BATTERY HOUSING

Abstract

The invention relates to a battery housing, in particular for an energy accumulator for a hybrid drive, comprising a tubular main body and at least two terminating covers, which are inserted into the main body and each have a cover plate that is offset inwards in the longitudinal direction of the main body and supports housing walls of the main body, wherein the terminating covers are each welded to the main body and all joints of the battery housing are formed without separate connecting elements.

Claims

1. A battery housing, in particular for an energy accumulator for a hybrid drive, comprising a tubular main body and at least two terminating covers, which are inserted into the main body and each have a cover plate that is offset inwards in the longitudinal direction of the main body and supports housing walls of the main body, wherein the terminating covers are each welded to the main body and all joints of the battery housing are formed without separate connecting elements.

2. The battery housing according to claim 1, wherein the main body and the terminating cover are each formed from materials, in particular a steel or a steel alloy, which has identical material properties.

3. The battery housing according to claim 1, wherein at most four, in particular at most three, continuous, fluid-tight weld seams.

4. The battery housing according to claim 1, wherein the main body is formed from two metal sheets each bent to give a C-profile, which metal sheets are welded to one another at their longitudinal edges in such a way that a substantially rectangular tube profile is formed.

5. The battery housing according to claim 1, wherein the cover plate extends substantially at right angles to a longitudinal axis of the main body and has openings for guiding through electrical connectors and/or fluid connectors.

6. The battery housing according to claim 1, wherein the terminating covers each have a peripheral edge flange which is formed in one piece with the cover plate, extends outwardly in the longitudinal direction of the main body and is welded to the main body.

7. The battery housing according to claim 1, wherein the edge flange has an outer edge which terminates flush with an end-side end edge of the main body.

8. The battery housing according to claim 1, wherein at least one securing flange is welded on to the main body and is suitable for securing the main body to a vehicle.

9. The battery housing according to claim 1, wherein the main body and the terminating cover each have a wall thickness between 2 mm and 5 mm, in particular between 2.5 mm and 4 mm, in particular between 2.8 mm and 3.5 mm, in particular of 3 mm.

10. The battery housing according to claim 1, wherein the battery housing is dimensionally stable at least in the longitudinal direction of the main body under the action of an impact force of at least 20 times, in particular at least 30 times, in particular at least 40 times, in particular at least 50 times the force of gravity.

11. A battery, in particular for a hybrid drive, comprising at least one battery housing according to claim 1, at least one cooling element and at least one cell block formed from battery cells which are formed as round cells, wherein the cooling element and the cell block are arranged within the battery housing.

12. The battery according to claim 11, wherein the cooling element is arranged between the cell block and the battery housing, wherein a pressure bag is provided between the cooling element and the battery housing, which pressure bag comprises a cured plastic and causes the battery housing to bulge outwardly at least in part, in such a way that the battery housing exerts an inwardly directed bracing force onto the cooling element and the cell block via the pressure bag.

13. A motor vehicle, in particular hybrid vehicle, comprising at least one battery housing and/or at least one battery according to claim 1.

14. A method for producing a battery housing or a battery or a motor vehicle according to claim 1, said method comprising the following steps: bending a steel sheet to form a C-profile; welding the longitudinal edges of two C-profiles to form a main body having a square hollow profile; arranging two terminating covers at the end sides of the main body, wherein the terminating covers are arranged within the square hollow profile; welding the terminating covers to the main body.

Description

[0021] The features and details of the subject matter of the invention will be explained in greater detail hereinafter on the basis of exemplary embodiments with reference to the accompanying, schematic drawings, in which:

[0022] FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a housing or a battery according to the invention. In this illustration, a side wall of the cuboidal housing has been omitted; and

[0023] FIG. 2 a perspective arrangement of a terminating cover according to the invention;

[0024] FIGS. 3, 4 and 5 show possibilities for the arrangement of securing flanges by welding to the main body of the housing.

[0025] In the various figures of the drawings, a battery system 10 comprising a housing 11 is illustrated. This battery system 10 is suitable in particular for a vehicle, for example a motor vehicle having a hybrid drive. A vehicle, in particular motor vehicle, is understood here to mean vehicles which are moved on land, in the air, or also on water.

[0026] The housing 11 is constructed substantially from a tubular main body 12, which in the exemplary embodiment illustrated in the drawings has a substantially rectangular-cuboidal basic form. This cuboidal basic form can be achieved preferably in that two steel sheets bent to form a substantially C-shaped profile are joined together to form the cuboidal main body 12 and are welded in a fluid-tight manner at their longitudinal ends butted together.

[0027] A multiplicity of battery cells 17 and cooling elements 18 are arranged inside the housing 11.

[0028] A terminating cover 19 or 20 is inserted (form-fitting) resting in a supporting manner into each of the open end sides of the tubular main body 12. The terminating covers 19 and 20 are welded in this position to the walls of the tubular main body 12, wherein it is expedient if the end edges of the peripheral edge flange 21 each rest in a supported manner flush with the end-side end edges of the main body 12. A fluid-tight welding of the inserted terminating covers 19, 20 to the tubular main body 12 can thus be achieved in a particularly simple manner.

[0029] The electrical connectors for the battery cells 17 are arranged in the terminating cover 19. Besides a power socket 22, an electronics socket 23 for example (see FIG. 2) can also be provided. The power socket 22 serves to tap the electrical energy stored within the battery cells 17 or to charge the battery cells; the electronics socket 23 can produce the connection to electronic components within the housing 11 and for example can serve for signal and/or data exchange between the battery system 10 and the vehicle electronics, for example a bus system. Both the power socket 22 and the electronics socket 23 and the component 24 supporting these are fixed on the terminating cover 19, sealed in a fluid-tight manner.

[0030] An opening or a valve 25—preferably distanced from the electrical connectors 22 and 23—can additionally be arranged in the terminating cover 19. The valve opening in the terminating cover 19 carries a valve externally for improved maintenance, which valve for example can be equipped with an air-drying means. This air-drying means should rest directly on the valve opening, such that the effect is provided inside the housing 11 and therefore the interior of the housing 11 can be continuously rid of moisture.

[0031] The terminating cover 20 is inserted in the second end side of the tubular main body 12 or the housing 11 in a manner comparable to the insertion of the terminating cover 19 and is welded there in a fluid-tight manner. As is also the case with the terminating cover 19, the terminating cover 20 has a cover plate 19.1 or 20.1 that is offset inwards in the longitudinal direction of the main body 12—offset by the peripheral edge flange 21. In contrast to the terminating cover 19 or the cover plate 19.1, however, it is not the electronic or electrical connectors that are introduced into the terminating cover 20 or into the cover plate 20.1, but instead the connectors 26 for the supply and discharge of cooling fluid. This arrangement of the fluid connectors 26 fully separated from the electrical connectors 22 and 23 is of particular importance for safety reasons.

[0032] The design shown in particular in FIG. 2 of terminating cover 19 with its integrated cover plate 19.1 and the peripheral edge flange 21—which is largely identical to the structural design of the terminating cover 20 with its cover plate 20.1—offers a range of advantages: On the one hand, not only is an increased stability of the housing 11 achieved by the supporting resting design of the terminating covers 19 and 20, but a particularly simple securing with easily attainable fluid tightness is achieved also at the connector points, firstly by the form fit and secondly by the edge-side welding. In addition, however, what is achieved in particular is that the fluid connectors 26 and the electrical connectors 22 and 23 as well as the valve 25 are arranged in a protected space offset inwards in the longitudinal direction of the tubular main body 12.

[0033] For crash safety and for durability it is particularly advantageous to produce all components of the housing 11—main body 12 with the C-profiles, terminating covers 19 and 20, and also the components for securing the electrical connectors, valves, fluid connectors—from a material having identical material properties, but in particular from a steel or a steel alloy. Here, a wall thickness of between 2 mm and 5 mm for the main body 12 and the terminating covers 19 and 20 has proven to be particularly advantageous; a wall thickness of approximately 3 mm is very particularly advantageous.

[0034] The stability of the design and in particular the crash safety of the battery system can be improved additionally in that cooling elements are arranged between the cell blocks formed from battery cells 17 in the interior of the housing 11 and the inner walls of the tubular main body 12 and at least one pressure bag is arranged between cooling element and inner walls of the main body 12, which pressure bag comprises a cured plastic and braces the tubular main body 12 or causes it to bulge outwardly at least in part, in such a way that the housing is able to exert an inwardly directed bracing force onto cooling element and cell block via the pressure bag.

[0035] FIGS. 3-5 illustrate a possible form of securing a battery housing in a motor vehicle. For this purpose, it is proposed to weld on a plurality of securing flanges 27 externally at arbitrary points of the tubular main body 12, which securing flanges for example are intended for screwing the battery system 10 to the structure of a vehicle. Due to the securing flanges 27 to be attached at arbitrary points of the housing 11, an individual adaptation of the securing to the vehicle geometry is easily possible. The number and positioning of the securing flanges 27 can be selected practically arbitrarily. A particular advantage of this securing form via welded-on securing flanges 27 can also be considered the fact that the stability of the housing 11 in respect of crash safety and in particular in respect of the protection of the functional components in the interior of the housing 11 is in no way impaired by the external welding-on of the securing flanges 27. Of course, securing flanges are conceivable not only on the narrow sides of the housing 11, as in the example shown according to FIGS. 3-5, but rather are also possible on the upper side or the lower side—depending on the vehicle requirements.

LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS

[0036] 10 battery system [0037] 11 housing [0038] 12 tubular main body [0039] 17 battery cells [0040] 18 cooling elements [0041] 19 terminating cover [0042] 19.1 cover plate [0043] 20 terminating cover [0044] 20.1 cover plate [0045] 21 edge flange of 19 or 20 [0046] 22 power socket [0047] 23 electronics socket [0048] 24 component [0049] 25 valve/valve opening [0050] 26 fluid connectors for cooling fluid [0051] 27 securing flange