Battery module with short-circuit unit, and battery pack and vehicle including same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11011802-B2
Application number	US-201816336337-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 11, 2018
Priority date	Jun 15, 2017
Publication date	May 18, 2021
Grant date	May 18, 2021

Abstract

A battery module including a first bus bar electrically connected to a first electrode lead of a first battery cell; a second bus bar electrically connected to a second electrode lead of a second battery cell; a short-circuit unit moving toward the first bus bar and the second bus bar by receiving an expansive force due to a volume increase of at least one of the first battery cell and the second battery cell to electrically connect the first bus bar to the second bus bar to generate a short circuit; and a cartridge accommodating or supporting at least a portion of the first electrode lead, the second electrode lead, the first bus bar, the second bus bar and the short-circuit unit.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A battery module, comprising:
a first bus bar electrically connected to a first electrode lead of a first battery cell;
a second bus bar electrically connected to a second electrode lead of a second battery cell;
a short-circuit unit configured to move toward the first bus bar and the second bus bar by receiving an expansive force due to a volume increase of at least one of the first battery cell and the second battery cell to electrically connect the first bus bar to the second bus bar and to generate a short circuit; and
a cartridge configured to accommodate or support at least a portion of the first electrode lead, the second electrode lead, the first bus bar, the second bus bar and the short-circuit unit,
wherein the short-circuit unit includes:
an elastic member having a first end supported to an inner side of the cartridge and configured to provide an elastic force in a direction opposite to a direction of the expansive force;
a slide bar having a short-circuit terminal provided at a first end of the slide bar to contact a second end of the elastic member opposite the first end of the elastic member and receive the elastic force from the elastic member, the slide bar having a rack gear formed along a surface of a second end of the slide bar opposite to the first end of the slide bar; and
an expansive force transmitting unit having a pinion gear provided at a first end of the expansive force transmitting unit to engage with the rack gear and support the second end of the slide bar, the expansive force transmitting unit having a second end opposite to the first end of the expansive force transmitting unit, wherein the second end of the expansive force transmitting unit is in contact with one end of each of the first battery cell and the second battery cell to receive the expansive force.

2. The battery module according to claim 1 ,
wherein when the volume of both the first battery cell and the second battery cell does not increase, the slide bar receives only the elastic force so that the short-circuit terminal is spaced apart from the first battery cell and the second battery cell.

3. The battery module according to claim 1 ,
wherein when the volume of at least one of the first battery cell and the second battery cell increases, the expansive force transmitting unit receives the expansive force to move toward the first bus bar and the second bus bar and transmits the received expansive force to the slide bar through the rack gear engaged with the pinion gear.

4. The battery module according to claim 1 ,
wherein when the volume of at least one of the first battery cell and the second battery cell increases, the slide bar receives the expansive force through the rack gear engaged with the pinion gear to move toward the first bus bar and the second bus bar.

5. The battery module according to claim 1 ,
wherein the short-circuit terminal comes into contact with the first bus bar and the second bus bar and electrically connects the first bus bar and the second bus bar to generate a short circuit.

6. The battery module according to claim 1 ,
wherein the short-circuit terminal is made of a conductive material.

7. The battery module according to claim 1 ,
wherein the cartridge has an accommodation portion formed therein with a shape corresponding to a shape of the short-circuit unit to accommodate the short-circuit unit therein.

8. The battery module according to claim 7 ,
wherein the accommodation portion corresponds to the volume of an elastic member according to a restoring state of the elastic member.

9. The battery module according to claim 1 ,
wherein the cartridge supports at least a portion of each of the first electrode lead and the first bus bar that are in surface contact with each other and are electrically connected, and supports at least a portion of each of the second electrode lead and the second bus bar that are in surface contact with each other and are electrically connected.

10. The battery module according to claim 1 ,
wherein at least one of the first bus bar and the second bus bar further includes a fracturing portion that is fractured to cut an electric connection to the outside when the short circuit is generated.

11. A battery pack comprising a battery module according to claim 1 .

12. A vehicle comprising a battery module according to claim 1 .

Assignees

• Lg Chemical Ltd

Inventors

• Hong Soon-Chang
• Kim Hyo-Chan
• Choi Hang-June
• Ryu Kye-Yeon

Classifications

• F16H19/04 Primary

  comprising a rack · CPC title

• H01M50/588

  outside the batteries, e.g. incorrect connections of terminals or busbars · CPC title

• H01M50/507

  comprising an arrangement of two or more busbars within a container structure, e.g. busbar modules · CPC title

• H01M50/211 Primary

  adapted for pouch cells · CPC title

• H01M50/572 Primary

  Means for preventing undesired use or discharge · CPC title