EV OEMs required a high-performance thermal pad to effectively manage high temperatures within battery packs, while integrating seamlessly into a fully automated manufacturing process.
Summary
To maintain the safe and efficient operation of electric vehicle (EV) batteries, it’s essential to carefully manage the temperatures within the battery’s electronic control unit. Parker Chomerics’ THERM-A-GAP PAD 30 Thermally Conductive Gap Filler Pads offer a high-performance solution that integrates seamlessly into robotic assembly processes, ensuring a faster, more efficient, and debris-free production line.
Customer Challenges/Requirements
Effective thermal management is a key priority for EV original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). Selecting the appropriate thermal interface material (TIM) for the battery’s electronic control unit is critical, as EV battery packs generate significant heat, and their performance is closely linked to internal temperatures.
Maintaining cleanliness during manufacturing is equally important. Robotics are employed to eliminate the need for operators to handle components, reducing the risk of foreign object debris (FOD). Therefore, any thermal pad used must integrate smoothly into the automated assembly process.
Design Requirements
Along with performance and compatibility with robotics, packaging played a crucial role in the design. The orientation of the thermal pads requires meticulous attention to ensure they are packaged and shipped securely.
Solution
Parker Chomerics’ THERM-A-GAP PAD 30 Thermally Conductive Gap Filler Pads met all the requirements for this application, offering excellent conformability at a competitive price. Parker Chomerics also developed specialized packaging to ensure smooth and secure product shipment.
The THERM-A-GAP PAD 30 delivers a soft solution (34 Shore 00) with a thermal conductivity of 3.2 W/m-K. Its extremely low outgassing ensures an effective thermal interface between heat sinks and electronic devices, especially where uneven surfaces, air gaps, or rough textures are present.
These pads are easily detected by vision sensors for efficient quality control and faster assembly, and their easy release from liners makes them ideal for pick-and-place robots in high-volume production environments.
Results
With THERM-A-GAP PAD 30, we transformed a high-performance TIM pad into a format that simplifies installation, enhancing assembly-line precision. Applicators can now position the pads into the locating fixture without direct contact, eliminating the risk of foreign debris and improving manufacturing speed while reducing failure rates.
To guarantee zero defects, automated inspection systems verify both the pad dimensions and placement, pausing the assembly process if any issues are detected.
THERM-A-GAP PAD 30 offers OEMs a solution that combines superior performance, ease of assembly, and defect-free production.
