Abstract:
A battery pack that has one or more batteries and a protection circuit module. The battery pack includes protection tab members that connect to the batteries and the tab members include a tab that has a coupling component that extends towards the batteries. The battery pack also includes a conductive member that connects the connection tab member to the protection circuit module. The battery pack also includes spacers that receive the connection tabs and that couple to the coupling component of the connection tabs and are interconnected to the conductive member and the spacers.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/593,176 filed Jan. 31, 2012 which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     1. Field 
     An aspect of the present invention relates to a battery pack, and more particularly, to a battery pack capable of facilitating connection between a connection tab and a coverlay or similar member. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     In general, it is difficult to use only one battery cell as a power source of a notebook computer, etc. Therefore, a battery pack having a plurality of battery cells connected in series and/or parallel is configured as a power source employed in a notebook computer, etc. so as to obtain a desired voltage and capacity. The connection of the plurality of battery cells in series and/or parallel is often performed by soldering using a connection tab. 
     A protective circuit module such as a charging/discharging control circuit and/or a protection circuit may be mounted on the plurality of battery cells. The protective circuit module may be electrically connected to the plurality of battery cells using a coverlay or similar member. That is, one side of the coverlay is fixed to the protective circuit module, and the other side of the coverlay is fixed to the connection tab for connecting the plurality of battery cells. 
     SUMMARY 
     Embodiments provide a battery pack in which a connection tab and a spacer are physically fastened to each other, so that the spacer can be fixed without its vertical movement, thereby facilitating soldering between the connection tab and a coverlay or similar member. 
     Embodiments also provide a battery pack in which a connection tab and a coverlay or conductive member are screw-fastened to each other on a spacer, so that a soldering operation can be omitted. 
     According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a battery pack including: a plurality of battery cells electrically connected to one another; at least one connection tab through which the plurality of battery cells are electrically connected to one another; a protective circuit module formed at one side of the plurality of battery cells; a coverlay or conductive member through which the protective circuit module and the at least one connection tab are electrically connected to each other; and a spacer positioned between the plurality of battery cells and the coverlay or conductive member. 
     In another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a battery pack comprising at least one battery, and at least one connection tab member that connects the at least one battery, wherein the at least one connection tab member includes a connection tab that has a coupling component that extends outward from the connection tab member. In this aspect, the battery pack further includes a protection circuit module and a conductive member that electrically interconnects the at least one connection tab member to the protection circuit module. In this aspect, the battery pack further includes a spacer that has a member that is engaged with the coupling component of the at least one connection tab when the spacer receives the conductive member and is positioned in a first position proximate the at least one battery, wherein the connection tab of the at least one connection tab member is interconnected to the conductive member and to the member of the spacer. 
     A through-hole through which the connection tab passes may be formed in the spacer, and the connection tab may be bent toward an upper surface of the spacer by passing through the through-hole of the spacer. A first fastening portion may be formed at one side of the through-hole of the direction in which the connection tab is bent, and a second fastening portion may be formed at a position of the connection tab corresponding to the first fastening portion. 
     The first fastening portion may be formed in the shape of a hook, and the second fastening portion may be formed in the shape of a hook latching hole for accommodating the hook. 
     The other side of the through-hole, in which the first fastening portion is not formed, may be formed to be inclined. 
     The spacer may be positioned in a space between the plurality of battery cells and a case for accommodating the plurality of battery cells. The spacer may be formed so that, on the vertical section of the spacer, the shape of a top surface corresponds to the shape of an inner surface of the case and the shape of a bottom surface corresponds to the shape of an outer surface of the plurality of battery cells. 
     The connection tab and the coverlay or conductive member may be connected to each other by soldering. 
     Alternatively, the connection tab and the coverlay or conductive member may be connected to each other using a separate fastening member. A first fastening hole may be formed in the connection tab, and a second fastening hole may be formed at a position of the coverlay or conductive member corresponding to the first fastening hole. A coupling groove may be formed at a position of the spacer corresponding to the second fastening hole. 
     Accordingly, the fastening member can be fastened to the coupling groove by passing through the first and second fastening holes. The coupling groove may have a shape to which the fastening member such as a screw is fastened. 
     A groove having a shape corresponding to the conductive member may be formed on a top surface of the spacer so that the conductive member is mounted thereon. 
     A positive (+) symbol is formed at one side of the spacer, and a negative (−) symbol is formed at the other side of the spacer. Thus, it is possible to prevent the direction of the spacer from being reversed. 
     The battery cell may be a cylindrical battery cell. 
     According to the present invention, the connection tab and the spacer are physically fastened to each other, so that the fixing ability of the spacer can be improved, thereby more easily performing a soldering operation between the connection tab and the conductive member. 
     Further, the connection tab and the coverlay or conductive member are screw-fastened to each other on the spacer, so that the soldering operation can be omitted. Thus, it is possible to simplify the manufacturing process of the battery pack and to equalize the quality of the battery pack. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The accompanying drawings, together with the specification, illustrate exemplary embodiments of the present invention, and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the present invention. 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view showing a battery pack according to a first embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is an exploded perspective view showing the battery pack according to the first embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view showing a connection tab according to the present invention. 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view showing a spacer according to the present invention. 
         FIG. 5  is a sectional view taken along line A-A′ of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 6  is a perspective view showing a spacer used in a battery pack according to a second embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 7  is a perspective view showing a battery pack according to a third embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 8  is a sectional view taken along line B-B′ of  FIG. 7 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     In the following detailed description, only certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, simply by way of illustration. As those skilled in the art would realize, the described embodiments may be modified in various different ways, all without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention. Accordingly, the drawings and description are to be regarded as illustrative in nature and not restrictive. In addition, when an element is referred to as being “on” another element, it can be directly on the another element or be indirectly on the another element with one or more intervening elements interposed therebetween. Also, when an element is referred to as being “connected to” another element, it can be directly connected to the another element or be indirectly connected to the another element with one or more intervening elements interposed therebetween. Hereinafter, like reference numerals refer to like elements. In the drawings, the thickness or size of layers are exaggerated for clarity and not necessarily drawn to scale. 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view showing a battery pack according to a first embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 2  is an exploded perspective view showing the battery pack according to the first embodiment of the present invention. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the battery pack according to this embodiment includes a plurality of cylindrical battery cells  30   a ,  30   b ,  30   c ,  30   d ,  30   e  and  30   f  (hereinafter, commonly designated by ‘ 30 ’ except when it is necessary to describe each of the battery cells), which are electrically connected to one another, and at least one connection tab  31  through which the plurality of battery cells  30  are electrically connected to one another. A protective circuit module (PCM)  20  is provided at one side of the plurality of battery cells  30 , and the PCM  20  and the at least one connection tab  31  are electrically connected to each other through one or more conductive members or coverlays  40 . The battery pack according to this embodiment further includes a spacer  50  provided between the plurality of battery cells  30  and the conductive member  40 . 
     More preferably, the spacer  50  may be formed to fill a space between the plurality of battery cells  30  and a case (not shown) for accommodating the plurality of battery cells  30 . That is, the spacer  50  may be formed so that, on the vertical section of the spacer  50 , the shape of a top surface corresponds to the shape of an inner surface of the case and the shape of a bottom surface corresponds to the shape of an outer surface of the plurality of battery cells  30 . 
     A through-hole  51  through which the at least one connection tab  31  passes is formed in the spacer  50 , and the connection tab  31  passes through the through-hole  51  of the spacer  50  and is then bent toward an upper surface of the spacer  50 . In this case, a first fastening portion  52  is formed at one side of the through-hole  51  of the direction in which the connection tab  31  is bent, and a second fastening portion  32  is formed at a position of the connection tab  31  corresponding to the first fastening portion  52 . Here, the first fastening portion  52  is formed in the shape of a hook, and the second fastening portion  32  is formed in the shape of a hook latching hole in which the hook is accommodated. 
     As described above, the first fastening portion  52  of the spacer  50  is inserted into the second fastening portion  32  of the connection tab  31 , so that it is possible to inhibit vertical movement of the spacer  50 . Accordingly, a soldering operation between the connection tab  31  and the conductive member  40  can be more easily performed on the spacer  50 . 
     A slope portion  53  (See  FIG. 5 ) may be formed at the other side of the through-hole  51 , on which the first fastening portion  52  is not formed. The slope portion  53  may provided a space so that the first fastening portion  52  of the spacer  50  is more easily inserted into the second fastening member  32  of the connection tab  31 . 
     The PCM  20  in this embodiment has electronic components mounted therein, and a protection circuit, etc is configured in the PCM  20 . The protection circuit includes a circuit for detecting overcharge or overdischarge of a battery and controlling current, a circuit for detecting overdischarge of a battery and blocking current, etc. An insertion hole  21  into which an end portion of the conductive member  40  is inserted may be formed on the PCM  20  where the electronic components, the protection circuit, etc. are not positioned. 
     The plurality of battery cells  30  is formed into a structure of 2S3P, in which the six battery cells  30   a ,  30   b ,  30   c ,  30   d ,  30   e  and  30   f  are connected in series and parallel. In this case, the plurality of battery cells  30  are electrically connected to one another by the connection tab  31 , and the connection tab  31  positioned at an outermost end of the plurality of the battery cells  30  may be used as a high current terminal in the battery pack. 
     The conductive member  40  through which the PCM  20  and the plurality of battery cells  30  are electrically connected to each other is formed in the shape of a thin and long plate, and may be made of a conductive material such as copper (Cu) or nickel (Ni). An insulating member  10  surrounds the outer surface of the conductive member  40  except one end portion of the conductive member  40  connected to the PCM  20  and the other end portion of the conductive member  40  connected to the plurality of battery cells  30 . That is, the outer surface of the conductive member  40  except a soldering portion  41  and an exposure portion  42  is surrounded by the insulating member  10 . 
     The plurality of conductive members  40  may be integrated by the insulating member  10 , and the insulating member  10  may be formed in various shapes easily mounted on the outer surface of the plurality of battery cells  30 . Here, the insulating member  10  may be formed with a polyimide (PI) film. 
     The conductive member  40  is mounted on the spacer  50 , and the connection tab  31  passing through the through-hole  51  of the spacer  50  is bent and then mounted on an upper portion of the conductive member  40 . In this case, the hook of the spacer  50  is latched into the hole-shaped second fastening portion  32  of the connection tab  31 , so that it is possible to perform a soldering operation between the conductive member  40  and the connection tab  31  in the state in which the spacer  50  is fixed. 
       FIG. 3  is a perspective view showing a connection tab according to the present invention. 
     Referring to  FIG. 3 , the connection tab  31  is used to electrically connect the plurality of battery cells  30  (See  FIG. 1 ) to one another. The connection tab  31  may be formed with at least one connection tab so as to connect the plurality of battery cells  30  to one another. The connection tab  31  includes a plurality of first connection portions  35  connected to the battery cells  30  and a second connection portion  36  connected to the conductive member  40  (See  FIG. 2 ). The battery cell  30  and the first connection portion  35  may be connected to each other by soldering, and the conductive member  40  and the second connection portion  36  may be connected to each other by soldering. 
     The second fastening portion  32  is formed at a position of the connection tab  31 , at which the connection tab  31  passes through the through-hole  51  (See  FIG. 2 ) of the spacer  50  (See  FIG. 2 ) and is then bent toward the upper surface of the spacer  50 . Here, the second fastening portion  32  is formed at a position corresponding to the hook-shaped first fastening portion  52  (See  FIG. 2 ) formed in the through-hole  51 . The second fastening portion  32  may be formed in the shape of a hook latching groove into which the first fastening portion  52  is inserted 
     As described above, the first fastening portion  52  of the spacer  50  is inserted into the second fastening portion  32  of the connection tab  31 , so that the spacer  50  can be fixed without the vertical movement thereof. Accordingly, the process of soldering and connecting the second connection portion  36  of the connection tab  31  and the conductive member  40  to each other on the spacer  50 . 
       FIG. 4  is a perspective view showing a spacer according to the present invention. 
     Referring to  FIG. 4 , the spacer  50  may be positioned in a space between the plurality of battery cells  30  (See  FIG. 1 ) and the case (not shown) for accommodating the plurality of battery cells  30 . The spacer  50  may be formed so that, on the vertical section of the spacer  50 , the shape of a top surface corresponds to the shape of an inner surface of the case and the shape of a bottom surface corresponds to the shape of an outer surface of the plurality of battery cells  30 . That is, the spacer  50  may be inserted into a concave portion between the plurality of battery cells  30  arranged in parallel. 
     More preferably, the top surface of the spacer  50  is formed in a flat shape corresponding to the inner surface of the case, and the bottom surface of the spacer  50  is formed in an arc shape corresponding to the outer surface of the plurality of the battery cells  30 . That is, the spacer  50  has a structure in which the bottom surface is upwardly tapered in directions of both end portions of the top surface, and the upwardly tapered surface of the spacer  50  is formed in an arc shape corresponding to the outer surface of the plurality of battery cells  30 . 
     Accordingly, the spacer  50  can inhibit vibration and movement of the plurality of battery cells  30  due to an external impact, etc., and enables the plurality of battery cells  30  to be stably fixed at a correct position. Here, the battery cell  30  has a cylindrical shape, and the width of the spacer  50  preferably has a size corresponding to an approximately middle portion of two battery cells  30  of which both ends are adjacent to each other. 
     The through-hole  51  through which the at least one connection tab  31  (See  FIG. 2 ) passes is formed in the spacer  50 , and the connection tab  31  is inserted into the though-hole  51  of the spacer  50 . The connection tab  31  is bent toward to the upper surface of the spacer  50 . In this case, the hook-shaped first fastening portion  52  is formed at the one side of the through-hole  51  of the direction in which the connection tab  31  is bent. The first fastening portion  52  is inserted into the hook-latching-hole-shaped second fastening portion  32  (See  FIG. 2 ) formed in the connection tab  31 , thereby fixing the spacer  50 . 
     The slope portion  53  formed to be inclined to a predetermined angle may be formed at the other side of the through-hole  51 , in which the first fastening portion  52  is not formed. The slope portion  53  may provide a space for more easily fastening the first fastening portion  52  of the spacer  50  to the second fastening portion  32  after the connection tab  31  is inserted into the through-hole  51 . 
     The spacer  50  is not particularly limited as long as it is an electrical insulating material, and may be preferably made of, for example, polymer resin such as polycarbonate (PC) or polyacrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS), etc. The spacer  50  can be easily manufactured by performing injection molding or press molding on polymer resin and then cutting the polymer resin to have a predetermined size. 
       FIG. 5  is a sectional view taken along line A-A′ of  FIG. 1 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 5 , the connection tab  31  through which the plurality of battery cells  30  are electrically connected to one another passes the through-hole  51  of the spacer  50  and is then bent toward the upper surface of the spacer  50 . In this case, the hook-shaped first fastening portion  52  is formed at the one side of the through-hole  51  of the direction in which the connection tab  31  is bent. The hook-latching-hole-shaped second fastening portion  32  is formed at the position of the connection tab  31  corresponding to the first fastening portion  52 . Accordingly, the first fastening portion  52  of the spacer  50  is latched to the second fastening portion  32  of the connection tab  31  while being accommodated in the second fastening portion  32 . 
     Here, the other side of the through-hole  51 , in which the first fastening portion  52  is not formed, may be formed in the shape of the slope portion  53  so that the first fastening portion  52  of the spacer  50  is more smoothly fastened to the second fastening portion  32  of the connection tab  31 . The second connection portion  36  at the end portion of the connection tab  31  is connected to the conductive member  40  in the state in which the connection tab  31  is bent toward the upper surface of the spacer  50 . The conductive member  40  is a component that electrically connects the PCM  20  and the connection tab  31  to each other. The conductive member  40  is positioned between the spacer  50  and the connection tab  31  so as to be connected to the connection tab  31  by soldering. 
       FIG. 6  is a perspective view showing a spacer used in a battery pack according to a second embodiment of the present invention. 
     Referring to  FIG. 6 , a groove  55  for mounting the conductive member  40  (See  FIG. 2 ) thereon may be formed on the upper surface of the spacer  50  according to this embodiment. The groove  55  is formed on the upper surface of the spacer  50 , so that the conductive member  40  for electrical connection between the plurality of battery cells  30  and electrical connection between the PCM  20  and the battery cells  30  can be more easily and stably mounted on the upper surface of the spacer  50 . 
     The groove  55  may be formed in a shape corresponding to the conductive member  40 . More preferably, the groove  55  may be formed so that the width of the groove  55  corresponds to that of the conductive member  40  and the depth of the groove  55  approximately corresponds to the thickness of the conductive member  40 . 
     A positive (+) symbol may be formed at one side of the spacer  50 , and a negative (−) symbol may be formed at the other side of the spacer  50 . Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the direction between positive and negative electrodes of the spacer  50  from being reversed. 
       FIG. 7  is a perspective view showing a battery pack according to a third embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 8  is a sectional view taken along line B-B′ of  FIG. 7 . 
     In  FIGS. 7 and 8 , the plurality of battery cells  30 , the PCM  20 , the conductive member  40 , etc. are identical or similar to those in the first embodiment, and therefore, their detailed descriptions will be omitted. In the battery pack according to this embodiment, the connection tab  31  and the conductive member  40  are fixed by a fastening member  34 . 
     First, the spacer  50  is positioned between the plurality of battery cells  30  adjacent in parallel. Then, the connection tab  31  is bent toward the upper surface of the spacer  50  through the through-hole  51 . In this case, the connection tab  31  and the conductive member  40  may be fixed by the fastening member  34  in the state in which the hook-shaped first fastening portion  52  of the spacer  50  is fixedly inserted into the second fastening portion  32  of the connection tab  31 . 
     Here, first and second fastening holes  33  and  44  are respectively formed in the connection tab  31  and the coverlay  40  so that the fastening member  34  passes therethrough. A coupling groove  54  having the fastening member  34  coupled thereto is formed at a position of the spacer  50  corresponding to the first and second fastening holes  33  and  44 . Accordingly, the fastening member  34  can be coupled to the coupling groove  54  by passing through the first and second fastening holes  33  and  44 . Here, the coupling groove  54  may have a shape corresponding to an outer surface of the fastening member  34  so that the fastening member  34  such as a screw is coupled to the coupling groove  54 . 
     As described above, the connection tab  31  and the conductive member  40  are fixed by the fastening member  34 , so that it is possible to omit a soldering operation and to uniformly maintain the quality of the battery pack. 
     While the present invention has been described in connection with certain exemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but, on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims, and equivalents thereof.