Patent Publication Number: US-2022223955-A1

Title: Housing and battery having the same

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a national phase entry of International Application No. PCT/CN2020/115669, filed on Sep. 16, 2020, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. 
    
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     This application relates to the battery field, and in particular, to a housing and a battery having the housing. 
     BACKGROUND 
     An existing battery generally includes a housing, a cover, a cell, and so on. The cover and the housing are generally positioned by a flange structure, and then are connected together by welding. However, positioning by using the flange structure has the following problems: 1. The flange structure occupies inner space of the battery, which leads to a reduced energy density of the battery. 2. The flange structure features low positioning precision and is prone to weld deviation during welding, which leads to liquid leakage of the battery. 3. Use of the flange structure increases costs of raw materials of the battery. 
     SUMMARY 
     In view of this, it is necessary to provide a housing to resolve the foregoing problems. 
     A housing in an embodiment is disclosed, the housing includes a first housing and a second housing, where at least one protrusion is disposed in the second housing, and the first housing includes a bottom wall and a side wall disposed on a peripheral edge of the bottom wall to form an accommodating space together with the bottom wall; where the second housing is disposed on a side of the side wall away from the bottom wall, and the at least one protrusion is accommodated in the accommodating space and comes in contact with an inner surface of the side wall. 
     In some embodiments, the at least one protrusion comprises a plurality of protrusions, and the plurality of the protrusions are arranged in succession. 
     In some embodiments, the at least one protrusion comprises a plurality of protrusions, and the plurality of the protrusions are arranged in an equidistant intermittent manner or a non-equidistant intermittent manner. 
     In some embodiments, a cross-section of the at least one protrusion is fan-shaped, oval, triangular, square, pentagonal, or circular. 
     In some embodiments, a height of the at least one protrusion is not greater than 50 millimeters. 
     In some embodiments, a distance between an end of the at least one protrusion facing towards the first housing and the side wall is 0 to 100 millimeters. 
     In some embodiments, the at least one protrusion protrudes from a surface of the second housing facing towards the first housing. 
     In some embodiments, the at least one protrusion is formed on an inner surface of the second housing, and a groove is formed at a location, corresponding to the at least one protrusion, on an outer surface of the second housing. 
     A battery in an embodiment is disclosed, the battery includes a cell and the foregoing housing, where the cell is accommodated in the housing. 
     In some embodiments, the battery further includes a pole, and the pole is disposed on the second housing. 
     In conclusion, the at least one protrusion of the second housing is accommodated in the accommodating space and comes in contact with the inner surface of the side wall to limit the second housing, thereby implementing precise positioning between the first housing and the second housing, and avoiding liquid leakage caused by weld deviation during welding of the first housing and the second housing. In addition, positioning by using the at least one protrusion also avoids a defect that a conventional positioning structure occupies an internal space of the housing, thereby improving the energy density of the battery. In addition, manufacturing costs of the battery are greatly reduced. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a schematic cross-sectional diagram of a housing according to Embodiment 1 of this application; 
         FIG. 2  is an enlarged view of a position II shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a schematic partial cross-sectional diagram of a housing in another implementation according to Embodiment 1 of this application; 
         FIG. 4  is a top view of a second housing according to an implementation of this application; 
         FIG. 5  is a top view of a second housing according to another implementation of this application; 
         FIG. 6  is a top view of a second housing according to still another implementation of this application; 
         FIG. 7  is a schematic cross-sectional diagram of a battery according to an implementation of this application; 
         FIG. 8  is a schematic cross-sectional diagram of a housing according to Embodiment 2 of this application; 
         FIG. 9  is a schematic partial cross-sectional diagram of a housing in another implementation according to Embodiment 2 of this application; 
         FIG. 10  is a schematic partial cross-sectional diagram of a housing according to Embodiment 3 of this application; 
         FIG. 11  is a schematic partial cross-sectional diagram of a housing in another implementation according to Embodiment 3 of this application; 
         FIG. 12  is a schematic partial cross-sectional diagram of a housing according to Embodiment 4 of this application; 
         FIG. 13  is a schematic partial cross-sectional diagram of a housing in another implementation according to Embodiment 4 of this application; 
         FIG. 14  is a schematic partial cross-sectional diagram of a housing according to Embodiment 5 of this application; and 
         FIG. 15  is a schematic partial cross-sectional diagram of a housing in another implementation according to Embodiment 5 of this application; 
     
    
    
     REFERENCE NUMERALS OF MAIN COMPONENTS 
     
         
         
           
             Battery  100   
             Housing  10   
             First housing  11   
             Bottom wall  111   
             Side wall  112   
             Accommodating space  113   
             Second housing  12   
             Inner surface  121   
             Outer surface  122   
             Groove  123   
             Protrusion  13   
             Injection plug  14   
             Cell  20   
             Negative electrode plate  201   
             Positive electrode plate  202   
             Separator  203   
             Negative tab  204   
             Positive tab  205   
             Pole  30   
             First protection element  40   
             Second protection element  50   
             Height H 
             Distance L 
             Depth D 
           
         
       
    
     This application will be further described with reference to the accompanying drawings in the following specific embodiments. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The following clearly describes the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application with reference to the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of this application. Apparently, the described embodiments are only some rather than all of the embodiments of this application. All other embodiments obtained by a person of ordinary skill in the art based on the embodiments of this application without creative efforts shall fall within the protection scope of this application. 
     Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein shall have the same meanings as commonly understood by those skilled in the art to which this application belongs. The terms used in the specification of this application are merely intended to describe specific embodiments but not intended to constitute any limitation on this application. 
     Some implementations of this application are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In absence of conflicts, the following embodiments and features in the embodiments may be combined. 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 , an implementation of this application provides a housing  10 . The housing  10  includes a first housing  11  and a second housing  12 . 
     The first housing  11  includes a bottom wall  111  and a side wall  112 . The side wall  112  is disposed on a peripheral edge of the bottom wall  111  to form an accommodating space  113  together with the bottom wall  111 . A shape of the bottom wall  111  may be adaptively adjusted based on an actual requirement, and may be a regular shape such as a rectangle, a triangle, or a circle, or another irregular shape. 
     In this implementation, a material of the first housing  11  may be metal, plastic, or a composite material of metal and plastic. The metal may be selected from one or more of materials such as steel alloy, aluminum alloy, iron alloy, copper alloy, and other metals. 
     As shown in  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2 , the second housing  12  is provided with at least one protrusion  13 . 
     The second housing  12  is disposed on a side of the side wall  112  away from the bottom wall  111 , and the at least one protrusion  13  is accommodated in the accommodating space  113  and comes in contact with an inner surface of the side wall  112 . In this way, precise positioning is implemented between the first housing  11  and the second housing  12  through limitation of the at least one protrusion  13 . Specifically, a surface of the at least one protrusion  13  in the accommodating space  113  includes an arc face and a plat face. The inner surface of the side wall  112  is a plane, and the flat face of the at least one protrusion  13  is in contact with the inner surface of the side wall  112 . In this implementation, the first housing  11  and the second housing  12  are secured by welding. 
     In this implementation, a shape of the second housing  12  may be adaptively adjusted based on the shape of the bottom wall  111  or other actual requirements, and may be a regular shape such as a rectangle, a triangle, or a circle, or other irregular shapes. A material of the second housing  12  may be metal, plastic, or a composite material of metal and plastic. The metal may be selected from one or more of materials such as steel alloy, aluminum alloy, iron alloy, copper alloy, and other metals. 
     As shown in  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2 , the second housing  12  includes an inner surface  121  and an outer surface  122  away from the inner surface  121 . The inner surface  121  faces towards the first housing  11 . In this implementation, the at least one protrusion  13  is formed on the inner surface  121 , and a groove  123  is formed at a location, corresponding to the at least one protrusion  13 , on the outer surface  122 . In this implementation, a cross-section of the at least one protrusion  13  is fan-shaped, oval, triangular, square, pentagonal, circular, or polygonal. A height H of the at least one protrusion  13  is not greater than 50 millimeters. A distance L between an end of the at least one protrusion  13  facing towards the first housing  11  and the side wall  112  is 0 to 100 millimeters. A depth D of the groove  123  is not greater than 100 mm. The at least one protrusion  13  may be formed by punching the outer surface  122  of the second housing  12 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 3 , in another implementation, the at least one protrusion  13  protrudes from the inner surface  121  of the second housing  12 . The at least one protrusion  13  may be formed on the inner surface  121  of the second housing  12  by using a process such as bonding or welding. In another implementation, the at least one protrusion  13  and the second housing  12  may alternatively be formed integrally. 
     Referring to  FIG. 4 , in an implementation, a plurality of protrusions  13  are disposed on the second housing  12 , and the plurality of protrusions  13  are arranged in an equidistant intermittent manner, or may be arranged in a non-equidistant intermittent manner, as shown in  FIG. 5 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 6 , in another implementation, the at least one protrusion includes a plurality of protrusions  13 . The plurality of the at least one protrusions  13  are arranged in succession. Certainly, the second housing  12  may alternatively include one protrusion  13 , and the at least one protrusion  13  is annular or circular. 
     Referring to  FIG. 4 , in this implementation, the second housing  12  includes eight protrusions  13 . The eight protrusions  13  are disposed on the inner surface  121  of the second housing  12 , and are arranged in an equidistant intermittent manner. In this way, precise positioning is implemented between the first housing  11  and the second housing  12  through limitation of the protrusions  13 . The first direction and the second direction are perpendicular to each other. 
     Referring to  FIG. 5 , in an implementation, the eight protrusions  13  are arranged in a non-equidistant intermittent manner. In another implementation, a quantity of protrusions  13  is not limited, and may be one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, nine, ten, or the like. 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 , in this implementation, an injection hole (not shown in the figure) may further be provided in the housing  10 , and the injection hole may be located in the first housing  11  or the second housing  12 . An electrolyte may be injected through the injection hole. The injection hole is provided with an injection plug  14 , and the injection plug  14  is configured to seal the injection hole, so as to prevent leakage of the injected electrolyte or prevent external impurities from entering the housing  10 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 7 , an implementation of this application further provides a battery  100 . The battery  100  includes the housing  10  and a cell  20 . The cell  20  is accommodated in the housing  10 . The battery  100  may be a button battery, and a material of the housing of the battery  100  may be steel. In an implementation, the cell  20  may be a laminated core or a wound core. 
     The battery  100  further includes a pole  30 . The pole  30  is disposed on the second housing  12 . In this implementation, the cell  20  may include a negative electrode plate  201 , a positive electrode plate  202 , and a separator  203  disposed between the negative electrode plate  201  and the positive electrode plate  202 . The negative electrode plate  201 , the positive electrode plate  202 , and the separator  203  are laminated to form the cell  20 . The negative electrode plate  201  includes a negative current collector and a negative active material layer formed on a surface of the negative current collector. The positive electrode plate  202  includes a positive current collector and a positive active material layer formed on a surface of the positive current collector. The negative current collector and the positive current collector may be respectively connected to the negative tab  204  and the positive tab  205  by welding. The negative tab  204  may be connected to the first housing  11  or the second housing  12  by welding, and the positive tab  205  may be connected to the pole  30  by welding, so that the pole  30  and the second housing  12  present opposite polarity. 
     In this implementation, the battery  100  further includes a first protection element  40  accommodated in the housing  10 . The first protection element  40  is located between the cell  20  and the housing  10 . Specifically, there are two first protection elements  40 . One of the first protection elements  40  is disposed above the cell  20  and located between the cell  20  and the inner surface  121  of the second housing  12 , and is configured to isolate the cell  20  from the second housing  12  and prevent the pole  30  from piercing through the plate of the cell  20 . The other first protection element  40  is disposed below the cell  20  and located between the cell  20  and the bottom wall  111  of the first housing  11 , and is configured to isolate the cell  20  from the bottom wall  111  of the first housing  11 . 
     The battery  100  further includes a second protection element  50  accommodated in the housing  10 . The second protection element  50  surrounds an outer circumference of the cell  20 . The second protection element  50  is configured to isolate the cell  20  from the second housing  12 . The second protection element  50  may be substantially annular, so as to surround the outer circumference of the cell  20 . 
     This application is described in detail below by using the embodiments. 
     Embodiment 1 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 , the housing  10  includes the first housing  11  and the second housing  12 . 
     The first housing  11  includes the bottom wall  111  and the side wall  112 . The side wall  112  is disposed on the peripheral edge of the bottom wall  111  to form the accommodating space  113  together with the bottom wall  111 . In this implementation, the bottom wall  111  is circular. 
     Also referring to  FIG. 2 , the second housing  12  is provided with the at least one protrusion  13 . The second housing  12  is disposed on the side of the side wall  112  away from the bottom wall  111 , and the at least one protrusion  13  is disposed in the accommodating space  113  and comes in contact with the inner surface of the side wall  112 . In this implementation, the first housing  11  is circular. 
     The second housing  12  includes the inner surface  121  and the outer surface  122  away from the inner surface  121 . The inner surface  121  faces towards the first housing  11 . In this implementation, the at least one protrusion  13  is formed on the inner surface  121 , and the groove  123  is formed at the location, corresponding to the at least one protrusion  13 , on the outer surface  122 . The at least one protrusion  13  may be formed by punching the outer surface  122  of the second housing  12 . The cross-section of the at least one protrusion  13  is fan-shaped. A diameter of the fan shape is not greater than 1000 mm. 
     Referring to  FIG. 3 , in another implementation, the at least one protrusion  13  protrudes from the inner surface  121  of the second housing  12 . The at least one protrusion  13  may be formed on the inner surface  121  of the second housing  12  by using a process such as bonding or welding. In another implementation, the at least one protrusion  13  and the second housing  12  may alternatively be formed integrally. 
     Embodiment 2 
     Referring to  FIG. 8 , a difference between Embodiment 2 and Embodiment 1 lies in that the cross-section of the at least one protrusion  13  is triangular. The at least one protrusion  13  may be formed by punching the outer surface  122  of the second housing  12 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 9 , in another implementation, the at least one protrusion  13  protrudes from the inner surface  121  of the second housing  12 . The at least one protrusion  13  may be formed on the inner surface  121  of the second housing  12  by using a process such as bonding or welding. In another implementation, the at least one protrusion  13  and the second housing  12  may alternatively be formed integrally. 
     Embodiment 3 
     Referring to  FIG. 10 , a difference between Embodiment 3 and Embodiment 1 lies in that the cross-section of the at least one protrusion  13  is square. The at least one protrusion  13  may be formed by punching the outer surface  122  of the second housing  12 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 11 , in another implementation, the at least one protrusion  13  protrudes from the inner surface  121  of the second housing  12 . The at least one protrusion  13  may be formed on the inner surface  121  of the second housing  12  by using a process such as bonding or welding. In another implementation, the at least one protrusion  13  and the second housing  12  may alternatively be formed integrally. 
     Embodiment 4 
     Referring to  FIG. 12 , a difference between Embodiment 4 and Embodiment 1 lies in that the cross-section of the at least one protrusion  13  is pentagonal. The at least one protrusion  13  may be formed by punching the outer surface  122  of the second housing  12 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 13 , in another implementation, the at least one protrusion  13  protrudes from the inner surface  121  of the second housing  12 . The at least one protrusion  13  may be formed on the inner surface  121  of the second housing  12  by using a process such as bonding or welding. In another implementation, the at least one protrusion  13  and the second housing  12  may alternatively be formed integrally. 
     Embodiment 5 
     Referring to  FIG. 14 , a difference between Embodiment 5 and Embodiment 1 lies in that the cross-section of the at least one protrusion  13  is substantially semicircular. The at least one protrusion  13  may be formed by punching the outer surface  122  of the second housing  12 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 15 , in another implementation, the at least one protrusion  13  protrudes from the inner surface  121  of the second housing  12 . The at least one protrusion  13  may be formed on the inner surface  121  of the second housing  12  by using a process such as bonding or welding. In another implementation, the at least one protrusion  13  and the second housing  12  may alternatively be formed integrally. 
     In conclusion, the at least one protrusion  13  of the second housing  12  is accommodated in the accommodating space  113  and comes in contact with the inner surface of the side wall  112  to limit the second housing  12 , thereby implementing precise positioning between the first housing  11  and the second housing  12 , and avoiding liquid leakage caused by weld deviation during welding of the first housing  11  and the second housing  12 . In addition, positioning by using the at least one protrusion  13  also avoids a defect that a conventional positioning structure occupies an internal space of the housing  10 , thereby improving the energy density of the battery  100 . Furthermore, manufacturing costs of the battery  100  are greatly reduced. 
     The foregoing embodiments are merely intended to describe the technical solutions of this application, but not intended to constitute any limitation. Although this application is described in detail with reference to embodiments, persons of ordinary skill in the art should understand that modifications or equivalent replacements can be made to the technical solutions of this application, without departing from the spirit and essence of the technical solutions of this application.