Traction battery packs with second tier integrated supporting, thermal, and sealing structures

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11335963-B2
Application number	US-202016749107-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 22, 2020
Priority date	Jan 22, 2020
Publication date	May 17, 2022
Grant date	May 17, 2022

Abstract

This disclosure details exemplary battery pack designs, such as those designed for use within electrified vehicles. Exemplary battery packs may include an enclosure assembly and a plurality of battery arrays housed inside the enclosure assembly. The enclosure assembly may include a mid-tray that is configured for supporting, cooling/heating, and sealing second tier battery arrays. The configuration of the mid-tray allows coolant joints to be eliminated inside of the battery pack.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A battery pack, comprising:
a tray;
a first battery array positioned within the tray;
a mid-tray received relative to the tray;
a second battery array positioned within the mid-tray; and
an internal cooling circuit disposed inside a floor of the mid-tray and configured to thermally manage the second battery array.

2. The battery pack as recited in claim 1 , wherein the tray includes a peripheral flange, and the mid-tray is secured to the peripheral flange by a fastener.

3. The battery pack as recited in claim 2 , comprising a seal disposed between the peripheral flange and the mid-tray.

4. The battery pack as recited in claim 1 , comprising:
a third battery array spaced apart from the first battery array within the tray; and
a fourth battery array spaced apart from the second battery array within the mid-tray.

5. The battery pack as recited in claim 1 , wherein the mid-tray includes the floor and at least three side walls that protrude upwardly from the floor.

6. The battery pack as recited in claim 5 , wherein the mid-tray includes an open side.

7. The battery pack as recited in claim 1 , comprising a thermal interface material (TIM) disposed between the second battery array and the mid-tray.

8. The battery pack as recited in claim 1 , wherein the internal cooling circuit includes a plurality of fluid passes arranged between an inlet port and an outlet port of the mid-tray.

9. The battery pack as recited in claim 8 , wherein the inlet port and the outlet port protrude outwardly from an external surface of a wall of the mid-tray.

10. The battery pack as recited in claim 8 , wherein the plurality of fluid passes are arranged together to establish a serpentine path.

11. The battery pack as recited in claim 1 , comprising a cover secured over both the tray and the mid-tray such at least a portion of both the tray and the mid-tray are exposed outside of the cover.

12. A battery pack, comprising:
a tray;
a first tier of battery arrays supported by the tray;
a mid-tray positioned over at least a portion of the first tier of battery arrays and secured to a peripheral flange of the tray;
a second tier of battery arrays supported by the mid-tray; and
a cover secured to both the peripheral flange of the tray and a sealing surface of the mid-tray, wherein the mid-tray includes a floor and an internal cooling circuit disposed inside the floor.

13. The battery pack as recited in claim 12 , wherein the mid-tray includes the floor and at least three side walls that protrude upwardly from the floor.

14. The battery pack as recited in claim 13 , wherein the internal cooling circuit includes a plurality of fluid passes disposed inside of the floor.

15. The battery pack as recited in claim 12 , comprising a first seal disposed between the peripheral flange and the mid-tray and a second seal disposed between the cover and the peripheral flange and between the cover and the mid-tray.

16. The battery pack as recited in claim 12 , wherein the mid-tray includes an inlet port and an outlet port that are both exposed outside of the battery pack.

17. The battery pack as recited in claim 16 , wherein the internal cooling circuit of the mid-tray connects between the inlet port and the outlet port.

18. The battery pack as recited in claim 12 , wherein the mid-tray is secured to the tray by a first plurality of fasteners and the cover is secured to both the tray and the mid-tray by a second plurality of fasteners.

19. The battery pack as recited in claim 12 , wherein the battery pack excludes any internal coolant joints.

Assignees

• Ford Global Tech Llc

Inventors

• Negrete Justin Eugene
• Bilezikjian John Peter

Classifications

• H01M50/20

  Mountings; Secondary casings or frames; Racks, modules or packs; Suspension devices; Shock absorbers; Transport or carrying devices; Holders (structural combination of accumulators with charging apparatus H01M10/46) · CPC title

• H01M10/625

  Vehicles · CPC title

• B60L50/64

  Constructional details of batteries specially adapted for electric vehicles · CPC title

• B60L58/26 Primary

  by cooling · CPC title

• H01M10/6557

  arranged between the cells · CPC title