Patent ID: 8563165

Claim:
A battery module comprising: a housing having a plurality of bolt holes and having an interior space; a plurality of batteries housed within the interior space, each battery comprising at least one unit cell, each unit cell including a cathode electrode, an anode electrode and a separator, the plurality of unit cells sealed by a sealing material, each battery having electrical terminals external of the sealing material, the electrical terminals including a cathode terminal and an anode terminal; a shaft member made of an electrically conductive material inserted through each of the plurality of bolt holes of the housing, the shaft member spaced apart from the plurality of batteries, the cathode terminals and the anode terminals; each shaft member having a conductive collar placed around the shaft member and electrically connected to the shaft member by contact with the shaft member; and each shaft member inserted through an output terminal, wherein the conductive collar is electrically connected to at least one of the electrical terminals of one of the plurality of batteries through an electrode part of the output terminal.