Electric storage module and electric storage device

• US 9,368,771 B2
• Filed: 03/30/2011
• Issued: 06/14/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 04/01/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi Automotive Systems Limited (Hitachi, Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Hitachi Automotive Systems Limited (Hitachi, Ltd.)
• Inventors: Seto, Sadashi, Sugawara, Tatsuo
• Primary Examiner(s): Eggerding, Alix
• Application Number:
  US13/075,533
• Publication Number:
  US 20110244282A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,903 Days
• Field of Search: 429/158, 429/123, 429/160
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/6553 Terminals or leads
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/213 adapted for cells having curved cross-section, e.g. round or elliptic H01M50/209, H01M50/216 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/227 Organic material
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/276 Inorganic material
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/296 characterised by terminals of battery packs terminals of batteries H01M50/543
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/30 Arrangements for facilitating escape of gases
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/516 by welding, soldering or brazing
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/569 Constructional details of current conducting connections for detecting conditions inside cells or batteries, e.g. details of voltage sensing terminals battery terminal connectors with integrated measuring arrangements G01R31/364
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/10 Energy storage using batteries

Abstract

An electric storage module includes: a plurality of electric storage units; a casing that houses the plurality of electric storage units, and includes a pair of resin side plates that hold and support at least the plurality of electric storage units from opposite sides; a plurality of conductive members for electrically connecting the plurality of electric storage units; a metal cover member that covers the casing on an outside of each of the side plates; and a peripheral wall protruding from each of the side plates so as to surround each of the plurality of conductive members, wherein: a height of the peripheral wall from each of the side plates is higher than a height of the conductive members from each of the side plates, and smaller than a distance from each of the side plates to the cover member.

Claims

1. An electric storage module, comprising:

a plurality of electric storage units;

a casing that houses the plurality of electric storage units, and includes a pair of resin side plates, having an inner wall surface facing the plurality of electric storage units and an outer wall surface opposite to the inner wall surface, that hold and support at least the plurality of electric storage units from opposite sides;

a plurality of conductive members for electrically connecting the plurality of electric storage units, that is arranged on each outer wall surface of the pair of side plates and is separate from the side plates; and

a metal cover member that is attached to the outer wall surface of each of the side plates and covers the outer wall surface of each of the side plates in a state where the plurality of conductive members is arranged on the pair of side plates;

wherein;

the side plates include a plurality of through holes that are provided corresponding to the plurality of electric storage units, respectively, and a plurality of peripheral walls that are provided corresponding to the plurality of conductive members, respectively;

an opening of each of the plurality of through holes at the inner wall surface is closed by a terminal surface of a corresponding electric storage unit;

a gas release chamber is formed between the outer wall surface of each of the side plates and the cover member, wherein the gas release chamber is fluid-tightly separated from an inner space of the casing in which the electric storage units are housed and in which a cooling medium flows, and in case where a gas is ejected from the electric storage units, the gas ejected from the electric storage units is released to the gas release chamber, the gas release chamber including an exhaust passage connected to an exhaust mechanism for discharging to an outside the ejected gas that is kept separated from the cooling medium;

each of the conductive members includes a middle portion and end portions that are formed at opposite ends of the middle portion and extend from the middle portion into the through holes and are connected to terminal surfaces of two corresponding electric storage units;

each of the peripheral walls is a mechanism to prevent contact between a corresponding one of the conductive members and the cover member, and protrudes from the outer wall surface of each of the side plates toward the cover member so as to surround the corresponding one of the conductive members;

a height of each peripheral wall from the outer wall surface of each of the side plates is higher than a height of the middle portion of each of the conductive members from the outer wall surface of each of the side plates, and smaller than a distance from the outer wall surface of each of the side plates to the cover member;

the side plates include guide members that connect the conductive members;

the guide members protrude toward the cover member from each outer wall surface of the pair of side plates; and

each guide member is inserted through a through hole provided in the middle portion of each of the conductive members.

2. An electric storage module according to claim 1, wherein:

the height of each peripheral wall from the outer wall surface of each of the side plates is equal to or higher than a height of the guide members from the outer wall surface of each of the side plates.

3. An electric storage module according to claim 1, further comprising:

a voltage detection conductor that detects a voltage of each of the plurality of electric storage units;

the voltage detection conductor is embedded in the side plates, and a tip portion of the voltage detection conductor is exposed from a predetermined through hole in the side plates so as to be connected with a conductive member corresponding to the predetermined through hole; and

the peripheral walls are provided except at a position where the tip portion of the voltage detection conductor is placed.

4. An electric storage module according to claim 3, wherein:

the voltage detection conductor is formed so as to include a plurality of detection lines each corresponding to positions of the plurality of conductive members; and

a distance between the plurality of detection lines is set to be 2 to 2.5 times an insulation creepage distance that is defined according to a voltage of the electric storage module.

5. An electric storage module according to claim 1, wherein the guide members include a first region thereof the extends at an oblique angle to the middle portion.