Ford enters new territory with game-changing battery tech: 'This could reduce repair costs'

Legacy Detroit automakers aren't letting Tesla and the big Chinese brands have all the fun when it comes to electric vehicle innovations, as evidenced by some recent patent applications from General Motors and Ford. 

A filing from Ford published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office late last year deals with tech that would make EV batteries easier to repair, according to Green Car Reports. The concept involves modular packs that could be removed independently without evacuating the entire battery system. 

"This could reduce repair costs and could be greener, potentially allowing some packs to be rehabbed with new modules rather than replaced," Green Car Reports' Stephen Edelstein wrote. 

A drawing included with the patent shows a floor-based setup with multiple modules. Tech with spring-loaded connectors would allow each one to be removed as needed. 

An immersion-cooling feature using a nonconductive fluid is also noted in the filing. It's a novel approach. Typically, fluid-based coolants are used on the outside of modules, sometimes with a cooling plate, all per Green Car Reports. 

The fast battery cell access might be game-changing for EV tech, especially for safety, which is a topic in many labs. Experts at the University of Arizona are developing sensors that monitor cell temperature fluctuations. The gauges, coupled with Ford's modular pack design, could allow for the quick identification of a flawed module, along with its easy removal. 

The combination would help to avoid rare, yet catastrophic, fires from thermal runaway while saving the healthy parts of the packs, as a hypothetical example. 

Ford also has a patent filed for a battery-swapping EV. Other companies, including China's NIO, already have swappable batteries with a network of stations that EVs enter. An automated process then quickly replaces the dead battery with a new one. 

Ford's version is unique because its battery is located in the rear of the vehicle. The EV would apparently back up to a docking station that swaps or charges the packs, all per Motor Authority. 

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GM isn't sitting idle on the patent front, either. Its engineers have filed an application for a dual-port charging system that would allow for the faster charging of larger EVs. Another filing detailed a vehicle that could charge in one port while providing energy through a second one. 

It's proof that the big U.S. brands are keeping their innovators active in EV development as worldwide competition picks up. Reuters reported that battery-powered and hybrid plug-in sales increased by 25% last year to 17 million vehicles. Tesla and China-based BYD account for a third of the market share of battery EVs, according to data collector Statista. 

And in the U.S., Cox Automotive reported that EV sales hit a record 1.3 million last year. Sales stateside continue to be incentivized by valuable tax credits of up to $7,500, though President Donald Trump has indicated that he intends to end the program. 

Innovations from other brands are encouraging as our transportation system continues to become less dependent on fossil-burning rides. Switching to an EV can save you around $1,500 a year on gas and maintenance costs as well as cut thousands of pounds of heat-trapping air pollution annually, according to the U.S. Energy Department. Vehicle exhaust is linked by medical experts to risks for neurological, heart, and lung health concerns, among others. 

At Ford, EV purchases are even encouraged with the inclusion of home-based chargers and their installation as part of a pilot program. Green Car Reports' Edelstein sees the patents as holding great potential for the brand in the future. 

"Bringing such tech to the mass market may help Ford get a jump on others — even Tesla," he wrote.

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