Newly disclosed battery pack design highlights growing cooperation in EV technology, next-generation batteries
Samsung and Hyundai Motor Group are expanding their battery partnership from supply deals to joint development, newly disclosed patents show, amid a recent push by the two conglomerates to step up cooperation across future industries.
According to the Korea Intellectual Property Rights Information Service on Wednesday, a patent jointly filed by Hyundai Motor, Kia and Samsung SDI, titled “Battery Pack and Vehicle Including the Same,” was made public on Oct. 22.
The patent describes a battery pack designed to improve energy density by integrating the space needed to protect batteries from external impacts with the space required for gas venting during thermal runaway, a condition in which battery temperatures rises uncontrollably.
The proposed design places vent holes beneath battery cells, allowing high-temperature gases generated during thermal runway to escape through a passageway in the battery pack’s lower cover.
By combining gas venting and impact protection in the lower section, rather than requiring separate spaces above and below the cells, the structure aims to improve the battery pack’s energy density.
The design also incorporates a heat-resistant member to limit heat transfer to nearby cells and a cooling plate to regulate battery temperatures. While the patent primarily illustrates prismatic cells, one of Samsung SDI's flagship products, the design can also accommodate pouch-type and cylindrical batteries.
Five Hyundai Motor and Kia researchers and two from Samsung SDI are named as inventors on the patent, signaling that the companies’ collaboration now goes beyond battery procurement into the joint development of battery pack design.
Samsung SDI and Hyundai Motor signed their first EV battery supply agreement in Oct. 2023. Under the deal, The battery-maker will supply prismatic cells manufactured in Hungary for Hyundai and Kia electric vehicles sold in Europe from 2026 through 2032.
On Monday, Samsung hosted senior Hyundai Motor Group executives at its training center in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, for “HMG Appreciation Day,” a rare, large-scale gathering aimed at strengthening collaboration on auto parts and emerging technologies.
"Samsung and Hyundai Motor Group are expanding opportunities for cooperation beyond automotive electronics, audio and batteries into future industries, such as robotics and energy," Hyundai Motor Group Vice Chair Chang Jae-hoon said at the event.
Chang expressed hope that the two groups would continue combining their respective strengths to tackle future challenges.
Hyundai Motor and Samsung SDI’s partnership also extends to all-solid-state batteries, a next-generation technology many view as a potential paradigm shift for electric vehicles and robotics.
Between 2002 and 2025, Hyundai Motor, Kia and Samsung SDI jointly filed nine patents related to all-solid-state battery technology, including divisional applications.
The companies filed four applications in 2022, three in 2023 and one each in 2024 and 2025. Samsung SDI was listed as the lead applicant on seven, while Hyundai Motor led the remaining two. Two of the applications were granted patents last year.
sahn@heraldcorp.com
