# US 2021/0242439 A1 · Rotatable terminal plate housing assemblies and methods thereof

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- Number: US 2021/0242439 A1
- Document ID: US20210242439A1
- Status: Published application
- Kind: A1
- Application number: 16/778,720
- Filed: 2020-01-31
- Published: 2021-08-05
- Earliest claimed: 2020-01-31
- Assignees: Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc.
- Applicants: Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc.
- Inventors: Jordan S. Guttrich; Brian Schneidewind; Douglas A. Siewert; Lincoln Morfin
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20210242439A1

## CPC

- B60L 50/64: Constructional details of batteries specially adapted for electric vehicles
- H01M 50/148: characterised by their shape
- B60L 53/80: Exchanging energy storage elements, e.g. removable batteries
- H01M 10/42: Methods or arrangements for servicing or maintenance of secondary cells or secondary half-cells (H01M10/60 takes precedence)
- H01M 50/20: Mountings; Secondary casings or frames; Racks, modules or packs; Suspension devices; Shock absorbers; Transport or carrying devices; Holders (structural combination of accumulators with charging apparatus H01M10/46)
- H01M 50/209: adapted for prismatic or rectangular cells (H01M50/216 takes precedence)
- H01M 50/543: Terminals
- H01M 2220/20: Batteries in motive systems, e.g. vehicle, ship, plane
- Y02E 60/10: Energy storage using batteries
- Y02T 10/70: Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries
- Y02T 10/7072: Electromobility specific charging systems or methods for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors
- B60L: PROPULSION OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES (arrangements or mounting of electrical propulsion units or of plural diverse prime-movers for mutual or common propulsion in vehicles B60K1/00, B60K6/20; arrangements or mounting of electrical gearing in vehicles B60K17/12, B60K17/14; preventing wheel slip by reducing power in rail vehicles B61C15/08; dynamo-electric machines H02K; control or regulation of electric motors H02P); SUPPLYING ELECTRIC POWER FOR AUXILIARY EQUIPMENT OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES (electric coupling devices combined with mechanical couplings of vehicles B60D1/64; electric heating for vehicles B60H1/00); ELECTRODYNAMIC BRAKE SYSTEMS FOR VEHICLES IN GENERAL (control or regulation of electric motors H02P); MAGNETIC SUSPENSION OR LEVITATION FOR VEHICLES; MONITORING OPERATING VARIABLES OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES; ELECTRIC SAFETY DEVICES FOR ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES
- H01M: PROCESSES OR MEANS, e.g. BATTERIES, FOR THE DIRECT CONVERSION OF CHEMICAL ENERGY INTO ELECTRICAL ENERGY
- Y02E: REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION
- Y02T: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES RELATED TO TRANSPORTATION

## Abstract

Embodiments described herein generally relate to a battery pack assembly. The battery pack assembly includes a plurality of housing segments and a plurality of battery cells. The plurality of housing segments are coupled to one another. Each one of the plurality of housing segments includes a terminal receiving portion. The terminal receiving portion has a pair of end walls, a pair of side walls and a floor. A terminal connector is positioned within the terminal receiving portion. The terminal connector has a pair of openings. Each battery cell of the plurality of battery cells has a terminal side. A pair of terminals are positioned on the terminal side of each of the plurality of battery cells. Each one of the plurality of housing segments are configured to be rotated with respect to an adjacent housing segment between a use position and a maintenance position.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A battery pack assembly comprising:
a plurality of housing segments coupled to one another, each one of the plurality of housing segments includes:
a terminal receiving portion having a pair of end walls, a pair of side walls and a floor;
a terminal connector positioned within the terminal receiving portion, the terminal connector having a pair of openings;
a plurality of battery cells each having a pair of terminals that are received within the pair of openings,
wherein each one of the plurality of housing segments are configured to be rotated with respect to an adjacent housing segment between a use position and a maintenance position thereby permitting access to at least one battery cell of the plurality of battery cells.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The battery pack assembly of claim 1, wherein in the use position, the pair of terminals are received by the pair of openings of the terminal connector such that the pair of terminals are engaged the terminal connector and the pair of terminals are communicatively coupled to the terminal connector.

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

The battery pack assembly of claim 2, wherein in the maintenance position, the pair of terminals are disengaged from the pair of openings of the terminal connector.

### Claim 4 (depends on 3)

The battery pack assembly of claim 3, wherein in the maintenance position, a selected battery cell of the plurality of battery cells is removed from the battery pack assembly.

### Claim 5 (depends on 2)

The battery pack assembly of claim 2, wherein each one of the plurality of housing segments further includes:
a flexible elongated member receiving portion having a cover portion hingedly attached to the flexible elongated member receiving portion to move between an open position and a closed position, the cover portion includes a clip and the flexible elongated member receiving portion includes a corresponding clip receiver such that the clip is received in the clip receiver in the closed position.

### Claim 6 (depends on 2)

The battery pack assembly of claim 2, wherein each one of the plurality of housing segments further comprising:
a tube portion, the tube portion having a first half and a second half hingedly attached to the first half such that the second half moves between a closed position and an open position, the first half is coupled to the terminal receiving portion, the second half includes a clip, the first half includes a clip receiver such that the clip of the second half is received by the clip receiver of the first half to form a cylindrical shape of the tube portion when the second half in the closed position.

### Claim 7 (depends on 6)

The battery pack assembly of claim 6, wherein:
the first and second half each include a proximate end and an opposite distal end,
the distal end includes a tube attachment portion, the proximate end includes a tube retainer portion.

### Claim 8 (depends on 7)

The battery pack assembly of claim 7, wherein the tube attachment portion of the housing segment is received in the tube retainer portion of the adjacent housing segment to couple the adjacent housing segment to the housing segment of the plurality of housing segments when the second half of the tube portion is in the closed position.

### Claim 9 (depends on 8)

The battery pack assembly of claim 8, wherein in the maintenance position, the tube attachment portion of the housing segment is rotated with the tube retainer portion of the adjacent housing segment of the plurality of housing segments such that the housing segment of the plurality of housing segments is individually moved from the use position to the maintenance position.

### Claim 10 (depends on 9)

The battery pack assembly of claim 9, wherein a plurality of flexible elongated members are housed in the tube portion.

### Claim 11

A battery pack assembly comprising:
a plurality of housing segments, each one of the plurality of housing segments comprising:
a terminal receiving portion; and
a tube portion, the tube portion having a first half and a second half hingedly attached to the first half such that the second half moves between a closed position and an open position, the first half is coupled to the terminal receiving portion, the first and second halves each include a tube attachment portion that is received a tube retainer portion of an adjacent housing segment,
wherein the housing segment is coupled to the adjacent housing segment of the plurality of housing segments when the tube attachment portion of the housing segment is received in the tube retainer portion of the adjacent housing segment and the second half of the tube portion is in the closed position.

### Claim 12 (depends on 11)

The battery pack assembly of claim 11, wherein each one of the plurality of housing segments are configured to be rotated with respect to the adjacent housing segment about an axis that extends through the tube portion between a use position and a maintenance position.

### Claim 13 (depends on 12)

The battery pack assembly of claim 12, wherein the coupling of the adjacent housing segment to the housing segment is by a snap tab engagement.

### Claim 14 (depends on 12)

The battery pack assembly of claim 12, wherein in the maintenance position, the tube attachment portion of the housing segment is rotatably engaged within the tube retainer portion of the adjacent housing segment of the plurality of housing segments such that the housing segment of the plurality of housing segments is individually moved from the use position to the maintenance position.

### Claim 15 (depends on 14)

The battery pack assembly of claim 14, wherein the terminal receiving portion includes a terminal connector having a pair of openings and is communicatively coupled to at least one flexible elongated member.

### Claim 16 (depends on 15)

The battery pack assembly of claim 15, further comprising:
a plurality of battery cells, each battery cell of the plurality of battery cells having a terminal side, a pair of terminals are positioned on the terminal side of each of the plurality of battery cells.

### Claim 17 (depends on 16)

The battery pack assembly of claim 16, wherein in the use position, the pair of terminals are received within the pair of openings of the terminal connector such that the pair of terminals engage with the pair of openings to communicatively couple to the pair of terminals of the battery cell to the terminal connector of the housing segment.

### Claim 18 (depends on 16)

The battery pack assembly of claim 16, wherein in the maintenance position, the pair of terminals are disengaged from the terminal connector of the terminal receiving portion of the housing segment.

### Claim 19

A method of removing a battery cell from a battery pack assembly, the method comprising:
identifying the battery cell of a plurality of battery cells to be removed from the battery pack assembly;
removing at least one fastener from each corresponding pair of terminals of the identified battery cell and an adjacent battery cell of the plurality of battery cells;
moving an individual housing segment of a plurality of housing segments corresponding to the identified battery cell from a use position to a maintenance position; and
removing the identified battery cell from the battery pack assembly.

### Claim 20 (depends on 19)

The method of claim 19, wherein moving the individual housing segment corresponding to the identified battery cell of the plurality of housing segments from the use position to the maintenance position disengages a terminal connector of the housing segment from the corresponding pair of terminals of the identified battery cell.