Power supply unit having uniform battery characteristic

• US 7,511,455 B2
• Filed: 03/21/2005
• Issued: 03/31/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/23/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Yoneda, Shogo
• Primary Examiner(s): Ullah; Akm E
• Assistant Examiner(s): WILLIAMS, ARUN C
• Application Number:
  US11/083,947
• Publication Number:
  US 20050285563A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,471 Days
• Field of Search: 320/104, 320/112, 320/116, 320/150, 320/107, 429/120
• US Class Current: 320/112
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 1/04 of the electric storage means for propulsion exchanging batteries for electric propulsion of vehicles B60L53/80; for auxiliary purposes only B60R16/04; supplying batteries to, or removing batteries from, vehicles B60S5/06
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/64 Constructional details of batteries specially adapted for electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/66 Arrangements of batteries
• CPC Class Codes: F01P 1/06 Arrangements for cooling other engine or machine parts
• CPC Class Codes: F01P 2050/30 Circuit boards
• 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 10/6557 arranged between the cells
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/6565 with recirculation or U-turn in the flow path, i.e. back and forth
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/663 the system being an air-conditioner or an engine
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/209 adapted for prismatic or rectangular cells H01M50/216 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/249 specially adapted for aircraft or vehicles, e.g. cars or trains constructional details of batteries specially adapted for electric vehicles B60L50/64
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/10 Energy storage using batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries

Abstract

A component box has a shape of a substantially flat plate, and is stacked along a direction UPR toward the ceiling of a vehicle with its center placed at a central portion of a casing for a battery pack. Cooling wind which has been used for air-conditioning inside the vehicle and supplied from a cooling fan to the battery pack is supplied to a coolant introducing space located on an upper side of a module, passes through a gap between adjacent battery groups to flow down to a lower side of the battery groups, and then is emitted from a coolant lead-out space located at a lower side of the module out of the battery pack. Since the component box is in contact with a cooling wind passage with the casing therebetween, the component box in contact with the cooling wind via the casing is cooled down simultaneously with the cooling of the module. Since the component box is placed with its center positioned at the central portion of the battery pack, variations in temperature among batteries can be suppressed.

Claims

1. A power supply unit mountable in a vehicle, comprising:

a battery pack accommodating a battery module including a plurality of battery cells, said battery module being formed in said battery pack to include a plurality of layered battery groups which include said plurality of battery cells,

a component box accommodating an electric component electrically connected to said battery module, said component box having a shape of a substantially flat plate, and

a cooling device for supplying a coolant to said battery module to cool down said battery module,

wherein said battery pack includes a casing as an exterior material for said battery module,

said battery pack further includes a coolant passage through which said coolant passes between an outer surface of said battery module and said casing,

a contacting surface of said component box is placed in substantial contact along the contacting surface with one of longitudinally extending side surfaces of said casing, said side surfaces extending in a direction in which said plurality of layered battery groups are layered among the plurality of side surfaces of said casing, thereby placing said component box in contact with the coolant passage through the contacting surface, and

said component box is placed with a center thereof positioned at a central portion of said side surface of said casing extending in the direction in which said plurality of layered battery groups are layered, such that heat exchange of increased uniformity over said plurality of layered batteries occurs between said component box and said battery pack through the contacting surface without transfer of any coolant from the cooling device into the component box.

2. The power supply unit according to claim 1, wherein said component box has a shape of a substantially flat plate extending in the direction in which said plurality of layered battery groups are layered.

3. The power supply unit according to claim 2, wherein said component box has a shape of a substantially thin flat plate extending in the direction in which said plurality of layered battery groups are layered.

4. The power supply unit according to claim 1, wherein

the direction in which said plurality of layered battery groups are layered is substantially vertical to a forward direction of said vehicle, and

the side surface extending in the direction in which said plurality of layered battery groups are layered has a normal line in one of an upward direction, a downward direction, a forward direction, and a backward direction of said vehicle.

5. The power supply unit according to claim 4, wherein said battery pack is placed in a luggage space behind a seat of said vehicle.

6. The power supply unit according to claim 1, wherein said battery pack further comprises:

a coolant introducing space for supplying said coolant from said cooling device to said coolant passage; and

a coolant lead-out space for exhausting said coolant from said coolant passage out of said battery pack.

7. The power supply unit according to claim 6, wherein said cooling device comprises:

an intake portion for taking in said coolant which has been used for air-conditioning of said vehicle;

a blower portion for supplying said taken-in coolant to said battery pack; and

an exhaust portion for exhausting said coolant exhausted from said battery pack out of said vehicle.