System and method for establishing connections of a battery module

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9660244-B2
Application number	US-201414231013-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 31, 2014
Priority date	Sep 6, 2013
Publication date	May 23, 2017
Grant date	May 23, 2017

Abstract

A battery module includes a housing and battery cells disposed in the housing, each of the battery cells including two terminals. The battery module also includes bus bar cell interconnects including a first material, where each bus bar cell interconnect is configured to electrically couple two adjacent battery cells via an electrical coupling with a first terminal of one of the adjacent battery cells and a second terminal of the other adjacent battery cell, where at least one of the first and second terminals includes the first material. The battery module includes welds, each weld being disposed at a corresponding welding point to directly couple one of the bus bar cell interconnects with the corresponding at least one terminal including the first material. Each welding point is accessible for welding from a position above the battery cells when the interconnects are disposed over the battery cells.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A battery module, comprising:
a housing;
a plurality of battery cells disposed in the housing, wherein each battery cell of the plurality of battery cells comprises a first terminal having a first material, and a second terminal;
a plurality of bus bar cell interconnects comprising the first material, wherein each bus bar cell interconnect of the plurality of bus bar cell interconnects is configured to electrically couple two adjacent battery cells of the plurality of battery cells via an electrical coupling with the first terminal of one of the adjacent battery cells and the second terminal of the other adjacent battery cell;
a plurality of first welds, wherein each first weld of the plurality of first welds is disposed at a corresponding first welding point and directly couples a corresponding bus bar cell interconnect of the plurality of bus bar cell interconnects with a corresponding one of the first terminals comprising the first material;
a terminal post connector for outputting a voltage from the plurality of battery cells, the terminal post connector comprising the first material;
a printed circuit board (PCB) installed in the battery module proximate to the first and second terminals of the plurality of battery cells; and
a shunt disposed on the PCB of the battery module for carrying current from the plurality of battery cells to the terminal post connector, wherein the terminal post connector is welded to the shunt at a first shunt welding point, and wherein the first shunt welding point and each first welding point of the plurality of first welds is accessible for welding from a position above the plurality of battery cells and unencumbered by the installed PCB.

2. The battery module of claim 1 , comprising a plurality of second welds, wherein all of the first and second terminals of the plurality of battery cells comprise the first material, wherein each second weld of the plurality of second welds is disposed at a corresponding second welding point and directly couples the corresponding bus bar cell interconnect with a corresponding one of the second terminals comprising the first material, and wherein each second welding point of the plurality of second welds is accessible for welding from the position above the plurality of battery cells and unencumbered by the installed PCB.

3. The battery module of claim 1 , wherein the second terminal of each battery cell of the plurality of battery cells comprises a second material different from the first material.

4. The battery module of claim 3 , comprising a plurality of adapters, wherein each adapter of the plurality of adapters is disposed over a corresponding second terminal comprising the second material, wherein each adapter comprises:
a first end comprising the second material, wherein the first end is configured to contact the second terminal comprising the second material; and
a second end comprising the first material, wherein the adapter transitions from the second material in the first end to the first material in the second end, wherein the second end is welded directly to the corresponding bus bar cell interconnect of the plurality of bus bar cell interconnects at an adapter welding point, and wherein each of the adapter welding points is accessible for welding from the position above the plurality of battery cells unencumbered by the installed PCB.

5. The battery module of claim 4 , comprising a first bus bar of the battery module coupled between one battery cell of the plurality of battery cells and the shunt, the first bus bar comprising the first material, wherein the shunt is welded directly to the first bus bar of the battery module at a second shunt welding point, and wherein the second shunt welding point is accessible for welding from the position above the battery module and unencumbered by the installed PCB.

6. The battery module of claim 5 , wherein the first bus bar is welded directly to one of the first terminals comprising the first material at a first bus bar welding point, and wherein the first bus bar welding point is accessible for welding from the position above the plurality of battery cells and unencumbered by the installed PCB.

7. The battery module of claim 1 , wherein the PCB comprises one or more voltage sense connection tabs, wherein each of the one or more voltage sense connection tabs is coupled via a tab weld to one of the plurality of bus bar cell interconnects at a tab welding point, and wherein each tab welding point is accessible for welding from the position above the plurality of battery cells and unencumbered by the installed PCB.

8. The battery module of claim 1 , comprising a second bus bar of the battery module, wherein the second bus bar comprises the first material and is electrically coupled between one battery cell of the plurality of battery cells and a second terminal post connector of the battery module.

9. The battery module of claim 8 , wherein the second bus bar of the battery module is welded directly to the first terminal of the one battery cell of the plurality of battery cells at a second bus bar welding point, and wherein the second bus bar welding point is accessible for welding from the position above the plurality of battery cells and unencumbered by the installed PCB.

10. The battery module of claim 8 , comprising an adapter, wherein the adapter comprises:
a first end comprising a second material different from the first material, wherein the first end contacts the second terminal of the one battery cell of the plurality of battery cells; and
a second end comprising the first material, wherein the adapter transitions from the second material in the first end to the first material in the second end, wherein the second end is welded directly to the second bus bar at a second bus bar welding point, and wherein the second bus bar welding point is accessible for welding from the position above the plurality of battery cells and unencumbered by the installed PCB.

11. The battery module of claim 1 , wherein the first material is copper, and wherein each first weld of the plurality of first welds comprises a copper-to-copper weld.

12. A method of manufacturing a battery module, comprising:
disposing a plurality of battery cells in a housing of the battery module, wherein each battery cell of the plurality of battery cells comprises first and second terminals disposed on a terminal end of the battery cell;
disposing a plurality of bus bar cell interconnects comprising a first material over the plurality of battery cells;
electrically coupling each bus bar cell interconnect of the plurality of bus bar cell interconnects with two adjacent battery cells of the plurality of battery cells via an electrical coupling with the first terminal of one of the adjacent battery cells and the second terminal of the other adjacent battery cell, wherein at least one of the first or second terminals comprises the first material;
installing a printed circuit board (PCB) over the plurality of battery cells and proximate to the terminals of the plurality of battery cells such that a first surface of the PCB faces the terminal ends of the plurality of battery cells; and then
welding each bus bar cell interconnect of the plurality of bus bar cell interconnects directly to a corresponding one of the first or second terminals at a corresponding welding point, wherein each welding point is accessible for welding from a position above the plurality of battery cells when the plurality of bus bar cell interconnects are disposed over the plurality of battery cells;
welding a terminal post connector comprising the first material to a shunt comprising the fi

Assignees

• Johnson Controls Tech Co

Inventors

• Dinkelman John P
• Winders Lisa L
• Dekeuster Richard M
• Soleski Edward J
• Balk Mikhail S

Classifications

• B60L58/24

  for controlling the temperature of batteries · CPC title

• B60L58/15

  Preventing overcharging · CPC title

• H05K2201/09327

  Special sequence of power, ground and signal layers in multilayer PCB · CPC title

• H05K1/0298

  Multilayer circuits · CPC title

• H05K2201/0715

  provided by an outer layer of PCB · CPC title