I'm hoping for some input on this battery layout I have diagrammed. Due to the space constraint of a small van, I am wondering if it's feasible to place cylindrical cells on their sides, resulting in a large, flat battery that could go beneath a floor or fixture. Besides not taking up much vertical space, the layout could be shaped around a non-square area, like fitting around a wheel well.
The system would consist of 'packs' of 4 cells spot welded in series all placed in a big square and connected in parallel. The whole thing wouldn't be more than 4ft lengthwise or widthwise. There are two wiring configurations I could think of. The first would be to connect each parallel cell together in a grid. This would allow the current in each pack to not have to travel through more then 4ft of wire. The second would be a row of packs widthwise connected in parallel, then each of those packs connected in parallel to the packs above them, branching up like a tree. The downside to this would be that the energy in the furthest pack away would need to travel up to 16ft.
My main consideration is heat. The wires connecting the cells in parallel would be much longer then usual and therefore might need to be thicker gauge. But even with correctly gauged wiring, would there be too much energy loss from the cells furthest away? Should the battery terminals need to be moved to exit from a more central pack?
I drew up some diagrams in Microsoft paint to illustrate the layout. A 'grid' diagram, a 'tree' one, and a crude attempt at a 3d depiction. The drawing just represents a section of the battery, and would be extended as needed.
Are there any considerations I'm not making? Do I have misconceptions about any of the concepts?
The system would consist of 'packs' of 4 cells spot welded in series all placed in a big square and connected in parallel. The whole thing wouldn't be more than 4ft lengthwise or widthwise. There are two wiring configurations I could think of. The first would be to connect each parallel cell together in a grid. This would allow the current in each pack to not have to travel through more then 4ft of wire. The second would be a row of packs widthwise connected in parallel, then each of those packs connected in parallel to the packs above them, branching up like a tree. The downside to this would be that the energy in the furthest pack away would need to travel up to 16ft.
My main consideration is heat. The wires connecting the cells in parallel would be much longer then usual and therefore might need to be thicker gauge. But even with correctly gauged wiring, would there be too much energy loss from the cells furthest away? Should the battery terminals need to be moved to exit from a more central pack?
I drew up some diagrams in Microsoft paint to illustrate the layout. A 'grid' diagram, a 'tree' one, and a crude attempt at a 3d depiction. The drawing just represents a section of the battery, and would be extended as needed.
Are there any considerations I'm not making? Do I have misconceptions about any of the concepts?
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