EP-4742404-A1 - BATTERY MODULE

EP4742404A1EP 4742404 A1EP4742404 A1EP 4742404A1EP-4742404-A1

Abstract

Disclosed is a battery module. The battery module includes a case providing a space therein; a battery array including a plurality of battery cells positioned inside the case and stacked along a right and left direction, each battery cell having an accommodation portion extending in a front and rear direction and accommodating an electrode assembly and a sealing portion extending forward from the accommodation portion; a bus bar frame assembly positioned at a front side of the accommodation portion and electrically connected to the battery array; and a fire prevention cover positioned between the bus bar frame assembly and the accommodation portion and having an accommodation space for accommodating at least one sealing portion.

Inventors

KWAK, Won-Suk

Assignees

LG Energy Solution, Ltd.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260513
Application Date: 20241209

Claims (14)

A battery module comprising: a case providing a space therein; a battery array including a plurality of battery cells positioned inside the case and stacked along a right and left direction, each battery cell having an accommodation portion extending in a front and rear direction and accommodating an electrode assembly and a sealing portion extending forward from the accommodation portion; a bus bar frame assembly positioned at a front side of the accommodation portion and electrically connected to the battery array; and a fire prevention cover positioned between the bus bar frame assembly and the accommodation portion and having an accommodation space for accommodating at least one sealing portion.
The battery module according to claim 1, wherein the fire prevention cover contains a mica material.
The battery module according to claim 1, wherein the fire prevention cover includes: a plate configured to cover a front side of the sealing portion; and a top wall protruding rearward from the plate and extending along the right and left direction to cover an upper side of the sealing portion.
The battery module according to claim 3, wherein the top wall is extended to cover an upper side of the accommodation portion.
The battery module according to claim 3, wherein the fire prevention cover further includes a partition wall that protrudes rearward from the plate and extends along an upper and lower direction to partition the accommodation space.
The battery module according to claim 5, wherein the partition wall is provided in plurality, and wherein the plurality of partition walls are arranged along the right and left direction.
The battery module according to claim 5, wherein the partition wall is extended to be positioned between neighboring accommodation portions of the battery array.
The battery module according to claim 3, wherein the fire prevention cover further includes a side wall that protrudes rearward from the plate and extends along an upper and lower direction to cover an outer side of the sealing portion of an outermost battery cell of the battery array.
The battery module according to claim 8, wherein the side wall is extended to cover the accommodation portion of the outermost battery cell.
The battery module according to claim 3, wherein the fire prevention cover further includes a bottom wall that protrudes rearward from the plate and extends along the right and left direction to cover a lower side of the sealing portion.
The battery module according to claim 10, wherein the bottom wall is extended to be located below the accommodation portion.
The battery module according to claim 3, wherein the plate has a slit, and wherein the battery array includes an electrode lead that protrudes forward from the sealing portion and passes through the slit to be connect to the bus bar frame assembly.
A battery pack, comprising the battery module according to any one of claims 1 to 12.
A vehicle, comprising the battery module according to any one of claims 1 to 12.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present disclosure relates to a battery module. The present application claims priority to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2024-0059245 filed on May 3, 2024 in the Republic of Korea, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. BACKGROUND ART As the demand for portable electronic products such as smartphones, tablet PCs, and smart watches increases significantly and electric vehicles become increasingly widespread, research is actively being conducted on batteries installed the portable electronic products, especially secondary batteries that can be repeatedly charged and discharged. Currently, commercially available secondary batteries include nickel-cadmium batteries, nickel-hydrogen batteries, nickel-zinc batteries, lithium secondary batteries and the like, and among them, lithium secondary batteries have little or no memory effect, and thus they are gaining more attention than nickel-based secondary batteries for their advantages that recharging can be done whenever it is convenient, the self-discharge rate is very low and the energy density is high. Lithium secondary batteries primarily comprise lithium-based oxides and carbon materials for a positive electrode active material and a negative electrode active material, respectively. A lithium secondary battery includes an electrode assembly including a positive electrode plate and a negative electrode plate coated with the positive electrode active material and the negative electrode active material, respectively, with a separator interposed between the positive electrode plate and the negative electrode plate, and a sealed packaging or battery case accommodating the electrode assembly together with an electrolyte solution. In general, lithium secondary batteries may be classified into can-type secondary batteries in which the electrode assembly is included in a metal can and pouch-type secondary batteries in which the electrode assembly is included in a pouch of an aluminum laminate sheet, according to the shape of the battery case. Recently, secondary batteries have been widely used in medium and large devices such as electric vehicles and energy storage systems (ESSs) for driving and storing energy, as well as in small devices such as portable electronic devices. A plurality of secondary batteries may be electrically connected and stored inside a module case, thereby forming a battery module. At this time, each secondary battery included in one battery module may be called a battery cell. In addition, multiple battery modules may be connected to each other to form a battery pack. However, if a plurality of battery modules are included in the battery pack as above and each battery module includes a plurality of battery cells, the battery pack may be vulnerable to a thermal chain reaction between battery modules or between battery cells. For example, if an event such as thermal runaway occurs inside one battery module, the thermal runaway needs to be prevented from propagating to other battery modules or other battery cells. If thermal runaway propagation between battery modules or battery cells is not properly prevented, an event occurring in a specific battery module or battery cell may cause a chain thermal reaction in other battery modules or other battery cells, which may cause an explosion or fire or enlarge the scale thereof. In particular, if an event such as thermal runaway occurs in a battery module, gas or flame may be randomly discharged to the outside. At this time, if the discharge of gas or flame is not properly controlled, gas or flame may be discharged toward another battery module, which may cause a thermal chain reaction in other battery modules. In particular, a module terminal may exist at the front side of the battery module, and a component such as a module bus bar may exist for electrical connection with another battery module or battery pack. Accordingly, if flame is discharged to the front side of the battery module, the module terminal may be damaged inside the battery pack, causing an electrical short. In addition, since another battery module may exist at the front side of the battery module, if flame is discharged to the front side of a specific battery module, the discharged flame may be directed to another battery module, which may easily cause a fire to spread between battery modules. If the thermal propagation between battery modules or battery cells is not properly controlled, the voltage drop of the battery module or battery pack may occur rapidly. This may cause a sudden shutdown of a device equipped with the battery module or battery pack, resulting in unexpected damage. For example, if a voltage drop of the battery pack occurs suddenly while an electric vehicle is in operation, it is impossible to secure sufficient time to move the electric vehicle to a safe location. Moreover, if a fire or explosion occurs suddenly due to failure to properly control thermal propagation betwe