Battery pack

• US 6,569,561 B1
• Filed: 10/06/2000
• Issued: 05/27/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 10/08/1999
• 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: Hamada, Shinji, Kimura, Tadao, Yamauchi, Tomokazu, Ogata, Yoshiaki, Sekimori, Toshiyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Maples, John S.
• Application Number:
  US09/684,250
• Time in Patent Office: 963 Days
• Field of Search: 429/153, 429/157, 429/176, 429/120, 429/136, 429/159, 429/99, 429/100
• US Class Current: 429/159
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/0413 Large-sized flat cells or batteries for motive or stationary systems with plate-like electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/281 Large cells or batteries with stacks of plate-like electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/613 Cooling or keeping cold
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/617 for achieving uniformity or desired distribution of temperature
• 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 10/6555 arranged between the cells
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/6557 arranged between the cells
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/6563 with forced flow, e.g. by blowers
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/6566 Means within the gas flow to guide the flow around one or more cells, e.g. manifolds, baffles or other barriers H01M10/6565 takes precedence
• 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 50/209 adapted for prismatic or rectangular cells H01M50/216 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/258 Modular batteries; Casings provided with means for assembling
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/291 characterised by their shape
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/10 Energy storage using batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 70/50 Manufacturing or production processes characterised by the final manufactured product

Abstract

A battery module is constructed of an integral battery case which is constituted by forming a plurality of prismatic cell cases into a unitized body, wherein positive electrode plates and negative electrode plates laminated alternately upon one another with intervening separators are respectively accommodated in each of the cell cases, thereby constituting a plurality of cells, these cells being electrically connected in series. A plurality of such battery modules are arranged in a direction in which the electrode plates within each cell are laminated in a condition with coolant passages formed between the battery modules, and bound tightly together with end plates arranged at both ends in the direction of adjacent arrangement of the battery modules.

Claims

1. A battery pack comprising:

a plurality of battery modules, each of said plurality of battery modules being constructed of an integral battery case which is constituted by forming a plurality of prismatic cell cases into a unitized body, wherein positive electrode plates and negative electrode plates laminated alternately upon one another with intervening separators are respectively accommodated in each of said cell cases, thereby constituting a plurality of cells, said plurality of cells being electrically connected in series,

said plurality of battery modules being arranged in a direction in which the electrode plates are laminated within each of said cell cases of the battery module, in a condition with coolant passages formed between the battery modules;

end plates arranged at both ends in the direction of adjacent arrangement of the battery modules; and

means for binding said plurality of battery modules and said end plates together as one piece.

2. The battery pack according to claim 1 wherein the plurality of cell cases have short lateral walls and long lateral walls, and the integral battery case of the battery module is constituted by mutually coupling said cell cases such that the short lateral walls of the cell cases are shared between adjacent cell cases as partitions.

3. The battery pack according to claim 1 wherein a plurality of protrusions are formed on opposite faces of the integral battery case of the battery module, and the battery modules are arranged such that said protrusions of one battery module are contacted with said protrusions of an adjacent battery module, whereby said coolant passages are formed between the battery modules.

4. The battery pack according to claim 1 wherein the integral battery case is made of metal, and each of the cells constituting the battery module accommodates therein said electrode plates such as to be enveloped in an insulating film.