BATTERY COOLING DEVICE AND ASSOCIATED OPERATING METHOD

• US 20150283874A1
• Filed: 04/07/2015
• Published: 10/08/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 04/08/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Mahle Behr Gmbh & Co. Kg (MAHLE-STIFTUNG GmbH)
• Original Assignee: Mahle Behr Gmbh & Co. Kg (MAHLE-STIFTUNG GmbH)
• Inventors: Hofmann, Herbert, Hirsch, Stefan, Schmid, Caroline, Seitz, Matthias
• Granted Patent: US 10,562,366 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/00271 HVAC devices specially adapted for particular vehicle parts or components and being connected to the vehicle HVAC unit
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/00278 for the battery arrangement of batteries B60R16/04
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/00392 for electric vehicles having only electric drive means
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 2001/00307 Component temperature regulation using a liquid flow

Abstract

A battery cooling device may include a refrigeration circuit configured to communicate a refrigerant in a flow direction. The refrigeration circuit may include a plurality of refrigerant paths configured to be flowed through in parallel by the refrigerant along the flow direction. The plurality of refrigerant paths may respectively include at least one of a cooling element and a cooling element section. The at least one of the cooling element and the cooling element section may be fluidically incorporated into the respective refrigerant paths and be thermally coupled in a heat-transmitting manner to at least one battery. A plurality of valve devices may be arranged in the respective refrigerant paths and be configured to control a throughflow of the refrigerant.

Claims

1. A battery cooling device, comprising:

a refrigeration circuit configured to communicate a refrigerant in a flow direction, the refrigeration circuit including a plurality of refrigerant paths configured to be flowed through in parallel by the refrigerant along the flow direction,

wherein the plurality of refrigerant paths respectively include at least one of a cooling element and a cooling element section,

the at least one of the cooling element and the cooling element section being fluidically incorporated into the respective refrigerant paths wherein the at least one of the cooling element and the cooling element section is thermally coupled in a heat-transmitting manner to at least one battery, and

a plurality of valve devices configured to control a throughflow of the refrigerant in at least one of (i) the plurality of respective refrigerant paths and (ii) a refrigerant path group defined by at least two refrigerant paths,

wherein the plurality of valve devices are arranged in the respective refrigerant paths downstream of a branching region with respect to the flow direction, the branching region defined by the respective refrigerant paths of the at least one of the plurality of refrigerant paths and the refrigerant path group branching from a refrigerant main line of the refrigeration circuit, and wherein the plurality of valve devices are arranged upstream of a confluence region with respect to the flow direction, the confluence region defined by the respective refrigerant paths of the at least one of the plurality of refrigerant paths and the refrigerant path group connecting to the refrigerant main line.

2. The battery cooling device according to claim 1, wherein at least one of:

the respective refrigerant paths of the refrigerant path group are each controllable individually with regard to the throughflow of refrigerant via a separate valve device of the plurality of valve devices,

the respective refrigerant paths of the refrigerant path group are controllable with regard to the throughflow of refrigerant via a common valve device of the plurality of valve devices, and

the respective refrigerant paths of the refrigerant path group are controllable individually with regard to the throughflow of refrigerant via a common valve device of the plurality of valve devices.

3. The battery cooling device according to claim 1, wherein the respective valve devices are configured as an open-closed valve switchable between an open position and a closed position.

4. The battery cooling device according to claim 1, further comprising a control device operatively coupled to the plurality of valve devices for actuating the plurality of valve devices, wherein the control device is configured to actuate the plurality of valve devices successively such that the individual refrigerant paths of the at least one of the plurality of refrigerant paths and the refrigerant path group are flowed through temporally in succession by the refrigerant flowing in the refrigerant main line.

5. The battery cooling device according to claim 4, wherein the control device is configured to successively actuate only one of the plurality of valve devices to an open position to allow the throughflow of refrigerant, wherein the other valve devices are in a closed position.

6. The battery cooling device according to claim 4, further comprising:

a temperature sensor arrangement configured to determine a temperature of the at least one battery, the temperature sensor arrangement being coupled to the control device,

wherein the control device is configured to actuate the respective valve devices to an open position for a predetermined opening time in response to the temperature of the at least one battery, wherein a duration of the predetermined opening time increases as the temperature of at least one battery exceeds a predetermined temperature.

7. The battery cooling device according to claim 6, wherein the control device regulates the temperature of the at least one battery via varying the predetermined opening times of the plurality of respective valve devices.

8. The battery cooling device according to claim 1, wherein at least one refrigerant path includes at least one of a plurality of cooling elements each configured to be flowed through in series by the refrigerant and a plurality of cooling element sections each configured to be flowed through in series by the refrigerant.

9. The battery cooling device according to claim 1, wherein at least one refrigerant path includes one cooling element having at least two coolant element sections configured to be flowed through in series by the refrigerant.

10. The battery cooling device according to claim 1, wherein the cooling elements associated with each of the respective refrigerant paths define a cooling element group, wherein the cooling element group includes at least one separate cooling element for each associated refrigerant path.

11. The battery cooling device according to claim 1, wherein at least one of:

at least one of the respective valve devices is arranged upstream the at least one of the cooling element and cooling element section of the associated refrigerant path; and

at least one of the respective valve devices is arranged downstream the at least one of the cooling element and the cooling element section of the associated refrigerant path.

12. The battery cooling device according to claim 1, wherein at least one of:

each of the respective refrigerant paths not incorporated into the refrigerant path group is associated with a separate valve device of the plurality of valve devices, and

the refrigerant path group, which includes precisely two refrigerant paths, is associated with one valve device, wherein the valve device associated with the refrigerant path group is switchable between a first switching position, which blocks a first refrigerant path of the refrigerant path group and opens a second refrigerant path of the refrigerant path group, and a second switching position, which opens the first refrigerant path and blocks the second refrigerant path.

17. The battery cooling device according to claim 2, wherein at least one refrigerant path includes at least one of:

a plurality of cooling elements each configured to be flowed through in series by the refrigerant; and

a plurality of cooling element sections each configured to be flowed through in series by the refrigerant.

18. The battery cooling device according to claim 2, wherein at least one refrigerant path includes one cooling element having at least two coolant sections each configured to be flowed through in series by the refrigerant.

19. The battery cooling device according to claim 3, wherein the plurality of valve devices are switched in the open position successively, wherein one of the plurality of valve devices is in the open position and the other valve devices of the plurality of valves are in the closed position.

13. A method for cooling a battery device, comprising:

communicating a refrigerant in a flow direction via a refrigeration circuit, the refrigeration circuit including a plurality of refrigerant paths each associated with at least one of a cooling elements and a cooling element section, wherein the at least one of the cooling element and the cooling element section are respectively coupled in a heat-transmitting manner to at least one battery,

arranging the at least one of the cooling elements and the cooling element sections associated with each of the plurality of refrigerant paths in parallel with respect to the flow direction to be flowed through by the refrigerant, and

distributing the refrigerant to the plurality of refrigerant paths, wherein distributing the refrigerant includes at least one of (i) controlling a throughflow of the refrigerant of the plurality of refrigerant paths individually and (ii) controlling a throughflow of the refrigerant of at least two of the plurality of refrigerant paths collectively.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein distributing the refrigerant further includes at least one of:

controlling the throughflow of refrigerant of the plurality of refrigerant paths, individually, and

wherein at least two refrigerant paths of the plurality of refrigerant paths define a refrigerant path group, and controlling the throughflow of refrigerant of the refrigerant path group individually.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein distributing the refrigerant further includes conveying the refrigerant a predetermined time period successively to the respective refrigerant paths of the at least one of the plurality of refrigerant paths and the refrigerant path group.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein the predetermined time period is determined individually for at least one of the respective refrigerant paths and the refrigerant path group in response to a present cooling demand of the at least one of the respective refrigerant path and the respective refrigerant path group.

20. A batter cooling device, comprising:

a refrigeration circuit including a main line configured to communicate a refrigerant in a flow direction, the main line including a plurality of refrigerant paths defined between a branching region, in which the plurality of refrigerant paths branch away from the main line, and a confluence region in which the plurality of refrigerant paths connect with the main line, wherein the plurality of refrigerant paths are fluidically separated and configured to be flowed through in parallel by the refrigerant along the flow direction;

a plurality of cooling elements associated with the plurality of refrigerant paths, the plurality of cooling elements being fluidically incorporated into the associated plurality of refrigerant paths and configured to be flowed through by the refrigerant, wherein the plurality of cooling elements are thermally coupled in a heat-transmitting manner to at least one battery; and

a plurality of valve devices configured to control a throughflow of the refrigerant in the plurality of refrigerant paths, the plurality of valve devices being arranged downstream the branching region and upstream the confluence region with respect to the flow direction, wherein the plurality of valve devices are switchable between an opened position permitting the throughflow of the refrigerant, and a closed position blocking the throughflow of the refrigerant.