JP2008130330A - Cooling structure of battery box and assembly method of battery box - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide cooling structure of a battery box having high space efficiency and capable of efficiently uniformly cooling a battery module. <P>SOLUTION: In the cooling structure of the battery box having the battery module formed by connecting a plurality of battery cells in series, constituted by stacking a plurality of battery modules in parallel, and forming an intake port and an exhaust port for sucking in and exhausting a coolant, an intake part and an exhaust part are installed in each battery module, an induction member for inducing the flow of the coolant into between battery modules is installed, and the induction member supplies in parallel new coolant to each battery module. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a cooling structure for a battery box and a method for assembling the battery box.

  The principle of a battery mounted on a hybrid vehicle, for example, a nickel metal hydride battery (NiMH battery), is that if the temperature can be maintained within a certain range, a sufficient life can be secured and efficient charge / discharge can be realized. Known experimental, experimental and empirical.

  To realize such temperature control, it is necessary to cool the battery, and further, a battery storage and stacking structure suitable for battery cooling is required. A hybrid vehicle and an electric vehicle are generally equipped with a plurality of batteries. However, it is necessary to suppress the temperature difference between the batteries as much as possible and make them uniform.

  When the temperature variation between the batteries is large, not only temperature management is difficult, but there is a possibility of causing adverse effects such as a decrease in charge / discharge efficiency of the battery. This is because there is a difference in internal resistance and chemical reaction between the high temperature battery and the low temperature battery, and the performance differs between the batteries.

  For example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-255859 discloses a structure in which each battery cell of a battery-type power supply device mounted on a hybrid vehicle, an electric vehicle or the like is cooled as uniformly as possible.

  The battery assembly disclosed in this publication is characterized in that a bypass duct is provided for guiding a cooling medium to a battery module arranged on the upstream side without bringing the cooling medium into contact with the battery module and contacting the battery module on the downstream side. .

Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2004-3248 discloses a power supply apparatus having a cooling structure in which an intake part and an exhaust part are provided in the upper and lower spaces of each battery module and a fresh cooling medium is supplied to all battery cells. is doing.
JP-A-10-255859 JP 200431248 A Japanese Patent No. 3557117

  In the battery assembly described in Patent Document 1, a bypass duct is provided between the battery modules stacked in a plurality of stages to guide the fresh cooling medium to the downstream battery module without bringing the cooling medium into contact with the upstream battery module. Therefore, there is a problem that space efficiency is poor, and the cooling medium for cooling the downstream battery module is a mixed medium of a fresh cooling medium and a medium for cooling the upstream battery module. There is a problem that it is difficult to cool uniformly.

  In the power supply device described in Patent Document 2, a fresh cooling medium can be supplied to all the battery cells. However, since the upper and lower spaces are required for each of the battery modules in a row, space efficiency is increased. However, there is a problem that the power supply device becomes large.

  Moreover, since the design is such that the supply and exhaust are forcibly matched, the intake and exhaust spaces are dispersed, resulting in the need for duct space before and after the battery box, leading to a reduction in space efficiency.

  In an on-board vehicle, it is necessary to set intake and exhaust locations in a limited space, and it is a problem to improve space efficiency including a duct portion. Furthermore, since the wind guide plate is formed of battery box components without being integrated with the battery module, a separate part for the wind guide plate is required, leading to high costs.

  In order to improve the cooling of the battery cells, it is necessary to make the flow path thinner in order to increase the flow rate, but it is difficult to manage the dimensions of the integrally molded product as a battery box, and the crossing dimensions vary, resulting in cooling variations. Will occur.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a cooling structure for a power supply apparatus that can supply a fresh cooling medium to all the battery cells and that has good space efficiency.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, a battery module configured by connecting a plurality of battery cells in series, a plurality of battery modules stacked in parallel, and an intake port for intake and exhaust of a cooling medium And a cooling structure for a battery box including an exhaust port, wherein the battery module includes an induction member that defines an intake portion and an exhaust portion for each of the battery modules and guides a flow of a cooling medium between the plurality of battery modules. And the said induction | guidance | derivation member is comprised so that a novel cooling medium may be supplied in parallel with respect to each battery module, The cooling structure of the battery box characterized by the above-mentioned is provided.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the guide member is configured to surround an outer periphery of each of the battery modules, and each of the intake portions opens to the intake port side of the battery box. The exhaust portions are opened to the exhaust port side of the battery box, and the collecting portions of the air intake portions and the exhaust portions of the battery modules are arranged other than between the battery modules arranged in a plurality of stages. A battery box cooling structure is provided.

  According to a third aspect of the invention, in the first or second aspect of the invention, the guide member is composed of a plurality of air guide plates that cover a set of two battery modules with a predetermined interval. A cooling structure for a battery box is provided, wherein the air intake portion and the exhaust portion are configured by a wind plate.

  According to a fourth aspect of the invention, in the third aspect of the invention, each of the air guide plates has a plurality of annular partitions that are spaced apart in the axial direction of each of the battery modules and abut against the outer periphery of the battery module. A cooling structure for a battery box is provided.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the invention according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, an opening area of the air intake portion for the battery module disposed on the air intake side of the battery box is the battery. There is provided a cooling structure for a battery box, which is smaller than an opening area of the air intake portion for the battery module disposed on the exhaust port side of the box.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a battery box cooling structure according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, wherein the plurality of battery modules are arranged in a staggered manner.

  According to the invention of claim 7, a battery pack is manufactured by covering the periphery of a battery module formed by connecting a plurality of battery cells in series with a wind guide plate having an intake port and an exhaust port with a predetermined interval, There is provided a battery box assembling method, wherein a plurality of the battery packs are arranged in parallel in the battery box by partially contacting the air guide plates of the adjacent battery packs.

  According to an eighth aspect of the invention, there is provided a battery box assembling method according to the seventh aspect of the invention, further comprising the step of stacking the battery pack in a plurality of stages.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, since a fresh cooling medium can be supplied in parallel to all the battery modules, the cooling efficiency can be improved and all the battery modules can be cooled uniformly.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, since the collecting portions of the intake and exhaust portions of each battery module are arranged other than between the battery modules arranged in a plurality of stages, the space efficiency can be improved.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, the induction member is formed of a plurality of wind guide plates that cover the periphery of a set of two battery modules at a predetermined interval, and the battery module and the wind guide plate are integrated into a battery pack. Therefore, it is easy to manage the dimensions of the flow path of the cooling medium, and the temperature variation of each battery cell can be reduced.

  In addition, since the battery pack is used, the number of assembling steps can be reduced, and the insulation of the battery pack alone can be ensured, so that the insulation tube that is conventionally required for the battery module can be eliminated.

  According to the invention of claim 4, since the passage of the cooling medium supplied to each battery module is divided in the axial direction by the plurality of annular partition walls, the fresh cooling medium can be uniformly supplied to all the battery cells. It is possible to reduce the temperature variation of the battery cells.

  According to the invention described in claim 5, since the opening area of the intake portion is made larger on the downstream side than on the upstream side, a fresh cooling medium can be uniformly supplied to all the battery modules, and the temperature variation of the battery cells is reduced. be able to.

  According to the sixth aspect of the invention, since the plurality of battery modules are arranged in a staggered manner, the space efficiency can be improved.

  According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, the battery module is assembled by integrating the battery module and the air guide plate into a battery pack, and a plurality of the battery packs are arranged in parallel in the battery box, so that the assembly efficiency is remarkably improved. be able to.

  According to the eighth aspect of the invention, since the battery pack is provided with a step of stacking a plurality of battery packs in the vertical direction, a high-power power supply device can be efficiently assembled.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail based on embodiments shown in the drawings. Referring to FIG. 1, a perspective view of the battery assembly 2 is shown. In the battery assembly 2, two battery modules 4 are arranged in parallel and connected in series by connection conductors 10.

  Each battery module 4 has six cylindrical battery cells 6. The battery cells 6 are composed of, for example, NiMH batteries, and are mechanically coupled to each other and electrically connected in series.

  Rubber rings 8 are fitted into the connecting portions of the battery cells 6 and both ends of the battery module 4. The rubber ring 8 has a function of suppressing vibration transmitted to each battery cell 6. The surface of each battery module 4 is covered with an insulating tube.

  FIG. 2 shows an exploded perspective view of the air guide plate (induction member) 14 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The air guide plate 14 is formed, for example, by resin molding, and has a central air guide plate 16 having a substantially S-shaped cross section and a pair of end-part air guides having a semicircular cross section that is hinged to the central air guide plate 16. It consists of plates 18 and 22.

  Since the battery assembly 2 has two battery modules 4 connected in series, the polarities of the terminals 12a and 12b protruding from the left end of each battery module 4 are different. The end wind guide plate 18 is pivotally connected to the central wind guide plate 16 by a hinge 20, and the end wind guide plate 22 is pivotally connected to the central wind guide plate 16 by a hinge 24.

  The central air guide plate 16 having an S-shaped cross section is obtained by connecting one of the two air guide plates 16a and 16b having a semicircular cross section to the other by inverting 180 degrees. In FIG. 2, the outer surface of the air guide plate 16a and the end air guide plate 18 is visible, and the inner surface of the air guide plate 16b and the end air guide plate 22 is visible.

  A terminal holder 26 having two holes 26 a and 26 b is integrally formed at one end (left end) of the central air guide plate 16. A cover 28 that covers the connection conductor 10 of the battery assembly 2 is formed integrally with the other end (right end) of the central air guide plate 16.

  A plurality of engagement projections 21 are integrally formed on the end portion wind guide plate 18, and a plurality of engagement projections 25 are also integrally formed on the end portion wind guide plate 22. The engagement protrusions 21 and 25 are engaged with engagement holes (not shown) formed in the central air guide plate 16 to form two cylindrical shapes.

  A plurality of annular ribs (annular partition walls) 30 are formed on the air guide plates 16b and 22 whose inner surfaces are visible. These annular ribs 30 abut against the outer periphery of each battery module 4 when the battery assembly 2 shown in FIG. 1 is accommodated in the air guide plate 14, and separate the passage of the cooling medium described later in the axial direction. . Similar annular ribs are also formed on the inner surfaces of the air guide plates 16a and 18 where the outer surface is visible.

  The battery assembly 2 shown in FIG. 1 is housed in the air guide plate 14 shown in FIG. 2, and the engagement protrusions 21 and 25 are engaged with engagement holes (not shown) formed in the central air guide plate 16. 14 is assembled, the battery pack 32 shown in FIG. 3 is obtained.

  Referring to FIG. 4, an exploded perspective view of the battery-type power supply device 34 according to the first embodiment of the present invention is shown. A plurality of battery packs 32 are housed in a battery box (housing) 36 so as to be stacked.

  In this embodiment, the battery packs 32 are arranged in three rows in the horizontal direction, and the battery packs 32 are stacked in three rows in each row. A terminal plate 38 is formed of an insulating member having a plurality of holes 40, and a bus bar is inserted into the holes 40 of the terminal plate 38 and connected to the terminals 12 a and 12 b of the battery pack 32.

  Reference numeral 42 denotes an upper guide plate that guides the cooling medium, and is attached to a pressing member 46 that extends in the lateral direction via a member 48. By fixing the pressing member 46 to the support bracket 50, the upper end portion of the battery packs 32 stacked in three stages is pressed by the pressing member 46, and the guide plate 42 is disposed at a predetermined position for guiding the cooling medium. A lower guide plate 44 guides the cooling medium.

  FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the central row in FIG. 4, but the structure of the air guide plate is different from that of the air guide plate 14 shown in FIG. That is, in FIG. 5, the cooling medium is guided to each battery module 4 in parallel by combining the inverted S-shaped air guide plate 14a and the S-shaped air guide plate 14b. Here, the cooling medium is generally air.

  FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view when the battery packs 32 corresponding to the embodiment shown in FIG. 4 are stacked in three stages. Reference numeral 36 ′ denotes a battery box (housing) having an intake port 52 and an exhaust port 54. A fan 57 is disposed on the downstream side of the exhaust port 54. By sucking air as a cooling medium by the fan 57, an air flow in the direction indicated by arrows 53 and 55 is generated, and each battery module 4 is forced. Air-cool.

  The air guide plate 14 of each battery pack 32 has two intake portions (intake ports) 56 and two exhaust portions (exhaust ports) 58 that are offset from each other. According to the present embodiment, the air guide plate 14 can supply fresh air to each battery module 4 in parallel.

  That is, the air sucked from one intake part 56 of the air guide plate 14 creates an air flow around one battery module 4, and heat-exchanges with the battery module 4 to cool it and then exhausts it from the exhaust part 58. Further, the air is exhausted from the exhaust port 54 of the battery box 36 '.

  All the battery modules 4 are supplied with fresh air supplied from the air inlet 52 of the battery box 36 ′, and after exchanging heat with each battery module 4, the battery box 36 ′ is not supplied to the other battery modules 4. The air is exhausted from the exhaust port 54. Thereby, each battery module 4 can be cooled efficiently.

  Furthermore, in the present embodiment, in consideration of airflow loss due to resistance or the like, the opening area of the air intake portion 56 of the battery pack 32 close to the exhaust port 54 is set to the opening of the air intake portion 56 of the battery pack 32 close to the air intake port 52. It is larger than the area. Thereby, each battery module 4 can be cooled uniformly without temperature unevenness.

  The air guide plate 14 of the battery pack 32 covers the battery module 4 with a predetermined gap. This predetermined gap is preferably about 1 mm to about 2 mm, more preferably about 1.5 mm.

  In the present embodiment, the battery modules 4 are arranged in a staggered manner. Thereby, space efficiency can be improved, ensuring cooling performance. A plurality of stages of collecting portions of the intake portions 56 of each battery module 4 (space on the right side in the battery box 36 'in the drawing) and collecting portions of the exhaust portions 58 (space on the left side in the battery box 36' in the drawing) are arranged. They are not arranged between the battery modules 4.

  Referring to FIG. 7, an enlarged sectional view taken along line 7-7 of FIG. 6 is shown. An annular rib (annular partition wall) 30 formed integrally with the air guide plate 14 so as to be spaced apart in the axial direction of the battery module 4 is in contact with the outer periphery of the battery module 4.

  Therefore, since the airflow can be separated in the axial direction of the battery module 4 by the annular rib 30, the airflow can be uniformly applied to each battery cell 6, and each battery cell 6 can be cooled uniformly.

  Referring to FIG. 8, a perspective view of a battery type power supply device 60 according to the second embodiment of the present invention is shown. This embodiment is an embodiment in which the battery modules 4 are arranged in two stages vertically. That is, the battery pack 32 is arranged in the battery box (housing) 62 in parallel in the horizontal direction.

  Reference numeral 64 denotes a terminal plate, and the terminals of each battery module 4 are exposed from holes formed in the terminal plate 64. Air as a cooling medium is sucked from above and exhausted from the exhaust port 66. Also in this embodiment, a suction fan (not shown) is provided in the vicinity of the exhaust port 66.

  FIG. 9 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the embodiment of FIG. Also in the present embodiment, the induction plate 14 supplies fresh air in parallel to the battery modules 4. Therefore, each battery module 4 can be cooled efficiently and uniformly.

  Referring to FIG. 10, there is shown a schematic diagram of the power supply device 68 when the battery modules 4 are arranged in four stages. That is, a plurality of rows of battery packs 32 are arranged above and below the central air supply path 72.

  The air supplied to the air supply path 72 as indicated by the arrow 70 is supplied to the upper and lower battery packs 32, respectively, and after cooling each battery module 4, the air supply device 68 is viewed from the upper and lower sides as indicated by arrows 73 and 75, respectively. Discharged.

  Also in this embodiment, since fresh air can be supplied in parallel to each battery module 4 by the air guide plate 14, each battery module 4 can be efficiently cooled.

  Also in the present embodiment, the opening area of the air intake portion of the battery pack 32 disposed on the side close to the exhaust port is formed larger than the opening area of the air intake portion of the battery pack 32 disposed on the side close to the air intake port. Therefore, air can be supplied uniformly to each battery module 4, and this can be cooled uniformly.

  Next, a method for assembling the power supply device using the battery pack 32 described above will be described with reference to FIG. First, as shown in FIG. 11A, a wind guide plate having an intake port (intake unit) 56 and an exhaust port (exhaust unit) 58 around a battery module 4 formed by connecting a plurality of battery cells 6 in series. 14 to cover the battery pack 32 with a predetermined gap.

  As shown in FIG. 11B, the battery pack 32 is partially brought into contact with the air guide plate 14 of the adjacent battery pack 32 in a battery box (housing) 76 having an air inlet 78 and an air outlet 80. The battery-type power supply device 74 can be easily assembled by arranging a plurality in parallel in the lateral direction. Furthermore, by stacking a plurality of battery packs 32 in the vertical direction, it is possible to easily assemble a power supply device with higher power.

  Referring to FIG. 12A, a cross-sectional view of the battery pack 82 of the second embodiment of the present invention is shown. The battery pack 82 is configured by storing the battery modules 4 in two cylindrical air guide plates 84 arranged in parallel and connected by ribs 86.

  A battery-type power supply device using the battery pack 82 of this embodiment and an assembling method thereof will be described with reference to FIG. First, as shown in FIG. 12A, a wind guide plate having an intake port (intake unit) 88 and an exhaust port (exhaust unit) 90 around a battery module 4 formed by connecting a plurality of battery cells 6 in series. A battery pack 82 is manufactured by covering with a predetermined gap at 84.

  As shown in FIG. 12B, a plurality of battery packs 82 manufactured in this manner are first arranged in parallel in a lateral direction in a battery box (housing) 76 having an intake port 78 and an exhaust port 80.

  Next, another battery pack 82 is mounted with a predetermined shift so that the air guide plate 84 exactly overlaps the first-stage battery pack 82. Thus, the battery-type power supply device 94 can be easily assembled by arranging the battery packs 82 in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction.

  FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining a power supply device and its assembling method when the battery pack 96 has one battery module 4. First, as shown in FIG. 13A, the battery module 96 is manufactured by covering the periphery of the battery module 4 with a wind guide plate 84 having an intake portion 88 and an exhaust portion 90 with a predetermined gap.

  As shown in FIG. 13B, a plurality of the battery packs 96 are arranged in the battery box (housing) 76 in the horizontal direction, and the wind guide plates 84 of the battery packs 96 are overlapped in the horizontal direction. The battery type power supply device 98 can be easily assembled by stacking the other battery packs 96 with a slight shift.

  Referring to FIG. 14, there is shown a schematic cross-sectional view of an embodiment in which battery modules 4 are arranged in a grid pattern. In the present embodiment, air, which is a cooling medium, is guided to each battery module 4 using the substantially inverted S-shaped air guide plate 14a and the S-shaped air guide plate 14b similar to those shown in FIG. .

  As described above, even when the battery modules 4 are arranged in a grid pattern, a fresh cooling medium can be supplied in parallel to each battery module 4 to improve cooling efficiency and achieve uniform cooling. be able to.

It is an external appearance perspective view of a battery assembly. It is a development perspective view of a baffle plate. 1 is an external perspective view of a battery pack according to a first embodiment. It is a disassembled perspective view of the battery-type power supply device concerning 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing of the 1 part modification of the implementation shown in FIG. It is typical sectional drawing which changed the one part for demonstrating the effect | action of embodiment shown in FIG. FIG. 7 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line 7-7 in FIG. 6. It is an external appearance perspective view of the battery-type power supply device of 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is typical sectional drawing for demonstrating the effect | action of embodiment shown in FIG. It is typical sectional drawing of 3rd Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure explaining the assembly method of the power supply device which uses the battery pack of 1st Embodiment. It is a figure explaining the assembly method of the power supply device which uses the battery pack of 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure explaining the assembly method of the power supply device which uses the battery pack of 3rd Embodiment. It is a schematic sectional drawing of embodiment which arranged the battery module in the grid | lattice form.

Explanation of symbols

2 Battery assembly 4 Battery module 6 Battery cell 14 Air guide plate (induction member)
16 Central air guide plates 18 and 22 End air guide plates 20 and 24 Hinge 30 Annular rib (annular partition)
32 Battery pack 34 Battery type power supply 36, 36 'Battery box (housing)
42 Upper guide 44 Lower guide 52 Air inlet 54 Air outlet 56 Air inlet 58 Air exhaust part 82 Battery pack 84 Air guide plate 96 Battery pack

Claims (8)

Battery module configured by connecting a plurality of battery cells in series, and cooling of a battery box including a stack of the battery modules stacked in parallel with each other and an intake port and an exhaust port for intake and exhaust of a cooling medium Structure,
An air intake part and an exhaust part are defined for each of the battery modules, and an induction member for inducing a flow of a cooling medium between the battery modules is provided.
The cooling structure for a battery box, wherein the induction member is configured to supply a novel cooling medium in parallel to each battery module. The induction member is configured to surround an outer periphery of each battery module,
Each of the intake portions opens to the intake port side of the battery box,
Each exhaust part opens on the exhaust port side of the battery box,
The battery box cooling structure according to claim 1, wherein the intake portions and the exhaust portions of each of the battery modules are arranged at locations other than between the battery modules arranged in a plurality of stages.   The induction member is composed of a plurality of air guide plates that cover a set of two battery modules with a predetermined interval, and each of the air guide plates constitutes the intake portion and the exhaust portion. The cooling structure of the battery box of 1 or 2.   4. The cooling structure for a battery box according to claim 3, wherein each of the air guide plates has a plurality of annular partition walls that are spaced apart in the axial direction of each of the battery modules and abut on the outer periphery of the battery module. .   The opening area of the air intake part for the battery module arranged on the air inlet side of the battery box is smaller than the opening area of the air intake part for the battery module arranged on the exhaust port side of the battery box. The battery box cooling structure according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the battery box cooling structure is provided.   The battery box cooling structure according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of battery modules are arranged in a staggered manner. A battery pack is manufactured by covering the periphery of a battery module formed by connecting a plurality of battery cells in series with a wind guide plate having an intake port and an exhaust port at a predetermined interval,
A battery box assembling method, wherein a plurality of the battery packs are arranged in parallel in the battery box by partially contacting the air guide plates of adjacent battery packs.   The battery box assembling method according to claim 7, further comprising a step of stacking the battery packs in a plurality of stages.