KR20220047057A - Battery module and battery pack including the same and vehicle including the same - Google Patents

Abstract

A battery module, a battery pack including the same, and a vehicle are disclosed. The battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention includes: a battery cell stack in which a plurality of battery cells are stacked; a cover in which the battery cell stack is accommodated; and a heat sink that is inserted into the cover and comes in contact with the battery cell stack to be supported, wherein the heat sink is coupled by insert injection.

Description

BATTERY MODULE AND BATTERY PACK INCLUDING THE SAME AND VEHICLE INCLUDING THE SAME

The present invention relates to a battery module, a battery pack including the same, and a vehicle, and more particularly, to a battery module capable of improving cooling performance, a battery pack including the same, and a vehicle.

As technology development and demand for mobile devices increase, the demand for secondary batteries as an energy source is rapidly increasing. Conventionally, nickel cadmium batteries or hydrogen ion batteries have been used as secondary batteries, but recently, compared to nickel-based secondary batteries, the memory effect Lithium secondary batteries having a very low self-discharge rate and high energy density are widely used because they do not occur almost completely, allowing free charging and discharging.

Such a lithium secondary battery mainly uses a lithium-based oxide and a carbon material as a positive electrode active material and a negative electrode active material, respectively. A lithium secondary battery includes an electrode assembly in which a positive electrode plate and a negative electrode plate to which the positive electrode active material and the negative electrode active material are applied, respectively, are disposed with a separator interposed therebetween, and a casing for sealing and housing the electrode assembly together with an electrolyte, that is, a battery case.

A lithium secondary battery consists of a positive electrode, a negative electrode, and a separator and an electrolyte interposed therebetween, and depending on which positive active material and negative active material are used, a lithium secondary battery (Lithium Ion Battery, LIB), a lithium polymer battery (Polymer Lithium Ion Battery) , PLIB), etc. In general, the electrodes of these lithium secondary batteries are formed by coating a positive or negative electrode active material on a current collector such as an aluminum or copper sheet, a mesh, a film, or a foil, and then drying. In addition, various types of secondary batteries are provided with a cover that can protect the battery cells, and a plurality of battery cells are stacked and inserted into the cover as in the following patent document (Publication No. 10-2019-0056013). and a battery pack including a plurality of battery modules.

Meanwhile, in the conventional battery module, a heat sink provided in the battery module is bonded to each other using an adhesive. However, when the adhesive is exposed to the outside, since it acts as a foreign material in the flow path formed in the heat sink, there is a problem in that cooling performance is deteriorated. In addition, there is a problem in that the strength varies according to the performance of each of the various types of adhesives.

Republic of Korea Patent Publication No. 10-2019-0056013 (published date: May 24, 2019)

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a battery module, a battery pack including the same, and a vehicle, capable of improving cooling performance by eliminating the possibility of foreign substances being generated in a flow path of a heat sink.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a battery module capable of ensuring uniform bonding strength of a heat sink, a battery pack including the same, and a vehicle.

According to an aspect of the present invention, a battery cell stack in which a plurality of battery cells are stacked; a cover in which the battery cell stack is accommodated; and a heat sink inserted into the cover and supported in contact with the battery cell stack, wherein the heat sink is coupled by insert injection.

In addition, the heat sink may include an upper plate disposed on an upper side thereof; and a lower plate disposed under the upper plate to form a flow path between the upper plate and the upper plate, and may be joined by an insert resin introduced between the upper plate and the lower plate.

In addition, the upper plate and the lower plate may be made of different types of materials.

Also, the upper plate may be made of a metal material, and the lower plate may be made of a plastic material.

In addition, the insert resin may be inserted between the upper plate and the lower plate while being formed in a shape corresponding to the shape of the flow path.

In addition, a plurality of protrusions may be formed on the lower plate to be in contact with the upper plate.

In addition, the protrusion may include a flat portion in contact with the upper plate; and an inclined portion inclined from the flat portion.

Also, the insert resin may be introduced into a space between the plurality of protrusions.

Meanwhile, according to another aspect of the present invention, a battery pack including the above-described battery module may be provided, and a vehicle including the battery module may be provided.

In the embodiments of the present invention, since an adhesive is not used, the possibility of generating foreign substances in the flow path of the heat sink is eliminated, thereby improving cooling performance.

In addition, there is an effect of ensuring uniform bonding strength of the heat sink by mechanical and chemical bonding regardless of adhesive performance.

1 is a schematic exploded perspective view of a battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a perspective view of a heat sink in a battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is an exploded perspective view of the heat sink of FIG. 2 ;
4 is a cross-sectional view and a partially enlarged view taken along line A-A' in FIG. 2 .
5 is a cross-sectional view of a state in which an insert resin is introduced between protrusions in a battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention.
6 is a cross-sectional view of a state in which the insert resin is removed in FIG. 5 .

Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The terms or words used in the present specification and claims should not be construed as being limited to their ordinary or dictionary meanings, and the inventor may properly define the concept of the term in order to best describe his invention. Based on the principle that there is, it should be interpreted as meaning and concept consistent with the technical idea of the present invention. Therefore, the configuration shown in the embodiments and drawings described in this specification is only the most preferred embodiment of the present invention and does not represent all of the technical idea of the present invention, so at the time of the present application, various It should be understood that there may be equivalents and variations.

In the drawings, the size of each component or a specific part constituting the component is exaggerated, omitted, or schematically illustrated for convenience and clarity of description. Accordingly, the size of each component does not fully reflect the actual size. If it is determined that a detailed description of a related known function or configuration may unnecessarily obscure the gist of the present invention, such description will be omitted.

As used herein, the term 'coupled' or 'connected' refers to a case in which one member and another member are directly coupled or directly connected, as well as when one member is indirectly coupled to another member through a joint member, or indirectly. Including cases connected to

1 is a schematic exploded perspective view of a battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a heat sink in the battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the heat sink of FIG. It is a perspective view, and FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view and a partially enlarged view taken along line A-A' in FIG. 2, and FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the insert resin inserted between the protrusions in the battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention, 6 is a cross-sectional view of a state in which the insert resin is removed in FIG. 5 .

Referring to the drawings, the battery module 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a battery cell stack 100 , a cover 200 , and a heat sink 300 .

Referring to FIG. 1 , in the battery cell stack 100 , a plurality of battery cells 110 provided with electrode leads are provided and stacked. The electrode lead provided in the battery cell 110 is exposed to the outside and a conductive material may be used as a kind of terminal connected to an external device.

The electrode lead may include a positive electrode lead and a negative electrode lead. The positive electrode lead and the negative electrode lead may be disposed in opposite directions with respect to the longitudinal direction of the battery cell 110 , or the positive electrode lead and the negative electrode lead may be disposed in the same direction with respect to the longitudinal direction of the battery cell 110 . may be located.

The positive electrode lead and the negative electrode lead may be made of various materials, for example, the positive electrode lead may be made of an aluminum material, and the negative electrode lead may be made of a copper material.

The electrode lead may be electrically coupled to the busbar. The battery cell 110 is a unit cell (Unit Cell) arranged in the order of positive plate-separator-negative plate or positive plate-separator-negative plate-separator-positive plate-separator-negative electrode bi-cell arranged in the order of the cell (Bi-Cell) battery It may have a structure in which a plurality of layers are stacked according to the capacity.

The battery cell stack 100 may be configured such that a plurality of battery cells 110 are stacked on each other. Here, the battery cells 110 may have various structures, and the plurality of battery cells 110 may be stacked in various ways.

The battery cell stack 100 may include a plurality of cartridges (not shown) accommodating each battery cell 110 . Each cartridge (not shown) may be manufactured by injection molding of plastic, and a plurality of cartridges (not shown) having a receiving portion capable of accommodating the battery cell 110 may be stacked.

A cartridge assembly in which a plurality of cartridges (not shown) are stacked may be provided with a connector element or a terminal element. The connector element may include, for example, various types of electrical connection parts or connection members for connection to a battery management system (BMS, not shown) that can provide data on the voltage or temperature of the battery cell 110 . there is.

In addition, the terminal element includes a positive terminal and a negative terminal as a main terminal connected to the battery cell 110 , and the terminal element is provided with a terminal bolt to be electrically connected to the outside. Meanwhile, the battery cell 110 may have various shapes.

Referring to FIG. 1 , the battery cell stack 100 or the cartridge assembly in which the battery cell stack 100 is accommodated is accommodated in the cover 200 . For example, the cover 200 may be provided to surround the battery cell stack 100 .

Also, a heat sink 300 for dissipating heat may be inserted into the case to contact the battery cell stack 100 .

The cover 200 surrounds the entire battery cell stack 100 or the plurality of cartridge assemblies, thereby protecting the battery cell stack 100 or the cartridge assembly from external vibration or impact.

The cover 200 may be formed in a shape corresponding to the shape of the battery cell stack 100 or the cartridge assembly. For example, when the battery cell stack 100 or the cartridge assembly is provided in a hexahedral shape, the cover 200 may also be provided in a hexahedral shape to correspond thereto.

The cover 200 may be manufactured by bending a metal plate, for example, or may be manufactured by plastic injection molding. And, the cover 200 may be manufactured integrally or may be manufactured as a separate type.

A through portion (not shown) through which the aforementioned connector element or terminal element can be exposed to the outside may be formed in the cover 200 . That is, the connector element or the terminal element may be electrically connected to a predetermined external component or member, and a through portion may be formed in the cover 200 so that the electrical connection is not obstructed by the cover 200 .

The cover 200 may include an upper cover, a lower cover, and a side cover, but is not limited thereto.

The heat sink 300 is inserted into the case, and is supported in contact with the battery cell stack 100 . The heat sink 300 is in contact with the battery cell stack 100 to discharge heat generated from the battery cell 110 to the outside.

The heat sink 300 includes an upper plate 310 and a lower plate 320 . Referring to FIG. 3 , the upper plate 310 is disposed on the upper side. In addition, the lower plate 320 is disposed under the upper plate 310 to form a flow path 330 between the upper plate 310 and the upper plate 310 and is coupled to the upper plate 310 .

The upper plate 310 and the lower plate 320 of the heat sink 300 may be made of different types of materials. For example, the upper plate 310 may be made of a metal material, and the lower plate 320 may be made of a plastic material.

As described above, in the case of the conventional battery module 10, when the upper plate 310 and the lower plate 320 are made of different materials, the upper plate 310 and the lower plate 320 are bonded using an adhesive. , the adhesive is exposed to the outside to prevent movement of the cooling water in the flow path 330 , thereby deteriorating the cooling performance of the heat sink 300 .

However, in the battery module 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention, the insert resin 400 is inserted between the upper plate 310 and the lower plate 320 without using an adhesive, and is bonded by insert injection.

That is, since the heat sink 300 is coupled by insert injection, there is an effect that the cooling performance can be improved by eliminating the possibility of foreign substances being generated in the flow path 330 of the heat sink 300 without using an adhesive.

4 to 6 , a plurality of protrusions 321 that may come into contact with the upper plate 310 may be formed on the lower plate 320 . Here, the protrusion 321 may include a flat portion 325 and an inclined portion 326 .

The flat portion 325 is in contact with the upper plate 310 , and the inclined portion 326 is formed to be inclined from the flat portion 325 . Here, referring to FIG. 3 , the insert resin 400 is formed in a shape corresponding to the shape of the flow path 330 between the upper plate 310 and the lower plate 320 , for example, a plurality of protrusions 321 . ) can be introduced into the space (see FIG. 5) between them.

Hereinafter, the operation and effect of the battery module 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

The battery module 10 includes a heat sink 300 that is in contact with the battery cell stack 100 to dissipate heat from the plurality of battery cells 110 . The heat sink 300 includes an upper plate 310 and a lower plate 320 , and the upper plate 310 and the lower plate 320 are coupled to form a flow path 330 through which air or water moves.

A plurality of protrusions 321 that can be in contact with the upper plate 310 are formed on the lower plate 320 , and the insert resin 400 is introduced into the space between the plurality of protrusions 321 , and the lower plate 320 and The upper plate 310 may be bonded to each other by insert injection.

Accordingly, since the battery module 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention does not use an adhesive, it is possible to improve the cooling performance by eliminating the possibility of foreign substances being generated in the flow path 330 of the heat sink 300 and , In addition, there is an effect that it is possible to secure a uniform bonding strength of the heat sink 300 by mechanical and chemical bonding regardless of the adhesive performance.

Meanwhile, a battery pack (not shown) according to an embodiment of the present invention may include one or more battery modules 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention as described above. In addition, the battery pack (not shown), in addition to the battery module 10, a case for accommodating the battery module 10, various devices for controlling the charging and discharging of the battery module 10, such as BMS, current A sensor, a fuse, etc. may be further included.

Meanwhile, a vehicle (not shown) according to an embodiment of the present invention may include the above-described battery module 10 or a battery pack (not shown), and the battery pack (not shown) includes the battery module 10 . may be included. And, the battery module 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied to the vehicle (not shown), for example, a predetermined vehicle (not shown) provided to use electricity such as an electric vehicle or a hybrid vehicle. can

In the above, although the present invention has been described with reference to limited embodiments and drawings, the present invention is not limited thereto and will be described below with the technical idea of the present invention by those of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention pertains. Of course, various modifications and variations are possible within the scope of equivalents of the claims.

10: battery module 100: battery cell stack
110: battery cell 200: cover
300: heat sink 310: top plate
320: lower plate 321: protrusion
325: flat part 326: inclined part
330: Euro 400: insert resin

Claims (10)

a battery cell stack in which a plurality of battery cells are stacked;
a cover in which the battery cell stack is accommodated; and
a heat sink inserted into the cover and supported in contact with the battery cell stack;
The heat sink is a battery module, characterized in that coupled by insert injection. According to claim 1,
The heat sink is
an upper plate disposed on the upper side; and
and a lower plate disposed under the upper plate to form a flow path between the upper plate and the upper plate,
A battery module, characterized in that it is joined by an insert resin introduced between the upper plate and the lower plate. 3. The method of claim 2,
The battery module, characterized in that the upper plate and the lower plate is provided with different kinds of materials. 4. The method of claim 3,
The upper plate is made of a metal material, and the lower plate is made of a plastic material. 5. The method of claim 4,
The insert resin is formed in a shape corresponding to the shape of the flow path, and is inserted between the upper plate and the lower plate. 6. The method of claim 5,
The battery module, characterized in that the lower plate is formed with a plurality of protrusions that can be in contact with the upper plate. 7. The method of claim 6,
The protrusion is
a flat portion in contact with the upper plate; and
Battery module, characterized in that it comprises an inclined portion formed to be inclined from the flat portion. 8. The method of claim 7,
The insert resin is a battery module, characterized in that introduced into the space between the plurality of protrusions. A battery pack comprising a battery module according to any one of claims 1 to 8. A vehicle comprising the battery module according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

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