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EP-4740261-A1 - COVER ARRANGEMENT WITH PREFABRICATED TERMINAL GROUP AND PRODUCTION METHOD

EP4740261A1EP 4740261 A1EP4740261 A1EP 4740261A1EP-4740261-A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a cover arrangement for covering a cell housing of a battery cell at least in some regions, having at least one prefabricated terminal group with at least one collector and at least one battery pole, wherein along a vertical direction between the at least one battery pole and the collector, at least one connection portion is arranged, having a cell cover with at least one opening, wherein the at least one opening has a cross-section shape such that the at least one battery pole of the terminal group projects beyond the opening, at least in some regions, along a width direction and/or along a longitudinal direction and forms a protrusion, and having at least one insulator which is designed to electrically insulate the at least one terminal group with respect to the cell cover. The invention furthermore relates to a method and a battery cell.

Inventors

  • Gräf, Jürgen

Assignees

  • Cellforce Group GmbH

Dates

Publication Date
20260513
Application Date
20240703

Claims (15)

  1. 1. Cover arrangement (20) for at least partially closing a cell housing (130) of a battery cell (100), comprising at least one terminal group (10) manufactured in advance with at least one collector (11) and at least one battery pole (12), wherein at least one connecting section (13) is arranged along a height direction (H) between the at least one battery pole (12) and the collector (11), comprising a cell cover (21) with at least one opening (22), wherein the at least one opening (22) has a cross-sectional shape such that the at least one battery pole (12) of the terminal group (10) protrudes at least partially beyond the opening (22) along a width direction (B) and/or along a length direction (L) and forms a projection (15), and comprising at least one insulator (30, 31) which is designed to electrically insulate the at least one terminal group (10) from the cell cover (21).
  2. 2. Cover arrangement according to claim 1, wherein an insulator in the form of a plate (31) is arranged along a height direction (H) between the cell cover (21) and a collector (11) of the terminal group (10), wherein a connecting section (13) of the terminal group (10) and/or the battery pole (12) protrudes at least partially through the insulator (31).
  3. 3. Cover arrangement according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the at least one battery pole (12) of the terminal group (10) projects at least partially beyond at least one connecting section (13) along a width direction (B) and/or length direction (L).
  4. 4. Cover arrangement according to one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the terminal group (10) arranged in an end position (E) in the at least one opening (22) is at least partially electrically insulated from the cell cover (21) by an insulator designed as a hardened casting compound (30).
  5. 5. Lid arrangement according to one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the at least one opening (22) of the cell lid (21) has a cross-sectional shape that tapers to a point at least in some regions and/or a cross-sectional shape with a slope (23) oriented transversely to the longitudinal direction (L).
  6. 6. Cover arrangement according to one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the at least one opening (22) of the cell cover (21) has a cross-sectional shape corresponding to the battery pole (12), which is rotated by an angle with respect to a cross-sectional shape of the battery pole (12) in an end position (E).
  7. 7. Lid arrangement according to claim 6, wherein at least one web (23) is formed adjacent to the opening (22).
  8. 8. Cover arrangement according to one of claims 1 to 7, wherein in the region of the opening (22) a recess (24) is formed for at least partially receiving the battery pole (12) and/or the insulator (30).
  9. 9. Cover arrangement according to one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the at least one projection (15) is formed in the form of at least one overlap region between the battery pole (12) and the cell cover (21) in the region of the opening (22).
  10. 10. Cover arrangement according to one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the collector (11) and the at least one battery pole (12) and the at least one Connecting section (13) of the prefabricated terminal group (10) are materially connected, in particular by welding, soldering and/or riveting, to form a one-piece component.
  11. 11. Method for producing a cover arrangement (20) according to one of claims 1 to 10, wherein a cell cover (21) with at least one opening (22) and a terminal group (10) manufactured in advance are provided, wherein the terminal group (10) is tilted and/or rotated and/or displaced relative to the cell cover (21) and then at least one battery pole (12) of the terminal group (10) is pushed through the opening (22) of the cell cover (21), wherein after the battery pole (12) has been pushed through, the terminal group (10) and the cell cover (21) are aligned with one another and connected to one another.
  12. 12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the cell cover (21) and the terminal group (10) are connected to one another by at least partially introducing and curing a casting compound (30) and/or by forming.
  13. 13. The method according to claim 11 or 12, wherein the cell cover (21) and the terminal group (10) are aligned with each other such that at least one edge of the cell cover (21) is aligned flush and/or parallel to at least one edge of the terminal group (10).
  14. 14. Method according to one of claims 11 to 13, wherein the terminal group (10) is tilted and/or rotated and/or displaced relative to the cell cover (21) and relative to an insulator plate (31) and then at least one battery pole (12) of the terminal group (10) is pushed through an opening (32) of the insulator plate (31) and through the opening (22) of the cell cover (21).
  15. 5. Battery cell (100), in particular in the form of a lithium-ion battery, comprising a cell housing (130) with at least one cell stack (120) arranged in the cell housing (130), wherein the cell housing (130) is closed at least on one side by at least one cover arrangement (20) according to one of claims 3 to 10.

Description

COVER ASSEMBLY WITH PREFABRICATED TERMINAL GROUP AND MANUFACTURING METHOD The invention relates to a cover arrangement for closing the edge of a cell housing of a battery cell, with a terminal group having at least one collector and at least one battery pole, as well as a method for producing a cover arrangement and a battery cell. In addition to pouch cells, so-called hardcase cells are also known in the manufacture of battery cells. Such battery cells have a rigid metal housing and can be geometrically designed in a prismatic shape or in the form of round cells. The respective battery poles are positioned on the so-called terminals of the battery cell in a raised form on the outside in order to enable a simplified electrical connection. The battery poles are usually integrated into a cover arrangement of the battery cell, which closes the cell housing. Normally, the electrical insulation and sealing of the battery poles against a breakthrough in the cover arrangement is carried out by an electrically non-conductive casting compound that is processed in liquid form and then hardened by chemical processes. For example, casting compounds made of polyurethane, silicone or epoxy resin are known for such applications. Casting compounds are also known that liquefy when heated and harden again when cooled. These include in particular thermoplastics such as polypropylene, polyethylene terephthalate, polyethylene or polyphenylene sulfide. Such battery poles are connected to the terminal, which technically simply protrudes through the opening in the cover arrangement and is also mechanically attached to the cover arrangement by means of the casting compound. The disadvantage here, however, is that the fixation in the direction of the battery cell is only achieved by means of the adhesive effect of the casting compound, which means that there is no higher mechanical loads, such as those that occur in an accident. The present invention therefore has the object of creating a cover arrangement with a terminal arrangement and a method for producing a cover arrangement, by means of which the battery poles can be connected to a cell cover in a mechanically more robust manner. This object is achieved by the features specified in claim 1. Further advantageous embodiments of the invention are part of the subclaims. According to one aspect of the invention, a cover arrangement is provided for at least partially closing a cell housing of a battery cell. The cover arrangement has at least one terminal group manufactured in advance. Furthermore, a cell cover with at least one opening is provided. The at least one opening has a cross-sectional shape such that at least one battery pole of the terminal group protrudes at least partially beyond the opening along a width direction and/or along a length direction and forms a projection. Analogously, the collector of the terminal group also forms a projection which, at least in some areas, projects laterally beyond the opening of the cell cover. Laterally, for example, it can be directed in the width direction and/or in the length direction. Furthermore, the cover arrangement has at least one insulator which is designed to electrically insulate the at least one terminal group from the cell cover. The prefabricated terminal group or terminal assembly has at least one collector and at least one battery pole. At least one connecting section is arranged along a height direction between the at least one battery pole and the collector. The connecting section can be designed as an independent component and/or as a component of the collector and/or as a component of the battery pole. According to the invention, the at least one battery pole projects beyond the at least one connecting section at least in regions along a width direction and/or a length direction. By extending the battery pole laterally at least in some areas, a lateral overhang can be achieved, which can form an overhang in conjunction with a cell cover. After the terminal group has been cast with the cell cover, this measure results in additional securing of the terminal group in the cell cover with the help of the overhang. If a force is applied to the terminal group from the outside in the direction of a cell housing, the overhang can form a positive connection between the battery pole and the cell cover and reinforce the hardened casting compound or relieve it of tensile stress. The overhang between the battery pole of the terminal group and the cell cover is achieved by the fact that the battery pole can only be threaded through the opening by twisting and/or pivoting and/or tilting. After the battery pole has been passed through the opening in the cell cover, the terminal group can be brought into an optimal position for potting by one or more movements. The terminal group can thus be inserted into the opening of the cell lid according to the so-called key principle or latch principle. The resulting overhang or undercut b