JP2015072831A - Spacer for holding battery and battery holding method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To allow for easy and low-cost switchover from one battery to be charged and discharged to another battery to be charged and discharged having specification different from the one battery.SOLUTION: A spacer 10 for holding a battery is provided that is disposed between adjacent secondary batteries 11 in a charge and discharge device 1 carrying out charge and discharge by connecting power source side terminals 12 to positive electrode tabs 11A and negative electrode tabs 11B of the plurality of secondary batteries 11 arranged in the thickness direction and that is used when one of the positive electrode tab 11A and the negative electrode tab 11B of the secondary battery 11 is arranged on the opposite side of the power supply side terminal 12. The spacer 10 for holding a battery comprises: a contact tip 20 for making contact with either electrode tab of the secondary battery 11; a false electrode tab 22 that is disposed at a position corresponding to the power supply side terminal 12; and a conductive member 21 that electrically conducts the contact tip 20 and the false electrode tab 22 to each other.

Description

  The present invention relates to a spacer and a holding method used when holding a secondary battery in a charge / discharge device.

  In a manufacturing process of a secondary battery such as a lithium ion battery used in an electric vehicle, a hybrid vehicle, or the like, after the secondary battery is assembled, charging / discharging is performed so that predetermined characteristics can be exhibited. As a charging / discharging device used for the charging / discharging, there is known an apparatus that performs charging / discharging by connecting a terminal on the power source side to positive and negative electrodes of a plurality of held secondary batteries.

  For example, in Patent Document 1, a secondary battery in which a positive electrode terminal and a negative electrode terminal are gathered on one side is held in a stacked state via a spacer, and a charge / discharge unit having a power supply side terminal is connected to the positive electrode terminal and the negative electrode of the secondary battery. A charging / discharging device connected to a terminal is disclosed.

JP 2010-140844 A

  However, the charging / discharging device described in the above document is intended for charging / discharging a secondary battery in which the positive electrode terminal and the negative electrode terminal are gathered on one side, and the positive electrode terminal and the negative electrode terminal are arranged on the opposite side. Even if it is going to charge / discharge a secondary battery, a charge / discharge unit cannot respond. For this reason, in order to be able to charge and discharge the secondary battery in which the positive electrode terminal and the negative electrode terminal are arranged on the opposite side, the charge / discharge unit is replaced with a compatible one, and the compatible charge / discharge unit is It is necessary to modify the device so that it can be implemented.

  By the way, a plurality of types of secondary batteries may be produced, for example, for electric vehicles and hybrid vehicles. In such a case, the specification of the battery to be charged / discharged is changed from the secondary battery in which the positive electrode and the negative electrode are gathered on one side to the secondary battery in which the positive electrode and the negative electrode are arranged in opposite directions, and vice versa. May be switched. Thus, when switching the specification of a to-be-charged / dischargeable battery, if a charging / discharging device corresponding to each specification is prepared, the cost increases. On the other hand, if the charge / discharge unit is replaced or the charge / discharge device is remodeled every time the specification of the battery to be charged / discharged changes, the productivity is lowered.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to enable easy and low-cost switching of the specifications of the charge / discharge target battery.

  According to an aspect of the present invention, adjacent secondary batteries of a charging / discharging device that performs charging / discharging by connecting a power supply side terminal to each electrode tab of the positive electrode and the negative electrode of a plurality of secondary batteries arranged in the thickness direction. A battery holding spacer is provided. The battery holding spacer is used when either the positive electrode tab or the negative electrode tab of the battery to be charged / discharged is disposed on the side opposite to the power supply side terminal. The battery holding spacer includes a contact chip for contacting any one of the electrode tabs of the secondary battery, a pseudo electrode tab provided at a position corresponding to the power supply side terminal, a contact chip, and a pseudo electrode tab. A conducting member for conducting the current.

  According to the above aspect, the battery holding spacer includes a contact chip for making contact with any one of the electrode tabs of the secondary battery, a pseudo electrode tab provided at a position corresponding to the power supply side terminal, and a contact chip. A conducting member for conducting the pseudo electrode tab. If such a battery holding spacer is used, even if one of the electrode tabs is disposed on the side opposite to the power supply side terminal, charging / discharging can be performed by connecting the power supply side terminal to the pseudo electrode tab.

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a charge / discharge device. FIG. 2 is a perspective view for explaining the configuration of the spacer. FIG. 3 is a view taken in the direction of arrow A in FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing another example of the view taken along the arrow A in FIG.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a charge / discharge device according to an embodiment of the present invention. The charging / discharging device 1 can charge a plurality of secondary batteries 11 at a time, and has a magazine 2 that holds the secondary batteries 11 side by side so as to be stacked in the thickness direction, and a charging / discharging having a power supply side terminal 12. And a jig 3.

  The power supply side terminals 12 include terminals that are connected to the electrode tabs of the secondary batteries 11 held in the magazine 2, and are provided in a number corresponding to the number of secondary batteries 11 held in the magazine 2. As the charging / discharging jig 3 moves in the direction of the secondary battery 11, the power supply side terminal 12 is connected to the positive and negative electrode tabs of the secondary battery 11. That is, the power supply side terminal 12 is configured to be connected to both electrode tabs by approaching from the side where both electrode tabs are aggregated with respect to the battery where both electrode tabs are aggregated on the same side.

  On the other hand, in the secondary battery 11 used in the present embodiment, the positive electrode tab 11A and the negative electrode tab 11B are arranged on opposite sides. However, the power supply side terminal 12 is electrically connected to the positive electrode tab 11A and the negative electrode tab 11B of the secondary battery 11 by using the spacer 10 described later.

  The magazine 2 includes a base plate 13, end plates 5 and 6 fixed in a standing state on the base plate 13, a beam member 4 spanned between the end plates 5 and 6, and the beam member 4 as a guide. And a movable plate 7 that is movable. Then, the secondary batteries 11 are held side by side so as to be stacked in the thickness direction in a space between the end plate 6 and the movable plate 7.

  A spacer 10 is disposed in a space for holding the secondary battery 11 of the magazine 2. The spacers 10 are disposed between the adjacent secondary batteries 11 and sandwich the secondary batteries 11 from the thickness direction, and the number of the spacers 10 is sufficient to sandwich the secondary battery 11 to be held.

  The movable plate 7 urges the load in the direction of the end plate 6 against the secondary battery 11 and the spacer 10. This is because the secondary battery 11 expands by generating gas at the time of charging, and therefore, misalignment due to expansion is suppressed. As a configuration for biasing the load, for example, the elastic force of a spring member may be used, or air pressure or hydraulic pressure may be used.

  Next, the connection between the positive electrode tab 11A and the negative electrode tab 11B of the secondary battery 11 and the power supply side terminal 12 will be described.

  The power supply side terminal 12 has a configuration corresponding to the battery in which the positive electrode and negative electrode tabs are gathered on the same side as described above, whereas the secondary battery 11 has the positive electrode tab 11A and the negative electrode tab 11B opposite to each other. Is arranged. For this reason, even if the charge / discharge jig 3 is moved in the direction of the magazine 2, the negative electrode tab 11 </ b> B and the power supply side terminal 12 do not come into contact with each other. Therefore, when the spacer 10 has only a function of sandwiching the secondary battery 11, the negative electrode tab 11B and the power supply side terminal 12 are not electrically connected.

  However, in the present embodiment, the negative electrode tab 11B and the power supply side terminal 12 can be electrically connected by using the spacer 10 described below.

  FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the spacer 10 and the secondary battery 11, and FIG. 3 is a view taken in the direction of arrow A in FIG. 1.

  The spacer 10 includes a contact chip 20 that comes into contact with the negative electrode tab 11B of the secondary battery 11, a pseudo electrode tab 22 that is arranged to protrude on the same side as the positive electrode tab 11A of the secondary battery 11, and the contact chip 20 and the pseudo electrode. A conductive member 21 connecting the tab 22.

  Note that the contact chip 20, the conductive member 21, and the pseudo electrode tab 22 of FIG. 2 are arranged on the surface of the spacer 10 indicated by a broken line in FIG. 2 that faces the secondary battery 11.

  In FIG. 3, the contact chip 20 is configured with a plurality of convex portions that are convex toward the side in contact with the negative electrode tab 11 </ b> B. It is for making it contact. That is, the shape of the contact chip 20 is not limited to the shape shown in FIG. 3 as long as it can ensure contact with the negative electrode tab 11B.

  A stopper 23 is disposed on the surface of the spacer 10 that faces the surface on which the contact chip 20 is provided. When a load is urged by the movable plate 7, the negative electrode tab 11 </ b> B is sandwiched between the contact chip 20 and the stopper 23. It has a configuration.

  Even if the stopper 23 is not provided, the negative electrode tab 11B and the contact tip 20 come into contact with each other when the load is urged by the movable plate 7. However, if the stopper 23 is provided, the negative electrode tab 11B is deformed in a direction away from the contact tip 20. Is suppressed and contact is made more reliably.

  The pseudo electrode tab 22 is the position of the negative electrode tab of the secondary battery when the original battery to be charged / discharged of the charging / discharging device 1 (that is, the secondary battery in which both electrode tabs are aggregated on the same side) is held. Placed in. In FIG. 2, the pseudo electrode tab 22 is disposed below the positive electrode tab 11A. For example, if the power supply side terminal 12 is not in contact with the positive electrode tab 11A unless it is in contact, the pseudo electrode tab 22 is connected to the positive electrode tab 22A. It arrange | positions so that it may rank with the same height as the tab 11A.

  In addition, since the power supply side terminal 12 is made on the assumption that it connects with the negative electrode tab 11B, it is desirable to form the pseudo electrode tab 22 with the same thickness as the negative electrode tab 11B.

  The conducting member 21 is formed using a conductive member such as a bus bar, for example.

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 4, you may arrange | position the rubber 30 in the site | part facing the secondary battery 11 of the spacer 10. As shown in FIG. 4 is a view taken in the direction of arrow A in FIG. The effects of arranging the rubber 30 are as follows.

  When the secondary battery 11 is sandwiched between the two spacers 10, the pressure necessary to hold the secondary battery 11 so as not to be misaligned is to ensure contact between the contact chip 20 and the negative electrode tab 11 </ b> B. Small compared to the required pressure. However, the load urged by the movable plate 7 cannot be set to a different size for each part. Therefore, the load urged by the movable plate 7 is set to a size suitable for bringing the contact tip 20 and the negative electrode tab 11B into contact with each other, which is an excessive size for holding the secondary battery 11. Become.

  However, by interposing the rubber 30 between the spacer 10 and the secondary battery 11, a part of the load urged by the movable plate 7 is absorbed by the rubber 30, so that the load applied to the secondary battery 11 is reduced. Can be reduced. Even if the spacer 10 or the secondary battery 11 is distorted, it is possible to prevent a locally high load from being applied between the spacer 10 and the secondary battery 11 by interposing the rubber 30.

  Further, the contact chip 20, the pseudo electrode tab 22, and the conductive member 21 may be detachable from the spacer 10. In this case, since existing spacers, that is, battery spacers in which both electrode tabs are gathered on the same side can be used, capital investment can be suppressed.

  If the contact chip 20 and the conductive member 21 do not interfere when holding the secondary battery in which both electrode tabs are gathered on the same side, only the pseudo electrode tab 22 may be detachable. According to this, since the work for switching the specifications of the charge / discharge target battery is only the attachment / detachment of the pseudo electrode tab 22, the productivity is further improved.

  The effects of the embodiment described above are summarized as follows.

(1) The spacer 10 is an adjacent secondary of the charging / discharging device 1 that performs charging / discharging by connecting the power supply side terminal 12 to the positive electrode tab 11A and the negative electrode tab 11B of the plurality of secondary batteries 11 arranged in the thickness direction. It is arranged between the batteries 11. Moreover, it is used when either the positive electrode tab 11 </ b> A or the negative electrode tab 11 </ b> B of the battery to be charged / discharged is disposed on the side opposite to the power supply side terminal 12. The spacer 10 has a contact chip 20 for making contact with either the positive electrode tab 11A or the negative electrode tab 11B of the secondary battery 11, a pseudo electrode tab 22 provided at a position corresponding to the power supply side terminal 12, and a contact. A conducting member 21 that conducts the chip 20 and the pseudo electrode tab 22 is provided.

  When the secondary battery 11 is stacked in the thickness direction using the spacer 10 as described above and held in the magazine 2, the pseudo electrode tab 22 electrically connected to the negative electrode tab 11B is on the same side as the positive electrode tab 11A. Protruding. Therefore, the power supply side terminal 12 designed on the assumption that both electrode tabs of the chargeable / dischargeable battery are concentrated on the same side is used as it is, and the secondary battery 11 in which both electrode tabs are arranged in opposite directions to each other. Charging / discharging can be performed. In other words, by using the spacer 10, the electrode tabs are arranged in opposite directions using the charging / discharging device 1 that uses the battery in which both electrode tabs are gathered on the same side as the original battery to be charged / discharged. The secondary battery 11 can be charged and discharged. This eliminates the need for modification of the charge / discharge device 1 when changing the specifications of the battery to be charged / discharged, thereby realizing cost reduction and shortening of production interruption time.

  In the present embodiment, the charge / discharge device 1 is designed on the assumption that both electrode tabs 11A and 11B of the secondary battery 11 are arranged on the same side, and the electrode tabs 11A and 11B are in opposite directions. The spacer 10 used when charging / discharging the arranged secondary battery 11 has been described. However, based on the idea of the present embodiment, the charge / discharge device 1 designed on the premise that the electrode tabs 11A and 11B of the secondary battery 11 are arranged on the opposite sides, and the electrode tabs 11A and 11B. It is also possible to charge / discharge the secondary battery 11 that is integrated on the same side. In this case, the contact chip 20 of the spacer 10 is brought into contact with the electrode tab on the side opposite to the power supply side terminal 12 to be connected, and the pseudo electrode tab 22 is projected to the same side as the power supply side terminal 12 to be connected. Just do it.

(2) The contact chip 20, the pseudo electrode tab 22, and the conductive member 21 may be detachable from the spacer 10. In this case, the existing spacer 10, that is, the original spacer 10 for the battery to be charged can be diverted, so that the capital investment can be suppressed.

(3) An elastic member (rubber 30) may be disposed in a portion of the spacer 10 facing the secondary battery 11. According to this, since a part of the load urged by the movable plate 7 is absorbed by the rubber 30, the load applied to the secondary battery 11 can be reduced. Even if the spacer 10 or the secondary battery 11 is distorted, it is possible to prevent a locally high load from being applied between the spacer 10 and the secondary battery 11 by interposing the rubber 30.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and it goes without saying that various modifications can be made within the scope of the technical idea described in the claims.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Charging / discharging apparatus 2 Magazine 3 Charging / discharging jig 7 Movable plate 10 Spacer 11 Secondary battery 20 Contact chip 21 Conductive member 22 Pseudo electrode tab 30 Rubber (elastic member)

Claims (4)

Battery holding disposed between adjacent secondary batteries in a charging / discharging device that performs charging / discharging by connecting a power-side terminal to each of positive and negative electrode tabs of a plurality of secondary batteries arranged in the thickness direction For spacers,
Used when either the positive electrode tab or the negative electrode tab of the battery to be charged / discharged is arranged on the side opposite to the power supply side terminal,
A contact tip for making contact with any one of the electrode tabs of the secondary battery;
A pseudo electrode tab provided at a position corresponding to the power supply side terminal;
A conducting member for conducting the contact chip and the pseudo electrode tab;
A battery holding spacer. In the battery holding spacer according to claim 1,
The battery holding spacer, wherein the contact chip, the pseudo electrode tab, and the conducting member are detachable. The battery holding spacer according to claim 1 or 2,
A battery holding spacer comprising an elastic member at a portion facing the secondary battery. A spacer is arranged between adjacent secondary batteries of a charging / discharging device that performs charging / discharging by connecting a power-side terminal to each electrode tab of the positive electrode and the negative electrode of a plurality of secondary batteries arranged in the thickness direction, In the battery holding method for holding the secondary batteries so as to be sandwiched one by one from the thickness direction,
Contact the electrode tab disposed on the opposite side of the power supply side terminal of the secondary battery and the contact chip provided on the spacer;
The power supply side terminal is connected to the pseudo-electrode tab arranged on the same side as the power supply side terminal, and the other tab of the positive electrode or the negative electrode of the secondary battery. A battery holding method.

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