Patent Description:
Meanwhile, when a plurality of battery cells are connected in series or in parallel to configure a battery pack, it is common to configure a battery module including at least one battery cell first, and then configure a battery rack by using at least one battery module and adding other components. Here, according to various voltage and capacity requirements, an energy storage system may be configured to include at least one battery rack that includes at least one battery module. An example of battery rack is disclosed in <CIT>.

In the conventional battery rack, if an abnormal heating occurs in the battery cells of at least one battery module so that the temperature continuously rises, a thermal runaway is generated over a certain temperature and propagates to surrounding battery modules, which may a serious safety problem. <CIT> discloses a system for preventing thermal runaway of a secondary battery and <CIT> discloses a fire prevention and control device for a lithium ion battery energy storage system.

Therefore, there is a need to find a technique for providing a battery rack capable of quickly preventing heat propagation to peripheral battery modules due to thermal runaway, and an energy storage system including such a battery rack.

The present disclosure is directed to providing a battery rack, which may quickly prevent heat propagation to peripheral battery modules due to thermal runaway, and an energy storage system including such a battery rack.

In addition, the present disclosure is also directed to providing a battery rack, which may secure overall rigidity and protect a nozzle or the like from external impacts by means of a double bracket structure, and an energy storage system including such a battery rack.

In one aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a battery rack, comprising: a plurality of battery modules respectively having at least one battery cell; a rack case configured to accommodate the plurality of battery modules; a fire extinguishing water supply unit disposed at the rear of the rack case and connected to the plurality of battery modules; and a bracket unit configured to cover the fire extinguishing water supply unit and disposed at the rear of the rack case.

The fire extinguishing water supply unit may include a fire extinguishing water pipe disposed along a height direction of the rack case; and a plurality of fire extinguishing water nozzles connected to the fire extinguishing water pipe and mounted through the plurality of battery modules.

The bracket unit may include a first bracket configured to cover the fire extinguishing water pipe; and a second bracket fixed to the first bracket and configured to support the plurality of fire extinguishing water nozzles.

The first bracket may have a plurality of venting holes disposed opposite to the plurality of fire extinguishing water nozzles.

Each of the plurality of fire extinguishing water nozzles may include a nozzle body mounted through the second bracket; and a nozzle head connected to the nozzle body and configured to penetrate the plurality of battery modules.

Each of the plurality of fire extinguishing water nozzles may include a sealing member provided at an outer side of the nozzle body.

The sealing member may be disposed in close contact with the second bracket.

The plurality of venting holes may be disposed at a side opposite to the fire extinguishing water nozzle.

The plurality of venting holes may be disposed to be spaced apart from each other along a height direction of the first bracket.

In addition, the present disclosure also provides an energy storage system, comprising at least one battery rack according to the above embodiments.

According to various embodiments as above, it is possible to provide a battery rack, which may quickly prevent heat propagation to peripheral battery modules due to thermal runaway, and an energy storage system including such a battery rack.

In addition, according to various embodiments as above, it is possible to provide a battery rack, which may secure overall rigidity and protect a nozzle or the like from external impacts by means of a double bracket structure, and an energy storage system including such a battery rack.

<FIG> is a diagram for illustrating a battery rack according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, <FIG> is a front view showing the battery rack of <FIG>, <FIG> is a rear view showing the battery rack of <FIG>, and <FIG> is a side view showing the battery rack of <FIG>.

Referring to <FIG>, a battery rack <NUM> may include a battery module <NUM>, a rack case <NUM>, a fire extinguishing water supply unit <NUM>, and a bracket unit <NUM>.

The battery module <NUM> may be provided in plural. The plurality of battery modules <NUM> may be stacked on each other so as to be electrically connected to each other. For example, the plurality of battery modules <NUM> may be arranged in two rows along a height direction of the battery rack <NUM>, explained later.

Each of the plurality of battery modules <NUM> may include a battery cell <NUM> and a module case <NUM>, respectively.

The battery cell <NUM> is a secondary battery and may be provided as a pouch-type secondary battery, a rectangular secondary battery or a cylindrical secondary battery. Hereinafter, in this embodiment, it will be described that the battery cell <NUM> is a pouch-type secondary battery.

One battery cell <NUM> or a plurality of battery cells <NUM> may be provided. Hereinafter, in this embodiment, it will be described that a plurality of battery cells <NUM> are provided.

The module case <NUM> may accommodate the plurality of battery cells <NUM> therein. For this, the module case <NUM> may have an accommodation space capable of accommodating the plurality of battery cells <NUM>.

The module case <NUM> may have a nozzle insert portion <NUM> (see <FIG>). The nozzle insert portion <NUM> is provided at a rear surface of the module case <NUM>, and a nozzle head <NUM> (see <FIG>) of a fire extinguishing water nozzle <NUM> (see <FIG>) of the fire extinguishing water supply unit <NUM>, explained later, may be mounted to the nozzle insert portion <NUM>.

The rack case <NUM> may accommodate the plurality of battery modules <NUM>. To this end, the rack case <NUM> may have an accommodation space capable of accommodating the plurality of battery modules <NUM>.

The fire extinguishing water supply unit <NUM> is disposed at the rear of the rack case <NUM> and may be connected to the plurality of battery modules <NUM>. The fire extinguishing water supply unit <NUM> may supply a fire extinguishing water into the plurality of battery modules <NUM> when an abnormal situation such as a thermal runaway of the plurality of battery modules <NUM> occurs.

To this end, the fire extinguishing water supply unit <NUM> may be mounted through the module cases <NUM> of the plurality of battery modules <NUM> to directly inject the fire extinguishing water to the battery cells <NUM> inside the module case <NUM> in the event of the abnormal situation.

In this embodiment, by means of the fire extinguishing water supply unit <NUM>, which may directly inject the fire extinguishing water toward the battery cells <NUM> inside the module case <NUM>, when a thermal runaway or fire occurs inside the battery module <NUM>, it is possible to extinguish the thermal runaway or fire more quickly.

The fire extinguishing water supply unit <NUM> may be connected to a fire extinguishing water tank unit <NUM> (see <FIG>) through a fire extinguishing water supply line <NUM> (see <FIG>), explained later, provided at the outside of the battery rack <NUM> to supply the fire extinguishing water.

Hereinafter, the fire extinguishing water supply unit <NUM> according to this embodiment will be described in more detail.

<FIG> is a diagram for illustrating a fire extinguishing water supply unit, employed at the battery rack of <FIG>, and <FIG> is a diagram for illustrating a fire extinguishing water nozzle of the fire extinguishing water supply unit of <FIG>.

Referring to <FIG> and <FIG>, the fire extinguishing water supply unit <NUM> may include a supply pipe <NUM>, a fire extinguishing water pipe <NUM>, and a fire extinguishing water nozzle <NUM>.

The supply pipe <NUM> may be connected to the fire extinguishing water tank unit <NUM> (see <FIG>) through the fire extinguishing water supply line <NUM> (see <FIG>), explained later. The supply pipe <NUM> may be supplied with the fire extinguishing water from the fire extinguishing water tank unit <NUM> through the fire extinguishing water supply line <NUM>.

The fire extinguishing water pipe <NUM> is connected to the supply pipe <NUM> and may be arranged along a height direction of the rack case <NUM>. For example, the fire extinguishing water supply pipe <NUM> may be arranged in two rows along the height direction of the rack case <NUM> and provided in an approximately rectangular frame shape.

The fire extinguishing water nozzle <NUM> is connected to the fire extinguishing water pipe <NUM> and may be mounted through the plurality of battery modules <NUM>. Accordingly, the fire extinguishing water nozzle <NUM> may be provided in plural to correspond to the plurality of battery modules <NUM>.

The plurality of fire extinguishing water nozzles <NUM> may include a nozzle body <NUM>, a nozzle head <NUM>, and a sealing member <NUM>.

The nozzle body <NUM> may be mounted through the second bracket <NUM> of the bracket unit <NUM>, explained later. The nozzle body <NUM> may be mounted through the bracket unit <NUM>, explained later. The nozzle body <NUM> is connected to the fire extinguishing water pipe <NUM> and may be at least partially disposed inside the plurality of battery modules <NUM>. Specifically, the nozzle body <NUM> may, at least partially, be disposed between the second bracket <NUM> and the rear surface of the rack case <NUM>.

The nozzle body <NUM> may have a passive valve or an active valve. The passive valve or active valve may keep an inner channel of the nozzle body <NUM> to be closed under normal circumstances. Also, in an abnormal situation such as thermal runaway of the battery module <NUM>, the passive valve or active valve may operate to open the inner channel so that the fire extinguishing water may be sprayed toward the battery module <NUM> where the abnormal situation occurs.

One end of the nozzle body <NUM> may be disposed inside the module case <NUM> of the battery module <NUM>. Accordingly, when an abnormal situation such as thermal runaway occurs at the battery module <NUM>, the nozzle body <NUM> may spray the fire extinguishing water into the module case <NUM>, thereby more quickly cooling the battery cells <NUM> of the battery module <NUM> where the abnormal situation occurs.

The nozzle head <NUM> is connected to the nozzle body <NUM> and may be mounted through the plurality of battery modules <NUM>. Specifically, the nozzle head <NUM> may be mounted to the nozzle insert portion <NUM> of the module case <NUM> to penetrate the module case <NUM> of the battery module <NUM>.

The sealing member <NUM> may be provided to an outer side of the nozzle body <NUM>. The sealing member <NUM> may be disposed in close contact with the second bracket <NUM> of the bracket unit <NUM>, explained later.

The sealing member <NUM> may be disposed in contact with the second bracket <NUM> while surrounding the outer side of the nozzle body <NUM>. Through this, the sealing member <NUM> may more reliably prevent the fire extinguishing water or the like from leaking to the outside of the nozzle body <NUM>. Specifically, when an abnormal situation occurs in any one battery module <NUM> among the plurality of battery modules <NUM>, the fire extinguishing water may be sprayed from the nozzle body <NUM> of the fire extinguishing water nozzle <NUM> connected to the battery module <NUM> where the abnormal situation occurs. When the fire extinguishing water is sprayed, it may be necessary to prevent the fire extinguishing water from flowing into the battery module <NUM> where the abnormal situation has not occurred even though the fire extinguishing water is leaked to the outside of the nozzle body <NUM>. In this embodiment, since the sealing member <NUM> is disposed in close contact with the second bracket <NUM> of the bracket unit <NUM> at the outer side of the nozzle body <NUM>, it is possible to more reliably and firmly prevent the fire extinguishing water from leaking out of the nozzle body <NUM> where the fire extinguishing water is sprayed.

The bracket unit <NUM> covers the fire extinguishing water supply unit <NUM> and may be disposed at the rear of the rack case <NUM>.

Hereinafter, the bracket unit <NUM> will be described in more detail with reference to the following drawings.

<FIG> and <FIG> are diagrams for illustrating a bracket unit, employed at the battery rack of <FIG>, <FIG> and <FIG> are diagrams for illustrating the fire extinguishing water supply unit mounted to the bracket unit of the battery rack of <FIG>, and <FIG> is a diagram for illustrating a structure in which the fire extinguishing water supply unit mounted to the bracket unit of the battery rack of <FIG> is mounted to a battery module.

Referring to <FIG>, the bracket unit <NUM> may include a first bracket <NUM> and a second bracket <NUM>.

The first bracket <NUM> may cover the fire extinguishing water pipe <NUM> of the fire extinguishing water supply unit <NUM>. The first bracket <NUM> may be disposed to surround the fire extinguishing water pipe <NUM>. By means of the first bracket <NUM>, it is possible to prevent a direct shock such as an external shock from being transmitted to the fire extinguishing water pipe <NUM>, and it is also possible to effectively buffer an external shock or the like that may be transmitted to the fire extinguishing water pipe <NUM>. Accordingly, in this embodiment, by means of the first bracket <NUM>, it is possible to effectively prevent the fire extinguishing water pipe <NUM> from being damaged.

The first bracket <NUM> may have a venting hole <NUM>.

The venting hole <NUM> may be provided in plural.

The plurality of venting holes <NUM> may be provided in a number corresponding to the plurality of fire extinguishing water nozzles <NUM>. The plurality of venting holes <NUM> may be disposed to be spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance along a height direction of the first bracket <NUM> and may be disposed in two rows along the height direction.

The plurality of venting holes <NUM> may be disposed opposite to the plurality of fire extinguishing water nozzles <NUM>. The plurality of venting holes <NUM> may be disposed at a side opposite to the fire extinguishing water nozzles <NUM>.

The plurality of venting holes <NUM> as above may guide discharge of gas that is generated when an abnormal situation such as thermal runaway or fire occurs at the battery modules <NUM>. Accordingly, in this embodiment, through the plurality of venting holes <NUM>, the high-temperature gas that may be generated when an abnormal situation occurs may be discharged more quickly to the outside of the battery rack <NUM>, specifically to the rear of the battery rack <NUM>.

The second bracket <NUM> is fixed to the first bracket <NUM> and may support the plurality of fire extinguishing water nozzles <NUM>. In this embodiment, by means of the second bracket <NUM>, the fire extinguishing water nozzle <NUM> of the fire extinguishing water supply unit <NUM> may be supported more stably.

Moreover, the second bracket <NUM> may cover the front side of the fire extinguishing water pipe <NUM> by forming a double bracket structure together with the first bracket <NUM>, thereby more reliably protecting the fire extinguishing water pipe <NUM> and also increasing the overall rigidity of the bracket unit <NUM>.

The second bracket <NUM> may include a nozzle mounting portion <NUM> through which the fire extinguishing water nozzle <NUM> is mounted.

The nozzle mounting portion <NUM> may be provided in plural to correspond to a number of the fire extinguishing water nozzles <NUM>. The plurality of nozzle mounting portions <NUM> may be disposed to be spaced from each other by a predetermined distance along the height direction of the second bracket <NUM> and may be disposed in two rows along the height direction.

As described above, by means of the bracket unit <NUM>, the battery rack <NUM> according to this embodiment may support the fire extinguishing water pipe <NUM> of the fire extinguishing water supply unit <NUM> and guide the fire extinguishing water nozzle <NUM> to be more stably supported and mounted.

In addition, since the battery rack <NUM> according to this embodiment forms a double bracket structure by means of the bracket unit <NUM>, it is possible to protect and buffer the fire extinguishing water supply unit <NUM> against external shocks to the maximum and also further enhance the overall rigidity.

<FIG> is a diagram for illustrating an energy storage system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to <FIG>, an energy storage system <NUM> is an energy source and may be used for home or industrial use. The energy storage system <NUM> may include at least one battery rack <NUM> of the former embodiment, and a rack container <NUM> for accommodating the at least one battery rack <NUM>.

The rack container <NUM> may include a fire extinguishing tank unit <NUM> for supplying a fire extinguishing water to the plurality of battery racks <NUM>. The fire extinguishing water tank unit <NUM> is filled with the fire extinguishing water, namely water. The fire extinguishing water tank unit <NUM> is connected through the plurality of battery rack <NUM> through the fire extinguishing water supply line <NUM> to supply the fire extinguishing water toward the plurality of battery rack <NUM>.

Since the energy storage system <NUM> according to this embodiment includes the battery rack <NUM> of the former embodiment, it is possible to provide an energy storage system <NUM> that includes all the advantages of the battery rack <NUM> of the former embodiment.

According to various embodiments as above, it is possible to provide a battery rack <NUM>, which may quickly prevent heat propagation to peripheral battery modules <NUM> due to thermal runaway, and an energy storage system <NUM> including such a battery rack <NUM>.

Claim 1:
A battery rack (<NUM>), comprising:
a plurality of battery modules (<NUM>) respectively having at least one battery cell;
a rack case (<NUM>) configured to accommodate the plurality of battery modules (<NUM>);
a fire extinguishing water supply unit (<NUM>) disposed at the rear of the rack case (<NUM>) and connected to the plurality of battery modules (<NUM>); and
a bracket unit (<NUM>) configured to cover the fire extinguishing water supply unit (<NUM>) and disposed at the rear of the rack case (<NUM>).