US 12,249,700 B2
Battery cooler
Michio Suzumori, Toyota (JP); Satoko Tofukuji, Toyota (JP); and Yusuke Suzuki, Toyota (JP)
Assigned to TOYODA IRON WORKS CO., LTD., Toyota (JP)
Appl. No. 17/764,965
Filed by TOYODA IRON WORKS CO., LTD., Toyota (JP); and TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA, Toyota (JP)
PCT Filed Sep. 30, 2020, PCT No. PCT/JP2020/037148
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Mar. 29, 2022,
PCT Pub. No. WO2021/066010, PCT Pub. Date Apr. 8, 2021.
Claims priority of application No. 2019-179194 (JP), filed on Sep. 30, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2022/0407147 A1, Dec. 22, 2022
Int. Cl. H01M 10/6568 (2014.01); B60L 50/64 (2019.01); H01M 10/613 (2014.01); H01M 10/625 (2014.01); H01M 10/6557 (2014.01); H01M 50/204 (2021.01)
CPC H01M 10/6568 (2015.04) [B60L 50/64 (2019.02); H01M 10/613 (2015.04); H01M 10/625 (2015.04); H01M 10/6557 (2015.04); H01M 50/204 (2021.01); H01M 2220/20 (2013.01)] 17 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A battery cooler arranged to be sandwiched between side surfaces of a plurality of unit cells forming an assembled battery, comprising:
a refrigerant filling chamber in which refrigerant is charged, the refrigerant filling chamber being sandwiched between opposed unit cells of the assembled battery and arranged at a position where the refrigerant filling chamber is configured to receive heat from the opposed unit cells;
a refrigerant inflow passage configured to allow a refrigerant condensed by an external condenser to flow into the refrigerant filling chamber, the refrigerant inflow passage being connected to a lower portion of the refrigerant filling chamber; and
a refrigerant outflow passage configured to allow a refrigerant vaporized in the refrigerant filling chamber due at least in part to the heat of the unit cells to flow out and toward the condenser, the refrigerant outflow passage being connected to an upper portion of the refrigerant filling chamber, wherein:
the refrigerant filling chamber has opposed wall surfaces in contact with the side surfaces of the unit cells arranged at both sides of the refrigerant filling chamber,
the refrigerant filling chamber has a first joint part joining a portion of the opposed wall surfaces so as to suppress expansion and deformation of the refrigerant filling chamber caused by a pressure of the refrigerant in the refrigerant filling chamber, and
an outflow side wall surface rising from a bottom surface of the refrigerant filling chamber toward a connection part of the refrigerant outflow passage is provided with an inclined surface directed downward from a horizontal direction.