Cell-to-pack battery design in 2026: overview
Cell-to-pack (CTP) design places cells directly in the battery pack, removing the conventional module layer. Fewer intermediate parts can free packaging volume and simplify assembly, but module removal shifts more responsibility to the pack for cell restraint, cooling, electrical isolation, crash protection and fault containment. The design is therefore a system-level trade: higher integration must remain safe and serviceable.
Recent work is concentrating on pack safety, thermal control and performance evidence. In October 2026, CATL and LG Corp patent filings addressed cell casing and pack layouts, including venting spaces and cooling members; a TU Munich-led teardown publication examined how capacity and resistance scale from cells to field-aged EV packs. Commercial execution is also advancing: BMW began Gen6 battery production in China in October 2026, while ProLogium and Rimac Technology completed a battery-pack concept mockup that month. These developments put thermal management, fault isolation, degradation measurement and manufacturable integration alongside energy density.
- 1Integration shifts upward: Removing modules makes the pack structure, cooling paths and cell interfaces more central to safety and manufacturability.
- 2Safety shapes layouts: Recent patent work on venting spaces and cooling members shows that thermal events and heat removal remain core pack-design constraints.
- 3Evidence beyond cells: Teardown-based analysis of field-aged packs highlights the need to distinguish cell degradation from pack-level effects.
Top organizations working on cell-to-pack battery design
Ranked by Linknovate activity score · last 24 monthsThe activity score adds up the relevance of every patent, publication, grant and news item linking an organization to cell-to-pack battery design. Showing 7 of 87 organizations.
| # | Organization | Approach | Signals (24 mo) | Momentum | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 
LG Corp
Corporate · South Korea |
Cylindrical cell integration | PAT 204 · NEWS 72 | +40% | Recently, its battery patents have covered cylindrical cells, cell construction and pack features, including designs for easier pack disassembly. |
| 2 | 
BYD Company
Corporate · China |
Blade-style prismatic cells | PAT 32 · NEWS 95 | +27% | BYD’s Blade battery uses long prismatic cells arranged directly in the pack, making its cell-to-pack architecture a core part of the company’s EV battery systems. |
| 3 | 
Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd
Corporate · China |
Structural pack design | PAT 15 · PUB 2 NEWS 115 |
+32% | CATL develops cell-to-pack battery architectures that integrate cells more directly into the pack; its patents cover battery-cell, pack and energy-storage configurations. |
| 4 | 
BMW AG
Corporate · Germany |
Cylindrical cell integration | NEWS 108 | +70% | Recently, BMW began producing Gen6 high-voltage batteries in China and opened a Bavarian battery plant, both making cylindrical-cell packs for Neue Klasse vehicles. |
| 5 | 
Volkswagen Group
Corporate · Germany |
Prismatic cell integration | NEWS 70 | +80% | Volkswagen has developed a standardized unified battery cell for broad use across its future EVs, alongside work on new ways to arrange batteries in vehicles. |
| 6 | 
Hyundai Motor Company
Corporate · South Korea |
Structural pack design | PAT 3 · NEWS 54 | -3% | Hyundai and Kia have explored integrating battery-pack cases with vehicle structural components, aiming to improve packaging efficiency. |
| 7 | EE
Eve Energy Co., Ltd
Corporate |
Structural pack design | PAT 8 · NEWS 14 | +75% | EVE Energy has patented cell-grouping structures and cell-to-pack packs, including layouts that combine multiple cells with liquid-cooling components. |
| 8 | ··Hidden organizationCompany | Approach | PAT 00 · PUB 00 GRANTS 0 · NEWS 00 | +00% | Available to registered users. |
| 9 | ··Hidden organizationCompany | Approach | PAT 00 · PUB 00 GRANTS 0 · NEWS 00 | +00% | Available to registered users. |
| 10 | ··Hidden organizationCompany | Approach | PAT 00 · PUB 00 GRANTS 0 · NEWS 00 | +00% | Available to registered users. |
Leading research centers
Leading research institutions 59 total
- AUAditya UniversityIndiaAditya University researchers study thermal behavior and active balancing in EV battery packs, including packs built from cylindrical cells.
- APAnhui Polytechnic UniversityChinaAnhui Polytechnic University researchers have designed and thermally characterized a cell-to-pack liquid-cooled battery pack and studied integrated power-battery system design.
- SPSavitrbai Phule PuneUniversityIndiaResearchers study thermal management and mechanical performance across cylindrical-cell packs and battery cells, modules and packs for EV applications.
- ··Hidden research institutionCountryAvailable to registered users, with their key researchers.
- ··Hidden research institutionCountryAvailable to registered users, with their key researchers.
Where cell-to-pack battery design innovation happens
Share of documents with at least one organization from each country.
Open the interactive map with all 87 organizationsMain technical approaches
Last 24 months| Approach | What it is | Documents | Leading organizations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blade-style prismatic cells | Long prismatic cells are arranged directly in the pack to reduce module overhead, but cell replacement and heat management can be more demanding. | 34 |
LG Corp, BYD Company, Volkswagen Group |
| Prismatic cell integration | Prismatic cells are integrated into the pack with fewer intermediate structures, trading packaging efficiency against service access and thermal design. | 69 |
Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd, LG Corp, BYD Company |
| Cylindrical cell integration | Cylindrical cells are densely grouped in the pack, but the spaces between cells and their cooling paths require careful management. | 111 |
BMW AG, Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd, LG Corp |
| Pouch cell integration | Pouch cells allow flexible pack layouts, but need robust compression, restraint and protection against mechanical damage. | 54 |
Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd, AESC Japan Co Ltd, Klinikum Rechts der Isar |
| Structural pack design | The pack contributes to vehicle structure and stiffness, but structural loads can complicate crash protection, repair and cell replacement. | 23 |
LG Corp, Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd, Researchmoz |
Emerging trends
Last 12 months vs previous 36 monthsTerms whose frequency in the last 12 months grew the most compared with the previous 36 months.
Funding and investment
Recent funding rounds
The records list $55,084,429 in grants across 14 awards since 2020. This aggregate is not a project-by-project measure of cell-to-pack-specific funding.
Patent landscape
Top patent holders · last 24 monthsRecent developments
Latest news, duplicates removed- Oct 2026News provided byWacker Chemical Corporation Oct 01, 2026, 10:00 ET - WACKER will highlight silicone technologies for thermal management, thermal runway protection and efficient processing in battery and electronics…All Environment
- Sep 2026China has officially reported a fourth-generation high-compaction lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cell benchmark exceeding 200 Wh/kg, pointing to further energy-density gains from the chemistry without switching to…CarNewsChina.com
- Sep 2026Taiwanese battery developer Xing Mobility has presented its Immersio CTP lithium-ion marine battery system at the SMM maritime exhibition in Hamburg, Germany. The cell-to-pack system is designed to provide continuous…Battery
- Jul 2026The A110 Future mule previews Alpine’s plan to make an EV sports car that still feels small, balanced, and genuinely driver-focused. - Alpine’s electric A110 uses a split battery pack to keep a low driving position and…InsideEVs - Articles
- Month 20XXHidden developmentAvailable to registered users with alerts enabled.
Frequently asked questions about cell-to-pack battery design
What companies are working on cell-to-pack battery design?
LG Corp, BYD Company and Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd are among the named companies working on cell-to-pack design. BYD uses long prismatic cells arranged directly in the pack, while CATL develops direct cell integration and pack configurations. LG Corp patent activity covers cells, pack structures, cooling and venting. BMW AG and Volkswagen Group also work on battery integration and pack architectures.
Which cell-to-pack battery design startups are the most promising in 2026?
FACTS lists 0 startups in its cell-to-pack startup total, so it does not support a ranked list of promising startups. ProLogium Technology is identified as a startup in the organization data, and ProLogium and Rimac Technology completed a battery-pack concept mockup in October 2026. That collaboration is a concrete development, but the available information does not establish a comparative startup ranking.
Who are the main cell-to-pack battery design manufacturers or suppliers?
The named manufacturers include BYD Company, Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd, LG Corp, BMW AG and Volkswagen Group. BYD is associated with blade-style prismatic cells, CATL with structural pack design, and BMW AG with cylindrical cell integration. The records also name EVE Energy, AESC Japan and Sunwoda Mobility Energy Technology among organizations with battery-pack patent activity.
Which universities and research centers lead cell-to-pack battery design research?
Named research contributors include Aditya University, Anhui Polytechnic University and Savitrbai Phule PuneUniversity. Anhui Polytechnic University researchers have designed and thermally characterized a cell-to-pack liquid-cooled pack. TU Munich and its co-authors published a teardown-based study of capacity and resistance scaling in field-aged EV packs in October 2026. The available data identifies contributors, but does not establish a definitive ranking.
How much funding has cell-to-pack battery design received?
The records list $55,084,429 in grants across 14 awards since 2020. This is the aggregate funding associated with the topic, not a confirmed total for dedicated cell-to-pack projects. The funding data does not identify the purpose of every award, so it should not be treated as a direct measure of investment in any one architecture or company.
Who holds the most cell-to-pack battery design patents, and is patent activity growing?
LG Corp leads the listed patent holders with 204 patents, followed by BYD Company with 32 and Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd with 15. Patent activity grew 37.8% in the last 12 months compared with the previous 12 months. The records also list 352 patents in the defined 24-month window, indicating continuing IP activity around cells, pack structures and safety features.
What are the latest developments in cell-to-pack battery design?
In October 2026, CATL and LG Corp patent filings addressed battery-cell and pack configurations, including venting and cooling features. A TU Munich-led publication that month examined how capacity and resistance scale from cells to field-aged EV packs. BMW began Gen6 battery production in China in October 2026, and ProLogium and Rimac Technology completed a battery-pack concept mockup. These examples point to parallel work on safety, performance evidence and manufacturing.
What are the main approaches in cell-to-pack battery design, and how do they differ?
The main approaches are blade-style prismatic cells, prismatic cell integration, cylindrical cell integration, pouch cell integration and structural pack design. They differ in cell shape, layout, mechanical support and how the pack manages cooling and loads. Direct integration can reduce intermediate structures, but the design must still provide restraint, heat transfer, fault containment and access for repair.
Which countries lead cell-to-pack battery design?
The United States has 2,120 listed documents, followed by China with 1,068 and South Korea with 920. Germany, Japan and the United Kingdom are also among the countries with substantial activity in the records. These document totals show geographic participation, but they do not distinguish research quality, commercial deployment or the specific contribution of each country to cell-to-pack architectures.
What are the applications of cell-to-pack battery design?
The listed applications include passenger electric vehicles with 826 documents, commercial vehicles with 179, off-highway vehicles with 31 and marine vessels with 12. Passenger EVs are the largest application in the records. Recent news also describes Xing Mobility’s Immersio CTP marine battery system, illustrating how direct cell integration is being applied beyond passenger cars.