Integrated sealed secondary battery

• US 6,444,353 B1
• Filed: 02/29/2000
• Issued: 09/03/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 03/03/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation), Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation), Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Yuasa, Shinichi, Hamada, Shinji, Fukuda, Shinsuke, Takaki, Mitsugu
• Primary Examiner(s): Maples, John S.
• Application Number:
  US09/516,558
• Time in Patent Office: 917 Days
• Field of Search: 429/120, 429/83, 429/87, 429/88, 429/148
• US Class Current: 429/120
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/34 Gastight accumulators
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/613 Cooling or keeping cold
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/625 Vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/647 Prismatic or flat cells, e.g. pouch cells
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/651 characterised by parameters specified by a numeric value or mathematical formula, e.g. ratios, sizes or concentrations
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/6556 Solid parts with flow channel passages or pipes for heat exchange closed pipes H01M10/6552
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/6557 arranged between the cells
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/6567 Liquids
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/103 prismatic or rectangular H01M50/109, H01M50/11 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/26 Assemblies sealed to each other in a non-detachable manner
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/50 Current conducting connections for cells or batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/10 Energy storage using batteries

Abstract

An integrated sealed secondary battery in which a plurality of cells are arranged in a row, cooling medium passages are formed on both sides on the row of the cell, and cooling medium passages are formed between adjacent cells such as to effect communication between the cooling medium passages on both sides.

Claims

1. An integrated sealed secondary battery comprising:

a plurality of cells, having an outside, arranged in a row respectively accommodating electricity-generating elements,

said row having two ends,

each cell having a rectangular tubular case with a bottom end, an upper end, a first side, a second side, a third side and a fourth side;

cooling jacket members forming first cooling medium passages along the first and second sides of the cells adjacent the cooling jacket members;

second cooling medium passages formed between the tubular cases on the third side and on the fourth side of respective cells and communicating with the first cooling medium passages;

said third side and said fourth side of respective cells including bosses; and

said second cooling medium passages being formed by the bosses being mutually welded to respective opposing ones of the bosses.

2. The integrated sealed secondary battery according to claim 1, further comprising third cooling medium passages formed between the coolingjacket members and the outside of the cells at the two ends of the row.

3. The integrated sealed secondary battery according to claim 1, wherein the cooling jacket members are respectively joined to one of:

the first side and the second side of each respective cell; and

the first side and the second side of each respective cell and the two ends of the row.

4. The integrated sealed secondary battery according to claim 1, further comprising flow alignment projecting strips and a cooling medium, wherein said flow-alignment projecting strips are provided in the first cooling medium passages such that the cooling medium flows over the entire surface of the first cooling medium passages on the first side and the second side of the row of the cells.

5. The integrated sealed secondary battery according to claim 1, further comprising an integral cover mutually sealing each of the upper ends of the cells.

6. The integrated sealed secondary battery according to claim 5 wherein the cases and the integral cover of the cells are made of synthetic resin and are integrated by being mutually joined by welding.

7. The integrated sealed secondary battery according to claim 5 wherein the cases of the cells, the integral cover, and the cooling jacket members are made of synthetic resin and are integrated by being mutually joined by welding.

8. The integrated sealed secondary battery according to claim 1, further comprising:

distribution headers provided at the two ends of the row of cells,

an inlet orifice member for supplying cooling medium in one distribution header of said distribution headers at one end of the two ends,

an outlet orifice member for discharging cooling medium in the other distribution header of said distribution headers at the other end of the two ends,

the inlet orifice and the outlet orifice communicating with the first cooling medium passages through the distribution headers.

9. The integrated sealed secondary battery according to claim 1 wherein the second cooling medium passages are formed respectively between adjacent ones of the cells.

10. An integrated sealed secondary battery comprising:

a plurality of cells arranged in a row each cell having a rectangular tubular case including electricity generating elements having a respective bottom end, upper end, a first side, a second side, a third side and a fourth side;

cooling jacket members forming first cooling medium passages along the first side and the second side of the cells adjacent the cooling jacket members;

second cooling medium passages formed between the tubular cases on the third side and on the fourth side of respective cells and communicating with the first cooling medium passages;

said third side and said fourth side of respective cells including bosses;

said second cooling medium passages being formed by the bosses being mutually welded to respective opposing ones of the bosses;

an inlet orifice member and an outlet orifice member for supplying and discharging cooling medium to and from the first cooling medium passages; and

an integral cover for sealing upper ends of the cases of the cells, the integral cover having a planar external surface with recesses with the inlet orifice member and the outlet orifice member mounted therein such as not to protrude beyond the planar external surface of the integral cover.

11. The integrated sealed secondary battery according to claim 10, further comprising a plurality of connection ports, wherein the plurality of connection ports are arranged, respectively, in the inlet orifice member and outlet orifice member in a horizontal direction.

12. The integrated sealed secondary battery according to claim 10, further comprising:

a plurality of connection ports, wherein the inlet orifice and the outlet orifice, respectively, include J-shaped box elements, each J-shaped box element is open at an underside and has an approximately J-shaped planar shape with a long side and a short side,

said connection ports being arranged such as not to protrude from a tip of the short side further than a tip of the long side of the J-shaped box elements, each J-shaped box element being joined to the integral cover,

the integral cover having recesses and connecting apertures, said connecting apertures being at positions on a bottom face of the recesses facing the tip of the long side of the J-shaped box elements and communicating with at least one of the first and second cooling medium passages.

13. The integrated sealed secondary battery according to claim 12 wherein the recesses are formed on one side at both ends of the integral cover, and the long side of the J-shaped box elements is arranged on the outside while its short side is arranged on the inside.

14. An integrated sealed secondary battery comprising:

a plurality of cells arranged in a row respectively having rectangular tubular cases including electricity generating elements each case having a bottom end and upper end, a first side, a second side, a third side and a fourth side;

an integral cover for closing upper ends of the cases of the cells;

connecting elements disposed inside of the integral cover for electrically connecting adjacent cells;

cooling jacket members forming first cooling medium passages along the first side and the second side of the cells adjacent the cooling jacket member;

second cooling medium passages formed between the tubular cases on the third side and the fourth side of respective cells and communicating the first cooling medium passages;

said third side and said fourth side of respective cells including bosses;

said second cooling medium passages being formed by the bosses being mutually welded to respective opposing ones of the bosses; and

third cooling medium passages formed above the connecting elements that communicate with the first cooling medium passages.

15. The integrated sealed secondary battery according to clam 14, wherein the cooling jacket members are plate-shaped and the coolingjacket members are joined on both sides of the integrated sealed secondary battery in a direction orthogonal to the direction of arrangement of the cells, the upper ends of the first cooling medium passages are linked to both ends of the third cooling medium passages for cooling the connecting elements.

16. An integrated sealed secondary battery comprising:

a plurality of cells arranged in a row respectively having rectangular tubular cases including electricity generating elements, each cell having a bottom, an upper end, a first side, a second side, a third side and a fourth side;

an integral cover for closing upper ends of the respective cases of the cells having a planar external surface and recesses;

connecting elements disposed inside of the integral cover for electrically connecting adjacent cells;

cooling jacket members forming first cooling medium passages along the first side and the second side of the cells adjacent the cooling jacket members;

second cooling medium passages formed between the tubular cases on the third side and on the fourth side of respective cells and communicating with the first cooling medium passages;

said third side and said fourth side of respective cells including bosses;

said second cooling medium passages being formed by the bosses being mutually welded to respective opposing ones of the bosses;

third cooling medium passages formed above the connecting elements that communicate with the first cooling medium passages; and

an inlet orifice member and an outlet orifice member for supplying and discharging cooling medium to and from at least one of the first, second and third cooling medium passages, mounted in recesses formed in the integral cover such as not to protrude beyond the planar external surface of the integral cover.