KR20230054186A - Busbar unit, battery module, battery pack and vehicle comprising the busbar unit, and method of menufacturing the busbar unit - Google Patents

Abstract

A busbar unit according to an embodiment of the present invention includes: busbar bodies that are stacked in multiple layers; an insulating member inserted into the busbar bodies; and at least one busbar hole that is spaced at a predetermined distance from the insulating member and is formed in the busbar bodies. The busbar unit according to an embodiment of the present invention can reduce manufacturing costs and achieve weight reduction.

Description

Bus bar unit, battery module, battery pack and automobile including such a bus bar unit, and manufacturing method of such a bus bar unit UNIT}

The present invention relates to a busbar unit, a battery module, a battery pack, and a vehicle including such a busbar unit, and a manufacturing method of such a busbar unit.

Secondary batteries, which are highly applicable to each product group and have electrical characteristics such as high energy density, are used not only in portable devices but also in electric vehicles (EVs) or hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) driven by an electrical driving source. It is universally applied. These secondary batteries are attracting attention as a new energy source for improving energy efficiency and eco-friendliness in that they do not generate any by-products due to the use of energy as well as the primary advantage of dramatically reducing the use of fossil fuels.

Currently, types of secondary batteries widely used include lithium ion batteries, lithium polymer batteries, nickel cadmium batteries, nickel hydride batteries, nickel zinc batteries, and the like. The operating voltage of such a unit secondary battery cell, that is, a unit battery cell is about 2.5V to 4.5V. Therefore, when an output voltage higher than this is required, a battery pack is formed by connecting a plurality of battery cells in series. In addition, a battery pack may be configured by connecting a plurality of battery cells in parallel according to a charge/discharge capacity required for the battery pack. Accordingly, the number of battery cells included in the battery pack may be variously set according to a required output voltage or charge/discharge capacity.

Meanwhile, when a battery pack is configured by connecting a plurality of battery cells in series/parallel, a battery module including at least one battery cell is first configured, and other components are added using the at least one battery module. A method of configuring a battery pack or battery rack is common.

In the case of a conventional battery module, a bus bar unit for connection between a battery cell assembly including at least one battery cell and an external power source or other electrical connection is generally provided. In the case of such a bus bar unit, the cross-sectional area is generally defined according to the allowable current, and when the conductor width is constant, the number of layers becomes an important factor.

Conventionally, in the case of a bus bar unit, a copper material is used as a conductor, but recently, it is requested to find a way to reduce the amount of copper used to achieve weight reduction while reducing manufacturing cost.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a bus bar unit capable of reducing manufacturing cost, a battery module, a battery pack and an automobile including such a bus bar unit, and a manufacturing method of such a bus bar unit.

In addition, another object of the present invention is to provide a bus bar unit that can realize weight reduction, a battery module, a battery pack, and a vehicle including such a bus bar unit, and a manufacturing method of such a bus bar unit.

In order to solve the above object, the present invention, as a bus bar unit, a bus bar body laminated in a plurality of layers; an insulating member inserted into the bus bar body; and at least one bus bar hole spaced apart from the insulating member by a predetermined distance and formed in the bus bar body.

The bus bar body may be made of a flexible material.

The bus bar body includes a first layer provided in plurality; and at least one second layer provided between the plurality of first layers.

The plurality of first layers may be made of a copper material, and the at least one second layer may be made of an aluminum material.

The bus bar body may be bent at least once.

The insulating member may be bent at least once together with the bus bar body.

The bus bar unit may include at least one plating part formed on a bus bar body in which the at least one bus bar hole is provided.

Further, the present invention is a method of manufacturing a bus bar unit, comprising: rolling a bus bar body stacked in multiple layers at least once; Cutting the bus bar body to a predetermined width; Processing at least one bus bar hole in the bus bar body; inserting an insulating member into the bus bar body; Bending the bus bar body into which the insulating member is inserted; and plating and welding a part of the bus bar body.

The bus bar body may be made of a flexible material.

The bus bar body includes a first layer provided in plurality; and at least one second layer provided between the plurality of first layers.

In addition, the present invention, as a battery module, provides a battery module characterized in that it includes; at least one bus bar unit according to the above-described embodiments.

In addition, the present invention, as a battery pack, provides a battery pack comprising at least one battery module according to the above-described embodiment.

And, the present invention, as a vehicle, provides a vehicle characterized in that it includes; at least one battery pack according to the embodiment described above.

According to various embodiments as described above, a bus bar unit capable of reducing manufacturing cost, a battery module including the bus bar unit, a battery pack and an automobile, and a manufacturing method of the bus bar unit can be provided. .

In addition, according to various embodiments as described above, it is possible to provide a bus bar unit that can realize weight reduction, a battery module, a battery pack, and a vehicle including such a bus bar unit, and a manufacturing method of such a bus bar unit. .

The following drawings attached to this specification illustrate preferred embodiments of the present invention, and together with the detailed description of the present invention serve to further understand the technical idea of the present invention, the present invention is the details described in such drawings should not be construed as limited to
1 is a diagram for explaining a battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a view for explaining a bus bar unit of the battery module of FIG. 1 .
3 is a cross-sectional view of a bus bar body of the bus bar unit of FIG. 2 .
4 is a view for explaining the multilayer structure of the bus bar body of FIG. 3;
5 is a cross-sectional view of a bus bar body according to another embodiment of the bus bar unit of FIG. 2 .
6 is a view for explaining the multilayer structure of the bus bar body of FIG. 5;
7 to 13 are views for explaining a manufacturing process of a bus bar unit of the battery module of FIG. 1 through a bus bar unit manufacturing system.
14 is a diagram for explaining a battery pack according to an embodiment of the present invention.
15 is a diagram for explaining a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The present invention will become more apparent by describing preferred embodiments of the present invention in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The embodiments described herein are shown by way of example to aid understanding of the invention, and it should be understood that the present invention may be variously modified and implemented differently from the embodiments described herein. In addition, in order to aid understanding of the present invention, the accompanying drawings may not be drawn to an actual scale, but the dimensions of some components may be exaggerated.

1 is a diagram for explaining a battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1 , the battery module 1 may include a battery cell assembly 10, a connection terminal 30, and a bus bar unit 50.

The battery cell assembly 10 may include at least one battery cell or a plurality of battery cells. The battery cell, as a secondary battery, may be a pouch-type secondary battery, a prismatic secondary battery, or a cylindrical secondary battery.

The connection terminal 30 is connected to an external power source, etc., and is connected to a bus bar unit 50 to be described later so as to be electrically connected to the battery cell assembly 10 .

The bus bar unit 50 may be electrically coupled to the battery cell assembly 10 and the connection terminal 30 . The bus bar unit 50 may be connected to the battery cell assembly 10 and the connection terminal 30 through a bolting member or by welding. It is not limited thereto, and the bus bar unit 50 may be connected by other coupling methods capable of enabling electrical connection.

Hereinafter, the bus bar unit 50 according to the present embodiment will be described in more detail.

FIG. 2 is a view for explaining a bus bar unit of the battery module of FIG. 1 , and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a bus bar body of the bus bar unit of FIG. 2 .

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3 , the bus bar unit 50 may include a bus bar body 100, an insulating member 200, and a bus bar hole 300.

The bus bar body 100, as a conductor, may be stacked in multiple layers. The bus bar body 100 may be made of a flexible material that can be flexibly bent to maximize space utilization. In this embodiment, the bus bar body 100 may be bent at least once.

The bus bar body 100 may include a plurality of first layers 110 and at least one second layer 130 provided between the plurality of first layers 110 .

The plurality of first layers 110 may be made of a copper material. In this embodiment, the plurality of first layers 110 may be provided as a pair.

The at least one second layer 130 may be made of aluminum. In this embodiment, the second layer 130 may be provided as one. That is, in this embodiment, the second layer 130 may be disposed between the pair of first layers 110 .

4 is a view for explaining the multilayer structure of the bus bar body of FIG. 3;

Referring to FIG. 4 , the bus bar body 102 may be provided in a multi-layered structure according to the current capacity required by the battery module 1 (see FIG. 1). Accordingly, the bus bar body 102 may have a multi-layered structure in which the second layer 130 is disposed between the pair of first layers 110.

5 is a cross-sectional view of a bus bar body according to another embodiment of the bus bar unit of FIG. 2, and FIG. 6 is a view for explaining the multilayer structure of the bus bar body of FIG.

5 and 6, the bus bar body 105 may also be provided with a two-layer structure including the first layer 110 and the second layer 130. In addition, the bus bar body 107 may also be provided with a multi-layered structure of the above-described two-layered structure according to the required current capacity. Here, the multi-layer stacked structure of the two-layer structure may be a form in which the second layers 130 of the adjacent two-layer laser structure face each other. Accordingly, the layers exposed to the upper and lower sides of the bus bar body 107 may be the first layers 110 . This is to expose the outside of the first layer 110 made of copper.

Hereinafter, other configurations of the bus bar unit 50 will be examined in detail.

Referring back to FIG. 2 , the insulating member 200 may be inserted into the bus bar body 100 . The insulating member 200 is a flexible insulating material and may be provided as an insulating tube having an inner hollow. The insulating member 200 may be bent at least once together with the bus bar body 100.

At least one or more bus bar holes 300 may be provided. The bus bar hole 300 is spaced apart from the insulating member 200 by a predetermined distance and may be formed in the bus bar body 100. A bolting member may be coupled to the bus bar hole 300 or a welding process for coupling may be performed when the bus bar unit 50 is connected to the battery cell assembly 10 and the connection terminal 30. there is.

The bus bar unit 50 may include at least one plating part 400 .

The at least one plating part 400 may be formed in the bus bar body 100 in which the at least one bus bar hole 400 is provided. The at least one plating portion 400 may prevent corrosion of the bus bar body 100.

Hereinafter, the manufacturing process of the bus bar unit 50 according to this embodiment will be described in more detail.

7 to 13 are views for explaining a manufacturing process of a bus bar unit of the battery module of FIG. 1 through a bus bar unit manufacturing system.

7 to 13 , the bus bar unit 50 may be manufactured through the bus bar unit manufacturing system 500. Here, the manufacturing method of the bus bar unit 50 includes rolling the bus bar main body 100 stacked in multiple layers at least once, cutting the bus bar main body 100 to a predetermined width, and Processing at least one bus bar hole 300 in the bar body 100, inserting the insulating member 200 into the bus bar body 100, and inserting the insulating member 200 into the bus bar body It may include the step of bending 100, and the step of plating and welding a part of the bus bar body 100.

To this end, the bus bar unit manufacturing system 500 may manufacture the bus bar unit 50 by processing the bus bar body 100 or the like that moves in a predetermined direction. The bus bar unit manufacturing system 500 includes a first layer reel 510, a second layer reel 520, a heat treatment unit 530, a first rolling roller 540, a second rolling roller 550, A slitting unit 560, a plating unit 570, a cutting unit 580, and a punching unit 585 may be included.

The first layer reel 510 is provided as a pair, and the movement of the first layer 110 may be guided by winding or unwinding the pair of first layers 110 .

The second layer reel 520 is provided between the pair of first layer reels 510 and guides the movement of the second layer 130 by winding or unwinding the second layer 130 can do.

The heat treatment unit 530 may increase bonding strength between the pair of first layer 510 and the second layer 130 . The heat treatment unit 530 may be provided near the first rolling roller 540 and the second rolling roller 550 to be described later. The heat treatment temperature of the heat treatment unit 530 may be between approximately 200 degrees and 300 degrees.

The first rolling rollers 540 are provided as a pair and may be disposed to face the first and second layer reels 510 and 520 . Between the pair of first rolling rollers 540, the pair of first layer 510 and second layer 130 of the bus bar body 100 may pass.

The second rolling rollers 550 are provided as a pair and may be spaced apart from the pair of first rolling rollers 540 by a predetermined distance. The pair of second rolling rollers 550 may further compress the bus bar body 100 passing through the pair of first rolling rollers 540 .

The slitting unit 560 may cut the width of the bus bar body 100 according to the required width of the bus bar unit 50. The slitting unit 560 is provided as a pair to cut the width of both ends of the bus bar body 100 along the moving direction.

The plating unit 570 may plate at least a portion of the moving bus bar body 100 to prevent corrosion or oxidation of the bus bar body 100. The plating unit 570 may have a tin (Sn) electrolytic plating structure.

The cutting unit 580 may cut the length of the bus bar body 100 according to the required size of the bus bar unit 50. Cutting through the cutting unit 580 may be performed in a vertical direction of the moving bus bar body 100 .

The punching unit 585 is for forming the bus bar hole 300 of the bus bar unit 50, and may punch a predetermined portion of the bus bar body 100. Punching through the punching unit 585 may be performed in the vertical direction of the moving bus bar body 100, and depending on the required design conditions, at least one of the plated part and the non-plated part It can be possible in one.

In the bus bar unit manufacturing system 500, the insulating member 200 may be inserted while the bus bar body 100 is moving. When the insertion of the insulating member 200 is completed, the bus bar body 100 into which the insulating member 200 is inserted may be bent at least once together with the insulating member 200 according to required design conditions, etc. One side of the bus bar body 100 is cut through the cutting unit 580 to complete the bus bar unit 50 of a predetermined unit.

14 is a view for explaining a battery pack according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 15 is a view for explaining a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention.

14 and 15, the battery pack P may include at least one battery module 1 according to the previous embodiment and a pack case 5 packaging the at least one battery module 1. can

The battery pack P may be provided in the vehicle V as a fuel source of the vehicle. For example, the battery pack P may be provided in a vehicle V such as an electric vehicle, a hybrid vehicle, and other methods capable of using the battery pack P as a fuel source.

In addition, it goes without saying that the battery pack P may also be provided in other devices, instruments, and facilities, such as an energy storage system using a secondary battery, in addition to the vehicle V.

As such, the battery pack P according to the present embodiment and a device, apparatus, or equipment including the battery pack P such as the vehicle V includes the battery module 1 described above, as described above. A battery pack P having all the advantages of one battery module 1 and a device such as a vehicle equipped with such a battery pack P can be implemented.

According to various embodiments as described above, a bus bar unit 50 capable of reducing manufacturing cost, a battery module 1 including the bus bar unit 50, a battery pack P, and a vehicle V , And, it is possible to provide a manufacturing method of such a bus bar unit 50.

In addition, according to various embodiments as described above, the bus bar unit 50 capable of implementing weight reduction, the battery module 1 including the bus bar unit 50, the battery pack P, and the vehicle V , And, it is possible to provide a manufacturing method of such a bus bar unit 50.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described above, the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiments described above, and is common in the art to which the present invention pertains without departing from the gist of the present invention claimed in the claims. Of course, various modifications are possible by those with knowledge of, and these modifications should not be individually understood from the technical spirit or prospect of the present invention.

V: car
P: battery pack
1: Battery module
5: Pack case
10: battery cell
50: bus bar unit
100: bus bar body
102: bus bar body
105: bus bar body
107: bus bar body
110: first layer
130: second layer
200: insulation member
300: bus bar hall
400: plating part
500: busbar unit manufacturing system
510: first layer reel
520: second layer reel
530: heat treatment unit
540: first rolling roller
550: second rolling roller
560: slitting unit
570: plating unit
580: cutting unit
585: punching unit

Claims (13)

In the busbar unit,
A bus bar body laminated in multiple layers;
an insulating member inserted into the bus bar body; and
A bus bar unit comprising: at least one bus bar hole spaced apart from the insulating member by a predetermined distance and formed in the bus bar body. According to claim 1,
The bus bar body,
A bus bar unit characterized in that it is provided with a flexible material. According to claim 1,
The bus bar body,
A first layer provided in plurality; and
A bus bar unit comprising: at least one second layer provided between the plurality of first layers. According to claim 3,
The plurality of first layers,
It is made of copper material,
The at least one second layer,
A bus bar unit, characterized in that it is provided with an aluminum material. According to claim 1,
The bus bar body,
A busbar unit, characterized in that it is bent at least once. According to claim 5,
The insulating member,
A bus bar unit, characterized in that bent at least once together with the bus bar body. According to claim 1,
A bus bar unit comprising: at least one plating portion formed on a bus bar body in which the at least one bus bar hole is provided. In the manufacturing method of the bus bar unit,
Rolling a bus bar body stacked in multiple layers at least once;
Cutting the bus bar body to a predetermined width;
Processing at least one bus bar hole in the bus bar body;
inserting an insulating member into the bus bar body;
Bending the bus bar body into which the insulating member is inserted; and
A method of manufacturing a bus bar unit, comprising: plating and welding a part of the bus bar body. According to claim 8,
The bus bar body,
A method of manufacturing a bus bar unit, characterized in that it is provided with a flexible material. According to claim 8,
The bus bar body,
A first layer provided in plurality; and
At least one second layer provided between the plurality of first layers; manufacturing method of a bus bar unit comprising a. A battery module comprising at least one bus bar unit according to claim 1 . A battery pack comprising at least one battery module according to claim 11 . A vehicle comprising at least one battery pack according to claim 12 .

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