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EP-4736271-A1 - LOW-VOLTAGE CONTACTING ARRANGEMENT FOR A BATTERY, ASSEMBLY OF THE LOW-VOLTAGE CONTACTING ARRANGEMENT, AND VEHICLE HAVING A HIGH-VOLTAGE BATTERY

EP4736271A1EP 4736271 A1EP4736271 A1EP 4736271A1EP-4736271-A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a low-voltage contacting arrangement for a battery (1), comprising receiving elements (4) on a surface, the receiving elements being electrically contacted via an enamelled wire (5) welded to them. The low-voltage contacting arrangement according to the invention is characterized in that the receiving elements (4) run at an angle to the surface (9) receiving them, the angle deviating from the perpendicular.

Inventors

  • SCHURZ, ANDREAS
  • Engin, Fatih
  • Schmeiler, Julian

Assignees

  • Mercedes-Benz Group AG

Dates

Publication Date
20260506
Application Date
20250708

Claims (6)

  1. 1. Low-voltage contacting for a battery (1) with receiving elements (4) on a surface which are electrically contacted via a enamelled wire (5) welded to them, characterized in that the receiving elements (4) extend at an angle to the receiving surface (9) which deviates from the perpendicular, wherein the receiving elements (4) are surrounded on at least two of their sides by protective elements (11) which are firmly connected to the surface (9) or are integrally formed with it.
  2. 2. Low-voltage contacting according to claim 1, characterized in that the receiving elements (4) are arranged at an angle of 10 to 60° to the surface (9).
  3. 3. Low-voltage contacting according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the protective elements (11) are arranged on two opposite sides.
  4. 4. Low-voltage contacting according to claim 1, 2 or 3, characterized in that an upper edge of the receiving element (4) has less distance from the surface (9) than the upper edge of the protective elements (11).
  5. 5. Method for mounting a low-voltage contact according to one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the enamelled wire (5) is wound around or threaded into the receiving elements (4) which are perpendicular to the surface (9), after which the enamelled wire (5) is welded to the receiving elements (4), characterized in that, following the welding, the receiving elements (4) are bent in the direction of the surface (9) between at least two protective elements (11).
  6. 6. Vehicle with a high-voltage battery (1) which has a low-voltage connection according to any one of claims 1 to 4 and which is intended for storing electrical drive power. Vehicle with a high-voltage battery (1) which has a low-voltage contact according to any one of claims 1 to 4 and which is intended for storing electrical drive power. ...

Description

Low-voltage contact for a battery, assembly of the low-voltage contact and vehicle with a high-voltage battery The invention relates to a low-voltage contact for a battery according to the preamble of claim 1. The invention further relates to a method for mounting such a low-voltage contact and to a vehicle with a high-voltage battery which has such a low-voltage contact. Batteries such as lithium-ion batteries, which are used to store electrical drive power in vehicles, are well-known from the state of the art. A basic battery module of this type is shown, for example, in the... DE 102010035478 Al. This document describes the cell contacting of battery modules for power extraction and charging of individual battery cells. In addition to this so-called high-voltage contacting, where high voltage, according to the definition in ECE 100R, means that voltages of more than 60 V DC prevail, such batteries or battery modules typically also have a low-voltage (LV) contacting at a lower voltage level. This contacting typically serves to acquire measurement data such as individual cell voltages, for control purposes, or similar applications. German patent DE 102019000856 describes a generally known and common design for such a low-voltage connection. Typically, enamel-insulated wires are welded to pins or contact forks, creating an electrically conductive connection. The wire for the low-voltage connection is then placed or wound around the pins or contact forks and led to a battery management control unit. The design is correspondingly simple, as the raised contact forks and pins allow for exceptionally easy and highly efficient contact during assembly. However, when used for traction batteries in electric vehicles, these low-voltage contacts can be damaged by intrusions during a crash, for example, if they are bent or the raised wire is torn off by a component damaging the battery. This is particularly critical because information about the battery's condition is crucial in such situations to assess its safety after a crash and to take any necessary countermeasures. If the low-voltage contacts are unavailable at precisely this moment, safety-critical disadvantages can arise. Further high-voltage contacts or components for them are known from US 2019/0189996 Al or DE 102018201155 Al. These patents show terminal elements running obliquely to a surface, which are crimped to cables or, according to the German patent application, also electrically connected in another way. For further information on the state of the art, reference can also be made to US 2019 / 0296312 Al and CN 2 17385 761 U. The object of the present invention is therefore to provide an improved low-voltage contacting system and a method for its assembly which avoids these disadvantages. According to the invention, this problem is solved by a low-voltage contact for a battery with the features of claim 1. Advantageous embodiments and further developments are described in the dependent claims. Furthermore, a method for mounting such a low-voltage contact according to claim 5 solves the problem. Here, too, an advantageous embodiment is described in the dependent claim. Claim 6 also describes a vehicle with a high-voltage battery equipped with such a low-voltage contact, thus indirectly solving the problem as well. The low-voltage contacting system according to the invention comprises – comparable to the prior art – a enamelled wire welded to receiving elements such as contact pins or contact forks. According to the invention, these receiving elements are now provided that run at an angle to the surface on which they are recorded, deviating from the vertical. Furthermore, it is provided that the receiving elements are surrounded on at least two of their sides by protective elements that are firmly connected to the surface or formed integrally with it. These protective elements serve to further reduce damage to the receiving elements for the enamelled wire in the event of intrusion. Ideally, these protective elements are arranged on two opposite sides, and, according to a particularly advantageous embodiment, the upper edge of the receiving element is closer to the surface than the upper edge of the protective elements. This achieves very good protection with minimal additional design effort. This angle can be in the range of 10 to 60° to the surface. The mounting elements are therefore no longer arranged perpendicular to the supporting surface, but rather bent towards it. This ensures that the mounting elements themselves require less vertical space, minimizing the risk of damage in the event of an intrusion. Additionally, the angled arrangement to the surface results in the enameled wire running closer to the surface, further minimizing the risk of damage. This allows for a highly effective design that, with minimal additional effort, can significantly improve the construction's crash safety in accordance with current best practices. The mounting elem