Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha

Rika Shimazaki

Kazuyuki Kusama

Toshinori Okura

Yuta Nemoto

Tomohiro Ono

Youichi Naruse

Kaito Matsubara

Naoto Kagami

Masao Takano

A battery pack includes a plurality of cells, a plurality of heat releasing members, and a restraining unit. Each of the plurality of cells includes a pair of planar portions opposed to each other, and the plurality of cells are arranged such that planar portions of each adjacent pair of the cells are in a face-to-face relationship. The plurality of heat releasing members are disposed intermittently between adjacent pairs of cells along a direction in which the plurality of cells are arranged, and each of the plurality of heat releasing members juts out from the planar portions of the adjacent cells in regions where the plurality of heat releasing members are disposed. The restraining unit includes a pair of restraining members and a support member supporting the pair of restraining members, the pair of restraining members restraining opposite ends of the plurality of cells arranged with the plurality of heat releasing members interposed.

Battery pack

A battery pack includes a plurality of cells, a refrigerant pipe, a plurality of cooling members, and a restraining unit. Each of the cooling members includes a plate-shaped portion interposed between the cells, and a contact portion jutting out from between the cells and contacting the refrigerant pipe. The restraining unit includes a pair of restraining members and a support member supporting the pair of restraining members, the pair of restraining members restraining opposite ends of the plurality of cells arranged with the plurality of cooling members interposed. The cooling members include one or more first cooling members and one or more second cooling members, the one or more second cooling members having a heat capacity higher than the one or more first cooling members and having a greater contact area with the refrigerant pipe than the one or more first cooling members.

A battery pack includes one or more clearance adjusting units. Along a direction in which a plurality of cells are arranged, the one or more clearance adjusting unit are disposed intermittently between adjacent pairs of the cells or between sets of adjacent pairs of the cells. Each of the clearance adjusting units includes a pair of plates respectively placed against respective planar portions of the cells adjacent thereto, and an elastic body disposed between the pair of plates.

A region of a hole-inner circumferential surface composing a portion defining a terminal through-hole, the region being located on the battery case cover side, include a tapered surface gradually enlarged in diameter as extending toward the battery case cover side and opening toward the battery case cover side; when riveting is carried out, a region of a shaft portion, the region being located inward of the tapered surface, is enlarged in diameter so as to form an annular projecting portion in contact with the tapered surface; and a hole circumferential portion located around the portion defining the terminal through-hole is held between the external enlarged-diameter portion and the annular projecting portion so as to fix a first terminal member to a second terminal member.

Growing community of inventors

Aichi-ken, Japan

Rika Shimazaki