KR20170020095A - Battery module - Google Patents

Abstract

According to the present invention, disclosed is a battery module having an improved structure so that heat transfer between a secondary battery and a cooling plate can be smoothly and rapidly performed. The battery module according to the present invention comprises: a plurality of secondary batteries arranged in a vertical direction and in left and right directions; a plurality of cartridges which are formed in a mutually laminated form and configured to receive two secondary batteries and surround the edge of the secondary battery housed therein; and a cooling plate which is made of a conductive material in a plate shape, formed on the center of the cartridge, interposed between the two secondary batteries housed in the cartridge, and has a mounting part on which the lower part of the secondary battery is seated by being formed in a protruding form in the left and right directions.

Description

Battery module

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention [0001] The present invention relates to a battery including at least one secondary battery, and more particularly, to a battery module having improved structure to improve cooling performance, and a battery pack and an automobile including the battery module.

The secondary rechargeable batteries are nickel-cadmium batteries, nickel-hydrogen batteries, nickel-zinc batteries, and lithium secondary batteries. Among them, lithium secondary batteries have almost no memory effect compared to nickel- It is very popular because of its low self-discharge rate and high energy density.

These lithium secondary batteries mainly use a lithium-based oxide and a carbonaceous material as a cathode active material and an anode active material, respectively. The lithium secondary battery includes an electrode assembly in which a positive electrode plate and a negative electrode plate each coated with such a positive electrode active material and a negative electrode active material are disposed with a separator interposed therebetween, and an outer cover material, that is, a battery pouch outer cover material, which encapsulates the electrode assembly together with the electrolyte solution.

Generally, a lithium secondary battery can be classified into a can type secondary battery in which an electrode assembly is embedded in a metal can, and a pouch type secondary battery in which an electrode assembly is embedded in a pouch of an aluminum laminate sheet, depending on the shape of the casing.

In recent years, secondary batteries are widely used not only in small-sized devices such as portable electronic devices, but also in medium to large-sized devices such as automobiles and electric power storage devices. When used in such a medium to large-sized apparatus, a large number of secondary batteries are electrically connected to increase capacity and output. In particular, pouch-type secondary batteries are widely used because they are easy to laminate in such a middle- or large-sized apparatus.

However, the pouch type secondary battery is generally packaged in a battery pouch outer cover material of a laminate sheet of aluminum and a polymer resin, so that the mechanical stiffness is not so large. Therefore, when a battery module including a plurality of pouch-shaped secondary batteries is constructed, a cartridge is often used to protect the secondary battery from external impact, prevent the flow thereof, and facilitate stacking.

The cartridge is usually made of a polymer material in the form of a square plate with a central portion being empty, in which case four side portions surround the outer periphery of the pouch type secondary battery. These cartridges are used in a stacked form to constitute a battery module, and the secondary battery can be located in an empty space formed when the cartridges are stacked.

Meanwhile, when a plurality of secondary batteries are assembled using a plurality of cartridges, a cooling plate formed in the form of a metal plate may be interposed between the secondary batteries. The secondary battery may be used in a high temperature environment such as in the summer, and the secondary battery itself may also generate heat. In this case, when the plurality of secondary batteries are laminated to each other, the temperature of the secondary battery may be further increased. If the temperature is higher than the proper temperature, the performance of the secondary battery may deteriorate, and there is a risk of explosion or ignition in severe cases. Therefore, a configuration in which a cooling pin is interposed between the secondary batteries when constructing the battery module, and the temperature rise of the secondary battery is prevented through the cooling plate is often used. In such a configuration, heat generated when heat is generated on the secondary battery side can be discharged to the outside of the battery module through the cooling plate.

However, in the conventional structure in which the heat is discharged through the cooling plate, the heat transfer between the secondary battery and the cooling plate is not sufficiently performed, and thus the battery module can not be cooled properly. That is, when heat is generated in the secondary battery, the generated heat must be smoothly transferred to the cooling plate. However, according to the conventional battery module structure, the heat generated from the secondary battery can not be transmitted to the cooling plate.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a battery module having improved structure for smoothly and rapidly transferring heat between a secondary battery and a cooling plate, and a battery pack and an automobile including the battery module. .

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description, and it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited thereto. It will also be readily apparent that the objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and attained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a battery module including: a plurality of secondary batteries arranged in a vertical direction in a lateral direction; And a cooling plate which is made of a plate-like thermally conductive material and which is interposed between the two secondary batteries and protrudes laterally so as to have a seating portion on which the lower portion of the secondary battery is seated.

Here, the secondary battery includes an assembly of electrodes and a separator, a storage unit for storing the electrolyte solution, and a sealing unit to which the pouch exterior material is fused, and the lower portion of the storage unit can be seated on the seating unit.

Further, the sealing portion can be brought into contact with the side portion of the seat portion.

Further, the cooling plate may be in surface contact with the side portion of the storage portion.

In addition, the seat portion may be formed with an inclined surface inclined at a predetermined angle in a direction of lowering toward the left and right.

The seat portion may have a flat surface in the up and down direction on the left and right sides, respectively.

The battery module according to the present invention may further include a plurality of cartridges configured to be stacked one on top of the other and configured to house two secondary batteries and surround the rim of the stored secondary batteries.

Here, the cooling plate may be interposed between two secondary batteries provided in a central portion of the cartridge and accommodated in the cartridge.

In the cartridge, at least one of the upper and lower portions may have a through-hole, and the cooling plate may have a penetrating portion penetrating the through-hole and an exposed portion exposed to the outside of the cartridge.

In addition, the exposed portion may be formed flat in the horizontal direction.

The exposed portion may be configured such that the exposed portion of the adjacent cooling plate and the left and right end portions are in contact with each other.

In addition, the through-hole may be formed in at least one portion of at least one of an upper portion and a lower portion of the cartridge, and the through-hole may be formed in at least one of the upper portion and the lower portion of the cooling plate.

In addition, the seat portion can be seated on the upper portion of the cartridge.

In addition, the cartridge may have a protrusion protruding upward in a portion where the seat is seated.

The cooling plate may further include a contact portion protruding in the left-right direction and contacting the upper portion of the secondary battery.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a battery pack including a battery module according to the present invention.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a vehicle including the battery module according to the present invention.

According to an aspect of the present invention, heat transfer efficiency between the secondary battery and the cooling plate can be improved.

Particularly, according to one aspect of the present invention, heat generated in a battery passes through the thickness direction of the battery and is transmitted to the cooling plate as well as to the seating portion of the cooling plate through the longitudinal direction of the battery So that the heat transfer from the cell to the cooling plate, that is, heat extraction efficiency from the cell, can be increased. One of the reasons is that the heat transfer characteristic inside the battery is anisotropic. That is, the thermal conductivity in the thickness direction of the battery is very low and the thermal conductivity in the longitudinal direction of the battery is very high. Further, according to one aspect of the present invention, the contact area between the secondary battery and the cooling plate can be increased.

Therefore, according to these aspects of the present invention, the heat generated from the secondary battery is rapidly transferred to the cooling plate, so that the cooling performance of the battery module can be effectively improved.

In addition, according to one aspect of the present invention, the secondary battery is stably fixed and prevented from flowing in the internal space of the cartridge, thereby preventing the components of the battery module such as the secondary battery or the power connection structure from being damaged, .

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of the specification, illustrate preferred embodiments of the invention and, together with the description of the invention given below, serve to further the understanding of the technical idea of the invention, And should not be construed as limiting.
1 is a perspective view schematically showing a configuration of a battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing a part of the cartridge and the secondary battery in FIG. 1; FIG.
3 is an exploded perspective view schematically showing the configuration of a pouch type secondary battery according to an embodiment of the present invention.
4 is an assembled perspective view of the configuration of Fig.
5 is a perspective view schematically showing a configuration of a cartridge according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 6 is a perspective view schematically showing a configuration in which a secondary battery is coupled to the cartridge of FIG. 5;
7 is a perspective view schematically showing a configuration of a cooling plate according to an embodiment of the present invention.
8 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line A1-A1 'in Fig.
9 is an enlarged view of the portion B1 in Fig.
Fig. 10 is a view showing the secondary battery and the cooling plate separated from each other in the configuration of Fig. 9. Fig.
11 is a diagram schematically showing the contact portion between the secondary battery and the cooling plate and the flow of heat in the lower portion of the secondary battery.
12 is a view schematically showing a configuration of a battery module having a shape of a seat portion according to another embodiment of the present invention.
13 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a lower structure of a battery module according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Prior to this, terms and words used in the present specification and claims should not be construed as limited to ordinary or dictionary terms, and the inventor should appropriately interpret the concepts of the terms appropriately It should be interpreted in accordance with the meaning and concept consistent with the technical idea of the present invention based on the principle that it can be defined.

Therefore, the embodiments described in the present specification and the configurations shown in the drawings are only the most preferred embodiments of the present invention and do not represent all the technical ideas of the present invention. Therefore, It is to be understood that equivalents and modifications are possible.

1 is a perspective view schematically showing a configuration of a battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing a part of the cartridge and the secondary battery in Fig. 1. Fig.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a battery module according to the present invention may include a secondary battery 100, a cartridge 200, and a cooling plate 300.

The secondary battery 100 may include an electrode assembly, an electrolytic solution, and a pouch case.

Here, the electrode assembly may be an assembly of an electrode and a separator, in which at least one positive electrode plate and at least one negative electrode plate are disposed with a separator (separator) interposed therebetween. The configuration of the secondary battery 100 is obvious to those skilled in the art, and therefore, a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

The secondary battery 100 can be divided into a can type secondary battery and a pouch type secondary battery depending on the material of the pouch exterior material. In particular, the secondary battery of the battery module according to the present invention may be a pouch type secondary battery. In this case, the pouch exterior member of the secondary battery may be configured to have an external insulating layer, a metal layer, and an internal adhesive layer.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view schematically showing a configuration of a pouch-type secondary battery 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is an assembled perspective view of the configuration of FIG.

3 and 4, in the pouch type secondary battery 100, the pouch case 120 may include a right pouch 122 and a left pouch 121, At least one of the pouches 121 may be formed with a concave shaped storage portion I. The electrode assembly 110 and the electrolytic solution can be accommodated in the pouch I accommodating portion. The sealing portions S are provided on the outer peripheral surfaces of the right pouch 122 and the left pouch 121 so that the sealing portions S are adhered to each other so that the receiving portion I accommodating the electrode assembly 110 is sealed can do. Each electrode plate of the electrode assembly 110 is provided with an electrode tab, and one or more electrode tabs may be connected to the electrode lead 130. The electrode lead 130 is interposed between the right pouch 122 and the sealing portion S of the left pouch 121 and is exposed to the outside of the pouch so as to function as an electrode terminal of the secondary battery 100.

A plurality of pouch-type secondary batteries 100 may be included in the battery module. The pouch-shaped secondary batteries 100 may be arranged in the horizontal direction in the form of being raised in the vertical direction.

That is, in the battery module according to the present invention, the pouch type secondary battery 100 has a configuration in which the two large surfaces are located on the right and left sides, and the sealing portions S are located on the upper and lower sides, ≪ / RTI > In other words, the secondary battery can be set up and down so that the left pouch 121 and the right pouch 122 of the secondary battery are located on the left and right sides, respectively. The pouch-shaped secondary battery thus formed can be arranged in parallel to the left and right directions, that is, in the horizontal direction, with the large faces facing each other.

The cartridge 200 is configured to be stackable with each other, and can be configured to receive the secondary battery 100 in the internal space.

5 is a perspective view schematically showing a configuration of a cartridge 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention. 6 is a perspective view schematically showing the structure in which the secondary battery 100 is coupled to the cartridge 200 of FIG.

5 and 6, the cartridge 200 may be configured to surround the rim of the secondary battery 100 from the outside. To this end, the cartridge 200 may have a plurality of unit frames. At this time, each unit frame of the cartridge 200 may be configured such that both ends thereof are mutually connected. The number of such unit frames can be determined differently depending on the form of the secondary battery 100.

For example, the secondary battery 100 may be configured such that the shape of the secondary battery 100 is substantially rectangular as viewed from the wide side. At this time, according to the number of sides of the secondary battery 100, (201, 202, 203, 204). Each of the unit frames may be configured such that both ends thereof are interconnected. These unit frames may be manufactured in an integrated form from the beginning or assembled separately after being manufactured. In this way, when both ends have four unit frames connected to each other, it can be said that the cartridge 200 is configured as a rectangular ring shape having an empty central portion.

Hereinafter, for convenience of explanation, for each unit frame of the cartridge 200 positioned on the upper, lower, front, and rear sides of the secondary battery 100, the upper unit frame 201, The forward unit frame 203, and the rear unit frame 204, respectively.

For the sake of convenience of explanation, the direction in which the electrode leads 130 are protruded is divided into front, rear, and rear directions in this specification. 130), the left side and the right side are distinguished from each other. That is, with respect to the configuration of the battery module of FIG. 1, assuming that the electrode lead 130 is viewed from the side of the battery module, the portion where the electrode lead 130 is located is referred to as the front of the battery module, And the right side are referred to as the left side and the right side of the battery module, respectively. Hereinafter, such a direction will be described as a reference unless otherwise specified.

The cartridge 200 can accommodate the secondary battery 100 in an internal space defined by the unit frame. For example, when the secondary battery 100 is configured in a rectangular shape, the cartridge has four unit frames 201, 202, 203, and 204, and each unit frame has four sides of the secondary battery 100 Respectively.

Particularly, the cartridge 200 can accommodate two secondary batteries 100. That is, when two secondary batteries 100 in a vertically erected configuration are arranged in parallel in the horizontal direction, these two secondary batteries 100 can be housed in one cartridge internal space.

The battery module according to the present invention may include a plurality of cartridges, as shown in Figs. Such a plurality of cartridges may be arranged in the horizontal direction and stacked one upon the other. That is, the cartridges can be mutually coupled to form a layer in the left-right direction as shown in the figure. Further, due to the mutual coupling of these cartridges, a void space can be formed inside the coupling structure of the cartridge. Therefore, the plurality of secondary batteries 100 are located in the internal space formed by the engagement of the cartridges, and mutually laminated states can be stably maintained, held and prevented from flowing, and can be protected from external impacts.

For this, the cartridge 200 may be provided with concavities and convexities corresponding to the surfaces to be brought into contact so as to facilitate stacking. For example, the cartridge may have a protrusion formed on the left side and a recess on the right side corresponding to the protrusion. In this case, when the cartridges are stacked, the projections formed on the left and right sides can be fitted to each other in such a manner that they are inserted into the recesses.

The cartridge may be made of a polymer material such as plastic. In the case of the polymer, the moldability is excellent and the electrical conductivity is low, so that it is easy to secure the insulation of the battery module. However, the present invention is not limited to specific materials of such cartridges.

The cooling plate 300 may be formed in a plate-like shape, and may be arranged so that its wide side faces up to the left and right. The cooling plate 300 may be configured to fill an internal space formed in each unit frame of the cartridge, and the rim may be located in the unit frame.

7 is a perspective view schematically showing a configuration of a cooling plate 300 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 7, the cooling plate 300 may be formed in a substantially plate-like shape having two wide surfaces. In particular, the cartridge 200 may be configured in the form of a square ring, in which case the cooling plate 300 may be configured in the form of a square plate as shown in the figure to correspond to the shape of such a cartridge 200 .

The cooling plate 300 may be made of a thermally conductive material to enable heat exchange with the secondary battery 100. For example, the cooling plate 300 may be made of a metal such as aluminum. Therefore, when heat is generated from the secondary battery 100, the generated heat can be transferred to the cooling plate 300. [

The cooling plate 300 may be provided at the center of the cartridge 200. This will be described in more detail with reference to Fig.

8 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line A1-A1 'in Fig.

Referring to FIG. 8, the cooling plate 300 may be vertically extended from the upper end to the lower end of the cartridge 200. At this time, the cooling plate 300 may be located at the center portion in the left-right direction in the cartridge 200. Therefore, when two secondary batteries 100 are accommodated in the cartridge 200, the cooling plate 300 can be interposed between the two accommodated secondary batteries 100. [ Accordingly, the cooling plate 300 can absorb heat from the secondary battery 100 disposed on the left side and the secondary battery 100 disposed on the right side, and can transfer the heat upwards or downwards.

In addition, the cooling plate 300 may include a seating portion 320 so that the lower portion of the secondary battery 100 is seated. This will be described in more detail with reference to Figs. 9 and 10. Fig.

FIG. 9 is an enlarged view of the portion B1 in FIG. 8, and FIG. 10 is a view showing the secondary battery 100 and the cooling plate 300 separated from each other in the configuration of FIG.

9, 10, 7, and so on, the cooling plate 300 includes a main body 310 facing the wide side, i.e., a side surface of the secondary battery 100, And a mounting portion 320 formed in a protruding shape in a direction of the mounting portion 320. The lower portion of the secondary battery 100 may be seated in the seating portion 320. That is, the secondary battery 100 may be placed on the seating portion 320 of the cooling plate 300, and the lower portion of the secondary battery 100 may be in contact with the seating portion 320.

According to this configuration of the present invention, the secondary battery 100 can be more stably fixed within the battery module, and damage to the secondary battery 100 or the power supply system due to vibration, shock, or the like can be prevented. In addition, according to this configuration of the present invention, the space between the secondary battery 100 and the cartridge 200 is reduced, which can be more advantageous for miniaturization of the battery module. Furthermore, according to this configuration of the present invention, the cooling performance of the battery module can be increased.

3 and 4, the secondary battery 100 is provided with a storage section I for storing the electrode assembly 110 and a sealing section S to which the pouch outer casing 120 is fused. can do. At this time, the lower part of the storage part I can be seated on the seating part 320 of the cooling plate 300. 9 and 10, on the upper surface of the seating portion 320 of the cooling plate 300 as indicated by F1, a lower portion of the storage portion I of the secondary battery 100 as indicated by I2 And can be seated in a surface-contacting manner.

According to this configuration of the present invention, the contact area between the secondary battery 100 and the cooling plate 300 is increased, and the heat can be moved more quickly. This will be described in more detail with reference to FIG.

11 is a diagram schematically showing the contact portion and the flow of heat between the secondary battery 100 and the cooling plate 300 in the lower portion of the secondary battery 100. As shown in FIG. 11, the contact portion between the secondary battery 100 and the cooling plate 300 is indicated by a dotted line, and the flow of heat is indicated by an arrow.

Referring to FIG. 11, the battery module according to the present invention may be in contact with the cooling plate 300 on both the side surface and the lower surface of the secondary battery 100, as indicated by dotted lines. That is, in the secondary battery 100, not only the left side or the right side of the storage portion I as indicated by I1 in Fig. 10 but also the lower side of the storage portion I like the portion indicated by I2 in Fig. 10 is the cooling plate 300).

The side surface of the secondary battery 100 can be brought into contact with the main body 310 of the cooling plate 300 and the lower surface of the secondary battery 100 can contact the main body 310 of the cooling plate 300. [ And may be in contact with the seat portion 320.

The contact area between the secondary battery 100 and the cooling plate 300 is enlarged and the amount of heat exchange between the secondary battery 100 and the cooling plate 300 can be increased.

11, in the battery module according to the present invention, heat can be transferred not only in the thickness direction of the cooling plate 300, but also in the plane direction of the cooling plate 300, as indicated by arrows. That is, the heat generated from the secondary battery 100 can be transmitted in the lateral direction in the drawing, that is, in the thickness direction of the cooling plate 300, through the side portion I1 of the storage portion I. In addition, the heat generated from the secondary battery 100 can be transmitted through the lower portion I2 of the storage portion in the vertical direction of the drawing, that is, in the planar direction of the cooling plate 300. [

Particularly, since the heat transfer inside the cooling plate 300 can be made in a planar direction of the cooling plate 300 (up and down in FIG. 11) as a whole, when heat is transferred in the plane direction of the cooling plate 300, The heat can be transmitted more quickly than in the case where heat is transferred in the thickness direction of the substrate 300. Therefore, according to this configuration of the present invention, since the heat transfer in the thickness direction of the cooling plate 300 and the heat transfer in the plane direction of the cooling plate 300 can be performed together, the heat transfer rate can be greatly improved.

Also, preferably, the seating portion 320 may be configured to contact the sealing portion S. This will be described in more detail with reference to FIG.

FIG. 12 is a view schematically showing a configuration of a battery module having a shape of a seating part 320 according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 12, as shown in part C, the seating part 320 may be provided with a side part, and the sealing part S of the secondary battery may contact the side part of the seating part 320. Particularly, at least a part of the sealing part S of the secondary battery is formed to extend in the downward direction, and the side part of the seating part 320 is configured to be flat in the vertical direction, 320 may be in surface contact with each other.

According to this configuration of the present invention, the contact area between the secondary battery and the cooling plate 300 can be further increased to further improve the heat transfer efficiency between the secondary battery and the cooling plate 300.

On the other hand, as described above, the cooling plate 300 can be configured to be in contact with the side portion of the accommodating portion I of the secondary battery.

For example, the cooling plate 300 may be in surface contact with the right side of the secondary battery located on the left side of the left side, and in surface contact with the left side of the secondary battery located on the right side of the right side.

According to this configuration of the present invention, the heat is directly conducted between the secondary battery and the cooling plate 300, and the heat transfer efficiency can be improved. Also, it is easy to reduce the space between the secondary battery and the cooling plate 300 to achieve miniaturization of the battery module, and to prevent the secondary battery from flowing.

Also, preferably, the seating portion 320 may be inclined at a predetermined angle in a direction in which the seating portion 320 is lowered in the left-right direction.

For example, referring to FIG. 10, the seating portion 320 may be formed with a sloped surface configured to be lowered toward the left at the upper left portion, as indicated by F1, An inclined surface configured in a shape that becomes gradually lower can be formed.

According to this structure of the present invention, the contactability between the lower portion of the secondary battery 100 and the seating portion 320 of the cooling plate 300 can be improved. Particularly, the lower part of the secondary battery 100 is formed due to the difference in thickness between the storage part I and the sealing part S in the secondary battery 100. In a state where the secondary battery 100 is set up, I may not be parallel to the paper surface but may be inclined at a predetermined angle from the paper surface. Therefore, when the upper portion of the seating portion 320 is configured to be inclined as in the above embodiment, the upper portion of the seating portion 320 and the lower portion of the secondary battery 100 are formed to correspond to each other, Can be increased. In addition, according to the present invention, in the battery module in which the secondary battery is arranged horizontally in a raised form, the secondary battery can be easily attached in the downward direction, so that the battery module can be assembled more easily have.

In addition, according to this configuration of the present invention, the heat introduced into the seating portion 320 can be discharged to the outside of the cooling plate 300 more quickly. 10, the cooling plate 300 may be configured in the form of a generally thin plate, but thickened in the seating portion 320 compared to other portions. The cooling plate 300 thickened in the seating part 320 is formed in the form of a thin plate in the lower part of the seating part 320 so that the heat introduced into the seating part 320 is absorbed by the lower part of the seating part 320 And can be discharged to the outside of the cartridge 200 through the thin portion. In this case, the heat introduced through the wide contact area of the seat 320 and the secondary battery can be discharged to the outside through a narrow exhaust path at the center. If the left end and the right end of the seating part 320 are configured to be lower in height than the center part of the seating part 320 as in the above embodiment, the left end to the right end of the seating part 320, By narrowing the distance between the discharge paths located at the lower center of the part 320, the heat introduced into the seating part 320 can be discharged more easily to the discharge path located at the center part.

Further, according to this configuration of the present invention, the contact area between the seating portion 320 of the cooling plate 300 and the lower portion of the sealing portion S of the secondary battery 300 is further increased on the basis of the same horizontal distance, And the miniaturization of the battery module can be more easily achieved.

Also, preferably, the seating portion 320 may have a flat surface in the up and down direction on the left and right sides, respectively. For example, referring to the configuration of FIG. 12, the seat portion 320 may be formed such that the left side and the right side thereof are flat in a direction perpendicular to the paper surface, as indicated by C portion.

According to this configuration of the present invention, surface contact between the sealing portion of the secondary battery and the seating portion 320 of the cooling plate 300 can be more easily achieved. In particular, the sealing portion of the secondary battery may be at least partially flattened in a direction perpendicular to the paper surface, and this portion may be in contact with the side surface of the seat portion 320. At this time, the end of the sealing portion of the secondary battery is folded in the left or right direction, so that the battery module can be made compact.

Also, preferably, the cooling plate 300 may include a penetration portion 330 and an exposed portion 340.

The penetration portion 330 may be a portion penetrating the cartridge 200 from the cooling plate 300. [ 9 and 10, the penetration part 330 may be formed in a shape extending from the lower part of the seating part 320 located inside the cartridge 200 to the outer side, that is, the lower side And may be configured to penetrate the cartridge 200. [ To this end, a through-hole may be formed in the lower portion of the cartridge 200, as indicated by H in the drawing, such that the penetration portion 330 of the cartridge 200 can be penetrated.

The through hole 330 of the cooling plate 300 is fitted into the through hole H of the cartridge 200 so that the coupling force between the cooling plate 300 and the cartridge 200 is ensured .

Particularly, the penetration part 330 may be configured to be thinner in the lateral direction than the seating part 320. According to this configuration of the present invention, it is possible to prevent the mechanical rigidity of the cartridge 200 from being weakened due to the wide through-hole H. [

The exposed portion 340 may be a portion exposed from the cooling plate 300 to the outside of the cartridge 200. 9 and 10, the exposed portion 340 may extend from the lower portion of the penetrating portion 330 and may be positioned at a lower portion of the lower unit frame 202 of the cartridge 200 have.

In this case, the exposed portion 340 may be provided with a cooling channel in contact with or adjacent to the cooling channel such as air or cooling water. For example, the battery module according to the present invention may include a cooling pipe 400 in which a hollow is formed and cooling water flows in the hollow. In this case, the cooling pipe 400 is directly contacted with the exposed portion 340 . Alternatively, the battery module according to the present invention may be configured such that air is directly brought into contact with the exposed portion 340.

In particular, the exposed portion 340 may be formed flat in the horizontal direction. For example, referring to FIGS. 7 and 9 to 12, the exposed portion 340 may be formed to be flat in the left-right direction and the front-rear direction. At this time, the penetrating portion 330 may be located at the center portion of the cartridge 200. In this case, the exposed portion 340 may be flattened in the form of extending in the lateral direction at the outer end of the penetrating portion 330 have.

According to this configuration of the present invention, it is possible to improve the cooling performance of the battery module by increasing the contact area between the cooling plate 300 and the cooling fluid. For example, when the battery module includes a cooling pipe, the cooling pipe 400 may be in surface contact with the flat-formed exposed portion 340 so that heat transfer efficiency is improved.

The exposed portion 340 may be configured such that the exposed portion 340 of the adjacent cooling plate 300 and the left and right ends thereof are in contact with each other.

For example, in the configurations of FIGS. 9 to 11, the exposed portion 340 may be formed to have the same length as the lower unit frame 202 of the cartridge 200 in the left and right direction. In this case, when the cartridge 200 is stacked in the left-right direction, the exposed portion 340 of each cartridge 200 can be in contact with the left end and the right end, as shown in Fig. That is, the left end of the exposed portion 340 of the cooling plate 300 provided in the predetermined cartridge 200 may be in contact with the right end of the exposed portion 340 of the cartridge 200 located on the left side. The right end of the exposed portion 340 of the cooling plate 300 provided in the predetermined cartridge 200 may be in contact with the left end of the exposed portion 340 of the cartridge 200 positioned on the right side.

Since the cooling plates 300 between the cartridges 200 are in contact with each other, even if a large amount of heat is generated in the secondary battery 100 housed in the specific cartridge 200, the heat generated in the cartridge 200 To the cooling plate 300 mounted on the other cartridge 200 as well as the cooling plate 300 mounted on the other cartridge 200. [ Therefore, heat generated in a specific secondary battery can be dispersed to other cooling plates 300 as well as the cooling plate 300 adjacent to the secondary battery, so that the cooling performance can be further improved.

13 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a lower structure of a battery module according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 13, the through-hole H and the penetrating portion 330 may be formed on the lower portion or the upper portion of the cartridge 200. For example, the cartridge 200 may have two through-holes H in the lower unit frame 202, as shown in Fig. The cooling plate 300 may include two through-holes 330 at a lower portion of the seating portion 320. In this case, the two penetration parts 330 can be inserted into different through holes H, respectively.

According to this configuration of the present invention, heat can be discharged through the plurality of through-holes H, so that the heat introduced into the seating portion 320 can be more smoothly transmitted to the exposed portion 340. In addition, the coupling between the cooling plate 300 and the cartridge 200 can be more stably maintained through the coupling between the plurality of through-holes 330 and the through-holes H.

Also, preferably, the seating portion 320 can be seated on the upper portion of the cartridge 200. For example, the seating part 320 may be placed in contact with the upper surface of the lower unit frame 202 of the cartridge 200, as shown in part D in FIG.

According to this configuration of the present invention, the coupling between the cooling plate 300 and the cartridge 200 can be more stably maintained, and the central portion of the cooling plate 300 can be prevented from bending in the horizontal direction. Further, as shown in the figure, the seating part 320 may be formed in a flat shape in the horizontal direction. The bottom part of the seating part 320, which is formed as such a flat surface, As shown in FIG.

Particularly, in the cartridge 200, the protrusion 210 may be formed so as to protrude upward in a portion where the mounting portion 320 is seated.

For example, as shown in Figs. 9 and 13, the lower unit frame 202 of the cartridge 200 may be provided with the protrusion 210 in the upper direction. Further, the protrusion 210 may be provided at a portion where the through hole H is formed. In this case, the seating portion 320 of the cooling plate 300 can be brought into contact with the upper end of the protrusion 210, and the penetration portion 330 can be inserted into the through hole H formed in the center of the protrusion 210, As shown in FIG.

According to this configuration of the present invention, the mechanical rigidity of the cartridge 200 can be enhanced at the portion where the through-hole H is formed. That is, the portion of the cartridge 200 where the through-hole H is formed may have a lower mechanical strength than the other portion, but the thickness of the through-hole H is thicker than the other portion through the protrusion 210, .

Although the secondary battery 100, the cartridge 200, and the cooling plate 300 have been described above in the above embodiment, the upper portion of the battery module may be configured to be symmetrical with the lower portion, Various portions of the contents may be applied to the upper structure of the secondary battery 100, the cartridge 200, and the cooling plate 300. [

For example, the through-hole H of the cartridge 200, the penetration portion 330 and the exposed portion 340 of the cooling plate 300, and the like may be applied to the upper portion of the cartridge 200 and the cooling plate 300 . That is, the cartridge 200 may have at least one through-hole H formed in the upper unit frame 201, and the cooling plate 300 may have through-holes 330 ). The cooling plate 300 may include an exposed portion 340 extending from the penetration portion 330 and exposed to the outside of the upper unit frame 201. As described above, the cooling plate 300 may be configured to be exposed through the upper unit frame of the cartridge 200 and exposed to the upper portion of the upper unit frame 201.

In addition, the cooling plate 300 may correspond to the seating part 320 provided at the lower part, and may further include a contact part on the upper part.

The contact portion may be formed in the body 310 of the cooling plate 300 so as to protrude laterally. The upper portion of the secondary battery 100 may contact the lower portion of the contact portion. Particularly, the upper portion of the accommodating portion of the secondary battery can be brought into contact with the lower portion of the contact portion. The upper sealing portion of the secondary battery may be brought into contact with the side portion of the contact portion.

In addition, since the upper portion of the secondary battery 100 may be formed to be symmetrical with the lower portion, the contact portion may be formed to be vertically symmetrical with the shape of the seating portion 320. For example, the contact portion may be formed with an inclined surface at a lower side inclined at a predetermined angle in a direction in which the contact portion is lowered in the left-right direction. The contact portion may have a flat surface in the vertical direction on the left and right sides.

On the other hand, in the battery module according to the present invention, the cartridge may be manufactured by an insert injection method in which a cooling plate is injection-molded while being inserted. However, the present invention is not necessarily limited to this manufacturing method, and cooling plates and cartridges can be manufactured in various other ways.

The battery pack according to the present invention may include at least one battery module according to the present invention. In addition to the battery module, the battery pack according to the present invention may include a pack case for storing such a battery module, various devices for controlling charge and discharge of the battery module such as a BMS (Battery Management System), a current sensor, a fuse As shown in FIG.

The battery module according to the present invention can be applied to an automobile such as an electric car or a hybrid car. That is, the automobile according to the present invention may include a battery module according to the present invention. Particularly, in the case of a vehicle such as an electric vehicle that obtains driving force from the battery, the cooling performance of the battery module is very important. Therefore, when the battery module according to the present invention is applied to such a vehicle, a stable and safe battery module can be provided with an effective cooling performance.

While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments. It will be understood that various modifications and changes may be made without departing from the scope of the appended claims.

In the present specification, terms indicating upward, downward, leftward, rightward, forward, and backward directions are used, but these terms are for convenience of explanation only and may vary depending on the position of an object or the position of an observer It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited thereto.

100: secondary battery
I: storage portion, S: sealing portion
110: electrode assembly, 120: pouch case, 130: electrode lead
200: Cartridge
201: upper unit frame, 202: lower unit frame, 203: forward unit frame, 204: rear unit frame
210: projection, H: penetration hole
300: cooling plate
310: main body, 320: seat portion, 330: penetrating portion, 340: exposed portion
400: cooling pipe

Claims (6)

A plurality of secondary batteries arranged in a vertical direction in a lateral direction; And
A cooling plate having a plate-shaped thermally conductive material and disposed between the two secondary batteries and protruding in the left-right direction to have a seating portion on which the lower portion of the secondary battery is seated;
The battery module comprising: The method according to claim 1,
The secondary battery includes an assembly of an electrode and a separator, a storage portion for storing an electrolyte solution, and a sealing portion to which the pouch exterior material is fused,
And a lower portion of the receiving portion is seated on an upper portion of the seating portion. 3. The method of claim 2,
And the sealing portion contacts the side of the seat portion. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the cooling plate is formed in a protruding shape in the left-right direction, and further comprises a contact portion to which an upper portion of the secondary battery contacts. A battery pack comprising the battery module according to any one of claims 1 to 4. A vehicle comprising a battery module according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

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