Battery module, and rechargeable battery for constituting the battery module

A battery module with a plurality of rechargeable batteries coupled together, each of the rechargeable batteries configured for accommodating therein a liquid electrolyte and a group of electrodes comprising a group of positive electrode plates and a group of negative electrode plates, the battery module comprising:

• a plurality of prismatic cell cases having short lateral walls and long lateral walls arranged side by side with adjacent short lateral walls being integral with each other, and upper open ends of the plurality of prismatic cell cases being integrally closed with a single lid member;
• the group of electrodes inside a cell case including a positive electrode collector plate and a negative electrode collector plate arranged at laterally opposite ends of each of the group of positive electrode plates and the group of negative electrode plates respectively;
• holes extending through the short lateral walls of the cell cases at upper edge portions thereof;
• a pair of frame fittings comprising base ends and protruding portions in each of the cell cases for connecting two adjacent cell cases, the protruding portions of the pair of frame fittings extending into the through holes in the upper edge portions of the short lateral walls of the cell cases from both sides and being welded together, and the positive and negative electrode collector plates in the cell cases being respectively attached to the base ends of the frame fittings;
• end frame fittings having base ends and protruding portions for cell cases located at both outer ends of the rechargeable battery for connecting the cell cases at both outer ends of the rechargeable battery to outside terminals;
• and
• connection terminals having protruding portions connected to the end frame fittings of the cell cases at both outer ends of the rechargeable battery.