Battery system and vehicle including the battery system

Abstract

A battery system for an electric vehicle includes a high voltage battery including a plurality of battery cells interconnected with one another configured to provide a high voltage output at battery system terminals and a battery disconnecting element powered by the high voltage battery and configured to disconnect the high voltage battery from at least one of the battery system terminals in the event of a malfunction or crash.

Claims

1. A battery system for an electric vehicle, the battery system comprising: a high voltage battery comprising a plurality of battery cells interconnected with one another and configured to provide a high voltage output at battery system terminals; and a battery disconnecting element powered by the high voltage battery and configured to disconnect the high voltage battery from at least one of the battery system terminals in the event of a malfunction or crash, wherein the battery disconnecting element comprises a pyro element and energy needed to trigger the pyro element is provided by the high voltage battery.

2. The battery system of claim 1, further comprising a transformer configured to transform at least one of the high voltage output of the high voltage battery to a voltage for powering the battery disconnecting element and a current of the high voltage battery to a current for powering the battery disconnecting element.

3. The battery system of claim 2, wherein the battery disconnecting element further comprises a switch and a control unit configured to actuate the switch, and wherein actuating the switch powers the battery disconnecting element.

4. The battery system of claim 3, wherein the control unit is configured to actuate the switch for a time span.

5. The battery system of claim 3, further comprising a backup power supply for the control unit.

6. The battery system of claim 3, wherein the transformer comprises a first coil and a second coil, the first coil and the switch are connected in series to each other and connected in parallel to the high voltage battery between the battery system terminals, the second coil being connected to the battery disconnecting element to trigger the battery disconnecting element.

7. The battery system of claim 6, further comprising a diode connected in parallel to the first coil of the transformer.

8. The battery system of claim 7, wherein the diode is a flyback diode.

9. An electric vehicle comprising the battery system of claim 1.

10. The electric vehicle of claim 9, further comprising a low voltage supply circuit powered by a low voltage power supply and a high voltage supply circuit powered by the high voltage battery.

11. The electric vehicle of claim 10, wherein the battery disconnecting element comprises a switch and a control unit configured to actuate the switch, and wherein actuating the switch powers the battery disconnecting element.

12. The electric vehicle of claim 11, wherein the low voltage power supply is configured to power the control unit.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) Aspects and features of the present disclosure will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art by describing, in detail, exemplary embodiments with reference to the attached drawing, which is a block diagram illustrating a battery system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(2) Reference will now be made, in detail, to embodiments, an example of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawing. Aspects and features of the embodiments, and implementation methods thereof, will be described with reference to the accompanying drawing. The present disclosure, however, may be embodied in various different forms, and should not be construed as being limited to only the illustrated embodiments herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided as examples so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the aspects and features of the present disclosure to those skilled in the art.

(3) Throughout the specification, like reference numerals denote like elements, and redundant descriptions may be omitted. For better readability, not all elements in the FIGURE may be marked with reference signs, especially in the case of redundant elements. Accordingly, processes, elements, and techniques that are not considered necessary for those having ordinary skill in the art to have a complete understanding of the aspects and features of the present disclosure may not be described. In the drawing, the relative sizes of elements, layers, and regions may be exaggerated for clarity.

(4) As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. Further, the use of “may” when describing embodiments of the present disclosure refers to “one or more embodiments of the present disclosure.” In the following description of embodiments of the present disclosure, the terms of a singular form may include plural forms unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

(5) It will be understood that although the terms “first” and “second” are used to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element from another element. For example, a first element may be named a second element and, similarly, a second element may be named a first element, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

(6) It will be further understood that the terms “have,” “include,” “comprise,” “having,” “including,” or “comprising” specify a property, a region, a fixed number, a step, a process, an element, a component, and a combination thereof but do not exclude other properties, regions, fixed numbers, steps, processes, elements, components, and combinations thereof.

(7) It will be understood that when an element or layer is referred to as being “on,” “connected to,” or “coupled to” another element or layer, it may be directly on, connected, or coupled to the other element or layer or one or more intervening elements or layers may also be present. When an element or layer is referred to as being “directly on,” “directly connected to,” or “directly coupled to” another element or layer, there are no intervening elements or layers present. For example, when a first element is described as being “coupled” or “connected” to a second element, the first element may be directly coupled or connected to the second element or the first element may be indirectly coupled or connected to the second element via one or more intervening elements.

(8) As used herein, the terms “use,” “using,” and “used” may be considered synonymous with the terms “utilize,” “utilizing,” and “utilized,” respectively. As used herein, the terms “substantially,” “about,” and similar terms are used as terms of approximation and not as terms of degree, and are intended to account for the inherent variations in measured or calculated values that would be recognized by those of ordinary skill in the art.

(9) Spatially relative terms, such as “beneath,” “below,” “lower,” “above,” “upper,” and the like, may be used herein for ease of description to describe one element or feature's relationship to another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. It will be understood that the spatially relative terms are intended to encompass different orientations of the device in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if the device in the figures is turned over, elements described as “below” or “beneath” other elements or features would then be oriented “above” or “over” the other elements or features. Thus, the term “below” may encompass both an orientation of above and below. The device may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations), and the spatially relative descriptors used herein should be interpreted accordingly.

(10) The electronic or electric devices and/or any other relevant devices or components according to embodiments of the present disclosure described herein may be implemented utilizing any suitable hardware, firmware (e.g., an application-specific integrated circuit), software, or a combination of software, firmware, and hardware. Further, the various components of these devices may be implemented on a flexible printed circuit film, a tape carrier package (TCP), a printed circuit board (PCB), or formed on one substrate. The electrical connections or interconnections described herein may be realized by wires or conducting elements, for example, on a PCB or another kind of circuit carrier. The conducting elements may include metallization, such as surface metallizations and/or pins, and/or conductive polymers or ceramics. Further, electrical energy may be transmitted via wireless connections, for example, by using electromagnetic radiation and/or light.

(11) Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which the present disclosure belongs. It will be further understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art and/or the present specification and should not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense, unless expressly so defined herein.

(12) A battery system 10 for an electric vehicle according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown in the FIGURE. The battery system 10 includes a high voltage battery 12, which in turn includes a plurality of battery cells. The battery cells may be arranged in a row forming one or more battery modules. Each battery cell may include two electrode terminals, which are connected with electrodes of the respective battery cell. The battery cells may be interconnected with one another via busbars providing an electrical connection between the electrode terminals of two neighboring battery cells. For example, the battery cells may be interconnected with one another in series via the busbars within the modules. The high voltage battery 12 is connected with two battery system terminals 14, 16 through which the high voltage battery 12 may provide its high voltage output to, for example, an electric vehicle.

(13) The battery system 10 further includes a pyro fuse 20 as a battery disconnecting element for disconnecting the high voltage battery 12 from at least one of the battery system terminals 14, 16 in the event of a malfunction or crash. The pyro fuse 20 may sever the connection between the battery system terminal 16 and the high voltage battery 12. The pyro fuse 20 is powered by the high voltage battery 12 as will be explained below.

(14) The battery system 10 further includes a transformer 22 and a switch 24. The transformer 22 includes a first coil 22a and a second coil 22b. The first coil 22a and the switch 24 are connected to each other in series, and the first coil 22a and the switch 24 are connected, in parallel, to the high voltage battery 12 between the two battery system terminals 14, 16 as shown in, for example, the FIGURE. The second coil 22b is connected to the pyro fuse 20.

(15) The high voltage battery 12, the transformer 22, and the switch 24 form a driver circuit for supplying the pyro fuse 20 with power to trigger the pyro fuse 20. The pyro fuse 20, the transformer 22, and the switch 24 may be part of a battery disconnecting unit (BDU).

(16) In the event of a malfunction of the battery system or a crash of the electric vehicle including the high voltage battery as a traction battery, a control unit actuates (e.g., closes) the switch 24 and triggers the pyro fuse 20. The switch 24 may be actuated by the control unit when the control unit receives either a crash signal provided by the vehicle system or by a signal output of an overcurrent monitoring system of the battery. The driver circuit is closed by actuating the switch 24 to connect the pyro fuse 20 with the high voltage battery 12 as a power supply so that the pyro fuse 20 is triggered. The transformer is galvanically isolated (e.g., has a galvanic isolation) and provides power (e.g., the correct power) sufficient to trigger the pyro fuse 20 (e.g., the transformer transforms the low current, high voltage pulse provided by the high voltage battery 12 via its coils 22a, 22b into a low voltage, high current pulse that is applied to the pyro fuse 20 to fire the fuse).

(17) Furthermore, the driver circuit includes a flyback diode 26 connected in parallel to the first coil 22a of the transformer 22. The flyback diode 26 protects the switch 24 from flyback (e.g., a sudden voltage spike seen across the transformer 22 when its supply current is suddenly reduced or interrupted). The flyback diode 26 may also be part of the BDU.

(18) Thus, the battery system of the high voltage battery, such as the traction battery of the electric vehicle, is itself used to power the battery disconnecting element (e.g., to trigger the pyro fuse). Therefore, no capacitor is needed to provide power to the battery disconnecting element. The battery system according to the present disclosure is therefore less complex and has a lower risk of malfunctioning.

REFERENCE SIGNS

(19) 10 battery system 12 high voltage battery 14, 16 battery system terminals 20 pyro fuse 22 transformer 22a first coil of transformer 22b second coil of transformer 24 switch 26 flyback diode