characterised by their shape
- H01M50/213—Racks, modules or packs for multiple batteries or multiple cells characterised by their shape adapted for cells having curved cross-section, e.g. round or elliptic
Landscapes
- Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
- Chemical Kinetics & Catalysis (AREA)
- Electrochemistry (AREA)
- General Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
- Battery Mounting, Suspending (AREA)
- Charge And Discharge Circuits For Batteries Or The Like (AREA)
Abstract
A portable and convenient swappable battery and a battery swapping system are disclosed. The proposed battery (called UNiBat) is relatively robust and simple in design, with many features and capabilities, and it is practical and flexible for use in many applications, thus having the Potential to be standardised and adopted in large scale in electrical vehicles, energy storage and other sectors.
The proposed battery swapping system works such that basically only a relatively simple mechanism embedded in the battery compartment housing of a vehicle or of any application is used to swap the batteries. Although typically for commonly used vehicles, another simple external mechanism at a swapping station is added, making the swapping process fully automatic.
The proposed battery swapping system works such that basically only a relatively simple mechanism embedded in the battery compartment housing of a vehicle or of any application is used to swap the batteries. Although typically for commonly used vehicles, another simple external mechanism at a swapping station is added, making the swapping process fully automatic.
Description
A SWAPPABLE BATTERY AND A BATTERY SWAPPING SYSTEM FOR EV's AND OTHER APPLICATIONS
Field of the Invention:
This proposed invention relates to energy storage batteries used to power electrical vehicles and other applications. More particularly, it relates to swappable batteries.
Background of the Invention:
The classical design of EV's with fixed battery packs comes with many disadvantages. One of them is the non-standardised battery pack across all EV's leading to higher car production cost and higher maintenance cost in repairing or replacing the battery pack. Also, for recharging those vehicles, a big number of charging stations is needed, and building these infrastructure needs a lot of resources and comes at a high cost. And no mater how big the charging station is (the number of charging points), its charging capacity is limited by the maximum electrical power it can withdraw from the local electrical grid. Even with increasing charging capacity by adding energy storage to the charging station, it is still limited by the available electrical power from the grid at that location, and yet by increasing its cost (the energy storage units are expansive).
And given the relatively long time it takes to fully charge an EV even with a super charger, recharging an EV is somehow inconvenient especially when in high demand (too many vehicles at the same station), for long distance drivers and for taxi and delivery fleet, etc.
Another drawback of the superchargers especially when using them often is the reducing of lifespan of the Li-ion batteries of the EV's.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 It is also known that the classical EV's equipped with fixed battery packs are much more expensive compared to conventional internal combustion engines vehicles due primarily to the cost of the fixed battery pack, and even if their routine maintenance cost is less expensive, the battery capacity is degrading overtime and the cost of replacing the battery pack after warranty is very high for the owner.
A proposed technology for mitigating the drawbacks of the fixed battery packs consist of the swappable battery systems. There were some solutions for swappable battery systems that are developed in the recent years but none of them was adopted broadly by the EV's manufacturing companies like Tesla or widely used in mobile or stationary applications. Among the reasons are the degree of complexity of such proposed systems, the economical feasibility, the convenience, the safety, and the non standardisation of both the swappable batteries and the swapping systems. Among the examples of those systems, the ones developed by companies like Ample and Aulton.
This emphasis the need to find a better solution for a battery swapping system and a swappable battery that mitigate those issues.
Summary of the Invention:
The proposed battery swapping system with its proposed portable universal use battery (UNiBat) will redesign the charging of EV's by bringing more charging capacity and flexibility for the charging stations and by speeding up the EV's recharging process and giving more convenience and flexibility for the end user.
The proposed battery (UNiBat) is designed such a way to facilitate its loading, unloading, transportation and handling during the replacement and recharging procedures. As well it offers many operational and safety features thanks to its Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 power converter and its battery management system (BMS) leading to more convenience and safety when used or recharged.
The proposed battery swapping system could be entirely embedded on the EV or any application in general since it has a simple design, and its swapping operation could work with minimal or without any external mechanism at the swapping station or even anywhere.
For the EV owner, the proposed battery and battery swapping system will remove the burden of replacing a degraded battery pack or repairing a malfunctioning one, in fact with swappable batteries, there is no battery degradation or functionality issues, thus less maintenance of the EV is needed.
At the swapping stations, the proposed battery and battery swapping system will bring recharging flexibility in a way that the batteries could be recharged locally, otherwise if there is not enough power from the local grid they will be brought to be recharged in another location and the recharged batteries will be brought back to be reloaded into the station, and this could be done by special trucks like conventional fuel. Furthermore, it is not even necessarily for the batteries to be recharged at all locally at the swapping station thus removing the load demand on the local electrical grid and reducing the charging cost since there is less needed distributed electrical infrastructure.
Economically, the proposed battery and the battery swapping system can be standardised, and mass produced given their simple design and easy assembly, leading to reduce their cost considerably for the end user.
In the other hand, EV manufacturing will be redesigned as well, so the new cars will be made without integrated battery packs. This will speed up car production Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 and will help the creation of new EV manufacturing companies and all of this will lead to cheaper EV's in the market.
Also, with the proposed battery swapping system, the electrical vehicles will be featured with modulable autonomy, given that the battery system can work with only a few loaded batteries or possibly even one battery, this will bring flexibility of using only a needed number of batteries and a possibility of adding more batteries in the future as needed, this will reduce even further the front cost of EV
ownership for some users.
Also, there is even more flexibility with many options of using the batteries as needed, for the end user, with the possibility of buying, renting, or paying per use.. .etc.
To make the proposed solution more convenient for the EV user, the EV with the proposed battery system could always be recharged at home in a conventional way by plugging with level 1 or level 2 charger.
Regarding the stationary applications, the proposed universal battery and the battery swapping system will bring considerable benefits over the classical fueling or recharging methods especially for energy demanding applications as machinery in remote construction sites for example. There is also a possibility for this battery given its convenience and safety to be used for energy storage for any application with its power converter output that could be configured to deliver DC or AC
current depending on the need.
- In one aspect of the invention, a convenient, portable, and universal swappable battery for storing and delivering electrical energy is proposed. The battery comprises an elongated body with two ends and at least one head attached to one Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 end. The body and heads of the battery can be in any shape, but preferably cylindrical for making it more convenient to handle and to swap.
Each head is made in overall of electrically insulating and mechanically resistant material and is provided with a passageway that is used for electrical mating with a plug member for at least one head, allowing the battery to deliver its power.
Depending on the applications, the passageways with the plug members are used also for holding the battery firmly and secure in place.
The battery body comprises several modules stacked together along the body longitudinal axis and are electrically connected in parallel via electrical buses or via any electrical conductors that run in the center of the battery along its longitudinal axis. Each module is a grouping of Li-ion cells or any electrical energy storage cells connected in parallel together and to the electrical buses or electrical conductors. The holding body of each module is made preferably of cork, a material that is highly fire resistant, fire retardant, shock tolerant, vibration absorbent; and liquid/gas proof and yet verry light weighted.
- In another aspect of the invention, the body of the proposed battery is provided with a heat sink envelope that is made of high temperature coefficient transfer material for heat exchange from the battery to cool it down when in operation.
The material is preferably aluminium alloy, and the outer surface of the envelope is preferably slotted all around longitudinally along the length of the body to facilitate such heat transfer. In this case, the heads are preferably provided with aeration openings to facilitate cooling air circulating along the body envelope of the battery.
- In another aspect of the invention, the heat sink envelope is reinforced with steel rods going along its length to enhance its strength, the said steel rods extremities Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 could be threaded and used to fasten the said heads to the said envelope by using appropriate hardware.
- In another aspect of the invention, each one of the said battery modules is provided with a heat dissipater plate that is wrapped around some or all the cells and including the module holding body to allow for the heat transfer from the cells to the heat sink envelope. Preferably, two types of cells are put in the modules; low heat reaction cells in the middle of the module and high heat reaction cells at the periphery of the module and wrapped in the heat exchanger plate including the module holding body.
- In another aspect of the invention, the battery is equipped with a battery management system to protect the battery from electrical and thermal damage, and for safety against electrical shock and arc flash to protect the public against risks related to misusage of the battery.
- In another aspect of the invention, the proposed battery is provided with at least one DC-DC power converter unit; the power converter has an input fed from the main electrical conductors or bus bars and an output that is electrically connected to one head of the battery; The power converter play a double role of a booster or a buck converter allowing the battery to deliver power for use and to receive power in order to be recharged.
- In another aspect of the invention, each one of the battery modules is provided with at least one (+) connector allowing electrical contact between each one of the cells and at least one bus bar, and one main (-) connector allowing electrical contact between the cells and one of the bus bars.
- In another aspect of the invention, the battery management system combined with the power converter implement smart capabilities in reducing the heat Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 generated by the cells and protecting the cells and improving their lifespan during discharging and recharging processes of the battery. This is achieved by managing, in real time, the optimum amounts of current injected into or withdrawn from each cell group; (outer) high heat reaction cells and (inner) low heat reaction cells, without compromising the needed output power from the battery at that time.
-In another aspect of the invention, the battery management system BMS of the battery is provided with a mean of wireless communication to receive and transmit data between the battery and a vehicle control system or any system where the battery is used.
Therefore, this will make the proposed battery a robust, light weight, very convenient, reliable, safe to use, and multi-purpose battery that will resist eventual mechanical shocks, stresses and vibrations and will contain any internal fire caused by temperature runaways of the cells or any discharge of the cells.
And depending on the chemistry of the cells, the battery will get rid of its excess heat simply through its heat sink envelope, passively or with the help of a circulating air.
Furthermore, the battery simple design will result in the streamline of its manufacturing process, lowering its manufacturing cost and making its operation unlikely to have technical issues resulting in lowering the service costs associated with its use as well. Thus, this will a potential for this battery to be standardised and widely used resulting in its mass production and further lowering its cost.
- In another aspect of the invention, a battery compartment housing located on an electrical vehicle (preferably underside) or on any other moving or stationary application, and that could be loaded with one battery or several batteries.
This battery compartment housing with its simplest design, comprising a battery Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 jamming mechanism, a spring repulsion mechanism, and a container. For a battery to be loaded into the battery compartment housing, it will be pushed in by an external mechanism typically located in a swapping station. The battery will then be jammed in the housing by the jamming mechanism and hold in place by the help of spring repulsion mechanism, if there is more than one battery to be loaded, the next battery will be loaded the same way and then it will push the first battery further inside, and with the two mentioned mechanisms, both batteries will be jammed and hold in place inside the housing. And so on if there are other batteries to be loaded into the battery compartment housing.
The unloading of each battery starts with the jamming mechanism being disengaged first via a servomotor, then the spring repulsion mechanism will push out the battery from the battery compartment housing in order for the battery to be disposed off typically at the swapping station, one battery will be pushed from the battery compartment housing each time and disposed off, and the remaining batteries will be hold in place by the jamming mechanism. And so on for the next battery to be unloaded until all the batteries are unloaded from the housing.
As mentioned above, this battery compailtnent housing is simple in design, and it will have a direct effect on the cost of producing battery driven vehicles and in the adoption of battery swapping technology.
- Another aspect of the invention is the battery compartment housing mentioned above that has a self loading/unloading capability with a loading/unloading mechanism that is an integral part of it. In order for a battery to be loaded into the housing, it is put on at least one lifter before the control system of the electrical vehicle detect its presence and then the lifter driven by a servomotor will lift it and push it inside the housing. The battery will then be jammed in the housing by the jamming mechanism and hold in place by the spring repulsion mechanism.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 The next battery will be loaded the same way and then it will push the first battery further inside. And with the two mentioned mechanism, both batteries will be jammed and hold in place inside the housing. And so on for the remaining batteries to be loaded. Unloading of each battery starts with the jamming mechanism being disengaged first via another servomotor, then the spring repulsion mechanism will push out the batteries and with the intervention of the lifters, one battery will be pulled from the housing each time and disposed off the EV, and the remaining batteries will be hold in place by the jamming mechanism. And so on for the next battery to be unloaded from the housing until all the batteries are unloaded.
Even with adding the loading/unloading mechanism as an integral part of the battery compartment housing, it is still relatively simple in design compared to other battery swapping solutions. And especially, this design is very useful such that only a simple mechanism is needed at the swapping station for loading the batteries into the battery compartment housing of a vehicle. Also, the loading/unloading mechanism could also be optionally used for loading batteries without any external mechanisms at the swapping stations with the batteries being fed manually to the vehicle by an operator with added safety protocol.
- Another aspect of the invention is that each battery in the battery compartment housing is hold in its position by a retaining plug member or 2 retaining plug members preferably driven by linear actuators, and every retaining plug member penetrates one battery head via its passageway at its center to hold it in place.
At the same time, at least one of the plug members play the role as an electrical contactor delivering power via two battery terminals, the positive (+) and the negative (-). Each electrical contact point for every battery is connected to a common electrical bus bars via 2 spring shaped flexible wires to allow for the linear movement of the retaining/contact plug member.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 The fact that all the batteries are independently connected in parallel with their respective contactors to common electrical bus bars will make the battery system very reliable in the case of failure of one battery or one contactor in the battery compartment housing.
- Another aspect of the invention is the cooling of the batteries through their heat sink envelopes using air that circulate through the battery compartment housing by entering via an inlet and exiting from an outlet.
- Another aspect of the invention consists of the location of battery compartment housing at the bottom of the EV in a way that integrate the vehicle frame in a convenable way. The battery housing will be embedded to the EV from the bottom during manufacturing process of the vehicle in a way that is like embedding a stationary battery pack. To protect the batteries from the elements, the battery compartment housing is equipped with a sealed lid that swing downward when open.
- Another aspect of the invention is the swapping station, where discharged batteries are disposed off and charged batteries are loaded into the EV. The disposal of the discharged batteries is done through an opening at the flour of the station.
The loading of the charged batteries could be done automatically or manually.
The procedure is as follow:
- the driver will bring the vehicle at the exact location by some guiding techniques.
- then the driver will initiate the unloading process by electrically disengaging the batteries from the battery compartment housing.
- then the batteries will be unloaded one by one, with the station controller counting the number of batteries being unloaded.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 - then a corresponding number of charged batteries will be released for delivery from a battery reservoir, and whether loaded automatically by using a mechanism that pushes the batteries inside the battery compartment housing of the EV, or by using a mechanism that delivers the batteries one by one to the battery compartment housing that has its self loading capabilities, or loaded manually by an operator that has to pick the batteries and delivers them to the battery compartment housing that has self loading capabilities.
- Another aspect of the invention is the introduction of the serial engaging battery swapping system with the use of 2 battery reservoirs. One reservoir where several charged batteries are stored and only a given number of charged batteries is taken from that reservoir to be engaged electrically at one time. Another reservoir is where the discharged batteries are disposed off. This system is suitable for application with high energy demand like heavy machinery where several batteries are used, but only the minimum needed battery to produce the desired power are engaged electrically at the same time.
NOTE: While this invention is susceptible of embodiments in many different forms, this specification and accompanying drawings disclose only some specific forms as examples of the invention. The invention is not intended to be limited to the embodiments so described; however, the scope of the invention is pointed out in the appended claims.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 Brief Description of the Drawings:
- Fig 1 is showing the overall view of the UNiBat battery preferred embodiment, that is made of two heads and a body with a slotted heat sink envelope and showing a detailed view of one head.
- Fig 2 is showing the UNiBat battery without the heat sink envelope where are shown the stacked battery modules and the BMS/Power converter - Fig 3 is showing the UNiBat battery with some modules that are removed and the main electrical bus bars of the battery that connect all the modules to the BMS/Power converter.
- Fig 4 is showing the top of one isolated module with outer and inner positive connectors that connect respectively the high heat reaction Li-ion cells (at the periphery) and the low heat reaction cells (at the middle) to the main bus bars of the battery (not shown).The high heat reaction cells are wrapped in a heat dissipater plate (made of highly heat transfer material) that covers the module body as well and is in direct contact with the heat sink envelope of the battery body to insure proper heat exchange.
- Fig 5 is the bottom of one isolated module showing the negative connector that connects all the negative poles of the cells to the negative main bus bar of the battery (not shown).
- Fig 6 is showing an exploded view of the module, including the module holding body, the module heat dissipator plate, the Li-ion cells, the connectors, and the separation layer.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 - Fig 7 showing the energised head of the battery and its cross-section view, where are shown the electrical terminals, the electrical connections with the BMS/Power converter and the aeration openings of the head.
- Fig 8 showing the second non-energised head of the battery and its cross section, where are shown the aeration openings of the head.
- Fig 9 is the overall view of the battery compartment housing showing the container of the batteries with its opening for battery loading/ unloading, and the cooling air inlet and outlet.
- Fig 9-a is an isolated view of the container of the batteries with a detailed view showing the openings for air flow at each side of the container.
- Fig 10 is showing a UNiBat battery on the lifting mechanism in the process of loading or unloading.
- Fig 11 is the fully loaded battery compartment housing with 10 batteries (with the container not shown for clarity). Showing the lifting mechanism, the jamming mechanism, and the spring repulsion mechanism (with the spring fully compressed).
- Fig 12 is a simplified representation of the battery compartment housing with one loaded battery in it and showing only the loading/unloading mechanism, the jamming mechanism, and the spring repulsion mechanism (with expanded spring).
- Fig 13 is a view of detailed representations of the loading/unloading mechanism showing the lifting arms (with their respective servomotors), the lifting bar and its servomotor as well the jamming mechanism with the jams, the jamming bar, and its servomotor.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 - Fig 14 is a view of the battery compartment housing without the container and the side covers and a detailed view showing the retaining/contactor plug members with their corresponding linear actuators and their flexible wires that are connected to the main electrical bus bar, and the bracket as well that is holding them.
- Fig 15 is showing the DC output power terminals and the control/communication ports on the back side of the battery compartment housing.
- Fig 16 is a view of the battery compartment housing (without the container and the side covers) and a detailed view of the retaining plug members and the retaining/contactor plug members that are disengaged with the batteries.
-Fig 17 is a top view of Fig 16.
- Fig 18 is the same as Fig 16 but with the retaining/contactor plug members that are engaged with the batteries.
- Fig 19 is showing a sectional view of one battery with a retaining plug member and a retaining/contactor plug member that are disengaged and their respective linear actuators. Also showing the electrical terminals (contact points) of the energised battery head, the BMS/Power Converter, and the battery modules.
- Fig 20 is showing a typical emplacement of the system on an electrical vehicle.
- Fig 21 is showing the emplacement of an EV at the swapping station.
- Fig 22 is a view of a swapping station and a detailed view showing the opening for a disposal of discharged batteries and a release mechanism for charged batteries.
- Fig 23 is an EV at the swapping station in the process of loading a charged battery.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 - Fig 24 is an illustration of an example of the serial engaging technique, with contactor engagement mechanism, charged batteries reservoir and discharged batteries reservoir.
Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments:
Detailed descriptions of the preferred embodiments are provided herein. It is to be understood however, that the present invention may be embodied in various forms.
- The UNiBat Battery:
In some embodiments, the UNiBat battery as shown in Fig 1 is cylindrical in shape, has a body (3) and two heads (1) (2) that are attached to the ends of the body. In some embodiments, the battery has one energised head (1) with a positive and a negative terminal and both heads (1) (2) are used for immobilising the battery. The heads (1) and (2) shown in figures (7) and (8) are made with high resistant and electrically insulating material preferably coated with a layer of rubber material to withstand impacts during loading and unloading processes of the battery.
In some embodiments, the body is provided with a heat sink envelope made with a high heat transfer and rigid material preferably aluminum alloy and is slotted along its length to increase its heat transfer capability.
In some embodiments, the heat sink envelope is reinforced with steel rods that are going along its length and fitted around it to enhance its strength, the steel rods extremities are preferably threaded and used to fasten the heads (1) (2) to the Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 envelope by using appropriate hardware.
In some embodiments, to allow for air flow to circulate along the heat sink envelope and cool down the battery, the heads (1), (2) are equipped with openings (14) along each head periphery, as Fig 7 and Fig 8 show.
As fig2 and Fig 3 show, Inside the body, many individual modules (4) are stacked and connected electrically via 3 bus bars (6) to a power converter/BMS module (5) that is connected electrically to the energised head (1).
In some embodiments, for making electrical contact with the rest of the battery system, the passageway of the head (1) has a pin shaped positive terminal (15) and a cylindrical shaped negative terminal (16), and both terminals are made with a conductive material preferably copper. On the inner side of the head (1), there is 2 bolted electrical connections (17) for making contact between the wires from the Power converter/BMS (5) and the head (1) (shown as well in Fig 19).
In some embodiments, the battery module shown in Fig 4, 5 and 6 contains 19 Li-ion cells (7), 12 outer cells with high heat reaction as NMC cells (Nickel Manganese Cobalt Oxide) or NCA cells (Nickel Cobalt Aluminum oxide) and 7 inner cells with low heat reaction as Lithium Iron Phosphate cells.
The outer cells are all connected to one of the bus bars (6) (shown in Fig 3) via a ring-shaped outer (positive) connector (9) and every cell is electrically protected with a fuse (9-a). The same for the inner cells, they are all connected to one of the bus bars (6) (shown in Fig 3) via a ring shaped inner (positive) connector (10) and every cell is electrically protected with a fuse (9-a). And to prevent the inner connector (10) to make an electrical contact with the outer connector (9), a ring-shaped sheet (13) made of an adequate electrically insulating material is put between the two connectors (shown in Fig 6 only for clarity). To prevent the outer Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 connector (9) and the inner connector (10) from making electrical contact with the bodies of the cells (that have a negative polarity), a disk-shaped sheet (not shown for clarity of the drawings) made of an adequate electrically insulating material should be put between the top of the cells and the connectors. At the bottom side of the module as shown in Fig 5, all the 19 cells are connected to the third bus bar via the main (negative) connector (11).
The outer cells are wrapped in a heat exchanging plate (8) (made of high heat transfer material) and are engulfed in the module holding body (4-a). The heat exchanging plate (8) will transfer the excess heat from the outer cells to the heat sink envelope of the battery body (3).
The module holding body (4-a) is made preferably of cork, given the many thermal and mechanical proprieties of this material. In fact, cork is a fire-resistant, fire-retardant material and has high heat storage capacity that will contain any localised fire in the case of a cell temperature run away and will contain any cell gas/liquid discharge given its gas/liquid proofing. Also, given that cork has a good shock and vibration absorption and impact resistance properties, this will make the UNiBat robust enough to withstand all mechanical stresses that it will be subject to when in moving vehicles and during loading and unloading processes.
The use of cork as the principal material for holding the cells in the battery modules and between the modules (as discussed below) along the use of aluminum allow as the material for the heat sink envelope will make the UNiBat battery a very light weighted compared to its volume, making it an easy-to-handle battery.
In order to isolate the stacked modules one from each other electrically and for thermal, chemical and mechanical protection of the modules, an inter-module Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 separation (12) is inserted between the modules and is made preferably of cork, given its proprieties discussed above.
In some embodiments, the Power Converter/BMS (05) has three principal roles:
boosting the DC voltage of the cells to an adequate level (preferably hundreds of volts) when the battery is delivering power, lowering the DC voltage to the cell charging voltage level when the battery is recharging, and as a battery management system, protecting the battery from overheat, electrical and chemical damages.
The Power Converter/BMS (05) input is fed directly from the 3 bus bars (6) (as shown in Fig3); one main negative bar (-) and two positive bars (+). Each positive bar is connected to one of the two groups of cells of each module (inner cells and outer cells) and are managed separately by the BMS during power delivery and recharging of the battery (given that each cell group has its own electrical and thermal characteristics).
It is worth noting that the fact all the cells are connected in parallel configuration offers an advantage over combined serial/parallel configuration in a way that the battery operation and performance will not be affected in the case of any blown cell fuses or cell failure.
The power converter (5) must combine these two low voltage inputs and convert them to one higher voltage at its output. The output has two wires (+) (-) that go from the power converter to the energised head and connect with it using a wire connection (17) preferably with lugs and bolts as shown in Fig 7.
In some embodiments, the BMS have some safety features to protect the public from electric shock and arc flash hazards. These safety feature comprises cutting off the power output of the battery in a faulty condition or to prevent electric shock Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 and arc flash hazards. As well, enabling/disabling the power output of the battery as needed, by wireless or direct control.
In some embodiments, in order for the BMS to receive and send data with the vehicle central computer directly or indirectly, a wireless communication module (as Bluetooth) is installed on the battery energised head and connected with the BMS (not shown in the drawings for simplicity).
In some embodiments, the battery has 2 Power Converter/BMS units coupled with two energised heads if more power is needed to be delivered by the battery or the battery need to be recharged faster.
In some embodiments, the BMS implements smart capabilities in further reducing the heat generated by the cells and further protecting the cells and enhancing their lifespan during the use and recharging processes of the battery. This is achieved by the BMS when managing in real time, the optimum amounts of current withdrawn from each different cell group (inner cells and outer cells) at a given time without compromising the needed total output power from the battery at that time.
- The Battery Compartment Housing:
In some embodiments, the battery compartment housing is as shown in Fig 9 with its cooling air inlet (19) and outlet (20) and its container (18).
In some embodiments, the container (18) as shown in Fig 9-a where the batteries are stacked and has several openings (19-a) on its sides, allowing cooling air to circulate through to cool down the batteries.
In some embodiments, the battery compartment housing is comprising: the container (18), the loading/unloading mechanism (21), the battery Jamming Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 mechanism (22), the Spring repulsion mechanism (32) and the battery retaining and electrical contact mechanism (34).
In these embodiments, the Loading/Unloading Mechanism (21) as shown in Fig 10, load and unload the batteries one by one into and from the container (18).
The battery jamming mechanism (22) as shown in Fig 11, helps in the process of loading/unloading a battery by holding the other batteries from coming out of the container. The spring repulsion mechanism (32) allows for the ejection of the batteries one by one from the container in the unloading process as well regulating the loading process and correctly positioning the batteries in the container (18) especially in the case it is not fully loaded. The Battery Retaining and Electrical Contact Mechanism (34) has the role of engaging electrical contact with the batteries as well retaining the batteries flit lily in place.
Explanation of the loading process of the batteries into the battery compartment housing:
By Referring to Fig 10,11,12 and 13, the process begins by depositing one battery on the 4 lifters (24) of the loading/unloading mechanism (21). The two lifters on the sides are equipped with proximity detectors (27) to indicate the presence of the battery to the vehicle control system. The control system will then rotate the lifter bar (25) via a servomotor (23) to bring the battery by the lifters inside the container via its opening. During this process at some point, the controller will engage the lifter arms (35) (of the four lifters) to extend using the lifter servomotor (26) to push the battery further inside the container until it will reach and push down (release) the three jams (29) of jamming mechanism (22). While the battery is pushed in by the lifters (24) and de-engaging (releasing) the jams (29), it will also Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 push back the spring pulling plate (31) of the spring repulsion mechanism (32).
And with the help of the jam retention spring (36) the jams (29) will be engaged again once the battery has passed through them and jam the loaded battery in place.
The spring repulsion mechanism (32) with its pulling plate (31) along the engaged jams (29) will then hold the battery in place. the lifters (24) then, return to their initial position and be ready to load the next battery.
When all the batteries are loaded as shown in Fig 16 (without the container), the battery electrical contact/retaining mechanism (34) is then ready to be engaged with the batteries.
Explanation of the battery retaining and electrical contact procedure:
As shown in Fig 19, the Contactor/Retainer plug members (37) and Retainer plug members (43) driven by the linear actuators (41) and (44) are pushed inside each battery head passageway to make the electrical contact and to retain the batteries solidly in place (as shown in Fig 18).
The electrical continuity is then obtained between the battery teitninals (15) (16) and the electrical buses of the housing (38) via flexible wires (40) that allow for linear movement of the Contactor/Retainer plug members.
Each side of the Battery Retaining and Electrical Contact Mechanism (34) has a holding bracket (39) as shown in Fig 14, that is fixed to the container and has the linear actuators that are bolted to it.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 Explanation of the unloading (ejection) process of the batteries from the battery compartment housing:
The unloading of the batteries starts by disengaging the Retaining and Electrical Contact Mechanism from the batteries, where all the Contactor/Retainer plug members (37) and Retainer plug members (43) driven by their corresponding linear actuators (41) and (44) are pushed out from the battery head passageways, resulting of the batteries being isolated electrically from the electrical buses (38) as shown in Fig 14. Then the batteries will be ejected one by one from the container in three steps. The first step is releasing the jams (29) via the jam release bar (30) and the jam release servomotor (28) as shown in Fig 12. The second step is driving out the battery by the spring repulsion mechanism (32) and the loading/ejection mechanism (21) where the battery is pushed by the spring puling plate (31) against the four lifters (24).
The four lifters(24) driven by the servomotor (23) and the driving bar (25) with the help of their respective lifter aims (35) and their respective lifter servomotors (26) (Fig 13) will catch the battery, and guide it while pushed out by the spring repulsion mechanism (32) until dropping it completely from the housing (disposed of), or alternatively, bring the battery to a position (initial position) where it can be picked up from the lifters (24) as shown for example in Fig 10.
At some point during this second step, the jams (29) will be engaged again by driving counter wise the jam release bar (30) via the jam release servomotor (28) and with the help of the jam retention spring (36) as shown in Fig 12, 13 to hold the remaining batteries in place and prevent them from being pushed out by the spring repulsion mechanism (32). The third step is when the vehicle controller detect that the battery is disposed off or taken from the lifters via the two sensors (27), the 4 lifters (24) then will be brought to the position where they will be ready Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 to unload the next battery, as shown in Fig 11. And so on for the next battery to be unloaded until all the batteries are unloaded from the housing.
In some embodiments, the battery compartment housing is comprising:
the container (18), the battery Jamming mechanism (22), the Spring repulsion mechanism (32) and the battery retaining and electrical contact mechanism (34).
In this case, an external loading/unloading mechanism typically located a swapping station is needed to load and unload the batteries to and from the battery compartment housing.
In some embodiments, as shown in Fig-15, for the battery compartment housing to be connected to the rest of the vehicle in term of electrical power and data transmission, it is provided with 2 DC power terminals (45), 2 actuator control ports (46) and a data communication port (47).
In some embodiments, in order for the battery compartment housing to exchange data with each battery in it, it is provided with a wireless communication mean preferably Bluetooth technology allowing such communication. The battery compartment housing exchanges the data with the vehicle control system via the data communication port (47).
In some embodiments, the batteries inside the battery compartment housing could be configured in a way such that the power is withdrawn from the batteries in a sequential way (battery by battery) rather then in parallel way (all the batteries).
The sequential way works such that one or more batteries are used at the same time depending on the needed power until they are discharged, and one or more batteries are in standby mode to be used next when needed. Some advantages of this are that there is no need to wait for all the batteries to be discharged to go to Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 the swapping station and replace them, and the possibility of having one or more spare charged batteries to use latter when in need.
-The Swapping Station:
In some embodiments, as shown in Fig 20, the battery compartment housing is located underside of an electrical vehicle and has a swinging lid (49) allowing for the loading/unloading of the batteries which is done typically at a swapping station.
In some embodiments, the swapping station comprise two reservoirs one for discharged batteries and another one for the charged batteries, the discharged batteries are recharged locally or withdrawn from the first reservoir and transported to another location by special trucks to be recharged.
The recharged batteries are brought the same way to the station to be put in the second reservoir and ready to be used.
In some embodiments, as shown in Fig21,22 and 23, the swapping operation works as follow:
The vehicle is brought to the right position by the driver with some guiding technics, the driver then interacts with the swapping station via its control panel (51) and start the swapping process of the batteries by a mean of a wireless communication from inside the vehicle, or as an option, by using the control panel interface (51).
Depending on the configuration of the system that the user wants as explained above, the disposed discharged batteries at the station could be the total batteries Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 that are in the battery compartment housing or just some of them (as in the case of the gas tank that is totally empty or partially full of gas).
If the green light is given by the control panel (51) of the station, the process then begins.
The battery disposal gate (52) opens to allow for the dropping of the discharged batteries from the vehicle. Then the same number of the charged batteries (54) will be dispensed and loaded one by one via the battery release mechanism (53).
This begins with the retractable train (61) coming out of the battery dispensing machine (50), then the charged batteries are pulled one by one from the second reservoir and put one by one onto the battery dispensing pans (58).The pans(58) are driven by a servomotor (59) via a bar (60) to swing downward in order to deposit the charged battery in the battery system of the vehicle and swing back upward to be ready to receive the next battery, until all the batteries are loaded into the battery compartment housing of the vehicle.
-The Serial Electrically Engaging Battery Swapping System:
In some embodiments, as shown in Fig24, the serial electrical engaging system works such that the batteries go through an appropriate mechanism (57) to be engaged to make an electrical contact in a serial method. Wherein depending on the amount of power needed for the usage, only a given number of batteries are electrically engaged at the same time by that system.
Once the engaged batteries are used and drained from their stored energy, they will be disengaged by the system and recovered in a reservoir (55) made for this Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 purpose. Then, the same number of charged batteries is pulled from another reservoir (56) that is made for storing the charged batteries. The new batteries in their turn, will be electrically engaged with the battery system, and so on.
It is however worth noting that a device for storing and releasing the energy needed during the transitional step is necessary, preferably super capacitors given their high-power output, so there will be no power shortage from the battery system during that transitional step.
Typically, this system, given the high number of batteries involved, is suitable for applications that uses a lot of energy in relatively a short period of time like heavy machinery, trains, ships, or trucks for example.
Note:
Although the invention has been described in connection with a preferred embodiment, it should be understood that various modifications, additions and alterations may be made to the invention by one skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26
Field of the Invention:
This proposed invention relates to energy storage batteries used to power electrical vehicles and other applications. More particularly, it relates to swappable batteries.
Background of the Invention:
The classical design of EV's with fixed battery packs comes with many disadvantages. One of them is the non-standardised battery pack across all EV's leading to higher car production cost and higher maintenance cost in repairing or replacing the battery pack. Also, for recharging those vehicles, a big number of charging stations is needed, and building these infrastructure needs a lot of resources and comes at a high cost. And no mater how big the charging station is (the number of charging points), its charging capacity is limited by the maximum electrical power it can withdraw from the local electrical grid. Even with increasing charging capacity by adding energy storage to the charging station, it is still limited by the available electrical power from the grid at that location, and yet by increasing its cost (the energy storage units are expansive).
And given the relatively long time it takes to fully charge an EV even with a super charger, recharging an EV is somehow inconvenient especially when in high demand (too many vehicles at the same station), for long distance drivers and for taxi and delivery fleet, etc.
Another drawback of the superchargers especially when using them often is the reducing of lifespan of the Li-ion batteries of the EV's.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 It is also known that the classical EV's equipped with fixed battery packs are much more expensive compared to conventional internal combustion engines vehicles due primarily to the cost of the fixed battery pack, and even if their routine maintenance cost is less expensive, the battery capacity is degrading overtime and the cost of replacing the battery pack after warranty is very high for the owner.
A proposed technology for mitigating the drawbacks of the fixed battery packs consist of the swappable battery systems. There were some solutions for swappable battery systems that are developed in the recent years but none of them was adopted broadly by the EV's manufacturing companies like Tesla or widely used in mobile or stationary applications. Among the reasons are the degree of complexity of such proposed systems, the economical feasibility, the convenience, the safety, and the non standardisation of both the swappable batteries and the swapping systems. Among the examples of those systems, the ones developed by companies like Ample and Aulton.
This emphasis the need to find a better solution for a battery swapping system and a swappable battery that mitigate those issues.
Summary of the Invention:
The proposed battery swapping system with its proposed portable universal use battery (UNiBat) will redesign the charging of EV's by bringing more charging capacity and flexibility for the charging stations and by speeding up the EV's recharging process and giving more convenience and flexibility for the end user.
The proposed battery (UNiBat) is designed such a way to facilitate its loading, unloading, transportation and handling during the replacement and recharging procedures. As well it offers many operational and safety features thanks to its Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 power converter and its battery management system (BMS) leading to more convenience and safety when used or recharged.
The proposed battery swapping system could be entirely embedded on the EV or any application in general since it has a simple design, and its swapping operation could work with minimal or without any external mechanism at the swapping station or even anywhere.
For the EV owner, the proposed battery and battery swapping system will remove the burden of replacing a degraded battery pack or repairing a malfunctioning one, in fact with swappable batteries, there is no battery degradation or functionality issues, thus less maintenance of the EV is needed.
At the swapping stations, the proposed battery and battery swapping system will bring recharging flexibility in a way that the batteries could be recharged locally, otherwise if there is not enough power from the local grid they will be brought to be recharged in another location and the recharged batteries will be brought back to be reloaded into the station, and this could be done by special trucks like conventional fuel. Furthermore, it is not even necessarily for the batteries to be recharged at all locally at the swapping station thus removing the load demand on the local electrical grid and reducing the charging cost since there is less needed distributed electrical infrastructure.
Economically, the proposed battery and the battery swapping system can be standardised, and mass produced given their simple design and easy assembly, leading to reduce their cost considerably for the end user.
In the other hand, EV manufacturing will be redesigned as well, so the new cars will be made without integrated battery packs. This will speed up car production Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 and will help the creation of new EV manufacturing companies and all of this will lead to cheaper EV's in the market.
Also, with the proposed battery swapping system, the electrical vehicles will be featured with modulable autonomy, given that the battery system can work with only a few loaded batteries or possibly even one battery, this will bring flexibility of using only a needed number of batteries and a possibility of adding more batteries in the future as needed, this will reduce even further the front cost of EV
ownership for some users.
Also, there is even more flexibility with many options of using the batteries as needed, for the end user, with the possibility of buying, renting, or paying per use.. .etc.
To make the proposed solution more convenient for the EV user, the EV with the proposed battery system could always be recharged at home in a conventional way by plugging with level 1 or level 2 charger.
Regarding the stationary applications, the proposed universal battery and the battery swapping system will bring considerable benefits over the classical fueling or recharging methods especially for energy demanding applications as machinery in remote construction sites for example. There is also a possibility for this battery given its convenience and safety to be used for energy storage for any application with its power converter output that could be configured to deliver DC or AC
current depending on the need.
- In one aspect of the invention, a convenient, portable, and universal swappable battery for storing and delivering electrical energy is proposed. The battery comprises an elongated body with two ends and at least one head attached to one Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 end. The body and heads of the battery can be in any shape, but preferably cylindrical for making it more convenient to handle and to swap.
Each head is made in overall of electrically insulating and mechanically resistant material and is provided with a passageway that is used for electrical mating with a plug member for at least one head, allowing the battery to deliver its power.
Depending on the applications, the passageways with the plug members are used also for holding the battery firmly and secure in place.
The battery body comprises several modules stacked together along the body longitudinal axis and are electrically connected in parallel via electrical buses or via any electrical conductors that run in the center of the battery along its longitudinal axis. Each module is a grouping of Li-ion cells or any electrical energy storage cells connected in parallel together and to the electrical buses or electrical conductors. The holding body of each module is made preferably of cork, a material that is highly fire resistant, fire retardant, shock tolerant, vibration absorbent; and liquid/gas proof and yet verry light weighted.
- In another aspect of the invention, the body of the proposed battery is provided with a heat sink envelope that is made of high temperature coefficient transfer material for heat exchange from the battery to cool it down when in operation.
The material is preferably aluminium alloy, and the outer surface of the envelope is preferably slotted all around longitudinally along the length of the body to facilitate such heat transfer. In this case, the heads are preferably provided with aeration openings to facilitate cooling air circulating along the body envelope of the battery.
- In another aspect of the invention, the heat sink envelope is reinforced with steel rods going along its length to enhance its strength, the said steel rods extremities Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 could be threaded and used to fasten the said heads to the said envelope by using appropriate hardware.
- In another aspect of the invention, each one of the said battery modules is provided with a heat dissipater plate that is wrapped around some or all the cells and including the module holding body to allow for the heat transfer from the cells to the heat sink envelope. Preferably, two types of cells are put in the modules; low heat reaction cells in the middle of the module and high heat reaction cells at the periphery of the module and wrapped in the heat exchanger plate including the module holding body.
- In another aspect of the invention, the battery is equipped with a battery management system to protect the battery from electrical and thermal damage, and for safety against electrical shock and arc flash to protect the public against risks related to misusage of the battery.
- In another aspect of the invention, the proposed battery is provided with at least one DC-DC power converter unit; the power converter has an input fed from the main electrical conductors or bus bars and an output that is electrically connected to one head of the battery; The power converter play a double role of a booster or a buck converter allowing the battery to deliver power for use and to receive power in order to be recharged.
- In another aspect of the invention, each one of the battery modules is provided with at least one (+) connector allowing electrical contact between each one of the cells and at least one bus bar, and one main (-) connector allowing electrical contact between the cells and one of the bus bars.
- In another aspect of the invention, the battery management system combined with the power converter implement smart capabilities in reducing the heat Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 generated by the cells and protecting the cells and improving their lifespan during discharging and recharging processes of the battery. This is achieved by managing, in real time, the optimum amounts of current injected into or withdrawn from each cell group; (outer) high heat reaction cells and (inner) low heat reaction cells, without compromising the needed output power from the battery at that time.
-In another aspect of the invention, the battery management system BMS of the battery is provided with a mean of wireless communication to receive and transmit data between the battery and a vehicle control system or any system where the battery is used.
Therefore, this will make the proposed battery a robust, light weight, very convenient, reliable, safe to use, and multi-purpose battery that will resist eventual mechanical shocks, stresses and vibrations and will contain any internal fire caused by temperature runaways of the cells or any discharge of the cells.
And depending on the chemistry of the cells, the battery will get rid of its excess heat simply through its heat sink envelope, passively or with the help of a circulating air.
Furthermore, the battery simple design will result in the streamline of its manufacturing process, lowering its manufacturing cost and making its operation unlikely to have technical issues resulting in lowering the service costs associated with its use as well. Thus, this will a potential for this battery to be standardised and widely used resulting in its mass production and further lowering its cost.
- In another aspect of the invention, a battery compartment housing located on an electrical vehicle (preferably underside) or on any other moving or stationary application, and that could be loaded with one battery or several batteries.
This battery compartment housing with its simplest design, comprising a battery Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 jamming mechanism, a spring repulsion mechanism, and a container. For a battery to be loaded into the battery compartment housing, it will be pushed in by an external mechanism typically located in a swapping station. The battery will then be jammed in the housing by the jamming mechanism and hold in place by the help of spring repulsion mechanism, if there is more than one battery to be loaded, the next battery will be loaded the same way and then it will push the first battery further inside, and with the two mentioned mechanisms, both batteries will be jammed and hold in place inside the housing. And so on if there are other batteries to be loaded into the battery compartment housing.
The unloading of each battery starts with the jamming mechanism being disengaged first via a servomotor, then the spring repulsion mechanism will push out the battery from the battery compartment housing in order for the battery to be disposed off typically at the swapping station, one battery will be pushed from the battery compartment housing each time and disposed off, and the remaining batteries will be hold in place by the jamming mechanism. And so on for the next battery to be unloaded until all the batteries are unloaded from the housing.
As mentioned above, this battery compailtnent housing is simple in design, and it will have a direct effect on the cost of producing battery driven vehicles and in the adoption of battery swapping technology.
- Another aspect of the invention is the battery compartment housing mentioned above that has a self loading/unloading capability with a loading/unloading mechanism that is an integral part of it. In order for a battery to be loaded into the housing, it is put on at least one lifter before the control system of the electrical vehicle detect its presence and then the lifter driven by a servomotor will lift it and push it inside the housing. The battery will then be jammed in the housing by the jamming mechanism and hold in place by the spring repulsion mechanism.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 The next battery will be loaded the same way and then it will push the first battery further inside. And with the two mentioned mechanism, both batteries will be jammed and hold in place inside the housing. And so on for the remaining batteries to be loaded. Unloading of each battery starts with the jamming mechanism being disengaged first via another servomotor, then the spring repulsion mechanism will push out the batteries and with the intervention of the lifters, one battery will be pulled from the housing each time and disposed off the EV, and the remaining batteries will be hold in place by the jamming mechanism. And so on for the next battery to be unloaded from the housing until all the batteries are unloaded.
Even with adding the loading/unloading mechanism as an integral part of the battery compartment housing, it is still relatively simple in design compared to other battery swapping solutions. And especially, this design is very useful such that only a simple mechanism is needed at the swapping station for loading the batteries into the battery compartment housing of a vehicle. Also, the loading/unloading mechanism could also be optionally used for loading batteries without any external mechanisms at the swapping stations with the batteries being fed manually to the vehicle by an operator with added safety protocol.
- Another aspect of the invention is that each battery in the battery compartment housing is hold in its position by a retaining plug member or 2 retaining plug members preferably driven by linear actuators, and every retaining plug member penetrates one battery head via its passageway at its center to hold it in place.
At the same time, at least one of the plug members play the role as an electrical contactor delivering power via two battery terminals, the positive (+) and the negative (-). Each electrical contact point for every battery is connected to a common electrical bus bars via 2 spring shaped flexible wires to allow for the linear movement of the retaining/contact plug member.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 The fact that all the batteries are independently connected in parallel with their respective contactors to common electrical bus bars will make the battery system very reliable in the case of failure of one battery or one contactor in the battery compartment housing.
- Another aspect of the invention is the cooling of the batteries through their heat sink envelopes using air that circulate through the battery compartment housing by entering via an inlet and exiting from an outlet.
- Another aspect of the invention consists of the location of battery compartment housing at the bottom of the EV in a way that integrate the vehicle frame in a convenable way. The battery housing will be embedded to the EV from the bottom during manufacturing process of the vehicle in a way that is like embedding a stationary battery pack. To protect the batteries from the elements, the battery compartment housing is equipped with a sealed lid that swing downward when open.
- Another aspect of the invention is the swapping station, where discharged batteries are disposed off and charged batteries are loaded into the EV. The disposal of the discharged batteries is done through an opening at the flour of the station.
The loading of the charged batteries could be done automatically or manually.
The procedure is as follow:
- the driver will bring the vehicle at the exact location by some guiding techniques.
- then the driver will initiate the unloading process by electrically disengaging the batteries from the battery compartment housing.
- then the batteries will be unloaded one by one, with the station controller counting the number of batteries being unloaded.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 - then a corresponding number of charged batteries will be released for delivery from a battery reservoir, and whether loaded automatically by using a mechanism that pushes the batteries inside the battery compartment housing of the EV, or by using a mechanism that delivers the batteries one by one to the battery compartment housing that has its self loading capabilities, or loaded manually by an operator that has to pick the batteries and delivers them to the battery compartment housing that has self loading capabilities.
- Another aspect of the invention is the introduction of the serial engaging battery swapping system with the use of 2 battery reservoirs. One reservoir where several charged batteries are stored and only a given number of charged batteries is taken from that reservoir to be engaged electrically at one time. Another reservoir is where the discharged batteries are disposed off. This system is suitable for application with high energy demand like heavy machinery where several batteries are used, but only the minimum needed battery to produce the desired power are engaged electrically at the same time.
NOTE: While this invention is susceptible of embodiments in many different forms, this specification and accompanying drawings disclose only some specific forms as examples of the invention. The invention is not intended to be limited to the embodiments so described; however, the scope of the invention is pointed out in the appended claims.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 Brief Description of the Drawings:
- Fig 1 is showing the overall view of the UNiBat battery preferred embodiment, that is made of two heads and a body with a slotted heat sink envelope and showing a detailed view of one head.
- Fig 2 is showing the UNiBat battery without the heat sink envelope where are shown the stacked battery modules and the BMS/Power converter - Fig 3 is showing the UNiBat battery with some modules that are removed and the main electrical bus bars of the battery that connect all the modules to the BMS/Power converter.
- Fig 4 is showing the top of one isolated module with outer and inner positive connectors that connect respectively the high heat reaction Li-ion cells (at the periphery) and the low heat reaction cells (at the middle) to the main bus bars of the battery (not shown).The high heat reaction cells are wrapped in a heat dissipater plate (made of highly heat transfer material) that covers the module body as well and is in direct contact with the heat sink envelope of the battery body to insure proper heat exchange.
- Fig 5 is the bottom of one isolated module showing the negative connector that connects all the negative poles of the cells to the negative main bus bar of the battery (not shown).
- Fig 6 is showing an exploded view of the module, including the module holding body, the module heat dissipator plate, the Li-ion cells, the connectors, and the separation layer.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 - Fig 7 showing the energised head of the battery and its cross-section view, where are shown the electrical terminals, the electrical connections with the BMS/Power converter and the aeration openings of the head.
- Fig 8 showing the second non-energised head of the battery and its cross section, where are shown the aeration openings of the head.
- Fig 9 is the overall view of the battery compartment housing showing the container of the batteries with its opening for battery loading/ unloading, and the cooling air inlet and outlet.
- Fig 9-a is an isolated view of the container of the batteries with a detailed view showing the openings for air flow at each side of the container.
- Fig 10 is showing a UNiBat battery on the lifting mechanism in the process of loading or unloading.
- Fig 11 is the fully loaded battery compartment housing with 10 batteries (with the container not shown for clarity). Showing the lifting mechanism, the jamming mechanism, and the spring repulsion mechanism (with the spring fully compressed).
- Fig 12 is a simplified representation of the battery compartment housing with one loaded battery in it and showing only the loading/unloading mechanism, the jamming mechanism, and the spring repulsion mechanism (with expanded spring).
- Fig 13 is a view of detailed representations of the loading/unloading mechanism showing the lifting arms (with their respective servomotors), the lifting bar and its servomotor as well the jamming mechanism with the jams, the jamming bar, and its servomotor.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 - Fig 14 is a view of the battery compartment housing without the container and the side covers and a detailed view showing the retaining/contactor plug members with their corresponding linear actuators and their flexible wires that are connected to the main electrical bus bar, and the bracket as well that is holding them.
- Fig 15 is showing the DC output power terminals and the control/communication ports on the back side of the battery compartment housing.
- Fig 16 is a view of the battery compartment housing (without the container and the side covers) and a detailed view of the retaining plug members and the retaining/contactor plug members that are disengaged with the batteries.
-Fig 17 is a top view of Fig 16.
- Fig 18 is the same as Fig 16 but with the retaining/contactor plug members that are engaged with the batteries.
- Fig 19 is showing a sectional view of one battery with a retaining plug member and a retaining/contactor plug member that are disengaged and their respective linear actuators. Also showing the electrical terminals (contact points) of the energised battery head, the BMS/Power Converter, and the battery modules.
- Fig 20 is showing a typical emplacement of the system on an electrical vehicle.
- Fig 21 is showing the emplacement of an EV at the swapping station.
- Fig 22 is a view of a swapping station and a detailed view showing the opening for a disposal of discharged batteries and a release mechanism for charged batteries.
- Fig 23 is an EV at the swapping station in the process of loading a charged battery.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 - Fig 24 is an illustration of an example of the serial engaging technique, with contactor engagement mechanism, charged batteries reservoir and discharged batteries reservoir.
Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments:
Detailed descriptions of the preferred embodiments are provided herein. It is to be understood however, that the present invention may be embodied in various forms.
- The UNiBat Battery:
In some embodiments, the UNiBat battery as shown in Fig 1 is cylindrical in shape, has a body (3) and two heads (1) (2) that are attached to the ends of the body. In some embodiments, the battery has one energised head (1) with a positive and a negative terminal and both heads (1) (2) are used for immobilising the battery. The heads (1) and (2) shown in figures (7) and (8) are made with high resistant and electrically insulating material preferably coated with a layer of rubber material to withstand impacts during loading and unloading processes of the battery.
In some embodiments, the body is provided with a heat sink envelope made with a high heat transfer and rigid material preferably aluminum alloy and is slotted along its length to increase its heat transfer capability.
In some embodiments, the heat sink envelope is reinforced with steel rods that are going along its length and fitted around it to enhance its strength, the steel rods extremities are preferably threaded and used to fasten the heads (1) (2) to the Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 envelope by using appropriate hardware.
In some embodiments, to allow for air flow to circulate along the heat sink envelope and cool down the battery, the heads (1), (2) are equipped with openings (14) along each head periphery, as Fig 7 and Fig 8 show.
As fig2 and Fig 3 show, Inside the body, many individual modules (4) are stacked and connected electrically via 3 bus bars (6) to a power converter/BMS module (5) that is connected electrically to the energised head (1).
In some embodiments, for making electrical contact with the rest of the battery system, the passageway of the head (1) has a pin shaped positive terminal (15) and a cylindrical shaped negative terminal (16), and both terminals are made with a conductive material preferably copper. On the inner side of the head (1), there is 2 bolted electrical connections (17) for making contact between the wires from the Power converter/BMS (5) and the head (1) (shown as well in Fig 19).
In some embodiments, the battery module shown in Fig 4, 5 and 6 contains 19 Li-ion cells (7), 12 outer cells with high heat reaction as NMC cells (Nickel Manganese Cobalt Oxide) or NCA cells (Nickel Cobalt Aluminum oxide) and 7 inner cells with low heat reaction as Lithium Iron Phosphate cells.
The outer cells are all connected to one of the bus bars (6) (shown in Fig 3) via a ring-shaped outer (positive) connector (9) and every cell is electrically protected with a fuse (9-a). The same for the inner cells, they are all connected to one of the bus bars (6) (shown in Fig 3) via a ring shaped inner (positive) connector (10) and every cell is electrically protected with a fuse (9-a). And to prevent the inner connector (10) to make an electrical contact with the outer connector (9), a ring-shaped sheet (13) made of an adequate electrically insulating material is put between the two connectors (shown in Fig 6 only for clarity). To prevent the outer Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 connector (9) and the inner connector (10) from making electrical contact with the bodies of the cells (that have a negative polarity), a disk-shaped sheet (not shown for clarity of the drawings) made of an adequate electrically insulating material should be put between the top of the cells and the connectors. At the bottom side of the module as shown in Fig 5, all the 19 cells are connected to the third bus bar via the main (negative) connector (11).
The outer cells are wrapped in a heat exchanging plate (8) (made of high heat transfer material) and are engulfed in the module holding body (4-a). The heat exchanging plate (8) will transfer the excess heat from the outer cells to the heat sink envelope of the battery body (3).
The module holding body (4-a) is made preferably of cork, given the many thermal and mechanical proprieties of this material. In fact, cork is a fire-resistant, fire-retardant material and has high heat storage capacity that will contain any localised fire in the case of a cell temperature run away and will contain any cell gas/liquid discharge given its gas/liquid proofing. Also, given that cork has a good shock and vibration absorption and impact resistance properties, this will make the UNiBat robust enough to withstand all mechanical stresses that it will be subject to when in moving vehicles and during loading and unloading processes.
The use of cork as the principal material for holding the cells in the battery modules and between the modules (as discussed below) along the use of aluminum allow as the material for the heat sink envelope will make the UNiBat battery a very light weighted compared to its volume, making it an easy-to-handle battery.
In order to isolate the stacked modules one from each other electrically and for thermal, chemical and mechanical protection of the modules, an inter-module Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 separation (12) is inserted between the modules and is made preferably of cork, given its proprieties discussed above.
In some embodiments, the Power Converter/BMS (05) has three principal roles:
boosting the DC voltage of the cells to an adequate level (preferably hundreds of volts) when the battery is delivering power, lowering the DC voltage to the cell charging voltage level when the battery is recharging, and as a battery management system, protecting the battery from overheat, electrical and chemical damages.
The Power Converter/BMS (05) input is fed directly from the 3 bus bars (6) (as shown in Fig3); one main negative bar (-) and two positive bars (+). Each positive bar is connected to one of the two groups of cells of each module (inner cells and outer cells) and are managed separately by the BMS during power delivery and recharging of the battery (given that each cell group has its own electrical and thermal characteristics).
It is worth noting that the fact all the cells are connected in parallel configuration offers an advantage over combined serial/parallel configuration in a way that the battery operation and performance will not be affected in the case of any blown cell fuses or cell failure.
The power converter (5) must combine these two low voltage inputs and convert them to one higher voltage at its output. The output has two wires (+) (-) that go from the power converter to the energised head and connect with it using a wire connection (17) preferably with lugs and bolts as shown in Fig 7.
In some embodiments, the BMS have some safety features to protect the public from electric shock and arc flash hazards. These safety feature comprises cutting off the power output of the battery in a faulty condition or to prevent electric shock Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 and arc flash hazards. As well, enabling/disabling the power output of the battery as needed, by wireless or direct control.
In some embodiments, in order for the BMS to receive and send data with the vehicle central computer directly or indirectly, a wireless communication module (as Bluetooth) is installed on the battery energised head and connected with the BMS (not shown in the drawings for simplicity).
In some embodiments, the battery has 2 Power Converter/BMS units coupled with two energised heads if more power is needed to be delivered by the battery or the battery need to be recharged faster.
In some embodiments, the BMS implements smart capabilities in further reducing the heat generated by the cells and further protecting the cells and enhancing their lifespan during the use and recharging processes of the battery. This is achieved by the BMS when managing in real time, the optimum amounts of current withdrawn from each different cell group (inner cells and outer cells) at a given time without compromising the needed total output power from the battery at that time.
- The Battery Compartment Housing:
In some embodiments, the battery compartment housing is as shown in Fig 9 with its cooling air inlet (19) and outlet (20) and its container (18).
In some embodiments, the container (18) as shown in Fig 9-a where the batteries are stacked and has several openings (19-a) on its sides, allowing cooling air to circulate through to cool down the batteries.
In some embodiments, the battery compartment housing is comprising: the container (18), the loading/unloading mechanism (21), the battery Jamming Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 mechanism (22), the Spring repulsion mechanism (32) and the battery retaining and electrical contact mechanism (34).
In these embodiments, the Loading/Unloading Mechanism (21) as shown in Fig 10, load and unload the batteries one by one into and from the container (18).
The battery jamming mechanism (22) as shown in Fig 11, helps in the process of loading/unloading a battery by holding the other batteries from coming out of the container. The spring repulsion mechanism (32) allows for the ejection of the batteries one by one from the container in the unloading process as well regulating the loading process and correctly positioning the batteries in the container (18) especially in the case it is not fully loaded. The Battery Retaining and Electrical Contact Mechanism (34) has the role of engaging electrical contact with the batteries as well retaining the batteries flit lily in place.
Explanation of the loading process of the batteries into the battery compartment housing:
By Referring to Fig 10,11,12 and 13, the process begins by depositing one battery on the 4 lifters (24) of the loading/unloading mechanism (21). The two lifters on the sides are equipped with proximity detectors (27) to indicate the presence of the battery to the vehicle control system. The control system will then rotate the lifter bar (25) via a servomotor (23) to bring the battery by the lifters inside the container via its opening. During this process at some point, the controller will engage the lifter arms (35) (of the four lifters) to extend using the lifter servomotor (26) to push the battery further inside the container until it will reach and push down (release) the three jams (29) of jamming mechanism (22). While the battery is pushed in by the lifters (24) and de-engaging (releasing) the jams (29), it will also Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 push back the spring pulling plate (31) of the spring repulsion mechanism (32).
And with the help of the jam retention spring (36) the jams (29) will be engaged again once the battery has passed through them and jam the loaded battery in place.
The spring repulsion mechanism (32) with its pulling plate (31) along the engaged jams (29) will then hold the battery in place. the lifters (24) then, return to their initial position and be ready to load the next battery.
When all the batteries are loaded as shown in Fig 16 (without the container), the battery electrical contact/retaining mechanism (34) is then ready to be engaged with the batteries.
Explanation of the battery retaining and electrical contact procedure:
As shown in Fig 19, the Contactor/Retainer plug members (37) and Retainer plug members (43) driven by the linear actuators (41) and (44) are pushed inside each battery head passageway to make the electrical contact and to retain the batteries solidly in place (as shown in Fig 18).
The electrical continuity is then obtained between the battery teitninals (15) (16) and the electrical buses of the housing (38) via flexible wires (40) that allow for linear movement of the Contactor/Retainer plug members.
Each side of the Battery Retaining and Electrical Contact Mechanism (34) has a holding bracket (39) as shown in Fig 14, that is fixed to the container and has the linear actuators that are bolted to it.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 Explanation of the unloading (ejection) process of the batteries from the battery compartment housing:
The unloading of the batteries starts by disengaging the Retaining and Electrical Contact Mechanism from the batteries, where all the Contactor/Retainer plug members (37) and Retainer plug members (43) driven by their corresponding linear actuators (41) and (44) are pushed out from the battery head passageways, resulting of the batteries being isolated electrically from the electrical buses (38) as shown in Fig 14. Then the batteries will be ejected one by one from the container in three steps. The first step is releasing the jams (29) via the jam release bar (30) and the jam release servomotor (28) as shown in Fig 12. The second step is driving out the battery by the spring repulsion mechanism (32) and the loading/ejection mechanism (21) where the battery is pushed by the spring puling plate (31) against the four lifters (24).
The four lifters(24) driven by the servomotor (23) and the driving bar (25) with the help of their respective lifter aims (35) and their respective lifter servomotors (26) (Fig 13) will catch the battery, and guide it while pushed out by the spring repulsion mechanism (32) until dropping it completely from the housing (disposed of), or alternatively, bring the battery to a position (initial position) where it can be picked up from the lifters (24) as shown for example in Fig 10.
At some point during this second step, the jams (29) will be engaged again by driving counter wise the jam release bar (30) via the jam release servomotor (28) and with the help of the jam retention spring (36) as shown in Fig 12, 13 to hold the remaining batteries in place and prevent them from being pushed out by the spring repulsion mechanism (32). The third step is when the vehicle controller detect that the battery is disposed off or taken from the lifters via the two sensors (27), the 4 lifters (24) then will be brought to the position where they will be ready Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 to unload the next battery, as shown in Fig 11. And so on for the next battery to be unloaded until all the batteries are unloaded from the housing.
In some embodiments, the battery compartment housing is comprising:
the container (18), the battery Jamming mechanism (22), the Spring repulsion mechanism (32) and the battery retaining and electrical contact mechanism (34).
In this case, an external loading/unloading mechanism typically located a swapping station is needed to load and unload the batteries to and from the battery compartment housing.
In some embodiments, as shown in Fig-15, for the battery compartment housing to be connected to the rest of the vehicle in term of electrical power and data transmission, it is provided with 2 DC power terminals (45), 2 actuator control ports (46) and a data communication port (47).
In some embodiments, in order for the battery compartment housing to exchange data with each battery in it, it is provided with a wireless communication mean preferably Bluetooth technology allowing such communication. The battery compartment housing exchanges the data with the vehicle control system via the data communication port (47).
In some embodiments, the batteries inside the battery compartment housing could be configured in a way such that the power is withdrawn from the batteries in a sequential way (battery by battery) rather then in parallel way (all the batteries).
The sequential way works such that one or more batteries are used at the same time depending on the needed power until they are discharged, and one or more batteries are in standby mode to be used next when needed. Some advantages of this are that there is no need to wait for all the batteries to be discharged to go to Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 the swapping station and replace them, and the possibility of having one or more spare charged batteries to use latter when in need.
-The Swapping Station:
In some embodiments, as shown in Fig 20, the battery compartment housing is located underside of an electrical vehicle and has a swinging lid (49) allowing for the loading/unloading of the batteries which is done typically at a swapping station.
In some embodiments, the swapping station comprise two reservoirs one for discharged batteries and another one for the charged batteries, the discharged batteries are recharged locally or withdrawn from the first reservoir and transported to another location by special trucks to be recharged.
The recharged batteries are brought the same way to the station to be put in the second reservoir and ready to be used.
In some embodiments, as shown in Fig21,22 and 23, the swapping operation works as follow:
The vehicle is brought to the right position by the driver with some guiding technics, the driver then interacts with the swapping station via its control panel (51) and start the swapping process of the batteries by a mean of a wireless communication from inside the vehicle, or as an option, by using the control panel interface (51).
Depending on the configuration of the system that the user wants as explained above, the disposed discharged batteries at the station could be the total batteries Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 that are in the battery compartment housing or just some of them (as in the case of the gas tank that is totally empty or partially full of gas).
If the green light is given by the control panel (51) of the station, the process then begins.
The battery disposal gate (52) opens to allow for the dropping of the discharged batteries from the vehicle. Then the same number of the charged batteries (54) will be dispensed and loaded one by one via the battery release mechanism (53).
This begins with the retractable train (61) coming out of the battery dispensing machine (50), then the charged batteries are pulled one by one from the second reservoir and put one by one onto the battery dispensing pans (58).The pans(58) are driven by a servomotor (59) via a bar (60) to swing downward in order to deposit the charged battery in the battery system of the vehicle and swing back upward to be ready to receive the next battery, until all the batteries are loaded into the battery compartment housing of the vehicle.
-The Serial Electrically Engaging Battery Swapping System:
In some embodiments, as shown in Fig24, the serial electrical engaging system works such that the batteries go through an appropriate mechanism (57) to be engaged to make an electrical contact in a serial method. Wherein depending on the amount of power needed for the usage, only a given number of batteries are electrically engaged at the same time by that system.
Once the engaged batteries are used and drained from their stored energy, they will be disengaged by the system and recovered in a reservoir (55) made for this Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 purpose. Then, the same number of charged batteries is pulled from another reservoir (56) that is made for storing the charged batteries. The new batteries in their turn, will be electrically engaged with the battery system, and so on.
It is however worth noting that a device for storing and releasing the energy needed during the transitional step is necessary, preferably super capacitors given their high-power output, so there will be no power shortage from the battery system during that transitional step.
Typically, this system, given the high number of batteries involved, is suitable for applications that uses a lot of energy in relatively a short period of time like heavy machinery, trains, ships, or trucks for example.
Note:
Although the invention has been described in connection with a preferred embodiment, it should be understood that various modifications, additions and alterations may be made to the invention by one skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26
Claims (34)
1- A swappable battery, comprising:
- an elongated body having two ends; the said body contains the battery stored electrical energy that can be in any form inside the said body; the said body length could have any proportion compared to its width; and the said body is preferably cylindrical in shape;
- 2 heads or one head, each said head is attached to one end of the said body;
and each said head is made in overall of electrically insulating and mechanically resistant material; and the said head is preferably cylindrical in shape;
- wherein each said head is provided with a passageway; the said passageway is used for holding the battery in a firm position by a plug member; at least one said passageway is used for electrical mating with a said plug member, thus making an electric contact point from where the battery delivers its power.
- wherein the said body comprises stacked battery modules between the two said heads or between the two said ends of the said body; each one of the said modules is connected electrically to 1 or more electrical conductors;
preferably bus bars which are located and run along the center longitudinal axis of the battery; and Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 - wherein each one of the said battery modules comprises a grouping of electrical energy storage cells that are engulfed in a holding body made of a material that is heat insulating; heat resistant; flame retardant, shock/vibration absorbent and liquid/gasproof; preferably cork;
- an elongated body having two ends; the said body contains the battery stored electrical energy that can be in any form inside the said body; the said body length could have any proportion compared to its width; and the said body is preferably cylindrical in shape;
- 2 heads or one head, each said head is attached to one end of the said body;
and each said head is made in overall of electrically insulating and mechanically resistant material; and the said head is preferably cylindrical in shape;
- wherein each said head is provided with a passageway; the said passageway is used for holding the battery in a firm position by a plug member; at least one said passageway is used for electrical mating with a said plug member, thus making an electric contact point from where the battery delivers its power.
- wherein the said body comprises stacked battery modules between the two said heads or between the two said ends of the said body; each one of the said modules is connected electrically to 1 or more electrical conductors;
preferably bus bars which are located and run along the center longitudinal axis of the battery; and Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 - wherein each one of the said battery modules comprises a grouping of electrical energy storage cells that are engulfed in a holding body made of a material that is heat insulating; heat resistant; flame retardant, shock/vibration absorbent and liquid/gasproof; preferably cork;
2- The battery recited in claim 1 wherein the said body is provided with a heat sink envelope made of high heat transfer index material preferably aluminum alloy.
3- The battery recited in claim 2 wherein the said envelope has a slotted outer surface to facilitate heat dissipation from the battery.
4 - The battery recited in claim 3 wherein the said envelope is reinforced with steel rods going along its length to enhance its strength, the said steel rods extremities are preferably threaded and used to fasten the said heads to the said envelope by using appropriate hardware.
- The battery recited in claim 1, 2, 3 or 4 wherein each one of the said battery modules is provided with a heat dissipater plate that is wrapped around part or all the said cells and around the said holding body to allow for heat transfer from the said cells.
6 - The battery recited in claim 1 wherein each one of the said battery modules is provided with at least one (+) connector allowing electrical contact between the Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 said cells and one of the said conductors; and one main (-) connector allowing electrical contact between the said cells and one of the said conductors.
7- The battery recited in claim 6, further comprising; at least one DC-DC
power converter unit; the said power converter has an input fed from the said electrical conductors and an output that is electrically connected to at least one said head of the battery; the said power converter is bidirectional allowing the battery to deliver power and to receive power to be recharged.
power converter unit; the said power converter has an input fed from the said electrical conductors and an output that is electrically connected to at least one said head of the battery; the said power converter is bidirectional allowing the battery to deliver power and to receive power to be recharged.
8 - The battery recited in claim 2, 3, 4 or 6 wherein the said heads are provided with aeration openings to let cooling air circulate along the said heat sink envelope.
9 - The battery recited in claim 1, 2, 3, 4 or 6 further comprising a battery management system BMS.
- The battery recited in claim 9 wherein the said battery management system is provided with a mean of wireless communication to receive and transmit data between the said battery and the vehicle control system or any battery usage controller.
11 - The battery recited in claim 10 further comprising at least one DC-DC
power converter unit; the said power converter has an input fed from the said electrical conductors and an output that is electrically connected to at least one said head of Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 the battery; the said power converter is bidirectional allowing the battery to deliver power and to receive power to be recharged.
power converter unit; the said power converter has an input fed from the said electrical conductors and an output that is electrically connected to at least one said head of Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 the battery; the said power converter is bidirectional allowing the battery to deliver power and to receive power to be recharged.
12 -The battery recited in claim 11 wherein the said battery management system is provided with a mean of safety features against electrical shock and arc flash to protect the public against risks related to misusage of the battery.
13 - The battery recited in claim 12 wherein each one of the said battery modules, comprising:
- one outer group of the said cells that have a high heat reaction and wrapped in a heat dissipater plate that is also wrapping the said holding body to allow for the heat transfer from the said outer cells to the said heat sink envelope;
- an inner group of the said cells that have low heat reaction without being wrapped in the said heat dissipater plate; and - wherein the two groups of the said cells have two separate (+) connectors with each (+) connector allowing electrical contact between one group of the said cells and one of the said bus bars or conductors; and the two groups of the said cells have one main (-) connector allowing electrical contact between the said cells and one of the said bus bars or conductors.
- one outer group of the said cells that have a high heat reaction and wrapped in a heat dissipater plate that is also wrapping the said holding body to allow for the heat transfer from the said outer cells to the said heat sink envelope;
- an inner group of the said cells that have low heat reaction without being wrapped in the said heat dissipater plate; and - wherein the two groups of the said cells have two separate (+) connectors with each (+) connector allowing electrical contact between one group of the said cells and one of the said bus bars or conductors; and the two groups of the said cells have one main (-) connector allowing electrical contact between the said cells and one of the said bus bars or conductors.
14 - The battery recited in claim 13 wherein the said heads are provided with aeration openings to let cooling air circulate along the said heat sink envelope.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26
15 - The battery recited in claim 13 or 14 wherein the said battery management system combined with the said power converter implement smut capabilities in reducing the heat generated by the cells and protecting the cells and improving their lifespan during discharging and recharging processes; this is done by managing in a given time the optimum amounts of current withdrawn from each said cell group (inner cells and outer cells); without compromising the needed power output from the battery at that particular time.
16 - A Battery Compartment Housing for any Application, comprising:
- a container for at least one battery;
- a jamming mechanism that work such that during the loading process of the said battery; it allow the said battery to be loaded inside the said battery compartment housing but once it is loaded the said jamming mechanism holds the said battery from coming out of the said Battery Compartment Housing; the said jamming mechanism is provided with a release system to let the loaded battery ounce it is discharged to come out of the said Battery Compartment Housing;
- a spring repulsion mechanism that pushes the said battery out of the said Battery Compartment Housing with the release of the said jamming mechanism during unloading process of the said battery; if the said battery compartment housing can hold more than one battery; the said spring repulsion mechanism also works such that the loaded batteries are positioned correctly to make electrical contact inside the said Battery Compartment Housing especially when it is not fully loaded with batteries; and Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 - a mean to hold the said battery firmly in place within the said Battery Compartment Housing; and to make electrical contact between the said battery and the said Battery Compartment Housing.
- a container for at least one battery;
- a jamming mechanism that work such that during the loading process of the said battery; it allow the said battery to be loaded inside the said battery compartment housing but once it is loaded the said jamming mechanism holds the said battery from coming out of the said Battery Compartment Housing; the said jamming mechanism is provided with a release system to let the loaded battery ounce it is discharged to come out of the said Battery Compartment Housing;
- a spring repulsion mechanism that pushes the said battery out of the said Battery Compartment Housing with the release of the said jamming mechanism during unloading process of the said battery; if the said battery compartment housing can hold more than one battery; the said spring repulsion mechanism also works such that the loaded batteries are positioned correctly to make electrical contact inside the said Battery Compartment Housing especially when it is not fully loaded with batteries; and Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 - a mean to hold the said battery firmly in place within the said Battery Compartment Housing; and to make electrical contact between the said battery and the said Battery Compartment Housing.
17 - The Battery Compartment Housing recited in claim 16 wherein the said jamming mechanism comprising; at least one jam; and at least one jam release servomotor that drives the said jam directly or via a driving bar.
18 - The Battery Compartment Housing recited in claim 17 wherein the said jam is provided with a jam retention spring which keeps the said jam in an engaged position (jamming position).
19 - The Battery Compartment Housing recited in claim 16, 17 or 18 wherein the said spring repulsion mechanism, comprising:
- a pulling plate that push's the batteries out of the said Battery Compartment Housing;
- at least one spring attached in one side at the said pulling plate and on the other side attached to the back of the said Battery Compartment Housing;
and - wherein the said spring is compressed toward the back of the said Battery Compartment Housing when the batteries are been loaded and the said spring is elongated along the said Battery Compartment Housing toward its opening when the batteries are been unloaded.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26
- a pulling plate that push's the batteries out of the said Battery Compartment Housing;
- at least one spring attached in one side at the said pulling plate and on the other side attached to the back of the said Battery Compartment Housing;
and - wherein the said spring is compressed toward the back of the said Battery Compartment Housing when the batteries are been loaded and the said spring is elongated along the said Battery Compartment Housing toward its opening when the batteries are been unloaded.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26
20 - The Battery Compartment Housing recited in claim 16 wherein the said mean to hold each battery firmly in place within the said Battery Compartment Housing;
and to make electrical contact between each battery and the said Battery Compartment Housing, comprising:
- at least one linear actuator;
- at least one plug member that is driven by the said linear actuator into a battery passageway;
- at least one electrical bus bar; and - at least one flexible electrical cord connected between the said plug member and the said bus bar.
and to make electrical contact between each battery and the said Battery Compartment Housing, comprising:
- at least one linear actuator;
- at least one plug member that is driven by the said linear actuator into a battery passageway;
- at least one electrical bus bar; and - at least one flexible electrical cord connected between the said plug member and the said bus bar.
21 - The Battery Compartment Housing recited in claim 16 further comprising a battery loading and unloading mechanism.
22 - The Battery Compartment Housing recited in claim 21 wherein the said loading/unloading mechanism comprising of; at least one lifter; and at least one servomotor that drives the said lifter directly or via a driving bar.
23 - The Battery Compartment Housing recited in claim 22 wherein the said lifter is provided with an arm to which another servomotor is attached; the second servomotor will rotate the lifter relatively to the said arm allowing the said lifter to expand or retract during loading and unloading processes; the movements of both said servomotors are being harmonised in the processes of loading/unloading each battery into/from the said Battery Compartment Housing.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26
24 - The Battery Compartment Housing recited in claim 16 further comprising a cooling air inlet; a cooling air outlet and aeration openings in the said battery container to let air flow to cool down the interior of the said Battery Container and the batteries within.
25 - The Battery Compartment Housing recited in claim 16 further comprising a mean of wireless data communication between each of the loaded batteries and the said Battery Compartment Housing.
26 - The Battery Compartment Housing recited in claim 19 wherein the said mean to hold each battery firmly in place within the said Battery Computment Housing;
and to make electrical contact between each battery and the said Battery Compartment Housing, comprising:
- at least one linear actuator;
- at least one plug member that is driven by the said linear actuator into a battery passageway;
- at least one electrical bus bar; and - at least one flexible electrical cord connected between the said plug member and the said bus bar.
and to make electrical contact between each battery and the said Battery Compartment Housing, comprising:
- at least one linear actuator;
- at least one plug member that is driven by the said linear actuator into a battery passageway;
- at least one electrical bus bar; and - at least one flexible electrical cord connected between the said plug member and the said bus bar.
27 - The Battery Compartment Housing recited in claim 26 further comprising a loading and unloading mechanism of the batteries in and from the said Battery Compartment Housing.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26
28 - The Battery Compartment Housing recited in claim 27 wherein the said loading/unloading mechanism comprising of; at least one lifter; and at least one servomotor that drives the said lifter directly or via a driving bar.
29 - The Battery Compartment Housing recited in claim 28 wherein the said lifter is provided with an arm to which another servomotor is attached; the second servomotor will rotate the lifter relatively to the said arm allowing the said lifter to expand or retract; the movements of both said servomotors are harmonised in the process of loading/unloading each battery into/from the said Battery Compartment Housing.
30 - The Battery Compartment Housing recited in claim 29 further comprising a cooling air inlet; a cooling air outlet and aeration openings in the said Battery Compartment Housing to let air flow to cool down the interior of the said Battery Compartment Housing and the batteries within.
31 - The Battery Compartment Housing recited in claim 30 further comprising a mean of wireless data communication between each of the loaded batteries and the said Battery Compartment Housing.
32 - A Battery Swapping Station, comprising:
- a reservoir located at the underground level such that to receive and store discharged batteries; and the said discharged batteries are disposed Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 automatically from a battery system of a vehicle at the swapping station into the said reservoir through an opening on the floor;
- another reservoir such that to store charged batteries, that are ready to be loaded into vehicles;
- a battery dispensing machine comprising; a battery release mechanism that receives the charged batteries from the second reservoir and delivers them to be taken automatically one by one by the battery system of the vehicle or manually by an operator; and - a control panel of the swapping station.
- a reservoir located at the underground level such that to receive and store discharged batteries; and the said discharged batteries are disposed Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 automatically from a battery system of a vehicle at the swapping station into the said reservoir through an opening on the floor;
- another reservoir such that to store charged batteries, that are ready to be loaded into vehicles;
- a battery dispensing machine comprising; a battery release mechanism that receives the charged batteries from the second reservoir and delivers them to be taken automatically one by one by the battery system of the vehicle or manually by an operator; and - a control panel of the swapping station.
33 - The battery swapping station recited in claim 32 wherein the said battery release mechanism, comprises:
- at least one pan that carries the charged battery coming out of the said dispensing machine and deposit it into the battery system of the puked vehicle by the said pan swinging downward;
- a servomotor that drives the said pan by swinging upward and downward directly or by a driving bar; and - a retractable train that is carrying the said pan and the said servomotor; this said train is coming out of the said dispensing machine only when a vehicle is at the swapping station and ready for the battery swapping.
- at least one pan that carries the charged battery coming out of the said dispensing machine and deposit it into the battery system of the puked vehicle by the said pan swinging downward;
- a servomotor that drives the said pan by swinging upward and downward directly or by a driving bar; and - a retractable train that is carrying the said pan and the said servomotor; this said train is coming out of the said dispensing machine only when a vehicle is at the swapping station and ready for the battery swapping.
34 - A battery swapping system, comprising:
- a reservoir where several charged batteries are stored;
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 - another reservoir where discharged batteries are disposed of; and - a mechanism that pulls one or a given number of charged batteries from the said first reservoir; and electrically engage them all together in order to make electrical contact with the said battery swapping system and deliver power; and after the batteries are drained from their stored energy; the said mechanism transfers the discharged batteries to the said second reservoir, and the process repeats itself until all the batteries of the first reservoir are used; and the said mechanism is preferably provided with a mean for storing energy to be released temporarily during the swapping process in order to deliver continuous power; and this mean is preferably a supercapacitor.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26
- a reservoir where several charged batteries are stored;
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26 - another reservoir where discharged batteries are disposed of; and - a mechanism that pulls one or a given number of charged batteries from the said first reservoir; and electrically engage them all together in order to make electrical contact with the said battery swapping system and deliver power; and after the batteries are drained from their stored energy; the said mechanism transfers the discharged batteries to the said second reservoir, and the process repeats itself until all the batteries of the first reservoir are used; and the said mechanism is preferably provided with a mean for storing energy to be released temporarily during the swapping process in order to deliver continuous power; and this mean is preferably a supercapacitor.
Date Recue/Date Received 2023-12-26
Priority Applications (3)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA3240324A CA3240324A1 (en) | 2023-12-26 | 2023-12-26 | A swappable battery for ev's and other applications |
| CA3224777A CA3224777A1 (en) | 2023-12-26 | 2023-12-26 | A swappable battery and a battery swapping system for ev's and other applications |
| CA3240352A CA3240352A1 (en) | 2023-12-26 | 2023-12-26 | A battery swapping system with battery magazine for general applications |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA3224777A CA3224777A1 (en) | 2023-12-26 | 2023-12-26 | A swappable battery and a battery swapping system for ev's and other applications |
Related Child Applications (2)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA3240352A Division CA3240352A1 (en) | 2023-12-26 | 2023-12-26 | A battery swapping system with battery magazine for general applications |
| CA3240324A Division CA3240324A1 (en) | 2023-12-26 | 2023-12-26 | A swappable battery for ev's and other applications |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA3224777A1 true CA3224777A1 (en) | 2024-02-20 |
Family
ID=89981761
Family Applications (3)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA3240352A Pending CA3240352A1 (en) | 2023-12-26 | 2023-12-26 | A battery swapping system with battery magazine for general applications |
| CA3224777A Pending CA3224777A1 (en) | 2023-12-26 | 2023-12-26 | A swappable battery and a battery swapping system for ev's and other applications |
| CA3240324A Pending CA3240324A1 (en) | 2023-12-26 | 2023-12-26 | A swappable battery for ev's and other applications |
Family Applications Before (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA3240352A Pending CA3240352A1 (en) | 2023-12-26 | 2023-12-26 | A battery swapping system with battery magazine for general applications |
Family Applications After (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA3240324A Pending CA3240324A1 (en) | 2023-12-26 | 2023-12-26 | A swappable battery for ev's and other applications |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CA (3) | CA3240352A1 (en) |
-
2023
- 2023-12-26 CA CA3240352A patent/CA3240352A1/en active Pending
- 2023-12-26 CA CA3224777A patent/CA3224777A1/en active Pending
- 2023-12-26 CA CA3240324A patent/CA3240324A1/en active Pending
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| CA3240352A1 (en) | 2024-02-20 |
| CA3240324A1 (en) | 2024-02-20 |
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