WO2023120904A1

WO2023120904A1 - Battery pack and device including same

Info

Publication number: WO2023120904A1
Application number: PCT/KR2022/015291
Authority: WO
Inventors: 백승률; 설재중
Original assignee: 주식회사 엘지에너지솔루션
Priority date: 2021-12-22
Filing date: 2022-10-11
Publication date: 2023-06-29
Also published as: KR20230095377A; DE212022000287U1

Abstract

The present invention includes a battery pack and a device including same, and the battery pack according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises: at least one battery module; a pack case in which the at least one battery module is accommodated and which includes a first side plate forming one surface of the pack case; a sealing member which is mounted to a groove portion located along the edge of the first side plate; and a drain which is a passage extending from the groove portion up to the outside of the first side plate, wherein the drain is formed to extend from the groove portion and pass through the first side plate.

Description

Battery pack and device including the same

Cross-citation with related application(s)

This application claims the benefit of priority based on Korean Patent Application No. 10-2021-0184793 dated December 22, 2021, and all contents disclosed in the literature of the Korean patent application are included as part of this specification.

The present invention relates to a battery pack and a device including the same, and more particularly, to a battery pack having improved lifespan and waterproof performance of a sealing member and a device including the same.

As technology development and demand for mobile devices increase, demand for secondary batteries as an energy source is rapidly increasing. Accordingly, a lot of research on secondary batteries that can meet various needs has been conducted.

In addition, secondary batteries are electric vehicles (EVs), hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles that are proposed as a solution to air pollution caused by existing gasoline vehicles and diesel vehicles using fossil fuels. (Plug-In HEV) and the like are attracting attention as a power source.

Accordingly, an electric vehicle (EV) capable of operating only with a battery, a hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) using a battery and an existing engine, and the like have been developed, and some have been commercialized. As a secondary battery as a power source for EVs, HEVs, etc., nickel metal hydride secondary batteries are mainly used, but recently, studies using lithium secondary batteries with high energy density, high discharge voltage, and output stability have been actively conducted.

When such a secondary battery is used as a power source of a vehicle, the secondary battery is used in the form of a battery pack including a plurality of battery modules or battery module assemblies. In vehicle battery packs, sealing members made of rubber are positioned at junctions between cases to seal the battery packs.

1 is a cross-sectional view of a plate constituting a conventional battery pack. FIG. 2 is a view of FIG. 1 viewed in the -z-axis direction.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2 , the battery pack 10 includes a case plate 13 accommodating and covering a plurality of battery modules, and corresponds to an edge area where the case plates 13 are assembled and engaged with each other. A groove 15 is provided. A sealing member 20 made of an elastic material such as rubber may be provided in the groove 15 .

When the sealing member 20 is positioned in the groove 15, there may be an assembly clearance between the groove 15 and the sealing member 20. The groove part 15 where the assembly clearance exists includes an inner clearance portion 16 positioned adjacent to the inside of the battery pack and an outer clearance portion positioned adjacent to the external environment of the battery pack with respect to the sealing member 20. (17) can be distinguished.

In the inner clearance portion 16, the sealing member 20 located in the external environment than the inner clearance portion 16 performs a primary waterproofing function so that dust or moisture does not flow in from the outside, but the outer clearance portion 17 Since it does not additionally have a component that performs a waterproof function, such as the sealing member 20, dust or moisture may flow in from the outside.

Since the conventional battery pack 10 does not have a passage through which moisture can be discharged, moisture is kept in the groove 15 and the sealing member 20 rots, so the durability of the sealing member 20 is weakened and the battery There was a problem that the waterproof performance of the pack 10 was also lowered. Accordingly, it is necessary to develop a battery pack 10 including a drainage structure to solve this problem.

The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a battery pack with improved lifespan and waterproof performance of a sealing member provided in the battery pack, and a device including the same.

However, the problems to be solved by the embodiments of the present invention are not limited to the above problems and can be variously extended within the scope of the technical idea included in the present invention.

A battery pack according to an embodiment of the present invention includes at least one battery module; a pack case accommodating the at least one battery module and including a first side plate constituting one surface of the pack case; and a sealing member mounted to a groove portion positioned along an edge of the first side plate. and a drain hole that is a passage connected from the groove part to the outside of the first side plate, and the drain hole may be formed from the groove part through the first side plate.

The groove part to which the sealing member is mounted may include an assembly clearance part.

The assembly spacer includes an inner spacer located inside the battery pack from an edge of the first side plate based on the sealing member, and an edge of the first side plate than the inner spaced part based on the sealing member. It may include an adjacent outer gap.

The drain hole may be formed to be connected to the outside of the battery pack from the outer gap.

The drain hole may be formed parallel to the first side plate.

An upper surface of the drain hole may be parallel to an upper surface of the first side plate, and a lower surface of the drain hole may be parallel to a lower surface of the first side plate.

The drain hole may be formed with a slope.

The drain hole may be formed with an inclination so as to be away from the upper surface of the first side plate.

The upper surface of the drain hole may be formed inclined while having an acute angle with respect to the upper surface of the first side plate, and the lower surface of the drain hole may be formed inclined while having an acute angle with respect to the lower surface of the first side plate. there is.

An upper surface of the drain hole and a lower surface of the drain hole may have the same inclination.

The drain hole may be formed to be spaced apart from at least two or more along the groove portion.

A device according to another embodiment of the present invention includes the battery pack described above.

According to embodiments, the lifespan of the sealing member provided in the groove may be improved and the waterproof performance of the battery pack may be improved by providing a drainage hole through which moisture accumulated in the groove provided in the plate of the battery pack may be discharged to the outside. It can be.

The effects of the present invention are not limited to the effects mentioned above, and other effects not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the description of the claims.

1 is a cross-sectional view of a plate constituting a conventional battery pack.

FIG. 2 is a view of FIG. 1 viewed in the -z-axis direction.

3 is a perspective view of a battery pack according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4 is an exploded perspective view of a battery pack according to an embodiment of the present invention.

5 is a view showing a case plate and a sealing member provided thereon according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an area A1 of FIG. 5 .

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an area A2 of FIG. 6 .

8 is a cross-sectional view of FIG. 7 taken along line BB′.

9 is a cross-sectional view taken along line C-C′ of FIG. 6 .

10 is a cross-sectional view of a plate according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, various embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings so that those skilled in the art can easily carry out the present invention. This invention may be embodied in many different forms and is not limited to the embodiments set forth herein.

In order to clearly describe the present invention, parts irrelevant to the description are omitted, and the same reference numerals are assigned to the same or similar components throughout the specification.

In addition, since the size and thickness of each component shown in the drawings are arbitrarily shown for convenience of explanation, the present invention is not necessarily limited to the shown bar. In the drawings, the thickness is shown enlarged to clearly express the various layers and regions. And in the drawings, for convenience of explanation, the thicknesses of some layers and regions are exaggerated.

In addition, when a part such as a layer, film, region, plate, etc. is said to be "on" or "on" another part, this includes not only the case where it is "directly on" the other part, but also the case where another part is in the middle. . Conversely, when a part is said to be "directly on" another part, it means that there is no other part in between. In addition, to be "on" or "on" a reference part means to be located above or below the reference part, and to necessarily be located "above" or "on" in the opposite direction of gravity does not mean no.

In addition, throughout the specification, when a certain component is said to "include", it means that it may further include other components without excluding other components unless otherwise stated.

In addition, throughout the specification, when it is referred to as "planar image", it means when the target part is viewed from above, and when it is referred to as "cross-sectional image", it means when a cross section of the target part cut vertically is viewed from the side.

3 is a perspective view of a battery pack according to an embodiment of the present invention. 4 is an exploded perspective view of a battery pack according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIGS. 3 and 4 , a battery pack 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a pack case accommodating a plurality of battery modules 100 . The pack case includes a lower plate 1100 on which a plurality of battery modules 100 are mounted, an upper plate 1200 provided while covering an upper surface (z-axis direction) of the plurality of battery modules 100, and a plurality of battery modules The first side plate 1300 provided while covering both sides (y-axis direction and -y-axis direction) of 100, and the front and rear surfaces of the plurality of battery modules 100 (x-axis direction and -x-axis direction) ) It may include a second side plate 1400 provided while covering.

The battery pack 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a sealing member 2000 mounted on a first side plate 1300 provided while covering one surface of the plurality of battery modules 100 .

The battery module 100 may include a battery cell stack and a module frame in which a plurality of battery cells are stacked in a predetermined direction. The module frame may include an upper frame and a lower frame, and the battery cell stack may be mounted between the upper frame and the lower frame to constitute the battery module 100 . However, the module frame is not limited to the above, and may be a monoframe in the form of a metal plate in which the upper and lower surfaces and both sides are integrated.

Here, since the type of the battery cell is not particularly limited, it may be a cylindrical secondary battery, a pouch-type secondary battery, or a prismatic secondary battery.

A heat sink may be provided on the lower plate 1100, and at least one battery module 100 may be mounted on the heat sink. The size of the heat sink may correspond to the size of the battery module 100 or may be larger than the size of the battery module 100 .

The upper plate 1200 may be a plate covering upper portions of the plurality of battery modules 100 . The upper plate 1200 may have a size corresponding to that of the lower plate 1100 .

The first side plate 1300 may be a plate covering both side surfaces of the plurality of battery modules 100 . One facing edge of the first side plate 1300 corresponds to one edge of the lower plate 1100 and one edge of the upper plate 1200, respectively, and may be fastened using a fastening member or coupled by a method such as welding. there is.

The first side plate 1300 includes a groove 1310 to which the sealing member 2000 is mounted. The groove 1310 may be a region dug to a certain depth along the edge of the first side plate 1300 . The groove 1310 may be a region dug to a certain depth along the edge of the first side plate 1300 facing the plurality of battery modules 100 . The sealing member 2000 may be positioned in the groove 1310 .

The sealing member 2000 is a member additionally located on the first side plate 1300, and improves the degree of sealing when the first side plate 1300 is combined with other components constituting the battery pack 1000, thereby improving battery life. The waterproof and dustproof performance of the pack 1000 may be improved.

The second side plate 1400 may be a plate covering the front and rear surfaces of the plurality of battery modules 100 . The upper edge of the second side plate 1400 corresponds to one edge of the upper plate 1200, the lower edge of the second side plate 1400 corresponds to one edge of the lower plate 1100, and the second side plate Both side edges of the 1400 correspond to one edge of the two first side plates 1300, and may be fastened using a fastening member or coupled by welding or the like.

In this drawing, the sealing member 2000 is shown as being mounted in the groove 1310 of the first side plate 1300, but this is only one of the embodiments and is not limited thereto, and the sealing member 2000 is the lower plate 1100 ), the upper plate 1200 and/or the second side plate 1400 may be mounted in grooves.

The lower plate 1100, the upper plate 1200, the first side plate 1300, and the second side plate 1400 may be made of a material having rigidity. Therefore, it is possible to protect the plurality of battery modules 100 and electrical components connected thereto from external physical impact.

5 is a view showing a case plate and a sealing member provided thereon according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an area A1 of FIG. 5 . FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an area A2 of FIG. 6 .

5 to 7, the first side plate 1300, which is one element constituting the battery pack case, includes a groove portion 1310, a sealing member 2000 is mounted in the groove portion 1310, and the groove portion ( A drainage hole 1330 through which moisture can be discharged from 1310 to the outside of the battery pack may be provided.

The sealing member 2000 improves the degree of sealing of the battery pack and serves to prevent moisture or dust from entering the battery pack from the outside.

The sealing member 2000 may be provided along the edge of the first side plate 1300 . The sealing member 2000 may be provided in a groove 1310 dug to a certain depth along the edge of the first side plate 1300 . The sealing member 2000 may be fitted into the groove 1310 .

The shape of the sealing member 2000 may correspond to the edge shape of the first side plate 1300 . The shape of the sealing member 2000 may correspond to the shape of the groove 1310 of the first side plate 1300 . The width of the sealing member 2000 may be smaller than the width of the groove 1310 or may correspond to the width of the groove 1310 . The height of the sealing member 2000 may be higher than that of the groove 1310 or may correspond to the height of the groove 1310 .

The sealing member 2000 may be formed of an elastic material. For example, the sealing member 2000 may be formed of rubber. Accordingly, when pressure is applied to the sealing member 2000, the shape of the sealing member 2000 may change as the pressure is applied. For example, when pressure is applied to the sealing member 2000, the shape of the sealing member 2000 mounted on the groove portion 1310 is changed to prevent an empty space from being formed in the groove portion 1310 as much as possible. Accordingly, it is possible to maximally prevent moisture or dust from entering the battery pack from the outside, thereby improving the waterproof and dustproof performance of the battery pack.

Although the sealing member 2000 is illustrated as being mounted on one surface of the first side plate 1300 in this drawing, this is only one of the embodiments and is not limited thereto, and may be located on one surface constituting the battery pack case. there is.

When the sealing member 2000 is mounted in the groove 1310, an assembly gap may exist between the sealing member 2000 and the groove 1310, and a portion having an assembly gap in the groove 1310 may be an assembly gap. .

The drain hole 1330 may discharge moisture accumulated in the assembly clearance portion generated when the sealing member 2000 is mounted in the groove portion 1310 to the outside of the battery pack from the groove portion 1310 .

The drain hole 1330 may be a passage from the groove 1310 to the outside of the battery pack. The drainage hole 1330 extends from the bottom of the top surface (y-axis direction) of the first side plate 1330 toward the side surface (x-axis or -x-axis direction, z-axis or -z-axis direction) from the battery pack from the groove portion 1310. It may be a passage leading to the outside. The drain hole 1330 may be a passage formed from the groove portion 1310 through the first side plate 1300 .

The drain hole 1330 is a passage formed through the first side plate 1300, and is not a passage formed by digging a part of the top surface (y-axis direction) of the first side plate 1300. Therefore, since the area in contact with the external environment may be the drain hole 1330 and one area of the groove portion 1310 provided with the drain hole 1330, it is possible to prevent additional penetration of moisture or the like from the external environment. That is, waterproofing and drainage performance can be simultaneously improved.

Only one drain hole 1330 may be provided, or at least one drain port 1330 may be provided. The drain hole 1330 may be provided along the groove portion 1310, or may be provided at least one spaced apart from each other. The number and location of drain ports 1330 can be adjusted according to user convenience.

FIG. 8 is a view showing a cross section of FIG. 7 taken along the line BB′.

Referring to FIG. 8 , a first side plate 1300 constituting a battery pack according to an embodiment of the present invention is provided with a groove portion 1310, a sealing member 2000 is mounted in the groove portion 1310, and the groove portion A drain 1330 through which moisture can be discharged from 1310 to the outside of the battery pack may be provided.

Specifically, the sealing member 2000 is mounted on the groove 1310, and in this case, an assembly gap may occur between the sealing member 2000 and the groove 1310. That is, the groove portion 1310 may include an assembly clearance portion 1311 which means an assembly clearance space provided between the sealing member 2000 and the groove portion 1310 .

The assembly clearance portion 1311 may include an inner clearance portion 1312 and an outer clearance portion 1313 .

The inner clearance portion 1312 may be an assembly clearance portion located inside the battery pack from the outside with respect to the sealing member 2000 . The inner gap 1312 may be located inside the battery pack from the edge of the first side plate 1300 with respect to the sealing member 2000 .

The outer clearance portion 1313 may be an assembly clearance portion located closer to the outside of the battery pack than the inner clearance portion 1312 based on the sealing member 2000 . The outer clearance portion 1313 may be an assembly clearance portion located closer to the edge of the first side plate 1300 than the inner clearance portion 1312 based on the sealing member 2000 .

The inner clearance portion 1312 and the outer clearance portion 1313 may be divided based on the sealing member 2000 . Therefore, when moisture penetrates into the battery pack from the outside, the moisture does not reach the inner clearance portion 1312 due to the sealing member 2000, but may be located in the outer clearance portion 1313.

That is, the sealing member 2000 located outside the battery pack rather than the inner gap 1312 performs a primary waterproofing function, so that moisture or the like from the outside may not flow in. However, since the outer clearance portion 1313 is not provided with an additional configuration located outside the battery pack than the outer clearance portion 1313, moisture or the like may flow in and be located in the outer clearance portion 1313 from the outside. In this case, moisture located in the outer clearance portion 1313 may be discharged to the outside through the drain hole 1330 .

A drain hole 1330 may be provided in one area of the outer gap 1313 . Specifically, a drain 1330 may be formed from one area of the outer clearance portion 1313 toward the outside.

The drain hole 1330 may be a passage connected from the outer gap 1313 to the outside. Here, the outside may mean an external environment excluding the battery pack. The drain hole 1330 may be a passage formed from the outer gap 1313 through the first side plate 1300 .

The width of the drain hole 1330 may correspond to the width of the groove 1310 . However, it is not limited thereto and may be narrower or wider than the width of the groove 1310 .

Moisture located in the outer gap 1313 may move in the drainage direction D1 and be discharged to the outside through the drain hole 1330 . That is, the moisture may be discharged to the outside through the drain hole 1330 without continuously accumulating in the outer clearance portion 1313 . Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the sealing member 2000 from rotting due to moisture, thereby preventing the life span of the sealing member 2000 from being shortened, and improving the waterproof performance of the battery pack.

9 is a cross-sectional view taken along line C-C′ of FIG. 6 .

Referring to FIG. 9 , a drain hole 1330 according to an embodiment of the present invention may be formed from a groove 1310 passing through the first side plate 1300 .

The drain hole 1330 may be formed while penetrating the first side plate 1300 from the outer gap 1313 . The drain hole 1330 may be formed parallel to the first side plate 1300 . In this case, the upper surface 1331 of the drain hole may be parallel to the upper surface 1301 of the first side plate, and the lower surface 1332 of the drain hole may be parallel to the lower surface 1302 of the first side plate.

Moisture accumulated in the outer gap 1313 may be discharged to the outside through the drain hole 1330 along the drain direction D1. Therefore, since moisture does not accumulate in the outer clearance portion 1313, the sealing member 2000 does not rot due to moisture, improving durability and lifespan, and improving the waterproof performance of the battery.

10 is a cross-sectional view of a first side plate constituting a battery pack according to another embodiment of the present invention.

The battery pack described in FIG. 10 is a modified example of one embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. 9, and detailed descriptions of the same components as those described above will be omitted.

Referring to FIG. 10 , in the first side plate 1300 constituting the battery pack 1000 according to another embodiment of the present invention, a drain hole formed from a groove portion 1310 passing through the first side plate 1300 (1330) may be provided.

The drain hole 1330 may be formed from the groove portion 1310 through the first side plate 1300 while having an inclination. The drain hole 1330 may be formed to penetrate the first side plate 1300 from the outer gap 1313 while having a slope. In this case, the upper surface 1331 of the drain hole may not be parallel to the upper surface 1301 of the first side plate, and the lower surface 1332 of the drain hole may not be parallel to the lower surface 1302 of the first side plate.

The upper surface 1331 and the lower surface 1332 of the drain may be inclined toward the lower surface 1302 of the first side plate. That is, the upper surface 1331 of the drain and the lower surface 1332 of the drain may be formed while having an inclination so as to be away from the upper surface 1301 of the first side plate.

The upper surface 1331 of the drain may be formed by tilting while having an acute angle with respect to the upper surface 1301 of the first side plate, and the lower surface 1332 of the drain has an acute angle relative to the lower surface 1302 of the first side plate. It can be formed inclined while having.

The upper surface 1331 of the drain and the lower surface 1332 of the drain may be formed with the same slope. That is, the upper surface 1331 of the drain hole and the lower surface 1332 of the drain hole may be parallel to each other. However, it is not limited thereto, and the upper surface 1331 of the drain and the lower surface 1332 of the drain may be formed with different slopes.

Moisture accumulated in the outer gap 1313 may be discharged to the outside through the drain hole 1330 along the drain direction D1. In this case, due to the slope formed in the drain hole 1330, moisture can be discharged to the outside better than when the slope is not formed in the drain hole 1330, so that the sealing member 2000 does not remain wet and the sealing member 2000 ) The lifespan of the battery can be extended and the waterproof performance of the battery can be further improved.

The battery pack described above can be applied to various devices. Such a device may be applied to means of transportation such as an electric bicycle, an electric vehicle, or a hybrid vehicle, but the present invention is not limited thereto and is applicable to various devices capable of using a battery module and a battery pack including the battery module, which is also applicable to the present invention. It belongs to the scope of the right of invention.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto, and various modifications and improvements of those skilled in the art using the basic concept of the present invention defined in the following claims are also made according to the present invention. falls within the scope of the rights of

explanation of code

1000: battery pack

1300: first side plate

1301: upper surface of the first side plate

1302: the lower surface of the first side plate

1310: groove part

1311: assembly gap

1312: inner gap

1313: outer play part

1330: drain

1331: upper surface of drain

1332: the lower surface of the drain

2000: sealing member

Claims

at least one battery module;

a pack case accommodating the at least one battery module and including a first side plate constituting one surface of the pack case; and

a sealing member mounted on a groove portion located along an edge of the first side plate; and

And a drain that is a passage connected from the groove to the outside of the first side plate,

The drain hole is formed from the groove portion through the first side plate.
In paragraph 1,

The groove portion to which the sealing member is mounted includes an assembly clearance portion.
In paragraph 2,

The assembly spacer includes an inner spacer located inside the battery pack from an edge of the first side plate based on the sealing member, and an edge of the first side plate than the inner spaced part based on the sealing member. A battery pack including an adjacent outer clearance portion.
In paragraph 3,

The drain hole is formed to be connected to the outside of the battery pack from the outer clearance portion.
In paragraph 1,

The drain hole is formed parallel to the first side plate of the battery pack.
In paragraph 5,

The upper surface of the drain hole is parallel to the upper surface of the first side plate,

The lower surface of the drain hole is parallel to the lower surface of the first side plate.
In paragraph 1,

The drain hole is a battery pack formed while having a slope.
In paragraph 7,

The drain hole is formed while having an inclination away from the upper surface of the first side plate.
In paragraph 8,

The upper surface of the drain is formed inclined while having an acute angle with respect to the upper surface of the first side plate,

The lower surface of the drain hole is inclined with an acute angle with respect to the lower surface of the first side plate.
In paragraph 7,

The battery pack wherein the upper surface of the drain hole and the lower surface of the drain hole have the same inclination.
In paragraph 1,

The battery pack wherein at least two drain holes are spaced apart from each other along the groove.
A device comprising the battery pack of claim 1.