KR20060059453A - Secondary battery module - Google Patents

Abstract

The battery module according to the present invention includes a unit battery assembly formed by arranging a plurality of unit cells at regular intervals, a housing in which the unit battery assembly is built, and air for circulating air for controlling the temperature of each unit battery, and in the housing. And a diffuser configured to disperse different amounts of air between the unit cells according to positions of the unit cells.

Battery module, unit cell, unit cell assembly, housing, inlet, outlet, diffuser, nozzle hole, size, cross-sectional area

Description

Battery module {SECONDARY BATTERY MODULE}

1 is a perspective view illustrating an appearance of a battery module according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a side cross-sectional view schematically showing the configuration of a battery module according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a plan view illustrating the diffuser shown in FIG. 2.

4 is a plan view schematically illustrating a unit battery assembly configuration of a battery module according to a second exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

5 is a plan view illustrating a diffuser of a battery module according to a second exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

The present invention relates to a secondary battery, and more particularly, to a cooling structure of a battery module configured by connecting a plurality of unit cells.

In general, a secondary battery is a battery that can be charged and discharged unlike a primary battery that cannot be charged. In the case of a low capacity battery, a secondary battery is used in portable electronic devices such as a phone, a notebook computer, and a camcorder. It is widely used as a power source for driving motors of hybrid vehicles.

The secondary battery may be manufactured in various shapes, and typical shapes include cylindrical and rectangular shapes. The secondary battery may include the high output secondary battery so that the secondary battery may be used for driving a motor such as an electric vehicle. A plurality of secondary batteries are connected in series to form a large capacity secondary battery.

As described above, one high capacity secondary battery (hereinafter, referred to as a battery module for convenience of description throughout) is made of a plurality of secondary batteries (hereinafter, referred to as unit cells for convenience of description throughout the specification) connected in series. Each unit cell includes an electrode assembly having a positive electrode plate and a negative electrode plate interposed therebetween, a case having a space portion in which the electrode assembly is embedded, a cap assembly coupled to the case and sealing the protrusion, and protruding from the cap assembly. And positive and negative terminals electrically connected to the positive and negative current collectors provided in the electrode assembly.

In the case of the rectangular battery, each of the unit cells cross-aligns each of the unit cells such that the positive electrode terminal and the negative electrode terminal protruding from the top of the cap assembly alternate with the positive electrode terminal and the negative electrode terminal of the neighboring unit cell, and the threaded negative electrode terminal The battery module is constructed by connecting and installing a conductor between the anode terminals via a nut.

In this case, the battery module is configured to connect one to many dozens of unit cells to form one battery module, so that the heat generated from each unit battery can be easily discharged, and moreover, it can be applied to a hybrid electric vehicle (HEV). In the case of secondary batteries, heat dissipation is of paramount importance.

When heat is not released properly, for example, the heat generated from each unit cell causes an increase in the temperature of the battery module, resulting in a malfunction of the device to which the battery module is applied.

In particular, in the case of HEV battery modules used for vehicles, since they are charged and discharged with a large current, heat is generated by internal reactions of the secondary batteries according to the use conditions, and thus they rise to a considerable temperature. Will degrade the performance.

In addition, the internal pressure of the battery is increased due to the chemical reaction inside the battery, and thus the shape of the battery is changed, thereby adversely affecting the unique characteristics of the battery. In particular, when the ratio of width and length is large, such as a rectangular secondary battery, the risk is further increased.

Accordingly, in the case of configuring a battery module including a plurality of secondary batteries, in particular, a rectangular secondary battery, a battery partition wall is installed between the unit battery and the unit battery to secure a space for cooling air distribution between the unit cells. The unit cells are housed in a housing, and cooling air for controlling the temperature of the unit cell is provided inside the housing to distribute the cooling air through the battery partition wall, thereby cooling heat generated in each unit cell.

However, in the conventional cooling method, the flow rate of the cooling air circulated to the battery partition walls between the unit cells is not constant, thereby causing a temperature deviation between the unit cells. Accordingly, the conventional battery module has a problem in that the heat generated from each unit cell is not evenly radiated, resulting in a decrease in charge and discharge efficiency.

Accordingly, the present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and an object thereof is to provide a battery module having a structure capable of smoothly distributing a constant flow rate of air among a plurality of unit cells.

In order to achieve the above object, the battery module according to the present invention comprises a unit battery assembly formed by arranging a plurality of unit cells at regular intervals, and air for embedding the unit battery assembly and controlling the temperature of each unit battery. And a diffuser installed in the housing for distributing and dispersing different amounts of air between the unit cells according to the positions of the unit cells.

In the battery module according to the present invention, the unit battery assembly includes battery partition walls that separate these unit cells between the unit cells, and forms a flow passage through which the temperature control air passes.

In the battery module according to the present invention, the housing includes an inlet for introducing the temperature control air into the unit cell assembly, and an outlet for discharging air passing through the unit cells, and the temperature control air. The inflow direction and the outflow direction of are mutually the same structure.

In the battery module according to the present invention, the inlet is formed in such a way that the flow area of the air gradually expands with respect to the unit cell assembly. In this case, the inflow portion has a structure in which the flow velocity of the air gradually decreases from the inflow center toward the outside.

In addition, in the battery module according to the present invention, the diffuser is provided with an air dispersion plate installed in the inlet portion to have a plurality of nozzle holes for passing the air introduced through the inlet portion to the unit cell assembly, The nozzle holes have a structure that gradually increases in size toward the outside from the direction of the inflow center of the air. That is, the nozzle holes have a structure that gradually increases in size from the central portion of the unit cell assembly to the outside. Therefore, the battery module according to the present invention may provide air for temperature control at a constant flow rate between the unit cells.

The battery module according to the present invention preferably has a structure in which each unit battery has a rectangular shape, and the air dispersion plate is formed in a quadrangle.

On the other hand, the battery module according to the present invention has a structure in which each of the unit cells has a cylindrical shape. In this case, the unit cell assembly may include a circular package unit for packaging the unit cells. The diffuser may include a plurality of nozzle holes through which the air flowing through the inlet flows, and installed in the inlet to approach the unit cell assembly, and include an air dispersion plate formed in a circle corresponding to the package portion. Can be. In addition, the nozzle holes have a form in which the size of the nozzle holes increases gradually from the center of the unit cell assembly to the outside.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings so that those skilled in the art may easily implement the present invention. As those skilled in the art would realize, the described embodiments may be modified in various different ways, all without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention.

1 is a perspective view showing the appearance of a battery module according to a first embodiment of the present invention, Figure 2 is a side cross-sectional view schematically showing the configuration of the battery module according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to the battery module 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention with reference to the drawings, the battery module 100 is a large-capacity battery module, a plurality of unit cells 11 continuously spaced apart at regular intervals It includes.

Each of the unit cells 11 includes an electrode assembly having a positive electrode plate and a negative electrode plate disposed on both sides thereof with a separator interposed therebetween, and may be configured as a secondary battery having a conventional structure for charging and discharging a predetermined amount of power. have.

In the present embodiment, each of the unit cells 11 has an external shape in the form of a substantially rectangular shape (a wide width rectangle having a pair of long sides and a pair of short sides).

The battery partition walls 15 are provided between the unit cells 11 and the outermost unit cells 11 to keep the intervals of these unit cells constant and to support the side surfaces of the unit cells 11. have.

In each of the cell partitions 15, a flow passage 17 is formed between the unit cells 11 for distributing temperature control air, that is, cooling air at a relatively low temperature for controlling the temperature of the unit cells 11. Doing. In this case, each of the flow paths 17 preferably has a shape of at least one through hole formed in a height direction of the unit cell 11 with respect to the battery partition wall 15 while having a constant cross-sectional area.

Therefore, in the battery module 100 according to the present embodiment, a plurality of unit cells 11 are continuously arranged at regular intervals by the battery partition wall 15 so that the overall shape is made into a hexahedral form, and these unit cells 11 The unit cell assembly 13 of the structure which can distribute the air for temperature control to the flow path 17 between ()) can be formed.

The battery module 100 is provided with a housing 30 in which the unit battery 11 and the battery partition wall 15 are arranged and mounted, and the housing 30 includes the unit battery assembly 13 described above. In addition to the mounting, it functions as a so-called cooling device that cools the heat generated in each unit cell 11 by flowing air for temperature control in the flow path 17 between the unit cells 11.

The housing 30 has a mounting portion 32 for embedding the unit cell assembly 13 having the structure as mentioned above, and for circulating air for temperature control through a flow path 17 between the unit cells 11. A flow-out means is provided.

The mounting portion 32 accommodates the unit cell assembly 13 and forms an accommodating space for fixing the unit cell assembly 13, the appearance of which is corresponding to the overall appearance of the unit cell assembly 13. have.

In addition, the inflow and outflow means is configured to introduce the temperature control air into the mounting portion 32 and to discharge the air passing through each unit cell 11 to the outside of the mounting portion 32.

The inflow and outflow means is installed on the upper end of the mounting portion 32 is installed on the opposite side of the inlet portion 34 for introducing the temperature control air into the mounting portion 32 and the inlet portion 34 of the mounting portion 32 And an outlet part 35 for discharging air that has passed through each unit cell 11 in the mounting part 32 to the outside of the housing 30.

The inlet 34 forms an inlet 34a for introducing the temperature control air supplied from the coolant supply unit 38 in a direction parallel to the longitudinal direction of the channel 17. At this time, the inlet 34 has a form in which the flow area of the air gradually expands from the inlet 34a to the mounting portion 32. That is, the inlet part 34 has a duct shape in which the cross-sectional area gradually increases from the inlet part 34a toward the unit cell assembly 13. Accordingly, the air flowing through the inlet 34a gradually decreases toward the outside from the inlet center of the air. In other words, the inflow portion 34 has a structure in which the flow rate of air flowing into the flow path 17 between the unit cells 11 gradually decreases from the center portion of the unit cell assembly 13 to the outside.

In addition, the outlet part 35 carries air passing through the flow path 17 between the unit cells 11 in the mounting part 32 in a direction parallel to the longitudinal direction of the flow path 17, that is, the inlet 34a. An outlet 35a for discharging in the same direction as the inflow direction of the air flowing through the air is formed.

According to the battery module 100 according to the present invention configured as described above, as mentioned, the cross-sectional area of the flow path 17 is constant and the flow rate of air flowing through the inlet (34a) unit cell assembly 13 Since the structure gradually decreases from the center of the unit toward the outside, the flow path 17 between the unit cells 11 passes from the center of the unit cell assembly 13 toward the outside according to the hydrodynamic continuous equation. The amount of air gradually decreases. Therefore, since the amount of air passing through the flow path 17 between the unit cells 11 with respect to the unit cell assembly 13 is not constant, a uniform temperature distribution is applied to the entire area of the unit cell assembly 13. This results in a failure to maintain.

Thus, the battery module 100 of the present invention is installed in the housing 30 to disperse different amounts of air according to the position of each unit cell 11 to the flow path 17 between each unit cell 11. A diffuser 40 is provided.

The diffuser 40 distributes / distributes the air for temperature control introduced through the inlet 34a, and ultimately provides air induction means for providing a constant amount of air to the channel 17 between the unit cells 11. It will function as.

The diffuser 40 according to the present embodiment is formed in a rectangular plate shape corresponding to the overall appearance of the unit cell assembly 13, and is disposed so as to be close to the unit cell assembly 13 in the housing 30. It is provided with an air dispersion plate 41 fixedly or integrally fixed to the inlet portion 34 of the (30).

The air dispersion plate 41 includes a plurality of nozzle holes 43 for passing air introduced through the inlet 34a. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, the nozzle holes 43 ) The size increases gradually toward the outside in the portion corresponding to the direction of the inlet center of air. At this time, each nozzle hole 43 may be formed in a circular or elliptical or other polygonal shape, preferably as shown in the shape of a circular shape.

In detail, the air dispersion plate 41 is disposed in a shape of blocking the air flowing through the inlet 34a, and the nozzle holes 43 are sized toward the outside from the center of the unit cell assembly 13. Takes the form of gradually increasing. That is, as shown in FIG. 2, in the state where the battery partition walls 15 are arranged between the unit cells 11 and the unit battery assembly 13 is configured, the battery partition wall placed on the outermost side of the unit battery assembly 13. The size of the nozzle hole 43 increases from the nozzle hole 43 corresponding to the channel 17 of the channel 15 toward the nozzle hole 43 corresponding to the channel 17 of the central battery partition wall 15. It can be seen that gradually decreases. Here, the nozzle holes 43 are formed in a plurality of positions corresponding to each of the flow passages 17, and are preferably arranged continuously or irregularly at regular intervals. Alternatively, the nozzle holes 43 may be disposed at positions corresponding to the flow passages 17, respectively. It may be formed as a single hole. In addition, the size difference between the nozzle holes 43 from the outermost side of the air dispersion plate 41 toward the center portion is determined so that the flow rate of air passing through each nozzle hole 43 is constant, considering the continuous equation of hydrodynamics. It only has a cross-sectional area inversely proportional to different flow rates of air passing through the nozzle hole 43, and is not particularly limited to any particular value.

As described above, in the present invention, the nozzle hole 43 is made to have a different size. 34, the cross-sectional area of the nozzle hole 43 corresponding to the central portion of the unit cell assembly 13 is reduced, and the size of the nozzle hole 43 is made larger toward the outside of the unit cell assembly 13. This is to allow a constant amount of air to pass through each nozzle hole 43 by a continuous equation of fluid dynamics by having a cross-sectional area inversely proportional to the flow rate of air passing through each nozzle hole 43.

On the other hand, in the present invention, the refrigerant supply unit 38 for supplying the temperature control air into the interior of the housing 30 is installed in the inlet (34a) of the housing 30 to suck the air at a predetermined rotational force, the air A fan (not shown) of conventional construction that ejects through the inlet 34a into the interior of the housing 30. As an alternative, the coolant supply 38 is not limited to having a fan as above, but may also include a pump or blower, which is typically capable of blowing air.

According to the battery module 100 of the present invention configured as described above, the temperature control air is inside the housing 30 along the height direction of each unit cell 11 through the inlet port 34a by the refrigerant supply unit 38 Will flow into. At this time, the temperature control air has a form of a duct in which the inlet portion 34 gradually increases in cross section toward the unit cell assembly 13 from the inlet port 34a. The flow rate of the air gradually decreases from the central portion of (13) to the outside.

In the meantime, air having a different flow velocity with respect to the entire region of the unit cell assembly 13 is passed through the nozzle hole 43 of the air dispersion plate 41 corresponding to the inflow direction, and flows to the distribution path 17. do. At this time, the air has a structure in which the nozzle holes 43 of the air dispersion plate 41 gradually increase in size from the center portion of the unit cell assembly 13 to the outside, and thus, the unit cell assembly 13 as described above. The flow velocity of the air passing through each nozzle hole 43 gradually decreases from the center of the center to the outside, and the nozzle holes 43 have a cross-sectional area inversely proportional to the flow rate. As a result, a predetermined amount of air can be passed through each nozzle hole 43.

Therefore, it is possible to allow air of a constant flow rate to pass through the flow paths 17 between the unit cells 11 corresponding to the nozzle holes 43. In this process, heat generated in each unit cell 11 is exchanged by the air, and the heat-exchanged air exits the flow path 17 and is discharged through the outlet 35a.

As a result, in the present embodiment, the air having a constant flow rate flows through the flow paths 17 between the unit cells 11 as described above, and thus the heat generated from each unit cell 11 can be lowered to an even temperature distribution. As a result, an appropriate temperature is maintained for the entire area of the unit cell assembly 13.

4 is a plan view schematically illustrating a unit battery assembly configuration of a battery module according to a second exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to the drawings, in the battery module 200 according to the present embodiment, each unit cell 21 is formed in a cylindrical shape, and the air for temperature control of a constant flow rate is flowed through the channel 27 between each unit cell 21. It is made to flow.

Therefore, the unit cells 21 may form the unit cell assembly 23 according to the present embodiment, in which the overall shape is formed in a circular shape by being continuously arranged at regular intervals by the package part 24 which will be described later. have.

The package part 24 includes a circular case for integrally packaging the unit cells 21, and is formed of a material having insulation and relatively good thermal conductivity. At this time, the package portion 24 forms insertion holes 24a for inserting the respective unit cells 21 to substantially fix the unit cells 21. The flow passage 27 for circulating air for temperature control is formed between the unit cells 21.

In the present embodiment, it is provided with a cylindrical housing 50 for embedding the above-described unit cell assembly 23 and for distributing the temperature control air in the flow path 27 between each unit cell 21, The configuration of the housing 50 is substantially the same as that of the housing of the above embodiment, so detailed description thereof will be omitted.

5 is a plan view illustrating a diffuser of a battery module according to a second exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

4 and 5, the battery module 200 having the structure as described above is provided with a diffuser 60 for providing a constant flow of air to the flow path 27 between the unit cells 21. do.

According to the present embodiment, the diffuser 60 includes an air dispersion plate 61 formed in a circular plate shape corresponding to the overall appearance of the unit cell assembly 23. The air dispersion plate 61 includes a plurality of nozzle holes 63 for passing air introduced into the housing 50 toward the unit cell assembly 23, and the nozzle holes 63 are unit cells. The cross section is gradually increased from the central portion of the aggregate 23 toward the outside.

Therefore, the battery module 200 according to the present invention has a cross-sectional area of the nozzle holes 63 when the flow rate of air introduced into the housing 50 decreases gradually toward the outside from the center of the unit cell assembly 23. Since the unit cell assembly 23 has a structure that gradually increases from the central portion of the unit cell assembly 23 to the outside, a constant amount of air can be provided to the flow passage 27 between the unit cells 21 through the nozzle holes 63. It becomes possible. As a result, according to the present invention, heat generated in each unit cell 21 can be lowered to an even temperature distribution, and accordingly, an appropriate temperature can be maintained for the entire area of the unit cell assembly 23.

Since the operation of the battery module 200 according to the present embodiment is substantially the same as the operation of the above embodiment, a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited thereto, and various modifications and changes can be made within the scope of the claims and the detailed description of the invention and the accompanying drawings. Naturally, it belongs to

Thus, according to the present invention, by improving the flow structure of the cooling air to smoothly distribute the air of a constant flow rate to the flow path between the plurality of unit cells, it is possible to achieve an even temperature distribution over the entire area of the unit cell assembly. . Therefore, there is an effect of maximizing the cooling efficiency of the entire unit cell and thereby further improving the charging and discharging efficiency of the battery module.

Claims (13)

A unit cell assembly formed by arranging a plurality of unit cells at regular intervals; A housing in which the unit battery assembly is incorporated and air is passed for controlling the temperature of each unit battery; And A diffuser installed in the housing to disperse different amounts of air between the unit cells according to the positions of the unit cells; Battery module comprising a. The method of claim 1, And the unit cell assembly includes a battery partition wall that separates the unit cells between the unit cells, and forms a flow path through which the temperature control air passes. The method of claim 1, The housing, An inlet for introducing the temperature control air into the unit cell assembly and an outlet for discharging air that has passed through each unit cell, A battery module having a structure in which the inflow direction and the outflow direction of the temperature control air are the same. The method of claim 3, wherein The inlet is formed of a battery module in which the flow area of the air gradually extends with respect to the unit cell assembly. The method of claim 4, wherein The inlet portion of the battery module has a structure that the flow rate of the air gradually decreases toward the outside from the inlet center. The method of claim 4, wherein The diffuser has an air dispersion plate installed in the inlet portion to have a plurality of nozzle holes for passing the air introduced through the inlet portion to approach the unit cell assembly, And the nozzle holes are gradually increased in size toward the outside in the direction of the inflow center of the air. The method of claim 6, And the nozzle holes are gradually increased in size from the central portion of the unit cell assembly to the outside. The method of claim 7, wherein A battery module for providing a temperature control air of a constant flow rate between the unit cells. The method of claim 6, A battery module in which each unit battery has a square shape. The method of claim 9, The battery module of the air dispersion plate is made of a square. The method of claim 1, A battery module in which each unit cell has a cylindrical shape. The method of claim 11, The unit cell assembly includes a circular package portion for packaging the unit cells. The method of claim 12, The diffuser has a plurality of nozzle holes for passing the air flowing through the inlet portion is installed in the inlet portion to approach the unit cell assembly, and has an air distribution plate made of a circle corresponding to the package portion, And the nozzle holes are gradually increased in size from the central portion of the unit cell assembly to the outside.

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