JP4547895B2 - Battery pack - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a battery pack that houses a battery and is used as a power source for a battery tool or the like.

  In recent years, batteries that are the power source of battery tools have been shifting from nickel cadmium batteries that use harmful cadmium to harmless nickel metal hydride batteries for environmental protection.

  However, the nickel metal hydride battery has a drawback that heat generation during charging is larger than that of the nickel cadmium battery. Further, since the load current of the battery tool is as large as about 100 A at the time of restraint and about 10 to 20 A even at the steady load, it generates considerable heat during discharge.

  Due to heat generation during charging or discharging, the battery internal members such as separators, which are insulating members, are thermally deteriorated, shortening the charge / discharge life, or waiting time until the battery cools to a temperature at which the battery can be charged (usually around 50 ° C). There are problems such as too long.

  Therefore, for example, Patent Document 1 proposes and implements a method of cooling a storage battery in a battery pack by providing an intake hole and an exhaust hole in a battery pack case and blowing air with a cooling device such as a cooling fan built in the charger. ing.

  However, there is a problem that dust enters from the intake holes and exhaust holes provided in the case of the battery pack and accumulates in the case and the battery is not sufficiently cooled. Further, if the dust is conductive, the battery may be short-circuited and ignite. Therefore, a dustproof net is attached to the intake and exhaust holes, or a door that always closes the exhaust hole is provided as in Patent Document 1, and when inserted into the charger, the door is opened to open the exhaust hole, and the battery pack is opened from the charger. When the is removed, the exhaust hole is blocked by the door.

No. 5-37634

  Since battery tools are often used in an environment where dust and iron dust generate a lot, it is not perfect to simply install dust nets in the intake and exhaust holes of the battery pack. In addition, the method described in Patent Document 1 that closes the exhaust hole, when the battery pack is attached to a charger or battery tool, the intake hole and the exhaust hole are blocked by the battery tool or the charger and the door, so that the dust Intrusion can be prevented, but if the battery pack is left alone, there is a high risk of dust entering because the air intake holes are open. In particular, since batteries have limited energy, battery tool users often use 2 or 3 battery packs while replacing one battery tool. The current situation is that it is not possible to completely prevent the intrusion.

  The battery pack according to claim 1, which has been made to solve the above-described problem, is capable of protruding and retracting from the case, and an engaging portion that can be engaged with the battery tool at a protruding position from the case, and an operation that allows the engaging portion to appear and retract. The locking member provided with the air inlet is provided with an intake hole opening / closing part and an exhaust hole opening / closing part for opening and closing the intake hole and exhaust hole provided in the battery pack, respectively, and the operation part protrudes from the intake hole opening / closing part and the exhaust hole opening / closing part. The intake and exhaust holes are closed during the operation, and when installed in the charger, the operation part is pushed by the operation part pressing member protruding from the charger case to open the intake and exhaust holes. It is characterized by.

  According to the present invention, the locking member for locking the battery pack to the battery tool is provided with the intake hole opening / closing portion and the exhaust hole opening / closing portion for opening / closing the intake hole and the exhaust hole provided in the battery pack, respectively. Without providing a dustproof mechanism, the dustproofness is improved with an inexpensive structure.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
In the battery pack 1, a plurality of batteries 2 are connected in series by a conductive connection plate 3, and a plate-like positive electrode terminal 4, a negative electrode terminal 5, and a thermistor 6 which is a temperature detection element attached to the surface of the battery 2 are connected. A battery assembly 8 to which the thermistor terminal 7 is attached, a front case 9 for housing the battery assembly 8, and a rear case 10, are arranged on the front surface of the front case 9 at a position facing the ventilation path 11 that is a gap between the batteries 2. An intake hole 13 is provided in the upper surface of the exhaust hole 12 and the rear case 10, and a dustproof net 14 is attached to the exhaust hole 12 with a double-sided tape or the like.

  An attachment / detachment portion 20 in which a pair of guide rails 19 that engage with a pair of guide rails 16 of the battery tool 15 and a pair of guide rails 18 of the charger 17 is provided in the front case 9, and can be moved in and out of the rear case 10. And a locking member 24 provided with a locking portion 22 that can be locked with the locking claw portion 21 of the battery tool 15 at a position protruding from the rear case 10, and an operation portion 23 that can be moved in and out. A spring 25, which is an elastic body that biases the portion 23 to the protruding position, is attached to both sides. The locking member 24 is provided with an intake hole opening / closing part 26 for opening / closing the intake hole 13 and an exhaust hole opening / closing part 27 for opening / closing the exhaust hole 12.

  The charger 17 includes a substrate 28 on which a charging circuit is mounted and an upper case 30 and a lower case 31 that accommodate a cooling fan 29 that cools the battery 2 in the battery pack 1. An attachment / detachment part 32 for attaching the battery pack 1 is provided, and an air supply hole 33 is provided in the attachment part 32 at a position facing the intake hole 13 of the battery pack 1 to be attached and charged.

  When the operation part 23 is in the protruding position (when the battery pack 1 is attached to the battery tool 15 or when the battery pack 1 is not attached to the battery tool 15 or the charger 17), the intake hole opening / closing parts 26 on both sides are connected to each other. And the intake hole 13 is closed, and the exhaust hole 12 is closed by the exhaust hole opening / closing part 27 to be dust-proof.

  The operation of charging the battery pack 1 by attaching it to the charger 17 will be described. When the guide rail 19 of the battery pack 1 is engaged and inserted into the guide rail 18 of the charger 17, the operation portions 23 on both sides are pushed by the operation portion pressing members 34 protruding from the upper case 30 of the charger 17. Then, the locking member 24 moves inward, the intake hole opening / closing part 26 opens the intake hole 13 and the exhaust hole opening / closing part 27 opens the exhaust hole 12, and when further inserted, the positive electrode terminal 4 and the negative electrode terminal of the battery pack 1 are inserted. 5 and the thermistor terminal 7 are inserted and clamped into the positive terminal 35, the negative terminal 36 and the thermistor terminal 37 connected to the substrate 28 of the charger 17, respectively, and the battery pack 1 and the charger 17 are electrically connected. Then, the resistance value of the thermistor 6 is detected by the substrate 28, and the temperature of the battery 2 is calculated. When the temperature is lower than the chargeable temperature, charging is started while blowing with the cooling fan 29, and the chargeable temperature is exceeded. At that time, before charging is started, the cooling fan 29 is blown to cool the battery 2 and then charging is started. The cooling air blown from the cooling fan 29 enters the battery pack 1 from the air supply hole 33 of the charger 17 through the air intake hole 13 of the battery pack 1 as shown in FIG. 3, and passes through the ventilation path 11 and other gaps. Then, the battery 2 is cooled through the exhaust hole 12. When the battery pack 1 is attached to the charger 16, the intake hole 13 is covered with the attaching / detaching part 32 and the dustproof net 14 is attached to the exhaust hole 12, so that intrusion of dust can be prevented.

  When charging is completed and the battery pack 1 is removed from the charger 17, the operation unit 23 is detached from the operation unit pressing member 34, and the intake hole 13 and the exhaust hole 12 are closed again to be dust-proof.

The top view which shows one Embodiment of this invention battery pack. 1 is a front sectional view showing an embodiment of a battery pack of the present invention. The side sectional view showing one embodiment of the battery pack of the present invention. The side sectional view showing one embodiment of the present invention charger. The top view which shows the state before mounting | wearing this invention battery pack with a charger. The top view which shows the state which mounted | wore the charger with this invention battery pack. Front sectional drawing which shows the state which mounted | wore the charger with this invention battery pack. The side view which shows a battery tool. The rear view which shows a battery tool. The bottom view which shows a battery tool. The side view which shows the state which mounted | wore the battery tool with this invention battery pack.

Explanation of symbols

1 is a battery pack, 2 is a storage battery, 9 is a front case, 10 is a rear case, 12 is an exhaust hole, 13 is an intake hole, 15 is a battery tool, 17 is a charger, 24 is a locking member, and 26 is an intake hole opening / closing , 27 is an exhaust hole opening / closing part, 29 is a cooling fan, 33 is an air supply hole, and 34 is an operation part pressing member.

Claims (2)

A case that houses a plurality of batteries and has a common detachable part that can be attached to and detached from the charger and electrical equipment is provided with an intake hole at a position facing the blowing part of the blower built in the charger and an exhaust hole in the case A locking member provided with a locking part that can be moved in and out of the case and locked to an electrical device at a protruding position from the case, and an operating part that can be operated to move the locking part in and out, and a locking member in the protruding position In a battery pack composed of an elastic body biased toward
An intake hole opening / closing part that opens and closes the intake hole and an exhaust hole opening / closing part that opens and closes the exhaust hole are provided in the locking member, and the intake hole and the exhaust hole are opened and closed in conjunction with the operation of the operation part. Battery pack. When the operating part is in the protruding position, the intake and exhaust holes are closed, and when the operating part is attached to the charger, the operating part is pushed by the operating part pressing member protruding from the case of the charger, so that the intake hole opening and closing part and the exhaust hole are The battery pack according to claim 1, wherein the opening / closing part opens an intake hole and an exhaust hole.

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