JP2002298814A - Battery - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a low-cost battery allowing surely sealing the battery. SOLUTION: This battery 10 comprises a lid body 18 and a case body 16, that are divided from an integrally formed case raw material 40 and are engaged with each other via connection faces, which are respectively formed into a face extending along a common axis approximately, in parallel with each other and passing through the lid body and the case body.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a battery having a case for housing a battery therein.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In general, a lead storage battery having electrodes formed of a lead plate is widely used as a drive power supply for an electric fishing reel. Such a lead-acid battery, for example, a typical battery having a rated voltage of 12 volts, is about 3 to 4
Kg is relatively heavy, and the time available on a single charge is relatively short. For this reason, when the fishing time is long, it is necessary to carry a plurality of heavy lead-acid batteries or carry a large-capacity large battery that can withstand long-time use. In addition, since such a lead storage battery has a characteristic that its output gradually decreases, the output gradually decreases during actual fishing, and it is not possible to maintain the initial winding force at the start of use of the electric reel.

In recent years, attention has been paid to using a lithium ion battery as a fishing battery in order to improve such a problem. Such a lithium-ion battery is not only smaller and lighter than a lead-acid battery of the same capacity, but also has a longer usable time per charge,
Therefore, it is not necessary to carry a plurality of batteries or a large battery even when fishing for a long time. In addition, lithium-ion batteries have stable output characteristics and can maintain a nearly constant voltage up to their usage limit,
It is possible to draw out the functions of the electric reel to the maximum, stably all day.

[0004]

However, in the case of a lithium ion battery, since a plurality of cylindrical cells similar to a normal AA dry cell are used in combination, the following problems occur. That is, when manufacturing a resin case, separate molds are required to separately form a case main body for accommodating a lithium ion battery and a lid closing an open end of the case main body. Cost increases. In addition, since the joint surface between the lid and the case body is formed by the small end surface of the open end of the case body, if the area of the joint surface, that is, the end surface area is increased to secure sufficient joint strength, The whole becomes larger. Furthermore, it is difficult to achieve waterproof and dustproof between the lid and the case body on the joint surface formed by the small end surface of the open end of the case body, and the joint surface for performing sufficient waterproof and dustproof treatment. In order to secure the size, the area of the end face of the open end of the case body must be increased, and in this case also, the size of the entire case increases.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and has as its object to provide a battery provided with an inexpensive case capable of securely sealing the battery.

[0006]

A battery according to the present invention that achieves the above object is characterized in that a case for housing the battery therein is formed by blow molding. Further, according to the present invention, a lid and a case are provided, which are separated from the integrally formed case material and are fitted to each other via a bonding surface, and each of the lid and the case is joined together. The battery is provided, wherein the surface is formed on the case material so as to be substantially parallel to each other and to extend along a common axis passing through the lid body and the case body.

[0007]

1 to 3 show a battery 10 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The battery 10 according to the present embodiment generates a rated voltage of, for example, 12 volts by sealing a plurality of rechargeable lithium-ion batteries 12 in a case as a power supply for driving the electric fishing reel 8. It is particularly suitable for supplying electric power from the power supply cable 6 to the electric reel 8.

In the battery 10 of the present embodiment, the entire case is formed of an inexpensive insulating material such as polyethylene terephthalate, which has excellent waterproof and corrosion resistance. This battery case contains a lithium ion battery 12
Body 16 formed at one end with an opening end 14 for receiving the opening, and lid 1 closing the opening end 14 of this case body 16
8 is provided.

The case body 16 has a bottom wall formed with a support portion 20 projecting into the case body 16 and elastically supporting the lithium ion battery 12, and a ridge 2 for increasing rigidity.
2 has a wide side wall portion formed on the outer surface and a narrow side wall portion formed flat, and a smooth curved surface is formed at a corner of these side wall portions. The lid 18 accommodates the open end 14 of the case body 16, and its inner surface is
And a projecting portion 26 projecting from the joining portion 24, and between each of the wide side walls of the joining portion 24 and the projecting portion 26. A shoulder portion 30 is formed, and a cylindrical connector housing portion 32 projects from an end wall of the projection portion 26.

The shoulder 30 formed on the lid 18 engages with the lithium ion battery 12 when the open end 14 of the case 16 is fitted into the joint 24, and the lithium ion battery is connected to the case 16. Is pressed toward the supporting portion 20. Thereby, the lithium ion battery 12 is elastically held in the battery case, and is prevented from rattling or moving. In the protruding portion 26, lead wires 34 connected to the lithium ion battery 12 via the circuit board 33 are accommodated, and these lead wires 34
2 is connected to the receptacle 36 sealed. The plug 4 provided at the end of the power supply cable 6 is connected to the receptacle 36.
By fitting and screwing, the lithium ion battery 12 is electrically connected to the electric reel 8, and power can be supplied to the electric reel 8 from the lithium ion battery 12.

In the battery 10 of the present embodiment, the entire inner surface of the joint 24 of the lid 18 is
And tightly joined, for example via a suitable adhesive. As a result, the inner surface of the joint 24 and the outer surface of the case body 16 near the open end 14 form a large joint surface. The joining portion 24 which is the joining surface
The inner surface of the case body 18 and the outer surface of the case body 18 on the side of the opening end 14 are extremely tightly fitted through a process to be described later, and the gap therebetween is extremely small.
The adhesive disposed between the outer peripheral surface of the battery case and the outer peripheral surface of the battery case is sealed evenly and completely by a capillary phenomenon. Greatly improves dustproofing.

FIGS. 4 to 7 show an example of a molding process for blow molding a case material 40 in which the above-mentioned case body 16 and lid body 18 are integrally formed. As shown in FIG. 4, a suitable resin 42 that has been heated and melted is extruded into a tube shape from a die head 50 to form a parison 44 shown in FIG. The parison 44 in the molten state is sandwiched between blow molds 52 as shown in FIG. 6, the lower part of the parison 44 is cut, and the lower opening end of the parison 44 is fused. It is blown and formed into the shape of the blow mold 52. After cooling, the blow mold 52 is opened and the case material 40 is taken out as shown in FIG.
By continuously performing this step, the case material 40 having the same structure in which the case body 16 and the lid body 18 are integrally formed.
Is mass-produced inexpensively as a blow molded product. The resin forming the case material 40 is not limited to the above-described polyethylene terephthalate, but may be any appropriate resin. Suitable materials include, for example, polycarbonate, polyethylene, polypropylene, and vinyl chloride. The thickness of the case material 40 is
It is preferable to form it to have a thickness of, for example, about 1 to 2 mm except for a reinforcing part such as

FIGS. 8 to 11 show the case material 16 formed as described above, in which the case body 16 and the cover body 18 are divided, and the lithium ion battery 12 is enclosed therein to drive the electric fishing reel 8 for fishing. 2 shows a process for completing a battery particularly suitable as a power source for use.

[0014] As shown in FIG.
Then, the connecting part 17 connecting the part of the case body 16 and the part of the lid body 18 is removed by cutting along the division surfaces S1 and S2, and as shown in FIG. And split into

In this embodiment, since the opening end 14 of the case body 16 is formed so as to fit tightly into the joint portion 24 of the lid 18, the connecting portion 17 is connected to the opening end 14 of the case body 16.
From the portion to the joint portion 24 of the lid 18, and the outer surface near the opening end 14 and the inner surface of the joint portion 24 are parallel to each other and substantially flush with each other or the joint portion 24. The inner surface is kept slightly outside. Therefore, the inner surface of these joints 24 and the outer surface near the open end 14 correspond to the lid 18 and the case 1.
6 along a common axis L passing therethrough.

In this embodiment, since the joining portion 24 of the lid 18 is formed to have substantially the same width along the periphery thereof, the divided surfaces S1 and S2 from which the connecting portion 17 is removed are parallel to each other and have a common axis. Although arranged in a plane orthogonal to L, for example, when changing the width of the joint 24 along its periphery,
Such divided planes S1 and S2 may be arranged in appropriate non-parallel planes.

As shown in FIG. 10, a required number of lithium ion batteries 12 housed in a case body 16 are previously bundled in a predetermined shape and fixed. Then, after the receptacle 36 to which the lead wire 34 is attached is mounted on the connector housing portion 32 of the lid 18 in a waterproof and dust-proof structure, the lead wire 34 is attached to a predetermined position of the circuit board 33.

After the lead wire 34 is attached to a predetermined position on the circuit board, the lead wire 34 is folded and housed in the protruding portion 26 of the lid 18 together with the circuit board 33, and the lithium ion battery 12
Is pushed into the joint 24. At this time, the end of the lithium ion battery 12 is connected to the lid 18 as shown in FIG.
Of the lithium ion battery 12, and the opposite end of the lithium ion battery 12 is
6 Then, by pushing the open end 14 of the case body 16 toward the shoulder 30 of the lid 18, the shoulder 30 and the support portion 20 formed on the bottom wall of the case body 16 are pressed.
In between, the bundle of lithium ion batteries 12 is securely held.

The inner surface of the joint 24 and the case body 16
Since the joint surface formed by the outer surface near the open end 14 of the first joint is disposed in a state of extremely tight engagement, the adhesive applied during this time is efficiently applied to the entire large joint surface by capillary action. Going around, the inner surface of the joint portion 24 and the case body 16
An extremely strong waterproof and dustproof structure is formed between the outer surface of the portion near the open end 14 and the outer surface. Thus, as shown in FIG. 3, the battery 10 in which the lithium ion battery 12 is sealed in a battery case including the case body 16 and the lid body 18 is formed.
Is completed.

The battery 10 has a lithium ion battery 12 as a secondary battery sealed in an extremely lightweight and compact battery case, and can be repeatedly charged and discharged for a long period of time without taking out the lithium ion battery 12 from the inside. Therefore, permanent waterproofing and dustproofing can be performed, and therefore, waterproofing and dustproofing can be improved. On the other hand, due to the waterproofness and dustproofness of such a battery case, even if a situation such as a liquid leak occurs due to a failure of the battery housed inside, it is possible to prevent the battery case from flowing out to the outside. Is prevented from being contaminated or corroded by the leaked liquid.

FIG. 12 shows an attachment 62 for connecting a power supply cable 6 having a conventional lead-acid battery alligator clip 60 to the above-described battery receptacle 36. The attachment 62 is fixed to the board 66 and a plug 64 which is fitted to the receptacle 36 and is screwed to the connector housing portion 32 of the lid 18, and is connected to a contact (not shown) of the plug 64 via a lead wire. And two electrode terminals 68.

By attaching the plug 64 of the attachment 62 to the above-described battery receptacle 36 and the connector housing 32, the conventional alligator clip 60 can be connected to the electrode terminal 68. The attachment 62 has a compact structure and does not hinder the carrying of the attachment 62 during fishing.

FIG. 13 shows a display device 70 for checking the state of the battery while the electric reel 8 is in use. The lithium-ion battery 12 as described above maintains a substantially constant voltage up to its use limit, while its voltage drops rapidly when it reaches its use limit. Therefore, at the time of actual fishing, it is necessary to detect this change in voltage quickly and reliably. For this purpose, it is preferable to detect the actual voltage as close as possible to the angler.

A display device 70 shown in FIG. 13 can be inserted into the power supply cable 6 between the battery and the electric reel 8.
The connecting cable provided with 2, 74 extends. The display section 72 may be any display as long as the voltage can be easily confirmed. FIG. 13 shows an example (A) in which each of the display sections is displayed by a numeral on a liquid crystal display section and a plurality of lamps such as LEDs. An example (B) of displaying the voltage level on the display and an example (C) of displaying a bar on the liquid crystal display unit are shown. Of course, an appropriate display can be made in addition to the above. By using such a display device 70, the state of the battery can be reliably and securely determined without using a special device such as an electric reel or a battery having a display function. You can check quickly.

[0025]

As is apparent from the above, according to the battery of the present invention, since the case is formed by blow molding, only one blow mold is required as compared with a conventional molded product using a plurality of molds. Since the molding is easy, mass production is possible at low cost. In addition, a lid body and a case body which are divided from the integrally formed case material and are fitted to each other via the joint surface are provided, and the respective joint surfaces of the lid body and the case body are formed of the case material. Above, when formed on a surface that is substantially parallel to each other and extends along a common axis that passes through the lid and the case, a large joint surface between the lid and the case is secured, and The body and the case can be firmly joined together, and the lid and the case can be securely sealed through the large joint surface, so that waterproofness and dustproofness can be improved.

When the case material is formed by blow molding, the cover and the case can be simultaneously formed only by the blow mold, and the production cost can be greatly reduced.

Further, in the case of a battery containing a secondary battery in a case, since the battery can be repeatedly charged and discharged, there is no need to take out the internal battery, and therefore, the waterproof and dustproof treatment is performed to make the battery waterproof and dustproof. In addition to being able to improve dust resistance, the waterproof and dustproof nature of such a case prevents leakage to the outside even if a battery leaks due to a problem with the battery housed inside. Thus, it is possible to prevent articles such as clothes and equipment around the battery from being stained or corroded by the leaked liquid.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a use state of a battery according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the battery shown in FIG. 1;

3A and 3B are views for explaining the inside and the outside of the battery of FIG. 2, wherein FIG. 3A is a sectional view and FIG. 3B is a side view.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a die head and a blow mold for explaining a blow molding step of a case material.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of a step of forming a parison from a die head.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory view of a state in which air is blown by fusing the lower part of the parison.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory view showing a state in which a blow-molded case material is taken out.

FIG. 8 is a schematic sectional view of a blow-molded case material.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory view of a state in which a lid and a case are divided from the case material of FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is an explanatory view showing an assembled lithium ion battery together with a lid and a case.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory view showing a state where a part of a lithium ion battery is assembled in a lid together with a case.

FIG. 12 is an explanatory view of an attachment that can be used for the battery of FIG. 1;

FIG. 13 is an explanatory view showing various display devices capable of displaying the voltage of the lithium ion battery shown in FIG. 1;

[Explanation of symbols]

10 ... battery, 12 ... lithium ion battery, 16 ... case body, 18 ... lid body.

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page F term (reference) 2B108 DA06 GA18 2B109 FA10 5H029 AJ15 BJ02 DJ02 5H040 AA03 AA34 AS27 AT01 AY02 CC01 JJ05

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A battery comprising a case for accommodating a battery therein, wherein the case is formed by blow molding. 2. A battery provided with a case for accommodating a battery therein, comprising: a lid and a case which are divided from a case material formed integrally, and which are fitted to each other via a joint surface; The joint surfaces of the lid and the case body are formed on the case material on surfaces that are substantially parallel to each other and extend along a common axis passing through the lid and the case body. Battery. 3. The battery according to claim 2, wherein the case material is formed by blow molding. 4. The battery according to claim 1, wherein a secondary battery is housed inside the case. 5. The battery according to claim 4, wherein the secondary battery is a lithium ion battery. 6. The battery according to claim 4, which forms a power supply for driving the electric fishing reel.