Temperature control device for temperature controlling a battery

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10116015-B2
Application number	US-201615577338-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 25, 2016
Priority date	May 28, 2015
Publication date	Oct 30, 2018
Grant date	Oct 30, 2018

Abstract

A temperature control device for temperature controlling a battery of a vehicle may include a housing defining a housing interior. The housing may include a housing bottom and a housing lid. A plurality of tubular bodies may be arranged in the housing interior adjacent to one another for a coolant to flow therethrough. A heating device may also be disposed within the housing interior and may include, on each of a lower side facing the housing bottom and on a top side facing the housing lid, a lower or an upper electrical contact plate for connecting the electric heating device to an electric source of energy. An electrical insulation may be disposed between the housing bottom and a lower electrical contact plate. The electric heating device and the electrical insulation may be formed as a heating module unit. The heating module unit may be installed into the housing as a unitary component to the housing.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A temperature control device for temperature controlling a battery of a motor vehicle comprising:
a housing defining a housing interior, the housing having a metal housing bottom and a housing lid;
a plurality of tubular bodies arranged in the housing interior adjacent to one another for a coolant to flow therethrough, wherein an electric heating device is arranged in the housing interior in addition to the plurality of tubular bodies;
wherein the heating device includes, on each of a lower side facing the housing bottom and on a top side facing the housing lid, a lower or an upper electrical contact plate for connecting the electric heating device to an electric source of energy;
wherein an electrical insulation is disposed between the housing bottom and the lower electrical contact plate; and
wherein the electric heating device, having the lower and the upper electrical contact plates, and the electrical insulation are formed as a heating module unit, wherein the heating module unit is installed into the housing as a unitary component to the housing bottom via a bonded joint.

2. The temperature control device according to claim 1 , wherein the plurality of tubular bodies comprise a plurality of elongated flat tubes extending along a main flow direction of the coolant in the plurality of tubular bodies; and wherein the electric heating device is arranged in a transverse direction transversely to the main flow direction between two adjacent flat tubes of the plurality of elongated flat tubes and extends along the main flow direction.

3. The temperature control device according to claim 1 , wherein a hollow space is defined between at least two adjacent tubular bodies of the plurality of tubular bodies, and wherein the electric heating device is received in the hollow space so that the electric heating device fills out the hollow space to at least 80%.

4. The temperature control device according to claim 3 , wherein a volume of the hollow space substantially corresponds to a volume of at least one of the plurality of tubular bodies.

5. The temperature control device according to claim 3 , wherein a geometry of the hollow space substantially corresponds to a geometry of at least one of the plurality of tubular bodies.

6. The temperature control device according to claim 1 , wherein the electric heating device is elongated and includes a long side extending along the main flow direction having a length at least five times a length of a transverse side extending transversely to the main flow direction.

7. The temperature control device according to claim 6 , wherein the electric heating device is flat and disposed in a direction perpendicular both relative to a longitudinal direction defined by the long side and also relative to a transverse direction defined by the transverse side, and wherein the electric heating device has a maximum height of a tenth of the length of the long side.

8. The temperature control device according to claim 1 , further comprising at least one second electric heating device arranged between the lower and the upper electrical contact plates along the main flow direction adjacent to one another.

9. The temperature control device according to claim 1 , wherein a material of the electrical insulation comprises a ceramic or is a ceramic.

10. The temperature control device according to claim 1 , wherein the electrical insulation comprises a plate or a layer and is arranged sandwich-like between the housing bottom and the lower contact plate.

11. The temperature control device according to claim 1 , further comprising at least a second electric heating device, and wherein between two adjacent electric heating devices a corresponding number of the plurality of tubular bodies is arranged in the housing interior.

12. The temperature control device according to claim 1 , wherein the electric heating device comprises at least one heating element arranged spaced from one another along the main flow direction.

13. The temperature control device according to claim 1 , wherein the housing bottom comprises a bottom plate and the housing lid comprises a plastic cover, and wherein the plurality of tubular bodies and the at least one electric heating device are arranged sandwich-like between the bottom plate and the housing lid.

14. The temperature control device according to claim 1 , wherein the temperature control device comprises a common manifold fluidically connected to the plurality of tubular bodies to distribute and subsequently collect the coolant over the plurality of tubular bodies or from the plurality of tubular bodies and a deflection manifold, wherein the common manifold and the deflection manifold are arranged on opposing ends of the housing with respect to the main flow direction.

15. A battery arrangement for a motor vehicle comprising:
a Li-ion battery;
a temperature control device thermally coupled to the battery, the temperature control device comprising: a housing defining a housing interior, the housing having a metal housing bottom and a housing lid; a plurality of tubular bodies arranged in the housing interior adjacent to one another for a coolant to flow therethrough, wherein an electric heating device is arranged in the housing interior in addition to the plurality of tubular bodies; wherein the heating device includes, on each of a lower side facing the housing bottom and on a top side facing the housing lid, a lower or upper electrical contact plate for connecting the electric heating device to an electric source of energy; wherein an electrical insulation is disposed between the housing bottom and the lower electrical contact plate; and wherein the electric heating device having the lower and the upper electrical contact plates, and the electrical insulation are formed as a heating module unit, the heating module unit secured to the housing bottom via a bonded joint; and
wherein the battery housing for forming the thermal coupling lies flat against the housing bottom of the temperature control device.

16. A motor vehicle with at least one battery arrangement comprising:
a Li-ion battery;
a temperature control device thermally coupled to the battery, the temperature control device comprising: a housing defining a housing interior, the housing having a metal housing bottom and a housing lid; a plurality of tubular bodies arranged in the housing interior adjacent to one another for a coolant to flow therethrough, wherein an electric heating device is arranged in the housing interior in addition to the plurality of tubular bodies; wherein the heating device includes, on each of a lower side facing the housing bottom and on a top side facing the housing lid, a lower or upper electrical contact plate for connecting the electric heating device to an electric source of energy; wherein an electrical insulation is disposed between the housing bottom and the lower electrical contact plate; and wherein the electric heating device having the lower and the upper electrical contact plates, and the electrical insulation are formed as a heating module unit, the heating module unit secured to the housing bottom via a bonded joint; and
wherein the battery housing for forming the thermal coupling lies flat against the housing bottom of the temperature control device.

17. The temperature control device according to claim 1 , wherein a hollow space is defined between at least two adjacent tubular bodies of the plurality of tubular bodies, and wherein the electric heating device is received in the hollow space so that the electric heating d

Assignees

• Mahle Int Gmbh

Inventors

• Baumann Tobias
• Treier Joachim
• Stoeckel Jerome

Classifications

• H05B2203/02

  Heaters using heating elements having a positive temperature coefficient · CPC title

• H01M10/6556

  Solid parts with flow channel passages or pipes for heat exchange (closed pipes H01M10/6552) · CPC title

• H05B3/28

  heating conductor embedded in insulating material · CPC title

• H01M10/6571

  Resistive heaters (arrangements for heating the battery by its resistance to the internal current H01M10/637) · CPC title

• H05B3/06

  Heater elements structurally combined with coupling elements or holders · CPC title