US-12620642-B2 - Battery module and battery pack including the same

Abstract

A battery module according to one embodiment of the present disclosure includes a battery cell stack including a plurality of battery cells; a housing for the battery cell stack; and a pair of end plates for covering the front and rear surfaces of the battery cell stack, respectively, wherein electrode leads, each protruding from the plurality of battery cells, are formed on the front and rear surfaces of the battery cell stack; and a cooling block disposed between the electrode leads and the end plate.

Inventors

• Jinju PARK
• Hyun Wook Jeon
• Seung Ryul BAEK
• Daegil KIM

Assignees

• LG ENERGY SOLUTION, LTD.

Dates

Publication Date

20260505

Application Date

20210721

Priority Date

20200722

Claims (8)

1. 1 . A battery module comprising: a battery cell stack comprising a plurality of battery cells; a housing for the battery cell stack; and a pair of end plates for covering the front and rear surfaces of the battery cell stack, respectively, wherein electrode leads, each protruding from the plurality of battery cells, are formed on the front and rear surfaces of the battery cell stack, wherein a cooling block is disposed between the electrode leads and the end plate, wherein an insulating cover is formed between the end plate and the electrode leads, wherein the cooling block is configured to be inserted to an opening of the insulating cover, wherein the cooling block is configured to transfer heat generated from the electrode leads to the end plates, and wherein the cooling block is coupled to the opening of the insulating cover.
2. 2 . The battery module of claim 1 , wherein: a protrusion is formed on an inner side periphery of the opening, a groove portion is formed around the cooling block, and the protrusion is inserted into the groove portion so that the cooling block is coupled to the opening.
3. 3 . The battery module of claim 1 , wherein: busbars mounted on a busbar frame are disposed between the cooling block and the battery cell stack, and a cooling pad in contact with the cooling block and the busbars is attached between the cooling block and the busbars.
4. 4 . The battery module of claim 3 , wherein: the cooling pad is formed of a viscous material and adheres closely to the surface of the busbar and the busbar frame.
5. 5 . The battery module of claim 1 , wherein: a cooling adhesive is applied on a surface of the cooling block facing the end plate.
6. 6 . The battery module of claim 1 , wherein: a thermally conductive resin layer is formed between the battery cell stack and a bottom portion of the housing.
7. 7 . The battery module of claim 1 , wherein: the cooling block comprises an insulating material or a thermally conductive material.
8. 8 . A battery pack comprising the battery module of claim 1 .

Description

CROSS CITATION WITH RELATED APPLICATION(S) This application is a National Phase entry pursuant to 35 U.S.C. § 371 of International Application No. PCT/KR2021/009427, filed on Jul. 21, 2021, and claims priority to and the benefit of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2020-0091093, filed on Jul. 22, 2020 with the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. TECHNICAL FIELD The present disclosure relates to a battery module and a battery pack including the same, and more particularly, to a battery module having improved cooling performance, and a battery pack including the same. BACKGROUND ART A secondary battery has attracted much attention as an energy source in various products such as a mobile device and an electric vehicle. The secondary battery is a potent energy resource that can replace the use of existing products using fossil fuels, and is in the spotlight as an environment-friendly energy source because it does not generate by-products due to energy use. Recently, along with a continuous rise of the necessity for a large-capacity secondary battery structure, including the utilization of the secondary battery as an energy storage source, there is a growing demand for a battery pack of a multi-module structure which is an assembly of battery modules in which a plurality of secondary batteries are connected in series/parallel. Meanwhile, when a plurality of battery cells are connected in series/parallel to configure a battery pack, a method of configuring a battery module composed of at least one battery cell and then adding other components to at least one battery module to configure a battery pack is common. The battery module may include a battery cell stack including a plurality of battery cells, a housing for the battery cell stack, and a pair of end plates for covering the front and rear surfaces of the battery cell stack, respectively. FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a conventional battery module. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a section A-A of FIG. 1. Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the conventional battery module may include a battery cell stack 10 formed by stacking a plurality of battery cells 11, a housing 20 for the battery cell stack 10, and electrode leads 12 formed to protrude at both ends of the plurality of battery cells 11 constituting the battery cell stack 10. Further, the battery module may include a busbar frame 41 that is equipped with a busbar 40 coupled to the electrode lead 12 is mounted and covers the front and rear surfaces of the battery cell stack 10, an insulating cover 50 that covers the busbar frame 41 from the outside, an end plate 30 that covers the insulating cover 50 from the outside, and a thermally conductive resin layer 60 that is formed between the battery cell stack 10 and the bottom portion 21 of the housing 20. In relation to the cooling function of the battery module, conventionally, a thermally conductive resin layer 60 was formed between the bottom portion 21 of the housing and the lower side surface of the battery cell stack 10, so that heat generated from the battery cell stack 10 was transferred to the outside. However, since a separate cooling component is not disposed in the portion where the electrode lead 12 and the busbar 40, actually generating the largest amount of heat in the battery cell, are disposed, the temperature of the portion where the electrode lead 12 and the busbar 40 are located rises locally, so that the temperature deviation between the internal portions of the battery module increases and thereby, the overall performance of the battery module may be deteriorated. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Technical Problem It is an object of the present disclosure to provide a battery module that minimizes the temperature deviation between the internal portions of the battery module and lowers the temperature of the battery cell, thus improving cooling performance, and a battery pack including the same. The objects of the present disclosure are not limited to the aforementioned objects, and other objects which are not described herein should be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following detailed description. Technical Solution According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, there is provided a battery module comprising: a battery cell stack comprising a plurality of battery cells; a housing for the battery cell stack; and a pair of end plates for covering the front and rear surfaces of the battery cell stack, respectively, wherein electrode leads, each protruding from the plurality of battery cells, are formed on the front and rear surfaces of the battery cell stack, and a cooling block is disposed between the electrode leads and the end plate. An insulating cover is formed between the end plate and the electrode leads, and the cooling block may be inserted and coupled to the opening of the insulating cover. A protrusio