Strategies for Reducing EV Battery Weight

Optimizing the design of battery packs for electric vehicles that house cell stacks within irregularly shaped enclosures, to enable easier insertion of compressed cells into this opening and compression of cells between the irregular surfaces. It involves a block insert that interfaces between the irregular enclosure and cell stack. This insert allows compressing the cells to fit through the opening by providing a flat interface while transferring compression loads from the enclosure walls to the cells through a curved interface.

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A lightweight EV battery module with containing battery cells, a frame, a busbar frame, and an end plate that covers the busbar frame. The end plate consists of an insulating portion in contact with the busbar frame and a reinforcing portion inserted into the insulating portion. This maintains weldability and rigidity while reducing weight.

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A bus bar module for a battery pack that reduces size and height while not obstructing gas release from the battery cells. The module has a thermistor attachment portion that positions the thermistor vertically within the module. The temperature sensing wire from the thermistor is routed perpendicular to the thermistor attachment direction. This avoids wire bulkiness and protrusions above the battery cells.

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A lightweight battery pack case that reduces weight and maintains compression force over time while restraining a stack of batteries. The case uses panel structure walls made of two metal plates with a lower density interposed member between them. The metal plates provide strength and the low density interposed member reduces weight. The panel structure walls press the battery stack from opposing sides to compress and restrain it.

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Electrochemical cells with thin metal foil packaging that is more efficiently designed and produced than in previous conventional pouch cells. The metal foil packaging fully surrounds the cell stack and is directly welded along its edges to form a hermetic or near hermetic seal. The metal foil packaging also functions as current collector, with one electrode bonded to it. The thin, compact metal packaging allows more space for the cell components compared to conventional pouch cells, improving energy density in small batteries. The metal-to-metal seal close to the stack reduces thickness and enables thin cells.

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A method of manufacturing a battery module for electric vehicles that is lightweight and has enhanced quality and durability. The method involves forming electrode leads by friction-welding together a copper piece and an aluminum piece, rather than using solid copper or aluminum leads. The aluminum exposed on the outside of the cell pouch allows improved soldering and reduces corrosion. The copper-aluminum leads also reduce weight compared to solid copper leads. The module is built by stacking pouch cells with exposed aluminum leads and connecting those together.

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Vehicle battery pack design with higher energy density and simplified structure by applying a prismatic cell terminal exposure technique to pouch cells. The battery pack integrates functions to reduce parts and maximize cell volume. The cells have exposed terminals like prismatic cells. This allows direct busbar connection without intermediate modules. The pack has a cover pressing against the cells to prevent swelling. The cover also provides rigidity, cooling, and insulation functions. The battery pack has upper and lower casings, wiring, sensors, and a cell array in between. This provides a cell-to-pack (CTP) structure with simplified assembly compared to separate modules and cells.

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A lightweight, efficient battery system for vehicles like aircraft that uses negative pressure inside the battery housing to tightly brace the cell block against the housing walls. The system uses a vacuum pump to generate negative pressure inside the sealed battery housing. The housing walls are flexible enough to be pulled inwards by the negative pressure and tightly brace the cell block. This provides stability while reducing weight compared to fill materials. The cell block can be insulated and the housing walls contact it directly.

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Battery lower casing for battery systems that balances weight reduction and cost while maintaining safety. The casing has a lightweight support frame with fixing beams connected to a bottom plate. The frame surrounds the battery modules and has fixing portions to connect to them. A gap between the bottom plate and modules absorbs impacts.

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Battery enclosure for electric and hybrid vehicles made of thermoplastic composites. The enclosure consists of a top panel with reinforcement ribs and crossbeams, a bottom panel with support ribs, and outer covers. The panels are molded from fiber-reinforced thermoplastic sheets while the ribs and crossbeams are injection molded onto the sheets. The parts are joined by over-molding. The thermoplastic composite enclosure reduces weight compared to metal enclosures while maintaining strength, and simplifies manufacturing by using fewer parts.

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Battery pack design for electric vehicles that reduces weight and improves cooling compared to conventional packs. The pack has a box body, battery modules, and a bracket assembly above the box. The bracket has multiple spaced rods that support the battery management system. This allows lighter weight and ventilation between the rods compared to a solid bracket.

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Integrated battery pack design for electric vehicles that reduces weight, cost and complexity compared to conventional packs. The pack has a monolithic structure where the cells are directly embedded in the pack frame instead of being enclosed in separate modules. This eliminates the need for external housing and allows the pack to act as a structural component of the vehicle. The cells are arranged in arrays with cooling channels between them. The pack also has resin potting for thermal protection and electrical insulation. The pack has features like foil sheets for cell interconnection and voltage sensing electronics integrated into the frame.

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Battery pack assembly for electric vehicles that reduces weight compared to traditional steel housings while maintaining strength. The battery pack has a hollow housing made of aluminum components that surround the battery module. Each side of the housing has an upper mounting section and a lower hollow section. This design reduces weight by using hollow sections instead of solid ones while still providing structural integrity. The mounting sections connect the hollow sections vertically and provide attachment points. The lower hollow sections house the battery module. The hollow sections also have features like recessed areas and connecting ribs to further lighten the housing.

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Battery pack assembly and vehicle design that reduces weight and cost of battery packs by integrally molding the battery cell compartments and liquid cooling plate into the battery pack enclosure. This eliminates the need for separate brackets and reduces the number of parts compared to conventional stacked battery pack designs. The integrated molding also enables lightweight enclosure construction.

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A battery module frame design for electric vehicles that simplifies assembly, reduces weight, and improves safety compared to conventional battery modules. The frame has an open-ended outer shell with internal partitions forming multiple independent cell compartments. This eliminates the need for separate fixing structures to hold cells in place. The cells are directly inserted into the compartments. This simplifies assembly, reduces weight, and reduces safety risks from cell movement. The compartments also promote uniform cell temperature distribution.

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Lightweight design for lithium-ion battery packs used in launch vehicles that reduces weight while still providing structural strength and heat dissipation. The design features a frame with diagonal supports and an internal frame reinforcement. The frame holds the battery cells in place and uses the diagonal supports to create a triangular structure for stability. The internal frame further strengthens the frame while restricting cell placement. The cells are then sandwiched between the frame halves with heat pipes for cooling. This lightweight design allows reducing launch vehicle weight while maintaining structural integrity and heat management.

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A lightweight battery box for electric vehicles that reduces weight while maintaining safety and thermal management. The box uses a molded SMC frame with an integrated battery holder instead of separate parts. The battery cells are secured directly to the frame. The management module and communication components are housed inside the frame. Thermal interface material is used to attach the battery cells to the frame for heat dissipation. This integrated design eliminates separate battery mounts, reducing weight compared to traditional boxes.

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Battery pack and module design for electric vehicles that simplifies assembly, reduces weight, and enhances safety. The battery pack has multiple battery modules mounted to a frame using fasteners that go through apertures formed by cooperating cooling members of adjacent modules. This eliminates separate supports and reduces fasteners compared to conventional designs. The cooling members also function as heat sinks for the cells. The isolated cell groups within each module have electrical connections only when the pack is assembled, minimizing live voltage during handling.

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A simplified soft pack battery module structure for electric vehicles that improves efficiency and reduces cost compared to existing soft pack battery modules. The module uses an aluminum frame, battery baffle, PCB, heat conduction board, aerogel board, and insulation board. It eliminates the need for separate frames, boxes, and fasteners found in existing modules. The integrated design reduces parts count, weight, and assembly complexity while maintaining thermal management and electrical connections.

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Compact and efficient lithium ion battery pack for electric vehicles that improves energy density and simplifies design compared to conventional battery packs. The pack has a sealed housing with the battery cells clamped between upper and lower plates. The cells are connected in parallel and series using tabs that pass through the plates. A conductive strip provides electrical contact. This eliminates the need for external welding or sampling connectors. The housing provides protection and simplifies heat dissipation compared to split designs. The compact and integrated design reduces weight, volume, and complexity versus separate cell stacking.

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