Toyota has developed a reputation for taking electrical vehicle development slowly, and not rushing into things. The motor manufacturer was an early proponent of solid-state batteries, while being shy on details. However, its thoughts on flexible housings for safer batteries in electric cars have leaked out, and they are making sense.
Why Bother With Flexible Housings for EV Batteries
Batteries are a major cost factor in electric cars, and can account for half the overall cost. Certain battery chemistries, notably lithium-ion, can overheat to dangerous levels after impact accidents.
News channel AOL contrasts Toyota’s policy for impact-protecting EV batteries compared to other brands. According to them, the big difference is where you locate them:
- Most electric car batteries lock in ‘skateboard style’ beneath the passenger compartment.
- Toyota is taking a different approach by allowing the batteries to move slightly on impact.
- It locates them inside the frame ‘surrounded by suspension parts and reinforced sections’.
How This Arrangement Protects the Batteries
The general idea is that the parts that function as flexible housings for safer batteries take the initial knock. They absorb the energy by deforming, and redirecting it away from the battery.
The ‘secret sauce’ is Toyota’s policy of allowing free space around the battery, that allows it to shift slightly on impact. This should reduce the initial shock of a collision, that could otherwise damage individual battery cells.
In a certain sense, this technology is a bit like ‘crumble zones’ around passenger compartments, and engine mountings that give way. The slight movement of the electric battery is controlled, but avoids the initial shock from impact.
The Toyota approach to flexible housings for safer batteries breaks away from the tradition of providing mechanical shielding. It manages and redirects crash energy elsewhere instead. At this stage though, the thought is only at the patent stage.
More Information
The Toyota Solid-State Battery Project
The Toyota Electric Car Strategy Rolling Out
